My Favorite Christmas Gift, by Jay Kelly

What an amazing Christmas holiday we’ve had here at the Kelly house. We had cancelled our warm-weather travel plans because of financial concerns and decided to have a quiet Christmas celebration at home, just the four of us. Our Christmas has turned out to be quite eventful. There seemed to be a box or two on our front porch almost every afternoon (I’ve always loved receiving packages). We received a box of Korean pears from Jay Park and his fiancé, Minjung, who are currently studying and very close to the Kingdom. We found treasures from Connecticut thanks to Carol’s parents that included a gift of a goat to a needy third-world family in our honor. They also included the gift of shopping for Paige and Chandler and many other thoughtful surprises. I’ve always been amazed by Carol’s parents; they have become mine, too. Carol’s parents are better than Santa. Where is he on my birthday? With 10 children and 29 grandchildren, 4 great-grandchildren plus in-laws they never miss a beat. They express love and generosity to their family with a God-like faithfulness and determination. That’s one more reason why they belong to “The Greatest Generation.”
My mother showed up in person to deliver her Christmas treats, buy many more and bring our gifts for my family back to my parents’ retirement home in Melbourne Beach, Florida. My gift to Carol (we decided only one gift each, a commitment which she breached) was a new and improved engagement band/wedding ring set. On our 10th anniversary (we’re coming up on #19) I had given her the set my grandmother Hazel Mae had always worn as long as I can remember. After several more years of wear they dropped a diamond and pinched Carol’s finger and were subsequently punished by being put in a box for a long time. I had them fixed and cleaned and couldn’t wait to see Carol wear them again.
We haven’t gotten to my favorite Christmas package. It came from Texas, of all places. It was sent by an old friend and spiritual brother, John Calpena. It turns out that he is alive and faithful. We converted him when he was in charge of Seattle University’s ROTC recruitment program several years ago. September 11th happened. John was sent to Texas, then to Afghanistan and Iraq. We lost touch. My letters were returned. Our family prayed almost every night that John was safe physically and spiritually. Last week I opened the box to see that he’d sent me a collection of several Christmas gifts, cards and pictures and a long letter. He introduced me to J.D., his son, and included a series of growing-up pictures. His lasting loyalty, his understanding of family and his ability to make and keep a love commitment is why this was my favorite Christmas gift. These qualities are rare in our modern out-of-sight-out-of-mind culture. John stayed in step with the Spirit, in touch with his God and faithful to his spiritual family in the face of challenges that I will never truly appreciate. I’m thankful for John’s service to our country. I’m happy to know that as an Army Division Command Sergeant Major 10,000 to 15,000 soldiers look to our brother, John, for leadership, inspiration and example in a given day. God bless you, John. Thank you for blessing me this Christmas.

And To All a Good Night

A good friend of mine who is not a Christian recently remarked, “You know, there really is something about Christmas. People really do act differently. There’s a heightened sense of goodness that you can see and feel in people.” She said this admiringly, with a sense of wonder.

On this most enchanted night of the year, I wonder. Why is Christmas infused with magic? Why do we feel differently? Perhaps it is the confluence of Forgiveness—that Jesus was born to save us from our sins—and Innocence—we tend to focus on children, their hopes, their fantasies—and Unexpected (well sort of expected) Fortune—that a visit from Santa will bless our lives in the middle of the night without all the Ty Pennington dialogue. Yes, maybe the word is Blessed. (In Greek, the word for blessing translates roughly into "Lynne, Stephen, and Ariel".)

So break out the eggnog, put another log on the fire, and thank God for your blessings. I will haul some personal favorites tonight out of memory, bookcase and DVD stack: A Christmas Carol, with its tale of redemption, A Child’s Christmas in Wales—prose-poetry that goes down like hot chicken soup, and the film Love, Actually (minus a couple of rather, ahem, adult scenes they meant to be 'funny'), in which love dreams really do come true. I will be staring at and studying my beautiful family.

And tonight I will pledge like Mr. Scrooge to keep the spirit of Christmas all through the year, and not just for an ephemeral fortnight.

Peace.

The Power of Prayer or the Power of God?

