Crazier Next Year?

For the last few years, the Toledo First Church has hosted an annual car show. Regardless of weather, this ordinary outreach with really cool cars (click here to see some), fresh squeezed lemonade, and live 50's and 60's tunes has consistently delivered smiles galore and resulted in priceless friendships being developed in our community. Money from its proceeds were raised to comfort kids with cancer and even more was added to a fund to build a gymnasium for Toledo Junior Academy (a K-8 Christian elementary school) and James Meade Learning Center (an infant to preschool Christian daycare).

Though we will not be hosting a 2011 Car Show due to scheduling difficulties, plan for a 2012 return that's even bigger and better than ever. Stay tuned to www.kidzcrazycarshow.org for more info.

The Porcelain Unicorn?

Philips and the renowned director/producer, Ridley Scott, recently launched a global filmmaker competition dubbed the: “Tell It Your Way” Film Making Contest. The entrants were given total freedom of expression but could only use six lines of dialogue and no more than three minutes of film. The grand prize winner was entitled The Porcelain Unicorn. Click the triangular play button below to see why it won!!!

Doesn't God Love Hetero and Homosexuals Like Crazy?

Tim Keller, author of The Prodigal God, thinks so. If you have 15 minutes to listen to his thought provoking interview from Columbia University, please do. His conclusions remind me of the Old Testament prophet Ezekiel's who said Sodom's sins had more to do with not loving like crazy than sexual promiscuity. Ezekiel 16:49, "Sodom's sins were pride, gluttony, and laziness, while the poor and needy suffered outside her door. She was proud and committed detestable sins, so I wiped her out, as you have seen." Doesn't God love hetero and homosexuals like crazy?

The Born Supremacy?

In the first century AD, Christians suffered insults and persecution but stood side by side with those imprisoned for their faith (Hebrews 10:32,34). But as time went by, they grew weary and drifted away (Hebrews 2:1) and began to neglect their faith (Hebrews 2:2). Sin's deceitfulness began to harden their hearts (Hebrews 3:13-16) and they failed to grow spiritually (Hebrews 5:11-14). They gradually quit gathering for church (Hebrews 10:25) and some may have even publicly renounced Jesus (cf. Hebrews 6:4-6; 10:26-31; 12:15-17). Does anyone else recognize the similarities between those Christians back then and those today? No wonder the author of the book of Hebrews called the sermon he wrote a "work of exhortation" (Hebrews 13:22)!!!

Toledo First Church voted on what book of the Bible they wanted me to sermonize from next so our back-to-school sermon series, based on the New Testament book of Hebrews, is called The Born Supremacy. To many Christians, this book remains a mystery because its language of priests and sacrifices confuses them. But if we begin at the beginning and let the Word speak to us in its terms not ours, we can grasp its meaning. If the tired Christians in the first century who caught a glimpse of the supremacy of Jesus were renewed, revived, and invigorated after reading this letter about who Jesus is, what He accomplished on the cross, and what He is doing as our heavenly high priest, you can be too!!! Plan to bring a friend and join us Saturdays starting September 3 @ 11am!!! Click here for map and directions. You do NOT have to be a member of Toledo First Church to participate.

All Is Grace?

How do I know God loves us like crazy? Brennan told me. I'm SO glad I got to hear him live in Cleveland a few years ago. He had a serious fall recently,and is still alive but not able to speak much anymore. If you haven't read The Ragamuffin Gospel yet, you and your kids and your grandkids and pretty much everyone you care about should. I'm going to get his memoir All Is Grace (click below to read more about it). Acts 20:32 (NLT) says, "And now I entrust you to God and the message of his grace that is able to build you up and give you an inheritance with all those he has set apart for himself."

Ten Years Later?

On September 11, 2001, New Yorkers witnessed their fellow Americans' inspirational potential for generosity and sacrifice as aid from across the nation flowed into the city. The documentary New York Says Thank You follows the participants of this landmark public service initiative as they commemorate the anniversary of 9/11 each year by rebuilding homes, hospitals, schools, and churches destroyed by disaster. In the process they share stories of survival and hope, and bring a patriotic message of gratitude and solidarity to survivors of tragedy nationwide. Remember!!!

Got A Big But?

The Veracity Project equips the Christian church to contend for the faith with high impact media. This is one of my faves. Enjoy!!!

Buy your own copy here: http://www.theveracityproject.com/store/index.php/films/big-but.html

Shall We Shape Culture?

I am SO looking forward to hearing Gabe Lyons at the 7th Annual Conference on Innovation taking place in Columbus, Ohio OCT 2-4, 2011 (click above for more info). This 36 year old author of the 2007 book I previously reviewed and recommended on Fortune Cookies called unChristian has written another called The Next Christians (click vid below for a preview).

In it, Lyons stresses the activation of a network of "restorers who will work with anyone to see goodness go forward in the world and evil pressed back." These "next Christians," as Lyons calls them in the title of his 2010 book, "are socially conscious, grounded in their gospel commitment, and optimistic that when their faith is practiced according to the ways of Jesus, it is complementary to cultural reforms that value all human beings, all human flourishing, and all spiritual traditions." Read the entire recent USA Today article here. And don't forget, early bird $99 registration for the Conference on Innovation ends AUG 11, 2011 so if you want to go OCT 2-4 as part of my group, consider this your personal invitation and let me know before then!!! (You'll need to get there or carpool with me from Toledo and share/pay half the hotel room with someone else from our group but your registration fee will be covered. Shall we shape culture together? I hope so!!!

Summer Jobs?

Joshua (turning 12 in a few days) and Lydia (9 years old) have been working hard this summer. I'm SO proud of them!!! WTG!!!

A Modern Wonder Woman?

Four years ago, Katie Davis was homecoming queen at her high school in Brentwood, Tennessee. She had a yellow convertible and planned to study nursing in college. But those plans changed. Today, she's in Uganda, sharing her home with 13 orphaned or abandoned girls, ages 2 to 15. Davis is the legal guardian or foster mother for all of them, and hopes to one day adopt them. She reminds me of a modern wonder woman, who like Esther in the Bible, decided to use her beauty and influence to live for God in such a time as this. Click the pics for more info about Katie. Click here to listen to her inspiring interview on NPR. And click here to watch / listen / read more about Esther. Photos courtesy of Stylianos Papardelas

Will Christ Trump Country This Weekend?

This weekend, churches across the land will be focusing on country. This vid reminds us that rightly understood, Christ trumps country. Enjoy!!! (And BIG thank you and WTG to ShareFaith for making theologically powerful vids AND making them available for a 7 day free trial. Click the yellow link for more info and consider a ShareFaith video subscription for your church.)

An Interdependence Day Prayer?

Heavenly Father, You are the real foundation of nations, raising them up to serve and care for the people dwelling inside and outside their boundaries / Thank You for raising up a nation devoted to freedom and interdependence on You / Please bless this country with your Spirit so like Abraham and the followers You called before us, we can be a blessing to others

Help us not to squander our abundance on frivolity / May our strength always be on the side of justice / Help our leaders to be strong enough to seek peace and reject the myth of redemptive violence / May the great, strong hearts of our people be open to cheerful, and when necessary, sacrificial giving / Help our giving to benefit America but also the World / Especially the millions of women and children enslaved throughout it / More than at any time in earth's history / May all who seek citizenship be welcomed here / And may our legacy be one of enduring equality and liberty

We, the people, still believe there is hope for the least, the last, and the lost because once we were too, but now are found / On this Interdependence Day, and every day till we see Jesus face to face, may we the people continue to put our hope in You

- a personal prayer adapted from multiple scriptures and sources

Will You Picnic With Purpose?

Jesus did all the time. Matthew 14:15-21 says he did so with 5k plus people! We probably won't have that many at ours after church on July 16, but hopefully, we'll have a few hundred. Because in addition to our church members, who bring their friends and family who might never walk into a church but would walk into a park for a delicious meal, we will again be serving smiles and lots of fresh squeezed ice cold lemonade to all the walkers, joggers, and proud doggie owners walking by our picnic (plus doggie biscuits for the dogs!!!). Pastor Daniel is organizing a corn hole tournament and Donna will once again be taking on all challengers in ladder ball. Sabbath afternoon promises to be a delightful day full of good fellowship, games, and worship. Jesus always picnicked with purpose. Will you?

