Counterintuitive Reflections on Movements

Why do church leaders like me talk about movements?

The impulse usually comes from a good place. I want the Holy Spirit to move unmistakably. I want to see a movement where only God gets the credit. Or I look at the depressing conditions of the surrounding world and I yearn for something better for everyone. I want to see the fresh wind of God in a way where there is fruit that gives glory to God. Or I yearn for a day I've experienced before or read about in the history books when God was up to something huge and I could have joined something bigger than me, my church, and my denomination. A movement!

Part of why I'm writing about this at the moment is that there is a group among my tribe that is making an intentional effort to examine the idea of movement with a particular eye toward our shared history in my denomination. The effort is called "A Loyal Disruption." The collaborating authors are friends and colleagues I deeply respect. Some I worked with, in what feels like a past life, in denominational leadership (Billy, Santes, Dwight, Mike & Meredith). Others I've grown closer to in my adult years as friends, and I admire the way they do life as we’ve swapped stories and ideas (Jon, Jervie, and Matt). Two of the group I've known for literally three or four decades and trust as much as just about anyone (Christy & Jeremy). To be honest, if I was to build a list of the people I’d want in a room shaping the future of the church, I’d choose this group and not take any off the list, I’d merely add a few others. I’m reading avidly and cheering on their work as a fan and friend.

My readers come from various backgrounds, so this might not matter much to you. Still, it is worth noting that my Wesleyan denomination has a unique history with roots in many movements, including the holiness movement, abolitionist and suffrage movements. Then a long time ago before that, it was a part of the revivals including Methodists that were such a big deal they called them “Awakenings” that shaped America deeply. And of course way back at the beginning, there was the original Methodist renewal movement that changed England so dramatically. Whatever you might say of us, we are historically kind of a “pro-revival, love us some renewal, and really geeked about movements” kind of club, we Wesleyans.

As I've reflected on this group's efforts to examine the idea of movements of God, it got me thinking about the potential counterintuitive nature of the origins and effects of movements. I am writing this, I hope, in the spirit that my friends and colleagues are bringing it up. They intend to draw interest, spark action, and prompt a dialog about why we are plateaued and stagnant, perhaps even in decline, and whether God might ever spark a movement among us again. So I offer this reflection in the spirit of their prompting to merely add to the dialog.

So here are several counter-intuitive reflections I have about church movements I might offer:

I am reminded that many movements are bad.

All too often movements are more sociological than Spirit-led, or influenced by cultural and political forces in our country of origin, not God’s work. Only some movements are indeed truly of God. "Movement" is more of a neutral term, and so it is always key for me to think of it as something that could be good or could be bad. There are a good number of movements that started with fairly good intentions as well and might have been seen as a movement of God which later on took a turn where we now look back and wonder if they went too far or if the effect of them on the church was not all that positive, in the end. I should evaluate my proclivity toward movement-thinking with this caution in mind.

I am under the influence of multiple movements right now.

While musing on movements Dan Leroy wrote up a piece about many of the movements that came along in the last 100 years of the church. Some were highly influential on us and others were fought against. He listed the American holiness movement, the Pentecostal and fundamentalist movements, the second coming movement, the evangelical movement, the Jesus movement, the moral majority, the anti-war movement, and the worship renewal movement. I could perhaps add another ten to his list of movements that swirled around in the middle or the periphery of church life in the last 100 years, such as the church growth movement and the emerging church movement. There are likely many movements happening right now that are influencing me and the church. Some are positive. Many are not. It’s not as though a new movement of God would enter a playing field void of movements. It would likely compete with other movements for our time, energy, and focus. (Take the quick poll below to interact with these ideas.)

The great movement of God may already be happening and I'm missing it.

Who is to say that God isn't already up to something and I am clueless about it? Every movement of God (ever since the first one in an upper room in Jerusalem some 2000+ years ago) was either missed and ignored at best, or condemned and persecuted at worst by most. It could be that God is active in a great movement of the Spirit right now and I'm just not on board, or perhaps I'm even skeptical or judgmental about that movement. I might be a part of the folk that history will look back upon and say they "just didn't get it." Or the movement of God just might not be happening where I am. Recently I've been emphasizing that only 8% of Christians live in the United States. For comparison, the same percentage of Christians live in America as Muslims worldwide live in Bangladesh (8% for each). It is not only possible but likely that the most consequential contemporary movements of God are found in the fast-growing epicenters of the Christian faith in South America, Africa, Asia, Europe, or the Middle East. That's where most of the Christians are already, and where the faith is growing, not declining. As has been said, Jesus promised that the Church would prevail; he didn't promise that the American Church would prevail.

