Thoughts on Sabbath
While at the National Pastors Convention, Rudy and I met a cool guy named Wes. I've started reading his blog (it's on my Google Reader), not just because Wes is a cool guy (which he is), but mostly because Wes is a very good thinker and is also excellent at expressing his thoughts in blog-form.
An example of his excellence is his recent post on Sabbath. It isn't just about work or not work. It's about our identity. The current economic state should stand as a stark reminder that we have sought our identity in the wrong things (and continue to do so).
Now stop reading my blog and immediately go to Wes' and read his post on Sabbath.
Showing posts with label NPC. Show all posts
Showing posts with label NPC. Show all posts
Sunday, February 15, 2009
Blogging From the NPC: Day 4
Any guesses how I started my final day at the NPC? If you guessed "running" you'd be almost right. Actually what I did first was sneak into the Zondervan store and update my blog. But then I ran with the runners club. I only ran 3 miles, which means I was shamed by Rudy, who ran for 45 minutes (and did stairs... and walked like a 90 year old the rest of the day).
We decided that showers would be a better idea than seminars, so we got cleaned up (and started the extreme job of packing - when you come home with a truckload of books, it makes packing into an art form). Then we went to the final main session.
Efrem Smith was our speaker again, this time for a Communion service. He also led us in some hymn singing - as an aside, this was a great moment for the tech team. Efrem started a well-known song and then we went to the second verse and stopped and asked, "Do you know the second verse?" Then he turned around and noted, "Oh, they've got it on the screen!"
Communion was wonderful.
After communion, Rudy and I went out for lunch, but shortly after lunch, my old friend Jeff Rosenberry came down from LA to hang out. It was fantastic to see Jeff; it's been way too long since our days together playing soccer and at Chapel Hill. He is definitely one of the good guys.He and Rudy and I drove around and saw the sights, walked on the beach, saw a famous hotel (that's been in lots of movies) and ate ice cream there (it was really good, and despite the fact that it was not all that warm out, it melted and got all over the place; I felt like I was one of my boys eating it). Thankfully I had napkins, so when the ice cream got on my nose, I could wipe it off (and I did know that it was there before Jeff started whispering and giggling about it - I knew Rudy wouldn't tell me it was there; not after the time I had suffered a bloody nose and spent the afternoon in the office with crusted blood under my nose and he never said anything about it. Nope, not bitter or anything). So anyway, before I went on that tirade, I was talking about that hotel. Its picture is below.
After that, we drove around some more, talking and having a good time. We decided to check out Point Loma Nazarene University. Rudy had a friend who went there for a while, and we were there, so we drove over to visit. The campus overlooks the ocean... yeah, pretty spectacular. We drove in and there was a "guard shack" where we told the young woman, "We'd just like to visit campus."
Later Jeff (or was it Rudy?) said, "that girl is going to be really upset when we start shooting the place up." Hilarious!
We ended up parking and walking around campus.
Yes, that picture is for real. But we ran out of plutonium for the flux capacitor, and we couldn't get it up to 88 mph in this crowded parking lot.
Our tour of PLNU was uneventful; it seemed like the students knew we were coming and disappeared (or maybe they all went home for the 3 day weekend). We seem to have missed seeing Abraham Lincoln in concert (by a day), but we did see a mouse in their chapel.
I had been told that I had to try In-n-Out while I was in California, and it was certainly interesting! First of all, I guess they hadn't heard that there's an economic downturn; the place was consistently FULL (or maybe these were the people who usually would eat out at more expensive places... or they're just addicted and can't stop eating there!). By the time we left, there were people standing around waiting for tables. Lots of people.
I was thinking that In-n-Out mirrors many churches. 1. There weren't many choices. 2. There were more choices than there seemed to be, but you had to have insider information to order them. 3. They used specific insider language and terminology. 4. People regularly come back (and order the same thing) religiously. 5. You had to be a great driver to maneuver the parking lot.
By then it was time to go back to the hotel and let Jeff head back north. It was so good to catch up with him, to share fun stories, to hear how God is using him, and to just hang out with a great friend.
Friday, February 13, 2009
Blogging From the NPC: Day 3
This morning started (can you guess how?) with a run. Rudy got up and came running, so I tortured him by taking him up the hill. Then I went and met up with the Runners Club for a good 3 miler. It was a lot of fun. The morning group runs are a highlight of the convention for me.
The morning session started out with an interview with Paul Young, author of the Shack. He reinforced God's love for His Bride, the Church (refreshing after last night's downer). One very insightful comment he made was that the shack stands as a metaphor for our human soul that we don't want to live in because of the pain that it has withstood. Therefore we don't live life to the fullest and instead put up facades and live behind them. This was very helpful when thinking about some other things I've read and experienced (Chap Clark's "world beneath" from his book "Hurt" is all about young people not living in the shack).
