NEW BLOG! (wordpress)

Hi Ladies and Gentlemen - I switched my blog over to wordpress. My new address is http://ryanedwinpaulson.wordpress.com/ - update your links! Sorry about the change, but wordpress offered a little bit more versatility.

Yahtzee!

60th Anniversary

Yesterday I had the awesome opportunity to celebrate my grandparents 60th wedding anniversary. What an accomplishment! It was so fun to be together as a family and to see the impact that their marriage has had. What a great legacy. it's really fun to see the way that God's grace has been evident in my family for so many generations. I'm grateful! 60 years, that's a long time. Can't wait to celebrate 60 with Kelly!

Fun day

Today, for the first time, we went swimming with Ethan! Here are a few pics. He was so funny in the water. He loved it.

Become a Fan

My message for this week in our series "The Gospel According to Facebook" is called "Become a Fan." I am so stoked to give this message. The whole fan thing has been one of my favorite developments in facebook over the last few months. The things that people come up with to be fans of is absolutely hilarious! I was doing some research for my message this weekend looking at some of the crazy things people are fans of. One that caught my eye was "Laughing when people fall." I thought to myself, "that's about the dumbest things I've ever heard." Not only that, but it's simply not nice to laugh at people when they fall. Anyway, I went to the site to read what people were posting (which I'd never done before, but people write some really funny/ridiculous things), and I found this video posted. I was in my office crying I was laughing so hard! Evidentially I am a fan of "Laughing when people fall" and I didn't even know it! Watch this... please.

Friend Request

I am continuing to teach this week in our new series called "The Gospel According to Facebook." This week my message is called "Friend Request." I have been studying friendship in the Bible and feel like the Lord is giving me a good message to deliver, but I can't get the stupid Michael W. Smith song "Friends" out of my head. It's absolutely killing me. So many good/disturbing/emotional/cheesy memories attached to this song. I might have to share a few on Sunday night.

Push play... I dare you!

Facebook Generation

I a starting a new series this weekend called "The Gospel According to Facebook." I'm so excited to teach on this. I am going to use the phenomenon of facebook as a metaphor for the Christian life. As I have been thinking about facebook and why it is so popular it seems to me that its popularity is driven by the way that it touches so many of the desires and cravings that we hold in common as human beings. For examples; connection with other people, causes to believe in, groups to join, etc...

Anyway, as I was studying, I ran across an interesting article in the Wall Street Journal about the "facebook geneeration" and the way that they are changing the way that business is conducted. Here are the 12 main things that they see:

1. All ideas compete on an equal footing.
2. Contribution counts for more than credentials.
3. Hierarchies are natural, not prescribed.
4. Leaders serve rather than preside.
5. Tasks are chosen, not assigned.
6. Groups are self-defining and -organizing.
7. Resources get attracted, not allocated.
8. Power comes from sharing information, not hoarding it.
9. Opinions compound and decisions are peer-reviewed.
10. Users can veto most policy decisions.
11. Intrinsic rewards matter most.
12. Hackers are heroes.

It seems to me that the church might do well to take notice of some of these realizations that the business world is coming to. I think that there are a lot of them that are applicable to the way that churches operate. Thought?

Liberty?

I read today that Liberty University will no longer recognize the Democratic Club on their campus. Now, I am not a democrat (nor would I consider myself a republican), but I think this is a bad move on a few different levels to kick them out. And, I must point out that the name Liberty seems a bit ironic at this point! The University said that they will no longer recognize them because "the national party's platform goes against the conservative Christian school's moral principles." If you want to read the article, click here and read what The Washington Post reported.

To make the statement that "the national party's platform goes against the conservative Christian school's moral principles" are you implying that the Republican Party is wholly in line with your values? I certainly hope not. The marrying of Christianity with one political party has weakened Christianity for long enough. Hopefully we can move beyond blind support one party and think about ALL issues through Biblical lens.

Those are just a few of my thoughts, I'd love to know what you think about the story.

Free Goods

I saw this link to a free Coldplay Live album. Here is the link. I haven't had the chance to listen to it yet, but hey, it's free.

Enjoy!

