Quick Links

For those new to my blog, I like to do what I used to call 'Speedlinks.'  These are just some interesting reads around the web.

1. Here is a really cool photograph of cubes.  This guy takes great pictures at 'The Daily Dose of Imagery.'
2. How do you get to be a successful venue attracting millions of people every year?  Go away!  According to Scott McClellan, the NFL brings us football, gives us a show, and goes away for a few months.  The football void brings us back for more!  I wonder how this could apply to other businesses or organizations?
3. Seth Godin reflects on what it means that we have memories from events and from people we have never personally experienced. 
4. Also from Scott McClellan, here are some thoughts from the "Restoration Fiasco."  My two favorite:  Good intentions don't justify themselves and It's easy to offer a distorted picture of Jesus.
5. Relevant Magazine has a great piece to remember 9/11.  My favorite is the story of the woman saying she felt sorry for the young man because "Your generation will have to deal with this."  It was an amazingly astute comment in terms of governance.  Economy, military, politics, laws, freedoms, and health issues will be DIRECTLY affected by that one day for the next 50-100 years.
6. Happiness vs. Holiness?  This writer makes a case that we have made Happiness an idol.
7. Satirical Christian writer Jon Acuff, wrote a funny piece about interruping Facebook prayer.

Easter Musical

For the first time since Junior High, I am a part of a play. I am terrified. It is an Easter Play called "The Easter Song." I play Thomas...I said yes not understanding that Thomas is the main character! Of course many people assume that since I preach every Sunday that I am not nervous about getting in front of an audience. It's true that I don't fear public speaking, but acting is totally different. We had our first entire cast rehearsal. It is a musical - don't worry, I'm NOT singing - so the choir was there, the other actors were there, some family of participants were there. I learned very quickly that practicing with 2 people in the room is very different from having everyone there! It's amazing how little noises, or side directions can totally throw you for a loop. We had no mistakes in our small practices, but yesterday we had some 'lost' lines between us. Please pray for me as I memorize my lines. Please pray for the entire cast as we all memorize our songs and parts. Most of all please pray for our community that many would show up and hear the Gospel of Jesus and in hearing we all would believe.

Firing the 20 for the 80

I subscribe to Seth Godin's blog. I enjoy reading his leadership and organizational insights. They usually spur me on when I need a kick in the tail.

In the interview below, he speaks of a hotel owner who "fires" 20% of his customers so that he can focus on the other 80%. Having a clientele devoted to a particular vision allows the provider to focus on that vision. How do you get that clientele? Seth suggests firing those not on board. Risky? Controversial? Yes.

I know Mike Slaughter of Ginghamsburg UMC has said, "The biggest growth we ever had was from 100 to 60." Mike essentially "fired" attenders of his church and lead the church to devote their ministry to a core that ended up growing exponentially. To this day, he is unflexing in regard to the aims and direction of the church...food for thought. Lots of good stuff here, check out the video.

Exclusive interview with Seth Godin from GiANT Impact on Vimeo.

Ashes to Ashes

Mortal Reminders
[Hold up gold tube] Anyone know what this is? This is a burial record holder. Long ago, when a funeral took a casket to the cemetery, this was a part of the luggage. It went with the casket, and inside was the information about the person, casket, and plot.

It was given to me by a funeral director as a gift because he saw that I was always looking for dirt. You see I put dirt in here to take to graveside services, so when you die and I do your funeral, I will take dirt from this receptacle, pour it over your casket and say, “We commit this body to the ground; earth to earth, ashes to ashes, dust to dust.”

Ash Wednesday is an odd day. Christians around the world take a moment to stop and remember: “I am going to die. My days are numbered.” You and I came from the earth, and to the earth we will go. It’s pretty sobering.

I will never forget the first time I put ashes on someone’s forehead, someone I knew, someone I sat with as their spouse had surgery, someone who prayed for me before every Sunday worship service, I’ll never forget thinking as I made the Ash Cross: God, I’m telling this person they’re going to die!

Fast forward a couple of years, and my wife came forward with our son. It truly was all I could do to smear ashes on my boy’s head and get those ancient words out, “Remember, from dust you came, to dust you shall return. Repent and believe the Gospel.”

