Merry Christmas!!! 2.0

We in the Hull house are doing well! We are all healthy and well. Here are some things we have been doing to prepare for Christmas:

- Went to Christmas Eve service tonight at The Well! Then, of course, had to stay for the "sugar rush" hour of hanging out and eating goodies!
- Lit our advent candles
- Been reading through bits of the Christmas story through a cool calendar/mini-book/ornament thing we have (you pull the appropriate mini-book out and read it together and then someone hangs it on the tree as an ornament). This is WAY cool for use with the kids!
- Talking about the Christmas story over meals
- Shared what things we were glad we have been able to give this year (i.e. able to share our time serving, able to give the gift of hospitality, etc)

Here are our plans for Christmas day:
- Sleep in!! (yeah right, but I thought I'd attempt it!)
- Share the Christmas story together
- Share gifts
- Play (kids) and sleep (parents)
- Have some friends over for Christmas dinner! (Ham, cheesy potato casserole, fresh made bread, pies, yes!)
- Thank God for another great day and for Jesus!

New Blogger Beta is Good!

I just updated my blog to the new beta and it is far superior. One of the two major drags before were not being able to label the posts and not being able to easily manipulate your template. Both are remedied here and so my hats off to the Google folks for this upgrade. If you are in blog land, then I'd recommend the upgrade for sure.

Merry Christmas!

It's been a wild and wooly couple of weeks here in O-town, Kansas. First and most important is my wife's recent post with pics of our family! Since I know a good portion of you squatters out there (squatters = people who come and see but don't comment, which is fine) stop by only to see if there are any pics or stories of my fabulous children, you'll love these.

But in other news, the small project I'm working on - Nazarene Youth Confernce - Water Fire Wind -had the final week of its initial registration. We had almost 3000 registrations last week alone! This is good, but also means a lot of phone calls, emails, etc. So my office and I have been a tad busy. I do want and need to praise God ofr his faithfulness to us. In the times when I doubted He brought me the Holy Spirit (who often speaks through my wife!) to bring peace and hope.

Our family, including me (see above paragraph for context), has been battling some flu bug that includes fever and vomit. But we have survived and come out stronger!

We are now focusing all of our possible efforts on anticipating as a family the coming Christ. We are trying to "make the way straight" of our hearts for Christ's coming, removing obstacles and anticipating the good he brings. For Advent we have been using this calendar that has very small books in it. Each day leading up to Christmas we remove one of the books and read its portion of the Christmas story and then hang it on the tree. Our family LOVES this small ritual each day!

One final thing... my wife's name is Carol, as in Christmas Carol, because her birthday is Dec. 23rd! We are looking forward to that celebration too. You could drop her a birthday note on her blog!

Where we come from

It's always interesting to me how I try to think more highly of myself than I ought. I'd love to think that I'm somehow better, smarter, cleaner, more worthy than others. I don't know if it's natural to want to be special or something, but I know for me it is true.

I also know its not true. This is not in any way a reflection of how I feel about my own family, but rather the truth of me. I'm a sinner. I sin. I do things that I wish I didn't. I struggle with things that I wish I didn't. I react in ways that I should have outgrown long ago. But somehow God is changing me. God is making me new again. God is revealing himself in me as he changes my tastes, changes my ways. It's this part that I like and its this part that I'd like everyone to believe is the real me that has always been me... but it just ain't true.

But then none of us start so clean, so perfect. Look at Jesus. A boy born in a manager in a small town known for raising sheep (clean sheep mind you, but sheep nonetheless). A boy who grew up in the "blue collar" out of the way town called Nazareth. As it was said, "what good can come from Nazareth?" Even his lineage is not so clean. There's a prostitute in there plus plenty of other unsavory characters.

Where do we come from? It definitely impacts who we are, shapes us, forms us. But perhaps more important than where we come from, is where we are going and whose we are. If we are allowing God to form us, trying to obey and follow, trusting in Him, then perhaps that is what matters most.

I wonder how my own actions and identity would be different if I lived in that reality? A reality of anxiously expecting God to work in me, change me, form me, come to me, to us, to those who don't come from such great places.

BCS = Brian thinks College Football Postseason STINKS!

