Frank Viola (author of Pagan Christianity and several other books) interviewed me and posted the interview today here on his web site. I have grown to really love Frank as his heart is for people to truly experience the depth of knowing Jesus. He asked me about what questions I have and two of them were about Frank - one being about believing if you can have an "organic" church but also be a larger church with paid staff - and another one about Frank's hair style. So you can read that here.
This is a full season for me with many things happening, so I just can't blog or Twitter much (or maybe in priorities it isn't at the top so that is why I am not doing it). But some things thinking about or doing:
- had a wonderful meeting last night at the Vintage Faith Church office with someone who just became a Christian 3 weeks ago and is part of our church. It was not an overnight process, but it was through friends, thinking, exploring and it was a thrill to hear his story!
- had a post-worship gathering open forum last night which closed our series on sex, marriage and relationships and it was really refreshing. The vulnerability there, the level of maturity of questions asked and I was so happy to hear people who are serious about thinking through and living out relationships, sex and marriage biblically as they follow Jesus.
- trying to figure out what to do as I am fast approaching 5,000 "Friends" on Facebook. If you don't know this, Facebook shuts you down in having any more Friends after 5,000. The option I have watched some author friends of mine take when they reach 5,000 is to form a "fan" page which allows you more than 5,000. But it is just weird thinking of using that term and all and I wish Facebook would remove the 5,000 limit or give options other than having to form a "fan" page.
- looking forward to our church's Leadership appreciation dessert Friday night. And we are giving a gift to everyone which was a life changing one for me. So I hope it will be life-changing for them as well. Can't say right now or I will spoil the gift.
- working like mad on the completion of the Zondervan book and trying to come up with a title for it. I will post some options we are coming up with and ask for feedback.
- Katie and Claire have fallen in love with Matisyahu's "One Day" song. Which is fun to hear them singing it around the house.
- Really appreciating the feedback on the question on "Organized Religion" here and on Facebook.
- Thinking about social justice and evangelism. I believe we have to feel and urgency and spend time and focus on evangelism in the same way that we do on justice issues. If we don't, in 50 years the church will lose the impact we can have in justice issues because we will die out (literally) if we aren't making new disciples. If we aren't making new disciples (as in people who weren't Christians becoming followers of Jesus), then the church won't have disciples of Jesus in the future to then be joining together in fighting injustice. We have to have urgency and focus on both and be thinking short-term and longer term for both evangelism and justice.
- preaching this Sunday on the genealogy of Jesus as we begin our Christmas "Hope Rising" series.
- time to go home from the church office now. I am here while typing this and Katie and Claire's American Girl dolls are laying on their backs here in my office. I have to bring them home and they look pretty creepy right now laying there motionless on their backs. If you know what American Girls are, you know what I mean. I didn't know what they were until we had daughters.
