GlocalNet

Last week a leader in Oman ran across some articles that I’d written and articles written about me and our church and what we do.  He was very kind and gracious in his response to me as an evangelical.  He knew David Belt who works for the U.S. government and sent him links to the article.  David who specializes in foreign affairs and Islam sent me this paper he wrote in which this leader was a part of.  You may not agree with everything - and you may - but it is their perspectives from some of the elites of Oman and how they see the world.  I enjoyed reading it - thought some of you might as well.

Frank Frankincense

Strategic Insight and Counsel for America from Oman’s Sages

David Douglas Belt
7 May 2008
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The Sultanate of Oman is at the crossroads of East and West, East and East, Arabia and Persia; and the worldview of its sages is a product of this geographical web.  It stands juxtaposed to the Islamic Republic of Iran across the narrow Straits of Hormuz, standing watch over the world’s most strategic energy routes.  Oman everywhere is marked by its contrasts: from its thousands of miles of uninhabited beach where hard jagged mountains fall steeply into the sea, to its beautiful sandy-soft dunes blanketing an equally uninhabitable inland desert, to its 3,000 meter high mountain range adjacent to the flat coastal regions dotted with both the cool oasis and hot spring. Even the treasured frankincense is contrasted by the scraggly desert tree that bears it.

Oman’s greatest and rarest of treasures are the Omanis themselves—cosmopolitan, globally engaged citizens, living distinctly quiet local Omani lives. The host of my trip to Oman was an Omani Sheikh who I had met in a broader Middle East North Africa track II diplomacy event in Athens Greece nearly a year earlier; he was the former head of a prominent institution until two years ago; a member of the upper house ; and a member of the Gulf Cooperation Council’s (GCC) consultative council. I refer to him here as “the former senator.”  He insisted that I stay the entire week at his home near the beach, where I enjoyed his family and the family routines, including some of the best cooking …

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I am passionate about Jesus Christ and my personal relationship with him.  I am passionate about the Kingdom of God and how that moves us from action to transformation.  I am passionate about NorthWoodchurch.org as a place that is making disciples and engaging the world and creating a model.  I am passionate about young pastors planting new churches.  I am passionate about the world getting to hear the Good News of Jesus.  I am passionate about people from other religions or no religion, and becoming their friends and working together side by side with them in their societies serving them and learning from them.  I am passionate about building friendships where one on one we talk about our views of God and faith.  I am passionate about the world and how it operates and how we heal it from injustice and poverty.  I am passionate about releasing disciples on the grid of society, where they can be salt and light.  I am passionate about people to people relationships of different faiths/governments/races., etc.  . . .  . .

I could go on and on and on - but I won’t I’ll stop there.  How can we start so many churches this year, send so many people to Vietnam, engage different religions around the world, work with mosques and synagogues in DFW and be effective?  I would say we are effective and have an impact precisely because we are involved in all those things and because we are connected it informs all the other things we are involved in and prevents any of our work from being done in silos.  Thus, church planters are taught to relate directly with religious leaders of different faiths from their cities in our church planting which has a direct impact on how they engage the other side of the world. 

Not everyone does everything - but everything matters to someone and it all fits in the big picture.  This is what the body of Christ or the church is supposed to be about.  It is not a matter of global or spiritual ADHD - but it is a matter of “connected states” of being and them all fitting together.  You cannot look at things as independent entities in their own rights - they are all connected and there are strands that hold them together.  Pull things out from their context and it becomes a …

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Click here to see the article in The Washington Post

Six steps to real interfaith work
By Bob Roberts
pastor

How can conservative Christians and Muslims build positive and productive relationships with each other without compromising their faith?

After being part of last week’s Global Leadership Forum on Evangelicals and Muslims, hosted at Georgetown University, I am convinced there are six steps we must take to move beyond all the interfaith dialogue to action.

The meeting focused on how Christians who follow the Great Commission and Muslims who follow the Dawa can get along and actually partner to make the world a better place. Several of the Muslim panelist, as well as people I’ve been hearing around the world believe passionately that freedom of religion is the key to the future of faith in the world. With the world connected as it is we have to make space for each other.

