Looking for a good camera

Jane and I have decided to look into buying a nice digital camera for Christmas this year. She is pretty good with a camera, and enjoys taking pictures not only for us, but has done it for others a little bit too (weddings, and family pics, etc.). I currently have an el-cheapo digital, and Jane has a Canon Rebel 35mm that she really likes. But we probably need to get up to speed and get a better digital. Does anyone have any advice?

The digital Rebels look good, but it appears they don't have video capability - which isn't necessary, but it would be nice. She also has a nice zoom lens, so we would like one you can interchange lenses. I start to freak out when we get up into the $600-$700 range though. Is it worth it to pay that much? What are good brands? These are the type of questions I'm thinking.

I am printing off some comparisons from PC World and other places right now, but if you have any suggestions, I would certainly appreciate it.

The gospel road

I've been listening to Johnny Cash's "The Gospel Road" while doing the bulletins. An older lady in our church loaned me the cassette of this. She thought I might like it. It is AWESOME! Johnny Cash tells the story of Jesus in both word and song.

I see there is a DVD by the same title, and I'm wondering if it's the same thing. I am going to buy it, and if it is at least similar.... what I'm thinking is, I would love to show this on a Sunday morning. I will be gone two Sundays in a row this spring, and since the movie is 83 minutes long, if it works out right, we could show half one week and half the next - in place of a sermon. I will have to watch it first, and then talk to the church council about it. But that's one of the things I love about our church - most people really like when we do things like this. At least I think they do. They haven't fired me yet.

Last night - random

I suppose this is totally narcissistic of me, but here's what happened last night.

• I talked with the travel agent on the phone (instead of email) and we have finalized a date for our honeymoon anniversary trip, and a location (Punta Cana, Dominican Republic). Now we're just trying to decide which resort, and what city we want to fly out of. There are charter flights out of Detroit or Chicago, or a regular flight out of Indianapolis. The charters are a wee bit more expensive, but they would be direct and a whole lot quicker. Indy would be cheaper, and closer, but it wouldn't be a direct flight and would take longer. Either which way, all I can see when I close my eyes right now is blue water on a white sandy beach. Ahhhhh.
• I walked on the treadmill for about 40 minutes. I haven't ran for awhile. Slowly working my way back.
• We had Bible Study last night and only 1 person showed up. That's always a bummer. Just one of those nights. Of course, the one person who was there has to drive further than anyone else who attends. I felt bad for him. We still hung out and talked for an hour and a half though.
• I watched a little bit of the Fighting Illini/Maryland basketball game. Missed the first half due to "Bible Study", and what I did see didn't look real good.
• At 9 we switched from the game to one of our favorite shows - Criminal Minds. It was a weird one last night.
• After that we watched my personal favorite show right now - Life. I don't know what it is about this show but I really like it (even though it hasn't received real good reviews).
  
• Went to bed.
  

Bookmark prayers for the year

I just received my box of bookmarks from Navpress. They have packets of them to use as prayer guides on a whole slew of topics. I thought maybe this year I would insert a bookmark in the church bulletins on the first Sunday of each month, with a different topic each month. That way our whole church could concentrate on praying together throughout the year on 12 different topics. This is how I think we'll work it:

January - Prayers That Birth Revival (start the new year off right)
February - Prayers For Prodigals (as Lent begins)
March - Prayers of Repentance (approaching and during Easter)
April - Life-Giving Prayers For Your Church (celebrating the resurrection)
May - 25 Ways to Experience God (great for spring)
June - Prayers For Missionaries and Their Families (many will be on furlough)
July - 31 Ways to Praise (there are 31 days in July)
August - Scriptural Prayers For The Next Generation (school starts)
September - Prayers of Hope in Times of Calamity (9/11)
October - Partnering With God In The Struggle Over Sin (could be anytime)
November - Praying For The Lost (prior to Advent)
December - Praying For Your Family (because we'll likely be seeing them)

Reading the bible abba-centrically

Reading today from Scot McKnight's book The Jesus Creed, on p. 174:

A concrete suggestion to aid us in preparing for eternal fellowship with Abba: we need to read the Bible Abba-centrically, or "Father-centered." Christians sometimes read the Bible too often to "figure things out," to come to terms with a theological debate, or to settle an old score. They read it for information.

But as M. Robert Mulholland explains in his very important book, Shaped by the Word, in reading the Bible for knowledge, we can (and often do) miss the mission: for Abba to love us and for us to love Abba. When we let Abba speak to us through the Bible, we come to know him (and not just about him), and our reading moves from communication from God to communication with God, from "information to formation," from learning about love to learning to love.

Good stuff. Scot suggests putting away the study aids, getting out a piece of paper and a pen, and just writing down what we learn about God in a passage of Scripture (not that there isn't a time and place for study aids). This is kind of what we're currently doing on Wednesday nights in our Group Lectio Divina - except we're sharing verbally with one another instead of writing it down. I kinda like it.

Dan kimball goes to hell

Dan Kimball walks through the sermon he preached this Sunday: "If you think I'm going to hell, you should care that I'm going to hell."

As always with Dan, it's good stuff.

Christ's birthday

Did you know... (from Christian History)

Perhaps as early as the year 273, churches decided to celebrate Christ's birth on December 25. This day already hosted two pagan festivals: natalis solis invicti (the Roman "birth of the unconquered sun"), and the birthday of Mithras, the Iranian "Sun of Righteousness" whose worship was popular with Roman soldiers. Seeing that pagans were already exalting deities with some parallels to the true deity, church leaders decided to commandeer the date and introduce a new festival.

