My Kentocratic Environment

Epic Church wants to keep up with you on Twitter

2009-12-31T09:49:00.001-08:00

Epic Church wants to keep up with you on Twitter

Twitter connects you with everything you want to know, right now. Short bursts of information are readily available from news organizations, corporate entities, politicians, celebrities, local businesses - even your close friends and family. Also, if you have something to share with the world, Twitter makes it super easy. To join for free, click the link below. http://twitter.com/i/b54967f4f5b1aabad57bdddb52db5320c8361eda

Thanks,

@twitter

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Epic Church wants to keep up with you on Twitter

2009-12-31T09:48:00.001-08:00

Epic Church wants to keep up with you on Twitter

Thanks,

@twitter

About Twitter, Inc.

The time has come...

2008-04-11T07:23:00.000-07:00

Hey everyone, the time has come for me to switch blogs, I am now using wordpress, this is the link to my new blog. See ya there!

Don't forge to check out our new church Epic Church. We are moving to Andover, Kansas in January 2009 to plant Epic Church. We are partnering with other churches to plant Epic Church to reach those who feel disconnected and far from God!

Talkin bout good vibrations!

2008-04-02T10:30:00.000-07:00

I think I like Netvibes. I definitely like it for keeping up on blogs. It makes it much easier and it is much more efficient than an simple RSS Reader. I can either read an RSS version of a post, or I can click on a button that says "show website" and it will load (which has been preloaded while you were reading the post) the website page of the blog and I can comment, etc. It's super nice. You can check out how it works by visiting my universe!

I use it for keeping updated on sports (which I am ever trying to understand) and some other stuff...

Water Power Theory

2008-04-01T19:10:00.001-07:00

So, here's my latest theory, I woke up this morning and it was the first thing I thought of. What if we put some sort of generater in our water pipes that used the natural water pressure created by the water towers and gravity to create electricity. I don't know the specifics of how it would work, but it seems possible. Let me know what you think.

'Nother Dream

2008-03-29T13:00:00.001-07:00

So I had another dream last night. I was at this huge mansion on a huge hill. I got in a go cart with two of my friends (Chris L., & Heath H.). We were driving around the mansion and the two of them kept whining that we weren't going any faster. I specifically remember Heath saying, "Can't this thing go any faster", and giving Chris a High Five. I said, "You want fast, I'll give you fast", I abruptly turned the car down hill going offroading. We flew over a little bump and realized that there was only a hundred feet left before we crashed into the ocean. I hit the breaks and remembered that we were in a go-cart and that it was not equiped with the kind of breaking system we would need. I looked back at the guys, said farewell and woke myself up right before we bound into the water. For all I know, Heath and Chris hit the water. I hope they are ok, wherever they are... Anyway, that's my newest, latest dream. Hope your not mad that you read all the way to here and this is how it ends...

Introducing Mr (or Miss) Barton Finkey Wagner

2008-03-28T15:55:00.001-07:00

I added the red to give a little definition to what you are seeing...

Dream

2008-03-28T15:51:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I had a dream (I was taking an afternoon nap, I heard that is common during the 2nd trimester of pregnancies). In my dream there were all these people that I knew who are kind of legalistic in their walk with Christ, they were all walking through this maze. The maze was made up of balsa wood boards that were like 8 feet long and 4 inches wide by half inch thick. I saw them going through the maze and decided that I needed to break the wood so they can get to the goal without having to go through the maze. Anyway, there was a little more to the dream, but Jenni is ready for me to go...

All I Want For Christmas... Is a Robot Guitar...

2007-11-14T04:31:00.001-08:00

Gibson has come out with a Robot Guitar, and I want it... This is the future of guitars as we know it, you wonder why it took so long for anyone to think of it... Automatic tuning, preset alternate tunings, automatic intonation and easy string changes... Gibson, you are an absolute genius!

So, if anyone out there is looking for something to get me for Christmas, this is it...
You can check out video of the guitar here.

U2 Embeded...

2007-11-13T12:55:00.000-08:00

For Those U2 Lovers...

2007-11-13T12:50:00.000-08:00

If you are not on Facebooka and iLike, you would not have ever known, except that I love you all... Hah... This is something totally new in the music industry - Bono is changing how things are done... I like how he can't remember all of the lyrics... Hah. You will dig this video if you haven't seen it yet...
You may have to sign up for a Facebook and add iLike, but it is worth it.
Maybe Bono will read your comment...

------------------

Dear iLike user on Facebook,

I'm writing to tell you about an amazing video clip that U2 has just posted on iLike - it means a lot to me and I think it's a little bit of rock'n'roll history.

(Forgive me for the mass email -- we've never done this before. I've included my email address below if you want to contact me.)

Today, U2 used iLike to post a personal message from Bono, singing - and talking us through - "Wave of Sorrow". It's a track that U2 demoed during sessions for The Joshua Tree in 1987. Just recently Bono laid down vocals for the song and it will be released for the first time next week on the remastered release of The Joshua Tree. As Bono plays us the track, he also tells the powerful story of the song. I found it quite moving!

>>> Watch the video of Bono singing "Wave of Sorrow" and leave your feedback.

Since we started iLike a year ago, our vision has been to bring people together through music. As others follow U2's lead, this could transform how artists connect with fans. To get concert alerts & content from other artists, tell us which artists you like.

Sincerely,
Hadi Partovi, co-founder, iLike
hadip@ilike-inc.com

p.s. On a personal note, I was in the room when this video was filmed. My brother recorded it on his cameraphone. Now that's a memory to treasure!

---
iLike rarely ever sends mass email, and we respect your privacy
To learn more or to stop receiving these emails, click here.

My Teeth

2007-11-13T08:07:00.000-08:00

Well boys and gurls, it's official, I took my good friend Matt Lobmeyers advice and saw the good ol' Dentist. Some may have thought me to be an anti-dentite, but truth be told, I love the dentist... The guy is the only doctor that has never given me bad news. In fact, today I got a "that a boy" from him as he looked at my teeth in awe and amazement.
I was a little worried that it might go the other way, it had been 4 years since my last visit, but the dentist was so impressed with my teeth that he took pictures of them and spent several minutes just doddling over the impressiveness of my pearly whites...

Silly Scientists...

2007-11-06T07:12:00.000-08:00

I was watching the today show this morning. They were doing a little segment on the Galapagos Islands. I found it ironic because they were talking to the President of the Charles Darwin Society or something like that and he was talking about all of the conservation efforts they are hoping to put in place to keep animals from becoming extinct. The irony to me was this guy is the president of a group trying to keep Darwinism (evolution) alive and yet they are attempting to bypass survival of the fittest - the thing that makes evolution possible. I am all for saving animal species on the brink of extinction, but I would think any good evolutionist would be glad to see them go, if they were too weak to survive, then why keep them around. I guess I will never know...

The Anti-Narnia...

2007-10-31T11:32:00.001-07:00

I was reading on Snopes about the movie "The Golden Compass", that Nicole Kidman is in and is coming out at Christmas. It looked like a good movie from the previews, but evidently in the Trilogy, the kids - in the end - kill God.

The Golden Compass is, the anti-narnia...

The 119

2007-10-29T07:08:00.000-07:00

"How can a young man keep his way pure?
By living according to your word.
I seek you with all my heart;
do not let me stray from your commands."

All for King Jesus...

2007-10-04T06:30:00.000-07:00

Last night Jenni and I were looking at the stars and talking about God's promise to Abraham. Rich Mullins always said that one of those stars was lit just for us. We talked about God's promise to Abraham, that through him many nations would come.