Mission Trip Blog

Our mission team for the Dominican Republic started a blog a little while back. You can got to it and check out thoughts and prayer requests of people on the team. Also, we will post pictures when we are there (hopefully, that will depend on technology) and then we will share stories once we are home. Hope you enjoy it!

http://www.thewellefcc.wordpress.com/

Sheer Randomness!

I haven't had the chance to blog ina while, so I thought I would post a few random thoughts...

• my son peed in his eye this morning. that's right, you read that correctly, he peed in his eye. like a good dad I just started screaming. he smiled at me. evidently it wasn't as big a deal to him as it was to me!
• is Charles Barkely the worst golfer in the world? I saw this clip of him golfing this weekend where he hit someone in the crowd with the ball. he was playing at some sort of pro am fundraiser and he took someone out who was sitting in the front row. i'm not sure who is at fault here... who in their right mind would stand there when barkely is teeing off? have they seen his swing? i seriously couldn't stop laughing.
  

• I'm really enjoying teaching through the book of James, but man is it convicting! It seems like every message I prep for God really challenges me through. This last week was on the way that faith expresses itself through speech. ouch.
• I am so excited for the Nuggets in the playoffs. They are playing so well right now and just can't wait. Bring on the Lake show!

National Day of Prayer

I had the chance to share at North County's National Day of Prayer breakfast this morning. It was truly an honor to be able to speak to a room full of people who are far more prestigious than I will probably ever be. I shared about the power of prayer and how I had the chance to introduce a student to Jesus over at Palomar College just yesterday. One thing that I have realized about prayer is that it really forces me to get my agenda in line with God. Yesterday God just literally brought this student up to me and I just responded to the opportunity that he had obviously given to me.

I read this quote about prayer by Henri Nouwen that really got me thinking about the way that I think about prayer and often times compartmentalize my prayer life. Nouwen wrote,
"To pray, I think, does not mean to think about God in contrast to thinking about other things, or to spend time with God instead of spending time with other people. Rather, it means to think and live in the presence of God. As soon as we begin to divide our thoughts about God and thoughts about people and events, we remove God from our daily life and put him into a pious little niche where we can think pious thoughts and experience pious feelings. ... Although it is important and even indispensable for the spiritual life to set apart time for God and God alone, prayer can only become unceasing prayer when all our thoughts -- beautiful or ugly, high or low, proud or shameful, sorrowful or joyful -- can be thought in the presence of God. ... Thus, converting our unceasing thinking into unceasing prayer moves us from a self-centred monologue to a God-centred dialogue."

What a great truth to keep in mind!

Great Quote

I ran across this quote this morning as I was doing some reading. It resonates with me because this is exactly what I want the focus of my life to be.

THE GREATEST USE
OF A LIFE IS TO
SPEND IT FOR
SOMETHING THAT
OUTLASTS IT.

Faith You Can See

I started a teaching series on the book of James two weeks ago in the college ministry. When I started it I knew that it was going to be a challenging book to study, but it has really blown my own expectations out of the water. It is REALLY challenging and really practical. This week we are looking at James 1:19-27 which paints a picture of what true faith looks like. As i have studied, there are really 4 different things that James points out. Faith expresses itself in the way that we deal with anger, the way we listen and respond to the Word, the way we speak, and the way we care about the things God cares about.

This is a really challenging passage, but I think James a book that the church needs to embrace in a new way. We (at least in Evangelicalism) have told people that faith is saying a prayer and being convinced in our head of some theological truths. After spending time with James, I think he would say that is a pretty weak definition of the word 'faith.'

I'd be interested to hear your thoughts....

Go Natinals!

Are you kidding me? The worst franchise in baseball just became a bigger joke. Two weeks ago two of the Nationals players (their 2 best players by the way), walked out onto the field to play a major league baskball game... with the name of their team logo spelled wrong on the front of their jersey! Way to strive for excellence Natinals! You go Natinals! The Worlde Seris is rite arownd the korner.

Thankful

I was sitting in a seminary class last night, talking about ministry and I was just struck by how thankful I am for the people that I get to work with and share life with. Seriously, we have the best staff! Here is a recent picture that's on a postcard we send out to new people who come. (for some reason the colors are messed up when I upload it, but you get the picture).

