My family had the opportunity to attend Rob Bell’s “An Introduction to Joy” tour in Portland, last Friday. I unashamedly love Rob Bell’s teaching. We attended Mars Hill Bible Church in Grand Rapids, Michigan for several years before we moved to Oregon (and he left for California). It was the last time I have felt truly moved and inspired by church attendance. (It is his philosophy that a good sermon should “disturb the comfortable and comfort the disturbed”.) So, if it sounds like I am a fan of Rob Bell, I am not. Let me explain….
Rob Bell has a level of celebrity status. He has his share of followers and dissidents. At “An Introduction to Joy”, I found myself listening to the conversations going on around me. The majority were talking about how much they “love Rob”—how “great” he is. He is certainly entertaining—he is a great speaker. He is a guy I can certainly see hanging out with. I don’t, however, put him on a pedestal. He is a man with a message. He delivers the message in an extraordinary way, but it is the message that I love. He is simply the vessel by which it is delivered.
My faith is not about me. I struggle with the sermons that are about personal salvation and intended to make me feel good. I understand the need to appeal to the “unchurched” (though I would argue that filling seats is not the purpose of church), but I want to be changed. So, to me, the notion of “a good sermon is going to disturb the comfortable and comfort the disturbed” is revolutionary.
I was able to sit in the front row, center stage, for the show in Portland. I was entertained, indeed, but what most struck me most about the show was not the clever stories. I was close enough to see Rob’s eyes. More specifically, to see the tears in Rob’s eyes. He is not an entertainer. Indeed, he is a rabbi—a teacher. His passion is in helping people. Whether you accept his teachings on heaven and hell and the Jesus message (or your perceptions of what that message is), it is clear that his purpose is to define what faith is to mean for me today. His message is to bring unity to the world. It is a very “Jesus” message.
I am not a fan of Rob Bell. I am, however, a fan of learning to live a new way.
Be your best today; be better tomorrow.
Carpe momento!
During the show, my phone buzzed a message from an old high school friend who shared the below link to his daughter’s interview with Rob Bell. It was a huge déjà vu for me—the kind that stops you in your steps. I find these moments to be deeply Spiritual. I refer to these as Celestine Prophesy moments. So, I also feel compelled to share with my readers. So, check it out: