God and the Blue Angels

Last Friday I went to an air show at the Jacksonville Naval Air Station.

It was amazing, inspiring, and the best part . . . it was completely free!

That's one of the reasons I love Jacksonville.

Orlando--where I used to live--is a tourist destination, so the local government has invented ways to get money from the people who live and visit there. There are impact fees, association fees, tourist taxes, higher gas prices, and tolls on almost every important road. It used to cost me $2.50 in tolls just to go to church on Sundays.

I digress.

Anyway, I've always been fascinated with airplanes, so when my friend David told me about a free air show at the local Navy base and, since my wife and kids are still living in the magical world of fees and I'm in Jax all by myself during the week, I made plans to go to the air show last Friday.

The highlight of the show was supposed to be a performance by the Blue Angels at 3 p.m., but--for me--the highlight of the air show was a performance by God at 2:58 p.m.

The Blue Angels are a squadron of F/A-18 Hornets used by the Navy for promotion and entertainment. The Blue Angels' show is a high-speed, high-energy, display of American military power.



The show involves the precision flight of 6 jets in tight formations and aerial acrobatics, but the show on Friday was delayed by a flock of about 50 ducks who were flying in formation off the end of the runway.

The Blue Angels' show was delayed by the flock of ducks for about 10 minutes and I couldn't help but wonder at the irony of it all.

It seemed to me as if God was saying, "You think you invented flying in formation. You think it's cool when six human beings fly six multi-million dollar airplanes in formation . . . Well, I invented flight and I invented ducks and I created them to do--for free--what it takes you millions of dollars and countless hours to do. Watch this!"



It's not every day that the Blue Angels are out-performed by a flock of ducks, but it happened three days ago at an airfield in Jacksonville . . . and I praised God for the awesome display of his power.

The difference between a good sermon and a great sermon

I was checking out Brian Jones' blog (http://preachingstandard.com/SpeakingOutofTurn.asp) and found a great blog on preparing sermons. I found this so helpful. Check this out:

The Difference Between A Good Sermon And A Great Sermon
A few weeks ago I spent the better part of my week going through 10 years of sermons – re-labeling, re-organizing, and re-categorizing them so I could share them with my staff on our computer server. It was enlightening to say the least. I saw larger patterns of things I was somewhat proud of, and not so proud of.Here’s a list of things I took noticed I wanted to change, continue, or forever expunge from my sermonizing ways:What didn’t work?Too many canned storiesAs I looked back on the sermons that seemed to fall flat, they almost always had too many canned stories from sermon websites somewhere. As I reminisced, the sermons that seemed to come alive were always the ones where I took the time and emotional energy to craft a personal story from my own life. Looking back I think I took the “road heavily traveled” because I couldn’t keep my butt at the desk for those extra four hours my messages needed.Too human centeredAs I looked back over the messages that seemed banal I was I struck by the way they always seemed to focus on “us.” Worry. Relationships. Stress. I noticed dozens and dozens of sermons on human-centered issues and needs. What I couldn’t help notice missing were the series on the character of God, key doctrines, and theological issues.Too tied to the church calendar and key growth initiativesI was struck by how what I taught was predicated upon or connected to some kind of growth initiative (ex. Friend Day, capital campaign, “preach on this now because giving needs to go up”). Right or wrong, I look back on those messages feeling like I’ve compromised in some way.What worked well?Jesus Torquemada MessagesTorquemada was one of the key leaders of the Spanish Inquisition. Over the years, these “defining moment” messages all seemed to have one thing in common: our church was at a crossroads on a key doctrine and I had the guts to stand up and say “This is what we believe. Hopefully you can get on board. If not, then maybe this isn’t the church for you.”Preaching expositionally through a book or key passageLooking through my files I felt a little emotional as I revisited the messages I wrote as I preached through the Book of Titus, Philippians, Romans 5 and others. I recalled the personal insights I gained and how refreshing it was to get away from my hobby horses and simply teach the Bible.Using quotes from the Christian classicsThough the examples were few, I felt that the messages that shared insights and quotes from the Christian classics (ex. Thomas Merton’s Seeds of Contemplation, Thomas Kelly’s A Testament of Devotion, etc.) seemed especially potent. I felt like those messages really tied our faith community into the larger stream of Christendom and broke down denominational barriers.The biggest take away was this: I need to discipline myself to keep my butt glued to the seat until I feel “released” by the Holy Spirit. I know that seems too Pentecostalish, but I don’t know how else to put it. You know and I know when we’re “finished” or we’ve simply “cut prep. time short.” Too often, it appears, I’ve delivered sub-quality stuff simply because I was too tempted to check my email or walk out of my office and jump into something more fun.Four more hours.I think that’s the difference between a good message and a great message.

Interview with Erwin McManus

A preacher friend of mine sent me an interesting interview by Erwin McManus.


