Where the Bein' Was

I will never forget what happened last night.

My Grandpa Maxey lived in Louisville, Kentucky for most of his life. Somewhere in his Kentucky existence he picked up a line, "You gotta' be where the bein' is."

I wrote about this in my book, Running on Empty. Here's a brief excerpt:

So often in life we are in the wrong place at the wrong time.
Behind the school bus when you’re late for work.
You rush out to the local convenience store to pick up a package of much-needed diapers only to encounter a line that stretches out the door of people buying lottery tickets for that night’s drawing.
We’re in the “20 items or fewer Cash Only” lane at the grocery store behind someone with 54 items who can’t seem to find their credit card.
Sometimes we are in the right place at the wrong time.
You arrive at the bank ready to deposit your much needed paycheck only to find it’s closed for Columbus Day.
You meet some friends at your favorite Chinese restaurant for lunch only to find that the health inspectors have beaten you there and closed it down.
You finally get home from work--by way of the gym—but your son is already in bed and you missed hearing about the problem he had in class today with a bully, and you missed helping him learn how to write a cursive “Z”, and you missed kissing him on the forehead moments before he drifted off to sleep.
Sometimes though we are in the wrong place at the right time.
The time is “right” to be home with your family, but you’re in the wrong place returning email to strangers.
The time is “right” to be wresting with your kids on the living room floor, but you’re in the wrong place fighting for a business deal to please a boss who plans on letting you go.
The time is “right” to be talking with your spouse about a problem in your marriage, but you’re in the wrong place talking about your spouse to a friend.
The time is “right” to be sitting with your family in Church, but you’re more interested in walking around a golf-course hitting a little white ball into a plastic cup.
So much of our life can be spent working far away from where life is. Where we are is often not where we should be.
Yes, I said, “should be.” Pack your bags—we’re going on a guilt trip.
“Should be” is the place we feel guilty about not being.
We make one last phone call before leaving, when we should be at home eating pork chops and applesauce with our family. We go to work early when we should be leaning over our kids’ bed saying, “It’s time to get up.” We turn the T.V. on when we should be talking to our family about stuff. We sit at the computer pointlessly surfing the web, or answering one more e-mail, when we should be chatting with our neighbor about how terrible the Home Owner’s Association is, how to kill chinch bugs in St. Augustine grass, how the weather changes every 15 minutes, or what it takes to keep a marriage from falling apart.
My Grandpa Maxey was a wise man. His life was both humble and significant. He was a brilliant man, but never advertised his credentials. Grandpa was just smart and said a lot of things that are now permanently a part of my family’s lexicon. He was better than smart—he was wise.
One of the phrases he said that I still say today is, “You gotta’ be where the bein’ is.”
(It might help you if you say this phrase with a bit of a country accent.)
“Bein’ where the bein’ is” is one of the key elements of an abundant life. It’s being at the right place at the right time. This takes discernment.

Last night, the NACC was where the bein' was.

I will always be grateful to have been where Jeff Walling delivered the message he delivered last night. He is a gifted communicator and instrument of peace.

I will always be grateful to have been where Jeff Walling & Dave Stone (and many other Church leaders) exchanged Bibles as a sign of Christian Unity.

I will always be grateful to have been where we sang the Lord's Prayer afterwards while countless tears of joy streamed down thousands of faces.

I will always be grateful to have been where key leaders from the Independent Christian Churches and Churches of Christ came together--again--for an evening with hopes of coming together again forever.

I will always be grateful to have been where the bein' was, which--last night--just happened to be the Grand Ballroom of the Kentucky International Convention Center in Louisville, Kentucky.

NACC--Wednesday & Thursday, July 28-29, 2006

From the stage, on several occasions, the 2006 NACC has been called a "Family Reunion." This conjures up several images in my mind.

Eating. My family likes to eat, so when we are together each meal is an event. Reunion meals are cherished times during which we catch up on each other's lives, share stories, and reconnect with each other. So much more than eating occurs during mealtime. Eating out is one of the great things about the NACC. The breaks between main sessions become little slices of Heaven, but unlike the NACC, our fellowship times in Heaven won't be rushed, infrequent, or expensive!

