Created by Parent Audio Test
OK, full disclosure. The voices on the audio are Kristen and I. Why? Because this is our response to the one going around the other day. I think 99% of the people I know could hear it. But I’m 99% sure that when kids hear these words they won’t hear a thing!
Ah, Saturday. This was a fast week full of projects, lists, late nights, and dreaming about the future. I would say that I’m looking forward to a relaxing weekend… but we’re moving! Needless to say, our Saturday is a little jacked up getting ready for it.
But this morning is simple. A man and his computer. A boy and his cartoons. A girl and sleeping in. Kristen and Stoney are off climbing a mountain. You know… a quiet start to a wild weekend.
Here are the next 10 tunes I’m listening to. As always, these are completely random and my ratings are included.
#1 Drowning by Hootie and the Blowfish ****
#2 Insane in the Brain by Cypress Hill *****
#3 Beautiful Jesus by Kristian Stanfill ****
#4 You Love Me by Kimya Dawson ****
#5 Pony (It’s OK) by Erin McCarley ****
#6 Mysterious Ways by U2 *****
#7 Consuming Fire by Hillsong United ****
#8 Lucky by Jason Mraz *****
#9 Life is Beautiful by Vega4 ****
#10 Too Much Space by Lisa Germano
A former student of mine posed a question on the Fast Tuesday groups discussion board that I thought was pretty interesting. I think there are differing opinions about Jesus’ instructions. She said, “Aren’t you supposed to fast in private?”
It’s kind of crazy but my kindergartner wants to be the cool kid in his class. A big part of that has been a fascination with having cool hair. (We do live in Southern California, you know.)
For the last few weeks Paul didn’t want to go to school because “the kids won’t like me.” Of course, that’s not true because as soon as you drop him off he has 4-5 kids who want to play with him and they just start running around the playground like laughing hyenas.
Then a couple days ago the light bulb went off when Kristen discovered Paul was trying to use my deodorant as hair gel. What he meant by “the kids won’t like me” was that there was another boy who had cool hair and since he didn’t have cool hair he didn’t feel like anyone like him. More light bulbs went off as we realize how much time he’d spent in the bathroom, and that he’d always been playing with the soap gel. Our 5 year old wanted some product for his hair.
So last night Paul and mom made a trip to the store and acquired some hair gel. This morning I showed him how to use it. Instant coolness erupted in our house. Paul was ready for school 15 minutes early and was ready to race up the hill again to school.
Problem solved. Or problem created? We shall see.
There weren’t many memorable moments, but Ben mocking Joaquin Phoenix’s Letterman appearance was classic.
Today is Mardis Gras. Good old Fat Tuesday. It’s an annual tradition where people feast before Lent begins on Wednesday morning. Well, very few people I know feast before Lent begins. But most of us are aware of Mardis Gras in New Orleans or Carnival in Rio de Janeiro.
I’m one of those people who looks at traditions and likes to find the Jesus element and wonder how I can make that tradition relevant to my walk. (Running around drunk and throwing beads at women just seems irrelevant to my walk with the Lord, you know? Plus, I think the whole thing is just gross.) The past few year’s I’ve chosen one day, Tuesday, during Lent each week to observe a fast. I don’t say that to make myself seem more spiritually cool than anyone else, it’s just something I’ve been doing. A tiny sacrifice to remember and prepare myself for Holy Week and Easter.
Since I’m into puns… I always referred to it as Fast Tuesday. (Get it? Mardis Gras is Fat Tuesday. Fast Tuesday? Yeah, I’m corny.)
Last year I started wondering… How could I invite other people into this same observance without making it a big show of “Look what we’re doing!” In fact, Jesus said in Matthew 6, “When you fast, do not look somber as the hypocrites do, for they disfigure their faces to show men they are fasting. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full. But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash your face, so that it will not be obvious to men that you are fasting, but only to your Father, who is unseen; and your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.”
Long story short, this is my invitation. If you’re interested in fasting alongside me Tuesday’s during Lent…
1. Chose your fast. I’ll be doing a water and juice fast. That means I won’t eat any food at all, but I will drink water and some juices. I’ll be posting some resources for those who want to do their own research. Trust me, you won’t die.
2. Join the group. Rather than talk a lot about the fast here on my blog [which makes me feel like I’m violating that Matthew 6 teaching] I’ve created a Facebook group for those who are looking for resources, talking about fasting experiences, etc.
3. Participate in the group. I recognize that most of my friends don’t come from a fasting tradition. Evangelicals, by and large, only scratch the surface at any spiritual discipline. So I would encourage those participating to not just join the group, but participate.
