Archive for February, 2010
Can you put it all on a single table?
Ran across this quote on Seth Godin‘s site:
Tim Cook at Apple: “This is the most focused company I know of, am aware of, or have any knowledge of… We say no to good ideas every day.” Cook then pointed out to analysts that every single product the company makes would fit on the single conference table in front of him. “And we had revenue last year of $40 billion.”
What a challenge for churches. Can you put every single one of your ‘products’ on a single table? And is there that stamp of deepness, excellence on every single one of those items?
Much to ponder…
I Think We’ve Survived But Our Carpets Are Never Going To Be The Same
“Throwing up sucks.” – Camber, age 10
Technically Camber, it blows but I understand. It’s also very evident that none of our kids have great aim when it comes to vomit. After one child threw up beside Amy’s side of the bed, we (meaning Amy) ran her into the bathroom right in front of the toilet. The thought went something like this — when you throw up again, hit the round thing we call a toilet. It’s French for “Smells Funny.”
She still missed the toilet. She did not miss the walls, the floor, the unused toilet paper dispenser, the roll of toilet paper on the wall, or the hand towel. Nothing quite says “I love you” than the splat of nasty-ness on a tile floor in the middle of the night. The older son because he’s the oldest and must excel in all things, 3 upped his sister.
So there are 4 pretty significant spots to fix, replace, blow up, bleach, cut out and just call it a day. A brutal reminder that your kids are never too old to have white carpet. And never give your kids red Gatorade if they are feeling puny. Write that one down, you’ll want to keep that one.
The reality is we throw up because something is wrong in us and our bodies don’t really care where we are or how convenient it is at the time. Something is wrong and this is the fastest way to get it out of the system. It’s not the neatest or most convenient, but it is the fastest. And when you’re throwing up, you don’t really care what you look like or even where you are at. It’s just not as important when you think your spleen is about to come through your nose.
So what’s my point? My point is this – today I caught myself more concerned about my carpets than my kids. How backwards is that? I mean – it’s a carpet and I don’t even like the carpet anyway. It’ll clean… maybe… eventually… ok… probably not ever but that’s beside the point. My kids were puking their guts out and needed more from me. I was worried about the carpets.
I’m embarrassed about that but I’m bound and determined to not let that thinking invade the church. WE can’t let that kind of thinking seep into the church. It’s happened in other places. They are more concerned about their carpets than their kids. As in – until you get cleaned up (quit living together, smoking, cussing, drinking, addicted, or cheating), you can’t play on our carpets.
It’s totally backwards of how God operates, how Jesus treats us and expects us to treat others. Jesus knows how to clean carpets and it doesn’t seem to bother him as much as it does others. So maybe we need to once again remind ourselves that at one point in time, we were the ones throwing up in the middle of the night unable to find the toilet. And he loved us anyway…and he cleaned up the mess.
4 Circles To Explain Christianity?
This is so genius, so simple, so TRUE, it almost makes you want to slap yourself upside the head. Almost
It takes 3 minutes to watch and it will forever change how you present God’s story to people. Thanks to Gene Wilkes and James Choung
Where Is The 2nd Guy?
My good friend Rex and I (and our families) were sitting around lunch Saturday and we were invaded by a bunch of old guys wearing fezes…or is it fezzes? The upside down popcorn bucket hats with tassels on them – those hats. Shriners. Appears that the circus is in town – literally – and they always seem to help kids.
But it did bring up a crucial question in the history of humanity. Where’s the 2nd guy? Meaning, it is completely understandable for one individual to do or wear or say something utterly ridiculous. It is on the 2nd guy to correct that behavior so that it does not turn into a social phenomenon. The Macarana immediately comes to mind.
It’s the 2nd guy who could have stopped the insanity by saying — “There’s no way you’re wearing that bucket on your head” but obviously he didn’t. He lied and therein gave credibility to something utterly ridiculous.
So this is the partial list we came up with…add others as they hit you.
Fez hats with tassels
Rocky Mountain Oysters
Double Luge
Running with Bulls
Bungee Jumping – we had some disagreement here. I mean, if the first guy didn’t die — it’s legit.
Fire Walking
Ear Gauging
Milking a Cow – think about it…
Mullets
Exercising in spandex
I Hope My Final Thoughts On Tiger
First, to the Golf Writers Association — you all are a bunch of suck-up hypocrites and your ‘ban’ of Tiger’s announcement was the ultimate in “You really don’t get who you are and why you are here.” You think Tiger not answering questions is an insult to journalism?
