the life of Jared (4/27)

The week that was:

Where to begin?  My mom and dad flew in for the weekend on Wednesday and they got to see Karis for the first time in person, which was cool.  My sister and brother in law flew in on Friday for the weekend as well, and they also got to see Karis for the first time.

Saturday was my 30th b-day and my lovely wife planned a surprise party for me with a few friends.  It was a great time hanging out with good friends.  The highlight was probably when Stephen Porter walked into the room.  He came all the way from South Africa, though not totally for me.  He is in town for a couple of trips to DC to hopefully secure visas for his family so they can return to Angola and the missionary assignment they have there.

Sunday was a really busy day.  It was our 30 hour famine Sunday at church which meant that Doug and I team preached in "big" church.  We were both satisfied with the message that we challenged our church to be a part of the solution.  I don't know if everyone "heard" what we said, but hopefully a few did.  We called the church to a time of prayer at the end of the service in order to begin to dream about being a part of the solution and in both services the altars were full.

Also on Sunday Holly and I dedicated Karis.  That was the main reason that my family came into town, and it was good to have them there.  Doug dedicated her and prayed over her.  It was cool to have him do that since I had dedicated and prayed over both of his kids.  Man, I'm going to miss that guy when I move.

After lunch at a local Italian place we returned home to snap a few more pictures and then I took my family to the airport.  I returned home for about an hour to only go back to church for Solomon's Porch, where I spoke again.  In addition the kids had brought in a bunch of cupcakes to celebrate my birthday and one of our leaders painted a caricature of me that I'll take a picture of when I get it back.  She wants all of our students to sign it.

The week that is:

I am currently gearing up for Middle School retreat this weekend.  We are focusing on the Potter's house passage in Jeremiah.  I'm really excited about this weekend and the impact that it'll have on our students.  I just hope that they are open to hear what God has laid on Doug and my heart.

What I'm reading:

I'm finding it really hard to read right now.  I don't know why, but I keep looking at the same 3 books and not making any progress with them.  Because of that I'm putting off the Romans study until life gets a bit more steady.  I promise that I will pick it up!

What I'm listening to:

Right now, Hillsong United.  I like them, but can only handle em in doses.  This will be my dose for the week.  I really wish they would write more communal songs instead of everyone of them focusing on the individual.  I listened to a little bit of Crowder this morning as well.  I really like the Remedy album and the live one is great as well.

What I'm (Not) looking forward to:

Packing.  I don't like packing at all.  I need to start purging some clothes that I don't wear anymore and other junk that I've accumulated over the past few years.  I'm going to try my best to get that done here in the next 2 weeks.

Housing.  Do you know how hard it is to find a house when you are hundreds of miles away?  We are blessed with my sister being in the town that we are moving to and my in laws a couple of hours away and willing to go on road trips, but this is really stressing me out.  It seems like when we find something fairly good online, it's either in a bad area, not as good as the pics they posted, or too far away for Holly to commute.  We are going down there next week and hope to come back to PA knowing exactly where we will be moving.  Please pray that we can work out these details.

Update on Karis:

I can't believe how much she is changing.  She is really starting to interact with us well.  We have a few trigger words that always seem to bring a smile when she is in a good mood.  I love my little girl no matter how much she screams in the middle of the night.

the life of Jared

The week that was:

Highlighted by our 30 hour famine event Friday over Saturday.  It was amazing!  It's funny how we can put all of this time, effort and energy into putting something together and then God does something totally different.  Truthfully I was kind of bummed on Friday night as many of our kids came to check in and hadn't raised any money at all.  In fact, as a group we had about 20 more people than last year and raised only half of the money.  But over the course of the weekend many of our students became convicted of their lack of effort and have now decided to do anything they can think of raise money.  It's great to hear feedback from our students about how God has been wrestling with them over simple things as our lifestyle and the things we eat.  I'll try to put some of my many thoughts into a post sometime soon.

The week that is:

My parents, sister and brother in law are coming to town this weekend!  This is a big weekend as my 30th birthday is on Saturday, Karis is being dedicated on Sunday and I'm team preaching on Sunday with Doug in "big" church.  Needless to say my time is going to be pulled in many different directions.

What I'm reading:

Same few books.  Nothing new here.

What I'm listening to:

I'm on a serious DMB kick lately.  I've probably plowed through a few of his live albums both in my car and in the office.

What I'm looking forward to:

Well this past weekend I announced an upcoming move that Holly and I are making to our high school students and our youth leaders.  For the most part everyone was very supportive.  There were a few students who were totally caught off guard and are still processing through the news.  This coming weekend the announcement will be made to the whole church, so on top of preaching and Karis being dedicated it should be a roller coaster day.  All of that to say that we are now looking for housing in Chattanooga and it's turning out to be a difficult proposition.  Please pray that we can find a place that we are comfortable with and that will be good for Karis to grow up in for the next 3 years.  Also we are now starting to purge some of our junk and pack what we are going to take and I always hate this part of life.

Karis update:

She's over 8lbs now, which is awesome!  She's also had a few long nights lately which is making things difficult for mom and dad.  Hopefully this is just a phase and will pass soon, but we'll see.

the life of Jared

The week that was

Holy week was filled with both some good down time and also a few events.  This has been a challenging lenten season and I'll blog about it sometime this week.  The first part of the week was pretty uneventful with the latter part of the week being fairly busy.  I have switched my day off from Friday to Monday to accommodate Holly's schedule with her last rotation.  This has been a bit of an adjustment, but one I'm taking fairly well.  On Thursday we had an open communion time where Doug (my co-youth pastor) and I manned a station.  I love having the chance to connect with families in this way.  We were able to serve communion to and pray with many of the families that either work with us or that we directly serve.  On Friday our youth ministry held a tenebrae service at the same time one was going on in the main sanctuary.  It was a very good service as we reflected on the death of Christ.  The thing that I liked the most is that our students actually left the room in silence.  I don't know if that has ever happened before!  We had good services on Sunday as well.  It was weird to be in the back and not involved, but it is also a welcome change.

The week that is:

Our student ministry is participating in the 30 hour famine this weekend in conjunction with another church.  So this week is going to be spent mostly in preparations for that and Sunday.  Our past two famines have been a huge success and I'm praying for the same again.  I'm also in the process of securing housing for our family when Holly starts residency.  This process is starting to stress me out a bit so please keep this in your prayers if you remember.

What I'm reading:

Ok, so I have a bit of ADD when it comes to reading lately.  I'm still reading the book on the atonement, "Recovering the Scandal of the Cross".  I have also started two others though.  The first one is called "The Sacredness of Questioning Everything."  The second one is called "The Hole in our Gospel."  The last one is by the president of World Vision and he is writing about his own journey but also about how we in the western church aren't really living out the whole gospel.  I picked this book up through a program that Thomas Nelson offers to bloggers.  It's free, all I have to do is write a review on here and a place like Amazon.

What I'm listening to:

Nothing consistently.  I've been taking advantage of the genius feature on iTunes lately.  Man, I love that feature.

What I'm keeping an eye on:

I have a big and tough announcement to make this weekend.  It's one of those bittersweet things that pop up in life.  I just pray that God will be glorified in all that we say and do.

the life of Jared (4/6)

The week that was:

Dominated by a quick trip to Charlotte for one of my college friends wedding.  This trip/wedding was big for a couple of different reason.  First, it was the first time that I have been away from Karis overnight.  And it was two nights at that!  It was really hard to leave but my friend only gets married once.  Second, my friend who got married is the last of my close group of friends to do such.  So we are all married now and many of us have begun to have kids as well.  Third, I really love seeing all of my college friends and catching up with them.  I so miss the community that I had with those guys and even some of the ignorance that comes with youth.

The week that is:

Well it's Holy Week that that means I have something going on Thursday and Friday night.  Thursday we are having drop in communion at our church that the pastors are staffing and Friday we are doing a Tenebrae service with our youth.  I really enjoy having the freedom to put together and execute a Tenebrae service.  I only hope that the youth that do come will appreciate what we are remembering on that evening.

What I'm reading:

I'm all over the place with what I'm reading right now.  I started reading a book on the atonement called "Recovering the Scandal of the Cross" and I'm enjoying it.  I'm still kind of reading through "Crazy Love" but can only take the reformed theology in doses.  I have decided to do a pretty extensive study of the book of Romans after Easter which I'm looking forward to.  I'll try to blog on the things that I will learn.

What I'm listening to:

On my plane ride I listened to some DMB and John Mayer.  I like listening to live albums on trips as it helps the time to pass quicker.

What I'm looking forward to:

UNC is playing in the national championship tonight.  They completely destroyed MSU last time they played them, but I don't think this game will have the same outcome.  The only thing that kind of scares me is that this is basically a home game for MSU.  But I think our talent and execution will eventually give us the advantage.

On another note, I correctly picked 3 of the 4 final four teams which includes the match-up tonight.  Aren't I smart?

the life of Jared 3/23

The week that was:

Sleep, sleep and more sleep.  Holly's mom was here from Sunday thru Thursday so that meant that Holly and I got more sleep than usual.  Thanks Brenda!  It's funny what more sleep does to you after you've learned how to live without it.  I found that my body didn't fully catch up to "normal" until Wednesday, but then it was back to business as usual on Thursday.  Additionally we had our annual Volunteer Appreciation Banquet at church last Friday night.  Our theme was "The Greatest Church on Earth" and we ultimately put on a circus.  That's right, I said a circus.  I had a couple of parts to play in the whole shebang.  I was the "6 ft. man eating chicken" (the important part of my costume was a box of Chick-fil-a chicken strips) and I was also a construction clown.  We had a fun night entertaining our volunteers and showing them thanks for the many sacrifices that they make.

