Diet Church?

As Pam and I have been transitioning our family to a new church home, we’ve visited some new places. We are drawn to bigger churches (surprise) and some of them are in the seeker friendly mold. There is no doubt that the worship is lively and genuine in these churches but I never feel completely at home. I think it’s because it feels like “Church Lite” or “Diet Church”, a phrase I love that Pam coined a couple weeks ago.

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I am not against seeker churches.... They are certainly exposing many people to Christ who would not otherwise hear.

but.....

The scriptures are not read aloud. There are almost no hymns, sometimes not even the re-imagined kind like Wonderful Cross or Fairest. And Sin? (shhhh we don't talk about that .)

The teaching from the pulpit centers more on practical life applications for marriage and family (not that I’m against stronger marriages and families) than any inductive teaching.

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I think I already knew this... but it's different when you are right there in the middle of it worshipping.

And so the question is this: In the drive to be a welcoming, non threatening place for people not accustomed to traditional church, have the seeker churches become a place where mature Christians should simply not bother to go? Is it like a steak lover going to a vegetarian eatery?

What do you folks out there think?

What Will He Do?

(I'm at a conference this week, so Pam is pinch-hitting)

From The Mountaintop to the Valley

What will He do?

A few weeks ago, I was feeding our 9-month old daughter in her room. Our older two daughters, Emma and Abby, were playing in the living room when I heard crying. The sound came closer and closer to Lilly’s door. A head poked in and Emma said Abby had pinched her arm. All kids have different cries, even as they grow older and from the strength and duration I could tell that the pinch had really hurt. I asked Emma to tell Abby that I would be out in a minute.

Emma relayed the message to Abby who asked “What will she do?” I sat rocking Lilly to sleep pondering Abby’s question. I thought of all the power we have over our children and in the same way, the power God has over us, His children. I could punish her or I could go out there and speak gently to her, explaining her wrongdoing like our loving and patient God does for us so often.

Our God is full of grace. From John 1:16 it states, “From the fullness of his grace we have all received one blessing after another.” In our moments of sin, we wonder “what will He do?” God often provides teachable moments, parent to child. He invites us to listen as He speaks gently to us. And because of His grace our blessings are multiplied.


Pam

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Things I will always remember

• After 18 months of long commutes, Sunday May 28th marks the last time that we will be serving in the worship ministry of The Chapel. We will begin attending a church closer to our new home on a regular basis. I’ve had the privilege to serve for 8 years and Pam has served for 2. It has been one of the greatest blessings of our life. I know we will be back to visit and God willing we will come back to live in the area someday, but for now here is a long list of things I will always remember about The Chapel. Some serious: some not so much.
  
  - Playing 5 services in one day
  - The Prodigal Suite (sweet!)
  - Wake up it’s Christmas!
  - Realizing Guy had a big legit voice in there.
  - “tequila” as a lyric in a very good church song
  - Deb Cardy singing that bunny song, you know the one I mean
  - Jason and Kim jumping for joy when they sing
  - The gleam of the spotlights off Kenton’s head
  - Sub woofers on the stage
  - Learning to play the half-diminished chord
  - Guitar players with Gear Acquisition Syndrome
  - The first , first, first Sunday, Sunday, Sunday in Green, Green, Green
  - All the My Story’s
  - Telling My Story and learning to talk about my own pain for the first time.
  - Jay Halley’s story about dumping his son in the canal while on a bike ride
  - Glen Wood – Mr. Subtle on the drum kit (or not)
  - Andrea L. and her heavy foot
  - How wonderful it was to have my wife on the platform these last two years
  - Being “the other Brian”
  - The Rhythm thing Friday pot luck thing
  - Knute’s noodle signal
  - Telling Pam, “I don’t know who they are going to hire for the Worship Leader job, but it won’t this Kenton dude that was at rehearsal tonight. He’s a wacko””
  - Giving “birth” to a song and watching to take life on the platform
  - The Sunday night congregation cheering after the first 3 chords of “Ancient of Days”
  - We Are United (I try to forget, but it just won’t go away)
  - “Arguing” over lyrics for The Choice with Dan Lebo, admiring his convictions, and eventually changing to his way
  - The Friday morning Oatmeal club
  - Our dear, dear friends Brian and Janet
  - The teaching from the pulpit
  - Marvin Matthews’ bright blue suit, and how patiently he explained how he wanted some stuff played
  - The joy that comes from playing the B-3
  - The people, the people, the people

