It’s Moving Day

Hey ya’ll,

I’m moving to www.buddywatt.blogspot.com. Check it out!

Stop Pointing. It’s not nice!

It is 11p.m. I am sitting here watching TV. I started my evening checking out SNL. Man, I used to love that show. I just can’t watch it anymore. I turn it on every Saturday hoping that it will be funny, just to be disappointed. I always turn it off in the first five minutes. For one, it’s not funny, it just isn’t. They would do themselves a favor if they just showed reruns from the Adam Sandler, Chris Farley, Dennis Miller, and Eddie Murphey days. Now there were some funny moments with those guys. The second problem is that the show uses perverted humor. Not judging, perversion is just not my thing.

So, I flipped through the channels to find something else that might help me escape for awhile. Well, I turned to one of the two “Christian” stations in the area. I watched a guy preaching that I had never heard before. Quite honestly, I will never hear him again. He had nothing too say. Not being critical, I stopped because I thought I might hear a little “nougat” that I could take with me. Nope, nada, nothing, zilch, zero, the big goose egg. So, I continued flipping the channels and found Hillsong. You can’t go wrong with Hillsong. Only the most annointed worship bands of our times.

 Enough of the rambling, let’s talk turkey. <– whatever that means! A friend of mine sent me a text message the other day. He texted, text, I dunno. The message was simply a verse in the Bible, Acts 2:46. For Charismatics, you are definitely familiar with this chapter. There was even an 80’s band called The Second Chapter of Acts. I wish I was making that up, but I am not. Anyway, back to my point. Check this out:

Acts 2:44-47

44)And all the believers met together constantly and shared everything with each other, 45) selling their possessions and dividing with those in need. 46) They worshiped together regularly at the Temple each day, met in small groups in homes for Communion, and shared their meals with great joy and thankfulness, 47) praising God. The whole city was favorable to them, and each day God added to them all who were being saved.

My first thought is, why did they break up verse 46 and 47 when they did? King James should have fired his editor. Seriously though, this passage caught my attention. I have read it several times, but this was different. I was reading the things that the early Christ-followers were doing. Check it out; they hung out constantly, the crew from Clean Sweep showed up and helped them get rid of their stuff, they took that stuff and divided it up to those who needed it, they had a Hillsong United concert EVERY day, met in small groups, ate togther, and praised God. Amazing stuff. Put yourself in their shoes. This is the first time that this is happening. No one had experienced this before. This was groundbreaking. There was no conference, book, or church that was doing this. Wheel’s Off!

This is normally where I would check out of this study. But, look what happened as a result of their community. They were given the key to the city, and every day, people were finding Jesus on their journey. That excites me. I believe that this will be the model for evangelism for the 21st century church. Long gone are the days of pointing your finger at someone on the sidewalk, playing the “have you ever stolen anything, have you ever told a lie, than you are a lying thief condemed to hell game.”

When Christ-followers are living in TRUE community, lost people experience Jesus. True evangelism involves caring for others, not pointing a finger, but lending a hand. I heard Matthew Barnett, Pastor of the LA Dream Center make this statement that I just cannot shake: “When you live your life with hands out, ready to receive, you will only be happy on your birthday and Christmas. When you live your life with hands down, ready to give, you will be happy 24 hours a day 365 days a year.” How powerful will it be when you and your small group sell it all, divide it up, and meet the needs of those around you as well as those in your group. That neighbor who doesn’t want to talk about God, might just be drawn to Him because of your unselfish behavior. What would happen if you actually enjoyed being with the people that were in your small group? When I say enjoy, I don’t mean you enjoy their company during your weekly meeting. I mean that those people are the first people you call when you want to catch a movie, watch the game, go to dinner,go to the gym, need prayer, need money, need someone to talk to, need to repent, need to laugh, or need to cry. You genuinely care for them, like them as friends, and you trust them as family. Your worshiping God together, giving him uber credit for everything in your life, and your doing life together. If we can get this down, we will be so attractive to unchurched people, that we will grow. We will grow spiritually, numerically, and will be given the keys to the city. That sounds like true evangelism to me. So what do you need to give away? Who do you need to persue? Who do you need to praise? Let’s start bringing Heaven to earth!

