Music, Music, Music

Here are some albums that I have been jamming to on Spotify...some are new, some are new to me, and some might be new to you, but all worth a listen!

Need to Breathe

Their album The Outsiders has been a regular staple of my listening diet, but I can tell you right now this new album is much better, which is saying a lot! The lyrics are a blessing and yet fun, their sound is the usual you would expect, but their music has a different tone to it this time, and I haven't stopped listening to it since I found it. It's worth listening to, but I would highly encourage you to buy it if you are a music fan!

Jacaranda

I downloaded Josh Garrels Love and War and the Sea In Between for free and immediately sought out his other albums. The free album is worth paying for and I am glad someone on twitter recommended it to me. The dude has a very unique sound and his lyrics are deep, thought provoking food for thought. His songs have been in the mix on my shuffle list and you can't go wrong with any of his stuff. Been jamming to Jacaranda in my office all week and highly recommend it along with his other albums.

Sweeter

Never heard of the dude before, but enjoying his stuff on his new album. Easy listening tunes and fits perfectly into my writing periods at work. We'll see how long it stays in the mix though.

Love Songs Volume 1

I threw this one on the other day when it was rainy, cold and dreary. Holiday's rustic voice was a welcome tone to get me through the day. All of her stuff is great, but love songs just hit the mood!

There's a few recommendations for ya!

The Pastor and the Parachute (Part Two)

Photo via Cannon AFB

I wanted to share a few more observations about my afternoon at CAFB that have nothing to do with spirituality, and has everything to do with a pastor that enjoys different aspects of life.

Having grown up down the road from an air force base it was inevitable that military life would at some point pique my curiosity. I'm not sure I've told many people this and I don't even know if I ever told my parents, but my senior year of high school I went to visit with a recruiting officer at our school to see about joining the Marines. I was a great candidate, and we went through the formalities and I was extremely excited about taking my oath and signing my life away, until I was disqualified due to my asthma. I was completely bummed and turned back to pursuing the college life and trying to earn an athletic scholarship.

Ever since then I have had to look at the military life from a distance, although I have had small glimpses through my relationships with members of the military. I have visited our local base numerous times and each time I am like a kid at Christmas. I love the traditions, the uniforms, the weapons, the discipline, the ranking system, the nomadic yet privileged lifestyle, and for me there is a mystery to it all.

I know that I am speaking as an outsider, and there are mixed feelings about serving, but for me it is exciting. I guess just like anything in life, if you work on the planes daily and get to see what the life is really like behind the scenes it loses its appeal and excitement, but I can't help being intrigued by it.

As I wrote in my last post, I was able to attend the open house at Cannon Air Force Base and experience just a little of the life by walking in, around, up and down the aircraft, visiting with the pilots and crews, and getting some hands on with the equipment and weaponry that is used by our Special Ops.

Here are some things that I found fascinating about my experience:

 I am an extremely large man. Yes, I know that most of you would point out that is an obvious statement. And I concur, but I'm talking about walking through the aircraft. Now, the AC 130 Gunship was a little easier, but squeezing through certain parts of it was difficult. It was a cool experience walking through and I was amazed at the size of the cannon sticking out of the backside. I wanted to ask questions, but there was a line of women waiting to talk to the young, good looking airman. I didn't make it up to the cockpit either as my daughter decided that we were being swallowed by a massive monster the deeper we ventured and threw a fit. My boys went up and checked it out and were fascinated by it. There was a small room with computer equipment that I stuck my head in but didn't get to experience as once again a crowd was gathered around personnel as they answered questions. I walked around the outside and took some pictures that are below.

We went and checked out the AC 10 Thunderbolts (or more commonly known as the Warthogs) which is one of the coolest planes. I was super excited as the hogs had Arkansas flags on them and the pilots were more than eager to show us around and let us look up close. They wouldn't let us get up to see the cockpit and I don't know if that was for security or safety. The ladder to climb up is not user friendly, so I'm not sure what the reasoning was but I was bummed.

