Rocking Chair Religion: much motion, little progress?

Statistics can prove anything . . . and nothing. Today's paper says the economy is down 2%, while home prices have risen 2%. Gas prices have moved up a penny, but, the stock market is off a point. The interest rates are climbing as the trade deficit is falling. The GNP is stable, yet, the national debt is shaky. Statistics are everywhere.

We're no different in radio. For example, we've learned more people wake up to the clock radio (48%), than to the clock alarm (43%). Most Americans hit the snooze button (51%), rather than get up. Only 81% know how to reset their car radio buttons. I suppose all this means something, but, I don't get too excited about it.

Some people "live and die" by this kind of stuff! Often, however, statistics can leave highly misleading clues. For example:

Over 50 million Americans profess to be Christ-followers.

The 20th century has seen the development of the largest churches in history. In the western United States, churches of five, ten or even 15 thousand are not uncommon.

More money is being given to Christian causes than at any time in human history.

More Bibles, in more languages, are in more hands than ever before.

And yet, George Gallop, the famous pollster and Episcopalian has said, "Never before has so much Christian activity brought so little change to our world."

If you are a Christ-follower, you role must never be minimized or reduced to statistics. You are apart of an organism by which God reaches the world (the church). Your role is critical!

What these stats are showing us is how statistics can be skewed- because if 50 million Americans were indeed genuine Christ-followers (people who say that a relationship with Jesus authentically makes a huge difference), than the stats would read different.

That's the difference between saying something vs. living it out.

Live it OUT LOUD - and watch the statistics change. It's time. It's time for your friend to see something real. Your family to see something real. The real deal is what the real world needs.

Non-denominational churches are growing

Journey is a non-denominational church. The reason is simple: we wanted to create a place of "common ground" in Christ for people on their spiritual journey. We major on the "majors" and give little attention to "minor" things that are more style and traditional than they they are biblical.

A new and extensive survey of the religious landscape in the United States came out on Monday by the Pew-Forum on Religion and Public Life. I found this interesting in light of who we are, and what other churches are doing. If you want to all the details, you can get those straight from PEW-Forum.

Some of the highlights:

• Non-denominational churches are gaining members.
• The U.S. about to lose its status as a majority Protestant nation.
• 25 percent of adults leave faith of their upbringing.
• Survey found a dropping confidence in organized religion.

Sick kids and prayer

We've been nursing both of our boys thru colds and gross, nosy stuff all week. Of course, it gives us an opportunity to pray with them and teach them that God hears us when we pray.

Here's a cute story:

A five-year old boy was headed to McDonald's when they passed a car accident. Usually when they would see something terrible like that, the family would say a prayer for those who might be hurt, so the dad pointed and said, "we should pray." From the back seat he heard his little boy say this earnest request: "Please, God, don't let those cars block the entrance to McDonald's."

Wow, some powerful conversations

I can't get over what a dramatic two weeks it's been since we've started our new series "Forgiveness: the real F word." Many stories about people releasing their hurt and pain. Many finding forgiveness. Out of confidentiality, I can't share some - but trust me - God is meeting people right where they're at! In case you've missed it, here's a synopsis of what we've talked about:

In week one of this series, we learned that unleashing unforgiveness is unnatural. We said that there’s something in all of us that likes to be leashed up to unforgiveness. Someone messes me around, someone hurts me, someone takes advantage of me, I want to get them back. I want to make them pay. I want to seek that sweet revenge. We asked ourselves this question in week one, “Who is sitting on the bench of our lives?” It may be a parent, a former boyfriend, an ex-spouse, or a business partner that ripped us off. Who is sitting on the bench of our lives? Who are we dragging around and causing all of this collateral damage with? Who are we leashed up to?

Last week, we learned that unleashing unforgiveness is unbelievable. God wants us to unleash it because it has unbelievable benefits. The upside is huge—emotionally, relationally, physically and spiritually.

You know, just like love binds people together, unforgiveness also binds people together. You show me someone who is harboring a hurt, you show me someone who is leashed up to unforgiveness, and I’ll show you someone who enjoys their hate, who enjoys their anger, who enjoys the animosity they feel toward that person. And in many circumstances and situations, it’s the only connection left in the relationship.

Let's keep growing together!

Howard Hughes and leadership

Howard Hughes became synonymous with money, power and control. "Every man has his price, or a man like me couldn't exist," he would say. Yet, for the last fifteen years of his life, no one could say for certain whether he was alive or dead; much less, what he looked like. He controlled thousands of lives and hundreds of thousands of jobs. Even governments depended on him. Yet, he lived a sunless, joyless, half lunatic life. His scraggly beard hung down to his waist. His long, unwashed hair hung to the middle of his back. His fingernails were two inches long. His toenails hadn't been trimmed for so long, they looked like corkscrews. He lived with a horrifying fear of dying. All that accumulation . . . yet, today it does him no good. All that wealth, and all that unhappiness. His name meant, "authority," yet, his life meant nothing. It's the classic tale of time verses eternity. Howard Hughes had it backwards.