(My sweetie with her sweetie)

Today we received an answer from God via the UW Medical Center: yes, we can do that surgery tomorrow (Dec 20) and not have to wait until next year. This really mattered to us for insurance reasons (hello, big deductible). The doctors had said to Lynne, over and over again throughout the fall, “Forget it.” Healing times, the tightness of their surgical schedules, and other factors all seemed to spell clearly the need for this surgery later, as in February. But Lynne and many of you prayed for a swifter date, and that’s exactly what happened this morning.

Amidst this immense celebrating (Lynne and I danced around the room and popped some cheap champagne), a theological question raised its ugly head—did God make this happen as a response to our prayer? Here’s what I mean: God heals so much and so many every single day, routinely, but no less miraculously. We take for granted his “daily healing,” whether it’s a child’s cut on a finger (get the Bactine!) or our bodies purging tumors in ways we’re unaware of. God is at work in our bodies daily. In addition, what if God saw Lynne’s cancer and predicament and had already decided to speed the surgery before we prayed? We don’t know. We won’t know, until we see Him in heaven. He might say, “I already set up the healing in the scheme of things,” or, “I decided to intervene in the surgical calendar because I felt bad for you guys,” or, “I decided to respond directly to your prayer.” Or something else I didn’t think of.

The point is this: I need to be grateful for the power of God, regardless of whether or not he exactly responded to my prayer. I’m not trying to devalue prayer, which the scriptures tell us are powerful and effective. In fact, we need to pray more, and more faithfully! I’m just trying to say that speculating on the relative power of my prayers is the wrong focus—I just need to stay focused on the power and care of God. It’s his power, not mine. It’s his will, not mine. He’s in control, not me and my prayers.

Mr. Evolution

I was amused to read the other morning in the Seattle Times the headline, “Why don’t pregnant women topple over?” Couldn’t resist reading something we’ve all always been burning to know. It turns out that two engineering feats—differences between men and women anatomically—make it possible. One lower lumbar vertebra that in men is square-shaped is wedge-shaped in women. In addition, a key hip joint is 14% larger in women. As the article notes, without those differences women’s vertebrae would be subject to disabling shearing forces. One scientist gleefully observed “Evolution has tinkered…!”

I’m always amazed by how often evolutionary biologists anthropomorphize Blind Chance or Evolution, as if these concepts were living entities. “Tinkering” is something personalities do, not random forces. It implies design and intent. Most evolutionists do not believe in Intelligent Design, but it seems that in practice, it’s hard for even them to totally rid human development of a personal factor: dudes, if it looks like a duck, and walks like a duck…

Can we stop treating Mr. Evolution like it’s some kind of cosmic Boeing engineer? Wouldn’t it just be more logically consistent to say, “Some intelligent designer has tinkered…”? Or, “blind chance has lucked into women having these amazing design shifts. Gosh, what if the mutation had been disadvantageous?”

I guess then pregnant women would be falling all over themselves to have babies.

Lead Artfully

I can’t remember exactly what recent news story brings this to mind, but the thought popped into my head the other day that the American Art Culture (and I’m including in that visual arts, theater, movies, and music) has been getting a pass from the rest of us on Responsibility. I say this as a former college rock band singer and piano hacker. This really matters for us parents because nothing could be clearer than the natural gravity of arts and media and how they pull powerfully on our teens. It also really matters for the Seattle church because we want, especially through the talents and efforts of Darin Ford, to build an outreach to the Seattle arts community that saves lives and glorifies our artistic God.

What do I mean by pass? I mean that the advocates of today’s art scene long for maximum freedom of expression (amen), including the freedom to protest (amen), but tend to fall silent when people like me suggest that with such freedom and opportunity comes much responsibility (cough). Can I get an Andy Warhol amen to that?

Let me be clearer. For a youth culture, nothing speaks louder than arts and sports. Both are actually leading our teens. The old basketball saw Charles Barkley barked, “I’m not a role model; parents are role models,” but he was dead wrong. Entertainers and artists likewise swear that their craft is only about expression. They too are as wrong as a Mondrian with a picture frame. When you influence, you lead. Excellence in any area becomes a form of leadership, whether you asked for it or not.

