A religious deviant who enjoys coffee, reading theology, graphic design, and spending time with his wife and son while creatively exploring the riches of the Spirit of Christ.
I was reading a book recently and the author asked the question, “Does your theology hold up in the face of the burning children at Auschwitz?”
Needless to say, the question was unbelievably graphic, but he made his point. A theology that cannot accommodate preposterous suffering is no theology indeed. Why? Because we see suffering all around us, don’t we?
The shortest verse in all of Scripture is John 11:35. It says, “Jesus wept.” Jesus wept. That’s significant to me. Significant because, I believe, it sums up the heart of God towards you and me: God suffers with us.
Maybe the questions like,
Why did 9/11 happen?
Why do 5-year-olds die of cancer?
Why didn’t God save the people of Haiti from the devastating earthquake?
Why me?
Maybe they’ll never get answered–at least not this side of reality. But, if God is a God who weeps with us, maybe the sting of unanswered questions doesn’t have to hurt as much.
Have you ever noticed some in the millennial generation are bent on bringing about change to their fields of interest, while maintaining fixed beliefs that actually work against the change they wish to see?
I have a theory: We don’t actually want things to change.
Seriously. Because if things change, we have to learn new systems and alter the way we work.
This effects many different areas in society, but I see it especially in the church.
Young, talented, entrepreneurial Christians with a desire to see the church become a creative expression of Christ’s love for the world, but not committed to change their mindset in order to make their ideas a reality. What’s missing is a belief that we can make a difference from right where we are. Anyone, at any time, can spark change. However, becoming a catalyst for change is difficult, and requires a sacrifice of comfort. Most people will give up on an idea, because even though they want things to change, they don’t really want to give anything up for it.
Trust me, we need your voice. We need your ideas. We need your innovation. If we are going to see the local church become a creative, compassionate and powerful force in our communities, we need you to think differently about yourself. Re-think your views and jump in. We are waiting.
Here’s a recap of the top three posts from BeDeviant.com this past week. If you haven’t had a chance to stop by the site, check out these posts and get up-to-date. These got the most traffic on the site, were shared the most, and had the most comments.
Andy Stanley DVD Giveaway – Here’s How to Win – The contest is over, but you can still check out some very cool resources from Catalyst. Plus, stop on by the comments and tell us what book you’ve been enjoying lately.
Claim Your Facebook Fan Page Custom URL Today – This post gets more stumbles than a drunk at closing time! If you administer a Facebook fan page, you can get a slick customized URL. For instance, BeDeviant’s facebook page can be found here: Facebook.com/BeDeviant. Find out how to do this by reading this post.
What Churches Can Learn From Lost, Pt. 1 – Our very own Deviant Network is responsible for post number three this week. Dave Sandell blows your mind showing us how the Church can learn from the TV show LOST. It’s good. You need to read it.
So there they are, your top 5 posts of the week! Recap, refresh, re-read, re-tweet!
Andy Stanley can flat out teach. I read Communicating for a Change in one of my seminary classes and it changed the way that I communicate. Solid.
As such, we’ve partnered with the good people of Catalyst and are giving away three sets of “Systems” – a DVD teaching by Mr. Stanley himself.
In the DVD, Andy explains the ways in which many systems are flawed, how to attain the behaviors you desire through a system, the components of an effective system, and biblicalprinciples that should be integrated into every system.
Bonus features include behind-the-scenes interviews with Andy Stanley, Jeff Henderson (Pastor of North Point’s Buckhead Church), Carlos Whittaker (Service Programming Director at Buckhead Church), and Jenny Boyett (Director of Assimilation for North Point Ministries).
I’m a sucker for bonusfootage.
PostScript: Andy’s coming to Chicago for Catalyst One Day on March 25, so if you dig his stuff and live in the area make sure to check it out.
—-
UPDATE: We have our winners! Congrats to the following tweeps:
@jsym
@davidhuey
@onejp
You won! Email me at justin (at) bedeviant.com with your mailing address and we’ll get these sent out to you real quick-like. Thanks to all who played.
This is a guest post from Dave Sandell. This is the second post in a two-part series. Part one is here.
Creativity & Lost
Last night, Lost began its sixth and final season. And this morning, thousands of blogs, message boards, newspapers, podcasts, water cooler talks and impromptu lunch breaks are springing up dissecting each second of the premiere. Millions of people will obsess over every second and every shot. As I said yesterday, the thought of a community of people responding that way to a sermon or a message from our church is exciting to me. So, today we continue our look at what churches can learn from Lost’s creative process.
Lost is a show that thrives on mysteries, mythologies and answers waiting to be discovered. The creators of Lost seem to have a master plan, and viewers who obsess over every scene are often rewarded. So, I’m tempted to develop a master plan for our church messages. I’m tempted to obsess over each little word.
But what’s amazing about Lost is that it’s mostly accidental. There was no masterplan from the very beginning. Everything that happened, happened organically.
This is a guest post from Dave Sandell. This is the first in a two-part series.
The Audience Experience
Tonight, Lost begins its final season, 18 hours that will consummate a television series that’s changed the way people think about the medium. For the next two days, I want to look at two things churches can learn from Lost. Tomorrow, as we buzz about the ramifications of whatever we see tonight, we’ll discuss what we can learn from the creative process of the show. Today, I want to think about Lost’s audience experience, and what it could mean for a church.
A man can keep his sanity and stay alive as long as there is at least one person who is waiting for him. The mind of a man can indeed rule his body even there is little health left. A dying mother can stay alive to see her son before she gives up the struggle, a soldier can prevent his mental and physical disintegration when he knows that his wife and children are waiting for him. But when “nothing and nobody” is waiting, there is no chance to survive in the struggle for life.
On the morning of the “LOST” season premiere, Henri Nouwen brings our attention to the “anchor.” Desmond had Penny as his anchor as he tumbled through space and time. It kept him sane and alive.
I think one of the most important questions we must answer as human beings is, “Who is my anchor?“ (And please, let us answer this question with the assumption that Christ, first and foremost, is our anchor. This is a given. In other words, it’s okay to have a real, flesh-and-blood person as your anchor.)
Anchors keep us sane. And alive. Both are beneficial for the optimal living experience.
The Judeo-Christian tradition does not deny the power of God, but neither does it magnify this attribute; moreover, and more to the point, it does not abstract the divine power from the divine-human relationship. The relationship qualifies–radically–the nature and deployment of power on God’s part.
God’s chooses to honor your will; your choices. Pause, and calmlythink on that.
There’s a Subway in town that has a sign on the sneezeguard which says, “Please refrain from using your cell phone while in line.”
This comic brilliantly illustrates why–People zone in on their phones and zone out of reality. The poor sandwich artist simply wants to know what toppings you’d like on your Meatball Marinara. Meanwhile, you’re trying to knock off Jared as the Mayor. The sign could also simply read, “Pay attention!”
Let us never be people who are so preoccupied with our digital lives that we miss the tangible reality right in front of our faces.
SOCIALIZE:
SUBSCRIBE: