Here is my long long overdue book review of “The Gospel According to LOST”, by Chris Seay.  I have seen similar books before that compare POP culture topics to the gospel, but this would be the first time I have ever read through one.

This was a very quick and easy read. It only took me a few sittings to get through the book.  I am a big fan of the show, and the show of course has been a major hit both in viewing ratings and online forums and blogs discussing every aspect of the show.  What does this mean, what does that mean…fans scour the Internet looking for insight into the show.

The book is breaks down into chapters based on each character.  I thought that was interesting, and would be good when speaking with people that would be fans of the show to capture their attention and relate gospel topics into something they know.  It might get them talking more or be more receptive.

I would recommend people to read the book as it would get them thinking how they also could take POP culture topics and explore faith more deeply with them.  This book takes something that most fans of the show would be open to further discussion anyway as that is what fans of the show do.  It would help in building community with fans of the show.

Here is another Thomas Nelson Blogger Book Review

Finished this book about a month ago.  Here is the review of the second book by Ron Hall and Denver Moore. To start I never read the first book, so jumping into the second one had me thinking I may not be able to follow some of it. 

Even though I didn’t read the first one, as I started with the chapters, the authors were able to include enough info to help me follow along. It is a really easy and quick read. The book is a result of the success of the first one, and includes details of what has been the outcome since that book was written.

This book has enough challenges in it, that I found myself underlining and make notes in the margin to use as quotes when teaching and speaking.  Throughout the book I found myself thinking, very strong point of view and it we could only apply that to our lives, what a difference it would make.

Here is a sample quote,

If all the Christians – I mean all of ‘em – got outta the pews on Sundays and into the streets, we’d shut the city down.

We’d shut down hunger

We’d shut down loneliness

We’d shut down the notion that there is any such of a thing as a person that don’t deserve a kind word and a second chance. (Pg 56)

I would recommend this book…it will not take long to get through, but you will make many mental notes as you make your way through the pages.

Tim Sanders today has relaunched his book, “Saving the World At Work”.

Click here to visit the relaunch page

TESTIMONIAL:
“With intelligence and passion, Tim Sanders reveals the new competitive logic of business: Being great now depends on being good.  Whether you’re in the boardroom or the mailroom, you owe it to yourself to read Saving The World at Work and to begin putting into practice its powerful lessons.” Dan Pink, author of A Whole New Mind

I plan on ordering my copy….I recommend that you purchase one as well.

I read the following post on Rhett Smith’s blog, called “The Values of Generation Y/Millennials That Will Help Transform Work and Church”.  I recommend you read the post and also the watch the clip from 60 Minutes, which I have embedded.

After reading through Rhett’s post and watching the video, even though I am of Generation X, I would say there are items in this report that fit me well.  Like Rhett, I feel at home and operate well with this generation due to being involved in youth ministry and college/career ministry over the past 10 years.

I have noticed in my 9-5 workplace……even if they wouldn’t admit to it, they have a long way to go to adapt.  I find my current 9-5 employer is very old-school when it comes to things in this report.

Watch the clip and head over to Rhett’s blog he has lots of posts and resources.

Here is a great post from Tony Morgan.

“How to Get from Here to There”

“So, as you can see, it took about 12 years in various marketplace roles
before God transitioned me into ministry. And, it’s taken me not quite
10 years in ministry to get to the place where I am today.”

This looks to be a good read.  The blog at Mountain Equipment Co-Op. 

Ethical Sourcing & MEC

The store here is Ottawa is on the other side of the city for me, I have been meaning to make my way out to the story to pick up their water bottles that do not have the chemical bisphenol A. Which Canada has recently taken action on, see article here.

Tags: mec, Mountain Equipment Co-Op, Ethical Sourcing, blog, bisphenol A, Government of Canada

Here are my random thoughts on the US Presidential Race thus far. I am Canadian for those reading this that may not know, so I do not get a vote in the process, so these are views from an outsider. Kind of long, hope it makes sense.

