New Site, New Blog jonathanherston.com

It has been a long time, far too long since I've posted.  However, I am preparing to get back into the swing of things.  In preparation, I have rebuilt my website jonathanherston.com
I have migrated all of my posts from this blog to the new one, and will begin posting only on the new site from here out.  Thanks for your interest in my thoughts.  I hope you enjoy the new site.

Thanks,

Jonathan

Bell’s Hells - The thing beneath the controversy

There has been a bit of controversy surrounding Rob Bell’s new book I playfully like to call “I’m a Universalist and there is no Hell” (I like to call it that because evidently that should have been the title based off the reaction by a particular group that made all kinds of judgments about it prior to it’s actual release).  However, the actual title is Love Wins.  I thought about doing a post on the book itself once I had it read, but I’m not sure that we really need any more voices adding to the clatter.  And boy has there been a LOT of clatter.  So, first, I assume if you want to know what the book really says you will probably actually read it and think for yourself.  Second, I don’t presume to think that anyone cares what I personally think about it, although if you would like to hear my thoughts I’d be happy to share.  What I find interesting is not the book itself, it’s almost exactly what I expected.  Rather what I find interesting is everything that has happened in regard to it’s release.  But first, some caveats.  I’m trying hard not to defend nor condemn anyone, yet I don’t want to pretend as if I’m a completely neutral spectator, so let me tell you a bit about myself.

I first heard Bell at a youth worker’s convention almost a decade ago, and he was unbelievably good.  It was a bit as if he had been able to see into some of the questions I was wrestling with and articulate and explore them in a way that was extremely helpful in putting my finger on various tensions, yet he did not give me answers that closed the door on the conversations.  He left room for me to explore and take what he had said and go further with it.  In seminary I found the podcast from his church and have been listening each week for the last eight or so years.  I have a deep exposure and appreciation for him.  His work has challenged my faith and helped me grow in many, many ways, and for that I am deeply thankful.  So, yes I am a fan.

So, when I heard about his new book I wanted to find out what it was about.  My first exposure was actually all the blogs calling Bell a Universalist and saying that he doesn’t believe in Hell.  However there was a slight problem in that the book had not been released and none of the people making these comments had actually read the book.  Yet they had already decided what it must say (because evidently there’s no such thing as paradox or nuance).

Now, Bell has been known to be controversial.  However, I’ve personally never felt like he was trying to create controversy.  To be honest, some of the most controversial stuff I’ve seen from him has flown under the radar without anyone really knowing, realizing, or saying anything.  And, when controversy has indeed sprung up, I’ve never really understood it.  I honestly still don’t get the whole Velvet Elvis controversy regarding the virgin birth, he actually affirms it on the page following the line everyone uses to say that he denies it (for those who haven’t read it, he asks if it would destroy your faith if scientists were to find a way to absolutely invalidate the doctrine of the immaculate conception, he creates a hypothetical scenario to make a point).  However, when I saw what this book was about, my first reaction was that he had actually gone out and sought the controversy this time (however, having now read the book I honestly don’t believe that to be the case).  But, all kinds of questions and observations began to be raised for me.  First and foremost, my personal reactions.

My initial reaction was judgment, Rob’s gone off seeking controversy this time.  Second was a sense of betrayal, if he says anything too controversial in this book then people who have supported and/or defended him are going to feel betrayed (a bit like those who loved the Harry Potter series and defended it against a certain group then had Rowlings out Dumbledore as homosexual after the series was over).  I’m not one to hop into the comments and defend people.  For the most part it just makes all of us look bad. I’m not interested in that.  He can defend himself if he wants, and if he asks then I’ll join in the conversation, but I’m going to try to do it with as much openness and humility as possible.  Then third was a bit of rationality, (ok, what do I actually expect Bell to say?).  Now having read the book, I got pretty much exactly what I expected.  I haven’t quite figured out what to do with my reactions, but it does give me a bit of insight into myself.

Second, everyone else’s reactions.  There were all these people making all these comments, hateful, angry, venomous comments about something they had not read.  To which I have to ask the questions “What is really going on here?” and “Who Cares?”

I understand that Rob Bell has a large following, and a lot of influence.  And I’m sure this is why when he posts a video to promote a book and the video is ambiguous enough to say that Gandhi might not be in Hell there are people who are going to feel threatened.  I’ve said long before ever hearing of Rob Bell that I think we will all be surprised at who may be where after death and it isn’t my place to judge and try to figure out who is where (I do this mainly because that seems to be the position Jesus promotes).  However, if I were to write the book no one would care, John Piper would not tweet, and life would go on without skipping a beat.  So, there seems to be to be a real fear on the part of the critics, and understandably so.  Imagine for a moment that you really believe that the only way someone can get to heaven is by praying a prayer at 11:55 on a Sunday morning at a kneeling rail (or in front of a stage at a big youth concert type thing on a Friday/Saturday night).  Here is someone with a large following saying that it might not be that simple.  Well, that will mean that those people he has influence with might not try to convert people, which will mean that tons of people will not be saved and will burn in conscious physical torment forever.  If this is your perspective, than this is a big, scary, dangerous thing Bell is doing.  Anger in some ways is justified, trying to get the message out that he’s wrong is necessary.  However, what is done with that anger, and the means by which the message is refuted is REALLY important.

Because how we go about doing things is just as important as the things we do.

I’m not sure that the angry, venomous, malicious, slanderous ways that have been employed are helpful. Actually I think it’s working against them.  I honestly think all it’s done is help to get more copies of the book selling off the shelves, make them look bad, and make more people go, yep that’s why I want nothing to do with christianity.  

And honestly, I don’t blame them one bit.  If I were not so compelled by the Jesus portrayed in the scriptures I probably wouldn’t have anything to do with Christianity either.

But, it has been really interesting to watch the arguments that have been leveled against him start to leak.  With all the media coverage there are several people who have interviewed him based off of the comments made by people who had not read the book.  They ask him a question, he answers, then the reporter seems confused because he doesn’t seem to be saying the things of which he’s being criticized.

The other reaction I have to this whole thing is, “Who Cares?”  I think the only people who care about this whole thing is the big christian subculture.  I mean yes, he’s done these interviews on these big shows like Good Morning America, but don’t most of us work?  And even if we didn’t would we be watching Good Morning America?  I mean unless he’s on Conan I’m not going to catch it.  If he’s not on The Daily Show, Letterman, or Oprah is anyone outside the popular church subculture really going to notice?  I mean many christians don’t know who he is, is one book suddenly going to propel him to the point that all the non-christians are going to suddenly know who he is and begin believing as he believes?  I suppose that could change the trajectory of what the global church believes, but I find it highly unlikely (and I think the latter is happening anyway and he’s just one small part of it).  And if all these non christians were to figure out who he is, would they even care?  I hope so, but I kind of doubt it.  And, if you take a good church history class, you’ll find that he’s not saying or exploring anything that you won’t find has been part of the 2000 year christian conversation.  So, while I can understand why people could be upset, I’m just not sure it’s as big of a deal as people are making  it out to be.  

