Josh Benner

Tag: Chicago

  • Moving day – one chapter closes, another begins

    IMG_1634 2.jpg
    Moving day today. I finished up my pastoral residency in Minnesota.

    I think of the places where I’ve lived. Columbus, Ohio, my hometown. The place that will always be home.

    Bowling Green, Ohio, where I went to college and had some of the greatest times of my life. So much of who I am today I attribute to my time in college.

    Deerfield, Illinois for seminary, just outside of Chicago, one of the greatest cities in the world. Even though I was there for four years, I still feel like I barely scratched the surface on all Chicago had to offer.

    Fergus Falls, Minnesota. Beautiful part of a beautiful state. Perhaps more than any of these other cities, Fergus Falls felt the most like an adventure when I moved there.

    Moving by myself hundreds of miles away to a town that I had never heard of until about three months before I moved there. When I told people I was moving to Minnesota, the response was always “MINNESOTA?! It’s so cold there!”

    The legends were true. It was cold. (Although not as much snow as you’d probably think). Although it was also fitting that as we packed up our last things into the truck, I spent my last few hours in windy, sub-zero temperatures. Felt like it was my final exam as a Minnesotan.

    It was the smallest place I’d ever lived, but it never really felt like that small of a town to me. I always thought there was so much to do. When I first moved there, I had just gotten into photography. On my days off, I’d find a forest in a different part of the state, drive there, taking pictures all along the way. I’d spend hours just taking pictures. Sometimes on a nice night, I’d go out and take pictures for a couple hours around town. Those are honestly some of the greatest times I had in Minnesota. I loved it. The county had over a thousand lakes. But the sunsets were just as awesome over the farmland.

    It was love at first sight. I always thought the area was breathtaking.

    It was the first place where I lived with my wife after getting married. She wasn’t from Fergus Falls either. But was just as enamored with the area when she moved there too. It was the first place we lived after getting married.

    As I think of all of the art things about the places where I’ve lived, more than anything, the things I enjoy most about these places is the people and the relationships. Everywhere I’ve lived I’ve loved. Because everywhere I’ve lived, I’ve met a lot of people I loved.

    Thanks for reading! I’d love to hear what you think, and don’t forget to subscribe! 

    Josh Benner  has a Master of Divinity from Trinity Evangelical Divinity School. He has served churches in Minnesota and Illinois. He enjoys writing about faith and culture. He lives with his wife Kari in St. Louis.

    Let’s connect!
    Facebook
    Twitter
    Instagram

  • Willow Creek fallout continues as pastor and elders all resign

    Willow_Creek_Community_Church_sign
    Willow Creek church was formerly the third largest church in America. A trailblazing church over the past 40 years under the visionary leadership of Bill Hybels. Hybles planned to retire later this year but this past spring, the Chicago Tribune reported about accusations of sexual misconduct. In the fallout, Hybels retried shortly after. The reigns left to Willow pastors Heather Larson and Steve Carter.

    This past week, a new story of multiple instance of groping a former secretary, and one sexual act between Hybels and the sectary were reported in the New York Times. On Sunday, Carter resigned.

    Last night, at a special meeting, Larson resigned and the elder board of Willow has also announced their resignation. (more…)

  • More allegations, more problems for Willow Creek

    DSC_1268
    Bill Hybels is one of the most influential Christian leaders of the past generation. Earlier this spring he stepped down from his position at Willow Creek, the church he founded, in the wake of a number of allegations stretching back several years of inappropriate contact between Hybels and women connected to the church and leadership team of Willow Creek.

    From a Chicago Tribune article from March:

    The alleged behavior included suggestive comments, extended hugs, an unwanted kiss, and invitations to hotel rooms. It also included an allegation of a prolonged consensual affair with a married woman who later said her claim about the affair was not true, the Tribune found.

