The levite chronicles

Migration

2006-06-16T10:10:00.000-05:00

I've migrated to levite.wordpress.com. This was a great place to start, but I need the power to do categories. Join me there.

commitment

2006-06-10T14:51:00.000-05:00

Getting people to act takes getting people to decide.

secrets

2006-06-09T16:22:00.000-05:00

If our acts of righteousness are to be done in secret, do righteous people have blogs?

The job of a Levite

2006-06-04T17:34:00.000-05:00

There are a bunch of things identified for levites to do. Carrying, helping, lifting--especially in the portable tabernacle days. Guarding, officialing and judging, singing--especially in the temple days. But the most intriguing to me is that every day, twice a day, morning and evening, the levites were to stand and praise and thank the Lord.

I Chronicles 16:4 talks about this: "He [David] appointed some of the Levites to minister before the ark of the LORD, to make petition, to give thanks, and to praise the LORD, the God of Israel."

In 2 Chronicles 31, after Hezikiah restores the temple, guess what: "Hezekiah assigned the priests and Levites to divisions—each of them according to their duties as priests or Levites—to offer burnt offerings and fellowship offerings, to minister, to give thanks and to sing praises at the gates of the LORD's dwelling."

I guess that being a levite includes praising and thanking God. It is part of what we must do, part of what we lead in doing.

Another video idea: Men's ministry

2006-06-01T12:12:00.000-05:00

A video to talk about men's ministy at the church, particularly in light of the new focus on relationship building. This is ideally, of course, to run in the service, but we could distribute copies for men to watch at home.

If we start with an explorer kind of guy talking about having found a video buried in a box.

We could have older guys talking about history, about what it meant to be a guy with guys. Even if we had a couple of vets talking about being a part of a squad.

some younger guys talking about meeting every week for Bible study

John talking about the vision for men relating to men.

here's a link that might work

2006-05-31T18:45:00.000-05:00

Look here

another thought....

2006-05-31T18:34:00.000-05:00

Backpackit.com is yet another way to store and distribute information. I think that no one else can get to my page, yet, but we'll see.

Resources for organizing.

2006-05-31T11:55:00.000-05:00

I'm not an organized guy. However, it may be time to be more organized. These sites have stuff that helps.

About GTD TiddlyWiki
This is an example of a tiddlywiki, based on the David Allen book, "Getting Things Done".
This is 43 Folders
A site about personal productivity, named after the 43 folders that end up at the core of a tickler-based organizing system (12 months plus 31 days), this site Includes discussion of the Hipster PDA.
D*I*Y Planner
This site has templates for creating your own paper-based planner. Includes GTD materials.

Resting and recovery

2006-05-27T21:50:00.000-05:00

Follow the link to a great blog by Mark Driscoll about steps to create space for those who are in ministry. Which, probably, should be everyone.

His comments about sabbath, about technology distance, are very helpful.

about ministry and productivity

2006-05-26T20:44:00.000-05:00

I'm putting this here, though it may disappear
when I have a chance to look at it more closely. However, at first glance, the idea of a blog with the motto, "Less time on tasks...more time on people" is probablely worth looking at. Also, Bob's church, evergreen, in portland OR is something I want to followup with, as is Joomla which is the content driver for his website.

Just some stuff to remember

New blogging resources

2006-05-25T12:00:00.000-05:00

"w.bloggar" is a freeware application that allows you to create posts for blogs from the desktop without having to log into the blog. It has easier formatting and everything.

Also, the FMCTV blog is setup at feedburner.com which allows people to subscribe to it. and then at feedblitz.com which allows people to subscribe to the blog through email. Once a day, if there has been a post, this will send an email to the address that is entered, allowing everyone involved to know that there is activity worth checking on.

Someday, we'll get all kinds of stuff figured out.

Psalm 40

2006-05-24T16:17:00.000-05:00

"Here I am. I have come."

What a delightful way to think about coming into God's presence, responding to His invitation to talk with Him.

it's monday

2006-05-22T14:55:00.000-05:00

and if i don't write something this week then bill or someone will think that nothing is happening in my brain and that would be awful because something is always supposed to be happening. But monday's are not happening days and i struggle because i want to have quiet and talk with and listen to God and the pace of life is such that i fall asleep when i pray and i have to go to the dentist which is completely not quiet and i can't figure out how to just listen and.

enough.

the week will get better.

Musings from Horace

2006-05-18T14:35:00.000-05:00

After a banquet, Horace offered this note:

Conversations with a distant light
"In the valley, in the city, many lights, much fellowship. But off in the distance, in the fields and hills, distant lights, isolated hopes for weary travelers. What would one of those conversations be, the talking between the near light and the far?"

So what would the conversation be? Complete confusion? Perhaps both feeling proud of their locations, community vs independence? But then awareness of the lack of each...gluttony vs pride? But then the need for both interdependence and independence?

I don't know. What do you think?

Call to worship

2006-05-18T13:15:00.000-05:00

we always think that a call to worship is a musical piece, saying, in essence, "Hey you all, come and worship."

