Desist!

Right now, in the Eastridge daily reading plan, we’re reading through Psalms alongside the other books of the Bible in the reading plan. This past Monday’s reading included Psalm 46. I’ve always liked this Psalm; it’s a beautiful, lyrical expression of praise. The first part of verse 10 is possibly one of the most familiar sentences in the Psalms; in the NIV, it reads:

Be still, and know that I am God…

I’ve been reading the Psalms in the Complete Jewish Bible in addition to the NIV. That same sentence reads quite differently in the CJB:

Desist, and learn that I am God…

That’s a really different reading of the same concept, isn’t it? The phrase be still in the extremely familiar NIV translation of that verse, at least to me, suggests slowing down a little, an almost gradual deceleration of activity. The CJB translation uses desist, which sounds totally different. I decided to look up the word desist to see what nuances its meaning has, and, according to the dictionary, it basically just means to stop, although to me it really sounds like a pretty harsh command. Because I’ve heard it on Law & Order and shows like that, I asked a local judge about the legal definition of the term, and in legal uses, desist implies that one cease a particular action immediately.

Maybe that’s just what it takes for us to truly experience God speaking to us. Instead of us just being still or slowing down, maybe we have to stop completely. Maybe we have to even drop some of the things that aren’t necessarily bad but that weigh us down and hold us back from following Christ with all we have.

Take A Hint, People!

As we were leaving El Charro, our local legendary Mexican restaurant, after staff lunch yesterday, we noticed the following sign(s). Sorry for the blurry pic; the lighting wasn’t so good, and I took it with my phone.

I take it they don’t want people to seat themselves…

Spring Fever

I’ve got a fever, and unfortunately it can’t be cured by more cowbell. This beautiful weather we’ve had these last few days has made me long for springtime.

I’m a big fan of the change in seasons. One of the most clever things God did was allow us to experience a new season just at the time we get tired of the old one. And this has been a particularly cold, damp, tough winter (don’t get me started on global warming), so a change is most definitely welcome.

There’s so much to love about spring… I love the warmer weather, the clear blue skies, the birds and their songs, the green trees and grass alongside multi-colored flowers. I love how the world seems to emerge from the sleepiness of winter into the energy and warmth of spring. What I love most is the fact that springtime is a perfect metaphor for God’s promise of renewal.

After the cold starkness of winter, the beauty of springtime reminds us that God is creative and transformational. The new life that blooms from the ground and the life that emerges from hibernation and returns from southern travels are all reminders that God brings new life from old. The changes in the environment are representative of how God renews our lives…often on a daily basis. Spring is all about renewal, and that’s a really good thing.

So bring on spring…I’ve got the fever.

Project Future: A Highly Recommended Book

Yesterday, I finished a really good book. Chad Emerson’s Project Future is a slim volume accounting the process that Walt Disney, and, after his death, the Disney corporation, undertook to build and open Walt Disney World. It’s a fascinating story about the land choice, the legislation, and the legal wrangling that allowed the resort and it’s governing body, the Reedy Creek Improvement District, to come about. If you like behind-the-scenes kind of stories (like me), or if you’re a huge Disney nut (like I am), I can’t recommend this book highly enough.

The Tyranny Of The Urgent

I’m one of those people. I’m driven heavily by the task(s) at hand. I dream up these ideas and projects that I want to do and have the best intentions of accomplishing, but they keep getting pushed down the to-do list in favor of the things that have to be done each day and each week. The cliché I hear is “the tyranny of the urgent”; the idea is that we’re slaves to the things that have to be done in the moment.

This idea is one that I’ve had in my head for a while now, but our discussions in this morning’s staff meeting brought a new resonance to the concept. We talked about our devotion to God and how our relationship with Him should be integrated into every area of our lives. Linda Miller said, “How can we do all our work and not think about God?”

That question hit me like a ton of bricks. It’s so easy to go through my days and be so nose-to-the-grindstone, focused on my to-do list, and driven by what I have to accomplish that I forget why I do what I do and Who I’m doing it for. I’m surrounded by an amazing, hard-working staff who probably feel the same way I do, in spite of our love for and devotion to the Lord.

In our frail human nature, we often get stuck in the tyranny of the urgent. The funny thing is, I don’t know the remedy. All I can do is cling to God and pray that the Holy Spirit will help me not to fall into that trap.

Can anybody else here identify with me?

Unfailing Love

Here at Eastridge, we’re reading through the Psalms alongside other books in our daily reading plan. I’ve read through the Psalms I don’t know how many times before, and one phrase stand out every time I see it in the Psalms: “unfailing love.” The phrase appears 32 times in the Bible in the New International Version according to YouVersion; 26 of those instances are in the Psalms.

Here are some examples:

The Lord loves righteousness and justice; the earth is full of his unfailing love.

Psalm 33:5

But I trust in your unfailing love; my heart rejoices in your salvation.

Psalm 13:5

Many are the woes of the wicked, but the Lord’s unfailing love surrounds the man who trusts in him.

Psalm 32:10

How priceless is your unfailing love! Both high and low among men find refuge in the shadow of your wings.

Psalm 36:7

I’ve loved that phrase for years, because it encapsulates God’s love in the best way I’ve ever heard it. Unfailing love is something I am always grateful for. I let people down from time to time, no matter how much I love them, and even the people who love me the most disappoint me sometimes. But God’s love never fails. (That’s the whole point of my favorite worship song…hear and see it here…)

Isn’t it a humbling, encouraging thing to know that the love we need the most is the perfect, complete love that never lets us down? Isn’t it wonderful to know that God loves us with an unfailing love?

