June 2008 Archives

how often do you have conversations wrapped around encouragement?

seriously?

i never have conversations with other people about what encourages me most and what it takes for me to stay encouraged... furthermore, i know that internally, intrinsically i don't have this conversation enough with myself.

the compliments, the words of encouragement... YES of course they encourage me... but they are oh so fleeting for me too. i have based way too much on the encouragement of others way too often in my life.

what happens when the words don't come?
or
if the people aren't there?

Q: how do you stay encouraged?
Q: what is your source of encouragement?

F

often times in life and in our pursuits we need to tear down... to de-construct before we can re-construct or construct.

what do you need to tear down, to de-construct in your life, in your heart before you can begin the process of building what will be in our lives?

too often tradition or the way that we have always done things, maybe even to a great degree of success, forces us to remain in the place where our greatest distractions lie. not to mention the temptation to try to go alone... to be a lone ranger and navigate the waters of life on our own... that is and will lead to certain death.

what is in the way of your heart?

what is holding you back from experiencing freedom?

F

when you (i) sit and reflect on what has been and what is, i cannot help but to think about formation. how did we get to where we are? how are we going to get to where we think we need to be?

building, shaping, nudging, cultivating a culture... a community... is the most difficult, stressful, BEAUTIFUL, life giving adventure that i have ever been a part of. i think that is one of our biggest callings in following christ - to be a culture creator. one who creates the culture around them through and with their lives.

its easy to build a "program" that people attend, which by the way is not bad nor wrong... depending on the lens through which you look. if more people attending equates to more health for you, probably not a bad thing then.

but what if you really are one of the those people who are interested in more than just mere numbers?

building PEOPLE that build people and building a CULTURE that builds people are high callings in ones lives. its no wonder why many people opt for the program over the people... less time, less mess, less risk, etc. this is one of the great mirages.

build people... the investment will pay out (eventually) more depth, fullness, richness, authenticity.

Be patient... don't miss the small victories along the way.

F

perry noble, pastor of newspring church in anderson, sc (http://www.newspring.cc/) will be speaking tonight to close out our ONE prayer series for the month.

UNBELIEVABLE talk for us tonight.

"i believe that god has called the church to be dangerous."

"a church is only as dangerous as the people who come in the front doors."

WOW!

Q: are you frustrated or are you anticipating what god is going to do next in your life... in your community?

WOW!

stoked for tonight... hope to see you there.
the gathering_7:00 @ the REALM

F

seems like for the past two weeks now i have this sort of "writers block". call it a creativity block, or an excuse... i don't know, just not posting a lot lately. there have been several times in the last year, which is my first full year of bloging, that this has happened to me.

i started a blog in the first place out of fear... fear of critics, no one would read, that i had nothing to say, at least nothing anyone wanted to hear... whatever the fear, it paralyzed me to stay dormant and read everyone else's thoughts. the fight to create, to cultivate, to share, to shape, shift, nudge... that is why i fought the fear and the paralysis.

the next difficult thing for me is to write what i am saying. whether it is something coming out of the gathering, leadership, trainings, dreams, lunches... whatever...

then, of course i have this desire to give something worth grappling with. i want to give you something worth chewing and wrestling to force to think. nothing absent minded, shallow, lifeless. often times this puts pressure on me.

so... all that to say.... i am just going to write. if you tune in, awesome, if you comment, great... from the beginning i said that this is my dairy out loud... so i will journey on...

i pray that fear does not keep me, keep you dormant. i pray that your boredom leads you to explore and discover the life and imagination of god.... the intimacy that we were created for.

F

here is a little exercise for you...

Q: describe each of these "words/concepts" separately from one another?

Q: are there any connections, associations, correlations?

more conversations to come...

enjoy

F

J.K. Rowling's recently gave the commencement address to the graduates of Harvard and gave us a rare glimpse into her ideas about life and imagination.

“Imagination is not only the uniquely human capacity to envision that which is not, and therefore the fount of all invention and innovation. In its arguably most transformative and revelatory capacity, it is the power that enables us to empathize with humans whose experiences we have never shared.”
J.K. Rowling

SOMEONE IS ALREADY DOING YOUR NEXT GREAT IDEA!

