Last night I received the following comment on this blog,
“How sad you are to radical for the reformed, but far to Baptist-Reformed for the Vineyard compared to John Wimber. No offense but, Who are you Dave?”
I found this comment to be very challenging and also very sad. Challenging because it’s a good question, “Who am I?” (Even though if you read through this blog you will get to know who I am. I’m pretty transparent here.) I’ll address that question in a bit.
But this question was also very sad. Sad because we like to identify people with labels, and labels do not adequately describe or identify anyone. People are a lot deeper than the label that is often attached to them, and a label can never completely describe a person. (By the way, In the Christian community we really like to throw out labels. We like to categorize people. We like to put them in boxes. Then, once a person is in a box, we get mad at them and tell them they should really be in our box. It’s a very lovely experience.)
Well, back to the question, “Who are you Dave?” Here’s my response…
Dave is not…
- a follower of John Calvin or John Wimber. Last time I checked neither man said, “follow me.” I admire what both of them have written, and agree with a lot of what both of them have written.
- a Republican or Democrat. I have voted for both in my lifetime.
- simply Reformed, Baptist, Vineyard, Charismatic, Pentecostal, Non-Denominational, Presbyterian, Methodist, or Catholic.
- going to let a simple label fully define who I am. Because I do appreciate parts of the Vineyard Movement AND the Reformed denomination!
- in competition with other believers and other churches. Last time I checked we are on the same team.
Dave is…
- a follower of Jesus. He is the only one who has died for me so that I can be forgiven, and is the only one I will follow and give my life to.
- daily, trying to be obedient to God’s word and what it says.
- constantly in need of forgiveness because I am a sinner.
- trying to listen and follow the Spirit of God on a daily basis.
- influenced by gifted teachers in many different denominations. I like listening to people that disagree with each other. (For example, Rob Bell and Mark Driscoll don’t really get a long, but I like listening to both and I can learn from both.)
- not 100% correct on his theology, and neither are you, and neither are any of the people I listen to. The only person who was 100% correct was Jesus, and that’s why I follow him.
- passionate about Jesus.
- disgusted with religion and hates it when followers of Jesus argue over petty issues. What does this communicate to the world?
- deeply saddened when people reject Jesus and the abundant life he offers.
- the husband of a beautiful woman named Ceci, and she is my best friend.
- the father of three beautiful girls. (No, we are not going to keep trying until we have a boy. I hate it when people ask that question.)
- a runner.
- in love with God and tries every day to demonstrate that love to others.
So, that is who I am. Honestly, there’s even more to me than that. I’m not “reformed.” I’m not “vineyard”. I’m a follower of Jesus!
By the way Mr Anonymous, you ask, “Who are you Dave?” I think the better question is “Who are you?” I would love to chat with you sometime about your question and would love to get to know you. I’ll even buy the cup of coffee. Feel free to e-mail me at daver@lakeshorevineyard.org. Oh, and one more thing, I wasn’t offended by your question. I appreciate you asking and wanting to get to know me.