I’ll Pencil You In

Things have been pretty hectic in my life lately. Between going to school full-time, two kids, working out, and watching lost, I have had very little time to hang out with my wife. In order to facilitate interaction with my wife, I decided to break out the ol’ planner and schedule my life out. If you don’t schedule your life, someone else will. So, I decided to schedule specific time for just my wife and I. I am more excited about this than words can express. However, because of my busy schedule, the only time that we are able to get together is Sunday morning between 11a.m. and 2p.m. Sounds crazy, but it should work.

I have some very incredible things planned for this time. For starters I am going to hire a very talented friend of mine. He has a tremendous voice and just happens to be an very accomplished gutairist. I have hired him with the specific task of writing songs about my wife and than singing them to her. It should be awesome! Eat your heart out men, feel free to steal this idea. It should keep me off of the couch for days!

A sure fire way to add days to the couch counter is another incredible idea. I will personally give a speech about her. I will wax eloquent for 35-45 minutes about how awesome she is. I will tell her everything that is beautiful about her and how she has changed my life. If I play my cards right, I will be winning more tables than Jesus Jones in a full tilt tournament! I am so excited about our time together. Of course at 2p.m. I am going to have to end the time with my wife and begin to prepare for the week ahead. I will see her next week from 11a.m. till 2p.m. I won’t be able to interact with her throughout the week, but I will be very faithful to my time with her on Sunday morning!

If I were even close to serious about the above idea, I would be out faster than Kevin Durant from Texas University. My wife would kick my pathetic but to da curb!

Think about it, is that not how the American church treats God. We gather on Sunday mornings from 11a.m. – 2p.m. We listen to some great musicians sing songs about God. We may participate, we may not. It depends on the singer, the style of music, how loud it is, if we feel like it, or if we decide to actually show up to the serivce on time or conveniently arrive at the end of worship. The goal with worship was that we feel good about the worship experience. Than we will listen to a skilled communicator paint a beautiful picture about the person of Jesus Christ and how, if we will make Him Lord of our life, we will be able to experience incredible things. The communicator will end his message, and depending on your denominationthe ending will look very different. If you are a Baptist you will be reminded that pre-marital sex is wrong because it may lead to dancing. If you are AG, you automatically now that the ending of the communicator’s message is actually the beginning because it ain’t over till someone leaves with tongues of fire! When the service wraps up, you will go to Cracker Barrel with some acquaintances, complain about the food, the service, and leave someone a $20 dollar tip, I mean a $20 track. Wrap up lunch, and make plans to do it again next weekend with no intention of seeing God throughout the week. That may be a little harsh, but unfortunately I think this is how it works in the lives of those attending the American church.

The Bible speaks of having a form of godliness but lacking power. Because of our schedules, commitments, and relationships we do not have, or take, the time that we need to grow our relationship with God. Please know that I am not bashing the church, or even beign critical. I am not saying that a service is wrong or ineffective. I am saying that somehow there is a disconnect between going to church and being Christ Followers. Where does that come form and why? What can we do to change that? How do we mobilize those that are in the pews to BE the church and not just Go to church? Acts 1:8 says that the Holy Spirit will give us power to BE a witness. When we are being, power is released. We need to have a greater understanding that Christ Following has very little to do with Sunday from 11a.m-2p.m. It has everthing to do with Sunday from 2:01p.m until the following Sunday at 10:59. If we can avoid the vacumm of the mundane, we can begin to experience the abundant life that God has to offer.

All Things Church

I was looking at my blog and soon realized that I have not updated in quite awhile. There are a couple of reasons for that. (1) I have been slightly busy with school. (2) I have been a little preoccupied with the arrival of our newest child. (3) Probably the most credible reason for not blogging is that I simply have had nothing to say. I should rephrase that, I have had nothing new to say. It seems like I keep blogging a dead horse and I don’t want to be type cast. However, I am going to have to admit that I am going to begin a new chapter in my, pathetic, blogging career. It is time that I start conversing with those of you who have been involved in my journey. So, here it goes:

The last year has been an extremely difficult time for me and my family. Those of you that are close to me understand this. One year and two days ago, I announced to our wonderful church family in PA that my wife and I would be leaving our position in search of God knows what. From that day to this, my life has been turned upside down.

My thoughts about the church have been turned upside down as well. How do we do church? Why do we do church the way we do? Is there a better way? Is there a right way? Is there a wrong way? Is there something I can do to contribute? Is it there something you can do to contribute? Is the church as we know it the church that is described in the Bible? Is the church relevant? Are relevant churches missing the point? I have many more, but I think you get my point. If you are still reading, you are an amazing friend of mine! I am going to give my very elementary views on these subjects in the coming blogs. Stay close to your computers because you don’t want to miss this. I promise to be more entertaining than Blades of Glory!