What a contrast between his life and ours! There's not much money, rarely a headline, never any glitz. But, a role of being a parent, Christ-followers and leaders in our world have greater effects than a movie studio, and is far more reaching than a Spruce Goose. Our nine-to-five's have eternal consequences. We've discovered the best treasures are not amassed here, but, stored up in Heaven. It's a high calling, this work of ours.

Silent treatment.....

Angela and I use to engage in the "Silent Treatment". I am sure none of you who read this know what I am talking about :) , but it's something that we, as a couple, had to change early on.
Now, we just throw things at each other......

It's much more beneficial it say "I'm sorry" instead. Case in point, the humorous story below....

"A married couple had a quarrel and ended up giving each other the silent treatment. A week into their mute argument, the man realized he needed his wife's help. In order to catch a flight to Chicago for a business meeting, he had to get up at 5 a.m.

Not wanting to be the first to break the silence, he wrote on a piece of paper, "Please wake me at 5 a.m."

The next morning the man woke up only to discover his wife was already out of bed, it was 9 a.m., and his flight had long since departed. He was about to find his wife and demand an answer for her failings when he noticed a piece of paper by the bed.

He read, "It's 5 a.m. Wake up."

Insincere Apologies

Since we are doing our Forgiveness series, I found this interesting........

Have you ever received an apology that seemed insincere? The following are some very public examples:

"It has come to the editor's attention that the Herald-Ledger neglected to cover the civil-rights movement. We regret the omission" (July 4, 2004). —The Herald-Ledger of Lexington, Kentucky, apologizing for the 40-year-old policies of the paper to relegate the coverage of sit-ins, marches, and the like to brief mentions in a column called "Colored Notes."

"The comment was not meant to be a regional slur. To the extent that it was misinterpreted to be one, I apologize" (Oct. 17, 2003).
—Assistant U.S. Attorney Kenneth Taylor, apologizing for referring to potential jurors in the eastern Kentucky mountains as "illiterate cave-dwellers."

"I really, from the very bottom of my heart, want to apologize for statements I made about Christianity. I did it mainly out of frustration. At one time or another, I've offended almost every group. I'm sure I'll be apologizing again" (June 13, 1990).
—CNN founder Ted Turner, apologizing for repeatedly calling Christianity "a religion for losers."

The Bible and a 747

At first, it seems impossible. How can a Boeing 747, weighing nearly one million pounds, ever get off the ground? It's impossible! But, the truth is, it has to fly . . . it can't do anything but fly.

Here's why. When an aircraft moves down a runway, the air pressure around the wings changes. The air moving over the rounded surface on top flows in a curve. As it does, it's air speed increases and it's air pressure drops. The air under the wings flat bottom moves in a straight line and therefore, it's speed and pressure are not changed by the wing. Now here's where it gets exciting! A high-pressure area always moves toward a low-pressure area. Meaning, the air under the wing tries to get to the air over the wing. But, it can't because the wing is in the way! The faster the 747 rolls down the runway, the greater the lift its wings produce. Finally, as more and more pressure is pushing the bottom of the wings, bingo! One million pounds of 747 takes off.

What appeared impossible at first, becomes an everyday occurrence when the proper principles are applied. These are laws determined by the Author of the universe.

Living the Christian Life is somewhat similar. Whether your life feels like a 747 or an ultralight, the same rules apply. Biblical principles were given for its survival, and success; for its effectiveness and edification. These, too, were designed by the same Author. The key for any Christ-follower is knowing and implementing these principles.

It takes faith and reasoning- two things that sometimes defy a completely the purely "cognitive" approach to spirituality. Yet, it's not "either / or" - but "both / and." We follow God with our faith and our mind (Rom. 12:1-2). We renew our mind according to the principles that work in the Spiritual universe, making us fly to the next level that God has for us!

The 'F' Word

I've been putting final touches on our new Journey series, FORGIVENESS: The real F word.

The letter F has been given a bad rap. When we hear the f-word we think of a very offensive word that society has thrown out. But in God’s alphabet the letter f stands for his f word : forgiveness. Forgiveness brings freedom. But sadly, unforgiveness is leashing many of us to a bunch of anger, resentment and hurt that we drag through life. And it is keeping us from experiencing the abundance that Christ desires for each of our lives.

We hold ourselves back from experiencing life just because of some anger, resentment or hurt. Instead, we can experience the power of forgiveness!

Another Story....

Wow, what a great Anniversary it was for Journey on Sunday! God was the hero, we just celebrated all He has done in our lives. Here's another story from a family......

"This past year has held a lot of spiritual firsts for all our family. One year ago almost today was the first time my husband ever willingly attended a church service with me. Since then, he has committed himself to Christ, been baptized, and although I thought he was pretty great before, I have seen so many wonderful changes in him as a husband, a father, and a friend.

