10.27.2007
halloween... rock chalk style
This looks awesome! btw. The Jayhawks are 8-0!
Willow's Woes
It's been over a week since I've posted. Mainly due that my Macbook Pro was at the repair shop and is not on a table in Apple's offices. I hope it comes back with Leopard installed.
However, in the time that has elapsed there has been a controversial repentance by Bill Hybels and the leadership of Willow Creek Community Church. It has been interesting to read articles, posts and comments on this issue. As you read the responses, it is almost like the world of Christiandom is like the world of politics.
Well instead of Republicans and Democrats, we have Seeker Driven and non-Seeker Driven (I chose this term since other terms would present a derogatory connotation either way).
In this confession where Willow Creek apologizes that their people are not as mature as they feel they should be and lay out the reasons why they came to this assumption, non Seeker Driven parties have used this as a vehicle to push their cause. They have also taken this as an opportunity to enlighten people that Willow's 30 years have been wasted and that it will be nearly impossible for them to change the course of this large church.
On the flip-side, Seeker Driven churches are applauding Willow's efforts to confess and re-align their directional compass.
Why do we look for things to go wrong? Are we so ego-centered that our point-of-view, and interpretation of scripture is the how God meant it to be read? (Don't read too much into that question. I'm not promoting heresy here.)
Admitted that my car is running rough doesn't mean the car is going to fall apart since or that it's days are numbered or that it won't survive this repair.
Willow Creek is on the same track. And every church will be in the church "workshop" re-aligning or repairing something a lot. If you aren't in the shop often, it probably means you're not on the road doing what you were designed to do.
I can't wait for the day that we stop looking for the wrong in every large church, while we ourselves are justifying our non-growing church (I didn't want to call it a dying church, since things that aren't growing are dying) and making spiritual excuses like we are "led by the Holy Spirit."
Seeker, non-seeker, Republican, Democrat... does it really matter? The old antidote is true regardless if you are an expository preacher or a topical preacher... "Methods change, but our message should always remain the same."
However, in the time that has elapsed there has been a controversial repentance by Bill Hybels and the leadership of Willow Creek Community Church. It has been interesting to read articles, posts and comments on this issue. As you read the responses, it is almost like the world of Christiandom is like the world of politics.
Political Transfer
In politics, anything a Republican does or falls short of becomes the hot topic of the Democrats and vice a versa. They constantly look for every shortcoming and analyze it to death until they find something that they can put down to make their party look better.Well instead of Republicans and Democrats, we have Seeker Driven and non-Seeker Driven (I chose this term since other terms would present a derogatory connotation either way).
In this confession where Willow Creek apologizes that their people are not as mature as they feel they should be and lay out the reasons why they came to this assumption, non Seeker Driven parties have used this as a vehicle to push their cause. They have also taken this as an opportunity to enlighten people that Willow's 30 years have been wasted and that it will be nearly impossible for them to change the course of this large church.
On the flip-side, Seeker Driven churches are applauding Willow's efforts to confess and re-align their directional compass.
Why do we look for things to go wrong? Are we so ego-centered that our point-of-view, and interpretation of scripture is the how God meant it to be read? (Don't read too much into that question. I'm not promoting heresy here.)
Tune-Up
People are trying to make this a bigger deal than it really is. It's not earth shattering. It's not going to disrupt the "seeker sensitive" world. It's a tune-up. Just like giving my car a tune-up, which is happening a an automotive shop as we speak, churches need to re-align their priorities and programs.Admitted that my car is running rough doesn't mean the car is going to fall apart since or that it's days are numbered or that it won't survive this repair.
Willow Creek is on the same track. And every church will be in the church "workshop" re-aligning or repairing something a lot. If you aren't in the shop often, it probably means you're not on the road doing what you were designed to do.
Calling it for what it is
I can't wait for the day that we stop looking for the wrong in every large church, while we ourselves are justifying our non-growing church (I didn't want to call it a dying church, since things that aren't growing are dying) and making spiritual excuses like we are "led by the Holy Spirit."
Seeker, non-seeker, Republican, Democrat... does it really matter? The old antidote is true regardless if you are an expository preacher or a topical preacher... "Methods change, but our message should always remain the same."
Links
Here are links to different articles on this:10.19.2007
10.13.2007
10.08.2007
Cure for Criticism
Do you find yourself in situations where you wish you weren't so critical? Do people accuse you of always criticizing different things? If so, there's a great rule of thumb that will allow you to gain influence with your peers and leadership in your company, organization, church, club, even at home.
Criticize by creating. Michaelangelo was the person who coined this term. It's a great way to eliminate criticism from vocabulary. The next time that you want to criticize something, think of a way that you can change it, do it different, or help out. If you can help then do it, otherwise don't let the criticism fly out.
When you begin to create new options and challenge the process you will gain influence with your peers, company, or organization.
Go for it, give it a shot.
Criticize by creating. Michaelangelo was the person who coined this term. It's a great way to eliminate criticism from vocabulary. The next time that you want to criticize something, think of a way that you can change it, do it different, or help out. If you can help then do it, otherwise don't let the criticism fly out.
When you begin to create new options and challenge the process you will gain influence with your peers, company, or organization.
Go for it, give it a shot.
10.06.2007
New Canon Powershot G7
I bought a new camera for work and it came in yesterday. The Powershot G7. So far, I love it. It captures great color. Here's an example of what I mean. These are some flowers that are about 30 yards away from me as I sit here outside of Johnson County Community College where my wife is taking a test.You can see how well this 10 megapx camera grabs the color in the flowers. I also used it yesterday to take some pics of the new building we are building up at ZonaRosa. It was at dusk so everything has a gold tint but hey, it looks good.
10.03.2007
Always Promote
One thing I think that churches fall short is in promoting events effectively. There are a lot of churches that will attempt to tell people in a compelling way about the next weeks event, but I believe there are several keys to promotion.
- Build expectation. Whether its a new sermon series, an event or a new class you can build expectation by letting the people know how this could benefit them. Mention a common topic and wet their appetite by mentioning something that your message or class will solve.
Building expectation is all about peaking interest. So make it interesting. Do something different. Be like Ed Young says, predictably unpredictable. Don't allow the message to be the typical sermon, or the class to be patterned in a way that everyone can predict what you'll say next. Mix things up. - Begin with the next beginning in mind. When you start something, know what's coming next. What are you following this up with? How will you do it? Do you have a big Sunday where you want everyone to invite their friends to? Then what are you going to have next for them to want to come to?
Don't fail to plan. It's an old adage, but it's worth stating and being redundant, by saying it again, and repeating the saying over and over... k... I'm done. People who fail to plan, plan to fail. Don't be a leader that plans to fail. - Give them something to help them remember. It might be an invite, a pen, or a paper clip (if you give them a paper clip, let me know how you tied that in, I'd love to know.) Be creative. Use something that common to their life so when they see it, use it, they remember what's coming.
Theaterchurch.com gave away invites that looked like a cd for a series they called "Billboards."
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Posts
