Brain cramp

the well is dry.

the cupboard is bare.

creativity has vanished.

the mind is preoccupied.

the slurpee has done it's deed.

the thinking mechanism is completely frozen.

elvis has left the building.

the return is forthcoming.

joy comes in the morning.

it's friday...but sunday's coming.

you can't keep a good man down.

Sunday attendance

i don't know exactly how to say this without appearing ungrateful, but here goes. as a pastor, two of the most difficult sundays of the year for me to face are the sundays on either side of thanksgiving. they usually represent two of the lowest attended sundays of the year because people leave to visit their families.

don't get me wrong. i'm not a family killjoy. i love my big thanksgiving dinner and sitting around watching bad football on television with the best of you. even though loading up the fam in the minivan to visit grandma and grandpa has never been my thing, i know the holidays wouldn't be the same without it for many. but the sundays? they are usually weak, a little depressing and...let's just say the offerings are less than stellar. (for the record, things were a little better around here than most years.)

that's not my issue. here's my monday morning insight... i was pretty stunned yesterday. the sunday after the thanksgiving sundays had fewer people than the holidays! i know there were as many different reasons as there were people missing, but it was still a little shocking.

the good news? church attendance does not punch our ticket to heaven. it's not even a healthy way to evaluate our commitment to christ. it's a horrible way to get rid of guilt. i'm so grateful we don't live by rules, traditions, laws and requirements. it's a awesome reality to know that following the master is so much more than coming to a building on sunday mornings.

with that said, i wonder if people really have any idea how pumped i am when the building is full and the excitement in worship is ready to bust the walls out? i wonder if people knew how inspired and motivated i am when i see the house full and the looks of expectation...would it make a difference on saturday nights or sunday mornings when they are deciding whether or not to join us? i wonder if people realize how much their simple presence makes in the lives of people they are sitting next to in worship?

why not give someone a call and have them join you next sunday?

A moment of thanks...a few days late

here's a story that moved me today:

Several years ago I ran into a pastor at a store while shopping. I had preached for him a decade earlier and asked how his church was doing. Here is the conversation that followed.

“Well Clayton, I really can’t say how the church is doing because they fired me 2 years ago and I have not been back, or even heard from anyone since I left. I was there for 13 years. Attendance doubled, we built a new sanctuary and added 4 new staff positions. But what I did not realize is that I let church work become my life. It came before time with my family and it even became more important to me than Jesus.”

“I figured out who the power players were in the church, and a deacon told me to make sure I did not make any of them mad because they had the 2 things that mattered most; family and money. So I made every decision based on them. I preached for them, made sure I did not offend them, and made special efforts to cater to them and their families. This brought short-term success, but I was burning out. I had no passion left. I was just working for a paycheck and health insurance for my family.”

“I did not realize how much I had neglected my kids until one became a drug addict and the other one slipped into deep physical sin. I did not even know my own children, and it was my fault. Then one day I came home from a deacon’s meeting, and my wife had taken all of her stuff and left a note on the table that said she was tired of it. She hated me for ignoring my family and she blamed me for everything, for putting the church before them.”

You can imagine the lump in my throat as I stood there and listened to this grown man choke back tears over the family he lost. He was broken; a ghost of the leader, pastor, and shepherd I had met 10 years earlier. Then the saddest words to ever leave his lips landed on my ears.

“So what did my church do when all of this happened? The people I had served and pastored called a business meeting and they fired me. They said they could not have a divorced pastor with rebellious kids leading their congregation. They gave me 2 months salary and wished me luck.”

No grace. No counseling. No support. Maybe they felt he was unable to lead them any further. Fine. But not even a reception with cupcakes and coffee to say thanks for 13 years? This is way too common. I see it more than most anyone else because my calling carries me so many places, and when I hear these stories, I cry out to God to protect pastors, and the churches they serve, from shooting our own wounded. Of course not every church is like this and not every pastor suffers such a fate, but this man did. God help him, his wife, and his kids. And God help the Body of Christ to offer mercy and compassion to our own wounded who lay on the side of the road, in a ditch, waiting on anyone, even a Samaritan, to come to our aid.

i am so grateful to serve in a church that treats me like a friend and not an employee...a church that values my time with my wife and my family...a church that supports and encourages and forgives me and does not place unrealistic expectations on me...a church that has patiently waited for me to grow into the position that i hold...a church that holds to the biblical model of a pastor and not one that has been unfairly and unspiritually created by church tradition and modern culture...

we may not be the biggest or baddest church in the city, but i wouldn't trade places with anybody.

hope you are continuing to experience a life that is worth being grateful for.