There just seems to be a lot of fear, and I think I remember reading somewhere that perfect love casts out fear.

Which brings me to another things about my own personal reactions.  I grew up in a fairly conservative theological framework.  And when you see the sorts of things that are going on in the world (earthquakes, tsunamis, nuclear meltdowns, rebellion after rebellion after rebellion in the middle east) it really reminds you of some of the apocalyptic saying of Jesus, along with that being the rise of false prophets that would be able to deceive even the elect if that were possible (my paraphrase).  Which could really begin to make one question if the dogwatch type critics could be right.  Is Bell arising as a false prophet in the end days?  However, Jesus also says that we know trees by their fruit, and we’ll know his true followers by the fruit their lives produce.  I’m not trying to make a judgment against anyone, but it does force me to wonder who really is the false prophets?  Although, maybe at this point no one is.

Because, while this whole controversy disturbs me in a million ways (which is why  I write about it) what I do like about this whole thing is watching how Bell handles it.  Two of the more controversial figures are Brian McLaren and Rob Bell.  They get attacked from all kinds of directions with all kinds of slander, and repeatedly they handle it with humility and grace.  I haven’t seem them get angry, fight fire with fire, and start slandering back.  They seem to know something, understand something that is far beyond me.  They seem to have found ways to take it and turn it into opportunities for grace.  Opportunities for them to become better as opposed to bitter.  On top of this, helping put an end to the most extreme suffering in the world seems to part of their primary focus.  And this is what compels me to continue to explore their works as I explore my faith.  I hope to become a fraction of the type of person these two people seem to be.  Now I don’t know either of them personally, however, if who they seem to be in any way reflects who they truly are, I along with a lot of others have much to learn from them.

Now, if for some reason you have been masochistic enough to read these narcissistic ramblings of mine and would like to comment I definitely welcome and appreciate that.  However, I do ask that they be open, honest, and respectful otherwise you’ll simply be making us all look bad and wasting your time.

Ash Wednesday Reflections

Ashes to ashes, dust to dust, from the earth you came, to the earth you shall return.

Ash Wednesday marks the beginning of lent, a 40 day preparation towards the cross and ultimately resurrection.  It is a time of preparation, it is a time of in some ways dying. 

Because death is the engine of life.

Unless a seed falls to the ground and dies it can never be anything more than a seed.  Lent is a somber time in which we make an inward journey, dying to self so that come easter we might find new life in some form.

But we hate when death comes around.  You get a phone call that a loved one has died, or you get a diagnosis from the doctor and suddenly everything changes.  What you thought you knew about life and faith all come into question.  You now find realities that you never imagined could even be possibilities.  Your world is shattered into a billion pieces and you don’t even know if the pieces can be picked up, much less where to begin. They are gone.  You are going.  

Everything has changed.

Death in this moment seems so big.  In an instant it is able to change your entire world.  And the life you lived, the faith you believed, the dreams you had held dear are gone.  You can never be that person, you can never believe quite the same as before, and those dreams are now no longer a possibility.  In this instant, you suddenly realize how precious and fragile life is and how quickly and easily it can be taken away and everything change.

And in this moment we have to decide how to react.  For many of us we become worriers.  We have come face to face with death, it has destroyed our life, and we know it will be coming again, it’s only a matter of time.  Each time a loved one doesn’t answer their phone your heart sinks and you think, ok, I knew it was coming.  We begin to take every precaution we can to keep death at bay.  We become fearful and serious.  Constantly afraid, constantly worried, constantly trying to control every aspect of life because we’ve lost control of it before and we are determined to do everything we can to keep from losing it again.

To keep from feeling that pain, that loss again.

When death comes near it bleeds onto us.  The loved one dies, but so do you.  You receive the diagnosis and you’ve got a certain amount of time left, but in that moment in many ways you died already.  

The question isn’t whether you die in those moments, you do.  The question is what kind of death do you experience?

Oddly enough when we are faced with death and we become aware of the frailty of life and the fact that we might not make it through today we actually begin to enjoy life less.  We let the fear and anxiety and worry overtake us, we try to control everything and in the process we lose the joy that makes life worth living.  It is in these moments that we should become determined to make each moment more enjoyable and meaningful precisely because it could all end tomorrow.

Lent is a somber time where we die in many ways, but the point of facing our mortality is that we will appreciate the life we’ve been given.  That instead of becoming bitter by our encounters with death we actually become better.  Instead of giving up when everything comes crashing down we realize that it is an opportunity to re-evaluate our lives, to figure out what’s truly important to us, and re-imagine what life could be like if we were to realign our lives around those most important things.  It is an opportunity to live a new life, discover a new faith, and dream new dreams.  

This doesn’t meant that we become glad tragedy has happened.  I’ve yet to meet a person who is glad that tragedy struck because of the new opportunities it gave.  Even if their life overall has become better because of it, most of us would still rather have that person back, or the additional time they thought they had.

Yet, with time we also begin to realize the truth of something that my father used to say regularly, 

“Death is a part of life.”  

Death comes.  It comes to our loved ones and it will come to us.  We can try to fight it, but no one cheats it.  Hopefully, our worst nightmares won’t come true.  However, if it does we want to make sure that the time we’ve had has been well spent.  And hopefully, if we truly learn to live life well, by the time it truly comes for us we can be ready and embrace it as an old friend,  

knowing that resurrection lies ahead.

Conan Announces Name Of New TBS Show!

I'm so excited about this, check it out.

Is Bigger Better?

“get ready, God is preparing you for something really, really small” – shane claiborne

In a moment of indiscretion I did something horrible in college. I applied to a large university. Now I really say that as a joke, because in actuality I don't have anything against this particular institution. As a matter of fact I rather like it a lot as well as it's cross state rival. However, I applied and was accepted to this institution and I thus I began the gauntlet of requirements being part of the school necessitated. Park in this are, then walk/run all the way across campus to get the TB test, then head over to a different corner of campus to file the change of address form, after that make sure to go see a counselor over at a different part of campus, then you can go back to your first area to actually register, etc. etc. And there was this sense that if I were to make one misstep in this horrible process filled with red tape that I was unworthy to be part of the institution. And of course no one was going to help in any way. Often times employees would refuse to give any clearer directions than go to the such and such building, which is great if you know which building that is and/or where it's at, no help at all otherwise. So I did everything. I did it all right, I filled out my change of address forms and moved just down the road from the school.