I’ll tell you what an insult to journalism is — the way you babied Tiger, never asked him any hard questions, help hide his disease, and kept your mouth shut when he was on top of the world. Let’s be honest, your organization hasn’t exactly produced the kind of work that is going to be seen on Nightline or Sixty Minutes. You looked the other way with Couples, Daly, and Woods. You weren’t looking to expose anything when you were writing all those puff articles on Tiger and getting paid. Please don’t grandstand now.
Having said that, I’m still amazed that people are amazed.
While Tiger did his usual saying a lot to not really say a whole lot, I don’t think he owes me or the public a more detailed explanation of what he did wrong. I get the picture. I’d soon move on. His bosses and sponsors and wife and kids may deserve more but I don’t. The hardest critic is still his wife and kids. The real hard questions will come without the cameras and microphones.
As for Tiger’s comments, nothing really groundbreaking. He’s out of mind to think the media will leave him alone. It can’t. Part of that is accountability, part of that is consequence. It’s insane to think he is just another golfer, he’s not. He’s a brand unto himself and he created himself that way. This is just part of that package. All the press releases in the world stating otherwise won’t change that.
Every Tour player and fan will have to decide what to do with Tiger once he decides to play again – shut him out, root against him, forgive him, or mixture of all. As with any situation, that decision will say more about us than it does Tiger.
The Pursuit of Happy And Other Geese
Have a former student who asked these questions (among others) —
How should one pursue happiness? Is it even worth pursuing?
I’m at a place in my life that I think less and less about being happy. Or at least the focus on my life is less and less on my state of happiness. Is it depression or maturity? A little of both? Not sure.
In my youth I pursued happy and got misery. Now I am pursuing meaning and impact and communion with God…and generally I’m happier now than I’ve ever been. Irony, huh? The years of believing that if I got this one thing or one experience, I’d be happy have taken their toll. I’d get it and then I’d be miserable looking for the next one thing. How many one things were there? I lost count. But they were all done in the pursuit of being happy.
By not pursuing happiness, I’m happy … more often than not. But it’s larger than just NOT pursuing happy. It’s pursuing God (for me), His ear, His heart…meaning, impact, communion. And maybe it’s not really happy but rather joy. Whatever “this” is, it is the residual feeling of pursuing meaning, impact, communion with God.
I’m tempted to write that the pursuit of happy is the most selfish thing a person can do. Not that I want all of us being Eeyores, but I’m not sure happiness can be achieved with itself being the end goal.
My generation and the ones behind me have an unhealthy obsession with being happy. Someone told us that we’re entitled to being happy and we believed them. Where did we get this? Where did the idea that my life was supposed to be easy and happy? And who is continuing to feed that lie?
Some Random Thoughts Looking Ahead
We start our new series Sacred Rituals on Sunday. (Trailer here and we didn’t get 20 comments, so Rick is off the hook.)
I hope we’re able to do more than just educate about the rituals but also experience them.
I hope people reach a new level of awe and wonder with God as a result of these ‘rituals.’
I hope we (the church) never lose sight of why we do what we do. Even if it means we shake things up to help us remember.
I hope our services continue to be places of encounter and experience of the Holy, not just a ‘good show.’ The rituals help in this journey.
The ‘sacred rituals’ are sacred because of their object, not because of who can perform them. They are for ALL followers of Jesus.
Everything starts with communion. Real communion with Jesus. Worship, baptism, generosity, community — all begin with communion, not the ‘act’ of the cup and the bread but what the cup and the bread represent. That we are part of Christ…because of His act, His movement, not ours.
I’m On The Tractor And I’m Not Getting Off
What a great read this morning. It’s from Don Miller’s blog and I’ll quote the part that pinged my heart this morning.
He (Rick McKinley, pastor of Imagio Dei) recalled hunting on some property in Eastern Oregon, sitting in a duck blind, watching a farmer a couple fields away just driving his tractor back and forth. Rick said that is what building a church looks like, it looks like farming. It figures, because, well, God invented farming.
Don goes on to talk about four practical applications of this and often he (I, you too I’m guessing) gets distracted from plowing the field by bigger fields or deeper fields or prettier fields or maybe it’s not a field at all…maybe it’s a mountain (ouch). The point is – God’s put each of us in a field and He not expects us to plow that field but He’s gifted us for that field and He’s purposed us for that field. And who doesn’t love to ride on a tractor anyway?