This morning I started thinking how that promise really did not come about through Abraham, nor through Isaac, but it came through Jacob. Each of them was promised that the covenant made with Abraham would be fulfilled in them.

We do not hear this type of covenant again from God until David comes onto the scene and then it is promised again a very similar type thing, that his kingdom shall pass down and never be removed.

God has been playing this game of chess with the end game in mind all along. The entirety of Israel's history was deliberate strategy on the part of God to bring the messiah Jesus into the world to deliver mankind from the bondage of sin. Understanding this we can see why it was Jacob's direct lineage and not Isaac or Abraham's (both had sons that were not part of the fullfillment of God's promise - Abe had Ishmael, Isaac had Esau but all of Jacob's children became the nation of Israel) was the lineage through whom God choose to bring forth the nation of Israel. David was chosen because the DNA he carried was the DNA of the savior.

It makes me wonder how God is directing the flow of humanity in our world in order for Christ to return again.

More from "In a Pit with a Lion on a Snowy Day"

2007-10-03T06:52:00.000-07:00

Talking about Gordon MacKenzie's book orbiting the Giant Hairball and a section on workshops he led in elementary schools.:
"MacKenzie would ask the kids upfront: 'How many artists are there in the room?' And he said the pattern of responses never varied.
In the first grade, the entire class waved their arms like maniacs. Every child was an artist. In the second grade, about half the kids raised their hands. In the third grade, he'd get about ten out of thirty kids. And by the time he got to sixth grade, only one or two kids would tentatively and self-consciously raise their hands."

Matthew 18:3
"And he said: 'I tell you the truth, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.'"

Will and Working out...

2007-10-02T09:19:00.000-07:00

Boy howdy. Today, I got to the YMCA fine, but it was a struggle to get through every minute. I kept saying, "You can do 20 minutes" and then I would get there and say, "well, it's only 10 more minutes to 30" and so on till I did my 40 minutes. The second week is definitely harder, but I am excited about it. It feels good to work out, I can already feel my legs getting blood back to them. Now I just need the will power and the self discipline. That is what I have been praying for from God! Well, that's all for today...

I wonder...

2007-10-01T07:11:00.001-07:00

I was thinking this morning about regret. I wonder if we regret more the things we do in life that are failures or the things we never did and wish we would have. I think of all of the students who have graduated from High School under me, and how many of them say, "I wish I would have taken the time to share Jesus with people." None of them say, I wish I wouldn't have gone to that party, although they probably wish they hadn't - what sticks out to them are the things they could have done for God, but were afraid to.

Kingdom

2007-09-28T06:22:00.001-07:00

Daniel 2:44 (NRSV)

"44 And in the days of those kings the God of heaven will set up a kingdom that shall never be destroyed, nor shall this kingdom be left to another people. It shall crush all these kingdoms and bring them to an end, and it shall stand forever;"

The Holy Bible : New Revised Standard Version. Nashville : Thomas Nelson Publishers, 1989

Quotable Quotes from the book "In a Pit With a Lion On a Snowy Day" by Mark Batterson

2007-09-26T07:43:00.000-07:00

So I've been reading this book and here are few ideas or quotes from my reading today that really challenged me and inspired me:

"Maybe a relationship with God doesn't simplify our lives. Maybe it complicates our lives in ways that they should be complicated.
All I know is this: Marriage complicates my life, Kids complicate my life. Pastoring a growing church complicates my life. Wealth will complicate your taxes, and success will complicate your schedule. Thank God for complications." (pg 85)

Speaking about Corrie ten Boom a Nazi concentration camp survivor:
"Corrie used to speak to audiences about her horrific experiences in the concentration camps, and she would often look down while she talked. She wasn't reading her notes. She was actually working on a piece of needlepoint. After sharing about the doubt and anger and pain she experienced, Corrie would reveal the needlepoint, She would hold up the backside of the needlepoint to reveal a jumble of colors and threads with no discernible pattern. And she'd say, "This is how we see our lives." Then she would turn the needlepoint over to reveal the design on the other side, and Corrie would conclude by saying: "This is how God views your life, and someday we will have the privilege of viewing it from His point of view." (pg. 98)

If you know me...

2007-09-25T05:51:00.000-07:00

I have decided to start getting up in the mornings and working out before I go to work. I am really praying that God will give me the self discipline to continue this course. Most of you know me well enough to know that I am a great starter and a mediocre finisher. I would like to ask you to pray for me that God would not let me sputter out of this lifestyle change, and that you would keep me accountable by asking me how I'm doing with it and not allow me to give you the "it's going well" answer. Ask me how much I did on the treadmill that day, or what workouts I did. Thanks for helping me stay accountable! I feel like I need to do this for Jenni, my future children, my youth group, church, friends, etc. I want to be able to run again :)

have we lost something?

2007-09-18T06:32:00.001-07:00

Do you think that the kingdom of God looses something when we make becoming a believer all about simply belonging to a group of saved people? When we don't stress the need for conversion (a word I don't think I've heard for a long time). Being a follower of Christ is not simply about doing the right things, or being part of the right group of people and acting like them. There is some point where you have to repent, believe, confess, and be baptized. What do you think?
I ask this because I see this with students, they come, don't ever "choose" Christ and when they leave, they find a new group of people and because their system hasn't changed they end up becoming like that group of people...

Reading the Prophets

2007-09-18T06:23:00.001-07:00

Mt. 24:23-24
23"Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of your spices—mint, dill and cummin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law—justice, mercy and faithfulness. You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former. 24You blind guides! You strain out a gnat but swallow a camel."

Jesus sums up the entire message of all of the prophets - Justice, mercy and faithfulness over rote obedience to the law. The pharisees are just like their forefathers. Blind guides obeying the simple things of the law and leaving out the powerful things.

What is a Kingdom?

2007-09-17T16:42:00.001-07:00

What do you think Jesus means when he talks about "The Kingdom of God " or "The Kingdom of Heaven"? What does it mean to be a citizen of His Kingdom? What does it say about Jesus being a Messiah in the line of David? Where is the Kingdom? What do you think? This has been something I have really been contemplating...

Fun With the Camera

2007-09-10T18:55:00.000-07:00

2007-09-10T18:53:00.000-07:00

Lyssie Playing Tetherball! She's almost as good as me!

2007-09-10T18:25:00.000-07:00

What us Protestants are missing...

2007-09-10T07:15:00.000-07:00

I decided today, that what we miss as protestants is our own football team. If you are Catholic, you can just cheer on that Dame of Notre, but who as a protestant am I supposed to cheer? Who can I get a big foam finger for that promotes my belief system. I'm telling you, it's a huge shame, a crying shame if I dare. Anyway. Just a thought.
It's funny, cause I don't even watch football, but maybe that's because I don't have a protestant team.
I wonder what their mascot would be? I'll leave that up to you...

Top Ten things I wish I Knew When I was a Freshman:

2007-08-31T08:08:00.000-07:00

This was a top ten I did for youth group this week, talking about fitting into what God wants of you instead of what everyone else wants...