Then one day I received a notice that my classes had been dropped. I go to investigate and find that despite me doing everything right, they had sent my bill to the wrong address, and since it had not been paid my classes had been dropped. Now the classes were full and I could not get any of the classes I needed. This was all due to their mistake, they were even able to find the change of address form I had filled out and submitted.

At this point I decided I did not like being treated like a number rather than a person, so I transferred to another smaller school where people were helpful and you felt like a person.

Now I don't think institution number one is evil or anything like that, I simply believe it's large. And when things get too large people become smaller and smaller, worth less and less. There are great advantages to being large, but there are also drawbacks.

I think by and large in the U.S. we tend to think that bigger is better, and we fail to see the impact that small things can have. But over and again in the scriptures Jesus seems to refer to the Kingdom of God in terms of small or hidden things, bursting forth and changing everything else (mustard seed, etc). When we look at Jesus we see that he did draw large crowds, but it also seems like whenever the crowds really start to grow he begins to teach things that will thin them out (John 6).

I don't deny that God wants to do big things in our world. The mustard seed does grow and spread, the disciples were told they would preach in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and to the ends of the earth. However, I think that God might be even more concerned with the small things, that's where the big things begin. At the same time, a mustard tree only grows so large, then it reproduces. While the disciples were told that they would do big things, those big things were to happen through the making of other disciples.

Again, don't think I'm demonizing big. There are advantages that come with being big, I'm well aware of it. However, often the good that comes with being big comes at the cost of our humanity, so it's important that we find ways to grow smaller while/if we grow larger. Very often we forget that often times the big things that happen take place because of a few very dedicated people. Jesus' core was 12, um . . . make that 11 disciples and a few women. And yet they completely changed the world as we know it. I think Mother Theresa said it best, that we can do no great things, only small things with great love. But that small things with great love can change the world.

Update

About a month ago I started a new blog series that I hope to continue in the not too distant future. It's full of really good stuff. However, shortly after I started it a lot of things happened and life has become quite hectic. So, for all our friends out there I just wanted to give a quick update.

Over the last month Katie has truly started her new job as well as another semester of evening classes in pursuit of her Master's Degree. Cari started Kindergarten, so we are working diligently on learning our letters and simple words. I turned 30 and collected money to help provide clean water for people in Africa who could likely die without it. Also, I've been independently ordained thanks to some great friends, Don Brock and the great folks at Synergy Ministries, thank you so much, it means more to me than you know. My Parent Project® classes have started and are going well which takes up another evening, and I got called from a local community college to teach an Ethics class which I am absolutely loving. It may not pay much, but I can't remember the last time I've actually earned money for having so much fun. On top of all of this, I plan to start a small business doing full service web hosting and site design. I have to wait until September to get a business license, but getting everything done on that has been taking some time as well. The plan is to offer web hosting for $5/month. However, what I'm really excited about is that I want to offer to churches a full service package where I do a custom site build to what they're looking for and I do updates each week for $30/month. With a one year agreement I will build the site for free. My hope is that I will be able to help small churches that don't have the money or technical resources to have a quality site that is regularly updated get exactly what they want and need that the large churches pay thousands of dollars for.

So, life is hectic but really great. Once we get more into the rhythm of all these new schedules and adjustments I'll try and continue the series.

Luke 15 Critiquing the Pharisees Part 1

As I previously mentioned I am starting a series of blogs about some of the parables of Jesus. Several of these stories have really captured my attention in unique ways for some time, and I wanted to share some of the dynamics and insights I've found within them. Some of the posts will be long, others will be extremely short. And of course I'd love to hear your thoughts along the way, get to share in the things that you've found that I've missed. So with that said, let's get started. The first parable (or set of parables) I want to talk about is found in Luke 15, the familiar parable of the "Prodigal Son."


The parable of the man with two sons commonly called the Prodigal Son doesn’t actually begin at verse 11. In actuality it starts no later than verse 1. This chapter begins with a scene in which Jesus is teaching and “tax collectors and sinners” were gathering to listen to him. The Pharisees and teachers of the law are grumbling about the kind of company Jesus welcomes and eats with. It is in response to this grumbling that Jesus tells three parables. The first is a parable concerning a lost sheep, the second is a parable about a lost coin, and the third is a parable concerning lost sons. These stories are interesting in that they serve in very subtle ways to both justify Jesus’ activity while simultaneously condemning the activity of the religious leaders of the day.

Question: Why is the sheep and the coin lost? Now certainly sheep can wander off, but by and large sheep tend to flock together, they’re followers. That’s why you wouldn’t want to mix sheep and goats. Goats wander, sheep follow. This doesn’t necessarily have to be a critique against the shepherd, but certainly could be especially in light of the second parable about the lost coin. Unlike animals, coins don’t simply wander off. The coin is obviously lost due to mismanagement (unless of course she has a two year old, in which case this would be completely understandable). How does someone lose a day’s wages?

Jesus is obviously defending himself, he is the one going off after those who are “lost.” But, could this also be a critique against the religious leaders of his day?
As we move toward the parable of the two sons we will see that lostness can occur for multiple reasons. But, looking at these two parables together we find that one reason for lostness can be mismanagement. Could it be that Jesus is saying to the religious leaders of his day that he wouldn’t have to be the one finding the sheep or coin if they had done their job correctly to begin with?

Herston 30 for 30

A bit of an update. I know it's been a bit since I've blogged. For anyone who might have been looking for a post, sorry. I've got something in the works that is going to be some good stuff, so don't give up on me. I've had several specific parables of Jesus that have just been returning to me over and over again over the last few years, and I want to spend some time dwelling on them, learning what you get out of them, and sharing some of the things I've gotten as they have been brought back to me over and over again. So, besides working on this series of posts what have I been up to? Glad you asked.

I've posted about this a couple of times, but I've been quite busy with some different things one of which being my 30 for 30 campaign. My hope is that other people's lives will be better because I existed. That there will be people who live because I lived. In short, in some small way I want the world to be a better place because I'm a part of it. So, with my 30th birthday coming up what better than to ask friends and family to give toward building a well in Africa. $1 = clean water for 1 person for 1 year. $5000 = a well providing clean water for a village for generations. That means I need 150-175 people to give $30 each for my 30th birthday (not including my personal contributions). If you feel generous feel free to give more. To learn more visit www.30for30.jonathanherston.com

Controlling Life

I've been reading this book, and it's full of wonderful information. At the same time it comes from a "christian" perspective and the scripture work in it is pretty horrible a lot of the time. It spot quotes verses, takes them out of context and tries to make them mean things different than how they were really intended (and I don't mean in a that scripture is kind of but not really related to that kind of way, but in a that has nothing to do with what you're talking about kind of way). Normally I would put the book down and walk away, but this one was written by psychologists, and as I said the information (beyond the scripture work) is really good. I'm finding it helpful to me and I would imagine it would be to plenty of others that I know. So, I've continued reading, but it has gotten me pondering all kinds of questions about "Christian" perspectives.

