Just saw this on Yahoo and thought it was pretty good. Why does always seem to be that the best tantrums are in the minor leagues?
Saturday, August 28, 2010
Thursday, August 19, 2010
BIG and small
I read a blog post yesterday from Pete Wilson. He writes the blog Without Wax is a pastor at Cross Point Church in the Nashville area and the author of the book Plan B. What he had posted the other day was something that really stood out to me. He quoted from a blog that Kevin DeYoung had written on Ligonier Ministries Blog about those people that "plod" along in the church. It really stuck with me too and I have been thinking about his words off and on for the last couple of days, processing them and mulling them over a bit.
Friday, August 13, 2010
The Anthem
Ever felt like, been called or just know that you're a dork? Yeah, gotta say that it happens to pretty much all of us at some time in our life.
Thursday, August 12, 2010
5 Reasons Teens Are Avoiding Church
A pastor friend of mine shared this link this morning on Twitter. It's been posted by both Roni and myself. It's got some good stuff in it and I wanted to share it here as well.
5 Reasons Teens Are Avoiding Church
Here are a few of my thoughts on this:
1) The point that no one is ever too busy for church is right on. That is the classic excuse of people in my age group; those with young children. We hear about how they just don't have time with everything else they have going on, often placing the blame on the activities they have placed their children in. As the author says, time doesn't discriminate, we all get the same 24 hour span. It's about how we use and prioritize those hours.
2) It is easy to get caught up in trying to create the next "big event" or "draw". There have been times in my ministry where parents will look at what other churches are doing and then relay that to me with the "subtle" hint that maybe we should be doing that as well. I hope that I have tried more often to give substance over flash.
3) Teens don't make church a priority because their parents don't make it a priority is something that we have seen for years. I'm so glad it was addressed here. When the parents don't make it a habit or a lifestyle to be in worship and active in the church body, the kids aren't either. After all, there isn't going to be any kind of blow back from the parents. Too often parents don't want to offend their kids when it comes to "making them" go to church. The same can't be said for practices, school or even interaction with friends.
4) It's true that kids don't need the church to connect with their peers anymore really. They spend time in school and practices with them almost every day. They are connected to them through Facebook, myspace, Twitter and texting. But my issue with this one is that these methods still allow kids to maintain distance from each other and don't necessarily lead to that kind of deep social interaction that we need. As the church one of our goals should be in striving to create that kind of interaction within community.
5) Until we as leaders are able to really model that change the kids will rarely model true change. We need to give them that example of how following Jesus and living out his example is world changing.
6) Great point about being real as opposed to trying to be "cool". Cool comes and goes, and if we are chasing that then we will never find rest. When we know who we are and what we are called to and allow ourselves to be real around these kids, that is where the difference is made. This is something that can take years to learn. It is that realness that will speak to the youth today (and in the future) more than our attempts to be like them. To take from a friend of mine, if the kids want a cool youth minister, they are the ones that make them cool.
That's it. I thought it was a great article and had some good points in it.
Grace, Peace and Love y'all.
5 Reasons Teens Are Avoiding Church
Here are a few of my thoughts on this:
1) The point that no one is ever too busy for church is right on. That is the classic excuse of people in my age group; those with young children. We hear about how they just don't have time with everything else they have going on, often placing the blame on the activities they have placed their children in. As the author says, time doesn't discriminate, we all get the same 24 hour span. It's about how we use and prioritize those hours.
2) It is easy to get caught up in trying to create the next "big event" or "draw". There have been times in my ministry where parents will look at what other churches are doing and then relay that to me with the "subtle" hint that maybe we should be doing that as well. I hope that I have tried more often to give substance over flash.
3) Teens don't make church a priority because their parents don't make it a priority is something that we have seen for years. I'm so glad it was addressed here. When the parents don't make it a habit or a lifestyle to be in worship and active in the church body, the kids aren't either. After all, there isn't going to be any kind of blow back from the parents. Too often parents don't want to offend their kids when it comes to "making them" go to church. The same can't be said for practices, school or even interaction with friends.
4) It's true that kids don't need the church to connect with their peers anymore really. They spend time in school and practices with them almost every day. They are connected to them through Facebook, myspace, Twitter and texting. But my issue with this one is that these methods still allow kids to maintain distance from each other and don't necessarily lead to that kind of deep social interaction that we need. As the church one of our goals should be in striving to create that kind of interaction within community.
5) Until we as leaders are able to really model that change the kids will rarely model true change. We need to give them that example of how following Jesus and living out his example is world changing.
6) Great point about being real as opposed to trying to be "cool". Cool comes and goes, and if we are chasing that then we will never find rest. When we know who we are and what we are called to and allow ourselves to be real around these kids, that is where the difference is made. This is something that can take years to learn. It is that realness that will speak to the youth today (and in the future) more than our attempts to be like them. To take from a friend of mine, if the kids want a cool youth minister, they are the ones that make them cool.
That's it. I thought it was a great article and had some good points in it.
Grace, Peace and Love y'all.
Sleep Walking
The Boy is sleeping right now, which is good since it is after midnight and he is two. But that wasn't the case about 10 minutes ago. As I sat here looking at some things and texting a friend, I heard the sounds of The Boy starting to cry out. I knew that he was about to be awake and therefore hard to get back to sleep. So I started down the dark hallway that I could hear him coming down. Part way down I flipped on the light, picked him up and headed back to his bed to lay beside him as he went back to sleep. It is a feeling that I enjoy a great deal, having my children fall asleep pressed against me.
So that was the case, I heard a cry in the dark, I headed toward it, turned on the light and I took my son in my arms and them laid with him until he was out once again, And that is when I realized what I wanted to write about. Because the parallels seem lovely really.
The Boy woke up, found himself to be in the dark and it scared him a bit. So he did what he knows to do: He cried out and headed for Daddy. The girls were the same way (still are at times). Often times The Boy makes it into my bed, thus throwing a kink into my plans of sleeping for many hours at a time. However there are times when I am able to catch him first and go and lay with him and let him feel safe and secure.
I feel like the same is true with God. How many times do we find ourselves in a dark place that scares us (more than) just a little bit? And when we do, we tend to cry out and head toward Daddy for protection. And then we find ourselves being swept into His arms and hugged to His chest and protected and safe. Unlike myself, who tends to sleep through things like the crying out. God hears us every time. And when we cry out to Him and start toward Him, he is faithful to scoop us up into his arms and hold us close where we can be both warm and safe.
May you cry out to God in your times of trouble and may he be that protective Father for you when you do.
Grace, Peace, and Love y'all.
So that was the case, I heard a cry in the dark, I headed toward it, turned on the light and I took my son in my arms and them laid with him until he was out once again, And that is when I realized what I wanted to write about. Because the parallels seem lovely really.
The Boy woke up, found himself to be in the dark and it scared him a bit. So he did what he knows to do: He cried out and headed for Daddy. The girls were the same way (still are at times). Often times The Boy makes it into my bed, thus throwing a kink into my plans of sleeping for many hours at a time. However there are times when I am able to catch him first and go and lay with him and let him feel safe and secure.
I feel like the same is true with God. How many times do we find ourselves in a dark place that scares us (more than) just a little bit? And when we do, we tend to cry out and head toward Daddy for protection. And then we find ourselves being swept into His arms and hugged to His chest and protected and safe. Unlike myself, who tends to sleep through things like the crying out. God hears us every time. And when we cry out to Him and start toward Him, he is faithful to scoop us up into his arms and hold us close where we can be both warm and safe.
May you cry out to God in your times of trouble and may he be that protective Father for you when you do.
Grace, Peace, and Love y'all.
Tuesday, August 10, 2010
Time to Bail
It's always been my desire to catch a foul ball or better yet a home run ball at a baseball game. In all the games I've been to in the last few years, it has never happened. Most times I'm sitting too high up for a ball to even get there, but still I can hope right?
Wednesday, August 4, 2010
Used by God
So I was looking at Jesus Needs New PR today and this is what got my attention:
This is the kind of thing that drives me crazy. In this day and age, to have people who are still of this mindset like the guy in the video blows my mind. As far as I have ever been able to tell it all comes from the one bit of scripture where Paul tells Timothy that he doesn't allow women to speak and teach. The problem is that rather than looking at the cultural context of this we try and make this an overall decree for all women in all leadership positions. That is such a crock.
To claim that we serve this God who is bigger than anything we can even imagine, and then to try and limit who it is that He can call and use in ministry is ignorant. To claim that we believe that God can use anyone and anything, and then to say though that someone can't be used simply due to gender makes no sense. I go back to where Paul says that there is "no longer Jew or Gentile, slave or free, male or female; but Christ is all and in all; we are ONE in Christ" (Colossians 3:11 & Galatians 3:28 combined and paraphrased). When God calls someone to His service it no longer matters about gender or even orientation. All that matters is the call that God has placed on that person's life. It is not for the culture to determine what that call is, but rather it is between the Caller and the called.
God can use who he wants how he wants.
Grace, Peace and Love y'all.
This is the kind of thing that drives me crazy. In this day and age, to have people who are still of this mindset like the guy in the video blows my mind. As far as I have ever been able to tell it all comes from the one bit of scripture where Paul tells Timothy that he doesn't allow women to speak and teach. The problem is that rather than looking at the cultural context of this we try and make this an overall decree for all women in all leadership positions. That is such a crock.
To claim that we serve this God who is bigger than anything we can even imagine, and then to try and limit who it is that He can call and use in ministry is ignorant. To claim that we believe that God can use anyone and anything, and then to say though that someone can't be used simply due to gender makes no sense. I go back to where Paul says that there is "no longer Jew or Gentile, slave or free, male or female; but Christ is all and in all; we are ONE in Christ" (Colossians 3:11 & Galatians 3:28 combined and paraphrased). When God calls someone to His service it no longer matters about gender or even orientation. All that matters is the call that God has placed on that person's life. It is not for the culture to determine what that call is, but rather it is between the Caller and the called.
God can use who he wants how he wants.
Grace, Peace and Love y'all.
Tuesday, August 3, 2010
Oops He Did it Again...
I do wonder if that is the song Vikings fans will be singing this week (or at least today) with the news breaking that Brett Favre is once again going to retire. It does seem like a very appropriate song for the last three years as far as Favre is concerned.
Thursday, July 29, 2010
Break It Down
Saw this on today's (Thursday) edition of Today's Big Thing and thought I should share it with all of you.
Yeah so I have always found it to be pretty fascinating when you slow down things being destroyed and watch them break apart in slow motion. Hope you enjoyed all the destruction.
Grace, Peace and Love y'all.
Yeah so I have always found it to be pretty fascinating when you slow down things being destroyed and watch them break apart in slow motion. Hope you enjoyed all the destruction.
Grace, Peace and Love y'all.
Wednesday, July 28, 2010
Howl at the Cross (Yeah, that's the best I've got)
This has got to be one of the scariest, creepiest videos that I have encountered in a while. This was on Jesus Needs New PR last night and I'm really glad I didn't watch it before bed, because I'm pretty sure I would have had nightmares about it. Also pretty glad that my children didn't watch it either, as I am afraid they would have ended up in my bed with nightmares about the singing dog face.
Dude looks like a WWE personality gone bad with the make-up. The chorus is the best of course. The "Howl-ee-lu-ya" is classic. Maybe I should start doing that when there is a hallelujah in our hymns...well probably not, because that would be silly.
Grace, Peace and Love y'all.
Dude looks like a WWE personality gone bad with the make-up. The chorus is the best of course. The "Howl-ee-lu-ya" is classic. Maybe I should start doing that when there is a hallelujah in our hymns...well probably not, because that would be silly.
Grace, Peace and Love y'all.
Tuesday, July 27, 2010
Messin' Around
So I was watching the Rangers tonight and saw this commercial.
As a guy, I must admit I thought this was pretty hilarious when I saw it. I think pretty much all the Messin' with Sasquatch spots are pretty funny actually, but this one caught me off guard I guess.
Also the Rangers won to go 8 up on the Angels and 8.5 up on the A's. Nelson Cruz smashed a walk-off, 2 run home run in the bottom of the 10th inning for the win.
So in summary, a good ball game, a great win by the Rangers and a pretty funny commercial to boot.
Grace, Peace and Love y'all.
As a guy, I must admit I thought this was pretty hilarious when I saw it. I think pretty much all the Messin' with Sasquatch spots are pretty funny actually, but this one caught me off guard I guess.
