Friends + Laughter = Memories

Bruce & Karen Lane warmed us up after our caroling by inviting us over for some hot soup & chili and some warm cider. THANKS - BRUCE & KAREN. But as I was driving home that night Christine and I were reliving the funny stories from the night. The creative gifts opened during the white elephant exchange. The jockeying for position to get the right gift or get rid of the wrong gift. The antics of Guesstures & Taboo.

There were many stories that we could share and will fondly remember for a long time. I was impressed by how healing it can be when we gather with friends and we laugh together. We were making memories. But memories are not without cost.

It takes some risks to make memories right? Some had long weeks and just showing up was difficult. Some didn't really know that many people, others get embarrassed making a fool of themselves (that is what games are all about, right?). But those who took the risk made some good memories.
Anyonee need a rubber chicken.
Oooh goody, nose hair trimmers
How's that block of wood Robert?
What is it Andy?

Joy to the World

On Saturday we surprised a local neighborhood by showing up on their steps to sing Christ-centered carols. We were received quite well and most people held their doors open to enjoy our song, despite the 20something degree weather. We lost no one to frost-bite, but we almost lost Erin to an aggresively close-talking man clad in shorts & a t-shirt.

May this Advent season stir your hearts to sing a new song to our King, Jesus.

We couldn't pass up the opportunity to pose with Santa.
They sounded like a chorus of angels.
Sing it Steve, Amy, Tiff & John.

Tea Anyone?

Last Thursday a group of 727 gals joined in on the church-wide Christmas Tea festivities when Kristen Stewart hosted a table. In addition to a "night out" of fine dining complete with entertainment, it was a chance for the men of the church to serve the ladies. Steve jumped at the chance to be at the beck & call of this table of pretty yet demanding ladies. It looks like he was providing service with a smile. Merry Christmas!!

Creation & Salvation

Last week I gave props to Ken Myers, suggesting Mars Hill for your Christmas shopping. Well, he's back, I just read his December letter from the Mars Hill Audio Journal, in which he challenges some of our common thinking about creation & salvation. How do you link these two ideas? Do you believe that time & space as created by God will one day be destroyed so that those who are saved will be saved to a timeless-spaceless other-existence called heaven? Consider some excerpts.

"American Christians seem much more willing to fight about the fact of Creation (against Darwinism) or fight with one another about how many hours Creation took than they are to order their lives around the structures that God has placed in Creation. Christians want to insist on the fact of Creation even as they are willing to ignore the meaning and significance of the order of Creation."

Is our interaction with creation simply an objectifiable fact which we arm ourselves to defend our belief in God? Does our interaction with creation also include our living experience with other created things/people as subjects of the king? How does the order established in Genesis 1 & 2 order our lives? How do we interact with living things (plants, animals, places) and people in a way which glorifies our creator?

"There has been since the beginning of the Church a temptation to read the story of God's saving work as an account of human liberation from Creation rather than human redemption in the context of a renewed Creation."

Do you consider the earth and its cultures as things which must be loathed or left behind in order to pursue more spiritual things? How does your salvation include ways in which you live (treat, consider, care for, enjoy) redemptively with other created things? What if heavens looks a lot more like earth than heaven?

"The creation waits in eager expectation for the sons of God to be revealed. For the creation was subjected to frustration, not by its own choice, but by the will of the one who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the glorious freedom of the children of God. We know that the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time. Not only so, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies." (Romans 8:19-23)

Should my Church close on Christmas Sunday?

That is the question of the day, because we get to decide this year. CNN even had carried a piece, "Some megachurches closing on Christmas." The debate is raging. Check out what both sides are saying.

Ben Witherington , NT scholar at Asbury Seminary, Kentucky
Scot McKnight, NT scholar at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School, Chicago

Witherington offers a response to McKnight, in Comment #13. Our church is consolidating its typical 2 Sunday services into one larger one on the heels of 3 Christmas Eve Candlelight services. What are your thoughts?

Are you wasting your life?

That is a question that I've come in contact with lately. Well it's not always that explicit but that is the question that lies just below the surface. Guys and gals, men and women who want their life to count...to not be wasted. They work at nice jobs but at the end of the day wonder if they are making any difference for God. Some even say they are considering quitting work to move overseas to be in "full-time" Christian ministry.

I identify because that was my story. I was a salesman in the computer industry for 7 years before I quit my job, went to seminary and entered into vocational ministry. But now that I am removed from the regular workforce I have noticed the detriments of becoming a "man of the cloth." So I want to encourage my brothers and sisters whom struggle with this question that impact is not described in terms of vocation or geography but in terms of perspective and attitude.

I was recently was flipping through John Piper's handy book, "Don't Waste Your Life", and came across a helpful list of how to bring a ministry-mindset to your job. The list is pulled from chapter 8 "Making Much of Christ from 8 to 5." May his thoughts encourage you in your daily toil.

