Interactive Sermon

Pastor Bans Facebook

  
You've probably heard about this by now.  A NJ pastor banned Facebook use among his staff and has encouraged the 1100 members of his congregation to delete their accounts.  His reason: Facebook leads to adultery.  Well there you have it.  Give the story a read.  I'd love to hear your thoughts--posted comments here or catch me in conversation.

I noted that the folks over at Church Marketing Sucks, where I came across the story (hat tip CMS!), added a rather thought provoking comment in the dialogue at the end of the post: "100% of adulterous relationships involved at least one penis and/or one vagina. shall we take the next illogical step?" Uh...

I've talked about Facebook before.  I've actually argued (friendly disagreements) with local pastors about the use of Social Media.  I'll plan to revisit some of those thoughts and update them here in the coming days.  

What do you think?

 

What's On My Mind?

Bet you'll be sorry you asked.

Advent ~ Just caught a hint of Christmas music from a friend in Florida, Marcus Naugler, worship music leader at Real Life Church in Clermont. Got me in the mood. I'm thankful for great worship music leaders and musicians of our day and what they bring to our spiritual journey.

Big Buts ~I heard that the pastor of that same church in Florida on Sunday commented that he thought someone should write a book on the Big Buts of the Bible. He said he googled it up... and found ME. How cool--I'm google-famous for having an affection for big buts! Oh, and yes, the editing continues. Please continue praying for me in that regard.

The Local Church Community ~ As I mentioned earlier this week on the blog, I've taken to listing and linking other local congregations on our CCA site. A few of the other congregations are planning to do the same.  Meanwhile, we're planning to offer a Marriage Seminar to our community as a joint effort in May of 2011, bringing in a nationally known Marriage Ministry. And we're planning a worship music get-together in early 2011.  It is so wonderful to be THE CHURCH instead of a bunch of little churches.

DWTS ~ So everyone is up in arms that Bristol Palin is still 'alive' in the competition. I'm not. I think there is something to be said for the fact that she is not an entertainer. Jennifer Gray and Brandi--last time I looked they were known as dancers in their respective fields. What challenge is that? But a teenage mom from Wasilla, Alaska? Go Bristol. (And go tea-party. Who else do you think is voting her along?)

What's In A Name? ~ We're on the verge of adding a new quadroped to the family. We're in discussion as a family over the right name.  Popular with the girls is Snoop-Dog.  I'm not sure about that one.  I'm thinking that registering him at Town Hall with a name like Snoop-Dog might put us on a surveillance list or something.  Shari and I like Teddy (after one of my favorite Presidents) or Tedi (after one of my favorite Linebackers).  A sleeper choice is Howie... just because it sounds silly--no offense to any of you named Howie.  Of course, this little guy has a name already.  Bode.  Perhaps we will just leave him be a Bode.  Any suggestions?

Five Weeks ~I suppose it's about time I spill the beans on these little anniversary celebrations I've been Tweeting and FBing.  Perhaps in a post here tomorrow...

What's on your mind?

Challenging The Status Quo

You know that I meet every week with my peers, the pastors in our local community. We call ourselves the Souhegan Valley Pastor's Association. Those guys have become friends over the years, and I know them all to be authentic followers of Christ and desiring to pastor and shepherd their congregations in a way that blesses our community and honors God. 

They all know--as many of you do--that I am passionate about changing our vocabulary where the church is concerned. I strive never to use the word 'church' when referring to a congregation, for there is truly ONE CHURCH made up of many local expressions.  So it's not this church and that church, my church and your church, his church and her church, but rather this congregation or that expression of the body of Christ that we should be referring to, for they're all parts of the ONE CHURCH.

But still, the reality is that we live in a consumerist culture that views these many expressions of the body as competitors. And if we're not intentional about being otherwise, we'll slide right into that trap. 

This week I've added a section to the front page of the Christ's Church website listing and linking to the local congregations whose pastors I know and believe in.  If someone is looking for a church home in our community--keeping in mind that I think everyone should come to Christ's Church--I want them to know that there are a number of great local expressions of the body of Christ in our area. 

I'm thrilled also that several of the congregations in our community regularly pray for one another during Sunday morning services.  How cool is that?  You're visiting The Bridge in Milford on a Sunday morning and they mention Christ's Church during their congregation's prayer time.  You're in Merrimack at Grace Baptist and they mention Colonial Hills Baptist in their prayer time.  And just this evening I've heard from two other congregations who saw the links we've added to our site, and they're planning to do something similar.

So I ask: Different local congregations embracing the idea that we're all ONE CHURCH! How many congregations and communities do you think this can be said of?

Maturing Our Prayers & Conversations

Many of us were invited along— On Sunday morning (10/17), Kari Lynn Knight asked us to pray for her during an upcoming weekend get-away (10/22-23) with a few of her girlfriends, some of whom are not believers in Christ. She asked us to specifically pray for her and her girlfriends who are believers, that they would have opportunities to share their faith with their friends and that the Lord would bless their time together.

That prayer request made its way onto the Christ’s Church prayer list. Another day or so later several of us received an email from Kari Lynn and her friend Feather, reminding us all to pray and providing some more specific prayer requests.

It was my privilege to remember to pray for these ladies and their get-away on several occasions. I had added the request to my regular prayer routine. There were even a couple of occasions where their request came to my mind out of the blue—once while driving back from Boston, for instance—upon which I seized the opportunity to pray.

The weekend of their trip passed. I wondered a couple of times how things went. I looked forward to bumping into Kari Lynn to ask. The Monday after (10/25), I received a follow-up email from Kari Lynn and Feather. They reported back that the weekend included some very fertile times of conversing—that God very much showed up and continues to work. The note even included a plea that we continue to pray. I have and I will.

Kari Lynn and Feather don’t know that I’ve used their pleas and emails as an example. I hope they’ll forgive me! I do want to point out, however, that these are ways in which we can be the body, minister together, and share the journey. This is maturing our conversations and our prayers!