Family Photos

A friend of mine sent me a link to this article/these pics from the Huffington Post. I didn't include them all, but I thought these were so funny that they had to be shared. The comments above each pic weren't part of the Huffington story.

"Mom, dad, you're going to have to give me some space."

Next year we're getting dad pajamas, too!

"Can't sleep. Doll will eat me."

I don't recall the last time I saw a single picture that told such a long and painful story.

Are You a Leader?

My friend, Scott Wakefield, introduced me to this video on leadership. The video is short and if you're at all interested in what it means to be a leader, you'll want to watch it. It's fun and instructive all at once.

Take A Quick Break. Look at Three Pictures.

This week's sermon is on the horrible, horrible text from Judges 19 and 20. The book of Judges ends with a nation in chaos and it's hard to find enough scraps of redemption to bring this to the pulpit.
So we'll talk about something a little less intense in this post.

This sign at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway made me chuckle (I didn't laugh out loud, though). We've all heard British characters in movies or plays tell people to "sod off". This sign just made me think of that. I don't think I've seen a "Keep Off Grass" sign like this one before.
I saw this book in a bookstore last week. Forgive me for judging a book by it's cover, but I can't imagine David Archuletta has been through all THAT much. When did American Idol start water boarding their contestants? I don't think a cancer survivor or someone who has been through the loss of a child would shed too many tears for David as he confesses that he was really, really, really hurt when Simon didn't affirm his singing talent.

Am I wrong on this? Has he been through something horrible that I don't know about? (don't tell me to read the book to find out because ... well ... I'm not reading this book).

IHN Volunteers Needed

Imagine you've been charged with staffing a ministry to homeless families for one week. Now imagine that when you put sign-up sheets out in the foyer. People think about signing up, but eventually breeze past the sheets. You KNOW their hearts are in the right place and they want to help. You KNOW they want the ministry to homeless families to bear fruit. You KNOW they just need a gentle nudge.

If you've imagined that scenario, then you might hope the minister would provide a gentle nudge on his blog.

Gentle Nudge.

Call the church office, please, if you can help. This ministry, in my opinion, is the most gospel-centered ministry the church of Johnson City offers. Please participate if you can!

The NACC Wednesday Morning Sesion

First the pics ... I'm not staying in downtown Indy this year. I miss being able to get back to the hotel and shut the noise out, but the BONUS this morning was the sunrise as I was leaving my brother's house.
This is as close as I got to the stage today. I took this pic during worship. The music was excellent.

Here is a quick pic from the back/top of the room this morning.

Greetings to you from a dark corner of the food court at the Circle Centre mall in Indianapolis, Indiana where Day 2 of the North American Christian Convention is in full swing. Ben Cachiaras delivered the opening message last night and did a fantastic job of challenging folks to go BEYOND (the theme for the week as you ... hopefully ... will remember). He ended his sermon with a touching story that looked back at his Greek grandfather’s fidelity to his calling and the ministry that his life had spawned.

Good job, Ben. Keep up the good work.

Now to my assigned task, which is to blog about this morning’s 9:30 am session in which Brian Jones delivered the message.

We opened with prayer and worship, singing Today is the Day, Blessed Assurance, Glory to God Forever, Take My Life and Let It Be, and ending with a Matt Redman song called Shine. Then Paul Williams introduced Brian Jones, who is the planter/preacher at Christ Church of the Valley in Philadelphia.

Brian’s task was to preach on the Great Omission, which is the phrase we’re using this week to talk about the penchant of some churches to stress evangelism at the expense of teaching and discipleship once someone has accepted Christ. Usually we just get fussed at for not evangelizing. This year we're getting a more balanced fussing!

Brian arranged his material around three main points:

Undiscipled converts might fall way.

I have to admit that my favorite thing he said today was under this heading. Brian gave proper respect to John Piper (who is a fantastic preacher) and to Mark Driscoll (whom people say is good and I believe them) but then made it plain that he disagreed with their stance that people can’t lose their salvation. Thems fightin’ words to some folk. I love my Calvinistic brothers and sisters, but I’m glad to have someone remind our folks that we aren’t the spiritual descendants of Calvin.