    –Chicago Tribune 

    This week, a story broke in the New York Times about a former secretary who accuses Hybels of inappropriately touching her on multiple occasions in the mid 1980s. Her allegations include mentioning an instance of sexual activity, something that previous accusers had not said.

    In the aftermath of that revelation, Willow’s teaching pastor resigned on Sunday, effectively immediately. Part of Carter’s reasoning is Willow’s handing of the situation.

    Since the first women came forward with their stories, I have been gravely concerned about our church’s official response, and it’s ongoing approach to these painful issues. After many frank conversations with our elders, it became clear that there is a fundamental difference in judgment between what I believe is necessary for Willow Creek to move in a positive direction, and what they think is best.

    –Steve Carter 

    The leadership of Willow had been informed about these allegations four years ago and did very little to take them seriously. They did an internal investigation, but internal investigations can be hard when their is an internally vested interest in clearing someone of wrongdoing.

    Willow Creek was a trail blazing church. Scot McKnight is a New Testament scholar at Northern Baptist Theological Seminary in suburban Chicago. He attended Willow Creek for a decade and has responded to these events.

    Earlier this summer, McKnight said in a blog post:

    I believe the women on the basis of what I have learned. I am, as I said at the outset, often asked about the Willow situation and I have done my best to discern the facts. What I do know is this: Bill Hybels and Willow Creek’s leadership have undone forty years of trust for many. A church that has stood valiantly for women in ministry, that has always stood for Christian grace and truth and forgiveness for repenters, that has supported #metoo in various places, that then responds to women as they did to these women unravels the thread Willow has woven for four decades. Many of us are asking why Bill Hybels and Willow Creek’s pastors and Elders slandered the women, calling them liars and colluders, and still refuse to offer them apologies.

    It’s unfortunate. It’s unfortunate for the women who were put in uncomfortable situations or approached inappropriately by someone they trusted. It’s unfortunate for this church and the many faithful attendees and people who have given of their time, talents, and treasures to help build this church up as one that has had a positive impact on so many lives. It’s unfortunate to the many young adults who are drawn to Willow Creek who had never previously been to a church that felt like a place where they could belong, and who are now left with more questions than answers as another church leader is brought down by scandal. It’s unfortunate for the Church. The failures of people within the church poorly reflect what the church is supposed to do to an increasingly secular and skeptical society. More ammunition is given.

    May we not lose heart when people fail. People will because all sin and fall short of the glory of God. We are imperfect and willingly sinful. But we have a great savior who came and died so that all who believe in him would never die. So that those who are dead in sin can be made alive to God.

    Aside from Jesus, the prominent people in the Bible all failed. Peter denied the Lord Jesus three times before Jesus was crucified. The Apostle Paul persecuted Christians and had them killed. David cheated on his wife and then had her husband killed to save himself. That’s not to justify any of these things. They were sins. But God still accomplishes his purpose with as sinful as humanity is.

    But there are consequences. McKnight has suggested that Willow Creek will need changes in leadership going forward. That the people who showed poor leadership for the last few years and who made half hearted attempts to investigate the allegations cannot continue leading in the future.

    Will Willow Creek be able to right the ship? Time will tell. If I had to make a prediction: with all of the bad publicity, with the poor leaderships, with the loss of their visionary founder, the ship will keep sinking until it’s swallowed up by the sea.

    Josh Benner is the associate pastor at Cornerstone Evangelical Free Church in Fergus Falls, Minnesota and has a Master of Divinity from Trinity Evangelical Divinity School. He enjoys writing about faith and culture. He lives with his wife Kari in Minnesota.

    Let’s connect!
    Facebook
    Twitter
    Instagram

  • Reaction: Bill Hybels steps down

    Bill_hybels_photo.jpg

    Bill Hybels stepped down as the pastor of Willow Creek Church in suburban Chicago yesterday. This came a few weeks after a Chicago Tribune report which talked about decades of sexual misconduct: lingering hugs to females, kissing women staffers, inappropriate comments, inviting women back to his hotel room on trips. The 66 year old pastor had planned to step down this October but moved his retirement up following the Tribune story.

