India is a country that is close to my heart ever since I visted it following college graduation in 1997. It is one of the most amazing countries in the world and what I experienced over there was both breathtaking and tragic. I have more unbelievable stories from the things that I saw and experienced over there…things that I have never witnessed since, especially when it comes to spiritual warfare and the supernatural….the topics that we don’t often discuss over here in the United States. One of my most memorable days was being in the city of Calcutta on the day that Mother Theresa’s funeral procession was making its way through town. I remember being in her orphanage that day and seeing firsthand the unbelievable conditions that she ministered so faithfully in for so many years. I remember driving through town as her funeral procession made its way through the city with both rich and poor, famous and unknown, following closely behind it.

I am asking you to be in prayer for the country of India and its people. I just received some phone calls from my brother who was just there for a couple of weeks with Hopegivers Inernational with his church Frontline in the Washington D.C. Metro Area/VA. He has asked me if I could post something to remind us all to be in prayer for India, a country that is under considerable persecution, especially the Christians who are sufferring a great deal for being faithful to the Word of Jesus Christ. Recently, one of the orphanages that my brother was working with has come under considerable persecution and attack and many of the children have been kidnapped. Some of the information is highly sensitive and confidential as many people’s lives are in danger, but please check out Persecution.org, which is the International Christian Human Rights Organization. Please visit this site, and go to the left side bar and click on “sign petition.”

Please be in prayer for these people, and many others who suffer for what we most often take for granted on a daily basis.

Oscars Foundering in Era of Niches is an interesting article in Sunday’s Los Angeles Times. Here are some quotes:

But the problem with the Oscars is more deeply rooted than just public lack of interest in the nominees. Ratings are crumbling for the Oscars, and award shows in general, because the Era of the Mass Event is drawing to a close……..

We are now a nation of niches. There are still blockbuster movies, hit TV shows and top-selling CDs, but fewer events that capture the communal pop culture spirit. The action is elsewhere, with the country watching cable shows or reading blogs that play to a specific audience……

There is another, even more radical shift in today’s pop culture that is helping to undermine the Oscars and other tradition-bound award shows. For years, the Oscars have mattered because the awards served as a barometer of cultural heft. Just the name alone–the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences–has the air of high-minded authority.

But this elite, top-down culture is being supplanted by a raucous, participatory bottom-up culture in which amateur entertainment has more appeal than critically endorsed skill and expertise…….

This article has me thinking about its relevance to church. I was talking today with one of our pastors about how our church has seen a drop in involement in our “large events”, whether it be our all church retreat or large worship events. The draw in the last couple of years has been for small, more intimate events. The church seems to be more niche oriented. I don’t know if this is either good or bad. Maybe in the last 20 plus years we have really celebrated and pushed the large event, especially as we have made numbers a significant marker of the church’s success.

I have also been noticing a swing in the church from a top-down culture, to a bottom-up culture. The role of the pastor does seem to be shifting…..Whereas he or she used to be the keeper or bearer of all information, teaching, preaching, truth, authority, etc….there now seems to be a growing shift where the pastor is not the controller of all these things, but rather there is a larger empowerment of the congregation and laity.

Just some quick hit thoughts after reading this article…….

Technorati Tags: Oscars, Los Angeles Times, church

I have been thinking recently about who we often learn from, and that sometimes we don’t often afford ourselves the opportunity to learn from those that we disagree with on certain issues. When it comes to the world of blogs we tend to stick in our own circles, and if we venture out of them, it is usually only to get our blood flowing by what others say, or to find something we can disagree with, so that we can go back to our own blogs, and our own circles and blog about it.

There is someone out there in the blog world that i don’t agree with theologically on many issuse, but he is a very smart man, and he happened to be the person that first got me interested in the study of theology, which led me to seminary months later.

During the spring semester of my senior year in college I decided to take a church history class for an elective. I was studying at Grand Canyon University in Phoenix, AZ, which at the time was a small, liberal arts Christian university, and was part of the Souther Baptist Convention (the university now…don’t ask). The university required a class in OT and NT and a weekly chapel, so I thought I would learn more in the area of theology.

The professor was James White of Alpha and Omega Ministries. I remember being excited about going to this class during the week, and I remember thinking that I didn’t know that the history of the church was that fascinating. Class was always great, and White was a great lecturer. Looking back, I don’t remember whether or not he pushed a lot of his Calvinist views in class, or whether it aligned with the doctrine of the SBC. But what I do remember was thinking that this class would forever change my life.