So why do we do this?


Numbered Days
We do this because our days are numbered. We have approximately 26,000 days to live. It sounds like a huge number, but when you consider that at only 33, I’ve lived 12, 174 of those days, nearly half, it doesn’t look like so many...and when one of those days is over, it’s gone...There’s no getting it back.

We have so many ways to dull that reality: TV, make-up, cosmetic surgery, games, sports, beer, drugs, relationships, even religion.

But the reality is: Our days are numbered. When Jesus came he invited us to live the abundant life, and living the abundant life means living intentionally, deliberately, thoughtfully, faithfully.

This day we make the sign of the cross in ashes to symbolize our mortality and frailties. The dust and ashes are a sign to us that we will someday die. They are a reminder to us to live each day to its fullest. What is important? What do we want to live for? What do we believe? What do we want to accomplish? What legacy do we want to leave? The dust and ashes bring these to mind...

But we the ashes also remind us of our sins, our failures, our shames, our regrets, our pains, and our sorrows. In the ancient world covering oneself with ashes was a sign of sorrow, humility, and repentence. A loaded word, repentence, means nothing more than “Turning around.”

And so the ashes are made in a cross, the symbol of the God who lived, and breathed, and died with us. The symbol of the empty tomb, and the symbol of Christ’s victory over sin, death, and the grave.

In amazing irony, the ashes reflect God’s exchanging death for life, sin for forgiveness, regrets for joy. This sign is a sign of hope to those who believe in God through Christ Jesus. It is the sign of new life...not just in eternity, but right now.


Living Signs
So we hear the words of Isaiah tonight, admonishing us not to just play at the religious game, but to go out and life the crucified life.

For the next 40 days, we are to take a special time to reflect and hear God’s calling in our lives.

This Lenten season, God invites us all to a fast of addition. A fast of righteousness. The Isaiah 58 fast: This Lent I encourage you not to just subtract or fast from something, but to add something to your life.

Call it a fast, call it reflection time. In our church we’ll be calling it 40 for 40, reflecting 40 minutes for 40 days You can call it whatever you want. but I invite you to give to others by sacrificing our most precious possession: Time.

Take some time to give. Take some time to love. Take some time to feed the hungry, clothe the destitute, heal the sick, free the oppressed.

And when we do that, we will have no need for ashes. No need for sackclothe, no need for public humiliation. For then our light will rise in the darkness, and our night will become like noonday. And we will be known as Children of God. We ourselves will be living crosses of earth and ash, living signs of the hope and the forgiveness, and the love of God.

A Weekend of Ups and Downs...but More Ups!

Purdue lost to, 10th place in the B1G, Iowa. A team everyone has mauled, except IU, we lost in what was amazingly only a one point loss. We didn't hustle or play hard, and the shots didn't go in the bucket. That always equals a loss in the B1G.

Other than that, though, it was a great weekend. The local Girl Scouts had an overnight and joined us for worship. It was fun having almost 30 girls and their parents join us worshiping God!

I've been wanting to fix some sound equipment issues, and I invited Terry LeMaster to check it out. Friends from CCUMC, Terry brought his whole family, and we had a great time after church.

Later in the evening, Steph and I did Youth Group. The bright spot of any week, the DVD was very powerful. John Ortberg's The Me I Want to Be is OK, but this video was worth the entire lesson.

What a great weekend!

Transfiguration Sunday

I love Transfiguration Sunday...

It has so many meanings....

Jesus on the Mountain Top with Moses and Elijah, a clear connection with the OT that Jesus is the Messiah.

Jesus' Transfiguration, a symbol of the glory to come.

Peter's fully human desire to capture the moment, enshrine it and focus on the place and not the Who.

The foreshadowing of the Resurrection to come, a glimpse of glory before the darkest days ahead. A glimmer of hope in the night of Jesus' ministry. Like a cancer victim receiving news the cancer is in remission. Or that the storms are over. Or the report card with a C+ instead of an F. And those times when we feel the real presence of God working in our hearts in worship and prayer.

Moments that can change our day, week, even life. Little Resurrections of hope barging into ordinary life and changing it forever.