Laughing. When we are together we love to laugh. Like you, we've experienced a lot of pain in this life, but we have an unquenchable hope that floods our family reunions with laughter. I have laughed a lot this week. I have laughed at Wayne Smith being . . . Wayne Smith. I've laughed with old classmates as we recalled our days at Bible College. I've laughed at humorous stories in the sermons.

Singing. My family loves to sing, so there was always a time at our family reunions when we'd gather in the living room and sing. This was never planned--we'd gather like animals walking to the Ark lead by a force we couldn't explain--but it always happened. We'd sing old songs that the young ones barely knew and we'd sing new songs that the old ones barely tolerated. Our song times are some of my favorite memories. I've so enjoyed the music at the NACC this year. The singing portion of each session has been such a poignant blessing to me. As I sing I find my heart filling with both love for God and longing for Heaven. I think that's how it's supposed to be.

Remembering. At our family reunions Grandpa told us stories about our heritage. These stories reminded me that I was a part of something much bigger than myself. This week, the organizers of the NACC have done an extraordinary job of reminding us of who we are.

We are Christians. We are one body in Christ. We are a family experiencing reunion.

NACC--Tuesday, June 27, 2006

We’ve been enjoying the Trolleys in downtown Louisville.

I have four kids with four sets of little legs, so the walk to the Convention Center—even though it’s only a few blocks and easy for me—is a little tiring for my kids, so we were grateful to find out that kids ride free on the Trolley. For 50 cents my kids and I can get to the Convention and back.

My wife is on the worship team all week and is involved with a lot of practices and sound-checks, so I’ve had the blessing of extra time parenting this week.

Btw—Fathers, when they are your kids it’s not “baby-sitting”, it’s “parenting.”

Anyway--last night, I dropped my kids off for the children’s program (which they loved!) and walked back to the Galt House to check my oldest daughter into the teen program (which she also loved). We waited, but the Trolley didn’t come, so we gave up and walked to the Galt house, but it was hot and humid, so by the time I reached the Galt House I was sweating profusely.

On the way back I decided to try the Glass Covered Walkway that connects the Galt House and the Convention Center.

Big mistake.

A third of the way to the Convention Center I realized that the air-conditioning on the Glass Covered Walkway is not working, so the Walkway felt like a sauna.

That glass tunnel was hot and uncomfortable. In fact, walking into that Glass Covered Walkway felt like walking into Hell, but it was worth the discomfort, because walking into the Convention Center last night felt like walking into Heaven.

As I entered the room, I felt energized by the spirit of anticipation, hope, and unity that I sensed throughout the room.

As the program began it only got better.

From the opening video (of Rick Atchley and Bob Russell’s vision for unity) to the singing of “We are one in the Spirit” at the end of the evening there was a powerful spirit of unity that was both God-honoring and inspirational.

I was very emotional during the worship singing. Realizing the diversity of the group and the unity in our voices I kept thinking, “This is what Heaven’s going to be like.”

When we sang, Agnus Dei, which contains the words, “Holy are you Lord God, Almighty . . . Worthy is the Lamb,” and I realized that, one day, we are all going to sing those exact words together—not in a convention center, but around the Throne—I was overcome with emotion.

Last night was God-honoring and inspirational, but I hope it is also transformational. But for that to happen we are going to have to bring the unity of last night out of the Convention Center and into the streets of Louisville, to our communities, and to our congregations back home.

I was so blessed by the program last night. It was a glimpse of what Heaven is going to be like and well worth a short walk through an uncomfortable tunnel.

I can’t wait for tonight, but I think I’ll ride the Trolley this time.

NACC--Monday, June 26, 2006

We’re staying at the Galt House, which I found to be a little symbolic of the Church in America.

Bear with me here . . .

Like the Church in America, the Galt House has been around for many years, but is in a state of restoration. All of the rooms are clean, safe, and comfortable, but some rooms are modern and some are not.

