From Len Sweet's new book

Out of the Question...Into the Mystery : Getting Lost in the GodLife Relationship Humans find it quite difficult to live with one another even during the best of times. Some of us aren?t emotionally wired for intimacy. Some of us have crippling flaws that make relationships difficult. In fact, some of history's greatest contributors have been relationship-challenged. As an adult, Isaac Newton shunned personal intimacy in all its forms, preferring his laboratory of the mind to living specimens. Henri Nouwen, who inspired many of us to move deeper into relationships with God and one another, had trouble himself developing intimacy with others. Relational disorders abound among creative people. During the Second World War, while they were both in Yugoslavia, English satirical novelist Evelyn Waugh and his friend Randolph Churchill (son of Winston) got in constant fights. Churchill one day exploded, "I thought you were supposed to be a Christian and a Catholic." To which Waugh replied, "And think how much worse I would be if I wasn't." But we live in a culture that makes relationships harder while stimulating the hunger for relationships. The more globally the market economy structures itself, the more relentless the assault on all nonmarket social relations. This makes the church's role in strengthening the social and ecological webs in which humans live all the more important. Unfortunately, the culture seems to be more aware of this than the church. The most highly visible people addressing the impoverishment of our relationship skills are "relationship ministers" such as Dr. Phil, Dr. Laura, Oprah, and (my favorite) Delilah.

Cookout2

Cookout2
Originally uploaded by Shoogerbear.

Just playing with flickr

Wrong Question: How Do We Do Church Better

Faced with diminishing returns on investment of money, time, and energy, church leaders have spent much of the last five decades trying to figure out how to do church better.......All of this activity anesthetizes the pain of loss. It offers a way to stay busy and preoccupied with methodological pursuits while not facing the hard truth: none of this seems to making much of a difference. Church activity is a poor substitute for genuine spirituality.

to truly choose

Agent Smith: The purpose of life Mr. Anderson is death. . .So why, Mr. Anderson? Why do you do it? Why get up? Why keep fighting? Do you believe you're fighting for something? For more that your survival? Can you tell me what it is? Do you even know? Is it freedom? Or truth? Perhaps peace? Yes? No? Could it be for love? Illusions, Mr. Anderson. Vagaries of perception. The temporary constructs of a feeble human intellect trying desperately to justify an existence that is without meaning or purpose. And all of them as artificial as the Matrix itself, although only a human mind could invent something as insipid as love. You must be able to see it, Mr. Anderson. You must know it by now. You can't win. It's pointless to keep fighting. Why, Mr. Anderson? Why? Why do you persist? Neo: Because I choose to faith is an open and honest expression of self and a choice. one chooses to be a follower of christ, one chooses to help, one chooses to love - it is not a "magic" tradition, but one of choice. i choose to love, to help, to care, to express - and others can either choose not to accept my choices, and they have that right. what i have found most interesting in my faith walk is that many claim to choose, but few have taken the steps to truly choose.

Jon Stewart on Crossfire

I came across this link through Tony Jones Blog this morning. If you would like to see Jon Stewart on Crossfire, and see a historical moment of putting people in their place, then please download this clip and watch it. Jon characterized exactly how I feel about politics in 10 minutes. I do not hold Stewart up by any means, his show is friggin hilarious, and he does put out a lot of truth that other news networks will not. Warning, if you lean way to the left, or way to the right, you may not find this amusing! to download, click the link below http://randomfoo.net/?p=2004_10_00_archive.inc#crossfire

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Mountains, Movies, and Mormons

Had a great trip last weekend to my home state of West Virginia. Perfect weather, and the leaves were just right. That is all I can really say about where I grew up, is that it's beautiful to live there. We watched "Saved!" last weekend. It is so in your face on so many levels. I really couldn't get our people in to a discussion about how wrong it was and how right it was. Depending on how you watch that movie, you can be offended. You can also see how an outside perspective of Christianity can be right on sometimes. These were stereotypes on steroids, and yea, we got the point. I plan on showing this movie again either this week, while we are gone to Indiana, or when we get back. I also have another surprise in that the two Mormon kids who came to my house last week, have been invited to our $2bill bible study. Pray that none of our folks move to Utah, but that the conversation is healthy and we all learn more from each other! Oh yea, Indiana, we are headed to Anderson this weekend for homecoming and a campus visit for some of my kids. Can't wait to see old friends!

I want this on the back of my business card! 

WARNING, THIS IS A RANT = REPEAT = THIS IS A RANT I am big on moving forward. I do not like to stay in one place. The casual observer may see me as one that doesn't budge, or one who doesn't make any sense. I like that I am an enigma to many, but I don't like when one thinks they can sum me up. Back to moving forward. I hate politics. There is nothing in politics that proves to me that moving forward is important. Now I am thankful that slavery was abolished, and of all the rights and freedoms I have, but I cannot take listening to politicians, but they aren't the reason of progress. I honestly think God has His hand in moving this country forward. Man that is as patriotic as you'll ever get me. I only had to watch the VP debate tonite for 10 minutes to see people talking in circles, and one side accusing the other of flipflopping, well isn't flipflopping the main criteria for one to be in politics. I will also say this, as I do every time its election time. I have no patience for people getting passionate about their beliefs and party's, only when it is time to choose the right guy to be put in office. Welp, see ya in 4 years when you actually will care again. I am not one to be categorized, so it is impossible for me to leave my 'independent' status. Oh yea, get your God is not a Democrat or Republican sticker.