January 2010
29 posts
Chronos & Kairos--Together Forever
Uncovered an interesting tidbit this week. Apparently, the ancient Greeks had two words for “time”—chronos and kairos.
Chronos described sequential time—seconds, minutes, hours. (Hence, of course, our word chronological). Kairos, on the other hand, meant “the right or opportune moment.” More qualitative than chronos, kairos would have been closer to our word,...
2 tags
Shedding the Lizard Brain
Heard a great presentation recently from Seth Godin. He talked about how chickens and other stupid animals have what he calls a “lizard brain“—a very low-functioning brain that’s always 4 things:
Selfish
Hungry
Scared
Horny (pardon the indelicate word, but it’s his and it best communicates the truth here)
Those four impulses rule the lizard brain. It...
1 tag
What's Your Best Church Moment?
So here’s the title slide for this weekend at Henderson. We’re anticipating a bunch of visitors, and we’ll be talking about the necessity/blessings of a church family. I’ve certainly got some experience with this, but I’d love to incorporate other people’s stories.
So—short/long, small/big, funny/serious—what’s your story? Is there a time...
2 tags
How to Help Haiti
A few days ago, I shared an amazing story from Josh Wyatt’s trip to Haiti. If you haven’t read it, check it out. Long story short, Roberta and her kids need our help.
Here’s Josh talking about how to make it happen:
**Donate to Manna Global Ministries here.
**Donate to Roberta directly by writing a check to “Estes Church of Christ” (marked “Haiti...
2 tags
Are Gospel Meetings Worth Saving?
So I was asked yesterday to preach a gospel meeting for a church this October.
For those of you not familiar with this breed of event, it’s a series of church services (usually Sunday morning, Sunday night, Monday night, Tuesday night, and Wednesday night) during which a visiting speaker will preach a series of lessons (sometimes tightly themed, but often a kind of “best of”...
2 tags
Hosanna!
Preached last night about Jesus’ Triumphal Entry and discovered several things I hadn’t realized before I studied for the lesson.
For instance:
The people shouting “Hosanna!” (literally, “God, save us!”) and hailing Jesus as King aren’t the people of Jerusalem. They’re disciples who’ve come with him from Galilee for the Passover. So the...
1 tag
“First say to yourself what you would be; and then do what you have to do.”
– Epictetus
2 tags
Pass/Fail
Powerful words from Jesus:
“Whoever is not with me is against me, and whoever does not gather with me scatters.” (Mt. 12:30)
I guess the million dollar question is, What would it look like if I was truly with Christ? What would it look like if I was actively gathering with Jesus?
If my life doesn’t match that picture, well…I’m on the wrong side.
1 tag
39 Things God Is
Here’s a great exercise: take a look at every time the phrase “God is” happens in Scripture.
Enlightening, inspiring, sobering.
Here are some highlights:
“God is with you in everything you do” (Gen. 21:22) “God is giving” (Ex. 20:12)—give number of times “God is not a man, that he should lie” (Num. 23:19) “God is near us...
3 tags
An Incredible Story From My Friend's Trip To Haiti
Shared this story in church last night. So awesome.
As soon as he heard about the earthquake in Haiti, my friend Josh got on a plane to the Dominican Republic and found a spot on a truck headed across the border to Port-Au-Prince.
He was trying to get to a small orphanage run by a Christian friend of his named Roberta. Josh has an adopted daughter from Haiti and he’s spent a lot of time...
1 tag
Happy Birthday, Jen
Today is my wife’s birthday.
I love that woman.
Here’s just one reason: “Teaching My Daughter About God…with Words!”
1 tag
To Fudge, Or Not To Fudge
I bought a car today. Our 10-year-old ride bit the dust thanks to a busted transmission, so we replaced her with an 8-year-old “new” one. And for all of you out there who are wondering, it’s a Ford Taurus.
Yeah, baby.
Anyway, when it was time for the title to be signed over, the guy I bought it from said, “And, of course, you pay taxes on whatever price you put on...
3 tags
The Day Jesus & Moses Had A Conversation
There are a few moments in history I’d pay some good money to have witnessed.
Jesus’ transfiguration is one of them.
I preached about it yesterday, and in my preparation came across a really cool detail. When Moses and Elijah appear and begin talking with Jesus (while Peter, James, and John watch, flabbergasted), Luke says they talk about Jesus’ coming...
1 tag
Just Now:
Jen: I feel like Tuesdays and Thursdays are odd numbers, and Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays are even numbers.
Me: Really? I've always thought the opposite. Tuesday is definitely an even number.