So here’s the challenge: ALL YOU ARTISTS out there, you are not just “expressing” yourselves. You are not just exercising “voice”. In the hard, real, world, you ARE leading our teens. So lead responsibly, morally, tastefully, and positively. Otherwise, GET OUT OF THE ARTS! Do something else that doesn’t lead--like become an art critic. (You know teens never read that stuff.)

Does God Exist Debate

There is a very enlightening and entertaining debate between Doug Jacoby and Michael Shermer (a leading agnostic author) that is posted on youtube. It is a bit long, but worth the time, and I'd say it will strengthen your faith. The video has 10 parts which can be found at the following link:

http://video.google.com/videosearch?q=jacoby-shermer&hl=en&sitesearch=

A report on the debate can be found at this link:

http://www.sdcoc.com/Articles/2007/apologeticsreport.htm

Revelation

If these messages aren't online yet, they soon will be--Jay, Alex and I have begun a Sunday series on the book of Revelation, using a book called "Discipleship on the Edge" (DOE) as a commentary guide. I've always been a little suspicious of commentaries because I've had a hard enough time on my own reading God's word for instruction and insight without someone else's "quiet time" over-influencing the process. Yes it's odd.

For my message Sunday ("First Love-Jesus' Rev 2 letter to the Ephesian church"), I incorporated many of the insights from DOE, and some from another recent read, "Velvet Elvis." But I did add one of my own that, like all insights I guess, "came to me" as I was studying Revelation 2: knowing from DOE that "revelation" translates more like "unveiling" or "revealing," I realized that Jesus starts that process with seven letters to seven churches. BEFORE he "unveils" what is and what is to come to the disciples, he does a very personal unveiling of what is going on in the seven churches of Asia--he reveals what they are and are not doing.

We (hopefully) crave spiritual insight. We want some ongoing "unveilings" of scripture as we read and study--real "meat," something new. But perhaps the structure of Revelation points the way: only when we are first engaged in the unveiling of our own hearts will we encounter unveilings about God's will for us in scripture. Heart inventory is a good thing, and that's why Jesus spends so much time on it in Rev 2-3.

Joining the Fray

Yesterday afternoon the Seahawks prevailed over da Bears and looked more like the offensive juggernaut of 2005 than at any time I've seen them over the past two years. The offensive was beautiful to watch all day. Perhaps the most beautiful play, though, belonged to the kicker, Josh Brown, who raced down the field on one kickoff and wrastled Bears kick return specialist Devin Hester to the ground like a cowboy grounding a steer. It was a real football play and you usually don't see that from kickers. Brown is in the battle.

I'm fond of saying that football is a sport where standing around isn't an option--you'll get hammered by someone. Unless you're a kicker. Kickers can be part of the action but stay out of physical trouble.

So, on the spiritual field, which are you? A kicker who likes to minimize contact, or a Josh Brown that is in the fight, eager to hit before being hit? That choice will probably determine how happy and fulfilled you are as a Christian.

Saturday, Sara Brumley had "had enough" of standing around, field goal kicking from the sidelines. She jumped into the Christian contest, baptized on Mercer Island that morning, surrounded by friends, fellow students, parents, and grandparents. She's in the storm now, full of blessings, full of challenge, but ready, I'm convinced, to do some serious spiritual hitting.

How to Save a Life

Step one you say we need to talk
He walks you say sit down it's just a talk
He smiles politely back at you
You stare politely right on through
Some sort of window to your right
As he goes left and you stay right
Between the lines of fear and blame
You begin to wonder why you came

Where did I go wrong? I lost a friend
Somewhere along in the bitterness
And I would have stayed up with you all night
Had I known how to save a life

Let him know that you know best
Cause after all you do know best
Try to slip past his defense
Without granting innocence
Lay down a list of what is wrong
The things you've told him all along
And pray to God he hears you
And pray to God he hears you

Where did I go wrong? I lost a friend
Somewhere along in the bitterness
And I would have stayed up with you all night
Had I known how to save a life

As he begins to raise his voice
You lower yours and grant him one last choice
Drive until you lose the road
Or break with the ones you've followed
He will do one of two things
He will admit to everything
Or he'll say he's just not the same
And you'll begin to wonder why you came

Where did I go wrong? I lost a friend
Somewhere along in the bitterness
And I would have stayed up with you all night
Had I known how to save a life
How to save a life
How to save a life

In high school I stayed up all night not a few times trying to save someone I loved. But I didn't know how.

