It's been some time since I've done this, so in the spirit of the New Year holiday, let me offer up my Top 10 Resolutions for 2008:
10. Stop stalking Marie Osmond.
9. Finally, once and for all, kick the Human Growth Hormone habit.
8. Go postal when the Wendy's drive-thru staff keep interrupting me while I'm placing my order.
7. Find a way to avoid any church-related Friday afternoon meetings at my office.
6. Go postal when the Burger King drive-thru staff keep interrupting me while I'm placing my order.
5. Accept Carman's never-ending request to record a rap duet album.
4. Flunk all of my speech students...and feel good about it, darn it.
3. Trade in this worn-out hairpiece for a quality rug.
2. Get back down to my original fighting weight of 225.
1. Accept my party's nomination for President of the United States.
Happy New Year!
Monday, December 31, 2007
Monday, December 24, 2007
Merry Christmas!
For 20 big bad years, Darlene Love has appeared on Letterman to sing "Christmas/Baby Please Come Home". Unfortunately, the writers' strike kept her off the airwaves for a 21st year.
But, here she is in all her glory 2 years ago in the best version of this song I've ever heard. Fantabulous.
Merry Christmas!
But, here she is in all her glory 2 years ago in the best version of this song I've ever heard. Fantabulous.
Merry Christmas!
Sunday, December 09, 2007
Ten and Done
This coming Sunday is my last "official" Sunday as Sunday School Superintendent. I think that's the most times I've used the word "Sunday" in a sentence, by the way. I may be there on the 23rd to help out one last time, but the 16th was the day given on my original resignation notice, and I'm going to keep that the official date.
I'm not going to sit here & bash anything or anyone. I have a full week and can't fit in another meeting.
Seriously, I'm just sitting here and thinking about the last 10-plus years. It's been fascinating. Had God not led differently, I would've done this for 10 more. But, that can't happen.
Keeping this on an optimistic note, I remember some of the best moments of the last 10 years. I remember our Parenting Conference at Immanuel, where we had moms and dads as far away as Shelby and Lincoln Counties coming to our seminars and hearing our speakers and class teachers. I remember our game-show fellowships..."Who Wants to Win Some Free Stuff" (taken from "Millionaire") where we had Bible trivia questions under the familiar game show format. "Match Game" where I spent most of the weekend constructing the set and then just about had to censor our interim music leader for an answer he gave from the panel. "Family Feud" on a Sunday night where, before I purchased my Game Show Theme Song CD for events just like this, I had to have "Baptist to the Bone" played as the show's theme.
I remember our chili suppers, Sunday School Round-Ups, and all the other events along the way.
But more than that, I remember hearing so many class members find a closer relationship with Christ and with their fellow church members by participating in a class. The love my teachers showed for their members can't be overstated. I have more respect for my teachers - past & present - than simple words can show. I hope they know how much I love each of them.
It's been an amazing decade. I'm so blessed and deeply thankful for the experience.
I'm not going to sit here & bash anything or anyone. I have a full week and can't fit in another meeting.
Seriously, I'm just sitting here and thinking about the last 10-plus years. It's been fascinating. Had God not led differently, I would've done this for 10 more. But, that can't happen.
Keeping this on an optimistic note, I remember some of the best moments of the last 10 years. I remember our Parenting Conference at Immanuel, where we had moms and dads as far away as Shelby and Lincoln Counties coming to our seminars and hearing our speakers and class teachers. I remember our game-show fellowships..."Who Wants to Win Some Free Stuff" (taken from "Millionaire") where we had Bible trivia questions under the familiar game show format. "Match Game" where I spent most of the weekend constructing the set and then just about had to censor our interim music leader for an answer he gave from the panel. "Family Feud" on a Sunday night where, before I purchased my Game Show Theme Song CD for events just like this, I had to have "Baptist to the Bone" played as the show's theme.
I remember our chili suppers, Sunday School Round-Ups, and all the other events along the way.
But more than that, I remember hearing so many class members find a closer relationship with Christ and with their fellow church members by participating in a class. The love my teachers showed for their members can't be overstated. I have more respect for my teachers - past & present - than simple words can show. I hope they know how much I love each of them.
It's been an amazing decade. I'm so blessed and deeply thankful for the experience.
The Basics of Life, Pt 1
We didn't have church this morning because of the ice, so Tammy & I got to have a deep philosophical discussion about church.
Please forgive me for being vague. However, I'll need to keep this generic in order to keep the Blog Police who came to visit me four Fridays ago from visiting me again.
But, I digress...
On Friday night, I had the chance to read a couple of really good articles from this month's Pathway newspaper. They spoke specifically about the lack of meat in churches today; the articles specifically referenced how we as Christians willingly threw out the baby with the bathwater when Bill Hybels and his "seeker-sensitive" model of church became all the rage a few decades ago. In the interim, our churches have thrown out expositional preaching and traditional Christian courage in proclaiming Christ in favor of felt-needs based "programs" and slick slogans for success.
Let me clarify here - I'm not speaking about "one" church or "a" church...I'm speaking about many.
Years ago, I remember a very simple church motto that would be sneered at today by many: Where everybody is somebody and Jesus Christ is Lord.
Don't get me wrong - I believe there are places for new ideas & methods. Quite honestly, many of them opened new and exciting doors of opportunity at my current church over the last decade-plus I served as Sunday School Director.
But when a church adopts these methods and bases its ministry on its relevancy to the secular world and a hard focus on numbers versus doing what you think is right and what is Bible-based and letting God handle the rest, you're in trouble.
I remember a few years ago when Hannibal's high school football team (I'm a former proud Pirate) played Pattonville in the district playoffs. I was at the game and watched a Pirate player take a kickoff and streak through the Pattonville defense, seemingly on his way to a touchdown and what could've been the nail in the coffin in the game.
