Does anybody know what I am talking about when I say "the smell of consumerism?"

I went to Blockbuster to rent the new Lord of the Rings DVD - and Blockbuster has this smell - I smell it other places - it is a smell of "new stuff." Does anyone know what I am talking about? Anyway - it's a peculiar sensation that I thought I would record. I love that smell - the smell of new stuff!

I got my NT Wright books today. (ps they smell good) In all fairness I also ordered a book that critiques his works as well. But I am going to read him first. I am not sure if I will ever finish. His first book is the smallest - registering in at only a mere 535 pages. The mammoth - Resurrection - is 818 pages. All this and I am starting classes on Tuesday. 6 books one class - 4 books for another. I am glad that I love to read.

I will read a little 100 page book by Os Guinness this weekend about how Christians in trying to become relevant have become irrelelvant. Sounds good.

I will still try to blog - I will need it (the blog) probably to vent and to keep my sanity.

Why is it that when we explain the faith to someone - we immediately want to bring them to the incarnation and Jesus on the cross instead of back to where Paul did - creation. Isn't that the place where most world-views differ the most? Could it be that if a "pagan" understood the creation narrative and the ramifications of a teleological existence that we could then bring in the incarnation and cross and it make more sense? Do we just jump to the middle of the story? Is it like watching "The Two Towers" in the middle for 5 minutes and not understanding the story or the characters?

Wondering... still trying to listen - but failing fast. Want to talk tooo much!!

I need to develop my skills as a listener. I took a small quiz in a book about listening skills and being a reflective listener and I failed miserably. I do listen - to my credit - more than I did, say two years ago, but that is not saying much. I guess the realization that I am coming to is that the world does not revolve around me (imagine that - to use a cliche.) I have knowledge of that intellectually - but I am having to let it trickle into the other areas of my soul.

So I am going to listen. Anyone need someone to listen? I need practice. Maybe I can shut up long enough to listen. My wife will be the perfect guinea pig. She gets tired of hearing me talk. But as soon as I start to do this spiritual practice she will immediately think that something is wrong. People always do when you talk a great deal and then decide to care about someone other than yourself and start listening.

I am shutting up now.

I thought that this was a great idea - have a time and a place that people just get together - public invited - just to talk about spiritual and "meaning of life" issues.

Here is somewhere they are doing that - Cafe Grace

I am reading a book by the guy that started Cafe Grace. He is a scholar in New Testament and Pauline Studies but he works in the corporate world. His main idea in the book that I am reading in to decentralize "church." I see a decentralization coming not only of the "professional" God-man (clergy) but also of the "sunday service" or congregation-oriented christianity.

I think this is a great idea (see link)

I ordered some books by N.T. Wright tonight. I hope that they are interesting reads. I got the whole series Books 1,2, and 3. The third book on the resurrection - interests me very much. I have so many books on my to read list and I guess these will join them. I do read them - it just takes awhile to finish them when you are reading 5 at one time. I am such a nerd that I am starting to make out a reading schedule like I have in seminary for my personal reading - so that I will crank out the 2 books a week again. I am a student - so I am able to read more. But blogging has also made reading more of a challenge - blogging is fun!!! And also very time consuming. So now I must limit my time with it as well. My wife has finally realized that because I am a pastor and student that my reading is not excessive - it is my job. The people that go to our fellowship are an intelligent bunch - but with the exception of two guys - they read probably one book every 3 or 4 months. I believe that is good because I am sure for the average congregation reads far less. My dad who is a Warren Buffet disciple (yeah Jimmy's brother - very rich brother J/K) says that he is going to start reading 2 every month because that is what the world's "richest people" do. I cannot convince him that reading does not make one rich. (Ha Ha my dad says) But part of being a "pastor" is to devote time to "prayer and to the Word" which I do with Bible reading both devotionally and in study taking up a large percent of my time. I feel sometimes - pardon the analogy- like a momma bird who chews up the food and gives it to her chicks. I see that changing. I do not want to be everyone's "Moses" - I want people to learn to hear and seek God for themselves. It is tough to do though when you come from a system that spoonfeeds you everything that you need to know about "Christian Theology in 5 Minutes a Day". What a culture we live in.