Tommy Walker led worship again, and was fantastic once again. During worship, he asked us to high-five ten people and praise God for who He is. It sounded kind of cheesy, but we did it (if nothing else, we pastors are obedient to the worship leader!), and it was cool. In fact, the energy in the room went through the roof.
Bill Hybels was our main speaker. He was impressive because he was so humble and vulnerable. He talked about listening to God's voice - God's whisper - and obeying, and how everything he has accomplished (which is tremendous) was simply because he listened and obeyed when God whispered to him. Awesome!
We went to hear J. P. Moreland in the seminar series, and he is brilliant. He was talking about signs and wonders and the one big thing I got from his talk was that we, as humans, are supposed to do the signs and wonders that Jesus did while he was here walking around on earth... fully human. But one reason we don't is because we don't practice, and the spiritual disciplines are there for that reason. Disciplines like self-denial (fasting, serving others, praying for others) and the discipline of living a life of gratitude are important for this.
In the afternoon, we took off to see San Diego. We too
k the bus to Balboa Park, which was beautiful. We hit the Air and Space Museum, specifically to see the Leonardo da Vinci exhibit, which showed a lot of his inventions and artwork. It was amazing to think that he was doing this inventing around 1500!
This morning started (can you guess how?) with a run. Rudy got up and came running, so I tortured him by taking him up the hill. Then I went and met up with the Runners Club for a good 3 miler. It was a lot of fun. The morning group runs are a highlight of the convention for me.
The morning session started out with an interview with Paul Young, author of the Shack. He reinforced God's love for His Bride, the Church (refreshing after last night's downer). One very insightful comment he made was that the shack stands as a metaphor for our human soul that we don't want to live in because of the pain that it has withstood. Therefore we don't live life to the fullest and instead put up facades and live behind them. This was very helpful when thinking about some other things I've read and experienced (Chap Clark's "world beneath" from his book "Hurt" is all about young people not living in the shack).
Tommy Walker led worship again, and was fantastic once again. During worship, he asked us to high-five ten people and praise God for who He is. It sounded kind of cheesy, but we did it (if nothing else, we pastors are obedient to the worship leader!), and it was cool. In fact, the energy in the room went through the roof.
Bill Hybels was our main speaker. He was impressive because he was so humble and vulnerable. He talked about listening to God's voice - God's whisper - and obeying, and how everything he has accomplished (which is tremendous) was simply because he listened and obeyed when God whispered to him. Awesome!
We went to hear J. P. Moreland in the seminar series, and he is brilliant. He was talking about signs and wonders and the one big thing I got from his talk was that we, as humans, are supposed to do the signs and wonders that Jesus did while he was here walking around on earth... fully human. But one reason we don't is because we don't practice, and the spiritual disciplines are there for that reason. Disciplines like self-denial (fasting, serving others, praying for others) and the discipline of living a life of gratitude are important for this.
In the afternoon, we took off to see San Diego. We too
k the bus to Balboa Park, which was beautiful. We hit the Air and Space Museum, specifically to see the Leonardo da Vinci exhibit, which showed a lot of his inventions and artwork. It was amazing to think that he was doing this inventing around 1500! Balboa Park was fantastically beautiful, and we enjoyed walking around and looking at stuff.
When we finally made it home (after having a little bit of a time figuring out which bus to take), we had dinner and went to the evening session. The worship (Tommy Walker again) was wonderful. Taylor Mason did some comedy, which was extremely funny (whoever thought a puppeteer could be so funny?). The main speaker was Christopher Wright, and his speaking style was very dry, and since Rudy and I both found ourselves falling asleep, we went back to the room to snooze.
When we got back to the room, I was looking at our NPC book and found that not only had my picture been used for the website (the one where I'm running), but there, on the front of the book, is a picture of me, sitting and reading a book. I'm so famous.
When we finally made it home (after having a little bit of a time figuring out which bus to take), we had dinner and went to the evening session. The worship (Tommy Walker again) was wonderful. Taylor Mason did some comedy, which was extremely funny (whoever thought a puppeteer could be so funny?). The main speaker was Christopher Wright, and his speaking style was very dry, and since Rudy and I both found ourselves falling asleep, we went back to the room to snooze.
When we got back to the room, I was looking at our NPC book and found that not only had my picture been used for the website (the one where I'm running), but there, on the front of the book, is a picture of me, sitting and reading a book. I'm so famous.
Blogging From the NPC: Day 2, Post 2
The afternoon included a trip to the ocean for a run with the Runner's Club. It was fantastic. The view was beautiful, and the company was great. We ran out into the wind at an 8:30/mile pace, but when we turned around, we jacked it up to 7:30s. It was awesome. I don't usually get to to a harder workout with anyone else. Come to think of it, I don't usually get to run with anyone else at all!