I will be the first to admit that I have not been lock-stock and two smokin' barrells sold out that a college football playoff is the way to go. I have a bit of traditionalism in my blood when it comes to college football. I like the rivalries that mean something because they've been rivalries for so long. I like the way college sports are broken down into leagues and that those games always mean more. I like that at the end of the college football season lots of teams have a chance to go to a "big game" and finish the season feeling like they accompished something. I like that while everyone will always say, "my team could beat yours," in college football there can be a lot of great teams who do well. The late, great Bo Schembecler used to always put highest priority on winning the Big 10 above anything else, and I think that thinking those ways helped a lot of people not be just good athletes, but good people.

I know there are many out there who have long disagreed with me and my thoughts about college football and the postseason. I also know your arguments so please don't send them to me as if somehow I'd never thought about the joy of clarity in determining a national champ on the field ("like in college basketball" you'd say, which i think is a totally broken and not appropriate anaolgy). I stood by thoughts and reasons when my mighty Wolverines could have played the cornpuff Cornhuskers and whooped their butts to outright when the national championship a few years ago. I have lived through the BCS fiasco year after year and yet somehow I remain loyal to the bowls and their system. I have also had to put up with the unfair, unscrupulous and downright completely biased agenda of all of TV to advance Notre Dame the school that should be ranked in the top 10 rarely, but always is AT LEAST 5 spots higher than they should be... because people want them to play in big games and come to their bowls because all their alumni are rich.

But NO MORE.

This year's farce of a finale to the season has brought me to change. It has shaken their earth to cosmic ptoportions. It has revealed clearly that the hearts of the NCAA and the BCS beat - which we all have known in our hearts all along, but have wanted desperately to believe wasn't true - money.

Now for my take on the issue at hand...
If I'm Ohio State, I definitely wouldn't want to play Michigan again. For one, if they were to beat Michigan again and Florida would somehow escape another team with victory, Ohio State would never hear the end of it. Now they have beaten Michigan and after they beat Florida they can say they've beaten all comers (do I get a Boise State boo-hoo?). Secondly, I truly believe they don't want to face Michigan, because if they had to play the Michigan team of the second half, they would lose badly. Hey, Tressel didn't with hold his final vote of the season because he wanted to be unbiased, he wanted to sleep at night... on second thought he did recruit Maurice Clarrett (maybe morality and ethics are such a big issue).

If I'm Florida, I'm thrilled to death. I've narrowly escaped at least twice this year games that I should have lost. I've got a young team for whom the extra time and coaching will pay dividends. Besides, I've lucked out and squeaked into the national championship game. Maybe now people will stop longing for "ball coach" all the time.

If I"m Michigan, I've gotten what I deserve. You have to win the games on the field that matter and you have to beat Ohio State if nothing else. You didn't. so you're at the mercy of a mystery computer (has anyone ever seen this computer by the way????) and some money hungry grubs who lock themselves in a room for a short time (I'm betting to compare notes on the best places to eat in different cities and talk about solutions to world peace.... er... well one of those).

Having said all of that... clearly the best two teams in football are Michigan and Ohio State. I don't think Florida has a chance against Ohio State. I think Michigan would destroy Florida as well. I just hope that the Wolverines don't quit the season all together once they get to Disney Land and that they beat the trojan off his horse against USC. That way people will be forced to talk about the reality of our situation... there needs to be a college football playoff to detemine the best team in the country. It's just not going to happen because it would expose Notre Dame as a first round out every year and the Wolverines as the best football program in the world.

Thankful

for...

- family - a great wife and kids, a heritage of faith in Christ and the legacy we're trying to leave now.
- breathe - just thankful to breathe and have being, to say God's name.
- friends - thanks for caring for us and showing us Christ in the little and big things, in the times you mean to and don't.
- old friends - Tiz, Chris Baker, Josh Childs - thanks for being a part of my life and for being a part of my life again!
- Scripture - a precious gem indeed
- Jacob's Well - a loving community redeeming people and situations, thanks for allowing us to be a part and to learn from you and with you
- Bel Air family - you know how much you mean to us and we appreciate your investment in us
- blogs
- Madden video games - I have in my home right now the first (for Sega) and the latest...
- Church of the Nazarene - I have hope more than ever before
- my kids - what a blessing to me! They teach me so much about life and Christ... I'm perfecting the parental exercise of failure on a regular basis, thanks for your patience and love!
- my wife - she married ME??? Truly I'm thankful for your life!