Bono's Interview about Christ

As you know, I'm a big U2 fan...Here is a great link to bono talking straight up about faith...This one is an absolute gem!

Wordling

OK, so I spent too much time playing while I was designing the front of the bulletin cover...

But here is John 1:1-18, our Advent and Christmas Eve texts, in Wordle form! Click here if you want to Wordle!

Speedlinking

Here are some great links to check out!!!

1. If you've ever put yourself out there, you'll know this already. But, it never hurts for all of us to be reminded: You will be misunderstood. It's OK...Keep at it!!!!
2. Interesting parable about ascetic theology from author Steve Taylor.
3. Cathy Escobar's great blog has a good post about single parents.
4. Andrew Conard lists some non-negotiables for church staffs. What do you think? What would you add? Subtract?
5. Is Yoga compatible with following Jesus? Interesting thoughts by my least favorite attention...lover, Mark Driscoll, but I found myself unable to disagree with what he was saying.
6. Apparently, the founder of the Tea Party movement isn't a fan of the United Methodist Church...and apparently, I'm not a big fan of him either after reading some of his other tirades!?!
7. If you haven't seen the new translation app called "Word Lens" you're missing out on Star Trek being made real today! It instantly translates any words/signs/etc. you point at...check it out!

Silent Night

I'm a huge fan of Six Pence None the Richer. It seems they get what Christian music should be about, which is probably why they have had a rocky relationship with the industry. The following video is their rendetion of Silent Night. It is amazing. I love the angel smiling at 2:46. It made my day, and I hope it makes yours.

Btw, we're singing Silent Night to this to close out worship on Sunday...come join us if you can!

Back From Vacation!

I'm back from a much needed vacation. It was a wonderful time...

I went to two days of continuing education at Duke. It was awesome listening to N.T. Wright and Rob Bell share their insights and thoughts regarding God and ministry.

After that we stayed at a beach house on Topsail Beach, NC. Wow! It was really nice...best of all, some friends of ours owned it and blessed us with a gift of staying there with no cost. Talk about a great vacation :)

If you're interested in pics from Uncle John's funeral, Duke, our trip just click on each of the links for my FB page pics! Sorry, but you have to be my FB friend to see them...

The Church & U2: Grace

Sermon Snip-It:

It's only been in the last few years of my own faith journey that I've begun to understand the true horror of karma [the 'baggage' of bad deeds that determine who you are]. It is to me the most evil side of religion. For its result is to wall away those that we humans deem unworthy, too dirty, too bad, or unloved by God. We wall them away, cast them aside, and pretend like they are not there...all around us. And brothers and sisters, let's not pretend that we aren't doing it, too, right here in [insert where you are]...

And that's what is so amazing about the message of Jesus: No karma. That's what's so amazing about Grace: No more karma. God doesn't hate you for what you've done. You don't deserve living in a slum. No one "earned" being disabled. Grace makes beauty out of everything. It was a revolutionary idea in Jesus' day, and it's just as big an idea today.

The Church & U2: One

Sermon Snip-It:

The number one mission of the Church is to be the undoing of Babel, the curse that made one into many. The healing that flows from the Spirit of God through the Church brings the many to One.

The Church & U2: She Moves In Mysterious Ways

Sermon Snip-It:

"The Spirit moves in mysterious ways that we can't always predict or understand, but we can rest assured that the Spirit of Power is at work and moving in our lives...."

Sermon Snip-It

From this Sunday there are some words I would like to share from my sermon...

Scripture Reading: Acts 1:1-11 (The Ascension of Christ)
Sermon: "Why Are You Standing Around?"

We aren't to be looking upward...We're to be looking forward. To be looking at the world around us, at the mission God has given us!

We have not been called to be followers of Jesus in order to stand around, sing songs, put on fancy clothes, or even to be nice. No, we have been bought with a price, redeemed, and called into the mission of God, bringing new life through Christ to all the world around us: Yes, in these walls, but also in our homes, at work, in our neighborhoods, at school, with our friends, with our family.

The Ascension reminds us that Jesus isn't here: BUT WE ARE!!! WE ARE!!!

