Why do we expect Christian behavior from the world?

It amazes me how we expect non-Christian companies to act like they are run by Christians. Why would we expect Walmart to instruct it's employees to say merry CHRISTmas if they are run by people who don't believe in Christ. Would our time be better spent building relationships with not yet Christians than fighting with them over "Merry Christmas"? Showing love not disdain. I seem to think so!

Waiting on the Lord

God is on the move! Not Aslan at least in my movie, at least in my life. I am just not sure how. Please pray for me and Kim as we are desperately and with great excitement waiting on the Lord. He is working in us but we have no clue as to exactly how. It has been years since I have felt Him moving so strongly, like a mighty wind pushing us into the unknown. But as Ty likes to quote, "bring me the horizon" I will go and do what ever God wants! Pray that is what happens!

The Airline Industry and the Church

I was intrigued as I listened to talk radio the other day as to the striking similarities between the Airline Industry and the current state of the church. The talk radio hosts were talking about a recent poll done in some magazine about which airlines ranked the best when it came to effectiveness and customer loyalty. They explained that it was no surprise that airlines like Jet Blue and frontier (fairly new and young) were at the top of the list and airlines like United and American (old "legacy") were at the bottom. An airline expert commented that the "legacy" airlines "grew up" in the regulated airline industry when the gov. subsidised a large portion of their cost and that the newer airlines have "grown up" in a competitive market. Being as such the new airlines are much better and aware as to what must be done to reach potencial passengers.

It struck me at this point as to how similar this is to the church of today. The older model of "Christiandom" as a way of going about church "grew up" in a society where it was the center and it was just expected you would go to church. Some of the more "emergent" modes of church have "grown up" in a very different cultural context and thus has had to understand a new paradime. The church of today must understand how to be in culture and be salt and light with in it and not just expect everyone to come to it for salvation. The old model is not wrong just outdated and ineffective. Maybe there is more that just good TV on Frontier!

Hebrew Day Planner

This is a challenging concept that came to Kim and I through the book "Making Room For Life" by Randy Frazee. Here it is: "There are essentially three major activities in each day that should be governed by night and day: productivity, relationships, and sleep. Because the work of the Hebrews was agrarian, productivity was accomplished during the hours of sunlight - 6am to 6pm... So the basic structure of a normal day for the Hebrews went like this: twelve hours available for productivity and work (6am-6pm); four hours available for relationships (6pm-10pm); and eight hours available for sleep (10pm - 6am)." On Friday night at 6pm they would begin their 7th day of rest as God designed. All governed by Day and Night. I think the question we all should ponder is this: Should we live by the same divine clock? and if so HOW? in a non-agricultural society! I believe we have got to slow down, get connected to others and our Lord or we will continue our slow death! Our crowded loneliness.

Grace = Fear???

Ever sang the song "Amazing Grace"? I have many times but this last week something struck me as I sang again. In one of the verses there are two line that stood out and I just can't let it go. They go something like this: "twas grace that taught me heart to fear, and grace my fears released." The second line makes perfect sense but grace teaching fear seems a bit odd and hard to comprehend. How does getting what we don't deserve cause us to fear? Is it that we are given so much and it is hard to handle? I wonder what the writer really meant when they coined those words. It is good to think about. The better I can understand Grace, God's Grace, the better I will be at living it out.

Guilt vs Guard

In this life filled with the flesh Satin has used Guilt a number of times to keep me down about myself and my sin. All the while keeping me from having any victory over that sin. Yet my guilt also serves to remind me of my faults and to help me keep my guard up against what gave me reason to guilt. It seems to be a hard balance between having my guard up to keep from sinning but to not be lost in guilt. Shame is not of the lord, He has forgiven and forgotten and He want to see victory in my life and a continual progression to Christ likeness. Satin though wants me lost in my self pity and guilt. Is 6: "See this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away and your sin atoned for!" (emph. added) O lord Jesus thank you for being the coal that has touched my lips, may I have joy for my guilt is taken away and my sin is atoned for.

Absolute truth?

I have recently been challenged to rethink all the things I have been thinking are Absolute truth. I think I have spent a lot of my life living as if there are many more absolutes that there really are simply becaue someone told me they were. From God's word there are some fairly clear ones but there are may others that I think are from us(man) that really are not in there. May be you would take a minust and add your thoughts. What do you think is Absolute truth????

Who's your daddy?

Have you ever been challenged by someone in a sermon or just talking where they asked you, "What are you doing that would fail if God didn't show up?"? I was thinking about that recently with a few situations in ministry right now and taking comfort in the fact that there is no way this could happen with out God showing up. GOD really must show up but I have been challenged all the more that the answer to the question is nothing less that Life itself. My life is a completed failure aside from God and would be if He were left out. So in a sense I think that is a silly question and one I don't think I will be asking anymore. Who are we that we could think there is anything that would not fail if God didn't show up! So Who's your Daddy?

A powerful Community Question!

At a camp Kim and I went to a week ago our friends there that run the camp asked a powerful question that is designed to help us think through if we really are involved in TRUE community or if what we have is just scratching the surface. Here is the question: "If you or your family were falling apart do you have someone or another family that would step in and do something?" NOT that could or that might but WOULD. The answer for Kim and I is sadly no. We have friends and families that are close(relationally) to us but are fare(geographically) enough away that they may not know what is happening. Those that are physically close to us we are not quite as close to in relationship. HOW ABOUT YOU?!!! You and I had better change and change that fast before we really need it!

The Connecting Church

I have recently been really challenged to help my chruch see the need for true community. I am wondering if anyone has seen a great example of a chruch that "Get's it" a place that is biger than a few hunderd and yet has broken themself down enough to truly have families and individuals living life together? I am trying to think through what this might look like in my local context. I am not sure if it is even possible here but I pray it is and I pray God might use me to iniciate that change. It is a huge task to try and help a very "Modern" chruch see the need and to let go of all the sacrid cows to move forward in a way that will truly be powerful. Any help would be great!

My first post

How do we stop doing chruch and start being church?