Ben [Boston US] and his on-line ministry[10.08]

Hi, welcome to our virtual coffee shop. Pull up a chair, take the load of your feet. Let's chat.

So who are you, where you from, what do you do in life?
My Name is Ben, I’m From Somerville Mass whichi s just outside of Boston. I work as a chef, and currently I’m the youth pastor at a small Baptist church. I do this while I try to work on my own ministry.

Can I get you a drink?
Cappuccino, earl grey, dandelion and burdock, pale ale...? Pale ale, homemade if you got it if not a good microbrew will really work for me.

Would you like a doughnut or pastry to go with that?
No thanks.

So, if you had to describe the church/project/experiment/thingy you are currently involved with in one sentence, what would that sentence be?
I am a youth pastor while I work on creating an online ministry designed to help those that feel like the church has scorned them.

Are you an instigator? / new recruit? / have absolutely no recollection of how you got involved?
I’m the creator of the online ministry.

What do you value most about being part of it?
For me it’s about seeing people hurt by the church and the church forgetting it’s about the people not about trying to become a megachurch, or flash.

What excites you most about it?
For me it’s the work of just doing all the little stuff to start up. Getting people involved, recruiting them, and helping them grow in their own ministries.

Has anyone ever turned up out of the blue not knowing what to expect? What did they say?
I think for my current church they don’t know how to handle me. I attend a very mainstream conservative Baptist church, which is dying. Many of the people have really lost vision but are afraid of change. I started to build a youth group and currently they are starting to put faith in me and in the pastor again.

Three words that describe your attitude to 'being church' in the big wide world:
People, family, trust

Three words that DON'T:
Money, Business, pride

You have this weird dream - you meet Jesus face to face. Where does it happen, what does he say to you?
For me it would happen in a meadow (don’t know why but I’ve always pictured it in a grassy meadow) and He would tell me that that he’s not happy with what we call the current state of His church. How people have let it become about numbers and not transformation, How He’s tired of the business of the church being business and not about the people. Then Jesus would tell me why we don’t see the power the apostles carried of healing the sick (to the degree they did it) raising of the dead, and other things. He would then tell me it’s time for the church to change and how we have to be more diligent in our seeking him, live more on faith and finally we need to change the church. We need to stand strong and faithful.

What's the big secret you're itching to share with everyone?
If I had one I guess it would be that I am an ordained pastor. I never mention it because I like my actions to speak louder than my title.

What would your 'emerging church survival kit' contain?
My bible, internet and a comp to go with it, I really haven’t thought of it so I don’t know what else.

Anything else you'd like to share with us before you have to rush off?
No not really.

Thanks! Good to see you, have a good day!