We then looked at the CV-22 Osprey next and I have to say that it is one of the coolest looking planes when it is in flight. It was awesome being able to get a close view on the ground, but earlier in the day we watched as it circled the base and it is such a cool sight. Now, walking through the inside of it was a little uncomfortable for me, as I had to hunch over due to my height. I'm not sure what the average height of a pilot or member of an Osprey crew is, but I wouldn't take on that gig. It's such a cool plane though and I was glad to have the opportunity to check it out.

We also got to see a Huey Rescue Chopper, and my youngest son sat in the co-pilot's chair, and beamed from ear to ear. They were demonstrating how the lift works by putting a few kids on and manually moving it for them. That was cool.

Then we went over to a few of the booths and just checked out some gear. That's where I suited up in the parachute gear and took a few pics. I also picked up a few machine guns and to my surprise they were much heavier than I expected. I looked down the scope of a few sniper rifles and the big 50 Cal sniper rifle (below) was awesome. I'd hate to be on the other end of that!

I picked up another gun that had a holographic scope on it and the young man showed me how he uses it when inspecting buildings looking for the bad guys. Cool stuff. And there is no way I would have ever experienced it any other way than through the open house. I picked up different types of guns, binoculars, held different sized shells they use in their different weapons systems, and they showed how computer technology has changed the warfare with a few simple demonstrations.

I missed a few things because our time was short. I wished I could have seen the Predator and the Reaper drones, as well as watched the bomb squad play with their robots and demonstrate with their K-9 Units. There were other things I'm sure were out there that I didn't know about, but all in all it was a fun hour out of the afternoon. I plan on going back if they do it again and giving myself several hours to explore.

There still remains a mystery about the Air Force and other branches that intrigues me and fascinates me. I will always look at the planes flying overhead, and seeing the men in uniform and wonder what it's like. The least I can do is thank those I do know for their service and their sacrifice, and beg them to take me out there to check out all of the cool gear they get to use!!!

The Pastor and the Parachute

This past Saturday afternoon my family along with my in-laws went to the open house at Cannon AFB. All of us were excited to get up close and personal with the planes and their crews, as well as take our time going through each of the booths set up talking to each of the military personnel who were working them.Here are a few things that I learned on Saturday that I thought could apply to our church and how we interact with our community.

 The first thing I noticed was how efficient the organization was. They had personnel everywhere that were meant to guide and direct us to the places we needed to be. They led us to the parking lot, then to the security checkpoint, through the welcome center to get wristbands, onto the bus that took us onto the base and out to the airstrip where everything was taking place. They handed us a magazine that told us about the day, the history of Cannon, the history of the Special Ops and how each plane is vital to the mission at hand. There wasn’t a thing that I could complain about. I know that is part of the discipline of our armed forces, but how can we take this example and apply it to our church? We need volunteers to sacrifice their Sunday school time, or worship service experience to greet our guests, get them the information that is needed and show them where to go, handing them off to our teachers or staff members. It’s as simple as that. Planning, volunteering, serving and executing the plan.

 The second thing that caught my attention was the atmosphere to interact and ask questions. I was fascinated by each of the different aircrafts that were there for us to walk through, explore, put our hands on and ask questions to the pilots. They took their time and answered the questions. They didn’t seem to be in a hurry or appear to be bothered by the line that formed near them. They were excited about their work, they were interested in teaching us about their planes, their specific jobs, and then they let us get a brief glimpse of what that was like. I had two massive men invite me to try on their gear for jumping out of the planes. They strapped the pack on my back explaining it to me and then placed the heavy gun over my shoulder and strapping it into the pack securely. They had me step into the bottom part of the gear and then secured it to the pack on my back. They adjusted straps, put the altimeter on my wrist and explained how to read it and when I would deploy the chute. They put the helmet on my head explaining each piece of it, and asked if I was ready to jump?

