Best/Worst

Best and Worst sermon you ever heard...

Update...w/ links galore!

In Maryland now, checking emails and such on Jason's computer. Ross and the band are downstairs running some stuff. Right now, I'm hearing "Just As I Am." I think it's an Integrity song...I like it...sounds different, you know, kinda' old. Kinda' fun to hear Ross, Michael and Ben playing with an electric guitar in the mix. Alex, an old bandmate of Ross, lives somewhere near and is sitting in on electric.

Last night, we all attended LifePoint's Saturday night service and then down to the student ministry "Underground" to eat and hear a rap artist named Victorious. After that, we headed to O'Liordan's, an Irish pub that was very cool - with uncomfortable chairs.

I've taken a few pictures and will throw them on the site as soon as I can. I'm staying at Lance and Amy's house and got a really nice sleep last night. Kinda' weird not actually playing music on this trip...but I'm looking forward to the rare privilege of sitting under worship under Ross and his friends!

One More Way The Bible Freaks Me Out...

Does the scripture freak anybody else out?

(Judges 11)

32 Then Jephthah went over to fight the Ammonites, and the LORD gave them into his hands. 33 He devastated twenty towns from Aroer to the vicinity of Minnith, as far as Abel Keramim. Thus Israel subdued Ammon.
34 When Jephthah returned to his home in Mizpah, who should come out to meet him but his daughter, dancing to the sound of tambourines! She was an only child. Except for her he had neither son nor daughter. 35 When he saw her, he tore his clothes and cried, "Oh! My daughter! You have made me miserable and wretched, because I have made a vow to the LORD that I cannot break."
36 "My father," she replied, "you have given your word to the LORD. Do to me just as you promised, now that the LORD has avenged you of your enemies, the Ammonites. 37 But grant me this one request," she said. "Give me two months to roam the hills and weep with my friends, because I will never marry."
38 "You may go," he said. And he let her go for two months. She and the girls went into the hills and wept because she would never marry. 39 After the two months, she returned to her father and he did to her as he had vowed.

Or am I just spiritually immature?

MORE ON PREACHING...

Let's hope the Remnant doesn't go like THIS.

PREACHING...

A lot of you know that some things changed for me in mid-to-late 2007. Primarily, I got the chance to do more "preaching" at my church.

First, in a dialogue sermon, then all by myself a month or two later. And most of you know what happened...I liked it. A lot.

Then, as 2007 drew to a close, I had this crazy idea to pastor/preach/lead/host a young adult Bible study. So, the preaching thing is obviously gonna' stick around for awhile.

Since all of this stuff started happening, a lot of you (Okay, not A LOT of you. Maybe 2 or 3. Okay, so it was Clay) started hinting that I might be headed toward setting my guitar down and taking on a pulpit.

Let me first say that God can do what He wants. If God tells me to up and join seminary and start churches and preach, then I'll do that. I wouldn't mind it, because A) It would be obeying God and B) I find preaching to be one of the most amazing ministry choices...I'm fascinated by it.

But as flattering as the thought is, I gotta' say that I don't think it's gonna' happen. And I don't think it should. Here's why...

Why is it that our smartest and best ministers are all preachers? Why am I not hearing wise teaching coming from worship leaders? Why do I see seminars and churches promoting events with speakers and teachers that are brilliant but fronted with worship leading by dudes and gals who sing, look pretty and teach us nothing?

When did we decide that the first 30 minutes of our service need to be entertainment and the back half should be educational/pastoral?

Why do I go to youth camp to be led by a bunch of pretty boys with cool shoes who regurgitate tired old Christian culture cliches before some amazing theologian and pastor takes the stage?

Worship leaders, we have a great job. We get to do a thing that a lot of people don't. We get to stand on on a stage and rock and roll and, often, very little is required of us. (Especially if we play all the Top 40 Worship Hitlist.) And most of us get paid a pretty fair wage to do it, too.

But it's not enough, and it's not okay for me to get my pastoring fix elsewhere when God's given me a platform already.

I'm not giving up preaching. As long as God gives me the chance, I'll do it, but all of you worship leaders need to hear me...

WE'VE GOT TO WORK HARDER.
WE'VE GOT TO STUDY.
WE'VE GOT TO KNOW THE WORD.
WE'VE GOT TO GET OVER OURSELVES.
WE'VE GOT TO PASTOR.

Oh, and by "we," I mean, you know, ME.

What I'm Doing, Part II

I mentioned briefly in the last post that my theory is that young adults tend to value powerful presentation over pastoral care. While that's probably not the healthy way to live, I think we can extract some 'good' out of it.

Let me explain: I think its amazing that young adults who are Christians are so familiar with guys like John Piper or Rob Bell or Matt Chandler or Andy Stanley or Neil McClendon or Voddie Baucham. (That's quite a varied group, ain't it? Wouldn't you love to see all of them around a dinner table?)

Here's what I mean: I think that for the first time in a long time, young adults are more passionate about finding teachers that actually know their stuff. We've got an entire movement of Christan college students who are reading, hearing and studying deep, theological issues. I realize that all college students get a bit pretentious, but I'm willing to bet that Christian college students are better-read these days than, say, fifteen years ago. And that's what we're factoring into the Remnant.

Understanding that we are probably going to be dealing with a group of people who are used to, and expect, a certain level of quality in sermons, classes, studies, lectures, we've decided to invest our time in crafting study of the Bible that is going to be thoughtful, prepared, and well-delivered. In addition to that, we're intentionally playing down the "show."

The Remnant will be held in the "chapel" of our church, a small space with stained glass, pews, the whole deal. To be honest, the idea of "postmodern" or "ancient future" never occured to me as we picked this location. Frankly, I just love the room and have wanted to have more meetings in there for two years. (I'm a sucker for the stained glass at night.)

Lufkin has had multiple young adult outreaches over the years - all with full bands, projection screens, video clips and lots of pseudo-momentum - but none of them have lasted. I'm not against bands or screens. I like them and use them on every single Sunday morning. But I think there's something to be said for trying something that's more low-key in its approach. My prayer is that each of these services will communicate a relaxed atmosphere while also being very focused on the study of scripture.

Oh, did I mention that I'm the one preaching? Yeah...I'm not leading worship at this one, folks. That's worth the price of admission right there!

working title...

Starting in February, I'll be heading up a new young adult outreach at our church. I'll be "hosting" the service - preaching, leading discussion, connecting with guests, etc., while the worship will be led by a host of volunteer folks from around town.

We'll probably be throwing up a facebook or blog site for the service pretty soon. I'm really really excited about this new venture in ministry. I'll try to keep you guys posted on the progress.