10. Senior Cheerleaders have boyfriends - and even if they don’t, they don’t want to date you…
9. Your hair isn’t as cool as you think it is…

8. Books are for reading, not drawing in…
7. You should never, and I repeat NEVER where underwear on your head, no matter what…
6. If an upper classman invites you to go with a bunch of his buddies out to a field to do something you’ve never heard of, you probably shouldn’t go…
5. Your glasses are not as cool as you think either…

4. While showering after gym is embarrassing, smelling like rotten trash could be worse…
3. Girls are not impressed with burps, farts or spitting…
2. You should always, always, always wear deodorant. Lots and lots of deodorant…
1. You will never be cool enough…

Life Expectancy

2007-08-30T05:03:00.000-07:00

Do you think that life expectancy in our day and age should really be attributed to Medical advances or should the decline of the infant mortality rate be attributed to Medical advances. I am pretty sure that people who survived birth and childhood in past centuries lived into their 70-80's, but when you try to average it out and have to include deaths at birth it brings the average life span down a bunch. I was thinking about this because the bible mentions people who had long life spans outside of the first few chapters of Genesis. Anna is a great example. Anyway. I always thought as a kid that our medicine had made some spectacualar leap for mankind by creating the perfect anti-death agent. It turns out that we are just more proficient at delivering babies - no small feat in itself, but quite different from making someone live who would have lived 30 years live for 80. Just a thought...

Wow...

2007-08-29T06:25:00.001-07:00

New Testament - Old doubts...

2007-08-27T06:59:00.000-07:00

Last night I was thinking about the New Testament. I was thinking just how outlandish it all is. The idea that God would put on skin, that He would walk around, that He died and that through that our sins are forgiven and we are redeemed from an afterlife spent in hell. I thought about the idea that He was then raised back to life after being for 3 days, I mean, His heart had not beaten for three days, rigamortis had set in, he was , . It is all so unbelievable. What I started thinking about is how there are so many other documents that record events that are just as spectacular or at least similar in their miraculous nature, that we simply discount as frauds. The book of Mormon is one that comes to mind readily.
Here is what I realized. The New Testament is different from all other Manuscripts of this type. It is a set of documents that were all written in the same span of time that the events took place. Let me explain it this way. People live for 60-90 years. Jesus died in the early 30 AD's. The new Testament was all written before or up to about the 80's. This means that a maximum of 40 years had surfaced between the latest writings of the New Testament and the of Jesus. THIS MEANS: that the reports of the New Testament were testable. Individuals could have read the gospel of Matthew, Mark, Luke or John, and simply gone and talked with Nicodemus or Zacchaeus and asked if they had really witnessed Jesus in the manner the gospels record. No other document that I can think of has this same kind of "testability" to it. Joseph Smith wrote about things that had supposedly happened in the past. There is no way we can go and ask someone, did this happen. But early observers of Christianity had this luxury. It is no wonder the church grew by leaps and bounds in those early days. People in Jerusalem had seen all that had happened, they had heard reports and they were asking themselves, "what does this all mean?" Along comes Peter, he does a bit of preaching and explains the "Good News" and THOUSANDS accept Christ. It is no wonder. They accepted because it filled in the blanks for what they had witnessed.

Uzziah & Esau. to the cross.

2007-08-24T04:22:00.001-07:00

I have been thinking about these two guys in Israels history. Esau gave up his birthright for a single meal. The present moment seemed so important and enticing that he gave up all the future held for him for a bowl of soup...
Uzziah had lived a righteous life. He was a good king for Israel, yet towards the end he became so proud of himself that he assumed the responsibility of the Priests and went himself to sacrifice before God. He was given a skin disease for his foolish pride.
It is so easy to look from the outside of this history and make judgemental calls. I imagine it is much harder to be in the situation. I wonder if Paul was able to identify more with the broken participants of Israels history as much as he was able to identify with the giants of the faith (2 Corinthians 12). I feel the need to constantly remind myself that there are meals out there that will tempt, but the birthright is worth too much, the battles that have been won in my life are not due to my own diligence and fortitude, but they are all the power of the Cross. I am worthless, Christ gives me worth...

If more was a crime then I would be guilty...

2007-08-23T18:09:00.000-07:00

More photo of mine...

2007-08-23T18:00:00.000-07:00

Notice how messy the bed behind me is:
This is what life without Jenni is like...

Kim Berlin Heights. Pictures from TN

2007-08-23T17:58:00.000-07:00

This is the campus here at Johnson. It is beautiful. It's been cool to get back into the grove of things as far as school goes and to realize what a big deal it is to work on your Masters. The picture of the tree is a tree they have where people go to pray. I spent time studying the scripture there yesterday morning...

Livin in Tennessee

2007-08-22T12:42:00.000-07:00

This morning I woke up to early so I got in my rental and took off for an adventure. I drove and just took any road that led me up into the moutains of TN. I ended up of a dirt road as you can see in the picture that was pretty steep. I was listening to U2 "Where the Streets Have No Name", it was all pretty awesome! I also included this picture of this beautiful Willow I took while driving on a tiny curvy road. TN is a beautiful place. I have added a youtube video of U2 so you can enjoy the music and think about driving on winedy backroads with me, going where ever the road takes us (this is the beauty of the GPS, I can go where ever I want and the GPS tells me exactly how to get back without me knowing anything).

This afternoon, we just did a bunch or Orientating... I have learned how to learn and what my Masters will consist of. Met a bunch of other guys that are just like me and drank a Mt. Dew. I'm off to dinner soon and then an evening of excitement. I will update again as soon as I feel I need to :).

For Some Strange Reason He Guided Me to Tennessee

2007-08-21T07:04:00.000-07:00

I'm on my way to TN, gonna miss my wife, friends, dogs, the church kick off and probably a lot more. I leave you this video as a token of my adventure...

Well, perhaps I will update you on the trip and my progress, if I see fit... Have a good week...

"Headliner, I challenge you to a game of horse shoes, a GAME OF HORSE SHOES...."

Ezekiel Ramblings

2007-08-16T05:21:00.001-07:00

I have been reading Zeek lately. Some of it fly's right past me, but other parts are really sticking. Last night, I was really struggling, I didn't really want to read the Bible. I just wanted to read the books I've been getting into. I was just about to give in and leave the Bible on the night stand, when I thought, "why would I read Bill Gates or Andy Stanley, when I could read the God of the Universe?" So, I opened up Zeek and started reading. I read about how God was fed up with the shepherding that the Israelites leaders had been doing and how He Himself was going to come and be their shepherd. I began thinking about Jesus being the "Good Shepherd", about how Matthew said that Jesus had compassion on people because they were helpless and like sheep without a shepherd, and how Jesus asked Peter to feed His Sheep. I could see Jesus being the direct fullfillment of this prophecy spoken in Ez. 34. How God Himself showed us how to lead, how to love, how to have compassion. It was just super interesting and a really cool study. When it was all done with, I realized that if I had given in and not read, I would have missed it. I would have missed seeing my savior fulfill a prophecy that was way before His time.

Boy, I know I have missed so many other things because my mind has been distracted or my heart was just in other places. I want to be sold out. I want to be a world changer through Jesus. As a teen I thought all of those things, I desired them all, but it was in immaturity, not really knowing what it takes, how hard it is, how life can subtly turn you. Now I think them and think, "the only way is through the strength of Jesus". I am not much by myself... Not much at all...

Business @ The Speed of Thought...

