For many of you who read this blog (Walt, Brent, et. al.), you may not realize just how influential Billy Graham was with the media in his prime. Go ahead and laugh at the 1969 fashions in this video. But note how culturally relevant Graham was during a very tumultuous time in the US. There was no debate or argument - just friendly discussion about God and the Bible. Billy did good.
Saturday, September 29, 2007
Tuesday, September 18, 2007
Tony Snow's Unexpected Blessings from Cancer
This was sent to me from a TNC leader. It's worth the read - especially since we are all touched by cancer.
Cancer's Unexpected Blessings
When you enter the Valley of the Shadow of Death, things change.
by Tony Snow
Commentator and broadcaster Tony Snow announced that he had colon cancer in 2005. Following surgery and chemo-therapy, Snow joined the Bush administration in April 2006 as press secretary. Unfortunately, on March 23 Snow, 51, a husband and father of three, announced that the cancer had recurred, with tumors found in his abdomen—leading to surgery in April, followed by more chemotherapy. Snow went back to work in the White House Briefing Room on May 30, but resigned August 31. Christianity Today magazine asked Snow what spiritual lessons he has been learning through the ordeal.
Blessings arrive in unexpected packages—in my case, cancer. Those of us with potentially fatal diseases—and there are millions in America today—find ourselves in the odd position of coping with our mortality while trying to fathom God's will. Although it would be the height of presumption to declare with confidence What It All Means, Scripture provides powerful hints and consolations.
The first is that we shouldn't spend too much time trying to answer the why questions: Why me? Why must people suffer? Why can't someone else get sick? We can't answer such things, and the questions themselves often are designed more to express our anguish than to solicit an answer.
I don't know why I have cancer, and I don't much care. It is what it is—a plain and indisputable fact. Yet even while staring into a mirror darkly, great and stunning truths begin to take shape. Our maladies define a central feature of our existence: We are fallen. We are imperfect. Our bodies give out.
But despite this—because of it—God offers the possibility of salvation and grace. We don't know how the narrative of our lives will end, but we get to choose how to use the interval between now and the moment we meet our Creator face-to-face.
Second, we need to get past the anxiety. The mere thought of dying can send adrenaline flooding through your system. A dizzy, unfocused panic seizes you. Your heart thumps; your head swims. You think of nothingness and swoon. You fear partings; you worry about the impact on family and friends. You fidget and get nowhere.
To regain footing, remember that we were born not into death, but into life—and that the journey continues after we have finished our days on this earth. We accept this on faith, but that faith is nourished by a conviction that stirs even within many nonbelieving hearts—an intuition that the gift of life, once given, cannot be taken away. Those who have been stricken enjoy the special privilege of being able to fight with their might, main, and faith to live—fully, richly, exuberantly—no matter how their days may be numbered.
Third, we can open our eyes and hearts. God relishes surprise. We want lives of simple, predictable ease—smooth, even trails as far as the eye can see—but God likes to go off-road. He provokes us with twists and turns. He places us in predicaments that seem to defy our endurance and comprehension—and yet don't. By his love and grace, we persevere. The challenges that make our hearts leap and stomachs churn invariably strengthen our faith and grant measures of wisdom and joy we would not experience otherwise.'You Have Been Called'
Picture yourself in a hospital bed. The fog of anesthesia has begun to wear away. A doctor stands at your feet; a loved one holds your hand at the side. "It's cancer," the healer announces.
The natural reaction is to turn to God and ask him to serve as a cosmic Santa. "Dear God, make it all go away. Make everything simpler." But another voice whispers: "You have been called." Your quandary has drawn you closer to God, closer to those you love, closer to the issues that matter—and has dragged into insignificance the banal concerns that occupy our "normal time."
There's another kind of response, although usually short-lived—an inexplicable shudder of excitement, as if a clarifying moment of calamity has swept away everything trivial and tinny, and placed before us the challenge of important questions.
The moment you enter the Valley of the Shadow of Death, things change. You discover that Christianity is not something doughy, passive, pious, and soft. Faith may be the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. But it also draws you into a world shorn of fearful caution. The life of belief teems with thrills, boldness, danger, shocks, reversals, triumphs, and epiphanies. Think of Paul, traipsing though the known world and contemplating trips to what must have seemed the antipodes (Spain), shaking the dust from his sandals, worrying not about the morrow, but only about the moment.