What if the invitation were more gentle? What if we started the service with a testimony, talking about what God has done in an individual's life in a major way. This is not a destiny piece, but a piece that specifically praises God for His work. Then, as we are all in awe, clapping about God's healing or comfort or peace...then we can have a musical response or a psalmic response to God's work.

Rather than saying "you ought to be responding" we can invite response by reviewing God's work. Kind of a fun thing.

hey Bill, I lied

2006-05-18T13:05:00.000-05:00

I told Bill that I had updated since last Thursday, ignoring the fact that I hadn't. Well, actually, I thought I had put something. The truth is that time is passing so quickly...or perhaps I am passing so quickly past time. So, Bill, I'm sorry. you were right. My one reader was right.

ah well.

Something to make

2006-05-10T15:52:00.000-05:00

We need a moving background for communion Sundays, which is 1/4 image on the left side of the screen with the remaining 3/4 of the screen black for the lyrics of communion songs to be placed. (this could, I suppopse, also be done with image in the bottom 1/3 and black ini the top 2/3s) The image? bread being broken and a cup being poured/a panning across empty crosses/i'm not sure what else. We just know that communion comes 12 times a year and I never think of this until I'm in the service!

From Wheaton - a story about a storyteller

2006-05-06T06:21:00.000-05:00

Meredith Aulie came to college with a twofold purpose—to become a filmmaker and tell others about Jesus Christ. But figuring out how a liberal arts education would get her there has proven considerably more complicated for this third-generation Wheatie. After changing her major twice, she landed in the art department for good, viewing art as a means of communicating truth, and film as a method of capturing the senses in order to speak to the human condition.

“In the same way that Jesus' parables used examples from everyday life to reveal His kingdom, Christians have the opportunity to use storytelling to make the gospel known,” says Meredith. “If I could do one thing with film it would be to plant a seed. . . . I want to stir a deep questioning in the hearts of nonbelievers.”

“A friend gave me a piece of advice the beginning of my freshman year. She said to pursue my goals whole-heartedly but cling to them loosely,” says Meredith. “I kind of like that. . . . I’m OK with not knowing where I’ll end up—whether it’s small projects for mission organizations or directing an independent film in the future, I’m up for it.”

http://www.wheaton.edu/acad/academics_people.html

A sample for L and K

2006-05-04T08:55:00.000-05:00

James says, "Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds...." Does that mean that it is a conscious choice to just say that this counts as joy? Whatever the "this" is? I mean, when I walk into the office and have a thing that needs to get done and have 16 other conversations before I get to that one thing, I am supposed to not get frustrated but i am supposed to say, "This is joy. I'm getting to find out how well God is equpping me to deal with the sandstorm of ministry" or maybe, "This is pure joy, I am finding out how much I need to write things down." or .....

What is pure joy? Is there another kind? Is that the best kind?

something to think about.

Video concepts

2006-04-26T09:55:00.000-05:00

create a video that is a person talking about an incredible video that they have seen, something about something that would invovle incredible effects, for example.

2006-04-20T20:59:00.000-05:00

"I have sometimes seen, in the morning sun, the smoke of a thousand villages where no missionary has ever been." Robert Moffat

Resources and connections

2006-04-20T06:51:00.000-05:00

Blackhawk ministries is doing a worship and evangelism conference with Tommy Walker in May. Here's the scoop:

http://www.blackhawkministries.org/tommy/index.html

Indelible Grace is reworking tunes for very old lyrics. Here's the scoop:

http://www.igracemusic.com

Willow Creek has an annual art conference. Here's the scoop:

http://www.willowcreek.com/events/arts/

lessons learned

2006-04-16T18:00:00.000-05:00

It's Easter evening, there were several projects that were completed, and it's time to make some notes.

-It is possible to just decide that a project is done.

One video for this morning was a background for a song being performed live. I spent a bunch of time on it, and had some ideas on how to push it even further, which would have taken, um, I'm not sure how long since I'm not sure exactly what to do to create a veil to be torn. But then I realized that it was background. So I finished in the next 12 minutes. Sometimes done is best.

-One second clips of a key sign or image can cover a multitude of cuts.

-Live performance has tremendous power; so does video. However, they have different power and need different scripting and approaches to time. And you can cut 1:28 from a video and still keep the story going. And you can use black screen with time on it to represent the passing of time. And the dialogue can start under the dark slide to keep the audio content going.

-Spend the time on photoshop backgrounds.

-Test the rough cut on the equipment that you are going to use for projecting the actual project or you will be surprised by the sound or the projection or both.

-Adrenaline works, but don't live on it.

thinking about ...

2006-04-04T21:29:00.000-05:00

there are so many opportunities to write, to reflect, to capture
thoughts. Unfortunately, the time to write seems to slip away. Even when
there are times for helping people reflect in devotionals, when they
words seem to need to be captured here, I just move on to other things.

A meditation on the death of Uzzah and relating it to how we mishandle
what represents the presence of God on earth now, namely other people. A
meditation on the death and life of Eutycus, as a way of thinking about
being prepared for worship.
A mediation on being clay pots.