I was brought onto the team at Christ's Church (www.ccontheweb.com) to start an alternative service targeting 20-35 year-olds, so the following portion of the interview caught my attention:

There's a sociological grid - not created by Christians, just a part of normal sociology - that says that 2.2% of the population are the Innovators and 12.4% are Early Adopters. 34.1 are called Early Majority. 34.1 are Late Majority and 12.4 are what are called Late Adopters. 2.2% are called Laggers, but that sounds mean so we call them Nostalgics. It's just a natural bell curve.
Now, I think one of the cultural dilemmas in Christianity is that for the last 50 years, Christianity has been dominantly led by people on the far right end of the spectrum - the Nostalgics and Late Adopters. I just met with Larry King. I mean, I didn't meet with him but I was at an event where I got to talk with him. And the first thing he says to me is, "John MacArthur. He can't decide whether it's 1936 or 1937." And I thought here's a guy who's like eighty years old. You know, it's Larry King.
But I was so embarrassed because that's the reality that the Christian leadership is the Late Adopters or Laggers. So all we tend to reach are up to this Late Majority. Megachurches tend to reach this 70% - the middle Early Majority to Late Majority. These are the people who love clustering in big groups and they want to feel they are a part of the majority or they're not safe. Does that make sense?
Absolutely.
So what happened is that this movement of Jesus Christ, which started at the far left end... I mean, the book of Acts was the Innovators and the Early Adopters. These guys were risking everything. They shifted the sacred day from Saturday to Sunday. These guys were not connected to tradition or the past. They walked away from everything.
So they may have been fishermen, tax collectors and doctors but they had a certain connectedness. They were all willing to begin the new before anyone else thought that was right. So what's happened is that the church has lost this front 15% because, for one, it hasn't called people to vocational ministry who are at that end, who are willing to reach those people because they're hardest to reach. They disproportionally cluster in major cosmopolitan cities, which is why I'm in L.A. because L.A. is the capital of the future.
And that's why we're trying to plant churches in New York - we have two congregations there. And we're in Berkeley, San Francisco and we're looking and doing things in England and Paris and South Africa, New Zealand, and Australia because the world changes disproportionately. It doesn't changed in a balanced way. And so we've been working in China, India and the Middle East. What we need to do is target this top 15% of Innovators and Early Adopters because really the only people who are going to lead their religions, risk their family and everything to pursue Christ are these Innovators and Early Adopters. And if they move, everyone who takes their cues from them will move toward Christ.
What does the church do to reach that 15%?

That's a great question.

Here's a link if you'd like to read the rest of the article and McManus' answer: http://www.infuzemag.com/interviews/archives/2006/10/erwin_mcmanus.html

I'd love to hear your thoughts/reflections/critiques of this interview.

Do you know the name of your pharmacist?

There's an interesting public service announcement running here in Jacksonville.

In the PSA, a woman named Karen Reid--who represents the American Pharmacists Association--asks what I initially thought was an odd question: Do you know your pharmacist's name?

She says that studies have proven that a good relationship with your pharmacist can improve your health because a pharmacist who feels more connected to his/her customers takes his/her customers' health care more personally. The assumption is that if you know your pharmacist's name then he/she will know your name and studies have shown that if your pharmacist knows your name he/she is more likely to double-check your medications, offer you generics (to save you money), and be an advocate for you to your doctors and insurance companies.

Studies show that a healthy relationship with your pharmacist can save your life.

This PSA reminded me of a passage of scripture from John:

"I am the good shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep know me— just as the Father knows me and I know the Father—and I lay down my life for the sheep.

--John 10:14,15

Do you know God's name or is he a stranger who works in the building on the corner whom you only visit when you are feeling spiritually weak--or ill--and you need some spiritual medicine for your soul?

He knows your name and he wants to have a relationship with you . . . and studies of his word have proven that a healthy relationship with God will save your life.

Oh . . . and by the way . . . my Lord's name is, "The Good Shepherd" and I promise to find out my pharmacist's name by the end of the week.

Check out Jennifer's blog . . .

I checked Jennifer Taylor's blog (http://christianstandard.com/WriteAboutNow.asp) as I was getting ready to leave the office tonight.

I like her blog. She's a good writer and she always makes me think.

Anyway . . . in her blog from October 11th she recounts her experience at the taping of a TV sitcom. She gives us some "behind the scenes" detail and then makes a great application.

Here's an excerpt:

Wouldn't it be nice to have unlimited "do-overs"? Mess up a conversation and just start over from the top. Wreck a relationship and call in the writers to fix it by season-end. Boring small group, annoying neighbor, tedious job--just add a few one-liners and some zippy situations and boom!--instant fun.