Also the Rangers won to go 8 up on the Angels and 8.5 up on the A's. Nelson Cruz smashed a walk-off, 2 run home run in the bottom of the 10th inning for the win.
So in summary, a good ball game, a great win by the Rangers and a pretty funny commercial to boot.
Grace, Peace and Love y'all.
Monday, July 26, 2010
And the Silver Medal Goes To...
I've been doing youth ministry now for 14 years. It is something that I love doing and feel like I'm good at it (at least somewhat). In all those years I have heard the question(s) about when am I going to do "real" ministry or when am I going to head to seminary or when am I going to get my own church many times. Thankfully, as the years have gone by these questions have gotten to be fewer and farther between.
I have a whole list of people that I am thankful for who have influenced me in my path and have invested in me over the years. I won't start naming them here for fear of 1) leaving out many along the way and 2) sounding like it's the Friday "testimony/share" time at camp or on a mission trip. But know this, I am thankful beyond anything I could ever express to those who have played a part in who I am as a Christ follower as well as a youth minister.
That is why I wanted to post this link to today's post on Stuff Christians Like.
http://stuffchristianslike.net/2010/07/treating-youth-ministers-like-silver-medal-ministers/
Peace, Grace and Love y'all.
I have a whole list of people that I am thankful for who have influenced me in my path and have invested in me over the years. I won't start naming them here for fear of 1) leaving out many along the way and 2) sounding like it's the Friday "testimony/share" time at camp or on a mission trip. But know this, I am thankful beyond anything I could ever express to those who have played a part in who I am as a Christ follower as well as a youth minister.
That is why I wanted to post this link to today's post on Stuff Christians Like.
http://stuffchristianslike.net/2010/07/treating-youth-ministers-like-silver-medal-ministers/
Peace, Grace and Love y'all.
Friday, July 16, 2010
Hellooo Ladies....
This one is kind of for the ladies out there. This is how we guys often times feel when it comes to you, the fairer sex.
Who better to deliver that message to you than our friend The Old Spice Guy. I think he speaks for most men in the world when he says that YOU know exactly the next step for us to take, because you're women, so please let us know.
Peace, Grace and Love y'all.
Who better to deliver that message to you than our friend The Old Spice Guy. I think he speaks for most men in the world when he says that YOU know exactly the next step for us to take, because you're women, so please let us know.
Peace, Grace and Love y'all.
Friday, July 9, 2010
Here Comes the King...But Who Really Cares?
So who really watched "The Decision" tonight on ESPN? Who really cared that much about where LeBron was going to end up signing? To be honest, I lost interest in all of it a long time ago. To me it was just wasn't that big of a thing. So the LeBron is leaving Cleveland via free agency and heading to the Miami Heat. Bully for him, but did we really need an hour long "special" to make that announcement? What did they do for the other 58 minutes that weren't him saying he was going to the Heat? Was there a montage of his life and career up to this point?
This was simply another way for LeBron to draw attention to himself. This was not ESPN's idea from what I understood. It was LeBron's. I really think it is the kind of thing that can backfire on him, if for no other reason than it will become to butt of jokes. Maybe LeBron will be one of the first to make the jokes but I don't know that I see that.
I think the next thing we are going to see like this will be Brett Favre convincing ESPN to give him an hour long special to announce his decision about whether he's going to retire or not. At least that special could have some real intrigue to it. Even Favre wouldn't know how it was going to turn out. And then the next week he could get a second special to reverse his decision from the first special.
In the end this was a self-absorbed and narcissistic display. As many others have written better than me, it was something that simply was not needed. Congratulations Miami, you know have a the "King". Good luck with that.
Peace, Grace and Love y'all.
This was simply another way for LeBron to draw attention to himself. This was not ESPN's idea from what I understood. It was LeBron's. I really think it is the kind of thing that can backfire on him, if for no other reason than it will become to butt of jokes. Maybe LeBron will be one of the first to make the jokes but I don't know that I see that.
I think the next thing we are going to see like this will be Brett Favre convincing ESPN to give him an hour long special to announce his decision about whether he's going to retire or not. At least that special could have some real intrigue to it. Even Favre wouldn't know how it was going to turn out. And then the next week he could get a second special to reverse his decision from the first special.
In the end this was a self-absorbed and narcissistic display. As many others have written better than me, it was something that simply was not needed. Congratulations Miami, you know have a the "King". Good luck with that.
Peace, Grace and Love y'all.
Wednesday, July 7, 2010
Reborn
What does it mean to be "born again"? Does that mean that that you have to actually be born a second time? How is that even possible? Where does that term even come from?
This past week at the Sr. District Camp I was at there was a...discussion...about what this means and what the importance of it really may be. One of the people involved in the discussion was of the mind set that the term "born again" isn't really all that important. After all it is used only one time in the Bible in a conversation between Jesus and Nicodemus . Jesus tells Nicodemus that in order to see the kingdom of Heaven one has to be born again. Here is the thing on this as far as I am concerned (and one of the other counselors at camp make this point as well) Jesus is the person who said it, who coined the phrase if you will, so that is really all we need. If Jesus said it, and we are trying to live a life that exemplifies Him and his teachings, then if he says we need to be born again, then we need to be born again.
Here is my take on what happened at camp though. It has more to do with the terminology than the actual concept of being born again. I really think that the first person in all of this simply has a problem with the terminology "born again" rather than the truth behind it. Here is what I mean by that: There are certain terms in our language that simply aren't the best for conveying what is actually meant. This in some ways is one of those terms. People hear "born again Christian" and the Hollywood idea of what that means comes to mind. That image is one of a person that is a goober, a Ned Flanders type if you will. Someone who is judgmental, "holier-than-thou" and doesn't believe in "fun". In that case I can see where the problem lies with the use of that term.
When we look at the truth behind the term, we begin to see that it means so much more than what we usually have in mind. The truth of this means to be changed. It means that we are no longer the old person that we were before Jesus and the Spirit found us and changed us. This same truth is found, worded differently, in 2 Corinthians 5:17 where Paul is talking about what a changed life looks like. The old us goes away and in it's place there is someone new.
We have an example of this truth in nature itself. It is what happens when a caterpillar becomes a butterfly. The caterpillar begins as one thing and then through a series of events becomes something new and different. This is a great illustration of what the idea of being "born again" is really about.
In the end really the term means very little. Regardless of what we call it, the truth is the same: unless we have accepted the life transforming, rebirthing power of Grace through Jesus and the Spirit we are still stuck as the old caterpillar.
Peace, Grace & Love.
This past week at the Sr. District Camp I was at there was a...discussion...about what this means and what the importance of it really may be. One of the people involved in the discussion was of the mind set that the term "born again" isn't really all that important. After all it is used only one time in the Bible in a conversation between Jesus and Nicodemus . Jesus tells Nicodemus that in order to see the kingdom of Heaven one has to be born again. Here is the thing on this as far as I am concerned (and one of the other counselors at camp make this point as well) Jesus is the person who said it, who coined the phrase if you will, so that is really all we need. If Jesus said it, and we are trying to live a life that exemplifies Him and his teachings, then if he says we need to be born again, then we need to be born again.
Here is my take on what happened at camp though. It has more to do with the terminology than the actual concept of being born again. I really think that the first person in all of this simply has a problem with the terminology "born again" rather than the truth behind it. Here is what I mean by that: There are certain terms in our language that simply aren't the best for conveying what is actually meant. This in some ways is one of those terms. People hear "born again Christian" and the Hollywood idea of what that means comes to mind. That image is one of a person that is a goober, a Ned Flanders type if you will. Someone who is judgmental, "holier-than-thou" and doesn't believe in "fun". In that case I can see where the problem lies with the use of that term.
When we look at the truth behind the term, we begin to see that it means so much more than what we usually have in mind. The truth of this means to be changed. It means that we are no longer the old person that we were before Jesus and the Spirit found us and changed us. This same truth is found, worded differently, in 2 Corinthians 5:17 where Paul is talking about what a changed life looks like. The old us goes away and in it's place there is someone new.
We have an example of this truth in nature itself. It is what happens when a caterpillar becomes a butterfly. The caterpillar begins as one thing and then through a series of events becomes something new and different. This is a great illustration of what the idea of being "born again" is really about.
In the end really the term means very little. Regardless of what we call it, the truth is the same: unless we have accepted the life transforming, rebirthing power of Grace through Jesus and the Spirit we are still stuck as the old caterpillar.
Peace, Grace & Love.
Friday, May 28, 2010
I'm Sorry
Saw this today on Wes Molebash's blog, Max vs. Max and thought it should be shared here.
I'm wishing it was always that easy to be an "apologist." Hope you have a great, safe Memorial Day weekend. Peace and Love y'all.
I'm wishing it was always that easy to be an "apologist." Hope you have a great, safe Memorial Day weekend. Peace and Love y'all.
Monday, May 17, 2010
Two Sides to Everything
Well it came to pass once again this year that the Cleveland Cavaliers were knocked out of the NBA playoffs short of their stated goal, which was of course to win the NBA Finals. This is the second straight season that they have had the best regular season record for the entire league and have been the overall number one team, and have been knocked out early. It would be different if they had lost in the Finals, but the last two seasons have seen them go out in the Eastern Conference Finals last year and the Eastern Conference Semi-Finals this season. To be honest, for some teams and fans the second round isn't that bad. My Spurs went out in the second round this year. I'm not too depressed about it though because they were a #7 seed in the West. Those seeds aren't expected to win it all and make deep runs in the playoffs. But the Cavs, oh those Cavs, they are supposed to make a run to the Finals the last couple of seasons as the #1 team, it just didn't happen for them.
There has been a lot talk too about what it was that caused the collapse of the Cavs. ESPN guys talking about it, TNT guys talking about it. I'm sure many folks from Cleveland are talking about it as well. The biggest thing that I hear is that LeBron didn't play up to his potential. He played at only about 3/4 of what he is truly capable of. He wasn't the leader that all the greats who have won championships were. Basically, what they are saying is that LeBron is supposed to be something super.
This got me thinking a little bit about the contradiction that we find in the world of sports. We want a superstar on our team. These are the guys that are the biggest names and the biggest talents. They are the ones who show up in the clutch and in crunch time. These are the guys that the fortunes of our teams rise and fall with. And yet we don't seem to want them to get to be a regular athlete.
We want two things from them:
1) To shoulder the blame when our team does badly and loses- This is what so many talked about LeBron needing to do. To put it on himself as the leader and superstar of the team. No matter how he performed in the game we want him to (and the other "superstars") to be the scapegoat, to take the brunt of the blame. Did a guy off the bench miss the game winning three as time expired? Blame it on the superstar, he should have been the one taking the shot. Did the other teams center score a career high in points that was the difference in the game? Let the superstar take the blame even though he is a point guard and has no business guarding that guy. No what it is, we want and expect our teams superstar to shoulder the blame.
2) We want to guy to the most humble person on the face of the planet when out teams wins- Now should our team pull off the win, then we want to superstar to be as humble as possible. Now rather than take credit for the win, like he took the blame for the loss, he is expected to deflect all the the praise to his teammates. The guy off the bench hit the 3-pointer as time expired to win by 1? Well he made a great shot in the face of the pressure to do so. Forget that the superstar gave the ball up to him. In a win, if the superstar takes the final shot, we would think of him as arrogant or just wanting to hog the glory and/or pad his stats. In the interview room, our superstar, when asked about that last shot that so-and-so made, is supposed to deflect all the praise to that guy by saying things about what a great shooter the guy is (true or not) and how he had complete confidence in him to hit the shot.
We want a leader that is humble in both situations. Humble enough to take the blame but also humble enough to defer praise to others. It is what a leader honestly should be willing to do. The problem though for me is that I would prefer that it be a true humility, something that is a real part of their personality. Because forced humility really isn't humility at all.
Peace and Love y'all.
There has been a lot talk too about what it was that caused the collapse of the Cavs. ESPN guys talking about it, TNT guys talking about it. I'm sure many folks from Cleveland are talking about it as well. The biggest thing that I hear is that LeBron didn't play up to his potential. He played at only about 3/4 of what he is truly capable of. He wasn't the leader that all the greats who have won championships were. Basically, what they are saying is that LeBron is supposed to be something super.