Relationships with skin

this afternoon, i was reading an article about the rise of instant messaging throughout our society...with both kids and adults. there's some pretty amazing figures about how many "im" and how much they do it.

(ok...i'm just now getting back to writing because i was just answering a text from one of the kids in our youth group. talk about current...)

anyway, one of the things the article says is that 43% of teenagers use it to say things to people that they wouldn't say in person. accepting dates, turning down dates, breaking up, "facing" conflict, expressing anger. this doesn't surprise me. but a comment by a 34 year old adult is the one that leaves me frustrated:

Danny Hitt, 34, a real estate agent in Riverside, Calif., says he has chatted with four or five IM buddies at once — a number some teens would consider embarrassingly low. He prefers the telephone for important communications. "To me, a significant conversation takes a phone call," Hitt said. "The inflection in the voice, you lose that" with instant messages.

significant conversations take place on the phone? you gotta be kidding me. what is happening to us? my frustration with the comment is that it's true. and he's not even telling the half of it. we have become people that hide behind phone calls and emails and text messages and fake handshakes and distant smiles and unresolved conflicts and fear that speaking the truth will draw us into relationships that will demand more of us than we want to give.

i'm with danny...you lose the inflection of the voice with instant messages. and you lose connection with no eye contact...and you lose conviction with no body language...and you lose trust with no smile and confidence with no heart.

i like relationship with skin. even if there's bad news. being part of a body demands it.

snicker, snicker

like i've always said...it's better to be lucky than good.

go chargers.

The virtual church, part two

i don't know all the reasons why i'm stuck on this right now, but i just can't let it go...

i read an article in usa today this morning talking about the rise in church websites. it said that over 88% of churches over 200 have websites and many of them are using their sites as a way to recruit new members.

the article, just like the ongoing discussion among church leaders, debates some of the pros and cons building cyber connections. the fear is that people are already disconnected enough...and don't need an even easier way of keeping their distance. the upside is the willingness to face the reality that this is a digital age and people will simply use the most convenient and efficient way possible to make good decisions.

apparently, smart churches are using the web to showcase who they are and give discriminating church shoppers a clear and appealing look at their product. the truth is, i don't particularly want to be a pastor of a dumb church, so we are rethinking our website...since we are part of the 88%. here's what i'm also thinking:

i believe that jesus is the son of God, incarnate, sinless, killed, buried, raised from the dead, the perfect atonement for my pathetic life, giver of purpose, the key to the mystery of life and the king who will return and reign for eternity. i also believe that the church is his holy bride, his body, God's chosen for the purpose of living out his priorities and message for all of history.

with that said, it kind of hacks me off that there are people who say they believe this stuff, but don't care enough to invest themselves particularly deep into friendships with others who believe this stuff. consequently, we shop for churches.

hey...it's only monday!

Virtual church

i was doing some online reading the other morning and i came across this website. it's an internet church. you can sit in the confines of your comfortable recliner and do church. you can watch and listen to the music. you can watch and hear the preacher. you can give your offering online. you can even go into the virtual lobby and meet people by having live chats with others you are doing church with. amazing.

at first glance, it seems so wrong. but times have changed. people have changed. we live in a culture of people that connect through their computers. myspace. facebook. personal websites. bloggers who have their own private audiences. i'm still processing this, but i can't help but think that this could be the perfect front door for a disconnected digital generation.

while i'm thinking, here's a question: why do people come to church buildings on sundays if they have no real intention of entering into meaningful, honest, committed friendships? what's the point? if all you are looking for is a sermon, some music, and a place to give your money, why bother wasting the gas? maybe the internet church is just what you're looking for...