2007-08-14T11:31:00.000-07:00

I have started reading Bill Gates book, Business @ The Speed of Thought. I am very intrigued by how many of his predictions have come true. He wrote in 1999 and was predicting the ways that we would use digital resources in the future. It was really interesting to me. I suppose much of the reason his predictions were right was because they were not predictions at all, but his vision of where technology needs to go. This is an interesting look at how one man and a company with the right vision and resources can literally direct an entire nation and effectively the world.
Gates' point of the book is the in order to be effective in business, you must be able to respond immediately to the information that is being compiled about your company, customer base, and products. I think most businesses have incorporated most of his ideas into the way they do business. I now do all of my banking on-line, as do a lot of people my age. Not only am I personally connected with my bank and information immediately, my bank is also collecting data and able to get real time feedback from me on processes that work well or poorly.
What strikes me is about this book, is how much thought and time goes into business dealings. How much effort and emphasis. How much data and information. Businesses can now run at a fluid pace because they take the time and effort to collect data and put pressure on themselves to be at the top of their game. And for what? Money? Success? To put out a better widget? I am still trying to assimilate all of this, but I am asking myself, how do we do a better job as the whole-salers of grace to this world? How do we keep up? How do we not just keep up, but lead out? I'm not totally sure, but I know we must deal with these issues. The culture is becoming so fluid, we must find a way to flow with and ahead...

Itallian Fresh Prince Theme on You Tube

2007-08-01T16:31:00.000-07:00

What is it in Worship?

2007-02-21T09:12:00.000-08:00

Yesterday I was feeling a little down, so I picked up my guitar and my newest worship CD and started practicing some of the songs. As I sang to God and let the words of these songs penetrate my heart, I could feel healing coming about. It is interesting how placing your thoughts on God can wipe away other thoughts and feelings. It is intriguing how His prescence can heal you. Usually I am so focused on feeling sorry for myself that I forget to set my eyes upon the author and perfecter of my faith. He is the only place where true safety occurs, I will place my hope in Him!

Slick Sledding on the South Side....

2007-01-23T07:48:00.000-08:00

Yesterday Jenni and I decided to go sledding. So, I of course, set out to find the best sledding hill in all of southwest Kansas. My goal was to make concentric circles in ever widening paths outward from the epicenter of Garden City (my house) until we found the perfect hill. After about 20-30 minutes of driving in cirlces I decided to go out to the country. We drove around a bit, but thought better of sledding down a hill into a yuka plant. I finally decided we would check out the sand pits. We found the perfect spot. It was a dug out area that was nearly 60ft. deep and had one perfect run from top to bottom. It was seamless, no trees or weed to be seen and the width of two sleds. I was the first to slip and slide my way down this virgin path. I sailed like a condor. It was a beautiful thing. I got up, covered in snow and yelled back to Jenni to "let her rip". Jenni came whistling down. She began to get tipsy about half way through her run and fell to the side, laughing and giggling. I began to try and make my way to her when I realized something that would have been a nice tidbit of information to know before beginning this journey. The ground underneath the snow was straight ice. You see, we had chosen the southern side of this hill, the side that never saw the sun. It was still inches thick of ice from the weeks before. Jenni and I spent at least 30 minutes making our way back to the top. At the end, I was standing on a tree about 5 feet from the lip of the crevasse. Jenni crawled up me and I pushed her to the top. I said "just leave me behind and go find some help", I knew this was the moment in the movie where the hero sacrifices himself for the damsel. She reached out her hand and said "I'm not leaving you...", powerful music began to play and I clasped her hand (the camera pulled in tight and slow motioned as the snow flew off of our gloves). I dug deep and tugged on her (fully expecting her to go plummeting back down to the bottom under the pull of my weight), but instead, some ethereal force bit into my sweet wife, and she tossed me out of that bowl of icy death to the top of the snow covered mountain. It was truly amazing, a real Christmas miracle. I laid on top for another 15 minutes trying to catch my breath and pretending like I knew everything was going to be OK...

The moral of the story...

Always Bring a Rope...

Mr. Stumpy

2007-01-16T09:48:00.000-08:00

Isaiah 6:13b
"But as the terebinth and oak leave stumps when they are cut down, so the holy seed will be the stump of the Lord." God may cut down the whole tree, but the stump will be holy...

Salvation Stipulation...

2007-01-15T06:31:00.000-08:00

I was recently asked, "at what point is a person saved?". It was one of those theoretical questions that you feel like you can only give a heretical answer to. The underlying question this person was asking was, "Does baptism really have anything to do with salvation?". We talked about it and came to no great conclusion. I told him I view salvation as a process, not a one time event. It is a matter of repenting, believing, confessing and baptism. All these things do not happen every time all at once. So, if someone dies before the process is complete, are they saved. I would probably say yes, but for those of us alive, does that mean we can neglect the process, I would say no.
What it got me thinking about, and the reason for this rant is the idea of the word "saved" we Christians like to throw about. The idea that we accept Christ and are, at once, presently translated into a new person - we are longer on the recieving end of God's punishment stick. Our talk about being saved is as though it is a present reality a current occurence. Our idea of the word is tha "I am saved" (meaning I am currently, presently saved from sin), the scripture, on the other hand, talks about salation in the idea of "those who are being saved" (2 Corinthians 2:15), as far as I can tell, and I certainly will leave room for me to be wrong, salvation is a future tense reality, not a present occurrence in our lives. Hebrews 9:28, speaking of Christ's sacrifice to take away sin says "and he will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for him." 1 Peter 1:9 says "for you are receiving the goal of your faith, the salvation of your souls." (The emphasis in both verses is mine). It seems that salvation is a life long process that we are all rending ourselves through until the day of Christ or our final breath on this earth. Does this mean that as believers we are no different? That no change has actually taken place in us? I would say not. We have become the dwelling place of God on earth. The Holy Spirit dwells within us, those who are believers, He is our deposit until the day of that salvation (read 2 Corinthians or follow this search link). This means that God is freeing us from sin and yet we are bound by it. This means that we still hurt, still die, still cannot understand, and we still see as though we are looking into a foggy mirror. There is a day when salvation will come on a white horse and he will have his name tattooed on his thigh. His sword will protrude from his mouth and once and for all we will be healed.
So, when is a person saved? When they die...

A philosphical question and a question of philosophy...

2007-01-12T14:15:00.000-08:00

As Christians, we are constantly trying to get rid of those elements of society that function in an immoral manner - porn on the web, violence in video games, sex in TV and movies, etc. My question is for those "free willers" out there, those Armenian brothers:
If God is a God of choice, desiring that individuals chose him, then why do we try to rid an individual of choice? Let me clarify, why do we try to rid ourselves of the negative choices in life?
Do we make for stronger Christians if we remove any possibility of sin?
Do we make for better Christians if we take away any chance of falling away?
Will grace abound? Is our job to clean up society and remove temptations? (I am not talking at a personal level, I am talking at a corporate level).
Someone might well then say, "what choice do we have but to get rid of immoral things, they corrupt, kill, maim and smell bad." Of course they do, they are immoral because they are in direct opposition to the things of God (which tend to smell quite peculiar and tantalizing). But is getting "rid" of this societal corrosion really the answer? Even God left Adam & Eve with a choice, he left them the chance to be immoral. It has always boggled me how much time we Christians put into banning, badmouthing, and breaking down immoral activities only to have five more pop up in their wake. I have long felt that, if anything, we loose ground in this fight. Perhaps, we do not gain ground because our struggle is not meant to be against imoral "things". Perhaps, God has never desired a moral nation or people, but an obedient, loving community. Perhaps, He cares much more about the condition of our souls than the language on our lips (fixing the first will lead to a rebirth in the former).
This is why Christians being involved in the working of politics and schools, homes and businesses, is of the utmost importance, because we must find a way to give a choice to the masses. We must make sure that the world not only has sex, drugs, and rock n' roll to chose from, but that they are able to see and chose the grace that can be found in a relationship with Jesus... If we make clear what is wrong but leave out what is right, we only make for moral people. I am about changed lives, not moral people...