Who do you trust???

If Europe is ahead of us in philosophy and religion, then we could very well be in "trouble". Check out this article on who the Swedes trust more than the church. I first was clued onto this by a friend at church who recommended Fark. Funny stuff... and troubling too.

Sharing Faith

I'm in Cinci for the YS convention. Event's great. People's great. Came back to my room to find a tract on how to go to heaven on my pillow... left there from Bo with whom I'm sharing my room (I told him there was a discount on the room if we only slept in one bed, but he didn't believe me). But none of that is what's on my mind right now.

I'm glad we can share faith. I'm thankful that faith in Christ is communal. This week in particular I'm sharing the faith of my wife. I've been struggling with some things lately, really struggling to trust. In fact, I'm still struggling. Carol and I were talking about it Thursday morning and I just realized that her faith was stronger than mine, and so I claim her faith in Christ. I claim it because I want to be there. I claim it because I want to share it. This is what sharing faith is about.

Its like someone in our small group said a few weeks ago... "I sing the songs on Sunday with everyone else, making sure to say the words, not everytime because I believe them, but because I want to and I want to share the faith of those around me." That's what I want too.

An Emerging Story

“I just don’t know if I our church can handle this kind of thinking,” said the pastor to me. It was a warm fall 2004 day in the east and we were standing outside a seminar talking about the emerging church. I wanted to say something that would reassure my friend that the Church of the Nazarene was indeed a church that would embrace those who would think missionally about how they might reach this postmodern world for Christ. But I couldn’t because that statement could have come from me just as easily as from him. So we just stood there and looked at each other sharing hope and uncertainty.

Since that time I’ve found myself in the story of Ruth and Boaz. At different points in my own journey I’ve found myself in different characters in that story, but I’m continually drawn into that great narrative. Most often lately I find myself as Naomi. I’m journeying back into relationship with the Church of the Nazarene. With me I bring a newcomer, a foreigner, (those who find hope and home in the emerging church) and I’m hoping that somehow she can find encouragement, resources and protection from the established church. My hope doesn’t stop there. My hope continues that this newcomer may some day be redeemed back into the story of the established church, the Boaz.

There is a dangerous character in this story for me though. There is this older brother of Boaz who has first rites on redeeming the foreigner into the story. In the Scriptural account this brother decides that while having the profits in the end might be nice, its not worth the hassle and relationship that would come with it. Will the Church of the Nazarene be the Boaz or the brother to this emerging church?

I’ve never been as hopeful that I’m working with Boaz as I was last week. Nazarene Theological Seminary (NTS) hosted the “Missional Leaders in an Emerging Culture” workshop (?). The event’s presence alone said a lot about the Church’s involvement in the conversation. The response and the relationships told us even more.

Tim Keel, pastor of Jacob's Well, started with a presentation on Tuesday night. He talked about church, leadership and creativity. It was a great discussion by all accounts. I wasn't there because it was Jahred's birthday!

On Wednesday six presenters shared with the participants on different ways that the emerging church is interacting with Wesleyans and Nazarenes. Jay Akkerman from Northwest Nazarene shared about the “Order of Love” that he is a part of in his community of Nampa, Idaho though which they order their lives and their rhythms to more fully follow Christ. Sean Heston shared about the emerging church he is a part of in Lawrence, Kansas. Most importantly Sean told stories and invited others’ stories of how God is at work in a different way. Dean Blevins talked about “Discipleship in a PostModern World,” which was a great encapsulation of how ministry and discipleship are changing as the culture is changing. Susan Cox-Johnson also came and shared as a District Superintendent from the United Methodist Church and as one embracing the emergent movement. Her vision for the community together was a blessing.

One of my favorite reports of the day was when Hal Knight, professor from Saint Paul School of Theology (Methodist) presented a paper on “John Wesley and the Emerging Church.” His thoughts on why we Wesleyans should be embracing the emerging church were excellent. He highlighted the parallels of Wesleyan theology and the emerging church in discipleship, missional focus, incarnational approach, alternative communities, preaching and teaching, worship and a generous orthodoxy.