A mere 27 days

ok, i took a month off of writing. so sue me...

there is so much that i could write about. the last 27 days have been so full. i could give you my perspective on fire and displacement and loss. or car wrecks and death and unspeakable sadness. or tumors and cancer and life change. broken bones, hip replacement, financial stress, marriage trouble, broken friendships, lost dreams, theological confusion, poverty, depression, fear, emotional paralysis, and hopelessness. but that's far from the whole story.

the last month has also been about hope and change and faith and courage and determination and real friendship and commitment. it's been about love. it's been about priorities. it's been about spiritual growth...growing up and growing deeper. it's been about fun and laughter and sarcasm (the good kind) and practical jokes and honest conversation and music. good music. cooler nights and an even cooler snow storm. and baseball.

and, oh yeah, the chargers are back.

it's amazing how much can be packed into the short span of 27 days.

Back from the mountains

i'll let you in on some of the life lessons i learned on my six-day journey in the colorado wilderness over the next few days. in the midst of the profound, though, let me give you a small dose of my reality...

on the plane ride home, as we approached dfw airport, the pilot comes on the speaker and echoes these wonderful words: "ladies and gentlemen, let me be the first one to welcome you dallas. it is cloudy and winds are from the southwest at 15 mph. there is a slight chance of thunderstorms and it is a brisk 94 degrees."

a brisk 94 degrees? you gotta be kidding me! texas in october...sheesh.

Life lessons

like most athletes who compete on a high level, my son has been going through a difficult period of competition, performance, defeat, frustration, disappointment, and confusion. it's just part of the game, as they say.

we talked on the phone and told me that god had reached down and used his difficulties to teach him (again) some of the basic life lessons that we wrestle with every day of our existence...whether we are athletes or wannabes. it happened to come from an unexpected source of truth: espn.

most sports fans are aware of the fate that was dropped on the university of michigan football team the first week of the season. they were beaten by 1-aa appalachian state university in an epic battle that became an instant classic and sent sports writers and fans around the globe looking for a greater upset in the history of sport. i'm pretty sure nobody has found one.

the following week they were beaten, again. this time by a team of their stature, but certainly not of their reputation. come on...oregon makes us think of hippies and rain. unlike the land of the fooball gods in michigan!

needless to say, the coach of michigan has had an onslaught of attacks from the michigan faithful, as well well as every sports pundit this side of vince Lombardi's tombstone. but in the midst of incredible opposition and criticism, lloyd carr has remained solid. in an interview, he said some words that inspired my son to remember some simple principles to live by:

• Don't blame others.
• Don't make excuses.
• Get up and do something.

i don't think i've ever heard a preacher say it better. you know, living the spiritual life isn't really all that spiritual...

on another note, i will be heading to the great land of texas haters for the next week on my yearly journey to the colorado wilderness with boat load of younger youth ministers for mentoring and encouragement. no technology for a week...anybody want to join the "fast"?

one final note...my son is back on top of his game.

Sunday night exhale

i gotta tell you, sundays are no day of rest for me.

it is really good to be tired at the end of the day...the kind of tired you feel when you have had good, meaningful work. that's how I feel.

i am completely indebted to my church upbringing...the good people, the committed sunday school teachers, the traditions that fueled church life in my childhood...but i don't miss the church music of my past.

here, i'm going to tell you something you probably know already: i like loud music. i like loud rock and roll on my ipod. i like loud, energetic worship. i like the driving beats of drums and the creative sounds of electric guitars. i like to feel my music. for me, the volume of the worship draws me to the greatness of god.

everybody doesn't agree with me. i can still sleep at night.

i really want to see people who are far from god come close to him.

i really want to lead a church that wants to see people who are far from god come close to him.

i really want to lead a church that cares more about seeing people who are far from god come close to him...than they do about pleasing people who are already close to god.

i am totally and completely infatuated with the potential of north point becoming a church that really cares about seeing people who are far from god come close to him.

what do you think is the next step for us?

what do you think is the next step for you?

i am so impressed by the commitment and hard work of the college kids who are running underground (our sunday night youth thing).

it is so great to see a room full of teenagers again.

we are getting really close to my favorite day of the year...the first day that temperatures drop and we can break out the sweatshirts!

this was a bad week for my san diego teams. it may be time to break out the lucky underwear.

speaking of sports...the first night of the adult bowling league was a winner. we have ten teams. can you imagine that? 40 adults bowling! sheesh.

i need to get my own bowling ball.

no matter how old i get, i won't ever stop being a dad.

three more days until rubios.

this is going to be a huge week. are you ready for it?

