Monday, October 13, 2008
Quote o' the day
“Every concept formed by the intellect in an attempt to comprehend and circumscribe the divine nature can succeed only in fashioning an idol, not in making God known.” - Gregory of Nyssa, “Life of Moses”
Monday, September 1, 2008
Friday, August 29, 2008
What the heck?
Brain Lateralization Test Results |
| Right Brain (66%) The right hemisphere is the visual, figurative, artistic, and intuitive side of the brain. Left Brain (24%) The left hemisphere is the logical, articulate, assertive, and practical side of the brain |
Are You Right or Left Brained?
Saturday, August 9, 2008
Friday, August 8, 2008
New Addiction
Featured in the September issue of Food & Wine is my new favorite place on earth:
http://www.foodandwine.com/articles/where-to-go-next-best-us-coffee-bars
http://www.foodandwine.com/articles/where-to-go-next-best-us-coffee-bars
Thursday, July 17, 2008
Q & A
Relevant Magazine recently asked,
"As the Church moves forward in the new millennium, what is the biggest problem facing the body of Christ?"
Chuck Colson:
"We have substituted therapy for Truth. We hear a feel-good message, and we’ve lost our understanding of the basic truths of Christianity. The world is defining us by the attacks of aggressive secularists, best-selling authors who admit to being anti-theists. They will continue to define us unless we learn how to define ourselves—and not only define ourselves, but live out our faith in such a way that people can see the invisible Kingdom made visible in our midst."
"As the Church moves forward in the new millennium, what is the biggest problem facing the body of Christ?"
Chuck Colson:
"We have substituted therapy for Truth. We hear a feel-good message, and we’ve lost our understanding of the basic truths of Christianity. The world is defining us by the attacks of aggressive secularists, best-selling authors who admit to being anti-theists. They will continue to define us unless we learn how to define ourselves—and not only define ourselves, but live out our faith in such a way that people can see the invisible Kingdom made visible in our midst."
Thursday, July 10, 2008
Are you a chaplain?
I had coffee with a very good friend yesterday morning. What was supposed to be 30 minutes of getting caught up turned into 2 hours. We talked about what has happened over the past few months since we had last gotten together. I've only known this friend for 15 months and so even now we are still sharing more and more of our story and how we came to be where we are.
I was telling him about a phone call from another friend the week before where we discussed his struggles with a potential inappropriate workplace relationship when the topic of a former pastor came up. I was describing this pastor's week as roughly 40 hours of office time in sermon/teaching prep with an occasional trip to the hospital, wedding and/or funeral....no time in the community, no time in a small group, no relationships with the lost, no feeding the hungry or clothing the poor....nothing that I believe Jesus came to die for. His response has had me thinking ever since:
"So....he was your chaplain."
He went on talking but I glazed over (I'm not a very good listener at times). Let me stop and say this is in no way meant to bemean the role of a chaplain. I've only known two people who were chaplains and both were amazing people. I guess I'm stuck on how some people who call themselves pastors and that take on that incredible task can get to a place where they believe that 90% of their life should be given to sermon preparation.
I truly believe that he was/is a product of a lot of things but mostly a time and place that takes the idea of the equipping of the saints as they (try) to do the rest of the Bible.....literally. I guess the idea is, "I'm just called to equip the saints." How anyone can get to a place where they believe they are in no way called as a Christian to get out and live life among the world and put "their money where their mouth is", is beyond me.
I know this generation is passing away. Most of the pastors I know spend intentional time outside the walls of the church engaging this wonderful world that Jesus came to die for and have a pretty good grasp of God's mission of reconciliation. Many of the pastors I know and interact with are actually trying to figure out how to get more of themselves and the money that comes in back into the community to meet the needs of the least, last and lost.
As always, I apologize that you choose to be subjected to my ramblings....just my way of processing the ideas bouncing around in my head about the idea of pastors as chaplains.
I was telling him about a phone call from another friend the week before where we discussed his struggles with a potential inappropriate workplace relationship when the topic of a former pastor came up. I was describing this pastor's week as roughly 40 hours of office time in sermon/teaching prep with an occasional trip to the hospital, wedding and/or funeral....no time in the community, no time in a small group, no relationships with the lost, no feeding the hungry or clothing the poor....nothing that I believe Jesus came to die for. His response has had me thinking ever since:
"So....he was your chaplain."
He went on talking but I glazed over (I'm not a very good listener at times). Let me stop and say this is in no way meant to bemean the role of a chaplain. I've only known two people who were chaplains and both were amazing people. I guess I'm stuck on how some people who call themselves pastors and that take on that incredible task can get to a place where they believe that 90% of their life should be given to sermon preparation.
I truly believe that he was/is a product of a lot of things but mostly a time and place that takes the idea of the equipping of the saints as they (try) to do the rest of the Bible.....literally. I guess the idea is, "I'm just called to equip the saints." How anyone can get to a place where they believe they are in no way called as a Christian to get out and live life among the world and put "their money where their mouth is", is beyond me.
I know this generation is passing away. Most of the pastors I know spend intentional time outside the walls of the church engaging this wonderful world that Jesus came to die for and have a pretty good grasp of God's mission of reconciliation. Many of the pastors I know and interact with are actually trying to figure out how to get more of themselves and the money that comes in back into the community to meet the needs of the least, last and lost.
As always, I apologize that you choose to be subjected to my ramblings....just my way of processing the ideas bouncing around in my head about the idea of pastors as chaplains.
Monday, June 30, 2008
Monday, June 23, 2008
Post of the year!
I read a ton of blog posts every day. Somewhere in the neighborhood of 40 to 50. It goes without saying that I don't read every word of every post but I do skim all of them to find the ones that I am interested in. As you may or may not know, there is a synchroblog of some 50 people today posting on the word "missional" (the rest of the folks are listed at the bottom of David's post). I guess it is the nature of my interests but about a dozen of the people taking part are in my google reader. This link will take you to what is, right now, the best post I've read this year. I guess it is because I'm a recovering mega-church member. My family and I have been a part of 3 different mega-churches over the past 10 years in 3 different cities and two different states. There are many positive things about mega-churches but in the end, we decided that for us, the negatives (probably not the right word) outweighed the positives. I've struggled to put my feelings into words on why we had to leave LifeChurch but, where I have failed, David Fitch has excelled. Do you ever read something that makes you wonder if that person has been offloading brainwaves from you? That was this post for me.
Thursday, June 19, 2008
Wednesday, June 18, 2008
Friday, June 13, 2008
Thursday, June 12, 2008
Monday, June 9, 2008
WOW!!!
The story and the art really moved me:
http://mattstone.blogs.com/photos/sacred_images/lord_jesus_of_many_faces.html
http://mattstone.blogs.com/photos/sacred_images/lord_jesus_of_many_faces.html
Wednesday, June 4, 2008
No dialogue, No theology
This is a post from Matt Stone who blogs at Glocal Christianity:
Someone having trouble? You need to study your Bible and find out what it says for your problem. We have reduced the Bible to nothing more than a book full of answers to our questions/problems. Don't believe me? Check out a guy named Hank Hanegraaff.
I'm glad that in many places the idea is shifting back to a theology of "faith seeking dialogue". Does this mean that you and I ultimately decide what is truth and what isn't? I guess my unlearned answer is that for me, theology shouldn't be determined by a text book that applies to everyone everywhere. Theology is something that is lived out in context. So, the people that live in that context are largely responsible (through the power of the Holy Spirit) for deciding how our faith gets fleshed out in our context. Are we really deciding what is truth for us and what isn't? Not really. Although that is the claim from the fear mongers who are trying to protect and preserve and outdated and broken model. For me it is a matter of trying to figure out how to apply the Biblical narrative in the context that God has me in. Nothing more nothing less.
I was reading an article on Indian theology and found an interesting morsel to chew on.
One of the problems with Christianity of late is that we've followed the modern mindset into believing that Theology is just like anything else that you might study in college. You have a text book and you discover or learn faith by studying your textbook and finding the truth.Eminent Indian theologian Felix Wilfred, who heads Chennai's Department of Christian Studies, emphasizes the indispensability of dialogue in contextual theology. Indian theology is "faith seeking dialogue"... modifying St. Anselm's classical definition of theology being "faith seeking understanding."
Someone having trouble? You need to study your Bible and find out what it says for your problem. We have reduced the Bible to nothing more than a book full of answers to our questions/problems. Don't believe me? Check out a guy named Hank Hanegraaff.
I'm glad that in many places the idea is shifting back to a theology of "faith seeking dialogue". Does this mean that you and I ultimately decide what is truth and what isn't? I guess my unlearned answer is that for me, theology shouldn't be determined by a text book that applies to everyone everywhere. Theology is something that is lived out in context. So, the people that live in that context are largely responsible (through the power of the Holy Spirit) for deciding how our faith gets fleshed out in our context. Are we really deciding what is truth for us and what isn't? Not really. Although that is the claim from the fear mongers who are trying to protect and preserve and outdated and broken model. For me it is a matter of trying to figure out how to apply the Biblical narrative in the context that God has me in. Nothing more nothing less.
Tuesday, June 3, 2008
Drugs are my friend...
Thank goodness for Oxycodone. I never thought I would be able to say that....see previous posts for details about what it has done to my mom (who is doing very well now). For me, it has been a blessing over the past few days. While trying to finish up some yard work on Sunday morning, I was squatted down finishing cutting down a tree in my front yard. When I got finished and tried to stand up, my back gave out and I ended up on my knees. Long story longer, I eventually had to give up on walking and decided to crawl back into the house. I have a pinched nerve that has caused a lot of pain in my back and left leg. I've been to see the Chiro twice a day and he has me almost back to normal. I've taken a few pills over the course of the last 48 hours, but only when the pain got so bad I couldn't find a position to lay in that eased the pain. That stuff is amazing and I could see where someone might get hooked....you can go from completely miserable with unbearable pain to feeling good and not giving a damn about anything in the span of less than 30 minutes.
The moral of the story is to trim your trees yearly, not decadely.
Much Love,
PB
The moral of the story is to trim your trees yearly, not decadely.
Much Love,
PB
Tuesday, May 27, 2008
20 reasons to drop 20 pounds.
This is from Men's Health and gave me a few laughs...I laughed hardest at number 3:
1. Because you whine that you need to. Have you ever been wrong about anything?
2. Twenty pounds of warm human fat can refill every bottle in an empty case of beer, with enough left over to fill your blender.
3. The statement "There's more of me to love" has an actual bedroom translation of "There's more of me to endure."
4. It's not scaling Everest or writing the great American novel. You can do it in your spare time.
5. You'll speak of toaster pastries the way you talk about that dirty blonde from the blues bar in Berkeley, another whiskey-soaked lament over a love too great to last.