We can make much of Christ in our secular job...
1. Through the fellowship that we enjoy with Him throughout the day in all our work.
2. By the joyful, trusting, God-exalting design of our creativity and industry.
3. When it confirms and enhances the portrait of Christ's glory that people hear in the spoken Gospel.
4. By earning enough money to keep us from depending on others, while focusing on the helpfulness of our work rather than financial rewards.
5. By earning money with the desire to use our money to make others glad in God.
6. By treating the web of relationships it creates as a gift of God to be loved by sharing the Gospel and by practical deeds of help.

Engaging the Mind

1 Corinthians 9 tells us that it is OK for those who feeds our spirits to derive their living from the support of their sheep. Well I want to share with you one of the shepherds that has been leading me into a more Christianly thoughtful engagement with American culture, Mars Hill Audio.

A few months ago a friend of mine gave me a great gift by turning my onto this bi- monthly audio journal, produced by Ken Myers. I was smart enough to listen and for $36 got my years subscription. These audio journals have been a devotional for me and have challenged me to walk out into the deep waters of Christian cultural engagement.

Remember when Jesus said, "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength (Mk 12:30; Lk 10:27)." Very few Christians I know actually show me how to love my Lord with my mind. So I try to find really smart, godly men who aren't afraid to go to the movies or turn on the TV, because they will undoubtedly show me how to critically engage my culture with a transformed mind.

I just received my third MHA Journal in the mail and look forward to the exercise my Christian mind will receive. Do yourself a favor this Christmas and give yourself a gift that will disciple you in transforming your mind. Check out the Mars Hill Audio Journal.

A favorite freebie of mine is an extended interview with Eugene Peterson on his latest book, "Christ Plays in 10,000 Places."

Give Thanks!

You have turned my mourning into joyful dancing.
You have taken away my clothes of mourning and clothed me with joy,
that I might sing praises to you and not be silent.
O LORD my God, I will give you thanks forever!
Psalm 30:11-12

The Gospel Truth

Scot McKnight, NT professor at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School in Chicago and author of various books like Jesus Creed, reviews John Piper's latest book "God is the Gospel."

In his review he defines the Gospel as the work of the trinitarian God (Father, Son, Spirit), in the context of a community, to restore cracked Eikons to union with God and communion with others, for the good of others and the world. Chew on that.

Milk and Cereal

This makes you want to break your fast. Ha!

Cleaning house brings criticism

The article on the front page of today's Columbus Dispatch caught my eye, One man's storage unit is another's eyesore. The story focuses on the misfortune of one local family whose home was severely damaged when a run-away car slammed into it. Now as they are piecing their life and home back together they are "cleaning house" and taking advantage of that great invention, PODS (portable on demand storage).

But as the picture above reveals, all is not well on Main Street, because the POD is a bit of an eyesore to the neighbors. A friend of the family said, "If I didn't know their situation, I'd call the city." We don't like PODS, do we, because they are not clean, they don't fit in. Well manicured lawns and white picket fences don't seem to fit in when someone's living room is in their front yard. So the article follows the discussion, how long should someone have a POD in their front yard? How long is too long? How long is long enough? I don't want my neighbors cluttering up their yard with random belongings that should be tucked away in their house, that is not what I signed up for when I moved into the neighborhood. Do you?!

But if our houses represent our lives and our neighborhood is our local church (just work with me) how long should PODS be allowed to be in our front yards. As Christians we are slowly being transformed into the image of the Lord (2 Cor 3:18) and we go through some remodeling in the process. We have to move some furniture out of the living room, knock down some walls and put on some fresh coats of paint. And unless we live behind 8 foot privacy fences, it will be a bit visible to the neighbors. Sometimes we even have hire some pro's to come in help us do the work.

How should the neighborhood respond? Should we allow PODS in the neighborhood? How long should they be there? I find a bit of guidance in Galatians 6. "Bear one another's burdens, and thereby fulfill the law of Christ (6:2)." The picture here is an oppressive load that will crush an individual if they alone are left to support it. In those situations Paul say, hey neighbors - not only will a POD show up in their yard, but you should put one in your yard and take some of the load. Sometimes homes are nearly demolished and PODS must be brought in.

But Paul goes on in verse 5 to say, "For each one will bear his own load." Here the image is a back-pack size load that is manageable. These loads don't require a POD, so everyone in the neighborhood should strap on their backpacks to handle their own loads of this size. So every neighborhood is a mix of backpacks and PODS as we all undergo remodeling, the sanctifying process of being conformed to the image of His Son (Romans 8:29). My back-pack is on and my driveway is open for a POD if you need it, will you pull one up if I need?