The week that is:

Nothing much going on here.  Holly's cousin is coming at the end of the week for a quick visit and we have a Middle School event on Friday night as well.

What I'm looking forward to:

Vaguely, the future.  As our families future is coming into more focus, Holly and I are looking forward to what the future holds.  It's amazing that Holly is about to graduate med school and that she will be starting residency this summer.  We are one step closer to functioning as a "normal" family that doesn't have to worry about schooling and not being settled.  That is unless I go back to school in the near future like I want to do.  But more on that in the future.

What I'm reading:

Since my class is finished I'm now free to read what I want.  I'm thinking about plowing through Missional Church.  Any other suggestions.

What I'm listening to:

I've been listening to some DMB lately as well as U2 and The Fray's new albums.

Angry Conversations with God

That's the name of a book that I've been recently reading.  It's by an author named Susan Isaac's and I recommend that you check out her story.  Here is a link to her blog as well.  I won't give away too much of her story but I will say that unfortunately too much of Susan's story is found in the world today.  We construct our concept of God based on our fathers and the people who are found in churches.  I was luckily blessed with a good father who never cheapened my concept of God, but I have come across too many people that have messed up views about who God is because their fathers were not very godly.  As Susan points out at one time, it wasn't her fault, and it's not; but it's the church's fault.  Now I don't want to trash the church too much here, but I think too many times we get in the rut of saying things that we have either heard or we just hope might be true in some sense.  All of this to say that I was caught up in Susan's story of taking God to marriage counseling and recounting her life and how God was working through these various experiences.  Thank you Susan for being transparent about your "marriage" with God, may others be encouraged by your journey.

The life of Jared (3/16)

The weeks that were:

Nothing much has happened lately.  My sister-in-law and brother-in-law came up for a quick Karis visit at the beginning of last week.  My last class session was on Saturday.  I'm kind of glad that it's over because I don't seem to have a ton of free time to put towards preparing for class, but I do enjoy teaching and the conversation that is sparked from what I prepare.  This last session was on eschatology which is always an interesting topic.

The week that is:

My mother-in-law is here this week helping out.  Karis has been really high maintenance lately with having her days and nights mixed up.  I know that all babies go through this phase, but it's killer when they are going through it.  Here's the funny thing though, Karis isn't consistent with her mix ups.  Some days everything is normal, and then the next two will be flip flopped.  Also this week is our annual volunteer appreciation banquet at the church.  This year we are doing something brand new in that the staff is putting on a circus to honor our volunteers.  It's gonna be pretty crazy and your truly is going to be a construction clown.  Hopefully it will go off well but most importantly that our volunteers will feel very appreciated.

What I'm reading:

"Angry Conversations with God"  I will be doing a post on Wednesday of this book which I recommend.  I might even do a giveaway if you're lucky.  I'm trying to finish Crazy Love since our students are having to read this for the summer mission trip.

What I'm listening to:

The new Fray album, the new U2 album and random DMB.

What I'm keeping an eye on:

Holly and I find out where she matched for a residency program on Thursday.  We are on pins and needles with anticipation about knowing where our next journey will be to.  Once we do find out, then we have to start our preparations to move out of our crappy apartment.  Now that I'm really looking forward to!

Karis update:

Other than the day/night mix up she's doing awesome.  She's growing like crazy and is now starting to interact a bit with you.  She won't focus too long on your face, but she will turn and look at you from time to time when you speak to her.  I love seeing her develop right in front of our eyes.  I know this is only the beginning of the many first that she will have.

The life of Jared (3/1)

The week that was:

Fairly uneventful.  Mostly my week looks like this.  I work up until 1 and then head home and Holly goes to her rotation site.  One of us is always at home right now with Karis.  It is amazing how fast time flies when I'm taking care of Karis.  Especially since she is spoiled and loves to be held.  It's almost impossible for me to get any reading done.

We did have some friends over on Saturday night.  That was a good release for Holly and I to have other adults to hang out with, plus they were loving on Karis the whole time.

The week that is:

Not much here again.  Karis has a Dr.'s appointment to get a shot.  Yuck.  I need to keep pace on preparing for my class.  Our last session is on the 14th.  I really need to get on my taxes.  I keep putting that off, but I know that's one of those things that will sneak up on you if you let it.

What I'm reading:

Two main things:  "Surprised by Hope" by NT Wright.  I am loving this book and the call that he is making to the church.  "Angry Conversations with God" by Susan Isaacs.  This is a book that I got a prerelease copy in order to write up a review when it is released.  I am having fun with this one and you should really pick up a copy when it comes out in a couple of weeks.  I'll do a formal write up then.

What I'm listening to:

Right now, the new U2 album that came out today.  First impression is that it's pretty good.  Kind of chill, but still solid.  I also thinking about picking up an album that Don Miller recommended from a group called The Alternate Routes.

What I'm keeping an eye on:

Carolina has two big games this week.  They can wrap up the ACC regular season title with a win on Wednesday of Va Tech.  Of course I'd also love for them to pound Duke.  I'm a little concerned about their defense when it comes tourney time, but hopefully things will click here in the last week.

We are also now in the Lenten season.  I will be doing a devotional blog on my church's website for our youth.  Feel free to check it out and leave some comments.

The Life of Jared (2/22)

The week that was:

Taught class on Saturday where we talked about worship and the sacraments.  We had a great discussion, especially about infant baptism.  It's so much fun to be an integral part in helping people formulate their theology and helping them to rethink past positions.  I also sold our living room set on Craigslist last week.  I put all four pieces for $50 because I wanted to make sure it was sold by Friday when we picked our new sofa.  Let's just say that I had a lot of interest since they were in such good shape.  I wound up selling the set to a family who had refinished their basement for their two girls who are 15 and 10.  The set sold for $100, because demand was driving the price up, and they pitched in another $20 when I helped them load it up.  They seemed to be a nice family and I hope the girls enjoy the furniture as much as Holly and I did.  Lastly, we picked up our new sofa and it is awesome!  I feel so grown up with a new baby and a new sofa.

The week that is:

Lent starts tomorrow so I've been preparing for our Ash Wednesday service and our first week's message on Sunday.  Hopefully things will settle down a bit, but with a newborn I don't think that's possible.

What I'm listening to:

Lots of different albums.  Passion: God of this City, Downhere: all 3 of them, Chris Tomlin: Hello Love, DMB: Live at the Mile High Music Festival, The Fray: The Fray.

What I'm looking forward to:

I'm really anticipating lent this year as I'm fasting from something totally different than I normally do.  I'll put up a separate post on it tomorrow, just know that it will stretch me quite a bit.  I have also put together a lenten devotional for our students that I'd love for you to use if you need something.  You can find it on our church website.  Once it's up tomorrow I'll post a link.  I will also be blogging through lent on the church website to try and generate some discussion there.

Karis update:

Here's a new category.  Karis is doing really well.  She's starting to learn to swat away things from her face that she doesn't like.  Namely the suction bulb thing that we use to get boogers out of her nose.  She's also starting to turn when you speak to her.  She has also outgrown a few of her preemie outfits!

The Life of Jared (2/16)

The week that was:

Not a whole lot happened.  My in laws came in for the weekend to see Karis and help out, which was appreciated.  Holly and I were able to go out by ourselves for the first time since Karis came home.  We went to a wedding of two of our youth workers, which was awesome.  Then we went to a place called the Dump and bought a sofa!  I led worship with Doug and spoke on Sunday night and enjoyed both very much.  I hadn't played the guitar in over a couple of months and really missed it.  I was also very please with my message on Sunday night in talking about God disciplining us.  I just hope and pray that our students heard it!

The week that is:

My mother in law is here until Thursday helping out with Karis, so therefore Holly and I are working later to try and get caught up with other things.  I am working to get our Lenten devotional together and starting to study for our lent series.  We are going to be following the lectionary for the rest of the year, which I think will be fun.  I also have class on Saturday so I've gotta get that all together as well.  Our new couch will be here on Friday and I'm trying to sell our older pieces on Craigslist right now.  So far I've had 3 bites!

What I'm reading:

Same old things for class and a secondary source called Ancient-Future Worship.  I really like that book a lot!  I'm also enjoying my new Wesley Study Bible.

What I'm listening to:

Today I was listening to a band that a friend of mine used to be in called Kurios.  I was walking down memory lane.

What I'm looking forward to/keeping an eye on:

Sitting on my new couch.  Teaching on Saturday.  Lent beginning.  Carolina creeping up to #1.  Phillies starting Spring Training.  Holly going through the residency match.

Good quote

I'll try to post my weekly update soon, but I came across this quote as I prepared for our Ash Wednesday service and thought you might like it.

By virtue of who we are, we will sow in tears; by virtue of who God is, we may reap in joy.

Words to build a life on

So I've been listening to the Mike Crawford and His Secret Siblings album in my car again.  I've really been captured by the last song called "Words to Build a Life On."  Here is the a link to their myspace page where you can give it a listen to and below are the lyrics, what do you think?

