Flashback Friday: Walking in Another’s Shoes

Frank

***Originally posted on August 24, 2009. Posted in the wake of the Court overturning California’s Proposition 8. It’s been a while since I kicked this hornet’s nest…***

One of my goals with this blog is to be even-handed in my analysis and commentary, though I do have obvious religious and political beliefs. That doesn’t mean I’m not open to taking a different point of view. Walking in another’s shoes, so to speak, and these two articles do just that. They both highlight how one’s worldview impacts their decisions. By reading these articles, I gained a great deal of respect for both men because they are consistent in applying their worldview, something I seldom see in the present culture-war.

The first is about Ted Olson, a conservative lawyer who is fighting to overturn Proposition 8 in California. His defense of gay-marriage is based on his conservative principles to keep the government out of our personal lives. You can’t argue that he’s not consistent with his conservative view of government, in contrast to a conservative view of social moors taken by many politicians and activists. Now, I’m not about to change my opinion on gay-marriage. However, given the background in this article I will concede the point of “fundamental right” though I still worry about the “slippery slope” and disapprove the means by which homosexuals are trying to gain this right. (Specifically, not responding to Prop 8 with a proposition of their own and instead throwing a legal hissy fit)

The second article is about the “abortion evangelist” (gotta love the sensationalist headlines) LeRoy Carhart. I don’t approve of his practice, but I understand his motivation for providing it. I also admire that he does stick to his guns. In one example, “Carhart asked her what she would do if she had to carry the baby to term. ‘She didn’t say she was going to kill herself,’ he says. ‘She said she would put it up [for adoption].’ He turned her away..” I do regret that he feels the way he does about his own safety. I hope he realizes that not everyone who is opposed to abortion wants him dead. But given the slant of the article, I don’t expect that perspective to be conveyed. What is also important to glean from this article is how tragic abortion really is and that criminalizing it only marginalizes those who “need” (I hesitate using that word, but I think it’s appropriate here) the service. The real war against abortion needs to be against this need (“abortion should be available, but rare”). Think simple supply-demand economics. Legal restrictions to abortion reduce the supply which only increases the cost (emotional and physical in addition to financial) to women. Instead, the demand needs to be brought down. And no, I believe showing pictures of fetuses to women entering a clinic is too late to have any measurable effect. Instead the preciousness of life (via Scripture) needs to be emphasized alongside the value of reserving sex for marriage. There is a moral case for family planning.

In both of these cases, it can be seen how their careers are guided by their respective worldviews. But neither worldview is Biblical. Get Religion points out that the profile of Ted Olson only mentions that Olson is “not a regular churchgoer”, and Newsweek fails to mention any religious affiliation of Carhart. Yet, while we may not agree with them, we should take the lesson that our lives should be guided by some particular worldview. As Christians, our worldview should be built on being Christ-like and “what would Jesus do?” I also think it is important to be open-minded and respectful of others’ worldviews. I linked these two articles above despite my being against both cases. It is always important to see the other side of an argument. That may sound wishy-washy, but I’m not saying “we can both be right” or “truth is relative”. Instead I’m saying that I disagree with, but respect your opinion, just as you are free to disagree with mine.

Be Careful How You Talk About Your Bride

Frank

One of my convictions when it comes to marriage is to never speak negatively about your spouse in public. This conviction came about from observation- almost every Sunday I will hear someone bad-talking their husband or wife. It’s one thing to be open for the sake of getting help, but it’s a whole other to just gossip and gripe.

We treat Christ’s bride the same, sadly. And I am guilty of this myself. I just read this fro the first chapter of Transformational Church bt Thom Rainer and Ed Setzer and I need to camp out on it for a while:

Right now it is en vogue to look down on the church. If you take a look at certain sections of the blog and book worlds, or just peruse the Christian Twittersphere, you can find all kinds of people taking all kinds of shots at the Bride of Christ. And they’re doing it for all kinds of reasons. Many are disillusioned with the church of their upbringing. Some are discouraged by decline or scandals. A younger generation is frustrated with the church’s apparent apathy about social justice causes. Some are upset that the church won’t get more modernized; some are upset because the church has lost it’s ancient ways. There are criticisms abounding of emerging churches, seeker churches, missional churches, traditional churches, Boomer churches, multi-site churches, old churches, new churhes, and the list goes on. Sometimes it seems there are as many complaints as ther are Christians, and some of these complaints are well meaning.