My journey was a little different. I have been attending church on and off most of my life and I have always volunteered to help at my churches but I never really knew what fellowship was like until we started Journey. It's nice when the same people I call for a prayer are the people that I enjoy hanging out with outside of church. I have never had that before and it's been such a blessing. The end of the year was a little rough for me personally and I don't know how well I would have handled it if I hadn't had God's family to help me through it.

Our daughter obviously hasn't really been on a spiritual journey since she is not even 2 yet but it meant a lot to both my husband and I that she was Christened in a church we love surronded by people who care."

Isn't that cool???? Go God!!

What an Anniversary Party!!

We had a great time last Sunday as we celebrated Journey's 1st year. Here's another story you will find encouraging......

"Our journey began as a lifetime of Catholisism had grown unfulfiling. After a lapse of a few years of sporadic church attendance we decided to explore other churches after attending a non-denominational church near a friends house in michigan. This hit a chord, and for the first time we and our kids were excited about a church. We tried several local churches but they were too big and lacked intimacy, then we received a postcard in the mail for a new church named "Journey" during the Desparate Households series. The message was edgy and unlike church as we knew it. We returned only to eventually become regular attenders. It was a place that accepted you unconditionally, wherever you happen to be on your spritual walk. For the first time we began to learn the Bible in a fresh way, one relevant to the day, in a manner we could actually understand and relate to. Additionally, having a 12 and 14 year old, we were searching for a spiritual foundation to guide them. Both are now excited about church and look forward to attending youth group every week. My wife and I went through the 40 Days of Purpose, and are now in Alpha. When we look back on where we were spritually a year ago we can't believe the difference it has made in our faith walk. Journey has provided a real sense of comfort and we thank God that he led us to this awesome family."

Isn't that great???


Go God!!

Why Bono thinks Jesus was more than a nice guy

Here's the final excerpt of Bono's interview on faith:

"Look, the secular response to the Christ story always goes like this: he was a great prophet, obviously a very interesting guy, had a lot to say along the lines of other great prophets, be they Elijah, Muhammad, Buddha, or Confucius. But actually Christ doesn't allow you that. He doesn't let you off that hook. Christ says: No. I'm not saying I'm a teacher, don't call me teacher. I'm not saying I'm a prophet. I'm saying: "I'm the Messiah." I'm saying: "I am God incarnate." And people say: No, no, please, just be a prophet. A prophet, we can take. You're a bit eccentric. We've had John the Baptist eating locusts and wild honey, we can handle that. But don't mention the "M" word! Because, you know, we're gonna have to crucify you. And he goes: No, no. I know you're expecting me to come back with an army, and set you free from these creeps, but actually I am the Messiah. At this point, everyone starts staring at their shoes, and says: Oh, my God, he's gonna keep saying this.

So what you're left with is: either Christ was who He said He was—the Messiah—or a complete nutcase. I mean, we're talking nutcase on the level of Charles Manson. This man was like some of the people we've been talking about earlier. This man was strapping himself to a bomb, and had "King of the Jews" on his head, and, as they were putting him up on the Cross, was going: OK, martyrdom, here we go. Bring on the pain! I can take it. I'm not joking here. The idea that the entire course of civilization for over half of the globe could have its fate changed and turned upside-down by a nutcase, for me, that's farfetched …

Bono later says it all comes down to how we regard Jesus:

Bono: … [I]f only we could be a bit more like Him, the world would be transformed. …When I look at the Cross of Christ, what I see up there is all my s--- and everybody else's. So I ask myself a question a lot of people have asked: Who is this man? And was He who He said He was, or was He just a religious nut? And there it is, and that's the question. And no one can talk you into it or out of it.

Bono - on Grace

Here's more of an excerpt of Bono's interview about Karma vs. Grace...

Bono: "You see, at the center of all religions is the idea of Karma. You know, what you put out comes back to you: an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth, or in physics—in physical laws—every action is met by an equal or an opposite one. It's clear to me that Karma is at the very heart of the universe. I'm absolutely sure of it. And yet, along comes this idea called Grace to upend all that "as you reap, so you will sow" stuff. Grace defies reason and logic. Love interrupts, if you like, the consequences of your actions, which in my case is very good news indeed, because I've done a lot of stupid stuff.

But I love the idea of the Sacrificial Lamb. I love the idea that God says: Look, you cretins, there are certain results to the way we are, to selfishness, and there's a mortality as part of your very sinful nature, and, let's face it, you're not living a very good life, are you? There are consequences to actions. The point of the death of Christ is that Christ took on the sins of the world, so that what we put out did not come back to us, and that our sinful nature does not reap the obvious death. That's the point. It should keep us humbled… . It's not our own good works that get us through the gates of heaven."

Great stuff from U2's Bono!!