Um, no. However, they were enthusiastic about gearing me up and then talking to me about the weight of the gear which they said weighed nearly 180 pounds. Yeah, I totally felt that. I got to play with different rifles, machine guns, scopes, binoculars, etc. and at each table the enthusiasm remained. They love what they do and wanted to share it. And the one thing that never happened at any of the stations or planes was an effort to recruit. They let their product speak for itself. I knew then that I was never cut out for the armed forces, but my respect level went up tremendously for the members of our military.

 I think there are some lessons here that we can apply in our church. Let people ask questions and patiently answer them. Let people explore our facilities, meet our staff, teachers and volunteers letting them interact and hopefully show enthusiasm about our ministries. Let’s let people explore our faith without pressuring them to join our church or accept our faith. Let our product speak for itself and I think we will see people wanting to give their lives to Christ and wanting to join our church family.

This was an article I wrote for the Messenger, our church newsletter!

Stop being a fool...

Another quote from Brennan Manning's book All is Grace: A Ragamuffin Memoir. This one comes from his close friend Fil Anderson.

My highest hope is for all of us to stop trying to fool others by appearing to have our act together. As people living in intimate union with God, we need to become better known for what and who we actually are. Perhaps a good place to begin would be telling the world--before the world does its own investigation--that we're not as bad as they think. We're worse. At least I know that I'm worse.

Let's get real. For every mean-spirited, judgmental thing some preacher has said, I've thought something nastier, more hateful and more cutting about one of my neighbors. For every alleged act of homophobia by my fellow Christians, I've done something stupid to demonstrate my manliness. For every brother or sister whose moral failure has been exposed, I've failed privately. No matter how boring followers of Jesus may appear to be to the outsiders, they don't know the half of it; trust me....If we really believe the gospel we proclaim, we'll be honest about our own beauty and brokenness, and the beautiful broken One will make himself known to our neighbors through the chinks in our armor--and theirs.

Vulgar Grace

I just finished reading Brennan Manning's memoir, All is Grace: A Ragamuffin Memoir  and in it he quotes the Episcopal priest Robert Farrar Capon (pictured above). The following is what Capon describes as Vulgar Grace:

In Jesus, God has put up a "Gone Fishing" sign on the religion shop. He has done the whole job in Jesus once and for all and simply invited us to believe it--to trust this bizarre, unprovable proposition that in him, every last person on earth is already home free without a single religious exertion: no fasting till your knees fold, no prayers you have to get right or else, no standing on your head with your right thumb in your left ear and reciting the correct creed--no nothing... The entire show has been set to rights in the Mystery of Christ--even though nobody can see a single improvement. Yes, it's crazy. And yes, it's wild, and outrageous, and vulgar. And any God who would do such a thing is a God who has no taste. And worst of all, it doesn't sell worth beans. But it is Good News--and therefore I find it absolutely captivating.

This really spoke to me. Vulgar Grace.

The Death of the Bookstore

If you haven't heard, bookstores are closing down left and right. I came across this article on CNN that paints the picture of the death of Borders, a well loved bookstore chain that has seen its death due to bankruptcy. Many independent booksellers have had to liquidate and close their doors as well.

It is bittersweet for this book lover. I enjoy walking through a bookstore and browsing the shelves, flipping through pages of books that caught my attention with an interesting dust jacket, or a title that jumped off the shelf. I enjoyed the diversity of the books offered, watching other book lovers find that treasured jewel and rush to the counter to buy it. It is still my favorite store at the mall, and it is the guaranteed one shop stop that I will make.

I also enjoy the used bookstores, and still see their life hanging on for a while. The dusty, musky smell of age old books collecting the aromas of their owners and then shifting off to someone else. This is really my haven, as the right used stores are lined from wall to wall, floor to ceiling with buried treasures waiting to be found. It's a small slice of heaven for me and I one day dream of opening my own used bookstore.

So what is causing this death of bookstores?

For one, the economy. Let's be honest, these large chain stores didn't always offer up the most friendly prices for a book. I rarely bought a book straight off of the shelve unless it had a big red "Clearance" sign above it. The dusk jacket price was unreal and rarely do these chain stores mark the prices down. They might give a slight discount on a new book for a few weeks, or eventually put it on a clearance rack or table after sales cooled down, but for the average book it was still way too high. I believe this ultimately led to the economic failure of these stores and their eventual bankruptcy filings.