While the only theme that weaved the presentations together was the emerging church, the message became clearer and clearer that indeed not only is there room in the Church of the Nazarene and in Wesleyan theology for the emerging church, but it is needed. “Perhaps one of the greatest things the emerging church has to offer us Wesleyans is a call back to being Wesleyan,” Hal Knight said.

Thursday morning Jesse Middendorf, General Superintendent, and Jon Middendorf, Associate Pastor at Oklahoma City First Nazarene had a “Generational Dialogue” that was moderated by Dave Curtiss.

Jesse and Jon talked about the tension between the Church of the Nazarene and the emerging church as they see it and about the natural partnerships between the emerging church and the Church of the Nazarene that center around justice, small groups and friendships and theology. Both acknowledged the tension, but agreed that it is a healthy tension because the points of pressure revolve around re-discovering our Wesleyan roots and re-claiming what we say that we believe.

Jesse said, “One of the things I have struggled with in my ministry, one of the traditions of denominations is to say, you believe so we engage you. I want to say we engage you so you can believe.” Jon concurred that we must make friendship the end goal, not a means to an end.

The question then naturally arose, “Do you think there is room (in the Church of the Nazarene) to embrace the emerging church?” Jesse responded, “Not only room, but it would be a tragedy for us to pull out of it. I don’t think we can ever afford to not be a part of this dialogue. It is helping us.” Jon agreed and pointed out that we need to work on our language so that people see those who are emerging as “hopeless romantics”, who desire to be a part of God’s story and the Nazarene story.

The tension, they both went on to articulate, is real and will always be there, but they see it as a healthy tension. Jon went on to describe the relationship this way, “Maybe lions and lambs don’t lay down together until there is a lot of tension. When they first see each other until they lay down together there is a lot of angst, there must be a priority to lay down together that goes beyond what might even be instinct to go away from each other. In order to bring that picture to fruition, we’re going to have to choose to stay together in the midst of unbelievable tension. That’s what we started as a denomination that was a ‘big tent denomination’. That despite the tension we could remain together.

Sitting amongst the participants listening to this conversation, I could only imagine what it must have felt like for Naomi the first time Ruth returned from the fields of Boaz. I was filled with hope. Hope that we as the Nazarene church indeed protect, resource and empower the emerging church. Hope that both sides would stay committed to each other amidst the tension.

These conversations bring me hope not because they are saying things I haven’t thought or felt or even believed for years, but because they are putting words to a movement the way a good poet puts words to emotions. Our entrance into the conversation may well be a belated, but it is definitely a beautiful voice in the conversation.

Gardens and Plants

Using one of my favorite metaphors for our time, Brian Postlewait blogs on the feelings many of us have had and have shared over the years (and obviously continue to). I'm encouraged and disheartened by this post. Encouraged because of Sean's comment (thanks!), in the hopes that perhaps i might be considered some sort of odd gardener there.

I'm discouraged because we keep losing folks. Our "tribe" of Nazarenes, seems to be struggling with our identity. I'm fine with that struggle because I believe from where I sit that the voices of the many in this conversation are all still at the table and allowed to have their voice. However, it appears that what I would call the loudest voice (see squeaky wheel) of the fundamentalists seems to be the voice that most assume is taking control. I wouldn't be here if that were what I believed and I sure hope that is not the case. I understand the feelings - I've felt them many times - but I'm just trying to stand for hope.

I'd love it if you'd join me in this stand for hope. But I'm not looking to start and organization or a club. I just want to stand for hope in my beliefs and my actions within this crazy tribe, so that the organic growth of the Kingdom may show itself in me... and my tribe.

Movements

I first want to take a moment to recommend that you visit the Order of Saint Stephen blog. Not only do I recommend the practices they are talking about and valuing, but I recommend the idea of an "order" all together. These are some great people who are "doing it" and have been.

There has been something popping up in their comments though that I want to touch on in this post. When there was not an immediate update on the site to some of what they were planning people got pessimistic... and fast. Pessimism is certainly not new or suprising. Pessimism on the web is even less suprising. But what I want to address is this idea of movements.

In the past (yes, I'll leave it as the ambigious all of history) there has been this sense that the only thing worth starting is something that's will somehow live on forever. The "success" of something was dependent on its "formality" in organization, control and measurable features. If an organization or movement was successful it was growing in measurable ways. If it wasn't growing, then it was failing and the worse failure is the disappearance of the measurable and controlable things.