I got back in time for the second half of USA-Mexico's soccer game... in Columbus, Ohio. Yes, I had to watch the game on TV. But I was extremely happy (and completely unsurprised) at the 2-0 result. I had predicted it, but that's nothing because we always seem to beat them 2-0 when we play on US soil.
In the evening, Tommy Walker led worship, and he was on fire. I seriously almost shot my voice singing "Hallelujah" to God at the top of my lungs. Something I really enjoy about being here is something I enjoy about worship at Millersport UMC; I can sing at the top of my voice, raise my hands, clap, and worship in whatever posture seems right. But Tommy Walker is a fantastic worship leader. He's got a ton of charisma, but it never seemed like it was about him at all.
Then we were treated to Rob Bell interviewing Shane Hipps, a genius who has a lot to say about the media we use to share the Gospel. His view, from an extremely high-powered advertiser's standpoint, is that the medium is the message. He got me intrigued enough to buy his book. I am interested in what he has to say about it. The one reason I don't know if I can go all out with him on this is because the message isn't merely words, our message is a Living Word...
The keynote speaker for this evening was Will Willimon. I was excited to see him and hear him speak, because I have seen him before, and he delivered a challenging, biblical message. Not to mention that he's a UMC bishop who usually has something insightful to say (and is thus a reminder to others that the UMC isn't so bad). To say that this evening's presentation was disappointing would be an extreme understatement. Not only did he disappoint, but he made me angry. Not the "This guy has different views than I do" kind of angry, but the "don't talk about my mama" kind of angry.
You see, his entire presentation was pretty much stand-up comedy blasting "the laity." And the way he said "laity" made it sound like laity was something you might find stuck to the bottom of your shoe following a nice stroll through a dog park. He just blasted away at them, going so far as to say, "Church isn't where the faithful disciples gather; it's where Jesus is crucified between thieves." He related story after story about horrible lay people. He ended up with a picture of Jesus and the thief on the cross... being the first "lay person" in heaven, and guess what: when we get to heaven, we'll have to put up with those same horrible lay people.
And then he walked off the stage.
I was so mad, because the lay people he was blasting are people who pray for me (and my family) daily. They are people who are passionate about Jesus. They are people who have welcomed me and my family to a new town and have embraced us as their friends. They are people who Jesus died for. They are the Church, the Bride of Jesus Christ, and he loves the laity. Sure, they are sinners, and certainly there are bad churches and bad situations and some of the "sheep" certainly have teeth, but in the morning session, we just got finished forgiving these very people!
At the end of the session, Ken Medema brought his unique brand of improv music. The guy is a freaking genius. He synthesizes the entire content of the session (including comedians, artists, special music, interviews, worship, and the main message) into one song, and his use of dynamics, different sounds, different styles of music is moving and soul touching.
The afternoon included a trip to the ocean for a run with the Runner's Club. It was fantastic. The view was beautiful, and the company was great. We ran out into the wind at an 8:30/mile pace, but when we turned around, we jacked it up to 7:30s. It was awesome. I don't usually get to to a harder workout with anyone else. Come to think of it, I don't usually get to run with anyone else at all!
I got back in time for the second half of USA-Mexico's soccer game... in Columbus, Ohio. Yes, I had to watch the game on TV. But I was extremely happy (and completely unsurprised) at the 2-0 result. I had predicted it, but that's nothing because we always seem to beat them 2-0 when we play on US soil.
In the evening, Tommy Walker led worship, and he was on fire. I seriously almost shot my voice singing "Hallelujah" to God at the top of my lungs. Something I really enjoy about being here is something I enjoy about worship at Millersport UMC; I can sing at the top of my voice, raise my hands, clap, and worship in whatever posture seems right. But Tommy Walker is a fantastic worship leader. He's got a ton of charisma, but it never seemed like it was about him at all.
Then we were treated to Rob Bell interviewing Shane Hipps, a genius who has a lot to say about the media we use to share the Gospel. His view, from an extremely high-powered advertiser's standpoint, is that the medium is the message. He got me intrigued enough to buy his book. I am interested in what he has to say about it. The one reason I don't know if I can go all out with him on this is because the message isn't merely words, our message is a Living Word...
The keynote speaker for this evening was Will Willimon. I was excited to see him and hear him speak, because I have seen him before, and he delivered a challenging, biblical message. Not to mention that he's a UMC bishop who usually has something insightful to say (and is thus a reminder to others that the UMC isn't so bad). To say that this evening's presentation was disappointing would be an extreme understatement. Not only did he disappoint, but he made me angry. Not the "This guy has different views than I do" kind of angry, but the "don't talk about my mama" kind of angry.