There are a few other factors here that are obvious in today's book selling world. 

The internet certainly changed the playing field with companies like amazon.com.  Amazon is still my go to place to buy books now. Steeply discounted prices, an amazon like offering of titles, quick shipping options, and the game changing Kindle are my deciding factors.

Some have said I'm shallow, but when I'm on a tight book buying budget, the bigger bang for the buck wins every time. The E-Book revolution has changed things as well. I used to carry two or three books with me in my bag at all times, but now I can carry thousands of books. A library travels with me at all times and offers a diverse selection for me to choose from. Not to mention the thousands of titles that are free for download from Amazon and other sites, the Kindle is a bookstore killer. Barnes and Noble released the Nook recognizing that they had to change their game to stay in the competition. 

So, the basic answer is the economy, the internet and the e-book revolution.

I have found myself among those who are saddened to see the bookstores close, but aren't willing to shell out the big bucks to keep them open.

Some may say I am shallow, but I don't buy from our local Christian bookstore for the same reasons. Their prices are steep and their selection is small. Why buy a book from the bookstore when I can buy three for the same price online?

Some would argue that I should be supporting the local economy. Fair point.

Some would argue that I should be supporting local Christian businesses. Fair point.

I would argue that while both points are valid, my determining factor is budget. While I seek to continue reading and learning from new books, I also have to support my family.

And there is this really cool thing called a library where I can borrow books for free, and they normally stock the bestsellers. That's a frequent stopping place as well.

I'm sad to see the stores closing but the bottom line is it is guys like me that are giving them their death sentence.

Lots O Links

You Just Don't Get Me

Youth Pastors Are Great Fakers

Yesterday I Stepped Into A Time Machine

Only One Right Person

No Passport Needed

Men Worth Imitating

The Difference Between Great and Mediocre

We Need Boring Christians

Real Men Repent

The Danger of Defining Yourself by What You Are Against

Pastoral Ministry is War

A Theology of Cultural Engagement

Your Praise is Not the Boss of Me

What We Do With Sehnsucht

We Naturally Praise What We Truly Find Praiseworthy

Hey Pastor: Sometimes People are Better Off When You Stay Home

How I use Social Media

Facebook is my go to site for social media. It's the place where I am most connected and use it for various purposes. I use it to post quotes, thoughts, etc. to engage in conversations. I use it to update family about my family and to post pics for them. I use it to interact with my youth group kids from my current group and from groups in the past. I use it to make announcements about youth group, to contact parents, church members, etc. I use it to link to articles, blogs, videos, etc. that people might find interesting or useful. I use it to follow those friends or peers that are encouraging or helpful in my life. I use it to promote our church, my blog, etc. It's the overall useful tool for me. At first it was addictive to see what everyone was doing or to play games, or browse pictures, but now I leave it constantly open on my desktop because it is my most effective communication tool.

Twitter for me is a simple tool to get bite sized nuggets from people that I want to learn from. That simple. I don't do it to get followers and rarely do I post something other than I want to get something to post on Facebook without signing on to Facebook. Twitter is for me and not to promote me, which I know is kind of the anti-Twitter perspective, but that's how I roll. 

Google Reader is my second most used social media tool. It is a one stop pop to read all of those blogs that I follow. I used to bookmark them all and then have to go to each site, but now I subscribe to the blogs and then wake up in the morning, sign in to GR and they are all there waiting for me to read. I also use it as a test tool for blogs. I get a lot of recommended blogs to read and so I'll plug them in and check them out for a while to see if they are worth my time, and if they are then they get a permanent place in my rotation. This is the tool I use to collect all of my links to share on my blog posts, the funny pictures that I include on my blog, and so many great articles and ideas to draw from for teaching purposes, preaching illustrations or just simply for my own personal growth. And there are many that are just highly entertaining and give me that much needed laugh. GR is a great tool to use if you consume a ton of blogs!