Q: What are you dreaming about?

F

on a scale of one to ten (because it always seems that we need "measuring sticks") how well do you KNOW god?

maybe i should define know first...

the word know in the OT... the word yada and in the NT the word ginosko reflects intimacy.

John 17:3 "now this is eternal life that they (being us/humanity) may KNOW you (god) the only true god..."

Q: how well do you think you know god?

what does it take to KNOW something or someone? Jer. 29:13 says, "they that SEEK me will FIND me." genuine seeking will produce genuine finding. god does not reveal himself to the person who casually "knows" or probably more accurately put casually seeks him.

Matt 18:3 unless you become like a child, you will miss this (speaking about the kingdom of god... remember the kingdom is NOT just about a place that we will go [heaven] it has more implications about here and now).

that is why john 10:10 is so pertinent to follows of christ...

there will be many people that will one day enter heaven and miss the intimacy, the fullness, the richness... HERE AND NOW!

genuine seeking will produce genuine finding.

F

it is impossible to give what you don't have!

we all long for intimacy in relationships and wonder where it is and why we don't experience depth... all along knowing we can't give what we don't have.

so... here is our reality;

on one side we have good and the other side we have intimacy. (good vs intimacy) we have grown to pursue good because on some level we can measure it, or at least we have created enough of a mirage that we think that we can measure it. it's like a cause and effect paradigm. if i ____ then i will ____.

the problem with this thinking (on top of many others) is that "good" was never part of the conversation in the first place. the reality is that we are NOT good and we will never be; meaning that we will always fall short...

doesn't it get old falling short all the time and missing the intimacy?

embrace the process... embrace the journey...

F

everything in creation was designed specifically for a purpose with direct intentions in mind of what "it" would be and do.

how would you define worship?

waves crash... making sounds and singing songs that constantly and consistently, never ceasing to worship in its original intention and purpose.

coyotes howl at the moon making their soundtrack to the creator.

locusts create a symphony to bring glory to their maker.

and you...?
what song do you sing that reflects your original purpose for being created?

F

what does desperation look like?

this is the question that the worship leader (ronnie freeman) asked in the first worship set. for you, here and now what does desperation look like? although i have made personal reflection a habit often practiced it is so easy for me to dismiss the effort it would take for self evaluation at times in life. this question is so much more than a cerebral exercise that we end up with a lofty concept.

to define a question like this one needs to look into the depths of the heart, spirit, soul and mind to begin to understand.

have you ever been desperate for anything?

F

today we leave for THEE camp for the next five days...

all depending on our ability to get WI-FI we will be updating several times a day with pics and posts pertaining to the days events at camp.

hopefully we will be in touch.

F

stoked to have craig groeshel (http://swerve.lifechurch.tv/) speaking tonight at the gathering at the REALM via video for our current series ONE prayer http://www.oneprayer.com/

see you tonight!

F

another great post that i read today that i thought i would pass along and share...
from scott hodge blog http://www.scotthodge.typepad.com/

Someone just asked me, "How can a church embrace diversity without offending someone?"

My answer: "I don’t think it can. Everything a church does will offend SOMEONE. I think the question has to be, 'WHO are we willing to offend in order to reach the people we're called to reach?"

although this is not a fun idea to think about, this is a conversation that needs to happen to further identify your, our identity.... our DNA.

Q: who are we... the REALM?
Q: who are you?
Q: who and what do we want to be known for?

F

summer is upon us and with it comes the nuances that summer extends to us without knowing...

laziness
less responsibility
stay up and out late
sleep in longer
diffused/misguided focus
the need for money
the need to work to get money

i have always said that summers are a small glimpse of what college life will be like... if we struggle thru summer, the truth is that college life brings with it the same realities but with less supervision (for lack of better words).

STAY CONNECTED... somewhere...

no regrets by the end of the summer.