6. It's the difference between being thought of as jolly or witty.
7. You'll lose weight everywhere, including the suprapubic fat pad at the base of your penis. So as your belly shrinks, something else appears to grow.
8. Decreased: your chances of developing heart disease, prostate cancer, diabetes, sleep apnea, depression, back pain, impotence, gallstones, joint problems, high blood pressure, low sperm counts, and an impressive collection of prescription-drug bottles.
9. Increased: your chances of putting four fingers on a basketball rim.
10. You'll literally get closer to women.
11. Holy sh-- . . . abs!
12. Men who lose weight never have less sex. They may not have more, mind you, but they never have less.
13. You'll shock the world at your local pool by being the only "big splash" champ to win the "little splash" crown.
14. Research shows that since you'll have less weight propelling you into the windshield, you'll also have less risk of dying when your car hits a semi.
15. Every time you pick up a 20-pound dumbbell, you'll remember.
16. You'll be able to reach even more places to scratch.
17. The clothing cliche: It's liberating the first time your pants fall down by themselves.
18. More pullups, because there's less to pull up.
19. Wait till you ride a WaveRunner, quad, or snowmobile when you're 20 pounds lighter. Vroom, baby.
20. In our society, people respect weight loss. Even if you do nothing cool or interesting or memorable for the rest of your life, you'll have done that.
1. Because you whine that you need to. Have you ever been wrong about anything?
2. Twenty pounds of warm human fat can refill every bottle in an empty case of beer, with enough left over to fill your blender.
3. The statement "There's more of me to love" has an actual bedroom translation of "There's more of me to endure."
4. It's not scaling Everest or writing the great American novel. You can do it in your spare time.
5. You'll speak of toaster pastries the way you talk about that dirty blonde from the blues bar in Berkeley, another whiskey-soaked lament over a love too great to last.
6. It's the difference between being thought of as jolly or witty.
7. You'll lose weight everywhere, including the suprapubic fat pad at the base of your penis. So as your belly shrinks, something else appears to grow.
8. Decreased: your chances of developing heart disease, prostate cancer, diabetes, sleep apnea, depression, back pain, impotence, gallstones, joint problems, high blood pressure, low sperm counts, and an impressive collection of prescription-drug bottles.
9. Increased: your chances of putting four fingers on a basketball rim.
10. You'll literally get closer to women.
11. Holy sh-- . . . abs!
12. Men who lose weight never have less sex. They may not have more, mind you, but they never have less.
13. You'll shock the world at your local pool by being the only "big splash" champ to win the "little splash" crown.
14. Research shows that since you'll have less weight propelling you into the windshield, you'll also have less risk of dying when your car hits a semi.
15. Every time you pick up a 20-pound dumbbell, you'll remember.
16. You'll be able to reach even more places to scratch.
17. The clothing cliche: It's liberating the first time your pants fall down by themselves.
18. More pullups, because there's less to pull up.
19. Wait till you ride a WaveRunner, quad, or snowmobile when you're 20 pounds lighter. Vroom, baby.
20. In our society, people respect weight loss. Even if you do nothing cool or interesting or memorable for the rest of your life, you'll have done that.
quote o the day
This came at the end of one of my conference calls that I have to be a part of every Monday morning (we bankers were off yesterday):
"All mankind is divided into three classes: Those that are immovable, those that are movable and those that get moving!"
- Unknown
I have no idea where this came from but I immediately thought about how this quote, which was being used in a business/work context, applies to our daily lives as Christ followers. I'm sure you can think of different people in your life that fit each of the three categories. Which category fits you best?
Unfortunately, I spent the better part of over a decade trying to maintain the "immovable" image. I had my systematic theology, ecclesiology, soteriology and all the other "ologies" down into a perfectly immovable system. That is our number one calling in life right? According to many people it was and still is. After all, if the Christian life is all about going to Heaven what else are we supposed to do while here on Earth?
Thanks to some great friends, I am beginning to live out a much healthier, more holistic Christian life. I would no longer characterize myself as immovable and with God's help, I will never be there again. I think there is a huge misconception that theology is something that has an answer and that we are to figure it out so it can be settled. May God grant us grace to live a life that is worthy of the calling placed on our lives. May it always be about openness. May we be open to new ideas, new friends, new ways of looking at the world, new depths of our faith and new ideas shared by others.
Closed minded and "immovable" can only lead to atrophy and ultimately death. Let's encourage one another to be "movable" and to "get moving". It's fine to memorize another scripture but for me, it is about trying to figure out how to live out the ones I already know.
PB
"All mankind is divided into three classes: Those that are immovable, those that are movable and those that get moving!"
- Unknown
I have no idea where this came from but I immediately thought about how this quote, which was being used in a business/work context, applies to our daily lives as Christ followers. I'm sure you can think of different people in your life that fit each of the three categories. Which category fits you best?
Unfortunately, I spent the better part of over a decade trying to maintain the "immovable" image. I had my systematic theology, ecclesiology, soteriology and all the other "ologies" down into a perfectly immovable system. That is our number one calling in life right? According to many people it was and still is. After all, if the Christian life is all about going to Heaven what else are we supposed to do while here on Earth?