But… If you can’t do, teach. And if you can’t do or teach, become a critic.

Who’s fighting by your side?

Frank

Saturday, my family attended the wedding of a young couple in my church. The groom was the first person I met here when I moved out. At the time he was a young teen with a serving heart, seeing an unfamiliar face looking around not sure if he was at the right place. He took me under his wing and made sure to introduce me to those who would later become some of my “closest” friends. He didn’t know it at the time, but he left a life-long impression on me. Now, eight years later he enters into marriage, a new kind of relationship, a new kind of battle.

Coincidentally, Sunday was the going away party for the Best Man at my wedding. I was also his Best Man. After I moved out here, I stayed with him while looking for a place to live. We led our Singles Ministry together. We stayed up late most nights. We studied together. We led people to Christ together. But I wasn’t at his party. Instead I was on a plane, on yet another business trip. He will be moving overseas, on to his next adventure. I’m not sure if I’m ever going to see him again in this life.

That, sadly, is typical. I’m not close to many people. Not as many as I should. While I’d lay down my life for just about anyone, I’m not sure many would for me simply for the fact that I’ve let few others in. My best friend and I started to grow apart after we were married, further apart after he divorced, and even further apart when my children were born. I found out he was moving second-hand, though he did tell me it was coming. Honestly, these words are hard to put on the page. I’m on the verge of tears just sitting here.

But this wasn’t (entirely) meant to be a confessional. Recently, Jay Cookingham has posted a series based on the documentary Band of Brothers. In his first post, he measured his life by adding up the years he has been friends with his BoB. He counted them up to 313 years. Sure, he’s got a few more years on me. And I could make the excuse of only living where I am for eight years. But even with those excuses, I couldn’t even name 13 of my closest friends. This point was also made in the sermon a week ago. But that challenge was simpler. I couldn’t name three. Like I said, this isn’t meant to be a confessional. Instead I am convicted. I am intentionally going after friendships I take for granted- recognizing that by standing side-by-side in the fight is what bonds brotherhood, not simply being part of some arbitrary group.

Friday night we were over at a friends house for their daughter’s birthday party. While there a brother confronted me about hanging out. Something we’ve been talking about doing for far too long. We had a good conversation that night. It won’t be the last. In fact, I’m picking up my phone right now.

My question of the week this week has three parts:

Who is your closest friend and how long have you been friends?


Do you have at least three close friends that you can turn to when your back is against the wall?


Can you name 13 in your Band of Brothers (or Sisters)/Mighty Men/or whatever you wish to call it?

Weekend Reading, 7 August

Frank

Wow, what I week! I didn’t think I spent that much time online and thought this would be a short shout-out, but this list kept getting longer and longer. So, grab a large cup of coffee and read what I read this week:

 

Flashback Friday: It Is Well With My Soul

Frank

***This has been a rough week, or a rough several weeks, for many in and around my circle on the blogosphere and Twitter. Prayers continue to go out for Mike at Mike In Progress and Kevin at Shooting the Breeze. Peter Pollock put up a post on the song It Is Well With My Soul and it reminded me of this earlier post of mine from 5/23/08 when Steven Curtis Chapman’s daughter was accidentally killed playing in her driveway. A reminder we could all use.***

It was reported yesterday that the youngest daughter of Steven Curtis Chapman was killed in an accident at their home. My thoughts and prayers go out to him and his family. It is tempting to take Satan’s approach to Job that it’s easy to glorify God when everything is going well. But one’s faith is truly tested when the inexplicable happens. Steven Curtis Chapman has certainly glorified God through his music, but also through his family and the adoption non-profit he founded. For tragedy to strike his family directly like this must be gut-wrenching as he is likely wrestling with the question of “why?”

To relate to this songwriter, I turn to another- Horatio Spafford. If the name isn’t familiar, he’s the writer of It is Well With My Soul, one of my favorite hymns. This is the story “behind the music” (courtesy of Wikipedia):

This hymn was writ­ten af­ter several trau­matic events in Spaf­ford’s life. The first was the death of his only son in 1871, shortly followed by the great Chi­ca­go Fire which ru­ined him fi­nan­cial­ly (he had been a successful lawyer). Then in 1873, he had planned to travel to Europe with his family on the S.S. Ville Du Havre, but sent the family ahead while he was delayed on business. While cross­ing the At­lan­tic, the ship sank rapidly after a collision with an­o­ther ship, and all four of Spaf­ford’s daugh­ters died. His wife Anna sur­vived and sent him the now fa­mous tel­e­gram, “Saved alone.” Shortly afterwards, as Spaf­ford traveled to meet his grieving wife, he was inspired to write these words as his ship passed near where his daugh­ters had died…

When peace like a river, attendeth my way,
When sorrows like sea billows roll;
Whatever my lot, Thou hast taught me to say,
It is well, it is well, with my soul.