—Adapted from Elesha Coffman's article, Why December 25?

When you leave

This post has been removed because apparently some people found it offensive. It is never my intention to offend anyone, and I am sorry.

Big eyed fish

Yesterday I took the deck off the mower and cleaned it good. It was a real pain getting it both off, and back on. Man...

Last night we went to a nice little dive bar on Wells St. called Big Eyed Fish and listened to Carrie's boyfriend's band. I love listening to music in places like this. But I can't for-the-life-of-me remember the name of the band. I even put it in my phone so I'd remember it, but my phone is beside the couch and someone is presently sleeping on the couch and I'm not sure who it is. Aaaanyway... it was fun. Drew (the boyfriend) is the singer. I really like his sound. He has a great voice and presence. It was cool seeing him perform, because it's a side of him we've ne'er before seen. And I would imagine he was super nervous - having the girlfriend's parents sitting there and all. But he didn't seem like it - even when the mic didn't work on the first song. They're a fun band. One of those where - they didn't have enough songs to fill the whole time-slot, so they just played them all twice. And nobody cared! :) And they might not be the greatest musicians, but that didn't matter either. They're good enough to have a good time doing what they do and they wanted everyone else to have a good time too. You know, anyone can play an instrument; but not just anyone can help people enjoy themselves. And that's what people were there for. I like that about this band. They certainly had the place hoppin'.

Today it is back to work.

2 days off

This is kinda weird.... Two days in a row without going to the office. Yesterday was a holiday and today is my regular day off. This year I am taking advantage of it working out like this.

Unfortunately Jane had to go to work today. Making pizza dough at 7 am the day after thanksgiving cannot be fun.

I didn't go to the stores this morning. Um.... never mind.

Bogey is back on the steroids. He will never get to compete in dog shows now. At least they're not the kind that made him balloon up when he was younger. His stomach almost drug on the ground, and he couldn't climb stairs then. These are just for allergies. He got a shot a couple weeks ago and he seemed to look and act so much better. The vet told us if he started having problems after 2 weeks to come in and get some pills. We did. It used to be he lost his hair all over the place, but after that shot he hardly shed at all.

I think I am brain dead. I couldn't remember my zip code this morning. I mean, I typed it in four different ways and finally had to go look it up. I wasn't really even close. That was weird. Kinda scary.

I'm in a strange mood this morning. Hmm.

It's thanksgiving

Well it's Thanksgiving today in the US of A. I'm actually feeling pretty good. Let's see... no work, I'm still in my robe, I can smell the turkey, the Cowboys will be on this afternoon, I can have leftover turkey sandwiches for a few days... and there's probably lots more that I'll enjoy today.

I'm not sure about the decision to have three NFL games on today though. I mean, hasn't anybody ever heard of "too much of a good thing"? I like football, but somebody's always gotta go messing with things, and the next thing you know, it's ruined. Although I am one of the blessed one's to actually get to see all three games, because we have Dish and not Comcast. This also allows me to get the Big Ten Network. My condolenscenses to those of you being held in sportsman's hell by Comcast.

I think part of what made this a good day this year is I am not freaked out about Sunday. It's just going to happen. I know my sermon is not as good as maybe it should be, and we're just going to sing hymns - and out of the hymnal - but I think everyone will be better off with that than if I'd tried to cram everything in and then been miserable. Plus we usually have smaller crowds around holidays. So, it's not that I don't care... but I'm trying to take a more long-term view of things for my overall health and good of the church as a whole.

Well, I think my brain is empty now. Maybe I'll brush my teeth or something.

I would say "have a happy turkey-day," but... I don't like that term, and I have friends who won't be eating turkey. So... I hope you have a nice thanksgiving. Peace.

Random music news

In reading through the latest issue of Rolling Stone last night this little tidbit struck me as really strange.

Garth Brooks has surpassed Elvis to become the second-best-selling artist of all time. According to the RIAA, the country star has shipped 123 million albums in the U.S. (The Beatles hold the record, with 170 million copies shipped).

Wow. Garth Brooks, huh? I can't really say that I know any of his music, but... it just kinda surprises me.

Praying in the christmas rush

Just something I'm thinking about. Last night I heard where some stores are going to open at like 4 am this Friday - so shoppers can get a head start. I'm thinking of maybe joining them. Not to shop. But partly just to *see* it, and partly to kinda walk around and silently pray for people. Consumerism is so rampant, and devastating, and maybe it's.... something I can do. I don't know. I often do this on my days off. I'll walk around the mall, or different stores. Sometimes people are pretty easy to read. But I usually never say anything to them. I especially think about it before Christmas though. People have lots of needs. I don't know. Just a random thought. Sometimes I wonder if it makes any difference. Sometimes I think about setting up a booth and putting up a sign that says "Need Prayer?" I wonder what would happen? People would probably think I was a freak. Or they might think I thought I had all the answers. Which I don't. I dunno.

Just thinking...

Blogging

Adam Cleaveland has a nice little post he called Blogging 101 in which he tells how he started blogging, explains what a blog is, and reasons a person should blog. I thought it was pretty good. For a definition of blogging, he says:

A blog, or Weblog, is basically a Web site that has constantly changing content. The Oxford American Dictionary defines a blog as “a Web site on which an individual or group of users produce on ongoing narrative.” Instead of the more traditional, static Web sites we are used to (where the content remains the same), people constantly add new posts to their blogs and often update them daily — producing an ongoing story or narrative of their lives or thoughts. On most blogs, not only can you go and read the posts, but you can also leave comments and get involved in conversations on the blog.

