Famous

Amazingly enough, Dave Limina, Rob Hewitt and I were on TV today. We recorded some Christmas music with performing jazz artist Ellen O'Brien. One song was shown today and the other will be shown Christmas Eve morning. It was pretty fun and, more importantly, I am now famous. Click on the picture to watch.

How to Change the World

When you have a few minutes, check out this article at Christianity Today. It is a fascinating look at how a pastor to some of the poorest people in the world first had to gain the respect of these people before he could do any profitable ministry.

Though our situation is very different, the lesson Saul (the pastor) learned is the same. Saul says in the interview, "People need to see you're for real--that you really care for them, that you're even ready to put your life on the edge for them." How will people be compelled to trust in Jesus if they don't trust the people who are the deliverers of his message? What steps do you need to take to live this out? If you do, I think you'll be that much closer to changing the world.

"Walk in wisdom toward outsiders, making the best use of the time. Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you ought to answer each person," (Colossians 4:5-6).

My Top 5 Books For Christmas

With Christmas around the corner, Ryan suggested that I, too, should include some selected books for Christmas presents. I've tried to pick books from a vast array so that I may hit upon something that tickles your fancy. With that said, here goes:

1) The Jesus Creed by Scot McKnight. Intrigued by the Jewish context and practices that shape some of Jesus' interactions and stories? Then you'll love Scot McKnight who weaves these profound insights into his explanations of those stories. In this book, he writes about spiritual formation from Jesus' point of view because all spiritual formation ever written about is based on Jesus and what he taught. So Scot McKnight fleshes that out in a devotional format where he makes it short enough to read easily but long enough to give "aha!" moments. And now, I'm sunk because my secret source for some of these insights is out!

2) Great Short Works of Leo Tolstoy by Leo Tolstoy. I am still working my way through this profound work. Tolstoy has a way of shedding light on profound topics in sober ways. It is a collection of short stories that are short in the sense of about 150 pages where he explores death, lust, relationships, religion and other such topics. So whether you are deprived in great literature or a glutton for it, this is a great read.

3) From Dawn to Decadence: 500 Years of Western Cultural Life (1500-Present) by Jacques Barzun. For the history buff in your life, this is a New York Times bestseller and for good reason. But this isn't your typical trip through history. Barzun traces history through cultural shifts in "art and thought, manners, morals and religion, and the social setting in which these activities have been and are taking place." (Barzun's own word in his author's notes of the book). So some aspects of history are assumed in his writing, but it is still a worthy read, especially as a topic of discussion with a friend working through it concurrently. At least, that's how I made my way through it!

4) God Is Closer Than You Think by John Ortberg. If you've listened to a swatch of my preaching, you'll hear me say things like: "John Ortberg tells the story..." I am an admitted Ortberg guy. Why? Because he mentors me from afar as a teacher and preacher. Flat out, he's a great communicator, even with some of the most difficult concepts. This is just the latest one that I've read and again Ortberg is profound in pointing us how we might live with the understanding that God is with us, which, as Ortberg points out, is the most repeated promise in Scripture. There I go again!

5) Neither Poverty Nor Riches: A Biblical Theology of Possessions by Craig Blomberg. Ever felt completely guilty about money or what you own? Ever felt like money and material possessions were a black hole of uncertainty in your understanding of following Christ? Then this is the book for you! Written by a former professor of mine at Denver Seminary, Dr. Blomberg surveys the Bible from the Old Testament through the inter-testimental period and on through the New Testament to trove for how God would have us handle our money and material possessions. Without piling on the guilt nor excusing us from God's demands, Dr. Blomberg lays out the biblical case for money and its use in our lives so that we can wade out of uncertainty and intentionally practice God-honoring principles in how we use our money and possessions!

Any other suggestions? Any questions about the books?

Zion Bible College

Well, I had heard rumors that this was in the works, but now it is official. Zion Bible School (part of the Assemblies of God denomination) is moving into the old Bradford College in Haverhill. Check out the article in the Eagle Tribune. They are moving from their current location in Rhode Island. You can check out their website here.