After The Fray penned this chart-topper two years ago, the meaning got obscured by its eventual attachment to the ABC television series “Grey’s Anatomy,” a meaningful story of love longed for, lost and found, amidst a whole lot of meaningless sex among doctors. Which is pretty typical, I suppose of our culture—confusion about love, confusion about sex. The original meaning of the lyrics actually concerned an at-risk teenager who defied outreach and counseling.

There is a part of me that is trying to know how to save a life. I have been doing that really all my life, from the first person I reached out to spiritually when I was in junior high school to my graying 40’s. Even now I’m in my first quarter at Seattle Pacific University as a Masters candidate in Psychology, hoping to learn, along the way of saving souls, how to help save marriages and families. I want to know how.

But then, as one of my professors said recently, we can’t save anyone. We can’t “make it happen.” Yes, we can help. But only God, His grace, and their own choices can really pave that Way. Even surgeons are under a bit of a delusion; it seems like they really can “save the day,” but of course, without the miracle of God-driven human healing, medicine is completely a waste of time. If I’m a surgeon, for all I do, there’s so very much I don’t do.

With Lynne’s cancer well-treated but well still on our minds and personal horizons, I am reminded of the miracle of deliverance and salvation—what a team thing it is. Lost souls, hearts, marraiges, and families need God's good help. We need God. They need us. And God needs us to do our part—so much smaller than His, but so vital, so urgent.

We don’t know how to save a life. But we do know how one is saved. Will we, then, stay up all night?

1st Cousin-in-Law, Once Removed, My Brother by Jay Kelly

On October 29th I received an amazing email...

"Hi Jay, my name is Ian Mohlie and I’m a disciple in the Richmond church. …and I think I’m your relative too! My grandmother is Pat Goodman (well, she was, until she became a Mohlie), and when I told her about the church she told me about you and carol. Does this ring a bell? Anyway, if so then we should talk!"

Ian and his roommate are coming out to visit for the weekend of Dec. 7-9. We can't wait to meet him. We've been praying for our relatives near and far. Carol's Mom and Dad told us that Ian might be in our church. He invited his Grandmother (Carol's Aunt Patty) to church and they immediately thought that we might be connected.

Ian and his campus group heard Alex Whitaker preach at the last campus conference and were very inspired.

What a great encouragement to find out that our prayers for family near and far had been answered years ago without us even knowing it. Ian and his mother are both disciples in the Richmond, Virginia Church.

2007 Fall Campus Retreat

Title: Fall 2007 Campus Retreat “Lost Ones”
Marcus Wallace (South Sound Church of Christ Intern)

This year’s fall campus was one to remember. Although we were once again in Vashon Island aka the Island City with No Street Lights (named by me and other students), we were in a new and improved part of the Camp Sealth campground (which for some of us was hard to find). However once we got there, we had a great time. We started off the night by eating some of Alex Whitaker’s famous New York chili and then had our first lesson entitled “Lost Leadership” in society today. The speaker for this class, Marcus Wallace (yes it was me—it is always strange writing about yourself), strove to highlight the lost leadership that exists in America by reporting some disparaging stats about society. A few included:

- Pornography industry makes about $10 billion dollars a year which is more than ABC + CBS + NBC (about 6.2 billion)

- Porn revenue is larger than all combined revenues of all professional football, baseball and basketball franchises.

- Somewhere in America, a woman is raped every 2 minutes, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.

- Nearly half of all marriages end in divorce

- About 60 percent of men and 40 percent of women will have an affair at some point in some marriage

In addition to these statistics, he also discussed how in many circles of Christianity today, the topic of sin has been replaced by a feel good message that leaves people feeling good but unchanged in many areas of their lives spiritually. In closing, Marcus challenged all the students to redefine leadership by knowing their bibles and letting it be the standard of how they should live their lives.