But, he turned around to look to see who was gaining on him. In doing so, he dropped a step, and before he could reach the end zone he was tackled at the 3 yard line. On the next play, there was a botched snap from center, and Pattonville picked up the ball and ran it back 97 yards for a touchdown. Pattonville never looked back and eventually won the ballgame.
I learned two important lessons from that turn of events.
First, run hard and don't look back...someone might be gaining on you.
Second, who cares if someone's gaining on you? If you're doing what's right, and you know you're doing what's right, there's no reason to look around to see what others are doing. As long as they're going to a Bible-believing church, isn't that the goal? Do what God leads you to do, not what others are doing.
I hope you enjoy these next two articles...they really spoke to me where I'm at right now, and I hope they shed a little light on a situation I've previously tried to write about, but without the good choice of words these two authors selected.
Please forgive me for being vague. However, I'll need to keep this generic in order to keep the Blog Police who came to visit me four Fridays ago from visiting me again.
But, I digress...
On Friday night, I had the chance to read a couple of really good articles from this month's Pathway newspaper. They spoke specifically about the lack of meat in churches today; the articles specifically referenced how we as Christians willingly threw out the baby with the bathwater when Bill Hybels and his "seeker-sensitive" model of church became all the rage a few decades ago. In the interim, our churches have thrown out expositional preaching and traditional Christian courage in proclaiming Christ in favor of felt-needs based "programs" and slick slogans for success.
Let me clarify here - I'm not speaking about "one" church or "a" church...I'm speaking about many.
Years ago, I remember a very simple church motto that would be sneered at today by many: Where everybody is somebody and Jesus Christ is Lord.
Don't get me wrong - I believe there are places for new ideas & methods. Quite honestly, many of them opened new and exciting doors of opportunity at my current church over the last decade-plus I served as Sunday School Director.
But when a church adopts these methods and bases its ministry on its relevancy to the secular world and a hard focus on numbers versus doing what you think is right and what is Bible-based and letting God handle the rest, you're in trouble.
I remember a few years ago when Hannibal's high school football team (I'm a former proud Pirate) played Pattonville in the district playoffs. I was at the game and watched a Pirate player take a kickoff and streak through the Pattonville defense, seemingly on his way to a touchdown and what could've been the nail in the coffin in the game.
But, he turned around to look to see who was gaining on him. In doing so, he dropped a step, and before he could reach the end zone he was tackled at the 3 yard line. On the next play, there was a botched snap from center, and Pattonville picked up the ball and ran it back 97 yards for a touchdown. Pattonville never looked back and eventually won the ballgame.
I learned two important lessons from that turn of events.
First, run hard and don't look back...someone might be gaining on you.
Second, who cares if someone's gaining on you? If you're doing what's right, and you know you're doing what's right, there's no reason to look around to see what others are doing. As long as they're going to a Bible-believing church, isn't that the goal? Do what God leads you to do, not what others are doing.
I hope you enjoy these next two articles...they really spoke to me where I'm at right now, and I hope they shed a little light on a situation I've previously tried to write about, but without the good choice of words these two authors selected.
The Basics of Life, Pt 2
This is the first of two articles I wrote about above. The article can be accessed here, but for those who choose to not link through, the full text is located just below.
Dever cautions about 'relevant' mindset
Posted on Nov 7, 2007 by Garrett E. Wishall
LOUISVILLE, Ky. (BP)--The health of local churches doesn't depend on relevance to the world and success in numbers, but on reflecting the character of God and upholding His Word, Mark Dever said at a Southern Baptist Theological Seminary forum.
"I would like to suggest that the most fundamental problem in the church is not that we are not relevant enough in relation to the world, but that the church is not distinct enough from the world. Our churches must reflect the character of God," said Dever, pastor of Capitol Hill Baptist Church, Washington, D.C, and a trustee at the Louisville, Ky., seminary.
Church leaders should channel their energy toward maintaining purity in the church instead of spending great amounts of time and ministry on relating to the culture, Dever said at a forum sponsored by the seminary's Korean Student Fellowship Oct. 9.
The idea that the Gospel must be made relevant is a liberal assumption which, if taken to its end, can result in the theological liberalism of Friedreich Schleiermacher, the father of Protestant liberalism, Dever said, adding that numerous church models seek to be relevant and do not reach the unorthodox conclusions of liberalism but remain unhealthy because they are based on an unbiblical definition of success.
"The problem with the seeker-sensitive model, emerging church model and even the traditional model that say, 'Get as many people into a room as possible and share the Gospel with them,' is that they view success in light of visible fruit," he said. "All three of these approaches say, 'Change your techniques and let's get some numbers.'
"Instead of being directed by [visible] success, we should be directed by faithfulness. We should say, 'If the Lord doesn't like our product, we will change the product.' We shouldn't take the idea that if we don't have X number of conversions in our church, then we must be doing something wrong. I am glad Jeremiah didn't think that. And I am glad that Jesus Christ didn't think that. Let us remember that we are following the One who was crucified as a revolutionary."
Dever also is the founder of 9Marks Ministries and author of "Nine Marks of a Healthy Church." 9Marks Ministries attempts to help local church leadership re-establish biblical bearings and rethink ministry methods, and to help them discover and apply the biblical priorities that cultivate health and holiness in the local church.
"You must have preaching that makes the point of the text the point of the message and where the Gospel is always present," Dever said, noting the first of the nine marks of a healthy church is expositional preaching.
"In the Bible, the people never create God's Word. Instead, God's Word always creates the people. That is how God has always worked. And that is how we should preach. That is how people are saved and how people are sanctified. God's Spirit works with His Word.
"Expositional preaching must first characterize a church that will be able to withstand the pressures of an increasingly secular culture," Dever added.
Second, sound theology will go hand-in-hand with expositional preaching, further helping people view the world through God's eyes. Biblical understandings of the Gospel, conversion and evangelism also will promote church health, he said.