Ancient theological battles aside, Brian hit the nail square on the head on this one.

I would have appreciated hearing how he addresses the need to disciple and deepen at CCV in Philly. Should churches be like AA where you have to have a sponsor? Not a bad idea, actually. When it comes to deepening and to discipleship there is no substitute for personal, one-on-one attention--for prolonged periods of time. Hence the difficulty.

Undiscipled converts might eventually become bad PR for God.

If you've ever been embarrassed by unChristian behavior from a Christian friend then you totally get this one. Brian quipped that he has known people he wished he could offer $10 in hopes that they would never admit to being Christians.

The bad press we Christians give ourselves by behaving in ways that are contrary to the gospel can be devastating.

Undiscipled converts might become polite church members.

Here is where Brian challenged us to be aware that we are following someone who died for the cause of faith. Jesus doesn't call us to be good ladies and gentlemen. He calls us to be followers who pick up our crosses daily and offer our lives to God. Our lives. Not just our time and talents and dollar bills. Our lives.

This morning's session was a good one. I'd say more about it, but I'm supposed to have this posted soon and I'm running out of free internet and battery power.

It is really good to be here at the convention. It's good to be back in Indy. It's good to see friends.

God is gracious.

Arriving in Indy

The convention center in downtown Indy is half springing to life today. The convention doesn't begin in earnest until tonight, but the exhibit hall is open. I've gotten to see a host of our Grandview folks including the Greers, Brent Nipper, Bob Hall, Dan Lawson, Erin Layton, Bob and Loretta Hull, Phyllis Fox and her daughter (one of my favorites), Katy.

I also got to talk to Ethan Magness, Lee Magness, Karla Cachiaras, Greg and Becky Johnson (of Generations Christian Church near Tampa), Wye Huxford (of the EES), and David Wright (of TCM). It's been a nice afternoon. Part of the fun of attending the NACC is catching up with folks we don't get to see on a regular basis.

The girls and I arrived at my brother's house last night. Anna and Cora are spending the day with their Aunt Missy and their cousins. This morning Meghan and I were able to visit my dad and his wife. Dad is looking good after his surgery! The recovery seems to be kicking in. After visiting my dad we went to see my grandfather. He was looking well.

On our way downtown we took a detour to the Indianapolis 500 (it was more of a stop than a detour ... my grandfather lives in Speedway). Here is a picture of Meghan from inside the first turn of the Indy 500. We also took a van ride/tour consisting of one lap around the track. We traveled a blazing 30 mph.

Then we hopped into our own van and drove to the convention center (driving faster than 30mph).

I never promise a next post, but tomorrow is a pretty sure bet. I've been asked to blog the morning session by speaker Brian Jones. I'll try to take some pics.

Bend Cachiaras Visits Grandview

My old friend, Bend Cachiaras, visited Grandview today. He must have been on his way to the 2010 NACC in Indianapolis where he will spend most of his time in the Emmanuel School of Religion booth (#601), posing for pictures.

He arrived on his purple, Minnesota Vikings motorcycle.

He even let me take it for a ride on what was a beautiful day here in East Tennessee.

Then we sat down in the lobby of the church and enjoyed a little coffee clutch.He wanted me to hear his new song that he wrote for the worship services at Mountain Christian Church in Joppa, Maryland.
Then he preached a great sermon that he's hoping to preach at the convention.

The sermon was so good that he convinced himself that it was time to be baptized.

Since I was the only other person around, I got the honors of participating in his baptism.

I know he's been thinking of getting baptized for a long, long time.

After the intense spiritual experience, he has emerged as a major ecumenical figure. He even embraces Packer fans now.

Yikes: the sermon series

Following The Prodigal God series we will have a series that looks at some of the more scandalous material in scripture. I haven't finalized my list of texts to include. This is a huge challenge because, quite frankly, some of the material in scripture isn't fit to preach in mixed company (especially with children present). I know some branches of Christianity have a history of book burning, but I doubt any of the charred remains top the Bible when it comes to outrageous material.