- US political system is much more complicated then ours in Canada. At least it seems that way to me. Primaries (open & closed), caucuses, delegates, super delegates, electoral college, etc. Even the differences on how the Republican and Democrats assign the delegates after voting in the primaries/caucuses differ, confusing to say the least.

- It looks like the younger generation is coming out to vote, after years and years of people saying the younger generation wouldn’t get engaged in the political process despite the efforts of many. Even in Canada we have low turnout with these generations in our elections. Seems to be more because it was the same old same old before, and now Obama is giving the message of change and hope that is connecting. It is a real chance to change the status quo of politics.

- It was said that Bill Clinton could capture a room and was a great orator. My feeling is that Bill Clinton is no where near the speaker that Obama is.

- Not sure where Hillary’s 35 years of experience comes from. Puzzling to me.

- Hillary keeps saying that Obama doesn’t have the Foreign Policy experience to become Commander-In-Chief. Where did Bill Clinton gets his when he ran for President. Does being a Governor count? If it does, why doesn’t Obama’s Senate position. Maybe I am missing something there.

- Seems that Hillary will stop at nothing to get into the office.

- Does Obama get a easier ride in the press. Not sure, but he doesn’t seem to have truck loads of baggage to bring up either. So, when you are running a positive campaign that has created a movement of supporters, then why wouldn’t that be positive press coverage. That is a huge story of this election.

- Hillary keeps saying that she will bring in Universal Health Care. Didn’t she try that before and it did not go through when Bill was in office? Was that Washington politics at play? Then will the same thing not happen again when she is president?

- I watched Romeo Dallaire’s documentary, "Shake Hands with the Devil" on CBC the other night. In that film, it was brought up that Bill Clinton failed the country of Rwanda (other countires did as well), turning its back on helping, and would not admit to the mistake, and he said he didn’t know what was going on in the country. Yeah right, read the book or ask Dallaire. Hillary was there when he visited the country after the genocide and made those statements. Is that part of the 35 years of experience that she is stumping. Not the experience I would want to claim. I wonder how she would answer the red phone.

- If Bush has such a low approval rating right now (mainly because of Iraq), and the biggest "strength" that McCain is citing is Foreign Policy and the war in Iraq. He would be basically continuing the Bush mantra on it, does that bold well for the election?

- If the economy is a big issue for this election, McCain is supposedly not strong on economics, does that bold well for November?

- If Hillary continues to push hard till the convention is it her plan to fracture the party so Obama can’t win in November? Basically ceding to McCain for 4 years to run again in 4 years.

- Is the Democrat establishment now realizing that it does not have to be Clinton’s party anymore. That the Clinton machine was not invincible.

- It doesn’t seem that Hillary is very open and real. She comes across as very calculated and scheming. Wouldn’t be someone that you could sit down and have a chat over coffee with.

- Where Hillary says it is "very personal" for her. Does she mean, "I want this position" or she has compassion for the issues.

- As you can tell I am not a big Hillary or Bill Clinton supporter.

- I used to be a Bush supporter.

- I would support Obama if I had a vote.

- Universal Health Care is good in theory in Canada, but is still a major issue here in Canada, because we have a massive wait time issue that needs to be dealt with; among others. I wonder how these plans being proposed intend to tackle that issue.

- Seriously, garnishing people’s wages? So if her plan is so expensive that it is unaffordable, she garnishes wages, ouch. I guess that is why my taxes are so high, similar I guess.

- I have heard that until the primaries on the calendar come closer, Obama was more of lesser known to people in some states. How is that possible nowadays with the media covering this as it is?

- Do people think that Bill is getting a third term and Hillary is still getting support because of the 1990’s? Talk about going retro.

- Can Obama keepthe momentum up? Does a prolonged race with Clinton benefit him? Does it get him tested before the Republicans can test him in the general?

- Could Canada have affected the Ohio vote? I hope not.

- I might pick up the book, "Audacity of Hope".

- I have become hooked on CNN election coverage.