Church membership and church discipline each must be preached and practiced by church leaders to maintain purity within local churches, Dever said. Church membership and discipline fulfill Jesus' command to love one another, and church leaders will give an account for the people they allow into their congregation, he said.
"The basic idea of practicing a self-conscious allegiance to a certain group of people and to a certain group of elders is taught in the Bible," he said. "Our church membership should capture what it means to be a Christian through people's actions.
"Jesus said that they would know that you are Christians by your love, not for the people in the community, but for each other. Somehow what happens in the community of a congregation is more powerful even than your individual honesty and kindness to others. I think we will give an account to God for the membership of the church in which we pastor," Dever said.
Finally, Dever said a concern for discipleship and Christian growth and a biblical church leadership structure will promote healthy churches.
Patience and courage are needed to correct a situation where the number of church members greatly exceeds those who faithfully attend and participate in the life of the church, he said.
"You must very clearly preach the Gospel, Sunday after Sunday, making it very clear what a Christian is [in such a situation]," he said.
"Second, you must be very patient. It took me two years to finish dealing with that issue, in a very stable, Bible-believing congregation. Get counsel from older men who agree with you theologically.
"And when the time comes, what is typically lacking in pastors in many cases is courage," Dever said, adding that it takes "courage to look at a man twice your age and tell him that he has been doing things wrong all his life. You must keep making it very clear what a Christian is."
--30--
Garrett E. Wishall is a writer at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary.
Dever cautions about 'relevant' mindset
Posted on Nov 7, 2007 by Garrett E. Wishall
LOUISVILLE, Ky. (BP)--The health of local churches doesn't depend on relevance to the world and success in numbers, but on reflecting the character of God and upholding His Word, Mark Dever said at a Southern Baptist Theological Seminary forum.
"I would like to suggest that the most fundamental problem in the church is not that we are not relevant enough in relation to the world, but that the church is not distinct enough from the world. Our churches must reflect the character of God," said Dever, pastor of Capitol Hill Baptist Church, Washington, D.C, and a trustee at the Louisville, Ky., seminary.
Church leaders should channel their energy toward maintaining purity in the church instead of spending great amounts of time and ministry on relating to the culture, Dever said at a forum sponsored by the seminary's Korean Student Fellowship Oct. 9.
The idea that the Gospel must be made relevant is a liberal assumption which, if taken to its end, can result in the theological liberalism of Friedreich Schleiermacher, the father of Protestant liberalism, Dever said, adding that numerous church models seek to be relevant and do not reach the unorthodox conclusions of liberalism but remain unhealthy because they are based on an unbiblical definition of success.
"The problem with the seeker-sensitive model, emerging church model and even the traditional model that say, 'Get as many people into a room as possible and share the Gospel with them,' is that they view success in light of visible fruit," he said. "All three of these approaches say, 'Change your techniques and let's get some numbers.'
"Instead of being directed by [visible] success, we should be directed by faithfulness. We should say, 'If the Lord doesn't like our product, we will change the product.' We shouldn't take the idea that if we don't have X number of conversions in our church, then we must be doing something wrong. I am glad Jeremiah didn't think that. And I am glad that Jesus Christ didn't think that. Let us remember that we are following the One who was crucified as a revolutionary."
Dever also is the founder of 9Marks Ministries and author of "Nine Marks of a Healthy Church." 9Marks Ministries attempts to help local church leadership re-establish biblical bearings and rethink ministry methods, and to help them discover and apply the biblical priorities that cultivate health and holiness in the local church.
"You must have preaching that makes the point of the text the point of the message and where the Gospel is always present," Dever said, noting the first of the nine marks of a healthy church is expositional preaching.
"In the Bible, the people never create God's Word. Instead, God's Word always creates the people. That is how God has always worked. And that is how we should preach. That is how people are saved and how people are sanctified. God's Spirit works with His Word.
"Expositional preaching must first characterize a church that will be able to withstand the pressures of an increasingly secular culture," Dever added.
Second, sound theology will go hand-in-hand with expositional preaching, further helping people view the world through God's eyes. Biblical understandings of the Gospel, conversion and evangelism also will promote church health, he said.
Church membership and church discipline each must be preached and practiced by church leaders to maintain purity within local churches, Dever said. Church membership and discipline fulfill Jesus' command to love one another, and church leaders will give an account for the people they allow into their congregation, he said.
"The basic idea of practicing a self-conscious allegiance to a certain group of people and to a certain group of elders is taught in the Bible," he said. "Our church membership should capture what it means to be a Christian through people's actions.
"Jesus said that they would know that you are Christians by your love, not for the people in the community, but for each other. Somehow what happens in the community of a congregation is more powerful even than your individual honesty and kindness to others. I think we will give an account to God for the membership of the church in which we pastor," Dever said.
Finally, Dever said a concern for discipleship and Christian growth and a biblical church leadership structure will promote healthy churches.
Patience and courage are needed to correct a situation where the number of church members greatly exceeds those who faithfully attend and participate in the life of the church, he said.
"You must very clearly preach the Gospel, Sunday after Sunday, making it very clear what a Christian is [in such a situation]," he said.
"Second, you must be very patient. It took me two years to finish dealing with that issue, in a very stable, Bible-believing congregation. Get counsel from older men who agree with you theologically.
"And when the time comes, what is typically lacking in pastors in many cases is courage," Dever said, adding that it takes "courage to look at a man twice your age and tell him that he has been doing things wrong all his life. You must keep making it very clear what a Christian is."
--30--
Garrett E. Wishall is a writer at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary.