25-21...cause for worship

With hands lifted high and voices bellowing from deep within our collective souls the Buckeye Nation joined together in a unified chorus of worship of "Carmen Ohio." The worship will continue for days, weeks, months and years as we re-live and remember the story of Novemeber 19, 2005. We complete our joy by re-living and retelling...the drive...the catch...the score. We tell our kids and our kids re-enact the events of the day. Bob Hunter in the Columbus Dispatch notes this reality in his Sunday column. Go Bucks!

Touch no unclean thing.

"Therefore come out from them and be separate, says the Lord. Touch no unclean thing, and I will receive you." 2 Corinthians 6:17

No blasphemy intended, but this week in Columbus is about separating the sheep from the wolves (pun intended). Draw a line in the sand, pick your colors, sit on different couches or at different locations. This one is for all the tamales.

I feel like talking X's & O's today. I think the difference in this one will be the special teams and the turnover ratio. You've got to protect the pill and come out ahead in the kicking game. We'll see which group of men separate themselves from the boys this weekend. Any brave souls want to sound off and venture a guess at the outcome? I'm rarely a prognosticator but how about 34-14 Scarlet & Gray.

A leader worth following

Can you imagine packing up all your belongings your wife and two kids and driving to the Pacific ocean to start a church... from nothing. That might be the short version of the story but that is exactly what a seminary friend of mine, Paul Fleming has done. Talk about adventure... talk about walking by faith... talk about courage. That is why I wanted to introduce you to Paul, because he is such an encouragement to me. He is driven, he has amazing skills and work ethic and a deep faith that this is God's work.

I would encourage you to keep your eye on his ministry (Westport Church) as they try gather a church in one of the largest non-christian populations in the country....Hillsboro, Oregon. Check out some of the creative things he's been doing as they are just getting started:

• School System: The facilities director in our school system has agreed to talk with us about how Westport can serve our local schools.
• Chamber of Commerce: We have been welcomed by our city leaders, and receive regular invitations to local community events.
• Business Breakfast: Each month we join business leaders around the city for breakfast, hosted by a local Christian businessman.
• Intel: We've been meeting each week on the campus of Intel to discuss The Davinci Code with employees.
• Local Advertising: We secured advertising space in the city's local maps. 10,000 maps were printed for distribution to new move ins. We're excited that the name of Jesus Christ is being exalted in our city's promotional materials.

Pray for Paul & his family as they introduce their community to Jesus Christ.

Good News with skin on...

"The message of the gospel is not a 'spiritual' thing, but good tidings applied to man's entire existence. . . . The true New Testament expectation includes the new earth, and the present life is founded on and proceeds from this expectation. Only with an eye to God's future can one understand the richness of life in the present."
-- G. C. Berkouwer, The Return of Christ (Eerdmans, 1972)

Lock the church doors...

When is the last time that God called off church for the week? Probably too long ago. What if God said, "Don't waste my time this Sunday by acting like things are going OK"... or ... "I know that you aren't bringing your best to worship, you are robbing me".... or ... "I need a Sabbath from your sorry excuse from worship" ... or ..."your service is so full of you (speaking, playing, singing) that there is no room for me (to speak, to encourage, to be there)."

I know sacrilege to even suggest the thought. But I know that God is not impressed with our shows or our words if we are coming to Him with all of our heart, mind, soul and strength. And in a day when God did speak quite directly to his people, he said something just like this. In the time of the prophets, God sent Malachi to Israel to point out to them the error of their ways. And their problem was that they were playing at worship and in the process mocking God. Trying to get God's full blessing, while cutting corners on the sacrifice they were willing to make to Him. So God says, "I wish that one of you would close the temple doors...I am not pleased with you...and I will no longer accept an offering from you (Malachi 1:10)."

Is our church due for a Fall Break? Does God wish that we would just lock the doors and quit playing at worship? Our God is a Great King and is worthy of our best. Why do we consider holding it back? Who are we saving our best for? Our worship matters because He matters.

Time for some fresh air

Sunday Night at 11:15 our kitchen was filled with firemen and paramedics. It was surreal, but it happened. It all started as a typical lazy Sunday night for us. The kids were asleep and we were lying on the couch sharing a bag of microwave popcorn. We both commented how our stomachs were bothering us, nothing more. I dozed off and Christine woke me suggesting we head off to bed.

But something in the back of her mind was troubled that or stomachs were bothering us. For some reasons she noted that our carbon monoxide detectors were unplugged (due to the kids) and thought she would plug them in... for peace of mind. But when she plugged the first in, the alarm sounded, signifying a dangerous level of CO in the house. We pulled it out and put in a second detector, with the same results. We tried both detectors in different parts of the house and each time the alarm sounded.