Pagan utopia - nature is self-generating and worthy of worship. No creator because there was no creation. No transcendence- WYSIWYG.

Christian utopia begins with creator/creature distinction. God exists independently of creation as Creator of life. Begins with God's act of creation and concludes with His act of recreation. Teleological - not cyclical.

Elementary christian philo 101 - but it gets better...

Paul was not your average rabbi - but the "apostle to the pagans"

From Worldnetdaily article by Doug Powers

1.Moses parted the Red Sea without first performing an environmental impact study.

2. Jesus gave a Sermon on the Mount where he talked of giving to the poor, and spoke out against greed, and all without charging attendees $300 per ticket. (Barbra Streisand only).

3. The term "The Three Wise Men" is insensitive to the intellectually challenged. That should be changed to the "Trio of educationally advantaged amateur astronomers."

4. Instead of gold, frankincense and myrrh, they should have brought hummus, incense and a representative from Child Protective Services.

5. The Virgin Mary didn't first meet with consultants from Planned Parenthood.

6. Ten plagues and still not a single person thought of nationalizing health care?

7. Adam didn't ask Eve for verbal as well as written consent before touching her.

8. Of course Cain killed Abel. He was obviously suffering either from bipolar disorder, low blood sugar, emotional abuse as a child, or societal neglect.

9. "The trials of Job" were nothing. Try getting a job with nothing but a masters degree in Norwegian Art History – that's a test!

10. Too bad Greenpeace didn't have their own ark so they could have rammed Noah's Ark. You just know that, after the flood, Noah sold those animals to the circus.

11. The destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah could have easily been prevented if they would have passed hate-crime legislation sooner.

12. Jesus is one of the greatest teachers in history, but isn't a member of the National Education Association. In other words, God uses scab labor.

13. David slew Goliath simply because he was unfortunate enough to have been stricken with gigantism.

14. "The Last Supper" didn't offer an option for people on gluten-free diets, and the fat content on the food was not labeled.

15. The part about Jonah and the whale becoming entangled in tuna nets is conveniently passed over in the Old Testament.

16. God should have spent the seventh day not resting, but rather going around putting warning stickers on all potentially dangerous, really pointy things.

17. What's the big deal about Nebuchadnezzar spending seven years ingesting grass? Heck, Woody Harrelson's done it longer than that.

18. The Bible mentions nothing about obtaining the necessary permits to build the Tower of Babel.

19. People lived to be hundreds of years old without prescription-drug coverage? I don't think so.

20. Jesus turned water into wine, which was not very mindful of those who happened to be teetering on the brink of plunging down the stairs of their 12-step program.

21. Of all the wealth possessed by King Solomon, the amount he donated to environmental causes: $0.

And the thing about the Bible that drives the left the most crazy? People can find salvation without their assistance.

This is a new book I am reading- a must read for those who believe that something is going on in the world that is not quite peachy...

I quoted this book in an earlier blog-entry. I am very anti-LEFT BEHIND theology - thinking most of it is part of the "Christi-culture" as well as very alarmist. I will say this- Peter Jones who wrote this book - has captured my attention with a detailed exposition of Roman political, social, and spiritual history and its comparison to U.S.A. and UN. Even if the eschatological EVE of the world is not at hand - the demise of the US may be (?) I don't know. I am not a Hal Lindsey Scofieldian disciple - however the similarities of the two cultures cannot be ignored. In the second part of the book (which I am about to dive into) he gets into the apologetical side of pagan religion. Taking a pagan back to creation like the apostle Paul did. Sounds interesting. I will dialogue more about this later.