The Youth at Place of Promise

After collecting non-perishables at GracePoint in November, Adam Herndon (our director of youth and family ministries) took the youth with him to deliver the bounty! Here's his version of the events...
"What a great experience we had two weeks ago. Upon arrival to the Place of Promise we received a very warm greeting from the residents and founder. The students were a little taken back by there greeting and openness. We had the opportunity to meet some of the residents prior to bringing in the food. Then the residents and the students worked together to bring all the food in. Once inside we went through all the bags to put everything into categories. As we were unpacking the residents and workers were so grateful and thankful for the food. This gave the students some real perspective on life. They had never seen anyone so grateful for everyday items before. It really opened their eyes to peoples needs even in their own backyards. As we were going through the bags the kitchen workers and owner were so excited to see every item on their list for their thanksgiving meal (that is for about 30 people) and then some. The entire time we were continually humbled by their thankfulness. The one thing that struck me the most was one of the kitchen workers excitement about a huge box of elbow noodles. He kept saying how much he had wanted some elbow noodles and even had been praying for some, That was a real answer to prayer for him, a box of elbow noodles, I wish you could have seen his excitement. How truly blessed we are, I can’t even image what it would be like to have elbow noodles on my prayer list. That was a truly humbling experience that keeps running through my mind. As the students were unpacking and the longer we were there talking with the residents, you could see a change in the faces of the students, they really saw the fact that they were meeting needs of these people. Afterward I took all the students to dinner and we processed, the students were so energized afterward and kept saying they want to go back there and help out some more. God did a work in the students heart that night. Please remember to keep these people in your prayers."

92 Year Old Extreme Evangelist

Wow.



HT: Hot Air

Science & Faith

It seems that the debate between science and faith gets more and more airplay every day. For Christians, the subject should be one we broach regularly and without fear. We worship a God who is the sovereign creator and sustainer of everything and studying our world only points us more directly to him.

But problems still remain. Questions still abound. Our dilemma, in large part, goes unresolved. How do we, as Christians, reconcile science and faith? I am hopeful that we will move forward on our journey this January and February as we wrestle with The Decisive Questions of Science and Faith. We are blessed to have the distinguished (and British) Steve Hill. A medical doctor, a CEO, and a master in religion, Steve will lead us to an area that will be, in the least, fascinating. Listen to him talk on this subject here.

Come out January 13th, 27th and February 3 at 9AM. Childcare will be provided.

CT's Review of The Golden Compass

Christianity Today's Peter Chattaway just posted his review and it is a good one. The important section for us, at least as we try and understand this movie from a Christian world view, is pretty interesting:

"And so we come to the film's treatment of religion. Serafina says the coming war—which, in the second and third books, is revealed to be a war against the Judeo-Christian God—will bring an end to "destiny" and establish a new era of "free will." What that means exactly is not spelled out, not in this movie, but we can get a sense of it from the fact that nearly all of this film's villains work for the church-like Magisterium, which spends much of its time "telling people what to do."

He Continues:

"The filmmakers have been at pains lately to say that they toned down the book's anti-religious content, and that may be true to the extent that the movie never uses words like "church" or "God." But the word "magisterium" does refer, in the real world, to the teaching authority of the Roman Catholic Church, and the film is still peppered with religiously significant words like "oblation" and "heresy," as well as a cryptic reference to "our ancestors" who "disobeyed the Authority"—that is, to Adam and Eve and their disobedience against God in the Garden of Eden."

As you know, I am comfortable watching some movies that others are not as long as I do so actively and not passively. This is one of them. (Make sure to read "The Family Corner" at the end of the article or check out Kids-in-Mind. As far as I can tell, this is not a movie for kids.) Much of the Christian community has serious reservations about this movie. I understand why and have those same reservations. The film's atheistic bent is obviously not a message we should esteem. But my reservations do not go so deep that I would avoid seeing it. In fact, this is a perfect film for Christians to engage and use to talk about Jesus. Your Christian friends may avoid this film, but those who do not believe surely won't.