The meeting was sponsored by the Institute for Global Engagement (IGE) and the Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal Center for Muslim-Christian Understanding (ACMCU) at Georgetown University. Chris Seiple of IGE and John Esposito, the Founding Director of ACMCU were the driving forces.

Was it worth it? Definitely. Was it enough? No. Here’s what we all must do to move beyond polite conversation.

First, recognizing that we all live in a connected world. All religions are all places. Christianity is flourishing in traditional Muslim places and Islam is flourishing in traditional Christian places. This demands a different kind of relationship with one another. It is a great opportunity for peace or a new pretext for long-term conflict and fear. There are no private conversations anymore, everything is public - what does that say about what we say, how we say it, and where we say it? We must have a single message that is clear.

Second, we need a new platform to relate. The interfaith dialogues are talk - not action. Often they are also driven by liberal Christians and moderate Muslims. Conservative Christians and Muslims do not want to compromise their faith in order to have a relationship. If getting along, means denying what we believe the truth is, then we can’t go there. BUT, if there is a place that says we do have “irreconcilable” theological differences but the best of our …

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Click to see article in The Christian Post

WASHINGTON – When Bob Roberts meets with Muslims around the world, he is always introduced as an evangelical Christian or a Baptist pastor from Texas.

Influential Theologian Troubled by Christian-Muslim Dialogue Christians, Muslims, Jews Worship at Evangelical Megachurch He is upfront and transparent about who he is and what he believes, he says.

“At the end of the day for me as a Christian, as a follower of Jesus, ... I believe Jesus was God, I literally believe that he went to the cross, he died and was resurrected. I can’t compromise on that,” he said Thursday at a forum on evangelicals and Muslims.

Pastor of Northwood Church in Keller, Texas, Roberts has been working with Muslims for eight years now. And it’s been eight years since he stopped fearing Muslims and started building relationships with those he knew very little about.

While working in Afghanistan on humanitarian projects he realized evangelicals lacked the “people to people diplomacy” that former president Dwight Eisenhower promoted.

“Literally, as an evangelical we’re great at preaching all this stuff but we never talk to the people that we want to communicate with,” he told The Christian Post ahead of the forum held at Georgetown University.

“I think what we’ve done is we’re trying to speak into cultures, people’s lives, and we don’t know them. We don’t understand them. We have no relationships with them. I think we need to spend time to get to know people, to serve them, and as they ask questions they [may] want to follow Christ, they may not.”

Though he might not directly preach the Gospel, he found many of the Muslims and imams he has worked with asking “tons of questions” about Christianity, such as why Christians believe Christ was raised from the cross and what difference that makes.

Roberts, 52, goes by the little saying: “We serve not to convert; we serve because we’re converted.”

He explained, “The whole idea behind that is people only accept God because he’s God, not because we’re trying to bribe them with the Gospel. So God does the saving anyhow.”

He’s a big believer in the Great Commission and his church has started over 130 new churches. At the same time, he believes many Christians have adopted a “closed” faith system in which …

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Several of you that heard my presentation at Georgetown have asked me for my points, notes, etc., that I gave at the Global Leadership Forum hosted by John Esposito, Professor and founding Director of the Prince Alwaleed bin Tala Center for Muslim-Christian Understanding at the Walsh School of Foreign Service at Georgetown, and Chris Seiple of the Institute of Global Engagement.  So, here it is . . . . . The Title of the blog was the title of my presentation along with Imam Yayhendi - the Muslim Chaplain of Georgetown, Sayyid Syeed the National Director of the Islamic Society of North America, and David Johnston who for 16 years was a pastor and teacher in Algeria, Egypt, and the West Bank - another Fuller alum.  He focuses on Islamic law and theology in Muslim-Christian dialogue - teaches part-time at Yale, University of Pennsylvania, etc.,  I’m sorry I ran out of cards, if you go to Northwoodchurch.org you can find my email there and contact me - it will come through my assistant.  So, here are the notes . . . . You will notice a couple of things come up in this I didn’t get to in the presentation.  . . .