This got me thinking a little bit about the contradiction that we find in the world of sports. We want a superstar on our team. These are the guys that are the biggest names and the biggest talents. They are the ones who show up in the clutch and in crunch time. These are the guys that the fortunes of our teams rise and fall with. And yet we don't seem to want them to get to be a regular athlete.
We want two things from them:
1) To shoulder the blame when our team does badly and loses- This is what so many talked about LeBron needing to do. To put it on himself as the leader and superstar of the team. No matter how he performed in the game we want him to (and the other "superstars") to be the scapegoat, to take the brunt of the blame. Did a guy off the bench miss the game winning three as time expired? Blame it on the superstar, he should have been the one taking the shot. Did the other teams center score a career high in points that was the difference in the game? Let the superstar take the blame even though he is a point guard and has no business guarding that guy. No what it is, we want and expect our teams superstar to shoulder the blame.
2) We want to guy to the most humble person on the face of the planet when out teams wins- Now should our team pull off the win, then we want to superstar to be as humble as possible. Now rather than take credit for the win, like he took the blame for the loss, he is expected to deflect all the the praise to his teammates. The guy off the bench hit the 3-pointer as time expired to win by 1? Well he made a great shot in the face of the pressure to do so. Forget that the superstar gave the ball up to him. In a win, if the superstar takes the final shot, we would think of him as arrogant or just wanting to hog the glory and/or pad his stats. In the interview room, our superstar, when asked about that last shot that so-and-so made, is supposed to deflect all the praise to that guy by saying things about what a great shooter the guy is (true or not) and how he had complete confidence in him to hit the shot.
We want a leader that is humble in both situations. Humble enough to take the blame but also humble enough to defer praise to others. It is what a leader honestly should be willing to do. The problem though for me is that I would prefer that it be a true humility, something that is a real part of their personality. Because forced humility really isn't humility at all.
Peace and Love y'all.
Wednesday, May 12, 2010
The Longest Journey
Living in Texas, and growing up in West Texas in particular, I'm no stranger to long trips. We routinely played football games in high school where we were driving 2+ hours to get there. On vacations with the family, we drove everywhere. It was too expensive to fly and Dad refused to do so anyway. So every time we went somewhere it was always by car: the Grand Canyon, Branson, Ohio. It didn't matter, we were driving there. And as you know in Texas it feels like at least half of the trip is actually spent in Texas. So long trips are nothing new for me.
There is a journey however that I have made or, more accurately, am making that has taken me pretty much all of my life, and to be honest there is no known end in sight. It is a journey that for so long I didn't even think about being on. It is that trip from Legalism, Literalism, Fundamentalism and Judgmentalism, to Grace and Love (Grace and Love sounds like it should be an actual town somewhere like Truth or Consequences, NM is). This is the longest, hardest journey that I have ever taken in my life, but I know that in the end it is well worth the time and expense of it all.
Each of the places along the road are difficult to be in, but oh they are so often even harder to leave. I get used to being in those places. It's as if I am a vagabond or nomad who needs to be on the move toward that final destination, but I have found work and stability in these other locales along the way.
I can look back now and see that I wasn't really meant to do more in each place other than set up camp for a bit and then move on, one step closer to my final destination. I am not meant to settle down in any of these places other than my final destination of Grace and Love. Yet sometimes I feel like I have been in some of the places long enough to have taken a census there and be counted as a part of the town's population. Part of the problem as well seems to be my willingness to do good enough in each place that I choose to build a nice summer home or perfect get-away. You know just in case I decide to move back to one of these places after I have retired.
Legalism is that place that tells me I have to be sure to keep all the rules that are ever put on me. It's really not enough though for me to try and do that alone. No, when it comes to legalism, I'm either the mayor, on his staff or at the least employed by the city. Therefore, it is my job to make sure that everyone else is following the rules as well. And when they aren't? Well I guess they are looking forward to getting that home with the really big fireplace (that's my hell reference by the way). When I've been here, it doesn't matter if I'm actually keeping the rules, but rather if everyone else is keeping them. It is such an easy place to get bogged down, because it sure seems to be in all black and white. And it doesn't take long for me to find my way back once I finally get a chance to leave...I don't even have to stop and ask for directions.
Literalism is the suburb where I live at times too. Of all of the four, this is the one that has actually been the easiest to get away from. I still like to go there, maybe to shoot a round of golf, maybe even more at times, but for the most part I understand that it is a place that is set up so people can understand better what God did, to help us wrap our minds around it. It's OK for me to keep this as more of a little bungalow than a full on home. I drop by at times but for the most part I am able to only go there when I need to.
Fundamentalism is that place that lures me in and that I at times have the hardest time shaking off. I guess I should think of it in this way: it's like your home town and how you just get so ready to get out of it, to get away from it because you've seen what it has to offer and you've done just about all of it. You want to get out, yet t here is something that seems to just keep you there. This is where I grew up-I was right and so many others were just wrong-but finally decided that it was time to move away and try something new.
Judgmentalism is the last place where I have spent time. Never am I able o be just passing through. I always have to stop and partake of the festivities in all these places. Judgmetalism is like the college town that lets me feel better about myself while also letting me look down on others for the things they have done that I consider to be really bad.
Finally there is Grace and Love. There are so many times that it still feels so very far away, like the road will never end. Thankfully there are always Grace and Love pit stops along the way where I can stop and be refreshed and reminded where I'm actually headed.With out those who knows how long it really take to get there. It's so far that at times it almost makes you want to stop and turn around and go back to where you came from, Legalism, Literalism,Fundamentalism and Judgmentalism. But there is hope, that just over the next hill you will catch a glimpse of Grace and Love and you will be able to get there and at that point end the journey, finally in that place that I want to be most of all. That place where I can relax and not worry about people doing "bad" things and people having to keep so many rules. In Grace and Love we are no longer tied to Literalism and we can do things in a way that works best for us, and not about what others are up to.
It is a long journey. In the end though, it will be well worth the time and effort and the uprooting and moving to be in that place that allows me to be who I am with out worrying. One of these days, I'm going to buy me a house there and retire. I can't wait for that day to get here.
Peace and Love y'all.
There is a journey however that I have made or, more accurately, am making that has taken me pretty much all of my life, and to be honest there is no known end in sight. It is a journey that for so long I didn't even think about being on. It is that trip from Legalism, Literalism, Fundamentalism and Judgmentalism, to Grace and Love (Grace and Love sounds like it should be an actual town somewhere like Truth or Consequences, NM is). This is the longest, hardest journey that I have ever taken in my life, but I know that in the end it is well worth the time and expense of it all.
Each of the places along the road are difficult to be in, but oh they are so often even harder to leave. I get used to being in those places. It's as if I am a vagabond or nomad who needs to be on the move toward that final destination, but I have found work and stability in these other locales along the way.
I can look back now and see that I wasn't really meant to do more in each place other than set up camp for a bit and then move on, one step closer to my final destination. I am not meant to settle down in any of these places other than my final destination of Grace and Love. Yet sometimes I feel like I have been in some of the places long enough to have taken a census there and be counted as a part of the town's population. Part of the problem as well seems to be my willingness to do good enough in each place that I choose to build a nice summer home or perfect get-away. You know just in case I decide to move back to one of these places after I have retired.
Legalism is that place that tells me I have to be sure to keep all the rules that are ever put on me. It's really not enough though for me to try and do that alone. No, when it comes to legalism, I'm either the mayor, on his staff or at the least employed by the city. Therefore, it is my job to make sure that everyone else is following the rules as well. And when they aren't? Well I guess they are looking forward to getting that home with the really big fireplace (that's my hell reference by the way). When I've been here, it doesn't matter if I'm actually keeping the rules, but rather if everyone else is keeping them. It is such an easy place to get bogged down, because it sure seems to be in all black and white. And it doesn't take long for me to find my way back once I finally get a chance to leave...I don't even have to stop and ask for directions.
Literalism is the suburb where I live at times too. Of all of the four, this is the one that has actually been the easiest to get away from. I still like to go there, maybe to shoot a round of golf, maybe even more at times, but for the most part I understand that it is a place that is set up so people can understand better what God did, to help us wrap our minds around it. It's OK for me to keep this as more of a little bungalow than a full on home. I drop by at times but for the most part I am able to only go there when I need to.
Fundamentalism is that place that lures me in and that I at times have the hardest time shaking off. I guess I should think of it in this way: it's like your home town and how you just get so ready to get out of it, to get away from it because you've seen what it has to offer and you've done just about all of it. You want to get out, yet t here is something that seems to just keep you there. This is where I grew up-I was right and so many others were just wrong-but finally decided that it was time to move away and try something new.
Judgmentalism is the last place where I have spent time. Never am I able o be just passing through. I always have to stop and partake of the festivities in all these places. Judgmetalism is like the college town that lets me feel better about myself while also letting me look down on others for the things they have done that I consider to be really bad.
Finally there is Grace and Love. There are so many times that it still feels so very far away, like the road will never end. Thankfully there are always Grace and Love pit stops along the way where I can stop and be refreshed and reminded where I'm actually headed.With out those who knows how long it really take to get there. It's so far that at times it almost makes you want to stop and turn around and go back to where you came from, Legalism, Literalism,Fundamentalism and Judgmentalism. But there is hope, that just over the next hill you will catch a glimpse of Grace and Love and you will be able to get there and at that point end the journey, finally in that place that I want to be most of all. That place where I can relax and not worry about people doing "bad" things and people having to keep so many rules. In Grace and Love we are no longer tied to Literalism and we can do things in a way that works best for us, and not about what others are up to.
It is a long journey. In the end though, it will be well worth the time and effort and the uprooting and moving to be in that place that allows me to be who I am with out worrying. One of these days, I'm going to buy me a house there and retire. I can't wait for that day to get here.
Peace and Love y'all.
Talent
I'm sure most of you have seen this already seeing as how it has gone viral and had 36,000+ hits already. I wanted to go ahead and share it though.
He is supposed to be appearing on Ellen tomorrow. He seems to be pretty seriously talented. Go check out his two original songs at greyson97. If nothing else I hope that this at least brought a smile to your face. Peace and Love y'all.
He is supposed to be appearing on Ellen tomorrow. He seems to be pretty seriously talented. Go check out his two original songs at greyson97. If nothing else I hope that this at least brought a smile to your face. Peace and Love y'all.
Friday, May 7, 2010
Growtivation
Saw this today on Stuff Christians Like and thought it was fantastic. This is a video from North Point Media team. I hope you enjoy this:
"Sunday's Coming" Movie Trailer from North Point Media on Vimeo.
Man that is some funny stuff, and so very true too. I especially like the part about the offering and how we should "feel free to give if you feel led. That's between you and God...but we are tracking it." I also dig the whole making up new words and using them to catch on as the new Christian "buzz" words. I like the fact that this group is able to poke fun at the overall "megachurch" concept/model, especially since it looks like they are one. It's refreshing to see that happening. Peace and Love y'all.
"Sunday's Coming" Movie Trailer from North Point Media on Vimeo.
Man that is some funny stuff, and so very true too. I especially like the part about the offering and how we should "feel free to give if you feel led. That's between you and God...but we are tracking it." I also dig the whole making up new words and using them to catch on as the new Christian "buzz" words. I like the fact that this group is able to poke fun at the overall "megachurch" concept/model, especially since it looks like they are one. It's refreshing to see that happening. Peace and Love y'all.
Tuesday, April 20, 2010
Why Dishwashers Were Invented
I watched this video this morning and thought I would share it.
Peace and Love y'all.
Peace and Love y'all.
Monday, April 19, 2010
Front, Back, Side-to-Side...Front Front Back Back Side-to-Side
I just today finished reading the book "Traveling Mercies" by Anne Lamott. It was an interesting book. I had known a little bit about her story and background and that was what had me interested in reading the book. Ms. Lamott was an atheist who eventually came to believe in God and then finally stepped into a relationship with Jesus. It is a story that Christians in particular love to hear, maybe (or most likely) as an "I told you so" type of thing. But that was what I knew of Anne Lamott before reading this book.
So it took me a bit by surprise when I started reading. It was an interesting book, but was not at all what I was expecting from a theological viewpoint of conservatism. In some ways that was very refreshing. I found grace in the pages of essays that she shared with her readers. I found that it didn't matter that she has a bit more liberal viewpoint of some things than I do...I can blame it on being raised in the San Francisco Bay area in the 1960s and 70s.