So now we are wondering do we have a problem or is this a false alarm. If it was nothing we didn't want to blow it out of proportion, but what if? What if we were surrounded by a deadly cloud of invisible, odorless gas that was slowly killing us? We had no idea if we were breathing fresh air or indeed we were in a death chamber, so we called 911. Within minutes a fire engine and an ambulance pulled in front of our house, complete with lights flashing and sirens sounding. (How are we going to explain this to the neighbors? - we thought).

Within minutes the firemen were able to clarify that indeed there was no dangerous level of CO and that we probably needed new CO detectors, but the experience was a bit unnerving. And it got me thinking about how many Christian lives die slow and painless deaths. It is as if they slowly succumb to an invisible cloud of deadly gas and slowly fade off. If you are in the presence of dangerous levels of CO and you do nothing, you will die. And I think that we as Christians are surrounded by a similar cloud that will bring our spiritual lives to a halt if we don't do anything.

Not that Christianity is defined by our doings, but if our lives are not lived Christianly we will surely fade into an existence that is robbed of the joys of being "in Christ." That seems to be what Paul is saying in Galatians 5:16 when he says "live by the Spirit." Our lives of eating and breathing and speaking and playing are either done in step with the Spirit (Gal 5:25) or in step with the flesh. Our Christianity is a way of life a way of living, almost a spiritual breathing, of fresh air which gives us life and enlivens our actions and speech. With out living with this fresh breath of the spirit our breathing takes in an invisible, odorless gas that is lifeless and will slowly kill our spiritual life. In that case, call 9-1-1.

Smile

A visit from across the pond

That may look like America's cutest couple, but it's not. That is Peep (pronounce Pape) & Anna Saar from Estonia. They visited our Homegroup on Tuesday to share about what God is up to in their country. They are part of an Estonian mission called Going UP which is reaching thousands of teens and 20somethings with the message of Christ. And these are certainly not your mommy & daddy's style of missionaries. The dress cool, they look good, they love authentic worship, they have fun, they use engaging technology... and they are enticing thousands of people to consider the claims of Jesus. Astounding in a country which regularly ranks as one of the most secular societies in the world.

How do they do it? When I listened to Peep I was struck by two things: his big god-size vision for reaching his country for Christ and his honest sense of humility about being apart of this work of God. It appears to be all about Him (that is God) and not so much about them. How refreshing and encouraging it was to see such vision and to catch a glimpse of what God is doing. A group from our church will go over to help them run an English Camp March 16-26, 2006. Save your vacation days and join the trip.

Beauty

The colors dance before me as I glided down the road. On this side a cloud of rich crimson red waves in the afternoon soon. Just down the way a punchy orange stands under the protection of some splendid evergreens. Across the street some pale yellow playfully tickles some light green limbs which reach out into the breeze. And as time slows for this moment, I see it. I see amazing beauty. When I can see beyond the picket fences and the stone chimneys laid in geometric symmetry I see the organic, natural beauty of creation. The vivid colors invite me to look again and again. I look for patterns and rhythm and continuity. I see creativity and ingenuity and power. It's right there in front of me. What has been hidden during the heat of summer days is not revealed during the crispness of fall. Surely beauty has a source greater than the small minds of men can conjure up. The tapestry of tall trees, ice covered mountains and deep oceans spill forth a creative story. It is inexcusable...It is right there. Wow, what beauty. Thank you God for revealing your beauty and breathing your creative life into this place.

Together Alone

Last weekend I sat down with Jon Krakauer's classic, "Into Thin Air". It is his personal story of a 1996 ascent to Mt. Everest, the highest point on the earth (29,028 ft). But the trip suddenly went all wrong and 9 people died near the peak, after being caught in a storm. Four of the five whom he reached the peak with were killed within hours.

It is a chilling tale of personalities, wills and egos that drive individuals to attempt such a feat. The closest I have been to a mountain is a few random days in an indoor rock gym. But even from that distance I get the idea that the world of climbing, while an individual endeavor, often requires a great deal of teamwork. That is why one particular passage on 213 jumped off the page when I read it.....

"There were more than 50 people camped on the Col (26,000 ft) that night, huddled in shelters side by side, yet an odd feeling of isolation hung in the air. The roar of the wind made it impossible to communicate from one tent to the next. In this godforsaken place, I felt disconnected from the climbers around me - emotionally, physically, spiritually - to a degree I hadn't experienced on any previous expedition. We were a team in name only, I'd sadly come to realize. Although in a few hours we would leave camp as a group, we would ascend as individuals, linked to one another by neither rope nor any deep sense of loyalty. Each client was in it for himself or herself, pretty much. And I was not different..."

How sad that a group of people who would have each benefited from a common sense of loyalty were simply alone together. As a pastor I dread the thought that people in my church are not tethered together as they climb the mountains of life. We too would benefit from being roped together by a deep sense of loyalty.