I’m staying on the 14th Floor and it’s really nice. Our room has new furniture, new carpet, contemporary pictures of Louisville, fresh paint, and smells new. It is really modern and we really like it.

It wasn’t until we visited my brother-in-law’s room last night that we realized that not all of the rooms in the Galt House are as modern as ours.

When we got off the elevator on the 4th Floor the first difference we noticed was the smell. The 14th Floor—where our room is—smells nice, but the 4th Floor smelled to me and my wife like a nursing home. The 4th Floor has dark paneling and antique furniture, that is nice and clean, but it’s also old and creates a different feeling than our modern furniture on the 14th Floor evokes in us.

We didn’t really feel comfortable on the 4th Floor and were eager to get back to the modernity we had grown accustomed to on the 14th.

We met a friend at the food court in the mall and he mentioned he’s staying at the Galt House, too, so I asked, “How do you like it?”

“It’s a dump!” he replied.

He’s staying on the 4th Floor. Restoration hasn’t reached him, yet. I didn’t want to discourage him even more, so I didn’t mention how much we love our life on the 14th.

I met a man yesterday who’s staying on the 4th and he loves it. It’s all he’s ever known and he’s so grateful to have a clean, safe, and comfortable room.

I travel a lot and visit a lot of churches around this country. The Church in America is in a state of restoration. From what I’ve seen, some congregations are “14th Floor” congregations and some are “4th Floor” churches.

Some are modern; some smell like a nursing home.

Some of the people in “4th Floor” churches are happy and grateful for a clean, safe, comfortable place in which to worship God, some are not and feel as if their reality is a “dump.”

If you belong to a “4th Floor” or a “14th Floor” congregation and you are happy—good for you.

If you belong to a 4th Floor congregation and you are unhappy because you’ve seen the 14th Floor and that’s where you want to be, then you just need to be patient, because the Church—just like the Galt House—is in a state of restoration and as long as the Church in America is in a state of restoration there will always be hope.

Restoration may not have reached you yet, but—be hopeful—it’s coming.

NACC--Sunday, June 25, 2006

I’m officially on my way to the NACC in Louisville. My family and I are in Elizabethton, Tennessee staying with my in-laws.

Church was a blessing today.

My father-in-law, John H. Smith, has been a preacher in east Tennessee for almost 40 years. He’s been the preacher at the Eastside Christian Church for the past eight years. They claim to be “the friendliest country church in Carter County.” I haven’t been to all of the 30+ Christian Churches in Carter County to study their “friendliness,” but I have been to Eastside many times over the past eight years and think they must be right.

Eastside has grown a lot in the past eight years—spiritually and numerically.

They've grown spiritually as they've diligently studied the Bible. They just finished a four-and-a-half year preaching and teaching program that took them through every book of the Bible. These people know the Bible.

They've grown numerically as they've focused on loving people in their community through strategic outreach and excellent programming.

Today, they gave out copies of their newsletter. My wife and I have been receiving Eastside’s newsletter for several years. They have one of the nicest church newsletters that I’ve ever seen in any church of any size. It’s a full-color multi-page newsletter that is full of pictures, news items, relevant articles, and member highlights. The newsletter even includes a section for book, movie, and concert reviews.

My wife and I went to the young adult class. Mike, the teacher, told us that he was substituting for the regular teacher, so he was a little nervous. Mike did a fine job. His lesson came from the Standard Lesson Quarterly. That fact caught my attention since I'm doing more and more work with the Standard Publishing team. I was impressed with how well the material was organized, how easy it was for a substitute to teach, and how engaging the lesson was.

I know—and I’ve heard—that the “Standard Execs” view their company as a ministry and themselves as partners in ministry, but I can be a little cynical, so it was really interesting, encouraging, and, honestly, a little surprising to see how Standard Publishing was--in a very real and practical way--a partner with Mike in his classroom at Eastside today.

So, to Mike--and my friends at Standard Publishing--I say, "Well done."

I’m really proud to be associated with people like you.

What Went Right?

May I confess something to you?

Thanks.

