• The worldwide leader in…

    I’ve been a college sports fan my whole life. It’s safe to say there has never been a time like this.

    Never. Ever. Ever.

    One by one the most trusted names in college sports are having the skeletons removed from their closet and broadcast on national news.

    • Jim Tressel, the squeaky clean football coach in the sweater vest at Ohio State, was revealed to be the type of guy who rigs kids raffle contest so the best players prep players get free Ohio State gear. [Source]
    • Joe Paterno was absolutely kicked to the curb by Penn State when it was revealed that he knew about allegations of sexual assault in his football building but did nothing about it.
    • It looks like Syracuse’s longtime basketball coach Jim Boeheim is next. Yesterday his assistant Bernie Fine was fired when ESPN revealed tapes of Fine’s wife corroborating an accusers story. Boeheim issued a statement yesterday that he knew nothing of the allegations. All it’ll take is one email or voice mail with him talking about it before last week and he’s out.

    The Witch Hunt is On

    Once the witch hunt begins, in this latest case trying to determine who knew what and when about Bernie Fine’s sexual abuse of ball boys– it’s nearly impossible to know who is the hunter and who is the hunted.

    I’m not saying these guys are innocent. I’m just wondering if there is more to this witch hunt than what is being presented. Maybe the hunter isn’t as innocent as they appear to be?

    ESPN is the Common Denominator

    As I listened to the news about Bernie Fine yesterday I couldn’t help but pick up on this detail… they’ve had this tape since 2003. Eight years! When you are talking about a man who uses his position to molest children eight years is exactly eight years too long to hold a story. Eight years where someone, probably a lot of people, chose to protect Syracuse basketball instead of protecting young boys.

    That’s not acceptable. We simply cannot let them hide behind this little statement of journalistic “integrity:”

    Davis first gave the tape to ESPN in 2003. At the time, ESPN did not report Davis’ accusations, or report the contents of the tape, because no one else would corroborate his story. [source]

    Wait… did you catch that? Someone at ESPN decided not to air the tapes because THEY couldn’t corroborate the story. They aren’t the police… they are a sports news agency!

    A man comes to them with proof that he was molested by a coach at Syracuse University, seeking help since local police wouldn’t do anything about it, and they sat on the story for eight years.

    Eight years.

    What kind of person doesn’t call the police when he knows a child has been molested? Do we really value sports above children in this country?

    So why now? 

    In the three cases I mentioned  above ESPN had knowledge of these stories long before they broke. Lots of people around Penn State knew of a grand jury investigation of Jerry Sandusky. And no one said a thing while they knew Sandusky continued to have access to the football facilities.

    Lots of people knew the Sports Illustrated article was going to expose Jim Tressel’s knowledge of player indiscretions. And they sat on hard evidence about Bernie Fine was molesting boys for eight years.

    So why now? Why is ESPN holding stories and then subsequently releasing them? What makes 2011 special?

    It’s always about the money…

    I’m not presenting a conspiracy theory. I’m just starting to connect the dots. (And asking you, my fair reader, for your input.)

    ESPN does what they do to make money, right? They tell the story that will make them the most money. And they cover the games and leagues that will make them the most money.

    That’s fair. (While not always moral) It’s a free market system and we live in a country with freedom of the press.

    But I wonder if this has anything to do with conference realignment and TV deals? On November 1st USA Today ran a story entitled, “Is ESPN the Force Behind Realignment?” It was almost a rhetorical question. Of course ESPN is the force behind realignment. As the article mentioned, every team or league will ask ESPN if added or removing a member school will increase or decrease their over all television worth. That automatically makes ESPN the linchpin in all of the realignment conversations as leagues will do whatever it takes to get a better TV deal from ESPN.

    And ESPN would love to see teams play in conferences that worked better for their markets and allowed them to make more money. (Even decreasing travel or shipping by 10% would make them millions more!) Why else would the Big East want San Diego State if it weren’t for their location in the 9th largest TV viewing market in the country… and the only major market without a team covered by ESPN?

    Conference realignment has everything to do with making more TV money for member institutions. Pure & simple.