The next movement of God might not include me.

In what was likely the most consequential speech of his life, my father Keith Drury claimed that the Holiness Movement Is Dead -- notably, he made this claim at a conference entirely designed to celebrate that very movement and act in such a way that it was very much alive (awkward!) After offering hope that he felt a new holiness movement may be emerging, he closed with what he termed a "disturbing question," asking, "Will the old holiness movement be in the new holiness movement? Or will God go outside of our circle to raise up someone else to lead the new movement?" Since that address I have always wondered if there is perhaps too much effort by those whose movement may have already served God's purpose to try and recapture the new wine into their old wineskins. Instead, I wonder if just being faithful to what God called you to in the first place is enough. Sure--one would love to be a part of the next movement of God, but he may prefer new wineskins to pour out the new wine into and that’s ok.

The movement of God may ruin my church leadership career.

There is nothing quite so deadly to mainstream church jobs than a new movement of the Holy Spirit. When movement comes along, old systems, old strategies, and the funding and structures and jobs that come along with them go out the window. I'm not saying that means we shouldn't want a movement of God, I'm just saying that it often seems like we want God's new movement to fit into our current lives and careers, and that's often not how it looks. I’ve noticed that those claiming they are a part of a movement of God always plan for their own job and their own organization to be a vital and well-funded part of the movement. Funny how that works, right? Unfortunately for me, my current boxes (and perhaps my current employment) are unlikely to contain a new movement. People will have to quit jobs and find other streams of income, and other people than me might become the "hired help" of the new movement of God if I am sucked up into the new thing. I'm sure that will be worth it, but I shouldn’t add my own job security to a list of things that will be incorporated into the new movement of God.

I must beware of nostalgia-tinged idealism about past movements.

One of the tricky parts of my obsession with movement is how much nostalgia is loaded into it. I study these heady days of revival and renewal and think: "Man alive, it would feel so awesome to be a part of that!" Or perhaps I've had a taste of other movements in my lifetime and I'd like to be at the center, or at least close by, when the new things happen again. The problem is that those movements were often not all they were cracked up to be. They had massive over-extensions of values. They hurt people. The leaders at the epicenter of most movements are often deeply flawed and I may not want to be around them today. It is idealistic and unhelpful to presume movements mean a new utopian church life. In reality, a lot of division, heartache, and chaos usually corresponds with movement, and we don't sell that part to each other when attempting to prepare for a movement.

What if there is no recipe for a Spirit-led movement?

Speaking of preparing for movement, I should add a point on that. I sometimes try to find threads in past movements, noticing that they were often preceded by intense prayer, young people signing up for sacrificial service or missions, or other ingredients "movements of God have in common." However, I must admit that I am unsure if there is a precise recipe that might trigger a Spirit-led movement of God. That's just the thing, I can't "lead" a movement, it's right in the name, after all. It's "Spirit-led." I can prepare, even respond. But I don't initiate the movement of God. I can do 100% of the practices of leaders like Luther, Whitfield, Edwards, Beecher, Asbury, Parham, Palmer, Seymour, Finney, and Wesley did, and still not see a movement materialize. I must admit, despite all my analysis and hope, that preparing for a movement is not like baking a cake. There is likely no recipe. I can no more bake a Spirit-led cake than I can conjure the Holy Spirit like a magician.

Nobody should wait for a movement.

Finally, there is a bit of a tendency in me to think: "Oh man, once the movement is rolling that is really when things will be different and I can dial things up." Nope. When and if the movement rolls along I should be doing the same things I'm doing now. If God sees fit to spark a movement of the Spirit and I'm nearby or somehow blessed enough to be in the early adopters or influencers, I should be living my life in nearly identical ways and merely "scaling things up" to help sew up new wineskins for the new wine. Yes, a movement of the Spirit may bring some impactful fruitful years; but I need to be dutifully faithful and disciplined in what God commands me to be and do and leads me to invest my time in, regardless of the amount of fruit or the intensity of how it feels. I can't wait around for a movement to move on what I should be doing all the time anyway.

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So, I've shared here some things that make me wonder about our inclination as church leaders to talk about movement. I hope they help continue the dialog on this subject that others, like my friend, scholar Logan Hoffman, offered here. I trust it will foster even more healthy and hopeful engagement in the mission that we've had all along and are living into, no matter what comes.

What are your thoughts on the movements of God and their place in the life of the church?