Car Crashes make the Church Delirious

"Laughter is the evidence of freedom…
. It was from a Mel Brooks movie called “The Producers” that U2 took the name of their latest {“Achtung Baby”} album . In the bizarre musical, an S.S. officer is met with the greeting “Achtung Baby!” to which he replies, “Zie furher would never say ‘baby’!” Quite right. The furher would never say ‘baby.’ We are writers, artists, actors and scientists. I wish we were comedians. We would probably have more effect…Anyway, for all this: imagination!..To tell our stories, to paint pictures…but above all to glimpse another way of being. Because as much as we need to describe the world we live in, we need to dream up the kind of world we want to live in. In the case of a rock and roll band that’s to dream out loud, at high volume, to turn it up to eleven. Because we have fallen asleep in the comfort of our freedom. "
-Bono, in a 1997 speech to artists, excerpted in "U2 at the End of the World"

As it's my wedding anniversary; August 30 is perennially (pun intended) my favorite day of the year. If I ever forget it, my wife had it engraved on the inside of my wedding band.

Just like a certain soing is etched on the inside of my soul and memory,

.
In light of ite being named in honor of (!) our anniversary; it is no surprise that the song "August 30" by Delirious has always caught our attention. An intriguing, contemplative song; it has for years minsitered to us on our anniversary and throughout the year. It's a song of thanksgiving and
renewal of trust in Jesus for the future.

It was not until fairly recently that i learned the meaning behind the title; though i had long known of the event:

It was birthed in a hospital.

The members of the band were recovering from a major car crash; losing much of theor equipment, but miraculously all surviving. They were forced to pray and ask tough questions about their futrue; even the very validity, and veracity of their perceived calling. The crash became an external metaphor and gut-wrenching parable for what the Delirious boys had been previously been processing internally: whether they should move deeper ointo the "secular" and marketplace arena (while keeping their faith intact)...or whether to homebase in the Christian music secene; and focus on reaching the church, not the world, Many of course cautioned them that the fornjer would be disaster if not dead wrong.

It was during their recovery that Delirious read a book (that they later interpreted as a Godsend) about another band who several years earlieer were forced to make the same decision; a band who prayerfully and carefully (against the advice of their church)chose the latter: route:

a litttle combo called U2.

This news becane an encouragement to Delirious, and in time they reached the same conoclusion as U2: that foir them, Being a band of Christians (as opposed to an officially "Christian band") was not incompatible with being "in the world" In fact, for them it would be sin to not so intentionally engage the world.

As Kyle Phillips says "Force the crisis!"


U2 faced no car crash to force the decision, and force the crsis and its resolution; at lreast not a literal one. The pressure and gutwrenching discernment was the equivalent, though. "It was a baptism of fire..we went down into the water and we alnost drowned.... " Bono once recalled. But even though they ahve lived in the tension ever since; they have never second guessed ther decision was God's best. I dont think Delirious has either. The gut wrenching and emotional guitar of U2's thicd CD was bithed in the cruvible of making that choice. . So the lyrics of Delrious' "August 30" an affirmation of the correctness of their parallel choice.


Thank you for the chance to live again
I will run always for you
Clouds had gathered all around my head
But these hands they lifted me
And I'll tell of this love that saved me

Thank you for the chance to live again
I will run always for you
Walking closer you are all I have in this world only you
And I'll tell of this love that saved me

And I'll wait for this light to break
I'll come to you, yes I'll run to you
And I'll wait for this light to break
I'll run to you, yes I'll come to you
I'll be one with you




It often takes a crash to wake and shake one up; to reassess all priorites and weigh the shakiness of foundations. Are we ..the western church in the middle of such a crash/crisis/opportunity at the present time?

No doubt.


No wonder "Everything Must Change."


The tragedy is that everything in this medium of church sets Jane up to experience her life as fundamentally dualistic. Even the sermon is unrelated to life and overly conceptual. No one has necessarily intended it to be this way-it's just somehow in the medium and in the fundamental assumptions that underlie much Christendom theology and practice. No matter how seeker friendly one might wish to make the service, it still communicates dualism. In the end God is experienced as a church god and not the God of all of life, including church. There is no missional edge to a community structured in this way. Its institutional message always works against, and thus cancels out, its overt verbal messages. And its spirituality sets people up to fail in seeing their work, play, and study as ministry or mission. Ministry is a churchy thing and is done by the experts.



It is almost ridiculous to say at this point that the New Testament church was nothing like this. It's that Christendom thing again.
--Frost and Hirsch, "The Shaping of Things to Come" (emphases mine)

In a later (and loaded) book, ("The Forgotten Ways") Hirsch repeats this section, and adds a creative example of a more missional body, "Third Place Communities" in Tasmania , Australia:

This group of Jesus's people refise to gather as God's people in sacred isolated space Rather they exist to incarnate and do misson in "third places", where people hang out in their spare time. So they gather in pubs, sports clubs, play groups, interest groups, subcultures, etc... and people look in on what they're doing. By deliberately choosing to hang out in'be church' in public spaces. the group has to be constantly attentive to its missional context. (239)

It's Third Place Day for the Church. It's August 3o for the Church. It's October 21, 1517 all over again. It's Next Reformation; Tipping Point.

All of the above, and none of the above, as "there is no bame for what God is doing now...Though my favorite name is Reorientation." (Leonard Sweet).


Having recently officiated at the 5oth anniversary renewal of wedding vows for my parents; it's an appropriate time for me to celebrate and renew covenant...as Joshua did in Joshua 24, as U2 diuddid in the 80s, as Delirious did in the 90s....

I'd rather have my parents glorious ceremony be my wake upo call than a literal car crash, or a spiritual crash and burn.

Our congregation is a about to take the leap to becoming a missional Third Place.

I am nervous, as any husband to be is bound to be.

So I close by drawing upon a spiritual forefather, John Wesley, who had the people called Methodist, rehearse, renew and recut their covenant each New Years Eve with a risky missional prayer. Maybe Delirious, U2, or you will set it to music (albeit appropraitely "broken music":

I am no longer my own, but Yours
Put me to what Yoy will, rank me with whom You will
Put me to doing, put me to suffering.
Let me be employed by You or laid aside for You
exalted for You or brought low for You
Let me be full, let me be empty.
Let me have all things, let me have nothing.
I freely and heartily yield all things to Your pleasure and disposal.
And now, O glorious and blessed God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit,
thou art mine, and I am thine.
So be it.
And the covenant which I have made on earth,
let it be ratified in heaven.
Amen.

Happy Anniversary.

And many more.