These are words to build a life on
These are Your words how can they be mine
These are words to build a life on
These are Your words I want them to be mine

Blessed are the poor
Blessed are the weak
Blessed are the ones
Who can barely speak

Blessed in your hurt
Blessed in your pain
Blessed when your teardrops
Are falling down like rain

Blessed when you’re broken
Blessed when you’re blind
Blessed when you’re fragile
When you have lost your mind

Blessed when you’re desperate
Blessed when you’re scared
Blessed when you’re lonely
Blessed when you’ve failed

Blessed when you’re beat up
Blessed when you’re bruised
Blessed when you’re tore down
Blessed when you’re used

These are words to build a life on
These are Your words how can they be mine
These are words to build a life on
These are Your words I want them to be mine

Blessed when you’re heartbroke
Blessed when you’re fired
Blessed when you’re choked up
Blessed when you’re tired

Blessed when the plans
That you so carefully laid
End up in the junkyard
With all the trash you made

Blessed when you feel like
Giving up the ghost
Blessed when your loved ones
Are the ones who hurt you most

Blessed when you lose your
Own identity
Then blessed when you find it
And it has been redeemed

Blessed when you see what
Your friends can never be
Blessed with your eyes closed
Then blessed you see Me

These are words to build a life on
These are Your words how can they be mine
These are words to build a life on
These are Your words I want them to be mine

Blessed when you’re hungry
Blessed when you thirst
Cause that’s when you will eat of
The bread that matters most

Blessed when you’re put down
Because of me you’re dissed
Because of me you’re kicked out
They take you off their list

You know you’re on the mark
You know you’ve got it right
You are to be my salt
You are to be my light

So bring out all the flavor
In the feast of this My world
And light up all the colors
Let the banner be unfurled

Shout it from the rooftops
Let the trumpets ring
Sing your freaking lungs out
Jesus Christ is King!

Jesus is my Savior
Jesus is divine
Jesus is my answer
Jesus is my life

These are words to build a life on
These are Your words how can they be mine
These are words to build a life on
These are Your words I want them to be mine

Give us ears that we may hear them
voice that we may sing them
life that we may live them
hope that we may give them
hearts that we can feel them
eyes that we can see them
thoughts that we may think them
tongues that we may speak Your words

How would your church handle the line, "sing your freakin' lung out that Jesus Christ is King!"

The life of Jared (2/9)

The week that was:

Not much went on last week.  I'm still getting adjusted to life with a baby at home.  I'm the one who gets up in the middle of the night and changes/feeds her since Holly is pumping.  The problem is that we aren't on the same schedule so we wind up waking the other up at various points in the night, especially if Karis happens to be fussy.  I also taught on Saturday and had a great discussion over the philosophy of the church.  It's amazing for me to think about how far we have gotten away from the vision that is found in the early church.  I'll try to post a little more on that later.

The week that is:

Same old, same old here.  Juggling job, baby, wife, class, etc all at once.  It's fun and tiring.  Karis has her next Dr's appointment on Thursday, hopefully she's still gaining a good amount of weight.  Speaking of Karis, she's on my chest sleeping right now as I type.  Pretty cool, pretty cool.

What I'm listening to:

I just picked up the new album from The Fray and it's pretty good.  I usually have to listen to an album a few times to make a good informed judgement about it.  But so far, I like this one.

What I'm reading:

Same old stuff for class but also at least one new book, Ancient-Future Worship by Robbert Webber.  If he's able to deliver on this book what he claims in the opening introduction, I'm going to really like this book.  Here's the cover and a link to amazon. 

What I'm keeping an eye on:

North Carolina and Duke play on Wednesday, that's always a huge game.  Go Heels!  Other than that I'm out of touch with the happens of the world.

Totally Dependent

So Karis has been home for two nights and I'm so fascinated by her.  What I'm the most fascinated about is the fact that she is totally dependent upon Holly and I.  Her very well being and survival is contingent upon us feeding her, keeping her warm and discerning certain warning signs that might indicate that something is wrong.  Lucky for Karis, Holly and I have so much love for her that we will probably overprotect her until we are confident that she is fully healthy.

You can probably see where I'm going with this, but I'll say it anyways.  I'm appreciating my own dependency upon God a bit more lately.  I can totally see how I mirror Karis in my relationship with God.  How God is always watching over me and trying to lead me in my journey.  I am so helpless on this journey with finding the right path, knowing which way to go, even having provision to make it to completion.  It kind of makes the portion of the sermon on the mount which says not to worry about what you will eat, wear, where you will sleep, for the future, etc. stand out in a new way.  We cannot fully live into this until we are OK with being totally dependent on God.  Able to soak up the love, grace and provision that comes our way from a God who cares more about us that the lilies of the field and the birds of the air.

God grant me the grace to accept my total dependence upon you and the strength and knowlege to take care of this precious baby that you have blessed us with.

The life of Jared (2/2)

I guess I should date these things for the few of you who care.

The week that was:

Not much happened last week.  Time in the office, at the NICU, etc.  We did have a snow day which was pretty cool, but Karis wasn't with us so that sucked a bit.  I had a Middle School event on Friday night that went really well.  Doug is battling a persistent form of strep so I told him to stay away.  Besides he's covered for me a lot lately.

The week that is:

The doctors keep talking like Karis will come home sometime this week.  Holly and I trying not to get our hopes up too much because they've talked like this before and then have said, "We want to keep our eye on her for a few more days."  As I said in an earlier post, I want her to come home now, but also when she is ready.  That's more important.  I think I'm speaking for our high school kids this week on the topic of 1st temple Judaism, which I'm calling the Ultimate Home Court Advantage.  Should be fun!

What I'm listening to:

Right now, Starfield.  I've also listened to Los Lonely Boys alot last week.  I love those guys.  Wouldn't you like to create a whole new genre of music?  There's is called Texican rock.

What I'm reading:

Still stuff for class, but one book in particular is called "Missional Church."  It's awesome, pick it up and plow through it.  I've also updated my book page on this blog.  Pretty soon I'll get around to talking about each book, if you care.

What I'm keeping an eye on:

Other than Karis coming home, not much else.  Things are on cruise control in the youth ministry until March so I'm going to take advantage of that.  I'm teaching again on Saturday which will be fun, assuming that I can get fully prepared.

A little dose of patience

I truly think that patience is a four letter word to most Christians.  Think about it, how many sermons do you hear on the subject of patience?  Sure the pastor may talk about and use the concept of patience to support a point, but patience is usually never the focal point of a sermon.  Truth is, patience is hard on us humans.  We are inundated with so many commercials that brain wash us into thinking that having patience is the old way of doing things.  We were originally sold on the idea that credit cards were the answer to the problem, or taking out a 2nd and/or 3rd mortgage on the house, but in the end that has gotten most of us nowhere.  In fact, most of us are worse off than when we started.

I speak of all this because Holly and I are enduring a little dose of patience with our daughter Karis.  She is so close to coming home from the NICU, but it seems that every time we get a little excited about what could happen in the next couple of days, those hopes get deflated by one thing or another.  The latest round was centered around the feeding tube.  One of the prerequisites for her coming home is doing 100% of her feeds by bottle or nipple.  For a couple of days we would feed her a little bit by bottle until she fell asleep and then they would put the rest down her feeding tube.  So on Wednesday, Karis' 3 week birthday, Karis pulled out her feeding tube and the nurse said she wouldn't put a new one in unless she proved that she needed one.  The good news is that she showed she didn't need it, but tonight while Holly and I were visiting she had a little relapse.  Now my definition of relapse is that she spit up a portion of her feed.  It wasn't enough to get up in arms over, but enough to become frustrated.  Our hope is that when she starts to do something that she will continue on in this upward trajectory toward "normalcy", whatever that is.  The truth is Karis is a preemie and all of our best intentions, and plans for her to progress need to happen in the right time.  We don't need to bring Karis home and then have to take her back to the hospital a few days or weeks later.

So we need to exercise a little patience.  We have to trust that Karis is in God's hands and that she will progress in the right time and while we are so ready for her to come home, she needs to come home when she is ready.  So please pray for us and our little dose of patience.  I will leave you with Paul's description of the fruit of the Spirit, what we are to model as we become more and more like Christ.

"But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.  Against such things there is no law."  Galatians 5:22-23

The life of Jared

Trying another name for this update thingy.

The week that was:

Not much went on last week.  My time in the office was spent on preparing to speak to our youth after a few weeks absence and preparing for class on Saturday.  I thought class went really well.  Our topic was on Salvation/Sanctification and I think I helped to clear up a few misunderstandings/bad definitions that had been thrown around to my students.  Every time I read John Wesley I am more and more disappointed at how we have twisted his thoughts and intentions.  But I guess we do the same to the Bible, so why should Wesley be any different.

My in-laws flew in for the weekend too.  We had a great time with them, even though it was short.  They got in around 11PM on Friday and after we picked them up at the airport we took them to the hospital to see Karis.  I taught on Saturday so Holly took them on Saturday to the hospital and then we went again after class was over.  They went again on Sunday morning as I had to come to church so that I can still collect a paycheck.  They flew out Sunday afternoon and then Holly and I spent the evening just hanging out.  I love having downtime with Holly.  She usually falls asleep and I watch TV or read, but I love just being close to her.

