Seeing gray in a world of black & white

Our senior pastor, Adam Hamilton, is starting a new sermon series on January 6th titled Seeing Gray...which will look at a variety of issues, particularly in regards to the upcoming election. Here's a video promo...looks to be quite intriguing and informative. And I just want to say that it is great being part of a community that is not afraid to talk about these issues. We may not all come down on the same side of each issue, and that's okay....I'm just glad we're talking about them!

What Not to Wear - Comfortable is Out!

You may have seen the TLC show What Not To Wear. If you have, you are probably aware that the majority of people on the show are wardrobe-challenged. You come to find out that many of the people just do not give their wardrobe that much attention. You also find out that most folks on the show take the 'function over fashion' adage to the extreme by saying that they prefer their clothing to be comfortable.

What the hosts of the show argue is that the way you dress is a reflection of yourself, and how you dress communicates a great deal about you and how you feel about yourself. Many times when people say they want their clothing to be comfortable, what they are really saying is that their current style of dress (being sweats or baggy clothes, or 1980's style) has more to do with their psychological comfort zone and not so much how the actual clothes feel.

The hosts then help each person venture outside of their comfort zone by trying on new clothes and giving them guidelines on how to shop for their particular body-type. Without fail, each person on the show comes away saying that not only do they feel great about how they look, but that their self-confidence has grown tremendously. A transformation has occurred.

I sometimes wonder...do we as the church sometimes find ourselves in the exact same place as some of the people on the show? Do we have a way of doing things that may be outdated, or just doesn't work? A way of functioning that alienates others, or is downright unhealthy?

Do we as the church have a comfort zone that is keeping us from realizing our full potential?

Are we intentional about doing the things Jesus told us to do, such as spending time befriending those outside the faith, or in different cultural or socio-economic standings? Do we allow the fear of change to dictate how our corporate gatherings are shaped, or to allow a program to continue which shouldn't, or a whole host of other things?

Is our desire to be comfortable?

I know for myself, deep down, that I desire comfort. I usually resist change that I do not help initiate. I think it is human nature to desire consistency, pattern, and repetition. But I also wonder if our affluence has contributed to our desire for comfort. We've grown accustomed to being able to satisfy our needs very easily and without much sacrifice, so why should we have to sacrifice in our churches. Why should we have to change?

If we cater our churches only to those who are already a part of them, then we are probably not developing relationships with those outside the church. If we are not developing relationships with those outside of the church, then we become no more than a narcissistic organization trying in vain to relive its glory days.

So I find myself continuously asking myself and those I am in ministry with, are we currently trying to reach others in this particular effort...or are we just trying to keep those of us already here happy and...comfortable?

Flash

Check out this Flash animation by alan becker..absolutely brilliant!
Animation vs the Animator

The wonders of Facebook

So, i've resisted the myspace craze rather well...but I finally gave in and created a facebook profile and I must honestly say that I am completely amazed at how fast and easy it is to create huge networks of people.

This is brilliant! In a matter of days I have found friends that I have not heard from in many years. One such friend is Trace Bundy...a truly amazing guitarist from Boulder, CO.

Check out this video of him playing...and notice his technique and use of capos. You can get his music from his website tracebundy.com, or at itunes.

Christmas at Resurrection

Every year, our church has its annual christmas musical, which took place last week, amidst wintry mix, which is really a nice way of saying it's really cold and ice pellets are falling from the sky. Any way - the production went very well. I'll post some pics soon. Although large productions like that are fun and exhilarating, it's always nice to have that sigh of relief when it's over. Now I can resume my life as it was and catch up on things that got pushed aside....such as blogging.

ciao

Church growth in Russia

The methodist church has an agency called the General Board of Global Ministries, which part of their purpose is to assist with the expansion of the methodist church across the globe. Russia happens to be one of the places which is experiencing a great deal of growth and expansion which has been assisted by the GBGM's Russia Initiative Conferences held annually throughout the US which attempts to partner local churches in the US with churches in Eurasia in order to grow & learn from each other.

We've had the opportunity to host this years Russia Initiative, which is number 13, and has been an incredible experience. A delegation of 110 pastors and lay leaders from Eurasia along with 227 pastors and laity from the US have gathered to be in dialogue and communication on how to best continue supporting the church in Russia and Ukraine and I must say it has been great meeting folks from halfway across the world that share in the same mission and vision.

I'll try to post some pics soon.

When belief systems fail

Kem Meyer has a great post on belief systems and what happens when they fail. Makes me think about what my assumed belief systems are, how I define myself, and whether or not my actions show that I believe what I say I believe.

a ghost, a witch, and a pirate ship

that is what we made tonight. You know, there's nothing like cutting open a pumpkin, reaching in and pulling out all the slimy grossness one finds inside pumpkins. I actually find it interesting that pumpkins are hollow. Why is that? I suppose if I really wanted to know, I could find out, but i'm feeling quite lazy at the moment.

Anyway - I've always carved pumpkins with kitchen knives and have found it to be a rather good way to end up with several band-aids on my hands, thus have had a reluctance to carving pumpkins...especially around small children. For the past few years, we've drawn on them with markers, but by doing that you really miss out on the backlighting effect when you place the candle inside...which I must admit is really pretty cool.

So we bought a carving kit which contained 2 small saw-like utensils, a small drill (plastic & non-motorized), and for lack of a better term - a little pokey-wheel, which helped you transfer your design from paper to the pumpkin (I think I've seen one of these used for sewing once before).

This was amazing. No more trying to saw through the pumpkin thinking that at any moment the knife may slip and cut off a finger (i wonder if others have similar thoughts). The saws give you great control and allow for a great amount of detail. So, here's our creations from tonight.











Happy Halloween!

are you Innovative?

check out these videos of all the main sessions from Granger's Innovate '07 conference. They have some pretty sweet stuff going on.

Dream On

Here's a great remake of Aerosmith's Dream On by Kelly Sweet.