Lovers Anonymous

I'm gonna have to say that one of my pet peeves are petitions for worthy causes.

Don't get me wrong! I think we should all stand up against evil and injustice in the world. However, it's too easy to sign a petition and think you've "done your part." This is especially difficult for me to grasp since I'm a hands-on kind of guy. Don't just write your name down (or type, which is even easier). Put your name down with sweat and blood. Jesus did it for us on the Cross.

We're finishing a three-week look at Romans 12 tonight in (grace)land. Paul is exhorting the church in Rome. He sums the thought process here with a list of ideas that play into living the life transformed by the Holy Spirit renewing the mind and compelling us to a Jesus-centered lifestyle.

A Fine Line...

I feel like I am walking a fine line with my future. On the one hand, I want to see the church grow and expand like Jesus wanted. On the other hand, I have a deep love for youth ministry. I want to stay in youth ministry, but for some reason sense a small call to more than "youth ministry" (i.e. college ministry, church planting, etc.) The Church is my third love (after God and my wife, of course) and tied with (but not exclusive from) missions. I think I should journal more about this...

Thomas

The Church Needs Dudes

I just saw this Youtube video from John Piper's Desiring God website. I thought it was really good in addressing the need for men in the church. I think Driscoll's right that our churches scream femininity and guys run away. How do we get men to come back to church without feeling like we're trying to feminize them?

Free At Last...

I've been overwhelmed recently by many articles addressing the oversexualization of our culture, media, world, etc. It seems very interesting to me that even many secular authors have been writing on this issue and the effects it is having and will continue to have on kids.

One thing that has always struck me as funny, though, is that there has never been many free Christian resources to help the church deal with and think through these issues. Sure, there's xxxchurch.com, a great ministry started by a couple of guys who now go to porn shows to witness to people (without overt condemnation). Still, there's by a lack of literature to spark discussion among Christians who struggle with pornographic lust.

In to save the day, my hero, Mark Driscoll. Yeah, I probably give the guy a little too much "hero worship" (by no means idolization). Everything I've heard about and from him has led me to believe he's theologically well-grounded, a committed father/husband, and a great teacher, but I digress.

He has recently released a free book in PDF format addressing the issues of pornography and "that M word." I find this a huge step in the world of Christian literature. I know for a fact that there are lots of Christian guys who struggle with this problem and everywhere you turn is another sexual image, so it's with a huge breath of relief that there's finally a free resource to help in the opposite direction. I'm glad he's willing to put his material out there for people to use. Check it out here. If you like it, you can still buy the book and have a copy that you can print to share with guys you may know who struggle with this stuff.

Stop the Willow

One of my goals for this break was to read the book The Gospel According to Starbucks by Leonard Sweet. I picked this book up off a table of free books in the hallway outside the youth office at New Covenant. At first glance, I thought the book would be total trash, but I was still intrigued because I like the Gospel and Starbucks coffee.

After reading this book, I have definitely begun to rethink the way of doing church. Sweet's premise for the book is that the church has given up being a lifeboat to give over to a yacht club model. We preach "feel good" instead of Christ. He doesn't say all of this, but the vibe is there.

I'm not writing this to bash the church. It's made of people just like everything else. This whole post is to say that Sweet has some good points in this book. One of those points is that the church needs to stop conforming to the models of a few megachurches. That's right... The title of this blog is referring to Willow Creek. I love Willow Creek, I'll must admit. But when churches start drooling over Willow Creek and implementing everything Willow Creek (or Saddleback, or any other megachurch) does, they begin to lose something. That something is uniqueness. One of the things that Starbucks does right is that every store is different inside. Not any two Starbucks coffee shops are the same. It provides a sense of uniqueness that is attractive. So attractive, in fact, that some people are in the habit of collecting Starbucks'. They are consumed with visiting as many Starbucks stores as they can. They want to experience the uniqueness that each has to offer.

