So quickly you say

Yes, I wrote a blog like ten minutes ago, but I have been confronted with one of the more funnier videos I have seen in some time. Check it out if you'd like.
http://www.ebaumsworld.com/videos/mothers-day-picture.html

True Worshipful Community

So, I decided to listen to just the radio yesterday and stumbled upon one of the CHristian stations. THey played a Mercy Me song while I stuck hot poker's into my eyes. THen they proceded to talk about how their station promotes true worshipful community.

Is it me being fed up with people trying to sound like ultra spiritual, high thinkers, or would that phrase cause the biggest disconnect with anyone outside of western evangelical church subculture? I use words like... community, meaningful, fellowship, post-modern, etc. all the time but am often reminded that they are words that sound good. And "worshipful" ... come on, they can't be serious. It sounds like a word that would come out while praying aloud in a group of people who are better than you. Don't pretend like you haven't played the Pharisee, we all have done it at some point.

My point is, these sort of spiritual words, or made up words strike me as being dangerous. THey mask over the need for action with empty words. I have been seeing more and more recently how Christians get decieved with stuff that sounds important and sounds right but couldn't more distracting. THere are two bads happening. One, we use words like worshipful to help push us towards doing something new, something relevant, something that doesn't bore us because that will translate directly to a non- Christian, so we think.
Two , we use big words that turn away non-CHristians because the words couldn't be more irrelevant to someone who isn't engulfed in church culture.

My re-occurring thought is that the newest Christian song isn't going to pull the secular world into the church. ( not that it won't aide or that being relevant to the culture is mute) THe world need truth taken directly to them. When JEsus taught he taught straight truth through teachable moments steeped in secular culture. How does the church find the balance? Will my thoughts change things? no. Does everyone in my circle say this? yes.

There could be more to say, but I am gong to go and do.

plotting and Flutie

First off, Doug Flutie announced his retirement from professional football today after 21 years either in the CFL or NFL. Hats off to the fluterino at 43 still had the juice to convert the first dropkick in like 50 years in the NFL. Giving hope to all short, old average looking dudes he had success all over the place from the National championship to the NFL where he took his team to the super bowl a few years back only to get benched.

Second, I have been watching Jeremy, my cat recently and have come to realize that he is definitely plotting world domination. He watches everything, constantly adding up figures in his head in order to achieve his goal of taking over the world. He practices his ninjitzu punches on Steve, my dog ( who thinks he is playing and runs all over the house only to be ninjitzu pnuched again). He has been walking around outside when it rains in order to build his stamina against his arch nemisis water. His only weakness is the flahlight, which when turned on, shoots a circle of light on the wall that is irresistible, and must be caught. World, be ware of Jeremy.

On the subject of losing your passion

if you are tired...
I don't care who you are or what you do, there are days when you don't want to do what you do. There are days when I don't want to play my guitar, or go into the church and hang- out wth the people I love to work and do ministry with. Are these the days when my faith is falling short? are these the days when I fail? Are these the days when I have crossed the line and done all I can do?

I am not having one of these days today, but am reminded of those days when I talk about being passionate about something, specifically what GOd is doing in the world through His church or could do without our sinfulness getting in the way. IN those days, " sabbath" becomes real. Truly entering into a state of not only rest, but reflecting on who God is.

It is awesome to think that GOd is not only willing, but fully counting on using us to do His work on earth, despite ourselves. IT is also awesome to realize that most of the things God wants us to do not only seem too big for us, but are too big for us. I have always heard people in ministry talk about working out of the overflow. God's spirit pouring out of us do to our awesome time spent with God... I am currently making the face... (for those of you who don't know the face, think of the dumbest thing you have ever seen someone do to you, take that disdain and direct it through your eyes and the face will take of itself.)

I agree that we have to work out of our overflow, but we also have to be realistic about who we are. honestly, outside of Jesus, who has that good of a quiet time. To make the matter more real, God said, take a break! you are human, I took a break and I'm God. I find that when my passion fades, when the thing I know God wants me to do is boring, I have surpassed the point when I was supposed to take a break. So don't be lazy, but take a break, walk around outside, read the Bible for no reason, play "throw cards into hat", find some people to mess around with, do anything else that could be put into a dorky what to do that is touchy feely book,
just break away and be refuled, return ready to fight round two of the good fight.

its all good

So, I have been feeling the pressure, having not posted in a while, to come up with something awesome. Luckily, I have been sort of focussing my energy into doing some song writing and reading through the book of Numbers. So far my creative and passionate buttons have not been depressed leaving me looking forward to anything.

Julie and I listened to a talk for a leadership program our church is doing. In the talk, the speaker was talking about our leadership moment when God reveals the element of our sinful world that pushes us to action. He talked specifically about Moses seeing a fellow Jew getting beaten by an Egyptian, this burned in him and eventually blossommed into His leadership role when God calls him. It was a good talk, the most important thing I thought that he said was to expose yourself to the things that tick you off. Like if it is bad music, put yourself into a position to experience it in order to fuel the fire. Another example would be Christ clearing the temple, His heart burning for what God had set up on earth to represent HImself to man.

Being very interested in how passions are developed in our lives I really connected with this concept now that I have been thinking about it. In our culture it is very easy to not stay fired up. Between TV, movies, golf, family, dog, bible study, order of service ( not in order of importance) I find it so difficult to stay fired up about what God has set me up to get worked up about.
"It's all good" should not be my mentality, but rather GOd's broken heart for all that is wrong with what could have been perfect. Maybe I should starring answerring the question "howsit goin?" with ... " bad. I look around at churches that don't get it or are so pre-occupied with themselves, they miss God! or how could you stand in front of the gathering of the body and not spill forth the most inspired - Spirit lead talk or worship or silence? ! "

I could go on, but it is already negative. of course... I am sure it wasn't kicks and giggles wen the temple was cleared.