This is your chance to help me out. I'd be happy for you to post a comment (or just email me) letting me know what text you think I should include. Remember, there are a few that I'm just not going to touch from the pulpit. Some texts are better examined in smaller Bible studies.

Examples of what I might, might not, or won't preach:

• Judges 11--Jephthah's Daughter (Rollin Ramsaran preached a good sermon on this one back when I was in seminary. I may try to get him to re-preach it).
  
• 2 Kings 2:23--Should Elisha Bear Children? (have no idea what I'll say about this).
• Genesis 38--Oh No, Onan! (I'm on the fence about this one, but will probably include it).
• 1 Samuel 18:25-27--(probably won't use this one).
• I will use nothing from Ezekiel 16 or 23. Don't even suggest those.

Okay ... I'll take your suggestions. Thanks!

Amateurs.

This is a cartoon by Truong Son that I am thinking of projecting during the sermon on Sunday. It's an oldie, but a goodie.

Just so you know ....

The youth are in Mexico and the daily reports are on the Grandview website: link.
It sounds like they're working very, very hard!

Oh, no ... Big Butter!!!!

How could I not blog about the untimely demise of the 63' tall statue that comedian Heywood Banks dubbed "Big Butter Jesus" (the song "Big Butter Jesus" is linked at the bottom of this post)?

I remember the odd feeling I got when driving along I-75, north of Cincinnati, and seeing Big Butter Jesus for the first time. I am at once pleased and repulsed. I'm pleased that church would attempt such a grand gesture. It takes a visionary group of people to attempt to do something like this.

I'm repulsed, though, because it just doesn't work. The statue plays into every silly cliche' ever uttered against cultural Christianity. Also, despite the grandness of the idea, it just looks silly.

Interestingly, Jesus has always been a lightening rod for controversy [insert rim shot]. Christians are torn over whether or not the statue is a good idea. Non-Christians (I suspect) just find it ridiculous.
Well, as many of you already know, the statue caught fire last week.

How apocalyptic does this thing look after being hit by the bolt and catching fire? Let the jokes begin. Who is responsible? God or some sinister power opposing God? This is the problem with heavenly signs. They can be interpreted in soooo many different ways.
Regardless where blame is assigned, all that's left is the skeleton. The church has pledged to rebuild it. I think I would leave well enough alone. I throw no stones at Solid Rock Church. They will do what they will do. I suspect they've tied their identity with the statue and that without it, they will feel adrift (I don't KNOW this. I suspect it. I don't know a single person who goes to this church).

That's the problem, though. If Solid Rock can't be the church without the statue, things need to change. Any church that ties its identity to a statue, a building, a song, a style of song, a preacher, or ANYTHING other than God as God is revealed in Jesus of Nazareth needs to rethink its vision.

At Grandview we don't have a big statue, but I'm sure we have a few idols....


Here's the song by Heywood Banks. The song isn't exactly reverent, but the comedian who sings it is lampooning the statue, not Jesus.

Bad Blogger

I don't blame you for failing to stop by lately. I just haven't had the time I would like for blogging. But I will interrupt the sermon prep this morning to post some pics from the past few weeks (some older than that).

Meg graduated from Science Hill High School last week. We're proud of her for being dutiful and for loving her parents (even when we aren't the best parents ever).

Here she is with her great-grandfather. He's 93 and she loves him, too.

All of my siblings and their kids were here for the event. It was great seeing them all. I guy couldn't ask for a better family.

I forgot to wish Cora a happy birthday in the blog. We went to the Firehouse (her favorite) to celebrate. She even got a birthday desert!

We start a new series tomorrow. If you want to do any advanced reading on it I recommend Tim Keller's book, "The Prodigal God". He gives a compelling and faithful interpretation of the Luke 15 and the story we usually call the "Prodigal Son." It's a short book and well written. Thanks, Tim (and Scott Wakefield for hitting me up to it).

