11.07.09
Three Flavors of Celebration
Heather & celebrated the 80th birthday of a MCC friend last night – certainly the largest (by attendance) birthday party I’ve ever attended 
Among the many humorous and touching tributes to a woman of God who has blessed many around her, MCC’s senior pastor Ben Cachiaras closed the evening with a blessing to her in the form of the Apostle Paul’s prayer from Ephesians 3:14-21.
Earlier yesterday, at a slightly larger gathering 150 miles north Yankee fans celebrated the team’s World Series victory with a parade. Though I’m an avid Yankees fan, I didn’t make any of the 1996, 1998-2000 parades; I think I’ll reserve my crushed-in-a-sea-of-millions NY experience for one of the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parades
Yankees’ manager Joe Girardi celebrated victory in a very different way, by helping a stranded motorist on the Cross County Parkway – I’ve driven the Cross County and he’s compassionate & brave, even if not quite to the degree of another traveler who stopped to help someone he didn’t know. I remember following him from his first days as a Yankee, including my joy at learning more about Girardi’s strong but not overly-confrontational faith.
10.30.09
India mission team + Slumdog Millionaire
Back in the spring, Heather & I went to see the Oscar-winning Slumdog Millionaire for her birthday, a rare movie for both of us She enjoyed the romance, and I appreciated the underlying reality of the religious extremism, crime, and poverty. For a more eloquent and thoughtful analysis, check Jennifer Taylor’s post. For a Christian mission that is confronting some of these crimes in the courts and on the streets, check International Justice Mission, my teammate Tom Moen was attending a screening of the IJM movie At The End of Slavery this week.
Last Sunday, she & I attended the celebration for MCC’s India short-term mission team. Imperfect disciples serving the one perfect God are changing the storyline of hatred, crime, and poverty one small step at a time, whether thousands of miles away or in our own neighborhood, something my teammate Luke Erickson will speak about this coming Sunday.
04.29.09
forecasting Christianity in America: cynical optimism
MCC’s exec pastor Rob Kastens forwarded our staff this recent Newsweek cover story and Albert Mohler’s follow-up blog post. Dr. Mohler posted another follow-up, commenting on Stephen Prothro’s crititque of Newsweek’s original analysis. One of my favorite bloggers Seldom Wrong Never In Doubt points to this Wall Street Journal critique, as well as adding his own “cynical optimist” opinion.
Earlier this week, I submitted a book review for my online church history course @ Cincinnati Christian University on Philip Jenkins’ The Next Christendom. In the spirit of SWNID-style cynicism, this Jenkins quote, “modern Western media generally do an awful job of reporting religious realities, even within their own societies.” Likewise, in the spirit of faith-and-historical-fact-based SWNID optimism, Jenkins concludes, “”Whether we look backward or forward in history, we can see that time and again, Christianity demonstrates a breath-taking ability to transform weakness into strength.”
04.05.09
Beyond Me Apr 5 resources UPDATED
I finished the message-based study guide late so the online draft is available here, and the MCC website version posted some time next week. Message notes here.
I don’t know the small group discipleship use for this, but here’s an extended length version of the video from today’s message
03.25.09
Follow-up to Beyond series
My teammate Kristal Dove recommended Francis Chan’s recent message series called Living a Life that Matters. ” It has been hugely challenging/convicting for me and has just really been tying in to the stuff that ‘Beyond’ has been stirring up in my life.” Francis Chan is teaching pastor at Cornerstone Church in Simi Valley, CA.
These are articles that specifically address last Sunday’s topic, “Beyond Racial Zones”:
Leadership Journal’s “Diverse by Design” on Mosaic, an intentionally multi-ethnic church in Little Rock, Ar.
CNN on “Why many Americans prefer their Sundays segregated”
This Beliefnet-Sojourner’s “A Bias Against Sunday Segregation brings up some different points, while coming to the same conclusion.
03.20.09
“Beyond Racial Zones” Mar 22 resources UPDATED
The small group study guide is available on-line now, message notes here.
The book my teammate Kristal recommended Same Kind of Different As Me also touches on reaching outside your racial comfort zone.
The study guide mentions Martin Luther King’s “I Have a Dream” speech, YouTube as several versions, the one below is the full speech.
03.05.09
Cutbacks and challenges UPDATED
Associate Professor of Business and EconomicsAt a recent MCC staff meeting, our senior pastor Ben Cachiaras shared this Top Ten list to challenge us keep moving forward with our mission, even in these tough financial times. Our executive pastor, Rob Kastens, passed along this insightful reflection from Dr. Bill Greer, VP Institutional Advancement @ Milligan College. Dr Greer is also Associate Professor of Business and Economics. These kind of resources can help small group leaders be the first responders in the modern church following the model of the early church in Acts 4:32-35.
On a humorous note, a teammate passed along this video clip:
http://www.nbc.com/Saturday_Night_Live/video/clips/dont-buy-stuff/27169/
03.01.09
“Beyond the Old Life” Mar 1 – study guide, message notes, video clip
Ben spoke this morning about “Beyond the Old Life.” Here are the small group study guide and message notes. You can download audio of recent messages from MCC’s audio archives (or subscribe to MCC’s iTunes feed).
Ben used this video clip during the message.
02.27.09
book notes
Our staff has begun sharing book recommendations during our biweekly staff meetings. A few weeks ago, Kristal Dove recommended Same Kind of Different as Me, the true story of homeless Louisiana sharecropper Denver Moore and upscale art dealer Ron Hall, whose lives connect because Ron’s wife Debbie has a heart for people. Kristal said. “because Denver is the homeless one, Ron assumes he’ll help Denver but it turns out the other way around.” Some MCC members and small groups have been serving “people kicked to the curb of life” for a while. Kristal recommended this book for those who need a reminder on the transformation that comes from serving.
This week, Ethan Magness recommended Prodigal God by Tim Keller, lead pastor at Redeemer Presbyterian Church. It’s a re-examination of the story from Luke 15:11-32 of the younger son who runs away from the father and returns, and the older son whose physical body stays home but whose heart is far away. Ethan recommends this book, especially for those who have been part of the church but have lost (or never had) their hunger for God.
01.31.09
Narnia in Philadelphia
My family had a fun day in Philadelphia with my sister Milen’s family, eating at Reading Terminal Market and seeing the Narnia exhibit at the Franklin Institute. My girls will probably remember romping with their cousins even more than the traveling exhibit, though the imaginative gift of C. S. Lewis’ fictional world will come in a closer second than some other museum visits.
Though we thoroughly enjoyed walking through larger-than-life-size wardrobe doors into the falling snow (artificial, alas!) of “always winter, never Christmas” that first greeted the Pevensie children – my sister did express regret that they did not have the one prop from the Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe movie set in which she was most interested. She’s wondered what symbol decorated Edmund’s throne in Cair Paraval, since his siblings had carvings of their gifts from Father Christmas on their thrones, and Edmund missed the Father Christmas scene because of his own poor choices. I didn’t have a guess then, but thought about it the rest of the night – my guesses are either the stone table or Aslan himself – if you want to know my reasons, email me
Siblings and cousins enjoying each other, stone giants, and sword-wielding Centaurs – a little bit of Narnia come to life.