Thanks to some great friends, I am beginning to live out a much healthier, more holistic Christian life. I would no longer characterize myself as immovable and with God's help, I will never be there again. I think there is a huge misconception that theology is something that has an answer and that we are to figure it out so it can be settled. May God grant us grace to live a life that is worthy of the calling placed on our lives. May it always be about openness. May we be open to new ideas, new friends, new ways of looking at the world, new depths of our faith and new ideas shared by others.
Closed minded and "immovable" can only lead to atrophy and ultimately death. Let's encourage one another to be "movable" and to "get moving". It's fine to memorize another scripture but for me, it is about trying to figure out how to live out the ones I already know.
PB
Saturday, May 24, 2008
Saturday, May 17, 2008
Wednesday, May 14, 2008
Missional
I was reading a post on "missional" when I ran across a link to an article by Tim Conder that appeared in a Christianity Today issue several months back. I've taken an excerpt that I think really gets to the point of what many who are truly trying to live missionally are really all about.
"In essence, missional churches seek to align their identity, activities, and hopes with God’s redemptive mission on earth. This is a tall order for churches that brim with cultural and programming expectations, resource abundance, iconic labels (like “evangelical” or “mainline” or “Pentecostal”), and visions of grand ambitions. The temptation is always to have a grand scheme to which we incessantly try to woo or invoke God’s presence rather see ourselves fitting into God’s agenda.
In contrast, the missional church is a corrective to or an outright rejection of commodified and cultural Christianity, steeped in institutionalism, individualism, and sentimentality."
Wow, an amazing summation of what many are feeling and trying to live out each day. May our lives always fly in the face of any/all institutionalized, individualized, commodified Christianity. My (new) pastor is teaching through a series called "Reorientation", where we are looking at different ways God is calling us to reorient our lives around Him, His work and His Kingdom. It is tough to hear, tough to think about and even tougher to live out....anything but an "attractional model" that so many churches are trying to perfect. We are finding out that all of these things we hold so highly are only accomplished within genuine community. That is probably another post. Everyone (all 1 of you) have a great day!
"In essence, missional churches seek to align their identity, activities, and hopes with God’s redemptive mission on earth. This is a tall order for churches that brim with cultural and programming expectations, resource abundance, iconic labels (like “evangelical” or “mainline” or “Pentecostal”), and visions of grand ambitions. The temptation is always to have a grand scheme to which we incessantly try to woo or invoke God’s presence rather see ourselves fitting into God’s agenda.
In contrast, the missional church is a corrective to or an outright rejection of commodified and cultural Christianity, steeped in institutionalism, individualism, and sentimentality."
Wow, an amazing summation of what many are feeling and trying to live out each day. May our lives always fly in the face of any/all institutionalized, individualized, commodified Christianity. My (new) pastor is teaching through a series called "Reorientation", where we are looking at different ways God is calling us to reorient our lives around Him, His work and His Kingdom. It is tough to hear, tough to think about and even tougher to live out....anything but an "attractional model" that so many churches are trying to perfect. We are finding out that all of these things we hold so highly are only accomplished within genuine community. That is probably another post. Everyone (all 1 of you) have a great day!
Monday, May 12, 2008
quote of the day
Not from a theologian but made me laugh so hard I decided to share it with the 3 of you that actually might see my post.
"I can run pretty fast, I just can't stop or change directions."
- my new friend Dax
"I can run pretty fast, I just can't stop or change directions."
- my new friend Dax
Wednesday, May 7, 2008
Nouwen quote
"What makes the temptation of power so seemingly irresistible? Maybe it is that power offers an easy substitute for the hard task of love. It seems easier to be God than to love God, easier to control people than to love people, easier to own life than to love life." -Henri Nouwen ("In the Name of Jesus")
Tuesday, May 6, 2008
Quote O' The Day
"Kindness has converted more sinners than zeal, eloquence, or learning."
Frederick William Faber
Frederick William Faber
Monday, May 5, 2008
Revolution MoneyExchange
I just signed up for Revolution MoneyExchange (HT: Adam Walker Cleveland) - which is very similar to PayPal, although it doesn’t charge any fees - which is really nice. I haven’t played around with it a lot yet, but the only thing I notice is that, unlike PayPal, if you want to send or receive money, you need to have a Revolution MoneyExchange account. It’s in the BETA stage right now, but they are offering a free $25 if you start up an account (I just signed up and instantly received my $25). If you sign up by clicking on the image below, it’s true that I will receive $10, but I will be giving all of the proceeds to the Bethel Foundation, a non-profit that helps single, battered moms get permanent housing and get back on their feet.
Wednesday, April 23, 2008
Sunday, April 20, 2008
"Luke, you're going to find that many of the truths we cling to depend greatly on our own point of view."
Obi-Wan
Brenden and I have been watching the Star Wars movies (sans the one where "Ani turns evil") over the past several weekends and this quote has jumped out at me the last few times I've seen Return of the Jedi.
It is early on Sunday morning so I can't really think very well to develop the thought....maybe later.
I hope everyone has a great day!
Obi-Wan
Brenden and I have been watching the Star Wars movies (sans the one where "Ani turns evil") over the past several weekends and this quote has jumped out at me the last few times I've seen Return of the Jedi.
It is early on Sunday morning so I can't really think very well to develop the thought....maybe later.
I hope everyone has a great day!
Thursday, April 17, 2008
a friend's journey
I spent some today talking with a work friend today. He was born and raised a charismatic, fundamentalist Christian (his words). He was raised in the home of a pastor of those churches. He became a teacher and a pastor within that environment.