On top of reading this book I've had a couple other experiences recently. I came across a blog post where both "Christians" and "Atheists" were posting comments. And, I came across a couple of presentations done by skeptics and scientists. And I've begun to notice something. I'm noticing that a lot of times our perspective on the world isn't about truth as much as faith, and it isn't as much about faith as control. Let me unpack this a bit.

We long to understand life. We want to know the best way to live, how to live and move in the world. We want success, ease, joy, comfort, excitement, and all the other good life has to offer. There's this sense that if I can figure out life, the key to it, the secret, then I can make the most of it and be happy. And we're bombarded by a million perspectives and according to each it is offering the fundamental rubric through which we are told we should ground our being. We can pursue money or power, fame or success, excitement, experiences, adventure or any number of perspectives that can serve as our lens for trying to understand how to conquer life.

And that's what it's really about, control. Some of us are afraid, so we pursue safety. We think if we can just keep things from going wrong everything will be ok. We buy insurance thinking that things will be ok no matter what, because I've got insurance and supplemental insurance. Others pursue fame. We think that if enough people know us, then we will have significance and fulfillment. Others pursue success. We think that if I do something of worth then I'll be of worth. Or, money will allow me to do what I want, then I'll be happy. Or, excitement and adventure will bring me a rush and I'll feel like I'm truly alive.

And to be honest, I'm not ever sure what exactly it is we're seeking. But, we have this sense that there is some kind of void in our lives and we need to do something to get rid of it.

Now, the anchors beneath all of these perspectives tend to gravitate around either religion or science. Either what we see and can measure and test is all that there is or there's something more. One of these two tend to lie underneath whichever perspective(s) we choose. Something is going to be the thing through which all that we do will be grounded, thus both are a type of faith. What we're looking for we tend to find. How else could such brilliant people come to such different conclusions on almost everything (I'm thinking specifically about a debate I recently saw between two unbelievably intelligent men regarding whether moving toward nuclear energy is a good idea or not - and they directly contradicted each other in their basic statistical information. In the end it seems to comes down to an in faith value judgment on the part of each.)

Science is concerned with the "natural world". And because of it we've learned much and made great advances. We need reason, we need science because it pushes us toward truth. It doesn't accept doctrine or myth. Thanks to science the faith of the Church is more accurate. We know that the Earth isn't the center of the universe like we once thought, like our interpretation of scriptures once said it had to be. At the same time most of us have this nagging sense that something isn't completely right about science. We don't completely trust it because yesterday's miracle drug now has law advertisements telling us that if we took that drug and developed a certain condition we are entitled to a settlement. We're hesitant to completely trust science in a world where today's dream come true miracle medicine could be tomorrows nightmare. We have this depths of our bones understanding that love is more than chemicals in our brain, I, my conscious self, am more than simply mind meat, and in between those two realities, the tangible and the intangible, the scientific and the philosophical lies something real, something meaningful. So, we look to religion.

But, oftentimes popular "Christian" culture doesn't seem to help. Between the tangible and intangible lies an unspeakable mystery. Yet by and large we aren't invited to step into it. Rather we are given easy answers to questions for which there are no easy answers. Life is wild, it can't be controlled. The Divine is untamed, beyond us in such a way that we never know what to expect. Yet, instead of admitting this and inviting people to delve into the mystery, into the wonder, we offer a religious science of "timeless principles" that are "true" because "the bible says so" all the while forgetting that scripture is always interpreted, rarely does it ever just "say so." Or, we take something God once spoke to someone and we take that as a promise for us here and now, because if it's in the bible it must be for me specifically. But, because scripture is always interpreted, what's really being offered isn't the mysteries of God and the universe, but rather just another perspective filled with over-simplified answers to make us feel like we are in control of life. And that's really what lies underneath all of this, our fear and anxiety and attempts at controlling both life and God. We do everything we can to place life and God in our little box of timeless truths and eternal promises. But, God cannot be tamed and life is beyond our control. We can influence life, but we can't control it. There are truths, but we will be infinitely exploring them because they are mysteries too large for us to attain. Much of what we talk about as truths are more like guidelines, things that will work by and large, but not something that is a guarantee. Because we were never intended to be in control. We are to guide and direct and influence, but you can do everything right and things still go wrong.

But, what I think I'm beginning to learn might be that learning to control and conquer life isn't the point. It's fools gold that only disappoints. Some of the perspectives will work for some people, some will work for others, and some will only work for a little while. But, all they allow us to do is stay so busy that you run from the void. If controlling life isn't the point, what is? I don't know, I'm in my twenties and live in Alabama. I don't even really understand the theory of relativity. But, I'm pretty sure finding the point begins with embracing the mystery between the tangible and intangible. It involves going beyond the easy answers on both sides of the tangible/intangible coin to that place where something real and significant lies. There is something meaningful in searching and living, in joy and wonder. Good can be produced even out of bad. Living is really about being open to what's happening around you here and now, communing with the untamable God at this moment, and trusting that whatever chaos life throws your way this God is bigger than it. It's about learning in the midst of it all to trust this God and ground your life in your connection with this large, wild, untamable Being who often can be found in the most ordinary of places and moments. Even this one.

On Business Marketing

I'm not much of a fan of advertising, by and large I'm against marketing. I struggle with the balance between making sure things are known about and much of the manipulation that goes on in marketing today. I want to know when a product I'm excited about is being released, and I always enjoy a funny commercial. But, ads are designed to capture (and steer) your emotions. I fear that having so many ads telling us that our lives are deficient (until of course we buy their product) has a negative psychological impact on us. And of course the products never deliver what the ad promises implicitly or explicitly (I've never enjoyed Herbal Essence shampoo as much as the people in the commercials). And I've been amazed that the message has gone from implicit to explicit. The, "buy our product and you will be happy" message used to be implicit, but with the recession all that has changed. Walmart - Save Money Live Better, Best Buy - Buy Happy, and the list goes on.

In a world where many businesses are solely about the bottom line, so much so to the point of down right being unethical, there has also been what is for me a welcomed trend. There have been businesses springing up that aren't simply about making money, but also making the world a better place. For example, when you buy a pair of Tom's Shoes a child in a third world country gets a pair as well. This mindset has begun to spill over onto marketing strategies.