There have been times when I've been a little embarrassed to be a part of the Restoration Movement.

I'm not embarrassed to share how our movement rose up out of a desire to get back to the Bible.

I'm not embarrassed to share how our movement rejected denominationalism in favor of New Testament Christianity.

I'm not embarrassed to share how our movement rejected creeds in favor of Christ.

I'm not embarrassed to share why we chose to call ourselves simply, "Christian."

I'm not embarrassed to share that we desired to use the New Testament Church as our only model for "doing" Church.

And, I'm definitely not embarrassed by the fact that we chose personal liberty in matters of opinion, but unity in matters more essential.

It's not embarrassing to talk about the things that defined, distinguished, and drove our movement to become one of the most phenomenal religious movements of the 19th and 20th centuries.

What's embarrassing is sharing the fact that our movement--once united--divided into three distinct groups that now have very little to do with each other.

The problem now is not that we sit at different tables at our family reunion, or that we don't have family reunions anymore, but that we (The Churches of Christ, Christian Churches, and the Disciples of Christ) don't seem to consider ourselves "family" anymore.

We can't go back an change history.

What's done is done.

Or, is it?

As I read this week's issue of The Christian Standard, "What Went Wrong?", I was so encouraged.

http://www.christianstandard.com/default.asp

This week's issue is full of history, but I also think it's full of hope.

What went wrong? We allowed disunity to define and divide our movement, but--it seems--there are a large number of Christians in the Christian Church and Churches of Christ who are now committed to fostering unity in spirit, word, and deed.

As I think about next week's NACC, I can't help but be proud to be a part of the Restoration Movement.

I have a dream.

I hope The Christian Standard is still around in the year 2106, and I hope that the June 2106 issue of The Christian Standard will be devoted to celebrating the unity that began--and grew--because of the 2006 North American Christian Convention in Louisville, Kentucky, and I hope that the June 2106 issue of The Christian Standard is entitled, "What Went Right?"

72 Seconds With . . . Robin Sigars

I had an idea this morning . . .

My travels allow me the pleasure of meeting a lot of great people.

I just got a new cell phone and it has a 72 second memo feature.

Two unrelated facts? Not any more.

Today, I decided that I would start a new recurring feature on my blog: 72 seconds with . . . .

My phone memo feature allows me to record four 18 second memos, so I decided that in my interviews I will give each person 18 seconds to answer four questions. Each interviewee will get the same four questions.

I'm speaking at CIY at Milligan College in Tennessee, so I decided to interview Robin Sigars.

Robin Sigars is married to Jayme Sigars and they have seven children: Candace, Courtney, Cassidy, Caleb, Kally, Collin & Jacob. Robin has been involved in youth ministry for over 20 years. Since January of 1991, he has worked for Christ In Youth as the Associate Director of Conferences. He travels thousands of miles every year speaking to teenagers and adults about their relationship with Jesus and serving the Kingdom.

1. What is the biggest lesson you've learned to this point in your life?

RS: No matter what happens in life. God is going to be in control and if you'll let him have your life, He'll take care and guide you and direct to places and things He wants you to do.

2. Who is your hero? Why?

RS: My father and father-in-law, because they both were examples of Jesus' love and grace their whole lives.

3. If you could go back in time and had 18 seconds with yourself at age 18, what would you say to yourself?

RS: Right now, just enjoy life and realize that you can have a bigger influence at 18 by loving and showing grace and serving people than you ever imagined . . . if you'll do just that . . . love and serve people.

4. Final Thoughts?

RS: I wish that we could just focus more on what Jesus wants out of our lives . . . what his call in our life is . . . discipleship . . . to follow him no matter what the cost. And not get so wrapped up in the things of this life--with the programs of this life--but, to look and to see the people around us and how can we serve them.

Thanks Robin.

Christian Standard Enewsletter

I hate spam.

When I see a fwd: in my inbox, I almost always delete it--even if it's from a relative (ask my wife!).

But, I look forward to receiving The Christian Standard Enewsletter each Wednesday.