FWD: I feel so... Dirty.

2007-01-04T07:34:00.000-08:00

by: Emily Dangdiddilydo Dodge
" the LORD God formed the man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being"
-Genesis 2:7

When I read the first few chapters of Genesis it's quite similar to me watching one of my favorite movies.
I love watching Robin Hood Men in Tights. I well never grow tired of it... ever. In fact.. now that I've mentioned it, I'll probably watch it tonight.
Anywho... While I watch that movie it's easy for me to just let everything fly by me.. because it's so redundant and I almost have every line memorized.
It's the same when I read Genesis. It's a story that I've been told since I can remember. I've read over the chapters several times. It's easy for me to just think.. "why, this is pleasant, I enjoy it". And not really pay attention.
But last night when I was reading, Genesis 2:7 popped out at me, and it really hit me. Harder than any Mel Brooks Quote... believe it or not. :0)
"formed the man from the dust of the ground" Are you kidding me??? Dust isn't even good enough to be dirt. Atleast people like dirt... you can do stuff with dirt, grow things and plant and walk on it. Dust is just there, an annoyance.
How easy it is for me to forget just where I came from, and who I am.
Why is it so easy to forget who God is? To blotch out all that God has done and continues to do. As if it's not a big deal.
It's hard for me to get over myself. Wether I'm complaining about how bad things are, or taking pride in something I've accomplished. It's stupidity.

Without God, I am nothing but Dust.

Thoughts Spawned by a Rabbi

2007-01-04T04:34:00.000-08:00

So I have been listening to this podcast by Rabbi Mintz in New York. They are very interesting. The class is a study in the history of Jewish and Rabbinic Law. I have learned a lot and been very interested. It has been interesting in the way an art gallery full of replica paintings would be interesting. It is like seeing an origional and yet not having the same depth or character as the origional. I mean no disrespect. It is after all a study of the history of Law not of Yahwey. What the Jewish law makers set out to do after the period of the judges, kings and prophets was to take the torah and explain it. They did this through the Talmud and the Mishnah. These documents set out general explanations of the law found in the pentatuch (the first five books of the Old Testament- their only testament or covenant). What happened was, they Jewish community, after returning from exile, no longer had prophets to tell them what God wanted. They had a temple where they could sacrifice to him, but all they had to live by was the previous prophetic message, the law of Moses, and the oral tradition (said to be handed to Moses on Sinai and passed on orally). The early pharisees, the predisesors to the Rabbi's, would take a law like "You should keep the Sabbath holy", and they would say, "Ok, we understand that we need to keep the Sabbath holy, and that we are not to work on the Sabbath, but what constitutes holy and work." The Talmud and the Mishnah are authoritative works that define these types of open ideas. The Mishnah was created in the early 200's ad and it is the written oral tradition, the Talmud came shortly after and it is a commentary of sorts on the Mishna, it not only contains the tradition, but seeks to define the tradition even more by presenting differing Rabbinical arguments. An example of a law in the Torah that needed this kind of definitive process in more recent years is that they were not allowed to start a fire on the Sabbath, this was considered work. So, in modern days the Rabbi's argued and debated whether or not you could flip a light switch or not on the Sabbath, because when you flipped the switch they were not sure whether you were starting a fire or not. These laws are the replicas I spoke of in my annalogy. We are quick to dismiss this kind of legalism, but it comes out of a deep respect for God, it comes out of trying not to overstep what God has commanded. But as Jesus would say, you uphold your traditions and forget the great things of God's law, love and mercy. At the time of Jesus these laws were still in an oral form and you would go to a Rabbi to get his take or argument, his "Talmudic" type saying. When Jesus comes he takes the oral tradition and the teachings of the Rabbi's and turns them of their heads. He says in Matthew 23 some harsh words concerning they way they handle the law of God, vs 23-24:
"Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of your spices—mint, dill and cummin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law—justice, mercy and faithfulness. You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former. You blind guides! You strain out a gnat but swallow a camel."
You strain out a gnat but swallow a camel. It is such beautiful imagery and such fierce words. Jesus is attacking a not just a tradition, but something they believe to come from God on Sinai with Moses. He might as well have spit in their eyes. But, that is not the point of what I am saying although I do like to watch a good fight. What I am saying, I guess what struck me about listening to this Jewish Rabbi talk. Was just how little any of it had to do with God himself. The whole enterprise became so focused on the law that it forgot the lawmaker. It became so rigid in principles it set out that it could not conceive of a God who went beyond their principles. The tradition was to be fluid, it was to change with it's context, but it was always about the tradition, never about God, not really. I mean, that is what most of the prophets are screaming out. That is what Jesus came to rail against. This is why we needed a new covenant, because in the old, the law that was to only be a school teacher became the stumbling block... Anyway. This was very interesting to me, hope it makes sense. It is very long, and probably needs editing to make sense seeing as how it is 7:14 in the morning, but alas, I am to lazy and I figure you can grasp my meaning without me fixing my mode... Hah, I hope so anyway...

Sing Songy..

2007-01-04T04:20:00.001-08:00

Wish washy, pish posh, ding dong, sling shot, billy goat... These words all come to mind this morning. Mostly cause I like the way they roll off the old tongue. I wish thoughts rolled out of your head like words roll from your lips. I am a thinker, not a great thinker, not a mediocre thinker, just a plan ol simple, can't get it out of my mind thinker. I analyse and criticize and chew and swallow and chew again. Sometimes this is a good thing, keeps me finding new ways to do things. Sometimes this is bad, keeps me from doing anything. Sometimes it makes me dwell on what needs no dwelling. And sometimes I can't help but look at the moon and wonder about all the grandness of God who shines a light even in the darkness. This morning it is my darkness that needs the light. It is not the kind of darkness the scripture speaks of, rather it is some sort of uncertainty some mystery within that seeks to break forth. There are ages and times when you deal more closely with these things. Where your inner man trys to break it's bonds and the Spirit within trys to free you. I think 28 in the winter must be one of those times for me. I will not bemoan this time, I will not grieve its existence. It is good to be at unrest and unsettled. It is good to not trust yourself. It is necessary for freedom and faith, belief and undoing. My darkness, my void, my inside man only seems to focus the light for me. I may not see God much clearer, but now I see that He can be seen clearer. And so I will let the good times roll, free my lips to sing songs and my heart to praise with lifted hands. I will find power in truth and justice, in Gods honor and glory and grace...

Not Who I Am...

2006-12-24T06:30:00.000-08:00

I woke up early this Christmas Eve. My thoughts were not on gum drops and little babies but on what I have become. I don't know if Christmas is a good time to take personal inventory or not, normally a thing left for New Years, but I have and so I will.
I couldn't stop thinking that my spirituality has been beaten and bruised and because of this brutality I have not been the man I should be, not for God, not for Jenni, not for the students in my ministry (I am not looking for accolades so please don't tell me how wrong I am). It is not as though I have abandoned any of those three or others, it is more like I have been choosing easy routes. Churches can be messy places, having people in them an all. Sometimes what should be is a far cry from what is, and when you are young and idealistic and run into those walls of resistance and messiness, it can really throw you off course. I have literally not done things in my youth ministry in the past few years because I have said "it is not worth it". Not, "it's not worth the time," or "worth the effort", "money", "sacrifice", etc. the "it" is the putting my neck on the chopping block in order to maybe share the gospel with a few kids. Doing something that might rock the boat a little bit, not for the sake of rocking but for the sake of the gospel.
Realizing that my bruises have left me a bit broken is one thing, but beginning to choose the path less trodden is another. I want every area of my life to be centered around Christ like compassion and service, often times it is centered around Kent like desires and complaining... I need the renewal of the Spirit of God, I need the Christ Child to smile on me and heal my brokenness. I need the self-control and servant heart that only God can deliver. I don't know that big changes are necessary, rather, small changes - after all, life is lived in the details with rare moments of grandness and beauty.
Well, how is that for confession and repentance.

