Preparing Our Hearts

As you prepare to gather as the church and to worship the Lord tomorrow morning, give some thought to Jesus' arrival in Jerusalem as recorded in Luke 19:28-44. You may also want to give a quick read to Matthew 23:37-38.

Kathy and the music team have a number of favorites ready to lead us in the morning, including God of Wonders, Enough and Worship You Forever on the list. Come prepared to join in the singing of praises and adoration.

We will also worship the Lord in observing the Lord's Supper. Come with your heart prepared to commune with Him.

I look forward to our gathering to share in worship tomorrow!

Technorati Tags: Interactive Sermon, Palm Sunday, Luke 19:28-44

The Big Buts of Passion Week

Introduction

For many, the thought of reading or studying the Bible is imposing. As a Pastor and Bible teacher, I’ve often heard people say “I don’t know where to start” or “I don’t understand what I’ve read”. Many times that will lead to setting their Bibles aside and giving up.

Consider the word ‘but’ for a moment. Not very imposing, is it? It’s a little three letter conjunction that is used numerous times each day, in virtually every dialogue you enter into. ‘Thank you, but’ is understood as a very polite rejection of an offer. ‘I’m sorry, but’ may cause you to question the authenticity of an apology. Why, even in traffic court the Judge is likely to give you three options: a plea of guilty, not guilty, or guilty - but with an explanation. Yes, I’ve been to traffic court. What can I say? Sometimes when you work for the Lord you have to go very fast! I thought about choosing the ‘guilty but’ option and trying that line on the Judge. ‘But’, I thought better of it.

My point is that in each of those examples the word ‘but’ stands as a great clarifier and lends tremendously to our understanding of what is actually being communicated. The same is
true where the written word is concerned. The same is true of your Bible.

For many years I’ve joked that I should write a book entitled ‘The Big Buts of the Bible’. As often as that word appears in Scripture it brings clarity to the text. I’ll offer you the same advice I’ve given for years: wherever you see the little three letter conjunction ‘but’ in your Bible, underline it, highlight it, or make a little star next to it, because it’s going to help you get more out of the passage you’re reading.

This blog series is intended to help you get the most out of your Bible reading and devotional time this Easter Season. My hope is that you will set aside a few minutes each day during this Passion Week (Palm Sunday through Easter Sunday) to revisit the days leading up to and including Jesus death, burial and resurrection.

Each morning this week I will post a devotional that includes suggested passages for you to read that roughly correspond to the days of the week as Jesus experienced them. I’ll also outline a few of my thoughts from the four gospels around the appearances of the word ‘but’, hoping to stir your thoughts and devotions a bit. I pray that you will be blessed the Easter season and always as you walk in relationship to our risen Lord!

Technorati Tags: Interactive Sermon, Big Buts, Passion Week Devotional

The Church: 'Ya'll Come!' or 'Get Going'?

Earlier this week I spent a bit of time visiting with a family newer to Christ's Church, getting to know them a bit, and hopefully helping them get to know us a little better. (By the way, should that family read this - thanks for a great visit!)

During our conversation we spoke about many things but one area in particular has continued to stir my thoughts. What are the differences between a 'missional' church and an 'attractional' church? Why are we more missional than attractional?

As you have probably figured out, I have some very clear answers to those questions. But, before I bully-pulpit the issue, what say you? What do you think of those two terms? Do you think CCA fits one more than the other? Let me know what you think and I'll take this matter further in a day or so with a follow-up.

Technorati Tags: Missional, Attractional, Ecclesiology

Stop Global Whining!

Oops! Ran across this on Snopes today. Very interesting. Wasn't it the former Vice President who just won an Academy Award for a film calling on us all to live more enviro-friendly lives? Seems the present President is doing his part.

Technorati Tags: Al Gore, Inconvenient Truth, Global Warming, Global Whining

Preachin' Politics

Taking a quick break from my 'Candidate Quickies', where Rudy Giuliani is next in line, I thought I'd bring you a quick hit on presidential politics in general - and this with a noted 'Christian' perspective for us to discuss.

Focus On The Family's James Dobson offers insight regarding some of the Republican candidates. Give the article a read here.