- A Dream Ticket? - maybe for Clinton. I hope Obama doesn’t get railroaded to put her on the ticket with him. That hurts him in my opinion,

- Florida and Michigan - I don’t think you should change the rules of the game now. Everyone knew the delegates where taken away. Hillary brought this up, because she knows she needs to find a way around the system. Typical it seems, do anything to win.

- Did Mitt Romney’s faith cost him the nomination?

- I really like the following couple of posts from blogger friends, Brian Leport "Criteria For Cultural Engagement: A Defense" and Don Ryan "How I Plan to Vote On Tuesday".

- Next week I am on vacation in Pennsylvania. It will be interesting to be there a few weeks before the primary, never been down in the US during an election period. I wonder if will be like when I was in Guatemala with all the parades etc…I doubt it, that was crazy down there.

Here are a couple of posts that I read today that are worth checking out (click the titles to read the full post)

1. Jonathan Herron - leading forward

"Forward leading can be lonely at each new initiative; by nature you are in front of everyone else.  That’s where vision and faith collide.  Most people dream.  But a dream without faith is a fantasy.  God-infused dreams fueled by faith become reality.  But only if you’re leading forward."

2. Jay Hardwick - Pour Your Heart Into It: Find Your Own Sound

"What would it look like if you threw off everything that was familiar and prayed like crazy for God to let you hear your own sound. And, in hearing your own sound, what if you then could see a "big one" opportunity that no one else sees?"

Side Note: Does anyone else get driven up the wall by all those term contracts that you are bound to in order to get services from various companies, ie, cell phone contracts, alarm system contracts, home heating plan contracts etc. 1 year, 2 year, 3 year or 4 year contracts.  The thing is, in most cases you cannot get the services without the contract, and some of them self-renew and can only be cancelled on the automatic renewal date….argh!

I am in a dispute with one of these companies right now, their process is stacked against the customer. I should hear back tomorrow.

Tags: Jay_Hardwick, Jonathan_Herron, service_contracts, dream, opportunity

Been awhile since I updated the Blogs I read on the left side….here are the ones I have added, and have been reading frequently…..

Mark Scandrette - http://www.markscandrette.com
Scott Hodge - http://scotthodge.typepad.com
Jason Boucher - http://jasonboucher.typepad.com
Eric Bryant - http://ericbryant.org/blog/
Fermi Project Blog - http://fermiproject.com/tell/
Zach Lind (Jimmy Eat World) - http://www.findingrhythm.com/blog/index.php

Watch this YouTube video, hat tip Eric Bryant, assistant pastor @ Mosaic in LA (Erwin McManus). Brian also talks at the end of the importance of small groups.

Read a post over on Mark Scandrette’s site….click here to read the entire post, very interesting

“We’ve had the opportunity to interact with over 1,000 people through speaking engagements, training events and one-on-one appointments. In a small way we hope that our work imitates the pattern of Jesus and his earliest disciples…..”

Technorati Tags: Faith, bloggers

Here is a interview from the UK with Rob Bell….(Hat Tip: Jonathan Herron)

It is interesting to listen Rob describe Mars Hill Bible Church, his teaching style, and his accountability he has setup in his life.

There is a conference @ Mars Hill - Jan 22-23, 2006 called “Isn’t She Beautiful”….thinking about making the trip down to it.

/continuing the journey…reg

Technorati Tags: Bloggers, Faith

Just a really excellent read…here is an excerpt from “In A Pit With A Lion On A Snowy Day” by Mark Batterson

Life is infinitely uncertain.  And you need to couple that with the fact God is infinitely complex….Fractals are the theological equivalent of what theologians call the incomprehensibility of God.  Just when we think we have God figured out, we discover a new dimension of His kaleidoscopic personality.  So if life is infinitely uncertain and God is infinitely complex, then all we can do is accept our finitude and embrace uncertainty. I think many people have the mistaken notion that faith reduces
uncertainty.  Nothing could be further from the truth. Faith doesn’t reduce uncertainty. Faith embraces uncertainty. We’ll never have all the answers. And some people never come to terms with this truth.  They feel like something is wrong with them because they can’t wrap their minds around God. But maybe faith has less to do with gaining knowledge and more to do with causing wonder.  Maybe a relationship with God doesn’t simplify our lives. Maybe
it complicates our lives in ways that they should be complicated.