Though Satan should buffet, though trials should come,
Let this blest assurance control,
That Christ has regarded my helpless estate,
And hath shed His own blood for my soul.


My sin, oh, the bliss of this glorious thought!
My sin, not in part but the whole,
Is nailed to the cross, and I bear it no more,
Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, O my soul!.


And Lord, haste the day when my faith shall be sight,
The clouds be rolled back as a scroll;
The trump shall resound, and the Lord shall descend,
Even so, it is well with my soul.

Memories

Frank

In conversations and in the comments from yesterday’s blog, just about everyone would grab pictures if their home was threatened with fire. Why is that so? Are our memories that bad?

I know my memory neglects the little things while honing in on major events or milestones. So pictures remind us of the moment the picture was taken, inconsequential or momentous. They capture the instant of a smile, of a word, of joy expressed however briefly.

“…do this in remembrance of me.” (Luke 22:19)

How many photo albums do you have?

How often do you pull them out?

What’s your favorite picture?

Jesus told his disciples to remember the Last Supper in the above passage. At the time, it was just another Passover dinner. Another time hanging out with Jesus. They didn’t know what was about to come, but Jesus did. Jesus also knew that his disciples, when looking back, would likely remember the major events (the trial, the carrying of the cross, the crucifixion, and of course the resurrection) but would struggle to remember the individual conversations from that last night.

“Then they remembered his words.” (Luke 24:8)

What one major event will you always remember, as long as you live?

Do you remember the dinner the night before that event?

When we take vacations in the summer, one of the goals of course is to get a break and have some fun. But it is more about the memories. As kids we have no idea the stress our parents feel as they pack the bags and load the car. As adults we forget the simple joy of our children getting to go someplace new.

I remember as a kid taking a road trip from my home in central Wyoming down to Phoenix to visit family. I remember playing games on the road, fighting with my sister over who got to sleep on the seat and who had to sleep on the floorboard (this was before car seats and seat belt laws), and collecting every menu, matchbook, and postcard we could find along our route to scrapbook our journey. Of course, the scrapbook has long since been lost and specific details of the trip vague, but I remember having fun.

My favorite summer memories were the road trips I’d take with my grandma to visit her brother and his family. He was my favorite uncle who I loved for taking me fishing, spending the whole day on the water talking about everything and nothing. I treasured the time alone with my grandma over the hundreds of miles on the road. I relished the scenery. We had our traditional stops along the way- a specific restaurant for a hot roast beef sandwich, a certain diner for a milkshake. As I grew older, she even let me drive part of the way. Even after my uncle passed away, we continued the trip.

As I write, a million memories flood my mind. I remember other vacations, visiting my mom’s side of the family in Georgia. I remember trips to the beach, the hot sun, and the inevitable sunburns. As I wax nostalgic, tears well up in my eyes and my heart chokes up. And I admit that I couldn’t find a single picture from these trips if I tried.

“Be happy, young man, while you are young, and let your heart give you joy in the days of your youth. Follow the ways of your heart and whatever your eyes see.” (Ecclesiastes 11:9)

What is your favorite vacation memory from childhood?

As an adult, vacations take on a different meaning. Sure, we want to get away from the job, from the responsibilities of our home, from the daily grind in general. But with children, I want to create special memories for them. I want them to look back at their childhood as fondly as I do mine. And I want those special moments to be shared together as a family, united in joy.

My son is at an age where he loves to tell me about everything. He especially loves to ask, “do you remember…?” Everything is big to him. Everything keeps him in awe. His little sister is catching on, wanting to join in those conversations even though her memories aren’t as long. They both remember the trips, the rides at Disneyland, the camping, the beach as if they were everyday occurrences. They talk about them as if they were yesterday (in fact my son hasn’t yet learned to discern time, so everything that happened before today was “yesterday”). I pray we get to continue to build those memories as they grow older and our lives grow increasingly hectic.

“Remember your Creator
in the days of your youth,
before the days of trouble come
and the years approach when you will say,
‘I find no pleasure in them’- “ (Ecclesiastes 12:1)

What is your favorite vacation memory as an adult?