There's nothing wilder than a life of humble virtue—for it is through selflessness and service that God wrings from our bodies and spirits the most we ever could give, the most we ever could offer, and the most we ever could do.
Finally, we can let love change everything. When Jesus was faced with the prospect of crucifixion, he grieved not for himself, but for us. He cried for Jerusalem before entering the holy city. From the Cross, he took on the cumulative burden of human sin and weakness, and begged for forgiveness on our behalf.
We get repeated chances to learn that life is not about us—that we acquire purpose and satisfaction by sharing in God's love for others. Sickness gets us partway there. It reminds us of our limitations and dependence. But it also gives us a chance to serve the healthy. A minister friend of mine observes that people suffering grave afflictions often acquire the faith of two people, while loved ones accept the burden of two people's worries and fears.
Most of us have watched friends as they drifted toward God's arms not with resignation, but with peace and hope. In so doing, they have taught us not how to die, but how to live. They have emulated Christ by transmitting the power and authority of love.
I sat by my best friend's bedside a few years ago as a wasting cancer took him away. He kept at his table a worn Bible and a 1928 edition of the Book of Common Prayer. A shattering grief disabled his family, many of his old friends, and at least one priest. Here was a humble and very good guy, someone who apologized when he winced with pain because he thought it made his guest uncomfortable. He retained his equanimity and good humor literally until his last conscious moment. "I'm going to try to beat [this cancer]," he told me several months before he died. "But if I don't, I'll see you on the other side."
His gift was to remind everyone around him that even though God doesn't promise us tomorrow, he does promise us eternity—filled with life and love we cannot comprehend—and that one can in the throes of sickness point the rest of us toward timeless truths that will help us weather future storms.
Through such trials, God bids us to choose: Do we believe, or do we not? Will we be bold enough to love, daring enough to serve, humble enough to submit, and strong enough to acknowledge our limitations? Can we surrender our concern in things that don't matter so that we might devote our remaining days to things that do?
When our faith flags, he throws reminders in our way. Think of the prayer warriors in our midst. They change things, and those of us who have been on the receiving end of their petitions and intercessions know it.
It is hard to describe, but there are times when suddenly the hairs on the back of your neck stand up, and you feel a surge of the Spirit. Somehow you just know: Others have chosen, when talking to the Author of all creation, to lift us up—to speak of us!
This is love of a very special order. But so is the ability to sit back and appreciate the wonder of every created thing. The mere thought of death somehow makes every blessing vivid, every happiness more luminous and intense. We may not know how our contest with sickness will end, but we have felt the ineluctable touch of God.
What is man that Thou art mindful of him? We don't know much, but we know this: No matter where we are, no matter what we do, no matter how bleak or frightening our prospects, each and every one of us, each and every day, lies in the same safe and impregnable place—in the hollow of God's hand.
Copyright © 2007 Christianity Today.
Cancer's Unexpected Blessings
When you enter the Valley of the Shadow of Death, things change.
by Tony Snow
Commentator and broadcaster Tony Snow announced that he had colon cancer in 2005. Following surgery and chemo-therapy, Snow joined the Bush administration in April 2006 as press secretary. Unfortunately, on March 23 Snow, 51, a husband and father of three, announced that the cancer had recurred, with tumors found in his abdomen—leading to surgery in April, followed by more chemotherapy. Snow went back to work in the White House Briefing Room on May 30, but resigned August 31. Christianity Today magazine asked Snow what spiritual lessons he has been learning through the ordeal.
Blessings arrive in unexpected packages—in my case, cancer. Those of us with potentially fatal diseases—and there are millions in America today—find ourselves in the odd position of coping with our mortality while trying to fathom God's will. Although it would be the height of presumption to declare with confidence What It All Means, Scripture provides powerful hints and consolations.
The first is that we shouldn't spend too much time trying to answer the why questions: Why me? Why must people suffer? Why can't someone else get sick? We can't answer such things, and the questions themselves often are designed more to express our anguish than to solicit an answer.
I don't know why I have cancer, and I don't much care. It is what it is—a plain and indisputable fact. Yet even while staring into a mirror darkly, great and stunning truths begin to take shape. Our maladies define a central feature of our existence: We are fallen. We are imperfect. Our bodies give out.