/continuing the journey…reg

Yesterday I posted about a question I came across on Pernell Goodyear’s blog…..

“communicating the gospel creatively in a new media environment.”

the question that stuck out to me was,

“Theology and resources of church being open source?”

So today I am going to try to put some thoughts out on this. For a full definition of Open Source, go to Wikipedia’s page on Open Source.

“Advocates in one field will often support the expansion of open source in other fields, including Linus Torvalds who is quoted as saying, ‘the future is open source everything.’” …”Often, open source is an expression where it simply means that a system is available to all who wish to work on it.” …”if needed, and redistribute them back into the community or other organizations.” (from Wikipedia, page on Open Source)

It is an interesting thing Open Source, being in the IT industry, I was once a strong proponent of Microsoft wares. When Open Source software, namely Linux made its appearance on the technology front, I didn’t think it was a viable solution. I figured the open source concept was a fad. I think it was more protecting the turf I was familiar with. Then as time went on, I have found myself more interested in this type of software, as I have seen the growth and maturity of the movement
and platforms. I now have switched from IE to Firefox, and Outlook to Thunderbird.

I often recommend OpenOffice to people instead of shelling out the big bucks for MS Office. I never thought Open source was going anywhere, but I was wrong.

Now when you read the Wikipedia page on Open Source, you read how Open Source has extended into other areas, science, culture and media for example. So the question from yesterday was how does Open Source in a new media environment apply to the church.

Here are my thoughts, I do believe the church does need to become more open source. One of the things that small groups and house churches lends itself to are the concepts of Open Source. When you are involved in small groups/house churches, you become part of the community and take an active role (or at least should for successful groups) in the growth of the members of the group, by putting into the group and receiving from the group. By contributing and collaborating with others in the group.

Another part of Open Source for the church in new media is the active self publication with Web 2.0, blogs, wikis, Myspace, and social networking websites etc. Communication via email, IM. Utilizing these technologies allows the church to communicate and work together for the greater good of the kingdom. I know through various blogs, I myself have been able to add to others and also have received from others to help to contribute to areas I am involved in.

One of the things that Jeremy and I were talking about was high cost to buy media resources such as clips that others have used, mostly self produced yet high quality clips. When you go to purchase, these prices are extremely high, now I am not suggesting that every should be completely free….but in cases like this, it would be a great thing to allow others to access and maybe modify for their setting. Instead of trying to become the next Bill Gates within our media resources, maybe open
them up into more Open Source.

Redistibute back into the Christian community, but not at prices that are so high that we start becoming the next Microsoft. I know of a few prominent churches that yes, their leader is considered one of the top leaders in the church world, they sell their DVD and CDs for around $10 and $15, and MP3 files for $4.00 - $8.00 USD. That’s crazy in my opinion.

Podcasts are a great thing that I use a lot, my iTunes on my laptop is loaded with multiple podcasts weekly, from Rob Bell to Erwin McManus and others. Gone are the days that we should be selling tapes and CDs locally for $5-$10. I know everyone tries to make a little cash for the building fund, but isn’t the point of the message to make it available to people…redistribute it back into the community, allow it to be worked with and contributed to.

One of the things that I have tried to make use of in the area of my own leadership is to have my blog become an extension of my message/lessons…posting summary notes etc, and having the leaders access them, and contribute their responses to. Helping build upon what I already have. What I have proposed in the past to our Small Groups coaches team is to create some sort of team blog (maybe it should be a wiki for content creation) to create an extension to our face-to-face meetings.
We have yet to do so, but I still think this would add some great value to our coaches. Becoming active participants as we journey together.