Igniting Change…

Eating Gator

I sit here on Tuesday morning in a daze. I am in complete shock of the whipping that Florida put on The Ohio State University. It takes me back to my senior year in high school. Our b-ball team made it to the regional tournament. Our coach took myself, and a few other guys all the way to Kentucky to scout our opponent. We video taped the game, watched each players tendancies, height, points scored, left hand, right hand, etc…We knew everything about them. We were as prepared as any team could have been. Gameday came, and we got throttled! They were better, faster, and stronger. It was as if the team we scouted stayed home and a different team showed up. Once the ball was tipped, it was as if someone hit a weird button that threw everything into slow motion, yet sped everything up at the same time. It was such a helpless feeling. We lost that game by 32 points. It was not the way that I wanted my high school career to end. However, there was nothing I could do to change it. Our team did everything that they could do. We were powerless.

Last night, I had that same feeling. So did the Buckeyes. You could see it on their faces. That weird slow/fast button was hit. There was absolutely nothing that they could do about it. They had no answers! Florida out played them. It was a very sick feeling! Watching your team, who you thought was great, be reduced to average at best, was very disheartening! The reality is that the Florida Gators are the national champs, and deserve to be so! I am eating gator because I posted a blog stating otherwise! The Big Ten is obviously week, and the SEC is not! I am changing my opinion. The Big Ten powerhouses, Ohio State and Michigan, both go their tails kicked by the best teams in different leagues. That says a lot. The Big Ten needs to make some serious adjustments to their league if they are going to compete in the future!

I am a Buckeye for life! I bleed scarlet and gray! I will train my kids to love them as well! I will never give a darn for the whole state of Michigan! I will always mark the Saturday before Thanksgiving on my Calendar to watch the biggest rivalry in College football! I will always consider beating Michigan a successful season, and losing as a very unacceptable procedure for OSU! I am a fan! I am a Buckeye! I am very, very, disappointed!

Just For The Record

I need to clear up something….The Bible states that “a good name is to be chosen above material possession that the world had to offer.” Apparently a few people have misinterpreted something that I talked about some time back. In my small group I was talking about language, not Chinese, Swedish, Japanese, German, or Pig Latin. The language that I was discussing was of the foul, expletive nature.

I brought up the fact that the when a person gets saved the church expects us to “clean up” our act. That cleansing process requires a person to stop drinking, smoking, abstain from sexual activity, and stop using foul language. For my discussion, I wanted to focus on foul language. Why do we as Christ-Followers deem the “S’ word or the “D” word, etc… as foul language? More importantly, Why do we view these words as sinful? My goal in this discussion was to cause Christ-followers to think about the things that we view as sin opposed to the things that are sin. Quite honestly, the words themselves are not sinful. You cannot find scripture that say these words are sinful. However, the context, and the heart, are sinful. Let’s revisit one of my favorite pericope’s in Scripture, I Cor. 10:22-23:

Looking at it one way, you could say, “Anything goes. Because of God’s immense generosity and grace, we don’t have to dissect and scrutinize every action to see if it will pass muster.” But the point is not to just get by. We want to live well, but our foremost efforts should be to help others live well.” (msg.) Another translation says, “We should seek the good of others first. It is very easy to just live our lives and enjoy the journey that God has for us. The problem is when we get selfish in our journey. Apparently a few, and I mean a few, people have decided that foul language is acceptable in their journey.

I need to warn you, that is selfish. That is not seeking the good of others. The ministry of Jesus was selfless. No, He does not want us to live under the bondage of religion. Yes, He wants us to have freedom. That freedom stops the moment you start infringing on the good of others. The moment you become so cavalier that you think that you can do and say anything that you want, you have missed the point. You have become the antithesis of what a Christ-follower is, and should be.

For the record: I do not believe that it is OK to use foul language. It is socially unacceptable, therefore, it is wrong, it is sinful. Why? It’s that whole others seeking thing. So, to those of you who have taking the stance that foul language is OK. I want to applaud you for allowing yourself to define your boundaries. I want to applaud you for having the guts to find your way on this journey. However, I apologize to you for not communicating my heart in a manner in which you misunderstood me. I am also correcting you. This is not acceptable behavior for men and women of God. You are way to amazing to allow your language to keep you from fulfilling your potential. You have a destiny on your lives and you need to embrace it. To quote Spider-man: “With great power, comes great responsibility.” You have a responsibility to God and to those around you. Your responsibility is to attract people to the Creator. So, while you are enjoying your journey, keep focusing on the “others.”

