I have been a fan of the Ashes and Snow project for a few years now, mostly because I’m fascinated by God’s creation and it is at the center of my communion with God.
I’ve only recently been checking out the short films Gregory Colbert has done. Here’s a taste:
For more, visit Ashes and Snow.
I wouldn’t call myself a developer by any definition, but in my line of work I stay in touch with what they are doing and how they do it.
I’m beginning to understand a concept called ‘isolated failure’ and how important it is for the end user to have a good experience.
In a nutshell most applications are a pile of functions that work together to create a user experience. Engineers and developers would prefer that if one of these functions breaks that it didn’t bring down the whole application. Makes sense.
But I think in terms of people and churchie stuff…I can’t help it, I’m a pastor.
Isolated failure seems like a good idea on the surface for a church (application). And I have been a part of churches that value it. When a leader (function) breaks, it doesn’t bring down the whole institution.
This is the best way to operate if the institution is the highest good. But it’s not.
This would be the best way to operate if it mattered that each user had a good experience instead of seeing the dirty truth.
But it’s not about the institution. It’s about Jesus.
It’s not about candy coated reality. It’s about the truth.
{photo | Behrooz Nobakht}
If you are going to plant a church anywhere, the first step you take is to go there. Simple.
When you get there, you find as many ways as you can to connect with people.
You find needs to meet.
You celebrate life with the community.
You walk right along side the community.
This has to happen first. before one note is played in a worship gathering. Before one word is said from a pulpit.
The same goes for planting a church on the internet.
How do we meet needs and celebrate life on the internet?
{photo | etrusia_uk}
I can’t believe the word is still staying alive!
There is nothing virtual about the people on the internet. Everyone of them is real.
There is nothing virtual about the people I care and pray for whom I have met on Twitter, Facebook and my blog.
This reality needs to be embraced in order to bring the Kingdom to the community that is the internet.
Because there is nothing virtual about the Kingdom_
I have been a member of the Soul Pancake community for a few months now after Todd mentioned it, and lately I have been getting more into it. If you follow me on twitter then you may notice the odd tweet from time to time:
If you like chatting about philosophy and spirituality in a free and open platform, then you may dig it. If you have a tendancy to get all fundamental on us, then maybe hold off.
Head on over to ChurchCrunch.com and find out what platform we are developing the Gateway Church website on.
if you care about that kind of stuff.
If not, here’s a picture of the Ultimate Warrior:
God’s will; sometimes its easy to figure out. Some things are laid out right before our eyes in creation and others written in scripture.
Maybe its too easy. Maybe having it there right in front of us all the time we take it for granted.
Take the disciples for example. At first you think that they were in constant awe and amazement at everything Jesus did all the time, every day.
The fact is, that even guys that were right there next to Jesus himself had trouble committing to His will.
One passage in John has Jesus and his crew out and about doing ministry all day and the disciples are pretty much over it.
Disciples: “Jesus, Dude…can we get some food or something? We’ve been running around God’s green earth all day!”
Jesus: “I have food that you don’t even know about.”
Disciples: “seriously? Jesus, If you have been sneaking snacks this whole time I’m gonna be so pissed.”
Jesus knew what he was doing. He knew what the REAL purpose was in everything he had the disciples do. His concern was the Kingdom and the work of the Father.
This is where we have a problem. There are two values that as humans we put up way too high on the list and as far as I can see it, there is no mandate from God for them; these are safety and success, and I mean these in the most human of ways. By safety I’m talking about basic health and well being. By Success, I’m talking about any and all success that is not that of the Kingdom and Gospel.
The fact is that God’s will for your life could look something like this:
Drop everything in your life and wander around the country with a bunch of dudes confused out of your mind following some rabbi. Have a bad day and deny anything to do with Christ. Feel guilty and come back full circle more on fire than before. Bring the Gospel to thousands of people. Get crucified with your wife.
Sign me up!
That’s Peter’s story. What’s yours?
[photo :: tricky]
There’s a few basic truths and concepts that are foundational to being a Christ follower that are so broad and obvious that we tend to under think the ramifications that they have on our every day lives.
God loves everyone.
I don’t think you will disagree with me. In fact, I’m not even going to list Bible verses where it says this…you know them.
I think we fail to add this truth up where the rubber meets the road of real life.
God loves me. I can get behind that, after all, I’m pretty easy to love. I smell pretty good most days. I’m not terribly ugly. I reasonably well read and educated.
God loves you. Not too hard to grasp. You’re a nice person. Not too many people hate you.
God loves child molesters, drug addicts, that neighbor with the barking dogs, terrorists, George Bush, Al Gore, Lance Bass…everyone. Whoa, whoa, whoa.
That’s hard to grasp. But I can grit my teeth and accept it.
But when you add it up and realize that as a Christ follower you are suppose to love everyone too…it gets tricky. I think a lot of us try to forget this. Its easier to sweep it under the rug.
Did we really sign up for that?
[photo : jamesfischer]