Here is a great resource that I came across as a link on Brian LePort’s blog. Theopedia

Those are some thoughts, what are yours….send me an email or drop a comment….

/continuing the journey…reg

Came across this post on Pernell Goodyear’s blog.  The post has some questions about

“communicating the gospel creatively in a new media environment.”

the question that stuck out to me was,

“Theology and resources of church being open source?”

That is an interesting question, Jeremy and I were talking about something that could pertain to this on Sunday morning.  We didn’t frame our conversation with the “open source” tag, but it did pertain to this question, Hopefully tomorrow I will post on this.

Yesterday (5th) was my 32nd birthday and with the gift card from Chapters my parents gave me, I purchased the following book from NT Wright, “Simply Christian”.  Looks to be a good read.

/continuing the journey…reg

I am going through my first reading of the book “In a Pit With a Lion On a Snowy Day” by Mark Batterson.  I have committed to do a blog review of the book for Mark once I am finished, but will likely post some things as I go.  Mark is the Lead Pastor at National Community Church in Washington DC…..this book is right on target for my life right now….it is absolutely a book that I needed to open and read right now….but not only read, dissect and implement into my life.

Check out Mark’s latest post on the book over at his blog, Evotional

/continuing the journey…reg

Tonight our small group had 4 adults and my 3 children. My wife did the children’s group downstairs, which she said went really well.  Then the 3 of remaining adults talked about I Cor 13.  Since we multiplied the group into two groups, the meetings have been so much better.  The discussion is way better, because with the larger group is was so hard to get a good discussion going, it was basically surface talk going on.  Tonight the three of us really were able to have effective discussion,
we were able to respond and build off each others answers. 

Also, I received a request from to participate in a survey for a report on blogging from someone that was reading my blog. I think this is legit, never know. So I will answer the survey post tomorrow.

And it seems that I might be able to do a online blog review of Mark Batterson’s book, “In a Pit With a Lion on a Snowy Day”

/continuing the journey

 Mark Batterson posted his New Year Manifesto for 2007 on his blog

Grab life by the mane. Quit living as if the purpose of life is to arrive safely at death. Set God-sized goals. Pursue God-ordained passions. Go after a dream that is destined to fail without divine intervention. Stop pointing out problems and become part of the solution. Stop criticizing and start creating. Stop playing it safe and start taking risks. Expand your horizons. Accumulate experiences. Consider the lilacs. Find every excuse you can to celebrate everything you can. Don’t let what’s wrong
with you keep you from worshipping what’s right with God. Burn sinful bridges. Laugh at yourself. Keep making mistakes. Worry less about what people think and more about what God thinks. Don’t try to be who you’re not. Be yourself. Quit holding out. Quit holding back. Quit running away. And remember: if God is for us who can be against us? Unleash the lion chaser within!

Last night for our family supper a new recipe from Rachael Ray’s Magazine , I made the following Drunken Risotto with Grilled Chicken. I substituted some of the ingredients such as 2 cups of Barolo Red Wine, instead used cooking wine (non alcohol), and didn’t use the mushrooms and chicken broth.  My daughter loved the rice, and everyone thought the chicken this way as very good.

Tonight, I made Panini sandwiches on my new Papa Panini Press that I bought from the Great Canadian Superstore today. I got the idea from the Panini Bar featured on the Rachael Ray Show .

The press worked like a charm.  Once each sandwich was made and placed on the press, it took about 2-3 minutes to cook.  Delicious.  These will be a regular item requested to be made I can be sure of that.

/continuing the journey…reg

Here are a couple of bloggers attending the Catalyst Conference in Atlanta.

Jay Hardwick

Mark Batterson

/continuing the journey…reg

Let me think out load here….that post from yesterday on Jay Hardwick’s blog that I posted here about Chasing Lions…well it has stuck with me all day, I keep think about it….”greatest regret”, “lions you didn’t chase”, “risks not taken”, “opportunities
not seized”, “dreams not pursued”, “stop running away”, “start chasing”….yeah it has again got me thinking….it seems every time in my own time start thinking, praying, studying about things relating to my divine discontent, I come across more and more statements and quotes like that…..then the another day I was reading the Jim Collins book, “Good to Great”, Collins is describing what it means to be a Level 5 leader.  Collins, talks about leadership that does the greater good for the organization. 