Regarding reasons for blogging, he says:

There can be many reasons to start and maintain a blog. It can help you become more mindful of random things in your life; random events or certain conversations can turn into potential blog posts to help you continue those conversations or reflections with others. For people who process better by thinking and writing, a blog can be a great place to give yourself the space and time to do just that, and share it with others. Blogging can also help connect you with others...

I began this blog in October of 2005, but I believe I was originally encouraged to blog by Tom a couple of years prior. When he first told me I should try it I thought it was silly. I can remember telling him, "I already get enough criticism, why would I want to do something that would open me up to more?" But, he set up a group blog for me, him, and another guy as we worked through a devotional together (was it Augustine's Confessions? I can't remember). Anyway, it didn't work very well. Then Brian set up the Emerging CGGC blog, and that was my first real leap into the blogging world. Shortly thereafter I set this one up - with some help from Brian.

I probably began blogging as a way to process my thinking and as more of a personal journal. But it has become much more of a social aspect of my life than I ever expected. Now I can't imagine not having it. I appreciate the people who have commented over the years, and who make it seem like more of the proverbial 'coffee shop' as others have suggested blogs are. It's amazing when I think of the friends and acquaintances I've made - all because of blogging. I am definitely glad I finally went ahead with it.

So how about you... when did you begin blogging? Why did you start? Who was it that encouraged you to do it? I'd be interested to know.

ht to tsk for the blogging 101 post.

Sunday

This morning while Sunday School was going on the phone rang. The person on the other end wanted to know how to spell Damon - "like Damon Bailey." Only in Indiana would someone use that reference. So, I spelled it; they said thanks; and that was the end of it. Weird.

Our gathering went okay this morning. The new strings made a big difference. Why don't I change them more often? Afterward Jane and I went to the new IHOP on Jefferson. There was a huge, long line. It was worth the wait though. Three buttermilk pancakes, four bacon strips, and coffee.

Tonight we are hosting the Community Thanksgiving Service. I believe there are six churches involved, but I think Tom and I might be the only two pastors there. So he's preaching and I'm doing the rest. I don't look for a huge crowd.

I don't know how pastors do it who have multiple Sunday services. I could hardly stay awake waiting for our food at IHOP. I am exhausted on Sunday afternoons. Of course, I remember at our old church back home, the Pastor didn't do anything but preach. That would be nice. Sometimes. But I like being in a small church.

Now it's time for a nap.

Changed guitar strings

I'm going to try to use this as a method of keeping track of when I change guitar strings. I am not real good about doing it regularly - usually waiting until I break a few. That poses new problems now that son Isaac isn't here to fix it during the worship gathering. I can usually go quite awhile without changing. Much moreso now than when I used to play ultra or extra-light guage. I don't really even remember what the strings were that I just took off. I haven't found anything I'm particularly in love with. And I wouldn't have even changed today - though I've needed to for a month or so - but I found a pack of new strings on my shelf. They are ghs acoustic mediums. A little heavier than I like, but they'll do for now. So...

Today I put new strings on the Yairi: silk and bronze ghs acoustics ML (E is a .12). 15 minutes.

Five kinds of christians

According to this article in Leadership Journal (fall 2007) there are five different kinds of Christians. I just skimmed the article, but this looks like interesting stuff. I want to look at it more in-depth later. One of the first thoughts I had was that I would like to personally go to the mall or somewhere and poll people myself as to what kind they consider themselves to be. Anyway, here are the "5 Kinds of Christians" from the article:

Active Christians 19%

• Believe salvation comes through Jesus Christ
• Committed churchgoers
• Bible readers
• Accept leadership positions
• Invest in personal faith development through the church
• Feel obligated to share faith; 79% do so.

Professing Christians 20%

• Believe salvation comes through Jesus Christ
• Focus on personal relationship with God and Jesus
• Similar beliefs to Active Christians, different actions
• Less involved in church, both attending and serving
• Less commitment to Bible reading or sharing faith

Liturgical Christians 16%

• Predominantly Catholic and Lutheran
• Regular churchgoers
• High level of spiritual activity, mostly expressed by serving in church and/or community
• Recognize authority of the church

Private Christians 24%

• Largest and youngest segment
• Believe in God and doing good things
• Own a Bible, but don't read it
• Spiritual interest, but not within church context
• Only about a third attend church at all
• Almost none are church leaders

Cultural Christians 21%

• Little outward religious behavior or attitudes
• God aware, but little personal involvement with God
• Do not view Jesus as essential to salvation
• Affirm many ways to God
• Favor universality theology

Good things

Trying to re-fix my gaze. These are some good things on my mind at this time:

• I just received my free copy of Brian McLaren's new book "Everything Must Change" - compliments of Joan at Sojourners. Thanks!
• Yesterday I had occasion to hang out in my mechanics waiting area. They are super nice people (they are part of our church), and it brought back a lot of good memories from when I worked in gas stations. It was also nice to just be around some people for a change. That is perhaps the hardest part of my job sometimes - the isolation. Plus... after spending 1 1/2 hours working on our car - the charge was $0. How cool is that?
• I think Jane and I have narrowed our vacation destinations down to two places: one in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic; and one in Cancun, Mexico. They are both pretty ritzy, and we're probably going to spend way more than we need to on this trip. But you know what - I don't care. It is to celebrate 25 years of marriage, and we've only went on an actual vacation maybe 5 times in all those years. And 3 of them were to Florida, either staying at relatives or in a condo owned by a couple in our church. Otherwise vacations usually consist of a week at my parents house or a weekend in Chicago or something. So I don't feel at all bad about splurging because it is likely the only time we will ever do anything like this. I only wish it were next week! :)
• The other day I had a bunch of kids come to the church door and ask if they could use the restroom. They had been playing on the playground. One little boy - maybe 4 - stayed behind and we chatted. He told me a couple of the girls were his cousins and they lived down the road. I said, "Oh, so you're here visiting your cousins?" And he said, "No, WE'RE HERE TO PLAY IN THE PARK!" He was so enthusiastic and excited about it. :) I don't usually think of our church grounds as a park, even though that's the idea. It was just really nice to know someone appreciates it.
  