But despite this—because of it—God offers the possibility of salvation and grace. We don't know how the narrative of our lives will end, but we get to choose how to use the interval between now and the moment we meet our Creator face-to-face.
Second, we need to get past the anxiety. The mere thought of dying can send adrenaline flooding through your system. A dizzy, unfocused panic seizes you. Your heart thumps; your head swims. You think of nothingness and swoon. You fear partings; you worry about the impact on family and friends. You fidget and get nowhere.
To regain footing, remember that we were born not into death, but into life—and that the journey continues after we have finished our days on this earth. We accept this on faith, but that faith is nourished by a conviction that stirs even within many nonbelieving hearts—an intuition that the gift of life, once given, cannot be taken away. Those who have been stricken enjoy the special privilege of being able to fight with their might, main, and faith to live—fully, richly, exuberantly—no matter how their days may be numbered.
Third, we can open our eyes and hearts. God relishes surprise. We want lives of simple, predictable ease—smooth, even trails as far as the eye can see—but God likes to go off-road. He provokes us with twists and turns. He places us in predicaments that seem to defy our endurance and comprehension—and yet don't. By his love and grace, we persevere. The challenges that make our hearts leap and stomachs churn invariably strengthen our faith and grant measures of wisdom and joy we would not experience otherwise.'You Have Been Called'
Picture yourself in a hospital bed. The fog of anesthesia has begun to wear away. A doctor stands at your feet; a loved one holds your hand at the side. "It's cancer," the healer announces.
The natural reaction is to turn to God and ask him to serve as a cosmic Santa. "Dear God, make it all go away. Make everything simpler." But another voice whispers: "You have been called." Your quandary has drawn you closer to God, closer to those you love, closer to the issues that matter—and has dragged into insignificance the banal concerns that occupy our "normal time."
There's another kind of response, although usually short-lived—an inexplicable shudder of excitement, as if a clarifying moment of calamity has swept away everything trivial and tinny, and placed before us the challenge of important questions.
The moment you enter the Valley of the Shadow of Death, things change. You discover that Christianity is not something doughy, passive, pious, and soft. Faith may be the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. But it also draws you into a world shorn of fearful caution. The life of belief teems with thrills, boldness, danger, shocks, reversals, triumphs, and epiphanies. Think of Paul, traipsing though the known world and contemplating trips to what must have seemed the antipodes (Spain), shaking the dust from his sandals, worrying not about the morrow, but only about the moment.
There's nothing wilder than a life of humble virtue—for it is through selflessness and service that God wrings from our bodies and spirits the most we ever could give, the most we ever could offer, and the most we ever could do.
Finally, we can let love change everything. When Jesus was faced with the prospect of crucifixion, he grieved not for himself, but for us. He cried for Jerusalem before entering the holy city. From the Cross, he took on the cumulative burden of human sin and weakness, and begged for forgiveness on our behalf.
We get repeated chances to learn that life is not about us—that we acquire purpose and satisfaction by sharing in God's love for others. Sickness gets us partway there. It reminds us of our limitations and dependence. But it also gives us a chance to serve the healthy. A minister friend of mine observes that people suffering grave afflictions often acquire the faith of two people, while loved ones accept the burden of two people's worries and fears.
Most of us have watched friends as they drifted toward God's arms not with resignation, but with peace and hope. In so doing, they have taught us not how to die, but how to live. They have emulated Christ by transmitting the power and authority of love.
I sat by my best friend's bedside a few years ago as a wasting cancer took him away. He kept at his table a worn Bible and a 1928 edition of the Book of Common Prayer. A shattering grief disabled his family, many of his old friends, and at least one priest. Here was a humble and very good guy, someone who apologized when he winced with pain because he thought it made his guest uncomfortable. He retained his equanimity and good humor literally until his last conscious moment. "I'm going to try to beat [this cancer]," he told me several months before he died. "But if I don't, I'll see you on the other side."
His gift was to remind everyone around him that even though God doesn't promise us tomorrow, he does promise us eternity—filled with life and love we cannot comprehend—and that one can in the throes of sickness point the rest of us toward timeless truths that will help us weather future storms.
