I had forgotten that David and I went to the same college in Arkansas. That was in the late 60’s. At that time I was thinking about job and marriage. How our lives might reconnect over the years never crossed my mind.
Years later Bev and I moved to Lubbock, Texas to work with the same church that David and his wife attended. We didn’t run in the same circles during our college years, but we became good friends in Lubbock. Then our paths separated again. Continue reading Reconnections
Sunday morning began at 5:45. By 6:45 I was dressed and ready to leave for Playhouse Merced, our church home. I have a regimen that I complete every Sunday: unlock Playhouse and turn on lights, put out our four outdoor signs, set up greeters table, preach through the morning’s sermon, help set up the children’s classroom, and pray. Continue reading A Good Day
On Thursday I was dreading the thought of giving up my Saturday. I treasure sleeping in, a slow breakfast, and being lazy for one day. But Jeff from Radio Merced gave me a free ticket to the “Nonprofit Management and Marketing” seminar at Merced College.
So the alarm went off at 6:00 AM, and after hitting the snooze a couple of times I reluctantly got up. I can now tell you that it was well worth the effort. It also reminded me of the wonderful resources that are often laying on the ground around us for little or no cost. That was true today. Continue reading Marketing Non Profits
Whenever I have talked with church planters, a common warning comes from them. It’s always something like “Don’t surrender your vision to anyone.”
Many planters warn that disgruntled and baggaged people seek out new churches and attempt to shape them into their own vision. That vision can take the form of a particular kind of music, a church model, or even the kind of people sought after. Continue reading Teamwork
Saturday night we went to the Dollar Store. It is one of many such businesses in our community. Everything in this store is priced incredibly inexpensive. Bev wanted to buy some inexpensive serving dishes for our Sunday morning refreshments at church.
I think that everyone should shop in a Dollar Store or similar establishment periodically. Why? Because it is too easy to assume that a particular way of life is average, and that most people live that way. The Dollar Store is a great leveler and assumption remover. Continue reading The Dollar Store
Run, don’t walk, to see Amazing Grace, the story of William Wilberforce who is credited with abolishing slavery in Great Britain. Wilberforce worked for 18 years lobbying, writing bills, and fearlessly attempting to eradicate slavery from British vocabulary. Slavery was abolished in 1807, and Wilberforced died in 1833. Continue reading Amazing Grace
I got a call yesterday from the secretary of an organization I belong to. “Would you send me the information on that new member we just inducted?” I am membership chairman so I keep that information on new members.
As I typed the information in an e-mail I noticed that the new member had the same birth year as me. But I thought she was in her mid to late 60’s, possibly even 70. Which makes me aware of how different “60” can be, depending on its bearer. Continue reading Birthday
Lead kindly light amid th’ encircling gloom; Lead thou me on;
The night is dark, and I am far from home; Lead thou me on.
Keep Thou my feet; I do not ask to see The distant scene–one step enough for me.
John Newman penned these words in 1833 when he became ill and stranded in Italy on his way to England. The song mirrored his frustration with not being able to see or control the future. I have thought about this song on many occasions and identified with the sentiment. Continue reading Seeing the path
I just discovered a great computer tool called Note Scraps. It’s a product made my Logos Bible Software, but Note Scraps is an application for anyone who needs a place to keep random thoughts or data.
Note Scraps is deceivingly simple. You can’t format anything. There are no nested menus. The FAQ page is short. The learning curve is about 5 minutes long.
You can download a fully functioning sample for free. You can post 10 different notes in that version. For $20 you can get the fully functioning version and store all the notes you want.
I like Note Scraps because it gives me a place to put random information, reminders, and thoughts. If you saw my littered desk, you’d understand why this is needed. When I need to find a note, all I have to do is just remember any one word in it. Note Scraps will search the whole data base for anything with that word. Voila!
If you become a pilgrim, you cannot live in isolation from others; you cannot ‘purposefully separate from others on the journey.’ As part of personal transformation, you become a member of community.
Radical autonomy, subjectively driven lives, and consumer choice lead in a predictable direction: toward cultural fragmentation.
My sermon last Sunday was about the otherliness of the Samaritan in Jesus’ parable. In the sermon we examined the mandate we have from Jesus to look out for the needs of others. I like what Diana Butler Bass says in this regard. “You cannot live in isolation from others…”
Truly, to be a disciple of Jesus means being connected to the people around us. It means giving them attention and putting their needs above our own. This is difficult to do because everything in our culture is dedicated to “radical autonomy” and living unaware of the people we rub elbows with.
I think that such unselfish attention is extraordinary in this world, and it also gives people who care about others an extraordinary advantage. But you have to be willing to put others first.
MonoLogue 