Trick-or-Treat

On October 31, my neighborhood comes to life. Nearly all the houses have their lights turned on and most everyone comes out to happily meet passers-by. In addition to the people sitting on their porches with goodies for the neighborhood, there are the kids who are dressed up and excitedly going house to house to support their sugar fix. It is the one day of the year that I feel like I actually live in Mayberry. I meet neighbors who've moved in but I haven't taken the time to meet yet. And tonight some of our neighbors came up the idea to schedule our first neighborhood progressive dinner. Halloween is actually one of the few reasons neighborhoods have of actually coming to life and interacting as neighbors. Maybe we should do this more often. This year we followed our little "Cowboy Woody" house-to-house while we carried a "Lion." We came across some houses that were dark and I paused, thinking "too bad that these folks missed a great opportunity to meet the neighbors."

Before I put Caden to bed he wanted to read the story of Daniel & the Lions den in his Bible. After we read the story I prayed silently that God would prepare him to be a good neighbor. That he would care about his neighbors and be involved in their lives. That he would trust in God, boldly, as Daniel had and that his love for his neighbor would overflow from his love for God.

80's Party Recap

Look at that good looking couple.
Looks like they just walked off the set of music video, ha.

Saturday nights 80's Party proved to be a night immersed in the 80's. Kudo's to those who jumped into the merrymaking with two feet. We were visited by the "GhostBusters" and the "Scooby Doo gang". Not too mention some preps and some goths with a few 70's throwbacks. But one word seemed to carry the night....karaoke. I think there is some hidden talent just waiting for the R.E.S.P.E.C.T. they deserve.

Click here to check some pics of the event and make your comments.

You can't win 'em all

Nothing like a game of Jenga to blow off some mid-week steam. That was my remedy tonight. The cares of the world faded away as I focused on these tiny little blocks. Every Jenga player knows that it takes patience, touch and the nerves of a brain surgeon to piece together a Jenga win. But it all depends on your competition. If your competitor is distracted or jittery, they are done.

Well tonight, I overpowered my jenga-mate 4-1. Nothing short of a landslide...yah, I know. But what do you expect when you play a first-timer. I actually had to teach him the rules of the game, if you can believe that. He is really inexperienced in pressure situations and seems to lack concentration at times. What's wrong with this guy, you're thing. Ok...I was playing my 2 year old son. There I said it. And yes he did win a match, it was the first game that we played. I knew he was pretty good at building blocks, but I didn't think he had it in him to stick it to dear old dad in our first ever competition. I'm not supposed to lose to him when I'm actually trying (and I was) for at least another 10 years, when I'm good and ready to realize that I'm over the hill. But I'm still young and resilient, so I rolled off 4 consecutive wins (although he hung in there) before I changed his diaper and put him in bed. Jenga anyone?

Where has all the curiosity gone?

I was recently listening to an interview with noted historian, John Lukacs. He shared that sometime back in the 16th century the French word used to refer to historians was 'curior' or 'curious one.' Thus, those who sought to know where they came from and how thought, art, politics and culture developed were driven for such an understanding by an insatiable curiosity about such things.

Which leads me to look in the mirror and ask...Where are the curious ones? Where is such curiosity that would turn off a TV a read a classic book or bypass the local theme park and go on to the historic museum. Has curiosity about people and places and religion and language...died? Or is there a pent up curiosity still within us. A muscle that has atrophied from too many late nights of Seinfeld and Saturdays of MTV & ESPN.

Without such curiosity is possible to know God? Isn't there a holy search that we embark upon, driven by a life-and-death type of curiosity to find answers to the big questions of life? I a reminded of first commandment, "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your MIND and with all your strength (Mark 12:30)." Might our curiosities be released so that we learn to love God with our minds. At the next commercial break maybe we should pick up a classic allegory. After the next movie maybe we should sit down with a systematic theology. At the next library maybe we should thumb through a good journal. Here's for feeding your curiosity.

The invisible sin

Today's post is probably mostly directed to guys, because its about pornography. With the proliferation of low-cost cable TV and satellite dishes and the instant access to the Internet, pornography is readily available free-of-charge, within the privacy and comfort of your most private space. And more often than not - men, boys and sometimes women open the door to this insidious and destructive world. My fear is that it is the silent demon that many Christians wrestle with. We must shed light on this dark closet of our lives so that through exposure we might find forgiveness from shame, power over the flesh, and redemption of our hearts and minds in the area of sex.