Check out Jeffery Overstreet's great article on why we should not fear The Golden Compass.

Truth to Others

Here Piper explains some simple ways you can engage the Word in order to engage the World.

Top 5 Books for Christmas

With Christmas around the corner I thought I would give some suggestions for books you can give to friends, family, etc. this year. Steve will do the same later.

1. Pleasures of God by John Piper. I love John Piper. He has a way of characterizing God in a way that seems truer than most other characterizations: huge, glorified, awesome. I would recommend any of the his books for Christmas, but this one, by far, is my favorite. He'll answer for you the question, "Is God for us or himself?" (which I might blog on at a later date). The chapter on prayer is worth the price of the book.

2. The Radical Reformission: Reaching Out Without Selling Out by Mark Driscoll. Yes, Driscoll pastors a church in Seattle. But no, that is not why I love him. Other than Piper, he is my most influential "I have never met him" mentor and has affected my ministry, family and life in untold ways. A man's man, he preaches and teaches hard, direct truth to a city that, as he says, "has more dogs than Christians."

3. The Rise of Christianity by Rodeny Stark. As far as I know, Stark is not a Christian. But for some reason he has made it his work (at least in the last 10 years or so) to defend Christianity, making the claim that its presence has been for the good of the world, not the bad. His sociological look at history is provocative, illuminating and highly interesting. This is his first book.

4. God's Passion for His Glory: Living the Vision of Jonathan Edwards by John Piper. Ok. Only half of this book is by Piper. John Piper says all of the time that he says nothing new. He just repackages what older theologians have already said. And when I say old, I mean it. The first half of the book is a short biography of Johnathan Edwards, the 18th century pastor and theologian. Most historians call him the greatest American theologian ever (some call him the best, period). Piper paints his story well, a that life is both fascinating and tragic. The second half of the book is by Edwards himself, called "The End For Which God Created the World." Edwards is notoriously hard to read. However, Piper took the time to write out fabulous, informative footnotes to help. His book "The Pleasures of God" is based largely on Edwards'. I should say that the bio is an easy read, but the Edwards section is not for the faint of heart. But for those who are game, I guarantee that it will be rewarding.

5. Atlantis Found! by Clive Cussler. Dirk Pitt found me in the middle of Rome, Italy and accompanied me during many of our "siestas" (=taking breaks from looking at art). It was such a release to read something so easy and exciting after 8 years of college/grad school (yes, 8). I want to be Dirk Pitt someday.

Please post your suggestions, too.

How to Criticize

Mark Dever, pastor and author in Washington D.C., gives sound advice when giving criticism. As another blogger put it, it is not only helpful but convicting:

1. "Directly, not indirectly"
2. "Seriously, not humorously"
3. "As if it's important, not casually"
4. "Privately, not publicly"
5. "Out of love for them, not to express your feeling or frustration."

Here is the explanation of each of those points.

(HT: Andy Naselli)

Behold the Lamb of God

When it comes to music, I am a picky guy. I just like what I like. But I reach a new level of picky (=annoying) when Christmas season rolls around. I like subtle, quiet, well crafted songs done in new and interesting ways that provoke awe and wonder of Jesus. My favorites are A Charlie Brown Christmas and Shawn Colvin's Holiday Songs and Lullabies. Unfortunately, there just isn't a lot of quality stuff out there. Perhaps that has to do with the consumerist nature of Christmas. Sad.

Happily, I have a new album to recommend and it might turn out to be my favorite of all. It is by a relatively unknown guy named Andrew Peterson who pieced together a bunch of tunes over a few years. It is called Behold the Lamb of God. But this is more than a Christmas album. It is a history of Israel. He begins with the covenant of Moses, moves to a people who have sinned against God and need a savior, finally reaching the climax, the birth of Christ. This is significant because it tells the true story of God and Christ which, to my dismay, is not well known, even in the church.