Earth Day - Stopping Short

So, it's Earth Day today. I have never been a big celebrator of Earth Day, but I am intrigued by people who do celebrate this 'holiday.' To me it really just seems like it is stopping short - no, not in the same was as the Seinfeld episode. It reminds me a lot of what Paul writes in Romans 1:25 which says, "They exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator—who is forever praised. Amen."

For me, the fact that this day even exists is a reminder to not stop short. To not worship the things that God has created rather than God himself. The Bible affirms that the things God has created are good, but we miss the point when we give those things praise rather than the person who gave those things to us for our use and enjoyment. May we press forward to the giver of all good things. We are too easily satisfied.

I am reminded of a famous C.S. Lewis quote where he said, ""It would seem that Our Lord finds our desires not too strong, but too weak. We are half-hearted creatures, fooling about with drink and sex and ambition when infinite joy is offered us, like an ignorant child who wants to go on making mud pies in a slum because he cannot imagine what is meant by the offer of a holiday at the sea. We are far too easily pleased." May we not be so satisfied with the gift, that we miss the giver. May our desires grow that we will long for so much more!

The Love of God

I heard the song "The Love of God" this past week and was just absolutely taken by the last verse.

Could we with ink the ocean fill,
And were the skies of parchment made,
Were every stalk on earth a quill,
And every man a scribe by trade;
To write the love of God above
Would drain the ocean dry;
Nor could the scroll contain the whole,
Though stretched from sky to sky.

What amazing poetry, truth, and beauty. It's so good to be reminded of this truth this week. I needed it!

Bees... they're sting crazy!

I had an interesting experience last Saturday. I was on the driving range getting ready to play a round of golf with my father-in-law. I saw a cloud type thing emerge in the distance, sort of like the smoke monster in Lost... It moved towards me and the other people hitting balls on the range. As it go closer, it became clear that it was a swarm of bees! I'm not a huge fan of killer bees, so along with the other people on the range, I backed up under the canopy (like that would have protected me!).

Eventually, the bees calmed down a bit. They seemed to be leaving, but when I looked closer, they weren't leaving at all, they just found a place to congregate and make a new home... right on my golf bag!!! That's right, there were literally a few thousand bees that made their home on my golf bag!

To make a long story short, the golf course had to call an exterminator to come. They put a bag over my golf bag and took the bag and the bees to a hive near the Wold Animal Park. I got my golf bag back at the end of my round. The people in the pro shop told me, "It has a little bit of wax and honeycomb on it."

CRAZY!

Resource for Holy Week

I found a great resource for Holy Week on a blog that I read. Here is the link. I hope that it is helpful to you as you think about the significance of this week.

A practical resource for Holy Week

Resurrection

Being that it is Easter next weekend, I have been doing a lot of study lately on the subject of resurrection. A lot of my study and thinking has centered around N.T Wright's book "Surprised by Hope." One of the things that has been solidified in my mind is the future hope of a bodily resurrection. While my thinking has been impacted by Wright's work, it is also being molded by 1 Corinthians 15. I have always been firm in my conviction of a bodily resurrection, but have never been too sure of where that fits into the generally accepted idea of heaven.

I am really enjoying "Surprised by Hope" and highly recommend it... I don't agree with everything in it, but it has stimulated some really good thinking and discussion.

Fire Danger

The Donkey King

I wonder if we really understand just how ridiculous and counter culture Jesus truly was. I am preparing to teach this weekend and we have decided to spend these next two weeks pointing to Easter and the cross (then we are going to teach through the book of James... so excited!). My focus this week is going to be the triumphal entry. It's one of those stories that we have heard so many times that we might no longer hear it.

Jesus comes into town, being crowned as a king, and he comes in riding on a donkey! That's crazy. No king in their right mind would have ever ridden into town on a donkey,; especially when they are being declared to be the king. You have to wonder if the people who were watching and cheering and laying down their clothes for him to walk into town on were wondering what the heck he was doing. It would be the equivalent of President Obama riding in a Pinto during his inaugural parade. It would never happen.