The Basics of Life, Pt 3
This is the second article I wrote about above...a link is provided here. But, for those who wish to see the article without linking through, here's the text below:
FIRST-PERSON: A shocking confession from Willow Creek Community Church leaders
Posted on Nov 6, 2007 by Bob Burney
COLUMBUS, Ohio (BP)--If you are older than 40 the name Benjamin Spock is more than familiar. It was Spock that told an entire generation of parents to take it easy, don't discipline your children and allow them to express themselves. Discipline, he told us, would warp a child's fragile ego. Millions followed this guru of child development and he remained unchallenged among child rearing professionals. However, before his death Dr. Spock made an amazing discovery: He was wrong. In fact, he said:
"We have reared a generation of brats. Parents aren't firm enough with their children for fear of losing their love or incurring their resentment. This is a cruel deprivation that we professionals have imposed on mothers and fathers. Of course, we did it with the best of intentions. We didn't realize until it was too late how our know-it-all attitude was undermining the self assurance of parents."
Oops.
Something just as momentous, in my opinion, just happened in the evangelical community. For most of a generation evangelicals have been romanced by the "seeker-sensitive" movement spawned by Willow Creek Community Church in Chicago. The guru of this movement is Bill Hybels. He and others have been telling us for decades to throw out everything we have previously thought and been taught about church growth and replace it with a new paradigm, a new way to do ministry.
Perhaps inadvertently, with this "new wave" of ministry came a de-emphasis on taking personal responsibility for Bible study combined with an emphasis on felt-needs based "programs" and slick marketing.
The size of the crowd rather than the depth of the heart determined success. If the crowd was large then surely God was blessing the ministry. Churches were built by demographic studies, professional strategists, marketing research, meeting "felt needs" and sermons consistent with these techniques. We were told that preaching was out, relevance was in. Doctrine didn't matter nearly as much as innovation. If it wasn't "cutting edge" and consumer friendly it was doomed. The mention of sin, salvation and sanctification were taboo and replaced by Starbucks, strategy and sensitivity.
Thousands of pastors hung on every word that emanated from the lips of the church growth experts. Satellite seminars were packed with hungry church leaders learning the latest way to "do church." The promise was clear: Thousands of people and millions of dollars couldn't be wrong. Forget what people need, give them what they want. How can you argue with the numbers? If you dared to challenge the "experts" you were immediately labeled as a "traditionalist," a throwback to the 50s, a stubborn dinosaur unwilling to change with the times.
All that changed recently.
Willow Creek has released the results of a multi-year study on the effectiveness of their programs and philosophy of ministry. The study's findings are in a new book titled "Reveal: Where Are You?," co-authored by Cally Parkinson and Greg Hawkins, executive pastor of Willow Creek Community Church. Hybels himself called the findings "ground breaking," "earth shaking" and "mind blowing." And no wonder: It seems that the "experts" were wrong.
The report reveals that most of what they have been doing for these many years and what they have taught millions of others to do is not producing solid disciples of Jesus Christ. Numbers yes, but not disciples. It gets worse. Hybels laments:
"Some of the stuff that we have put millions of dollars into thinking it would really help our people grow and develop spiritually, when the data actually came back it wasn't helping people that much. Other things that we didn't put that much money into and didn't put much staff against is stuff our people are crying out for."
If you simply want a crowd, the "seeker-sensitive" model produces results. If you want solid, sincere, mature followers of Christ, it's a bust. In a shocking confession, Hybels states:
"We made a mistake. What we should have done when people crossed the line of faith and become Christians, we should have started telling people and teaching people that they have to take responsibility to become 'self feeders.' We should have gotten people, taught people, how to read their Bible between services, how to do the spiritual practices much more aggressively on their own."
Incredibly, the guru of church growth now tells us that people need to be reading their Bibles and taking responsibility for their spiritual growth.
Just as Spock's "mistake" was no minor error, so the error of the seeker-sensitive movement is monumental in its scope. The foundation of thousands of American churches is now discovered to be mere sand. The one individual who has had perhaps the greatest influence on the American church in our generation has now admitted his philosophy of ministry, in large part, was a "mistake." The extent of this error defies measurement.
Perhaps the most shocking thing of all in this revelation coming out of Willow Creek is in a summary statement by Greg Hawkins:
"Our dream is that we fundamentally change the way we do church. That we take out a clean sheet of paper and we rethink all of our old assumptions. Replace it with new insights. Insights that are informed by research and rooted in Scripture. Our dream is really to discover what God is doing and how he's asking us to transform this planet."
Isn't that what we were told when this whole seeker-sensitive thing started? The church growth gurus again want to throw away their old assumptions and "take out a clean sheet of paper" and, presumably, come up with a new paradigm for ministry.
Should this be encouraging?
Please note that "rooted in Scripture" still follows "rethink," "new insights" and "informed research." Someone, it appears, still might not get it. Unless there is a return to simple biblical (and relevant) principles, a new faulty scheme will replace the existing one and another generation will follow along as the latest piper plays.
What we should find encouraging, at least, in this "confession" coming from the highest ranks of the Willow Creek Association is that they are coming to realize that their existing "model" does not help people grow into mature followers of Jesus Christ. Given the massive influence this organization has on the American church today, let us pray that God would be pleased to put structures in place at Willow Creek that foster not mere numeric growth, but growth in grace.
--30--
Bob Burney is Salem Communications' award-winning host of Bob Burney Live, heard weekday afternoons on WRFD-AM 880 in Columbus, Ohio. This column originally appeared at Townhall.com.
FIRST-PERSON: A shocking confession from Willow Creek Community Church leaders
Posted on Nov 6, 2007 by Bob Burney
COLUMBUS, Ohio (BP)--If you are older than 40 the name Benjamin Spock is more than familiar. It was Spock that told an entire generation of parents to take it easy, don't discipline your children and allow them to express themselves. Discipline, he told us, would warp a child's fragile ego. Millions followed this guru of child development and he remained unchallenged among child rearing professionals. However, before his death Dr. Spock made an amazing discovery: He was wrong. In fact, he said:
"We have reared a generation of brats. Parents aren't firm enough with their children for fear of losing their love or incurring their resentment. This is a cruel deprivation that we professionals have imposed on mothers and fathers. Of course, we did it with the best of intentions. We didn't realize until it was too late how our know-it-all attitude was undermining the self assurance of parents."