I recently discovered HotelsCombined.com who is doing something I think is a stroke of creative genius. Instead of spending their money on a traditional marketing campaign they are donating that money to charities. So, I join their facebook page then write on their wall where I want their donation to go, or post a tweet that contains HotelsCombined.com in it, or I do a blog post like this and send them an email to make them aware of it, and they send a donation to the charity of my choice.

As you may know, I'm trying to raise money to build a well in Africa for my 30th birthday, so I've begun the Herston 30 for 30 campaign. The idea is that I invite friends to share in my 30th birthday by giving $30 to blood water mission with Herston 30 for 30 in the comments box. So, I have facebook, I have tweeted, and now I have blogged, and they should be sending $35 to Blood Water Mission on my behalf.

I know very little about this company. I haven't used their service (although I did do a quick hotel search on their site and found some pretty good prices). I can't vouch for them beyond what I think is a brilliant marketing campaign. But, for me that is enough to give them a try next time I'm shopping for a hotel. I just find it inspiring to see a company think beyond traditional marketing and use that money to support good causes. If you would like to have them donate to your cause go to http://www.hotelscombined.com/Charity.aspx

iPhone 4, Technology, and Relationships

I've always been fascinated with gadgets, but I am a fan of very few products or companies. However, after working with/on computers for a few years I was really impressed when I experienced the OSX Mac. Since I knew Windows well I was afraid I wouldn't know what to do when when a Mac broke. Therefore I waited until they came out with Macs using the Intel Chipset so I could put Windows on it if I needed. But, I was so impressed with how much better it operated that it drives me crazy to use a PC with all it's freezing and crashing. If there were to be an operating system problem I still wouldn't know what to do, but after several years with this machine I haven't had to. So, I'll admit, I am a fan of Apple.

At the same time, I'm aware that Apple is not perfect, it is a company, it's out to make money. They tend to leave a few bugs in their first generation so that they can improve it for the next (like the recessed headphone jack on the 1st gen iPhones). This (along with money) is why I don't plan to get a 1st gen iPad. I figure I'll let them work out the bugs and we can get a 2nd generation or something. I'm still disappointed about the downgraded iMovie I was stuck with last time I upgraded iLife. But, faults aside, they do make darn good machines and I'm a fan. I love my 1st gen iPhone (even with the depressed headphone jack), I can have my iPod and phone all in one device, there's a full keyboard, and the calendar is fantastic and syncs with the one I use on my Mac.

I am really excited about the new iPhone 4. An led flash for the new 5 megapixel camera, taking HD video (and being able to edit it on the phone), the new display, and especially "facetalk" where you can actually do Jetson's or Skype type video phone calls from a mobile phone - finally, unbelievable. I think this is going to be an amazing device. I would love to get one, and anyone reading is more than welcome to purchase one for me.

Being a techie, I love technology, but I also realize that often our discoveries technologically tend to progress faster than our discoveries ethically. I love the idea of being able to video call with the family if I'm away somewhere, or be able to see what friends are seeing as they are on a trip. At the same time I'm slightly disturbed by what this could mean. I watched their ad and saw a father watching his child crawl, grandparents watching a grandchild graduate, a father watch an ultrasound, and I couldn't help but think, why are they having to use a video phone? Why aren't they there, why aren't they present?

The answer, because they don't have to be. They have a video phone and now they can give their presence to the things that are really important to them while not being completely absent from the relationships that matter most. I know that's a little harsh, it's really just to make this point, does technology actually expose our priorities? I understand there are times when we can't be somewhere and having this technology would be great. I have a cousin who had a birthday party the weekend before last and I couldn't make it. It would have been great to be on the other end of a video phone and be passed around to everybody and quickly catch up. But, the only way I would not have been there for my kids ultrasounds would have been if I didn't have a pulse.

Most of what we communicate does not come through our words, rather it's how we say it. The medium we use is the message. An extreme example: Have a nice day written on a card communicates one thing, having it written on the side of a bomb communicates something completely different. Calling someone on their wedding day let's them know your thinking about them. Driving five hours to be at the wedding, tell them congratulations, and give them a hug communicates something similar only in a more powerful way.

Technology has the ability to help us keep in touch with people. This is why I enjoy facebook, blogs, and twitter. But, they can only do so much. As Dr. Barnhardt says, they are great for maintaining relationships, keeping in touch, but they have a hard time actually strengthening or deepening relationships. And, if you're spending twenty minutes checking the status of hundreds of friends, that's twenty minutes that you're not spending with the people that are actually there, present with you in that moment.

So, don't get me wrong. I think the new iPhone is going to be awesome. I would love to get one. I love the part of the ad where one guy talks about his kids going off to college and him being able to not only hear their voice but look at their eyes and make sure they're ok. I'm a fan of technology and love that it can do wonderful things.

At the same time there is also the possibility that instead of us running the technology the technology will run us. There is the possibility that we will be connected to so many people that we won't truly be connected to anyone.

Exciting News

As you may or may not know we have been in a bit of a time of transition the last couple years. This has pressed me into a bit of soul searching that I'm still in the midst of. But, in this process I am forming values and goals for myself which hopefully you'll hear about for years to come. I want to invite you to be a part of one of my first endeavors.

One of my great hopes is that when my life ends this world will have been a better place because I was a part of it. Like the boy saving starfish on the beach to whom the old man says there are too many for you to save them all and the boy responds but I can save that one, I know that I cannot save the world from all the things that plague it. I know that compared to all the issues in the world my impact will be small. However, I also have come to realize that the people who are truly changing the world would never say they were. They simply engage in the hard drudgery that matters most. Hopefully, while people will not be able to say that I changed the world, there will be people who will be able to say that I changed their world.

I think the greatest impact that can physically be made on our world is that of providing safe, accessible water in places where people are having to walk miles to gather water from contaminated mud holes and engaging the third world in microfinance initiatives.

Therefore, for my upcoming 30th birthday I am asking my friends not to give me presents. Instead I want as many people as possible to give $30 toward providing clean drinking water for those without it through Blood Water Mission. Of course if you are welcome to give more if you want. But, if 200 people give $30 each we should be able to build a well for a village.

The basic formula is that $1 provides clean water for 1 person for 1 year (that's less than the price of one bottle of water at most gas stations or a quarter of the price of a bottle of water at Starbucks - just kidding I don't know how much water costs at Starbucks, who would buy water when there's vanilla bean frappuccinos?). So, what we're able to do will depend upon how much is given. But, I would love to see us raise enough to create a solution (maybe build a well) that will provide water to a village for generations.

