Name Calling

What aspects of name calling are good?
Jesus did his fair share of name calling what do you think was the context?
Why was he right?

Ie. Brood of vipers, white wash tombs,...

When I call someone a name sometimes I mean it for harm, sometimes I don't.
What is the essence of namecalling? Is it ok if its direct? Obviously second or third hand name calling is slander and gossip.

Are we too fragile to handle name calling? Or does it simply reflect the speaker and his opinion?

Why does the hearer recieve it? If the hearer recieves it and it is beneficial is it a good thing?

Is it always best to not offend? Not name call? Can you name call and still care?

Bring it.


posted by Andy at 2:01 PM | |

 
Why I like Tammy Faye Messner

She wears a LOT of make-up. It's obvious that she's been as renovated as the Statue of Liberty. Tammy was the symbol of everything that was wrong and repulsive about tele-evangelism, skimming tithe money off of the ministry she and her husband ran in order to build multi-million dollar homes and a rumored air-conditioned dog house, then divorcing Jim when times got tough. And she still calls herself a "minister of the Lord."

But after this past week, I can't help but like her on some level. I saw Tammy Faye while watching the season finale of "The Surreal Life", a reality show that stacks a group of washed-up and lesser-known celebrities into one house to live together for a time. Tammy Faye was one of the house residents, as was a girl named "Trishelle", who is so lesser-known that I have no idea where they dug her up from. Trishelle is a party girl in her early twenties who goes a little wild on alcohol every now and then, and on this final show, they confronted each member of the cast with some prior "bad behavior" on an in-house Sally Jesse Raphael show. Video was shown of Trishelle kissing numerous guys while she was obviously drunk. Sally called her a slut, and Trishelle got upset, threw her mic down, and left. Then Tammy stepped up.

"Let me tell you something about Trishelle. She lost her real mom when she was 14 years old. I don't understand what she does all the time, but I think some of it is that she has a void in her life because of the loss of her mom. I'd like to think that during my time here that I've helped her with that. I think she's great and I've just come to love that kid." By the time she was done speaking, Tammy was in tears, mascara running down her face. I flashed back to the mid-eighties, when that same image had been used as a symbol of all that was wrong with Christian culture in America. Now, it was a symbol of someone standing up to an overly-judgmental talk show host to defend someone who was hurt in a lot of different ways.

I don't think that excessive drinking or loose sexual behavior needs to be defended. It was clear that Tammy did not agree with those. But this young woman who Tammy has grown so fond of was attacked out of self-righteousness and a desire to please an audience. "Someone has to tell her that she looks like a slut" was Sally's justificiation. But maybe there is a hole in her life. I think Tammy Faye would know better than I would (or Sally would, for that matter). If that's the case, then people have to work through that. Hard times can lead to introspection and re-evaluation that people often end up seeing God in, once it's all said and done. Name-calling just hardens hearts. Tammy Faye recognized this. Too many Christians don't.

So I like Tammy Faye. No, I don't like everything that she does. I'm sure that if I saw her "Christian television show" that it would make my eyes roll into the back of my head. And if my daughter ever came home with that much make-up on, there would be a period of civil unrest. But I still like her, because I'd remember what she did for a young woman who apparently needed to be loved.
posted by Stephen at 11:13 AM | |

 
Well, my my my...

Everyone's just posting like mad tonight. Stephen wants to play, too.

This isn't nearly as deep or meaningful as the other things that have been posted tonight. I'm feeling a little bit ornery, though. Working two 16 hour days in a row will do that, yeah?

Why is it that no one can have a decent, rational discussion on this gay marriage topic? It really would be beneficial for those of us who are still trying to decide if it's something to get upset over or something to not lose sleep over (I don't think I'd ever support such a proposition, but that's just me).

But no. Instead, any time a "journalist" brings the subject up, they parade out the same "Who's Who in American Imbeciles."

Oh, look, here's James Dobson telling me how gay marriage will undermine the ENTIRETY of the social fabric that our society has been built on. Sorry... I don't buy that argument (and I use the term "argument" liberally). Does this guy ever say ANYTHING different? Every pet issue of his is what's finally going to do our culture in! We might as well start praying for mercy now, because it's only a matter of time before 1) meteors hit the earth, 2) we're taken over by barbarian germanic tribes (because that's what happened to the Romans when THEY allowed gay marriage!) or 3) they start stamping our right hands and foreheads! As Homer would say, "Run for the hills, Ma Barker!"

Oh, look, here's the Mayor of San Francisco, telling me how he's upholding HIS version of the Constitution, even though the people of California, for the time being, have already stated that they wish to define marriage as being between a man and a woman. Look, I understand that in order for the Supreme Court to review a law, the law has to be tested. Sometimes, this is done by someone breaking the law. But elected officials should at least feign respect for law and work to bring the review about another way. Two things are clear to me about the Mayor of San Francisco after watching him interviewed. 1) He's a smart-alleck prima-donna, grandstanding in the limelight of media controversy (but what should I expect, right?). 2) He obviously has little regard for the opinions of the people of California. I, personally, think the guy should be impeached.

I just love hearing people gripe about how the media portrays Christians as being hateful and closed-minded, unable to argue reasonably. Unfortunately, we do a good job of looking that way without anyone's help, thank you very much!

Look, people, if we're really concerned about defending marriage, and want to use the Constitution of the United States to do so, then you'd better include something about divorce and adultery. Heterosexuals have done a fine job of sullying the institution of marriage even without including homosexuals.

