Don't Rip Off the Young People in Your Church!

I once heard the testimony of a man who had grown up in a church that was very contemporary in its music style. After graduating and gowing away to college he visited a church that sang more of the old hymns. It angered him, but he wasn't angry that the music was old. He was angry because until then he had no idea that the Church had such a rich tradition of hymns. He felt that his home church had ripped him off because all they ever sang were the new choruses. 

I'm NOT arguing that we ought to sing only hymns, nor am I arguing that we should sing hymns in the same style as in the 1950's. What I'm saying is that we shouldn't cut ourselves off from the past as if somehow we finally learned how to worship when Matt Redman or Hillsong started writing music. We have an ancient tradition of hymns that goes back for literally millennia! The richness of these song connects the ages of the Church. We can sing the old songs and know we are a part of something that goes back long before we were born.  Something that will still be around long after we're gone. The most important thing about our time of worship is not what makes a church unique, but what makes faithful churches the same across ages of time and diverse cultures. 

What I'm advocating is singing the old songs in a new way. There are many today who endeavor to do this very thing. I'm not able to list them all here, but I will share one of my favorites--Indellible Grace. http://www.igracemusic.com 

In the 90's there seemed to be much more talk about "worship wars" where people divides over the labels of traditional and contemporary. I don't think "either or" is a healthy way to think about the issue. The music of the church MUST always be contemporary. It must be music that connects with the congregation. The music of the church MUST also be traditional--not in style, but in substance. Christianity is a faith that is defined by the passing on of a body of doctrine from one generation to the next. We are fools if we think we can divorce ourselves from the ancient hymns and not be missing out. The worship wheel does not have to be reinvented in every generation. In fact, to think it does is a recipe for idolatry. 

I urge you, if you are reading this, to take the time to connect with the old hymns of church history. Don't sing them in a dry and boring manner. Sing them in your own style and in the language of your own culture.

My Life: A Hallmark Movie?

With the timing of my move home, I can't shake the feeling that I've seen a Hallmark holiday movie with some parallels. A man hits hard times and moves to his hometown  just before Christmas. He reunites with old friends or has some breakthrough of self discovery. Maybe you've seen a story like this too. 

While I cannot predict what may happen in the coming year, I can't help but face it with optimistic expectation that something good will come, and not just because it always does in the Hallmark movies. I have eager hope because of the gospel. I have hope because of Christmas and the incarnation. Because God became an infant human child, I have hope. A light has shown in the darkness! I must trust that God is good and is working my life together for my good and His glory. I may not necessarily see the physical blessings I hope for this year, but I wait with an eager hope that I will know Jesus better in the coming year whether it be through tangible blessing or identifying with his suffering. 

Thankful to Be Working

Well, we are pretty well moved in. On December 1, my family of 5 moved in with my parents in Pocahontas, IL. For the last 2 1/2 years we've been in Kansas City, MO, and I've been working on a PhD. How did we get where we are? I have to admit that is because I've made decisions based on fear. In 2012, I came to realize that teaching middle school was not what I was cut out for, so my last good job came to an end. I was at a loss of what to do. I was frantically looking for any job I could find that could replace my income, but could find nothing. On a friends suggestion I looked into Midwestern's PhD program and got accepted. Though it probably wasn't a good financial move, we went--largely because I was fearful. Jobs were provided, but nothing EVER materialized that would provide sufficiently for our family. After 2 1/2 years in the program I took a semester off to seriously look for better work and still nothing. A good friend finally spoke the truth to me in love and said it looked like we were probably going to have to move in with my parents--which we now have. 

I'm 36 years old, and I'm finding out that life just hasn't worked out like I've planned. I trust that God is good. In spite of the difficulty we have faced we have also experienced many blessings. 

In Kansas City, Amy has developed one of the closest friendships she has had since we've been married. I've also made many friends and I have grown further on my journey of self discovery. 

Employment has been a major struggle for me. I always get lots of recognition for a job well done. Last Christmas I even got a thank you card sent to my home from my team leadership to recognize my good work. But all that verbal affirmation would never translate to career advancement! 

I made my interest known, that I desired to advance into management, but it never went anywhere. I've been given other explanations, but I'm convinced that they stem from the root of the fact that I'm seriously over qualified! 

Just consider, like I've said, I have two master's degrees and some post graduate study. So why would my employee want to risk the expense of training me for management? They know they can't pay me what I'm worth, and that I'll be gone as soon as I have a better opportunity comes. The tough part is that NO BETTER OPPORTUNITIES HAVE COME! I'm still hanging from a ledge hoping I can improve my situation and I'm stuck doing jobs that don't even require a high school degree! Oh well, as the title of this post says. I'm thankful to be working. I'd rather work for $9 and something than be unemployed. God is good. At least we have somewhere to go. We have a great relationship with our families. Many who suffer homelessness are there because they literally don't have any family to take them in or their relationships are strained to the point that they would not be welcome. 