This is an honest title to which we are addressing - and I like that - only when we are honest and speak clearly do we know what we are talking about.  Political correctness has no place in theological explanation no more than it does in scientific exploration.  Say it kind - say it in love, say it with respect, definitely say it with humility, but say it honestly.  We are all someone’s heretic - if not our own!  When we speak of partnership I would say that the people I feared most are the people I’ve come to love, admire, and enjoy being around the most. 

First, I feared Vietnam and the communist.  I grew up watching the death count every night on the news and my Dad as a pastor burying soldiers.  When we began to work there, I came to love the Vietnamese people.  We have had over 70 exchange students live with our church members for their final year in high school and it has been marvelous.  We had a boy live with us, his name is Ti, and he is famous at our church.  We love him like our biological …

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Hello EVERYBODY!!!!  No I haven’t dropped off the face of the earth - I’ve been super busy - right at home.  The past couple of weeks various ones of us on the staff of Northwood have been working hard on our ministries, the back to school calendar, and all the stuff that Northwood does and how we continue to take it to the next level - both inside Northwood and outside Northwood.  It’s exciting to see God move the way that he is.  For the past 18 months we’ve been studying all of this and gradually getting things in place and seeing some really good results.  We still have a ways to go - but we have clarity and focus and that counts for a whole lot.  I’ll write more about that later . . . especially for some of you pastors that are planting churches, working globally, and leading initiatives.  I’ve found though that’s the norm around the world - it isn’t here in the U.S. but I see all kinds of good stuff happening with some young pastors currently in these arenas.

This has been an interesting week.  Sunday I preached to probably 75 people in Lindale, Texas at Bethesda Presbyterian Church where my wife’s mother is buried.  She was killed in a car accident along with their newborn baby when Nikki was 5.  They asked me to preach so I did and really enjoyed seeing some old friends and family.  The past two days I was with a group of church planters in Sherman having a blast at a retreat with their wives.  In a little while I’ll go running then go to the airport for DC where I’ll be speaking at Georgetown University.  Country church, emerging pastors, and global leaders, what does that say with regards to faith? 

First, faith is about life and belief.  As I was at the little church I knew many of those families.  Their whole lives have been committed to God, and though many had never ventured out of Lindale that much, they are people of great and deep character.  They each have a story, faith holds them, guides them, and keeps them as they move forward in life.  It is their belief system but it is more than that, it is the substance that carries them through life. 

Second, faith is about dreams and visions.  As I listened …

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Nikki and I were invited to Rabbi Jeremy and Rachel Schneider’s “bries” for their new born son. This is a commitment ceremony of sorts for the parents and an inauguration into the Jewish community and faith that takes place eight days after the baby is born.  I thought it was just a kind of baby dedication - but it is a lot more than that.  They did the circumcision in the ceremony - kinda made me queasy - but they really did it.  The baby didn’t even cry that much.  Helped me understand why the Jewish faith never got beyond a few million versus tens and hundreds of millions! 

It was a beautiful ceremony.  There were Jewish songs sung - that I absolutely love.  Then there were readings and words different people brought.  One of the most beautiful parts was when they brought out a prayer shawl that Rabbi Jeremy and Rachel used in their wedding.  It was also used to wrap and name their first born son, and now this son as well.  They wrapped themselves in it as a family.  I want to start doing that in weddings I do! 

There was a special rabbi they flew in for the circumcision - he was in his 40’s I think - and a very happy excited man who wanted to educate us, not just perform the ceremony.  He seemed excited to be doing it!  He asked Rabbi Jeremy three times if he wanted to do the circumcision, he had to by Jewish law - three times with hands shaking Rabbi Jeremy said no! 

Nikki and I were grateful to be invited and to be present.  Rabbi Jeremy has gone out of the way to invite us into his family and make us a part and we have come to love them and pray for them on a regular basis.  One thing I’m grateful for is that Rabbi Jeremy was born and bred in Texas!  Of all the Jews in the world - there’s nothing quite like a Texas Jew!

