Life, Church, Family, Technology, and the occasional “et al”

My preference for avoiding confrontation is not getting me the results that I want.  I like to be considered “reasonable”, but as George Bernard Shaw said:

The reasonable man adapts himself to the world; the unreasonable man persists in trying to adapt the world to himself. Therefore, all progress depends on the unreasonable man.

I think I need to open up a can of “unreasonable” on a couple of situations.  Time to go buy a six-pack.

I am writing early this year in order to avoid your annual busy season.  I would like one of these, and I promise that I won’t use it to take over the world  

(via Gadgetopia)

I just finished "Pop Goes the Church" by Tim Stevens, and my brain is feeling like it has overindulged at the idea buffet! I’m feeling stretched, I’m kind of uncomfortable, and there’s a lot to digest.

A couple of things stick out.  First, this book is not about dealing with people who are already actively involved in your congregation.  It is about reaching the unchurched. It deals with intentionally looking for the questions and themes that are reflected in the arts and media of our culture and using them to start God-conversations in our community.

Secondly, this book is challenging Christians to make some changes. There is a focus on becoming missionaries to our own communities, meeting needs in order to get the opportunity to talk about God.  Some of us have  become very comfortable inside the church subculture, but by doing so we become isolated and insulated from our neighbors.  As the book points out, when we are all bent over in our "holy huddles", we should consider the view that we are giving to everyone else!

What’s next?  I don’t know.  I’m pretty sure that I’m the first to read this book in our church. I don’t think I’ll be the last, though.  This could spawn some good conversations - and maybe some changes.

-Blessings-

Production week schedules for our kids choir are amazingly hectic, but the final result is worth it.  the Kids of the Kingdom choir at Tigard Christian Church will be presenting “Living Inside Out” tonight and tomorrow at 6 PM.

That’s what I’ve been working on this week instead of blogging - just so you know

On a more technical note, we managed to get a live link set up so that our son Tim could watch the dress rehearsal from 1000 miles away!

Chris over at MinistryMarketingCoach has released a 31 page ebook on using Facebook for Ministry.  It has several good ideas on how to turn a complete time sink into a tool for reaching others for Christ.  Take a look.

I’ve played around with this weblog for a while, using it as a proof of concept and/or toy, but I’m thinking that I should do more writing as a means of a) recording thoughts, and b) crystallizing my thinking.  A couple of months ago I ran across this article by Scott Young - a productivity blogger that I follow, and it has been bugging me ever since.  Basically his point is that for whatever reason, we seldom act boldly to get the results that we want. 

Boldness - acting with courage - is the deliberate, willful, acceptance of risk. It means trusting something or someone more than you trust your own fear.  That’s hard to do.

Why? 

My fear has helped me avoid several types of pain. It keeps my mouth shut when I might embarrass myself. It keeps me from making phone calls when I might be considered rude.  It keeps me from going to the doctor when I might not like what he has to say.

But like any wall that is built to keep badness out, it also keeps me locked in.

<sigh>

I hate it when I talk myself into a corner.

If I want my ideas to have more impact, I need to write them down.  This is where I do that.

I think I’ve found a new blog entry that’s going to bug me for a while.  I just wrote it. 

Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the LORD your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you."  Deut. 31:6

I’ve just ordered my copy of "Pop Goes the Church: Should the Church Engage Pop Culture?"

Pop Goes the Church: Should the Church Engage Pop Culture? by Tim Stevens Read more about this book…

If the reviews are even half right, this will be a challenging read (and worth passing around!).  The author - Tim Stevens - is on the staff at Granger Community Church, and has co-authored the Simply Strategic books with Tony Morgan.  Apparently, the book is in its second printing already, even though it just came out in late March.

Great post on dealing with tech support folks.  I’ve been there, done that, got the bruises from beating my head against the nearest wall - mostly from the support guy side.

Heading up 101 toward Santa Clarita. We’re on our way.

Driving to California. I love going through southern Oregon with the forests coming right down to the road.

Music time at bonfire.

Link tag. Woo-hoo!

We are starting our pre-camp staff meetings for Winema second junior camp. Here we go!

Fern at my desk - photoblog test.

Hi,  I’m just checking out the ability to post messages via email  that is built into WordPress.  Next I’ll use this with Jott to post from my cell phone!

I recently purchased a new wallet based on a blog recommendation or two.  It’s actually an “All-ett“, which is a nicely built fabric wallet with room for plenty of cards, cash, and other flat items.  It’s a little larger than the tri-fold that I have carried for the last several years, but it separates the credit cards, ID cards, and other items into two stacks with two pockets per stack.
In related news, I’m working on how to fill in a 3×4 inch dent in the drivers seat of my pickup. It seems to have appeared about the same time that the wallet arrived!

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Winter must be over. There are daffodills in bloom in front of our house. There were large numbers of noisy birds awake at 6:30 this morning. And the one-eyed dachshund next door greeted me like a long lost friend when I got out of my pickup last night. Life is good.

25 years is a fairly long time.

It’s longer than most of the members of MySpace have been alive.

It’s longer than the Web has existed.

It’s as long as I have been married.  Wow!  Of course that’s not my fault…

I can think of several people to blame for that one, starting with my parents.  They set lofty expectations, and backed it up with their own example of working together through several years and the joys and difficulties that come with them.  Their example will hit 54 years on thursday.

I can lay some more on other friends and family members that have provided examples for us to watch and learn from.

I can lay some of the blame on our children for providing us with years of new experiences.

But mostly I think the responsibility falls on Merrill, who has put up with my quirks, helped me fix some of my faults, and refused to give up on me and us. 

 Thank you, Merrill, for the first 25 years.  I wonder what God has in store for the future, but I’m glad you’ll be with me to find out.