Taken from a GQ article 2002

WHAT WOULD JESUS DO?
BUT MORE, IMPORTANT, WHAT WERE JESUS' FITNESS SECRETS? IF YOU WERE ONE OF THE GROWING MILLIONS OF AMERICANS LIVING IN THE MULTIMILLION-DOLLAR CHRISTIAN ALTERNACULTURE—IN WHICH EVERYTHING IN MAINSTREAM CULTURE GETS CLONED AND THEN BLEACHED OF "SINFUL" CONTENT—YOU'D KNOW. WALTER KIRN SPENDS SEVEN STRANGE DAYS WALKING IN THE SHOES OF THE FAITHFUL.

Roman writer Juvenal wrote in 100 A.D. about "panem et circences - 'bread and circuses' to indicate how the Roman state looked after the population through material plenty and endless entertainment. Such economic plenty must have caused many to believe that life could not be much better." - Capturing the Pagan Mind

Interesting thought - what does that remind you of? The similarities between Rome and the U.S. are staggering - not just coincidence, huh?

Bread and Circuses? Mcdonald's and Hollywood?

"Modern man believes he is fruitful and productive when his ego is aggressively affirmed, when he is visibly active, and when his action produces obvious results."
Thomas Merton

How true is that even of churches and pastors - not just business oriented people?

I find myself fitting in that mold.

I really need to go to bed - I have to do some walking in the morning - in the "hills" - I must put the new "toy" down.

I love my new Mac. It is got to be the coolest computer that I have ever had. I love my PC but I have a feeling that the Mac's capabilities will surpass the PC by far. I will continue to use my PC - but I will now be fluent in both Mac and PC.

I am reading through manuals now - trying to decipher the differences between the two operating systems. They are like two totally different cultures. I will learn - yes - I will learn.

I have been so engrossed in the Mac stuff that I have not hardly read at all today. I do have some thoughts moving around the old cranium. I turned 29 yesterday and today I don't feel any different. I am a husband and a father - and those things make me feel different - but putting on age does not. Maybe I not "normal" (the truth is I know that I am not normal.) Nonetheless I am excited about being older - I am starting to see life as the best teacher (second to God) there is.

Feeding the son is always a way fun thing to do. My wife is out tonight to meet with a friend of hers and so me and the son are running solo. He is old enough now to do some finger foods - so while I type - he eats.

I love being a father. It is so rewarding. One of the most interesting things is the insight that I get into the father heart of God. There are things that I understand better now than I ever have before. A father is always going to take care of his kids. Hold on -now for some spoon action....

I am back. Well anyways - I love my son. He is such a blessing.

This is my first entry with my new Mac Os/x.

Mac OS/X rocks!!!

Relationships have got to be the hardest thing in the world. Especially if you are the type of personality that absorbs and bears people's burdens. I know that there is unhealthy people burdens - taking on too much. I also know that Paul told us to bear one another burdens. Sometimes it is tough to distinguish between what to bear and what to roll over to Jesus.

I really need to get my worry under control. It is sin and the realization of that is really starting to dawn on me. Even if I am bearing a burden I should not worry about it. It really shows my struggle with sometimes believing God.

I had some JW's (Jehovah Witnesses) come by yesterday. I always offer them water and invite them in from the hot. One woman was sweating profusely. I take scripture seriously about a cold cup of water (a good deed.) You never know when that generosity might make an impression. Most people want to argue with them or not even bother answering the door. All they are is people who really,really, believe what they are taught (without questioning) They are basically treated bad by non-JW's and then they say they are suffering for "Jehovah." I do not want to give that pleasure - I am going to love them.
I have so much pity for them sometimes - it is such slavery.

This site that I found about this guy who is a preacher that uses his blog as a psuedo-confessional is great. This guy is so real and authentic - and plus he tells really cool stories. I like the one that he has on there about the three sisters - see if you can find it on the site. Man I hope to start to tell stories - and effectively - again. I want to leave a legacy for my son - of not only my faith but my creativity as well. Plus I want a way to communicate my heart for life and Jesus.

The whole concept of christianity being a web of interlocking relationships instead of a programmed agenda that takes place on Sunday mornings has appeal to me. Already being part of a house church and experimenting in relational Christianity has laid a foundation for attempting to build a network of relationships that are the church - people together - knit together are the church.