The revolution of the Internet in 1993

this is crazy. can you remember the first time you used email? it blows me away to think where we will be with computer technology in the next ten years! what should it mean for the church? what will it mean for the progress of the gospel?

Different kinds of christians

if you've ever wondered about the difference between different kinds of christians these days, i think this is a pretty good picture...

Who would have thought...

first night of the fall adult bowling league...


sweet.

Sunday night exhale

i think this is one of those sundays that i'm not going to forget any time soon.

it is an amazing and humbling experience to speak to people about the realities of life and death and struggle and the detours of our life journeys.

as i preached today, i was more aware...more connected to the moment...and feeling more of the weight and responsibility to speak words of life than i normally do. i'm not sure how i feel about that.

every time i preach, i know that i am carrying out a sacred act...one that connects me to thousands of years and hundreds of thousands of god's heralds that have gone before me. it's overwhelming to know that i have the privilege to do something so significant.

to preach to human sadness and loss and to have the opportunity to point people to hope and faith is the greatest experience that a person can have.

today, singing was passionate, emotional, expressive, healing, hopeful, and courageous. to sing words that express what we feel when words escape us is incredible.

i love how our people linger after the service. i love watching the relationships grow.

i think that there is a group of people that are really beginning to connect to our first service. this is great news, because there isn't a whole lot of room left in the second service. this is a good problem.

underground was good tonight. i am so impressed with the heart for ministry that i see in our college young people. they really care about our younger kids. the energy and excitement that the whole group had when they entered the auditorium was awesome.

bowling starts this week. we have forty adults that are ready roll. hah! i think the newbies are going to be surprised. i hope the veterans keep their trash talking to a minimum on the first night.

i'm still a charger fan, but i need to take a short hiatus on my attention to football. the padres are in a pennant race and i think they really need me to focus. besides, watching the new england debacle on tv tonight has left me with a stomach ache.

i'm exhausted from today...mentally and emotionally. it starts all over again tomorrow. peace.

I don't know what's going on

i love reading what other pastors have to say about their lives and their churches. i am challenged, encouraged, frustrated, enlightened, inspired, and sometimes just entertained. i have this one guy that i read pretty often and this week he wrote something that really resonated with me. you can read all of what he wrote right here.

here's one of the things he said:

"When a pastor knows everything about what’s going on, their ministry will have a distinct ceiling. Sometimes the more you know, the slower you’ll grow."

although that frustrates me, i know that it's true. the good news is that is changing around our church family. more and more things are happening and i have no clue they are happening. small groups are meeting. bible studies are happening. people are being cared for. ministries are springing up. serving is happening. ideas are becoming realities. and these things don't start with me...end with me...require my assistance...look for my approval...or need my blessing.

it's great when i know i'm not needed.

Sunday night exhale

this was a good sunday. it was great to start this new preaching series on living life at the intersection. i am really pumped about continuing this next sunday. all i gotta say is watch out for detours when you come to intersections...

it sounds like we are off to a great start at underground. they had 60 show up for the first night! it's been a while since we had that many and it's only going to get better.

i really like the sound of the underground band. their hard work has really paid off.

i was all excited for it to rain today. all we got was a bunch of stinking humidity. what's up with that?

i thought it was pretty cool when the loud crash of thunder exploded right when we went into the silent prayer time at communion. i'm still wondering how debbie arranged for that to happen.

i know it doesn't make us better than anybody else, but i am really grateful that we are a church family that takes communion every sunday. i just don't get it when other say that it loses its meaning when we take it so often. pardon my language, but those people are nuts.

the chargers are off to a good start. 14-3 over the nfc champion bears is a good victory. some will say the bears played poorly and that's why the bolts won. i say that sounds like an excuse that losers give.

i just got through watching the cowboys win their first game, also. romo is the real deal. the cows defense is suspect. cow fans should be concerned.

one last football comment. it must really suck to be a michigan fan today. just thought i'd let you know.

looking forward to starting our romans study this week. i think this study is really going to make a difference in the lives of our adults. if you're reading this, you better have a good reason for not being there if i don't see you wednesday.

i ate at cabana and chipotle today. bad for my health, but good for my stomach...