All of these are in existence in time, in the hearts of the people I
talked with...but not here.

Ah well, talk with one of them.

sound effects

2006-04-03T21:35:00.000-05:00

Public domain animal sounds
http://www.fws.gov/video/sound.htm
http://members.tripod.com/Thryomanes/AnimalSounds.html

Lillenas drama service
http://www.nph.com/nphweb/html/ldol/index.jsp?nid=foot

Following up.

2006-03-31T21:53:00.000-05:00

"Reaching Out Without Dumbing Down: A Theology of Worship for This Urgent Time" by Marva Dawn quotes the Brueggeman book

For a discussion about Emergent

2006-03-31T21:35:00.000-05:00

http://www.criswelljournal.com/

what we do

2006-03-27T15:58:00.000-05:00

Last week, in a conversation on WBCL, I heard this statement:
"Paint the kingdom of God so beautifully that the congregation can inhabit it all week long." This was attributed to Walter Brueggman, "Finally comes the poet." Someday I will follow up on the reference, but today I want to preserve the thought. We are painters, prophets, builders. We work with the Holy Spirit to build clear pictures of the presence of God, of coming to the throne all together. We live our relationship as a planning team in such a way that it flows into the services.

I have long wondered about the chaos of our planning process, the delight and frustration of knowing what everyone's own script is, of knowing exactly when ___ will start to work on songs for the next week and ___ will have a joke and ___ will start to wander.

Here's what's funny: anyone in that group could fill in the blanks.

And that truth is exactly why as I have been writing this entry I understand a little more of why the services that grow out of that chaotic process end up with blessing from God more often than we deserve. We have created a community, a group which knows each other--aggravations and all--and still gathers every week and still contributes and still loves. And because it is our love for each other that is a measure of our love for God, we are finding that God blesses our often feeble efforts with baby Christians and growing passion.

Maybe we are painting the kingdom on Sunday a little better because we are loving the kingdom a little on Monday afternoon.

standing (sitting) in line

2006-03-16T22:40:00.000-05:00

I am currently number 208 in line to watch I play in the NCAA tournament
(wait, I'm now 183). This would be the online waiting room, where I will
be able to see the game on the computer while working on other
things...such as this blog. Of course, the TV is six feet from my feet,
facing the other direction and
(I'm in!) and (The game is blacked out because I can watch it on TV!)
Now, however, I can watch the Duke game on the computer, listen to the I
game, type a reflective paragraph, and think about the work I ought to be
doing (at 10:30 at night) and know that I have to be at two meetings at
6:30 tomorrow morning!

So, do I have problems with priorities or is it just that technology is
delivering too many options to me? I even get to watch the ads on the
computer, which means that right now Bobby Knight is kicking a chair.

Ah well, the resources for information and entertainment are, even for a
non-addict like me are huge. And the distractions are, well, distracting.

Had a thought but it escaped.

So did my video feed. I accidently hit a link and went back to 508 in
line.

I'm guessing that there is a spiritual lesson here, but I can't think of
it right now.

Testing what we do with money

2006-03-13T22:24:00.001-05:00

What would happen if we gave several people money, $10 a piece, for
example, with a note that says: This is God's money on loan to you. In
the next three weeks, use this money to make a difference in the lives of
people around you for Jesus. On the back of this card, keep track of how
you use the money and what happens. In three weeks, return this card and
any remaining money to Pastor Steve Jones at FMC.

The rules? You can't tell anyone this story. You have to ask God for help
in using the money.

What would happen?

Narrative style in Ken Burns

2006-03-13T22:24:00.000-05:00

Narrative descriptions: chronology, facts and figures, basic history

Emotional Chapters: stop time and tell a story

Telegrams: brief statements quoting people.

Editing Clusters: presenting both sides of the story.

for the hallways

2006-03-13T14:19:00.000-05:00

-build a mediashout program on the computer in the sanctuary which has
the schedule of the week of March 19th on it and has some of the videos
that we will be using.
-bring Scott in to create it.

THIS GOT DONE!!!!

Why the endless lists?

2006-03-13T14:17:00.000-05:00

I'm into dumping my brain right now, since clearly, there is way too much
to dump in there. I figure, if I put it here, someone can look at it and
sort it out and expand on what we are trying to do. It might work, it
might not, but at least there will be some reservoir.

Hallway video: The Life of the Church

2006-03-13T13:05:00.000-05:00

-video every baptism, baby dedication, wedding, and new member welcoming.

Then, for the Hallway program,

-include videos of destiny, cong appreciation, services, and the events
above.
-run these on a computer with mediashout

Sunday morning

2006-03-13T06:48:00.002-05:00

-make sure there are followup booklets at the front.
-write a brochure about the church
-who we are
-our passion statement
-our events
-our plans for the future
-our beliefs
-our web address and other contact information.

more Sunday

2006-03-13T06:48:00.001-05:00

turn off the lights during Steve's prayer so he can see the balcony.

still more

2006-03-13T06:48:00.000-05:00

If it gets hot, turn on the exhaust fan.