Igniting Change…

The End Of The World…..As We Know It?

For all of my fans out there, both of you, It is glaringly obvious that I am not good at this blogging thing. Actually, let me correct myself. I am good at blogging, amazing really, I am just not good at updating. I mean I am no Mr. Allain, but I think I can hold my own. So, enough of the formalities, let’s get to the meat, it’s lean, organic, free-range, and mad cow free…..maybe. Let us see where my ramblings and such take us tonight.

I should be studying for my finals right now but to be real honest I do not want to. I will, sooner or later. Well probably sooner, my two toughest exams are tomorrow. I am sure that I will get to the studying thing tonight. I do have the privilege of having above average grades in these classes so that has released me of any pressure that these exams may have brought to my life. I can fail both of them and still have high B’s in the classes. That is a great place to be. See, studying does pay off! I always wondered why people fussed about homework and tests, now I know. Seriously, this has been an eye opening experience in my “academic” journey. Do well on the homework, labs, tests, and papers and you have this entire world of “no pressure” exams. It is an amazing feeling. When I was in high school and the my brief encounter with junior college, I never had that privilege. As a matter of fact, my final exams formerly dictated whether I passed the class, by the skin of my teeth, or failed miserably. Studying, what a concept! Tomorrow will be a stress free day for me regarding education and the intellect. The end of the world as I have known it for the last semester. I promise not too get comfortable. For on the morrow’s eve a new semester lurks it’s formidable head! One that I shall displace from it’s neck!(I began writing this on Monday…Let me update you. I did really well on my exams. I received and 85 on my lifelong learning class giving me an A- for the class. I got a 100 on my Hist. 1302 exam giving me a 98/A+ in the class. I am not sure what grade I received on my Hist. 1301 exam, however I ended up with a B+ for the semester. Last but not least I ended my COSC 1301, intro to computers, with a strong B-. Overall I am happy with my first semester.)

In regards to formidable opponents. (<– Did you enjoy that transition? Thanks to the M.L.A. handbook!) This is a note to Gator Country. I am not underestimating your strength as a football team. I believe that you have a good team. I believe that you could beat The Ohio State University. I am not on the “you are underdogs bandwagon.” However, I will say this. The SEC is not the best league in college. Note too all SEC fans. Just because you can’t see the Big 10 because your aluminum foil laden T.V. antenna can’t pick up reception in the “hollar,” doesn’t mean they are not a good conference. I mean come on. Early in the season Auburn was kicking booty until…..the SEC Powerhouse, Vanderbilt, came to town and gave them a beating. Vanderwho? And who does Florida’s only loss come from? Auburn. You lost to a 6-2 in conference schedule. You definitely deserve to be in the hunt for the national championship hunt. Seriously you do not deserve to be there. Even if you beat the Buckeyes, it proves nothing. The national championship game was played on Nov. 18th between The Ohio State Buckeyes and the wretched team up north. If anyone deserves to play for the N.C. it is the maize and blue. Ranked number two, they lost to number one by three points. Isn’t that what the number two team is supposed to do? I am a huge hater of the wolverines, but they got jacked. I understand why they wouldn’t be able to play in the N.C. because of their blemished record, however, explain to me why Boise State is not in the game? B.C.S. you deserve coal in your stocking. You have been a very naughty, politically driven, biased, ratings system. Shame on you!

ON to other things:

Christmas. It is the hap, happiest time of the year. At least it is supposed to be. I believe it will be. I am stuffing my family and I into a vehicle to begin our amazing race to lovely Ohio. Our first pit-stop is scheduled to come in the 500th mile of the race. We are stopping in lovely Springfield, MO. We sold our house, thank you Jesus, and our closing is on Tuesday. Shall be a lovely time to bury the memories of “Jobs Gone Wild.” Nothing like selling a $125,000 souvenir from a 5 week vacation eh? Depending on how well our pit crew performs, we should finish the second half of our race in good ole Ohio. You need to remember that I have a wife who is great with child, and a two year old. If things go well we should make it in two days. If things go…..not so well…we should arrive by Easter. Either way, we will be excited to see our friends and family.

To all of my man friends remember our daily pledge…(stolen from the Red Green Show) “I am a man, I can change, If I have too, I guess.” Merry Christmas men. Here is to last minute shopping, eating till you throw up, and watching cheesy Christman movies to please the wife! Too all a good Christmas and too all a good night!