You see, his entire presentation was pretty much stand-up comedy blasting "the laity." And the way he said "laity" made it sound like laity was something you might find stuck to the bottom of your shoe following a nice stroll through a dog park. He just blasted away at them, going so far as to say, "Church isn't where the faithful disciples gather; it's where Jesus is crucified between thieves." He related story after story about horrible lay people. He ended up with a picture of Jesus and the thief on the cross... being the first "lay person" in heaven, and guess what: when we get to heaven, we'll have to put up with those same horrible lay people.
And then he walked off the stage.
I was so mad, because the lay people he was blasting are people who pray for me (and my family) daily. They are people who are passionate about Jesus. They are people who have welcomed me and my family to a new town and have embraced us as their friends. They are people who Jesus died for. They are the Church, the Bride of Jesus Christ, and he loves the laity. Sure, they are sinners, and certainly there are bad churches and bad situations and some of the "sheep" certainly have teeth, but in the morning session, we just got finished forgiving these very people!
At the end of the session, Ken Medema brought his unique brand of improv music. The guy is a freaking genius. He synthesizes the entire content of the session (including comedians, artists, special music, interviews, worship, and the main message) into one song, and his use of dynamics, different sounds, different styles of music is moving and soul touching.
Thursday, February 12, 2009
Blogging From the NPC: Day 2
Day 2 began with a fantastic run with my friends from the NPC Runners Club. Two runs, if you want to be specific (only 2 miles each, for a total of 4). I got to catch up with my friends Tom (from Zondervan), Kevin (from Lexington), and Randy, who I hung out most with last year.
Then it was time for the first main session of the day. It was fantastic. The musical group Sons of Korah played their unique arrangements of several Psalms. They were unlike anyone I've ever heard, and their music was wonderful.
Nazareth, a very funny man, brought us comedy as well. This morning the crowd was a little warmer than we were for Bob Stromberg's routine yesterday (he was extremely funny, but the crowd was pretty stiff for the first day - perhaps I wasn't the only one with a little jetlag!)
The highlight for the morning session was Rob Bell, who didn't at all go where I thought he would. I thought he would go along the "Everything is Spiritual" route, but he didn't. He talked about the hurts that church people lay upon their pastors (I'll blog more about these when I have my notes with me), and that was really funny (especially when he referred to the complaints that come veiled thinly within complements: he called them "chocolate covered turds"). He originally came onto the stage pushing a shopping cart, and when he came to the end of his message, we found out why. His talk turned to forgivenes, and he asked us to write the names of people we needed to forgive and to drop those names into the shopping cart. Some people were slam-dunking their names, but the atmosphere was so entirely healing!
After lunch, it was time for some relaxation, which included finding Argentina v. France on TV. Then it was out to the beach for a run with some friends from the Runners Club; it was windy and beautiful. We ran another 4 miles (at an average pace of 8 minute miles).
Speaking of running, if I'm going to run with the gang, I need to conclude this blog entry and get over there.
Day 2 began with a fantastic run with my friends from the NPC Runners Club. Two runs, if you want to be specific (only 2 miles each, for a total of 4). I got to catch up with my friends Tom (from Zondervan), Kevin (from Lexington), and Randy, who I hung out most with last year.
Then it was time for the first main session of the day. It was fantastic. The musical group Sons of Korah played their unique arrangements of several Psalms. They were unlike anyone I've ever heard, and their music was wonderful.
Nazareth, a very funny man, brought us comedy as well. This morning the crowd was a little warmer than we were for Bob Stromberg's routine yesterday (he was extremely funny, but the crowd was pretty stiff for the first day - perhaps I wasn't the only one with a little jetlag!)
The highlight for the morning session was Rob Bell, who didn't at all go where I thought he would. I thought he would go along the "Everything is Spiritual" route, but he didn't. He talked about the hurts that church people lay upon their pastors (I'll blog more about these when I have my notes with me), and that was really funny (especially when he referred to the complaints that come veiled thinly within complements: he called them "chocolate covered turds"). He originally came onto the stage pushing a shopping cart, and when he came to the end of his message, we found out why. His talk turned to forgivenes, and he asked us to write the names of people we needed to forgive and to drop those names into the shopping cart. Some people were slam-dunking their names, but the atmosphere was so entirely healing!
After lunch, it was time for some relaxation, which included finding Argentina v. France on TV. Then it was out to the beach for a run with some friends from the Runners Club; it was windy and beautiful. We ran another 4 miles (at an average pace of 8 minute miles).
Speaking of running, if I'm going to run with the gang, I need to conclude this blog entry and get over there.
Wednesday, February 11, 2009
Blogging from the NPC: Day 1
We made it in plenty of time to get some food and go to the first main session. Efram Smith spoke from Ezekiel 37 (the Valley of the Dry Bones). It was hard to stay focused because I was pretty tired, but his point was that Jesus is alive(!) and that means He breathes His breath into us and makes us alive, too. One of the best comments he made was about our current political situation:
An economic bailout is simply the government putting tendons, flesh, and skin on the dry bones, but only the LORD God can breathe breath into us.