The week that is:

Pretty much nothing new this week either, except that Karis may come home later in the week.  If she continues to take all of her feeds by bottle and shows that she doesn't need the feeding tube anymore, then they will consider sending her home with us.  Holly and I will be happy when that whole ordeal is over.  We both hate leaving her at the hospital, especially if she's awake.  But we understand that she is getting the best care there right now.

We have a middle school event on Friday night that I will attend unless Karis comes home and there's a little thing called the Super Bowl on Sunday.  I would love to watch that with Karis in my arms.

What I'm reading:

I have started reading "Missional Church" by Darrell Guder and others, for my class.  I'm only part of the way through the 1st chapter and can already tell that I'm going to like this book.  I'll post some thoughts as I work my way through it.

What I'm listening to:

Right now I'm listening to Shane and Shane, all of the albums that I have.  I don't know why, I'm just in that kind of mood.  Those guys are really talented and I especially love worshipping with them in person.  They led one of the sessions at YS this year that was amazing.

What I'm keeping an eye on:

Other than Karis, there's not much on my radar.  Can you tell that I want her home?

Sanctification

So I'm teaching a class on Saturday where we are covering the way of salvation and sanctification.  The latter idea is a big distinctive of the tribe that I belong to, but as I'm doing research on what John Wesley taught and believed I'm finding that we are way off.  In fact, the way that most people are starting to think of sanctification is more in tune with Wesley than the way that I remember it being taught to me.

The argument conversation basically boils down to process.  Wesley argued that we are cleansed from sin and then begin a process whereby our love is perfected into the love of God, or we are made into the imago Dei.  In the early 1800's a woman by the name of Phoebe Palmer started convincing people that they could have the whole kit and caboodle at one time.  No need to wait, just come to the altar, pray through, believe, and bam your sanctified.  The latter began to emerge as the standard view of the process of sanctification and I believe led many to a state of spiritual apathy.  You see, Wesley was very intentional about teaching that we were not through after the moment of sanctification.  We were still to grow in grace and in learning how to love God and neighbor perfectly.

I am perceiving that the Wesleyan view is once again taking hold in light of the many shift in thinking thanks to postmodernity.  Now if only we would stop preaching felt needs, self help sermons, etc and get back to a strong conviction of our tribe.

Church as the New Humanity

I've been thinking over Rob Bell and Don Golden's new book lately as I listened to it as I drove down to TN before Christmas.  The name of the book is "Jesus Wants to Save Christians."  Like most of Rob's teaching, it stretched and challenged me a lot.  I'm going to quote a little bit from the last chapter to hopefully spark some discussion among us.  But before I begin, I totally recommend this book.

A church is where peace has been made.  Because in the Eucharist, in Jesus' body and blood, everything has been reconciled to God.  Paul calls this the "new humanity."  The Eucharist is about the new humanity.  People who previously had nothing in common discover that the only thing they now have in common is the one things that matters.  People who had previously found themselves on opposite sides of a wall find out that the wall has been distroyed.  People who had fought over an endless array of issues realize that peace has been made and there is nothing left to fight about.

In the new humanity, you hear perspectives you wouldn't normally hear, you walk in someone else's shoes, you find out that the judgments you had previously made about that group of people or that kind of men or that kind of women or all of those kids simply don't hold up because now you're getting to know one of "those" and it's changing everything.  You learn that your labels for different people groups are insufficient, because people are far more complex and unpredictable and intelligent and creative.

You used to have a rigid stance on a particular issue, but now you've heard the other side and it's impossible anymore to categorize them all as stupid and uninformed and heartless, because you realize that they have thought about their position and they have weighed the consequences and they have good points that you must consider.

In the new humanity our world gets bigger, our perspective goes from black and white to color, our sensitivities are heightened, we're rescued from sameness and uniformity, because the wall has come down and peace has been made.  A church is the new humanity on display.  She's in graduate school, and he's in his nineties; and one couple has a million dollars, and another doesn't have enough money for dinner; and he arrived in this country three years ago with a small suitcase, and they've never been out of the country; and they have a son fighting in the war, and they're going to a war protest later today; and he's got serious doubts about what he was taught growing up, and she's just decided that God might even exist.

All of these people-who are divided, who never sit down and listen to each other- in the new humanity, in the church, they meet, they engage, they interact, they begin to feel what the other feels, and the dividing wall of hostility crumbles.  In the new humanity, them becomes us, they becomes we, and those become ours.

Sounds a lot like being generous doesn't it?  Is it possible for our protestant churches in this day and time to look like this?  Especially established churches?  I'll post a few more quotes from this chapter in the next few days.

A peek into my world

Still not sold on the name of these posts.  I will gladly take any suggestions.

The week that was:

I went back to work last week which was somewhat of a bummer.  Doug was out sick the first couple of days so other than braggin on my baby I didn't have too many people of too many subjects to talk about.  Holly's mom left on Tuesday to go back to TN and will return when Karis comes home.  Holly went to the hospital twice each day and I went mostly once since I had to be in the office.  We are still trying to adjust our schedules to Holly pumping which I think will help us once Karis does come home.  I just think that we will be more responsive to a baby crying as opposed to an alarm clock going off.

Holly had a baby shower on Saturday with some people from the church and we got a lot of great outfits to Karis and other odds and ends and also the jogging stroller that we registered for.  That is huge.  Thanks ladies.  While Holly was at the shower I took a good friend of mine, Petey as I call him behind his back and with Wendy and sometimes Doug, down to the NICU to see Karis.  Petey and I used to have offices next to each other and developed a great relationship through deep discussions and working through sermons together.  I really miss our rich conversations over theology and what is going on in the church, especially since he brought a conservative reformed background to the conversation.  Anyways, we had a great time catching up on life and the craziness of his families life in response to him being let go from our staff.  We also got to see Karis at one of her most alert times which was fun.  Hang in the Petey, God is not through with you yet my friend.

The week that is:

Not much going on except for class on Saturday.  I'm really behind on my reading and preparing for class so I've got to get busy.  This session we are talking about salvation and sanctification so it should be very interesting.  Other than that my days are going to be at the office and a part of the evening will be in the NICU.  Man, I can't wait for Karis to come home!

What I'm listening to:

I listened to a great sermon by Rob Bell today.  He is working through a series on Philippians and he did a sermon as Paul speaking to his congregation.  It was really great.  It was the sermon from Sept 7th if you are interested.  Other than that I'm using the genius feature on iTunes which means that random things are popping up.

What I'm reading:

Stuff for class.  Nothing special right now.  I will be doing a review of a book that will be released in March sometime in Feb.  Should be interesting.

What I'm keeping an eye on:

Tomorrow is the presidential inauguration, no matter what your beliefs are on politics you should be interested in this historic occasion.  Today is MLK, Jr. day.  I know that I wasn't alive during his time, but what an impact he made on the social landscape of our nation.  Hopefully we can continue his work to racial equality.

Karis' world:

Karis is over 4lbs now!  She is steadily gaining weight.  Hopefully they will begin to work on her suck and swallow reflexes this week.  As soon as she can master those things she will be home with mommy and daddy.  Let me leave you with a picture of her.  She melts my heart.

A Peek into my world

Be careful peeking into my world, this has been a crazy week.

The week that was:

I became a father on Wednesday!!!!  Does anything else top that?  It was a crazy ride that brought Karis Olivia into the world which you can read some of my ramblings about that situation on this blog.  Karis is doing well but in the NICU at Bryn Mawr instead of being home with Holly and I.  Holly came home from the hospital on Sunday and now we are heading down to the NICU a couple of times a day to see our baby.

The week that is:

I came back to work on Monday, which I wasn't too happy about.  I think I'm going to like being a stay at home dad when that happens.  Holly has been going down to the hospital around 11AM to be there for that feeding.  Then she and I plan to go for either the 5PM or 8PM feeding.  They do this thing called cluster care where every three hours they change her, take her temp and feed her.  We get to be hands on during that process as they want to make sure we know what we are doing when she finally gets to come home with us.  Another cool thing is that we get to do what's called kangaroo care.  It's where we hold Karis skin to skin for about an hour.  It helps her to adjust to life outside of the isolette and also helps with bonding between baby and parents.  Holly and I have been alternating doing this and it's great!

What I'm listening to:

With the craziness of last week I didn't listen to much.  I did listen to a little Dave Matthews when I would go back to the apartment.  For some reason their music calms me.

What I'm reading:

Stuff for class mainly.  I'm also working through Wesley's "A Plain Account of Christianity" for class.  Our next session is about salvation/sanctification.  Should be fun!

What I'm keeping an eye on:

My baby of course!  Plus football season is reaching it's peak towards the Super Bowl.  There's this team up here that has exceeded most people's expectations.  I don't know if that's a good thing or not.  Most people were crying for some sort of change all through the season, but I doubt that one will come now.  Also Carolina has lost their first two ACC games.  I don't know what's going on there but they better turn it around.

What's new in the world of Karis:

This is a new category that I will be adding.  Well she was born so that's new.  She's doing well and it was great to see them take off the CPAP machine so we could see her full face.  The nurse last night said that she'll probably progress alot in the next few weeks as her IV is taken out and she moves to a regular crib and then the slow process of growing and learning how to eat and breathe at the same time become the focus.