I'm sure we'll have some sort of party that you can give at, but if you would like to give online click here or go to www.bloodwatermission.com click on the donate tab, and put "Herston 30 for 30" in the comments box. All donations are tax deductible, so don't feel constrained to only giving $30.

Make my 30th birthday a happy one and save some people's lives.

Jason Mraz is right or The movement of faith and why prosperity preaching is wrong

This is a post that leans heavily on Luke Chapter 8, so you might want to read it before or after.  I primarily use the TNIV version here, and I have put letters in bold for those who want a quick reference for the various streams of thought P for path, R for rocks, T for Thorns and G for good.  With that said, here we go.

A farmer once went out to sow some seed.  (P) As he was scattering the seed some fell along the path where birds came and snatched it up.  (R) Some fell among rocky ground where it sprang up quickly but when the sun would bear down, it would also wither quickly because it had no root.  (T) Some fell among thorns, so they grew but they didn’t produce because the weeds choked the life out of them.  (G) Then some fell on good soil and produced more than was originally sown.

Jesus told this parable then explained that he was the farmer sowing the seed of the message of the Kingdom of God.  (P) He said that the seed that fell along the path is about people who hear the message but “the evil one snatches it away from their hearts” (primarily they don’t want to hear it or they are caught in behaviors they don’t want to give up).  (R) The seed that fell among rocky ground are those who at first receive it with great joy but when trouble or persecution come they quickly fall away.  (T) The seed that fell among the thorns are those who accept the message but then “the worries of this life and the deceitfulness of wealth” choke it.  (G) The seed that fell on good soil are those who “hear the word and understand it.”  They are the ones who produce a crop, more than was originally sown.

In this parable I see a few things going on here.  In pastoring churches and in my life I have noticed some patters to faith.  (P) God speaks to everyone, however everyone isn’t listening.  At the same time, some of us are.  

(R) Now, I’m not 100% sure of what all contributes to this, maybe it’s the really great personal stories we hear, maybe it’s the idea that we accept Jesus then whenever we die we go to heaven and escape trouble and that idea of escaping trouble then somehow bleeds over into ideas about our relationship with God here and now, maybe it’s an American pre-disposition, or maybe it’s the christian culture bubble and prosperity preaching, I don’t know.  But usually along with learning of God’s love for us we also get a message of, “If you’ll get your act together and get cool with God then everything will go well.  You will prosper, God will protect you, your family, and your friends, and you will be happy.”  The problem is, it’s not true.  

In Matthew, Jesus gives the sermon on the mount.  At the end of this unbelievably extraordinary  teaching he says that those who hear his words and put them into practice are like a man who builds his house upon rock.  And when the storms come his house will stand firm.  It doesn’t say that there will be no storms.  Storms are assumed, it’s about being able to weather them.  

Somehow we manage to read a lot of great things in the scriptures about people following God and things going well for them, but we miss their struggles along the way.  We see the day of Pentecost and miss the martyrdom of Stephen.  No one more fully walked with God than Jesus and he was crucified!  Almost all the disciples were eventually killed for their beliefs and somehow we miss that and think that Jesus is our life’s easy button.

And it’s one thing for us to pick this up on our own, but when we have churches and preachers who tell you this specifically and it doesn’t happen people walk away from church, faith, God, and the whole thing.  We often become cynical and jaded and it didn’t have to be that way.  Prosperity preaching is stuck in the early part of the process of faith, and it produces type two soil (rocky ground).  (R)(T) But, someone somewhere figured out that if they told people what they wanted to hear they would show up, watch their program, buy their books, and/or give.  It’s the easy shortcut.  We can have the best of intentions and yet choose the shortcut, go about the right things in the wrong ways, see success and at the same time leave devastation.  This is why pastors, churches, and denominations can not seek effectiveness or success as their goal (and I’m defining effectiveness as bodies, budgets, buildings and/or saving an institution of a local church or denomination).  Pursuing success leads to shortcuts.  It is counter productive and brings devastation.  However, pursuing faithfulness leads to fruitfulness (forgive my old preacherly cliche alliteration demons coming out). 

But, this is part of the process of faith.  (R) We hear of God’s love and we accept it with joy thinking it’s all going to be good now, then trouble comes.  And the question becomes do we stick with it?  Do we continue to turn in the direction we have begun, toward God rather than away?  Do we decide that we must have had some beliefs wrong at this part of the process and seek to understand struggle and brokenness in the faithful life?  Or, do we walk away from the whole thing?

After the joy phase comes the struggle phase.  (T) And after the struggle phase comes the worry phase.  At this point we’ve seen that what we thought before, that God would keep storms from coming, is false.  We have this sense that anything in life that can happen can happen to us.  Cancer, car accidents, anything that can happen has the potential of happening to me regardless of whether I’m walking with God or not.  Our simple binary understanding of, walk with God only good things will happen, don’t walk with God only bad things will happen, has been destroyed.  We had given our lives to God, but God didn’t come through, didn’t protect us, and while we might not have completely rejected the whole God thing, we came to some kind of understanding that this world is broken.  Good and bad happen to everyone.  

And we begin to realize that you can take the shortcut and succeed, that sometimes the wicked do prosper.  In this moment we are faced with a new temptation.  We may or may not still believe and affirm creeds, but the temptation becomes to take our lives back in the ways we live it in the day to day workings.  

I love the way this is worded, “the worries of this life,” and I particularly love this phrase, “the deceitfulness of wealth.”  Jesus is adamant that there is more to life than this life.  And I know this has been used in the most trite and cliche of ways, but part of the key for Jesus is realizing there’s something bigger going on than our small little lives we get lost in.  God is up to something bigger than the things we worry about and according to Jesus (and Paul) if we’re on board with God, in the end, in the bigger story, in the life beyond this life, it’s all going to work out.  At some point everyone dies, but in the end everything will belong, none of the pain and tragedy will have been wasted.  

Our job is to live in such a way that we bring heaven to earth (think, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven).  Money makes us feel secure, it makes us feel safe.  But, according to Jesus it’s a deception.  All the money in the world won’t save you or your family or your friends from tragedy.  If or when the worst happens, it isn’t going to matter how fat your bank account is.  And it is this worry, this pursuing of safety and security and wealth that can get us lost in our little lives and contribute to the brokenness of the world. These are things that can drive heaven from earth.

