Recently, I had a chance to spend some time with one of these people and run through some of my list of questions. It was probably annoying to that person, but it was awesome for me. One of my questions is “what is the most important thing that every person who is new to doing what you do, need to know?” In this case, it was a pastor. Since our conversation was not based on the pretext of me writing about it later, I’m not going to name this person, but they deserve credit for this. So here’s the question exactly as I asked it, then his response (paraphrased and hopefully not butchered too badly by me).

Question: What should every new or young pastor know about being a pastor?

Answer: The importance of relational priorities. Everyone [in church circles] talks about the order of priorities in relationships: God first, wife and family second, church third, work fourth etc. But I don’t know how often we live it. The best way to evaluate the priority of your relationships is to see what roles you are dispensable in and where you are indispensable. We are indispensable as the husband to our wives and the father to our children. We are indispensable in our relationship with God because only we can be who He called us to be and only we can be the child that He asks us to be. We are completely replaceable in our jobs. There is always someone more skilled that could do a better job than we are doing at our work. We are replaceable in many of the activities where we invest our time. When our time begins to become consumed with the activities where we are dispensable it’s time to make some adjustments. Balance in life is important, but we could all stand to invest more time in our indispensable roles.

This was a great reminder of something I thought I knew, but I know I can get off track in this area. Good stuff!

Quit living as if the purpose of life is to arrive safely at death. Grab life by the mane. Set God-sized goals. Pursue God-ordained passions. Go after a dream that is destined to fail without divine intervention. Keep asking questions. Keep making mistakes. Keep seeking God. Stop pointing out problems and become part of the solution. Stop repeating the past and start creating the future. Stop playing it safe and start taking risks. Accumulate experiences. Consider the lilies. Enjoy the journey. Find every excuse you can to celebrate everything you can. Live like today is the first day and last day of your life. Don’t let what’s wrong with you keep you from worshiping what’s right with God. Burn sinful bridges. Blaze new trails. Criticize by creating. Worry less about what people think and more about what God thinks. Don’t try to be who you’re not. Be yourself. Laugh at yourself. Quit holding out. Quit holding back. Quit running away.

I watched Ted’s interview on Oprah last night. And I guess he’s doing a whole media tour promoting his HBO special. I read the excerpts from his interview with Larry King last night. I had a lot of thoughts coming out of seeing these interviews that I shared with Lish. But the most pervasive thought I have right now is how confusing Ted’s current message is. I think it’s because he’s still confused. At times I didn’t even understand what he was saying about his past or present. It just kind of reminded me of a guy who is trying to define and broaden the gray area between what is right and wrong.

So the thought that kept coming back to me was “how is this confusing message going to help anyone?” By his own admission, he isn’t through this process of healing yet. Larry King asked him if he had all the answers yet. His answer was “Not at all. And I think I’m still deeply wounded and scarred and somewhat confused. I’m going to need at least another year to get my bearings.”

So if the message isn’t clear enough yet to provide real help or hope, then why be out sharing your thoughts? I couldn’t help but worry that this isn’t about helping anyone else and that Ted might be doing this to help himself (whether it be financially, emotionally, psychologically). And in the process of bringing this back into public view, he might be hurting (or re-hurting) more people just to help himself. If so, that seems pretty narcissistic (which might be a root cause for some of his struggles).

I’m just not sure it’s time for Ted to be back in the public eye. By his own admission, another year might be the time he needs to really get his life straightened out and stabilized. Why not take the time? Honestly, there may never be a time where Haggard “deserves” or is even ready to be back in the spotlight, but with the culture we live in, I’m sure he can get the spotlight whenever he wants. Which means he still has influence and that’s the responsibility that I hope he takes very seriously. I’m sure he’s come a long way in a short time. I pray God’s best for him and for wisdom for he and his family.

p.s. – A lot of people (Christians included) are talking about how Ted hasn’t admitted explicitly to what kind of indiscretions he has committed. I’d like to suggest that those folks just use their imagination. It’s irrelevant. What bearing does that have on your ability to forgive him? If you want details on what sexual immorality looks like or need to imagine it, just keep watching HBO through the night after Ted’s show is over.