Great Story: SEAL Falls on Grenade to Save Comrades

This story is inspirational and an amazing story of a man giving his life for his friends.

http://enews.earthlink.net/article/nat?guid=20061014/453060c0_3ca6_1552620061014720346870

CORONADO, Calif. - A Navy SEAL sacrificed his life to save his comrades by throwing himself on top of a grenade Iraqi insurgents tossed into their sniper hideout, fellow members of the elite force said.
Petty Officer 2nd Class Michael A. Monsoor had been near the only door to the rooftop structure Sept. 29 when the grenade hit him in the chest and bounced to the floor, said four SEALs who spoke to The Associated Press this week on condition of anonymity because their work requires their identities to remain secret.
"He never took his eye off the grenade, his only movement was down toward it," said a 28-year-old lieutenant who sustained shrapnel wounds to both legs that day. "He undoubtedly saved mine and the other SEALs' lives, and we owe him."

Christ's only movement was toward the cross to save our lives . . . and we definitely owe him, too.

A Reminder to Remember

While at Southside Christian Church I closed every service by challenging people to remember who they are and to remember why we're here and that our purpose is people.

As I was transitioning from Southside to a new ministry I was intrigued--and encouraged--to hear testimonies of how this weekly challenge impacted some of the people at Southside. Recently, one of the young men who attends Southside, Clayton Wheeler, reflected in his My Space blog about the importance of making our purpose people. I think he lays out the challenge in a clear, understandable, and effective way. Let me share an excerpt with you . . .

Arron Chambers, Teaching pastor of the contemporary service at Christ's Church Mandarin, when he was the Senior Minister at Southside Christian Church in Orlando, would always end the service like this, remember two things remember who you are and remember why were here our purpose is people. Our PURPOSE is PEOPLE, now here are two very strong P words that when put together can make such a difference, I mean what would the church look like if that was it's purpose, I think it would be pretty incredible myself and it would look a lot like the first century church, now they had their problems too, but it was always about people and reaching the lost, as well as those who may be hurting in the church already. I think this is what Jesus had in mind because he was always talking and listening to people, I mean why did he raise all those people from the dead or perform all those miracles? It was so that PEOPLE may believe and come to know him, even when his own disciples told the children or prostitutes to go away, Jesus wanted to be with them, now what the disciples did not know was that Jesus was giving an example for what he wanted his church to be, it's not the me church, our purpose is not ME, our PURPOSE because it was Jesus' PURPOSE is PEOPLE, you can't have one without the other.

A lot of People have done great things because they had a purpose. Bob Stacy, a professor at Ozark Christian back in the sixties, decided that there needed to be a ministry designed just for teens, and that is how Christ in Youth was founded. You see Bob Stacy had a Purpose: to bring students closer to Christ, and not only teens, but now even Middle School, College, and upper elementary. You see the Purpose is still there and it continues to spread, because one man had a purpose and his PURPOSE was PEOPLE, to bring PEOPLE closer to Christ. My challenge to you in this blog is to be the church that God wants us to be, to have a Purpose, and encouraging relationships,and to live your life with Purpose. Now God wants you to remember two things, one remember who you are, and two that his PURPOSE is PEOPLE.

Clayton, thanks for the reminder to remember.

Feeling Homesick

You need to read Jack Reese's article, "Our Fatherland, Our Home" in this week's issue of the Christian Standard (http://www.christianstandard.com/articledisplay.asp?id=425).

As I was driving to work this morning I received an unexpected blessing. As I turned to get on I-95, I noticed the sunrise in the eastern sky. The sight was stunning.

The rays of the sun were towering toward heaven from the center of a gold-tinged cloud resting at the base of a crystal blue sky.

It was breath-taking and reminded me that this world is not my home.

In my heart I prayed, "Lord, I can't wait for heaven."

Twenty-two minutes later I logged on to the Christian Standard online and read Jack's article. It reminded me that this world is not my home.

In his article Jack quotes the Epistle of Diognetus and then makes an important observation:

The distinction between Christians and other men is neither in country nor language nor customs. For they do not dwell in cities in some place of their own, nor do they use any strange variety of dialect, nor practice an extraordinary kind of life. . . . Yet while living in Greek and barbarian cities, according as each obtained his lot, and following the local customs, both in clothing and food in the rest of life, they show forth the wonderful and confessedly strange character of the constitution of their own citizenship.
They dwell in their own fatherlands, but as if sojourners in them; they share all things as citizens, and suffer all things as strangers. Every foreign country is their fatherland, and every fatherland is a foreign country. They offer free hospitality, but guard their purity. Their lot is cast "in the flesh," but they do not live "after the flesh." They pass their time upon the earth, but they have their citizenship in heaven.
Here is a word for our churches. Every foreign country is our fatherland—we belong to Korea, Paraguay, Angola, Bulgaria, and Mexico. All countries are honored. All need Jesus. We belong to them all because God loves them all and all are in need of the kingdom of God.