Standard's Enewsletter contains a lot of information that is not in the weekly paper issue including breaking news from Christian churches around the country.

If you're not a subsciber, I encourage you to go to Standard's homepage and subscribe:
http://www.christianstandard.com/.

If you like to know what's happening around the Restoration Movement, you'll probably enjoy receiving this weekly enewsletter as much as I do.

If you subscribe to Standard's weekly Enewsletter and you don't like it, forward an email to me explaining why you don't like it and I promise I'll read it. :)

Evangelism, Nintendo Style

I like video games.

I played video games a lot before I graduated from college (Some of my favorites in historical order: Pong, Intellivision Football, Battlezone, Missile Command, Space Invaders, Pac Man, Galaga, Mario Brothers, and Techmobowl), but after college I didn't play video games very much. I got busy with life and video games didn't interest me anymore.

I enjoyed playing them when I got the chance, but, since I didn't own a gaming system, or play video games very much, I quickly found myself out of the video game "loop", so when my wife got me an Xbox 2 years ago for my birthday (fantastic gift--by the way--for all of you last minute Father's Day shoppers!) I felt a little intimidated by the technology.

Back in my day . . . a video controller was a joystick and a red button. The XBox controller had two joysticks, 43 buttons, 17 triggers, and a big red button I was afraid to press because I was afraid pressing it my cause my neighbor's house to implode.

O.k., I'm exaggerating a little, but my Xbox controller seemed a little complicated, at first, but I eventually figured it out and now I'm an old pro (emphasis on the "old").

The games--and controllers--have been getting more and more complicated and it takes constant gaming to stay up to speed, which is why I was intrigued with an article my youth minister gave to me.

Josh Van Tassel, our youth minister, gave me an article from the May 15, 2006 issue of Time Magazine entitled, "A Game For All Ages".

The article describes how Nintendo is trying to reinvent itself by targeting people who are intimidated by gaming. Most video game companies target "gamers" who have been immersed in the gaming world for decades. They go to experienced "gamers" to find out what they like, what they want, and then cater to them, but Nintendo--while not ignoring life-long "gamers"--has decided to try to reach people who aren't playing video games, yet. Nintendo's reinvention started with them asking the question, "Why don't people play video games?"

Nintendo was once the global leader in games, but no longer, so--according to the article--Nintendo is going to change "in the weirdest, riskiest way you could think of."

So, after extensive research to understand why so many people, of all ages, feel intimidated by video games, Nintendo has invented a wireless wand-type device designed to make video games easier to play.

Nintendo has only one plan for re-taking over the gaming world: Turn nongamers into gamers.

After giving me the article to read, Josh sent me an email. Here's some of what he wrote:

Nintendo is taking huge risks to reach the non-gaming world as we sit comfortably in church saying “I hope people show up today”. As the church we should be bridging the gap between Christians and non-Christians, and doing so by taking risks. We need to ask ourselves “why don’t people come to church?” then fix the problem . . . I think the church worries too much about what everyone else is doing . . . To reach this generation we may need to do something never done . . . To ask the gamers would be counterproductive and serve those who already play video games. In the church we seem to do exactly that. We ask those already in the church how to make it better and how to build bridges. . . We need to be asking those who are not part of the church . . . They are the ones we are trying to build a bridge to. I think its time the church takes some risks. God did not put us on this earth to hope they will show up but to be innovative and to bridge a huge gap. Nintendo is reaching more people through doing what never been done before. Why can't we?

Josh thinks our church can learn something from Nintendo. I agree.

Some Violence, Brief Nudity, and Evangelism

How’s that for an attention grabbing title?

In the article he writes for Scripps Howard News Service (http://www.shns.com/shns/g_index2.cfm?action=detail&pk=RELIGION-FAITH-06-07-06) Terry Mattingly, a senior fellow for journalism at the Council for Christian Colleges & Universities and a regular contributor to The Lookout (http://www.lookoutmag.com/default.asp) reports that a Christian film was just given a PG rating by the Motion Picture Association of America because the movie, "Facing the Giants" is too evangelistic.