Through such trials, God bids us to choose: Do we believe, or do we not? Will we be bold enough to love, daring enough to serve, humble enough to submit, and strong enough to acknowledge our limitations? Can we surrender our concern in things that don't matter so that we might devote our remaining days to things that do?
When our faith flags, he throws reminders in our way. Think of the prayer warriors in our midst. They change things, and those of us who have been on the receiving end of their petitions and intercessions know it.
It is hard to describe, but there are times when suddenly the hairs on the back of your neck stand up, and you feel a surge of the Spirit. Somehow you just know: Others have chosen, when talking to the Author of all creation, to lift us up—to speak of us!
This is love of a very special order. But so is the ability to sit back and appreciate the wonder of every created thing. The mere thought of death somehow makes every blessing vivid, every happiness more luminous and intense. We may not know how our contest with sickness will end, but we have felt the ineluctable touch of God.
What is man that Thou art mindful of him? We don't know much, but we know this: No matter where we are, no matter what we do, no matter how bleak or frightening our prospects, each and every one of us, each and every day, lies in the same safe and impregnable place—in the hollow of God's hand.
Copyright © 2007 Christianity Today.
Friday, September 14, 2007
150 years ago
This is about one of my favorite stories from church history. It is amazing what God will do with one faithful person.
Saturday, September 08, 2007
Gamecocks 16 Bulldogs 12
By Paul Newberry - The Associated Press
ATHENS, Ga. -- Steve Spurrier did it to Georgia again.
ATHENS, Ga. -- Steve Spurrier did it to Georgia again.
The ol' ball coach, who beat the Bulldogs regularly while at Florida, guided South Carolina to a 16-12 upset of No. 11 Georgia on Saturday night, signaling the Gamecocks as a possible title contender in the Southeastern Conference. Just like it was for Spurrier in his days with the Gators. Ryan Succop kicked three field goals, Cory Boyd ran for the game's only touchdown and South Carolina's defense kept the Bulldogs out of the end zone.
That was hardly the formula Spurrier used to beat Georgia 11 out of 12 years, during his dominating run at Florida, which captured six SEC championships and one national title with the coach's Fun 'n' Gun offense.
Spurrier knows he doesn't have that kind of high-scoring talent at South Carolina (2-0, 1-0 SEC), forcing him to rely on a stout defense and Succop's accurate right leg to hold off the Bulldogs (1-1, 0-1).
Georgia, coming off an impressive 35-14 victory over Oklahoma State, was held without a touchdown for the first time since a 14-9 loss to South Carolina in 2001, when Lou Holtz was the coach and Spurrier was in his final season with the Gators. Succop connected from 41, 35 and 34 yards, the last of those giving the Gamecocks at 16-6 lead with 9:25 remaining. The Bulldogs drove into South Carolina territory on their next two possessions, but settled for Brandon Coutu's third and fourth field goals. The kicker accounted for all of Georgia's points.
Monday, September 03, 2007
In a New York Minute...
In a New York minute,
Everything can change.
In a New York minute,
Things can get pretty strange.
(Don Henley)
www.thinkchristian.net posted a link to the World Clock yesterday. Check it out and see just how fast the world is changing. Of particular note, I can't look at the Abortions statistic long. It makes me a little ill. Pretty interesting info, though. It won't be long before the world population hits 7 billion. Didn't we just hit 6 billion a couple of years ago?
When my dad was born in 1930, the world population was 2 billion. He will be 77 soon and the world population has more than tripled in his lifetime!
For Christ-followers, this means the mission field continues to expand exponentially. Get up Christians! We've got work to do. The fields are white....
Thursday, August 30, 2007
My Memoirs
What would the book jacket of your memoir say if you wrote one? Go to the memoirizer, answer a few questions, and see.
Here's mine:
Who I Was, Who I Am, and Who I Want to Be
A Memoir
by Gene Jennings
In Who I Was, Who I Am, and Who I Want to Be, Gene Jennings tells the almost too- remarkable-to-be-true story of his rise from villain to hero, including his struggle to overcome his sexual voraciousness, his troubled relationship with his wife and children, and his addiction to drugs, all of which lead him to a life of crime and to rehab, where he found redemption and the strength and wisdom to write this cautionary memoir about the power and resiliency of the human condition.
You didn't know all that about me, did you?