I'm a little uncomfortable as I read this piece. It seems to me that Mr. Dobson is implying that when we vote for President, we ought to vote for the candidate who most clearly displays that they are a Christian, even above where they stand on issues. For instance, note the last few lines about Mitt Romney - and Dobson's assertion that Evangelicals will have trouble supporting him because he is a Mormon.

By the way, while I won't be able to officially endorse a candidate as 'Pastor Darin', know that as 'Citizen Darin', I am watching very closely this actor/Senator from Tennessee. Reminds me a bit of an actor/Governor hero of mine from California.

How do you feel about this? Should Christians only vote for Christians? Should a candidate's faith be the most important criteria? Should how vocal or outward appearing they are about their faith be a litmus?

And, just in case you happen to be keeping track, at this early juncture of the Presidential campaign process, the two candidates speaking most in churches and of their faith... Hillary Clinton and Barak Obama! Back next time with Rudi.

Technorati Tags: Election 2008, Fred Thompson, James Dobson, Evangelical

Passion Week Devotional

Rumor has it that I am composing a little devotional guide for 'Passion Week' - the week between Palm Sunday and Easter Sunday.

As I was reading through the gospel records of that week in Jesus' life and ministry I was struck by the many appearances of the word 'but' in the texts. You know what that means!

Look for my little devotional guide (if you're interested) to be available in print on Sunday morning at church, or posted in daily segments here on the blog.

In The Aftermath Of The Storm

I spent last evening with my brother Dave, hearing more about the February 2nd tornadoes that devastated the community. He gave me the highlights about the storm itself, as he remembered it. But then he went on to tell me about the amazing things that are happening since the storm.

First, the storm itself. Dave was awakened at around 3AM because the lightning was so frequent it lit his bedroom like it was daylight outside. He turned on the television and the local Doppler radar was tracking a massive system on a track that would bring it right through Deland. He made a few quick preparations and went out on the back porch to see what he could see. Just a bit of hail - and as quickly as it came up, it was gone. His phone rang a couple of hours later saying he should get out to one of the church family's home, as it had been heavily damaged.

What followed was confusion. When Dave arrived there was much misinformation given by rescue workers. There was confusion as to whether Dave would be allowed into the perimeter that emergency workers had set up. But in the next couple of hours they managed to get the answers, and the access that they had hoped for - but news they had hoped not to hear.

The aftermath, however, continues to be a marvelous story. The local churches in the community came together in a way never seen before. The churches found out where needs were in the community and mobilized together to meet them. They partnered with the Red Cross is being among the earliest and most committed responders. The community noticed.

Dave learned some valuable lessons. First, he became an unofficial information officer of sorts for many family members and friends. He hadn't anticipated this, but when he forwarded his church phone number to his cell, and was on the scene, he became the man with the most up-to-date information. He recalled having to tell many loved ones and friends that this family was gone. He learned that there are right and wrong moves in being among the first responders - things that you can do to help, or things that you can do that would hinder emergency officials. He learned that the Red Cross offers training for first responders that teaches all this important information. At present, a number of people in his congregation, and a number of people from other local church congregations are taking the course - so should there be a next time, the church will be even more ready to be on scene and making a difference.

There's nothing like the church bringing light to the community!

Technorati Tags: Florida Tornadoes, Mission

Hour Upon Hour Of Bore... I Mean Gore

Well, I should have stuck with the Old Time Radio Classics for another day. Instead, I dialed in coverage of former Senator and Presidential hopeful Al Gore's 'testimony' before Congress on Global Warming. If that wasn't enough to make me angry, then I listened to a few hours of pundits talking about Gore's rant. Here are some highlights from the exchange:

Gore: "If the crib is on fire, you don't that the baby is flame retardant. You take action." Gee, and we missed out on this guy being our President?

Texas Rep Joe Barton: "You're not just a little off. You're totally wrong!" Who is this Joe guy? Is he available to campaign for the White House?

