“Flourishing in the Midst of Dissonance!”

But when some of the believers who belonged to the sect of the Pharisees stood up and insisted, "The Gentile converts must be circumcised and required to follow the law of Moses.” So the apostles and elders met together to resolve this issue. At the meeting, after a long discussion, Peter stood and addressed them as follows: "Brothers, you all know that God chose me from among you sometime ago to preach to the Gentiles so that they could hear the Good News andbelieve. God knows people's hearts, and he confirmed that he accepts Gentiles by giving them the Holy Spirit,just as he did to us.” Acts 15:5-9

People regularly ask me how I can thrive in the midst of disagreements, cultural differences and personality conflicts in the church? I just smile. Because God has been preparing me to build a “Meta Church” my whole life. When I was one-year-old my dad started a community church—a church that agreed to disagree- - - a church that would major on the majors and minor on the minors- - - a church that would be more interested in building the Kingdom of God than just the success of one group. I read about 1776 and how the United States of America began. There were a lot of disagreements between Thomas Jefferson and Alexander Hamilton, not to mention every other element making up this great country. I see myself as a Thomas Jefferson (of sorts) building a team of great leaders - all who disagree about a lot of things; but the ones who can see the big picture and hang in there will be the forefathers and mothers of a great church which will be a family of churches honoring one another because of Jesus Christ!

I never have expected my wife to agree with me 100%, but we have always grown in our love and respect for one another—what a blessing. My kids and I love to argue and discuss theology, philosophy, and politics. I would never think of ever giving up on them- - - they know I love them with all of my heart and respect them even our disagreements. This is the kind of person that God has made me and the style of leadership he has called me to- - - we call it “collaborative.” Recently, Jackie pointed out that I have been blessed with success throughout my life using this style of leadership. Many leaders really buy into this idea- - - have you ever talked to Dr. Vath about the form of leadership that we use at Washington Cathedral?

Sure, sometimes I feel worn-out by feeling like the only one in the room that loves everyone (and you can probably see it in my face and hear it in my voice), but then Jackie and I get to take a little break and we remember how short life really is and how much we love everyone in this church. As we pray, we remember some of those that we were blessed to serve a short time with: Jane Bishop, Marcy Marquez, Marv Stone, Bill Biggs, Bill Holmes, Wayne Myers, Arden Apted, Emily (Boyce) Hurren, and many, many more. We realize that everyone is such huge a blessing (for such a short time) and the overwhelming joy of the Lord fills our hearts; and we thank God for our differences and our problems. Then we dive into the amazing pace that God has given us the energy to keep up for 25 years and our burden is light and our yoke is easy. Read Acts 15, there was conflict throughout thehistory of the church, but they flourished and kept respecting one another because Christ's death on the cross was too recent in their minds to treat people any other way. Someone commented that this is unhealthy, but I totally disagree. Read Jim Collinsand try and understand “Level Five Leadership” it is the height of maturity. No family or nation can work without people who can flourish in the midst of dissonance and surely a meta church modeled after the Book of Acts must find “knights in shining armor” who believe in the cause and hang in there as a team. What would have happened in world history if our nation gave up justbecause of internal conflict? A lot of people are giving up on the United States now, but I pray every day a blessing on thosepoliticians who hang in there through great disagreements and believe in our nation. Can I have any less commitment to my church or my family?

It is amazing how God is blessing our church right now. Every week the work in Honduras progresses and hundreds of ministries take place in the name of Jesus Christ in our community through Washington Cathedral. The church is still growing and our best days are ahead!

The other day I stopped by two hospitals to visit and pray for people who are making great progress against big challenges.We laughed and talked, I read scripture to them, anointed them with oil and held their hand as I prayed. The first patient was a young brilliant doctor (a healer by trade). The second was an older widow who is a wonderful mother, grandmother andgreat-grandmother. After I prayed for her (my last visit before rushing to preachat a service) she said, spontaneously, “Thank you! I love you.” Then, slightlyembarrassed she said, “Can I say that?” I smiled and knew that it came from the deepest part of her spirit. It was almost as though God had told me that He loved me. That is all I need to flourish, regardless of the greatness of my personalchallenges!

Your friend and pastor for the rest of my life,

Pastor Tim White