Those statements by Collins got me thinking, again when I read this post by Hardwick….”God-ordained opportunities”, “divine discontent” as Bill Hybels talks about….so the greater good for a level 5 leader in Christian leadership is not necessarily the greater good for the local church that you are currently attending, but rather the greater good for the kingdom, not saying that the local church is not important, but when there are God ordained opportunities, they will always be for the greater good of
the kingdom, His kingdom…..time to chase the lion!

What are your thoughts/comments/opinions….drop a comment or an email

/continuing the journey…reg

From the blog of Jay Hardwick

“2. This is relevant stuff. Mark says, “Your greatest regret at the end of your life will be the lions you didn’t chase. You will regret the risks not taken, the opportunities not seized, and the dreams not pursued. Stop running away from what scares you most and start chasing the God-ordained opportunities that cross your path.” The whole idea of “chasing lions” comes from an obscure, yet courageous verse in
the OT. You have to get the book to find the verse! :)” Full post entry here

continuing the journey…reg

I was reading on Brian Leport’s site today his post on a quote from Peter Rollins….it was such a good quote I had to post here as well (Hat Tip to Brian)

“Instead of bringing God to ‘unreached’ places and ‘unreached’ peoples, I find countless missionaries who say that, while this was how they once thought, time and again they find that these unreached places are the very sites where they must go to find God and to be reached. How many of us have learnt too late that our initial idea, that by serving the world we will help bring God to others, has eclipsed the wisdom that in serving the world we find God there.” - Peter Rollins, How (Not)
To Speak of God, pg. 54

Check out Brian’s site over at www.brianleport.com

continuing the journey….reg

Interesting post on Mark Driscoll’s blog, “TheResurgence” titled Church 3.0

a few points made in the post are as follows, visit Church 3.0 for more…..

“CHURCH 1.0
In this version, the church is traditional and institutional…
The church expects to have a privileged place in the larger culture. choirs, robes, hymnals, and organs.
Missions involves sending Americans and dollars overseas.

CHURCH 2.0
Today’s dominant church form is contemporary and seeker-sensitive…
A culture war is being fought to regain a lost position of privilege. \Church services recycle 1980s and 1990s pop culture, such as acoustic guitars and drama, in an effort to attract non-Christian seekers.
Missions is a church department that organizes overseas trips and funding.

CHURCH 3.0
This incarnation of the church emerging and missional…
The church accepts that it’s marginalized in culture.
Pastors are local missionaries.
Missions is “glocal” (global and local).

/continuing the journey….reg

Dan Kimball posted on Willow Creek - AXIS service being shutdown.

But whatever the reasons for shutting down Axis, I can say, that from an outside perspective it saddened my heart - but I was not at all surprised. I am surprised it didn’t end sooner actually.

Check the whole post out

continuing the journey…reg

Here is an interesting post over at drewsams.com

Drew had lunch with David from the Barna group….here is an excerpt that Drew posted….

Until then…I want to leave you with a thought from David that will “get you warmed up” for the rest of the conversation.

David asks, “What if we, as the church, have gotten really good about drawing people into our weekend church services? What if we have gotten really good about engaging them in worship, teaching, and fellowship during these weekend services? We’d probably be pretty happy right?

However, what if in doing this, we have made people dependent on the weekend service for worship, teaching, and fellowship? What if in doing this, we have enabled them to be unable to worship, learn from Scripture, and engage in fellowship throughout the rest of the week? What if in doing this, we have actually been “doing” church for our congregants rather than releasing them “to be” the church. What if in doing this, we are actually doing more of a spiritual disservice to them in the process?”

click here to go to Drew’s blog and read the entire entry, and for tomorrow’s entry on David’s answer to the question.

/continuing the journey….reg