Also, Starbucks employees are different. Although many of them wear the same uniform, I've seen many different kinds of people working at a Starbucks. This is one of the things I've come to appreciate about Starbucks. You aren't told how to look. You aren't made to remove all the piercings, cover the tattoos, or have the right hairstyle. The baristas are all allowed to demonstrate their uniqueness to some extent.

Anyway, this book has a lot to offer the church. I think it has so many good points, and it was definitely an interesting read. I would recommend it to anyone out there who is a pastor, elder, or church leader.

What it REALLY means to be!

So, I am infatuated with one Clive Staples Lewis. What a great author! The 9 books of his that I have read (All 7 Narnia books, Mere Christianity, and The Problem of Pain) have been phenomenal. Lewis has a way to make you critically think then blows your mind out of the water!

I just recently finished The Problem of Pain. It was an eye-opening book, and I'll admit, I had my problems with it. Lewis brings into play his old-earth creation theories and talks some about his evolutionary creationist thoughts. However, it doesn't take away from the book at all. As I text messaged a friend last night, "I love how Lewis writes final chapters that make up for any craziness or confusion from the rest of the book." The last chapters of The Chronicles of Narnia series, Mere Christianity, and The Problem of Pain all deal with a single truth: What it REALLY means to be. Simply put, what are we really supposed to be? And he does a remarkable job at sharing his theories on it.

In The Chronicles of Narnia, the children are exposed to a new Narnia that looks the same old one. However, the world is more vibrant, more alive than the old world was. They find that they can do things there that they could never have done before. They find themselves to be truer selves.

In Mere Christianity, Lewis talks about The New Man. This idea is based on what Jesus said about losing your life to find it. When we submit ourselves to Christ, we find who we truly are. We find our very essence, our very being. Though we cannot experience that totally on this side of life, we can get a taste of it. But when we make it to Heaven, we will taste it for real and forever.

In The Problem of Pain, he says that each are created differently the same way keys are created differently. We have uniqueness to ourselves because who we are fits Heaven in a particular way. "Heaven was not made for us, we were made for it." God loves each of us differently because of our differences. He loves us with the same intensity, but in tremendously different ways. And when we find ourselves face-to-face with the Creator, we will experience Paradise once again. We will forever be in this cycle (or dance, as Lewis says) of us submitting ourselves to God and God showing us who we are more clearly. We will be humanity in Heaven. It sounds confusing, but it is a beautiful picture he paints. It's much better than his description of Hell, in which a person becomes what was left of a soul: a self-centered will and uncontrollable passions eternally excluded from humanity.

How encouraging it is to think that when I get to Heaven I will know who I really am. I may find clues as to who I really am on earth as I submit myself to Christ more and more, and pain may even exist because of this, but someday I will know me and you will know you in a way we could never know ourselves before. We will be given tablets of stone with our new secret names, which only the individual and the Father will know. We are each keys, as Lewis puts it, that unlock a different door in the mansion with many rooms. When those rooms are unlocked, we will know humanity and we will know God!

Hallelujah!

Forgive Us Our Sins

Forgiveness hurts. It hurts when you find out someone you trust and love dearly does something wrong against you. Whether it's a close friend, a family member, a boyfriend/girlfriend, or a spouse, forgiving someone so precious to you hurts. Our human nature doesn't want to forgive. It would much rather take revenge, make them pay for what they've done. After all, how could they have done that to you/me?

Then I remember the forgiveness I've received from the Father. When I didn't deserve it, it was there for me. When I should be eternally dead and separated from God, Christ brought us to righteousness. "Forgive as the LORD forgave you" (Colossians 3:13). But it hurts when we keep asking for forgiveness. It breaks the heart of God when we've made our commitment but renege on that commitment. He loves us that much. Having just a little glimpse on His sorrow and disappointment makes me appreciate my forgiveness even more.

"The beauty about grace is that it makes life unfair." -Relient K