When we first met it was 2003 and we were both in our first year of being Personal Bankers for BofA. I was just kinda going sideways (probably not possible) in my Christian life and he was "on fire for for God". He was preaching and teaching and I remember him coming in one Monday and telling me a story of a lady who was miraculously healed during their Sunday morning service that weekend. I remember being happy for him and the feelings that had created for him and privately knowing that God didn't do that type of thing...especially for those wacko charismatics. Jason was the picture of holiness and righteousness.....never drank, smoked, cursed, went to rated R movies, looked at women the wrong way, etc...
Fast forward 5 years and Jason is now a professed Atheist. I don't have enough room to go through the journey that got him to this point but I do want to tell you that it wasn't anything bad. No cheating wife, no bad stuff with church or church members, no fall out with his mom or dad.....nothing to "blame" for what has happened.
I also want to let you know that I'm not worried about him at all. I believe in a really big God and I also believe that God has big plans for Jason. As I told one of our mutual friends today, Jason is a very intelligent person with a high IQ and he was probably past due for something like this. He is still very young (25 or 26) and has never (until recently) had his rebellious phase or a single time of questioning the doctrine and theology that has been handed down to him as a third generation pastor.
I'm actually very excited for him because he is still very much seeking truth and if I know Jason and if I know (even a very little bit) about God, I know that the faith that he will come out of this with will be something real, transformative, sustainable and reproducible....something he hasn't had in the past.
I ran across this quote and found it somewhat appropriate:
Man can certainly flee from God... but he cannot escape him. He can certainly hate God and be hateful to God, but he cannot change into its opposite the eternal love of God which triumphs even in his hate.
Karl Barth
When we first met it was 2003 and we were both in our first year of being Personal Bankers for BofA. I was just kinda going sideways (probably not possible) in my Christian life and he was "on fire for for God". He was preaching and teaching and I remember him coming in one Monday and telling me a story of a lady who was miraculously healed during their Sunday morning service that weekend. I remember being happy for him and the feelings that had created for him and privately knowing that God didn't do that type of thing...especially for those wacko charismatics. Jason was the picture of holiness and righteousness.....never drank, smoked, cursed, went to rated R movies, looked at women the wrong way, etc...
Fast forward 5 years and Jason is now a professed Atheist. I don't have enough room to go through the journey that got him to this point but I do want to tell you that it wasn't anything bad. No cheating wife, no bad stuff with church or church members, no fall out with his mom or dad.....nothing to "blame" for what has happened.
I also want to let you know that I'm not worried about him at all. I believe in a really big God and I also believe that God has big plans for Jason. As I told one of our mutual friends today, Jason is a very intelligent person with a high IQ and he was probably past due for something like this. He is still very young (25 or 26) and has never (until recently) had his rebellious phase or a single time of questioning the doctrine and theology that has been handed down to him as a third generation pastor.
I'm actually very excited for him because he is still very much seeking truth and if I know Jason and if I know (even a very little bit) about God, I know that the faith that he will come out of this with will be something real, transformative, sustainable and reproducible....something he hasn't had in the past.
I ran across this quote and found it somewhat appropriate:
Man can certainly flee from God... but he cannot escape him. He can certainly hate God and be hateful to God, but he cannot change into its opposite the eternal love of God which triumphs even in his hate.
Karl Barth
Tuesday, April 15, 2008
a place to belong
After being involved with the same church for a little over 6 years, the Baird's may have found a new community. We actually "visited" this group about two years ago and due to where we were on our theological journey we ran back to safer ground. I am feeling so blessed that our return felt to be "God's timing". It was our first time to meet the pastor. Last time we visited, he was in India with a team delivering some kind of harvesting devices/tools that were designed to help the locals harvest their crops faster to make sure they didn't miss their very short window. He is a great guy that I actually went to college with...we didn't really know each other but recognized each other's names and faces. Our wives know each other pretty well.
From what I can tell they are truly living out the gospel in their neighborhood. The pastor and his wife have moved into an urban area that is in the beginning stages of a revitalization....the very beginning stages. It is still an area that is a perfect example of a once vibrant area full of restaurants, bars, and grocery stores that has devolved into an area of urban blight. They took a run down part of a strip that is trying to make a come back and are in the process of turning it into something very special. Check it out HERE. Art, music, a free clothing store once per month...good stuff for sure. The pastor has a "real job" as a free lance graphic designer (how freaking awesome is that Kathy?)
Our number one concern was our kiddos. They have become extremely spoiled living the good life (pun intended) at lifechurch.tv where they have moon bounces, customized video Bible lessons each week, hi energy leaders, etc... The first question my daughter asked was, "Are we going to one of those churches where they open a book and sing that opera stuff?" Which is funny because they have probably been in worship settings like that less than 10 times in their whole lives. Our kids had an absolute blast and are begging to go back! Further confirmation that we may have/probably found a home.
We are going to miss this weekend due to some travel stuff but I'm going to lunch with the pastor on Monday. Looking forward to playing the theology game in finding out who and what he is reading:) We were both trained at the fundamentalist Southern Baptist school Oklahoma Baptist University so it should be interesting.
We are kinda bummed to be leaving life but unbelievably excited about the future and joining in where God is already working. It will be a challenge for sure. Now it is time to put our words/talk into action. No more excuses for us!