It seems to me that Easter and all the events that lead up to it declare that God does not do things the way that we think he should. Are we willing to get on board with that kind of God? A God who rides into to town on a donkey?

New Best Invention... EVER

It would not be quite as funny if wasn't such a useful idea. I want to get paid to come up with stuff like this!

The Influence of "New Calvinism"

I recently saw that Time magazine anointed "New Calvinism" as one of the most influential ideas in 2009. If you want to read the whole article, here is a link to it. The New Calvinism got just edged out by "Jobs are the new asset" (meaning that people are having to start working again to earn money) and "Recycling the Suburbs" (meaning that people aren't as enthralled with strip malls as they used to be). I'm curious as to how Time decided on their list, but I'm more curious as to how they chose "New Calvinism" as being worthy of the top three. I'm guessing that it is because New Calvinism is backed by two of the strongest voices in conservative Christianity today; John Piper and Mark Driscoll.

I want to be clear, I have nothing against these guys whatsoever, in fact I really like and admire both of their work (especially in the pulpit). I am just curious as to why this theology is gaining such momentum and force. In a culture that is moving more and more towards relativism, New Calvinism stands in stark contrast this idea (thankfully). Anyway, i would like to know what you think and why you think this movement is growing with such vigor.

Just a side note: I'm glad that the "New Calvinism" is growing... and not the "Old Calvinism." Seeing as how good old John Calvin and his followers were responsible for the deaths of many Anabaptists. Not one of the brighter times in the history of Christianity.

One of my favorite times of year!

This is one of my favorite times of the year. Spring is in the air (not that it really leaves for all that long in the winter here in SoCal), the quarter at Seminary is winding down, and we are gearing up for summer.

All that is fine and good, but let me tell you what really gets me going. March Madness baby! I can't wait for the tournament. I love all the upsets, come from behind victories, and the Cinderella team that inevitably shows up and makes a great run.

Oh, I can't wait!!!

Jesus the Post-modern Evangelist?

Was Jesus a post-modern evangelist at heart? Let me explain what I mean by that. I have been studying for this weekend's message that I am teaching on John 17. I am so excited because the passage is just absolutely jam packed full of applicable truth for the church today. However, one of the things that Jesus said in this prayer really got my attention.

Jesus says,"May they be brought to complete unity to let the world know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me." (John 17:23) The "they" in this verse is talking about followers of Christ; the church. So, Jesus' point is that the way that the world is going to know that Jesus is the Son of God (see also v. 21) is through the unity that the church exhibits. It's not through well crafted arguments, its not through diagrams or pamphlets, and its not through evangelistic crusades. Not that any of those are necessarily bad, but they are not the way that Jesus said people would know that he was the Son of God. Simply, he stated, people will know that he is the Son of God by the way that the people who claim to be his followers love each other and the world around them. So, one of the great evangelistic methods that Jesus taught was a unified body!

That sounds very post-modern. It sounds very experiential. It's almost like Jesus was saying that people have to have an experience with the truth before they are going to really, truly believe it. I wonder if the church has more to say to the post-modern mind than we have originally thought. I also have to wonder if we could make a bigger impact if we were more unified.

Thoughts?

Comm.unity

The word community is a loaded word. Have you ever really thought about it? The first part of the word, 'comm,' means together. The second part of the word 'unity' means single-minded or the state of being one. So, the word community really means; together being one. Talk about a loaded word!

I have been thinking a lot about this word a lot today especially. As The Well (the college ministry that I pastor) has grown, its been something that has been a challenge to maintain.

As a pastor there is nothing that I would like to see more than people who are connected with each other and who really care for each other. As I have been spending time thinking about the core attributes of God over the past few weeks, one of the things that stands out to me is that God is a communal God. I think especially to Jesus' prayer in the garden where he prays for the believers who were going to believe in him later (you and me). He prays that we would be one, just as he is one with the Father. There was no competition between Jesus and the Father, there was no division, there was no envy, there was no...

So, as I think about this aspect of God, I would live to get your feedback. What do you think the main detractors for community for the church today? Help me with my message this weekend!

Worst Sermon Ever?