Does Keenan Know God Loves Him Like Crazy?

Keenan Cahill is far from your average high-schooler. For one thing, he has overcome incredible adversity, suffering from a rare genetic disorder called Mucopolysaccaridosis (MPS-6) since birth. For another, at the young age of 15, Cahill has already achieved international superstardom from behind a webcam in his childhood bedroom no less by lip-syncing todays top 40 hits. It was his cover of Katy Perry’s “Teenage Dream” that first threw Cahill into the spotlight earning 36 million views on YouTube and a legion of adoring fans including Katy Perry herself.

But it was Keenan's honesty about his condition that inspired a Chicago news team to ham it up in his bedroom helping him remind others that talent, no matter how much adversity its presented, can overcome all obstacles. I don't know if Keenan knows God loves him like crazy, but I'm sure He does!!! And I think God thinks it's pretty cool how one sick kid could inspire 36 million people without leaving his bedroom!!! WTG Keenan!!!

A Media Imperative?

Do followers of Jesus have a media imperative? Brian Solis from briansolis.com thinks so. He says 65% of the emerging "Millenial Generation" is disconnected from online stuff less than an hour a day! So if you want to reach them, that's where they are! And when we try, he says the acronym to keep in mind is not Keep It Simple Stupid. It's KISS = Keep it significant and shareable!

Obsessed With Church?

This vid reminds me of a quote from a book I'm reading right now. "This ecclesiocentric obsession means that primarily we mine both Scripture and culture for our own needs. We're so preoccupied with church questions that neither biblical narratives nor culture can become the places where God addresses us and challenges us to be converted" (Missional: Joining God in the Neighborhood, Baker Books, 2011) p.48. What do you think? Are Christians obsessed with church, money, and members? If we are, what can we do about it? What will you?

A Godly Sacrifice?

Stories like this one about Francisco ‘Paco’ Rodriguez remind me that God loves us like crazy and has a plan for your life—even after sin and brokenness often threaten [and sometimes] take it. Save 17 minutes to watch this vid some time. It moved me.

Can Christians Change the World?

Mother Teresa said, "Small things done with great love change the world." James Hunter, author of To Change the World might say it this way: "Small things done by networks of individuals and their institutions faithfully partnering with others over time change the world."

This book isn't an easy read because the first half undermines the "small things." Remember the Chicken Soup for the Soul story about the little boy on a beach littered with stranded starfish that picks one up and tosses it back into the ocean? That one was saved, but Hunter's point in the first half of the book is the vast majority of the "starfish" left on the "beach" [my analogy not his] prove Christians haven't really changed most of it. And never will if we continue to think the world primarily changes simply by altruistic individuals in power whether they're liberal or conservative.

As much as I hate to admit it (because I detest self-serving institutions and the hierarchy that runs them), if Hunter is right, individuals in institutions willing to make sacrifices so others flourish can change the world (so maybe there's a place for some of them)! IF Christians change the way they think about and pursue change. That's the good news you eventually reach if you read the rest of this book. Click pics for more info.

Best Rendition of 'How Great Thou Art'?

Millions of Americans have heard Carrie Underwood sing this stirring rendition of How Great Thou Art. Have you?

My Fave Apps?

Aside from carrying thousands of songs from my iTunes library, five of the latest Toledo First Church podcasts and six "Jesus books" [Jesus on audiobook by Walter Wangerin Jr is great for kids and what we're listening to for family worship, click for details], what I like most about my iPhone is its apps especially some that Pastor Anna showed me recently. Here are a few of my faves. If you have some too, do share!!!

• Dragon Dictation [free] records what I say and is amazingly accurate in turning the content into an email I can easily edit [if necessary] then send with the push of a button instead of texting messages on the tiny keys or typing them later on the computer.

• Dropbox [free] is worth adding to your PC or Mac even if you don't use a smartphone because it allows you to sync content when online to more than one of your computers [or someone else's if you invite them] by simply dragging a file into a folder on your computer.

• JotNot Pro [99 cents] turns your phone into an amazingly accurate scanner for pics and Word docs. Amazing really.

For seven more good apps, click pic or here to read Chis McConnells' article "10 Essential iPhone Apps for Pastors and Other Church Workers" in Outlook Magazine.