The retreat only got better as two disciples a part of the UW ministry (boyfriend and girlfriend) got a chance to share openly and candidly from their lives in the class entitled, “Lost Values.” Both of them shared how before they became true disciples of Jesus Christ, their value system for life was usually led by preserving self and seeking acceptance from others. As a result, their lives were plagued with frequent episodes of underage drinking and sexually immoral behavior with those they dated. They encouraged many of the college students to get open with the sin in their lives.

After lunch and a break for some sports, the men and women had separate classes as we looked at the topic of “Lost Souls.” For the men, Ryan Flynn led a convicting class that challenged many men to admit that as a result of the sin in their lives, they were separated from God. It was Amazing! For the women, a myriad of women shared about how their religious pride towards God led them into sin either before/and they became Christians. The night closed as people talked about the lessons, played board games like Risk and Scrabble and Mafia, or just fellowshipped with one another until they were ready for bed.

The crescendo of the Retreat came during the Sunday Worship Service as Alex Whitaker (Campus Minister at the University of Washington) preached a lesson that proved that in order to be found by God, one must first be Lost and then in order to have our sins forgiven by God, we must follow the plan of salvation outlined in the Bible (a path that many involved in Christianity have left). Immediately following the lesson, many of the visiting students set up bibles studies for later on that day and during the following week in order for them to repent and get baptized and get right with God. If you were Lost (Spiritually) before you came and if you wanted to truly change your life, you were definitely given the way to be Found (Spiritually).

Out of Time

Here’s an outline of yesterday’s staff meeting lesson and discussion, just in case you’re interested. Generally, Tuesdays are “Staff Training Day,” and that includes me. Even though I play the quarterback role for our staff/church, I receive much and learn much from the staff itself, especially on Tuesdays. The first Tuesdays are an “all-staff” meeting, including the Tacoma/South Sound staff. Third Tuesdays are for purely Administrative meetings—nuts and bolts, deadlines, goals that practically move the congregation forward. The other two Tuesdays are one-on-one appointments, our “discipleship partner” or “dp” times. Loads of follow-up, as you can imagine, gets done then.

Yesterday’s meeting theme was “Out of Time”

Luke 10:38-42

-Martha overwhelmed with a hectic life; was “time” the issue?
-We have enough time; the question really is our “choices” (Mary has chosen what is better)
-As congregational leaders, are we making good choices?
-What will we choose as priorities for 2008 especially?

Choose Conviction—Mark 1:29-39

-The rather hectic life and schedule of Jesus: demons, whole towns, etc.
-He was up early to be with God
-I tend to walk with God like a battery getting recharged. That’s a mistake because such a map of my relationship with Him allows me, like a battery, to function on “my own” until my battery runs down. Instead, I need a daily plug-in or nothing works. Exodus 16:11-20

-God gave manna daily—this is a BIG HINT on how to seek Him
-“Give us this day, our daily bread”
-Does anything else “stink”? Do our convictions putrefy?
-Being men and women of fresh conviction is our first leadership task

Choose a Field—Matthew 28:18-20

-We can share our faith “as we go” or “Go share our faith.” Perhaps both ideas are true.
-But if we lack intentionality, will we be surprised if our scattered efforts to scatter seed will yield little evangelistic fruit?

-Are our people aware of the fields they’ve chosen? Have they “chosen”?
-Have we, not as “ministers” but as “members” done likewise?
-Marco P’s example (from LA): set his mind that at least at the gym, “there, I will share my faith.” I’m not sure if he thinks that way everywhere or not, but in the last 13 years, 30 have been baptized that he met in that gym.

Choose a Few—Mark 3:13-19

-We easily forget that convictions spread like yeast, not like Wednesday announcements. Our fellowship convictions tend to spread beginning with a few. Sometimes ministers feel overwhelmed by a “congregational need;” they rightly suspect that preaching and teaching won’t be enough.