It’s amazing how memories were kept before the invention of photography. Imagine living without the hundreds of pictures stored on your hardrive. Memories were kept by telling stories and writing journals, being passed on through the generations. The Bible is a collection of such memories, passed along the same way. There are no pictures of Jesus, yet his disciples were commanded to remember him. “Remember” shows up 233 times in the Bible. It is as important today as it was then to remember God’s Covenant, to remember Jesus’ sacrifice, to remember “the sins of our youth”. If a fire were to destroy everything we own, all we are left with are our memories.

What will you remember?

Today continues this summer’s ‘virtual small group’ (VSG in the tags). I hope you come back as I take this season to reflect on the wonders of God’s creation, share vacation stories, etc, with the prayer that we come out of this season closer to God than how we came into it.

What would you take with you?

Frank
Last week a blazing fire came perilously close to my community, momentarily displacing many of my brothers and sisters in Christ. Though I was still a few miles away, the reality of losing it all hit home. Upon receiving the notice of evacuation, this is what one of my friends posted on Facebook:
For some reason,the desire for a bigger,nicer home was always a desire deep within my heart..after the events of the last two days, reading Matthew 6:19-20 has burned that desire into an ash heap, especially upon the realization that the most important things we took with us were each other, visual memories with our family and friends (pics), and some “important” papers (wouldn’t have cared if those burned actually).
One of my friends from campus ministry always used to say about things, “well, it’s all going to burn anyway” in response to everything from losing a CD to giving more on Sundays. Yes, it will all burn someday. So what’s important?
If a fire was bearing down on your home, and you had little time to choose, what would you take with you?
(And thankfully, only four homes were lost. Praise God too that no one was hurt.)

Weekend Reading, 31 July

Frank

Grateful for my kids letting me sleep in this morning! Grateful too looking back at blogs throughout this last week. I am blessed to have found a community of Christian bloggers that call me higher, challenge me, encourage me, and make me think. A (long) roundup of my favorites:

  • God is not a cosmic vending machine, plus other insight as Katdish meditates on Pete Wilson’s book Plan B.
  • Aarron Reddin reminds me that us addicts like to make excuses. Especially when it comes to picking and choosing which of Jesus’ commands to follow.
  • There are a lot of possible reasons David might have slipped. j4man considers a few.
  • Chad Missildine will never be a super-Christian. That’s ok, neither will I.
  • Are we spending time storing up worldly blessings or eternal? Dusty Rayburn asks.
  • Glynn Young gives a thoughtful and personal review of the late Michael Spencer’s book, Mere Churchianity.
  • Michael Perkins observes first hand that yes, God does use Facebook and Twitter.
  • Tips for how to destroy your marriage with an affair by Perry Noble.
  • Ryan Tate reminds us not to ignore our inklings.
  • In spiritual warfare, we need a band of brothers. Jay Cookingham measures his life in “friend years“.
  • Sometimes a building has to be torn down before it can be rebuilt. A lesson we can apply to our lives and our writings, encourages Barbara Scott.
  • Meanwhile, driving over the potholes in life requires realignment, writes Billy Coffey.
  • Finally, Peter Pollock asks if we have the guts after watching one of my favorite movies, Freedom Writers.

Flashback Friday: This is where the healing begins

Frank

***Originally posted 5/6/10 during my study on Romans 12. Reposted on the last day of Air1’s summer pledge drive. I’ve written about this before and about the costs of maintaining a Christian radio station. I’m reposting this instead because I want to stress that music ministers to each of our hearts differently. Some songs catch our attention (Jay Cookingham went on a recent music kick with Sanctus Real’s Lead Me and I’m Forgiven, and Bebo Norman’s Nothing Without You for example.) and inspire us, motivate us to change, or just bring us to tears. Not all of us are affected by music this way, but if you are, consider supporting Christian radio be it Air1, K-Love, or whatever.***

Tenth Avenue North has a new song out, This is Where the Healing Begins, that I encourage you to check out their video journal explaining the song here. Meanwhile, look at the lyrics (emphasis added):

So you thought you had to keep this up
All the work that you do
So we think that you’re good
And you can’t believe it’s not enough
All the walls you built up
Are just glass on the outside

So let ’em fall down
There’s freedom waiting in the sound
When you let your walls fall to the ground
We’re here now

This is where the healing begins, oh
This is where the healing starts
When you come to where you’re broken within
The light meets the dark
The light meets the dark

