Christmas... Version 1.0

It’s become a tradition for us to send Christmas ornaments to the sustaining financial supporters of our ministry.  Each year we try to find a piece which speaks of life here in the hills and hollers.  Many times these Christmas tree trimmings have been made from local coal dust, mixed with resin and shaped into remembrances of the coal industry which once dominated this region.  As I selected the ornaments for this year’s gifts I noticed that, in fact, I had sent this same design during a Christmas past.  My first impulse was to return the items to the local craftsman who sold them to me, but then I was reminded of one simple, yet profound truth; Christmas, and the Christ, are “the same yesterday and today and forever.” (see Hebrews 13:8)

I fear that many times our thirst for bigger and better seeps over into our worship of our King.  We never seem content with what is, but look to improve on it.  Every day the “app store” icon on my cell phone reveals a great number of enhancements which I’m told I simply must have.  Often my computer visually taunts me that its operating system is not the latest and greatest.  This agitating need to improve on everything, or at least cause it to grow in volume, is ever-present, even outside of the cyber-world.  Folks flood the Christmas section of Walmart to secure additional lights to make their homes more dazzling than last year.  Lasers and musically synced strings of LEDs replace the worn and weary ice-cycle lights of previous displays.  Even in our church celebrations during this special season, advancing technology brings the plays and musical presentations to a crescendo, at least until next year.

Change is inevitable in any circumstance.  In fact, it’s often healthy and necessary.  The writer of the Bible book of Ecclesiastes reminds us, “For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven:” (Ecc. 3:1)  For more than thirteen years my wife, Rita, and I have ministered among the impoverished people of Appalachia.  Over that span of time, we have frequently altered the means by which we engage people with the Good News of Christ.  What began as primarily a “church house” approach to reaching folks, has transformed into daily encounters with those who need assistance with myriad aspects of their lives.  While our means of ministering have changed, our motive has remained the same.  Our initial calling from God was to “Teach the people about My Love, and SHOW them how to take care of one-another.”  Over the years it has often been suggested that we GROW our organization, rebranding our appearance to the world and taking a more event-focused approach to ministry.  I’m not condemning those who upgrade the “version” of their ministry in an effort to be increasingly relevant in an often skeptical world, but Rita and I have discerned a need to remain constant in our simple one-on-one approach to helping people discover their true need to love God, and to love their neighbor as themselves.

The Christmas season brings to the hills and hollers a certain sense of desperation.  Needful folks literally race from agency to agency, trying to glean from the bountiful harvest of gifts and services... while they are still available.  We ceased to host a traditional Christmas “give-away” a year ago.  Our decision was influenced by the number of trucks parked in front of our building, during our events, already filled with bags and boxes of gifts obtained at other venues.  Instead, we choose to encounter people individually.  While the more populated areas in our county are host to a vast number of Christmas events, we work quietly to bring gifts to the children of a very remote community, appropriately named “Clark Holler”, as well as to our local neighbors who were passed over during other Christmas events.

I truly believe that the greatest gift that any of the needful souls who seek our assistance could ever receive- aside from their salvation in Christ- is the gift of “true understanding”.  The birth of Christ makes that possible.  As we minister to people during this Christmas season, and any time of the year, we try to illuminate the vital importance of seizing the responsibility and accountability which we all have within our society.  I’m sure that if folks would accept this gift with the same enthusiasm which they display while standing in line at multiple give-away events, they would find the True Purpose of Christmas influencing their lives... every day of the year.

I pray that you experience the Joy of Jesus in everything this season... in His unchanging version.  Merry Christmas from the Cmoliks and Hills and Hollers Ministries!

Relational Integration... again!

Dear Mission Family,

As I sat in my front porch sanctuary this morning, I once again became vividly aware of the change in seasons that is sweeping over us, both in a physical and a spiritual sense.  A few short weeks ago I was able to rest on my swing and view the fractal line of a mountain ridge, a mile in the distance.  Now my physical vision only extends out for thirty yards before colliding with a wall of vegetation.  As syrupy moisture laden air replaces the cool and dry breezes of spring, I know that summer has arrived in the hills and hollers.  Many folks revere this time of year.  I am not counted among those who do.

Another seasonal transformation, for many, is graduation from various levels of schooling.  Next Saturday one of our favorite young men in the area will be walking through the halls of the local high school for his last time as a student.  As James stands with his classmates and tosses his mortarboard high into the air, I will no doubt wonder- as I always do- how many of our graduates are prepared to begin assuming the role of “adult”.  I know that when I received my diploma I had very little vision for my future.  But I did have the benefit of a mother, other relatives and friends, who helped encourage me to grow beyond my current environment, into the concept of “responsibility”.

A few weeks back, I spoke to a group of high-school student leaders.  The meeting was at an off-site location, so I was given the opportunity to challenge my audience in matters of faith without much concern of “offense” (I’m so tired of hearing that word).  My message was one of “integrated responsibility”, and this ahead of any perceived “rights”.  I used the Gospel message of One Body with many parts, and tried to illuminate the vital need in life for each of us to see ourselves as a part of a bigger “whole”, and then to exercise our God-given responsibility within that larger existence.  I advised these future leaders that the Gospel of Christ is not simply a right to be claimed, though it IS the “Ultimate Right”, overcoming the offense of sin.  Using the illustration that the Apostle Paul provides us in 1Corinthians 12, I spoke of our need to seize our responsibility within this Greater Body, living out the Gospel by “one-anothering” as an integrated part of our salvation.