Truly amazing

So today I went to visit Karis in the NICU at the hospital.  She was in the hard plastic, incubator thing but I found myself just staring at her.  A nurse and a doctor came over to talk to me about her situation and to say that she was doing great.  They use big words, abbreviations and what seems to be a bunch of random letters when trying to explain her situation.  Anyways, as I was talking to the nurse I said that I couldn't wait to hold her, especially because I thought it would be around a week or so before we could do that.  The nurse then informed me that if I came back at 1:45 they would get her out for us to hold.  So Holly, my mother in law Brenda, and myself went to the NICU today and held Karis for about 30-40 min.  Holly went first and I will never forget the way that she teared up.  I can't imagine all that went through her head at that moment.  I know what went through mine but I wasn't carrying Karis around and having to deal with the complications that we experienced for the past couple of days.  About 5 min before we had to leave Holly let me hold Karis and I finally really started to feel like a real dad.  I held my baby today.  I held my baby today!  I HELD MY BABY TODAY!!!!!

In case you can't tell I'm pretty excited about that.

Life's unexpected surprises

So I had hoped to have a great number of posts done on a few of my favorite things and random things that I thought about on my 13 hr trek down to TN for Christmas alone.  I'll still get around to them, but I have to reflect a bit on the craziness of the past few days.  For those of you that don't know, or haven't seen my facebook status update on the right column, my daughter was born today at 10:01 AM 8 weeks premature.  Before I tell you how great she is doing and how adorable she is, let me tell you a bit about our journey to this place.

Holly woke up with kidney pains at midnight on Saturday.  These have been fairly normal throughout her pregnancy as she has to use the bathroom quite a bit with a living thing growing inside of her.  Around 2 AM I finally snapped out of my sleeping funk and we called Holly's OB who suggested that we come to the hospital.  So we loaded up the car and drove to the hospital while Holly's pain grew more intense.  We got here and they took us to a labor and delivery room where they hooked up a fetal heart rate monitor to Holly to keep an eye on the baby and figure out what was causing the kidney pain.  During the course of the next few hours while Holly was being questioned about health history, drugs she was taking, history of the pregnancy, etc, one of the nurses noticed that the baby's heart decelerated for a few minutes.  So we waited and a couple of hours later, it happened again.  Then again a couple of hours later.  Each time when it happened the nurses came in and Holly had to roll around on the bed in order to get the baby to move so they could find the heartbeat.  The first really bad episode happened while I was on my way back from running to the apartment to pack an overnight bag.

So Sunday was spent trying to figure out what the heck was going on and trying not to freak out with the fact that our baby's heartrate was slowing down for no apparent reason.  I'm glossing over quite a bit of details for the sake of my wife, but this was a pretty stressful day.  (If only we knew.)  Holly's mom flew up on Sunday evening to be with us and help out with trying to keep us both sane and also in case anything happened.  I was very thankful for her presence as it gave me the opportunity to not be on the edge all of the time.  From my memory, Sunday night was filled with more decells and the rolling over and such at ungodly hours of the night.  The worst part about Sunday night was the possibility that in the midst of one of these decells that they might have to do an emergency c-section to get the baby.  Luckily, our baby came out every one looking great according to the monitor and so the docs weren't too on edge about it.

Sometime early Monday all of this craziness stopped and Holly started dealing with contractions.  We had a consult with the perinatologist (high risk pregnancy) and neonatologist (premature babies doc) which didn't really help matter too much.  The perinatologist wasn't too concerned about it because the baby tested great on every ultrasound and the heartrate monitor, except for the decells.  The neonatologist came in to just describe what would happen if the baby was delivered in the next few days.  Through another ultrasound, they figured out that's Holly's kidney pain was because of a spasm that forced urine from the bladder back into the kidney.  They gave her some medicine that helped that out and we had a great afternoon.  In fact we went 14 hours without a decell and thought that we might actually get to go home and forget this whole ordeal.

Needless to say that didn't happen.  About 5 that night the baby started to decell and did so about every 3 hours through the morning. We did another consult with the perinatologist, on Tues morning, who discovered that baby had the chord wrapped around her neck.  Which is not uncommon because 1 of every 3 babies born have that occur.  The difference is that certain movement that our baby made caused the chord to compress and thus slow down her heart.  Luckily for us our baby is a fighter and she always responded beautifully from each of these episodes but after Tuesday, which we will call the night from hell, we were all spent emotionally, physically, you name it.  (I think I also forgot to mention that Holly's dad flew up on Monday evening as well.)  Tuesday night consisted of a decell at about every 2-3 hours.  Some of them were very long and at least once we thought that they were going to take Holly back to get the baby.

So on to this morning.  We were visited again by the perinatologist who was not acting too serious about the situation until he discovered that the baby had decelled 14 times in a 24 hour period.  After a consult with him and one of the OB/GYN's from our practice we decided to schedule a c-section to get the baby out.  She appeared strong and healthy and no one wanted to chance another day with that many decells.  So in a matter of 45 min I found myself in an OR holding my wife's hand while our baby was born via c-section at roughly 32 weeks!

I will never ever forget our baby's first cry.  It was such a huge relief because she sounded normal and gave a really strong cry.  Holly and I both started to cry ourselves as the whole experience had finally come to this incredible moment that we will forever share as husband and wife.  We had created a living human being!  Amazing is the only word that comes to my mind.

Now on to the truly amazing things.  Our baby was born 8 weeks premature.  One of the last things to develop in a baby is the lungs and so it's usually pretty touch a go with a newborn at the stage in development.  Luckily, Holly was given 2 steroids shots to help with that development and I'm glad that was able to take hold.  Our baby weighed 3 lbs 14 oz which is fairly big for that stage in development, or so I'm told.  She measured 17 1/4".  She is breathing with very little assistance and for the most part on her own.  Every test that they have done on her shows that she is actually a little ahead of her development.  I've seen her twice but not been able to hold her as of yet.  She will be in the NICU for about 3-4 weeks depending on how she continues to develop.  Hopefully three weeks though.

We have named her Karis Olivia.  Karis is the greek for grace, although it's spelled with a ch, we liked the K better.  Olivia just seemed to flow with it.  I can't believe that I could love something more than I do that little one.  We had a lot of scares the past few days, but now we are on a journey of excitement and more of the unexpected.  I believe that Karis is going to be alot like her mom.  She's moving just as much now as she was inside the womb.  She's fiesty and ultimately I think that is what brought her through this whole ordeal.  Well that and the faithfulness of our awesome God.

Thanks to all of you who have prayed for us in past 3 days or so.  The community of God's people are an amazing bunch.  All of the encouraging texts and those that went out of their way to pick up my in laws (Doug and Pegge, Darren and Ashleigh), do our laundry (Doug and Mear) and those that lifted us up in prayer.  Sorry to those that I wasn't able to contact in the madness, I hope that you'll understand.  I have so much more to say, but I think I'll stop here.

God is good.

All the time.

All the time.

God is good.

Thank you God for your grace and the gift of this precious little one in our life.

What the church should be about

Read this story by Rick Reilly who now writes for ESPN the magazine.  If only the church did stuff like this.

Personal listening device

Has anyone else seen the commercial for the personal listening device that allows you to spy on your neighbors? They market the device to help you hear the TV when you get old so as to not disturb your spouse or those that you live with. You can also hear wild game coming up on you when you are hunting. You can use it in church to amplify what the preacher is saying. But the most disturbing thing is that they show a lady wearing one listening in to her neighbors or someone in a public place hearing others talk about them.
Here are a few questions:

Is it really that important to hear what others are potentially saying about you?

What if you hear a piece of juicy gossip while wearing said device, how would you use that?

Or if someone said something about you, would you confront them on it or just hold a grudge against them?

In case you are interested it comes either as a device that is a little bit smaller than a credit card or as an earpiece that looks much like a bluetooth earpiece.  That way you can fake people out while you are spying on them.

Favorite things

So I'm not Oprah and I can't give all of my readers each one of the things that I may list, but hopefully I can turn to you something that you may have never heard or confirm that you are cool because you like the same things too. So here is the beginning of an ever expanding list of petty possessions that I want to talk about.

Dave Matthews Band: I spent part of my trip down to Nashville listening to a new DMB album that I picked up. Here are a few reasons why I love DMB. They became popular in large part due to their live shows and they do not shy away from releasing live albums. Most bands are hesitant to do a live album because it's not as polished as a studio album. I have also found that some people do not prefer live albums for various reasons. I on the other love live albums because on a live album you can really tell if a band has musical talent or not. If it needs to be said, DMB has talent. I also like DMB because they are not afraid to expand and tinker with their songs from concert to concert. I could have 6 different recordings of a particular song and each one could vary depending on the solo or whatever else they want to add to it.

a peek into my world

So I've decided to rename the weekly update.  I didn't like the title and I'm not completely sold on this one.  Maybe my 4 readers, which could be an overstatement, can come up with something better.

The week that was:

Just what I needed.  Slow.  Relaxed.  Nothing too big on the plate.  The biggest thing that happened is that I drove to TN on Sunday after our middle school program.  I left at 10AM (EST) and arrived at 10PM (CST).  13 hours baby!  But I can't tell you how awesome it was to sleep next to my wife for the first time in a couple of weeks.

The week that is:

Not much going on down here in TN.  I have some reading to do for class, some hanging out with family, Christmas, seeing old friends, etc.

What I'm listening to:

Wow, a 13 hr car ride gives you a ton of time to listen to things.  The main things that I listened to were a new Dave Matthews Band CD, some praise and worship song that were generated by the genius feature on my iPod and the audio-book of "Jesus Wants to Save Christians."  I'll post more about the book later this week.

