Off the Grid

Catrina and I leave for Montana tomorrow for a 10 day vacation.  We’ll be visiting her folks’ new riverfront property for a couple of days, traipsing around all of the places Catrina grew up, and spending some time with her family in Helena.  I’m looking forward to some time away (with my wife this time) and therefore will be off the grid for awhile.  I’m looking forward to unplugging for awhile, reading some books, and not staring at a computer screen.  Until then…

Assumptions in Preaching

Came across this article the other day that has really made me pause and think about the assumptions I make about the audience I preach to on a Sunday morning (when I get to preach on a Sunday Morning). It’s easy when preparing a sermon to make assumptions about where everyone lands on the most basic fundamental tenets of the faith and that the guy who doesn’t believe in the authority of Scripture but instead believes the ‘Holy Spirit speaking to our hearts’ is the highest authority  is an exception to the norm.  Based upon the recent Pew Forum Study completed, that is no longer the case.

As the article states, the study found that 57 percent of evangelical church attenders said they believe many religions can lead to eternal life. That’s not 57 percent of people who call themselves christian.  That’s 57 percent of evangelical (that’s us) church attenders (us too).  That is shocking to me.  I would think that our number would be a bit lower given our location (semi-rural) and demographic (conservative and christian), but still….that’s an amazing number.  Here’s my favorite quote from the article:

“The survey shows religion in America is, indeed, 3,000 miles wide and only three inches deep,” said D. Michael Lindsay, a Rice University sociologist of religion.

“There’s a growing pluralistic impulse toward tolerance and that is having theological consequences,” he said.

Needless to say, us preachers have some work to do…and now we know we can’t take anything for granted, even the basics.

Finished!

I am finally done with the class!  We gave our final presentation this morning on problems with Performance Based Acquisition (which I’m sure you’re all aware of), which went well, I ate a Krispy Kreme donut and said goodbye to all my training buddies.  There were some fun people in my class, that’s for sure.  One lady on my team actually gave us a baby gift this morning.  Not just a card either, we’re talking two little pink outfits for baby Grace.  I was humbled and blessed.

I’ve very glad to be done and very excited about going home.  It’s been a LONG two weeks…and a bit boring.  Being in Kansas City by myself is not my idea of a good time.  I’ve enjoyed the sun and the temperatures in the mid 80s, especially because of the pool, and I’ve really enjoyed spending time at the International House of Prayer and with my sister Mandy, where I’ll be heading shortly to spend my Friday night.    I’ve been to the movies more in the last 2 weeks than I have  since I got marriage.  My advice:  try and catch Iron Man and Indiana in the theater…don’t bother with the Incredible Hulk…..mediocre at best.  24 hours to go…

 

New Class Video

Given how horrible the last class video was, I felt it necessary to try and get another one to give you all a better idea of Mr Robinson, Instructor Extraordinaire.  Here’s a much better one, where he’s talking to my group about his problem with security personnel at some building always checking is badge.  I was pretending to text someone….he had no idea what I was really doing.   Enjoy…and be careful, there’s a loud noise at the very end!

Kansas City Update….Tuesday Morning

Nothing real exciting happening the last couple of days.  I’m just trying to stay awake.  I’ve pretty much checked out, which is sad since I still have 4 days to go.  Spent most of the morning like I’ve spent all the mornings, checking my email and reading the news.  I have to pipe up every now and then and ‘contribute’ to the discussion as part of our grade (yes we’re being graded) includes class participation.

Couple quick thoughts on a beautiful Tuesday morning:

1.  Saw Indiana Jones last night and enjoyed it.  I like that it kept the same spirit as the other movies in the series.  Luckily I remembered to wear my Movie Theater Monitor sash last night, as I had to tell the large group of junior high kids sitting behind me and another family to be quiet twice.  Junior High kids are nuts.

2.  Random sighting of a high school classmate:  I’m sitting by the pool at my hotel last night eating dinner (in Kansas City) when all of the sudden I hear a familiar voice ask a group of girls to my right where a good steakhouse might be.  It was none other than a guy named Raymond who I went to high school with.  I was so shocked I just hid behind my book… The LAST place I would ever expect to run into a high school classmate is sitting poolside at the Holtze Executive Suites in Kansas City.  What are the chances?

