Here are some of the pics from Sunday Night when we had our worship SERVICE which consisted of Water's Edge preparing burgers and hot dogs for 180 students as they began their SERVE project. There were students from all over (Canada, Florida, etc.).

Paul and Kristi at the Grill


Anna and the Spatula


Jaden Mesmerized by the Smoke


Aleesha Hangin' Out


The Feeding Masses


The Gals


John Trying to Be Serious


Travis and Heidi


After Cooking Up a Storm

For something of substance, read Joel's blog below. I am ranting... tonight I am watching Nightline, and they have some "evangelical preaching competition" thing as their topic. It has teenage guys competing for a national title... I don't want to be arrogant, BUT... I think that crap is a zillion miles away from the gospel... it simply pisses me off... I would run like *#@%& from that stuff it it were what the gospel is about...

Sadly, somehow we keep promoting it as the gospel...

Just popping in to say "Hi." I don't have access at home, so I am posting from work. That's why I've been silent on the blog for the last month. Torie and I are almost done with things in the new house, so that's a relief. I might post some pics sometime. I now have a new sympathy for people who are involved with building or remodeling a house. It can really be all-consuming. Maybe life can get back to being concerned with other things now.

I've been thinking through some things like this:

Standing by the Least
It is very tempting to insulate ourselves from the pain in the world. Sometimes we do it by hanging out with people who seem to ‘have it all together.’ Sometimes we do it by huddling in the safety of our own homes. Sometimes we do it by staying busy with our own projects.

I’ll be the first to admit that needy people are hard for me to be around. People with problems (and I mean significant problems, not the little problems we all have) are major drains on the schedule because it takes time to listen to them. It takes time to keep listening to them. Sometimes I want to say, “Get a grip, get a clue, and get a life!”

But I’m following Jesus—trying to learn how to live life from him—and that means that I had better stop trying to insulate myself from hurting people and start standing by the least.

Jesus was pretty clear about the fact that we are not to play favorites with the people who ‘have it all together’ while ignoring those who don’t. In fact, that kind of approach to life is dangerous.

Read through the prophets and you’ll see that God is always on the side of those who are hurting and ignored and oppressed. And that means that if you are ignoring or oppressing them, you are walking headlong against the will of God—and that is a dangerous way to live.

A better way to live is to walk with God’s wind at your back (like the old Irish blessing--thanks to Brian McLarenfor this image), being directed by the Spirit to stand by the least, the last, and the lost. Then you’ll be in good company.

So look around you and think about the people who are in pain (from illness, mental challenges, chemical imbalances, poverty, unemployment, divorce, death, etc.). Stand by them, spend time listening to them, and be ready to help them where you can.

Let’s be a people who go out of our way to stand by the least—to love people like Jesus did.

and this:

Contentment and Complacency

The line between contentment and complacency is a thin one sometimes. When is striving for more wrong? When is settling for less wrong?

I think the answer to this may come as we think about who we are called to be. We are called to be God’s peculiar people on this planet—extraordinary in the way we love, serve, rejoice, give, and forgive. We are called to be a people who trust that God will provide for our needs, and we are called to be a people that seeks first the kingdom of God (the ruling and reigning of God).

We are called to share in the Revolution of God (another way of saying the kingdom of God) as our lives together are transformed according to the image of our Creator (Colossians 3:1-17). This is a revolution because it challenges the assumptions of self-centered living (whether that be on the part of individuals, corporations, or countries).

Now, here’s where contentment and complacency come in. As we seek first the Revolution of God, trusting that God will provide for our needs (Matt 6:25-34), we can be content with what God has provided. We no longer define ourselves by what other people think of us (how much money we have, what clothes we wear, who we hang out with, what kind of job we have, etc.) . This does not mean that it is wrong to be successful—it simply means our value is not determined by the things we have or the accomplishments we make.

Therefore, we can be free from the anxiety that culture can place upon us—we can be content whether we have much or whether we have little.