Someone who is doing something about this is www.xxxchurch.com. They published these staggering "Porn Reality" stats:

• Number of pornographic web sites: 4.2 Million
• People who regularly visit Internet porn web sites daily: 40 million
• Christians who said pornography is a major problem in the home: 47%
• Breakdown of male/female visitors to pornography sites: 65% male - 35% female
• 30% of unsolicited e-mails contain pornographic materials
• Women, far more than men, are likely to act out their behaviors in real life, such as having multiple partners, casual sex, or affairs.
• Porn revenue is larger than the combined revenues of all professional football, baseball and basketball franchises.
• US porn revenue exceeds the combined revenues of ABC, CBS, and NBC at $6.2 billion.

Don't let this be the invisible sin. It is real. It happens in our homes, in our churches and in our families. To those who are burdened by the heavy yoke of sexual addiction I offer an alternative. "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light." Matthew 11:28-30

A Place or a People?

My mind raced to that simple question after a short discussion with a friend at church last Sunday. He was sharing with me how he was inviting co-workers to our church. He shared that he described our church as a place where people do more than go to church on Sundays, but that we are involved in life. I was pretty happy with his description. And my thoughts fell back to that simple question of identity, are we a place or a people. Recent history has answered that question for us and we have been formed in the midst of its answer. But does its answer live and breathe with he rich vitality of the gospel.

My own thinking on the subject was fertilized by the collection of essays entitled "Missional Church." Within its pages I discovered that during the Reformation the Reformers, in a desire to correct the wanderings of the church emphasized some "true marks" of the church. In an attempt to realign the church with Scripture they suggested that the true church is a place where the gospel is rightly preached, the sacraments are rightly administered and church discipline is exercised. And as the modern thought grew to embrace the autonomy of the individual and capitalism and consumerism rose to power in the west the church increasingly was viewed as "a place where certain things happened."

But does a this "place where" language accurately represent the scriptural call to go and make disciples. Now I am not suggesting that we sell off our church buildings, but maybe more how we think about our relationship to church and how we talk about our church. Think about how we talk about our churches (Missional Church, p.58). ...you "go to church" much the same way you might go to a store. You "attend" a church, the way you attend a school or theater. You "belong to a church" as you would a service club with its programs and activities." This language is often the way I speak of my church experience. But it has created the experience of "church hopping" where we shop churches to find which one serves us the best array of clerical delicacies.

But I'm increasingly finding this "place where" language devoid of the power that the gospel appears to bring in the writings of Paul and the acts of the apostles. The apostles seem to be gathering "a people who" will die to themselves and live for Christ..."a people who" will submit to another as to the Lord..."a people who" will give of their plenty to meet the needs of others. If our church is a place where certain things happen, then we might be missing the richness of alternative-community that the gospel can create when we are a people who are faithfully living out the gospel amongst one another.

Are we consumers shopping for a place where they play the best music, deliver the best sermon and look and dress just like us? Will we leave if the pastor says something we don't like or the elders make a decision we don't agree with? Then we go down the road to find another place where they don't do that.

Did Jesus have elbows?

An odd question I know but strangely enough elbows are a hot topic around our house these days. At least with my 2 year old. Yeah, that's right he has an obsession with touching peoples elbows. You know when you straighten out your arm and there is that extra skin that you can pinch between your fingers...that is what he likes to do. We had "Movie Night" at the house the other night and as he is sitting next to me, eyes glued to the tube, he instinctly starts pinching my elbow skin. Last night in fact, he had an especially hard time falling asleep. He was screeming "MOMMYYYY!!!". This is not his usual ritual, so my wife went up to see what he needed. His response..."I need to touch your elbow." After a few pinches, he laid down and was in dreamland.

I'm not really sure how this applies to life, but I'm beginning to see how kids have a complete fascination and amazement with some of the most basic and mundane things. Maybe that is part of the reason Jesus said, "Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these."

Tears of Joy

I had a pretty average day yesterday. I felt quite productive in the office, studying, administrating, planning and composing. But in the back of my mind was a responsibility that I had and that I am still getting used to....hospital visitation. Part of pastoral work is comforting people in time of need. I have often been comforted by some quite godly and gifted men and women in my own time of need. But I feel quite unprepared for the task. It is a good thing, when someone gifted in mercy and compassion is able empathize and encourage someone with great need. But I often feel that my portion of these gifts pales in comparison to others around me.

There appears the great pressure to do and say the perfect thing to relieve hurt from the individual or to point them to the greater spiritual lesson of the moment. How long do you stay? How do you pray? When do you counsel? What do you say? These thoughts flooded my mind as I drove to the hospital to visit someone much older and wiser than I was, so that I could comfort them. (Who would comfort me?) I dismissed these questions and strolled confidently into the room.

For 30 minutes we shared pleasant conversation and they put me at ease with their calm demeanor. I felt no expectations heaped upon me, just the simplicity of gratitude for a few minutes of my time. Before I left I held the hand of the man I was visiting and prayed a simple prayer for him. Then as I looked into his eyes to say goodbye I noticed a tear falling down his cheek. Nothing profound had occurred. I had offered no counsel and actually had talked very little. But we spent time together, just talking, and we prayed together. Sometimes being is more important than doing.