• It's Friday. Which is good because my brain is a vegetable for some reason. I had a hard time writing my sermon this week. Too many things on the brain. But today is for no thinking.
• I got a call yesterday that I had won a prize. I think it was a 2-week pass to some fitness place in Bluffton. They were calling random places and the first however-many people who answered the phone won. The lady was disappointed when I declined. I was right in the middle of a thought, and I probably shouldn't have even answered the phone, but when she started asking me questions I was afraid I was going to lose my thought, so I said no. I don't really like those places anyhow. But it's always nice to win a prize!

There might be other things, but that would require drawing on stored memory banks. We'll stop here.

peace.

Planting Bono churches

I like to read Keith Drury's stuff. I think he teaches at Indiana Wesleyan, which is not too far from me. Never met him though. Anyway, he has a good article he calls Bono Church. He says,

I see a major shift in how my students see church and it isn’t in musical styles or starting little anti-church gatherings meeting in homes. Those kind of “revolutions” might be the talk of aging and burned out boomers like George Barna but not my students. The revolution they seek has more to do with Bono than Barna. It is to make a serving church.

Interesting, and hopeful. Click on the above link to read the whole thang. You can find his blog HERE.

I can't believe...

• It snowed today. Pretty good when I was in the city. Actually, I can believe it, and it was even kinda pretty, but still...
  

• The President of the country released a statement about the Barry Bonds indictment. Wth! I mean, does anybody really even care about this? And doesn't the President have anything else to do?

• One of the most successful churches in America publicly admits to making some mistakes and pledges to change in order to try to get it better... and still people are criticizing them. Yeah, I know it's a dangerous thing to use words like "success" when describing church work, but lets get real - you might not like Willow's strategy or style, but they have done some incredible things. Perfect - no, but gimme a flippin' break. I'm tired of reading "christian" blogs.

I'm a little crotchety. Not sure why. Long week. Long. Weak. Tired.

Sites unseen

I believe I gave props to these guys once before, but I just crossed paths with them again. They have ONE FREAKIN' INCREDIBLE PLACE. It's called Sites Unseen - The Best Jesus-Infused Sites You Never Knew About, and it is simply astounding the collection of Christian resources they have. They even have MY BLOG listed, for cryin' out loud!!! Definitely Earth's Mightiest Alternative Christian Link Portal. Way to go Mike Morrell and Philip Scriber!

Pause

Ahhhh. I don't do well when I get too many things going at once. Not that I have any one BIG thing or anything, but just a whole lotta whole lotta little things. I've been running around like a chicken with my head cut off today. I need just a moment to make things stop.

This begins one of the busiest times of the year for me. I need some centering. I don't want to hate the holidays. I don't. But there's Thanksgiving - which means taking time off work, an extra service, family stuff, and the routine is tampered with. Then begins Advent - which requires special consideration, and shopping, and special stuff at church all throughout the month, budget meetings, planning services and special services, putting together annual reports, making plans for a new year, changing over books and records, and travel and family and whatever else. I know, I know. I'm not trying to bring anybody down.... it's just the way it is. I don't want to hate it. Really.

Enough.

I decided today that we're going to do a group Lectio Divina exercise at this Wednesday night's B.S. session. Lectio Divina is spiritual reading. There is a great site HERE that explains it pretty well. This is also the first place I've seen with a plan for a group setting. I like it. I hope it goes over well. We will use the evening text from the Daily Office (thanks for the tip, Tom).

Okay.... I think I'm breathing again. There are a million things I've been meaning to blog about. Just seems like I don't have time, or it's stuff I can't really talk about.

hmm.

Christ, church, and ministry connection

From the book, Historic Creeds, by Kenneth Boa:

• (18) "It is much better to desire God without being able to think clearly of Him, than to have marvelous thoughts about Him without desiring to enter into union with His will." ...Thomas Merton, New Seeds of Contemplation.
• (24) "It is easier to define ourselves by what we accomplish than by our new identity in Christ. For some, the Christian life consists more of fellowship, service to those in need, witnessing, and worship than of becoming intimate with Jesus. This leads to the problem of ministry without the manifest presence of God."
  
• (24) "God is an intensely personal and relational Being, and it is an insult for us to treat Him as though He were a power or a principle. Some of us find it easier to be comfortable with abstract principles and ideas than with people and intimacy. As we have seen, good things like the Bible, theology, ministry, and church can become substitutes for loving Him. As a countermeasure, it is good to ask God for the grace of increased passion for His Son so that, by the power of the Spirit, we will come to love Him as the Father loves Him.

I'm not entirely sure why these three pieces stuck out to me this morning. I've been thinking a lot lately about people who want to be followers of Jesus but don't want to be a part of the church. I also know a good number of people who are involved in parachurch ministries or go to Christian colleges and such, and have been wondering about church life for them. And, I've been wondering what it would be like for me if I weren't a pastor....

You know, I think it's easy for people to see church simply as 'a place you go on Sunday.' It can become just a routine; a 'putting your time in' sort of thing. But I also think we face a certain temptation to think church is not all that important. As long as we're listening to sermons or reading books and doing good works, there's a danger in thinking that makes us a part of the body of Christ.

It's a strange place where grace and works meet. I don't have a good argument for anyone, but I think that unless our works are an outgrowth of our community (church).... then it's maybe just us trying to do good things. I believe there is a biblical basis for a certain amount of organizational structure in the church. And community must be important, or there wouldn't be all those verses about unity and patience and loving one another. I think it's a hard thing for people, no matter what their life work consists of, to continue to want to be a part of the body; to keep working at relationships; and to be submissive to authorities ordained by God (and, yes, I believe God uses man in that ordination process). It's equally difficult to keep the perspective that it's not all about where we are on Sunday mornings.

I don't know, I guess it's just like trying to figure out how Jesus could be both God and man and what it all means. Well... I keep being interrupted by the ladies here for their bible study and can't keep a stream of thought flowing. Hmm... suppose there's a connection there?

The hindu weiners

Your Band Name is:

The Hindu Weiners

Band Name Generator

No freaking kidding - that's what it said. Yeah, I could see that being the name of my punk band. Hehe. Click on the link and see what your band name should be (and let us know).

ht - robin

Creeds

I am not very creedally informed. Did you know there are three main creeds from the early Christian church? I'd heard of the first two, but have to admit to ignorance on the third. They are the: Apostles, Nicene, and Athanasian (you can see this one here).

What got me to thinking about these is a little book/journal I have from Navpress called 'Historic Creeds'. It was put together by Kenneth Boa, and the back cover states:

"In these pages, you'll become intimately acquainted with key passages of Scripture and important creeds through lectio divina, a time-honored process of reading, meditation, prayer, and contemplation. This unique, interactive 90-day devotional guide and personal journal offers thorough guidance on how to begin the practice of contemplative reading, equipping you to unlock the riches of these historic statements and permanently strengthen the foundation of your faith."

I see that I started through this book once before.... but didn't finish. I'm thinking about having a go at it again. Maybe. Tom got me thinking about the whole lectio divina thing when he started using it at his church on Wednesday nights. We'll see.

I believe....

I am back

Yippee, the internet is working again. It must have been something with my provider, because about 5 minutes after 9 this morning it came to life. It was weird how lost I felt without it for only a day and a half. I think I need to get a life.

Ah, well. Not a bad weekend. Illinois beat Ohio State in college football, the Cowboys won, I have a new bathrobe (Oh, did I already tell you about that), my computer seems to be working right again (I'm wondering if it had to do with my wireless?? probably not, but...). However, Jane went to leave for work this morning and the car wouldn't start. It is deader than a doornail.

Well, now that I am alive and kicking again, maybe it's time to do something with my life.

Peace out; peace in.

I've been robed

My internet is being wacky. I'm down to dial-up, and it's not working real well. But... I had to get in a post-of-the-day. I called my ISP, but being a local place I'm sure they don't work weekends. Aaaaaaanyway...

The other day I was going through some old papers and found some money from Christmas last year. So I went out and bought myself a bathrobe and a new crossword book. I've never really been a bathrobe sorta guy, but this thing is softer than soft. I can see myself wearing it just about all day every day. If I have to go outside I can put on a stocking hat. :) Yep, I'm set for winter.

And did you see the Fighting Illini kick Ohio State's butt in football?! Wahooo!

Okay, back to the non wired world...

District leadership meeting

I know, I'm a little bit weird. I actually like when we have leaders/pastors get-togethers. Not too many others do though. Last night our district leaders were to get together for a meal and a chance to meet our new denominational director and his wife. I was looking forward to the fellowship and whatnot, but... there were only 20 people there. Only five churches were represented. There seem to be fewer and fewer people at these every time. I think I have an idea why, but... I dunno.

Anyway, the denominational director shared about himself and his vision. I like his enthusiasm, and his emphasis seems to be on church planting. Cool. Other than that... hmm. Maybe the worst part was the food. We had prime rib, which, if you like prime rib was probably good. But Jane and I don't eat much red meat anyway, and we certainly don't like it when blood is still pouring out. But, whatever.

So, I left this leadership meeting much like most of the other ones - feeling like I didn't fit in, not knowing what anyone was talking about, wondering why I seem to be the only pastor who doesn't have a clue.

Yep.

Streams of the emerging church

Yesterday I read through Scot McKnight's excellent article 'Five Streams of the Emerging Church' again. These are just some things that stuck out to me this time (all quoted directly):

• Emerging catches into one term the global reshaping of how to "do church" in postmodern culture.
• Postmodernity cannot be reduced to the denial of truth. Instead, it is the collapse of inherited metanarratives (overarching explanations of life) like those of science or Marxism. Why have they collapsed? Because of the impossibility of getting outside their assumptions.
• I know of no one in the emerging movement who believes that one's relationship with God is established by how one lives. Nor do I know anyone who thinks that it doesn't matter what one believes about Jesus Christ. But the focus is shifted. Gibbs and Bolger define emerging churches as those who practice "the way of Jesus" in the postmodern era.
• Unless you proclaim the Good News of Jesus Christ, there is no good news at all - and if there is no Good News, then there is no Christianity, emerging or evangelical.
• Any movement that is not evangelistic is failing the Lord. We may be humble about what we believe, and we may be careful to make the gospel and its commitments clear, but we must always keep the proper goal in mind: summoning everyone to follow Jesus Christ and to discover the redemptive work of God in Christ through the Spirit of God.

BTW, the five streams are: Prophetic (or at least provocative), Postmodern, Praxis-oriented, Post-evangelical, and Political.