The four practical applications Don draws are these – If you have a family – that’s the first field to plow. Plow the field God gave you. Work with consistency and faithfulness. Stop measuring your crops.
Stop measuring the crops. Better said – stop basing worth and performance on the measurement of your crops. We had 8 people join the church yesterday. There’s a list of 8 more waiting for our next class. And I’m not going to lie to you, that amps me up quite a bit. But that’s not the point. Really, it isn’t. It’s hard to believe that when most measurements of success for churches begins and ends with numbers.
The point is creating a culture where every person has the opportunity to encounter Christ and be changed by Him. That’s the plowing. In Life Groups, student ministry, children’s ministry, whatever we do in the name of God under the identity of Western Hills – is this Love, Live and Serve?
And that’s the plowing. Back and forth, back and forth. With faithfulness and consistency.
Thanks, Don.
Hardest NFL Team To Be A Fan Of, Conference Championships
Wildcard Weekend
Divisional Weekend
NFC Divisional Weekend:
Redskins vs. Rams
Rams win (lose) this going away. Redskins have so much more going for them than the Rams at this point. New coach, new system, new outlook and talent-wise they are not that far away from competing in the NFC.
Rams are hurting all over the place – from talent to ownership. Will they leave St. Louis? If they did, would anybody notice? Rams are much harder to cheer for at this state.
Lions vs. Seahawks
Very close game…almost too close to call. Is it harder to cheer for an old team with a new coach OR a young team with an old coach? The difference is that the Seahawks are in a division where they don’t have to get that much better to be good, whereas the Lions are staring up at the Bears, Packers, and Vikings.
Lions are the harder team to be a fan of.
Conference Championship:
Rams vs. Lions
Make your vote count….all both of you.
AFC Divisional Weekend:
Bills vs. Broncos
It’s close but after the last few weeks, the Bills win (really lose). Chan Gailey was a great coordinator and coach…in the late 80′s. The staff he is assembling right now looks pretty green. Talent level on the Bills not great and they still don’t know who is going to be the QB. Broncos have their drama and problems but talent level (at least on the offense) isn’t one of them.
Raiders vs. Chiefs
As a refugee living in Chefs country, things (according to fans) are actually looking a bit up. Charlie Weiss and Romeo seem to have lit the fires of hope and we all know that hope is a dangerous thing (Shawshank Redemption).
But there is no comparison to the mess that is the “Grrrreaaatness ofthe Raaaydahs.” Pick your poison – ownership, coach, QB, talent, fans, city? It’s all jacked up. I can’t wait for the draft this year to see who the next bust will be. Raiders win (lose) in a blowout.
Conference Championship
Bills vs. Raiders
The easiest odds to guess in the world….
Getting Thank You’s And An Invite From A Public School
It’s not why we do it…but it sure does feel awesome.
The volunteer coordinator for the McCarter Elementary PTO stopped by today. Her name is Maria and she had this huge manila folder in her arms. Inside were hundreds of hand written notes on various colors of construction paper saying thank you in so many different ways for the all the things we’ve done this year.
I was pretty impressed. If they are going to do this every time we do something, they are going to run out of construction paper and we are going to run out of walls. But I could tell something else was on her mind.
She starts…”So listen, we can’t even begin to describe how thankful we are for this past year. The blankets, the school supplies, Sharefest…the staff and principal just rave about your parish. We don’t want to be overbearing, but I’ve heard that you said that if at anytime we needed something….to ask. Is that right?”
I can’t stop smiling. I mean, I just can’t wipe the grin off my face. I’ve been praying for exactly this – when a need arises at the school, we are the school’s first call. I’m looking at answered prayer, right in front of me. And I know the only reason she is here because we served them first without pretense or agenda.
“That is right. How can we serve you?”
After the sigh of relief, she tells me about a fundraiser they are doing next week – a chili-feed. “It’s a little late notice” – Friday, February 19, 5 to 8pm, Town & Country Christian Church (we’ll have more info in the bulletin this week and on our website later) – “but we were wondering if you could invite your parish?”
“Absolutely. That’s easy. What else?”
“Well…again, don’t want to be overbearing but we’re wondering if your church was interested in helping with the school fair again this year? We’d love to have you again.”
“Absolutely.”
And there you are. That just happened. It’s not a huge deal but it is. I’m just AMPED at this…this God-moment of opportunity. How huge is this? I’m convinced it’s a larger deal for us than them. Love God. Live Connected. Serve All. It’s coming together, slowly and surely.