Oops.
Something just as momentous, in my opinion, just happened in the evangelical community. For most of a generation evangelicals have been romanced by the "seeker-sensitive" movement spawned by Willow Creek Community Church in Chicago. The guru of this movement is Bill Hybels. He and others have been telling us for decades to throw out everything we have previously thought and been taught about church growth and replace it with a new paradigm, a new way to do ministry.
Perhaps inadvertently, with this "new wave" of ministry came a de-emphasis on taking personal responsibility for Bible study combined with an emphasis on felt-needs based "programs" and slick marketing.
The size of the crowd rather than the depth of the heart determined success. If the crowd was large then surely God was blessing the ministry. Churches were built by demographic studies, professional strategists, marketing research, meeting "felt needs" and sermons consistent with these techniques. We were told that preaching was out, relevance was in. Doctrine didn't matter nearly as much as innovation. If it wasn't "cutting edge" and consumer friendly it was doomed. The mention of sin, salvation and sanctification were taboo and replaced by Starbucks, strategy and sensitivity.
Thousands of pastors hung on every word that emanated from the lips of the church growth experts. Satellite seminars were packed with hungry church leaders learning the latest way to "do church." The promise was clear: Thousands of people and millions of dollars couldn't be wrong. Forget what people need, give them what they want. How can you argue with the numbers? If you dared to challenge the "experts" you were immediately labeled as a "traditionalist," a throwback to the 50s, a stubborn dinosaur unwilling to change with the times.
All that changed recently.
Willow Creek has released the results of a multi-year study on the effectiveness of their programs and philosophy of ministry. The study's findings are in a new book titled "Reveal: Where Are You?," co-authored by Cally Parkinson and Greg Hawkins, executive pastor of Willow Creek Community Church. Hybels himself called the findings "ground breaking," "earth shaking" and "mind blowing." And no wonder: It seems that the "experts" were wrong.
The report reveals that most of what they have been doing for these many years and what they have taught millions of others to do is not producing solid disciples of Jesus Christ. Numbers yes, but not disciples. It gets worse. Hybels laments:
"Some of the stuff that we have put millions of dollars into thinking it would really help our people grow and develop spiritually, when the data actually came back it wasn't helping people that much. Other things that we didn't put that much money into and didn't put much staff against is stuff our people are crying out for."
If you simply want a crowd, the "seeker-sensitive" model produces results. If you want solid, sincere, mature followers of Christ, it's a bust. In a shocking confession, Hybels states:
"We made a mistake. What we should have done when people crossed the line of faith and become Christians, we should have started telling people and teaching people that they have to take responsibility to become 'self feeders.' We should have gotten people, taught people, how to read their Bible between services, how to do the spiritual practices much more aggressively on their own."
Incredibly, the guru of church growth now tells us that people need to be reading their Bibles and taking responsibility for their spiritual growth.
Just as Spock's "mistake" was no minor error, so the error of the seeker-sensitive movement is monumental in its scope. The foundation of thousands of American churches is now discovered to be mere sand. The one individual who has had perhaps the greatest influence on the American church in our generation has now admitted his philosophy of ministry, in large part, was a "mistake." The extent of this error defies measurement.
Perhaps the most shocking thing of all in this revelation coming out of Willow Creek is in a summary statement by Greg Hawkins:
"Our dream is that we fundamentally change the way we do church. That we take out a clean sheet of paper and we rethink all of our old assumptions. Replace it with new insights. Insights that are informed by research and rooted in Scripture. Our dream is really to discover what God is doing and how he's asking us to transform this planet."
Isn't that what we were told when this whole seeker-sensitive thing started? The church growth gurus again want to throw away their old assumptions and "take out a clean sheet of paper" and, presumably, come up with a new paradigm for ministry.
Should this be encouraging?
Please note that "rooted in Scripture" still follows "rethink," "new insights" and "informed research." Someone, it appears, still might not get it. Unless there is a return to simple biblical (and relevant) principles, a new faulty scheme will replace the existing one and another generation will follow along as the latest piper plays.
What we should find encouraging, at least, in this "confession" coming from the highest ranks of the Willow Creek Association is that they are coming to realize that their existing "model" does not help people grow into mature followers of Jesus Christ. Given the massive influence this organization has on the American church today, let us pray that God would be pleased to put structures in place at Willow Creek that foster not mere numeric growth, but growth in grace.
--30--
Bob Burney is Salem Communications' award-winning host of Bob Burney Live, heard weekday afternoons on WRFD-AM 880 in Columbus, Ohio. This column originally appeared at Townhall.com.
Wednesday, December 05, 2007
Danger at the Manger
I'm always amazed at how different boys and girls play. Girls: dolls, princesses, queens, land of puppy dog tails, yada, yada.
Boys: pirates, knights, weapons, you get the idea.
Now, when I was growing up my mom had this caroling family that she set out every year at Christmas. I loved it and even asked her if I could have it when she died. She didn't like the idea of her stuff with a name tag on it waiting for her demise, so she gave it to me when I got married.
She used to let me play with that caroling family and I would make up little stories about them traveling from house to house, having tea parties, riding in their carriage to the next Christmas party, that sort of thing.
The tradition continues in my own home. I let the kids play with various pieces of our nativity sets, as long as their careful. Remember, boys play differently.
I was walking through the kitchen the other day when I noticed three wise men and a shepherd with a Pizza Hut coupon for a free personal pan pizza. They were all placed in such a way that it appeared they were carrying it. When I asked Jonathan about it, he said the wise men and shepherd were taking the coupon to their leader so they could fight the bad guys. I told him fine, just as long as they protect the oranges and don't fall and break.