It did get me thinking though about a couple of things. In our current America, it seems that there are only two ways to go: liberal or conservative. Our politics are divided in this way, our thinking seems to be divided this way and even our churches tend to be split along these lines. Everything is either left or right, and whoever doesn't fall on your side of the line is wrong. Part of what gets me with this is how both sides have laid claim to God and where He stands (by the way, Lamott uses both pronouns when referring to God, as in He or She. This didn't bother me nearly as much as I thought it would). The problem is that both sides are trying to use him for their own gain and to justify their stances.
Here is what I know (or think I know): 1) I hate politics because the idea of doing things in a way that benefits yourself and select others rather than looking for the best solution for everyone is stupid (maybe that is just me), 2) God doesn't fall on either side of the party line. It sounds cliche I realize to say it, but God isn't Red or Blue, Republican or Democrat, Libertarian or Tea Party, Liberal or Conservative. God is simply God.
And here is the other thing: As followers of Christ, we are not called to be any of those things either. Jesus did not call us to follow a party or to pick a color, He called us to follow Him. In Matthew 4:19 Jesus says to Peter and Andrew "Come follow me, and I will make you fishers of men." Jesus calls us to follow him, and him alone. When we are seeking to do that, we will find that none of the rest matters. In both Galatians and Colossians 3 (28 in Galatians and 11 in Colossians) Paul writes that there is no longer a state of separation amongst those who claim Jesus as their Lord and Savior, but rather that we are all one in Christ. Our following Jesus should be bigger than any party affiliation or political ideals. That is what we are called to. In Acts 2 we learn that the early church was more concerned about trying to meet the needs of the people and they found favor by doing this. As the body of Christ it is time for us to eschew politics and simply do our best to follow Jesus. That is how we get on the road to restoring our nation. Peace and Love y'all.
So it took me a bit by surprise when I started reading. It was an interesting book, but was not at all what I was expecting from a theological viewpoint of conservatism. In some ways that was very refreshing. I found grace in the pages of essays that she shared with her readers. I found that it didn't matter that she has a bit more liberal viewpoint of some things than I do...I can blame it on being raised in the San Francisco Bay area in the 1960s and 70s.
It did get me thinking though about a couple of things. In our current America, it seems that there are only two ways to go: liberal or conservative. Our politics are divided in this way, our thinking seems to be divided this way and even our churches tend to be split along these lines. Everything is either left or right, and whoever doesn't fall on your side of the line is wrong. Part of what gets me with this is how both sides have laid claim to God and where He stands (by the way, Lamott uses both pronouns when referring to God, as in He or She. This didn't bother me nearly as much as I thought it would). The problem is that both sides are trying to use him for their own gain and to justify their stances.
Here is what I know (or think I know): 1) I hate politics because the idea of doing things in a way that benefits yourself and select others rather than looking for the best solution for everyone is stupid (maybe that is just me), 2) God doesn't fall on either side of the party line. It sounds cliche I realize to say it, but God isn't Red or Blue, Republican or Democrat, Libertarian or Tea Party, Liberal or Conservative. God is simply God.
And here is the other thing: As followers of Christ, we are not called to be any of those things either. Jesus did not call us to follow a party or to pick a color, He called us to follow Him. In Matthew 4:19 Jesus says to Peter and Andrew "Come follow me, and I will make you fishers of men." Jesus calls us to follow him, and him alone. When we are seeking to do that, we will find that none of the rest matters. In both Galatians and Colossians 3 (28 in Galatians and 11 in Colossians) Paul writes that there is no longer a state of separation amongst those who claim Jesus as their Lord and Savior, but rather that we are all one in Christ. Our following Jesus should be bigger than any party affiliation or political ideals. That is what we are called to. In Acts 2 we learn that the early church was more concerned about trying to meet the needs of the people and they found favor by doing this. As the body of Christ it is time for us to eschew politics and simply do our best to follow Jesus. That is how we get on the road to restoring our nation. Peace and Love y'all.
Friday, April 2, 2010
Standing Tall and Proud
Watched "The Marriage Ref" tonight with Roni. It's a pretty funny show for the most part really. Real couples send in their petty fights to the show and let a panel of celebrities weigh in on who should "win" the disagreement. Don't worry they don't really air serious problems on the show, which is good, because then it would be called Dr. Phil and that's not funny.
Take tonight for example: There was a couple arguing over the husbands decision to bleach his hair blond in order to help what he hopes to be a successful cooking career take off. Really, not a serious problem that needs professional counseling. But seriously , most of these disagreements are simply quirks that every married couple has and argues about from time to time. But tonight, there was one couple that generated a bit of discussion between Roni and I.
One of the couples featured tonight happened to be having a disagreement about one of their bathrooms in the house (they have 3). The talk was about what the man wanted to do with the bathroom, and they have been discussing this for 4-5 years now. It seems that the husband would like to put a urinal in one of the bathrooms. His wife thinks that it is a crazy idea, but he has been shopping for a few years now for his "perfect" urinal and even wondered about making an offer on one at a place. This brought about some discussion with Roni about the need/desire/purpose of having a urinal. So here are a few reasons why a urinal would be a nice addition to a house.
I tried to explain to Roni that for a man using a urinal is the equivalent of a woman using a regular toilet. Think about this for a moment. Why is it that girls don't have problems with hitting the bowl every time (at least after you have potty trained)? Because they are right up on it! It's like being able to stand on top of the rim in basketball and simply drop the ball through the hoop...you're not going to miss.
It is the same with a guy and a urinal. The urinal allows for us to have to urinating equivalent of standing on the rim. We are able to get right up there close (although never touching any part of the urinal) and do our thing. The person who invented this was a genius and was probably a woman who was tired of cleaning up after those late night trips to the bathroom by her husband.
This is the brilliance of having a urinal in the bathroom at home. It is convenient - no longer is there the need to lift anything to take care of business. This would be great in the middle of the night when you stagger, still mostly asleep, into the bathroom to pee. Even better there is no longer the need to have to remember to put anything DOWN after one of these trips. Now the woman has sole responsibility for whether the seat gets left up and she falls in.
In the end, I truly feel that a home urinal would be a sound investment for any home. Thankfully they come in various models from which to choose, thus helping the wife to feel that she has some kind of say in the matter. She can pick the one that is most aesthetically pleasing and goes best with her bathroom decor. After all, she does have several styles to choose from:
Such as the Bardon, the Branham, the Darfield, the Dexter, the Freshman, the Stanwell, the Jarvis or finally even the Steward waterless. No matter what you go with, an at home urinal sure seems like a good choice. Peace and Love y'all.
Take tonight for example: There was a couple arguing over the husbands decision to bleach his hair blond in order to help what he hopes to be a successful cooking career take off. Really, not a serious problem that needs professional counseling. But seriously , most of these disagreements are simply quirks that every married couple has and argues about from time to time. But tonight, there was one couple that generated a bit of discussion between Roni and I.
One of the couples featured tonight happened to be having a disagreement about one of their bathrooms in the house (they have 3). The talk was about what the man wanted to do with the bathroom, and they have been discussing this for 4-5 years now. It seems that the husband would like to put a urinal in one of the bathrooms. His wife thinks that it is a crazy idea, but he has been shopping for a few years now for his "perfect" urinal and even wondered about making an offer on one at a place. This brought about some discussion with Roni about the need/desire/purpose of having a urinal. So here are a few reasons why a urinal would be a nice addition to a house.
I tried to explain to Roni that for a man using a urinal is the equivalent of a woman using a regular toilet. Think about this for a moment. Why is it that girls don't have problems with hitting the bowl every time (at least after you have potty trained)? Because they are right up on it! It's like being able to stand on top of the rim in basketball and simply drop the ball through the hoop...you're not going to miss.
It is the same with a guy and a urinal. The urinal allows for us to have to urinating equivalent of standing on the rim. We are able to get right up there close (although never touching any part of the urinal) and do our thing. The person who invented this was a genius and was probably a woman who was tired of cleaning up after those late night trips to the bathroom by her husband.
This is the brilliance of having a urinal in the bathroom at home. It is convenient - no longer is there the need to lift anything to take care of business. This would be great in the middle of the night when you stagger, still mostly asleep, into the bathroom to pee. Even better there is no longer the need to have to remember to put anything DOWN after one of these trips. Now the woman has sole responsibility for whether the seat gets left up and she falls in.
In the end, I truly feel that a home urinal would be a sound investment for any home. Thankfully they come in various models from which to choose, thus helping the wife to feel that she has some kind of say in the matter. She can pick the one that is most aesthetically pleasing and goes best with her bathroom decor. After all, she does have several styles to choose from:
Such as the Bardon, the Branham, the Darfield, the Dexter, the Freshman, the Stanwell, the Jarvis or finally even the Steward waterless. No matter what you go with, an at home urinal sure seems like a good choice. Peace and Love y'all.
Tuesday, March 23, 2010
66 Love Letters by Dr. Larry Crabb
This was a very interesting book in that it made the attempt to break each book of the Bible down into bite sized pieces for the reader. The writing style is conversational, a dialogue between that author and God, that takes the reader into what it is Dr. Crabb feels God is telling him about each of the 66 books by giving us the main thrust of each book. He then expounds on what that means for us as we go about our regular, daily lives. In the end, he ties it all together with an epilogue consisting of 66 paragraphs showing the connection between all the letters. Reading this book, it has began to alter the way I think and maneuver in my relationships with people as well as with God.
I had really only one complaint about this book,and that had to do with the length of it. It is nearly 400 pages (394) of just the letters, sections notes and epilogue. Beyond that there are 17 more pages of prologue and "How this book can speak to you." These are good sections, but they could have been much shorter overall bringing the total page count down to a smaller number. In the end however, I felt that this was a very well written, well thought out and well put together book that I would gladly recommend to people wanting to find a somewhat different take on studying the Bible.
Tuesday, March 9, 2010
The 5 Rules to Fight Youth Ministry Stereotypes | YouthWorker.com
I remember the first time I went to the National Youth Workers Convention, and had pretty much this type of conversation with the guys I was there with. Good times. I got a kick out of this video and hope you enjoy it as well. Peace and Love y'all.
Friday, February 26, 2010
I'd Like That On Ice Please
Sports is something that brings forth a great deal of emotion. ABC's old Saturday afternoon program, The Wide World of Sports, used to touch on this in the opening sequence of every program with the line "The thrill of victory, and the agony of defeat." It was and is something that is acknowledged as being a part of doing something that is competitive like a sport.
The emotions that are evoked by sports are powerful things. I remember crying whole heartedly after losing in my final football game. After all the time and effort, all the pain and blood, sweat and tears that go into something like that there is going to be an emotional response from the players. There will be celebrations by the victors and there will be dejection on display when it comes to the defeated. It is Michael Jordan weeping and clutching the NBA Championship trophy after his Bulls won the title on Father's Day the year Jordan's father was murdered; it is the look of exuberance on Tom Brady's face after winning his first Super Bowl. It 's the frustration shown by LeBron James upon losing the Eastern Conference Finals to the Magic by simply walking off the court rather than congratulating the winners.
When we win, we celebrate. This was demonstrated last night in the Olympics when the Canadian Women's Hockey team defeated the USA Women for the gold medal. And their celebration has become a big deal. Not the fact that they reveled in the victory and the accomplishment of winning a Gold medal for their country, but more how they did this. They did not begin their celebration on the ice with the other teams in their presence, thus seeming showy and arrogant. No they were classier about it than that. They waited until the ice had cleared and until the stands had cleared. They waited until it was just them as a team there to celebrate what they had done together. The problem it seems is that there were still some photographers and other media people still around to catch the celebration.
It seems that these women decided to bring the typical locker room celebration onto the ice. So they re-entered the rink and brought with them some beer, champagne and cigars. They then proceeded to partake of these things. And this is where it is a big deal. There were pictures taken of the celebration that were then made public (as tends to happen with this kind of thing). Now Hockey Canada has issued an apology, and the IOC (International Olympic Committee) is doing an investigation. All I have to say is--really?
I can understand it they did this immediately following the win, gloating and rubbing it in the faces of the defeated Americans. But true to Canadian form, they waited a polite amount of time before having this little shindig. Lets be real here: this is the exact same thing that happens in the locker room. The difference is that they brought it out of the locker room, when they felt it was an appropriate time and they could be there alone as a team. I know that there is talk about the one young lady on the team who is 18 being seen drinking a beer (or champagne or whatever) and the legal drinking age being 19. OK, so she is just underage. I don't condone it, but I can understand it. It is part of the emotion that winning brings about.