The Origins Posts
This has been undeniably my favorite series I have ever been a part of. The partnership with Circle of Friends, the Friday Night Artwalk, the art, the content, the stories, the worship….just the whole experience has been phenomenal.
And the journey will continue for at least a little while longer. Warehouse 414 is displaying the art until the end of the month and you can still bid on the art until February 27. All proceeds go to this incredible program – Circle of Friends that is connecting special needs teens with other students to make their high school experience a positive one.
The Story of Origins, Part 1
The Story of Origins, Part 2
Origins: Earth
Origins: Humanity
Origins: Sin
Origins: Murder
Origins: Redemption
Origins: The Nations
Origins: the Nations and How God Is Selfish
There are two things I walk away from the Origins with concerning my theology of God. First, He’s selfish. Second, He is complicated.
I admit that ‘selfish’ is a strong word but I really can’t think of a better one. In humans, this extreme focus on self is called narcissism. And let’s be honest…it never goes well. If I really lived that way all the time, got what I wanted, when I wanted it and how I wanted it…it would be as close to hell on earth as I can imagine. How many times in my life have I been thankful that I didn’t get what I want? How many times has it turned out that what I wanted and how I wanted it would have ended up killing me?
But God functions this way – wanting to be the center of our life, always and forever. He wants us to have what He wants and how He wants it. So what’s the difference? It’s obvious that the difference is that God is good…all the time. Goes back to starting our theology in Genesis 1, not Genesis 3. He’s selfish because that’s what is best for us all. Anything other than God in the center of our lives is death, mayhem. Impossible to miss that in the first 11 chapters.
It’s also impossible to miss how complicated God is at times. This is a comfort to me, honestly. Growing up hearing the simple explanations of God and His word not only left me hollow but unsatisfied. This simple understanding led to some incorrect conclusions about God. Every story in the first 11 chapters has the temptation to be understood in simple and wrong terms. “God confused the languages because humanity was becoming more like Him and He wanted to stop that.” Well…okay but is that it? I mean, really…God has a complex thinking that there is a chance we’ll evolve and His job will be in danger?
There is always more to the story, more to God’s response than just the obvious. And that’s a good thing. It means that God is deeper, truer, and larger than I am or what I can imagine. And that’s exactly the kind of God I need at my center. Not the Tin Can, “Everything Will Be Alright In The Morning” God that my youth rebelled against.
The Tower is testament to this. You can hear my full rant on this here, but suffice to say that every response of God will be more than just judgment, more than just reaction. It’s full of His protection and provision as well…even when I can’t see it at first.
The artwork is by Lisa Peterson. Every culture and language originated out of one ‘hand.’ The colors and the pageantry of all the different worlds and how the most unifying feature of any culture is its language. Modern linguists are fascinated how all the different languages have similarities to each other.
In the end, all these cultures will be reunited. They won’t lose their distinctiveness or their flavor. Their unifying feature will no longer be their language or their color, but Jesus himself. We get a glimpse of this in Acts 2. The full picture will come later. Lord, hasten the day.
Shaking the Monday Blues…
It’s snowing today and for the first time since we moved here….I miss Colorado. I miss stealing a day skiing with friends. I miss the first lift up, the squeaking of powder underneath my skis. I miss the way the sun hits the foothills in the morning and the last peak of orange before dinner.
For some reason, it’s hard to stay focused today and I find my thoughts continually drifting West. When I hear people complain about the snow here, I smile and nod. I understand that in can be a nuisance. It makes our cars dirty and it’s impossible to get the Christmas lights off the house. (I promise I’m trying…sort of.) It slows things down – you can’t drive as fast, stop as fast, get to where you are going as fast, or get ready to leave as fast because of the layers you have to dress in. But that’s another reason I love the snow. It slows me down.
And when I slow down, I remember things. Namely, I remember Camber wrestling with this feeling when we first moved here. I learned much from her watching her deal with moving. Last semester I had one of those moments that I’m convinced God orchestrated for my benefit. Cammy walks into the living room, plops down besides me looking down. I asked ‘You okay?”
She passionately told me that she loved her new school, her new friends, her new church, her new house and if only she could get new siblings to go with it, her life would be perfect. As it stood – it was not going to be perfect until they all moved out. I thought to myself – if we’re lucky they’ll all move out. “You think they might just feel the same way at times?”