In this postmodern world, movements are embraced, not because of the ways they can be measured or controlled, but because of what they begin (both seen and unseen). This may seem a bit of language manipulation, but let me use an example from real life.

There was a church community, let's call it "the Fish-house", that was started as a ministry to young families in an urban environment. As it began, it attracted some young couples who came together, some came to proclaim faith in Christ, some grew in their faith and their community grew in numbers and in intimacy. Then, almost as quickly as it had begun, the momentum of new families attending ceased. There seemed to be a ceiling on the size of the community. In the midst of this stunted growth in one area, there was growth in another. The community of young couples and families grew closer and closer together and in faith. It was only a matter of two years before almost every one of the families felt called to ministry... but in other cities. The Fish-house was birthed, grew and died in just over two years.

It was considered a failure by those who aimed to fund it. It didn't make it. It never realized its potential. "It had such promise," they sadly muttered.

Here is where I would challenge this idea that movements must last forever [or at least as long as I'm interested :-)]. The reality of the Fish-house is that it may not have lasted as an organization in a formal sense, but the movement of that community continues to this day. The families that were a part of that community are now all over the globe doing and leading ministry. It was not to be a physical institution that would last, but it has proven to be a movement of the Spirit.

All of those words and that true story, to say this... movements are beautiful because of what they begin in us. They open doors in seen and unseen ways to those places that might have been a mystery to us before... or perhaps to re-discover something that has been tucked away in the shadows of our experience. The point of great movements, like great questions, is that they would open doors in our minds, hearts and experiences that we may never have opened ourselves.

Perhaps the greatest form of hospitality is the opening of doors for one another and the courage to walk through the doors opened for us.

Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, the German author said it well, "Whatever you can do or dream you can, begin it. Boldness has genius, power and magic in it. Begin it now."

Peace in the midst of Chaos

Wedding, family matters, sister's wedding and now I'm back. I've been gone so long and been so busy I'm not able to be at the Emergent Gathering and its tearing my guts out. If you know anyone blogging it, please pass it on. The schedule has been staggering and tiresome, so how have I maintained my sanity? How, you ask, do I keep my nose above water? I'm so glad you asked and I'll happily tell you in a few easy steps:

- Blogs: Andrew Jones has a couple great posts including this one for people interested in atonement theories and the emergent conversation. Linda has this post on emerging church myths... the second one is worth following the link.

- Events - hoping to get to the GOCN event here in KC and looking forward to the NTS emerging thing. see my older post for links.

- Listening - It has been my great privilege to be listening to "The Bible Experience". I first heard a glimpse from Mark-O at the DC of DCLA. It's dyn-o-mite! I love they way they've done it, I love being able to listen on my mp3 on the bus and I love the voices. Perhaps I'm just a geek, but as I said to a friend recently, "it's one of the ways I keep falling in love with God's Word".

October is Heating Up

Three great opportunities to connect this month with some great conversations and great people:

- Emergent Gathering - Oct. 9-12, Glorietta, NM - a gathering of folks from around the US and Canada to journey together and spend time doing the talking we always do between the sessions at every other conference. Great things always come out of this time.

- Gospel and our Culture Network Conference - Oct. 19-21, Kansas City - they've got a new website (finally, but nicely redone) and the thinkers there continue to put out great stuff. If you're in a congregation looking to connect around missional thinking - this would be a great place to be.

- Missional Leaders in the Emerging Culture Conversation - Oct. 24-26 at Nazarene Theological Seminary in Kansas City. I'm involved a little in this one and am excited to see our Nazarene Church and Seminary take some formal steps into this conversation. If you're a Nazarene and interested in the Emergent conversation, this would be a great place to connect, participate and build some generative friendships.

SAVDRU

Saw this license plate today and wondered, among other things, what I would have on my license plate if I had it personalized. I thought back to my younger days when my brother and I would fight each other for the license plate in the Honey Comb box. (the problem being that Honey Comb had some of the largest boxes of cereal known to man at the time so eating through two boxes so we both could have 1 never worked) There were some great ones like...

GO 4 IT
SPEED
MOV IT

I'm hereby taking suggestions for cool license plates that might fit me. Please keep the vulgarities to a minimum.