Afraid to let your secrets out
Everything that you hide
Can come crashing through the door now
But too scared to face all your fear
So you hide but you find
That the shame won’t disappear

So let it fall down
There’s freedom waiting in the sound
When you let your walls fall to the ground
We’re here now
We’re here now, oh

This is where the healing begins, oh
This is where the healing starts
When you come to where you’re broken within
The light meets the dark
The light meets the dark

Sparks will fly as grace collides
With the dark inside of us
So please don’t fight
This coming light
Let this blood come cover us
His blood can cover us

This is where the healing begins, oh
This is where the healing starts
When you come to where you’re broken within
The light meets the dark
The light meets the dark (C) Tenth Avenue North

I heard this coming home from work yesterday and the highlighted sections stuck in my head thinking about where we’re at going through the R12 book– “Coming to grips with the real you”. I just couldn’t shake these lyrics. The word “wall” kept resonating in my mind.

I was thinking about walls and I thought of The Wall, by Pink Floyd. I have to admit I was psyched when I heard recently that Roger Waters is going to tour for the anniversary of this album. Maybe that’s why The Wall was fresh in my head, I don’t know. I was sober the first time I saw the Wall (really!) and like many in my generation, I heard the album before I ever saw the movie. So I had a preconceived notion of an Orwellian/Phillip Dick sci-fi-ish movie and I was surprised by what I saw. No, not by the nearly pornographic animation, but by the darkness of underlying story. I admit that I instantly related. Roger Waters is soliciting videos and names of friends or family who have died in the wars going on overseas to include in his stage show. He freely admits the strong anti-war sentiment that runs through the storyline. However, this part of the plot only deflects from the real story- the Walls “Pink” built around himself. The irony is that Waters embraces the anti-war message, which is one of the bricks in Pink’s wall. Relating back to R12, Pink denies part of himself by using the War, and the loss of his father, as an excuse for is antisocial anarchist behavior. (He also blames his mom for his relationships with women, but that’s a whole other story) Even though he sings the song, and the animation shows the wall coming down, he is never really free. He never comes to grips with the real him.

I had quite a few Facebook comments on Tuesday’s post. An old friend that I grew up with reminded me that there are a lot of things out of our control (our gender, our parents) that shape who we are. I agree, except that our character is defined by how we respond to those things. We can either blame shift (my dad was an alcoholic, my parents divorced when I was young…) or we can do something about it. Yes, those things affect who we are, but God frees us from all of that.

So how do we do it? How do we come to grips with the real us? Yes, Romans 12:3-8 is a good start and a great scriptural foundation to build on. But the truth is, we’ll never break down the walls we built around us until we open up about who we are; share our deepest and darkest secrets; and stop blaming what we cannot control for who we are. And that is where the healing begins.

Blockbuster

Frank

In the movie biz, summer means three things: big explosions, big-name actors, and big receipts. If it’s not a big-budget shoot-em-up, it’s the innovative star-studded thriller. If it’s not pushing the limits of special effects, it’s pushing computer animation. Whichever, it is the summer blockbuster.

Which is this year’s big blockbuster? Salt failed to dethrone Inception over the weekend and I hear Inception is as good, if not better, than it looks. Earlier this summer Iron Man 2 left many underwhelmed, while Toy Story 3 made everyone cry. The Last Airbender may not be this year’s Avatar (bonus points if you caught the pun), but there’s nothing that looks like it will break box-office records like James Cameron’s 3-D spectacle.

“Look at the nations and watch—and be utterly amazed. For I am going to do something in your days that you would not believe, even if you were told.” (Habakkuk 1:5)

Why do we shell out $30+ (for two) to see the latest hits when we can wait a month and watch it at the dollar theater?

What is it that drives the blockbuster? It needs a compelling theme (Avatar knocked this one out of the park), a big name (I couldn’t tell you the main actor in Avatar, but everyone knows James Cameron), and memorable special effects (again, Avatar blew this away). But to be honest, I wasn’t a huge fan of that movie. Maybe I’m the only one given all its hype. I found it entertaining and enjoyable and I have to commend the special effects. But the mythology introduced (which many found to be so alluring) was derivative and unoriginal and the acting was flat (mostly because the Navi were perilously close to the “Uncanny Valley”). It was a sight to behold on the big screen, but was it worth waiting in line for hours the day it was released on DVD? (Maybe more people have a 52” plasma screen than I thought)

“Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith…” (Hebrews 12:2)

What is the best movie you’ve ever seen? What is your favorite?