I don't know why these were the things that stuck out to me this time, but every time I read through this article it seems something different does. Anyway, it's a good, short read into Scot's perspective of things emerging.

Tree

Jane and I planted this tree in Bogey's bathroom the back yard about seven years ago. A way to leave our mark, I guess.

What would jesus say...to me?

Jim tagged me with this meme a few days ago. He says:

I would like to start a new meme... I was thinking the other day about all the people in the Gospel that Jesus spoke to and what He said to them, and I wondered, "What would Jesus say...to me?" And the first thing that popped into my head was, "Go and sin no more." Followed closely perhaps by, "Go, sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me." I feel particularly convicted by that one recently.

So, what would Jesus say to me? Well, it changes from day to day, moment to moment. The first thing that popped into my head was, "Dan, you ignorant slut!" But unless you used to watch Saturday Night Live you might not think that too funny. But it was there. Aaaaaanyway...

Most of the time I think Jesus would probably say to me that I worry too much. And I do. I think about things for too long. I am too nervous. I play out too many possible scenarios. I wait too long. I hesitate. I am fearful. And they all likely stem from worrying; which is probably a result of a lack of trust.

Somewhat related... last night our Bible Study was on John 14:13-14 where Jesus says he will do whatever we ask in his name. The question we usually ask is, "Why didn't I get what I prayed for?" Perhaps the better question would be: "What does it mean to pray in Jesus' name?" Matt Williams shared that praying 'in Jesus' name' is not a matter of tacking those words onto the end of our prayer, but rather, it means we must love and obey Jesus in every area of our lives. I took the whole lesson to be saying - prayer isn't so much *asking* for things, but it is our way of connecting with God, so we'll learn what His will is. Prayer is more about developing our relationship with God than anything. I believe that's a hard concept for us to understand. But if I could be more in tune with God, I think I would worry a whole lot less.

Then Jesus would probably tell me to get over myself or something like that. :)

Thanks for the tag, Jim! You can find what others said on his post HERE.

Conversion: birth certificate or drivers license

From Scot McKnight's Jesus Creed, p. 93:

For some, conversion is like a birth certificate while for others it is like a driver's license. For the first, the ultimate question is "What do I need to do to get to heaven?" For the second, the question is "How do I love God?" For the first, the concern is a moment; for the second, the concern is a life.

The Jesus Creed is more like a driver's license than a birth certificate. The difference between the two is dramatic. A birth certificate proves that we were born on a specific date at a given location. A driver's license is just that: a license to drive, permission to operate. If conversion is likened to a birth certificate, we produce babies who need to be pushed around in strollers. If it is like a driver's license, we produce adults who can operate on life's pathways.

The Jesus Creed is about the totality of life, and so conversion to Jesus and the Jesus Creed is total conversion -- heart, soul, mind, and strength.

The Jesus Creed:
"Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one.
Love the Lord your God with all you heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength."
"Love your neighbor as yourself."
There is no greater commandment than these.

Go oiliers!

Ha! My alma mater, the University of Findlay Oilers, beat THE Ohio State Buckeyes in basketball! The only thing that would have made this better is if it were the CHEATERS at Indiana University instead of OSU. Although, even though I attended UF (I still think it should have been FU), I never actually went to any basketball games. But now daughter Carrie (technically) works for them, and will be attending grad school there this year. Go Oilers!

No voting allowed

I've had several people stop in today wanting to vote. I don't think any of them believed me when I told them that, yes, our church building is a polling place, but since we are in a rural area, there is nothing for us to vote on in this particular election. I finally put a sign on the door. It is kind of nice having visitors stop by for a change though.

Washing Osama's feet

Oh my. My hat's off to Tom for pointing me to Greg Boyd's excellent post "Washing Osama's Feet" and all the problems this picture caused. And guess who was mad? It was the Christians. Please click the link and read the post (though this picture could stand on its own).

Let me ask you - I'm curious - what does this picture *say* to you? Would Jesus wash his feet?

In case you're wondering, this is (left to right): German Chancellor Angela Merkel; Tony Blair, England; Kofi A. Annan, UN; Osama bin Laden; George Bush; Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh; and Jiang Zemin, former president of China. That's Jesus washing their feet.

Ready for work

This is Bogey's customary pose every morning when I get ready to leave for work. I normally try to take him to the office with me when I can because he hates to stay alone. I'll say, "Ready for work?" and he gets all happy. Then when we get there he'll either sit and look out the door or lay in my office snoring. But sometimes he can't go and I'll scratch his head and say, "Not today," and he slinks off to the corner to pout. So until I say anything, he has this lean, and this worried little look on his face.

Last week we took him to the vet for his regular distemper shot, and he also got an allergy shot to take care of his itching. He feels much better now, but what was best was, he weighed in at his lowest adult weight in a long time: 40.2 pounds. We've had two different vets tell us he is just a very muscular dog. Muscular, and short. :)

A nice day

One of my favoreet songs is "A Nice Day" by the great and wonderful Tommy Womack. But I had meself a nice day yesterday. Here it is....

The Fighting Illini trounced their opponent late Saturday night, we got an extra hour of sleep, and then it was Sunday - my favorite day of the week.

Then... I was totally surprised to see son Isaac pull in before the start of our worship gathering. Of course, I didn't realize until I was about to preach that I had planned to anonymously quote him in my sermon. I was going to do it anonymously because I hadn't asked him about it (I'd just read it Saturday), plus I didn't know if it would be embarrassing, but it all worked out okay, I guess.

