The CCJ Blog

Some good advise from something I have been reading. It’s hard not to ‘defend your faith’ when you are constantly attacked for your views. How do you respond? First, don’t fight back; don’t engage in the same attitude and tactics of the one who is being hostile to your views. Then, if you can, try to steer the conversation to a reasonable tone and direction.

Ultimately, avoid arrogance; again, it’s not about winning the argument, but rather changing minds and hearts. As Art Lindsley puts it: “The defense of the Gospel is most effective when combined with the demeanor of Christ.” Of course, realize the difference between offending with our attitude (not justifiable) and offending with the Gospel, which is supposed to be an offense to fallen human nature.

A friend sent me this humorous but someone true satire of two of America’s most influential leaders in the emerging church movement. These two leaders while good at making you think, dismiss many of the absolute truths of God’s Word.

BRIAN MCLAREN AND TONY JONES EXPLAIN SALVATION…WELL, SORT OF…
In the satiric tradition of the Sacred Sandwich we take you back in time to the first century for our reimagined version of the Philippian jailer who awakens after a violent earthquake. As he shakes the sleep from his eyes he sees that the prisoner’s chains have come off and the cell doors have sprung open. Knowing that he would be executed for allowing his prisoners to escape the jailer draws his sword to kill himself when suddenly he hears the voice of Tony Jones:

Read more here

“If you pretend to be perfect, people will admire you from a distance for a little while. If you are open about your mistakes and laugh about them, people will love you up close for a long time,” Bob Russell

303: a.m.
76: TF7 Connection

Not a bad day for a church in a garage but we’ve got a long way to go. May we never be satisfied.

For a quick tour of the new facility (currently under construction), Subscribe to the CCJ Podcast via iTunes or head to the front page of CCJ’s main site.

Though shakily shot on a Kodak digital camera and despite repeated use of the phrase “quick glimpse,” it’s a good look at the new digs.

File is 8 mb.

Obviously there are days when I do what I do because it is a calling not because it is fun. It is no fun to have to give people bad news, preach tragic funerals and witness some bad stuff. But most days I have the greatest job in the world.

I echo what Mark Driscoll wrote this week in his blog. “There is no desire in me to do anything but what I’m doing with the people I’m doing it with. I often tell my people that I am giving them my life and intend to preach my own funeral and then climb into my coffin and shut the lid to go see Jesus.”

Another line he writes that I absolutely love and relate to says, “We’re not a perfect people and this is not a perfect church led by perfect men. But we worship the perfect Jesus and He promises to make everything perfect in its time.”

That is cool my friends.

Download this mp3 of a sermon that speaks some hard, hard truths from I Corinthians. It’s easy to avoid, I know.

From the podcast description:
Pastor Mark Driscoll preaches on the guidelines for speaking in tongues, prophecy and women in the church.

Listen, please. And listen with an open heart to what God says,not what the world says.

OK, so the subject of last night’s encounter was about the rain we’ll all go through, no matter what. But that means we have to trust God and believe he is there with us - all we have to do is lay our burdens on him.
Then this morning, I open this forwarded message from Cheryl Shoemaker. And it took me right back to last night’s talk:

WE ALL NEED A TREE
I hired a plumber to help me restore an old farmhouse, and after he had just finished a rough first day on the job: a flat tire made him lose an hour of work, his electric drill quit and his ancient one ton truck refused to start.
While I drove him home, he sat in stony silence. On arriving, he invited me in to meet his family. As we walked toward the
front door, he paused briefly at a small tree, touching the tips of the branches with both hands.
When opening the door he underwent an amazing transformation. His face was wreathed in smiles and he hugged his two small children and gave his wife a kiss.
Afterward he walked me to the car. We passed the tree and my curiosity got the better of me. I asked him about what I had seen him do earlier.
“Oh, that’s my trouble tree,” he replied “I know I can’t help having troubles on the job, but one thing’s for sure, those troubles don’t belong in the house with my wife and the children… So I just hang them up on the tree every night when I come home and ask God to take care of them. Then in the morning I pick them up again.”
“Funny thing is,” he smiled,” when I come out in the morning to pick ‘em up, there aren’t nearly as many as I remember hanging up the night before.”