Rabbi Jeremy, Pastor Bob, and Imam Zia posing for this picture!!  We had volunteers from the synagogue, the church, and the mosque come together to clean up 3 different houses in each of our areas!!!  We wound up on the news - but the real news is how we are doing things together and getting along.  Zia - I love you in a T-shirt man!!!  Didn’t know you imams could be that casual!  Last week while I was briefly in the Middle-East my wife hosted Muslim, Jewish, and Christian women in our home as they practiced learning to cook Kosher, Halal, and Lard!  I’m having fun with you guys -

Tomorrow the rabbi is having a ceremony for his 8 day old son and I’ll be there - I wonder if they’ll let me participate???  Not sure what’s going to happen at that ceremony - I’ll tell you guys tomorrow.  I do have my old Bowie knife sharpened just in case! 

I’m sitting at DFW waiting to board my plane, about to head to Doha, Qatar, on the Arabian peninsula to meet with 250 Middle-Eastern leaders.  They are flying me there, putting me up, just to have conversations.  They don’t believe I’m really an evangelical because I like them and want to have a relationship with them.  It’s not hard for them to have that view.  Last night I listened to a brilliant report on CBN about Christians in the Holy Land and how they were leaving, not from Muslim persecution, but from the whole political situation.  I was proud of them - I thought maybe they’re getting it.  Then when the story was over, Pat Robertson, who I guess didn’t listen to it, commented “its sad all those Christians having to leave because of the persecution - don’t you believe it when they say Islam is a religion of peace!”  This morning I read another article from a European evangelical member of parliament in a particular country where he is trying to use the law and other conservative groups to stem Islam’s growth in Europe.  He was quoted as saying harsh and inflammatory things about the prophet Mohammed - it was so unnecessary. 

The response in the West on how we relate to Muslims and our fears is very different from evangelicals in the East and in Africa who have lived with Muslims for centuries.  I was with some of the world’s leading global pastors a week ago, one from India, one from Cote D’Ivoire, one from Indonesia, and one from Israel/Palestine, their response to Islam is radically different than ours. 

In the West, we tend to vilify our opponent - not just win the argument but demonize those we disagree with.  In the West, we project worst case scenarios in which we are being taken over and if we don’t act now certain doom follows.  In the West, we use politics, laws, and public policy to push our will on others.

My four pastor friends who have grown huge churches - one from the largest Muslim nation in the world - Indonesia, the second largest - India, an African, and one from Israel/Palestine - the heart of the conflict, would have a very similar response.

First, each one of them has strong relationships with the Islamic leaders in their countries.  Most are friends with them.  They eat …

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Yesterday Nikki and I celebrated our 30th anniversary.  I tweeted about it.  Len Sweet tweeted back that someone he knew had just celebrated their 71st wedding anniversary - later one of them died and within 24 hours the other also died.  Wow - that’s incredible.  I can’t tell you how to make it 71 years or even 50 - but I can tell you how to make 30. 

1.  Love is a commitment not an emotion.  I have a friend named Mazhar from Lebanon he says, “In America you marry the one you love - but in the Middle-East we love the one we marry.”  It’s true.  The first few months of a marriage are tough - for most people - not all.  Once the emotion is gone - then you can get down to work on the relationship.  That doesn’t mean emotions don’t matter - they do.  But emotions are not the basis of the relationship but the result of a healthy relationship.  I’m convinced this is the reason why Americans have the highest divorce rate in the world.  We are driven by emotion more than anything in our relationships.  You even see that in counseling at times,  “how does that make you feel?”  - just because I don’t feel ‘good’ or ‘happy’ etc., doesn’t mean it’s time to quit - our emotions change from day to day. 

2.  Learn to complement one another instead of compete with one another.  Nikki and I are both a little headstrong!  I have a wife who’s educated, smart, intelligent, and wise.  I didn’t want someone who didn’t think and have dreams.  She always wanted and felt called to be a pastor’s wife and a teacher.  Her being a teacher was just as important as me being a pastor.  Even though she doesn’t teach now, she is involved in global ministries and tutoring at a Title 1 school. It’s a calling.  She uses her teaching now in overseas universities, and health and hygiene training with the impoverished. Another thing we had to learn was that being so opposite was really a blessing in disguise.  She would see things I wouldn’t. I would see things she wouldn’t.  I NEVER hire a staff member without her input.  She’s incredibly discerning.  She is the one who led me to think deeply about how I could …

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