4. Invite others to join. Feel free to include whomever you’d like in Fast Tuesday. If you don’t know how to do that, just forward this link to a friend and tell them you’re participating in this and would like them to consider it as well.
5. Observe the fast. Fast Tuesday begins March 2nd.
That’s it. No strings attached. No fundraiser. No hidden cult agenda. (Though I could use the money!) Nothing other than what’s posted here. I’m very excited about the fast beginning next Tuesday. Experiencing something physical during Lent has opened up a whole world of meaning for Lent that I had always missed. I’m hoping you’ll consider it and join in as well.
The first time I talked about this topic, the assumption in comments was that the reason the medium-sized church is struggling is because of money. In my last post on the topic I explored the core problem… that there are no “medium-sized church people” in America. There are big church people and small church people. So… here were: Money problems are the effect and culture is the cause.
3 Financial Reasons the Medium-sized Church Struggles
1. People give to vision, not to guilt. What this means for medium-sized churches is that people simply aren’t going to give to a vision they don’t believe in. So if you talk about growth, the small church folk won’t give and visa versa. See number 3 for what I think the solution is.
2. Video killed the adequate preacher. A former student of mine summed this up well in describing the church she currently attends. “What I like about the worship leader is that he’s not trying to be Crowder or Tomlin.” In a society where everything seems fake, authenticity goes miles.
3. Big buildings are a waste of money. If you’re a megachurch you can spread that cost of a big building around. And massive buildings and huge programs are affordable for megachurches. Otherwise, I think most churches would be wise to shed their buildings and complext programs. This really squeeezes medium-sized churches. That’s why I think most medium-sized churches will go multi-site, video-site, house church, etc. See, I’m not predicting the death of a medium-sized church. I’m predicting that this size church will get creative in order to sharpen their mission.
Again, I’m not claiming to be an expert here. I’m just kind of putting into words a bunch of conversations I’ve had over the past few months. Share your thoughts!
I’ve noticed a crazy pattern. Help me understand it.
Cause: A Christian leader will say or blog or tweet or Facebook something over-the-top. Hey, it happens. The way things are these days, an unfiltered moment can easily get recorded.
Effect: Someone calls them on it. Maybe it’s a blog post or maybe it’s just a comment that says something like, “Um, that’s whack!”
Cause: That blog post, comment, or tweet draws even more attention to the original outlandish thing.
Effect: The once tiny statement, in context or out of context, starts getting mentioned to that leaders often enough where they think they have to respond. Maybe his co-workers mention it to him or maybe he’s gotten some emails or phone calls about it or maybe his statement ends up on a big name blog with a headline, “Christian leader thinks ______.”
[Pause] This is where a critical choice is made. The leader, who now feels exposed, has to chose what to do next. The smartest thing to do is to either apologize for the stupid statement or at a minimum just move on. About 90% of people do this. But lately a new option has taken on popularity. The original offender goes on the offensive against the person who has called them out. It’s like a train wreck from here on out! [unpause]
Cause: The Christian leader rallies his troops (friends, fans, staff) to defend him. It sounds noble, but it’s really throwing gasoline onto a smoldering fire. By taking a victims position these troops are poised to stand up and cry foul. Here comes the Christianese.
Effect: The person who originally mentioned the statement is blind-sided by tons of comments and emails demanding that he stop attacking this leader. Typically, without a leg to stand on, these troops will go the politically correct angle and say, “Who are you to call this persons integrity into question” or “do you think this is glorifying to God to defame ____?” In effect, two wrongs don’t make a right. The person who called out the leader is now put on the defensive simply for bringing up that the leader said something outlandish.
Cause: The Christian leader uses his platform (blog, Facebook, Twitter account, or even pulpit) to joke about how he has haters. Maybe he even makes fun of the person who brought it up in the first place? His aim in doing this is deflect the impact of his original offensive remark by pointing out how the person who called him out is a worse sinner than he is.
Effect: The community of people who have observed this entire exchange are left with less respect for Christian leaders.
My point? If you say something stupid, just acknowledge it, apologize for it, and move on. Taking it this far is buying a ticket for Jerk City. I really think that leaders who pursue the steps after the [pause] are just insecure in their position. In other words, you don’t see people who have been in visible positions for a long time getting tangled up in this sort of thing. They’ve learned that the best response is just to recognize their mistake and apologize as soon as possible.
For the record, I’ve been on every side of this story! I just hope I’m growing up enough to buy a lot fewer tickets to Jerk City.
Not only is it cool how this artist creates his craft, I think his message matches the theme of this blog.
It is possible…