You have to see this video. Please do yourself a favor and watch it! Absolutely hilarious. This pastor preaches a message on the phrase "I will destroy him that pisseth against the wall." Seriously watch!

Wright on Colbert

As you know I have been reading N.T Wright's book "Surprised by Hope." Some people have asked who he is, so I thought I would add a link to an interview with him. A friend shared this with me today. The interview actually gives a fairly good summary of N.T. Wright's premise in the book... when he is able to get a word in edge wise with Colbert. Anyway, Colbert... is always good for a laugh! Let me know what you think about his two-stage afterlife existence.

The Colbert ReportMon - Thurs 11:30pm / 10:30c

Bishop N.T. Wright

Colbert Report Full Episodes
Political Humor

One of my favorite pictures!

This is one of my favorite pictures... of all-time!

Surprised by Hope - 1

The premise of this book is pretty clear in the first chapter - at least Wright's view on heaven. His claim is that new creation a "new heaven and a new earth" have already come in Jesus of Nazareth. Essentially Wright's claim is that heaven is not a place that we should be hoping to go to one day when we die, but a reality that can be fully realized today. While on a lot of levels this type of argument is enticing, I don't think that it is completely Biblical.

There is definitely a literal place called Heaven described in the Bible. Just a few passages off the top of my head that come to mind are Isaiah 6, Revelation 4-5, and Paul's description of the hope that we have in 2 Corinthians 5.

But my question is, does it have to be either or? If we affirm that heaven is a place that followers of Christ will one day go when they die, do we also have to say that hope in Jesus Christ cannot be fully realized now? I think we fall into a unfortunate place when we limit the Kingdom of God to a place "out there" somewhere, OR when we say that it is fully here right now.

I am excited to continue to dialogue with Wright on this subject. He is one of the most respected historical Jesus scholars today. He is absolutely brilliant and I appreciate his work a ton... all that said, I don't expect that I will agree with him 100% on this subject.

I decided that over this season of Lent I am going to read through the book "Surprised by Hope" by N.T. Wright. I don't usually read other books while I am taking classes, but I have heard a lot about this one lately and the subject matter is really interesting. The subtitle is Rethinking Heaven, the Resurrection, and the Mission of the Church. I thought that it would be a good read before Easter. If you have read it let me know what you think. I will post thoughts about it as they come.

Ash Wednesday

Tomorrow marks the beginning of the Lenten season. As a college group we are going to celebrate the beginning of Lent with an Ash Wednesday service. I am well aware that the Evangelical Church has not typically celebrated Ash Wednesday (or even Lent for that matter), but as a staff we wanted to do something to make the Easter season more impacting this year. The past few years I have felt like Easter has just flown by with a one hour long service on a Sunday morning. So, if you are curious about what Ash Wednesday is all about from an Evangelical perspective, I have included a link to Mark Roberts' blog where he wrote about Ash Wednesday. I think he does a good job of giving a summary - and he is a reputable scholar and pastor.

Let me know what you think about the Evangelical church celebrating Ash Wednesday. Have we gone too far in distancing ourselves from some of the "high church" holy days? Not too far in the sense that any of the days/celebrations (like lent and Ash Wed) provide salvation, but that we are missing out on something that could potentially help us tend to our spiritual lives in a greater manner? I'm interested to know what you think.

http://markdroberts.com/

The Power Team

I was studying for this weekend and thinking about the omnipotence of God. How do I adequately describe the power of God. That he is all-powerful, there is nothing that eh is unable to do. I went around and filmed a video over at palomar college asking students what the first thing that came to their mind when they heard the word "powerful." A lot of people said the president... and there were a few other random answers.

But for me, the first thing that I think of is... The Power Team. Do you remember the power team? It was/is a group of guys who go around and rip phone books in half all for the glory of Jesus. What a brilliant idea (?). Here is one press release that cam out about the power team:

THE POWER TEAM is a group of world class athletes who have performed the world’s greatest exhibitions of power, strength, speed, inspiration, and motivation in every state and in over 40 countries for over 30 years. These giant men, many weighing over 300 pounds, can blow up hot water bottles like balloons, snap baseball bats like twigs, lift telephone poles overhead, rip phone books and license plates like pieces of paper, and smash walls of ice and concrete.