Following the session, I went to Don Everts' session on Understanding the Postmodern Skeptic's Path to Faith. It was fantastic. I really appreciated Don's relational teaching style, which was full of stories. He focused on five thresholds through which a skeptic must pass in order to come to life-saving faith in Jesus Christ.
They first have to trust a Christian, then become curious about Jesus, then be willing to change, then move from meandering to truly seeking, then finally make the decision to be a Christ-follower.
It was very freeing from a pattern that (perhaps unconsciously) stressed "sealing the deal" and led to a lot of misunderstandings about evangelism (especially how to do it in a post-Christian culture). It was a good reminder that evangelism takes a long time, if you want to do it, you've got to be in it for the long haul, and our best technique is to live out a true, vibrant, living faith in front of our skeptical friends. It was a very well done seminar.
After the seminar, we were pretty well beat, so we skipped out on Shane Claiborne's session and had a leisurely dinner. Our server was very cool and was kind of surprised that we just wanted to sit and enjoy our dinner. He doesn't see that very much. We made sure he knew we were pastors here for the NPC, and then we stiffed him on his tip and gave him a tract instead.
KIDDING!
No, we tipped like we should, and we also told his manager what a good job he'd done. Then it was back to the hotel for some debriefing and finally beautiful sleep!
We made it in plenty of time to get some food and go to the first main session. Efram Smith spoke from Ezekiel 37 (the Valley of the Dry Bones). It was hard to stay focused because I was pretty tired, but his point was that Jesus is alive(!) and that means He breathes His breath into us and makes us alive, too. One of the best comments he made was about our current political situation:
An economic bailout is simply the government putting tendons, flesh, and skin on the dry bones, but only the LORD God can breathe breath into us.
Following the session, I went to Don Everts' session on Understanding the Postmodern Skeptic's Path to Faith. It was fantastic. I really appreciated Don's relational teaching style, which was full of stories. He focused on five thresholds through which a skeptic must pass in order to come to life-saving faith in Jesus Christ.
They first have to trust a Christian, then become curious about Jesus, then be willing to change, then move from meandering to truly seeking, then finally make the decision to be a Christ-follower.
It was very freeing from a pattern that (perhaps unconsciously) stressed "sealing the deal" and led to a lot of misunderstandings about evangelism (especially how to do it in a post-Christian culture). It was a good reminder that evangelism takes a long time, if you want to do it, you've got to be in it for the long haul, and our best technique is to live out a true, vibrant, living faith in front of our skeptical friends. It was a very well done seminar.
After the seminar, we were pretty well beat, so we skipped out on Shane Claiborne's session and had a leisurely dinner. Our server was very cool and was kind of surprised that we just wanted to sit and enjoy our dinner. He doesn't see that very much. We made sure he knew we were pastors here for the NPC, and then we stiffed him on his tip and gave him a tract instead.
KIDDING!
No, we tipped like we should, and we also told his manager what a good job he'd done. Then it was back to the hotel for some debriefing and finally beautiful sleep!
Blogging from the NPC: Day 1: Getting Here
Tuesday morning started early, as Barb W graciously volunteered to pick Rudy and me up at 5:00 to bring us to the airport. Of course, both of us had used our time so wisely that our 4:30 alarm clocks brought us bouncing out of our beds, bright eyed and bushy tailed, ready for everything (or maybe we were each up late into the night doing laundry and packing).
The flight to San Diego was uneventful; there were a lot of open seats, so we got to spread out, which was nice. We met a character named Andy who was going to Las Vegas (for his 10th time in <3 years); he was very amusing. Most amusing was his little baggie of airport-sized bottles of Jack Daniels, for which he was scolded by Nurse Diesel, the flight attendant who mostly dealt with first class. She dealt with him as if she was a teacher and he was a misbehaving high schooler. This might even go on his permanant record!
One note about US Airways; those commercials you see where the airline keeps jacking up the prices? That's definitely them (if not others). If you check a bag (one bag), that's $15. If you want snacks, that's $5. A drink? $2-7. etc. etc.
Once we got to San Diego, we got a cab to the resort. Our room is in the opposite corner from the room I had last year, which means it is closer to the convention hall AND to the food sources. Nice. When they found that we were from Ohio, everyone kept asking us if it was warmer there than here. I wouldn't know. All I know is that it feels fantastic to be in San Diego. Rudy and I are thinking that it might be prudent to move Millersport here.
Tuesday morning started early, as Barb W graciously volunteered to pick Rudy and me up at 5:00 to bring us to the airport. Of course, both of us had used our time so wisely that our 4:30 alarm clocks brought us bouncing out of our beds, bright eyed and bushy tailed, ready for everything (or maybe we were each up late into the night doing laundry and packing).