So this is my Christmas album of the year. How can you beat biblical theology and good music wrapped up together? I commend it to you and hope it helps you make much of Christ this Christmas!

Here is a performance from the record by guest Derek Webb:

A Little Pastoral Humor

I couldn't resist it... This is a video of a baptism that inspired a couple of comments in my message about baptism on August 26th (check it out under the message series tab within the Questions series that is entitled Sprinkle, Dip, or Dunk?).

How I wanted to show this video as part of the message! Now's my chance!

A Discerning Movie Goer

I don't have kids yet. But when I think about them (especially my little girl that will be born in the spring), I think about how I will parent them. Will I be too strict? Not strict enough? This always leads me to think about entertainment. Magazines, TV, movies. It will all affect them in profound ways. Take movies, for example. How do we decide what is appropriate for our children? For that matter, how do we decide what is appropriate for ourselves?

A few years ago I decided that I was going to be a "discerning movie goer." I decided that rather than avoiding every movie that was rated PG-13 and above, I would see most movies, but do so with a two-fold purpose: (1) Be entertained and (2) Learn about life, culture and the world. That is what I hope to teach my kids. Yes, be entertained, but be discerning, too.

I hear people say that they watch movies to "get away." That is, they use the movie medium to escape their own reality and live in another one. To me, that means they "check out" and I think that is harmful. When we check out, we stop looking out for ourselves. When we check out, we fail to see how what we are watching affects our culture and then use that information to shape it for good. When we check out, I think that we are unable to, as Paul says, "Do all to the glory of God," (1 Cor. 10:31). It is usually the case that when you have decided to use movies purely for your own enjoyment, you will eventually watch anything.

What about the other side of the coin? Many think we should engage this medium in a very strict, controlled way. They would say that the movies we watch should reflect our Christian values. That means avoiding movies like "Harry Potter," "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind," and "The Golden Compass." Or, sadly, it means cutting a movie up, removing any harsh language or sexuality. I understand this point of view. However, it seems to me to be too extreme and, much of the time, is based out of fear.

As with most the things, the extremes are not where we should live. We should, to the best of our ability, use movies to engage those who do not yet know Jesus. That is why I try and be a discerning movie goer. I watch everything with a careful eye and ask myself what makes the movie, a scene or a simple piece of dialog important. What does this have to do with my life? What is this movie trying to say? Does it reflect a very narrow opinion or something much of the world believes?

We must not forget that movies are there for our enjoyment, too. But we can have discerning joy. What makes this movie good/bad? Can you follow the plot? is the cinematography and editing good? Did I like it?

Something that helps me in this process is reading what mainstream critics are saying. Also, though their arrival seems a few years late, there are some excellent Christian movie reviewers. To me, the best Christian movie reviewer is a guy named Jeffery Overstreet at Christianity Today Movies. He, as well as others there, deftly and discerningly watch and review most movies, bridging the gap between culture and Christianity. Their reviews are usually insightful, thought provoking, and illuminating, helping you understand movies in a Christian context. Beyond that, at the end of each review they detail what, if any, language, violence, or sexuality is in the film so you and your family can decide if it is right for you and/or your kids.

Movies are amazing. Who knows if they affect the culture more than they reflect it. Whatever the case, they should be viewed with a purpose in mind. Enjoy them. Discern them. Give God glory. I hope my kids benefit from that.

A Sneak Peek

I am really excited about the next series on the docket for our worship gatherings on Sunday morning! Why? Because it is an advent series where I'm going to try to take off some of that sentimental veneer that always surrounds Christmas.

Do you know what I mean? I know that in my own mind, I get so familiar with the Christmas story and the elements of that story that I miss how truly remarkable, messy, strange, and history-altering that whole story is. So as I was preparing this advent series, I wanted to take a really good whack at that sentimentality surrounding Christmas AND at the same time, return us back to some of the inspiring pieces of it.

