I love hearing from soldiers about their experiences in Iraq. I know many of them have different views and different experiences but I would rather hear from them than from a reporter. So this video caught my eye this morning. This is also a political video and the timing is pretty good to discuss these issues. I read a little about this guy and this is not a McCain paid advertisement. So check it out and let me know what you think.
This is what I posted on my LifeMatters blog today and I figured I would share it here as well.
One of my new favorite TV shows is “Eli Stone.” You can watch it on ABC Tuesday nights, or you can DVR it like I do and watch it later. I hate commercials and our small group meets on Tuesdays. If you’ve never seen “Eli Stone,” here is a quick summary of the first season: Eli is a lawyer rising up the ladder and is engaged to the boss’s daughter. He is destined to become a partner and probably make tons of money representing less than respectable people. But then he begins having visions and those visions help him to see the world differently. He starts helping the people he has visions about and his life changes. Season One ends with him having his brain aneurism removed, oh I forgot to tell you about that but everyone is blaming his new crazy actions on the aneurism. Season Two begins with a healthy Eli, the aneurism is gone, trying to return to his old life. He is meeting with a therapist and she later reveals she is actually a messenger from God. Her message is simple—Eli’s life is meant for something more. He needs the divine in his life. The ability to help people was given to him but could be given to someone else. If he wants it back then he has to take the aneurism back as well. He does, of course, and things get back to “normal” for him.
Please hear this, you will not get a theology lesson from watching this show. But it’s thought-provoking and entertaining. You can watch episodes for free on abc.com so get to it. The title for this episode is “The Path.”
I mention all of this because I found the scene between Eli and his therapist (Sigourney Weaver) intriguing and challenging. It reminded me that we are all in a similar boat. God’s story is going on all around us. Some of it is done using conventional methods and some of it only He understands. The beauty is that He allows us to be a part of it. God allows us, His children, to be as active on His journey as we want. We have full access and yet so often take it for granted, dismiss it, or choose something “better.” Eli thought returning to “normal” would be better for him. The aneurism would be gone and life would be good again. He quickly realized that his old life was not “better” in fact it was dreadful. Once you experience the divine, ordinary won’t satisfy. Once you experience the eternal, temporary fixes won’t do. Eli learned this and made the choice to live dangerously but be part of something bigger. His life mattered and he made differences in people’s lives. The good news is we have that same opportunity, and ours is real.
I love Romans 10:14-15. How blessed are we that we get to take the gospel to the world? God allows us to take His light and His love into a world of darkness and despair. We have the chance to impact people’s lives not only for eternity, but also for tomorrow. Sometimes people need hope and love today, and we get to play a role in that. Examine your life this week and ask yourself what role you’re playing. Do you have the divine presence in your life? Are you joining the story of redemption playing out all around you? Ask God for a part, and be ready and willing to accept what He offers. Use what He gives you to change the world around you. Guess what, that’s why He gave it to you.
Yesterday we had our doctor’s visit to find out how Baby #2 was doing and if Macie will have a little sister or brother. According to her, and this was coming straight from God, it was going to be a sister. At the time she was telling me this I just assumed she was playing around, but yesterday it was confirmed. Baby #2 is a girl and Macie knew it! Now maybe her and God can have a little chat about the Lotto #’s or something! You can check out a few pictures on Amy’s blog.
Not really, but last night there was some spooky activity at the Nashville Zoo. There were fairies, bats, ghouls, princesses, and a various assortment of other costumed characters running around is search of treats. We headed over there around 4:30 with Erik and family as well as several other Journey folk. Macie had a blast and you can see some pics here. Here are my thoughts on the night:
1. The treats were not worth the effort put in. There were stations set up all around the zoo and with the exception of the Krispy Kreme station, the treats were more plastic trinkety than sweet and chocolatey. We did allow Macie to have a few treats and she was hyped all night!
2. Parents need not wear costumes to kids events! If you are going to an adult party then be cool and dress up. Otherwise, dress the kids and have fun! I saw a Cleopatra, Wonder Woman and even a guy dressed like a king that looked more like Burger King than King Arthur. Some costumes looked they were purchased at the Lion’s Den, a shady store we passed on the way to the zoo.