At the same time, the advocates of gay marriage can dance around the question all they want, but they have to face the fact that we are talking about a major re-defining of a long-time institution. Once the definition of a word like "marriage" becomes arbitrary and open to interpretation, then it's difficult to re-draw lines without looking like a hypocrite. When asked on a Sunday talk show why polygamy should not be allowed, Congressman Barney Frank said that it would create societal instability, possibly be harmful to children, and undermine the structure of a time-honored institution. Hmmm... those arguments sound familiar.

So I suppose I'm going to have to look elsewhere for a decent discussion of this topic. Obviously, the American media is more intent on feeding us low-level bickering than honest dialogue (which, in my mind, says far more about the addicts who consume the product than the pushers who sell it).
posted by Stephen at 11:26 PM | |

 
Emptiness
From Henri Nouwen:

"We are afraid of emptiness. Spinoza speaks about our "horror vacui," our horrendous fear of vacancy. We like to occupy-fill up-every empty time and space. We want to be occupied. And if we are not occupied we easily become preoccupied; that is, we fill the empty spaces before we have even reached them. We fill them with our worries, saying, "But what if ..."
It is very hard to allow emptiness to exist in our lives. Emptiness requires a willingness not to be in control, a willingness to let something new and unexpected happen. It requires trust, surrender, and openness to guidance. God wants to dwell in our emptiness."
posted by Jimmy at 10:00 PM | |

 
How do we define difference between a "Para-Church" and Church organizations.

For some reason large portions of authority are given to the "Church" organizations.
While "Para-Church" organizations are treated like the step children of Christianity.

My concern is not with any spat between "Para-Church" and "Church", most parachurch organizations seem content with the relationship and are humble in their service to the body of christ, often fulfilling more of the great commission than their more glorified organizations.

Here is my thought, they are all "Para-church" organizations.
We the people are the body of Christ and those organizations are only valuable to the degree that they support the body of Christ.

What I am saying is the institutions are givin too much authority, power and money. They are too big to handle the context of ministry.
They are too big for their britches. Members spend their lives trying to fulfill the Visions of their "ego maniac" pastors who live in a spiritual bubble.

As I said before they are valuable to the degree that they support / teach/ equip the "body of christ", it is not the "body of christ" job to support the institution.

All thoughts welcome, I promise not to call any names :)

posted by Andy at 9:41 PM | |

 
An Excerpt From Isaiah 58...A Reflection for Lent
This is the kind of fast day I'm after:
to break the chains of injustice,
get rid of exploitation in the workplace,
free the oppressed,
cancel debts.
What I'm interested in seeing you do is:
sharing your food with the hungry,
inviting the homeless poor into your homes,
putting clothes on the shivering ill-clad,
being available to your own families.
Do this and the lights will turn on,
and your loves will turn around at once.
Your righteousness will pave your way.
The God of glory will secure your passage.
Then when you pray, God will answer.
You'll call out for help and I'll say, 'Here I am.'

If you get rid of unfair practices,
quit blaming victims,
quit gossiping about other people's sins,
If you are generous with the hungry
and start giving yourselves to the down-and-out,
Your lives will begin to glow in the darkness,
your shadowed lives will be bathed in sunlight.
I will always show you where to go.
I'll give you a full life in the emptiest of places --
firm muscles, strong bones.
You'll be like a well-watered garden,
a gurgling spring that never runs dry.

You'll use the old rubble of past lives to build anew,
rebuild the foundations from out of your past.
You'll be known as those who can fix anything,
restore old ruins, rebuild and renovate,
make the community livable again.

from The Message

posted by Jimmy at 8:55 PM | |

 
Good Point In An Angry Passion Review
I found this review of The Passion from Rudy's blog. The writer isn't very happy with the movie, and I'm not sure I agree with him...but he does make some good points. Here's one of them:

The point has been completely missed. Hate me if you like, but please listen. The point is this:

We would have crucified Him. We would crucify Him. You, me, us. We'd smile, be tolerant and loving, do the right thing as we see it, and crucify Him. Then go home to hug our children and talk about how bad the world had become.

Rudy has several posts listing interesting responses to the film.
posted by Jimmy at 9:39 AM | |

 
Just When I Thought I Was Getting Over This Crap
Mark goes and puts this on his blog...

Youth ministry story
I've had three lunches this week with youth pastors from the area.
They've all gone pretty much the same. Great pastors.. Great resumes. Big hearts. being hurt by the church.
I'm done gripping but I thought I'd quote one of them here.

"I had a parent tell me that the reason the youth ministry is not growing is because I'm fat and I look like a geek."

This is....oh, nevermind...go read some of our archived posts. It's all been said before.

posted by Jimmy at 11:35 PM | |

 
What Am I Supposed To Do?
I'm in one of those weird places right now. I've been there for about half a year now. It's a familiar place. I find myself here when God is about to do something in my life. I was here right before I moved from Edmond to Tulsa. I was here again right before I left Professional Youth Ministry™. So, I'm in anticipation, but it doesn't make it any easier. The place I'm in is a place of mystery until I feel like the next step has become clear to me.

The strange thing is that people have come to me with "opportunities" that a few years ago I would not have hesitated to follow. But the opportunities somehow seem more like temptations rather than opportunities. Temptations to be relevant and spectacular...to rush toward my own will instead of waiting for God's will.

So I will wait. Who knows when the Lord will move. Moses was 80 at the burning bush. Hopefully it won't take that long.
posted by Jimmy at 11:03 PM | |

 
Fixing People Vs. Knowing Them

rant...

You're not wise enough or powerful enough your church building will never be big enough, nor your programs amazing enough.