So this series that will happen on December 16th, 23rd, and 24th centers on the courage within Christmas. The whole story is one of remarkable courage that hit me between the eyes as I thought about it.

Mary, a teenager (which gives a whole new connotation for youth ministry, wouldn't you say?!), is asked to give up her dreams for any sense of normalcy by bearing Jesus Christ in her womb. And when she's asked, she says, "Okay." How is that normal or sentimental? Her simple words of acceptance betray a ferocious courage.

Or there's Joseph, a righteous man, who says NOTHING (I never noticed that detail before). He's asked to go along with everything and give up his reputation to provide Jesus with the right lineage. In his silence, his actions shout volumes of courage.

And then there's God in the whole Christmas. He came to a poor couple who would live life on the outside of the mainstream. He came in the flesh and was laid in a manger of wood, only to be laid on a cross of wood. What remarkable courage to come so vulnerable and weak to live a life so fragile as to be hung on a criminal's cross! What courage to be "God with us" and change history as a result!

So let's peel off that sentimental veneer together and see the true courage that reverberates within the Christmas story. Because who knows... God may build that same courage within us as we follow Jesus.

Behind the Scenes...

One of the reasons for the creation of this blog was to give a peek behind the scenes at GracePoint so that you could be kept in the loop about the happenings, progresses, and structure. So I just thought of something that I have difficulty recalling whether we have communicated publicly... the organization chart. If your eyes just glazed over, go ahead and check other posts!

But this is the chart I think of when I think of how GracePoint is organized and how ministries and leaders within those ministries are connected within the whole. Some of the ministries and people are very visible, while others are completely invisible, but we'd crumble without either of them!

So a couple of thoughts here... 1) If a ministry piques your interest within GracePoint, now you know who to contact to get involved; and 2) If you want to thank people for the sacrifices they make within a ministry that enriches you, now you know who to thank. With that in mind, here you go!

A Look Back...

While I love the concise yet cryptic sayings of Jesus, they have been really tough to teach and to bring into our world. How do you take single, small phrase and teach it for almost 30 minutes without repeating it over and over and over again? How do teach them in a way that doesn't look like that 500 word essay given as a punishment to a student (you know, "I am very, very, very, very, very, very, very... sorry.")?

So along with the commentaries and other references, I came across some fantastic studies on the Sermon on the Mount and the Beatitudes in particular. These were literally this struggling preacher's best friends for this series. I leaned heavily into them for help (that's why you may have kept hearing me refer to the authors quite a bit). And as I finished last week's message on that seventh Beatitude ("Blessed are the peacemakers"), I was struck that there might be others who would want to go deeper and further in the Beatitudes and/or the rest of the Sermon on the Mount.

So here are those struggling preacher's best friend for this series. The first is The Christian Salt and Light Company by Haddon Robinson who is one of America's best preachers. The whole book is his take on Matthew 5 and is phenomenal in taking abstract concepts and making them concrete and real for life. A BIG recommendation from me on him and his book.

The second is The Sermon on the Mount: An Evangelical Exposition of Matthew 5-7 by D.A. Carson who is a leading New Testament scholar. The whole book is his take on the whole sermon and the Beatitudes place in them. While the book is a bit more on the terse side of explanation, his clarity and directness are excellent.

The third is Studies in the Sermon On the Mount by D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones who was a phenomenal preacher in England. This book is basically a collection of his thirty sermons of Matthew 5-7 that someone took down short hand while he preached them. So it is a weighty tome but definitely a spiritual classic as he explains and applies the Beatitudes (and the whole Sermon on the Mount for that matter) with an obvious agenda for the day and culture he lived in. A must for devotionally and reflectively engagement of the Sermon on the Mount.

The first two books are out of print, but a quick search on Amazon.com (do I get a commission for that plug?) for them will yield some used book versions of them. At least, that's what I did.

So have at it!

I Love My Job

Living in this area is truly amazing. People in our church do some of the coolest things. Case in point, Drew Nyssen.



Is that a Hypercolor t-shirt?