I wrote my paper on the reformer Jon Hus, which would be the beginning of many theological papers for me as I headed to seminary within the next six months.

Though James White did his M.A. at Fuller Theological Seminary I don’t remember him being too fond of it when I asked him after class one day about it. But I won’t put words in his mouth.

I have since been to Fuller where I did my M.Div and where I am currently working on my M.F.T. And it’s a seminary I love. I have also been pastoring a college ministry for the last four years. And I truly believe that that church history class, taught by James White, was the catalyst that put me on the path where I am now.

Thanks for the great learning experience…..

Technorati Tags: James White, Fuller Theological Seminary

I have been wondering about something for a little while now, and I am wondering what your thoughts are on this. If you have some, let me know. Or it could be that no one else is wondering about this.

Recently I have been interviewing at some clinical counseling, family service type sites, as I am beginning to do counseling work as part of my requirments for my masters in Marital and Family Therapy. And one of the things that I have noticed about the interviews I was on, was this one underlying assumption or thought.

That as a counselor in training, and as a licensed therapist one day as well, it was important for me to know that I would always be a life long learner, and that I would need to be that in this profession. That one could not master counseling or therapy because we are dealing with people…unique people, always changing, always different, always different issues, etc. I like that aspect of therapy and counseling, because I enjoy learning. I enjoy this process. The interviewers made it pretty clear that if I thought I would have all the answers and wouldn’t be a humble learner, then this was not the profession for me.

And as I have talked with my friends about this idea, we have noticed that other fields such as technology, business, medicine, etc., are always evolving as well. There are learning curves and for one to advance in the field, one must be a life long learner. They must be willing to be open to new ideas, whether they eventually work or prove false. They must test theories. They must experiment, and be willing to make mistakes. It would almost be ludicrous to hire someone if they thought they had all the answers and didn’t need to learn anymore, or if they thought they were the expert and there was no room for mistakes or errors.

You don’t want that type of person coming out of med school who says they have all the answers. You don’t want that type of person coming into your computer company who feels they have nothing else to learn.

But why is it that when it comes to ministry and theology we seem to believe different? There are certain denominations, theological camps, etc. that expect one to be the bearer of all information. To have all the answers. To not have an answer, and especially the right one is looked on as a flaw, or inadequate. The underlying assumption then is this….that when it comes to theology, we are not life long learners, that we don’t need to grow or evolve, or even be allowed to change our theological stance if we come to believe different. Why is that?

After reading many books and blogs and having many friends in minsitry, it seems to me that churches are often weary of hiring someone who would say to them: “You know. I’m a life long learner in this field of theology and the task of ministry. I don’t have all the answers? But I want to grow and learn.”

Is theology, the study of God so easy to master? Are we not life-long learners? Do we at 25, 26 and older think that we can possibly have this Christian life, and the thoughts of the mind of God mastered when we are handed our M. Div. degree? Do we think that God is easier to figure out than technology and medicine and psychology, etc.?

This does not mean that we don’t hold convictions. This does not mean everything is up for grabs. But rather, what I am wondering is why certain theological camps, churches, seminaries, etc. claim absolute certainity on every issue concerning God as if they have Him figured out with absolute clarity…..when in other fields we would never do that? If any field of study should be more humble, and willing to learn, and grow and be challenged and make mistakes and be life-long learners, shouldn’t it be the field of theology?

I am becoming more and more convinced that there is great fear in many churches and theologians, etc. if they can’t come up with the right answer. The fear of not having the right answer is huge. That is also why I am more and more convinced at why many young Christians are being drawn to pastors and thinkers and theologians who they hear say at times, “I don’t know. I don’t have the answer for that question. But I will be praying, studying, etc. about that issue.” That type of not knowing is much of the authenticity that many Christians are looking for. It is also this fear of not knowing that shuts down much of the dialogue between different theological strains, etc… This is not about which questions we need to have answers to and which ones we don’t….it’s about the posture of sometimes not knowing everything, and being on a life long learning curve in pursuit of God.

Many might say what about, 1 Peter 3:15,

15But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect,

Are there not times when the reason and the answer we give for our hope is not always about having the right answer, but about sharing what Christ has done in our lives? Has not much of our apologetic attempts been without respect and gentleness?

Technorati Tags: theology, ministry, learning