The big C

I've just been watching Adrian Warnock's interview with Tim Smith (worship pastor from Mars Hill, Seattle) and had to watch a section 3 times in row to make sure I didn't miss the full essence of what Tim was saying. On the issue of culture engagement for the Gospel (and referring to an Andy Crouch book called "Culture Making" he's been reading), Tim was explaining how the standard responses to the culture around us are Critique, Copy, Condemn or Consume. There is a time and a place for these when appropriate, but generally no one cares if you critique the culture (except for those that follow your blog), no one cares if you copy or consume (because everybody else is doing that anyway), and condemning it will just marginalise yourselves. Tim (and Andy Crouch) insist that the right response is Create: to take what's around us, mash it up, and create something new that advances the Gospel. Then people will take notice, and hearts and minds are engaged and won. Our worship, our 'face', our contextualisation, is still counter-culture, it's still different, but it is also not alien to those around, and catches their eyes and subsequently - God-willing - their hearts. It's not about doing something new for the sake of it, but is certainly unfolding the "all things to all men" that Paul speaks of, and also insists we fully recognise our being made in the image of a Creator God - we're creative beings, let's use that for the Gospel...

...just throwing it out there, let me know your thoughts... (looks like Crouch's book is going on my to-buy list too...) Read more!

Beacon Fellowship Meal

Quick update to the latest Beacon news: we had a great Fellowship Meal on Saturday evening, giving us an opportunity to celebrate what God has done for us in the past year - testimonies from our new members, updates on our Cell group launch, the success of "Coffee and Chaos", Maxine's latest exploits in China - and then looking forward to what the Lord has in store for us over the coming year. We unveiled our new-look website (soon to be live! Watch this space!) and trusted God to continue His amazing work amongst us in terms of growth and community. We expect to see more family members added in the near future, and are looking forward to facing the challenge of needing a new venue for our morning services!

Big, big thanks must go out to John & Jayne, Clare, Sarah, Amanda and Tom from City Church Canterbury who served us so well with a smile, providing the evening's catering from start to finish. They're amazing.

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Driscoll on CNN

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Who to trust?

I've just been getting into baseball for the past month or so, having had an inclination for a while that it would be a sport I'd enjoy following. I've lost interest in football, and not been up for much other sport in general, except for a bit of Wimbledon maybe (and don't ask about actually playing anything; I get out of breath watching them on TV...). So I figured, hey, how about something different for a change? American Football was out of the question - twice my mate in Kentucky has sat me down to a televised game and twice I've fallen asleep. Eventually it boiled down to baseball and basketball, and baseball won. I don't know, there's just something about it. Maybe after a season or two - and if I still like the game - I'll be able to explain what that "something" is...

Anyway, the reason I'm posting is this: after a month of following the pre-season news (Spring training starts on Friday, and the season kicks off in April) a whole storm has blown up in the past few days. Amidst the bulk of signings and contracts, another steroids admission has caused huge upset for the game and the fans, even roping Obama in on the dialogue. You see, there's a young star called Alex Rodriguez ("A-Rod" to his fans) who, after some cajoling, has admitted on TV to testing positive for performance enhancing drugs in 2003, a period when the development of testing and penalties was still underway, with identities kept under wraps until the agreement decided otherwise for tests the following year and since (hence us only finding out about A-Rod's results now).

Fans are split: some think the guy (who has, at least until now, been heading for baseball legend status) should be chucked out of the game, others think we should forgive and forget. Regardless, the biggest problem people have is an age-old one: their hero has proven himself otherwise. The man they revere has been revealed as a cheat, even if he's genuinely clean now.

I'm not going to debate the issue of which camp is right: vilify him or support him? I know where I stand on that, but what does occur to me is the issue of hero worship, or more pointedly the hope and faith we place at their feet. Countless times, people in the public eye have let their fans down for one reason or another, and it's not always celebrities we're talking about either. Policemen commit crimes, pastors cheat on their wives, fathers abuse their children. Never should we allow these individuals to smear the trust we have in the others that do have integrity. But also, remember this: never should we allow the reality of the human heart - fallible, corrupt, stained by sin, every single one of us - smear our perception of God. Thankfully, He has allowed me to understand the truth of what His word says, but many people find it hard to trust Him or accept that He is incapable of evil or of letting them down, because of their experience in this world we live in.

There is one Hero in this world that will never let you down: Jesus of Nazareth, Son of God, King of kings and Lord of lords, described in the end times events of Revelation as Faithful and True. "For the Lord is good, His steadfast love endures forever, and His faithfulness to all generations." (Psalm 100.5) Don't let man taint the truth. Let God speak for Himself. Read more!

Barack's barracking for favour... and following a dangerous path...

Barack Obama recently asked Rick Warren to pray at his inauguration, causing a furore from the pro-gay "camp" (sic), then subsequently asked Gene Robinson to join in too. Barracking for favour from both sides? Wanting his cake and eat it? Whether it is or not, I couldn't express my concern better than John Piper, so take a click in his direction and let the man say it himself...

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Things to be thankful for in 2008

1. My beautiful wife and daughter: your support, humour, inspiration and downright general ability to put up with me are more than I could ask for (all cheesy but all true...)
2. For "The Dark Knight". Three further viewings in the past fortnight have only fortified its richness... Top film of the year? Oh yeah...
   
3. For the great success of our Coffee and Chaos toddler group: all down to Jennie's hard work, our rota'd recruits from Beacon and God's rich blessing...
4. For the mighty returns of Extreme and Metallica after years lost in the wilderness. Extreme's "Saudades de Rock" isn't quite up to the dizzy heights of "Waiting for the Punchline", but Nuno's licks and grooves will always make my day; as for Metallica's "Death Magnetic", it's a massive classic already. Can't get enough of it... Track 9 gets played over and over and over and over again in the car (much to Jennie's chagrin) ;-)
5. For Graham and Sue Hall (Gateway Church, Ashford) and Tom and Josie Shaw (City Church, Canterbury): their joint support as we find our feet within the Beacon family has been fantastic, and their vision, wisdom and prophetic insight are a total gift from God. Love you guys...
   

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