Where we will not be complacent, however, is in our pursuit of God’s Revolution. We will run hand-in-hand and headlong into our pursuit of seeing God become king over our lives and the whole world! We won’t tolerate spiritual infancies any longer—not because we’re angry, but because we love each other too much to let people believe that ‘crossing the line’ is all there is.

So be content with what you have, but don’t become complacent in seeking God and sharing in His Revolution.

So what do you think?

Baptism... today I was talking with a friend, and the topic of infant and believers baptism came up. At water's edge we have explored this topic a great deal, and I don't want to get into the thelogical points to be made on both sides. That simply isn't my point here... as I was reflecting on our conversation while trimming the shrubs in the yard this afternoon, it occurred to me that we ReALLY like to be right on this particular issue, and I wonder why this one is so important on being "right."

Here is my thought... it's largely because we like to know who is saved and who is not. We do like to be like God; we like to know the things of God. Perhaps this isn't really any of our business anyway. Maybe it's our business to share the story, live the story, and teach others the ways of Jesus, but perhaps the matter of who is "saved" is really only for God to know.

BUT, since we like to know the things of God, we have unconsciously decided that knowing these things is somehow important to living as apprentices of Jesus... but is it??? I want to hear your "Shout Out."

Blessings~

I've begun reading Brian McLaren's "The Story We Find Ourselves In." It's excellent in the same way that "A New Kind of Christian" was excellent! If we can only learn to engage our culture, the people of our lives, with the same kind of gentle thoughtfulness with which Brian tells his stories... let us learn how...

My wife submits to me :) She has been learning to do the biblical thing for the past 12 plus years. The more she learns to submit, the more our marriage reflects Christ. The more she submits to me, the better we get along. It's the way God intended it to be.

I could stop at that, but I believe that I would be on the verge of being heretical, and I certainly would be well on my way to sleeping on the couch for the next seven years - at which time she would be required to forgive me.

I need to add to that first paragraph; the more I learn to submit, the more our marriage reflects Christ. The more we submit to one another, the better we get along. It's the way God intended it to be. There - that reads a bit more like Christ submitting to the Father, the Father giving the glory to the Son, and the Son again pointing to the Spirit. The three working together. And in our human case, a significantly less perfect relationship, but striving to be a reflection of Christ nonetheless, and we learn to submit to one another.

My wife attended a seminar earlier this week regarding "the role of women in the church today." While the presenter was attempting to convey his biblical perspective, it was all about "submission" in the sense of women being "under" men. While he derived his perspective from Bible passages, I have no doubt that his perspective misses the point of the passages.

There are two significant issues that I hold against people who are so bull headed, and who are so confident in their positions. First, They are filled with arrogance. They are so convinced of themselves that they are prideful. It's as if they have touched the face of God, and all people with positions that differ are void of God. When I think of those who walked closely with God, I can't remember any of them that were arrogant. Those who were most arrogant, as Jesus pointed out, were the religious leaders of his day. They believed they knew exactly how to please God. They had spirital widson that others lacked. They could pray for hours, and they could give spiritual direction. Oops. They had it all wrong. It's too bad their pride and arrogance hindered them from becoming disciples of the Son of God. Oops.

And not to forget my second point, the arrogance of any male who believes he should always lead. The arrogance to believe that simple the designation of testicles and a penis makes one more likely to walk closely with God. To think that I have the answers in all situations, to think that I am always more spiritually alive, to think that I am always reflecting Christ's love better, to think that my spiritual opinion is always more correct --- what is that --- sin? Maybe... gulp.

I'm tired of these people screaming their arrogance toward me, and it's no wonder that so much of our world continues to walk out the doors of "church" never to return. We have failed these people not because we slipped down any slope toward the muck that is void of God. We have failed because we continually fail to love as Christ loved. He gave himself. He allowed six inch nails to be pounded through his flesh.... and we are arrogant enough to think that we have all the answers. Let us feel his flesh being torn apart, and let us remember that if we are not all about Christ we are about nothing at all.