I do not mean that we should stop serving people but, that we should cease believing that serving people or cliches and pat answers will fix them.
And cease being angry with the recievers of our service when they arent fixed by our efforts. Why should the one being served be burdened by the need of our validation?

The best you can hope to do is to know them and do your best to love them.
Weep with them, laugh with them, pray for them, live beside them.

Honor them.
Honoring presupposes that you disagree,(otherwise you would simply be "honoring" yourself)
Christ told us to honor one another. Which to me means his goal was not for us to agree on everything.
Often we seek out only those who agree with us and call that church.
As soon as we disagree we split the church and start a new one.
What a sick picture. We do the same in friendships...
Missing out on the highest of the virtues taught by christ, honoring one another.
How can anyone ever feel unconditional love without being known?
How often has someone thought "if you really knew me you wouldnt like me"
We must first reallly know them to reallly love them.

We cannot truly love or hate what we do not know. Leonardo Da Vinci

Beloved let us love one another.

Be excellent to one another- Bill and Ted

I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes.

"Depart from me, I never knew you..."

If we are telling people that God wants to know them, but we havnt taken the time to know them, then what does that mean?
How will they ever know what it means to be known? Have you ever been known?




posted by Andy at 9:28 PM | |

 
Ok. Ok. Here are my thoughts on The Passion
I first posted this here.
but since we are having such a passionate discussion here on it... i thought i'd share here too.

Just now while reading Rudy's blog it hit me why I'm frustrated with some of the buzz around this film. (not because of Rudy.. it just occured to me while i was reading his page)

Let me be clear first.
1. I'm excited to see this film. (or experience it as it seems everyone says these days.)
2. The diane sawyer interview and other "specials" has created space for a conversation to happen about Jesus. That is very cool. Frankly, great art and story always create space for conversation. It just happens that way.
Partnering great art with the world's hunger for all things true and it's a very cool conversation to be a part of.

HERE WE GO:
I've had a half dozen conversations with youth pastors or church members who have all heard something about it.
"It's Mel's hand that holds the nail!" "It's hard to sit through" or whatever.
As I'm taking inventory of myself these days and listening to the churches who are excited about it's release I'm inwardly wondering if we are more excited about this work of art, than the gospel itself. In other words. Is it easier to have a conversation about a movie than about jesus? Just a though I'm wrestling with today.

also.
I was an art minor in college. I love art, but I'm not a big fan of using art. I am using the word "USE" here in the same what a high school guy "uses" a young teen girl. High school boys have strong tendencies toward using girls for their own purposes. The church is notorious for using art. ok. look. Art speaks for itself. Great art has weight to it. You HAVE to notice it. It talks to you because it has a voice.



When you see Guernica by picasso you don't need an interpreter. You don't need any explainations on his thoughts on war. Saving Private Ryan? Writing by Chuck Palahniuk? A song by 100 portraits. The art speaks. it brings life.

more on Users.
This week we are going to see the unveiling of a wonderful new piece of art. in the form of a movie. And there are hundreds of thousands of people waiting outside the gallery where the work is shown to tell you what they think it means. Not only will they tell you what it meant for them... they will tell you what it should mean to you.

no thanks. not interested. Don't we understand? The art has a voice. Let the art speak. If you believe in God, let God meet you in the art. but please don't come to me with preprinted brochures using the artwork, fonts and images from the art to sell me something. It cheapens the story. It destroys the voice.

so let's not ravage beauty with our tracts, coffee mugs and preconceived ideas about how and how God might speak in and around this film.... and let's keep ourselves passionate about Jesus more than a movie.

thoughts?


posted by riddle at 1:44 PM | |

 
Ebert and Roeper's Review of The Passion of the Christ
Hey gang...this is really good. If you missed their review of this movie, please click here to hear the discussion they have in mp3 format. These guys are sharing the Gospel in their review. Absolutely fantastic. I can rejoice at this kind of preaching of Christ. Here's a quote from Ebert:

"It focuses relentlessly on the price that Christ paid for redemption," Ebert said. "And it emphasizes that Jesus wanted this to happen. His death was the instrument of his purpose, and we should be grateful to him instead of critical of those who were the instruments of his will."

and

"and you know (pause), It's not that the Jews killed Christ. It's that mankind killed Christ. He died for our sins. You killed Christ. I killed Christ. If you are a Christian, if you believe this, then that's what we have to believe...Jesus fulfilled his mission by dying, and that's the real story."

Here's a link to excerpts from the review...but listening to the audio is the best option.

The Ebert and Roeper main site is http://tvplex.go.com/buenavista/ebertandroeper/today.html
posted by Jimmy at 9:09 PM | |

 

A Reminder...
You should be reading this blog on a regular basis. Why can't I be this talented with words?
posted by Jimmy at 7:14 PM | |

 
Rejoicing that Christ is Preached
I recently had a conversation with a friend and he brought up this Scripture:

"It is true that some preach Christ out of envy and rivalry, but others out of goodwill. The latter do so in love, knowing that I am put here for the defense of the gospel. The former preach Christ out of selfish ambition, not sincerely, supposing that they can stir up trouble for me while I am in chains. But what does it matter? The important thing is that in every way, whether from false motives or true, Christ is preached. And because of this I rejoice. " Phil. 1:15-18

The discussion was about my views on the church™'s handling of the The Passion. Can I be content to know that Christ is preached? I think the issue for me is that I'm not sure that I believe that Christ is being preached. The method and the message cannot be separated in people's hearts and minds. What if the methods are actually detrimental to a majority's understanding of the Gospel?