    Don’t even get me started about the college football bowls. Did you know ESPN owns more than half of the bowls? That’s why we can’t have a playoff, duh! It’s about them protecting their assets.

    So here’s what I’m wondering. Could it be that they held and released these stories to devalue Big 10 football (Ohio State & Penn State) and Big East (Syracuse) basketball?

    You could say… “These are ESPN products, why would they devalue them?” And I’d hypothesize… “Because they have a monopoly and if they can devalue the product they can negotiate cheaper deals with member institutions.”

    What do you think? Did ESPN have the responsibility to involve law enforcement when the Bernie Fine tapes were given to them in 2003? Do you think ESPN would have any reason to hold this (and other stories like it) until “the right time?”

    Or am I just a silly fan who had too much time in the car yesterday to think about all of this?

    Sound off.

     

  • Understanding Advent in 2 Minutes

    ht to Bob Carlton

  • SDSU beats Arizona

    You, all we do is win. The Aztecs beat USC, Long Beach State, and Arizona… at 6-1 I think it’s time for the Aztecs to get a little love from the national rankings.

  • Sometimes You Have to Cheat the Church to do Ministry

    Let’s start with this reality. If you think ministering to teenagers is easy, simple, turnkey, low commitment, or something you can package into a program you are sunk. 

    That’s why I’d rather teach youth workers transferable principles than give them prescriptive solutions to the things that I talk about.

    Question: Adam, I just read your Immerse Journal article about re-embracing the priesthood of all believers and I don’t know where to start. Can you give me five action steps?

    Adam: No. Because if I give you what those 5 things are for your ministry that’s all you’ll hear and you will ignore what the article was challenging you to do… reject the preisthood of the staff and embrace the high trust, low control environment the New Testament teaches.

    I’m OK with ideas. And I’m OK with exploring case study. But giving you 3 quick things to try to get your students excited about their relationship with Jesus? It’s just not that easy.

    Entertainment vs. Transformational Ministry

    At this year’s National Youth Workers Convention I made an intentional, strategic decision about my time. As I hung out with my fellow youth workers between my seminars, at meet-ups, and so on I knew I wanted to get past the “nice to meet you and connect a face to a name” spot and talk about this concept of looking for philosophical, missiological solutions to the problems our ministry is facing. Maybe you don’t need a new small group curriculum? Maybe you don’t need a new worship display device or a new way to design t-shirts? I tried to guide these conversations to one of philosophy of ministry– maybe what you need isn’t a round of encouragement but and encouragement to stop working so hard on a strategy that makes you tired?

    At the same time I’m always careful to point this out. We know it’s not the church that is the problem. We know it’s not that the program is bad.

    It just isn’t enough. Jesus didn’t give his life so we could create religious organizations and programs to serve people interested in attending an institutionalized church and it’s programs.

    Jesus died for something so much bigger and better, didn’t he?

    Sometimes You Have to Cheat the Church to do Ministry

    A few years ago Andy Stanley shared a message at the Willow Creek Leadership Summit with the main point being about family. He said, “Sometimes you need to cheat the church for your family.”

    Agreed. We all need to embrace the reality that our job is just a job and it can’t take over our life.

    Yet, as I meet more and more frustrated youth workers stuck in the reality that their employment is tied to running a program only 2%-5% of the general population is interested in, my encouragement becomes… “Maybe you need to cheat the church to do ministry?”

    In other words: Maybe the solution to your frustration with your role running the program is to give it less of your time so you can redirect your time to reaching the lost in a missiologically appropriate way for your context?

  • Four Fresh Winds

    Photo by Eva Ekebald via Flickr (Creative Commons)

    There’s nothing quite as invigorating as a deep breath of fresh air. 

    As a kid I was highly allergic to cats. When I visited someone’s home who had cats my eyes would itch immediately. Then the wheezing would begin. The final step was a very labored, forced filling of my lungs, which always resulted in a trip to the emergency room for some time on the oxygen mask and a few shots.

    In most cases I could relieve all of the symptoms of my allergic reaction just by stepping outside. As the fresh air filled my lungs and washed over my eyes I was renewed. The wheezing faded. The itching subsided. Slowly I felt normal again.