I look at what President Obama has accomplished and politics aside, he has already inspired more people than most of us will collectively impact in our whole lives. On inauguration day I heard elementary school students telling reporters that President Obama reminds them that they can do anything. The man has a charisma and personality that helped him get into office. He connected with people. I think that charisma and personality are the very things that helped him to overcome the race barrier and become the first black president.

Could it be, that the race barrier would only be broken by someone with President Obama’s charisma? And if so, will future black candidates have fewer barriers to overcome in their political endeavors. Absolutely. So is it just possible that God will use President Obama’s achievements thus far to ignite a dream in a child, empower them to pursue it with fewer obstacles that may have not been overcome pre-Obama? Obviously the answer is I don’t know, but when I look at where our nation is, I see opportunity. I see new opportunity that didn’t exist pre-January 20 . We don’t know how President Obama’s achievements or decision will shape the course of history, but for followers of Jesus we know that God has a major role in what happens next. And that he’ll take this moment in our nations history and use it to affect His purposes. Remember, God didn’t fall of the throne with Tom Brokaw declared Barack Obama the next president.

By the way. Since this started off as a note to the church, maybe it’s most appropriate to remind the church what our responsibility is in the next 4 years (and the 4 after that, etc.). Romans 13:1-7 tells us that we are to pay taxes, respect, and honor to those in authority and that the governing systems that are in place, God has established. So chew on that for a little bit.

P.S. – yes the picture for this series does kind of weird me out. It feels very Big Brother from ‘1984’.

For early followers of Christ, His death wasn’t a day that they necessarily looked forward to. As you read the gospel, you get the impression that many of them didn’t understand why He had to die (Peter rebuked Him when He predicted his death) because all they saw was Jesus relative to their lives and what they had experienced while they were with Him. They couldn’t necessarily see the bigger purpose because they could only understand Christ relative to the time they had spent with Him, not in respect to the resurrection. And if you imagine the miracles and countless good that they saw take place, you can understand why they struggled to imagine the world being a better place as a result of Him dying. Really, if the disciples were doing a video blog while they were following Jesus around each day during his 3 years of ministry, I’m pretty sure that the episode of Him dying on the cross wouldn’t have been posted to YouTube that night. They could not see hope in Him dying. Here was the start of a great movement, led by Jesus, then all of a sudden it’s over. We can’t imagine feeling like the disciples because we have the clearer picture of His resurrection (the rest of the story as Paul Harvey would say), but in the moment that He died, it appeared hopeless to them. I think one of the most powerful reminders of the cross is that in hopeless situations, God is working, and He will take any situation and relate it to his broader purposes not our short-term, personal agendas. That’s what I mean by relativity.

We are so limited in how we view our lives.

Stop back Friday for the last in the series.

Our hope isn’t to be found in a form of government. Be honest, did you really like that other guy that was running? Did you agree with him 100 percent? What about the last president? Do you really think he nailed it with every decision? So you could make the argument that maybe your beliefs most aligned with theirs, therefore they were more likely to please you. But if your hope is in a form of government that gets you what you want most of the time, then I would propose that you are hopeless.

Our faith is all about moments in time that appeared hopeless (key word “appeared”). But for every moment we write off as hopeless, God is eagerly waiting to remind us that there are no hopeless situations and that He has a plan to use every situation for His good. That’s not to say that God’s plan was for President Obama to be elected. But that’s not to say it wasn’t either. The point is, you and I don’t know and it’s the wrong question to ask at this point anyways. God doesn’t have a voter registration card aligning Himself with a party. That would be too narrow minded for the Creator of the world. He doesn’t have to vote, He’s in control (FYI, complete control is much better than getting a vote).

Stop back on Wednesday for Part 2.