From what I can tell they are truly living out the gospel in their neighborhood. The pastor and his wife have moved into an urban area that is in the beginning stages of a revitalization....the very beginning stages. It is still an area that is a perfect example of a once vibrant area full of restaurants, bars, and grocery stores that has devolved into an area of urban blight. They took a run down part of a strip that is trying to make a come back and are in the process of turning it into something very special. Check it out HERE. Art, music, a free clothing store once per month...good stuff for sure. The pastor has a "real job" as a free lance graphic designer (how freaking awesome is that Kathy?)
Our number one concern was our kiddos. They have become extremely spoiled living the good life (pun intended) at lifechurch.tv where they have moon bounces, customized video Bible lessons each week, hi energy leaders, etc... The first question my daughter asked was, "Are we going to one of those churches where they open a book and sing that opera stuff?" Which is funny because they have probably been in worship settings like that less than 10 times in their whole lives. Our kids had an absolute blast and are begging to go back! Further confirmation that we may have/probably found a home.
We are going to miss this weekend due to some travel stuff but I'm going to lunch with the pastor on Monday. Looking forward to playing the theology game in finding out who and what he is reading:) We were both trained at the fundamentalist Southern Baptist school Oklahoma Baptist University so it should be interesting.
We are kinda bummed to be leaving life but unbelievably excited about the future and joining in where God is already working. It will be a challenge for sure. Now it is time to put our words/talk into action. No more excuses for us!
Monday, April 14, 2008
update / quote
It was recently brought (or brung if you are from Oklahoma) to my attention that my blog hadn't been updated in some time and that I left all 2 of you that see this hanging. My apologies.
Mom is doing really well...clean and sober as far as I know. Thank you for your prayers.
I just saw this quoted on another blog and I can't remember which but it is a great quote from Paul Tillich.
“The Church is the Community of the New Being. Again and again, people say, ‘I do not like organized religion.’ The Church is not organized religion. It is not hierarchical authority. It is not a social organization. It is all of this, of course, but it is primarily a group of people who express a new reality by which by which they have been grasped. Only this is what the Church really means. It is the place where the power of the New Reality which is Christ, and which was prepared in all history and especially in Old Testament history, moves into us and is continued by us.”
Great stuff. Have a great day!
Mom is doing really well...clean and sober as far as I know. Thank you for your prayers.
I just saw this quoted on another blog and I can't remember which but it is a great quote from Paul Tillich.
“The Church is the Community of the New Being. Again and again, people say, ‘I do not like organized religion.’ The Church is not organized religion. It is not hierarchical authority. It is not a social organization. It is all of this, of course, but it is primarily a group of people who express a new reality by which by which they have been grasped. Only this is what the Church really means. It is the place where the power of the New Reality which is Christ, and which was prepared in all history and especially in Old Testament history, moves into us and is continued by us.”
Great stuff. Have a great day!
Monday, February 18, 2008
All I can say is Wow.
It has been a trying week...let's see, where to begin....
Last Monday night I got a call from my aunt who had just spoken to my mom and she informed that my mom was down to her last few days of (highly addictive narcotic) pain pills and that since her primary care physician wasn't going to give her any more, she was thinking about ending it all. I called and she promised me she wouldn't do anything stupid and I promised her I would come get her the next day and bring her up here to get some help. Thankfully one of her lifelong friends showed up that night and stayed with her until after midnight to make sure she was going to be okay. I picked her up on Tuesday and with the help of a few friends/family, made phone calls to 3 different pain management specialist to see if we could get in on short notice....all we needed was a 5 minute consultation whereby they would refer mom into a rehab to get her cleaned up. No takers....ever...still waiting on call backs from them.
Wednesday night I came down with the flu....good times.
On Thursday, not having heard from anyone and mom running out of pills, my lovely bride loaded mom up and took her to the ER at St. Anthony's and after 4 hours of fun, they left with a prescription for a few more days of pills and hope that if we kept calling in every morning at 9, they would eventually have a room for her at the St. Anthony's START program. It was a tense few days but by the grace of God, we got her in Saturday and she is well on her way to recovery.
Thank you to all that prayed for us and we would ask that you continue to pray. Mom's name is Nancy LeJeune.
Last Monday night I got a call from my aunt who had just spoken to my mom and she informed that my mom was down to her last few days of (highly addictive narcotic) pain pills and that since her primary care physician wasn't going to give her any more, she was thinking about ending it all. I called and she promised me she wouldn't do anything stupid and I promised her I would come get her the next day and bring her up here to get some help. Thankfully one of her lifelong friends showed up that night and stayed with her until after midnight to make sure she was going to be okay. I picked her up on Tuesday and with the help of a few friends/family, made phone calls to 3 different pain management specialist to see if we could get in on short notice....all we needed was a 5 minute consultation whereby they would refer mom into a rehab to get her cleaned up. No takers....ever...still waiting on call backs from them.
Wednesday night I came down with the flu....good times.
On Thursday, not having heard from anyone and mom running out of pills, my lovely bride loaded mom up and took her to the ER at St. Anthony's and after 4 hours of fun, they left with a prescription for a few more days of pills and hope that if we kept calling in every morning at 9, they would eventually have a room for her at the St. Anthony's START program. It was a tense few days but by the grace of God, we got her in Saturday and she is well on her way to recovery.
Thank you to all that prayed for us and we would ask that you continue to pray. Mom's name is Nancy LeJeune.