Last week, David had his entire nativity set - three wise men, Mary, Joseph, and Baby Jesus - all on the couch. They aren't breakable so I wasn't too worried about it. What disturbed me was that they were on a stool on top of the couch and they were surrounded by the Imperial Army. Apparently, Darth Vader had found their location and there was serious danger at the manger. I noticed later on that the wise men had been moved from the stool on top of the couch and were attempting a sneak attack on the Imperial Army. Let's hope justice prevailed.
I have always known that the boys were creative and that their creativity always involved a war, nuclear attack, or pirates. Right before Thanksgiving, they were outside doing a joust then decided to fashion rocks and sticks into spears and became, no lie, "canniboobs". After holding in my laughter and doing a little investigation, I discovered they meant cannibals.
But is it okay to do that with a nativity set? You know, Baby Jesus, pure and innocent all of a sudden wrapped at the center of an intergalactic catastrophe? Is that okay?
Those questions will have to be answered later. For now, I'll have to settle for peace talks in the kitchen between Santa and the pirates. It's either jump down the chimney or hand over the loot. I think Santa has this all wrapped up.
Boys: pirates, knights, weapons, you get the idea.
Now, when I was growing up my mom had this caroling family that she set out every year at Christmas. I loved it and even asked her if I could have it when she died. She didn't like the idea of her stuff with a name tag on it waiting for her demise, so she gave it to me when I got married.
She used to let me play with that caroling family and I would make up little stories about them traveling from house to house, having tea parties, riding in their carriage to the next Christmas party, that sort of thing.
The tradition continues in my own home. I let the kids play with various pieces of our nativity sets, as long as their careful. Remember, boys play differently.
I was walking through the kitchen the other day when I noticed three wise men and a shepherd with a Pizza Hut coupon for a free personal pan pizza. They were all placed in such a way that it appeared they were carrying it. When I asked Jonathan about it, he said the wise men and shepherd were taking the coupon to their leader so they could fight the bad guys. I told him fine, just as long as they protect the oranges and don't fall and break.
Last week, David had his entire nativity set - three wise men, Mary, Joseph, and Baby Jesus - all on the couch. They aren't breakable so I wasn't too worried about it. What disturbed me was that they were on a stool on top of the couch and they were surrounded by the Imperial Army. Apparently, Darth Vader had found their location and there was serious danger at the manger. I noticed later on that the wise men had been moved from the stool on top of the couch and were attempting a sneak attack on the Imperial Army. Let's hope justice prevailed.
I have always known that the boys were creative and that their creativity always involved a war, nuclear attack, or pirates. Right before Thanksgiving, they were outside doing a joust then decided to fashion rocks and sticks into spears and became, no lie, "canniboobs". After holding in my laughter and doing a little investigation, I discovered they meant cannibals.
But is it okay to do that with a nativity set? You know, Baby Jesus, pure and innocent all of a sudden wrapped at the center of an intergalactic catastrophe? Is that okay?
Those questions will have to be answered later. For now, I'll have to settle for peace talks in the kitchen between Santa and the pirates. It's either jump down the chimney or hand over the loot. I think Santa has this all wrapped up.
Monday, December 03, 2007
Sunday, December 02, 2007
Friday, November 30, 2007
MU-OU
In possibly the biggest game since, oh, that '64 Yale-Harvard classic (what the heck am I talking about?), MU on Saturday night will take to the field as the #1 college football team in all of the civilized universe. They control their destiny - if they win, they're in...the national championship game on January 3 in beautiful, scenic, & safe New Orleans.
If OU wins, however, life as we know it is over. Dogs will start sleeping with cats, Cubs and Cards fans will wed, and former first ladies will start running for the White House.
Oh crap. I have a bad feeling about this...
Seriously. I would make a prediction, but I'm afraid it'll jinx it. I do feel very optimistic, however.
If OU wins, however, life as we know it is over. Dogs will start sleeping with cats, Cubs and Cards fans will wed, and former first ladies will start running for the White House.
Oh crap. I have a bad feeling about this...
Seriously. I would make a prediction, but I'm afraid it'll jinx it. I do feel very optimistic, however.
Saturday, November 24, 2007
MIZ - ZOU
Just spent the last 3 1/2 hours yelling at an inanimate object televising moving pictures of the MU-KU football game.
36-28, good guys. This'll probably move us up to #2.
Holy moly, what a game. One of the best football games I've seen.
But, to quote Marty McFly, "Why do we have to cut these things so darn close?"
"A small, tiny spot"
I remember the Sunday morning very well when our friend, Marge, told us she had a "small, tiny spot" on her lung. The doctors had caught it early, she said, and their early prognosis sounded like a few treatments later and this awful, frightening word - cancer - would be but a distant memory.
A small, tiny spot.
We lost Marge Tuesday night.
Tammy and the boys got to see Marge occasionally over the past few years; it seemed like every time they could go, I was under the weather - and vice versa. In her condition, we didn't want to spread anything to her. While I'm sure that was the obvious way to go, it seems sort of wasteful in hindsight. Were I her, I would rather have seen us than heard we were ill.
But, she did see us occasionally throughout her ordeal. And, for those who aren't familiar with her situation, it was indeed an ordeal. Operations, treatments, and exams begat more of the same. She's a much stronger person than I'll ever be. I think I always knew that, but I saw it in action over the last few years.
The last time I saw her was when I was - ironically enough - at the Ambulatory (walk-in) Clinic in Hannibal, and she & Bob came in for an appointment with the lab while I was in the feeding line for antibiotics for some upper respiratory illness I had at the time. I stayed a good distance away - I'm still not sure what I had - but I had a chance to visit with her and with Bob. They were always so pleased to see us - and we them. They really treasured our boys, nearly as if they were their own. And our boys loved them. Jonathan couldn't believe it on Wednesday morning when we told him.
I looked at Tammy tonight, and while I don't doubt the wisdom of God's plan or His timing, I said, "It just hit me. These last few years were all brought on by a little spot."
I could wax philosophical about the meaning of life or ramble on about how we're just specks in God's plan, but let me cut to the chase.