The Downside of Johnson City

NOTE: I wrote this last week, but am only posting now.

I enjoy living in Johnson City. I'll admit it's a bit smaller than I would prefer. It's also a bit more out of the way than than I would like (but there are good things that come along with living in a smaller town).

I would like downtown Johnson City to look more like an "is" place than a "was" place, but we seem to be making some progress on that.

I've gotten used to drivers who seem to meander in fits and starts, who pull out in front of you like they're in a hurry, then travel at 20 m.p.h.

I've gotten used to the elevators at the hospital, where more than a few some local folks stand before these magical rising cubes, but aren't at all used to elevator etiquette . These are people who don't come into contact with elevators anywhere but our seven-story hospital, folks who regularly jump on the first elevator that opens, regardless the direction it's heading. I watch them hit the "up" button, scurry to the "down" elevator, then magically reappear before me as they look around wondering how I made it to their floor before they did.

Last week there was a lady who did just that. When I got onto the elevator she turned to her friend and asked what happened. The friend figured it out.

"We got on the DOWN elevator."

"Well, why was it going down when we pressed the up button?"

The friend decided not to bother explaining, letting the comment pass. Then the first lady looked up at the monitor that the hospital uses to tell the captives how advanced their medical techniques are and said, "Look! They have cameras in here now. They're watching us!"

I'm used to those things here in Johnson City. I even find them endearing most of the time. All of these aspects of Johnson City are either minor annoyances or humorous diversions. But there is something troubling about living in Johnson City. It's something I don't think I will ever get used to.

By living and ministering in Johnson City I come into regular contact with some of the greats of our churches. I get to know them and appreciate them in ways I could never access if I lived far away from here. That is a great and wonderful thing.

But then I have the bittersweet task of knowing some of these greats as they leave us behind. It's so sad to experience, and it never stops. I've learned from and lost so many fine role models and teachers. Owen Crouch. Bob Fife. Charles Taber. Bill Norris. Howard Shaffer. Earl Stuckenbruck. And now Ray Giles.

If I were ministering in Florida I would hear that these men had died and I'd think, "That's too bad. I've heard he was a fine man."

The honor of knowing fine, Christian role models precedes the pain of saying goodbye. We, of course, grieve as people with hope, but when we live in Johnson City we grieve a lot as people with hope. Last week's was as tough as any I've experienced here.

Farewell, Ray. May God Bless Effie with the comfort only the Spirit can bring.

Growtivation

Okay ... I had to post this. I just made me laugh. It comes from North Point in Atlanta and is tongue-in-cheek in nature. I'm not making a big statement here. I'm just receiving the video in its intended spirit. Many of you have already seen it, but if you haven't then please enjoy1

"Sunday's Coming" Movie Trailer from North Point Media on Vimeo.

Bloggable Week ...

The most bloggable weeks are also the busiest (which makes it hard to find time to blog). So, here is my quick synopsis!

First (and saddest for us) is that Isaac and Maggie Schade said goodbye to us as they packed their bags for their westward move. The Sunday night farewell was a nice night, even though we were saying goodbye.

Logan Bembry was one of the speakers and he said one of the best things a young man could say (I'm paraphrasing here) "Isaac, you make me want to serve God in the church."

Dirk DiSantis and Jeff Miller made us laugh while they paid tribute to Maggie and Isaac.

By Wednesday I was in Indianapolis where I attended meetings involving Christian Missionary Fellowship, TCM International, and The European Evangelistic Society. The picture below was one I took while TCM and EES made it official that we will seek merger. We still aren't sure it will happen or how it will look once its finished, but I'm excited to see the potential for both groups to benefit from working together (mostly under TCM's banner).

Picture below, from left to right: Bruce Shields, Tony Twist, and Wye Huxford.

Then I got to see family. We had supper at my brother's house. Nephews Gideon and Ethan are pictured here while Ethan shows me that he can play "Yellow Submarine." It was a wonderful night and I enjoyed myself very much.