    Photo by Laura O'Halloran via Flickr (Creative Commons)

    While I’m no longer allergic to cats I still experience the same renewal when I am in the presence of people who provide me fresh air. When life has me wheezing and my eyes watering from irritation– even 15 minutes with a person who breathes fresh air into my life is life changing– alleviating the symptoms of whatever allergy life delivers.

    I’ve found that there are four types of people who breathe fresh air into others…

    1. The Cold Crisp Reality – When someone splashes water into my face with the reality I need to hear, I’m thankful. I’ve been in leadership long enough to appreciate when people take off the nice filter and tell me what’s really on their mind. Too often, I’m in the position of trainer and not learner. Trust me, the cold crisp reality is far more refreshing than a fistful of niceties.
    2. The Salty Truth – I have some people in my life who love to speak truth with a little salt in the air. Well beyond shock jock quality, their borderline cynicism moves me into deeper and deeper understanding. Here’s the thing about salt. Without salt a lot of life would lack flavor.
    3. The Dry Facts – This is different than a cold crisp reality because it is usually an examination of the data. While not exciting, much of life has data points which I both learn from and find refreshing.
    4. The Calm New Morning Mist – The experience of stepping out of your home into the freshness of a morning is instantly spiritual as my sleep renewed body conjoins with the dew filled renewal of dawn. Likewise, when calm refreshing still-quiet voices speak words of kindness into me my soul is renewed.
    Question: When you’ve gone a long time without fresh air– what are your signs of an allergic reaction?  
    Photo credits: (Creative Commons) Morning Dew – Eva Ekebald; Talk to the Paw! – Laura O’Halloran

  • Snapshots from campus life

    Two moments at SDSU from last weekend… both are jaw-dropping crazy and deeply sad at the same time.

    1. After the basketball game Friday night Megan (10) and I were walking through campus on our way home with a ton of underclassman. Two girls who seemed like new friends were chatting about why they chose SDSU versus other schools. One girl asked the other, “Oh, what other schools?” Westmont, Azuza Pacific, Biola… she listed a bunch of Christian schools. Her friend goes, “Oh, my parents wanted me to go to a Christian school too.” And she listed off a few on the east coast. The first girl kind of quietly says, “Yeah, well I didn’t want to go to a Christian school because I wanted to F a lot of guys.” Her friend said, “Yup, that’s pretty much it for me too.”

    Scary. I nearly stumbled over my jaw when they said that.

    2. Same walk Saturday night. After the game Paul and I are walking. Uneventful past the freshmen dorms and off campus into the frat/sorority area. 10 o’clock is pretty quiet. All the dudes are usually out at Rite Aid trying to score a 30 pack of Keystone. (Or pre-gaming while watching Sportcenter) So it’s dead quiet on frat row. But up ahead I see 4 girls coming towards us. Then one of them sees us and they all try to hide behind a car. Um, too late… we’re like RIGHT THERE. So they pop up and kind of half jog past us, trying not to make eye contact…

    All four of them in thongs, bras, high heals. (It was like 50 degrees out!) Nothing else. They were totally embarrassed. They didn’t know where to put their hands as they tried to cover themselves.

    We get in the car and I start laughing. Paul (8) looks at me and goes… “That was awkward.”

    Two thoughts…

    1. I might pull all the money out of the kids college fund right now and just give it to them. Forget college. They are not going.

    2. What the heck happened in our culture when women willingly show up to a party in their underwear? I mean nothing says “please take turns having sex with me when I get drunk” quite like showing up in your underwear, right?

  • Own your inner geek

    I love this video. I’ve seen it dozens of times as I’ve considered using it for YouTube You Can Use. In may ways it is perfect because of the high amazement factor. But the video is just too much of a stretch to tie into a discussion guide about God.

    Here’s what I think about when I watch this video.

    • First, notice this young man isn’t wearing a wedding ring. If he busted out these moves on a date you can see why he might have a hard time finding a spouse.
    • Second, this is truly amazing. While some of it looks improvised clearly there is a lot of work and practice to it.
    • Third, we all have our own geek inside of us. For this gentleman it is making his fingers dance. For others it is science fiction comic books. And for others it is…

    Whatever you geek out on– own it

  • Who will rise?