An upside-down world

The more I study Jesus the more I become uncomfortable with his life and his teaching. Although he stirred quite a following (and an opposition) while he walked the paths of Galillee, Judea and Samaria...he message was shockingly backwards. He wove elaborate parables in which the current enemies were the heroes of his stories. He spent intimately personal social time with people that others shunned. He even brought together two opposite ideas like kingdom and suffering...or even Messiah and suffering. If there was one thing that Messiah would not do, it would be to suffer. The Messiah would be one like Moses, who with the supernatural power of God would lead a million Jews triumphantly out of the oppression of Egypt. That was a messianic-type of action, that was the act of a Savior.

But Jesus waxed on his reign in paradoxically down-in-the-dirt descriptions that turned kingdom language on its head. He unveils this upside-down world plainly to his twelve disciples the night before he was killed (Luke 22:25-29). He told them that if they wanted to be the greatest in his eyes, to become the least. He challenged his followers to not be like the leaders of the world who expressed their superiority over their followers, but to follow in his steps and take the place of the lowest servant. The reality is that the kingdom of God values the humble not the proud, the poor not the rich, the persecuted not the comfortable, the ostrasized not the included (Lk 6:20-27).

I'm not quite sure I am comfortable embracing the paradox of the kingdom. It doesn't seem successful, or comfortable or even enviable. But I'm sure Jesus can turn my ideas of success and comfort on their head too.

A Lust for JayJay

Have you ever met Jay Jay the jetplane? If you have a toddler then you know who he is. He is the shiny, happy little jetplane that adorns the local PBS station every morning right at my kids breakfast time. He and his friends from Tarrytown Airport (like Big Jake, Herky the Helicopter and Snuffy) make child-like mistakes and by the end of every 30 minutes episode they have learned a valuable moral lesson that is supposed to prepare my toddler to be a good person.
All is well and good. My boys stay seated during breakfast and sometimes even dance during the cute little songs. But Jay Jay has become an obsession for Caden. We thought the good parent thing to do was to buy him the figurines so that he could create his own "Jay Jay" adventures. But soon after we gave him the planes, we noticed that he would not let anyone else even near the things.

He grabs them out of his cousins hands if he picks them up. He knocks his brother (only 1) down if he even walks near Jay-Jay and friends. And if I or my wife pick them up he throws a fit. You don't have to tell me twice that we are sinfully selfish from birth, I see it everyday. I have seen Caden so obsessed with these planes that he will carry them around, so that they don't even get out of his sight. It got so bad that last night I had to have a little devotion with him about this concept they call sharing.

But isn't that where we all find ourselves. We all have something in our lives that we don't trust anyone else with, even God. Maybe its our money, relationships, kids, control, future.... you name it.

If Jesus were here he would find it in our lives. Like the time when he was approached by a rich & pious ruler. This man was a spiritual specimen, but he was holding onto his Jay-Jay. In spite of his stoutly pious life Jesus said to him, "One thing you still lack; sell all that you possess and distribute it to the poor, and you shall have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me."
That is the problem with holding onto things, like Jay-Jay. They keep us from following Christ... from being true disciples... from being true Christians. We must be willing to give up Jay-Jay and Herky and Big Jake and the whole Tarrytown family, or we will be too bogged down to follow Him. One day, I pray, Caden will be willing to lay down Jay-Jay.

My hands said it all

This week didn't start the way I had exactly planned. I left some drinks in the freezer over the weekend and guess what happened to them. So I return to the office on Monday to the news that there is a mess in one of the freezers. So I spent the first 2 hours of my week cleaning out a freezer. And all the time I'm complaining to myself about the fact that I'm cleaning this freezer. I'm thinking, "this is below me"..."this is a waste of my time"..."I should be doing more important things for the church or for God or for me"....Pretty lousy attitude huh?!

So Tuesday comes and again I am reminded of another mess from the weekend that I have to clean up by the end of the day. This time it is some dirty, rust-covered, soot-filled barrels. Great now I'm gonna get dirty. I look around to see who I can get to take this mess off my hands, but I can't sluff this off on anyone else. So I get out the sun and start cleaning up these barrels and putting them away. During the task I have some time to do some thinking...and I'm right back where I was on Monday...grumbling. Insert previous grumblings here. Then at some point in the process I get sick of my own complaining. I just stop working, sit still and look down at my hands....

....Staring back up at me are a pair of dirty hands. I don't normally get dirty hands in my line of work. But at the sight I pause and ask myself, "Is this really below me?" "Are there really more important things I should be doing for God right now or is that just my selfishness rising up again?" Then I began to consider, what might Christ be thinking about as he did these things. Would he grumble? Would he delegate to a disciple? And I was reminded of some words that described him.

