Quiet Rhythms

Poll Finds a Fluid Religious Life in U.S.

More than a quarter of adult Americans have left the faith of their childhood to join another religion or no religion, according to a survey of religious affiliation by the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life.

read more here...

words that impose themselves on us

with all the talk about words in the news these days, and whether or not being able to deliver a great speech has anything to do with this or that...i thought i would throw in a few words of my own...

language

if language were only monologue, would it have any value?

imagine if God had only intended on having a monologue with us. it is hard for me to grasp that as truth. supposing it were true, however, i suppose that would mean that the salvation story would be something that was imposed upon us whether we like or not.

when you or i speak (unless extremely self-centered) we hope to receive some sort of response. when God speaks, he supposes that we will answer. God spoke his nature within us so that our response to Him would be formed within us and then show itself in a way that reflects the salvation dialogue He wishes to have with creation.

each of us has a part of the dialogue. salvation is being spoken by God to this creation, our question is this: what is my response?

how do we answer? do we sometimes have a hard time finding the words? are the words we speak formed by our broken nature, or Christ's nature within us. as a church this year, many of us have daily shared in email readings of the psalms. these psalms have been important to me as a way of learning the language of the Spirit as it interacts with the different situations of this human life. they have taught me how to speak salvation into this life. words that are formed by the image of God as revealed through the blood of His Son.

growing pains

i'm working my way through the emergent manifesto of hope, and would like to hi-light a section of the book that could be unpacked.

it comes from the chapter called 'growing pains' and it was written by Mark Scandrette. Mark is a writer, spiritual teacher, and executive director and cofounder of ReIMAGINE, a center for spiritual formation in San Francisco.

Here is the excerpt:

We live up to the story we live under. We live in a time when many people are waking up to the realization that the work and message of Jesus are about the future and the present, and represent the potential significant healing in every dimension of life. We are recovering from a legacy in which religious experience and devotion have been significantly separated from the domain of everyday life. We are recovering from a legacy in which religious experience and devotion have been significantly separated from the domain of everyday life. Often our legacy habits perpetuate a limited view of what is spiritual, so there is a need for new practices and perspectives. Embracing the reality of the kingdom means that everything matter and that ll of life is sacred. Spiritual leaders are being challenged not only to articulate a message or ideas well, but also to live, providing a compelling example to those who follow the.

Many participants in emerging conversations long for a sense of greater integration between belief and practice, local and global, inward and outward, the individual and a sense of place within a local community and culture. We see this longing for integrative theology and practice expressed in various themes with the emerging church phenomenon:

- significant interest in 'community,' communal living, and renewed monastic practices
- an open-source approach to community, theology, and leadership that encourages flatter structures, networks, and more personal and collective participation
- revitalized interest in the social dimensions of the gospel of Jesus including community development, earth-keeping, global justice, and advocacy - with particular emphasis on a relationally engaged approach to these issues
- renewed interest in contemplative and bodily spiritual formation disciplines that have, historically, been important Christian practices
a renewed emphasis on creation theology that celebrates earth, humanity, cultures, and the sensuous and aesthetic as good gifts of the Creator to be enjoyed in the proper contexts
- cultivation and appreciation of the arts, creativity, artful living, and provocative storytelling
- reexamination of vocation, livelihood, and sustainable economics

You can see how i am wrestling and responding to these issues at the other Quiet Rhythms site.

lessons from the ugandans

we were treated to the Watoto Children's Choir from Uganda on Sunday night. my daughter was very eager to connect with some of the children, so i got my girls out of school today to go and spend some time the Watoto children on their day off.

while the kids sat together and ate pizza, i watched them and spoke with one of their adults leaders about life on the road, what Uganda is like, and my trip to the dentist tomorrow.

i think what sticks out to me was their rootedness in the moment. i am sure if i were to follow them around for a week i would find moments of boredom that lead to discontentment; i'm not writing to address every specific moment. i am impressed by how second nature it seemed to be to them in our conversations to very quickly look for the silver lining in the situation. i say that this translates itself at a deeper level into a form of contentment that i don't see often enough in myself. you be the judge of how often your boredom leads to discontentment which leads to walmart.

even as they have been gone 6 months and will be heading home in one month, there was a moment of eagerness in their eyes to get home, but very quickly the conversation went to the beauty of the moment we were in.

i mentioned that i imagined that everywhere the kids went people wanted keep the them forever. the adult in the group laughed and said 'yes, but we want the kids to grow up ugandan.' thank God for His Church, not just here in america, but throughout the world. we have a lot to learn from each other.

