sixfootnineandcounting

You might not think much about going to the local biker bar for Jesus. If Jesus came back today, you probably would not go looking in a biker bar for him either. But He might be there. He just might be. What about you? In John 4, Jesus does not go to a biker bar, but where He did go was at least as controversial. The passage is literally a laundry list of “don'ts” for anyone, let alone the Messiah. The gospel points out that Jesus went through Samaria, talked to a Samaritan, talked to a woman, talked to divorced woman, asked to be served by such a woman, offered to serve such a woman, and offered the gospel to such a woman all in one fell swoop. Imagine your pastor serving in the local x-rated movie theater. That's the equivalent of what's going on here. This example that Jesus demonstrates for us kind of shatters the common understanding of ministry today, doesn't it? Okay, so maybe you don't start out at the local biker bar or x-rated movie theater, but if we real...

I was visited by Jesus today. His name was Bill. He looked a little different though; no robe, beard or long hair. He was unkempt with dirty hands. He smelled. He had a tattoo and his teeth were rotting. He just showed up without an appointment! Ugh! I am extra busy now that it's Christmas. I am busy doing the real ministry of answering phone calls, writing letters and emails. Oh, and blogging too! Now that's some real ministry! Actually, I was heading into the sanctuary to pray when He arrived. Really, I mean it. I am not making this up for dramatic effect. It was really inconvenient for Jesus to show up when I was about to pray. What was He thinking? The more I think about it, the more upset I get that Jesus would interrupt my ministry like that. Damn it! It wasn't on my google calendar for today to waste an hour and half helping Jesus with gas and food. I kept looking at my watch. After that, I only had six hours to get 8 hours of real ministry done. I mean I had some fi...

Chances are, if you're like me, you sell yourself short. The truth is, though, we all have a great purpose because we have a great God. How great? Well, our God made Canis Majoris. This is the largest star ever discovered. Apparently, I've never measured, but you could fit 7 quadrillion earths inside this star. To give you an idea of how big that is you could only fit 1 million earths inside our sun. I haven't tried this, but I heard you could do it from a good source. It's kind of a science and math thing. Anyway, the same God who made Canis Majoris, the sun, Mt. Everest and a beautiful lily flower also made you and me. I am pretty sure He did it all for a reason. As Christians, we believe that Jesus Christ showed us and told us that reason. The reason is to move mountains. It's to love God and neighbor. Like Abraham, it is to be a blessing. According to Jesus Himself, the reason is to do even greater things than He did. Don't believe me? He said, "I tell...

Jesus did say, "go", didn't He? If I remember correctly, that was the word. He didn't say "Wait for them to come!" I'm pretty sure about that. He didn't say, "Do the best you can, wait, and then complain about the empty seats!" I know he didn't say that. Ahhhh! Yes! I have it right here in front of me. It is all coming back to me now. Jesus said, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore, go and make disciples of all nations..." Yep, that's what Jesus said. He simply said, "go". The word "go" here really does mean "go". The Holy Spirit chose this word with the traveler in mind. It is a word with intent behind it and also a destination. There is not one shred of "the wait and see" approach woven into this word. You can dig, but you'll never find wait in this word for "go". The kind of action in mind is urgent action. The word is used ...

I'm reading a book by Reggie McNeal right now and I love it! It is a scathing indictment of how we "do church" today. I don't love that we are indicted, but I do love that someone is pointing out that "doing" church and "being" the church have become two very different things. For example, in his book "The Present Future ", McNeal writes, "The death of the church culture will not be the death of the church. The church Jesus founded is good; it is right. The church established by Jesus will survive until he returns. The imminent demise under discussion is the collapse of the unique culture in North America that has come to be called "church." This church culture has become confused with biblical Christianity, both inside the church and out. In reality, the church culture in North America is a vestige of the original movement, an institutional expression of religion that is in part a civil religion and in part a club where r...

How many times do we tell our kids to say, “thank you”. The number is infinite. We beat that drum equally as hard as our parents did to us. “Did you send those thank you notes yet?” I cannot remember how many times my Mom asked me that. It was usually because it was January or February. My birthday is in November. I did not always like writing thank you notes. I tried that trick where you write the same thing over and over again. Just insert a new name each time, but don’t forget to get the gifts right! Regardless of how I managed to get it done, and no matter how long I put it off, I always felt so much better thanking the gift giver. It works the other way too. I try not to expect thanks for gifts I give, but when I get thanks, it feels really good. There is something that is just right about saying, “thank you”. When was the last time you said, “thank you” to God? Have you tried that lately? Saying “thank you” to God is a form of praise. Did you know we were made to say “thank ...

It was a profound experience. Really, it was like no other I have ever had. It was our first U2 concert! Jennifer and I took our " bigs ", Emily and Jackson, to the outdoor concert in Raleigh, N.C. on October 3rd. We have pretty much raised all our kids on U2 and their lyrics all along. I will never forget Jackson in his car seat, as a little guy, raising his finger to the song, "Elevation". We have been raising our fingers to that song ever since. Of course, leading up to the concert, we played all the music over and over. It all reached a fevered-pitch when I managed to snag a perfect, front-row, field-level spot for us to soak it in. Listening to all the music in that setting was pretty close to a "religious" experience. My low-key, laid back son, Jackson, was jumping up and down, hands raised, to the music. I was amazed and somehow filled with the powerful presence of Christ in a new and unique way, at least it was for me. I think it is because I simpl...