Sunday Night Football Goes Dark Green

I’m all for recycling, using less electricity, organic foods, etc., but this is just overboard.  NBC has gone green this week, which is fine.  It is great to show people how think responsibly and develop a love for the earth we are here to care for. But it all comes down to execution, and this one as way off. 

NBC’s way of showing what is environmentally responsible was to do the Sunday Night Football halftime show in the dark.  You think I’m kidding.  I’m not.  Watch the video. 

We got a kick out of it as they had candles going and glow sticks, and Matt Laurer was up in the Arctic Circle freezing his behind off – also in the dark.  How reminiscent of Jimmy Carter.

It is kind of funny in one of those sad ways.  You know, where someone tries too hard and blows it.  Like the guy in Swingers who leaves 7 messages on the answering machine of a girl he just met.  Self implosion.

Seriously, what is the message here? That I should sit in the dark too?  Sorry NBC.  I want to care; I really do, but you guys have got to get a grip on reality here. 

 

God is Going to Get You!

The Bible makes it clear that God is involved in our world and that political powers get their power from God – both believing political leaders and unbelieving. This was the lesson Nebuchadnezzar had to learn in the book of Daniel.

So what does that judgement look like today?

Fred Phelps claims that God is judging America due to our tolerance of homosexuality, and that this is manifest in the deaths of our soldiers at war.  Pat Robertson links terrorism and Hurricane Katrina to abortion.  Muslims claim that God is judging America.  Some Muslims feel they are called to be that judgement ala 9-11.  

There is an awful lot of judgement going around.  Tornados are judgement.  Hurricanes.  Volcanoes.  Just about any natural disaster.  And then there are wars.  Diseases.  Sometimes I’m afraid to go outside.  It is the proverbial lightening bolt from the sky.

God certainly can use any method He wants to accomplish His will.  But I wonder if judgement might look at little different? 

I wonder how our pride and arrogance, sins that sow seeds of resentment, play into our global politics?  I wonder how sins of stewardship with both money and the natural world play out over time?  I wonder how the sin of self-righteousness inhibits the sharing of the gospel?  I wonder.

Don’t get me wrong.  I’m not here to cast judgement, or maybe I am.  I just think sometimes Christians should first look inwardly for the effects of sin and its consequences before stepping up to the microphone and blaming tragedies on someone else’s sin.

What do you think?

 

More Hate

Sorry, Fred Phelps.  I’m taking away your megaphone.  You don’t speak for all Christians.

The church’s founder and pastor, Fred Phelps, took the stand after Snyder and prompted a strong admonition from Bennett when the pastor said he had not considered whether children would see a sign carried by protesters with the words “Semper Fi Fags” and two stick figures that appear to be engaged in sodomy.

“No, it’s an irrelevancy,” Phelps said.

Bennett then interjected sharply.

“Just answer the question, sir. Don’t determine what’s relevant or not relevant. You just answer the question,” Bennett said.

Phelps said he chose to use the term “fag” in the group’s signs because it comes from scripture but could also have used Sodomite or dog. When asked by Katz why the group made a “Semper Fi Fags” sign, Phelps said it was in response to the need for a warning to the country “that your wicked ways are going to be your doom shortly.”

Here is a picture from Wikipedia.

What am embarrassment for Christians.  Here is Fred’s website if you want to take a look: http://www.godhatesfags.com/ .  The truth is we are all broken sexually.  We have all fallen short of God’s glory.  We are all in this boat together.  I do not have a stone to throw.  I do have grace to offer. Grace that was shared with me from Jesus.

Updated: Fred Phelps lost the civil case of his picketing fallen soldier’s funerals.   The defendents were ordered to pay $2.9M.  The church argued in their defense that the deaths of American soldiers was due to America’s tolerance of homosexuals. 

I’m glad they lost the case, but I wonder what the long term effect will be on free speech. What do you think?

 

Eating Alone

I’ve been traveling in NYC again.  I love NYC, but I hate eating alone.  If I’m ever on a trip with you don’t be surprised if I ask you multiple times to have dinner with me. 

 

Last night I was eating by myself at a restaurant in Chelsea, and I decided to listen in on what the people next to me were saying. 

It is ‘the man.’  No, they are all in his pocket -  Hillary, Giuliani – all of them.  You saw what happened to Kennedy when he didn’t pay ‘the man.’  ‘The man’ takes care of his own, takes care of business.  You do not cross ‘the man’.

At this point I’m wondering if I’m going to get shot for overhearing some mob guys talk about the boss.  From there it went into more normal things about his fiance and how she wrote this full on romantic poem for him for his birthday, how one guy was taking the other out for his birthday, how to eat Lobster, and why people have kids.

 

Yes, if I’m eating alone and sitting near you I am listening in.  Beware. 

 

Going South of the Border

This article was written in 2000, but totally talks about the things I have mentioned before, but does so much better and gives positive steps to take to correct the wide spread problems of missions trips to Mexico.

“Could it be true that a good portion of our short term missions effort actually hinders God’s work?

Popular cross-cultural evangelistic programs are based on given assumptions. Some of these can actually impede the progress of contributing to a healthy, indigenous local church.

This article explores these assumptions and the problems of dependency that have grown out of short-term missions. Specific emphasis is given to work in poorer Mexican settlements along the U.S./Mexican border, identifying problems and giving practical suggestions for improvement.”

http://www.missionfrontiers.org/2000/03/mexico.htm

 

Consistency

Something I didn’t expect a Missions Fest Seattle was the consistency of the call for churches to enter into local missions.  I was under the impressions that the movement to local was still emerging.  Not so.  Every mission speaker and session I attended talked about the importance of local missions and how the church needs to respond.  Expect to hear more about this in your local church soon.

