So I guess I'm a full time blogger now...

My 9 year student ministry run has come to an end.  Today was my final day of work at Orangewood.  Kind of surreal.  I haven't had a whole lot of time to reflect on it, but I'm sure I will in the coming weeks.  In the meantime we will be enjoying some rest in July as we gear up for the apprenticeship in August.  I guess I have plenty of time now to blog. 

Few random thoughts for now...

• It'll be weird to not be working this Sunday--first time in a long time.



• It is cool to think back about where Heather and I were 10  years ago...We were in college, getting married, and looking forward to student ministry together.  Today we are getting close to our 10 year anniversary, starting a new ministry (church planting) and thankfully still working together.



• I am thankful to have developed some close, significant relationships during my time in student ministry.  The most gratifying aspect is meeting with guys who are now in college after having had them way back in middle school. 



• It is helpful to look back and see that God has been faithful, even during trying times of ministry.



• Blogs weren't even around when I started in student ministry.



• I won't miss lock-ins--they are of the devil.



• I'm okay with not going to camp this summer.  I have eaten my fair share of camp food.  I won't miss that.



• I will miss the raw authenticity of students.  They aren't afraid to speak their minds and share how they are doing. 



• More than anything we are very thankful for our time in student ministry and also very excited about our future church planting plans.

I have more thoughts, but my mind is toast right now.  Until next time...Peace.

Father's Day

Having a great day with Heather and our girls up here in the mountains.  I've added some new pics to the "Boone June 2007".  Peace.

Saying Grace for Gas

Heather and I have bee listening to the latest podcast of the Fermi Project (which I recommend subscribing to), featuring Matthew Sleeth who wrote the book Serve God, Save the Planet.  One of the anecdotes that struck us was the concept of "saying grace for gas".  As Christians, we have no problem saying grace (as we should) for our food.  We appreciate and value this resource.  However, do we have the same mindset regarding other resources God has given us to steward?  The interviewer commented that his kids now remind him to say a prayer of thanksgiving after they fill up the family car with gas.  Interesting. 

This whole idea of environmental stewardship is something I need to learn more about.  Peace.

Hope is a trickster

The above title came from a section in the last chapter of "On Paradise Drive."  I had put this book down for awhile, but was able to finish it up yesterday.  I highly recommend it.  The last chapter is worth the entire cost in my opinion.  Brooks concludes the book by talking about how Americans have always lived oriented toward the future.  We are constantly at work.  Never resting.  Always desiring.  We always believe the next big thing or success is just around the corner.  Few quotes worth noting:

--"Whether in 1704 or 1904 or 2004, Americans have moved to new places because they've felt, sometimes semi-consciously, that they could build some piece of heaven there.  They live in that heaven of their imagination long before they ever get around to constructing it in real life."

--"They don't see that hope is a trickster and a seducer and a torturer.  American culture is more complicated than it seems."

--"Born in abundance, inspired by opportunity, nurtured in imagination, spiritualized by a sense of God's blessing and call, and realized in ordinary life day by day, this Paradise Spell is the controlling ideology of American life.  Just out of reach, just beyond the next ridge, just with the next home or entrepreneurial scheme or diet plan; just iwth the next political hero, the next credit-card purchase, or the next true love; just with the right all-terrain vehicle, the right summer home, the right meditation technique, or the right motivational seminar; just with the right schools, the right community values, and the proper morality; just with the right beer and a good set of buddies; just with the next technology or after the next shopping spree, there is this spot you can get to where all tensions melt, all time pressures are relieved, and all contentment can be realized...thereby producing a new Eden."

--"She dreams of arriving at that resting spot where time does not exist and all striving ceases.  In fact, the American Dream is the dream of finding a place where one will feel liberated from the burden of the future, though that place is always in the future.  The American Dream devours its own flesh."

As I read these concluding pages I felt a number of things.  I felt conviction, for these are the same idols I chase after.  I felt compassion for a world that is chasing after all the wrong things.  But I also felt that this future-mindedness is a gift from God that has simply been misused.  I believe the orientation toward the future, to create a better place, taps into how things really are in the world.  God has commissioned us, as his image bearers, to work and cultivate this earth.  The desire is not wrong, it is just misdirected.  Perhaps the church, and it starts with me individually, can redirect this God-given desire we all experience. 