Here's mine:
Who I Was, Who I Am, and Who I Want to Be
A Memoir
by Gene Jennings
In Who I Was, Who I Am, and Who I Want to Be, Gene Jennings tells the almost too- remarkable-to-be-true story of his rise from villain to hero, including his struggle to overcome his sexual voraciousness, his troubled relationship with his wife and children, and his addiction to drugs, all of which lead him to a life of crime and to rehab, where he found redemption and the strength and wisdom to write this cautionary memoir about the power and resiliency of the human condition.
You didn't know all that about me, did you?
Sunday, August 26, 2007
Action Photo
An incredible dive for a touchdown by Thurmond's Aramis Hillary. Hey, who's that on the chain crew in the background? (Photo by Mike Adams. Check out his blog at www.final-vision.blogspot.com)
Dale Jr. tats, Holy Huddles, et. al.
Here are a few things that have been on my mind lately...in no particular order:
1. I'm glad I didn't get a Dale Earnhardt Jr #8 tattooed on my body since it was recently announced that Dale Jr. would be changing numbers next year. You know there are some Dale Jr. fans out there with a #8 tat on them. They're probably wondering what to do now.
2. At TNC, we've been putting new Journey Teams together in preparation for the Fall. Journey Teams (or J Teams) are small groups that meet weekly for prayer, fellowship, Bible study, and ministry. One common concern is that we don't want our groups to become "holy huddles." But I've been thinking about that and wonder if maybe our J Teams ought to be holy huddles. Just like a football team huddles up before they go into action, J Teams should huddle up weekly to prepare for action in the world. Small groups become ineffective and stagnant when they never break out of their huddle. As long as J Team members are making an impact on their world and influencing others for Christ, huddle up!
3. If you attended TNC today, you saw the SHAPE promo video. Our own Matt McMeans created that claymation video. It was pretty impressive!
4. Are the North Augusta Yellow Jackets back? I've been anxious for football season to get started and couldn't wait for the first game of the year between our alma mater and hometown team versus rival Strom Thurmond High. (That's right, for my friends who are not from here, we have a local high school named after our beloved Senator.) Anyhow, STHS was a 17 point favorite and scored that many in the first half. But NA scored 27 unanswered points in a sloppy, wet, but fun and exciting game. We need a good season for a change. Maybe we'll get one this year. So far, so good.
5. I announced here in late May that I completed a novel. I am currently revising it and will soon get a few copies made at Kinko's for friends to read. I'd like to get some feedback before I pursue a publisher. If you are a fiction reader and would like to take a look at it and you can BE HONEST with me, I'd love for you to give me your critique. Let me know.
6. My dog, Deacon, is whining. He wants to play ball. Later....
Monday, August 20, 2007
Happy Birthday TNC!
Yesterday TrueNorth celebrated its 3rd birthday. We had a wonderful day as a near record crowd arrived to praise God for what he has done - complete with over 2000 balloons dropped from the ceiling, T-shirt launchers, confetti, glitter, and the TNC Band's version of The Beatles' song, Birthday. 1444 were in attendance.
I'm constantly amazed at what God has done in three short years. Can't wait to see what he'll do in the future.
I'm constantly amazed at what God has done in three short years. Can't wait to see what he'll do in the future.
Thinking Outside the Box
Course architect Alistair Mackenzie changed the golf world for eternity when he designed the Augusta National Golf Club. His outside the box thinking almost changed golf more than most people realize. When Mackenzie drafted his original plan for the Augusta course, he planned for not eighteen holes but nineteen. The nineteenth hole, a par three designed to play uphill between the ninth and eighteenth greens, was on the drawing board in case any members wanted to settle their bets by playing a tie-breaker or double or nothing. But Bobby Jones was too much of a traditionalist and vetoed Mackenzie’s unique idea.
Imagine the stories surrounding the Masters Tournament if the nineteenth hole had won Bobby Jones’ approval. What dramatic finishes would there have been? What would we have missed? Larry Mize would have never chipped in from 140 feet on the 11th in the dramatic 1987 sudden death playoff. Len Mattiace may have defeated Mike Weir on the 19th hole in 2003. Billy Casper would not have won the last 18 hole playoff in 1970. There would have been no 18 hole playoffs!