Another friend of mine saw a preview of The Passion. He said it was amazing. The best movie he has ever seen. So overwhelming that when you leave you just want to be in silence, to take it in and ponder the violence, the message, and the life of the story just experienced. I imagine it is much like my experience after leaving Schindler's List. I was with my wife and we just walked to the car in quietness. I think the most we said were things like, "Man..." and "Terrible....terrible...." I believe that is the mood with which many will leave The Passion. How terrible for that mood to be broken by people handing out information packets?

I am rejoicing that Christ is being preached through this movie. I love to hear people like Diane Sawyer mentioning how she and her co-workers have "gotten to know each other much better" through discussing this movie. It apparently causes people to feel the need to respond in some way and talk about it...and most of the time I assume the center of the conversation centers on Christ--his life, message, and death. However, we have to use wisdom so we don't (as my friend who saw the movie put it) "spiritually rape" people. Good intentions do not negate the possibility of error and bad taste. I mean, what's next, handing out tracts after funerals because that's the most opportune time to talk to them about death and eternal life?

I'm not sure I could rejoice that Christ was preached using such methods.
posted by Jimmy at 12:12 PM | |

 
Ralph Nader
I feel sorry for Ralph Nader. I mean, here's a guy who really has big issues with the corrupt American political system. I think it really bothers him that everyone knows it, but no one does anything about it. It bothers him that in a democracy for and by the people, our two choices will come down to two men and parties controlled by corporate interests and money.

Poor guy.

All the Democrats are upset that he's running and even some of his supporters. "It's his fault," they say, "that Gore didn't win in 2000." They don't get that Nader sees very little difference between Gore and Bush in the core of what they represent. They don't get that Rader doesn't really think that he could be our next President (or would want to be). His running for President is symbolic and a quadrenial podium to draw national attention to the issues.

There are a few things that Nader talks about specifically that I agree with...on the majority of issues I would probably come down far right of his agenda. But for some reason, I can't help but like this guy. I enjoy hearing him interviewed and would love for him to be in on a debate with the other candidates this time around. Maybe it's because--as Stephen said about me yesterday--"Jimmy likes to be a blue boy in a world of red men." I don't know. Maybe.

Maybe its that I see our Christian heritage filled with voices that were minimalized by their culture. Voices that were so strange to the natives that they were either foolish or terribly dangerous. Voices that spoke the truth in ways that either set people free or got the speaker crucified. And maybe that's it. Nader is speaking the truth as he sees it and he doesn't seem to care if he gets crucified--even by his own (former) supporters. I like that.
posted by Jimmy at 9:16 AM | |

 
Big Fish

I think the big secret that God is trying to let me in on right now (if secrets are to be told) is that I need to value the contact I have with the people I'm with right now.

I've posted before that I've always felt like I'm waiting for something. It really sucks, because when you're constantly waiting for something to end/begin/whatever, then you don't really live at all. You're in the purgatory of life on earth.

I recently saw the movie Big Fish. I won't ruin it for you, but those of you who have seen it will know what I mean when I say that I came away realizing that we never "catch" the people we value the most in our lives. We enjoy their company, but eventually, you have to let them go. If we all lived with this conscious knowledge, we would treat people differently. We wouldn't hurry our kids off to bed so we can get a little more reading done in quiet. We wouldn't pretend to be listening to our spouses while we think about work/dinner/ministry/money/what's on television/my spiritual life/etc. We would realize the importance of the moment we're spending with that person. The same would be true for everyone else we came into contact with. It's a little exhausting to think about.

Then one of the teachers at the school I work at wrote a song. I don't remember it all, but the chapel band played it and it said something like this: "I didn't love you today, I don't know if I'll love you tomorrow, but I want to be with you right now."

Is one of the secrets to Christian living to live in the moment as much as possible?

We beat ourselves up about our past. We guilt ourselves into thinking we're not doing enough to become what we could be. God, forgive us of our sin of thinking so much about ourselves.

I wish I knew how this was done. I've never been taught how to live like this, and I think I need some guidance. Left to my own devices, I'll just keep waiting for my ship to come in until there's no time left, and all those relationships that I could have enjoyed are gone.
posted by Stephen at 11:08 PM | |

 
Stolen from David Hopkins' Blog
These are thought provoking:

Our backyard has a tire swing. The previous owners left it here. Except instead of an actual "tire", it's a plastic fascimile of a tire. This means something.

Also...
Shanna posts, "And i didn't fit into their world view so they just didn't see me." An absolutely fascinating observation. As with most meaningful statements, we ought to turn it on ourselves. The question is: Who do I not see? I don't know, and that bothers me.

posted by Jimmy at 3:04 PM | |

 
LOL...
We're either hacking people off or really making them happy...or both. The number of URL referrals to our site really jumped today and lots of them link back to online email systems like hotmail. This basically means that several people are sending links to our site in their emails today. Hmm...I wonder what they're saying...
posted by Jimmy at 10:33 PM | |

 
Reality and Love
More from E. Stanley Jones in the early 70s:
"To be universal we do not have to be less Christian. For the truly Christian person is the most universal person in the world. He becomes more universal when he becomes more Christian.

If the church of this age marries the spirit of this age, then in the next generation it will be a widow. For this generation of secularism will be succeeded by another generation of secularism with its culture and its language and its outlook. For secularism has no fixed basis; it is the result of drives that ebb and flow and go the way of pressures.

