Disappointed with Andy

One of my favorite preachers these days is a guy named Andy Stanley. Andy is the preacher for Northpoint Church in Atlanta, Georgia. He has an incomparable gift for preaching meaningful, straightforward sermons, that are accessible to non-Christians, and instructive to Christ-followers. I’ve learned a ton from Andy, about how to drill down on one point so everyone can get it, about narrowing the focus of one’s work to the point that it can truly make a measurable difference. Not only his teaching style has affected, but his theology on things like money and margin have had a true impact on how I view the world.

Up until now I felt like Andy could do no wrong. Not every word out of his mouth is gold, but most of it was great. I was really excited to see a series entitled “The Sinai Code,” a study of the 10 commandments. Some critics feel like Andy avoids theology, and I was sure there would be no way to do so here.

I was not disappointed in the series. Andy took the typical Lutheran stance, that all of the ten commandments are outgrowths of the first. The last lesson of the series unpacked the “other people” commandments of murder, adultery, stealing, etc. He said they were all God’s way of saying that he wanted them to respect other people. Andy’s big idea here was that this was unbelievable in ancient cultures, that a nation would not be ruled by a King and a series of classes, but by a law, that led people to treat each other, no matter who they are, with the respect they deserve as human beings.

Then Andy said that this was a unique idea, given by God, buried by man, and resurrected in 1776 by the U.S. constitution. And he didn’t stop there. He praised George Bush for recognizing God as almighty. He explained that the ten commandments ensured healthy families, and that, only countries like America, having a sense of Divine Law, ensured human rights.

Next Time-Why this bothers me.

Happy Boxing Day

The day after Christmas serves to remind me that it really is almost 2008. It's time to get my head on straight for the coming year. My biggest help right now: Getting Things Done by David Allen. From what I've read so far it seems that Allen believes that we think too much, and about the wrong stuff. We need to get those thoughts out of our head, on to paper, a smartphone, a white board or soething. He occassionally refers to this as a "Brain Dump." Thinking less is actually the first step to Getting Things Done.

What about you? What do you need to Dump?

What should the role of Christmas be?

So, when I was younger, my family seemed to struggle with the idea of what Christmas was supposed to celebrate. We did the tree and Santa, but not much of the first few chapters of Luke. We were struggling with a religious tradition that wanted to emphasize Christ throughout the year, not just on certain days. There was also a reactionary element to that tradition, wanting to distance itself from anything Roman.

Today we've more or less given in, and I'm okay with that. Truthfully, I find myself wanting more. I want a full blown Christmas, with readings from Isaiah and the magnificat. But Christmas alone seems awful hollow without diving in the anxiety and anticipation of Advent. And even that's not enough.

I say, if you're going to do Christmas, you have to do it all. Program your life around the times of year like this, where the church traditionally revisits important parts of her story. Let it redefine your calendar, your agenda. Christmas should be an experience of reliving the end of the exile, the promise to shepherds, the crowded inn, the visit of magi. Christmas should give an overwhelming sense that the Infinite has become finite, the Word became flesh. We should be humbled by the dance that is trinity coming into our home, and thrilled to join in.

The role of Christmas is to simultaneously fill us with humility and hope.

Who's counting the human cost?

So, I finally got around to watching Reign Over Me last night. The movie follow's Don Cheedle as he tracks down an old friend who lost his wife and family on 9/11. Adam Sandler deliver's a performance that is not all that different than the comedies that made him famous, except for a few heart-wrenching scenes where he remembers what he has lost.

The movie brings out an important facet that has gotten lost in four years with two simultaneous wars on terrorism. The human cost. What does terrorism, or any war for that matter do to people's lives, or our culture as a whole? Beyond the monetary cost or the cost of life, what is this doing to us?

Go or Reach?

At some point the idea of evangelism got intermixed with the idea of outreach. Outreach, sadly, is often reduced to not much more than Christian euphemism for the “Field of Dreams” concept: that if you build it, they will come.

Just break down the word itself “reach” and “out.” The word implies that one object is stationary, yet extends a small part of itself to gather another. For instance, when I’m thirsty, I reach out and grab a glass of water.

I’m not sure Jesus ever did outreach. Think of the stories of Jesus. He went to Matthew and Zacheus. He went Lazarus. He went to the Samaritan woman. He did not try to build something that brought them to him.

Now, that’s not to say that Jesus did not have an attractional element to his ministry. The feedings of the masses and many healing stories show people coming to Jesus. So being attractional isn’t all bad.

But I believe that the reason they came to him is that he came to them first. After all that’s what John 1 teaches us, right? The Word became flesh, and dwelt among us. Our call then is not to develop the perfect outreach tool, but to go to the hurting people of the world.

Being Home

Being home for Christmas brings back crazy memories. The most potent ones I don't want to remember. Personal crises, Family crises, girls that were parts of my life at past holidays, and the general stresses of making sure all the right presents are under the tree.

Christmas desperately needs a makeover. I don't have a clue how to do it.

:(

My iPod is sick.

This is my third iPod in three years. And the fact that I may soon be looking for a forth is causing me to ask some questions. Are they just not made that well, and they have a lifespan of less than a year? Or am I just really rough on my iPod?

Xmas

Well, I'm in Colorado for the next week and will have a lot of time on my hands.

Any suggestions as to what we should talk about?

Top Two

As a single guy, I spend a lot more time talking about girls than talking too them. Maybe that explains a lot.

What I'm looking for has really changed, and I've narrowed it down to a top two list these days:

1) A girl that's got her stuff together. What can I say? Maturity is hot. Knowing who you are, what you want, where you're going. Being able to manage your own life. In a world where adolescence stretches into your late 20s, having your life together sets you a part from the pack.

2) Fruit. Jesus said "...every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. 18A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit" (Luke 7:17-18). In the past, I've dated girls that weren't headed the same direction as me, and I sometime rationalized it as "they have a lot of potential." Living in a part of the country where everyone is a nominal Christian, it's not very impressive to meet a girl who goes to church. I'm done looking for potential, I want to see faith that has fruit. Can I tell by how you spend your time, your money, your passions, that you love Jesus? Or are you just another nice person raised to waste your Sunday mornings at a religious service. Fruit is hot.

It's a lot harder to find than you might think.

Directions on using "Christian" as an adjective

An adjective is a describing word.

The word Christian means "Christ-Like."

Therefore, if the the word Christian is used preceeding another word, that means that the latter is in someway, like Christ.

It seems however, that Christian is a very tired adjective. It is used to described everything from healthcare services to breath mints to meditation practices derived from ancient religion.

Here's a quick test of how to determine whether or not you are using the adjective "Christian" correctly: If, a product, activity, gathering, is something that Jesus would like have done or used it might be proper to call it a Christian product, Christian activity, Christian gathering, etc. If a product, activity or gathering in some is like Christ, it could be called "Christian."

I plan to make many examples of this on the blog.

Niche Marketing at it's Finest

If you haven't found it yet, make sure to visit www.pandora.com. Pandora is an online music site that streams free music in a unique way. Instead of being at the mercy of some DJs playlist, you have power over what you hear. You tell the site the name of an artist or song you like. It pulls up that artists songs, as well as others with similar profiles. You tell the site whether or not you like the songs, and it builds a constantly more specified profile of you and your music taste.

Usually niche marketing bothers me. I don't like being told that my taste can be reduced down to a formula. But the fact is, to an extent, it can. So, even though I may be creating an ever more specified stereotype to be manipulated by record labels, I like the music, and I'll keep using Pandora for the time being.