In the end, I think the apology and the investigation are silly and needless. Let the team celebrate a huge accomplishment and a job well done. Peace and Love y'all.
The emotions that are evoked by sports are powerful things. I remember crying whole heartedly after losing in my final football game. After all the time and effort, all the pain and blood, sweat and tears that go into something like that there is going to be an emotional response from the players. There will be celebrations by the victors and there will be dejection on display when it comes to the defeated. It is Michael Jordan weeping and clutching the NBA Championship trophy after his Bulls won the title on Father's Day the year Jordan's father was murdered; it is the look of exuberance on Tom Brady's face after winning his first Super Bowl. It 's the frustration shown by LeBron James upon losing the Eastern Conference Finals to the Magic by simply walking off the court rather than congratulating the winners.
When we win, we celebrate. This was demonstrated last night in the Olympics when the Canadian Women's Hockey team defeated the USA Women for the gold medal. And their celebration has become a big deal. Not the fact that they reveled in the victory and the accomplishment of winning a Gold medal for their country, but more how they did this. They did not begin their celebration on the ice with the other teams in their presence, thus seeming showy and arrogant. No they were classier about it than that. They waited until the ice had cleared and until the stands had cleared. They waited until it was just them as a team there to celebrate what they had done together. The problem it seems is that there were still some photographers and other media people still around to catch the celebration.
It seems that these women decided to bring the typical locker room celebration onto the ice. So they re-entered the rink and brought with them some beer, champagne and cigars. They then proceeded to partake of these things. And this is where it is a big deal. There were pictures taken of the celebration that were then made public (as tends to happen with this kind of thing). Now Hockey Canada has issued an apology, and the IOC (International Olympic Committee) is doing an investigation. All I have to say is--really?
I can understand it they did this immediately following the win, gloating and rubbing it in the faces of the defeated Americans. But true to Canadian form, they waited a polite amount of time before having this little shindig. Lets be real here: this is the exact same thing that happens in the locker room. The difference is that they brought it out of the locker room, when they felt it was an appropriate time and they could be there alone as a team. I know that there is talk about the one young lady on the team who is 18 being seen drinking a beer (or champagne or whatever) and the legal drinking age being 19. OK, so she is just underage. I don't condone it, but I can understand it. It is part of the emotion that winning brings about.
In the end, I think the apology and the investigation are silly and needless. Let the team celebrate a huge accomplishment and a job well done. Peace and Love y'all.
Thursday, February 25, 2010
And with the first pick...
Man I love my job. Seriously, it's got to be just about the best job in the world. I get to minister to teenagers and help to shape generations and point them toward God's plan for their own lives as well as the lives of others. Really, what could be better than getting to do something you love?
Something else that I really enjoy is the NFL. I know, I know, how in the world is that even almost related to my job as a youth minister? Well that's the thing, it's not. But because of the fact that I like the NFL as much as I do, I keep up with the things that go on with it. It's fun to know what is going on. But this got me thinking about the differences between being in ministry and being in the NFL. So here is a list of differences between the two careers.
Top 10 Differences in Youth Ministry and the NFL
10) 40 Times- In the NFL there is a lot that is based on how fast a person can run a 40 yard dash. There are guys that have earned loads of cash because they could run that far in less than 4.5 seconds. Really seems like a crazy thing to base employment on. Imagine if a church made it's youth ministry candidates run 40s and used that to help determine who they hired. Maybe instead of an actual 40 they could take times on how fast they can get down the center aisle of the sanctuary.
9) No Agents to deal with- In the NFL guys have agents that come in and represent them to make sure they get the best possible contract deal. Sounds great, but that can lead to tension between the team and the player and result in guys holding out for a better pay package. Imagine if youth ministers had agents or threatened to hold out...imagine if youth ministers had actual contracts....
8) Training Camp- In the NFL guys have to go through two-a-days in the heat of the late summer to train and practice and get prepped for the new season. Maybe this wouldn't be such a bad idea at times for youth ministry. Actually we call it The National Youth Workers Convention.
7) Different Career Ending Injuries- NFL players are always one bad hit or one bad cut away from ending their careers. They have to deal with things like concussions, torn muscles, torn ligaments and torn tendons. Any of these could potentially end the career of a player. In youth ministry our career enders look a little different: lock-ins, road trips, mission trips, Youth Sundays and parents. The names may be different, but the results can be the same.
6) Scouting Combine- This is where all those college hopefuls gather to audition for the scouts, coaches and general managers of various teams. This can make or break where you are selected. In youth ministry we call this the interview process. You meet with the hiring committee, then (in some churches) "audition" with the youth group to see how you "fit". Not really an exact science in either profession.
5) Free Agency- In the NFL when your contract runs out and you aren't resigned by your team, you can become a free agent and have a chance at landing with another team. Many free agents are highly sought after and there are battles between teams to sign them. In youth ministry, well, not so much.
4) Salary Cap- In the NFL there is a limit to how much a team can spend as far as player contract from year to year. This helps to ensure equality among teams. There is also a salary floor which says the minimum amount a team can spend (which is kind of interesting as well) to ensure that teams stay competitive. In youth ministry, there is neither.
3) Fantasy Leagues- Every season there are tons of folks who put together fantasy football teams online and compete. It takes being a fan to a whole different level. I can't really imagine this being the case with youth ministry. For starters what kind of statistical categories would you base it on? Although the interaction from the players could be a nice thing to have.
2) Endorsement Deals- If I were an NFL player I would want to have an endorsement deal. The company could hook you up with what ever it is you are endorsing, you get paid extra and you get to be in commercials. In youth ministry, well there just aren't that many nationally known products (or youth ministers) to endorse. I guess we could get deals from Bible publishing companies, but really what else is there? Pizza?
1) The Draft- In the NFL many of the top college players are selected in the draft. The bigger the school and the bigger the stats you put up the higher you will probably go. It doesn't really guarantee success, but it sure looks good. In youth ministry, thank God they don't do a draft. If all churches went by were numbers and where you got your training (if you got any training), well I would be out of luck probably. Maybe I would be able to catch on as an undrafted free agent eventually.
Peace and Love y'all.
Something else that I really enjoy is the NFL. I know, I know, how in the world is that even almost related to my job as a youth minister? Well that's the thing, it's not. But because of the fact that I like the NFL as much as I do, I keep up with the things that go on with it. It's fun to know what is going on. But this got me thinking about the differences between being in ministry and being in the NFL. So here is a list of differences between the two careers.
Top 10 Differences in Youth Ministry and the NFL
10) 40 Times- In the NFL there is a lot that is based on how fast a person can run a 40 yard dash. There are guys that have earned loads of cash because they could run that far in less than 4.5 seconds. Really seems like a crazy thing to base employment on. Imagine if a church made it's youth ministry candidates run 40s and used that to help determine who they hired. Maybe instead of an actual 40 they could take times on how fast they can get down the center aisle of the sanctuary.
9) No Agents to deal with- In the NFL guys have agents that come in and represent them to make sure they get the best possible contract deal. Sounds great, but that can lead to tension between the team and the player and result in guys holding out for a better pay package. Imagine if youth ministers had agents or threatened to hold out...imagine if youth ministers had actual contracts....
8) Training Camp- In the NFL guys have to go through two-a-days in the heat of the late summer to train and practice and get prepped for the new season. Maybe this wouldn't be such a bad idea at times for youth ministry. Actually we call it The National Youth Workers Convention.
7) Different Career Ending Injuries- NFL players are always one bad hit or one bad cut away from ending their careers. They have to deal with things like concussions, torn muscles, torn ligaments and torn tendons. Any of these could potentially end the career of a player. In youth ministry our career enders look a little different: lock-ins, road trips, mission trips, Youth Sundays and parents. The names may be different, but the results can be the same.
6) Scouting Combine- This is where all those college hopefuls gather to audition for the scouts, coaches and general managers of various teams. This can make or break where you are selected. In youth ministry we call this the interview process. You meet with the hiring committee, then (in some churches) "audition" with the youth group to see how you "fit". Not really an exact science in either profession.
5) Free Agency- In the NFL when your contract runs out and you aren't resigned by your team, you can become a free agent and have a chance at landing with another team. Many free agents are highly sought after and there are battles between teams to sign them. In youth ministry, well, not so much.
4) Salary Cap- In the NFL there is a limit to how much a team can spend as far as player contract from year to year. This helps to ensure equality among teams. There is also a salary floor which says the minimum amount a team can spend (which is kind of interesting as well) to ensure that teams stay competitive. In youth ministry, there is neither.
3) Fantasy Leagues- Every season there are tons of folks who put together fantasy football teams online and compete. It takes being a fan to a whole different level. I can't really imagine this being the case with youth ministry. For starters what kind of statistical categories would you base it on? Although the interaction from the players could be a nice thing to have.
2) Endorsement Deals- If I were an NFL player I would want to have an endorsement deal. The company could hook you up with what ever it is you are endorsing, you get paid extra and you get to be in commercials. In youth ministry, well there just aren't that many nationally known products (or youth ministers) to endorse. I guess we could get deals from Bible publishing companies, but really what else is there? Pizza?
1) The Draft- In the NFL many of the top college players are selected in the draft. The bigger the school and the bigger the stats you put up the higher you will probably go. It doesn't really guarantee success, but it sure looks good. In youth ministry, thank God they don't do a draft. If all churches went by were numbers and where you got your training (if you got any training), well I would be out of luck probably. Maybe I would be able to catch on as an undrafted free agent eventually.
Peace and Love y'all.
Monday, February 22, 2010
I Love You This Much...But No More Than That
I saw this today on Stuff Christians Like and decided that it was too good to pass up. I posted the link on my Facebook as well, but I really thought it needed it's very own post on here too. I want to thank Jon Acuff for posting this in the first place (even if he found it elsewhere first).
When I was first watching this, I nearly spit coffee when the lady opens it in the kitchen and is so excited about it. Then the shot of the two girls laughing while one wears the Hug E Gram over her shoulders like a preppy dude wears his sweater, wow classic. Then of course there is the feature that allows you to create a "personalized" message for the person you love so much you aren't there to actually hug them. Finally, if you order now, they will also send your "loved" one some fake, wooden roses that will "last forever."
I mean really, what woman wouldn't want fake arms wearing Mickey Mouse gloves wrapped around her body instead of the arms of an actual person that she cares for? Does anyone else think this was invented by some guy with a fear of commitment? Peace and Love y'all.
When I was first watching this, I nearly spit coffee when the lady opens it in the kitchen and is so excited about it. Then the shot of the two girls laughing while one wears the Hug E Gram over her shoulders like a preppy dude wears his sweater, wow classic. Then of course there is the feature that allows you to create a "personalized" message for the person you love so much you aren't there to actually hug them. Finally, if you order now, they will also send your "loved" one some fake, wooden roses that will "last forever."
I mean really, what woman wouldn't want fake arms wearing Mickey Mouse gloves wrapped around her body instead of the arms of an actual person that she cares for? Does anyone else think this was invented by some guy with a fear of commitment? Peace and Love y'all.
Love and Grace
There is peace of mind at last for congregations here in East Texas, at least that is what we have been told after the arrests of two men that are believed to have been responsible for 10 church burnings here in the Tyler area. Since January 1, 2010 these two individuals have been on an arson spree burning various churches in the area. Today, they were arrested and the East Texas "church" will now breathe a collective sigh of relief. I'm glad to hear that this seems to have finally come to an end as well. But here is my question and my real reason for writing about this. What should our response be to these two young men (they are 19 and 21 by the way)?
For starters, I know that there are going to be people who are angry about all of this. And that is a justifiable response I think. There seem to be certain things that you just don't mess with in a persons life, and their church is one of those things. So I think that one of the first responses will be anger, and wanting to know why?
We will call them "sick" or "deranged" of any other number of things to try and help us understand the why and to make it easier for us to "understand" why they would do what they did. I guess the question I have is are they? I do wonder what it is that would cause someone to be so frustrated with the church or with God that they would do this kind of thing, but I wonder about our label of "sick."