How do you remember everything?

2006-03-12T23:28:00.000-05:00

1. put tellSteve@comcast.net on the screen at the end of every service.
2. in fact, create a set of stock slides that will have the service end
to punch in always.
3. remember to create a slide that is the missionary of the week to use
every week.
4. and put a loop at the beginning of every service of announcements.
5. and remember to pass the information pad every time.
6. and create a screen that is for children's church to leave.
7. create a video loop that is the whatever motion only in 1/3 of the
screen. Then the flame or whatever flickering can happen no matter what
the lyrics are.
8. create a something. what is the something that I wanted to create? I
don't have any idea.
9. The SOP for creating audio for video.

SOP: creating service CD's

2006-03-12T23:26:00.000-05:00

Creating a master

-put a blank CD in the TEAC cassette/CD recorder

-press [record]. If audio is present in the system, the lower of the two sets of meters will begin to move.

-when you are ready to start recording, press [play].

-to create a new track on the CD, press [record]. Do this at the beginning of sermon points, at other appropriate points during the event.

-For Sunday services, record just the sermon on the CD. Record everything on the cassette

-at the end of the sermon, press [stop].

-Press [finalize] and when you are asked, 'finalize?" press the round button.

-after the disk is finalized, it can be removed from the recording deck.

Creating copies

-turn on the duplicator (button is on the back)

-place the master in the top tray.

-place blank disks in the second and third trays.

-press [ENT] and the machine will record two copies and automatically eject them.

Creating labels

-On the Volunteer folder is a template for Word for creating labels.

-using search and replace, substitute the date for the word DATE and the title for the word TITLE

-place blank labels face down in the drop-down tray of the Tektronics printer

-print.

Applying labels.

-remove the label from the backing sheet and place FACE-DOWN on the mounting tool.

-place the recorded CD face down on the post.

-remove the disk and press the label firmly in place

-place in a sleeve.

FOR MORE INFORMATION ABOUT THE DUPLICATOR, see the manual which is next to it.

SOP for audio for video

2006-03-12T22:42:00.000-05:00

1. Use the submaster mixes that are the red faders in the center section
of the board.
2. Choose a channel for output and connect the camera to the board
through the plug on the back of the board.
3. for every channel that you want on the recording, you have punch the
corresponding send button. These are the four buttons labeled 1/2 3/4 5/6
7/8.
4. If the pan pot is in the middle, the send is evenly to both even and
odd in each pair. If the pot is to the right (as is the case on our SSN
house mike, you will only get signal in the even numbered fader.
5. make sure that the submix channel is not muted.
6. don't make sudden changes in the mix because it directly affects the
sound to the camera.

idea du jour: a ministry showcase DVD

2006-03-07T22:06:00.000-05:00

That's a silly name for a resource that could be pretty helpful. We
prodce a DVD that helps people understand how we are about "more people
to love Him, people to love Him more". However,

idea du jour: A Wake for Jesus

2006-03-06T20:47:00.000-05:00

What if we held a wake on the saturday night before Easter Sunday and invited everyone we know who says that Jesus was a good man who died. But he wasn't God and he didn't rise again. The theme would be "What if you're right/what if you're not."

This would be an informal, coffee and music and symbolism of some sort and maybe someone asking in an open mic format what the questions are about Jesus dying. It would be a way to deal with the questions, but would have a powerful element of "Well, I guess we'll know in the morning."

Remember, the disciples were pretty sure what Jesus had said, and they were hopeful, but they didn't know for sure what "in three days" meant. They knew what they saw: Jesus was dead. And they didn't have our post-resurrection experience.

So maybe this is a pretty good idea as a way to help pre-disciples identify with the disciples.

idea du jour: video loops

2006-03-06T20:44:00.000-05:00

We need 20 loops from around the church, shot in all seasons, about 10-12 seconds. The ideal would be shots that would include some recognizable building element--such as a step, a part of a sign, a part of the cornerstone, or something--and then green or red or white or rainy or snowy. These can be used as backgrounds behind the mediashout announcements or behind the songs or as part of the announcements running in the hallways.

Orville Wright did not have a pilot's license

2006-03-05T06:51:00.000-05:00

from "Orbiting the Giant Hairball"

it didn't work.

2006-02-27T12:47:00.000-05:00

just like all attempts to convey feelings...on the first draft.
So I will keep trying to figure it out, knowing that
the line breaks aren't being added by Juno.

This is a test....

2006-02-27T12:35:00.000-05:00

to see whether the line breaks have been removed from my email so that I
can send posts without having to edit them after they arrive.

hmmm.

Maybe it's another kind of test as well. Maybe this is a test to find out
whether or not I can say things in ways that will make sense to people
upon first reading rather than having people read or hear my words and
say, "What?"

I read the first sentence, and to me it makes complete sense. However, my
desire is to write and speak in such a way that people don't have to
struggle with either the nouns or the imagery on their way to
understanding. Unfortunately, "Line break" and "post" require a measure
of understanding of technology. The overall meaning of the first sentence
requires an understanding of the grammar of blogging which I have only in
a basic way, but which the people I would love to talk with have in
wildly divergent measures...including none.