Jen: What? Sunday is one, right? So Monday would be two.
Me: Technically, but come on--everybody knows Sunday is 7.
Jen: I guess you don't love Jesus.
2 tags
“Not everything that can be counted counts, and not everything that counts can be...”
– Albert Einstein
1 tag
Haiti, Before and After
Some sobering images from Haiti on Google Earth:
Donate to rescue and relief efforts through Healing Hands International here.
4 tags
Involvement Minister or Outreach Minister?
Some churches have “involvement ministers.” Others have “outreach ministers.” Either’s great, but here’s my opinion:
Nothing brings people together and gets them involved better than a shared mission that’s bigger than any one of them. And you can’t do outreach without getting people involved.
If the core of your involvement isn’t outreach,...
1 tag
Really? That's a Command?
We’re in a series on generosity right now at Henderson and last Sunday’s lesson was the fluff one of the series: being generous with praise. Now, hey—it’s good to encourage people.
But come on.
This is extra credit stuff, right? It’s for the people who are wired that way anyway—like a friend of mine (let’s call him “Nate”) in college. He...
3 tags
2 Racists, 1 Room, and No Excuse
I sat in a packed movie theater a while back watching a film centered on the events of Apartheid in South Africa. Ironically, what happened in the movie theater that night would not have made Mandela proud.
THE SETUP In the film, an innocent black African named Patrick is taken into custody under suspicion of a rebel bombing. When he won’t confess to the crime, the head of South Africa’s...
2 tags
God Is Here.
Life is a little crazy right now. I keep waiting for things to calm down. …That will happen, right?
Anyway, I love how God uses bad things to showcase His presence. Our only car broke down this weekend in 18 degree weather. At 10pm. In the middle of nowhere. 100 miles from home. With both kids in the back.
Since that moment, God has entered our life in extraordinary ways—a...
2 tags
Mini-Mentoring
I’m thinking of beginning a habit of one learning lunch per month. I choose an area in which I want to improve (fathering, ministry, prayer, leadership, teaching, etc.), find someone I admire in that area, buy them lunch, and seek their counsel.
They get a free lunch, and I get to borrow some wisdom. Win/win, right?
So here are two questions:
Who would be on your list? (Keep it...
Do You Have To Forgive Me If I Don't Ask You To?
Do you have to forgive someone if they don’t ask you to forgive them?
This question came up at church last night and sparked quite a bit of energetic discussion. (It does almost any time it’s raised.) And to be fair, I think cogent thoughts and compelling Scriptures can be offered on either side of this debate.
But here’s the thing: in the end, I’m not sure the answer to...
Good Husband or Good Blogger--Sometimes You Have...
Instead of writing a post for today, I helped the wife out with some blog tweaking. Comments are now up and running on her site, so go say hi and tell her I sent you.
If you’re still in the mood for a post here, punch the “random” button on the sidebar to the left. It’s an adventure waiting to happen. Okay, maybe not an adventure, but a semi-exciting way to spend the next...
2 tags
The Enemy of Interestingness
My two-year-old daughter loves to dance. I mean loves to dance.
I put on some music last night and she ran into the kitchen yelling, “Dass! Dass!” She then began running around in enthusiastic circles, moving her shoulders up and down, waving her arms like she was conducting a rock & roll symphony, and spinning like an wonky dradle.
This, of course, is hilarious to watch. When...
1 tag
Who's The Most Generous Person You Know?
We started a series last night at Henderson on living generously. In it, we’re exploring different ways to exhibit over-the-top, lavish, beyond-what’s-necessary generosity.
So here’s a question: who’s the most generous person you know? (And why?) You might not know a Mother Teresa, but somebody’s the most generous person you know.
So tell me, who is it?
3 tags
“I know men and I tell you that Jesus Christ is no mere man. Between Him and...”
– Napoleon Bonaparte
3 tags
Means or End?
Check out these ads for the Copenhagen Zoo.
I love advertising like this—a refusal to march lock-step with the status quo.
If advertising is putting up a billboard, then hey—put up a billboard and call it a day. But if advertising is communicating a message in a way that gets noticed, then maybe (probably) a billboard isn’t the best thing.
Whoever created this campaign...
3 tags
I Like New Year's Because...
I like this season—this moment when we’re on the threshold between one year and the next. I’m reflective and hopeful and regretful and satisfied and resolute all at the same time.
I heard once that the month of January traces the roots of its name back to Janus, the Roman god of gates and doorways. When sculpted or painted, Janus was depicted with two heads, each facing in...
1 tag
»Welcome to 2010. Let’s put something awesome down on this bad boy.