the wardrobe

Reflections of Rick McKinley's early conversion and revelation of the church after many years:

"It was like I had entered C.S. Lewis's warddrobe, full of anticipation, but instead of standing in a magical place of fawns, witches and every kind of possibility I somehow managed to walk through the wardrobe and into a dentist's office.  People sat around reading magazines asking me to calm down, to be quiet, to take a seat.  People say it very nicely, of course, like you would in a dentist's office.  The place was clean, with polite smiles everywhere and sterile smells.  What are you suppose to do in a waiting room except to try to kill the time?  I did a lot of that.  I killed time in college groups.  In church.  In Bible college.  I even have killed time as a pastor. 

But leaning back in my chair one day I realized that the walls of the waiting room were actually paper-thin.  Behind the veil of Western evangelicalism existed an untamed, revolutionary reality.  The world on the other side of the wardrobe did exist.  You just have to tear down the fake walls, kill the fake music, and let yourself go crashing newborn, wide-eyed anticipation out int the world.

And there it is all around you.  The kingdom of God."

I can't agree more whole-heartedly with Rick's description of probably what many of us go through as long-time Christians.  In my pursuit of a more organic view of Christianity I hope I rediscover the adventure of life and church beyond the fake walls we erect in church and our lives.  I hope I can become more like a child as Christ told us to.  Because being all grown-up and having a "mature" view of what church and Christianity should look can really suck from my own experience.  I sometimes desire to unlearn a lot of things I have been taught indirectly and directly by other Christians and just come to God humble, ignorant and hungry for Him to deposit in my spirit the seeds of His kingdom.  In this discovery I feel a bit like Lucy in the Chronicles of Narnia, curious and anxious to see what is beyond the wardrobe.

Comments

[Jessica]

Wow, Brandon, that is so amazing... I have truly been floored by what I've seen outside the church walls I've known all my life. Real, organic, gut-wrenching Christianity does exist (and can exist in a group of people with common goals). The world is a lot bigger than I ever believed...

[Jessica]

P.S. If I remember correctly, you're really into listening to sermon podcasts-- if you're interested, you should look up Tim Chaddick of Reality L.A. (my new home church here in LA). I think he's pretty badass (the recent series on the letters to the seven churches in Revelation really moved me), and I think you'd like him too...

[chris]

yes! yes! yes! I relate to your thoughts, B.

"You just have to tear down the fake walls, kill the fake music, and let yourself go crashing newborn, wide-eyed anticipation out int the world."

Come to him like a little child... I've been ruminating on this a lot.

[Charles]

Encouraged by this blog, I just finished reading Rick Mckinley's book "This Beautiful Mess: Practicing the Presence of the Kingdom of God." Subversive stuff! The trouble with reading a book like this is that you might feel obliged to move beyond empty Christian rhetoric and posing and actually get out there and do something!

Meanwhile, the walls of the waiting room are comfortingly familiar and the muzak is so soothing... but did I just catch a glimpse of something real? I believe I did! Can I ignore it can go back to sleep? Sure I can; that's what people do around here (Portland may be different). But finally, I would have to agree with the Switchfoot lyrics: "We were meant to live for so much more."

http://artists.letssingit.com/switchfoot-lyrics-meant-to-live-xxmtmbj

Charles.