She looked at me like I was from Mars. And I asked her at the risk of it blowing up in my face – so you don’t miss Colorado anymore?
“Oh no. There are days I do but there’s room for more than one favorite in your heart, isn’t there?”
I sat dumbfounded at the depth and wisdom of my quirky, funny, off-the-wall middle child. “Yes, Camber. You are absolutely right.”
So later today, I’ll be fine and I’ll see Camber and she’ll make me laugh.
But for a few moments this morning, I wish I could see Pike’s Peak.
Hardest NFL Team To Be A Fan Of, Divisional Weekend
So the first post really didn’t have the comments I was hoping for – which is okay because that just means I’ll make the decision. Since I’m always right about things concerning the NFL, this is better anyway.
NFC.
Wildcard Weekend:
Panthers vs. Rams
Rams win this contest going away. Rams just suck and there really isn’t much hope on the horizon because as good as Suh is, he can’t block, run, throw, kick, and cover DB’s.
Seahawks vs. Bucs
This game went to OT. The Seahawks got a late game push to lose (win) this game by the hiring of Pete “What NCAA violations?” Carroll. How close was this game? The home city weather pattern and uniforms were the deciding factor – giving the Seahawks the win…which is really a loss. Confused yet? It’s harder to be a fan of the Seahawks than the Bucs and the Seahawks unis are just atrocious.
That sets us up for the Division weekend and the matchups look like this:
Divisional Weekend:
Redskins vs. Rams – another game in which Rams are heavily favored to win…which is really a loss.
Lions vs. Seahawks – Winner (which really is a loser) of this game might just be the favorite to represent the NFC in the Loser Bowl. Oh wait…I forgot about the Rams. Never mind. Slight edge to Lions but it will be another close one.
AFC
The cream of the crop – which is really the bottom of the barrel – is in the AFC.
Wildcard Weekend:
Chiefs vs. Jaguars
Chiefs win (really lose) this one easily. The Jags put a couple of players in the Pro Bowl, they have hope, and they have talent. The Chefs – (misspelled on purpose) not so much in the talent department. But their coaching got better…which is not really going to help either but that’s another story.
Broncos vs. Browns
As it normally is when these two teams meet, it was a back and forth affair. Holmgren and Cribbs made the difference. Or better said, McDaniels the Hun couldn’t work it out with his incredibly gifted and stud DC Mike Nolan who lifted that D from 31 to top 15 in one season with the same players!!! What the HECKKKKKK is going on — sorry, my journalistic integrity was interrupted for a second. Denver won (lost). Looking to compete with Raiders at this point.
Divisional Weekend:
Bills vs. Broncos
Another close game. Mike Geer will have plenty to say about this matchup. Will look to him for advice and insight as he is a Bills fan, I’m a Broncos fan. Hard sharp metal objects from us this week.
Raiders vs. Chiefs
Is there really any doubt who is going to win (which is really lose) this game?
Okay, both of you – let me hear your thoughts.
Sacred Rituals Trailer
I completely stole this idea of the sermon series from Mark Batterson over at NCC. Here’s the trailer for the series we will start on February 21st. Come experience it with us.
Rick Stones said that if we got 20 comments on this post, he’ll sing a Gregorian Chant for us during the series.
Origins: redemption artwork and thoughts
Noah’s story is NOT a kids story. Every children’s bible I’ve ever seen has it in there with cute little pictures of bears, elephants, and giraffes. I’d love to know how many kid books have been written on Noah. It has to be the most retold story in scripture.
As I stated this past week, I’ve yet to see a kid’s story deal with the 3 core difficult pieces of this story. Who exactly were the sons of God? What does it mean that God grieved and was sorry he had made mankind? By destroying the entire human race (save Noah) and the land animals, Did God call into question His goodness?
The Flood can be interpreted in two very different ways. It was the reaction of an angry, hurt, disappointed God. That mankind deserved this and God wanted a do-over. Somehow the killing of all of those people and animals appeased him. The rainbow stands as his apology of sorts that He won’t ever do it again. Noah somehow was the best of the worst and was ‘saved.’
Or maybe the Flood was just God bringing to the forefront the natural consequences of the choice humanity was making at that time. If the end game of all sin is death and something innocent dies with sin. If the utter reality of all sin is the ambushing of the human spirit and soul, God just brings the inevitable to the forefront with as little suffering as possible – relatively speaking. If every inclination was evil, death was the conclusion. The Ark then becomes a story of redemption.