3.  Speaking of pools, parents shouldn’t let their 10 year old daughters wear skimpy bikinis….EVER!  Seriously, it’s your daughter!  What are you thinking?!? I don’t even know what to say.

4.  Finally, there was a recent story on msnbc.com (can’t find it now) about a man changing his name to ‘In God We Trust’, which I thought was kind of fun.  To all my readers out there (all 3 of you), if you were to change your name, what would you pick and why?  Here are a couple names I’m considering:

• I Hate Kansas City – based upon current feeling only….I’d probably regret it later, kinda like a tattoo of a former lover. 
• I Love My Wife -  a true statement, and would definitely pay dividends over time (wink wink).
• Never Look a Gift Horse in the Mouth – That’s good advice right there…something we all need to be reminded of….constantly!

Time to contribute again! 

As the great theologian Chris Tucker says…

“Do you understand the words that are coming out of my mouth?”

Proverbs 21:23 Whoever keeps his mouth and his tongue keeps himself out of trouble.

Yesterday was a good day.  I was lovingly confronted with some things that I had said that have hurt some people close to me.  It’s not my position that is being questioned, in fact those that have been hurt would agree with me, but some of my offhanded comments made people feel as if I was judging them, which was certainly not my intention at all.  I’d like to say that it’s just a perception issue and my flesh would like to argue that the problem is the listener;  that they just didn’t understand me and that it’s their problem if they ‘read too much’ into what I’m saying or if they don’t as if clarification if they have questions. However, when more than one person’s ‘perception’ doesn’t match my message, maybe it’s the message, and particularly my heart, that needs adjusting. 

I am a fairly passionate and outspoken individual (my wife, when she reads this, will be nodding vigorously) and enjoy discussing (arguing) any particular topic, especially those that I have a very strong opinion about.  What was once again made clear to me is the impact and the power of the words I speak and how often there are unintended consequences.   The issue is that I am careless with my tongue…that I am quick to speak, quick to stereotype, quick to assert my position (which is the correct one), quick to argue, quick to judge, and slow to recognize the potential impact my words may have on anyone, especially those I really care about.

The funny thing is, it’s not as if this is a new issue or the first time I’ve ever recognized this is a problem.  And it’s not as if scripture is silent on this issue (James 3).  I am so grateful that someone had the courage to confront me with this (thanks Dad) and that the Holy Spirit has convicted my heart and allowed me to see this as a problem.  I’m also grateful that I have been given the opportunity to take care of these things before more damage is done.

Just this morning I heard Sinclair Ferguson say:  “The only way to have a holy tongue is to have a clean heart.”  That is my prayer, that first of all my heart would be clean, that I would be quick to repent, quick to listen, and slow to speak.  That my words would bring life to those who listen and bring glory to Christ.

Kansas City…End of Week 1

Well, I’m finally done with week 1 of the class.  We got out early today too, which was nice. 

Today was a pretty laid back day.  While the class watched a video on organizational change filmed sometime before 1992, I read a hilarious article from one of my favorite sports writers named Bill Simmons on last night’s NBA finals game (http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/simmons/index).  The post-video discussion involved the instructor somehow using his divorce as an example. It was strangely uncomfortable to say the least, and got even more so after one my classmates asked how long he had been divorced (3 or 4 years) and then told him he needed to ‘Get Over It’.  Now THAT’s what I call entertainment.  Enjoy the weekend!

Kansas City on a Friday Morning…

I’ve finally made it to Friday, which was made all the better by the perfect double tall vanilla latte I just finished…which cost me $4.  I would complain more but that was a GOOD cup of coffee.  Minor tangent:  I hate it when the barista hands you back your change and then hangs around right by the tip jar until you leave.  Needless to say, I was guilted into dropping in the buck in change I got back.  Turned out to be a $5 cup of coffee.  Thank you Lord for the per diem I’m getting. 