We must be fixed to something universal and timeless. There are two things that are universal and timeless: reality and love. When you have reality and when you apply that reality by love you are universal and can speak to any age and are at home in any age and vital in any age. But to ape an age to get that age is futile. This age of youth has an acute nose for unreality and when youth sense that you are using their language and dress and outlook to catch them, they turn from you as "a phony." The head of the Campus Crusade for Christ in Canada told me that they tried aping the young people to get them—adopting their language, their dress, and growing their beards. They found it a failure. The youth saw through it. The Campus Crusade for Christ gave up emphasis on costume and returned to the emphasis on Christ; gave up emphasis on "campus" and returned to conversion. Now they were back in their native element—not fish flopping on an alien shore, but fish back in their native element again, at home! Not playing a part, but natural.

When the nonviolent, noncooperation movement for independence for India was on, the wearing of white homespun and handwoven khadi dress was the sign of a nationalist, one who wanted independence for India and who said so by the wearing of khadi. I felt I must identify myself with the movement for independence. So I wore khadi in public meetings to give public addresses. It was politically dangerous, for I might be sent out of India by the British. I asked a missionary what he thought of my wearing khadi and he said: "I think it is appropriate—for it expresses your inward attitudes. You believe in India's independence and are saying so." So now that India has her independence I still wear khadi at the Ashram at Sat Tal. They now know that it not a pose, but a position. But if I had used khadi to curry favor with the nationalists they would have seen through it at once. The fact that the president of India asked me to contribute a chapter to the National Memorial Volume to Mahatma Gandhi on the centenary commemoration of his birth, 1968, is proof that the country accepted me as a real friend of India in spite of, and maybe, in the minds of many, on account of, the fact that I am an evangelist of the Good News of Jesus Christ. Perhaps they saw in him I have reality and I hope they see him applied in love.

Reality and love are the two sides of the master key that will unlock the door to any situation. In the reconstruction of the church we must have reality and we must apply it in love."

I felt this quote applied to some of our recent conversations about branding, emergent, etc. It is amazing how this 80 year old missionary was saying things so long ago that still apply today. Perhaps the answer to the question "What does it look like?" in regards to the Church can only be answered by saying that we are in a constant state of renewal and struggle.

posted by Jimmy at 10:03 PM | |

 

Dipping Things in Cheese Doesn't Always Make Them Better
Just as I was thinking about putting together a Passion Happy Meal graphic to point out the striking stupidity (sacrilege?) of calling a Passion Coffee Mug a witnessing tool, I came across Spencer's Article, "When Passion Is Reduced To A Doorhanger". Great article!

Honestly, I can't wait for this movie to come out. I'm not against it. Just the marketing I see going on constantly here in Tulsa and apparently around America. I know some people probably won't see it because of the hype being generated by church™. I mean, do we really want people to associate this movie with the other greatly promoted gems like Omega Coce, Left Behind, and The Champion? "Perhaps the greatest witnessing tool in 2000 years"? Who came up with that crap?

I agree with what Scott posted on his blog at theopraxis.net:

I understand the excitement and the desire to communicate the message, and if this film prompts questions from honest seekers, then by all means we should be prepared to answer them. But the best opportunity in 2000 years? That stretches the bounds of credibility, and illustrates for me the flawed assumptions on which the "outreach model" is based:

Outreach is information driven

Outreach is event based

Outreach is methodological/program-driven

Outreach is market oriented

Outreach is ecclesiocentric

It seems to me that this model differs little from any secular marketing strategy designed to increase brand recognition. I don't, honestly, find much significance in the term "outreach". It seems a far cry from thinking of participation in the missio dei. Missio dei begins with God and His purposes. It assumes the kingdom of heaven is active and at work in the world, and looks to join with the Spirit in kingdom activity. It looks back to the origins of God's people in the call of Abraham and realizes that God blesses so that we may bless others. A community participating in the missio dei stands in a priestly role as an intermediary between God and world.

Wow - that amazes me. I want to be a part of the activities of the kingdom of God. I think that the "best outreach opportunity in 2000 years" is in joining God's Spirit at work in the world - not passing out pamphlets after a movie.

Note: Yes, the Passion Happy Meal® would come with action figures: the crucifix®, the Roman soldier®, the Pharisees®, and a mallet®. The box would convert to a crown of thorns®.

...and yes, I know this bugs some of you...now you know how I feel every time I see this movie being marketed by dipping it in cheese.
posted by Jimmy at 1:57 PM | |

 
Ugh!
My wife is really sick today. No fun.
posted by Jimmy at 12:22 PM | |

 
responding to Dino's comment on a previous post. .

this might go long but what the hell.

how do you balance being an alien in a strange land like it talks about in hebrews? but at the same time learn to talk to language?

I'm a paradox.
I want to be relevant and I want to be irrelevant.
maybe it's time someone said this.
there is something completely irrelevant about the gospel of God. or perhaps there is something that should be completely irrelevant.

churches who simply try to be relevant to culture are prostituting the gospel.
Jesus is stumbling block. we are not called to be cool... nor are we called to have cool churches. We must stop asking questions like "how did you like the service?" after attending a corporate gathering. we must stop changing the skin on our programs in the name of evangelism.

the heart of the kingdom is counter-cultural. it is culture redeeming. this is far more than using a video clip of bruce almighty in your worship service. or having a few candles. the heart of the kingdom must be present in your people. if not we are simply modern day pharisees. instead of whitewashed tombs we are technologically advanced pawns in the hands of culture, in the name of God. I'm not against technology. I'm moved by music and I love movies. but somewhere along the way many of us have been coopted by culture and we didn't notice. we are promoting a cultural gospel that really isn't good news and it's not really news.

if the kingdom of God is dwelling in and expanding from the hearts of your community (warts and all), bless you...

but people don't need to be sold the Gospel.
people don't need a cool jesus.
they don't need a new program, reimagined or not.
they need a people who bring the very word of God to others with their lives.

everything else is gravy.

maybe i'm just talking all around the issue... hopefully there's something to glean here.
posted by riddle at 6:57 PM | |

 

the Passion
If someone from a church hands me a tract after I leave this movie I will go off on them.