Brothers and Sisters, we are called to be Jesus to a hurting a broken world. We are called to love with our words, our actions, and all that we have. The Body of Christ was not meant to stand around. It was meant to get busy.

Here we are. Here we remain. And, here, we are are called. Amen.

Confirmation

We just finished confirmation classes. There were three girls who survived the classes, and they did a great job. While it's about learning, it's also about relationship building...that they would feel included and accepted as practicing members of their church. I loved it because it's the only confirmation class I've led where students invited their friends to come. Fun!

So, on Sunday, the ladies reaffirmed their baptism, took their confirmation vows, and I awarded them some "presents" to remind them of who they are in Christ.

Princess Tiaras for the daughters of the King.

Scepters and Rings symbolizing that all authority has been given to Christ, and as his ambassadors and followers, we too have authority. But with great authority comes great responsibility. Everywhere...at church, home, school, work, etc.

Fruity candies to encourage them to bear much fruit.

Symphony Chocolate bars to remind them that last week we talked about God giving us a lifesong...but as members of THE Church, our life fits into something better than ourselves!

It was fun, and I hope it was a day that they won't forget for in ceremony is a truth: We all must accept Christ as Lord, renounce this world, and seek to live in love with God and neighbor. Today, publicly, they said this is what they wanted.

Ladies, may God grant you the courage, strength, and grace to live out those desires.

Easter TV: CSI Miami

I'm using this clip Sunday morning to help illustrate the historicity of the Resurrection of Jesus.

The Resurrection is not something we believe blindly; however, it is something we believe by faith. Did you know that NOTHING is historically "provable?" Prove George Washington lived without relying on someone saying he did. The first step to historical research is understanding and rating the trustworthiness of your sources.

The resurrection of Jesus is found in all four Gospels, in the Epistles, and in other Early Christian literature. Christian claims are prevalent in Roman texts without firsthand dispute. That's fairly strong textual evidence!

Post-Palm Sunday Reflections

Palm Sunday must be important. It is one of the few events recorded in all four Gospels.

What makes it so important? It is the message Jesus is sending, which is often misunderstood and too often taught incorrectly.

The story has Jesus riding a donkey into Jerusalem. The Jesus' followers and even the crowds began cheering. They were offering up the interwoven spiritual and nationalistic cheers for this donkey riding rabbi. Luke has the Pharisees telling Jesus to quiet the crowds to which Jesus responds that even if he did, the stones would cry out.

So what's happening? Let's put the story into the context in which it occurred. First, we must remember that Jesus is Jewish. Jerusalem's people are Jewish. The religious leaders are Jewish. So it strikes me that we should look at this event through Jewish eyes to understand it (which most do not ironically).

The first mistake people make is the very reason Jesus is riding a donkey. Jesus rides the donkey NOT to be humble. On the contrary, he rides the donkey to elicit praise and adoration. From the O.T. tradition, the kings of Israel rode donkeys. Yes, Zechariah has a verse about riding the donkey in humility, but the very image of the donkey is one of kingship. So, when Jesus rides a donkey into Jerusalem, he is in fact making a startling claim: He is King and worthy of praise.

The second mistake is what this does to the crowds. They are not worshiping Jesus as the Son of God. They are adoring a challenger to Rome. In Jesus (or anyone willing to lead them), the Jews saw a possibility of overthrowing the Romans. As this young, popular leader takes the mantle of leadership/kingship by riding the donkey, the people cheer for they want the oppression, the taxation, and the humiliation of Roman occupation to end. The crowds are cheering a hero-to-be. They want a military coup, and symbolized by donkey, Jesus is a tantalizing possibility.

The third mistake is continues this same theme. The Pharisees are not asking Jesus to avoid being adored. They are begging Jesus to not rouse the attention and anger of the Romans. Potential Messiahs had come and gone...each leading failed rebellions against the Romans, and each one leaving the Jewish people in a worse position as the Roman military tightened the vice on Palestine. This is, from a historical perspective, the reason why Jesus is crucified. He was a threat to Rome. The Jewish leaders were quick to hand him over to the Romans as a peace offering. What an irony for that is exactly what he was.