We gotta trust Him to take care of us. As hard as that is to do, we have to.

This weeks kicks off the official start of new fall television season. I like TV so I get excited about. Most years I end up a little disappointed in the new shows but it seems there are always one or two I like. A person is to busy to watch them all so you kind have to pick and choose. Sometimes due to dirty and agenda filled shows we think there is nothing on TV. While there is some truth there it does seem that thanks to the never ending supply of channels there really is something for everyone.

Are you excited about any new or returning show this fall? What are you most looking forward to seeing?

I am not a natural leader. I don’t possess a lot of leadership skills and gifts. Yet God called me to be a leader anyway. (He has a habit of doing that). I am so thankful that God has surrounding me with Godly and capable leaders.

The one ingredient essential for success in any organization is Leadership. When a college or professional sports team isn’t playing well, they don’t fire all the players: They get a new coach, and let him make decisions about who stays on the team, and who goes….Several years ago, when John Ralston resigned as coach of the Denver Broncos, he explained that he was leaving because of illness and fatigue….He said, “The fans are sick and tired of me!”

Whether it’s always fair or not, the buck stops with the leader. That is another reason I am thrilled to have Mark with us. Not only is he a great leader at a young age, having him hear to focus on small groups gives me more time to focus on leadership development. As a church we must constantly be training future leaders who will follow God’s vision for the church. I love to read leadership books, going to leadership training, talk and spend time with great leaders, but most of all I love to study THE Leader, Jesus Christ. Study the gospels and see his leadership and you will be amazed. I pray every day that

So here we are five years after the attack on 9/11 2001. It is amazing that in some ways it seems like years ago and in others it seems like yesterday. I have some questions for discussion today:

1. Where were you when you heard of the attack and what went through your mind? (Mark asked this question at Close Encounter last night and goose bumps pop up on me like it just happened.

2. How has your life changed since that day?

Derek Webb, a musician who used to be with the band Caedmon’s Call, is giving away his music for free here.

Webb has challenged me to think about what I really believe and why I believe it and he has challenged me to think about my political and spiritual views and why I’ve often gotten the two mixed-up where I put certain things in places where they shouldn’t be in my worldview. If you have broadband and a bit of patience (and five friends’ email addresses), you can get the album for free. If you like it, you are encouraged to give the $10 you might’ve spent on the album to one of three very worthy charity.

Webb explains his reasoning for giving away his livlihood below:

i love music. i have grown up with music as a close confidant. and i believe in the power of music to move people. there’s something remarkable about the way a melody can soften someone to a new idea.

as an artist (and often an agitator), this is something i am keenly aware of. my most recent record ‘mockingbird’ deals with many sensitive issues including poverty, war, and the basic ethics by which we live and deal with others. but i found that music has been an exceptional means by which to get this potentially difficult conversation going. and this is certainly an important moment for dialogue amongst people who disagree about how to best love and take care of people, to get into the nuances of the issues.

one of the things that excites me most about the future of our business is how easy it is becoming to deliver music to people who want to hear it. i heard a story once about keith green caring so much that people were able to hear and engage with his music that he gave it away for free, which was a very difficult and expensive thing to do at that time. it’s actually never been as simple as it is today to connect music with music fans. and i want people to have a chance to listen to mockingbird and engage in the conversation.

so this is why, on september 1st, we’re launching freederekwebb.com, a place where anyone can go online and not just hear but actually download, keep, and share ‘mockingbird’ completely for free. In addition, freederekwebb.com will give you an opportunity to invite your friends to download ‘mockingbird’ in order to get them in on the conversation as well.

we hope this bold campaign will provide a jumping off point for conversations about all of these issues, and communicate my commitment to playing my part in starting them. so please help us spread the word: on september 1st, ‘mockingbird’ will be set free!

derek webb

he was killed by a stingray yesterday. Always thought he’d go out with a crocbite…

Games People Play: Battleship.

Sermon: Darrel Land, Pastor.
Check out ccjasper.com for more information on the Christian Church of Jasper.