 

New Conspirators

Tom Sine has a good overview of what he calls the new conspirators in the church today.  He breaks it down this way:

• Emerging edge
• Missional churches
• Mosaics
• New monasticism

The difference between emerging and missional is interesting.  The emerging church is more of a movement, grass roots and organic, and focused on new forms or modes of church and worship.  In fact, the emerging church in many ways expands the definition of church way beyond what many Christians would be comfortable with.

Missional churches take on more traditional forms of church, and often are connected to existing denominations, but they completely turn on its head what church is about.  Missional churches are primarily concerned with the praxia or practice of the gospel, and how to get their congregations to live out that life.  They are less concerned with programs that are focused on existing church members.  Missional churches are focused outward.

This gives a bit of hope to existing churches.  You may know the news is bad.  Churches across the country are losing people under 35 in a big way, and this is at the same time that spirituality among young adults is on the rise.  Clearly something is broken in the way Christians do “church”.  Or to put it a different way, young adults see the brokenness, illnesses and wars of our time see those and crave a church that enters into culture and life to reconcile and heal.  Young adults say no thanks to churches that don’t break out of the four walls of the building.

This is hopeful though.  While many churches will not make the jump to the radical forms of the emerging church, many churches may be able to turn their focus from inward to outward.  This is my prayer.  If the church turns its focus onto our neighborhoods and communities we will no doubt see the third great awakening sweep across our world.

Tom’s book is above.  I haven’t read it so it isn’t an endorsement, but if you are interested in a book with a different slant on typical, suburban churches and what the future of the church may hold you may be interested.

 

Invisible

One of the themes I’m seeing throughout the conversations at Missions Fest Seattle is of invisible barriers and bridges. 

With barriers there are many things we think are barriers that don’t really exist.  I’m excited and ashamed.  I’m excited to see the diversity of people and groups who are living out the mission in amazing ways.  I’m ashamed to realize how far I am behind.  How far my church is behind.  There are plenty of opportunities and ideas to get involved.  Lots of resources exist.  Lack of resources is an invisible barrier.

There are also invisible bridges.  I’m reminded of Indiana Jones in the movie the Last Crusade (okay, am I dating myself?  I hear they are working on Indiana Jones 4 to be released in the summer of 2008).  He gets to the gorge and there is no path to the other side – just a sheer drop off on both sides.  He makes a step of faith and discovers that there is an invisible bridge.  It was there all along.  He just had to take a step to find it.  It is a great scene.  Likewise the bridges to our communities are all around us.  We just have to make a move.

Real Life Interrupts

Turns out it is difficult to dial in and have these deep thoughts with a two year old in tow.  Our son just took his wind up car and plane and set them free down throughout the congregation here.  It is one of those amphitheater style churches, so they really got some momentum.  Funny stuff as you hear them shoot around the floor, and people cracking up and wondering what in the world was going on.  Meanwhile our kiddo starts yelling for his plane and car as he realizes they have taken off to the wild blue yonder some 10 rows or so down.  At this point we’ve totally disrupted the people in our section.

Funny but embarrassing.  “Oh, yes, that was us.  Sitting in the back.” 

Here’s a picture of the guilty party. 

 

Reconciliation

Art Beals and Barbara Williams-Skinner had some great words on the importance of reconciliation.  The requirement of Christians is to do justice, love mercy, and walk humbly – this is summed up in reconciliation.  The Bible says Jesus has reconciled all things to himself, but the ministry of making it happen is the Christian’s responsibility.  Think about all the things that need reconciliation:  East and West, rich and poor, Islam and Christian, beautiful and ugly, husbands and wives, and more.  Reconciliation is the business of the kingdom.

Dr Williams-Skinner had an interesting perspective from her journey as an African American woman.  She said her perspective has changed from one that was about racial divisions to a perspective that through Jesus has been changed to be about the kingdom.  Rather than focusing on divisions we should focus on reconciliation and making the kingdom a reality in the things we do and influence ever day in our life.  In her words:

Church is undergoing an identity crisis, and so Christians do not have the impact and power that they should have in our world and nation.  How is it that there are 100M Americans who claim to know Jesus and yet our streets, neighborhoods and schools are the way they are?

If the kingdom of God is in me what should that look like?  If the kingdom of God is in you how should that impact others?  We must move from being religious to being powerful in Christ.

Great points.  What are the people and issues in your community that need reconciliation?  What would kingdom on earth look link in your community?

 

Missions Fest Seattle

Have you ever wondered what is going on in missions and how that can be used to impact your local community?  So have I.

This weekend I and my family are attending Missions Fest Seattle.  It is a movement to increase awareness and involvement of local churches from the NW in missions.  They are hosting a free conference this weekend, and I and my family  (including kids!) are attending.  They have a neat kids program where they teach the children about different people groups around the world.  Tonight our four year old came home talking about the 10-40 window.  We picked up a world map and are going to draw the window in it with him tomorrow.

I’m really interested in the local missions aspect. How can I get involved in helping others in my local community?  And, how can I move my church in this direction as well.   I’ll blog the different events and speakers that I find interesting.

So what do you think?  What is your opinion on missions?  Local missions?  How are you involved? 

If you are not a Christian or on the fence, how do you perceive Christian missions?