I promise.
posted by Jimmy at 5:02 PM | |

 
Thought...
The Church must cease to offer services and instead offer ourselves.
posted by Jimmy at 4:47 PM | |

 
RE:Emergent
One of my concerns and a cause for my growing lack of interest in the "Emergent Church" movement is that it seems to be increasinginly about form rather than being the Body. It seems that we are going through cycles of whatever the new ecclesial chic happens to be. I know that there are exceptions, and that many of those who have been pioneering the Emergent "movement" have gone deeper than mere style, but when I survey the conversations going on and the implementation and establishment of "Emergent" and "Post-Modern" branding, I find little more than stylistic changes of the typical church™. Quite honestly, many times it looks like a "happening" youth program that has graduated on into adulthood.

The true danger is that if we let style be our guide, we will be destined to be guided by the world, and I am convinced more than ever that the world cannot set the agenda for the Church.

When I left church™ I was desperate for something different, and the differences are often first approached through outward appearances. A worship service is the perhaps the most obvious item in "need" of apparent change. So we changed the way we did worship....without grasping the deeper issue that perhaps the style of worship isn't as much of a problem as the heart of a worshipper. Taking a deeper look we find that the problem isn't the way we do worship but our way of being worshippers. I remember being in my small hometown church as a teenager, singing hymns at half-speed. I hated it. Now that I'm older, I've realized that I was the problem, not the worship. If I can't worship to those songs, can I worship at all? I'm afraid that much in the Emergent movement doesn't get to that deeper level. We're simply offering another brand of christianity™ without changing the substance. Much like a person who points out the silliness of buying an Abercrombie shirt for $50 only to be satisified in turning around and buying American Eagle for the same price.

We've also forgotten that the orginal idea of post-modern has nothing to do with style, but with a way of approaching the world. In many ways my parents (who are in the 60s) are more post-modern than many who the church™ and Emergent circles would consider post-modern. They are straight laced, country folk...who have a strong belief in the supernatural and strong doubts of the so-called answers that Modern philiosophies and sciences have provided. My dad wears a cowboy hat and they both speak the dialect of "hick" made fun of by TV shows and the media. If I see another representation of post-modernism as nose-pierced or dread-locked I think I will overload. Yes, its true that many pierced and dread-locked persons are post-modern...but those styles themselves are not post-modern. Post-modernism is like the culture described by Kal Lasn in Culture Jam:

"We are a very diverse tribe. Our people range from born-again Lefties to Green entrepreneurs to fundamentalist Christians who don't like what television is doing to their kids; from punk anarchists to communications professors to advertising executives searching for a new role in life."

Post-Modernism is like that...diverse but with a similar approach to the world. But like everything else, post-modern has been co-opted by church™ to be an issue of style rather than substance.

The bottom line for the Body of Christ is who are we called to be....as individuals and as communities. When I left church™ the Emergent movement was just beginning and it offered some hope...and it still does. At the beginning it was easy because it was more about questioning than practicing. Now that people have taken steps, the questioning of church™ is perhaps waning. As the Emergent movement gains momentum and status, it will be important that we question ourselves to keep from repeating the "sins" of those who came before us.
posted by Jimmy at 4:14 PM | |

 
The Church and the Secular City
More from E. Stanley Jones:

"And now they say that the church to be able to function in that Secular City must adopt its culture, its language, and its outlook. I agree that those within the Church must know the culture, language, and the outlook of the secular city, for it must know what we are speaking to and hence direct its message accordingly. But that we should adopt that culture, language, and outlook is quite another thing and quite a different thing. For the center of the culture of the Secular City is essentially and fundamentally self-regarding. It is a driven society, driven by pagan urges to get on, to succeed, to get ahead, to get status, to accumulate no matter what happens to the other person. It is softened at the edges by Christian attitudes and principles, but at the center it is anti-Christian. It makes itself God. Threfore, to adapt yourself to that secular society so wholeheartedly that this adaptation becomes an adoption, then this is a fatal abdication of the Christian faith in favor of paganism, whatever its name. For the Christian faith says that one must lose his life in a higher purpose and a higher will and then one will find it. This secular-city mentaility and outlook says the opposite--find yourself by asserting and looking after yourself in every way possible, in every sitatuion possible. Therefore, if the modern demand for adaption means adoption we are lost. We must be in the secular society but not of it. We must love that secular society but we must love something higher and more supremely. To merge is to be submerged. And if we are submerged we have no message. To have a message is to be different, inwardly aloof, conscious that we have something to give. Jesus ate with publicans and sinners as one of them, but when he was challenged, he said that "they that are whole need not a physician but they that are sick." He was there as a physician not as a fellow patient. He was different--that difference made the multitude crowd about him to touch him and be made whole."

