Crazy Love

"We go to church, sing songs and try not to cuss...is that all there is to being a Christian?"

I heard Francis Chan for the first time at the 2007 Catalyst Leadership conference and I was mesmorized by his teaching.  When I saw that he released a book this year, I had to pick it up.  It didn't disappoint.

Crazy Love is a book that goes back to the basics of what it means to be a Christian and what the Christian church needs to be all about.  The book is very conversational and challenges the reader to live a radical life that loves God.  Truly living isn't about following rules, it's about loving a God who has no end to His love.

To get a taste of Francis Chan, check out the book link 

Some quotes I took away from the book:

"Are we in love with God or just His stuff?"

"When you are truly in love, you will go to great lengths to be with the one you love."  Now apply that to God.

"Christians are like manure: spread them out and they help everything grow better, but keep them in one big pile and they stink horribly."

+ Krister Stendahl +

One of my friends shared with me a professor they had at Harvard Divinity School named Krister Stendahl.  He died on April 15, 2008 and was at one time Dean of Harvard Divinity School.  My friend shared with me an article that reprinted his convocation address of September 1984 after serving Harvard for 30 years.  After this speech, he left Harvard to become the Bishop of Stockholm in his native land of Sweden.  Two quotes inspire me:

"Joy is closer to God than seriousness.  Why? Because when I am serious I tend to be self-centered, but when I am joyful I tend to forget myself..."

When we learn about other religious traditions or engage in comparing religions, Stendahl presented the following 3 actions that we should take:

1. Don't compare your best to their worst.  Compare your worst to their best.

2. Talk to the adherents of the religion, not to the enemies.

3. Approach the religion with "holy envy".  What characteristic do you like or admire about that religion and how might you incorporate that in your religious life?

Trying to Be a Responsible Citizen

Last night, I was driving home from church when I received a call on my cell phone. Normally, I talk on my cell phone while I drive. But I heard this voice in the back of my head to turn off the road, stop and take the call. I decided to listen and be a responsible citizen and I pulled off into a driveway so that I didn't kill anyone on the road.

For those of you who haven't driven Campbellsville Pike, it is a narrow road that is twisty and hilly. This road is really fun to go fast on, which also makes it extremely dangerous. The phone call I took required my full attention so I knew I needed to stop driving and focus on the call.

The driveway I pulled off into was a wide drive, not like your typical driveway for a house. The driveway could easily fit 3 cars across. The cool thing about the experience was that I had at least 4 cars approach me, roll down their windows and ask if everything was ok. I answered everytime: "Thanks, I'm fine. I'm just taking a call on my cell so I don't get into an accident." I thought to myself, "Wow, there are some awesome people in the world that care." It gave me hope.

Except for the last car. While I was finishing up my phone call, another car came along, rolled down the window and said, "You're in my way; get out of the middle of the road."

Go figure.

Prayer at City Hall

Last week, I had the opportunity to give the invocation at our local Columbia TN city hall meeting. The mayor was there along with the city lawyer, city manager and various representatives. My theme verse was Philippians 4.4 "Rejoice in the Lord always and again I say: Rejoice!"

I offered a prayer that our city leaders would find joy in their duties and that the constituants they serve would find joy in their elected leaders. Here's what was striking to me: immediately following the invocation, the city couldn't pass the agenda from the previous meeting because a council member felt attacked! There was unresolved tension and disagreement from the previous meeting that carried over.

Here I was talking about having joy and the council was trying to hammer through hurt feelings and going on with the rest of business.

It makes me think about the church and how we can be a place of resolution and hope so that people can experience joy in their service to others. Even for our city leaders.

If you don't already, be sure you're praying for your city leaders and ask God to show you how you might help them see the joy in their duties.

Little Reminders: Kroger MINUS card

I went to Kroger over the weekend and had to do a lot of multi-tasking while in the checkout line: unloading the grocery cart, talking to Natalie making sure she was ok, getting out my wallet to get the debit card and of course remembering to be pleasant and give a 'hi' to the checkout lady, swiping the card, signing the balance and making sure we didn't leave a sackful of groceries behind. It's high pressure!

I looked at the receipt and something was wrong. I did the math and I had paid way too much for the items I got. It took me a while but I finally figured out that she didn't scan my Kroger plus card. I brought it to her attention and she quickly refunded me the $6 I saved and I went home to tell my wife.

My wife informs me that Kroger doesn't ask for your plus card anymore. I was shocked! Why wouldn't they ask for the card? Well, they don't want to be a nuisance and pest for those who don't have a card. I can sort of relate. I get peeved at the sales pitches to open a credit card balance while I'm at a store. But I never get upset if they ask me for a plus card if I don't have one (eg. FoodLion) because it's about feeling special.

I really appreciate someone helping me out and reminding me about an offer that saves me money. That's awesome! When I forget, it takes more time and energy to fix the problem than it would to have just asked up front in the first place.

I don't know. Maybe I'm making a bigger deal out of this than I need to. Maybe I should just suck it up, add "take out plus card" to my checkout routine and be done with it. But I sure miss that little reminder.

Since I'm in the church world, it makes me think about all the little reminders that we forget to tell guests and returning guests to our churches: how do you "sign in"? Where do you go for church? Where is the Bible study class? Did anyone say "hello" and "good morning" to them? What's the offering all about? What's that stale wafer and shot of wine all about? Where do you sit? We shouldn't assume that our guests know everything about how to 'do' church...we need to walk them through it. They certainly are multi-tasking before they even walk through the doors! Little reminders help them to feel a part of the experience and relieves their anxiety.