Another good part was that the sanctuary was pretty full. I believe we had 101 in attendance. And I know that numbers aren't supposed to matter, but lemme tell ya - for this preacher - I ain't too proud to say that it DOES make me feel better when there's a good crowd. We don't seem to top 100 very often and it's nice to write three digits. So all you preacher-haters can go ahead and citate me for liking a lot of people at our gatherings (you could sue me, but that would be fruitless for you).

Then... daughter Carrie Jade came sliding in during the music set, and had boyfriend Drew and one of his roommates in tow. I hate to say it, but I like this Drew guy. Not only does he make my daughter happy, but he's a sorta quiet, quirky guy with a nice sense of humor and he always seems at ease around us. I like that. Hope I didn't just jinx something though.

Also... I was a little worried about my sermon, because while I usually like to have it ready by Wednesday, this one was restarted on Saturday because I could just never pull together what I'd started last Monday. I hate it when that happens. But it seemed to go over well. Sometimes the Spirit works like that.

Afterwards we all went to one of my favorite restaurants - me, Jane, Carrie, Isaac, Drew, and Tom - and had a nice lunch together.

And it's not over..... Jane and I have a happy spot we go each Sunday night, and have made some great friends there, and THEY GOT ME A BIRTHDAY CAKE!!! And it was oreo. And it had candles on it. And they sang happy birthday to me. And they dimmed the lights. And they gave me a card. And it was just too awesome. I mean, how many restaurants will let their employees bring in food from outside to serve to their customers??? Not too many, I bet. Shoot, how many restaurant employees give birthday cakes to their customers! (and mine was better than MR's - even though his was first). :)

To top things off, my favorite team (the dallas cowboys) whoopped the eaglets last night. So... that's what I call a nice day, friends.

I hope you have one today.

Fast time or slow time

In case you didn't know it - Daylight Saving Time ended earlier this morning (2 am). Hopefully you remembered to set your clock back an hour.

And I probably shouldn't even write this, but I just don't understand... What is 'slow time' and 'fast time'? Yesterday someone from our church called the house and asked Jane what time our worship gathering was going to be this Sunday (today). She thought they were kidding, but to be on the safe side she said, "Same as always - 10 am!" And then they asked, "Is that slow time or fast time?" They were dead serious. So she had to explain to them that everyone would be setting their clocks back an hour, and it would be 10 am on "standard" time again.

Now, to be fair, I know hoosiers are new to this. Indiana just started observing Daylight Saving Time again last year, so it's understandable to not have a good grasp of it yet. But I don't know what 'slow time' and 'fast time' mean. I mean, I suppose one is for Standard and one for Daylight Saving Time, but, so, which is which? One is not slower and one faster. Time is time. I just don't get it. Anyway, there's a good article "Fall back: It's finally time to reset your clock" that explains not only Daylight Saving Time, but it also has other useful info about sleep, why we have crust in our eyes in the morning, morning breath, why we snore, and why we yawn.

Good day, all!

The time is right (for a change)

• Random clips on a beautiful fall midwest morning. I should probably take a picture through one of the two windows I can see out of right now, but there is perhaps no way to frame it without losing something vitally important.

• Don't forget to SET YOUR CLOCK BACK AN HOUR TONIGHT! Daylight savings time is coming to an end - and none to early. I don't mind observing DST (which is still new for most hoosiers), but I didn't like extending it into November. I will enjoy getting an extra hour of sleep tonight though.

• Last night for my birthday Jane and I had supper at Bob Evans, then went to the theater and watched American Gangster. It was pretty good - but I'm no movie critic. I like Denzel Washington and Russell Crowe.

• Music has a power over me. Watching the previews at the theater, I don't even remember what the movie was, but they went from Hendrix's version of "All Along The Watchtower" to Don McLean's "American Pie" and my eyes just welled up. I've always been like that; and not just with these two songs. Of course, it doesn't hurt to have movie-theater-sound; or that I was sitting with the woman of my dreams; but still...

• Each of my kids wrote a blog post this week that stopped me in my tracks. I already linked to Carrie's "Peace" post, and this morning I ran across son Isaac's post "Love Minus Zero/No Limit." Isaac is a good writer, albeit with a unique style that I'm not sure everyone gets. But I think this is his best yet. It reminded me of Wes King's song "Don't Say I Love You Too Soon." God is certainly good to have blessed a sap like me with such wonderful children (they get the good stuff from their mom).

• Rather than turn the clock back tonight, I kind of wish I could just freeze time right now. If you know me, you know it's rare that I would say something like that. I'm not usually very satisfied with the way things are, and it will probably change the minute I get out of this seat, I don't know. But I am married to the love of my life, my kids both seem to be at good points in their lives, I love the fall colors, yesterday I got cards, calls, text messages, myspace messages, emails, and comments from an assortment of old friends and new wishing me a happy day.... Well, I just feel okay right now. So.... getting back to my 'real' self.... I wonder what's about to go terribly wrong. :) (just kidding).

Peace out; peace in; peace all around, friends and flobies!

It's my birthday

Yup. I'm 45 today. I was born on my mother's birthday. And, actually, my birth was announced. Boyd Bitting was the announcer for our school's football games and apparently I was born on a Friday and it was announced at the football game. He announced all the games right up through my senior year of high school, and then he retired.

I don't really feel too bad this year. I can have a tendency to get weird around my birthday. Although I believe I have woke up with a headache the last three years.

Jane got me the new socket set I had been wanting (thanks for remembering, dear. better than $182). :) I also got a new crossword puzzle book. And I just went out to the mailbox and there were three birthday cards AND OUR PASSPORTS ARRIVED!!! Yippee!