Here are some interesting facts about the man urging me to cut my energy use and to slow my production of carbon dioxide. In each of his four homes, Al Gore used 22 times more energy than the average American family. With each of his four SUV's Al's staff daily creates 4 times more enviro-carbon than the average American soccer mom - she only has one SUV. Shall we calculate his miles aboard private jets? And one more thing that I felt was very interesting: President Bush's ranch in Crawford Texas, compared with the Gore primary residence outside of Nashville Tennessee - Bush's ranch rated four times more 'environmentally friendly' that Gore's home. Got to love it!

Technorati Tags: Global Warming, Global Whining, Al Gore

The Good Old Days Of Radio

Greetings from halfway to Florida, and a little retreat.

As I logged in 700 miles today, I decided to spend the day listening to old time radio programs on an XM station appropriately called 'Old Time Radio'. I listened to several episodes of Gunsmoke - starring the voice of William Conrad, as Marshal Matt Dillion (the role played by James Arness on television). I also listened to episodes of the Green Hornet, Ozzie and Harriet, and my favorite of the day was the Burns & Allen show, as in George Burns and Gracie Allen.

Here's what I came away with - it took real talent to make radio programs three dimensional for the listener. There were times when scenes changed, and the music or the voice inflection of the characters was all that was there to transport the listener to the new scene. Very cool for me to think about as a writer-wannabe.

The programs I listened to all had a date associated with them - they were from the 1940's through 1950's. During a Gunsmoke episode 'Doc' was tending a man who was dying of his injuries, and Miss Kitty began to quote Psalm 23. Scandalous!!! The bar girl knew her Bible. And you know I was loving every second of that.

I said that I liked the Burns & Allen shows the best. They had a guy named Bill who was a 'traveling salesman' type character, who would show up during the script at appropriate times and the products he was selling were the actual commercials that supported the show. Sometimes George Burns would interact with 'Bill', and the commercial parts were among the funniest spots in the show. Many of the products and advertisements are also long gone. One commercial urged that you could send a dime and a Swan Soap label to: Gracie Allen, Box 7, New York, and you would receive a box of orchid bulbs. Note the address. That is verbatim. Wow! (I found this old Swan Soap label, if you want to try to mail off for the bulbs.)

All this to say, we miss a lot these days, I think, of writing and creativity. Another 600 miles to go tomorrow. I think I'll dial in a few more radio shows.

Technorati Tags: Burns & Allen, Gunsmoke, Ozzie & Harriet, Swan Soap

Preparing Our Hearts

Greetings, and a Happy St. Patrick's Day to you. I hope that you're enjoying a great meal of corned beef and cabbage.

As we prepare our hearts to gather and worship the Lord tomorrow morning, you may be blessed to give Matthew 5:1-12 and advance read. We will be talking about the Sermon on the Mount as we continue our study of the Kingdom of God in the morning. Mike has a worship music set ready to go for us tomorrow that will have a bit of a different feel to it. It should be a blessing.

Immediately after the 11AM service tomorrow we will be having a very brief meeting to talk about a summer mission trip opportunity to Florida, to partner with our friends at Covenant Community Church. If you might be interested, plan on spending about 15 minutes after the second service tomorrow to hear about this opportunity.

I look forward to joining together with you in the morning to worship the Lord.

Upon Further Review

Snowed out. Moments after we finished the rewrite of our ageless classic... they tell us that the Open Mic tonight is snowed under. Stay tuned for the next chance to watch me make a fool of myself - sure to be coming soon.

3 Chords... Give Or Take

3 Chords & A Cloud of Dust it will not be, but I'll be there to do my best. Jimmy and Jesse have abandoned me for a weekend retreat. It's me and my guitar. To pretty things up, and to add exponentially to the talent level of my performance, my wife Shari will be joining me in sharing a couple of my original songs and one updated-for-a-new-millennium, classic standard from the 1960's.

Snow? What snow? Oh, the snow that is falling now. Yes, I am imagining that we are still on tonight no matter the weather - this is New Hampshire, we can handle snow! But, it still might be a good idea for you to give JBeaners a call (672-3332) before you head out tonight if you have any concerns that the event is cancelled. I'll certainly post it here if I hear anything.

I hope to see you tonight at 8:45. Come early for Mike's and Dave's set.

Technorati Tags: Interactive Sermon, JBeaners, 3 Chords

He Is Risen!