But if I’m being honest, I signed up for a Facebook account for one reason. I was having a conversation with a 20-something at 19North and it became very clear that if you don’t know someone as a ‘Facebook Friend’ you may not know them much at all. It’s pretty wild how open and honest people are on Facebook (or any social networking site) these days. It’s almost like people act as if no one will see what’s out there but obviously the opposite is true. It seems like people are using these sites to express themselves in ways that they don’t feel they can in “real life”. I don’t know what has happened. For some reason, as a society, we don’t feel like we can be real in “real life” anymore. So in “real life” we pretend to be the person that people expect us to be. So “real life” isn’t very real anymore. And virtual reality has become THE reality.

It’s really wild. I’ve seen everything from guys asking girls out on a Facebook wall that they’ve probably never said “hello” to in “real life” to people who will express an emotion or frustration (e.g. Ben is stark raving mad) that they would never let show in “real life”. And while there are some really great benefits to social networking sites, I can’t help but sit back and wonder about the long-term impact on society as a result. Will these sites make us better? Or have they become a substitute for rich, meaningful conversations that used to happen face to face in the “real world”. So many of our daily interactions have become so sterile, predictable and shallow. It seems that the richness of personal relationships has been reduced to 2-D, digital images and html posts. It just seems like kind of an empty way to live life.

Quite a few months back I was having a conversation with an acquaintance. We’re friendly with each other, but we’ve never gone out for coffee or anything like that. I asked him how his day was. His response was so rare that I was riveted. He said “Horrible. Just a really lousy day.” I was so caught off guard I didn’t know how to respond. It was great. I was clamoring to learn why and to have a good adult conversation with someone so that I could learn about them from. (Honestly, how many times per day do you ask the question “How are you?” How many times do you get a meaningful response? It’s like we’ve all become New Yorkers.) Back to the story though, in that same moment, another person overheard his response and chimed in “why would you say that?” I was stunned. But I think that speaks to my point that it’s so much easier to have 500 Facebook friends than it is to have 5 real life friends. They take less time, and when they’re hurting you can just say your computer was broken. And I think people feel like they can’t be honest in real life anymore because they might reveal that they are not the person that everyone thinks they should be. So the only place to be real is cyber space. And when you scan the status updates of your Facebook friends it becomes strikingly evident that people have substituted reaching out to you directly for dialog in their time of need for a random dart thrown into cyberspace hoping that someone will respond.

So here’s the wrap up. Be you. Be you in real life. The world and the people you interact with in real life need you to be yourself. The real, dirty, messy, vulnerable you. The one that hurts and crys and the one who laughs and plays. Because when people see the real you, you become approachable. Let’s face it, we all feel a lot more normal when we see that those around us are more like us than we realized. I’m not suggesting that everyone runs around airing their dirty laundry either. You get the picture.

I really am all for these great technologies as long as they remain an enhancemnt to a relationship and don’t become the substitute for a relationship. I think we can take back “real life” for what it was meant to be. Here’s a quote or two that I like:

“The TRUTH: It may not lead you to where you thought you were going, but it will always lead you somewhere better. When ignored, it will eventually show itself. The closeness of your relationships is directly proportional to the degree to which you have revealed the truth about yourself. It can be painful.”

“The quality of your life is the quality of your relationships.”

Joel Houston:
see the world is a place made up of places.. and every place has a history.. and every place’s history is reflected in what becomes it’s culture.. and culture itself is defined through its people.. and the people; well, they are the future… and the future is now..

so then – looking at it in the same light but from the other side of the room; at this moment in history, we are the people in the places.. and we are the ones defining cultures.. and we are the ones creating history.. and so the question must be asked…. If we are the future; how’s it gonna look..??