What is at stake in this scene is the Kingship of Jesus. Notice that this is all the Romans are concerned with during the trial and crucifixion: "Are you the King of the Jews?"

Jesus riding the donkey made that claim, and the people spread their palms out before him. Yet, just a few days later those same people were apathetic or fleeing or even condemning Jesus to death.

I cannot hold a palm on Palm Sunday without thinking of Ash Wednesday for I see in the palm waving in my hand the sin and betrayal of Jesus I have and will commit even while I wave it in worship of Him. The tension of the Sunday is hard to hold, and maybe it helps us understand the Grace we live with...for every day we worship Jesus we also end up betraying him. It's nothing new.

Holy Week Thoughts

Today at the Men's Tuesday Morning Breakfast, we talked about Jesus in the Garden of Gathsemane (read Matthew 26:36-46 here). It takes place on Thursday of Holy Week, after the Last Supper, late in the evening.

It is such a fascinating scene. The Divine Word made flesh praying in the Garden that God's Will would be done...Why? Because, the very human Jesus does not want to endure the Cross. "If there's any other way?...But, I will do whatever you will, Father God."

It is the loneliest of scenes in all of Scripture. Yes, Jesus' friends and students all fell asleep instead of staying awake and praying for him, but I think it's more than that. On the eve of arguably Jesus' most important day, he's not so sure. The Cross is closer than ever before. The betrayal is closer than we would expect. The comfortability of the now is more tangible than ever. Today, worship, teaching, and friendship. Tomorrow, suffering, despair, and death.

Too often we dehumanize Jesus. It's actually a long standing idea: Jesus was too good, too perfect, too divine to be like us. "There's no way that Jesus got tired, smelly, irritated, cranky, angry, or even scared." Yet, the Scripture says that he was fully human. Just like us, and so he must have had the same feelings that we have.

Jesus was scared in the Garden. Reluctant to give up all the things we take for granted, I believe he knew what was coming, and he didn't want to do it. But, he did want to do what God called him to do. I think that is what I take away from the Garden: Jesus' love for God was so strong that he would do anything God called him to do...Sounds obvious! Of course Jesus would! Yet...

Often I find myself not wanting to do what I know I'm called to do: To leave the comfort of my bed at 2 a.m. to pray and talk with someone in the mist of a crisis that words cannot fix. To turn the other cheek when people are intentionally hurting me. To apologize for hurting someone else. In these moments, I hear the struggle happening in my heart: You don't want to do this...You don't HAVE to do this...You don't DESERVE this.

I'm positive that Jesus felt the same way, except those things were way more true of him!

So when I taste that moment, I know that I have tasted just a tiny speck of Jesus' night in the Garden. This helps me to understand just how unobvious the temptation really was for Jesus, how human he really was, and, ultimately, how much the Father loves you and me: He loves us enough to put Jesus through this. Enough that when Jesus begged for something different, God stuck to the plan.

In the Gardens of our lives, my prayer is that we might find the strength in our hearts to love God and follow Him...wherever the Spirit may lead.

Creativity and Busy-ness

I have been sparse in my blogging recently...busy-ness is a part of it, but to be honest, my creative juices just haven't been flowing.

I remember one of my senior pastors told me one time that associate pastors always have more creative ideas because senior pastors are immersed in the details while the associates get to sit back and look at everything from a distance. At the time, I scoffed, but I think I'm eating some of that scoff right now...

It kinda has me thinking...what is creativity? Where does it come from? Why are there some days when it all comes so easily, when there are other days that it's impossible to pull an idea?

I think being creative requires intentional, hard work. Last week I took three days to be intentional about laying out sermon series and schedules for the year. My first day I finished one series...ONE! It was frustrating, but rewarding. I was able to take time to really think through some issues we need to deal with, how God's Word applies to those situations, how do we apply that Word, and lastly, creative vehicles to communicate that Word in tangible and receivable ways.

I stayed at home to have total quiet, total concentration, and absolutely no interruptions. It was worth it because as I went, it got easier, and soon I had until September planned out...with some nifty sermon series in there I might add!!!

Perhaps, I just need to be more intentional about blogging now!