-The gospels tell a story about a few; Jesus worked to change the world but helping a few, who, in turn, could teach others. Eventually, Christianity would reach a positive tipping point in Palestine, in Rome, in Europe.

-As ministers, we should “be there” for everyone in need. And yet, we must remember, like Jesus, to focus on a few “who will also be qualified to teach others” (2 Tim 2:2). Moses’ lesson in Ex 18 is still true.

Whether you are a member, a lay leader, or a full-time minister, what choices are you really making for 2008?

Gotta Have It...

I was reading a WSJ commentary that recounted an anti-war newspaper editor lamenting the fact that her son had signed up to fight in Iraq. The editor, obviously sincere and anguished, nevertheless tipped an interesting mindset in her narrative as she described how surely her son joined up neither for "arrogant patriotism" nor "murderous bloodlust." In other words, secular progressives tend to think of pretty much any war effort as being motivated by one of those two cited reasons. My opinion is that this simplistic thinking (people may join the army for a multitude of reasons) comes from, ironically, a form of fundamentalism.

By fundamentalism, I don't mean a view of Christian orthodoxy. Surely I am a fundamentalist when it comes to believing in God and that the Bible is His inerrant Word. I mean an attitude of must-have outcomes that distorts logic and decision-making.

In the Christian world, that attitude informs a political activism that, ironically, has a teeny weeny aspect in common with the Taliban--fusion of church and state. That way, the government can "make sure" we are behaving morally. The desire for a Christian state, misplaced in my view, emanates from "must-have-outcome" thinking. For many reasons, I, probably like you, am not for that kind of state. I want to inspire, not require, morality.

I think Paul would say that secular progressives are "religous in every way." They are addicted to must-have outcomes: you must be a fool to be anything but anti-war; you must commit to "diversity" or you are uneducated/unenlightened; you must believe in corporate conspiracy theories or you are "pro-rich" and "anti-poor." The list can go on.

I would suggest that the only must-have outcome we should embrace is this: to fear God and keep his commandments; and this, in our own personal lives--let's inspire it and not worry about requiring it.

Molecular Vindication

Over the years, I've intermittently attempted to understand the meaning of General Relativity and Quantum Mechanics (don't we all?). I have no idea why, but for some reason, I really wanna get it. I wasn't a physics major, so it's hard to explain the curiosity. But not harder than explaining QM. I've asked all kinds of scientists and engineers to explain them in "layman's terms," but they can't do it. I think their brains are just too large and mine too apt for a pinhead.

Anyway, I finally came up with my own general simplifier: relativity is a way of looking at things when, from our perspective, they're way too large (universe, planets, etc.) and QM is a way of looking at things when they're way too small.

Yesterday, in between classes at SPU, I was recalling all this to a classmate. When we sat down in class, our professor had us watch a film on string theory (so named because after thinking about it you'll feel really strung out, and without drugs). In the movie, the narrator spent the first 30 minutes explaining relativity and QM with almost the exact same words I had used with my classmate.

I will need a new theory to explain how it is I could feel so proud of myself and even a little ingenious about something I don't even understand.

I need to take my brain out now and go soak it...

Note for Alan

Alan, for some reason this blog won't allow me to enter a subsequent comment, so I'll just post it here. I'm thrilled to hear that you guys are cooperating. I will recommend to Roger Lamb to post your congregation as a cooperating one unless you tell me a reason not to do so. Is there anything in the content of the UPC that you guys don't agree with? I assume not. Please advise me at greenland1@comcast.net

love from Seattle

Cooperation Steps in LA

See Jay's cool pictures and account of the 2007 ICOC International Leadership Conference below...

Two days before the conference began, delegates from around the world elected from churches and regional leadership synergy groups met for a series of meetings to confer on how to better meet our trans-congregational needs. We had been relying on a few conferences and on a Steering Committee of nine last year to try to keep track of this, but that arrangement quickly proved obsolete.

This year, and heartily approved by the delegates, we all elected to replace the Steering Committee with 10 different specialized committees, including a "Strategic Building Committee" on which I will serve for the next two years--it's particular charge is to solicit/bring voice (esp on the web via Disciples Today) to commended brothers and churches who are setting an example for us all in maturity and missions. Hopefully some tremendous stories, interviews, and in-depth church building articles will emerge from this collaboration.