The Gospel of Jesus is called “The Greatest Story Ever Told”, but if it were a summer movie release, would it make any money? The Passion of the Christ exceeded box-office expectations (no I won’t talk about Mel Gibson’s recent issues) but had the advantage of being released to coincide with Easter. I’m not sure that movie would have seen the same numbers if released during the summer. Yet the Gospel encompasses every crucial ingredient to be a blockbuster. What could be more compelling than the Son of God, Prince of Peace, Savior of the world? God is a pretty big name, I sure hope his son can live up to the hype and doesn’t fall prey to the temptations that befall many Hollywood protégés. And don’t get me started on special effects- raising people from the dead, driving out demons, re-growing some dude’s ear! The story is filled with action, betrayal, love, and passion. What is there not to like?

But there’s plenty not to like about the Gospel. It’s challenging. It’s exclusionary. It’s (gasp) religious! Most of all, its message is positive and hopeful, contradictory to the cynicism that is so pervasive in today’s entertainment. So why do we watch?

“On hearing it, many of his disciples said, ‘This is a hard teaching. Who can accept it?’


Aware that his disciples were grumbling about this, Jesus said to them, ‘Does this offend you?’…


From this time many of his disciples turned back and no longer followed him.” (John 6:60-61,66)

Have you ever walked out on a movie? Why?

Driving to work today, my carpool buddy was telling me about Inception. He liked the special effects and the action, but didn’t like the message it delivered. This time last year, many derided Avatar because of its not-so-subtle politics. Personally, I don’t give movies (or more accurately, movie makers) that much credit. I don’t think it is some political conspiracy and oftentimes I don’t think there’s intention behind the message beyond what either reflects current events (you write what you know) or what is expected to strike a chord with the audience (and we relate to what we recognize). It could be argued that art is meant to be interpreted, so the messages are intentional, though I don’t consider movies to be art. But my friend countered that whoever first conceived the story was inspired by something and that something shaped the final product. There, he has a good point. I write what is on my heart. If I didn’t feel passionately about it, I wouldn’t write it. I expect the same to be true of novelists, screenwriters, poets and musicians. At the same time, the audience is also influenced by their pre-existing values and expectations. We will read into something what we choose to, independent of the artist’s inspiration.

“All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.” (2 Timothy 3:15-17)

What inspires you? What influences your worldview?

Evangelicals have coined the term “Biblical worldview” to define everything from media to politics. I agree with the principle- our values, convictions, and faith should influence how we view the world. In fact, that is the underlying theme of this blog- seeing everything that passes through the public square through our Christian lifestyle. I believe if you want to find an inspirational message in something you can in anything. I fully expect there to be several sermons preached based on the themes in Inception, just as there were for the Matrix, or Lost, or Gladiator. That doesn’t make it a Christian film, nor does one (of probably many) Christian’s negative opinion of its themes make it inherently nihilistic or anarchic. Our interpretation is based on our preconceived attitudes.

At the same time, we are inspired to be creative. After all, creation is an attribute of God and we are created in His image. That creativity may manifest itself in different forms- music, writing, career, hobbies, etc. Regardless of the medium, the outlet is still inspired. Just as we can interpret media based on our values (our worldview) we can influence the world with our values (the world viewing). It goes both ways. We cannot simply sit on the sidelines pointing our fingers at what we disagree with if we are not also engaging the very things we desire the world to overcome. Back to our summer blockbuster analogy, you cannot have the blockbuster if we’re not buying the tickets.

“Then Jesus came to them and said, ‘All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.’” (Matthew 28:18-20)

Who is your audience? What story is your life telling?

Last weekend alone, over $150 million was spent on the top-10 movies. Assuming $10 per ticket, that means 15 million people went to the movies this weekend. I don’t know if that’s more or less than the number who showed up to church on Sunday morning. I’m not advocating turning our worship into a spectacle. But I do believe we need to turn our lives into something worth viewing. We need to capture the audience with a big-name star (you), a compelling theme (admit it, your life has plenty of drama, doesn’t it?), and awesome special effects (a life transformed by the Gospel of Christ).

Today continues this summer’s ‘virtual small group’ (VSG in the tags). I hope you come back as I take this season to reflect on the wonders of God’s creation, share vacation stories, etc, with the prayer that we come out of this season closer to God than how we came into it.