Big Is The New Small

I am going to make this story very short and very sweet so that we can get straight to the questions.  There was an openly gay couple that attended my campus; as a matter of fact one of the girlfriends had invited the other.  According to these ladies; after weeks and weeks of attending church together they both began to realize that this lifestyle was not who God had created them to be. 

They decided to end their relationship, they gave their lives to Christ and they are now contributing volunteers at our campus.  God is Good!

QUESTIONS:

1. What are your thoughts about openly gay couples or individuals volunteering in the church?  Any ministry areas: Youth, Kids, Host Team, Hospitality….. 
2. What are your thoughts about openly gay couples/individuals leading small groups? 
3. What are your thoughts about the phrase “Openly Gay and In the Church?”

Friday Drive-by (15) Random Bullets

Politics: 

Hillary and Bill have been taking some serious pot-shots and they appear to be taking the gloves off.  BTW- The term “taking the gloves off” is goofy.  The race card is coming out and some divisiveness is beginning to occur between the proclaimed First Black President and the potential First Black President.  This thing is getting interesting and will get ugly…. Read more here.

LifeChurch.tv “N-dub”

Last week I told you that “Something is in the Air” and this past weekend we had record attendance with 2,511 people, 61 baptisms and 33 people giving their lives to Christ… did I mention that we are only 9 months old.  God is Good…

Link Me and I’ll Link you Back:  If you have linked to BigIsTheNewSmall, let me know and I will add you to my blogroll.

Comment of the Week: on post, I have a Dream: ”Dr. King may be dead, but the author of his dream isn’t.” Jimmy Paravane

What New Books I’m Reading: Human Sigma, Quiet Strength, Lead Like Jesus & Communicating for a Change

Tough Questions:

1. Obama said tongue and cheek that Oprah would be his Vice-President…. What are your thoughts on Oprah as the V.P., discuss?
2. Can Mitt Romney as a Mormon be the President of the United States?
3. As a former President, is Bill Clinton over stepping his boundaries in Hillary’s Campaign?

Have a great weekend & thanks for reading!  BigIsTheNewSmall

First of all I can’t reiterate enough; the importance of blog titles.  Now that you are with me, I want to clarify that my wife works…. and I don’t agree with the title in it’s literal form; however women should be in the kitchen at least sometimes. (smile)  The title is simply a figure of speech to guide us through two relevant questions.  Everyone has an opinion on these questions so jump right in and share your thoughts.

Do you feel comfortable with a woman as the U.S. President?  Why, why not, discuss!

Should women be Senior Pastors or Lead Youth Pastors?  Why, why not, discuss!

There is a new Sheriff in town and he goes by many different names; here are some names that you might or might not be familiar with: Affliction, Monarchy, Kentucky, MEK, Seven, VonDotch, True Religion…  What do all of these names have to do with a Sheriff, absolutely nothing; however they are the names of some popular designer jeans that can cost anywhere from $150 to $300 or more. 

These high end designer jeans have become very popular and are being worn by many contemporary pastors, teens all the way through much, much older adults.  I’ll be honest, I struggled with this initially; however I must admit that I do own some of these jeans.  It’s important that when I purchase a pair, that find them on somebody’s sale rack. 

The reason that I bring this subject up, is because I have read some popular pastors blogs, who have received e-mails and been criticized about how much they spend on their jeans and I have heard others discussing it.  There are obviously people who are concerned about pastors and these high dollar jeans.   

If you are wondering how people can tell what kind or how much a pair of jeans cost; it’s all about the wash, the threads and the pockets. 

I am totally cool with pastors or anyone for that matter spending some dough on expensive jeans.  I have heard that there is a new trend of guys wearing women’s jeans; now that deserves some critical e-mails.  BTW- Why are jeans called a pair of jeans?   

Thoughts? Discuss! 

This video is freakin’ ridiculous, in a good way.  We used this video in last years LifeChurch.tv Satan’s SexEd Series.  Watch the video in its entirety (it’s only 2 min.) and share your thoughts, funniest parts, offensive parts…  Satan tackles some tough questions such as:

• Is oral sex sex?

• Will pre-marital sex help your relationship?

• What’s up with pornography?

• What’s the deal with masturbation?

• Homosexuality….

Do you think this video is over the top for church?  In today’s society, has sex simply become no big deal?  Share your thoughts, don’t be shy!

In the bloghsphere, you have two types of bloggers; those who are open to receiving comments and those who are Scaredy Cats.  “Scaredy Cats” are bloggers who write some amazing, controversial, helpful, educational, funny, insightful, random… posts and don’t allow their readers to comment.  One of the aspects of blogging, that is different from being a writer for a magazine or newspaper is the relational connection with readers.  The bottom line in my opinion, is that all bloggers should allow their readers to comment; even book authors are open to comments/reviews on Amazon. 