Terabithia...

2006-12-19T07:38:00.000-08:00

I Passed...

2006-12-18T13:39:00.000-08:00

I took my greek alphabet test today and passed! Pretty sweet!
I didn't know but I had to read out of the Greek text, which I hadn't practiced, and he quoted some words to me and I had to write them in Greek, but evidentally I passed! It's so funny how nervous I was when talking to him, even though I have nothing to be nervous about, I know the stuff. I sounded like a third grader or something... Oh well, I made it.

Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow...

Jesus does Hosea

2006-12-14T06:07:00.000-08:00

Hosea 2:19-20
I will betroth you to me forever;
I will betroth you in righteousness and justice,
in love and compassion.

I will betroth you in faithfulness,
and you will acknowledge the LORD.

As I read Hosea today, I could not help but see the picture in Revelation 19 of the wedding of the Lamb!
In Christ this prophecy of Hosea's will be fulfilled.
It is quite a thing to be caught between these two passages, awaiting the day when to two will become one. New and Old mesh into a single thread of prophecy fulfillment!
The passage in Revelation says that the "bride has made herself ready." She is adorned in white, a white that claims its color from the righteousness of the saints of God. She is beautiful and he has come to sweep her off her feet. I love the idea that she has made herself ready. She is indeed, expecting his return. If Christ is the fulfillment of Hosea, the church should be the fulfillment of those words of readiness. We should be a beautiful bride dressed in white, a white that is not of a righteousness of our own that comes from the law, but that which is by faith! So put off your jealousy, fits of rage, grumbling, gossip, back biting and all sorts of evil and dress again in the clothes given to you at the time of your death and resurrection in Christ!
Our suitor has gone to prepare a place for us, but mark His words, He will come back again!

Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow...

2006-12-13T14:25:00.000-08:00

I sing the song let it snow as my prayer for snow, I'm pretty sure God thinks it is wonderfully entertaining, and I find it rather pleasant to sing. My only complaint is I keep missing the snow. Last year during the big snow I was in Chicago with only flurries, this year it skips over us and hits Wichita. I believe that enough of us sing this song as our snow prayer, that maybe, just maybe, God will dump on us and we will all get to go sledding and drink hot chocolate.
Oh, the weather outside is frightful...

Greek Tools

2006-12-11T06:43:00.000-08:00

Today I begin my first Masters course. It is a Greek Language Tools class. It looks like it will be pretty simple, I have 9 tasks I have to complete. Hopefully I can stay on course and get through it. I am such a flake about stuff, I am just concerned that I won't follow through. I would love all of your prayers for this... Thanks!

Rocky...

2006-12-10T11:45:00.000-08:00

Man, I love Rocky, I can't wait to see this movie when it comes out. Here is a preview for those of you who haven't seen it yet...

It would be so nice, to grow old with you...

2006-12-07T06:05:00.000-08:00

Last night I preached on the story surrounding the birth of John the Baptist. I realized shortly before I got up that the last time in the history of Israel when an elderly couple got pregnant was with good ol Abraham & Sarah. Through their child Issac and his child Jacob, would come the whole nation of Israel. The first covenant between God and man came from the birth announcements sent out by this old couple. We fast forward a couple thousand years and again we have a barren elderly couple who has faithfully followed the Lord. Except this time their child will usher in the new covenant not through his bloodline, but by his preaching and pointing people towards the messiah. I think it is as if God is saying, "this covenant I am now bringing will be similar in form to the old but will far surpass it in every way..."

Broke Bread

2006-12-06T09:50:00.000-08:00

I understand the desire in churches to return to the pattern found in Acts, whatever that may be. One thing that is interesting to me is Acts 2:46-47 where it talks about the believers meeting to break bread in their homes, this follows vs 42 where they speak of devoting themselves to the apostles' teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. 46 starts by saying "Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts...". Every day. I wonder if this is the reasoning behind Catholic Mass every day of the week. These folks lived in community with one another. As the church we do not hold to having a true fellowship like this. I wonder what would happen if we began to devote ourselves to a more full living out of the early church's pattern?
If I had a time every day for my students to gather together, would they? Would adults? Should we? I'm not sure yet...

32 of 72

2006-12-05T07:53:00.000-08:00

This past weekend, Friday - Sunday I drove for 32 hours in a 72 hour time span... We went down to Pharr, TX. (we were right north of the pool) for Jenni's grandparents 50th. It was a good time and it stretched my manhood for driving. I did all of the driving except for 2 hours from Medicine Lodge to there and back. The whole way down and back when people were sleeping I listened to Mark Moore sermons, they were really good, very challenging (worth the listen, especially the series on Revelation)...
I had a lot to think about as I drove, I will try and articulate some of my thoughts later...

I don't want a lot for Christmas.

2006-11-30T06:43:00.000-08:00

I was just thinking how funny it is that people get upset about the commercialization of Christmas, and yet they buy still go out and buy gifts... If you are upset that Christmas has become more about selling and buying goods than the Christ Child, then maybe you shouldn't add to the problem. I personally don't expect the world to stop. Stories of babies come to save the world do not put as much cash in your pocket as ipods & Wii's. Sometimes I think Christians hurt the cause by whining and complaining and trying to change the rules instead of trying to change hearts. Christmas is going to be commercialized until Christ comes back and we don't need it anymore, or until we as Christians get busy about sharing the gospel with those who are lost in this world without a savior...

Author's Intended Meaning?

2006-11-29T04:57:00.000-08:00

I was reading a book for my greek tools class last night and the gentleman (Alan Black) was discussing doing good exegesis. One of the things that he was stressing, as all good bible college professors do, was the need to find the Author's Intended Meaning (AIM). I have always struggled with this idea. I struggle because there seems to be a dichotomy between our means of interpretation and our stance on the source of biblical literature. What I mean is this. When we talk about scripture, defend it, etc. we express the idea that these are not man made works but Spirit of God driven, divine masterpieces. Yet when we study them our goal is to find out what "Paul" or "Matthew" meant. We would argue that they are divine in origin and yet study them as though they were any other piece of literature. I guess the question I am struggling with, is if the Spirit of God is big enough to create within the scripture itself nuansces that even the hand that was writing them did not fully grasp. Is it possible that Paul was being carried along by the Spirit and wrote things that amazed him? If so, what would his intended meaning have to do with anything? I hope this makes sense.

21

2006-11-28T09:46:00.001-08:00

Romans 12:21
"Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good."

Vongo

2006-11-28T09:25:00.000-08:00

I recently signed up for vongo, free 14 day trial... It is a movie download service. So far the quality of the movies is pretty nice, we will see if it is worth the $10 a month or not. If so, it may be better than netflix... Although you can't get TV shows which is a major draw back. The nice thing is that you don't have to wait two days for your movie...

Oil Ecology?

2006-11-27T07:00:00.000-08:00

What part do you think oil plays in our ecosystem? What major effect will it have to remove it from the crust of our earth? My new crazy theory is that the removal of oil from the earth's crust is causing global warming, not emissions...