I don't think that's the direction that I'm going this weekend, but it sure does bring back some good/funny memories. Check out some of these promotional pics!

On second thought... I might see if they are open this weekend!

Best Valetines Gift EVER!

I always like to give a little bit of "practical" dating or marriage advice (see Biblical dating post :) on my blog, and I think I found something that could really help you out. I ran across what I think could possibly be the best Valentines gift ever and the world must know that it exists! It is called the "Hug Me Pillow." (seriously, this is a real gift... and its on sale now at overstock.com.) Because, really nothing says "I love you" quite like a pillow in the shape of an arm.

It's a bold move by somebody to market this, but I appreciate it the risk they have taken. I hope Kelly doesn't read this post... it will completely spoil her Birthday!

Erwin McManus - 2

This is my second post about the one day conference that I went to where Erwin McManus presented. One of the things about Erwin that is pretty impressive is that he is a consultant to people in the business world and media industry - giving advice about how to help people connect more to the "human story" (as he puts it). As he shared, he told us there were three things that every good story has (movie, book, etc.), and three main cravings that the Bible points out that all human beings share:

1. Intimacy - he said that all people, everywhere, want to be a part of something bigger than themselves. That's why we are so big into: nations, cities, communities, teams, etc. When people give up on intimacy, they move towards immortality or isolation – even when people are wounded in LOVE, they still have the desire to be loved and to love.
   
2. Meaning – humans have found endless ways to communicate – we create ways to find meaning. When people give up on meaning and move to a place of doubt and despair – becoming superstitious (we give meaning to meaningless things).
3. Destiny/Progress – we are designed to believe that tomorrow can be better than today. When this is thwarted we move towards apathy or anger – and mental illness.
   

Erwin said that as we communicate to people, the more we can address these issues of the heart, the more effective we will be - both in preaching and in evangelism. Oh, and just a quick side note, the three cravings are the core content of his book Soul Cravings - a great read if you haven't read it yet.

Erwin McManus - 1

On Tuesday I had the chance to go down to a one day Pastor's conference with Erwin McManus. If you're not sure who he is, Erwin is pastor at a church in Los Angles called Mosaic. He is truly one of the most innovative and interesting people I have ever had the chance to be around. For my own reflection on the conference, I am going to blog over the next few days on some take aways.

One of the things that Erwin said was, "We need to be come more spiritual and more familiar with the voice of God." The whole room of pastors sort of looked at him slightly insulted because, well, we are pastors! But then he explained further. 2 things he said are huge take aways from the day. He said, "Moderns are more willing to accept a religious experience without God, post-moderns are not as willing. Sometimes Christians have a harder time seeing Jesus in things than non-Christians. And the he said , "People want to get engaged with Christianity to see if it is real… very different than wanting to be a Christian to go to Heaven."

His point was that the questions post-modern people are asking are different. They aren't better, they aren't worse, they are just different. He talked about the fact that when he shares the gospel with people, he really believes that the Spirit of God is already there, already active in the person's life, and that it is his job to show the person how and point out that Spirit as the Spirit of Jesus. I wonder how our evangelism tactics might differ if we really believed that the Spirit of God was actively working in the person's life that we were talking to. Would we feel the need to present an ironclad argument... or could we point out for them what the Spirit is doing in their heart?

It's very different. One of the things that I love about the gospel is its adaptability. The gospel has survived/thrived in a pre-modern world, a modern world, and now in a world that is moving towards post-modernism. The message hasn't changed in any of these settings, but the tactics and the focus that people have has. What a beautiful thing, what a brilliant God, that his word would be relevant and applicable in so many different cultures and situations.

Interviews at Palomar College

One of my favorite ways to start conversations with people about Jesus is to do interviews and find out what people think about a certain subject. This time when we went around were filming for a new series that we have coming up called I AM. The series is going to be on the attributes of God, so we thought it would be fun to see what words people would use to describe God. What we found was pretty interesting. Check out the video below.

Biblical Dating (?)