"Writing that makes sense" is what I would love to do, and is what I am
able to approach at very preliminary stages. I don't mean, writing that
communicates, or writing that is logical or writing that has meaning.
What I would love is to create descriptions, whether as essays or as
sketches or as media, which make sense, or perhaps better, which evoke
sensory responses.

I want to help people feel. More specifically, I want people to feel
God's love for them. when someone walks into my office or walks into the
service or walks into my life, I want to help them not just know ("Of
course I know that God loves me,) but actually experience ("but
sometimes, I wish I could feel...(see, hear, touch, be moved in my
heart))...") the love of God. That's why sometimes I hug people (okay,
guys). That's why I create emotional dissolves. That's why I want word
pictures that help people cry. That's why...maybe that's why I live.

Hmmmm. There's more here that needs to be explored. But for now, this is
just a test to see whether the line break thing works. Right?

Hi Anna

2006-02-25T18:33:00.000-05:00

A couple days ago I told someone to start a blog. I said that it would be a good way to share information with people scattered around this part of the state. I said that it was a great way to have other people share information as well.

Maybe she'll try it. Maybe she won't. I'm a good person to talk about this because I am such a great example. I have been working on this set of notes for months now. Of course, no one has the link so no one is seeing these comments, but the idea is great! Better than the "myspace" stuff where people babble in the moment about whatever happened in the last moment.

That's a metaphor for how we interact. Sometimes we don't say anything. Other times we explore ideas in interesting ways, but we never tell anyone how to get those ideas. Still other times we dump everything for everyone to see, and we tell everyone how to see it, so the whole world (or at least our whole circle of friends) reads our unfiltered gut-spilling.

The ideal would be a reflective strategically shared blog. Right Anna?

writing

2006-02-21T21:49:00.000-05:00

I wrote and presented a networking talk today for LID executive directors. This afternoon, I met a man and realized that I am moving toward a documentary, a story about transforming grace under difficult pressure. So what are the stories? What will be the elements? What are the themes?

I want to tell stories of people who are experiencing God's love in and through difficult times. These are people who are in situations that seem awful and who say, "God is working." I don't want to flatter them, or to make them seem superhuman. Rather, I want to know that they are very human but have tremendous assurance that God is at work.

i was right.

2006-02-20T11:35:00.000-05:00

Last week was a tough week. Sounds odd, doesn't it? I take a week of vacation, I get to do Valentine's Day for my family, I get to spend two days at a state park lodge with just my wife, I get to see both sides of family in relaxed times...and I describe it as tough.

However, back home a challenging situation was happening at work and I had to stay out of it. I kept hearing a voice say, "I wonder what is happening. What should you be doing. You need to do...." I had made a commitment to stay away, but my habit of work kept pulling me back.

And it is a habit. I am "addicted" to work, to information, to being involved, to fixing things. When I can't, when I have to just relax, it feels like work.

Don't get me wrong. Nancy and I had a great time. The vacation wasn't long enough. I am grateful for the time. And I am grateful that I got the sermon that I needed by the time that I needed it. But I learned a lot about fasting and about myself that I don't necessarily like. And that is a good thing to know.

fasting and working

2006-02-13T11:35:00.000-05:00

I'm on vacation this week. I'm preaching on Sunday. That little juxtaposition of facts has potential for frustration.

However, I started reading today about fasting, which is part of the Isaiah 58 text that I will be using, and is part of the idea of real hunger. John Piper is talking about fasting being from good things--created by God--to help us desire the best thing, God Himself. As I read, slowly, I realized that a vacation week is a wonderful way to understand how much I am dependent on my work for identity, for pleasing God, for pleasing others. Can I simply enjoy the life that God has given
me or am I stuck with constantly looking at work projects, trying to accomplish stuff, creating product? Even if the work is good.

And what I do is in response to a call from God and gifts from God and health from God and skills from God developed through God-directed opportunities. It is good. But if I crave being in the information flow, if I think that I have to fix things, then I am in need of fasting.

This may be a very frustrating week. But that may be a good thing.

It isn't simple in here

2006-02-07T23:02:00.000-05:00

For much of the world, much of my world, things are pretty simple. Every question has an simple and clear answer, every choice has two options. I keep discovering that for me, on the other hand, every question feels like "what is best, green or cow?" Or maybe the question will be a "is" question and my answer is a "yes, if we can and will and should."

What makes answering so difficult is that I believe at some level that everything is possible, that there are ways to work with and work around and work through almost everything. Even death, of course, isn't the ending because life continues--or better--begins at that point.

So I work to understand the questions and to be patient...and I fail horribly at the patient part, much to the pain of those close to me.

Maybe, I just need to discover how to make cows green...or accept that there are times when ambiguity and possibility thinking need to establish boundaries. "Yes it is possible, given infinite time and resources. Not being currently infinite, I will have to pick that up when I am eternal."