"For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many." Jesus, the God-man, the King of Kings and Prince of Peace the one who was above everyone he interacted with, did not seek to be served but to serve others.
"he got up from the meal, took off his outer clothing, and wrapped a towel around his waist. After that, he poured water into a basin and began to wash his disciples' feet, drying them with the towel that was wrapped around him." Jesus willingly did what no one would choose to do. He humbled himself to the position of the lowest servant. He didn't demand a high position or special treatment. He did the unthinkably mundane and low task, to express his humility to the task given to him by his Father.

"being in very nature God, [he] did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death-- even death on a cross!" The king became a servant so that undeserving servants could reign with the king. That is the gospel. My desperate need for repair drove Jesus to give up his status to serve my punishment. So how should I, a forgiven sinner, respond when mundanely low needs arise? As a someone who expects to be served or as one who (being forgiven much) is willing to follow in the steps of my Savior and humbly serve others. And although my heart was in the right place, my hands said it all.

If in doubt Jesus

So it's Sunday afternoon and I get to ask Caden, our 2 1/2 year old, one of my favorite questions. Well there are actually lots of questions that I like to ask him, even when I know what he is going to say. For example, I love to ask him how his sleep was at breakfast. And every time he answers, "good" while banana bread crumbs come tumbling onto the table and the floor. And then I like to ask him how his banana bread is. And yep, once again he comes up with his rote answer, "good." He's said "good" to both of those questions for months now, but I just love asking him just to hear him say it again.

So it's Sunday afternoon and I'm back to one of my favorite questions, probably the one that every parent asks there kid after bringing them home from Church. You might have heard it yourself, "Who did you learn about in church today." Caden looks at me and says confidently....J-E-S-U-S. I like the answer, but it's not true, because when I picked him up from his class his teacher was quizzing each toddler as they left. "Who built the ark?" And when each student chimed in "NOAH" they would receive an animal sticker. So I smile and I try to draw right answer out of Caden. "Noooo....who did you learn about today?" He thinks, then goes to answer #2...."G-O-D." Good answers, but his little 2 1/2 year old mind can't quite remember the mantra of the day "Noah built an ark."

But I'm a lot more like my son that I think. I can come and go to church and often the only thing that sticks is a hallmark card-like stanza about Jesus or God. Lacking is an appetite for a full course meal of truth. Missing is a zealous passion for morsels of truth that will propel me into a week of reckless abandon in serving my Savior. Invisible is a man broken by his sin, coming to the cross to wash himself in forgiveness of Cross and bask in the GLORY of "I AM". Absent is the conviction of the Holy Spirit that my comfortable life is a far cry from the kingdom lifestyle that I've been empowered to experience. And I know it's me that is distracted not Him. Lord, Awake in me an honesty and humility that is zealous for YOU

Caden's Cry

A few nights ago I awoke in the middle of the night. As I groggily opened my eyes and glanced at my clock, it read 1:15 am. In the silence I wondered, what woke me up. Then I heard it... a muffled screaming. It was somewhere in my house. This is not totally unusual for us, with two boys under our roof - one is two the other is one.
The screaming did not subside and my daddy ears kicked into action to decipher the two-year-old scream of "DAAA-DAAA". My son had singled me out for this middle of the night interruption. I slowly made my way out of bed and towards his bedroom door. His voice became clearer and clearer, "DAAAADDDYY - I NEEEED SOOMETHING."

I turned the door knob and creaked the door open. I peeked in to see him standing up in his bed, crying crocodile tears. He leaned his head back and cried up the the ceiling, "DAAA-DAAA". I opened the door wider and he noticed my presence. As I approached, he reached out for me through the dark night. I lifted him up and as he wrapped his legs around me with a full body embrace and placed his head restfully on my shoulder he continued..." I need milk."
The image of him standing and literally crying out for help to quench his midnight thirst stuck with me. It reminds me of Jesus words, "Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled." (Matthew 5:6) My two-year-old realized his thirst and his own inability to quench it alone. (quick parenting safety tip: we lock him in his room at night so he won't escape). He needed help...and he knew who he could turn to...his Father. So with all the power within him he cried out for help. He cared not what time of the night or how it might affect his younger brother's sleep. He cared not how his mother might feel. He knew his need and sought help.

What a lesson that is for me. Do I realize my need for righteousness is greater than I can ever perform? Am I thirsting for righteousness like my son thirsts for milk? Do I cry out to my Father for help, knowing my need and not really caring about how others will view my desperation? Jesus promised satisfaction to the soul thirst for acceptance if we will just cry out to him. He offers the provision and acceptance of a Father if we will only cry out to him, realizing our need. Lord, help me to grope for you like Caden's cry.

smile!

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