Turkey & The Speed of LIght

2006-11-22T05:50:00.000-08:00

Hey everyone, first, I just want to wish anyone who looks at this a happy Thanksgiving. I thank God for all of my friends, their faith and families!
Second, I was thinking this morning when I woke up about the speed of light. Is it possible to create slow light? I mean does all light have the same speed? What gives it it's speed. The same with sound, are there slow sounds and fast sounds? Do different frequency's travel at different speeds?
I was laying there at 6 in the morning thinking how cool it would be if you could figure out a way to slow down light enough that you could see it move...

Anyway, happy Thanksgiving!

Age & Assurance

2006-11-21T13:31:00.001-08:00

Boy, as I grow older and gain more knowledge, I seem to loose more assurance. Not assurance in the important things of life, but more in my ability to be the thing that I have envisioned myself as. I have always thought I would one day be mature, intelligent, successful - a shinning star of sorts. The problem as I see it, is that the closer I get to that old reality of myself, the further I realize I am from it really being true. My thoughts seem so elementary to me as I compare to great thinkers, my intelligence is diminished by the lack there of and success is but a whisp of smoke. It is a very scary, humbling reality - to realize ones place in this universe. It is also a very exciting position to do business from. There is so much more out there, I am a mere student among students.

Upernikwmen

2006-11-21T13:30:00.001-08:00

Upernikwmen - is a transliteration of a Greek word, it is pronounced, hoop-er-nik-ah'-o. The word means overwhelmingly conquer. It is used once in the entire New Testament, and that one occurrence is found in the book of Romans ch. 8 vs. 37. I love the idea found in this simple, chosen Greek word. The idea is that through Christ we conquer, in context, deth (had to mispell cause my computer is psycho and takes the real word out), life, angels, demons, things in the present or things to come, powers, height, depth or any created thing. The idea of hoopernikaho is not only that we conquer these things but that we overwhelmingly conquer, it's not even a fight. It is a word that is in the present tense indicative. That means that Christ is overwhelmingly conquering all things in the present, and will continue to, it is a simple statement of fact! He conquers all these things so that there is nothing that can separate us from the love of God, that is in Christ. What a powerful word...

Fwd: Luke 16:1-14 -- True Riches

2006-11-21T11:31:00.000-08:00

The Parable of the Shrewd Manager (study these verses)

1Jesus told his disciples: "There was a rich man whose manager was accused of wasting his possessions. 2So he called him in and asked him, 'What is this I hear about you? Give an account of your management, because you cannot be manager any longer.'
3"The manager said to himself, 'What shall I do now? My master is taking away my job. I'm not strong enough to dig, and I'm ashamed to beg— 4I know what I'll do so that, when I lose my job here, people will welcome me into their houses.'
5"So he called in each one of his master's debtors. He asked the first, 'How much do you owe my master?'
6" 'Eight hundred gallons[a] of olive oil,' he replied.
"The manager told him, 'Take your bill, sit down quickly, and make it four hundred.'
7"Then he asked the second, 'And how much do you owe?'
" 'A thousand bushels[b] of wheat,' he replied.
"He told him, 'Take your bill and make it eight hundred.'
8"The master commended the dishonest manager because he had acted shrewdly. For the people of this world are more shrewd in dealing with their own kind than are the people of the light. 9I tell you, use worldly wealth to gain friends for yourselves, so that when it is gone, you will be welcomed into eternal dwellings.
10"Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much, and whoever is dishonest with very little will also be dishonest with much. 11So if you have not been trustworthy in handling worldly wealth, who will trust you with true riches? 12And if you have not been trustworthy with someone else's property, who will give you property of your own?
13"No servant can serve two masters. Either he will the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money."
14The Pharisees, who loved money, heard all this and were sneering at Jesus. 15He said to them, "You are the ones who justify yourselves in the eyes of men, but God knows your hearts. What is highly valued among men is detestable in God's sight.

El Logos

2006-11-20T08:38:00.000-08:00

On Friday I subbed at Jenni's school (St. Mary's Catholic School). We had to attend mass. I had several thoughts as I participated in the goings on, actually there was more observation than participation. One major thought I had was how much scripture is weaved in and out of their liturgy. The priest even hit on this in his homiletical address. He talked about the words they say right before they take communion and how they are a reworking of the words the centurion said to Jesus in Luke 7, "Lord, I am not worthy to receive you, but only say the word and I shall be healed." (what Catholics say before receiving the Eucharist).
My thoughts over the extraordinary inclusion of scripture into all that they do made me ask the question of "Why?". Why does the Catholic Church have so much scripture inter weaved within their mass and prayers. I have a feeling that the answer has to do with several factors. One major and obvious factor is that the scripture is one of the places Catholics base their belief of Jesus upon (the other being the church - as I understand the Catholic theology). Other factors I might speculate upon would be literacy rates throughout history, the availability of printed scripture, etc. I don't know that I have a good answer as to why, but as I asked the question of "why" I found myself asking "why not?".
The typical protestant church puts much pressure on congregants to study scripture on their own accord. We have individualized the faith. The letters written in the New Testament were letters written to churches, not individuals (excluding Philemon, and the Timothy's - even these letters became documents that were passed around from church to church). It is also inconceivable that the early church had copies of every letter for every person, it is more likely that each congregation (however you want to interpret that) had it's own copies of some of the letters, and maybe not even all... I imagine these types of prayers and repetitious speaking was a common event in their services in order to place the words and thoughts of God in the minds of their people.
I can't believe that we have taken this completely out of our protestant churches. We elevate "fly by the seat of your pants prayers" above scripted ones because they have more personal meaning. By doing so we loose the benefit of filling anothers mind with the Logos (the word). We leave out the congregational reading because it is dry and dull, and yet for some it is the only time they will allow the words of life to pass through their lips.
I am not saying we need to adopt a Catholic service as our own. It was indeed interesting to me - but part of that has to do with it being different. I feel much of it is dull and slow paced, not because the content has lost it's power, but because our culture has lost it's patience. I will be doing thinking on this. I think it is a great idea to be instilling the scripture within a person without expecting them to necessarily have to go and sit down and read it...

The New Nintendo Wii

2006-11-17T11:28:00.000-08:00

Have you seen this? http://wii.nintendo.com/. It is pretty crazy. A whole new way of doing video gaming. I wonder if it will take off. I would be concerned about the usability of the remote and nunchuk. I wonder how hard they are to get used too. I have always liked the idea of games based off of real motions, but you always end up feeling goofy, I wonder if this will be the same. We will see. Maybe Matt will buy one so we can all play!

A Cool Resource

2006-11-17T10:52:00.000-08:00

I downloaded this program recently, it integrates with Firefox and IE 7, it's pretty nice www.browster.com. It preloads links on pages and allows you to view them without having to click on a link, you can search pages incredibly fast with it. I really dig it!

The Purpose of Prayer

2006-11-17T10:25:00.000-08:00

If there is one thing I struggle with as a believer it is the discipline of having a personally devoted prayer life.

I think Jesus gets me best in Matthew 6 when he says...

"6But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. 7And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words. 8Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him."(emphasis mine)

When I pray I suffer from the knowledge that the Father already knows what I need before I ask him. I think many Christians have a nagging feeling about this knowledge that keeps them from having a devoted prayer life. I have wondered if it is my definition of what prayer is that keeps me from being motivated by it. I assume that prayer is a communication between God and I where I tell Him about me. What if prayer has very little to do with me (As far as providing God information of what I want, how I feel, etc. - he already knows, remember, he's God)? What if prayer has much more to do with me alligning myself with what Gods will is, what Gods heart beats for. What if it is about me seeking the coming of God's kingdome, and forgiveness of those I need to forgive as I am being forgiven. What if?