The flight to San Diego was uneventful; there were a lot of open seats, so we got to spread out, which was nice. We met a character named Andy who was going to Las Vegas (for his 10th time in <3 years); he was very amusing. Most amusing was his little baggie of airport-sized bottles of Jack Daniels, for which he was scolded by Nurse Diesel, the flight attendant who mostly dealt with first class. She dealt with him as if she was a teacher and he was a misbehaving high schooler. This might even go on his permanant record!
One note about US Airways; those commercials you see where the airline keeps jacking up the prices? That's definitely them (if not others). If you check a bag (one bag), that's $15. If you want snacks, that's $5. A drink? $2-7. etc. etc.
Once we got to San Diego, we got a cab to the resort. Our room is in the opposite corner from the room I had last year, which means it is closer to the convention hall AND to the food sources. Nice. When they found that we were from Ohio, everyone kept asking us if it was warmer there than here. I wouldn't know. All I know is that it feels fantastic to be in San Diego. Rudy and I are thinking that it might be prudent to move Millersport here.
Tuesday, December 09, 2008
Getting Pumped for the NPC
As the weather around here gets gloomy and wintry, I can't help but look forward to Zondervan's National Pastors Convention. I checked out their website just to make sure that the Runners Club would be meeting, and I found that we would... but more than that, I found that Zondervan had made me famous.
The guy in the yellow shirt... yeah, that's me. I'm thinking it was one of the later runs - after our regular 3 mile run, when we'd hit the hill climb.
For me, running isn't just about running, and running with other people is real fellowship. Running is about worship as well.
I'm looking forward to getting back to the NPC. Kudos to Zondervan, the Air Force Chaplains, and Tom Dean for allowing us to worship in body as well as spirit at the NPC!
As the weather around here gets gloomy and wintry, I can't help but look forward to Zondervan's National Pastors Convention. I checked out their website just to make sure that the Runners Club would be meeting, and I found that we would... but more than that, I found that Zondervan had made me famous.
The guy in the yellow shirt... yeah, that's me. I'm thinking it was one of the later runs - after our regular 3 mile run, when we'd hit the hill climb.
For me, running isn't just about running, and running with other people is real fellowship. Running is about worship as well.
I'm looking forward to getting back to the NPC. Kudos to Zondervan, the Air Force Chaplains, and Tom Dean for allowing us to worship in body as well as spirit at the NPC!
Tuesday, March 04, 2008
From Neal's Blog
Remember how I said that Neal was going to blog about all the so-called scandals from NPC? Well, this is an excerpt from Neal's blog.
Look what we found from the San Diego Sheriff (museum). Apparently somebody skipped out of the conference (on Friday afternoon, after the conference was done) and went crazy in Old Town.
Word has it he was busted by a motorcycle cop.
Remember how I said that Neal was going to blog about all the so-called scandals from NPC? Well, this is an excerpt from Neal's blog.
Look what we found from the San Diego Sheriff (museum). Apparently somebody skipped out of the conference (on Friday afternoon, after the conference was done) and went crazy in Old Town.
Word has it he was busted by a motorcycle cop.Monday, March 03, 2008
More Thoughts from the NPC
OK, technically these thoughts are "about" the NPC, as I've returned home, but that really doesn't matter, does it?
I still sing the praises of Tom Dean from Zondervan who organized the NPC Runners Club. Not only did we get to meet and fellowship with some great people (the best people at the conference, in my oh so biased opinion), not only did we get free breakfast (the first day notwithstanding), but we also each got a slick technical t-shirt. It was really something seeing nearly everyone wearing that shirt on the last day.
N.T. Wright is a genius.
Jeff Allen brought his comedy to the NPC - though I've seen him several times (and if you buy the "Bananas" DVD and look carefully in the audience shots, you can see me there - my 15 minutes of fame) he was tears-rolling-down-your-face funny. Again. That guy hits a grand slam every time he gets behind the mic.
I went to a couple of seminars - one was a panel discussion on the Missional Church. Besides the fact that they spent a whole lot of time trying to define terms, the thing that bothers me is that it didn't seem like they have any real idea of how to transform a "non-missional" church into a missional church. The experts were all in church plants.
It seemed like they'd work for a while in an existing church, then they'd start a new service, then they'd run afoul of the local church governing body, so they'd break off and start a new church. Maybe that is the way to do "missional" church, but it doesn't seem helpful to the greater body. I'm not the expert, but it seems to me that we need each other.