As a college pastor, one of the main things that I deal with is relationships. I ran across this list of Biblcal ways to find a wife. So, let's end the debate about dating and courting. I want to be Biblical on the way that we encourage people to find a mate. Here are 15 suggestions!

THE TOP 15 BIBLICAL WAYS TO ACQUIRE A WIFE

1. Find an attractive prisoner of war, bring her home, shave her head, trim her nails, and give her new clothes. Then she's yours. (Deuteronomy 21:11-13)
2. Find a prostitute and marry her. (Hosea 1:1-3)
3. Find a man with seven daughters, and impress him by watering his flock. (Moses--Exodus 2:16-21)
4. Purchase a piece of property, and get a woman as part of the deal. (Boaz--Ruth 4:5-10.
5. Go to a party and hide. When the women come out to dance, grab one and carry her off to be your wife. (Benjaminites--Judges 21:19-25)
6. Have God create a wife for you while you sleep. Note: this will cost you. (Adam--Genesis 2:19-24)
7. Agree to work seven years in exchange for a woman's hand in marriage. Get tricked into marrying the wrong woman. Then work another seven years for the woman you wanted to marry in the first place. That's right. Fourteen years of toil for a wife. (Jacob--Genesis 29:15-30)
8. Cut 200 foreskins off of your future father-in-law's enemies and get his daughter for a wife. (David--1 Samuel 18:27)
9. Even if no one is out there, just wander around a bit and you'll definitely find someone. (It's all relative, of course.) (Cain--Genesis 4:16-17)
10. Become the emperor of a huge nation and hold a beauty contest. (Xerxes or Ahasuerus--Esther 2:3-4)
11. When you see someone you like, go home and tell your parents, "I have seen a ... woman; now get her for me." If your parents question your decision, simply say, "Get her for me. She's the one for me." (Samson--Judges 14:1-3)
12. Kill any husband and take HIS wife (Prepare to lose four sons, though).
    (David--2 Samuel 11)
13. Wait for your brother to die. Take his widow. (It's not just a good idea; it's the law.) (Onana and Boaz--Deuteronomy or Leviticus, example in Ruth)
14. Don't be so picky. Make up for quality with quantity. (Solomon--1 Kings 11:1-3)
15. A wife?...NOT? (Paul--1 Corinthians 7:32-35)

The Beauty of Sleep Deprivation!

As many of you know my wife gave birth to our first child on Friday January 30th! We are adjusting to being parents pretty well I think. When people tell you that life is going to change, they really mean it. Everything seems to be different; the way I look at the world, the way I pray, the way I think about God, etc. It really transforms a lot of things... in a good way!

The most popular question that people seem to as is, "Are you getting any sleep?" I'm not sure if its because I look tired or because most people with newborns don't get a lot of sleep. As I reflect on the question, yes, I am getting less sleep! However I can't think of anything that I would rather have interrupt my sleep than hearing Ethan's cry. As I begin on this journey of becoming a parent, even sleep deprivation is a beautiful thing! I'm not totally sure it will always be that way, but right now I will revel in the newness of it all, the beauty of it all, the blessing of it all, and enjoy even the lack of sleep! (spoken like a new parent I'm sure! :)

Inauguration

I went for a run today and as I was running I had the chance to watch a little bit of President Obama's Inauguration Parade. I have heard that between 1-2 million showed up for this historic event. No matter where you stand on the election of Obama as President, you have to admit that this is a historic day - a day that a lot of people thought would never come; when we would have an African American as the president of the United States. While I am convinced that the election of Obama will in no way shape or form solve all of our problems (as is exhibited by the stock market dropping a staggering 350 pts today), I do sense that there is a renewed hope and excitement for what the future might hold.

One of the things that I like about Obama is that he was willing to have Rick Warren pray at the inauguration - a move that he received a ton of flack for from his Liberal counterparts, and a move that Warren received flack for from the conservatives. We all know that Warren and Obama don't stand together on all the issues, but it is great to see people who aren't clones of each other have a mutual respect and admiration for one another. I hope that this move sets the tone for the way that Obama will proceed with his presidency.