Last night turned about to be a bit exciting.  I made it through my very first tornado warning for Johnson County (I’m staying in Johnson county).  After class I went over to IHOP (the prayer place, not the pancake place) and had coffee with my sister and spent some time in the worship and prayer room working on a sermon I’m preaching in a couple weeks and spending a little time with Jesus.  After getting back to the hotel, I turned on the news and began watching live video (some poor sap in a helicopter and a video camera flying through thunderstorms) as a tornado was touching down about 30 miles to the West of where I am staying….with the storm heading East. Shortly thereafter, off in the distance I heard the tornado sirens going off.  It was short-lived however, as the bad part of the storm went north and the warning was downgraded to a ’severe thunderstorm and flash flood’ warning only.  I did spend some time in the hotel lobby with all the other guests watching the news and ready to run down the stairs to the basement at a moment’s notice. 

After all was said and done, I was treated to an amazing weather night complete with torrential rains, loud thunder, and a fantastic lightning storm.  Gotta love Kansas City.  A few more random thoughts this morning…

One more reason why I like living on the West Coast:  The NBA Finals game don’t start until 8pm local time and last night’s game didn’t get over until about 11pm.  I feel sorry for those poor people in Boston who have to stay up until after midnight to watch their beloved Celtics win a fantastic game.  The moral of the story:  I’m getting old.

One more reason why I’m glad we don’t have cable at home:  I was flipping through the channels last night and as I landed on the HBO channel, there was a man balancing on a wire (like a high wire act, except only a couple feet off the ground) on a stage in front of a  presumably paying crowd who was taking off his pants while balancing on the wire. Seriously…Who would pay money to watch a man get buck naked while balancing on a wire?  I don’t know how it turned out as I flipped the channel quickly.  The LAST thing I want to see is some naked dude balancing on a wire.  Gotta love HBO…

One hour of class time (wasted) down…who knows how many more to go.  Here’s hoping we get out early.

Kansas City Update…Thursday Morning

Well…I’m back in class again today and we’re learning about leadership.  Currently we’re looking at numbers 6 thru 10 of the ‘20 Fundamentals of Leadership’.  Good times.  Here are some random thoughts to kick the morning off:

1.  Being from the Seattle area, I know all about expensive coffee, and Starbucks usually tops the list.  Currently, my tall vanilla latte at Starbucks costs me $3.11.  There’s a coffee shop close to where I’m taking this class called PT’s Coffee and I’ve got to be honest, it’s some seriously good coffee.  In fact, Pete the barista just won the 2008 award for ‘Best Barista in the Midwest’, which covers 5 states or so.  Pretty impressive….almost as impressive as how much they charge for coffee.  The price for my tall (12 oz.) vanilla latte this morning….$3.75.

2.  Do you want to live in a place that gives you a plethora of choices for your banking needs?  Come to Kansas City.  There’s a different bank on every corner.

3.  Looking for a church?  Come to Kansas City.  There’s a church on every corner too (right next to the bank).

4. I’m glad that we don’t have cable at our home.  Watching any show on MTV for 15 minutes will make you sick.   

5.  Saw Iron Man yesterday afternoon….really enjoyed it.  Stan Lee as Hugh Hefner was classic.  Don’t like going to a movie by myself, but  it’s better than just sitting in my hotel room and watching tv.

6.  Speaking of going to movies by myself, I miss my wife.

Time to pay attention for a couple of minutes…back later…

Kansas City…Thursday afternoon

Not much to update really.  The most exciting part of the day was the fantastic Panang Curry I had at lunch.  One thing I was not expecting was finding good Thai in Kansas City. I was satisfied with finding and enjoying good BBQ. Good Thai is a bonus.  Other than that, had to give a quick presentation and hang out in our group for awhile talking about ‘Empowerment’.  Trust me, not as riveting as it sounds.

Hopefully, we’ll be done for the day shortly. I’ve had just about enough.  I’ll be heading out to the International House of Prayer for awhile to hang out in the worship and prayer room and work on a sermon.  Then, back to the hotel room for some leftover Thai and NBA finals basketball.  Not a bad evening, actually.  I’m more half done with the first half of the two week class.  That sounds a lot better than saying I still have 9 days to go.  Every little bit helps…