Be still

2006-02-06T10:19:00.000-05:00

So I tell God, "I'm setting a timer and walking away from the computer and the phone and the cellphone for an hour." And I close the office door and walk away. I spend the hour reading In Isaiah, the latter 50's, and praying for some friends and family, and wrestling with how distant I am feeling and then with about 13 minutes left, I realize how antsy I am getting. It is about the lack of connection, the concern that someone will say something and expect an immediate response and I will not get it in time and then someone will be mad at me.

Mad at me. What a funny idea, but it drives me--as those close to me know.

But I stick with it. All the way to the end of the hour, making beds and praying for those who sleep in them, asking Jesus what He is praying for them, since I can't figure out quite what to pray.

And then I check the email. nothing. and the phone. nothing. and the other email. One small message of affirmation.

And I laugh, because the Master of the Universe is doing quite well, thank you.

What he'd really like, rather than my obsessing, is that I keep a Sabbath hour with Him. That will get the work done.

with one voice

2006-02-06T02:31:00.000-05:00

Last weekend we had an elders retreat. We spent some time "brainstorming" what we believe to be the idols that the contemporary church, including our church, need to repent of. It was a tough and interesting session. We hit all of the seven deadly sins, in one form or another, though not by intention, and ended up with a list of 17. That list became the sermon time for this morning, with the elders, lead by our pastor reading and discussing all 17 before communion. It took time, but it was a valuable time, as the congregation heard the elders talk of matters of importance and significance. They heard our own areas of struggle, without lurid details, but with authenticity.

Although it s, perhaps, a scary thing to hear that our elders are human, one of the things we repented of was the attitude of not having weaknesses.

Our besetting sin so often, and basically, is pride. It is what makes us think that everything is our fault, placing us at the center of the universe. It is what makes us decide that we can answer any question, do any job, solve any problem.

Or maybe, that's just what happens in my heart.

a vacuum

2006-02-04T00:00:00.000-05:00

If you write to a vacuum, does it make anything? Maybe someday, if anyone has this blog address again, we will find out.

In a couple weeks I'll be talking about hunger. The other day, Laurie Nichols promised me a copy of a book on spiritual hunger by John Piper. Today, I got a message from Lynne that she had looked on her shelf, looked at home, called a bookstore, called the library, all in an effort to get me a copy of the book to help me this weekend. Never mind that I won't need the book for a couple weeks. What was impressive was her desire to help, her passionate pursuit of helping, driven by her friendship with Laurie, and our God, of course. She was hungering after righteousness, we could say. looking for the satisfaction of keeping a commitment. A perfect example.

working with a team

2006-02-01T18:43:00.000-05:00

I suggested to someone today that we ought to see how many people we can identify working in and around the church every week. It would be an
enjoyable pursuit, particularly as we are thinking and learning about our spiritual gifts and our ministry destiny. What would happen if we counted? Would we discover that the idea of 20% of the people doing 80% of the work is actually a myth?

For example, last Sunday morning we had Brian and Scottie and Jared and Brad and Rich and Jordan and Phil and Eric and Erika and Cynthia and Laurie and Dennis and Scottie again and Robb and John and Ed and Scott and 2 other ushers that I can't see right now all actively involved in the service. There were also nursery servants and counters in their parts of the building. And that is just second service.

Of course, if there were two hundred people, 20% would be 40 people...and I'm not sure that we are up to that if we count everyone working. So maybe I'm in trouble! But during the course of the week, there are many others from that 200 who are ministering, having been recharged during our time together.

I'm guessing that our involvement is pretty high...which means that we need to be recruiting more people who don't know what it means to serve...because they don't yet know who to serve. Which is what outreach is about. And that is what we are praying about. (sorry for the preposition ending.).

Cool stuff

2006-01-31T18:17:00.001-05:00

For the communion service this week, we are putting a loop on a screen behind the communion table that will prompt people in their prayer. The first one, which is the only one clearly in mind right now, shows how Christ’s broken body is for our broken relationships, bodies, commitments, hearts.

More than you can imagine

2006-01-31T18:17:00.000-05:00

That’s the text that started my day, the place in Ephesians 3 where Paul says that God is able to do more than you can ask or imagine. Later, as I was praying with someone, I said to God that we fail Him by not imagining, by not even asking very much. It was a depressing confessing.

The creator of the universe is able to do immense things, even larger than creation because that was just the set He was creating to show His love. He WANTS to do immense things, but I don’t ask. What a sad commentary on faith.