Emphasis added.
posted by Jimmy at 5:19 PM | |

 
Christ is Sunlight, Christianity is Moonlight
I've started reading The Reconstruction of the Church--On What Pattern by E. Stanley Jones (written in 1972). It was recommended by a friend and has been sitting on my shelf for a while, but now that I've picked it up I'm amazed at Stanley's insights so long ago. His words are both encouraging me and convicting me. I'll be posting some quotes from the introduction in the following days to peak your interest. Here's the first:

"Christianity is moonlight, secondhand, built up through the centuries; Christ is sunlight, firsthand, not built up through the centuries, but revealed from eternity--the revelation of the meaning of God and man and life. Our fellowship must be around the firsthand, around the sun, if it is to be real. Our fellowship must be around Christ--the firsthand."
posted by Jimmy at 5:02 PM | |

 


From this article:

"Many women hoping for a more natural-looking alternative to saline breast implants were disappointed by the Food and Drug Administration's recent decision to maintain the ban on silicone-gel-filled implants. But there may be other options on the market one day, as doctors continue their quest to find better ways to boost a woman's bosom."

"Whole wheat" bread that has enriched wheat flour as the main ingredient. "Reality" TV shows in settings totally fabricated. Restaurants that advertise "home-cooking". "Low-fat" foods that have 30 grams of sugar per serving. "100% Pure Fruit Juice" in concentrate form. "Herbal" shampoo that brings a person to orgasm. "Natural-looking" perky breasts for all women of any age.

I'm not so sure we know what reality is anymore.

I guess that's okay. When I'm 60 and the reality is that I'm getting older, I'll just fix it with plastic surgery. Just as long as it looks natural.
posted by Jimmy at 9:31 PM | |

 
the BeChurch blog
Hey gang...Jamie's got some great posts over at his blog. Great posts of his own and good links to other encouraging and thought-provoking blogs.
posted by Jimmy at 8:54 PM | |

 
How to spot a middle class church...
From Gordon at the URBANArmy blog:

I once attended a ministers fraternal in another part of the country and was asked "what do you do with your poor people?" by another minister. Before I could answer another pastor jumped in "oh we have a sign now that says poor people this way!"

"Have you any poor people that we can come and take some pictures of?" I was asked several months ago from our national headquarters – I politely pointed out that it was a bit of an odd request.

"I want to work with poor people…" an interviewee once told me

Just recently on the collaborative blog on theooze there has been some mention of these poor people. It strikes me that it sometimes is very easy to patronise "the poor".

There is something so painfully middle class that makes us all think that they might even want our help. Do you not think that these people know that they are being used as a commodity to legitimise our perceived church activity?

My point is this - you'll never understand poverty until you experience poverty with them, and you'll never experience poverty until you truly know yourself, and when you do truly know yourself you will realise that these "poor" people have more to teach you than you'll ever know.

Why not simply journey and cut the patronising - isn't that the nature of incarnation?

posted by Jimmy at 8:48 PM | |

 
Jimmy's Travels


create your own visited states map
or write about it on the open travel guide

I now have a new mission...travel more. I mean...geesh...Mark's been everywhere. That must be one of the benefits to touring with a pop band!

posted by Jimmy at 5:04 PM | |

 
Doing Good To Your Enemies
My wife and I watched the 1972 movie Sounder tonight on a local Public Television channel. It's a movie set during what looks to be the 20s or 30s in the south. The movie tells the story of a struggling black family who's father has been sent to a hard labor work camp for stealing food for his family.

As I watched the movie, I couldn't help but be angry at the harsh treatment this family receives from the "upstanding white folk" who are just "following the rules". I can't believe that these people actually thought they were doing right. Suddenly, Jesus' instruction to do good to your enemies becomes very pragmatic to me...maybe part of the point is that you never know when you might be on the side of wrong and your enemy might be on the side of right. We shouldn't be so presumptive to know such things, and should never let "sides" of issues keep us from acting in love towards anyone.

P.S.--the movie also had a great quote. One of the black men (played by Taj Mahal who also did the soundtrack for the movie) is telling a joke. His story goes something like this: "So there I was stuck in this white church. And I prayed to the good Lord, 'Please get me out of here.' The Lord said back to me, 'Get you out? You're in better shape than I am.' I said, 'How's that, Lord?' He said, 'I've been trying to get in there for 200 years and haven't been able to get in yet!'"
posted by Jimmy at 12:32 AM | |

 
Christians in a Consumer Culture
Found this on Scott's blog. Good stuff:

Ways to be Christian in a consumer culture:

Live simply

Give without expecting return

View others as intrinsically significant; view them as important for who they are, not for what they can do or for what they have

Slow down

Critique bigger-better-faster-more

Be skeptical of marketing

Be captured by mystery and wonder

Think long-term

Find fulfillment in relationships and service

Create space for silence, stillness, and rest


(For the record, try to compile such a list without utilizing economic metaphors like "value" and "worth". That alone should highlight the challenge that we face.)
posted by Jimmy at 11:30 AM | |

 
The Future of Ministry: Branding
This link was sent to me by Shayna. Please be careful...you may want to throw up when you're done. Here's a taste of what you'll find:

When your congregation is proud of your brochure and they hand it to their friends... When the friends recognize the church because they had received a similar direct mail piece recently... When they visit the consistent website and are welcomed by the matching "welcome banners" in the parking lot... When the similar signage directs them to their destination with ease and when they open the complimenting bulletin shell... When these things happen, you truly shape the perception of the candidates for the gospel. You have made them aware that they are in a church that knows who they are and provides their message with the level of professionalism and planning that is due it.

When they give their lives to Christ, they will feel the true sense of belonging that your branding efforts only began to foster.

Create a lasting impression for your church. Provide your congregation with an image of something great - something they can be proud to be associated with - something worthy of this great Gospel!