I didn't get a picture of my drive home, but I did get to spend about an hour and a half in Wilmore talking to Dr. Ellsworth Kalas, one of my preaching professors at Asbury. I got some pointers from him about how to teach preaching, what to look for, and what how to critique in a constructive way.

On Friday we had a baptism. Luke has been thinking about baptism for awhile. He called me while I was on my way to Indianapolis and said he wanted to do it as soon as possible. Friday became the time. I am so pleased to welcome Luke into the Grandview family.

A nice day...

I've been too slow to get this picture on the blog! We are excited to have Anna Jones on board as our new Minister to Children. This Sunday is her first official Sunday on staff. Welcome, Anna! Ryan and I are looking forward to working alongside you.

I didn't see Anna yesterday because I finally got to take a real ride on what may have been THE perfect day to ride a motorcycle. There was a slight chill in the clean, Spring air. The sun was warm, without being hot. The leaves on the trees are still a greening, while some of the trees have the bright, early Spring, pink flowers.

Riding a motorcycle is a great way to spend a day off. I decided to ride to Mountain City because I wanted to enjoy the views of Lake Watauga.


After Mountain City I took a right turn and cruised over to a burger joint in Boone, NC. It really was a nice, nice day.

Meet Sandwich

Tomorrow's sermon isn't completed, but it's getting close (in between meetings!)

This week has been a busy one in terms of meetings. We opened with the Emmanuel trustees meetings, which included a nice supper where we got to hear from Emmanuel students from Haiti and Chile.

Then we sat in this room and talked.

Then the European Evangelistic Society met in the same room, but we had a nice lunch at Frieberg's German Restaurant. It was great to eat lunch with Beth Smith, Ethan Magness, and Ben Cachiaras all at once. That's a rare treat.

Then, on Friday night, I got to hear Cora in the choir concert that was a joint effort between the ETSU Chorus and the East Tennessee Children's Choir. They were fantastic.

Fire

Some of you saw the house across from the church this past Sunday. It burned about 3am on Sunday morning and I've been unable to make contact with the residents (we have talked in the past, but not very much). I haven't heard what caused the fire.

Not much is happening to begin the clean-up and things from the house are beginning to blow around the neighborhood.

The irony of the scattering litter is this Contents Page I found in our parking lot yesterday.

Chapter 1: When Loss Saddens Your Life
Chapter 2: When All Is Not Well
Chapter 3: When the Darkness Won't Lift

Very sad. We'll keep trying to make contact. I don't know if the residents rented or owned. We may not see them again.

In other news, Cora's friend, Nora, broke her arm at the BRAT PAC event last weekend. She gave new meaning to Spring Break. We went over last night, gave her a little gift, signed her cast and told her how sorry we are. As you can see, she's in good spirits.

The McGospel

Due to popular demand (okay, it was two people) I decided to post the McGospel from yesterday's sermon. The background on this is that I wanted to highlight the need for the church to preserve the language we have been given that allows us to discuss truths in rich and nuanced ways. I decided to use a place mat from McDonald's (the big piece of paper they put on their trays) as my lexicon for trying to convey the gospel. The exercise was more fun, and more difficult, than I imagined. I really liked how it came out, though:

The McGospel

Information found for you is from the 1 derived from none before. The 1 derived from none is the suppliers of resources of nutrition for each of you. The 1 publishes: I’m lovin’ you. The 1 publishes: I’m serving you. The 1 publishes: I’m not snack size lovin’ you. I’m large, ranch size lovin’ you. I’m deluxe, premium, Big-N-Tasty, triple thick shake lovin’ you. The 1 wrap you in lovin’!

How about lovin’ the 1? In seasonal the 1 saturated the 1 in “you” packaging. The 1 is derived from pre-consumer materials, and change formulations for you.

The 1 whipped for you. The 1 on hot McGriddles for you, in hot McSkillet for you throughout.
The 1 iced for you.

The 1 Reverse it! The 1 recycled for you. Learn it! The 1 appear for you. The 1 publishes: I’m not cooking you in oil.

The Powerade found from the 1 recommended for you.