I know that I’m just being human in that, but being human is not an excuse.

stuff we've done recently

2006-01-30T15:23:00.000-05:00

The impact of time
For a sermon on using our time, a guy sampled a clock ticking, which we then started playing under the prayer at the end of the sermon...which set the tempo for the closing song. We faded the sound while we sang to give the leader some freedom in tempo...and then brought it back up for the pastor's closing comments and then played it through the hallways instead of a postlude as everyone left. (worship 2, January 29)

The hands of the potter
We hired a potter to bring in her wheel and sit on the platform and throw pots during part of the singing and then throughout the sermon on a message about God shaping our lives. She made a total of 9 pots during the two services which she will be firing and giving back to us. We sent money to a Peace Corps project she was involved with. The pastor referenced her a couple times, but went ahead with the message as usual. (worship 1 and 2 January 22, 2006)

People of Destiny
We are highlighting people who are doing what God made them to do. We are creating 90 second spots on each person, using archival footage and a description by our pastor of the person. At the conclusion of the video, a spotlight is turned on, the person comes to the front with the pastor, people applaud. Our goal is to identify people who would not otherwise receive attention for their service. We do a different person for each service. (Worship 1 and 2, January and February, 2006)

sabbath rest

2006-01-30T15:13:00.000-05:00

What counts as Sabbath rest? For a pastor, it isn't whatever it is thathappens on Sunday, since, while energizing, that certainly isn't resting. But is in just "not going to the office"?

If I get a call from the office, does that mean that the whole day doesn't count or only a part of it?

If I work on the insulation in the crawlspace which hasn't been done for 3 years, does that violate sabbath or is that actually bringing a sense of rest to the "to do" list?

What about writing a blog entry, does that count or is that working as well?

If I try to pray and I fall asleep, is that a problem?

Obviously, the sabbath is about giving God time...and the silence people that I read would say that sleeping is okay, and time with family is okay. But what about the office call...when it helps get someone money for a funeral trip...but which could have been planned for...but which only took a few minutes on the phone...

And what about the writing?

unquiet

2005-06-26T17:39:00.000-05:00

Garrison Kiellor gets great mileage from the phrase, "It's been a quiet week in Lake Wobegon." It takes him 20 minutes of talking to tell about the nothing that happened in this town that time forgot.

In our lives, the busy weeks, which should give us lots to talk about, leave us with the feeling that we have no time to talk, let alone think. And yes, those words are in the right order. For me, it takes more time to think than talk, more time to figure out what I know, what I have been through, than it does to talk endless about the unthought.

In the last two weeks, I think I have been learning about leaning on the Spirit for direction--though I have the sense of not doing that nearly enough. Even this afternoon, a set of conversations delayed because of what could have been a lack of nerve, actually were delayed because of holy procrastination.

Perhaps if I asked more for help and strategized less, if I talked less and thought more, life would slow down, feel more effective. Maybe a quiet week is what could happen.

scattered thoughts

2005-06-14T15:10:00.000-05:00

Sunday morning, a church moved to a new home--in the fullness of God's plan. Elim, a Spanish-speaking church lived with us for almost four years, brought to us by God. When they were ready, He gave them a building at a great price, close to us. I wandered down for the beginning of the first service in their new house and was overwhelmed by the joy of God's work. There was such a sense of being right.

Monday was poetry day, working on a poem to describe how my dad was called to be an architect of men. Forming words and fashioning phrases so that we can find out what we feel is a delight. For verbally expressive people, writing and speaking become an act of worship. We don't know where we will end up until after we have started.

In a previous life, I was a rhetorical scholar (which is different than being a rhetorical question). One of the things which we discussed was the relationship between discourse and reality. Some argued that reality was created by discourse, others that discourse reports on reality. In my experience, particularly as a writer, reality is discovered through discourse. I come to know as I write or speak. At times, I don't know what I will say until I start.

As a Christ-follower, this discovery process is even more significant. As I talk with a person about a problem, giving them counsel, I find that I am being guided into the questions to ask and the words to say. Words and phrases and paragraphs from the Bible come to mind and come out of my mouth. I often say something and then step back wondering where that perfect insight came from. Of course, the answer is from God.

Perhaps God can only speak through us if we are speaking.

Although the response to that statement is a resounding, "duh", I didn't think about it--and the ramifications of that--until I wrote it.

Smile.

praying with God

2005-06-11T22:45:00.000-05:00

Yesterday I received a book which is already pushing my thinking about prayer in a whole new direction. In "Experiencing Healing Prayer"(Intervarsity Press, 2005), Rick Richardson suggests that when he is praying for someone, he asks Jesus what He is praying for the person. His basis is the Romans 8 text which talks about Jesus interceding for us.

I have always thought of that text meaning that as we approach Jesus, He approaches the Father. However, that same chapter says that when we don't have the words to pray, the Spirit prays for us. So we have the Spirit praying, the Son praying, the Son having prayed for us in John 14.

So what does it mean that Jesus is praying for us? Should we be asking Him what He is asking the Father on our behalf even now? I am asking God for clarification on this now as I begin to go deeper into Richardson's book--and Romans 8.

the freedom of modesty

2005-06-10T13:49:00.000-05:00

Last week was middle school honors night at Lane Middle School. Kids who are being recognized for academic achievement have their names announced, they step up on a platform, their list of honors is read, they receive a handshake and an envelope from a teacher and they go back to their seat.

Because the 8th graders sit on the stage, it is as close to graduation as we have. Most kids dress up for this event, girls more than guys. Often, modesty is compromised for what is called maturity. Girls end up wearing outfits which are far more revealing than anyone should wear, regardless of age.