The missional church seems to be light on structure and shuns the "purpose driven" intentionality that churches have been embracing recently. That life just happens, and living life as a Christian is a huge aspect of evangelism. To have a gathering of like-minded people who live it out (in word and deed) is attractive to outsiders. Sometimes intentional evangelism can make the targets feel like, well, targets. Who wants to be befriended just as a project? I'd rather have someone like me for me, not just to get me into their church (As a pastor, I experience that in this way: I'd rather have someone like me as Brian, not just because I'm the pastor - I don't believe it's a stretch to experience that from the non-Christian/Christian view).
I hope it really works out that way. But I believe for the existing church to do that takes intentional, purposeful work, and I believe that every Christian is called to a life of evangelism, not just those in so-called missional churches.
I also hit a similar seminar (led by one of the panelists from the missional church discussion) about the book They Like Jesus But Not the Church. This is great material, and I have been hearing it for a while (not the book itself, but the basic premise that Dan Kimball is explaining). The thing is: he hits the nail on the head. Young people are more and more attracted to Jesus, but they don't like the institutional church. This is probably why the missional church is being decreasingly involved in mainstream or existing congregations: because these churches are not being able to have the impact they should because of increasingly negative perceptions (or misperceptions - though perception ends up being reality) of the church.
We were unfortunately not able to get much into the "what to do about it" - but I'm guessing it would be something like this: live an authentic Christian life. Don't use Christianeze. When bringing a seeker to church, sit with them and explain what's going on. Fashion a worship service in such a way as to usher believers and seekers into God's presence - not simply entertain them or expose them to our unexplained traditions.
Another seminar I hit was one Bob Rognlein led on experiential worship. It was fantastic. He told us that we need to involve a large group of people in the creation of experiential worship services. The idea that we should be worshiping with all of our senses is a key - I've been sensing that people's senses have largely been unengaged in general worship services, and I've wanted to do something about it...
Ken Medema wowed us (again). He composed an original song after every general session, in which he integrated the MC's stage banter, the comedian, the worship set, and the main speaker. He was funny, musical, and poignant.
Finally, one of my running buddies kept joking that embarrassing things (or twisted words) would end up in his blog. We laughed about blogs being a "Christian" way to avoid any accountability while at the same time calling others to account. So through the rest of the week, if something came up that could be embarrassing, we'd say, "That's going in Neal's blog." (things like when my friend Randy and I went to the San Diego Sheriff's Museum and saw all sorts of cool stuff, including all manner of prison shanks and drug items... So I joked that we'd read in Neal's blog that we'd been the owners of said items.
Randy and I took Friday afternoon (after the conference ended at noon) to sightsee. We hit Old Town San Diego and learned about the history. There seemed to be some first-person interpretation, but most of the places we went in were self-guided tours with lots of pictures and written explanations. Once we figured out the trolley system, we got there in no time.
also visited a museum of the Mormon Battalion, in which we got some (rather stilted) history of the battalion that blazed a westward trail some 2000 miles (this was some sort of issue of suffering for their faith, but I couldn't quite figure that out). We thought we were going to get a Mormon hard-sell from the young lady who told us about the battalion, but when we weren't interested in the Book of Mormon that she almost offered us and when we didn't show any interest in filling out her forms, she let us be.
That's about it. It was a great trip, and well worth my while.
OK, technically these thoughts are "about" the NPC, as I've returned home, but that really doesn't matter, does it?
I still sing the praises of Tom Dean from Zondervan who organized the NPC Runners Club. Not only did we get to meet and fellowship with some great people (the best people at the conference, in my oh so biased opinion), not only did we get free breakfast (the first day notwithstanding), but we also each got a slick technical t-shirt. It was really something seeing nearly everyone wearing that shirt on the last day.
N.T. Wright is a genius.
Jeff Allen brought his comedy to the NPC - though I've seen him several times (and if you buy the "Bananas" DVD and look carefully in the audience shots, you can see me there - my 15 minutes of fame) he was tears-rolling-down-your-face funny. Again. That guy hits a grand slam every time he gets behind the mic.
I went to a couple of seminars - one was a panel discussion on the Missional Church. Besides the fact that they spent a whole lot of time trying to define terms, the thing that bothers me is that it didn't seem like they have any real idea of how to transform a "non-missional" church into a missional church. The experts were all in church plants.
It seemed like they'd work for a while in an existing church, then they'd start a new service, then they'd run afoul of the local church governing body, so they'd break off and start a new church. Maybe that is the way to do "missional" church, but it doesn't seem helpful to the greater body. I'm not the expert, but it seems to me that we need each other.
The missional church seems to be light on structure and shuns the "purpose driven" intentionality that churches have been embracing recently. That life just happens, and living life as a Christian is a huge aspect of evangelism. To have a gathering of like-minded people who live it out (in word and deed) is attractive to outsiders. Sometimes intentional evangelism can make the targets feel like, well, targets. Who wants to be befriended just as a project? I'd rather have someone like me for me, not just to get me into their church (As a pastor, I experience that in this way: I'd rather have someone like me as Brian, not just because I'm the pastor - I don't believe it's a stretch to experience that from the non-Christian/Christian view).
I hope it really works out that way. But I believe for the existing church to do that takes intentional, purposeful work, and I believe that every Christian is called to a life of evangelism, not just those in so-called missional churches.
I also hit a similar seminar (led by one of the panelists from the missional church discussion) about the book They Like Jesus But Not the Church. This is great material, and I have been hearing it for a while (not the book itself, but the basic premise that Dan Kimball is explaining). The thing is: he hits the nail on the head. Young people are more and more attracted to Jesus, but they don't like the institutional church. This is probably why the missional church is being decreasingly involved in mainstream or existing congregations: because these churches are not being able to have the impact they should because of increasingly negative perceptions (or misperceptions - though perception ends up being reality) of the church.
We were unfortunately not able to get much into the "what to do about it" - but I'm guessing it would be something like this: live an authentic Christian life. Don't use Christianeze. When bringing a seeker to church, sit with them and explain what's going on. Fashion a worship service in such a way as to usher believers and seekers into God's presence - not simply entertain them or expose them to our unexplained traditions.
Another seminar I hit was one Bob Rognlein led on experiential worship. It was fantastic. He told us that we need to involve a large group of people in the creation of experiential worship services. The idea that we should be worshiping with all of our senses is a key - I've been sensing that people's senses have largely been unengaged in general worship services, and I've wanted to do something about it...
Ken Medema wowed us (again). He composed an original song after every general session, in which he integrated the MC's stage banter, the comedian, the worship set, and the main speaker. He was funny, musical, and poignant.
Finally, one of my running buddies kept joking that embarrassing things (or twisted words) would end up in his blog. We laughed about blogs being a "Christian" way to avoid any accountability while at the same time calling others to account. So through the rest of the week, if something came up that could be embarrassing, we'd say, "That's going in Neal's blog." (things like when my friend Randy and I went to the San Diego Sheriff's Museum and saw all sorts of cool stuff, including all manner of prison shanks and drug items... So I joked that we'd read in Neal's blog that we'd been the owners of said items.
Randy and I took Friday afternoon (after the conference ended at noon) to sightsee. We hit Old Town San Diego and learned about the history. There seemed to be some first-person interpretation, but most of the places we went in were self-guided tours with lots of pictures and written explanations. Once we figured out the trolley system, we got there in no time.
also visited a museum of the Mormon Battalion, in which we got some (rather stilted) history of the battalion that blazed a westward trail some 2000 miles (this was some sort of issue of suffering for their faith, but I couldn't quite figure that out). We thought we were going to get a Mormon hard-sell from the young lady who told us about the battalion, but when we weren't interested in the Book of Mormon that she almost offered us and when we didn't show any interest in filling out her forms, she let us be.
That's about it. It was a great trip, and well worth my while.
Friday, February 29, 2008
Thursday, February 28, 2008
More from the NPC
Day 3 of the NPC is beginning, and there's been so much going on that it's going to be hard to summarize before the runners' club meets. But here are some highlights:
Day 3 of the NPC is beginning, and there's been so much going on that it's going to be hard to summarize before the runners' club meets. But here are some highlights:
Erwin McManus gave a great talk based on his book Soul Cravings. His main point was that people (all people) crave certain things, including love and significance. Great stuff.
Brenda Salter McNeil can preach. I remember years ago when she taught us back when I was n Northwestern's InterVarsity, and she's just gotten even better. Inspiring and practical with a huge dose of emotion and firey preaching. Wow.
The runners club has still been one of my personal highlights - it's kind of hard being an extrovert here by myself, but the runners club has given me a chance to meet some guys and to talk and fellowship while we run. Yesterday I led a group of 4 up the hill after we'd run our first 3 miles. One of them was from Lexington and we found a connection with Lexington Christian Academy (where I got m soccer coaching start). That was great.
Swimming outdoors in February? You've got to be kidding!
Worship that I didn't have to plan? Great - but I find that it's hard to not have a part in it other than "just" a singer.
Time to hit the road again!
Tuesday, February 26, 2008
Blogging From the NPC
I am here at the National Pastors Convention in sunny San Diego, CA! Things haven't started for me yet, but I did get to participate in the NPC Runners' Club this morning. I ran about a mile or a little more to warm up before stretching, then a group of 15-20 of us said a prayer together and hit the road. We did a 3 mile loop (mostly around the mall that's right behind the convention center), but when we got back, one guy asked who wanted to run more - including up the big hill overlooking Mission Valley. I had been asking everyone before we ran when we were going to attack the hill... so of course I went. It was beautiful.
But when we got back, they had already cleared out the promised drinks, fruit, and yogurt! Teach us to go the extra mile(s)!!
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