Other committees included: Campus, Teen, Single, HOPE, Teacher & Ministry Education, Shepherding and Advisory for churches in need, and Missions Support.

What a step! Pray for all our passionate efforts to bear good fruit and serve the churches.

SG

What a Conference in LA! by Jay Kelly

There is so much to say about our time at the International Leadership Conference in L.A. last week. Over 1,000 church leaders from all over the world kicked off our conference with the entire Los Angeles Church last Sunday. The Anaheim Convention Center was full of the Spirit as thousands of disciples followed Brian Craig’s lead in worship. The atmosphere was full of faith, hope and love.

Carol and I lived in Redondo Beach and led the Peninsula Sector of the L.A. church from 1993 to 1997 before moving to Seattle. This trip became a touching ten-year reunion for us. Old friends were around every corner in the fellowship. We didn't sleep much, but we were deeply refreshed. Here are Doug & Angela Wens, Brian & Dessa Craig and Gary & Chris Simmons hanging out with us.

Tully's Memory

Tully is our 9 year old border collie (one of three, and we live in a medium size house with no yard in the U District = we are dumber than our dogs). Like most dogs, the meaning of her life can be summed up in four letters--food, chow, something like that. Watching her endless drooling gaze at whatever we might be eating, regardless of how many bites we've already given her, I suspect that she has no real short-term food memory. Her response to any treat seems to be a look of "and when's dinner?"

It reminds me of the film, "Memento," in which the protagonist (am I remembering this right?) has lost his ability to make new memories past the date on which his wife was (he thinks) murdered. So he spends the whole film writing down clues to himself about his investigation into her murder. He has progressive tattoos done to leave permanent "facts" about what he has uncovered since he tends to quickly forget everything. Needless to say, he's pretty vulnerable to manipulative people around him.

I've started my Masters degree this fall in Psychology and feel rather in awe of the volumes (literally) we are assigned to read. Blundering around the library the other day, I was simply amazed at how many books there are, how much info there is, and wondered how teachers and professors ever find a way to choose exactly what to emphasize within a field. And I thought this: what if there were no books? What if we couldn't write anything down. Imagine a world in which an education based on testimony outside your generation is impossible--you only can learn what a person has time to learn within one lifetime. Would each generation even be able to go much beyond the discovery of the wheel?

What we are privileged to learn and know stands on the shoulders of our parents, our long-term culture, and all antiquity. Without that, I'd be writing my blog on cave walls with ink made from blood, bugs, and berries. We're not smarter, just blessed with extensive collective memory.

We should try hard not to forget that...

Suffering and Choosing

Last Thursday was Lynne's last chemotherapy session, the final act of a six month poison play bent on destroying anarchistic, undisciplined cells. The nurses came in with balloons and Martinelli's and celebrated this milestone with her. The SCCA is all class, but I still say they should have Brie and Champagne at the end of it all.

As I've watched Lynne deal with her treatments, I have tended to see only the brightness of her courage, resolve, and discipline. People whose friendship we don't deserve always ask me, "How's Lynne?" and I always reply, "What a warrior she is." And yet, the real truth is she has been suffering. All of this is suffering, and there will be more ahead in the form of surgery and maybe more down the road we don't yet know. Being afflicted is suffering, and being asked to make hard choices about your body is suffering, and being asked to acutely consider the length of your days is suffering. It's terrible, but she won't say that.

I think as disciples we know the way of character in Romans 5 through and through. We are, hopefully from the time of baptism, fairly in tune with the message of Jesus' suffering and familiar with the history of the early church's sufferings. We see it between the lines in Hebrews, Peter, and Revelation. Sometimes, caught up in the egotism of prominent and self-important self-sacrifice, we even talk as though suffering, or even martyrdom are things to welcome.

I'm not knocking the embracing of suffering. We must, in order to follow Jesus. But it's one thing to imagine one's suffering from afar and say, "yes, I think I can," and another to have it surprise you, mug you, hijack you. When we can choose to suffer, we feel the humility and the nobility. But when suffering chooses us unexpectedly, the test is daunting and heart-breaking.