Having a great time in North Carlolina

Spending the week with the fam up here in the mountains of Boone, NC.  I have uploaded some new pics you can view by clicking here.  The girls are having a blast.  They both really like hiking, or should I say riding in the Kelty Kid Pack?  Peace.

Church Planting Apprenticeship

I have created a new page on the blog where you can access our church planting apprenticeship information.  The link is in the upper right hand corner of this page.  You can also visit it by clicking here.  It's exciting to see what is happening.  The past few days have been pretty monumental...

On Sunday morning we were brought up front at Orangewood and our plans we're presented to the congregation.  Zach VanDyke was also introduced as the new Student Ministries Director, which was exciting as well.  It was all very surreal, yet very confirming.  One of those "closure" steps.  It was nice to have everything out in the open and the people of Orangewood were very supportive and encouraging. 

Sunday night was spent with the folks at CrossPointe as we participated in their Partnership Dinner (new members).  It was good to meet some of the other leadership, as well as connect with people that are new to the church.  We got a good 2 hour dose of what drives CrossPointe as we heard more about their mission and vision. 

Today (Wednesday) found out that some financial support has started to come in.  Big answer to prayer.  This was incredibly confirming for both Heather and me. 

Until next time.  Peace.

Homosexuality and the Church

This past Sunday at Orangewood, we began an new Equipping Center series called UNTOUCHABLES.  The hope is to address a controversial topic each week that is often times avoided by the church.  For the first week we had Alan Chambers from Exodus International to address the topic of homosexuality and the Church.  It was fantastic.  I am posting the mp3 recording from the morning as well as some of my own notes I took while listening to Alan.  So here's the notes in, albeit a bit unorganized from me...

• Exodus International started in the 1970's during the "Sexual Revolution."  Good for them for getting in on the issue at the outset, not years later.



• In response to his own struggle with homosexuality, Alan Chambers said he did not choose.  This was unwanted.  It's not like he woke up one day and decided to be gay.



• Exodus has made a choice to reach churches, not just individuals.  They feel if they can reach the churches and unleash them then the issue can really see some redemption.



• Alan came to see God's ability and grace to love him in his darkest hour



• The church is a bunch of "FORMERS"--we all have something we "used to be."  We need to keep this in mind.



• Alan longed to be healed and free.



• His initial draw to the homosexual life was because of the gay COMMUNITY.  Though it was a "counterfeit" it was better than anything he had experienced up until that point. 



• The gay community, a bar, etc. sometimes meet people's needs better than most churches.  They offer some sense of connectedness and love.



• The church has not always married TRUTH and GRACE.



• We should be 100% truth and 100% grace.  Need both.



• Controversy for the sake of the Gospel is a mandate.



• Church is called to repent and recommit regarding this issue.
  • Repent of our own immorality
  
  
  
  • Repent of our hostility towards the homosexual community--anger can help, but hostility will only destroy
  
  
  
  • Repent of being intimidated by the gay rights movement and reclaim our prophetic voice in the world



• It is KINDNESS that leads to REPENTANCE. 



• The depth of our honesty is the depth of our healing and redemption--with all issues we face.



• Vulnerability is courageous and brave.



• Three types of homosexuals:
  • Militant--they do not represent the gay community, but like the "crazy" Christians that don't represent us, the militant types are the 1%.
  
  
  
  • Moderate--they are more like us than we want to admit.  We are called to be an ambassador.  These are our neighbors.  We should care for them and be friends.  Who will they turn to when a crisis happens?  Strive to be the person they would turn to.  Commit to the "long journey" with them. 
  
  
  
  • Repentant--those who want to find freedom.  Those in our churches who are looking for people to engage in their story and love them with grace and point them towards truth.



• Lastly, Alan shared why he left homosexuality, and it was extremely profound...HE DID NOT LEAVE HOMOSEXUALITY BECAUSE HE THOUGHT IT WAS SO BAD, BUT BECAUSE HE FOUND SOMETHING BETTER.

Download alan_chambers___exodus_international_1.mp3