Do you ever think outside the box? We tend to conform easily to standards and traditions without giving innovative thoughts much consideration. We don’t like to color outside the lines. Thankfully, God doesn’t think like us. God saw that the world needed a Savior. He knew that mortal man could not fill that need so he did something incredibly radical. He became like us. Jesus Christ, God incarnate, became fully God and fully man so that we could be saved from our sin. Jesus’ life exemplified what it means to live a pure, godly life. His death paid the penalty for our sin as he became the ultimate sacrificial lamb. His resurrection guarantees that he lives today among us through his Holy Spirit and that we have the promise of eternal life. Aren’t you glad God is a radical thinker?
Imagine the stories surrounding the Masters Tournament if the nineteenth hole had won Bobby Jones’ approval. What dramatic finishes would there have been? What would we have missed? Larry Mize would have never chipped in from 140 feet on the 11th in the dramatic 1987 sudden death playoff. Len Mattiace may have defeated Mike Weir on the 19th hole in 2003. Billy Casper would not have won the last 18 hole playoff in 1970. There would have been no 18 hole playoffs!
Do you ever think outside the box? We tend to conform easily to standards and traditions without giving innovative thoughts much consideration. We don’t like to color outside the lines. Thankfully, God doesn’t think like us. God saw that the world needed a Savior. He knew that mortal man could not fill that need so he did something incredibly radical. He became like us. Jesus Christ, God incarnate, became fully God and fully man so that we could be saved from our sin. Jesus’ life exemplified what it means to live a pure, godly life. His death paid the penalty for our sin as he became the ultimate sacrificial lamb. His resurrection guarantees that he lives today among us through his Holy Spirit and that we have the promise of eternal life. Aren’t you glad God is a radical thinker?
Sunday, August 12, 2007
Mike Yaconelli video
Mike Yaconelli was an influential author, speaker, and minister, especially to youth ministers through Youth Specialties. He died suddenly four years ago and it was a huge loss to the Church but a tremendous gain for heaven. This video is almost 9 minutes long. Take the time to watch it. You'll get a good idea of how radical and out of the box Yak was. I would highly recommend any talks or books you can get from him.
Tuesday, August 07, 2007
Squirrel Rescue
A week ago Saturday, I was walking across our backyard when I saw this tiny creature laying in the grass. I wasn't sure what it was at first. I figured that it was either a squirrel or a possum. I looked up over head and there was a squirrel's nest. Apparently, Junior here, fell out of the nest for some reason. He had no fur. His eyes were still shut and his umbilical cord was still attached. He may have only been hours old.
What do you do with a baby squirrel? We didn't know either. We wrapped him up in a shoe box and tried to keep him warm and comfortable. Beth tried to give him some milk and water through a syringe. We figured that he was going to die. We just tried to help the little guy get comfortable.
Bailey found a website about squirrel rescue and rehab. We received info on how to call local people who can rescue critters such as this one so I called a lady named Lisa.
It was kind of like calling 911.
"What kind of animal do you have?"
"A baby squirrel. No fur. Fresh from the oven."
"Were there any other babies nearby?"
"No, this is the only one I saw."
"Have you tried to give it water?"
"No, but we gave it some milk?"
"OH NO! Cow's milk? You shouldn't give them cow's milk....well, you didn't know. You were just trying to help."
I felt really bad at that point.
"How about water? Have you given it any water?" Lisa asked.
"Yeah, he took some water."
"How soon can you meet me?"
We arranged a meeting place and met Lisa less than an hour later. We expected her to come with all of her lights on and sirens blaring but her Toyota wasn't equipped for it. When she arrived, she had all of her paramedic paraphernalia with her and began immediate life support for the babe. We didn't stay long as there was no time to talk and socialize in Lisa's mind. Her attention was fastened on the squirrel.
Bailey and I thanked her and left her in the restaurant parking lot where we met her with the hopes that maybe the little guy would survive. It wouldn't be because Lisa didn't make a valiant effort to save him.
Friday, August 03, 2007
Travis Pastrana 1st Double Backflip in Competition XGAMES
Those of you who know me know that I like riding my motorcycle. I don't think I'll ever pull a stunt like this off though...on purpose.
Saturday, July 28, 2007
More Trivia from the Old Files
Found another tidbit of info that was interesting to me. Not sure why I did this (I was obviously bored several years ago) - but I found a list of churches that I have preached in since entering the ministry. I think it's missing a few churches but all totaled up it includes at least 47 churches in 7 states and 5 countries. Not bad for a small town boy, I guess.