I'm trying to keep hope. I believe I am worth a salary that I can support my family with. I just have to find an employer in can convince of that too.

I'm a Free Agent

I hereby declare that I am a free agent. In sports this term refers to an athlete who's contract has expired with a team and is available for negotiations with other teams. I have no contract to expire, but I want to take a different approach in my employment negotiations. Typically I've approached employers with the attitude that I'm powerless and my only option is to take what they are willing to give--but I think I can do better. I graduated magna cum laude with my BA. I have two masters degrees and some post graduate study. I have a strong work ethic. I'm dependable, teachable, and a quick learner. I think I'm worth more than barely above minimum wage, and at the mercy of my employer for the few hours I can get! So if there is anyone reading this out there who is looking to hire and think they can make me an offer good enough that I can put food on my table, please message me. I'll make it worth your while if you make it worth mine.

A Brief Review of Kirk Cameron's Saving Christmas

My whole family went to see Kirk Cameron's Saving Christmas on the night the movie was released. It was the first time we had all gone together to the movies since our son Josh, who had just turned four, was born.

As a whole, I liked the movie. I found it to be a good positive argument for why Christians should embrace the celebration of Christmas. However, that very thing may be the movie's downfall. In this review I'll share two of the weaknesses to the film, and I will end with stating what I appreciate about it.

Weaknesses:

1. There wasn't a story. Good movies are driven by a good story. Facing the Giants, Fireproof, and Courageous were all movies that were driven by stories. They connected with audiences on an emotional level in so far as they told a believable story. Saving Christmas was not driven by a story. Rather, it was driven by a theological argument--with a story as window dressing.

2. It is an insider's Movie. As noted above, the movie was explicitly aimed at Christians. It seems that there was no attempt to hide this within the movie itself. One of the examples of this is the fact that the character of Kirk's brother-in-law is named Christian. I think this must have been very intentional. At one point, Kirk was making a statement to Christian about why all the modern trappings of Christmas are really about Jesus. His argument was addressed to "Christian," his brother-in-law; it's not too much to say that Cameron was really addressing his audience with the argument. The insider's feeling to the movie is understandable and to be expected with Christians as the target audience; however, I can imagine that this tone could be perceived as quite offensive to anyone who watches it from the outside of the faith. This is probably the reason why critics have been so merciless to the film. If you don't share the assumed worldview of the target audience, you probably won't like the movie at all.

Appreciation:

1. The film maintains an authentic Christian worldview. While this is very close to what I stated as a weakness. As one who shares the worldview, I appreciate what Cameron was doing.

2. The film was informative. The story of Saint Nicolas is one that is probably unfamiliar to most Christians; however, it was one I had been familiar with for some time now. I really appreciate his attempt to redeem the image of Santa Claus, and to show that the real Nicolas was a Christian pastor who was passionate about orthodox Christology and who was known for his generosity--not to mention his concern for the purity of marriage.

3. The film was positive. It can be the temptation of many Christians making a film like this to get very negative and point to all the things wrong with how we celebrate Christmas. Cameron's film was anything but that. This movie about saving Christmas took a very different approach.

4. The film was prophetic. I don't mean this in the sense that it tells of future events (like another of Cameron's earlier movies). The finger of correction was not pointed to those on the outside of the faith, it was pointed at Christians themselves. It was an in-house corrective argument. Cameron was clearly communicating a message to Christians that we should embrace and enjoy the Christmas season, and to focus on how each aspect of Christmas can help us to worship Jesus. In this sense, I think the film is right on the money.

Conclusion:
While the film seems to be taking a beating by many critics, I don't think that this is because they are somehow persecuting Kirk Cameron or Christians in general. Rather, I really don't think the film has what it takes to merit good reviews based on the standard that we normally use when we choose what movies we like. The fact that the movie was strictly driven by a theological argument and it has such an insider's feel to it will probably alienate many who go to see it who do not share the Christian world view.

One other thing: I also wouldn't recommend bringing an active 4 year old boy. It was good for our family to be together and enjoy a night out at the movies, but Josh really didn't have the attention span to sit through it.

All in all, I recommend the movie for Christians, but I think that any attempt to convince our unbelieving neighbors to go see the film might be frustrated by the weaknesses I've mentioned above.

Thank you to Kirk Cameron for making this movie!

What is the Gospel?

This is an audio file of a sermon I preached some time around Easter of 2012. The volume is not that loud on the file, so you may have to turn it up pretty loud to hear. In it I examined 1 Corinthians 15 and state that it is Paul's definition of the Gospel.

UPDATE:
Here are two more recordings. One is a thematic message from biblical theology on the concept of "sheep without a shepherd." I trace the development of the phrase from it's first occurrence in the book of Numbers into the New Testament. The other recording is a later recording of the same message that I posted above. This one I preached at Colbern Road Baptist Church in Lee's Summit in August, 2012. The sound quality is much better. It includes the music portion of the service, so the sermon starts around 18:50 minutes in.