How we view the story really hinges on how we view sin. Is it as bad as scriptures say it is or is just a flaw, a minor bother? Is sin really deadly or more of a nuisance?
Sherri was our artist for these pieces. Sherri has both learning and emotional disabilities that make expressing herself difficult. Art has given her a venue to show the rest of us what she sees and feels.
Origins: Murder, the art and the thoughts
The story of Cain and Abel disturbs me on many levels.
The idea that sin is out to ambush Cain…on purpose…with no remorse…to destroy him…that’s disturbing enough. That’s reality though, a reality I’m afraid that so few of us take seriously. Sin’s end aim for humanity is to kill and destroy. I learned in the Army that ambushes weren’t designed to have survivors and the best way to deal with ambushes was to avoid them all together. It’s hard at times to see my sin in this light…but it is whether I believe to be true or not.
But God’s words to Cain that he MUST, he CAN master it are equally disturbing. I’m pretty sure Cain didn’t feel that way. I’m pretty sure I don’t feel that way at times. It doesn’t FEEL like we can MASTER it but it is MASTERING us. God’s formula of mastering it – ‘do what is right’ – sounds both so ridiculously simple and difficult. Just do it. Don’t do what you feel, do what you know is right.
There’s the not-so-secret formula for avoiding ambushes and spiritual transformation in general – do what is right in spite of how you feel. That was Cain’s downfall – and mine at times – he let his emotions win, not his mind. He felt downcast and rejected because his offering wasn’t accepted by God. It wasn’t accepted because he did not do what he knew was right. God gave him the chance to fix it. When Cain didn’t, Sin pounced. The pattern is there in my own life — the feelings trump the facts, God doesn’t get the last word and when God doesn’t get the last word, sin does and sin always kills something innocent.
The 7 hands (can you find them all?) depict the 7 deadly sins (can you name them all?). I like the idea of the hands. It’s our hands that carry out the directive…we put ‘hands’ to the thought. I think there is something deeper at work here as well – that is there are no faces. A face would make the sin more deadly and therefore harder to dismiss and rationalize. Without the face, we can blame others, diminish the seriousness, ignore the victims, fall into a false sense of security that maybe the deadly sins aren’t really deadly. They aren’t. It’s just easier to justify living with them without faces.
What is Cain looking at? His past? His future? Why is he even given the opportunity to look in the first place? Why did God spare his life? Was allowing him to live but outside the presence of God really ‘sparing’ him? Sure Cain got to live but not really live – a wanderer, constant fighting with the land, the mark a constant reminder of his failure, not able to reconnect with the lover of his soul. It’s another layer of disturbing – God doesn’t avenge Abel. Grace wins again? Yet Cain’s banishment is the definition of hell – living outside the presence of God.
First Friday Artwalk, Origins, and Circle of Friends
This Friday night (February 5) at Warehouse 414 (map, facebook), the entire Origins series will be displayed and auctioned with all proceeds going to Circle of Friends. As to how this all got started, you can read that story here.
The auction will start at 5.30 pm on Friday night but Warehouse 414 is going to extend the auction throughout the entire month of February. After Friday, the art will be back on display at Western Hills for our services on Sunday then back to Warehouse 414 on Monday for the rest of the month. On February 28, the auction will close and the paintings sold to the highest bidder.
There has been quite a buzz generating throughout the city about this. In fact, Warehouse 414 published the following article to their art followers:
Students involved in Circle of Friends were given a blank canvas and the opportunity to tell one of the stories of ORIGINS found in Genesis. All of the pieces are available for silent auction with all proceeds going to Circle of Friends at Washburn Rural High School. The following is an interview with Grant English lead pastor at Western Hills regarding this show:
“I stumbled on this stunning piece of art at WRHS one afternoon last fall. I’m an art geek, so I wanted to know the story and meet the artist behind the piece.
Turns out, this student was a part of Circle of Friends. As I learned more about Circle of Friends and saw how disabled students were being touched, I was floored by both the simplicity of the program and its power. It’s the human touch and how redemptive and healing it can be. Art was one of the tools they used.
I had this crazy idea of asking those students if they’d be interested in painting some themed art around the ORIGINS stories Genesis. We could use the art to introduce the story during our worship services then after the series more than likely some of our members would buy the paintings.