    • That’s just the way it is.
    • I don’t have the power in my organization to do anything about it.
    • We make changes incrementally, it takes time.
    • We aren’t ready for that.
    • That’s on the agenda to do, just not something we can address right now.

    These are the excuses of people who value the status quo more than they want to see change occur in their midst. At the end of the day they’d rather lose their job in an attempt to protect it or see the church close it’s doors or continue to see their church reach the same saved people year after year than take the risk to lean into the calling God has for them.

    Then they whine when they lose their job. They point to their job description but miss the point. Someone paid them to be a leader and they didn’t lead their churches anywhere. You can do all of the tasks perfectly– but if you fail to lead than you aren’t a leader!

    In the end, the people of your church will always decide they don’t need a “leader “who will take them where they already have been. They need a leader who will take them where they don’t want to go. (Or are afraid to go, or don’t even know exists.)

    I’m sick of the excuses. I have a feeling you are, too.

    It’s like Genesis 18. God is on the hunt for one person. One. ANYONE who your people where they need to go instead of placating them for another budget cycle. Fire & sulphur are on order. This world will be destroyed. Is anyone going to lead people to safety? Anyone? 

    God is looking for one person to rise up, take control, and lead His people where they are unwilling to go on their own.

    Are you that person? Will you lead today?

    The bell has rung. The crowd is looking in your corner. Are you going to rise to the challenge?

    Or will you sit through another staff meeting, silent– lamenting– and wishing you had the power to change things?

  • Sticky Faith Book Club, Chapter 6

    Sticky FiathThis is part 5 in an 8 part series on Sticky Faith. Join our book club by signing up here. (part 1, 2, 3, 4, 5)


    Kristen:     Since moving to San Diego, two opportunities stand out where our kids were “getting it”. Three years ago our community group befriended a local refugee family. We assisted the family in a variety of ways – purchasing groceries, advocating for the dad when he was treated unfairly by an employer, and serving as a go-between at parent teacher conferences, etc. One member of our community group even attended the birth of their youngest child, assisting them with hospital paperwork and helping them find comfort in the unfamiliar hospital environment. We did fun things too, like sharing meals, playing together and taking them to the zoo and ocean for the first time. My personal favorite was snuggling with their newborn daughter each Sunday during church. The following year myself and the kids had the opportunity to tutor refugee students as part of an after-school program. I enjoyed the weekly sessions knowing that Megan and Paul were welcome to come along. Even before reading this book, the idea of serving together as a family has been pressing on my mind. Chapter six only made it’s importance more glaringly obvious.

    Adam: OK, so as of today we suck at this chapter. All of it. From top to bottom the McLane family needs improvement in this area of parenting.

    I hope I didn’t sugar that.

    In the course of our day-to-day life Kristen and I are pretty active about getting past issues of service and seeking practical justice. And while we do a decent job of talking to our kids about the nuts/bolts “why” questions of why we do what we do… we aren’t very good about getting them involved in acts of justice.

    “That’s not fair” – This is the mantra of our house

    “Life’s not fair. Cope and deal kid.” That’s probably not the most compassionate thing to come out of my mouth. But I struggle with the “fair” game our kids play at this age.

    Perhaps some of that is a developmental issue with our kids age? Megan (10) is just now starting to grasp the idea that she can serve others for a purpose greater than the reward she’ll earn from mom/dad for doing it. Paul (8) is happy to do just about anything with us… but he’s far from cognitively grasping an act of service as a form of justice. Justice for an 8 year old is getting to eat the same amount of Halloween candy as his big sister or having the same bed time.

    Chapter 6 was a wake up call that I can’t just teach justice at church. And I can’t just practice justice personally. I need to teach my kids what justice looks like in our daily lives.

    What I loved about this chapter is that it’s not too late or too hard to make changes. Heading into the tween and teen years we are fortunate enough to be positioned to do some really cool things with our kids. Whether its serving alongside them on one of the many service opportunities at church or having them join me on one of the justice projects I’m a part of… having made the connection that is isn’t enough for mom/dad to seek justice but it’s important to our kids spiritual development, those are adjustments we can and will make.