(G) But, our other option is to continue to turn as we did to begin with.  To continue to seek to understand this message of the kingdom.  The word repent literally means to turn or return.  Jesus’ primary message was to turn or return because the kingdom of heaven is near.  It’s a perpetual turning.  When we think we’ve got it all figured out and we quit seeking, we quit exploring, we shut ourselves off from this kingdom.  At the same time it is a continual returning, returning toward the God who creates and loves us, and returning the world to the way God intends it to be.  If we can do this, if we can continue to explore, if we can continue to patch the holes in our understanding of this faith that is bigger than our comprehension, if we can press on beyond the fallacies that we become aware of as the struggles come, as we’re tempted to take the easy way, as we’re tempted to take the shortcuts and false safeties, if we can press on beyond the struggles, the worries of this life, and the deceitfulness of wealth, then and only then do we truly produce a crop.  

And what we will find is that just like the seasons, troubles come and troubles go.  Everyone experiences good and bad.  Everyone dies at some point.  Tragedy befalls us all at some time or another.  We can worry about it and expend a lot of energy, but we are really quite limited in what we can actually do to prevent or stop it.  We can seek after money expecting safety but we will find that it fails.  And through this process we will find that it is this very process itself that cultivates the heart into good soil.  That by “persevering” through this process a crop is produced.

This is the pascal mystery.  This is the story of the God who became flesh and dwelt among us.  The one who teaches and shows us how to bring heaven to earth, who walked more closely with God than any other, and despite doing everything right suffered and died.  It is only through this experience only through that death that resurrection occurred. 

And here’s another thing, the gospels were brilliantly written with unbelievable intentionality.  If we look at this parable in Luke (ch. 8) what we see are direct examples of each of these types of soil in reverse order. (G) First is in a parable of a lamp on a stand (good and noble heart that understans/good soil that produces a crop).  (T) The second is Jesus’ mothers and brothers who are caught up in the worries of this life (seed among thorns/weeds).  (R) The third is the disciples caught in the storm (troubles/seed on the rocky soil).  (P) And the fourth is a man who is possessed by demons (engaging in various “sinful” behaviors was believed to open one up to demon possession, which would be hearing the word but having it snatched away by the evil one or the seed among path).  

Now in the parable itself the view is somewhat negative, most of the seed doesn’t produce.  Yet in the stories that follow no matter which type of soil they were, in reality Jesus was bigger than their issues.  Eventually Jesus’ mother and brothers believe, Jesus calms the storm and the disciples go on to do great things, and Jesus drives the demons out of the man (and history goes on to tell us that his witness leads to one of the major early churches).  It’s as if Luke is telling us, no matter where you are in this process it’s never too late.  

Then, as if to drive this point home, he tells us of a story of Jesus bringing a dead girl back to life and healing a woman who had an issue of bleeding for years. She had tried every option and was now hopeless beyond Jesus.  If it were ever too late, it would be too late for these two.  And yet, Jesus is bigger than even their problems, even death.  It’s as if Luke is telling us that with Jesus it is never too late.  You can always turn, you can always return.  Don’t give up, there is more to life than this life and Jesus is bigger than whatever your problems or hang-ups or, or wherever you are stuck in the process.

If you’ll just keep turning, what you’ll find is that, just like you have to turn soil in order to make it able to produce vegetation, in this process you are turning the soil of your heart.  It won’t be easy, bad things will happen, and the temptation to take your life back into your own hands will overwhelm you through the pain.  But, in then end none of it will have been in vain, nothing will have been wasted.  Everything belongs, all of life is a gift, and that resurrection is waiting.  In the words of Jason Mraz, life is wonderful.

Conan O'Brien's Dance off with Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert

Are theological differences really about theological differences?

So I've been "reading" a book, and by reading I mean skimming to get to one or two specific parts, and it's not my favorite. There's the religious language and just comes from a place that's kind of unappealing to me (for the most part, not completely). And it's not that those things are bad, it's just not my cup of tea. A lot of people would really enjoy it. Anyway, they did make an argument that I found really interesting.

They are reflecting upon some of the formulations of Christian doctrine, specifically whether Christ was in essence the same as God or in substance the same as God. While they're doing this they argue that the debate wasn't really about doctrine. Underneath the doctrine question was really a quest for power. You have two factions levying for power. Who will history deem right? Who will win and be able to lead this thing? The doctrine question was the symbol of this power struggle. Whoever won this battle won the war.

Now, this may be an oversimplification, and I'm sure each side had a lot invested theologically. But, I also know that usually things are rarely about what they seem to be on the surface. This is always about that. So, it makes me wonder if it's the same today. Are the factions within the Jesus faith really about the differences in doctrine, or are they really about power and the future? We look on these ancient debates and go, who cares, that's stupid to argue about, why are they even concerned about this? And I wonder if people will say the same about the "big" debates we have now. "Free will or predestination, that was stupid why were they arguing about that? Oh that was really about these different sides levying for power or self-justification, or fear that they might be wrong."

Love Your Enemies Video

Beliefs and Relationship

Sam is potty training. Therefore I read him a book, Everybody Poops, I asked him some questions about it which he got right, and I declared him potty trained. That is ff course until he pooped his pants. And in that moment I had a brilliant flash of insight, discovering something long forgotten that no one has knowing in 500 years, knowing about pooping in a potty and actually being trained to use the potty are completely different things. Donald Miller had a blog post yesterday in which this was a bit of the point.

Donald Miller created a post about right theology versus relationship. His basic argument from my understanding is that he wanted to show how right beliefs about God are different from a relationship with God - his post can be found at http://donmilleris.com. Another blogger came across the post and crafted a well reasoned argument for a more holistic understanding of the word theology, that given the meaning of the word theology it should include relationship as opposed to being place in opposition against it, as merely intellectual exploits concerning God- that post can be found at http://agreatercourage.blogspot.com.

In my opinion it appears that maybe Miller stumbled upon a matter of personal importance to agreatcourage who may or may not have inadvertently taken some angst on the subject out on Miller. I know neither of the individuals personally therefore I have no right to really take a side on the subject. Unfortunately some people have been offended and hurt in the process. I don't bring this up to "stir the pot." I hate that people have been hurt and hope that everyone can come to some kind of healing and reconciliation.

Actually I do this because I think both a of these people are extremely intelligent and articulate, much more so than myself. Both posts have great points at their core and I want to make those available for anyone who would like read them. Blog posts are not books, and I try to receive them in the fashion I create them, as not fully formed thesis on a topic, but a means of exploring with those interested ideas or concepts I'm thinking about and/or wrestling through at any given time. I hope for them to challenge, shed a little light, start a discussion, or beg a question. For me, a post should be the first step of a dialogue and our response should be that of questions. - Is this what you mean here? Am I reading this correctly there? What about this issue that relates to that? I would like to stay out of the stirred pot, therefore I'm addressing neither with my questions and thoughts, but I would love for anyone who would like to begin a discussion about a related matter to read the two articles then comment on this post about the relationship between beliefs and relationship.