One final thought on the election of Obama. I wish celebrities would shut the heck up. Just because I'll pay to watch you act in a movie doesn't mean I care a lick about you political views. I'm tired of hearing celebrities who have a platform because they have been in movies talking about things that they have no expertise in whatsoever! That's for free!

That's all I have!

There's probably no god...

I saw this article a few days ago highlighting a new ad campaign in England. (Here is a link to the news-article in the BBC newspaper) The goal of the campaign is to place on the sides of at least 60 buses around England the phrase, "There's probably no god, now stop worrying and enjoy your life."    

While I don't think the campaign will be highly successful (probably about as successful as Christian advertising on buses), I do think it will make people think a little bit. To be honest I think that this is the way that the majority of people live anyway, even many of those who call themselves followers of Christ. I think when it comes down to the way that we live on a daily basis, I think this ad might describe us better than "taking up our cross and following Christ."

The second thing that stands out to me about this ad is the word 'probably'. "There's probably no god..." It's almost as though the people that created the ad (Richard Dawkins and friends) are admitting that this assertion they make has gaping incongruencies in it. Not exactly strong advertising. 

Anyway, I thought that it was interesting. Hope it makes you think. If the trends hold, these ads will be on buses in the US in the next 20 years (we're about that far behind Europe). 

Beautiful day

This just in... it is already summer time in San Diego! I love it. I am sitting on the patio of a coffee shop, studying for this Sunday's message, enjoying the fact that it is 83 degrees in January. I love my life!

Lately I have just been really grateful to God for how good he has been for me. I am enjoying life a ton and can't wait for the next phase... fatherhood! Thank you Lord for your goodness to me.

Retreat

We had a retreat this weekend for The Well. If you missed it, you missed out! It was a great time. I think my favorite part of the weekend was seeing our group really bond together. We did a lot of playing and it was so fun to see groups mingle and people hang out with people that they didn't previously know.

The second highlight was the band. They really did a good job leading us in worship.

After this weekend I am reminded how grateful I am to serve God, to serve him with people that I truly love, and to serve people that I truly love and care about. I'm very tired today, but very grateful for the life God has given me and the calling that he has given me.

Worship Class

This quarter I get to take a class on worship. After having the first session last night, I am really excited about the class - what we are going to read and the discussions that we are going to have during class. Last night the prof handed out a quote by Erwin McManus. Erwing wrote:

"A church near the beaches of Santa Monica gathers each week with the ten remaining members whose average age is at best in its seventies. They cannot decide what to do. They are paralyzed by fear of death and the lack of life. Around the country, churches that were once over a thousand in attendance have literally ceased to exist... The only way church buildings stay filled through generations is if the church lives and dies and is born again over and over."

I love this quote by Erwin McManus, but to be honest I am a little bit scared of what it means for my future as a leader. I am sure that it means that at some point in my life as a pastor it will mean that I will have to kill soemthing that I really like, that I may even conect with, for the sake of reaching more people for the gospel. My hope is that I am mature enough to make that move and that I have led well enough, that when it is time, people will follow.

Great start to the class,

The best invention of all-time?

I can't believe I have lived 28 years without one of these. You have to check this video out. It's a real commercial!

Reasons I'm Excited for '09

As I sit here watching the Rose Bowl on the first day of 2009, I am fairly confident that no previous year will bring as much change to my life as this year. I say this knowing that in 2007 Kelly and I moved from our longtime home of Colorado to Southern California. In 2002 I married the love of my life (a great and a drastic life change). But, I'm not sure that any of them will rival 2009. In 2009 we will welcome our first child into the world. From what I hear, my life will never be the same. I can't wait! That's the #1 thing that I am excited about for '09.

Other things seem to pale in comparison, but I'll throw out a few other things that I'm looking forward to:

• Seeing The Well go to the next level. I'm excited to focus my time this year on equipping student leaders and helping students connect with each other. We are going to make an impact on campuses in '09!
• Running a marathon. 2009 is the year that I am going to run a marathon. May 31st baby!
• Finish my MDIV at Seminary. It's going to be a heck of a push, but I'm going to give it my best.

I don't think I have ever been this excited for a New Year. Bring it on 2009. Bring it on!