    An addendum to chapter 6 for my friends in youth ministry:

    As Kristen and I debriefed chapter 6 we talked about the disconnect between the examples of justice work given in the book and some of those in vocational youth ministry we know. It’s not that the examples given were bad, not in any way, they were just representative of a small minority of well-resourced ministries. We laughed together that some of the people following along with this book club don’t even know that churches like that actually exist!

    I’ve spent many nights in homes of youth workers across the country. I’ve shared coffee at their kitchen tables. I’ve sat in their offices. I’ve heard their stories of extreme faith and deep poverty. (I’m not trying to dishonor anyone– but you need to know that many people in youth ministry are truly poor.) As I read this chapter I couldn’t help thinking of those dramatically under-resourced folks. While relatively powerless in their ministries they faithfully serve Christ day-by-day.

    And I wonder if their kids look at justice a little differently? I wonder if instead of putting together some elaborate plan to teach their kids an object lesson on justice that they need to experience justice themselves?

    Maybe someone needs to stand up for them? Justice for many ministry families is a liveable wage. Or health care so they don’t have to chose between a visit to the doctor and their light bill. Or even realistic expectations on their parents so they can be good parents.

    As I think about those families, and not too long ago the McLane’s were one of them, I think that teaching justice to their kids looks a little different. Kristen and I joked (Not a funny ha-ha joke) about the choices we were forced to make. We willing chose injustice for our family for the sake of our ministry. Nights when we turned the heat up to 67 and served snacks we couldn’t afford for the sake of hosting an adult small group. Or times when we gave to up our vacation money to support things our church bailed on. Or times where we told our kids no to things because we couldn’t afford them in full knowledge that the senior pastors kids bragged about getting the same thing.

    I just want to acknowledge these injustices as we think about teaching sticky justice to our kids. We can’t glaze over the injustice we experience and think that we’re teaching our kids anything. I think as we wrestle with this as a ministry community and try to iron out developing sticky faith in our kids– we need to wrestle with some of the justice issues in our own kitchen. Because when you experience justice for yourself you don’t have to learn about what justice is anymore.

    Discussion questions:

    1. Kara shares how her and her husband define their family. How would you define your families priorities? What would your kids say?
    2. How would you describe your ministry role as justice instead of service?
    3. Tell us about a time when you and your family served together.
    4. Think about a few things your kids love to do. How can you help them connect their areas of interest to pursue justice in some area?

  • Social media interaction with minors – Where do you draw the line?

    I have a column this week on Slant 33 about this very topic. Here’s some sound bytes.

    Youth ministry is dangerous. It will bring you into temptation. It’ll bring you face to face with your deepest fears and greatest annoyances. It’ll cause you to create policies and break them at the same time. Chances are, as you engage with students online, you’ll see all of that and a whole lot more. 

    —

    Invitation is the dividing line in my eyes. I think that, as we engage with our students through social media, it has to be about permission. I know many of them say things in Facebook messages or chat that aren’t honoring to God. I know many of them have secret Tumblr accounts and private circles on Twitter and/or Google Plus. But I don’t want to force myself there without permission. I don’t think my role as a youth worker should come with expectations that I’m an FBI agent, cracking into their private spaces to discover what they really think. 

    —

    First, I think your church leadership should wrestle through this question together. I know it sounds lame to think about drafting a policy, but there are both philosophy of ministry and legitimate liability concerns to think through. Most school districts do not allow teachers to socialize with students on Facebook. There is good logic there that is worth wrestling through as a staff. Whatever the policy is, it’ll take the staff team policing one another to enforce it. 

    Second, I think that when you do engage your students, you should do it through a ministry account and not your personal account. For instance, it’d be a good idea to create a Facebook page for your ministry or church and then interact with your students by using Facebook as a page. It’s a nuanced difference but an important one. It puts you in a position where you are obviously an agent of the ministry instead of the individual person. Because, at the end of the day, that is your role. Just like you attend a Friday night football game as a representative from the high school ministry, you engage with students online as a representative of a ministry.

    Read the rest (And Tash & Scott’s take on the same question!)

    What say you?