F

so this is what has been on my heart ALL WEEKEND... losing sleep, great conversations, coming off a conversation with some buddies last week over lunch...

i guess the best and easiest way to start the process would be to ask a question... and the best, most practical way to ask the question i guess would be...

Q: what does SUCCESS look like in youth ministry?

i just think that "we" (youth pastors, people with teenagers, etc) continue to be OK with the status quo in terms of success in youth ministry in america. the PRACTICAL and TANGIBLE often times (lets be honest, most times, if not always) trumps the work necessary to build "cultures of learning." not even necessarily the work but the patience it takes to build PEOPLE in place of building PROGRAMS that people attend.

Q: what does america and the world need most?

i cant help but to think that we need PEOPLE... and people building people. building people takes time, strategy, energy, a new culture... but when it happens the self sustaining power behind the movement creates the reality of what will be.

i know that it is both/and... it is both people and programs BUT what more and where will the shifts and the nudges takes place to build people and not just more people attending cool events?

thoughts?

F

i just read this on another guys blog and it was so relevant to me, to us, to our community.

take a deep breath... based on our discussion last wednesday night at the gathering (you can also read diary time post on my blog) this will make complete sense.

"Until you get your focus OFF of the people who are disgruntled, unhappy, not supportive, and resistant to the direction God has called you to go, and ONTO those who are excited, supportive and on board, you will NEVER gain momentum and see a new culture created in your church (community)."

this statement brings freedom with it.

and with it comes encouragement to stay the course... yes it is healthy to reflect and see what and where we can do "better"... but to abandon ship for a few people who wants their preferences met... forward we go.

this is WHO we are... we (the REALM) will be known as a community that LOVES, PURSUES, that is welcoming, that doesn't think that we are better than anyone else. we are a group that forgives, we are group that is piecing LIFE together one conversation at a time, one life at a time. we are a group of broken people in need of someone who can put the pieces back together.

that is freedom...

so.. the question that begs is...
Q: are you excited, supportive and on board?

really... is this your vision? is this your community?

...because if it is... ITS GO TIME!

F

i feel great momentum today coming out of our mexico meeting last night. i felt like the people that were there (maybe not initially) really wanted to be there... like they were ready to go. there was great ethos there... great freedom there.

NOW THAT IS FUN!

when a group of like-minded people gather in a place to pursue intimacy with god and intimacy with one another... when a group of people gather to pursue love.

that is community...
that is freedom...
this is what it SHOULD be like ALL the time... this should be our reality!

the amazing thing is (at least from my perspective) that this IS becoming our reality.

its actually happening... one life at a time... one conversation at a time...

we will look back at this moment and remember when...

KEEP DREAMING...

F

(read post before this one for this to make sense)

when i think about substance, sizzle, soul i think of relationships also. obviously relationships are much more organic than preparing for a message or talk, but nonetheless WHAT i say, HOW i engage people and WHO i am plays out in my relationships...

so... should communicators be the same on stage as they are with people?
Q: is that authenticity?

Q: is this the person you want speaking, sharing, communicating with you?

thoughts?

F

Three basic assets of communication:

1. Substance - the content of WHAT you say (e.g., facts, ideas, formulas, directions, strategies, etc.)
2. Sizzle - HOW you engage people (e.g., your tone, pauses, volume, resonance, interaction); HOW you craft what you say (e.g., stories, metaphors, analogies)
3. Soul - WHO you are (e.g., your passions, desires aspirations, and values) and WHY your message is important to you.

Substance accounts for only about 7% of of why people will remember and believe what you say. Sizzle and Soul.....93%.

...this comes back to WHO you are... BE!

From Change The Way You See Yourself (from scott hodge blog)

http://www.oneprayer.com/

an unprecedented global (literally global) "event" started this week as churches around the globe will unite to share in a series called ONE prayer.

Q: what is your ONE prayer for the church?

it amazes me to know the significance of prayer in our lives and the health and state of our relationships and pursuit of christ around the intimacy of prayer... yet why is it still such a struggle for me to pray?

Q: what would happen if i, we prayed... i mean really prayed?

F