I Pose a Question or Three.

2006-11-16T17:37:00.001-08:00

Is the Catholic History, my history?

Am I a part of Apostolic succession?

Thoughts anyone?

Fwd: On the danger of Christian Nationalism

2006-11-16T06:08:00.000-08:00

I believe that blogging will meet its full potential when we begin to forward other blogs in our own blog. I got this from the john 3:30 group this group is led by one of my profs. at Ozark. He was one of the most stimulating profs I had. Matt, I believe that you may have sat in on a class with him, it is Mark Moore (click that link to go to his online lectures page, I think you will find him worth the listen).
------------- Fwd: below-------------
The following is a quotation from a prominent 20th century politician: "The national government will maintain and defend the foundations on which the power of our nation rests. It will offer strong protection to Christianity as the very basis of our collective morality. Today Christians stand at the head of our country. We want to fill our culture again with the Christian spirit. We want to burn out all the recent immoral developments in literature, in the theater, and in the press—in short, we want to burn out the poison of immorality which has entered into our whole life and culture as a result of liberal excess during recent years." To find out who said this, read the first comment.

The Stars

2006-11-16T01:37:00.000-08:00

Oh man, I got to work just a little while ago, and it was like 3:20 in the morning. The stars were spectatcular. I think for the first time I understood the Psalmist saying "what is man that you are mindful of him, the son of man that you care for him?" I mean, wow. Have you taken a good look at the universe lately? I sat there and wondered at the fact that God takes me into account at all...
I have to say, I also find it amusing that when God was throwing all of the stars out there, he couldn't help but create some dot to dots. I mean, honestly, you can't tell me that Orion is an anomaly. How beautiful...

Barth's Burgers

2006-11-15T09:11:00.000-08:00

there's nothing like a little "You Can't Do That On Television" to get ya going...

http://youtube.com/watch?v=_aLKlG0yuuw

The Pastoral Prayer

2006-11-15T07:16:00.001-08:00

Today I was invited by our area Chamber of Commerce to lead them off in prayer. It's always funny to me when I get asked to do that type of thing. I know that it is a privilege and all that, it's just funny. I wonder if Jesus ever got asked to pray at events? If he'd a been praying, they would have only needed like two strips of bacon and three eggs (you know, cause he would have multiplied them - fish and bread - get it?). Well, I guess that's life as a Pastor, always interesting and sometimes funny. Always living in a weird dichotomy of trying to understand how to better spread the good news and how to remain personally faithful to Christ.
I must say as a side note, that I believe pastors should probably be better attenders of events like that than church board meetings. Hah. I'm sure many of those people there today were believers, but I know that I had a much better chance of rubbing shoulders with someone who is not than I do in my church. I often miss the exhilaration of discussing the passion and sacrifice of Christ with someone who has never heard it.

An Evangelical Circus

2006-11-14T08:29:00.000-08:00

Today I was thinking on how shallow of a job American Evangelical Churches have done when it comes to taking care of the poor, widows and orphans. I wondered if it has to do with that word "Evangelical", it means to share the good news. It is, the battle cry of our churches, and why not, there is a lost world that is in desperate need of saving. I will fight for that the rest of my life. I just wonder, as I'm sure a million men and women have wondered, is there more? Not more in the way of salvation, I believe that Jesus is the only way to the Father. I mean, is there more we should be focusing on. Can the substance of the message of Christ, be separated from the form in which it was delivered? I suppose it can, but does it loose it's power? Is this why miracles are few and far between in our body of believers, because we don't need them? Who needs a miracle when all you are doing is singing and listening? Miracles are the things of dirty alley's and God-forsaken avenues. Healing is for the broken and sick, not the healthy. I tell you what, I am as desperate in this area as anyone. For me it is simply easier to prepare a sermon than it is to serve at a soup kitchen. I am not saying we should forsake one for the other, I am asking, shouldn't we be doing both? Shouldn't our faith have actions? Some questions do arise though.
Where does the responsibility lie? Is it a corporate responsibility? ie. should I as the minister be planning all kinds of events for people to serve the poor? Sometimes I think this still negates a persons individual responsibility to walk as Christ walked. Yet, I do not think it is totally an individual response to Christ. I do think there is a place for the community of believers to stand together for those who are hurt, oppressed and overlooked. I sure as heck wish I were smarter.
I hope that I can learn to live a life that is more than songs and sermons...

Theologians

2006-11-13T09:42:00.001-08:00

I was reading last night some works by great early theologians. It was interesting because the two were in stark contrast to one another. One, Justin Martyr, describes this synthesis between philosophy and theology. His argument is that philosophers were simply trying to describe the "Logos", the "word" as best as they could with their limited knowledge and that the truth found within their philosophies was still truth and was even "Christian" truth because it described the "Logos". He argues that the contradictions and so forth in their philosophy was only there because they had an imperfect perception of the Logos, but now that Christ has come, the Logos incarnate, we have a full picture of what it should really look like. All confusion is lifted.
Tertullian on the other hand had quite a different perspective, he said that the pagan philosophers and Christian theology had nothing to do with one another, he eludes to the the ideas found in 2 Corinthians 6:14-18 of there needing to be a complete separation between the two ideologies.
Augustine comes to the rescue of both and says that there is some truth that can be gleaned from the philosophers of old, but that we should not presume to place to much importance on their ideas. We should let Christ supersede by all means those ideas of philosophy.
As I have been studying the Emerging Church and their movement, I see a similar argument arising. One group trying very hard to be relevant to a philosophical movement (post-modernism, whatever that may be), and one group saying that we should not adopt the morias of our culture, rather change them to be Christ-like. I am wondering who our Augustine will be that will help unite the cause in understanding. It seems like the two voices that are predominant in this discussion really do take the thing entirely too far.

Pollo Politics

2006-11-13T09:16:00.000-08:00

I'll be honest. We just got done with an election and I had no idea who to vote for. I always end up asking friends who they are voting for and why, and usually end up voting the way they do, so basically they get two votes, they are so lucky... I have two main problems with the political process. One, it bores me to . I mean really, who has time to wade through all of the junk that both sides sling. And two, I don't know that I have ever felt like I really have had a candidate that I feel like supports the ideals I uphold. I feel like I have this choice between conservative greed hounds or liberal lifestyle proponents and neither parties really fit the perspective that I see Jesus upholding. One group puts personal rights ahead of moral responsibility, the other uses moral responsibility as a cover up for greedy ambitions... Ahhhhh... I feel like a political chicken on both fronts - not a scaredy cat, don't get onto the wrong metaphor. I feel like I am running around in this poop filled coup and I aint got nowhere to go and nothing to say about it. Sure, I can vote, I can be a part of the political process, but in the end, does it matter? What meaning is there in being a part of a process that I want to have no part of?

Well, there ya go. Politics are deep and consorted- not the kind of water I really want to be treading in, so I will leave this arena for now and ponder other stuff...

Nice Bible Tools...

2006-11-13T08:41:00.001-08:00

I found a cool website the other day that has some great bible study tools on it... http://www.searchgodsword.org/ you can look up the greek, commentaries and a whole bunch more, it's pretty nice!

Trying this out...

2006-11-13T08:27:00.000-08:00

Heath said the new beta version is, "sooooooooo cool" so I decided to try it out and see how she works...

beta.blogger.com