Perfect

From The Mountaintop to the Valley

Perfect

While searching for our beloved Cleveland Indians on TV not long ago, my wife and I happened upon a rebroadcast of the “perfect game” pitched by Len Barker May 15, 1981. We had a few chuckles at the uniforms and watching a youthful Mike Hargrove go through his interminable batters-box ritual. There is no dispute that this was quite a feat, one duplicated only 16 times in major league history. I wondered, though, how perfect is perfect?

Barker threw 103 pitches in that game, 84 of them strikes. Some quick math reveals 19 pitches were balls, so I guess perfection in baseball is relative.

On the other hand, God’s perfection is absolute. He’s all powerful, all knowing, all sufficient and eternally existent. Scripture uses phrases like, “He is the rock, His ways are perfect”, “As for God, His way is perfect”, “perfect in beauty, God shines forth”. How can we with our sinful nature hope to have a relationship with such perfection?

The writer of Hebrews put it this way in chapter 12:2-3. “Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.”

Now that is quite a feat. Accomplished only once; and for all.


Brian

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If My People

From The Mountaintop to the Valley

If my people

The first Thursday in May has been designated by the United States Congress as the National Day of Prayer since 1952. Many communities have large corporate prayer events, breakfasts, prayers on the court house steps, bible reading marathons, etc. Several of us had the privilege to attend a breakfast event this year where a well known sports figure spoke about the importance of faith and prayer in his life. I’m thankful that there is a National Day of Prayer and so many opportunities exist to gather together and pray. But like many other “day of …” events, we shouldn’t just stop there.

I often lament my own lack of consistent prayer time. I could say that there’s not enough time, but in my heart I know it’s that I haven’t made time. Getting started can be difficult, but Jesus gave an example of how to pray in the Lord's Prayer. Some people use the PRAY (Praise, Repent, Ask, Yield) acronym to help them along. Some say a short prayer every time the clock chimes.

The important thing to remember is that God loves us and hears our prayers. He gives us this promise in 2 Chronicles 7:14, “if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land.”

Happy healing…


Brian

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Mother of the Year 2006

Well, this is Pam, my wife, friend and "helpmeet" for all you KJV buffs out there. I hereby nominate Pam for Mother of the Year for 2006. We just passed the one year mark here in Perkins after a heart-wrenching, God-honoring move from Green, Ohio.

Pam homeschools Emma (6) and Abby (4), cares for Lilly (9 months), worries about our extended family, is always there to listen to her friends, plans the most fabulous meals, sews Easter dresses, etc, etc, etc. And all this on top of the tremendous burden of being married to me!

Happy Mothers Day Pam! You are the best!

What, me worry?

From The Mountaintop to the Valley

What, me worry?

The other day a colleague said “I don’t think you worry about very much.” And I guess I really don’t. It seems that if you don’t have the ability to control the outcome of a situation there’s no point in worrying. And if you DO have control, you’re better off doing something about it! With that in mind, I can’t possibly add anything on this subject beyond what Jesus says in this passage from the Gospel of Matthew:

"Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?

And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? …….. seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.”

Brian

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From the Mountaintop to the Valley

I write a weekly "devotional" for staff and friends of the YMCA of Greater Toledo. I don't like the word devotional since it is so overused, but I have yet to come up with a better name. It's titled From the Mountaintop to the Valley in homage to the struggle I have in taking the great mountaintop experiences I've had back down to the valley of real life. Once a week these writings will appear on this site, assuming I can figure out how it all works. I pray time will allow for other postings as well.