There is a guy named Wayne Jacobsen who has been doing this for years. His website has great articles about relational christianity. Realtionships are the hardest things to do - and what Jesus talked about most of all. Modern day piety-to-the-extreme or purist-orthodox-meaness is no at all what Jesus had in mind. I say this not to say piety and orthodoxy are not good things but to say that they must be tempered by relationship and relationship tempered by them.

But I must not only talk about this - I must do this.

J. Grant Swank, Jr.
MINUS REACTION TO GIBSON’S JESUS MOVIE EXPECTED
By J. Grant Swank, Jr.
Aug 14, 2003, 10:50

Jesus told His disciples, "They hate me. They will hate you."

That’s in the record. Jesus said it, if we conclude the record to be historically accurate.

Right there is the nub of the current debate regarding Gibson’s movie, THE PASSION. Can we take the accounts in the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John as historically accurate? Or are they trumped up in some passages? Are they fabricated in others?

When at Harvard Divinity School, my first class in New Testament rattled my ears. The professor, a tall fellow wearing clerical collar, informed the room that we basically would dismiss the start and finish of Jesus’ bio for they were myths — the virgin birth and resurrection.

I later learned that most of what was left in between was to be dismissed as well — not historically sound, trumped up, fabricated material believed by the doofuses but scorned by the academically legitimate.

At the start I told my young conservative head ...

" The question is whether our churches are part of the problem or part of the solution. When evangelism is discussed in books or at conferences there seems to be a growing appreciation that some version of church is vital for outreach in contemporary culture...The irony is that the search for the relevant church illustrates the extent to which church is still part of the problem."
- Liquid Church p.13

This is my newest read -

What I have read so far is very intriguing.

I am going in the next few weeks to get a Mac for school. I have never used a Mac before (except doing a little pagination at our local newspaper) I am not familiar with Mac OS at all. I am excited about learning the new machine though. I have heard a lot of good things.

Today was a good day - a day of mixed emotions. Sometimes I wonder if I really hear God correctly or if I just imagine His guidance and leading. I have been involved with a church plant of house churches - a network to reach the indigenous population cultures of the US. The US is truly a mission field (Newbigin) and I feel called of God to be a missionary.

But it is such discouraging work. Weekly I feel like quitting. I tread on. I have no idea why - except that I have been called. I feel like Abraham - " GO "

"Where God?' says Bran
"Just go - out there - make disciples."
"But people don't like me - I am demanding and rough around the edges" replies Bran sheepishly.

"Go"

So here I am - in a small town that I grew up in - with no "culture." That really stinks because I want to be apart of the "cutting edge" of the "postmodern church revolution" and wah wah ad nauseum. I think entirely too much of myself.

Then I remember. I remember one summer night when I first moved back to Vicks. I was on the tallest hill in the city, a place called Fort Hill which overlooks the Mississippi River, and I cried out to God

"Give me this town for you Lord, or I die" ( I really dug John Knox.)

I had no idea that my novel sentimentality would actually mean something to God. But He has had me here since. I cannot leave until I see God pour out His Spirit here - I have tried.

So I guess as I reflect now I see - I remember why I fight on. May God pour His grace upon me. I need it.

While pondering all the things that have been going on with the episcopal church I have come to a few conclusions about the matter.

1) While my title may appear like I am doing satire or comedy, I am not. I am really beginning to think that homosexuals would make better christians.

2) While to most heterosexuals, christianity is a sidebar - something you do on Sunday, a way to keep me from hell, and if they are really serious they become politically active "fightin fundamentalists." But above all else they are something else besides christians whether it be american, or ad nauseuam of other attachments.

3) Not so with a homosexual. They are homosexual through and through. homosexuality is the lord of their lives. It effects everything they do. They do not go to homosexual meeting for an hour on sunday. They don't have to wear tshirts that say "Gay? Yeah!" - witness wear for everyone to know that they are homosexuals. They live the life. It effects their politics, food choices, clothes, spending habits, EVERYTHING. Whereas we may disagree morally with their way of life - they by far are less of hypocrites than we as "christians" are.