What I'm reading:

Same old, same old.  Stuff for class and I picked up the book "Crazy Love" by Francis Chan.  I'm thinking this may be our required read for the mission trip this summer.

What I'm keeping my eye on:

The weather appears to be fluctuating quite a bit this week so that should be interesting.  The Titans secured the #1 seed in the playoffs.  The Tar Heels are looking really good this year in basketball.

Also, Holly, her mom, dad, sister and I saw our baby via ultrasound today.  I just wanted to watch her move around and yawn and blink her eyes.  I'm pretty sure that I will spend a lot of time just watching her when she finally arrives.

Lastly, I have quite a few random posts to put up this week thanks to the 13 hr car ride and much time to think.  So stay tuned in!

Darfur video

Watch this video. It was made by one of the students in our youth group. Great job Joel!

Use the center lane people!

Ok, so I'm in the mood to rant a bit.  I am from the south and we have some different habits when to comes to things like driving.  I have noticed that people up here north of the Mason Dixon line do not utilize the turning lane the same way that people do in the south.  I was taught that when turning left out of say a gas station, that if the traffic that is going the same way you are turning doesn't look like it will open up to you in the next few seconds; then it is appropriate to pull into the center lane and either wait or use it to speed up to the flow of traffic so that you can then merge into said flow.  But in the 3 1/2 years that I've lived in PA I have had many encounters where people in the same situation just pull out and cut you off.  It happened to me twice today on my way home!

I remember after I had been here a few weeks, my colleague Doug and I went to this great place called Wawa and I drove.  As we were leaving this same situation came up and I instinctively took the middle lane.  I wish that I had a video camera on in the car because Doug was fairly scared at the move we were making.  My memory is failing me a bit but I think the exchange went something like this.

Doug: "What are you doing?!?!"

Me: "I'm taking the center lane."

Doug: "Why"

Me: "It's what we're taught to do so that way we don't have to dart in traffic and use our car as a weapon."

Doug: "We never learned that one."

Me: "Well maybe you should."

Luckily I don't think Doug has held this encounter against me.  But I still don't understand the thinking behind not putting this move in your driving repitore.

Job I would not want.

NBA coach. It seems that most NBA coaches don't last too long. I wonder who usually has a longer tenure, NBA coach or associate pastor?

Weekly update for 12/15

The week that was:

In a word, crazy.  I learned a musical that I sang in on Friday night and Sunday morning for our church.  I was asked to sing in the Praise Team and do a couple of solos.  It went really well, but I started to lose my voice as the week progressed and I now think that I am about a day from being fully sick.  On top of that our students put on a coffeehouse to raise awareness and money for the situation in Darfur.  Our youth band played two sets that were awesome and one of our students, Joel, made this incredible video that I'll try to post on here.  There was also an art auction of pieces and crafts made by some of our students.  All total they raised $1055!  I'm so proud of them as Doug and I had nothing to do with the event other than to secure the coffee and run sound and lights.  In addition I also preached for 2nd service yesterday.  It went really well and I've heard some great feedback on how people were challenged.  I rewrote things from what I posted online so you'll have to find the podcast if you want the final version.

The week that is:

In a word...chill.  I do not have alot going on at the church so I'm going to focus on the class that I'm teaching in Jan.  I've fallen behind in some of the reading and research that I want to do for the class.  I'm also preparing to go back to TN on Sunday and be down there until Jan 1.  I cannot tell you how much I want to see my wife.  I hate being this alone.  I do not know how people that travel can stand it.  I'd have to find a new job.  But the main goal this week is to rest and relax compared to the past couple of weeks.

What I'm listening to:

There's a band that I found through the Emergent Village podcast called "The Cobalt Season."  They've got a great chill sound and I'm digging them right now.  I've also been listening to Starfield's lastest album, "I Will Go."  There are a couple of songs on there that I want to use with our youth group.

What I'm reading:

Still books for class.  They are systematic works as well as a few books on the Holy Spirit since that is our first subject in class.  I'm also wanting to start Francis Chan's book, Crazy Love.  I've heard some good things about that one.

What I'm keeping an eye on:

Did you see the guy who threw 2 shoes at President Bush?  That was pretty hilarious.  Bush had two great ducks because the first one would have clocked him in the face had he not moved.  I also keeping an eye on the weather as I leave out on Sunday.  I hope that the road stay clear from here to TN.  The last thing that I want is to be delayed by bad weather.  There is also a conversation around the word missional going on in the blogosphere that I've flagged to read now that I have a little bit of free time.

NAE should be ashamed

I don't know if you've been following the incident that has led to Richard Cizik's resignation from the NAE, but I think it's a great example of ungenerousity. Read this interview from the NAE president in Christianity Today. When will evangelicals learn?

I heard Cizik speak at a conference last summer and enjoyed his look at the history of evangelicalism.  It was an interesting place for him to be because I would venture to say that most of the people in the room considered themselves post-evangelical in the spirit of postmodernity.  But nevertheless, Cizik's call was for the church to remember its missional, evangelical roots that were focused on leading people to Jesus, not on condemning the world because they are the world.  (That last line is a shout out from Hauerwas which if I remember correctly sums up what Cizik was saying.) 

I have one quick question.  Is it a good thing for the church to try to live out the great commission in so many different ways?  (I can clarify that question in the comments if you need me to.)

Sermon help

Below is my sermon for Sunday.  Read it over if you get a chance and give me some feedback.  I will warn you that I haven't proofed it yet so there could be some major mistakes or words left out.  I tend to do that when I type.  Thanks for your help.

A Savior has come....now what?  We are formed into people of the Kingdom of God.

Exodus 16
Isaiah 9:2-7
Matt 5:2-16, 43-48; 6:19-34

Previously we have been answering the question, “a Savior has come, now what?”  Last week Pastor Dave and Pastor Doug answered that the Savior challenges the status quo.  This week I want us to take this idea a step further and look at how the Savior begins in us a process that forms us as people of an alternative kingdom that stands in contrast to the kingdom of the world.  But before we begin to talk about how we are formed, I want to talk about the kingdom of the world.  This is a rather popular catch phrase that we use in Christianity, especially around the Christmas season if you’re listening to Handle’s Messiah.  Deep down as Christmas rolls around each year, we know that we are supposed to be celebrating something unique that has happened at a point in human history.  But how often do we forget this unique event and get sucked into celebrating a totally different holiday?  How often does our citizenship in the Kingdom of God get traded in for a citizenship of the kingdom of the world?

Today I want to talk through 3 periods in history and what the kingdom of the world looked and acted like and how the alternative Kingdom of God speaks to something radically different.  First let us talk about the central story that is found in the Hebrew scriptures, the exodus.  The world in which the exodus story unfolds is wrapped around the narrative of power and domination.  The Israelites find themselves in slavery because the Pharaoh of the day thinks that they might be a threat to his rule and reign as Pharaoh.  So instead of trying to build a bridge of friendship to this foreign people group, the Pharaoh enslaves and oppresses them.  They are forced to build bricks without straw and to labor for the glory of Egypt.  There is even a law passed that all of their male babies are to be put to death upon birth.  It is out of this situation that they cry out to God and God begins to intervene on their behalf.  The story goes that God, through 10 plagues, begins the process of freeing the Israelites from Egypt.  Now it is important to note that as the Israelites are leaving Egypt that God leads them every step of the way and even performs a miracle, in parting the Red Sea, that saves them from the Egyptian army who is coming to force them back into slavery.

I couldn't be more proud.....

..of the students in our youth group. This Saturday night they are putting on a coffeehouse to raise awareness of the situation in Darfur. This came out of a series that Doug and I did right before school started where we looked at Micah 6:8 and what God requires of us. I think many of our students were challenged by the ideas of doing justly, loving mercy and walking humbly before God. One of our students has dared to ask the question, 'why can't we do more?' And so we are having a coffeehouse. Our students are the ones who have put this whole thing together. They are promoting it at their schools and seem to be getting positive feedback about the event. One of our teen bands, The Steadfast, will be performing along with an art auction and coffee from a local coffee shop, The Morning Mug. All of the money raised will go to helpdarfurnow.org and once again I could not be any more proud of our students. Way to go FVCN students!

The trouble with being generous.....

...is that it's difficult to interact with those that are not generous.  I currently find myself at a crossroads in dealing with a few people who view the world differently.  Disagreements are usually a hard situation to navigate in the first place, but when the disagreement revolves around religion or the Bible the situation worsens exponentially.

We've all been there before and know exactly how it plays out.

One person is right and the other person is wrong.  This has plagued the church ever since the Protestant Reformation when we found out it was easier to separate than to reconcile.  Separation allows us to keep our integrity in our minds because we stood up for what we believed in.  Some might even think that they have suffered for the gospel.  But what if suffering for the gospel meant putting aside our own personal beliefs/convictions and learning how to live in a way that reflects the Sermon on the Mount (Matt. 5-7).

So let me ask your take/advice on this matter.  How does one continue to pursue generosity when it is not reciprocated?  How can one begin a dialogue that might lead to a disagreement and not have it blow up in their face?  Lastly, what does generosity look like in the face of great frustration?

