Untitled


Chandy and Adam hanging out.

Went for a 10 mile run today. It was a beautiful day.

Here's the thing - if you e-mail me or call me between Sunday night and Monday night, you will not hear back from me until Tuesday morning, or more likely Tuesday afternoon.

I have decided to unplug on Mondays - no phone and no e-mail. If I have preached on Sunday night, my brain is so fried that I need the next day to fully decompress. I made the mistake of booking a speaking opportunity Monday at noon, followed by a meeting at the church at 1:30.

By the time I got to the meeting at the church I was yawning and spacing out.

I find if I do take the time off on Monday, I am way more effective the rest of the week.

So if you call or e-mail me on monday, I am not ignoring you. I am putting myself back together.

On that note - I had 25 e-mails this afternoon and 5 phone messages, which took up most of my afternoon. Between 4:00 and 7:00 today, I recieved 15 more e-mails. I'm sure if my internet connection was severed at home, I would start to feel like Tom Hanks in Castaway.

Had a great long talk with Dr. Warren. Sounds like life is good and busy in Calgary for the Loeppky's.

Had my relatives from Los Angeles in over the weekend - I love this above picture. It's my uncle Chandy and Adam sharing a moment.

Greg Boyd:

"The kingdom-of-God citizen knows that the world is not going to be fundamentally transformed by the "power over" use of the sword. We know that love, peace and justice will not be experienced on a global scale until the K. of God is permanently established, until human nature is fundamentally destroyed, and until the corrupting influence of demonic powers is finally destroyed. Take it on God's authority if its not already obvious to you: the ultimate hope of the world lies not in human kingdom-of-the-world wisdom, but in the advancement of God's kinfdom and the return of Jesus Christ!" - 56

"Jesus didn't come to give us the Christian answer to the world's many socio-politcal quandries, and he didn't come to usher in a new and improved version of the kingdom of the world. His agenda was far more radical, for he came to redeem the world and overthrow the kingdom of the world by ushering in an alternative kingdom. He came not to give solutions, tweak extrenal regulations and enforce better behaviour. He rather came to transform lives form the inside out by winning people over to the reign of God's sovereign love, thereby rendering the "power over" tactics of the kingdom of the world unnecessary." - 59.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Go to church

Image
We are several months out of even the most limited pandemic restrictions. I cannot remember the last time I wore a mask. When I see someone wearing a mask, it feels nostalgic - a reminder of a strange time when that person was the norm and I - the unmasked one would look strange. Despite the fact that we can break the 6-foot barrier and admire the lower halves of other's faces - I have been surprised at the number of Christians I meet who are just NOW starting to return to live worship services. I understand the lure of the live stream worship experience while sitting at home on the couch - worshipping in sweats and hot coffee in my mug - much more appealing than a hard couch and no coffee. I've also met believers boldly walking away from regular church attendance and proclaiming they can worship God anywhere - including the pickleball court. Nature is my sanctuary. "God’s Spirit and gift of salvation are not defined by church walls. But without an embodied community of be
Read more

Coaster goes up (a little)

Image
Unused photo from the Globe and Mail shoot. So, last night and all day today I was on the top floor of the Hyatt Regency Hotel in downtown Vancouver. Quite auspicious surroundings for church council/pastors meetings! there were stunning views of the North Shore mountains, Stanley Park and the downtown buildings. The meetings were lengthy, exhausting and a lot of work. Basically, FBC has been on a year long journey of crafting its vision statement and core values - we did it with the assistance of a coach from Outreach Canada. We are coming down the home stretch and needed to hammer out everything for presentation to the congregation. Today was the first day that I have begun to feel lighter and ready to resume the work. Although still feeling wounded from this whole mess, I'm ready to limp on. It's true: Sunday,Monday - elation at finally reaching a goal of holding a first@night service in a trendy nightclub - excitement at getting press coverage - even thoug
Read more

Where the Light Falls

Image
I've read two books by Augustine - City of God and Confessions. I think I've read his confessions 3 times. I like him because he is a good writer, has lots of self-insight, and loves God passionately. He was very honest about his pre-Christian life. At one point he makes this observation: "I had my back toward the light, and my face toward the things on which the light falls." Most people have their back to the light - and they focus where his light falls. Where the light falls refers to God's common grace. God does not keep good things only for those who follow him. Because he is good he distributes his blessings and grace widely. Where the light falls are places of grace: art, music, beauty, sunshine, loving relationships, a baby's smile. But - these things are not the light - to enjoy and encounter the light, we must turn around and follow the rays of light back to the source. What is the source of beauty, love, and truth? Jesus said he is the light of the
Read more