3. Kids dancing to Halloween music is great fun. Adults dancing to the same music is not. When guys are watching the ladies dancing rather than their own children, it is not good. This one comes back to the event being for the kids, adults do not need any attention at these events. Macie and Caleb had a blast dancing. It is funny watching a Tinker Bell and a Bat doing the Hokey Pokey.
4. When you are with good people, you will have a good time. The pursuit of the treat stations placed all around the Zoo was not fun. Searching for them with a small army of friends was a blast. Dancing to a cheesy DJ was not fun, watching your daughter and friends being silly and having fun was a blast. Community is fun!
After everything was done, we had one tired little Tinker Bell. She had no problem going to sleep last night!
My brother is currently working on planting a church in the downtown Richmond, VA area. He is working with a group in Arkansas that helps plant churches. Recently I have been helping him craft a short statement describing what Movement is all about. Movement is what he is probably going to call this new plant. Here is what we have come up with, what do you think? You can also check out his site by going to www.moverichmond.org.
“Why Movement? The easy answer is God is a mover. Moving planets, moving stars, and moving people. He is constantly setting people in motion, defining His followers by forward progress rather than stationary comfort. From the beginning of time, God has been causing movement. The nation of Israel was constantly in motion and people never encountered Christ without being sent in some new direction.
If we take our DNA in this new life from God, and God is a mover, we must also be in motion. Constantly moving, changing, bringing, going , and causing motion to happen to happen in the lives of others. Forward motion in the areas that truly matter – spiritual poverty, physical poverty, compassion, love and lostness.
The beauty of movement is it never arrives. It never finishes. Movement is a journey much like transformation. Our lives are to be like Christ and that is a life long pursuit. In much the same way beauty can’t be defined as well as it can be recognized, this movement will be recognized by a few factors. Chief among them are seeing disciples made and unleashing them into the world around us. Equipping those disciples to realize their God given pursuits and passions and engage a lost culture with the Gospel of Christ. In creating disciples our desire is to see people pursuing God’s presence, seeing the world with His perspective and living out His purposes.
True community is another recognizable feature of this movement. Within the building of this community people will be encouraged to live lives of transparency. Getting involved in the messy areas of life and loving all people as Christ loved. This is not a self contained community but one that is constantly looking to serve outside itself and looking to bring others in. An unleashing into the world not for the sake of one church but for the sake of the Church.
God’s movement toward redemption is happening all around us everyday. We will not be starting anything new, but rather joining in something very old. Our desire is to change and impact where we are and unleash others to do the same. As we link arms with others looking to change the world, it is our prayer that God would be glorified and His movement fleshed out both locally and globally.”
What do you think? What would your Passion statement be? What about your church?
Macie has started the funniest thing lately. She will literally have a conversation with God while looking off in the distance and slightly up toward the sky. This happened on Saturday and Amy has done a wonderful job of recording the story on her blog, so click here to read it.
I am not sure where you were on Saturday night, but if you were like me you were watching the ridiculous Elite XC fight on CBS. I wish something better would have been on because all in all, it was a terrible waste of time. But, like many others, I wanted to see Kimbo Slice and the circus that he is. I was also hoping for a few entertaining fights but everything from the fights to the announcing was lame. I am not sure where they found their announcers but this was hopefully the last MMA broadcast they will be doing.
The pre-fight interviews were ridiculous. At one point the female interviewer, not sure of her name, was talking to Gina Carano. She said, “I just know that sometimes women want to open a can.” That coming from her was absolutely hysterical. Reminded me of some early day WWF interviews.
Then when Kimbo, street brawler turned hype machine, came out the announcing took a turn for the worse. Watch the video but let it load for a minute or two. The first 5 minutes are opening announcements and introductions. Listen to the announcer once the fight is over. He labels it the most incredible victory in the history of MMA. This all happens at about the 5:20 mark. Another announcer says, “This is what MMA is all about. If you have a dream and you are willing to step into a cage and fight for your life you can be anything you want.” ARE YOU KIDDING ME?!?
That kind of sealed the deal for me, no more Elite XC fights. It’s UFC or nothing. The other guys simply can’t put the whole event together. I watched the Affliction fight several weeks ago and they kept cutting to Mega Death in between fights. Seriously, Mega Death? Hey guys, stop trying and wasting your millions and my minutes. Send the millions you are wasting to Africa and buy food for people or something.