Weekly Update

The week that was:

Crazy......after recovering from the wicked virus that crippled us last weekend, Holly and I went on a tour of the major cities in KY.  Holly interviewed at residency programs in both Louisville and Lexington on back to back days.  It was an interesting time that was highlighted by having lunch with my aunt while Holly was interviewing in Lexington.  After her interview on Tuesday we drove back to Murfreesboro and then I flew back to PA on Wednesday.  This past weekend we had a district event here at the church that took a lot of time and energy.  I was supposed to go to our staff Christmas party on Saturday after the event, but I had failed to do any preparations for speaking on Sunday morning to the Middle school students and on Sunday night to the High school students; so I went home and did some quick prep work and slipped into a coma.  Yesterday was a long day but thankfully it's over, only to start back into the same cycle.

The week that is:

Crazy again.  I am answering the call to the bullpen and speaking in "big" church this weekend.  It's only one service as our choir is doing a worship experience during the first service.  Oh yeah, I'm also singing in the praise team for that as well.  So here's my week in a nutshell.  Tonight, adult small group.  Tomorrow, nothing as of yet but I'm sure it will include reading.  Wednesday, same as Tues.  Thursday, Dress rehearsal for the choir thing.  Friday, choir performance.  Saturday, Save Darfur coffeehouse that our students are putting together, should be a cool event.  Sunday, 9AM performance and preaching at 11, Solomon's Porch that evening.  Yikes!!

What I'm reading:

I'm still reading stuff for the class that I'm teaching.  I had to put away 2 books that were taking away from my focus but hope to pick them up soon.  The main book that I'm working through right now is Simply Christian by N.T. Wright.  Thanks Jeremy for the recommendation, it is a great book.

What I'm listening to:

Music for the choir thing.  (I've only been to 2 practices!)  I've also been listening to Coldplay's EP that they just released, Prospekt's March.

What I'm keeping an eye on:

The calendar because I'm counting down the days when I go back down to TN and will be with Holly again.  I do not know how people that travel for work do it all the time.  I usually have a few nights of insomnia whenever Holly is not at home and I get lonely as well.  Which is interesting since I'm a loner by nature.  I guess the dynamics of being a loner has changed since I've been married.

How big is your pile?

That is the question that Francis Chan asked us at the youth specialties convention.  But before you tune me out, let me give you a big of context for the question.  Chan has been a very successful pastor in California in terms of building a mega church that started as a church plant.  He shared with us that God had been dealing with him about what success was in the Kingdom of God and how he started to rethink his priorities in ministry.

Chan then went on to talk a little about discipleship and how Jesus did discipleship.  He talked about how Jesus ministered differently to his disciples than to those in the crowds.  He then talked about the parables and Chan seemed to say that Jesus spoke in them to confuse those that didn't really care about what Jesus had to say.  I don't really know what I think about this but I see what he was trying to say.  He pointed to the fact that the disciples would come up to Jesus after a parable and then ask what the meaning was, this according to Chan is what Jesus means by the good soil. (Matt 13:1-17)  My problem with this is I don't know if I can say that Jesus essentially didn't care about those in the crowds at that time.  I understand that Jesus was concerned with teaching the disciples as much as possible since they were going to carry on what Jesus started.  But I'm a little uncomfortable in saying that Jesus didn't care about those in the crowd with whom he was teaching.  Maybe I'm wrong about this and would be willing to discuss it the comments of this post.  Or maybe I misunderstood what Chan was trying to say.

Anyways, Chan then began to talk about salt (Matt 5:13) in terms of "success" in ministry.  He then did something that has stuck with me the past few weeks and I am still thinking about.  He pulled out a little salt packet, opened it up and poured it on the top of his Bible and said that this represented those in his church who were truly living into the mission of God.  These were the people that he wanted to pour his life into and see how they would begin to flavor the world around them.  He then poured a big salt shaker that you would get at Denny's and dumped it on top of the smaller pile and said that this salt represented those that were just around for entertainment, prestige or any other reason that does not correspond with living into the mission of God.  He said when we get caught up in our "success" that we begin to walk around asking the question, "how big is your pile?"  I had to chuckle a little bit because not only have I been asked that question before, but in some cases I've asked that question.

If you do not know me, I must tell you that I am a co-youth pastor of a large youth ministry.  I do not say this to brag, but to let you in on my current situation.  We have a lot of kids that come through our doors, but Chan has me thinking about what kind of salt our students are.  Are they living into the mission of God or are they there to be entertained or to be seen?  More than anything this has me thinking about the discipleship process that we hope happens organically and I am wondering how intentional we should be about this. I am also thinking about how a student should enter into a discipleship process.  Should they be invited?  Should they take the initiative?  Should it be forced upon them?  What do you think?

I hope that I have done Chan justice in how I have remembered his message that evening.  If not, please correct me as I do not want to misrepresent what he said.  I will say that I totally admire the changes that he talked about that he and his church are making in an effort to live into the mission of God.  I pray that they will continue to allow God to lead them as they shift the way in which they "do" church.

Weekly Update

Hey, I actually posted this on Monday!  Aren't you proud of me?

The week that was:

This has been an interesting week to say the least.  I spent Monday and Tuesday night at my sister's house since Holly started a rotation in Chattanooga.  I had a great time hanging out with my sister and brother in law and their dog, who I guess is in some sense my niece.  On Tuesday my parents came into town and we had a huge meal to celebrate Thanksgiving since my brother in law had to work on Thursday.  Wednesday after her rotation Holly and I headed up to her parents' house to spend the night and then to join my extended family for Thanksgiving.  Here's where it gets interesting.  We arrive at my grandparents' house on Thursday and have a great time with my family whom I haven't seen for quite a few months.  The only problem is that my grandmother is sick with what she thinks is food poisoning and doesn't really tell any of us.  To add to that one of my uncles and cousin show up without my aunt who is at home sick with a virus that they have gotten over a few days prior.  Needless to say Holly and I caught the bug along with the rest of our family and it wasn't pretty.  Luckily this bug only last about 24 hours but it was not a fun 24 hours.  To top it all off I'm pretty sure that Holly and I have given the same bug to her family that were with us on Friday.

The week that is:

Yesterday, Holly and I drove up to Louisville where she is interviewing at a residency program.  She finishes sometime this afternoon and then we head over to Lexington where she will interview again tomorrow.  After that interview we will head back to her parents' house and I will fly home on Wednesday while she returns to her rotation in Chattanooga.  Upon returning home I have a busy rest of the week that includes preparations for Sunday and a weekend district event that is being held at our church.  Needless to say that there is no rest for the weary.

Music that I've been listening to:

Holly and I have spent a lot of time on the road so I'm trying to pick things that we both like.  This consists of Shane and Shane, James Taylor and Christmas music on the radio.  (The latter I'm not so crazy about.)  I imagine that we'll probably hit a few sermons on the way back to TN tomorrow but who knows.

What I'm keeping an eye on:

Well UT has hired Lane Kiffin as their new head coach.  I'm actually a bit excited about this as I think he should do a great job.  I just don't expect him to stay too long and I know this will make me frustrated down the road.

On the basketball front, UNC is looking really good and they're not yet at full strength.  They have a show down with Michigan State on Wednesday that I'll get to see!

Lastly, I'm hoping that there is no sort of relapse of the virus that I hope that run it course in my system.

Weekly Update

The week that was:

I was at the Youth Specialties convention in Nashville, my hometown.  I had a great time there with my wife and our other youth pastor couple from our church, Doug and Mear.  We actually drove down which took about 14 hours with a pregnant Holly in tow.  Overall the convention was great and I will be posting a few thoughts from it over the next few days.

We also had a baby shower at my in-laws house that was great.  It was good to get some baby stuff, but even better to see some old friends that came.  Plus the strawberry cake my mother-in-law had made was amazing!

The week that will be:

I'm currently at my sisters house in Chattanooga, TN as my wife started a rotation at a local hospital for the next 4 weeks.  I will be in the area until next Wednesday which should be fun.  We are going to my grandma's house for Thanksgiving and then will be with Holly's family for the weekend.  All in all I'm looking forward to eating a lot of great food and seeing family that I don't get to see very often.

Music I couldn't stop listening to:

I didn't listen to much this week so I'll talk about the groups that we at the convention.  David Crowder Band led worship for two session and did an amazing job.  Mercy Me performed for one session and did a great job as well.  Shane and Shane performed an amazing set with just the two of them singing, one guitar and a very unique drum set.  I really like hearing those guys.  Lincoln Brewster led worship at two sessions and seeing him live is pretty amazing.  I wish I could play guitar like him.  Finally, Starfield led for 3 sessions.  I had heard them on a couple of other occasions and still like them.  I'd recommend any of these artist's albums.

What I'm reading right now:

These books are for a class that I'm teaching starting in Jan.

The Holy Spirit by LeRon Shults and Andrea Hollingsworth.  This book takes a look at how the doctrine of the Holy Spirit came to be and what it's implications are for us.

Simply Christian by N.T. Wright

What I'm keeping my eye on:

The blogalogue that Tony Jones is doing on Same Sex Marriage is unfolding over on beliefnet.com.  There is a link to Tony's blog on the right.

Lastly, Saturday is Phil Fulmer's last game to coach at UT.  I hope the boys send him out as a winner over KY.  Go Vols!!!!

Weekly update

So I am going to institute a new pattern on my blog that I'm stealing from Marko.  I'm going to try and post an update on Monday of each week some thought from the past week and the week upcoming.  Hopefully you will find it entertaining or at the very least informative.  So here we go.