Wednesday, February 6, 2008
Thursday, January 31, 2008
The Gameplan
The family watched The Gameplan tonight starring Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson as a pro football player (not a huge stretch considering he was a great player at Miami). The movie was pretty good and at the end as the credits rolled my 6 year old son looked at me and said, "I knew they would win the Championship. If they didn't, it wouldn't be a good story."
Almost all of us are suckers for happy endings. That is one of the great things about being a Christ follower. We have an opportunity to walk with Christ here on earth and write a new page to our story every day. God sent his son to bring redemption. His story is still being written and we have a part in that story. I truly believe this is a story with a happy ending.
What is the story that you are writing with your life? The decisions you make every day are telling a story. Will it be one of self or selflessness? Does it point people to Christ? Are you living out the Shalom that Christ came to bring?
In the words of my good friend Samurai Jack, "Get out of the seat and into the story".
Almost all of us are suckers for happy endings. That is one of the great things about being a Christ follower. We have an opportunity to walk with Christ here on earth and write a new page to our story every day. God sent his son to bring redemption. His story is still being written and we have a part in that story. I truly believe this is a story with a happy ending.
What is the story that you are writing with your life? The decisions you make every day are telling a story. Will it be one of self or selflessness? Does it point people to Christ? Are you living out the Shalom that Christ came to bring?
In the words of my good friend Samurai Jack, "Get out of the seat and into the story".
Wednesday, January 30, 2008
Why men don't go to church???
I ran across this post and although it quotes Mark Driscoll, who is one of the biggest theological flip floppers of all time, who has an interesting idea on why more men aren't going to church. Your thoughts?
http://theresurgence.com/the_right_hand_of_fellowship
http://theresurgence.com/the_right_hand_of_fellowship
Sunday, January 27, 2008
Preparing for something big!
It's a catchy title for sure. Once upon a time it would have been followed by some story of grand visions of revival or tons of salvations. The longer I'm alive, the more I realize that God has big plans for us that usually include a lot of small (seemingly insignificant) actions. I'm reminded of a quote by Shane Claiborne who said, “Get ready, friends…God is preparing us for something really, really-small.” There is something (evil) in all of us that tells us that if we aren't over achieving and leading the pack, we are worthless. We have to have big buildings and tons of conversions. It seems like many are looking for this "revival" or "awakening" where God sweeps in and saves a bunch of people. I wonder why? Could it be that we are not wanting to go through the inconvenience of having to truly live out a sacrificial life committed to the Kingdom of God? We want God to do it for us. God forbid we actually have to get out there and take responsibility for our part in God's story.
I think all of it comes from a distorted view of Christ and His gospel. If we truly believe that we were created for a life in relationship with God and others, we will see the calling to follow Christ as more than punching a ticket to Heaven. We will see that Christ died so that, as John 10:10 tells us, "...you might have life and life more abundantly". We are called/claimed/saved for far more than a ticket to Heaven. A historical look at this "good news" of the gospel shows us that Jesus had much more than salvation in mind for us. He was calling them to realign their allegiance from following the king of the times and his plans to a new and different life of sacrifice, grace, justice and compassion.
Prepare for something big. Just don't be surprised if your something big is a conversation with someone that is hurting and needs an encouraging word. God might just give you an opportunity to feed or cloth someone who needs it. Keep your eyes open for something big! Many times it will look like "the least of these" and be something so seemingly insignificant that you might be tempted to fly right past it for something bigger.
Do something small for the Kingdom.
I think all of it comes from a distorted view of Christ and His gospel. If we truly believe that we were created for a life in relationship with God and others, we will see the calling to follow Christ as more than punching a ticket to Heaven. We will see that Christ died so that, as John 10:10 tells us, "...you might have life and life more abundantly". We are called/claimed/saved for far more than a ticket to Heaven. A historical look at this "good news" of the gospel shows us that Jesus had much more than salvation in mind for us. He was calling them to realign their allegiance from following the king of the times and his plans to a new and different life of sacrifice, grace, justice and compassion.
Prepare for something big. Just don't be surprised if your something big is a conversation with someone that is hurting and needs an encouraging word. God might just give you an opportunity to feed or cloth someone who needs it. Keep your eyes open for something big! Many times it will look like "the least of these" and be something so seemingly insignificant that you might be tempted to fly right past it for something bigger.
Do something small for the Kingdom.
Saturday, January 26, 2008
Friday, January 25, 2008
Thursday, January 24, 2008
Wednesday, January 23, 2008
Great quote
"The work of Jesus was not a new set of ideas or principles for reforming or even revolutionizing society, but the establishment of a new community, a people that embodied forgiveness, sharing and self-sacrificing love in its rituals and discipline in that sense, the visible church is not to be the bearer of Christ’s message, but to be the message.” - Stanley Hauerwas
Tuesday, January 22, 2008
Monday, January 21, 2008
III:Text IRL
I just got back from 4 days in the desert. It was equal parts exhilarating and exhausting. We had some spectacular down time of food and fellowship mixed in with around 15 hours of intense conversation over two days. Some recap mixed with some new and stretching material. Myself and a few of my friends convened in Anthem, Arizona to finish up our Fall '07 semester of III:Text. I really had little idea of how the IRL ("in real life") was going to go. This is the second go around for us on this "online learning community" experiment that we are all struggling to describe to our friends and family. III:Text (pronounced "three text") is the brainchild of one Dr. Ron Martoia, Transformational Architect.
