Facelift

You'll notice I'm giving my blog page a facelift... Although I shouldn't really be wasting time digging through these cascading style sheets trying to figure out which attributes do what, I've just really been wanting to better integrate my blog to my website. I've had my own website for about a year and a half or so and I've been hosting my blog there for that time (I still use blogger to ftp stuff to the blog), but it's always still felt independent because of the different look. I'm trying to integrate the blog to my site so that it seems more seamless to go between pages. Once that is done, I'll be able to better use the other pages so they will be more dynamic.

Anyway I know that's a lot of blah blah blah to some of you but my point is this - you may notice different looks to the blog and website over the next few days, which is to be expected, but if you notice anything not working, let me know so I can fix it.

Are You Kidding Me?

My Greatest Blog Entry Ever

...and I didn't even write it.

Isaac has been working on a worship song the last week or so. Dixie and I made a point not to offer him any help on this project. He wrote it. He typed it. He came up with the tune. I did help him record the audio file but other than that, this is Isaac's work. I think it's pretty cool.

"God Reigns Anywhere"
by Isaac Livingston

(click on these images to get a larger version)
(the magic marker scribbles are Jaylie's contribution)





Here's the printed version.

Here's the audio recording.

NotreDame Broadcasting Company

This is so true.

Zoe 2007

Here's a longer version of the article I'm putting in Meadowbrook's bulletin this week. It has some reflections of the Zoe conference this year.


It is good to be back home with my Meadowbrook family this week. Last weekend, Dixie and I attended the Zoe Worship Conference in Nashville. As always, the conference provided wonderful times of praising the Lord, challenging messages, and renewal of relationships with brothers and sisters from around the nation.

Brian McLaren was the keynote speaker this year. His messages were a blend of some of the themes from his two most recent books, “Everything Must Change” and “The Secret Message of Jesus.” Brian challenged us to be thoughtful of the world community and to respond to that community in a way that would reflect the love of Jesus. He suggested that our discipleship of Jesus should radically affect the way we live our lives – our relationship with our family, how we treat the poor, our politics, our concern for God’s creation. Brian’s words were a blessing as he gave a fresh perspective to our role as citizens of God’s Kingdom.

We also had several sessions that discussed the values of worship. He pointed out that worship is not an end in and of itself, but that the value of our Sunday morning worship shows up in our lives on Monday morning. Our Sunday morning worship honors I Am, but it also, through communal practices, opens our eyes to how God is working in our lives, and reminds us of our calling to be a blessing to all people. Our re-centering on God every Sunday morning helps us go out during the week and be salt and light for the Kingdom. We are called to be a Kingdom people who love without discretion. We are called to show a Calvary kind of love to people from all walks of life.

Usually at these types of events I find myself discovering great truths about ministry. While I had some of those types of revelations at Zoe this year, I found myself mostly taking comfort in the fact that the Meadowbrook family is already so involved in the Kingdom. Weekly we pray for peace, the poor, and God’s justice to come. We are frequently involved in practices that participate in God’s work in those areas: our work in Katrina, Christmas on the Coast, Stewpot, prison ministry, Billy Brumfield house, our hospital houses, our work with the poor, our medical missions, our hopes for the future of Crossover Ministries, and so many other ministries. Meadowbrook is full of people who are about the Kingdom. We recognize God’s love for us, and we share His love with those who need it. This family is such a blessing!

Special

Today is a special day. Not because I am 31 years and 2 days old today, but because tonight the Spurs opened their 07-08 season with their first preseason game. They didn't fare well, but it's early. Go Spurs Go!

...

I plan to post soon about the Zoe Conference...

unChristian

The Barna Group recently published a very interesting article entitled, "A New Generation Expresses its Skepticism and Frustration with Christianity".

If you're a Christian who is at all concerned with being a blessing to the world so that all people will know the One True God, then I suggest you read it.

How do we change perceptions?

How do we communicate that we are all in need of the same grace?

How do we communicate that our agenda is NOT one of antihomosexuality or antiabortion political movements?

How do we show the love of Jesus to people?

How do we stay salty?