Integration has long been at the heart of Hills and Hollers Ministries.  After all, this concept is what relationship is all about; seeing the interconnectedness of ourselves with another and then exercising our responsibility within that union.  Integration is NOT about using someone else’s resources to benefit our own quest.  It is about recognizing how our personal gifts and talents can build up a needful part of the Body, thus bringing improved health to the Greater Whole!  This is just as true for individual people as it is for businesses and ministry organizations.  By necessity, integration MUST be a “reciprocal” undertaking.  Without that condition developing, the growth of the Body is stunted.  “If one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part if honored, every part rejoices with it.” (1Cor. 12:26)

As I go about my daily ministry here in the hills and hollers, I am saddened as I see “contribution” being a substitute for real integration.  Opportunities for relationship are often bypassed for the sake of accomplishment of a mission.  Personally, I try to connect at a deeper level with everyone who comes to our ministry center in search of assistance, desiring to discover how our “parts” might draw health from each other.  I pray that each of us look outside of the sphere of our current relationships to draw an appreciation for the Greater Whole… and then discover our responsibility within it!

Relational Integration

A friend of mine recently responded to my Facebook post by sharing the lyrics of a 1967 song from the group, The Youngbloods.  “Come on people now, smile on your brother, everybody get together, try to love one another…”  While “peace and love” was the cry of that era, sadly violence and bloodshed were often the result of the agitation that existed.  But that’s another story for another day.

If you should ask of anyone who knows me, “What is Jim’s heart inclined toward?” they will probably respond, “Relationship!”  It’s true!  Many years ago I received a type of revelation; the kind that isn’t simply dropped into your mind, but rather, registers deep within your spirit.  Being an avid reader of the Holy Scriptures, I found that this concept was the TRUE foundation of the Bible; not a path of religion but a journey of relationship.  The heart of the teachings of Jesus became alive, but so did a deep agitation at how the world has distorted these truths.

I know!  Some would say, “Duhhhhh”.  But even those folks probably still don’t grasp the real nature of relationship.  I’ve had people tell me, “Not everybody is going to like you.  In fact, most people probably don’t want a relationship with you.”  But that thought springs from a rather superficial approach to relationship, thinking of it primarily in terms of social encounters or a sharing of common interests.  We often fail to see that the real power of relationship has less to do with “liking” someone, and everything to do with the concept of “Integration”!

One of the definitions of integration is “The act or process of making whole or entire.” (thank-you Wiktionary).  I’m intrigued by that notion, since the implication is that without this condition something essential is lacking.  But to truly understand the power of integration I think that we need to consider what that wholeness or entirety really looks like.  I’ve worked with groups who lay claim to the concept of integration, but seemingly fail to accept that the “whole” that they are striving for may be bigger than just themselves; businesses who focus on their own posture ahead of integrating with a larger effort of growing into a whole and healthy community; mission agencies who voice a desire to partner but do so only as it serves their own mission;  individuals who see their own daily quest as satisfying their personal needs rather than those of a neighbor.

 You see, I believe that the mystery to found in integration is that the pursuit of it must be focused on benefiting another, even ahead ourselves.  We have each been given something from God that another person desperately needs.  Our charge in life is to find out what that gift, talent or resource is, and then to direct it to that individual, without thought to how it might ultimately benefit ourselves.

Yes, I was greatly influenced by the radical nature of the 1960’s.  But I’m even more greatly influenced by the message that Jesus gave to us.  He spoke of the need to see ourselves as only a part of the greater whole, which ultimately becomes His Body on earth (and beyond).  “Come on people now, smile on your brother and sister…” and develop a desire to “one another”!

Being Above Doing...

I'm often asked what it is that we really hope to accomplish in our ministry to the impoverished people of McCreary County, Kentucky.  I think that the following excerpt from a recent letter to our financial supporters helps to clarify that point:

"As I walked into our Pine Knot ministry center, a few days back, I was greeted by the beaming face of one of our previous volunteer workers.  Haley had been a part of our team for a number of months, satisfying the community service hours that she needed in order to receive her KTAP (welfare) check for her two young children.  She left us to accept a full-time job offer and her departure was most bitter sweet for us; happy for her employment but sad to lose the opportunity for daily fellowship with her.  After a few minutes of catching up on her life experiences, I asked Haley why she chose to help us again this day.  She smiled and spoke of a desire to help “one another” her needful neighbors, but slowly her face became quite serious.  “Since I’ve left,” she nearly whispered, “I’ve missed the undeniable PEACE that I feel when I’m here.”

"When people first find themselves drawn to our center, they usually wander about the clothing shop, perusing the items but also absorbing the environment.  Many times, upon discerning our pastoral influence, they will ask me, “So where’s your church?”  I smile, draw my hand across those who are walking between the clothing racks and respond, “There they are!”  At first glance folks don’t see “a church” when they come to one of our ministry centers.  There is no vestibule or foyer to mingle in before a “service”; no swinging doors leading to an assembly room; no benches or chairs lined up to face a central point on an elevated platform.  It isn’t until visitors begin to interact with our staff and other visitors that they begin to “feel church”.  They hear conversations, not of local gossip but of recognition of the Love of God in our lives.  The look of concern which their faces often carry begins to relax into a gentle smile.  As people are drawn into sharing some of their personal struggles, they find a compassionate and concerned response, not indifference, or worse, judgement.  I’m often amazed that people can linger in our clothing centers for an hour or more, not because they are unable to find a needed item, but because they simply experience a sense of “peace” that so often alludes them through their day.

"Your financial gift continues to help us to “be church” among some very needy people.  Our gatherings are not based on a prescribed liturgy or an order of worship.  They are spontaneous encounters with people who are desperate to know the Peace of Christ, even if they haven’t realized that need yet!

"Thanking you for helping us to “grow” people into Church…"