Wer ist Jesus?

This past Sunday we showed a recent update from the Rasts in Germany. Part of the update was about a video that they made in Munich interviewing people on the street. Here is that video:

Visit the Rasts on the web and send them an email of encouragement to let them know that we are praying for them. You can find them HERE.

Greg and Shannon Rast - Update from Germany

This is the most current update that I have from our missionaries in Germany. If you would like more information on Greg, Shannon and their Ministry, then please visit their website: Urban Call

quietrhythms.org

i fired up the .org version of quiet rhythms today.

it will be a place to go for things dealing with spiritual formation. definitely going to be a work in process. hopefully it will provide valuable tools for you to use personally or in your church.

there isn't a lot there right now, but as it grows, please give me some feedback, or refer some material that i should be aware of.

Here is the link to the site: QuietRhythms.org

peace

north point community church's tom carson

after months of missing each other, we were finally able to get to talk to tom carson from northpoint (well, on the phone at least.) we gave him a verbal picture of who we are so that he could have a context by which to address us. we had sent him a list of questions regarding the northpoint.

how do you define the win?
they always pick two or three and then pound it over and over. the strength of north points simplicity is that the staff is able to invest more energy in less work. groups is a big piece. you can't do 20 things excellent. but maybe you can do 6. you will have more influence and have less stress on the system if you only focus on what you are able to do well, rather than try to be everything to everybody. at times, 'trimming the fat' may appear like you are speaking french to your congregation because they are used to always doing things a certain way, and having a certain program.

what is the big north point win?
for northpoint, the small group seems to be the big win. life in the church is celebrated through the stories that come out of small groups. a big step for someone may be to attend church on sunday morning, but the next biggest step for them would be to join a small group. how do people connect in community in our church.

what does assimilation look like
it may be necessary to create a middle step to take place between sunday morning worship service to small groups. tom and tori talked about providing a sunday morning 'sunday school/small group' environment. here at fwc, we have implemented north points starting point program to be this middle step for our people.

what about the people who won't get involved in a small group?
outlets for strategic service are available for the people who will not take part in a small group. these service teams have many aspects of a small group, but are obviously not built for longevity. but, because of the emphasis of small groups within the church, there are internal pressures within these service teams to create a desire for more of small group.

it can't be as simple as you make it look
north point presents themselves as very clean and simple. what do you do when the 'monster' that is day-in-day-out church administration and coordination. about 4 years ago, np began to hire staff that they called 'coaches' that would sit down and work with about 40 small group leaders to make sure that things iron out. the coach has assistants that help with this administration. for about 12 months, the coach mentors and trains their small group leaders. this takes place throughout the season of the small groups life. between months 12-18 are getting ready to reproduce.

how about church politics?
choose trust over suspicion. andy stanley is accountable pretty heavily to the elder board. get familiar with the different roles that each of the teams in the constitution talks about.

other random thoughts that could be unpacked more:
- 'we want you in a small group so badly that we will take away any excuse that you have.' provide babysitters, etc...
- discipleship, service, and connecting take place in the greatest capacity in the small group.
- keep your hand on the pulse of your volunteers. be 100% for them every week. make sure that they have what they need so that they feel that that time is appreciated and that they are able to do their work.
- be fully prepared and deliver excellence.

here are some links to the inner workings of north point church:
- North Point Administration
- North Point Missions
- North Point Constitution
- North Point Small Groups
- North Points 7 Strategies
- North Point Store

thanks tom. blessings to you.

time magazine article: christians wrong about heaven

N.T. "Tom" Wright is one of the most formidable figures in the world of Christian thought. As Bishop of Durham, he is the fourth most senior cleric in the Church of England and a major player in the strife-riven global Anglican Communion; as a much-read theologian and Biblical scholar he has taught at Cambridge and is a hero to conservative Christians worldwide for his 2003 book The Resurrection of the Son of God, which argued forcefully for a literal interpretation of that event.

read more...

the sex talk

thanks for sticking this up mikky.

here are the points for the guys who asked over in hodson (ps. see if you can do something about that smell.)

5. He needs you to be proud of him.
5. She needs you to be a good dad.
4. He needs peace and quiet.
4. She needs the bills to be paid.
3. He needs you to look good.
3. She needs to trust you (open and honest)
2. He needs a playmate.
2. She needs conversation.
1. He needs sex.
1. She needs affection.