Monthly Archives: April 2007

Church planting, Missional

Sharing the kindness of Jesus

VOMBev receives Voice of the Martyrs every month.  VOM is a publication about the religious persecution of Christians around the world.  The May 2007 issue has a large article about the plight of Malaysians wanting to become disciples of Jesus.

Native Malaysians are considered to be Islamic by virture of their nationality.  It is not permitted for a native Malay to be anything other than Muslim.  Furthermore, churches that permit Malays to attend are subject to persecution, seizure of their property, etc.

So no matter how badly you may want to become a Christian it is extremely difficult and dangerous to do so.  You may even be asked not to come to church by its members.

One of the Malay Christians named “Dian” described the approach that Christians have to take toward toward seekers.

‘Although it is risky, we share the kindness of Jesus with waitresses in restaurants and in villages…We pray for hurting people.  We do not argue about the Koran or the Bible.  Religious debates never saved anybody.  In our young days of ministry, we made enemies trying to be smart with our Christian knowledge and bring them down.  That is a waste of God’s time.

Christianity is not a religion, but a relationship between us and God.  Every opportunity is a divine moment.  You must not be self-centered but live for other people and care for them.  Muslims are coming to Jesus.

Dian’s strategy is wise and insightful.  No one appreciates a debate, and being a Christian is primarily a relationship and not a religious affiliation.

Leadership, Life in general, People

“I’m never to busy for your referrals.”

PeopleI really admire my friend Russ.  He is one of the kindest and most attentive people I know.

It’s not unusual to find a message on my cell phone.  “Hi Bruce, this is Russ.  I was just calling to say hello and see how you’re doing.”  It takes him about a minute to do that, but it really makes my day to get the voice mail.

Recently Russ and I were talking about what it takes to make organizations hum.  Again, he knows what people need in order to be encouraged and empowered.

I would summarize what he said in this way.  1) Take time to talk to people.  Not e-mail.  Talk.  2) Make sure that you don’t take people for granted.  Let them know that they are important to you and bring value to your life.

I think that is good advice for any group of people.

Life in general

A better use of time.

Ink pen 02I don’t get it.  Why do some people derive such fulfillment in being continually negative?

I read a rant in the paper this morning about what the city needed to be doing in regard to some land development.  I wanted to send the writer to Merced’s 10–month course, Leadership Merced. That would open his eyes.

On second thought, his eyes might be so jaundiced that he can’t see anything but the negative.

Earlier this week I pulled two rags from my post office box.  Somebody from my past decided that I needed to get their poison pen writings.  No thanks.  Into the trash they went.

People like this drive me nuts.  If they used the same amount of energy and thought for helping the poor, volunteering for good organizations, and otherwise helping their communities, they’d have a lot less time to spend making themselves and others unhappy.

Take me off your mailing list.

Life in general, People

New Header

Tower TheatreEver since I started blogging a year and a half ago, I’ve wished for a header to my blog that was more Merced specific.  My wishes got a little closer to reality today.

Tom Bustos is helping me redesign the header using Merced imagery.  Now, when you look at monoLogue, you will be reminded that this is about a venture that takes place in Merced, California.

Today I got a tour of the new Merced County courthouse.  It’s a really nice structure, and we got the tour from Judge Frank Doughtery who is the person who loved this project to completion.  That, in itself, was an honor.

The courthouse is so new that it’s not fully occupied.  Everyone walks around with big smiles.

The courthouse is modest but attractive.  It is worlds better than the portables and other “temporary” buildings that the County had to use for decades.  I thought that this was a tribute to what responsible, intelligent, and motivated people can do.  It was impressive.

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Life in general, People

Rap Lyrics

My friend Dwight Whitsett wrote the following about Rap music in his blog. He cracked me up, and I thought his talent was worth showcasing.

In the interest of being “current” and “hip,” I suppose I should have my own rap song. I’m looking for a producer who can make a fat, gray-haired man look fly to the hip-hop crowd.

As I researched rap lyrics (I only barfed twice) it occurred to me that some might not appreciate my efforts. Well in the words of rapper Jay-Z as he answered his critics (sorry I won’t quote the whole couplet in the interest of decorum) “If you don’t like my lyrics you can press fast forward.” (99 Problems). Continue reading Rap Lyrics →

Life in general, theology

“Meant to be”

I’m puzzled by the frequency with which I hear the phrase, “It was meant to be.” It implies that some force or god was controlling events and that the meant-to-be experience was orchestrated.

It’s interesting that the phrase is used equally by christians and non-christians. So for christians, the phrase points to God for the meaning. And the non-christians give credit to Fate or some other impersonal force for the occurence. Continue reading “Meant to be” →

Church planting, Life in general, LifeSpring Church

Eucharist

EucharistAdam did the “table talk” Sunday.  The table talk is the brief talk that is done just before we have the Lord’s Supper.  LifeSpring observes the Lord’s Supper weekly.

Some people call it Eucharist.  It is a symbolic meal consisting of a symbolic piece of bread and a small cup of wine or grape juice.  It is meant to cause reflection on the death and resurrection of Jesus.

Continue reading Eucharist →

Church planting, Life in general, Missional

6:45 AM

I try to get to Playhouse Merced at 6:45 AM in order to get everything set up for our Sunday worship.  This normally includes putting out signage, turning on the lights, unpacking the car, and rehearsing the morning sermon.

There’s not much going on at 6:45 AM on Sunday.  Traffic lights are mostly green, and those that aren’t usually only take a few seconds to change from red to green.  Starbucks has a regular clientele, but aside from that, not many people are walking around.

Continue reading 6:45 AM →

Church planting, LifeSpring Church

Conversation

I’ve had a very busy day.  It began with an 8:30 meeting.  A city official brought together a group of pastors to talk about faith-based initiatives and how churches could help the city.  It was a good meeting, and it was also heartening to hear a public official talking about the role of faith in the city without seeing it as a threat.

Later in the day I met a person who introduced herself and asked me who I was.  “I’ve seen you a Starbucks,” she said.  I explained that I was a church planter and that I officed in Starbucks.

Continue reading Conversation →