Before you blast me - or think that I am for the pro-gay agenda - read over again what I have written.

I have a love for quotes - I guess that I like someone who can say what is in my heart before I can verbalize it (especially in one sentence)

Our Lord has written the promise of the resurrection, not in books alone, but in every leaf in springtime.

-- Martin Luther (1483-1546)

It has pleased God that divine verities should not enter the heart through the understanding, but the understanding through the heart.

-- Blaise Pascal (1623-1662)

The last quote is especially good for me - considering my love of study.

I don't know why, but I have been grieving over this gay bishop thingie for the past few days. I have no idea why it has bothered me so much - maybe its just the prospect that the church is perhaps in stages of falling away or maybe it could be the very scary prospect of God judging our country. I don't know. I just know I have been thinking about it cutting grass, watching TV, blogging, especially in my devotions. It is like I have lost a relative that I really don't know but yet I feel grief and I really don't understand why. I felt this way when I lost my estranged grandfather. I never knew him - but when he died I felt a loss - but it was a different kind of loss. Not the kind I felt when I lost my grandfather that I was close to. Anyway - I just feel really sad. Sad for the episcopal church. Sad for the people in the system America calls church. Sad for Gene Robinson. Sad for a people who have a form of godliness but lack the power thereof. Please pray for me. I am grieved over a church that because of our sins keeps our Father from taking us under His wing. Yes - MY sins too.

God have mercy on us.

While we are having our discussion of "christian stuff" look at this. I got it off another guys blog - he too appears to think that this is amusing.

Christian Deer Hunting Camp

Not sure if the person who posted this to the FMC Mailing list meant this to be funny or not but I have seen it all now.

There was interesting discussion that my brother-in-law brought up on his page that I would like to continue here. That is about contemporary christian music. I agree with Bill Colrus and what he said about 98% of cont. christian music. It is bush. No good - stinks - pop- inauthentic. However - I thought of this question while at my in-laws.

What would authentic music look like that was done for the glory of God? Religious music. I hestitate to call anything Christian other than people because only something that chooses can be christian - the bible makes that clear. You have no Christian cars or gum or etc.

But what would authentic music with a christian message be like?

Is it me or is anyone getting tired of the race card being thrown out whenever someone is just incompetent or not getting their way? Here is an article about Sharpton and how the liberal "white" media is giving him disrespect. I don't know what media he is talking about but the one I am familiar with would not dream of dissing blacks - unless the democratic party had a better chance of getting elected with a white man. We all know that basically the liberal white men of today are all about power and exploit blacks and other minorities to get elected. So get over it Sharpton - ever thought that your own party has politics too? OR what about qualifications - the civil rights movement as King and others knew it is dead. All that exist now are guys that are perpetratin' a myth to make money.

I have completed (at least for now) the other blog. I gave myself a crash course on HTML and XML, CSS etc. this week. I am not a master by any means but I did learn a great deal.

I haven't blogged here for a few days. Let see ... so what is going on?

I have been doing a lot of church work - meetings etc.

I have also resolved to find a place here in Vicks that when I am not doing admin ministry stuff, that I can hang at (starbucks type place - we have no starbucks here) and have conversations. I am going to try to build new relationships with people. I am going to start counting conversations and not "conversions." That quote is not original to me - got it from Brian McLaren in More Ready Than You Realize - great book about evangelism. I so want to love and get to know people - not "conquer" them for Christ. I guess the Crusades are over?!

Well anyway my wife is telling me to go to bed. She is a morning glory and I am a night owl.

What a combination, huh?

Almost midnight - quick entry. Started setting up another blog today for our church - the beacon This site is much better than the one that we had started at blogspot. Movable type is just better and easier to use.

So hopefully - if I can find a cool template and tweak it - the new site will be up and running soon as possible.