I am amazed at the number of places God has given me opportunities to speak. I guess it just goes to show you what can happen when you let him have your life.
I am amazed at the number of places God has given me opportunities to speak. I guess it just goes to show you what can happen when you let him have your life.
Things I've Learned (from digging through old files)
On most Saturday mornings, I get up and start working through my "honey-do" list but it was raining this morning so I did something I've been needing to do for a long, long time. I went through some of my old files in my desk. I threw away a bunch of stuff that I no longer needed and discovered some things from the past that I had forgotten about. One of those things was a letter from H. Jackson Brown that he wrote in response to some quotes I sent him for an upcoming book. Brown wrote "Life's Little Instruction Book," "P.S. I Love You," "Live and Learn and Pass It On," and other little gift books. If those titles don't ring a bell, trust me, you've seen them in the bookstores over the years.
Anyhoo....I don't know if he ever used my quotes. I signed an agreement with him giving him permission to use them back in 1992. They were supposed to start with "I've learned that..." (That's how his "Live and Learn and Pass It On" quote books started). I thought I'd share them here since they've just been sitting in my files for years. (Unless Brown published them.)
I've Learned that...
I could survive on peanut butter.
evenings are more pleasant when the TV is off.
nothing beats a good book and a soft chair.
nothing melts a daddy's heart like a smile from his little girl.
nothing is more relaxing than walking barefoot on the beach.
compared to most homes in the world, my home (modest by American standards) is a mansion.
selfishness is the foundation for most wrongdoing.
distance doesn't separate good friends.
you can never read enough. But there never seems to be enough time to read.
the "conveniences" of life have made people busier.
everyone has funny looking toes.
it's good to watch cartoons every once in a while.
a good used bookstore is full of gems.
air conditioning has turned neighbors into strangers.
Anyhoo....I don't know if he ever used my quotes. I signed an agreement with him giving him permission to use them back in 1992. They were supposed to start with "I've learned that..." (That's how his "Live and Learn and Pass It On" quote books started). I thought I'd share them here since they've just been sitting in my files for years. (Unless Brown published them.)
I've Learned that...
I could survive on peanut butter.
evenings are more pleasant when the TV is off.
nothing beats a good book and a soft chair.
nothing melts a daddy's heart like a smile from his little girl.
nothing is more relaxing than walking barefoot on the beach.
compared to most homes in the world, my home (modest by American standards) is a mansion.
selfishness is the foundation for most wrongdoing.
distance doesn't separate good friends.
you can never read enough. But there never seems to be enough time to read.
the "conveniences" of life have made people busier.
everyone has funny looking toes.
it's good to watch cartoons every once in a while.
a good used bookstore is full of gems.
air conditioning has turned neighbors into strangers.
Friday, July 20, 2007
Hank Aaron and the Mission of the Church
Yogi Berra, legendary catcher for the New York Yankees, tells the story of the first time Hank Aaron stepped up to the plate in the 1957 World Series. Yogi noticed that Hank was holding the bat wrong. He said, “Hank, you’ve got the trademark on your bat wrong. Turn it towards you so you can read it.” Hank replied, “Yogi, I didn’t come up here to read. I came to hit.”
Hank Aaron wasn’t concerned with the conventional way to hold a bat. He made a name for himself in the Negro Leagues in the early 1950’s batting cross-handed. He was only concerned with hitting the ball. Considering the he broke Babe Ruth’s all-time homerun record in 1974, I’d say he got the job done. Hank knew his purpose and mission.
I’m afraid that in our churches we sometimes are more concerned with the conventional, traditional ways of doing things that we forget our mission. What is the mission of the Church? Jesus made it pretty clear. At the end of the gospel of Matthew, he gave us what is known as the Great Commission. “Then Jesus came to them and said, ‘All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.’”
I get frustrated when I see churches compromise the Great Commission for the sake of tradition. When churches refuse to change their music style to something more relevant to the culture for the sake of tradition, they’ve lost their focus. When is the last time you heard someone listening to choir music on the radio? When is the last time a robed four-part choir concert sold out an arena? What are these churches thinking? Here’s a thought: Sell the choir robes and the organ on eBay and buy some guitars and a set of drums.