What is III:Text? It is a great question. One that, frankly, we are all having some difficulty "defining". First and foremost for me, it is a God thing. Does that mean that we spent the last 4 months online and all 15 hours of our IRL studying scripture? No. One of the things that we who are taking part have in common is that we all see the need for doing ministry differently. That can mean a lot of different things to different people. Speaking of different people, we had 20 to 30 that signed up for this go around and 10 of us were blessed to be able to attend the IRL. We are from diverse Christian backgrounds: Methodist, Assembly of God, Lutheran, Presbyterian, Baptist, and Non denominational just to name the ones I can think of. Back to my thought about doing ministry differently. To many of us, it just isn't enough to "tweak and adjust" the same model that has led us to a place where the top words used to describe Christians by 16 to 29 year olds are "anti-homosexual", "judgmental" and "hypocritical".
We have committed to engaging three different texts: the Biblical text, the context and the human text. Dr. Martoia usually pairs 2 books at a time that we read and discuss online. This is the aspect that we (right now) are calling the "resource" part of the equation. The result of our reading/discussion many times is a disruption of our mental models. That is the aspect that makes us question how we are currently doing things and points out (unfortunately) many times that we are doing things that are more based on comfort levels or familiarity than on true Godly or scriptural principles.
The second aspect we have identified we are (right now) calling "container". This is the environment that is created when everyone comes together with the intent to contribute to the conversation. No one has all the answers but we value everyone's input equally. This creates an environment of trust. We know that we will not be judged but accepted by others. The bottom line is always to have the freedom to question (who, what, where, when and why) the things we are believing and doing. Not change for the sake of change but change for the sake of leading effectively.
The third and final aspect we continue to experience and believe is the aspect of the God in us. We are all doing our best to live out our faith in our own context and trust that God is leading us in His way. We continue to experience God's grace and trust Him to lead us as we discuss His truths. We experienced an amazing portion of God's grace in our IRL. He brought together a group of 10 people from different backgrounds and allowed us to experience a level of grace, cooperation and love that most of us could have never expected.
Thanks to everyone that was involved. Thanks to Ron for being our fearless leader and continuing to stretch us to be all that we were created to be. Thanks to Ted, John and the rest of the Fellowship Anthem crew for hosting us and doing an amazing job of helping create the "container" that led to such great conversation. Thanks to Nancy for all of her hard work in administrating III:Text and continuing to bug the crap out of all of us who need it. Thanks to everyone who took part in the conversation....it was amazing and truly profitable! And a special thanks to "Super" Dave Wahlstedt for allowing me to back out of our golf game on Tuesday without saying a negative word to anyone about it:)
Much Love,
Paul Baird
What is III:Text? It is a great question. One that, frankly, we are all having some difficulty "defining". First and foremost for me, it is a God thing. Does that mean that we spent the last 4 months online and all 15 hours of our IRL studying scripture? No. One of the things that we who are taking part have in common is that we all see the need for doing ministry differently. That can mean a lot of different things to different people. Speaking of different people, we had 20 to 30 that signed up for this go around and 10 of us were blessed to be able to attend the IRL. We are from diverse Christian backgrounds: Methodist, Assembly of God, Lutheran, Presbyterian, Baptist, and Non denominational just to name the ones I can think of. Back to my thought about doing ministry differently. To many of us, it just isn't enough to "tweak and adjust" the same model that has led us to a place where the top words used to describe Christians by 16 to 29 year olds are "anti-homosexual", "judgmental" and "hypocritical".
We have committed to engaging three different texts: the Biblical text, the context and the human text. Dr. Martoia usually pairs 2 books at a time that we read and discuss online. This is the aspect that we (right now) are calling the "resource" part of the equation. The result of our reading/discussion many times is a disruption of our mental models. That is the aspect that makes us question how we are currently doing things and points out (unfortunately) many times that we are doing things that are more based on comfort levels or familiarity than on true Godly or scriptural principles.
The second aspect we have identified we are (right now) calling "container". This is the environment that is created when everyone comes together with the intent to contribute to the conversation. No one has all the answers but we value everyone's input equally. This creates an environment of trust. We know that we will not be judged but accepted by others. The bottom line is always to have the freedom to question (who, what, where, when and why) the things we are believing and doing. Not change for the sake of change but change for the sake of leading effectively.
The third and final aspect we continue to experience and believe is the aspect of the God in us. We are all doing our best to live out our faith in our own context and trust that God is leading us in His way. We continue to experience God's grace and trust Him to lead us as we discuss His truths. We experienced an amazing portion of God's grace in our IRL. He brought together a group of 10 people from different backgrounds and allowed us to experience a level of grace, cooperation and love that most of us could have never expected.
Thanks to everyone that was involved. Thanks to Ron for being our fearless leader and continuing to stretch us to be all that we were created to be. Thanks to Ted, John and the rest of the Fellowship Anthem crew for hosting us and doing an amazing job of helping create the "container" that led to such great conversation. Thanks to Nancy for all of her hard work in administrating III:Text and continuing to bug the crap out of all of us who need it. Thanks to everyone who took part in the conversation....it was amazing and truly profitable! And a special thanks to "Super" Dave Wahlstedt for allowing me to back out of our golf game on Tuesday without saying a negative word to anyone about it:)
Much Love,
Paul Baird
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