I've held loved ones close this Thanksgiving. Take my advice. Do the same.
A small, tiny spot.
We lost Marge Tuesday night.
Tammy and the boys got to see Marge occasionally over the past few years; it seemed like every time they could go, I was under the weather - and vice versa. In her condition, we didn't want to spread anything to her. While I'm sure that was the obvious way to go, it seems sort of wasteful in hindsight. Were I her, I would rather have seen us than heard we were ill.
But, she did see us occasionally throughout her ordeal. And, for those who aren't familiar with her situation, it was indeed an ordeal. Operations, treatments, and exams begat more of the same. She's a much stronger person than I'll ever be. I think I always knew that, but I saw it in action over the last few years.
The last time I saw her was when I was - ironically enough - at the Ambulatory (walk-in) Clinic in Hannibal, and she & Bob came in for an appointment with the lab while I was in the feeding line for antibiotics for some upper respiratory illness I had at the time. I stayed a good distance away - I'm still not sure what I had - but I had a chance to visit with her and with Bob. They were always so pleased to see us - and we them. They really treasured our boys, nearly as if they were their own. And our boys loved them. Jonathan couldn't believe it on Wednesday morning when we told him.
I looked at Tammy tonight, and while I don't doubt the wisdom of God's plan or His timing, I said, "It just hit me. These last few years were all brought on by a little spot."
I could wax philosophical about the meaning of life or ramble on about how we're just specks in God's plan, but let me cut to the chase.
I've held loved ones close this Thanksgiving. Take my advice. Do the same.
Sunday, November 18, 2007
I love my wife...
Tammy just related to me that she'll always remember Brandy's mom's name. We just finished an IM conversation w/her - that's how this came up.
Brandy told Tammy her mom's name was "Geneva."
To which Tammy replied, "You mean, like the Convention?"
"Yes, Tammy...the Geneva Convention."
I love my wife.
Brandy told Tammy her mom's name was "Geneva."
To which Tammy replied, "You mean, like the Convention?"
"Yes, Tammy...the Geneva Convention."
I love my wife.
The Next Chapter
And today, the change official, I resigned as Sunday School Director at my church.
It was quite possibly the hardest ministry decision I've had to make. And, the outpouring of support I had from my closest friends and teachers was the definition of what a church family should be. May God bless them - they have a place in our hearts they'll never fully realize.
But, all good things must come to an end, or so I've heard. Today, this was the time. I'm not going to sit here and bash or hammer home reasons responsible for my decision. However, I will say if you've read this blog at all over the last few weeks, you probably understand.
I will say this for background purposes - I had helped put together the Sunday School Plan for our church, an initiative I announced and we started back in early September. I had told a very few that evening - following the meeting - that I would see the plan through to fruition, but after the plan's completion, I was done. True to my word, the plan was enacted today, and my service is ending - I'm remaining in the position through December 16.
But, the reasons that I finally answered the call to step aside that night a couple of months ago were far from the final reasons which helped drive home my decision. It became crystal clear after events I experienced a couple of Friday afternoons ago. No need to go into sordid details, but I knew then it was time.
I've rarely experienced this sensation...deep sadness over the end of a ministry, yet a great anticipation & freedom in looking forward.
It was quite possibly the hardest ministry decision I've had to make. And, the outpouring of support I had from my closest friends and teachers was the definition of what a church family should be. May God bless them - they have a place in our hearts they'll never fully realize.
But, all good things must come to an end, or so I've heard. Today, this was the time. I'm not going to sit here and bash or hammer home reasons responsible for my decision. However, I will say if you've read this blog at all over the last few weeks, you probably understand.
I will say this for background purposes - I had helped put together the Sunday School Plan for our church, an initiative I announced and we started back in early September. I had told a very few that evening - following the meeting - that I would see the plan through to fruition, but after the plan's completion, I was done. True to my word, the plan was enacted today, and my service is ending - I'm remaining in the position through December 16.
But, the reasons that I finally answered the call to step aside that night a couple of months ago were far from the final reasons which helped drive home my decision. It became crystal clear after events I experienced a couple of Friday afternoons ago. No need to go into sordid details, but I knew then it was time.
I've rarely experienced this sensation...deep sadness over the end of a ministry, yet a great anticipation & freedom in looking forward.
Thursday, November 15, 2007
Barry Bail Bonds-man, Part II
Top 10 Christmas gifts for Barry Bonds
10. Smokes
9. Carhart jacket to wear out in "the yard"
8. The mother of all nail files for his cell bars
7. A Yankees jersey so he can get used to pinstripes
6. An old time Giants jersey so he can get used to prison orange
5. Soap on a rope
4. Housewarming gift for those visits with the Manson family
3. Conjugal visits with godfather Willie Mays
2. Exercise equipment to get in shape the old fashioned way
1. A baseball encyclopedia with a huge asterisk
10. Smokes
9. Carhart jacket to wear out in "the yard"
8. The mother of all nail files for his cell bars
7. A Yankees jersey so he can get used to pinstripes
6. An old time Giants jersey so he can get used to prison orange
5. Soap on a rope
4. Housewarming gift for those visits with the Manson family
3. Conjugal visits with godfather Willie Mays
2. Exercise equipment to get in shape the old fashioned way
1. A baseball encyclopedia with a huge asterisk
Perfect vision
I had a fairly animated conversation with a couple of people recently, and it really struck me that people want to diagnose the symptoms instead of the problems in any given situation. We seem content in treating the sneezing instead of removing the mold and allergens from the house. Continually mopping up water that drips from the ceiling instead of fixing the roof. Putting air in a tire over & over again instead of getting a replacement or patching the hole. Getting infuriated and browbeating the messenger when the root problems are the issue.
It's a crying shame more people don't see the forest for the trees.
It's a crying shame more people don't see the forest for the trees.
Sunday, November 11, 2007
Excuse me??