The week that was:

I struggled with all of the rainy weather this past week.  I felt like I was in a funk constantly and didn't want to get out of bed.  There may have been some other factors for that feeling too, but I'm going to blame it on the weather.  My in-laws had visited the previous weekend and therefore I didn't get to be the lazy slob that I usually am on the weekend.  Thankfully I had a great time with them here.  Other than that, I team taught at our church yesterday with Doug and Kelly in our family worship service.  We talked about imagination and how our kids seem to get some of the things that Jesus talked about with regard to the Kingdom of God because they are not jaded by the "real world."  I think it went well and we received some positive feedback, but then again people in the church usually don't rip you to your face do they.

On tap this week:

I have much to get done in the office before Doug, Mear, Holly and I leave for a conference in Nashville and my subsequent vacation after that.  I can't tell you how much I am looking forward to this conference.  Mainly because I am spending time with my wife, my good friends and I'm going home.  Holly and I are going to try and show Doug and Mear many of the great things about Nashville, mainly the awesome food.  (Yes Wendy, I talked about food again!!!)  Anyways, we are also having a family/friends baby shower for our daughter that will be here in March.  It should be a great time!

Music that I couldn't stop listening to:

Some of you may not know this about me, but I tend to listen to the same thing over and over again until I move on to something else.  So I tend to find a few albums or songs and then wear them out.  Usually this includes a Dave Matthews Band album which bugs Holly since every time she gets in my car there is a DMB Cd that's playing.  But this past week I bought a new album that I absolutely love.  It's from the worship band at Jacob's Well church in KC.  The artist is listed as Mike Crawford and His Secret Siblings.  What a great name!  Anyways, it's so different from what I would expect that I think I am drawn to it.  Many of their songs are taken straight out of scripture or are engagements with scripture.  I cannot say enough about this album.  It is a 2 disc set that you can buy here or preview some of it here.  If you're looking for something different to listen to or even possibly use at your church, give this a listen to.

What I'm reading at the moment:

Lots of things acutally, but I recently picked up the book The Year of Living Biblically.  This was written by a self proclaimed secualr Jew who considers himself agnostic.  He decides that he wants to try and live for a full year by all of the laws in the Bible.  I'm a chapter into it and find it very fascinating.  I'm also reading a few books for the class that I'm teaching in Jan.  Never too early to prepare!

What I'm keeping an eye on:

Tony Jones is going to be engaging in a blogalogue about Gay Marriage on beliefnet.com.  I am really intrigued because of the pre-posts that he is putting on his blog about how he knows that he's going to take some hits for what he might say.  Unfortunately this is a converstion that the church should be having but many are not.  I applaud Tony for doing this.  I may not agree with everything that he says, but I will read and respect his opinion and that of the person that he is interacting with.

Lastly, I'm keeping an eye on who Tennessee will name as their new head football coach.  This is a very important hire for the university and I have no clue where they will go with this.  Let's hope it is someone who can come in and continue to build a good legacy and win a championship as well.

That's it for now.

Google Reader

About 2 weeks ago I started using Google Reader and let me tell you, I love it!!!!!  I used to check the few blogs that I read consistently a couple times a day to see if they had any new posts for me to read.  It was actually a little frustrating because I did a lot of useless clicking to get to each one.  But as I started using my gmail address more and more I decided to try google reader.  Here's what it does.  You can subcribe to blogs, news feeds, etc so that when something new comes across it is automatically uploaded into your reader.  So no more do I have to go to each blog to see if they have something new, I can just go into my reader.  This has allowed me to expand how many blogs, news and sports feeds that I read.  If you read any blogs or news feed online I recommend this way of doing things.  Thanks google for once again making life a little easier.

One might wonder...

So I have been reading and studying the book of Acts lately.  I have actually never read through the book from start to finish even though I've said that I wanted to many times.  In light of that I am trying to read a few chapters and week and do some extensive research by reading commentaries and doing some word studies, a la bib ex class in college.

Anyways, I wanted to ask you what your take is on the story of Ananias and Sapphira.  Here is a very interesting story that seems a bit out of place in light of the God that is portrayed in the New Testament.  I have a few thoughts that I will share as the conversation unfold in the comments but wanted to hear from you as well.  The whole story context is found in Acts 4:32-5:11.

Name calling

Do you remember when you were a kid and how calling somebody a name was like the biggest slap in the face?  You probably had your standard once and for all name that you used frequently too, didn't you?  For some it may have been boogerhead, dufus, dummy, four eyes, etc.  Growing up when I did I think I used Beavis a bunch.  Now that I am approaching my third decade of living, am involved in youth ministry and have a child on the way, I find myself thinking back to my own childhood and the things that I did.  Why did I feel the need to call someone a name?  Most of the time it was out of frustration because the other person didn't do something I wanted.  I don't really know what made me think calling them a name would change their action, but that was my line of thinking.  In fact, as best as I can remember, name calling usually made the situation worse because the one named now feels as if they need to defend their honor.  Which would lead to more name calling and eventually some sort of scuffle.

Now that I am an adult I cannot really say that the world has changed too much.  We still call each other names.  We think that if someone is labeled as a liberal or conservative, Jesus freak or pagan/sinner, athlete or nerd, orthodox or emergent, that it will cause them to see the error of their ways and lead them to a path of change.  The truth is that our labels often lead to more division.  The line of thinking usually goes something like this.  We could not simply associate with that person because they are.....  Or they wouldn't want to talk about this or go to this because they are.....  Our labels put us in a box that we cannot break out of.

I speak to all of this because I recently found out from a credible source that I have been labeled, a couple of different things.  I don't really care that I have been labeled becaue in one of the cases there is a bit of truth to it.  Here's the thing that bothers me about this situation.  These people that have labeled me have not spoken to me personally about it.  They have not approached me to talk about if I may actually be what their label points to.  Truth is they may not actually know what their label fully means.  My point is this, the church as a whole has to get beyond this way of conducting ourselves if we ever hope to be fully missional in our communities and the world.  Those who we hope to reach usually do not look like, act like and think like we do.  So a part of reaching out to them is to look past any lables or names that we may call them.  But if we are not doing this with those who share a faith in Christ, how can we ever hope to extend a measure of grace to those who do not share a faith in Christ?

Thankfully we serve a God that looks past our labels.  I am reminded of a sermon that one of my professors, Dr. Tim Green, gave a time when he spoke at a church I was serving in.  He was working through the story of Hagar and Ishmael and talking about labels.  The narrative in Genesis 16 says that Abram and Sarai referred to Hagar as "my servant" and "your servant", never by her name.  She was ultimately driven out into the wilderness by Sarai and it was here that God came and spoke to her through his angel.  Then the coolest thing happened in verse 8.  The first word out of the mouth of the angel was Hagar.  God had given Hagar her name back.  In God's eyes she was not labeled as a servant or slave, but as Hagar.

In the same way, I need to be reminded that God sees me as Jared and not by the labels or names that others may project on me.  Thank you God for the grace that you give to your servants and may we in turn offer that same grace to our friends, our enemies and the strangers and aliens among us.

The Promise and Threat of Missional Theology

Our next talk was given by Darrell Guder.  If you have never heard of Guder then you should know that he was the forerunner of this whole Missional Theology Conversation.  It all started with a book that he edited called Missional Church.  I personall have not read this book yet, but it is on my desk and laudry list of "to read" books.  I have read a book of Guder's in grad school called The Continuing Conversion of the Church and found it to be a great read.

On to Guder's talk.  Guder began by talking through the reason for even needing a term like missional in the church.  He reminded us that mission is the definitive of the church and that missional is not a noun.  It is an action word.  Guder then talked about our current North American context.  He claimed that we are in one of the most difficult mission fields ever.  This is so because Christendom was rooted in a Western mindset that left out mission as a priority in the church.  Our mission focus has always been out there, instead of right here.  Guder reminded us that the theology of the church should be rooted in the mission of God and that mission is the fundamental calling and action for the church today.

Now on to the promises.  Guder claims that we stand closer to the pre-Constantinian church than ever.  (For background on the Constantinian shift click here.)  He claims that we have lost the power and prestige of Christendom which frees us to reengage our mission as servants of Christ.  I loved a point that he made about how we do not take Christ anywhere but instead witness to what Christ is already doing in that particular place.  Guder concluded on the promise of how missional theology will help us to view our Christendom legacy with integrity.  He believes that we can address our theological divisions and ecclesiological divisions in a new light in this post-Christendom era and come to a point of landing where God would have us to be.

What are the threats you might ask?  Guder believes that there are some who fail to see the need for the church's continual conversion.  They are fine with the way things are now or have been for decades and centuries in the past.  He also believes that the church could become a servant of culture which would cause it to lose sight of the very mission it is called to fulfill.  He see the compartmentalization of theological disciplines as a threat as well.  His call is for all of theology to be based on missional thinking even to the point that we view church history through the missional lens.  Guder thinks that another threat is that we view Christendom as a problem that needs to be solved.  His response is that missional theology seeks to move on as if Christendom had never existed.  Lastly, Guder thinks that triumphalistic theology is another threat.  Our confidence should be in God and not ourselves and in that we are called to live in solidarity with the world.

Where do you see missional theology in your current context and how radical would this be to those that you serve?