Words Matter... plain and simple. It seems to me that words are taken for granted more and more, but yet the weight they carry is increasing. In the North American, United States, context, words are thrown around like bird shot out of a shotgun. We don't necessarily think we'll hit the target right on, we don't even think we'll get super close, we just hope that we're pointed in the general direction and it works out. Words are easy to come by (blogs alone are multiplying daily) but our abuse of it is rampant.

Words are important. I think many that have grown up in evangelicalism have realized this in our gut for many years and have reacted strongly to those places and cases where the language has been misused or in some cases not used. We are very good at diagnosing this problem.

I think we are in a new place. A place where we must be able to put some words - well thought out and prayed over words - to where we are and what we are experiencing and this faith journey that we are on and inviting others to. I will agree here with a friend that these words and language must come out of relationships, rather than into relationships. It seems to me though that as we "harvest" this langauge and these words out of relationships, we need to be sharing them with others, to be telling these stories.

These are generative and very important conversations. There are many who are desperate for the poets to emerge to chart the course for what they are feeling, experiencing and intuitavely knowing about the changes in culture and the shortcomings of the language in explaining the gospel.

So what's your story? What language do you use? Your words matter.

Life of Brian

We had a great time with some friends who were over tonight... our next door neighbors - Brian and Corey and some other friends - Brian and Kara. It was hilarious whenever someone called out "Brian", we would all look or respond. I think it must be like that at George Foreman's house because all his kids are named Geroge too. Except they're a lot bigger and his house is probably a lot bigger.

Friends and Squirrels

Our good friend Josh Kleinfeld is visiting with us right now. He's in town taking a class at seminary. It's been great for me to have him here! Lots of fun and good conversations.

He's taking an evangelism class... yeah... and I just happened to come across this method of sharing the gospel and had to share! If you've been following my blog the last few days, then I'll officially weigh in that this would not be MY choice for faith language. Enjoy...

Is your Church looking for exciting fun packed to double or triple

your Week-night Service by attracting non-members?

If yes Please let me introduce you to:

Animal Alley Ministriesgoes into the local public schools performing an 1/2 hour Secular Character Building Presentation using the exotic animals at no charge to the school. We advice the audience that we will be at your church that evening if they wish to see and learn more. The church will normally hand out flyers about that evening event and their location. Animal Alley Ministries will then do a Gospel Message that evening at your church again using the animals as examples of God's Love and His Creation.

Animal Alley Ministries is a nationally known ministry that travels coast-to-coast witnessing at hundreds of churches, Christian Schools , Colleges, Churches, Camps, VBS, Retreats, Christian Radio and television programs, etc. each year using live exotic animals to demonstrate examples of Godly Character, Gods Love and Creation. Animal Alley Ministries does messages for a single day, multiple day events and weeklong camps and events. Animal Alley Ministries messages are directed at the age of the audience, ages range from pre-k through adult.

Animal Alley Ministries will you be your area soon and has limited dates available.

We would welcome the opportunity to visit you and present our ministry.

For further information, Contact:

Animal Alley Ministries

443 Stanton Corners Road

Ferndale, NY 12734

Phone: (845) 292-7680

Website: www.animalalley.net

80's youth ministry vs. emerging?

Check out these great posts on the "Out of Ur" blog... quite interesting. I've often thought that youth ministry is a great "growing ground" for church planting because of the cultural work and the relationships. However... (there has to be an "however" on this blog doesn't there?) is this emerging church thing just grown up youth ministry? I hope not in many ways, mostly theological and holistically.

Heaven tickets

Heaven. Hell. How do we talk to people about this in our new context? Is there more to heaven than just not going to hell? What is heaven anyway? (Check out this great video from Google!) What is hell?

Lots of questions... not many answers. I'm wondering these days about "evangelism" and how we do it in this postmodern context. As a base line I think we can all agree that relationship is a must as the beginning. What next?

I personally react very strongly against those folks who do the "heavy sell" trying to scare people into heaven or try to "do evangelism" through some sort of information share only. What about you? How do we share faith? How do we share our story? How do we invite others to faith?

If I reject the traditional "roman road" way or the fact, faith feeling, or the four spiritual flaws...er.... laws, then what do I embrace? Let's pursue this together