Google + was intriguing but has lost steam for me. It's not even close to being equivalent to Facebook, although there are things I wish Facebook would incorporate that G+ offers, such as the ability to edit a post without have to delete it and post it again. Not much else going on there for me, and realistically, as long as Facebook exists I don't see myself using G+ all that much. It was a response and not an original, which usually bears bad for the copycat! Not impressed.

I use Blogger as my blog host of choice. It's free, and it's been my constant companion for years now. I've tried other hosts, but I like Blogger better than any of them. My blog is the place where I write. It's relaxing and allows my mind to have to focus and discipline itself. It's fun. I enjoy sharing my thoughts, and its a great way for me to interact with my hobbies. I like the challenge of writing and have recently joined with a few buddies to co write the blog. It's mainly a hobby and it has opened doors to get free books and other merchandise. If nothing else, I blog for me and if others enjoy it that is an added bonus!

That's about the extent of my social media use. How do you use it?

The Return of Lots O Links

Controlled Freak

Don't Be That Guy: Youth Pastor Edition

God is Good Right Now

Things I Learned from Irene

Before you go chasing down that problem...

Gospel Men

A Preacher's Decalogue

The Football Fast

The Irony of Hating Your Family

Are Spiritual Disciplines Legalism?

Belief

Pastoral Pressure and Apostolic Anxiety

God's Glory and Grandma's Traditions

2 Words that will Kill Your Marriage

A Lifestyle of Enough

Juan of the Good Guys

How to Raise a Fake Christian

30 Ways to Bless Your Workplace

The Problem with the NIV translation.....

I've used the NIV translation for as long as I can remember. It's been my constant companion and my translation of choice. My problem with the translation began when Zondervan decided to publish an updated version in 2005 called the TNIV or Today's New International Version. The problem with this translation is that it included gender inclusivism. Of course, a gender neutral Bible appeals to many facets of society, but I could not accept the changes to the text. Fortunately, the TNIV floundered because of the pressure from conservatives. Yet, the pressure remains for Zondervan to sell Bibles and thus, their 2011 Edition of the NIV will completely replace all other editions, including the 1984 version which has been my Bible of choice.

According to the SBC  75% of the inaccurate gender language remains in the 2011 version. 

The Bible committee that reviews and updates for Zondervan made the following statements concerning the changes:

“Our gender decisions were made on the basis of very careful and significant research,” Douglas Moo, chairman of the Committee on Bible Translation, which translated the 2011 NIV, told the Baptist Press.

The committee meets yearly to consider changes in the NIV Bible and was approached in 2009 by Zondervan and Biblica about a new translation.

“The decisions we’ve made about gender have no motivation of not offending people. The motivation, rather, is to communicate clearly to people what we think arguably is contemporary English.”

Mlive also reported Moo saying, “About 95 percent of the words are the same. On the one hand, we tried to keep the continuity because the translation was so good the first time. But there were a lot of changes in the English language that needed to be reflected as well.”

Personally, these changes are based upon human intent rather than a faithful interpretation from the original texts. So, this leaves me in a tough position.

Since Zondervan is no longer publishing the 1984 version of the NIV to go along with the 2011 version, I can no longer recommend the NIV translation when someone is looking for a Bible. In fact, the last few times I have had to check the date in the front of the Bible to make sure I was buying the 1984 version. This has become a growing concern for me, and I resisted changing the translation I preach from and teach from, but with Zondervan making the decision to pull the 1984 from the shelf, I am convinced I will change before too long.

I use many other translations to study from and have several in my study, but I would most likely switch to the ESV version. I use the ESV STUDY Bible a lot, and have enjoyed it. I have a thinline ESV which is a nice Bible. My second choice would most likely be the HCSB, published by our in house publisher for my denomination. I also like the NASB and NLT as possible choices.

It's a sad day for me and I will always keep my 1984 versions handy to read and study from, but I think the day is coming when the NIV will be replaced as my teaching and preaching translation.