The Credits

I’m a voracious reader of credits. One of the first things I used to do when I bought a CD (remember them?) was read the credits, and when iTunes has the virtual booklet, I generally look at it before I listen to the first song. I like reading about and knowing who plays and works on the album. I do the same with movies on DVD and TV shows, not so much in the theater, because nobody likes the guy who sits down to watch every name that runs up the screen.

I used to wonder why there were so many names listed. As I’ve grown older and learned about what it takes to put on a production of any kind, I realize how many people are involved in an album, a movie or TV show, or a production of any kind. Behind the band, the actors, and the stars are a crew of unsung heroes who make the whole thing possible.

It’s the same way on Sunday mornings. Most often, someone sitting in the congregation at Eastridge sees the speaking pastor, the band, and someone who makes announcements. But what a lot of people don’t realize is that there’s a cast and crew of hard-working people who make things happen.

In the auditorium, we have a devoted tech team who helps make sure each word on the screen is up at the proper time and each note is heard. Each cue is meant to create a seamless service. We have ushers who serve Communion and take up offering; greeters, parking lot attendants, and Information Center volunteers help people find their way and get the information they need.

In our Children’s Ministry, Adventureland volunteers take care of babies and younger children, while the E-town team produces a high-energy service that engages school age kids. Our Student Ministry puts on an engaging and relevant service for teens. The Cafe volunteers serve up treats, canned drinks, coffee specialties, and even breakfast for hundreds of patrons every week. And there’s so much more…and that’s just on Sundays.

During the week, even more volunteers work hard, from midweek services, to Celebrate Recovery, to the team of ladies who put the bulletins together every week…and so much more. We have the most dedicated group of volunteers that any church could ask for.

The coolest thing about our volunteers (and staff) is that, for them, the only credit that matters at the end is the one for the Almighty, the Perfect Father, the Great I AM…God. I couldn’t be more thankful for or proud of a group of people who serve and toil solely for the glory and exaltation of God. That’s the only credit that matters.

So, Why Isn’t Your Church Using Social Media?

A couple of weeks ago, most of our staff attended the Next Level Leadership Conference at Savannah Christian Church in Savannah, GA. Next Level is a practical conference for church leaders, designed to arm its attendees with ideas that they can take away and implement relatively quickly.

One of the workshops I attended at the conference was a Q & A about church communications. The discussion turned to the use of social media (Facebook, Twitter, blogs, etc.) in the church. Esther Griffin, SCC’s Communications Director, shared their strategy and examples of how social media has helped them; I was even able to add my thoughts in support of using social media to help churches communicate.

I was shocked at the resistance to social media by some of the representatives of smaller churches at the workshop. (Maybe I shouldn’t have been?) For some reason, these people were skeptical as to whether using Facebook and Twitter would be effective, even after hearing several instances where they were beneficial.

We utilize Facebook and Twitter practically every day. And there’s not a week that goes by where I don’t hear from somebody about how it helped them connect to or receive information from the church:

• “I didn’t realize that the event was cancelled until I saw it on Twitter.”
• “Sometimes I forget to read the daily reading, but when I see it on Facebook, I remember.”
• “It’s nice to know when the podcast is up. Thanks for sharing it on Facebook.”
• “I love to read the quotes you post from Sunday’s messages on Twitter.”

You get the picture.

I walked away from the workshop feeling validated, feeling like we’re doing a lot of things right in terms of communication at Eastridge. (Not everything, mind you, just some things…)

So, why isn’t your church using social media? It’s high time for churches to embrace innovation and technology and harness both to help get the timeless message of Christ to the world. The church can’t afford not to.

Authenticity

To be perfectly honest, I don’t really like much of what’s popular in music today. Modern pop (and, to an extent, some country) music seems to be dominated by artists who don’t write their own songs. These singers and bands rely on outside songwriters to tell the stories they sing. There’s very little that’s authentic about singing someone else’s songs.

I am (and, as long as I’ve been aware of songwriting credits, have been) drawn to singer-songwriters…artists and bands who tell their own stories and write the songs they sing. Singer-songwriters have to be concerned with their authenticity, because no one who sings their own songs wants to appear fake.

We who are believers in Jesus Christ have to be authentic as well. We’re writing our verses and lines in the Eternal Story, and we don’t want to sing someone else’s lines. I can’t help but believe that if we are true to who and what God is calling us to be, we’re going to be more effective witnesses, and our lives will never be boring.

Are you going to be a vapid pop star trying to interpret someone else’s songs, or are you going to be a singer-songwriter, making the most of your own story?

Ready For Spring

I have a confession to make: I’m over this cold weather.

Winter is most definitely my least favorite season. (I know I wrote yesterday about the beauty of snow, but that doesn’t mean I’d choose it over another time of year.) I don’t like the dreary landscapes, the cold weather…especially at night, and the short days. There’s something about winter that is difficult; add to it the fact that this winter has been the coldest in 20 years and an unusually wet season. I’m ready for spring.

Remember Out Of The Grey? They were a husband-and-wife duo who made sophisticated, adult-alternative pop back in the 90s. They had a song about 15 years ago called “Dreaming Of April.” It talks about exactly what I feel right now. I’m ready for warmer weather, green leaves and grass, flowers, and the promise of new life that comes with spring.

Are you ready?