Sire’s Seven Questions!

This is a post that the three of you who read this blog will enjoy. It is a paper that I just finished for a class of mine. I will warn you now, it surpasses the length of Bryan Allain. Call it genetics, call it genious! I hope you enjoy!…..or maybe not. I cannot paste it into this site. Any ideas? Please help!

Igniting Change….

Secular vs. Christian

I really don’t know why I am writing this, except for the fact that the issue of  “secular vs. Christian” continues to come up time and time and never ending time again. I love church, I love “the” church. I believe that the church is the “apple” of God’s eye. However, I strongly believe that we are missing the intention of the “apple.” This whole concept of “secular vs. Christian” sets up a spiritual class system of  “us vs. them.” Think about it. In the past, and I do mean in the past. I used to think that a Christian who was listening to “secular” music was missing out on the blessings that God had for his life. He  was definitely not following after the heart of God or he would be listening to “Hillsong” 24/7. How ridiculous is that? So, basically what I was saying is that I am “more” spiritual than you. Because of what I do, I am better than you! I decided to overlook the whole, “It is by grace that you have relationship with God.” My salvation has NOTHING to do with my deeds, nothing. It has everything to do with who God IS. What HE did and continues to do! I think that the whole concept of “secular vs. Christian” is not a “purity” issue as much as it is a “control” issue. If I can get you to live your life according to a Christian check list, than I can be sure of where you are spiritually, or, what really happens is many, many, Christians can learn to play the christian game and never actually own their spirituality. They borrow our principals because of peer pressure and guilt. It is much easier to put regulations and “standards” on people than it is to disciple someone by teaching them how to make wise music, entertainment, food, movie, relationship, and lifestyle choices based upon what the Word of God actually says. Teaching people requires much more time than telling.

 And why is music the primary issue that is focused on. You can watch movies, as long as their not “R”, that are produced by non-Christian’s, with non-Christian actors. Yet you cannot listen to music by non-Christian’s with non-Christian musicians……do you see the hypocrisy, or as to not be so harsh, the confusion here. A prime example of this is a great friend of ours was going to use a song to illustrate something. The idea that was thrown out was the song “God Bless the Broken Road” by Rascal Flatts. Our friend said, “Better yet I can use the “Christian” version by the group Selah (I think). The “Christian” version is the same exact song, same exact lyrics, same exact tune. The ONLY thing that is different between the “secular” and “Christian” version is the band. I DON’T GET IT. By the way, I am not criticizing, I am trying to point out that it is time that WE need to start using our brains. How come we don’t talk about food, gluteny is a big deal according to scripture, what about paintings, tv, magazines, books…you get my point. If we are going to use the “secular vs. Christian” standard than use it consistently throughout EVERY area of your life. Don’t just pick and choose because one area will make you “look” more spiritual on the outside, even when you have serious issues on the inside.

The world is not scary. The world is ours to enjoy. The world is ours to change. Whatever is loosed on earth is loosed in Heaven. It is time that we start influencing this culutre by bringing Heaven to earth and stop being scared of it. Every person on earth is on a search for truth. All truth comes from the Creator. It does not matter if that truth is found in a secular song, painting, movie, or t.v. show. Enjoy your journey. My search for truth may take me down a different path than yours. Neither is wrong, they are both different. Love God, Love People, and Love Life!

Igniting Change….

That Time Of Year!

Wow, I cannot believe it is that time of year again. You know back to school time! At my age, back to school means nothing to me. Until now! You are looking…..reading the words of, the newest junior at DBU. That’s right, I am a college student…again. Pretty amazing. I was in Wal-mart today with many other students looking for those much needed school supplies. I think most of the students who saw me in the folder isle thought that I was a parent picking up supplies for my elementary student. Little did they know that this middle-aged white guy was picking up supplies for himself. That’s right! Eat your heart out Rodney Dangerfield cus I’m going back to school! In two short years I will have a degree and than……I will take over the world!

Serioulsy though…I am going back to school. My wife and I are moving back to Dallas,Tx. It has been a temultuous 8 months of our lives. Through it all we are learning a lot about God, ourselves, each other, and those around us. I wish that things would have turned out much different  than they have, but hey, what doesn’t kill ya makes you stronger….right? I will let ya’ll know! I’m going to the big “D” baby!

Igniting Change….