Here’s an excerpt from Terry’s article:

The MPAA, noted Fuhr, tends to offer cryptic explanations for its ratings. In this case, she was told that it "decided that the movie was heavily laden with messages from one religion and that this might offend people from other religions. It's important that they used the word 'proselytizing' when they talked about giving this movie a PG....
"It is kind of interesting that faith has joined that list of deadly sins that the MPAA board wants to warn parents to worry about.

This may actually be a really good thing.

• The “PG” rating could give this movie what some of the teens in my church might call, “Street Cred” (i.e. credibility), which means that they might give it a chance.
• This controversy might generate interest and increase attendance for this movie.
• This rating might ensure that more parents actually see this movie with their kids giving them a chance to discuss it with them afterward.
• Or, this movie might be so bad that this is the last time we hear about it. I hope not.

Now, let’s just hope Facing the Giants is actually a good movie and not 2006’s version of the 1973 Christian “blockbuster”, Superchristian.

Food for Thought on Hunger

I spoke on Hunger yesterday.

Our congregation collected food for a local ministry we support (The B.A.S.I.C. Street Ministry) that ministers to homeless people in Orlando.

It was an emotional day that I won't soon forget.

Tuesday is National Hunger Awareness Day ( http://www.hungerday.org/content/index.php), so we set aside a Sunday to focus on those who are both physically and spiritually hungry.

Here are some of the stats we found:

• 38 million Americans in the USA are living on the brink of hunger.
• 14 million children live in households that sometimes have difficulty providing enough food.
• 13 million children live in households that experience hunger or the risk of hunger.
• 852 million people across the world are hungry, up from 842 million a year ago.
• Every day, more than 16,000 children die from hunger-related causes--one child every five seconds.
• In the developing world, more than 1.2 billion people currently live below the international poverty line, earning less than $1 per day.
• Among this group of poor people, many have problems obtaining adequate, nutritious food for themselves and their families. As a result, 815 million people in the developing world are undernourished. They consume less than the minimum amount of calories essential for sound health and growth.
• More than 180,000 people have died from hunger and disease during the past 18 months in the the Darfur region of Sudan.
• Every year 15 million children die of hunger
• Every 3.6 seconds someone dies of hunger

Kind of makes you lose your appetite doesn't it?

I challenged the people in our congregation to skip lunch tomorrow and send the money (plus a little extra) to a ministry that meets people's physical & spiritual needs.

Maybe you could join us?

Ten Surprises About the Unchurched

I just read an interesting article written by Dr. Thom Rainer in 2003. He and his research team spent 3 years studying the unchurched. His team covered all 50 states and Canada listening to the unchurched.

Here’s a link to the article: http://www.christianitytoday.com/bcl/areas/missions/articles/102704.html

Here are 10 of the surprises Rainer’s research team uncovered about the unchurched.

Surprise No. 1--Most of the unchurched prefer to attend church on Sunday morning if they attend.

Surprise No. 2--Most of the unchurched feel guilty about not attending church.

Surprise No. 3--Ninety-six percent of the unchurched are at least somewhat likely to attend church if they are invited.

Surprise No. 4--Very few of the unchurched had someone share with them how to become a Christian. And Christians have not been particularly influential in their lives.

Surprise No. 5--Most of the unchurched have a positive view of pastors, ministers and the church.

Surprise No. 6--Many of the unchurched have a church background.

Surprise No. 7--Some types of "cold calls" are effective; many are not.
Quote from article:

The bottom line of cold-call evangelism seems to be to make the most of every
opportunity God gives you. Pray for such opportunities. But showing up at
someone's home without an invitation was one of the biggest turnoffs articulated
by the unchurched.

Surprise No. 8--The unchurched would like to develop a real and sincere relationship with a Christian.

Surprise No. 9--The attitudes of the unchurched are not correlated to where they live, their ethnic or racial background, or their gender. The unchurched are not a monolithic group.

Surprise No. 10--Many of the unchurched are far more concerned about the spiritual well-being of their children than themselves.