The “Scaredy Cats” will use several excuses as to why they don’t allow comments, some of which include:

•  I don’t like criticism
•  I don’t have time to respond
• I’m not writing for comments, I’m simply journaling

If you don’t like criticism; don’t blog stay behind the scenes.  If you don’t have time to respond, simply don’t respond; even though it only takes a couple of minutes.  If you are simply journaling, just keep word documents and don’t put it out there for the world to see.  Stop being a “Scaredy Cat” and remember that www is short for the world wide web and that encompasses a lot of people.   

If you disagree, feel free to criticize, comment… and I will be happy to respond.  Don’t get me wrong, some of my favorite bloggers are “Scaredy Cats.”

Do you think that bloggers should allow comments?  Share your thoughts on the “Scaredy Cats!”

I think that I will turn off comments for this post! LOL

This past week LifeChurch.tv was named by Outreach Magazine as “The Most Innovative Church in America” for 2008.  Additionally, this past Sunday LifeChurch.tv gets rid of Church Members and instead is asking the people to partner for the cause of reaching people who are without Christ.  Craig’s message was powerful and really set the stage for a clear and Unstoppable Vision for LifeChurch.tv.  I want to share some bullet points from the message that were just awesome.  Here they are:  

•  No Church Members; instead “partners,” partnering together for “The Cause”

• We can accomplish more together and do more with less.

• We are not a Mega-Church, but a Micro-Church with a Mega Vision.

• If you don’t want to be “All In” here, go find another church!

• For those of us who committed before God to being partners, Craig prayed that we would be miserable if we didn’t honor our Commitment to God.  Ouch!  ”That was bold and I loved it!”

So what do you think about any of these bullet points…..?  Are you or your church willing to do anything short of sin to reach people without Christ?

There are several things that people say you shouldn’t talk about and I am going to talk about all three of them: Race, Politics and Religion.  These subjects can get kinda’ sticky, because people are just uncomfortable going there.  I have friends in the blogsphere who have been obliterated for appearing to support particular causes or candidates….   This can be a slippery slope especially as a pastor and leader of a congregation.  Okay blah blah blah, disclaimer, disclaimer. 

I’ll share some of my brief history and political experience because I know that God used those seasons to prepare me for what I’m doing today.  I have been a lobbyist, political activist, national political delegate, advisor to gubernatorial candidate, political consultant…….  In other words “Been there, done that!” 

You can mark it down on your calendar and take it to the bank; Barack Obama will be the next President and First Black President.  I don’t want you to get confused and think that I am supporting Obama; as a matter of fact, as of right now I will tell you straight-up that I am not voting for him.  I could have several series of posts about “Why Not”; however that’s not my agenda, purpose or season.  Here are the “Obama” momentum facts:

• Obama spanks Hillary in Iowa
• Bush, Gore and Kerry all won the Iowa Caucuses
• According to polls, a large percent of the U.S. is Anti-Bush and ready for change
• Republicans don’t have a chance this election, due to Anti-Bush sentiment
• Obama attracts a broad demographic of voters
• He’s talking moderation red state/blue state, republican/democrat
• He has the sexy, Hollywood, articulate and minority factor…
• He’s got the “O-Factor”, that would be Oprah

If you want to see part of Obama’s victory speech, you can see it here. Wow, I didn’t think the day would come this soon; in which I would say that we will have a Black President.  Not only will we have a Black President; I won’t be voting for him. 

Are we going to have The First Black President?  Share your thoughts!  Wow that’s a loaded question!  If you don’t want to go there; simply comment “No Thanks!”

Former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee answers the question regarding evolution. This was nearly six months ago, when Huckabee was not given a chance as a formidable candidate in the race for the GOP Presidential Nomination. Things have changed in 6 months and Huckabee is currently leading all GOP candidates in Iowa, according to a recent Newsweek poll.

Thoughts on Huckabee, Thoughts on his response, Thoughts on the question?

There is this website that will rate your blog and according to the site my blog is “Rated R.” This was apparently because the word abortion appears 5 times, murder 3 times and shoot 1 time. Wow it looks like I got my rating from one post, “Abortion is Murder.”

This got me thinking about the whole “Rated R” thing and whether or not it is appropriate to watch “Rated R” movies. I know plenty of people who will not touch “Rated R” movies with a ten foot pole and that is definitely their prerogative. Let me share my thoughts; I worked in the Corrections System for over 13 years and according to the rating standards, my job would have definitely been “Rated R.” If you don’t believe me send me an e-mail and I will share some things that I witnessed, experienced and heard that would surpass any “Rated R” rating. Since I have been in ministry I have to counsel couples and individuals on a regular basis that share some “Rated R” stories and “Rated R” experiences.

Unfortunately, we live in a world where “Rated R” is all around us and we have to guard ourselves from that; however we can’t act like it doesn’t exist. Personally I saw a “Rated R” movie this week “American Gangster” with Denzel Washington which was based on a true story of Harlem in the 1960′s. Many people will say “Pastor you did what?!” I enjoy conversations followed by those questions or comments.

Do you think that it is appropriate for Pastors, Christians or anyone to watch “Rated R” movies? What are your personal beliefs about “Rated R” movies? Share your thoughts and I appreciate your candor! Those of you RSS Readers, please chime in as well!