It seemed there was more I was going to say, but now I can't think of anything. Oh well. Today is also All Soul's Day. Kind of an odd thing as far as I'm concerned. Not too many significant things happened on this day according to wikipedia. Cheerleading began in 1898. Hmm. There are 59 days remaining until the end of the year.

Yup.

Nothin' matters and what if it did

I always liked the title of this album (even though I don't usually believe it to be true). Last night the lovely lady and I took in a John Mellencamp concert. It was awright. I usually don't think of John as a great musician/songwriter, but I had kinda forgotten just how much a part of my life he had been in my post-high-school years. I fight authority; wearing white t-shirts; the hair.... and even the number of songs I knew almost all the words too. Hmm. It was almost like we were brothers (at least that's probably what HE thinks!). :)

Anyway, it was a *fun* show. And he does a good concert. He came out unannounced and plowed through four songs non-stop (that's how shows should start - you can talk later). He didn't get too political, which was good, because that's where the two of us might have the most disagreement. He encouraged people to do good, to look out for others, and hoped the next generation would finally be able to legalize marijuana because, as he said, that was our generations biggest failure. Ha. He also refers to Jesus a lot in his music. I'd like to talk to him about that sometime. One of his new songs was perhaps one of my favorites, but I can't remember it right now -- something about asking Jesus to help him make it home. Anyway, it was also neat seeing his front guitarist, Andy York, who is a former guitarist in my friend Jason Ringenberg's band Jason & the Scorchers, and who we sat near the last time we were in Nashvegas.

Los Lobos did great opening up too. A big little band from East LA. And if I didn't know better I could have swore Tim Atkins was playing bass for them. :) I liked how they just came out and rocked. They didn't appear to be trying to impress anyone, but were just having a good time and seemed to want everyone else to have a good time too. What more could you ask for in a band? And I'm a sucker for that heavy guitar sound. I love that when they're right at the limit where if you let go for just a second you're spewing feedback all over everyone. I always thought son Isaac had a great way of playing in that dimension. Perhaps one of my favorite of his shows was his last day of high school in the courtyard - the sustain on his old red tradition was always teetering on the obscene. Fond memories.

Anway.... we had a brief moment of freakout. When they scanned our ticket it beeped funny and the guy told us we would have to go over to this other table. They changed our seat. Instead of being in the way top, we were in the middle. So that was cool. Glad I bought the cheap seats! The only problem was we did have aisle seats, and now we didn't. I almost always will choose aisle seats at places like this - I don't even care how high I have to go. I just don't like being stuck in the middle. And sure enough, we sit down, and this guy sits next to me and immediately starts talking to me like I'm his best friend. Then he puts his arm on the back of MY seat and says, "Feel free to stretch out, I don't mind." Eeek! After a few minutes we got up to use the restroom and kind of just floated around, sitting in aisle seats until someone showed up. We finally settled just a few rows up from where we were. Some people from our church actually ended up across the aisle.

All in all, it was a pretty good night. But I'm not too hard to please when it comes to concerts. Just don't be an ass and I'm happy. I love live music. I would go see John again too. And I bet Los Lobos would be an awesome band outdoors. They should consider them for the Three Rivers Festival in Fort Wayne. Or maybe someone would foot the bill to bring them to the Fair View Pavilion!? :)

Keep on rockin'.

Grace and peace...

My wonderful daughter, Carrie Jade, has a fantabulous post she called "Peace" on her blog. I recommend that you click on over there and read it, because it has some good stats and quotes, but I especially liked what she had to say:

Think about all of the things you stand against. How easy is it for you to KNOW that those things are wrong? Have you ever been immersed in that situation? How easy would it be to step into that territory? How thin is that line that have not crossed?

My hope is that this line of thought will allow you to apply grace to those who oppose your opinions. To step in their shoes - not supporting what they practice, but having compassion on them and their situation.

Have you ever met a girl who had an abortion? I have. And she is broken. My words are spoken a lot more carefully around her and I would benefit from thinking like this more often. Have you ever been friends with a gay man with a broken heart? I have. And I learned that he needs just as much love and compassion as a straight man in the same situation. Have you ever met a Muslim? I have. And she was not evil or violent. She wants the same peace I want. Have you ever talked with a homeless person. I have. And not all of them were lazy. They want out of the system just as much as we don't want to have to see it. love.

All of that is not to say that some how I have done it right. I haven't done anything at all. I just think that many are doing a great injustice to themselves by never experiencing the realities of this world. You do not have to be of the world to be in the world. Being with those who are different from me has perhaps taught me more, first hand, about what it means to love than anything else. And you don't have to go far to meet people like this. They are people you work with, go to school with, see at the mall, pass on the sidewalks...

Amen, sister.... I mean, daughter.

National blog posting month

Do you know what today is? It is the start of National Blog Posting Month! According to NaBloPoMo (the National Blog Posting Month website), they are challenging all bloggers to post something on their blog every day for the month of November. If you sign up on their site you could even win a prize!

I didn't actually sign up, but I am going to try to write something every day this month. Actually, I am currently thinking I would like to write more short posts, rather than a single long post each day. But we'll see.

So, are you up for the challenge? Heck, if you read here you know your posts don't have to be about anything. Why not give it a try. It's all good, right? :)

Funeral picketers lose lawsuit

According to THIS ARTICLE the church that pickets military funerals and holds up signs like "God Hates Fags" has lost an 11-million dollar lawsuit. Not that I should be happy, but..... I am. I think these people are seriously misguided and an embarrassment to Christianity. I seriously doubt the lawsuit will stick, and I doubt that it will do anything but make them even more callous in their protesting, but.... I still hold out hope that God would get a hold of their hearts and open their eyes.