While on a trip to the Holy Land in 1997, I met a pastor who told me about his conversion experience as a young adult. He was sitting on his couch one Saturday morning watching TV when the doorbell rang. It was two neatly dressed men from one of the local Baptist churches. He allowed them to come in and the two men did their part in fulfilling the Great Commission by sharing the good news of Jesus with him. My pastor friend knew this was a divine appointment because he had been struggling spiritually of late and he knew that he needed to get right with God. So he did. The two men prayed with him and he asked Jesus to be Lord of his life. Mission accomplished.
But then one of the two visitors strayed from the mission. Immediately after they said, “Amen,” the leader of the dynamic witnessing duo reached over and began buttoning the top two buttons of the new convert’s shirt. He told his new brother in Christ, “Now, if you’re going to be a Christian, you have to make yourself look presentable at all times.”
What the …..? How the …? Where did that come from?!
The first rule of being a Christian is to button up your shirt?? Holy cow! I guess they sent him to get a haircut that day too. Will someone please tell me about the Church and dress codes? Will someone please let me know why so many churches create a barricade at their front door by making a coat, tie, and polished shoes required for entry? Hank Aaron’s take on this might be, “I didn’t come here for a fashion show. I came here to worship.”
The Church’s refusal to be relevant to its surrounding culture is one key reason why 80% of American churches are dying or stagnant. No wonder 70% of the population is sitting at home on Sunday mornings instead of in our worship services. Over the last 20 years, we’ve made some headway down this path. Thanks to the Baby Boomers, the culturally relevant church has made an obvious impression on the American church. But the Baby Boomers parents are still holding on to convention and they’ve convinced many of their children that their peers have gone overboard. “It’s those hippies from the 60’s,” they say. “They just cut their hair and took a shower but they snuck guitars and drums into the church, took out the King James Bible, and made it into a combination theme park and rock concert. Did you ever see a picture of that California hippie pastor, Rick Warren, when he was young? His hair came down to his collar. And that Bill Hybels in Chicago took a bunch of hippies to start that megachurch of his. They’re all just a bunch of Woodstock alumni claiming to do church the right way.”
The Baby Boomers began to turn the ship away from convention and now the generation that followed them (Gen X) is knocking the ball out of the park like Barry Bonds on steroids. (Of course, um, if Barry Bonds was on steroids. But I digress…). It seems like I hear about a new church every week with a bright, young, creative pastor at the plate hitting homeruns. Thank God. Who cares how you hold the bat when you are tagging all four bases with one swing?
I say we need more Hank Aaron’s at the plate. Let’s get the job done with a “whatever it takes” attitude. Let the Bible be our guide, not convention or tradition, and let’s keep swinging for the fence.
Wednesday, July 18, 2007
Into the Wild Blue Yonder
Yesterday afternoon I cashed in my Father's Day present. Beth bought an introductory flight lesson for me. Pretty cool gift, huh? I have a great wife!
I went to Daniel Field yesterday kind of excited and kind of wondering if this was really something that I'd want to do. I've toyed with this idea over the years but have never been serious enough to really make the call. So Beth made it for me. I love to fly and I've flown on private and commercial planes many, many times. But I think I'm one of those that just enjoys being up in the air and seeing the sites more than I am interested in the actual mechanics of flying. But, I have to say, it is tempting.
When I turned 40 I decided it was time to answer the call of my mid-life crisis and buy a motorcycle. I've told Beth that when I turn 50 my next mid-life crisis would probably be flying. So she's given me a 5 year head start. It requires a lot of time and money. If I got a pilot's license, I don't know where I'd go. I couldn't go too far. I couldn't afford it...and there are only so many times you can fly around Clarks Hill.
The instructor put me in the pilot's seat of a Cessna 172 and explained all of the gauges and instruments to me. We did a thorough overview of the entire plane. That probably took an hour. Then we took the plane up. He let me taxi the plane out to the runway. Once we got up, he let me fly it. We circled around the lake, flew over Edgefield and Aiken counties and then took it back to the airport. It was fun and I can see how it can become addicting. I'm not sure if I'll go back for my second lesson or not. I may put it off for awhile. But don't be surprised if one day you read a blog post about me getting my pilot's license. It may happen - when I get in my 50's.
Wednesday, July 11, 2007
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