The crazy idea sort of took on a life of its own after this. First, Hobby Lobby helped with the canvases and then we had the idea of showcasing them at the First Friday Artwalk but no real venue to partner with. Warehouse 414 graciously stepped in and offered theirs.
The result of all of this? Stunning. Art has always inspired and provoked. With this project we also get to be a part of the healing.”
So if you are in Topeka this Friday night, come see me at Warehouse 414 and see these incredible pieces.
Tuesday Morning with my Leaders
Last month we looked at Mark 10. This month, Mark 11:1-26.
These were some of the thoughts shared this morning…
The same people that sang praises and Hosannas would sing Crucify in 6 days. Easy to blame fickleness on culture but these people weren’t just ‘culture.’ They were ‘believers’ of a sort, believers that Messiah had come and the time was now. Their expectations obviously weren’t met, hence the rejection of Jesus later in the week but the temptation to ‘revolt’ when my expectation isn’t met is there for me as well. Sometimes…often times…it is a good thing my expectation isn’t met. In the words of C.S. Lewis – I dream too small at times.
Jesus’ first order of business after the hype was the Temple Courts, not Pilate. This had to be the ultimate failed expectation of the crowd – Jesus going to clear the Temple Courts instead of the governmental office, Pilate, and the army. The Temple was home of worship, ‘good’ leaders, ‘moral’ leaders, their only sacred space in a world that had been taken over by the Romans. Why pick on the Temple leaders? Revolution was going to be different, not political or exterior but interior, spiritual, deeper, more dangerous than just kicking out Rome.
Jesus knew what he was going to do but waited one night before He did it. He curses the fig tree (more on that later) then goes to the Temple, sees that it was late and decided to come back in the morning. So Jesus whipping the Temple Courts into shape wasn’t a reactionary moment but a planned, thoughtfully bold move to rebuke and teach.
The cursing of the fig tree was visible reminder to the disciples of what is expected of them as leaders. Produce fruit. Doesn’t matter that the tree was in season or not, it was supposed to have shown some kind of hope to bear fruit. The Pharisees are linked to this tree – looks aren’t important – fruit is. The only way to produce fruit is to stay connected to the vine.
Faith and forgiveness are linked…somehow. Why does Jesus link his teaching on faith that moved mountains to forgiveness? What is the connection? Do our prayers lack power not so much because we lack faith but because we haven’t practiced forgiveness? As leaders, we will constantly deal with people failing to meet our expectations as well as us failing to meet theirs. Only way that situation is redeemable and fruit can be made in the middle of it is we have a culture of forgiveness. Maybe my prayer as a leader lacks power because I haven’t let go of some ‘injustice’ or failed expectation.
There is a time to be thoughtfully bold. Jesus moved boldy but not recklessly. It was a calculated risk. There was no other action he could have done to better communicate the kind of revolution he was really starting – one of the heart, not of policy. There was no better course of action to completely and utterly shatter the expectations of those following. Three things that strike me about clearing the Temple Courts. First, it was timely. Start of Passover Week, high crowds, high teaching moment. Second, it was bold.
But those two alone aren’t enough. It was morally right. That’s the key – it was the right thing to do, knocking down unnecessary barriers for those to get to God.
Loving this journey with the crew.
It’s Not Just About The System, People Matter
I gotta be honest…Kurt Warner’s retirement bums me out a bit. He has played outstanding football the last two years, resurrected his career again in Arizona, and once again took a laughable franchise and made them formidable. You know the numbers right? 1 Ring, 3 Super Bowls, 2 MVPs, top three passing yards games in Super Bowl history.
Did you know that he and has family have a tradition that when they go out to eat, they pick out another family in the restaurant and pay for their meal? True story – his family was eating out during Super Bowl week last year and they picked this family, paid for their meal. Soon afterward, a very large black man came over to Kurt and said “I can’t believe you’ve done this. You are so gracious. I really look forward to playing you on Sunday.” He was a player on the Pittsburgh Steelers.
The point I’m trying to make is this – it’s not just about the system, people matter. Can you imagine the state of the Arizona Cardinals without Warner? Leinart running that same team is a complete disaster. The Cardinals become the Seahawks without Warner and unless something major happens between now and the draft – like say McNabb moving in – the Cardinals can enjoy the bottom of the NFC West again.
And Warner did this with two franchises – made them better because he was there. There is a certain coach in Denver that I hope gets this — the system will only be as good as the players in it. And the same is true for any organization. The system is only as good as the people.
I’ll miss Kurt. He was one heck of a competitor.