I really like Miller's basic point. Belief is different than relationship, right belief does not equal having a tight relationship with God. We can look at scriptural texts and find that obvious (James 2:19). Miller uses two metaphors, one being that of marriage. He talks about how knowing information about your spouse is not the same as knowing your spouse. This is an issue I've been fascinated with recently with some great conversations about the impact of social networking sites (facebook, myspace, etc.) and their impact on relationships as well as some discussions concerning our celebrity worship culture where we feel like we know people because all the media/"news" outlets tell us everything about them. But, intimacy and information are not the same thing, we don't really know them.

The second metaphor is that of theology being like guard rails, they're not the point, but they take you to the point. In other words, my understanding of what he's saying is that believing the right stuff isn't the point. Believing the right stuff helps you get toward a deeper relationship with God, which is the point. All metaphors fall short, but for me this is the one that I have trouble with. I both agree and disagree with this simultaneously.

According to Isaiah (55:9) we are all heretics. God is beyond us. We have an experience of the Divine that is beyond anything we can comprehend. In a way experiencing God short circuits our brains. God is so imminent that we experience God as transcendent. So we're left trying to figure out what to do with something that's beyond what we can comprehend. On top of this we're left using words, which in and of themselves are metaphors, and this leaves us talking about things that words can't explain (for more on this check out Peter Rollin's How (Not) to Speak of God). We talk about God being love and use words like Trinity, yet we also know that God's love is really beyond any kind of love we could ever imagine (and good luck trying to wrap your mind around the concept of the Trinity). So, in our attempts to understand the incomprehensible we create beliefs. Much of the way we formulate our beliefs is determined by our context, a Pentecostal would probably describe the same experience very differently than a Roman Catholic. We have an experience of God's love, but words like love don't really describe it. It's more than anything you've ever experienced. However, it's only in exploring those beliefs and finding the places where our beliefs no longer work that we can continue to move forward. It is when we think we have all the right answers, we've got it all figured out that we're truly in trouble. Because we stop searching; we stop exploring.

I would say that beliefs are more like signs or ikons. They are representations that point toward a larger reality. They are things we have to use to guide us, that we can't navigate without, and yet we have to go further, we have to move beyond them toward that to which they point us. The sign of the beach is not the beach, but it points us toward the real beach. Without the sign we might go the wrong direction, so it guides us, yet we don't park under the beach sign and go, "man how great is this."

Which of course begs a couple questions. If reading a book on pooping doesn't make one potty trained, then why would affirming certain doctrines or beliefs make one in right relationship with God, a follower of Jesus, a Christian, or whatever language you want to use to speak about it? And, how can we continue to move churches from a place of telling us what to believe toward a place of encountering God, helping make sense of that encounter, and pointing people forward (a question in which there are a million flaws, please forgive)? And, if Jesus' primary command is to love, how do we continue to move churches more and more toward being places for training people how to love in the ways of Jesus?

Pure Awesomeness!

"Sunday's Coming" Movie Trailer from North Point Media on Vimeo.

On Church Plants

When it comes to church leadership conferences there are two major seasons, Fall (Oct/Nov) and Spring (April/May). And it seems like whenever that season arrives familiar conversations around church planting seem to flair up once again. Consequently, I'm always disappointed by the fact that the polarization around the conversation hasn't dissipated.

Just like conservatives and liberals, republicans and democrats, for some reason there is a demonization that tends to go on around church planting. Either church planters are characterized as church destroyers whose only aim in life is to destroy someone else's church or the traditional church is demonized as the ineffective enemy of all things that are truly of Jesus.

I've seen situations that have gone each of those directions. I've seen people who have spitefully and intentionally split churches in order to start their new one. It is ugly and messy and destructive. It's definitely not God honoring. But, I've also seen the other side as well. I've seen established churches bribe, manipulate, and dash people's dreams all because they were defending their established church. In these situations the fact that we should all be working toward the same goal has been lost. Both are looking out for their own private kingdom. This happened in the bible too. When Jesus raises Lazarus from the dead the pharisees decide they have to kill him because everyone might begin to follow him which would be a threat to their little kingdom.

I've also seen deeply dysfunctional established churches that were hell-bent on not being faithful to what a church should be and pastors feeling like the only way to be faithful was to start a new one. I have seen this happen quietly and peacefully and I have seen it happen loud and destructively despite pastors' best efforts to minimize the damage. (The thing that bothers me most is when a pastor is demonized even though it was the established church that actually caused the damage.  The opposite happens as well, but then there's a community of people to deal with the issue as opposed to a single person.  Always realize there are two sides to every coin and every story.)

However, in meeting countless church planters what I have found is that the spiteful intentional destruction of established churches in order to build a new church, while occurring far too often, is not the norm. Most of these guys have a real heart for God and don't want to see any church damaged. On the flip side there are many churches who welcome new churches to their area, even help them get started with financial assistance and man power.

In the end, we need established churches to reach the people who are being reached. At the same time we need new churches that are doing things differently to help those who aren't being reached by the already existing churches.

I just really hate that we keep falling into the tendency to polarize and demonize.  Why can't we just answer Jesus' prayer (John 17:11).

There are five stages to group process forming, storming, norming, performing, and adjourning.  This means that in the end, churches split in various ways, shapes, and forms.  Either we can embrace that, guide it, and let it be constructive and healthy or we can deny it, fight it, and let it be destructive and messy.  There are churches that have begun to recognize this, the first for me was Northpoint in Alpharetta and it is something I have always admired about that church.  They realized this tendency to split and so they decided they would break up intentionally.  As the Sunday morning auditorium begins to fill they decide to start a new campus so that they can reach more people.  It's really a beautiful way to reach more people without the whole thing going down the destructive path of the ugly mess that tends to characterize the church plant conversations that come about twice a year.

In the end, I think we need to realize that the defensiveness or offensiveness from "both sides" really comes from a place of fear, anxiety, or hurt.  At the same time, living out of that by demonizing the other only tends to make us feel self-righteous.  It doesn't actually make anything better, only worse.  There are existing churches and church plants who are doing great things.  There are some that are doing great things together.  We can choose to be cynical because we know of some instances where things have gone wrong, or we can choose not to judge, we can cling to hope paying attention to the times it's gone right.  And in so doing we can celebrate and encourage something beautiful.

Because when it becomes about "my thing versus your thing" then my thing is no longer accomplishing anything.

Despite appearances, some things are real

Peter Rollins waxing philosophical on social networking.

Despite appearances, some things are real