Here is what I think our response should be to all of this. I think that as the overall body of Christ, as the Church universal, it is up to us to show these two young men the Grace and Love that is in Christ. Should they have to pay for what they have done? Yes, there are still natural consequences for our sinful actions, even though Grace covers us. Yet, if we don't extend Grace and Love then we are adding fuel to the fire (no pun intended, I promise) of their already present frustrations concerning the Church. We will talk at length about how we will "pray" for them and that is good. But what we should really be doing is reaching out to them, showing them this Love and Grace that we have found.
I have no idea why they would do this kind of thing. From what I read, they attended a church in Ben Wheeler together. One of them was involved in a Bible club at some point. And yet somewhere along the way they became disenfranchised with the Church. I feel like there must have been some kind of frustration there to lead them on this path. Perhaps they encountered our humanity too often in the church rather than the Grace that we hope shines through us.
What they have done is awful, and I can find no justification for it regardless of what they may have felt about God or about church or organized religion. What I want to remember and what I want to express here is that now we have an opportunity to really be The Church. What they took were the buildings that housed a service. What they have given people is a chance to be the hands and feet of Christ outside of those walls. It is my prayer that we will take this opportunity and use it to expand the Kingdom of God rather than to shrink it down even further to the idea of us against the world. Peace and Love.
For starters, I know that there are going to be people who are angry about all of this. And that is a justifiable response I think. There seem to be certain things that you just don't mess with in a persons life, and their church is one of those things. So I think that one of the first responses will be anger, and wanting to know why?
We will call them "sick" or "deranged" of any other number of things to try and help us understand the why and to make it easier for us to "understand" why they would do what they did. I guess the question I have is are they? I do wonder what it is that would cause someone to be so frustrated with the church or with God that they would do this kind of thing, but I wonder about our label of "sick."
Here is what I think our response should be to all of this. I think that as the overall body of Christ, as the Church universal, it is up to us to show these two young men the Grace and Love that is in Christ. Should they have to pay for what they have done? Yes, there are still natural consequences for our sinful actions, even though Grace covers us. Yet, if we don't extend Grace and Love then we are adding fuel to the fire (no pun intended, I promise) of their already present frustrations concerning the Church. We will talk at length about how we will "pray" for them and that is good. But what we should really be doing is reaching out to them, showing them this Love and Grace that we have found.
I have no idea why they would do this kind of thing. From what I read, they attended a church in Ben Wheeler together. One of them was involved in a Bible club at some point. And yet somewhere along the way they became disenfranchised with the Church. I feel like there must have been some kind of frustration there to lead them on this path. Perhaps they encountered our humanity too often in the church rather than the Grace that we hope shines through us.
What they have done is awful, and I can find no justification for it regardless of what they may have felt about God or about church or organized religion. What I want to remember and what I want to express here is that now we have an opportunity to really be The Church. What they took were the buildings that housed a service. What they have given people is a chance to be the hands and feet of Christ outside of those walls. It is my prayer that we will take this opportunity and use it to expand the Kingdom of God rather than to shrink it down even further to the idea of us against the world. Peace and Love.
Wednesday, February 17, 2010
Lent
Well today is Ash Wednesday, so that means the beginning of Lent. Time to give up something for the next 40 days or so (until Easter at least I guess). I've done this in the past but to be honest not always very successfully. I will go for a little while and then end up breaking it for one lame reason or another. So this year I am going to really try to stick with my Lent. Here are 10 things that I considered for this year.
10) Hating on the Dallas Mavericks- This has got to be my least favorite team in pretty much any sport that I care about (and that is really saying something when you consider the Yankees, Patriots and Lakers are out there). I'm just not a fan of this team, and have even been known to use their name as a derogatory term. Alas, I'm afraid that this would be just too difficult for me to stick with for what is basically the remainder of the season.
9) Dating other girls- I suspect that this one doesn't actually count for two reasons: 1) I'm married and Roni would do me serious bodily harm, and 2) you should really give up something that you do anyway. To be honest, I wouldn't date anyone even if Roni was cool with it (which again she for sure is NOT).
8) Showering (or hygiene in general)- I do like to shower and bathe and brush my teeth and all those things, so to give it up would fit that requirement. However I don't think it would take long for people to beg me to break my Lent with this one, and I'm not sure that is a good thing.
7) Blogging- Really I'm not consistent enough right now for that to be a big deal. I don't think it would have the same effect to tell someone that I gave up blogging for Lent and them respond by asking something like "You blog? Who knew!"
6) Spending time with my kids- Again not a great idea. Roni would not go for it and I don't think that my kids would like the idea much either. But besides that, there are three of them, there's no escape anyway.
5) Going to bed late- I've tried this before when it wasn't Lent and I'm just not sure that I can do it. Come to think of it though, maybe that would be a good idea. Hmmm.
4) Talking- Just in general you know. I could do the whole monk thing and go for 40 days of silence. The main problems here are that I don't think people would leave me alone and would keep talking to me, speaking is part of my job, and I like to get to talk to my wife and kids too much.
3) Bathroom time- No way. Just not going to happen. First of all I don't think it would be looked at favorably for me to start using the trees behind the house as my spot. Secondly, well without this time, I don't know that I would ever be able to get away from the rest of the world. Third, I'm just not thinking that friends and family would be understanding of my suddenly deciding to wear Depends for 40 days.
2) Texting- Now were getting crazy. Without this, how in the world would I be able to communicate important messages to my youth and friends and family? Without this how would I get up to the minute reports about what's going on in the world of sports? And without this, how ever would I be able to get those great forwards about Jesus and how I'm ashamed of Him if I don't retext the message to at least 10 folks?
1) Giving stuff up- Let's be honest here. I'm not good at giving stuff up really, at least not like this. I once gave up the XBOX for Lent. I think that is the only time that I have stuck with it. I think the best thing I could give up is this idea that I have to give something up.
Well there it is. My list of possibilities for going without this Lenten season. Peace and Love y'all.
10) Hating on the Dallas Mavericks- This has got to be my least favorite team in pretty much any sport that I care about (and that is really saying something when you consider the Yankees, Patriots and Lakers are out there). I'm just not a fan of this team, and have even been known to use their name as a derogatory term. Alas, I'm afraid that this would be just too difficult for me to stick with for what is basically the remainder of the season.
9) Dating other girls- I suspect that this one doesn't actually count for two reasons: 1) I'm married and Roni would do me serious bodily harm, and 2) you should really give up something that you do anyway. To be honest, I wouldn't date anyone even if Roni was cool with it (which again she for sure is NOT).
8) Showering (or hygiene in general)- I do like to shower and bathe and brush my teeth and all those things, so to give it up would fit that requirement. However I don't think it would take long for people to beg me to break my Lent with this one, and I'm not sure that is a good thing.
7) Blogging- Really I'm not consistent enough right now for that to be a big deal. I don't think it would have the same effect to tell someone that I gave up blogging for Lent and them respond by asking something like "You blog? Who knew!"
6) Spending time with my kids- Again not a great idea. Roni would not go for it and I don't think that my kids would like the idea much either. But besides that, there are three of them, there's no escape anyway.
5) Going to bed late- I've tried this before when it wasn't Lent and I'm just not sure that I can do it. Come to think of it though, maybe that would be a good idea. Hmmm.
4) Talking- Just in general you know. I could do the whole monk thing and go for 40 days of silence. The main problems here are that I don't think people would leave me alone and would keep talking to me, speaking is part of my job, and I like to get to talk to my wife and kids too much.
3) Bathroom time- No way. Just not going to happen. First of all I don't think it would be looked at favorably for me to start using the trees behind the house as my spot. Secondly, well without this time, I don't know that I would ever be able to get away from the rest of the world. Third, I'm just not thinking that friends and family would be understanding of my suddenly deciding to wear Depends for 40 days.
2) Texting- Now were getting crazy. Without this, how in the world would I be able to communicate important messages to my youth and friends and family? Without this how would I get up to the minute reports about what's going on in the world of sports? And without this, how ever would I be able to get those great forwards about Jesus and how I'm ashamed of Him if I don't retext the message to at least 10 folks?
1) Giving stuff up- Let's be honest here. I'm not good at giving stuff up really, at least not like this. I once gave up the XBOX for Lent. I think that is the only time that I have stuck with it. I think the best thing I could give up is this idea that I have to give something up.
Well there it is. My list of possibilities for going without this Lenten season. Peace and Love y'all.
Tuesday, February 16, 2010
YMtoday.com: Youth Ministry Resources
I read this today in a Youth ministry eNewsletter that I get. I thought it was interesting and wanted to share it here. I think that in youth ministry this has been going on for years and it has finally caught up to "big" church. Peace and Love y'all
YMtoday.com: Youth Ministry Resources & News
Posted using ShareThis
YMtoday.com: Youth Ministry Resources & News
Posted using ShareThis
Monday, February 8, 2010
Super Saints
Well it's all said and done, over with for another year. The Super Bowl has come and gone and we have a new NFL champion. The New Orleans Saints claimed their first championship in franchise history as I'm sure pretty much all of you know. After 42 years of existence they finally have what every team desires, a Super Bowl win. Not only did they finally win the big game, they won it on their first try. They showed last night that the Saints won 3 post season games this season: two leading up to the Super Bowl and then the Super Bowl itself. In thier previous 41 seasons they had managed to win exactly 2 post season games. Pretty remakable stuff if you're a Saints fan. After dealing with years of futility and frustration, it finally all came together. There are now only 4 teams left in the NFL that have not made it to the Super Bowl: The Lions, Browns, Jaguars and Texans. Maybe one of these days it will happen. Last nights Super Bowl game was the most watched TV program EVER with an estimated 106.5 million viewers, just edging out the MASH finale that had 105.97 million viewers. That's another pretty big deal.
Congratulations to Saint fans, both for the win and for thier endurance and patience. Congratulations to the city of New Orleans; it has been four years since Katrina swept through and caused you so much damage and heartache, I hope this win will continue to unify you as a city and help you to reclaim you sense of who you are. Congratulations Louisiana, you finally have something to brag about other than your purchase by Thomas Jefferson from France. All in all it was a great game, a great night and good for the NFL. Peace and Love y'all.
Congratulations to Saint fans, both for the win and for thier endurance and patience. Congratulations to the city of New Orleans; it has been four years since Katrina swept through and caused you so much damage and heartache, I hope this win will continue to unify you as a city and help you to reclaim you sense of who you are. Congratulations Louisiana, you finally have something to brag about other than your purchase by Thomas Jefferson from France. All in all it was a great game, a great night and good for the NFL. Peace and Love y'all.
Thursday, February 4, 2010
The Gospel According to LOST by Chris Seay
In this interesting read, Seay draws connections between the gospel and the lives and stories of a selection of main characters from the show. It is in these connections he tells how he sees the Gospel message conveyed. The thought of finding the connections to the Gospel in one of my favorite shows definitely piqued my interest in this book. What I found was a fan of the show who was trying to look deeper beyond what we simply see and hear on the screen each week. This, for me, made the book enjoyable and something that I would recommend to other fans of the show. Chris Seay does a good job of looking at the show through Jesus' own "lost' stories from the book of Luke, and making connections in that way. It was a refreshing way to look at a show that has such deep connections to faith, and is worth a read if you have the time, opportunity and a desire to think about those connections.
Sunday, January 24, 2010
The "Ain'ts" No More
It has finally happened. The New Orleans Saints have finally gotten to the Super Bowl. It has been a crazy season for them, not to mention a crazy history for them period. In 40+ years of being an NFL franchise, they now have the opportunity to play for a championship. Watching the post game tonight, listening to the reactions of the Saint players, there was a sense of relief. This is a team who's fanned pioneered the game day fashion statement of wearing bags over their heads. And now here they are, two weeks from playing in the biggest sporting event there is.
This is a day that has to have felt as though it would never come. After all the years of losing, of not even being close, this must be a feeling of relief. It was big the fist time they made the playoffs; bigger when they finally won a playoff game; bigger still when four years ago they reached their first ever NFC Championship game; even bigger to have the chance to HOST an NFC Championship game (the first ever in New Orleans), and now to have won that game and be headed to the Super Bowl.
One of the things that makes this even sweeter for the fans of the Saints is that it comes after so much loss and devastation due to Hurricane Katrina four years ago. Sean Payton touched on it tonight when he accepted the trophy, that four years ago the Super Dome had holes in the roof, water on the field, and people being housed there. But it was the way the players stepped up in this time of need, the way that the people of New Orleans embraced this team even through the 3-13 season that immediately followed the devastation, that must make this such a very sweet moment for not only the players but the city as a whole as well.