Yea, of course Jesus is risen. But I'm talking about Sinbad! The web public encyclopedia Wikipedia briefly proclaimed that the 50 year old actor/comedian had died of a heart attack. That was news to his children and his managers who began to be flooded with phone calls and emails of condolences. Oops! Sinbad is laughing about it today. Here's the story.

Be ye aware of Wikipedia. Sometimes you get some great info. Sometimes... you die.

Technorati Tags: Sinbad, Wikipedia, Entertainment, Oops

The Man Hiding Behind The Lenses

Wow. So my first hours in the world of wearing glasses have been an adventure. The eye doctor advises me that I can choose whether to wear my glasses all the time or only when I am reading. They are bifocals intended to help both my reading and distance sight. The intermediate range is where all the fun seems to be.

Walking up and down stairs makes me feel like I'm on a roller coaster.

Things are blurry or very sharp depending on the angle of my head (between reading and looking across the room and further).

I reached for a bottle of Coke on my desk and missed the top of it.

Now, I don't mind falling down stairs or being nauseous. But, if I can't grab a bottle of Coke...

My daughters assured me that the frames really set off my gray hair and make me look wiser. Tremendous!

So, encourage me if you see me stumble past. Help the poor old man get a grip on his Coke!

Technorati Tags: Interactive Sermon, Glasses, Old Men

Friday Night Fun

Interactive Sermon Exclusive!

Friday night March 16th, Mike Knight, Darin Shaw and Dave Sumner (pictured above during their 2005 tour of Namibia) will be playing the Open Mic event at JBeaners Coffee Shop on 101-A. The schedule for the evening begins at 6pm, with Mike slotted in at 8:15, Dave at 8:30 and Darin at 8:45. Make plans now to join a group of folks Friday evening to hear some original music and have some fun together.

About the evening, the three musicians had this to say:

Mike - "Dave Sumner is pretty big in these parts."

Darin - "Everybody needs to come. Mike said he will be playing 'Mexican Senorita'!"

Dave - "What is a JBeaner?"

The Preacher Brought A Good Word

I ran across Bono's acceptance speech for an Image Award he was honored with by the NAACP on March 2. I love the opportunity to tip my hat to a good spoken word. HT Bono.

I especially liked the line about Dr. Martin Luther King, that he "refused to hate because he knew love would do a better job". He asserts a challenge at the end, "God is with the poor, my friends, and God is with us if we're with them." Give the clip a watch and let me know what you think.

Technorati Tags: Bono, HIV/AIDS, NAACP, Missions

Lost Classic

News this morning that New Hampshire resident and lead vocalist of the bands Boston and Beatlejuice was found dead in his home yesterday afternoon at 55. Brad Delp will be missed in my musical world.

Technorati Tags: Brad Delp, Boston, Beatlejuice

Preparing Our Hearts

Mike and the music team have a great set of songs ready for us to sing Sunday including favorites from Matt Redmon, Chris Tomlin and a new tune from Lincoln Brewster. There's also a great new arrangement of a classic hymn that the team has worked out. Come prepared to sing tomorrow morning!

As we look to the word, we will be reading through Matthew 21:28 thru 22:14. In that passage we will consider parts of three different parables Jesus spoke to the religious leaders of His day.

I look forward to our gathering to worship each week - and tomorrow even one hour sooner!

Yep, that's your reminder: Don't forget to set your clock ahead an hour before you go to sleep tonight! A public service announcement brought to you by the owner of this blog.

Technorati Tags: Interactive Sermon, Kingdom of God, Parables

On The Road Again! Almost...

As I type this I am a mere five minutes away from leaving to go pick up my car! What an ordeal. Wish me well, that there won't be any last minute surprises - the way this thing has gone, I'm half expecting to get there and find out they've misplaced my car. "I don't understand. It was here just a minute ago! We'll look for it and give you a call next week."

A man and his Mustang... 'tis a real love affair!

A Pirate Looks At 40 (but it's blurry)

It started with a few nights of watching the words blur during my late-night reading. 'Just over-tired', I figured. Then it progressed to watching the words blur almost all the time, but magically clear as I moved the book six inches further from my face. 'It's nothing', I assured myself. "What did you expect? You're turning 40 this year!" the eye doctor scoffed. 'Smart-&%$', I thought to myself! The verdict is: I need glasses.