Yesterday I received an email from someone who has decided not to join our homeschool group. That's fine. As president, I hear from all sorts of people interested in homeschooling and then they decide, for whatever reason, to not join our group. Fine.
Then it got ugly.
In her email she proceeds to tell me everything wrong with our group, why we'll never succeed, and then why Hannibal is a backward place. I know. I don't know how my homeschool group suddenly became the official representative of Hannibal.
I had written her an email. I poured my heart out. I told her how I felt. I got angrier. When I read the email to Scott, he suggested I save it as a draft, walk away, and email her something else. He did suggest, however, I post it as a blog.
So here it is, the email that I can't send to this person, but I can share with all our fans out there who know it takes to a lot make me mad. Couple that with essentially suggesting that I'm ruining my children's lives and then you've got yourself an extremely mad Tammy who is itching to send this thing!!!
Now, some of this was edited because I certainly don't want to offend the homeschoolers in the other group. It's not their fault this particular person has diva issues. It's so frustrating when people who are on the outside looking in think they have all the answers. That's the main reason why I don't say anything when my friends who public-school say things about their situation. I've never sent my kids to PS so what right do I have to say anything? I simply don't understand why I, and others like me, can't be afforded the same courtesy.
Then it got ugly.
In her email she proceeds to tell me everything wrong with our group, why we'll never succeed, and then why Hannibal is a backward place. I know. I don't know how my homeschool group suddenly became the official representative of Hannibal.
I had written her an email. I poured my heart out. I told her how I felt. I got angrier. When I read the email to Scott, he suggested I save it as a draft, walk away, and email her something else. He did suggest, however, I post it as a blog.
So here it is, the email that I can't send to this person, but I can share with all our fans out there who know it takes to a lot make me mad. Couple that with essentially suggesting that I'm ruining my children's lives and then you've got yourself an extremely mad Tammy who is itching to send this thing!!!
I read with great interest your email. I feel I need to defend our group from some comments that you have made.
**** sounds like it has many wonderful opportunities. However, they are located near a very large city and they themselves have many resources available to them that we do not have. Any classes could be offered to our group; all it takes is a parent or interested adult to step up and make the offer. We are more than happy to open our group to new classes. In the past we have had a volleyball team, basketball team, various science classes, writing classes. The only thing it takes is a willing parent to step up and make the offer.
You said that $30 covered the cost, all costs, to join, yet said that students provided their own supplies for some classes. Is that not requiring them to spend more money for a class? While we do ask parents to pay a fee for classes, this covers all books and supplies associated with the class. Just last year we recieved a grant from a Hannibal organization for art supplies. Although Hannibal, in your estimation, may not be as forward-thinking as *****, at least some in the town see the benefits of homeschooling and have even gone so far as to provide funding for top of the line art supplies so our kids have the best opportunity to let their talents soar.
Combining age groups was seriously considered. The age groups were divided as they were to accommodate class size and maturity levels. Combining four-year-olds with second graders is a daunting task and someone will either feel woefully under-challenged or extremely overwhelmed. However, if a parent wishes to put their child in an art class that better accommodates their talent, even if that class is considered "older", we welcome that.
My main frustration over your comments was that you lumped our group in with your own perception of Hannibal overall. I, for instance, am not from this area and I know many others that aren't from this area either. I don't defend Hannibal often, but this is where God has placed us for right now and for my money it's certainly better than an extremely liberal area that considers homeschooling to be a backward, ultra-conservative fad or, worse, something we need to mainstream, much like many of the classes offered within the ***** group.
I am interested in seeing how things could be better for the group; I would think anyone would welcome that for anything they're a part of. But I do ask that those making suggestions actually have been a part of the group. Looking from the outside in is much different than being a part of our group and seeing that we aren't rigid and try very hard to work with others, encourage classes, and have holiday parties and socials approxiamtely once per month. No, our group isn't perfect, but we love our children, believe in homeschooling, and are committed to doing the best we can for both.
Now, some of this was edited because I certainly don't want to offend the homeschoolers in the other group. It's not their fault this particular person has diva issues. It's so frustrating when people who are on the outside looking in think they have all the answers. That's the main reason why I don't say anything when my friends who public-school say things about their situation. I've never sent my kids to PS so what right do I have to say anything? I simply don't understand why I, and others like me, can't be afforded the same courtesy.
Tuesday, November 06, 2007
She was sure before she wasn't sure
Monday, November 05, 2007
Color me green...comma, stupid.
Last night, NBC's "Football Night in America" started the NBC-Universal enviro-wacko week by shutting off the in-studio lights for the tail-end of the pre-game show and then the halftime and post-game shows around the Dallas-Philadelphia football game played in Philly. The network wanted to show how energy conscious and enviro-friendly they could be by shutting off the studio lights, which was "enough power to fully light a normal-sized family home for a month."
Hey - here's an idea - leave the studio lights on, and PLAY THE GAME DURING THE SUNLIT DAY. Car headlights, studios, press boxes, and luxury boxes all could be partially-lit at best. Oh, and yeah...you could SHUT OFF THE MEGA-BANKS OF STADIUM LIGHTING at Liberty Financial Field in Philly.
How much energy could that have saved?
Oh, but wait - that would've required NBC to forfeit the millions of prime-time ad dollars they received by running the game on a Sunday night...no, now that can't happen, can it?
Don't even get me started on the impartiality of the week's "educational programming"...
Hey - here's an idea - leave the studio lights on, and PLAY THE GAME DURING THE SUNLIT DAY. Car headlights, studios, press boxes, and luxury boxes all could be partially-lit at best. Oh, and yeah...you could SHUT OFF THE MEGA-BANKS OF STADIUM LIGHTING at Liberty Financial Field in Philly.
How much energy could that have saved?
Oh, but wait - that would've required NBC to forfeit the millions of prime-time ad dollars they received by running the game on a Sunday night...no, now that can't happen, can it?
Don't even get me started on the impartiality of the week's "educational programming"...
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