Yes it is a football game, but it is so much bigger than that. This is relief, this is history this is the turn around that the city not only wanted but needed, this was redemption. They are the Ain'ts no more after today. Peace and Love y'all.
This is a day that has to have felt as though it would never come. After all the years of losing, of not even being close, this must be a feeling of relief. It was big the fist time they made the playoffs; bigger when they finally won a playoff game; bigger still when four years ago they reached their first ever NFC Championship game; even bigger to have the chance to HOST an NFC Championship game (the first ever in New Orleans), and now to have won that game and be headed to the Super Bowl.
One of the things that makes this even sweeter for the fans of the Saints is that it comes after so much loss and devastation due to Hurricane Katrina four years ago. Sean Payton touched on it tonight when he accepted the trophy, that four years ago the Super Dome had holes in the roof, water on the field, and people being housed there. But it was the way the players stepped up in this time of need, the way that the people of New Orleans embraced this team even through the 3-13 season that immediately followed the devastation, that must make this such a very sweet moment for not only the players but the city as a whole as well.
Yes it is a football game, but it is so much bigger than that. This is relief, this is history this is the turn around that the city not only wanted but needed, this was redemption. They are the Ain'ts no more after today. Peace and Love y'all.
Wednesday, January 20, 2010
Call me Ms. Vain
So usually I like to do "topics" on particular days and I had usually done some thing faith related on Wednesday and something more pop culture related on Tuesday. Well that is switched at least for this week. I saw this clip this morning and it is really too good to pass up. Besides I wrote something that was faith related last night.
On this mornings edition of "Daytime In No Time" on Yahoo! they had a clip from the Good Morning America's interview with Heidi Montag about her recent plastic surgeries. That's right, not her recent plastic surgery, singular, but rather surgeries, plural. As in 10 "procedures" in a 10 hour span on one day. That's right, 10 surgeries in 10 hours in 1 days time. Yet as she said in the interview she isn't addicted to it. And besides, she really has only had two plastic surgeries: one about 3 years ago and then one a few weeks ago that happened to be 10 separate things. I don't know about anyone else, but if I go in for some kind of surgery and they do things to multiple parts of me while in there, I count it as two surgeries. Even if they do them at the same time, I would think that they would count as separate things. Then again I've never had plastic surgery, so maybe the math is just different for them. No longer is it 10>1 like I remember learning in elementary, but instead in plastic surgery circles it is 10=1. I wonder if you could get them to think that way when it comes to the billing too? That would be nice. I don't see that happening.
All in all the thing that got me the most from the clip of the interview was Montag's answer to this question: "Triple D is big enough, that I wasn't pretty enough. What kind of message does that send to young girls?" And what was Heidi Montag's answer? "Well my main message is that beauty is really within." Seriously? Within what? The plastic surgeon's office as the Daytime In No Time hostess quipped? I mean for real, how can you go in to a place have 10 "procedures" done to tuck, augment, and reduce parts of you and then say that your message is really that beauty is found within? Beauty is really within: the breast implants within, the coligen within, and the botox within. That's like John Dillinger claiming that hard work is the best way to earn a living and make money, after he had robbed all the banks. Who is going to really take that as the message? It seems that the message is something more like "If you want to be thought of as pretty, have some work done to change what you don't like." It is vanity of the highest accord it seems to me. But this is the culture and society that we live in, God help us. Is it any wonder that so many young men and ladies have issues with self-image and self esteem? When this is the message they are getting? Beauty is really about what's within, but if you want people to notice what's within, you need to do something about what is without. Peace and love y'all
On this mornings edition of "Daytime In No Time" on Yahoo! they had a clip from the Good Morning America's interview with Heidi Montag about her recent plastic surgeries. That's right, not her recent plastic surgery, singular, but rather surgeries, plural. As in 10 "procedures" in a 10 hour span on one day. That's right, 10 surgeries in 10 hours in 1 days time. Yet as she said in the interview she isn't addicted to it. And besides, she really has only had two plastic surgeries: one about 3 years ago and then one a few weeks ago that happened to be 10 separate things. I don't know about anyone else, but if I go in for some kind of surgery and they do things to multiple parts of me while in there, I count it as two surgeries. Even if they do them at the same time, I would think that they would count as separate things. Then again I've never had plastic surgery, so maybe the math is just different for them. No longer is it 10>1 like I remember learning in elementary, but instead in plastic surgery circles it is 10=1. I wonder if you could get them to think that way when it comes to the billing too? That would be nice. I don't see that happening.
All in all the thing that got me the most from the clip of the interview was Montag's answer to this question: "Triple D is big enough, that I wasn't pretty enough. What kind of message does that send to young girls?" And what was Heidi Montag's answer? "Well my main message is that beauty is really within." Seriously? Within what? The plastic surgeon's office as the Daytime In No Time hostess quipped? I mean for real, how can you go in to a place have 10 "procedures" done to tuck, augment, and reduce parts of you and then say that your message is really that beauty is found within? Beauty is really within: the breast implants within, the coligen within, and the botox within. That's like John Dillinger claiming that hard work is the best way to earn a living and make money, after he had robbed all the banks. Who is going to really take that as the message? It seems that the message is something more like "If you want to be thought of as pretty, have some work done to change what you don't like." It is vanity of the highest accord it seems to me. But this is the culture and society that we live in, God help us. Is it any wonder that so many young men and ladies have issues with self-image and self esteem? When this is the message they are getting? Beauty is really about what's within, but if you want people to notice what's within, you need to do something about what is without. Peace and love y'all
Tuesday, January 19, 2010
Proof of Life
Have you ever known that person that was all talk about stuff? You probably know the kind of person that I'm referring to here. It's the person that is more than happy to TELL you all about what great things they have done or can do, and yet you've never actually seen them DO these things that they are talking about being able to do. It can be pretty tiresome and annoying. After all, we want proof that they can do what they are saying they can do.
In Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (that's the 2nd book in case you didn't know that) there is a character by the name of Gilderoy Lockhart. Lockhart is a very famous, very good looking wizard. He has published numerous books about the things that he has done and on top of that he talks a big game ALL THE TIME. He is always telling various teachers what a great wizard he is and making wild claims about things. The only problem is that when push comes to shove, Lockhart is exposed for what he was: a fake. He has been able to talk big and fool many people, but when evidence was called for, when it was time to back up all the claims, Lockhart's facade crumbled.
The same holds true for us as Christ followers. It's one thing for us to talk a big game about following Jesus and being a Christian. But when it comes down to it, when it is time for us to go beyond the words, then what will people see? Will they see someone who actually lives out the faith that they claim to have? Or will they find a person that is a shell of what they have claimed to be? John the Baptist seems to have stated it best in Matthew 3:8. He said to PROVE by the way you LIVE that youthat you have this faith, not just by the words you say.
The Pharisees and the "religious" leaders that John was speakking to talked a big game when it came to faith in God. But what they said didn't match what they were doing. Is that what people will see in us? Or will they see an open, true, genuine faith that gives proof that we have turned from sin and are going hard after God? Peace and Love y'all.
In Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (that's the 2nd book in case you didn't know that) there is a character by the name of Gilderoy Lockhart. Lockhart is a very famous, very good looking wizard. He has published numerous books about the things that he has done and on top of that he talks a big game ALL THE TIME. He is always telling various teachers what a great wizard he is and making wild claims about things. The only problem is that when push comes to shove, Lockhart is exposed for what he was: a fake. He has been able to talk big and fool many people, but when evidence was called for, when it was time to back up all the claims, Lockhart's facade crumbled.
The same holds true for us as Christ followers. It's one thing for us to talk a big game about following Jesus and being a Christian. But when it comes down to it, when it is time for us to go beyond the words, then what will people see? Will they see someone who actually lives out the faith that they claim to have? Or will they find a person that is a shell of what they have claimed to be? John the Baptist seems to have stated it best in Matthew 3:8. He said to PROVE by the way you LIVE that youthat you have this faith, not just by the words you say.
The Pharisees and the "religious" leaders that John was speakking to talked a big game when it came to faith in God. But what they said didn't match what they were doing. Is that what people will see in us? Or will they see an open, true, genuine faith that gives proof that we have turned from sin and are going hard after God? Peace and Love y'all.
Wednesday, January 13, 2010
Too Light
Do you remember that old VBS song? You know the one:
So in Luke 11:33 Jesus talks about us having this light in our lives. He makes the point that no one lights a lamp and then goes and hides it, or puts it under a basket. That would be pointless really. Instead when you light a lamp like that you would make sure that it was in a place where the light could be seen and would be useful.
After I graduated from high school, my family moved from Midland to Snyder (that's all in West Texas in case you are wondering). One of the things that we did at our new house was to put up a basketball goal. The only real problem was that the only outside light we had didn't really shine bright enough and throw far enough for us to be able to play at night. Then one of my parents showed us something that we had. In the garage we had a much brighter work light that we could move out there. So we would plug in the work light, place it on the corner of the roof and be good go even though it was dark. I would have pointless for us to have this light and to take it out and plug it in and then stick it behind a wall on in the flower bed.
That is what Jesus is talking about here. As Christ's followers we have his light burning inside of us. But if we hide it or try to cover it up, what good is that to us or anyone else? This world is a dark place desperately in need of the Light, and it is up to us to shine that light for others to see. Peace and Love y'all.
This little light of mine, I'm gonna let it shine. This little light of mine, I'm gonna let it shine, let it shine, let it shine, let it shine. Hide it under a bushel-NO! I'm gonna let it shine. Hide it under a bushel-NO! I'm gonna let it shine, let it shine, let it shine. Won't let satan whufff it out, I'm gonna let it shine. Won't let satan whufff it out, I'm gonna let it shine, let it shine, let it shine.Man that was a great song for vacation Bible school and children's Sunday school and stuff like that. It made a point and it was fun to sing. I remember doing all the hand motions and stuff like that and getting up in church to sing this song.
So in Luke 11:33 Jesus talks about us having this light in our lives. He makes the point that no one lights a lamp and then goes and hides it, or puts it under a basket. That would be pointless really. Instead when you light a lamp like that you would make sure that it was in a place where the light could be seen and would be useful.
After I graduated from high school, my family moved from Midland to Snyder (that's all in West Texas in case you are wondering). One of the things that we did at our new house was to put up a basketball goal. The only real problem was that the only outside light we had didn't really shine bright enough and throw far enough for us to be able to play at night. Then one of my parents showed us something that we had. In the garage we had a much brighter work light that we could move out there. So we would plug in the work light, place it on the corner of the roof and be good go even though it was dark. I would have pointless for us to have this light and to take it out and plug it in and then stick it behind a wall on in the flower bed.
That is what Jesus is talking about here. As Christ's followers we have his light burning inside of us. But if we hide it or try to cover it up, what good is that to us or anyone else? This world is a dark place desperately in need of the Light, and it is up to us to shine that light for others to see. Peace and Love y'all.
Monday, January 11, 2010
Patriot Games
The time has come to start again. I am planning to start writing again on this blog on a regular basis and with daily topics once again. So with that said, the topic for Mondays have in the past been sports, so here we go.
Lots of great stuff in the sports world over the last 5 days it seems like. From the BCS National Championship game in college football (The Alabama Crimson Tide rolled over the Texas Longhorns 37-21 to win their 13th national championship) to the first round of the NFL playoffs (Cowboys won their first playoff game in 13 years; the Cardinals won a shoot-out, 96 combined points, on, of all things, a defensive play in overtime) it was a great 5 days of football (I honestly didn't pay close enough attention to any of the other sports that were going on).
But in all of that there was one thing that did seem to stand out and it happened yesterday. The New England Patriots showed that they are possibly on the downside of being a dynasty when they lost to the Baltimore Ravens 33-14. Not that big of a deal really just to look at the score. The thing that IS a big deal about it is the fact that it was a loss at home for the Patriots. And in the playoffs, well, that just doesn't happen. Not since 1978 at least, which they showed yesterday was over 11,000 days since they last lost a home playoff game.
Lets think about that for a moment. It has been 32 years since the last time these guys lost at home in the playoffs. That's three decades of dominance for them on their home field. I mean what kind of crazy advantage is that? There have been so many things that have happened in that time span. Here is a list of things that have happened in my life alone since the last time the Patriots lost at home in the playoffs:
Lots of great stuff in the sports world over the last 5 days it seems like. From the BCS National Championship game in college football (The Alabama Crimson Tide rolled over the Texas Longhorns 37-21 to win their 13th national championship) to the first round of the NFL playoffs (Cowboys won their first playoff game in 13 years; the Cardinals won a shoot-out, 96 combined points, on, of all things, a defensive play in overtime) it was a great 5 days of football (I honestly didn't pay close enough attention to any of the other sports that were going on).
But in all of that there was one thing that did seem to stand out and it happened yesterday. The New England Patriots showed that they are possibly on the downside of being a dynasty when they lost to the Baltimore Ravens 33-14. Not that big of a deal really just to look at the score. The thing that IS a big deal about it is the fact that it was a loss at home for the Patriots. And in the playoffs, well, that just doesn't happen. Not since 1978 at least, which they showed yesterday was over 11,000 days since they last lost a home playoff game.
Lets think about that for a moment. It has been 32 years since the last time these guys lost at home in the playoffs. That's three decades of dominance for them on their home field. I mean what kind of crazy advantage is that? There have been so many things that have happened in that time span. Here is a list of things that have happened in my life alone since the last time the Patriots lost at home in the playoffs:
- I had three brothers born in that time.
- I went all the way from elementary school through college graduation.
- I got married.
- I had three children.
Tuesday, January 5, 2010
Being "that" Fan
One of my favorite things is sports. If you know me, you probably know this little tidbit of information already. If not and you are reading this just because, well I like sports. Football and basketball take the top two spots for me, but really I like others as well. And I like them at just about all levels (no matter how painful they may be to watch at times). But there is one thing about sports, and especially going to a sporting event in a small gym or football field that is hard to deal with: The obnoxious fan.
You know the one I'm sure. It's the person that sits in the stands and yells (wanting to be heard of course) at the refs, at the coaches, and the kids. It's the kind of thing that I am afraid of doing myself when my kids are actually old enough to participate in games that aren't as painful to watch. It's part of the reason that I am not sure about ever coaching my kids in pee-wee sports. I'm afraid that I would make myself look bad. Granted I have done this before and been reprimanded for it. I sit there at games now and can hear this type of fan yelling and I think the same thing that a couple next to me voiced: "This isn't Little Dribblers anymore. Nobody wants to listen to that now."
The thing that gets me though is when the person isn't just yelling indiscriminately, but instead is yelling very specifically, usually at their own kid. I can understand having a passion for the sport (or just sports in general) and even the desire to see your team and your kid do well. But is it really called for to yell at or to your child things that aren't exactly encouraging? My parents were great when it came to my sports. They were there and they were supportive, but thankfully they didn't yell at me about what I was supposed to do (in part that may be because they didn't really know any different). I remember a friend's dad who would come down and stand on the track behind us at Junior High football games and yell stuff at his son. Look let me put it like this, you're not coming off great to the folks around you. People that I've been around aren't generally supportive (or always appreciative) of this kind of thing. I know you're trying to help, to get a call, to get your kid to realize what's going on. I'm just saying that it may not be the best way to go about it.
I think in a lot of ways, people take that same view of Christians. Here we are on the outside, not in the heat of doing life with these people, and yet we are voicing (loudly usually) instructions about how they should be doing stuff. We are pacing on the track yelling out at those who are actully playing. What good does that do? Honestly, even if they hear us, do we think they are going to suddenly just listen to us? I think this is one of the reasons that Christians are often times seen as being that obnoxious sports fan. We think we know everything and we will loudly voice it for all those around us to hear, and yet what we doing to really help make a change?
In Acts 2:42-47 it talks about the early church. If you are a part of our youth ministry then you know that what we call it is 2Forty2. This refers to Acts 2:42, which talks about what the early believers did as far as worship, and prayer and fellowship and breaking bread together. But when we read further we also see that they shared what they had, not just amongst themselves but with others as there was need. They saw a problem and they found a way to deal with it, they didn't simply shout solutions. Then in verse 47b we reach the real kicker: "They enjoyed the good will of all the people. And God added to their number daily those who were being saved." They were not the obnoxious sports fan. This is what our call is. To live out our faith in such a way that people are drawn to us, not repelled by us. And that is hard to do, just like it is sometimes hard to not be that obnoxious fan in the stands. Peace and Love y'all.
You know the one I'm sure. It's the person that sits in the stands and yells (wanting to be heard of course) at the refs, at the coaches, and the kids. It's the kind of thing that I am afraid of doing myself when my kids are actually old enough to participate in games that aren't as painful to watch. It's part of the reason that I am not sure about ever coaching my kids in pee-wee sports. I'm afraid that I would make myself look bad. Granted I have done this before and been reprimanded for it. I sit there at games now and can hear this type of fan yelling and I think the same thing that a couple next to me voiced: "This isn't Little Dribblers anymore. Nobody wants to listen to that now."
The thing that gets me though is when the person isn't just yelling indiscriminately, but instead is yelling very specifically, usually at their own kid. I can understand having a passion for the sport (or just sports in general) and even the desire to see your team and your kid do well. But is it really called for to yell at or to your child things that aren't exactly encouraging? My parents were great when it came to my sports. They were there and they were supportive, but thankfully they didn't yell at me about what I was supposed to do (in part that may be because they didn't really know any different). I remember a friend's dad who would come down and stand on the track behind us at Junior High football games and yell stuff at his son. Look let me put it like this, you're not coming off great to the folks around you. People that I've been around aren't generally supportive (or always appreciative) of this kind of thing. I know you're trying to help, to get a call, to get your kid to realize what's going on. I'm just saying that it may not be the best way to go about it.
I think in a lot of ways, people take that same view of Christians. Here we are on the outside, not in the heat of doing life with these people, and yet we are voicing (loudly usually) instructions about how they should be doing stuff. We are pacing on the track yelling out at those who are actully playing. What good does that do? Honestly, even if they hear us, do we think they are going to suddenly just listen to us? I think this is one of the reasons that Christians are often times seen as being that obnoxious sports fan. We think we know everything and we will loudly voice it for all those around us to hear, and yet what we doing to really help make a change?
In Acts 2:42-47 it talks about the early church. If you are a part of our youth ministry then you know that what we call it is 2Forty2. This refers to Acts 2:42, which talks about what the early believers did as far as worship, and prayer and fellowship and breaking bread together. But when we read further we also see that they shared what they had, not just amongst themselves but with others as there was need. They saw a problem and they found a way to deal with it, they didn't simply shout solutions. Then in verse 47b we reach the real kicker: "They enjoyed the good will of all the people. And God added to their number daily those who were being saved." They were not the obnoxious sports fan. This is what our call is. To live out our faith in such a way that people are drawn to us, not repelled by us. And that is hard to do, just like it is sometimes hard to not be that obnoxious fan in the stands. Peace and Love y'all.
Star Gazing
Sunday morning we were sitting in church. A pretty typical thing for me on a Sunday morning really. In case you were wondering, Sunday was also the 9th day of Christmas. So I got up to read the scripture for the day which was Matthew 2:1-12. It is the part of the story of Jesus' birth that talks about the Magi coming to see him, about how they saw the star in the West and followed it, possibly for two years, in order to worship the King of the Jews that had been born. It is a great story and has a lot of great things in it that we can and should consider.
Yesterday however a thought occurred to me that I had never had before about the star. First of all let me say to you, think about everything you have have heard or seen when it comes to the Star of Bethlehem. What comes to mind? Is it some small pin prick of light that just happens to shine a bit brighter, perhaps like the North star? It seems that on most occasions when we think about this star, or we see a rendering of it it is pretty much a huge shining beacon in the night sky lighting the way not only for the Magi but for the shepherds and even some incoming air traffic. It seems that everyone believes that this star was like a spot light marking the location of where Jesus was for all to see.
And that's fine, and maybe it was that way. But if that were the case, why didn't (or couldn't) Herod and all his advisers see it outside of their city? Maybe it was because they lived in the city and the street lights and office lights were just too bright, I don't know. All I know is that if this star was as big and bright as what we tend to believe, it seems like it should have been hard to miss, and at the least someone should have noticed and maybe pointed it out to Herod so they could investigate. As I thought about this question in the last 36+ hours I have come up with a couple of reasons.
1) Herod and his "people" were blinded to the star. I can't help but wonder if it was a hard heartedness that kept them from seeing this sign from God that he was doing something in their very midst. In Habakkuk 1:5 God says that he is going to be doing a new thing. Herod was not the kind of king who was really hip to doing "new things". I think it is possible that they were blinded in some way to what was going on right there around them. It's the same way that people are today. God can be moving in the very midst of people, and yet some are so hard hearted, so determined not to see or acknowledge Him that they are basically blind to what is being done.
2) They weren't really looking something to happen. When the Magi come to Herod and tell him about the star and why they are there, the first thing Herod does is to call aside his priests and teachers and scribes and ask them about where the Messiah is supposed to be born. They all know the prophecy and tell him where Jesus has been born. Yet even knowing this information it seems that they weren't really looking for something to happen. Again we are this way at times. We have the information, we know what we need to know, and yet we are not really looking for anything to go down, therefore we miss what God is doing.
3) They didn't know what to look FOR. When the Magi arrived they talked about how they had been watching the sky and the stars and had seen this star as a sign that the King of the Jews had been born. These were not men who claimed to follow the One True God as the Jews did. These were people who followed the patterns in the stars and relied on that to navigate through life. Yet in the end, they knew what they were looking for when it came to the star that they saw. They recognized that there was something special going on and they wanted to be a part of it. Herod and the others didn't even seem to know where to start with all this.
So where do we fall in all of this? Are we like Herod who was hard hearted and didn't want to see what God was doing or are we more like the Magi who saw that God was doing something and knew that whatever it was they wanted/needed to be a part of it? That is something that we have to figure out and decide for ourselves. What choice will we make? Peace and Love y'all.
Yesterday however a thought occurred to me that I had never had before about the star. First of all let me say to you, think about everything you have have heard or seen when it comes to the Star of Bethlehem. What comes to mind? Is it some small pin prick of light that just happens to shine a bit brighter, perhaps like the North star? It seems that on most occasions when we think about this star, or we see a rendering of it it is pretty much a huge shining beacon in the night sky lighting the way not only for the Magi but for the shepherds and even some incoming air traffic. It seems that everyone believes that this star was like a spot light marking the location of where Jesus was for all to see.
And that's fine, and maybe it was that way. But if that were the case, why didn't (or couldn't) Herod and all his advisers see it outside of their city? Maybe it was because they lived in the city and the street lights and office lights were just too bright, I don't know. All I know is that if this star was as big and bright as what we tend to believe, it seems like it should have been hard to miss, and at the least someone should have noticed and maybe pointed it out to Herod so they could investigate. As I thought about this question in the last 36+ hours I have come up with a couple of reasons.
1) Herod and his "people" were blinded to the star. I can't help but wonder if it was a hard heartedness that kept them from seeing this sign from God that he was doing something in their very midst. In Habakkuk 1:5 God says that he is going to be doing a new thing. Herod was not the kind of king who was really hip to doing "new things". I think it is possible that they were blinded in some way to what was going on right there around them. It's the same way that people are today. God can be moving in the very midst of people, and yet some are so hard hearted, so determined not to see or acknowledge Him that they are basically blind to what is being done.
2) They weren't really looking something to happen. When the Magi come to Herod and tell him about the star and why they are there, the first thing Herod does is to call aside his priests and teachers and scribes and ask them about where the Messiah is supposed to be born. They all know the prophecy and tell him where Jesus has been born. Yet even knowing this information it seems that they weren't really looking for something to happen. Again we are this way at times. We have the information, we know what we need to know, and yet we are not really looking for anything to go down, therefore we miss what God is doing.
3) They didn't know what to look FOR. When the Magi arrived they talked about how they had been watching the sky and the stars and had seen this star as a sign that the King of the Jews had been born. These were not men who claimed to follow the One True God as the Jews did. These were people who followed the patterns in the stars and relied on that to navigate through life. Yet in the end, they knew what they were looking for when it came to the star that they saw. They recognized that there was something special going on and they wanted to be a part of it. Herod and the others didn't even seem to know where to start with all this.
So where do we fall in all of this? Are we like Herod who was hard hearted and didn't want to see what God was doing or are we more like the Magi who saw that God was doing something and knew that whatever it was they wanted/needed to be a part of it? That is something that we have to figure out and decide for ourselves. What choice will we make? Peace and Love y'all.
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