John Lennon, for instance. Would I look cool with the perfectly round lenses? They apparently helped John to see while he wrote some of the most lasting classics in rock-n-roll. But, they didn't help him with the ladies. (Yep, that's a Yoko dig!) And, I don't guess they helped his peripheral vision on that fateful December night in 1980.

What about the Rick Nielsen look? Cool with the checkerboard pattern thing going on. Matching glasses with the rest of my wardrobe might be the way to go. You can't see it so well in this small version of the picture, but even his in-ear monitor is dressed in checkerboard. Way cool. 'Mama's alright, Daddy's alright, they just seem a little weird..."

How about a Buddy Holly look? He made the 'wood-shop safety glasses' look cool. Hmmm. Sharp objects? Better not.

Some Bono's? His specs help him see the needy of the world with great compassion. They also help him see that talk is cheap, and action costs dearly. There's something to be said for those lenses!

'Sir-Eltons'! These frames are fit for a Knight. Elton said that he wore crazy glasses as a young performer to mask his stage fright. Then he hit 40. Now he wears them to mask his aging eyesight. I wonder if it's the glasses that have magnified that huge cross on his chest? Elton: Got Jesus?

Then there's Elvis. Elvis Costello, that is. Elvis makes the frames look cool, doesn't he? Veronica liked them.

Now, these are some glasses! They are BB's. B.B. King's lenses allow him to sing the blues, but always to have an infectious smile and a laughter about him. I think more people ought to get some of these glasses. I want to see the world this way.

Michael once sang, "I'm looking at the man in the mirror". Apparently his glasses are of the wrong prescription.

Bob Dylan went with the most affordable frames.

Maybe I could go 'Super Freak' like the late Rick James. Problems with these lenses though included his mistaking his wife for a punching bag, his dog for a soccer ball, and amphetamines for vitamins.

A good pair of David Crowder glasses could work. His lenses allow him to see God and then paint beautiful pictures in song to help the rest of us see God. Then again, David Crowder could make any pair of glasses look good, eh?

A good pair of glassed like Pete Townshend wears might be cool. I found out last week that he is a serious blogger. Check his blog here. Hmmm. Perhaps if I went with lenses like Pete my blog would get more daily hits? The glasses also also give him a 'kinder-gentler-Pete' kind of look. Does this look like a man who became famous smashing guitars at the end of shows?

Alas! I've decided to go with a pair of glasses similar to the Ken Block (of Sister Hazel) model. Ken sees the world like a poet and puts it to song for the rest of us. His lenses let him see the world in shades of 'sunrise to indigo' and back again.

Me? Emergent? Who?

HT to CartoonChurch.com

As I've said a number of times, the difficulty I have with criticism of the 'emerging church' or the 'emergent movement' is that there is not one satisfactory definition of just what constitutes the animal. Ask ten different self-professed 'emergees' to define it and you'll get ten different answers... at least.

Here is an article from Dan Kimball's blog that I found most thought provoking. He asks a question of critics: Just what information are they working with?

Where we are concerned, do any of these critiques sound to you like CCA? (1) drawn to ambiguity; (2) rejecting the notion that God's word is clear; (3) and that is it understandable; (4) the rethinking of or wholesale rejection of precious doctrines; (5) thriving on disorganization; (6) distrusting authority; (7) dislikes preaching; (8) recognizes few doctrinal boundaries; (9) few moral boundaries; and (10) feeds intellectual pride

There is one more allegation in the article, that is that 'everything is being questioned and deconstructed'. I think one of the markers of our society in these times is a propensity to ask questions and a desire to deconstruct - and I am seeing people come to Christ through this very process!

So, what do you think of Dan's article? The debate?

Technorati Tags: Interactive Sermon, Emergent, Emerging Church, Ecclesiology

What's On My Mind?

I'd appreciate your prayers as I will be delivering a lecture at Community Bible Study tomorrow morning on Ephesians 2:1-10. It has been my privilege this year to enjoy the tremendous teaching ministry of Gina Erickson at CBS, and I've really enjoyed just being one of the folks in the study - not having to wear a pastor's hat. The disguise comes off for a few minutes tomorrow, as I've agreed to fill in. But, then, it will be back into the crowd and my small group for me!