Go here if you want to see more. And no...this is not a joke. LOL...How do you like the theme at the top: "Reach Me™"
posted by Jimmy at 8:56 AM | |

 
Bob Carlton ask me to answer this question in in an email.


Given that so many faith communities are struggling with a great deal of issues, a number of folks find themselves grappling with the question
what will ministry with youth & young adults look like in 20 years ?
Please share your hunch of what the future holds - no hold barred, total truth, let 'er rip....


Here's my response for today:

Youth ministry will look mutli faceted. There will not be one way to do youth ministry, or even one dominate way.
Consumerism and our countries economy will be gaining velocity in such epic and dramatic steps that Americans will have the steadiness of a heavy meth-amphedimine user who just took a hit, and it already looking for another. The youth will be the epicenter for this wave. The youth and their parents will likely have the spiritual health equivilant to the physical health of a 17 year old anorexic girl because of the lack of nurishment culture will provide and the speed at which it changes it's definition of cool. Our country will be literally buying ourselves to death. The grip of this epidimic will be like a far reaching cancer, whose tenacles and cellular masses work themselves through out the body to the extent that that you can not identify them all. Nothing else (other than a world war or pandemic illness) will have the effect on youth people and young adults that our consumer culture does. The narcisistic culture will preen itself and spare no expense and like a gambler who must chase the money he's lost or the alcholic who chases another drink, the consumer will be chasing the next purchase to the point that it crushes their life and leaves them bankrupt in everyway. Yet still yearning for and desiring to land their parachuting life on the ever moving target of cool. Sorry if this seems depressing... but we are not even 20 years from this happening.
But there is a hope. There will be prophets and pioneers who will declare the kingdom of God in such times. They will be without fear. For they only fear God. They do not claim to be of this world, yet they thrive here. They are uncool people in a cool world. They do not measure success by any worldly standard. They have done years of difficult soul searching to identify characteristics of their character which are not kingdom values. They are zealots. They are dangerous. They not creating an alternative "kingdom cool" for the kingdom doesn't think in such terms. They are not out to be "radical youth for Jesus", there is nothing pretentious about them. They are about God and his Kingdom. their very character and worldview demand an alternative life. their reality is different. The church they build is not an earthly kingdom. There will be churches named after cities and the communities will never meet all of it's participants. The church will be organized enough to pastor those who need direction, but excess beaurocracy will be cut and quickly removed. Many of these prophets have yet to be born. A few are alive today.

The ministry these leaders create will be foreign to us. We will not understand it. It will feel and be offensive to us. But the Good News will be central. though we may fail to recognize it.

posted by riddle at 9:21 AM | |

 
Pondering Blog Changes
I'm thinking about moving to MovableType for this blog. Anyone out there use it?

I've uploaded it to my server and like a lot of its properties. The typePad blogs use the same engine, but MovableType is the free API.
posted by Jimmy at 11:23 PM | |

 
Dashboard Jesus
"I don't care if it rains or freezes,
as long as I got my plastic Jesus,
riding on the dashboard of my car.
I can go 100 miles an hour,
as long as I got the almighty power,
riding on the dashboard of my car."

A student recently bought me a dashboard Jesus. The more I think about it, the more I realize that this is the Christ that many may prefer. He comes in a box. He's meant to go wherever we choose to make sure we have a "spiritual lift" whenever we need it.

So many times we forget that Jesus doesn't fit in our boxes. That coming to Him has to be on His terms, not ours. We forget that we are the followers not Him...that if we want to be with Him we must go where He is and not expect Him to simply come and bless our lives.
posted by Jimmy at 8:56 AM | |

 
"Our enormously productive economy...demands that we make consumption our way of life, that we convert the buying and use of goods into rituals, that we seek our spiritual satisfaction, in consumption....We need things consumed, burned up, worn out, replaced, and discarded at an ever increasing rate."

Victor Lebow
U.S. retailing analyst
Journal of Retailing, 1960

Joe Dominguez and Vicki Robin point out in Your Money or Your Life that in dealing with workers' demands in the 1920's for shorter work weeks and more leisure time, the 1929 Herbert Hoover Committee on Recent Economic Changes published a strategy as to why giving in to the workers' demands might be a good thing:

"'The survey has proved conclusively what has long been held theoretically to be true, that wants are almost insatiable; that one one want satisfied makes way for another. The conclusion is that economically we have a boundless field before us; that there are new wants which will make way endlessly for newer wants, as fast as they are satisfied...Our situation is fortunate, our momentum is remarkable.'

Instead of leisure time being relaxed activity, it was transformed into an opportunity for consumption...even consumption of leisure itself (as in travel and vacations). Henry Ford concurred:

'..Where people work less they buy more...business is the exchange of goods. Goods are bought only as they meed needs. Needs are filled only as they are felt. They make themselves felt largely in the leisure hours.'" Your Money or Your Life, p. 16

It is nice to know that corporations and marketing gurus have been controlling our entire culture and way of life for at least 80 years. Our children are programmed to consume as early as they can see Elmo's face on the box of crackers. When we take vacations we must go somewhere and buy something...that's what is important, not relaxing. We must be entertained. We must be rewarded for our hard work by purchasing unnecessary items to clutter our starter mansions and 3 car garages. Even better give me a credit card to purchase what I will surely have enough money to pay for someday.

It all reminds me of the grotesque Mr. Creosote character in Monty Python's The Meaning of Life. We are gluttons...consuming until we annihilate ourselves.


posted by Jimmy at 10:12 PM | |