    In a statement on Tuesday night, Hybels said:

    “I realize now that in certain settings and circumstances in the past I communicated things that were perceived in ways I did not intend, at times making people feel uncomfortable. I was blind to this dynamic for far too long. For that I’m very sorry…I placed myself in situations that would have been far wiser to avoid…I was naive about the dynamics those situations created. I’m sorry for the lack of wisdom on my part.”

    I don’t know if these allegations are true or not.

    The Tribune article and some other pastors I respect say that there’s smoke behind this fire. Willow Creek says that they had already had these matters investigated by a third party.

    I just don’t know what’s true. But I do know it’s a very sad situation. Willow Creek is one of the largest churches in America and has been extremely influential in the 40 years since Bill Hybels founded it. It’s the third largest church in America with over 20,000 in weekly attendance.

    No matter what, this is a sad story.

    It’s sad that some will indict Christianity in general for this (when we don’t know the facts). It’s sad for people impacted within Willow Creek. It’s sad for the women involved. And it’s sad for the people who are Willow Creek attendees, because this effects them too.

    For many Christians, this story will undoubtedly be discouraging, because these stories are far too often from within the church. We live in a world that is not as it should be. And unfortunately, we see that even in churches. One way or another, someone isn’t being honest in this story. But regardless of the failings of people, God is still God.

    “Look among the nations, and see;
        wonder and be astounded.
    For I am doing a work in your days
        that you would not believe if told.”

    -Habakkuk 1:5

    I think it’s important to pray for Willow Creek, for those in leadership at that church. I also think it’s important to pray for the truth. I think many who follow this story will be tempted to jump to a side.

    When there’s so much spin and outright falsity, I feel like it can be hard to find the truth. But truth is inherently good and something we should always desire.

    Hybels is one of the most influential leaders of American Christianity over the last 40 years. He’s one of the founding fathers of the “seeker sensitive” movement. Willow Creek, which was founded by Hybels is one of the largest churches in America, with over 20,000 in weekly attendance.

    Josh Benner is the associate pastor at Cornerstone Evangelical Free Church in Fergus Falls, Minnesota and has a Master of Divinity from Trinity Evangelical Divinity School. He enjoys writing about faith and culture. He lives with his wife Kari in Minnesota.

  • Life lessons from baseball

     

    pexels-photo-773063

    Tomorrow is opening day of the 2018 Major League Baseball season. Between opening day and the end of the season in early November, more than 2,430 games will be played.

    Baseball’s regular season is the longest in American professional sports, nearly doubling the 82 games NBA and NHL seasons.

    I think about the baseball games that are blowouts. The 10, 12, 14 run wins. When a team gets behind by a huge margin in baseball, it’s very rare for them to comeback and win. And the later in the game a team is down by a big run-differential, the less likely they are to comeback. If you get to the bottom of the 9th down by double-digit runs, the incidence of a comeback is virtually unheard of.

    In a baseball game, you can go out on Thursday, and your team can get crushed. Starting pitcher might not have good stuff bats aren’t connecting, errors. It can be a horrible day, a 12 run loss.

    But the beauty of baseball is that, no matter what happened on Thursday, Friday is a new opportunity to go out and to succeed. No matter how badly you lost yesterday, it doesn’t matter with how you can do today.

    Life is the same way. We can have a really bad day. We can feel totally defeated. But tomorrow is always a new day.

    That metaphor works both ways. If you were the team who dominated on Thursday, you still have to go out and play well on Friday.

    Josh Benner is the associate pastor at Cornerstone Evangelical Free Church in Fergus Falls, Minnesota and has a Master of Divinity from Trinity Evangelical Divinity School. He enjoys writing about faith and culture. He lives with his wife Kari in Minnesota.