I don’t know about you.. but if our generation is remembered for ipods, myspace, and youtube we missed it.. if history speaks of our generation as self indulgent pioneers of the digital age, reality television and purpose built celebrity we’ll have failed.. the world will change by itself.. for better or for worse.. it changes daily.. but who will be the ones to shape it.. and how will it look?

in and of itself revolution is neither good or bad.. revolution represents change.. a shift in culture.. History is marked by revolutions.. social and political.. some have represented victory, freedom and justice, however on the flip-side.. too many have become infamous representations of despair, oppression and injustice.. all it takes for evil to prosper is for good men to do nothing.. for the church – the hands and feet of Jesus and His plan for the salvation of this big, broken sphere of dirt, water and life we temporarily call home, this has never sounded with more urgency.. it’s time for a revolution.. fuelled by a dissatisfaction with self-centred living and complacent faith.. driven by a desire for truth, love and justice..

that’s what this is all about…
every generation needs a revolution.. and this one needs to look, sound, walk and breathe like love..

it’s not a new concept.. it’s an eternal concept.. it’s the reason we are alive.. it’s the fundemental call of what it means to be a follower of Christ..

Love God.. love people.. that’s it.. that’s the revolution.. revolutionary I know.. but if we understand what that means.. if we get it.. if we establish in our thinking how that looks.. and we start living it.. we will change the world.. it’s not so much about the big stuff.. it’s just about the stuff.. it’s about the people in the places being the answer – in the places.. and together; becoming the answer to the big stuff.. it’s about your backyard.. it’s about my backyard..

I don’t know who you are or what you believe. And really it’s incidental to this post. In fact if you watched the video and immediately thought about your religion and how Karen Armstrong is trying to make all faiths the same and you immediately thought of all the ways that your religion is different, then you missed the point AND you are the reason for the Charter of Compassion. I’m not talking about her views on fundamentalism or narrow minded religions. I’m talking about her simple observation of the fact that most world religions have compassion as a core tenet, but none have lived up to it.

I don’t know much about most world ‘religions’. I can’t and won’t speak for them. This entry is for Christians, those who represent themselves as the followers of Jesus. And my observation is this: we have missed it. Myself included. Because, at the heart of our King is a love for people, yet the world isn’t able to see it, because our lives haven’t displayed it.

Shamefully, compassion hasn’t been one of our defining characteristics. Maybe that’s why the message of Jesus isn’t seen as relevant. Because people who investigate it see how Jesus lived and see a religion that looks totally different. I like what Erwin McManus said “Jesus is being lost in a religion bearing his name”. People can’t reconcile Jesus and Christianity, probably for a variety of reasons, but I believe at the core of this issue is the fact that we’ve lost sight of the simplicity of what Jesus called the most important commandment: “love God, love people”. Read it. It’s in that book that we like to wave around. You know, the one we use all the time when we need to prove we’re right but less often to shape our lives. That’s right, it’s in the Bible (Mark 12:28-31) and it is the very heartbeat of our King.

If those of us who identify ourselves as followers of Jesus were aligning ourselves with the simple command to “Love God, Love People”, then there would be no need for a ‘Charter of Compassion’ because there would be an entire movement of compassion. But sadly, the church has become more of a charity and less than charitable.

I hope you’re starting to get the point. This isn’t about the merits (or lack thereof) of the Charter project. If I’m being honest, I can take issues with a lot of what the people in the video say. But on the other hand, you have to admit, they got us. The only reason the Charter project is gaining any traction is because there is a deficiency in the world that shouldn’t ever have existed and people want to step in and fill it. If the church would just be the church that it was designed to be, the world would be a different place.

Maybe there’s more to unpack here, but not tonight. There’s already enough poorly written thoughts here for one night. Hopefully this post has stretched you a little bit.

The power to change the world is found in that simple command to “Love God and Love People”.

The world is crazy and sometimes it’s hard to see God at work in the world. This weekend at 19 North, God showed us what he’s doing in and through a group of 20-somethings as they shared about the walls that God has broken down in their lives. Here’s a short list of testimonies that people shared through just a few simple words on two sides of a piece of cardboard:

- sexual abuse

- alcohol & drug addictions

- self-hate to the point of attempted suicide

These are people that I know and it’s so easy to forget where they came from because there is no trace of those walls left in their life. Hopefully, we’ll be posting a video from this weekend in the next day or so and I can provide a link. In the meantime listen to this song by Phil Wickham. My favorite line in the song is “when blood and water hit the ground, walls we couldn’t move came crashing down”. That’s the power of the true love found only in Jesus.