It is easy to get upset about this display. However, as I watched our daughter and a friend of hers, girls who dressed far more modestly, I noticed an amazing thing. Far from being prudish wallflowers, these two girls moved with a freedom which was impossible for the other girls. Because they didn't have to worry about slits being in the wrong place or other potential wardrobe malfunctions, Hope and Katie were able to concentrate on being in the moment. They walked with confidence and poise. They stood with dignity and self-respect. They were beautiful young women, living in a freedom which comes from being in Christ.

In a culture which often thinks of restraint as restrictive and modesty as constraining, these two young women showed me that self-respect gives tremendous freedom.

electricity and ego

2005-06-09T16:16:00.000-05:00

Yesterday afternoon, I was sitting at my desk watching a video which had been produced for our Sunday service. The lights in the hallway and my air conditioner went out, but my computer kept running. I noted the outage, patted myself on the back for my UPS, and kept watching. Soon, however, the computer went off, and I wandered out to the hall. A person who was working in the kitchen came singing down the hallway, trying to stay positive in the face of preparations for her son's impending wedding. A call came in from one our our renters across the street, wondering why her power was out.

In each case, people assumed first that the problem was local and was part of the evidence of the world being against them. As they understood that the problem was building-wide, then neighborhood wide, their personalization of their frustration and the desire that we "fix this for them" disappeared, replaced with a sense of resignation and relief that someone else would be working on the problem.

As I thought about our reactions, I realized how often we get frustrated because we believe that there is a plot against our particular happiness. There is an intentionality to problems which is directed at our own joy and happiness and peace and success. I consistently have to help people understand that they are not the focus of pain. Frequently, there are many sides to stories. Often, there are details which they don't know. Always, there is a God who is aware of our lives and who desires to be part of our understanding of what is happening.

How often do we ask God to take away our anxiety? We are told to do so in Philippians 4. How often do we remember God's promise to the exiles that He had plans for them?

Often, the circuit breaker just trips. It is the enemy of our souls who wants us to take it personally. And it is the Savior of our souls that will give us peace in the midst of the darkness.

And just like yesterday, the power may be back on in a couple minutes.

Job opening: professional God praiser

2005-06-08T10:03:00.000-05:00

On the day that David had the ark brought back into Jerusalem, he gave a handful of people an interesting job description. In I Chronicles 16, Asaph and 9 other Levites were appointed to minister before the Lord, to make petition, to give thanks and to praise the Lord. At least part of their ministry was musical-to play harps, lyres, cymbals, and trumpets (the latter were played by two priests).

These were what we would call worship leaders. Their leadership was by example-they were to be fully present in their worship. Asaph, the chief, was particularly picked by God to be a leader in this area. He (and his family) wrote several songs (psalms) and were gifted in singing.

But to have that be your job--talking with God, leading people to God. Pretty cool. and pretty awesome. and pretty serious.

So who are the levites today?

levites and exploding heads

2005-06-07T09:23:00.000-05:00

The Levites were about worshipping God. That is what their heart focus was to be. Their jobs around the temple (and around the tabernacle before the temple was built) were varied. Some were musicians and worship leaders and pray-ers--all the things that we think of when we think of worship. Others, however, hauled the pieces of the tabernacle from place to place. Others were the guards of the temple, standing shoulder to shoulder (I Chronicles 26).

This morning I was reading in 1 Chronicles at home, and then I walked into the building and talked with Ben, our maintenance engineer. This past Sunday, we had written a sketch which required a balloon, representing a person's head, to blow up. (see the sermon at www.firstmc.org - June 5). Ben created a way to accomplish this with maximum impact and minimum distraction.

Ben is a levite. Though he received no credit line in the bulletin, though he wasn't on the platform, though he was working with design and visual art rather than our usual worship arts (music), he helped people understand how our pride gets in the way of coming to God and to other people.

Levites are all over. Sometimes they are even lurking in the boiler room.

graduation 2005

2005-06-06T13:26:00.000-05:00

Saturday was graduation day for our son. I was on my way to get one last table, a wheelchair for my dad, and a bunch of balloons. I started to cry as I was driving, which wasn't surprising because I had been on the edge all week. He graduates, his sister finished 8th grade, lots of transition right now.

As always, I was wondering how much I had failed. After 18 years of trying, what more should I have done? How could I have been more effective as a father? What are the things that I should have taught him?

I turned on the radio and heard worship music, lyrics which were pointing to the power and worthiness and significance of God. It felt odd, somehow, in my mood, but as I drove, thinking, switching between the two Christian stations in our town, I realized that every song on the playlists for both stations was pointing to God.

Then I realized that even in the middle of my doubting of myself, God wa assuring me that He was in control. He was and is and will be sufficient for our son--and us--for ever.

Do I have responsibilities? Yes. Do I have permission to be depressed? No. Can I question myself? Yes. Am I loved even in the middle of the questioning? Absolutely.

I think that I graduated on Saturday, too.