As I've been reading and re-reading the text these last couple of hours, here are a couple of things that really lift my heart. Grab your Bible and glance through 2:1-10 and try these observations on for size:

v. 2 We 'followed' the ways of the world. Jesus calls His disciples to 'come follow Him'.
v. 4 A very big 'but'... here I smile. Gina is such a gentle and articulate Bible teacher, and I'm going to ride in there tomorrow commending big buts to the people! But it is a very big but. Sin doesn't have the last word. God does.
v. 5-6 Note the words 'with Christ' repeated often in these couple of verses. Grace is communicated to us insofar as we are 'with Christ'.
v. 8 'It is the gift of God' - one of the questions regarding salvation in our group study for the text asks 'What is our part?' Here's my answer: WE HAVE NONE! I plan to deliver that answer with the exclamation mark, verbally. Think this will raise a few eyebrows?
v. 10 You and me, God's artistry! Makes me think of Psalm 139 and how we are 'fearfully and wonderfully made'.

Shari and I are also leading the CBSers in a few songs, among them Chris Tomlin's new version of Amazing Grace and We Bow Down. Ought to be a glorious morning. Thanks for your prayers!

Technorati Tags: Community Bible Study, Salvation, Grace, Faith, Eph. 2:1-10

The Kingdom of God - Two Months In

We’ve been studying the Kingdom of God for two months worth of Sundays now. I thought it would be appropriate to offer a little review. Just so that it might be fun – and because I am such a fun-loving guy – I thought I’d couch the review in a little matching game. See if you can recall these lessons we’ve learned of the Kingdom of God and match them with the text that we considered that brought them to light.

1) Gen. 1:26-31 & Ex. 19:1-6
2) Deut. 17:14-20
3) Psalm 2
4) Psalm 22
5) 2 Kings 22 & 23
6) The Parable of the Sower – Matt. 13:1-23
7) The Parable of the Banquet – Luke 14:15-24
8) The Parable of the Wheat & Weeds – Matt. 13:24-30, 36-47
9) The Parable of the Mustard Seed – Matt. 13:31-32
10) The Parable of the Yeast – Matt. 13:33-35


a) Being part of God’s Kingdom doesn’t mean that you will always be spared suffering, in fact, you should expect it.
b) The relationship God has with the King (in our case, Jesus) has direct bearing on how He deals with us.
c) It starts small and insignificant, and grows to great ends.
d) God’s plan for a Theocratic reign over His people, individually and collectively, was evident from the very beginning.
e) The Gospel of the Kingdom permeates a soul, a life, society and the world.
f) The Kingdom of God will face rebellion from other kings and kingdoms.
g) One of the stumbling blocks of defining Kingdom is our tendency to look horizontally for our definitions.
h) God’s Kingdom message is spread liberally, but people respond in different ways.
i) For a time, God’s Kingdom will exist with the kingdoms of this world – and that is by His design.
j) Many of the people called to be a part of the Kingdom of God will surprise ‘religious people’.

So, how do you think you did?

Technorati Tags: Interactive Sermon, Kingdom of God, Pop Quiz

Preparing Our Hearts

This weekend we will worship the Lord in observing the Lord’s Supper. Where the Lord’s Supper is concerned, you might give 1 Corinthians 11:23-29 a read. Come with your heart prepared to commune with the Lord.

Peter and the band have a number of great tunes ready for us to sing. A trio of favorites from Chris Tomlin, ‘Your Grace Is Enough’, ‘Enough’ and ‘Famous One’ are on the list, as is a favorite of our Namibia team in 2005, ‘You’re So Good’, plus a couple more. Come with your voice ready to sing praises!

If you’d like an advance look at the texts we will consider together on Sunday morning, give the Parable of the Mustard Seed and the Parable of the Yeast a read in Matthew 13:31-35 (note that you can also find them both in Luke 13). To take it deeper you might glance through Ezekiel chapters 17 and 23.

I look forward to worshipping the Lord with you this weekend!

Technorati Tags: Interactive Sermon, Parables, Kingdom of God