"my glorious" is a great worship song. i'm glad we get to sing it.

we're going to be doing two new worship songs in the next month that are amazing. huge energy. fun to sing. you may have new favorites after we do these songs.

we will officially cancel our landline phone at home this week. we are going totally cell phone. it seems wierd. no home phone. man, have times changed.

do you like watching "flip that house"? it is some of the best stuff to watch on tv. that and 24. for the record, the countdown has begun. four months and counting.

have a great week at your intersections.

Check this out

ok, this is the real deal... i think i have a new hero.



now here's what i'm thinking. you may or may not get into the style of music. that's not the point. this is a guy who has absolutely no formal training. what he has is a gift. it's simply what he's wired to do. it's in his blood. it's his purpose and his passion. it flows out of him. he is who he is. he's comfortable in his own skin. what about you? what has god wired you to do? what's in your blood? what were you created for? what do you throw yourself into with reckless abandon? check out this next video. he is for real. i think i'm addicted to his videos...



still think he's not for real? this one will seal the deal. go check out ronald jenkees videos on youtube. i love this guy!

Sunday night exhale...

this was a really good sunday at north point.

it was awesome to listen to the singing in the second service today! the energy while we were singing wholly was pretty incredible. i don't think i've ever heard us sing like that before.

i was a little nervous about labor day attendance, but what was i thinking?

i really like eating at raising canes. best chicken fingers around.

i watched the appalachian state - michigan football game yesterday. it would suck to be a michigan fan today. david conquered goliath in an epic battle. unbelievable. it reminded me again why we love sports so much.

i heard some people talk about the episode where miss south carolina made a name for herself. i finally saw it on the internet. take a look for yourself. bless heart little heart...

i have been looking forward to september 9th for the past five or six weeks. i can't believe it's just a week away. underground is going to be awesome! it makes me miss youth ministry more than i want to tell you.

in spite of that, i am even more excited to begin my new sermon series, living life at the intersection. i don't think i have ever looked forward to a series more than this one. i am praying that god will use it to change the life of our church family!

if you are not planning to be at the wednesday night bible study through the book of romans, i promise you are going to miss out! this book of the bible is so amazing. i can't imagine how a follower of christ could ever be faithful to kingdom living without understanding it.

nobody invited me to join their fantasy football league this year. i really feel left out. so i joined one on my own. i guess i'm just going to have to kick some butts of people i don't know.

tomorrow i start drinking two liters of water everyday for a month to get ready for my yearly trip to the colorado wilderness. i hate the taste of lewisville water in the fall.

i gotta finish painting the outside of my house this week. it's only taken all summer.

the adult fall bowling league starts in 16 days. anybody else counting?

can't wait to see what our song set will be for this sunday morning. i really love the way we do music and worship at north point.

hope you enjoy your labor day. or if you're a slacker and don't read this until thursday...well, i don't know what to say. just joking.

Wow

this morning, i was reading about a church leader who went to a particular restaurant (more expensive than he normally would go to) and was really impressed by the service he received. he made the following observation:

"...beyond the meal, the experience made me wonder what we can do in the church that hasn't been thought of yet that would "wow" our guests and help drive home how much they matter to God."

it made made me think about how we do things at church. many of us are leaders in particular areas of ministry in our church family, and i'm wondering what it would be like if each one of us approached our areas of responsibility with the same kind of attitude? are we driven to show people (regulars and newcomers) how much they matter to God? are we constantly looking for new and creative ways to communicate how much God matters to us? are we doing our best...even in the smallest details of our ministries? are we always looking for ways to improve what we do? what are some of your ideas for how we can raise our "wow" factor in our ministries?

trust me. i'm not into impressing people. but i am into people being impressed with the God we worship!