Setting aside speculations on the meaning of "omniscience," for the moment, is it possible that God too must sometimes face sufferings He did not know were really coming? It makes me feel better to think so.

The Best Albums?

Among my faves:

Chicago II (eponymous)
Madman Across the Water (Elton John)
Transit (Windham Hill, Ira Stein, Russell Walder)
December (George Winston)
By Heart (Jim Brickman)
Late for the Sky (Jackson Brown)
Revolver (Beatles)
Watermark (Enya)
The Stranger (Billy Joel)
Born to Run (Boss)

And I love Jacky Cheung and Wong Fei in HK

Back in School

Started my first master's program class at Seattle Pacific University last night, so I can now sympathize with those MKs who have done this while working. It's a 3 year program, featuring classes on Monday and Wed evenings and also Wed afternoon. The degree I'm studying for is the Masters in Psychology for Marriage and Family Therapy (MFT). There are about 30 people in the program and, sadly, I'm much closer to the age of the faculty than the other students. This must be confusing for both sides. Faculty: "Why is this geezer doing this? Where was he in the 80's?" Students: "Why is this geezer doing this? Where was he in the 60's?"

I hope to stand out for something other than my age...stay tuned.

War and the Flying Nun

Heard that Norma Rae had an Emmy fit last night, calling into question the wisdom of testosterone. I didn't see the show, but I guess she felt like war is basically a guy thing and that if the world were run by Moms we wouldn't be in Iraq, Flanders or anywhere else in barbarian space and time.

I am inclined to agree, but with two manly caveats. First, it's true that all wars we know of are started really by men, and almost all jails are full of men, not women, though some women do indeed go to jail. Men, it seems, like to fight. But if "women ran the world," would it really be, then, a bed of roses, a benign utopia? Something about the "all" in Romans 3:23 tells me that women would find their own way, a different way, to ruin the world. Readers may speculate how.

Second, with men out of the way, women might rise to the dark occasion and start more wars than we think. After all, Sally herself went from virtuous nun to profane judge without any men prodding her. You might even say she flew off the handle.

Hugs,

srg

Carlos Vargas et.al.....

Carlos left me an encouraging message from the Madrid church the other day, but I don't have a way to contact him.

Carlos, (and anyone else that wants to chat)--please email me at greenland1@comcast.net or in your comments leave me your own email address!

An Overdue Welcome to McCunes!

First, make sure you read Marcus' excellent post below.

How hectic are our lives? This hectic: we have consensus #1 draft picks come to Seattle this fall to work with the Eastside, but we (ahem, me) are too busy running in 10 different mental directions to actually acknowledge this amazing event.

And it is amazing. Mark and Annie have a well-deserved spiritual reputation for vision, hard work, friendship-building, evangelism, counseling, and fun--yes, that's right, fun. They have built ministries that have stood the test of time in Colorado, in Boise, in North Seattle, and in Spokane, Seattle's first church planting. We are lucky and blessed to have them here, and this will rapidly become apparent especially over on the Eastside. I simply cannot overstate what a GREAT blessing it is to serve with them on the full-time ministry staff and on behalf of the whole church I want to shout out a BIG WELCOME MARK and ANNIE!

Am I Being A Spiritual Fool?

By Marcus Wallace

Do you want to know why I love the Bible so much? Well there are many reasons, but huge reason is that no matter how many times I have read a particular scripture, I can still get convicted by it as if I was reading it for the very first time. For example, at last week’s All Teen Back-to-School devotional, my friend, Ben Richey read a familiar scripture from Luke 12 during his lesson to the students.

The Parable of the Rich Fool
Someone in the crowd said to him, "Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me." Jesus replied, "Man, who appointed me a judge or an arbiter between you?" Then he said to them, "Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; a man's life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions." And he told them this parable: "The ground of a certain rich man produced a good crop. He thought to himself, 'What shall I do? I have no place to store my crops.' Then he said, 'This is what I'll do. I will tear down my barns and build bigger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. And I'll say to myself, "You have plenty of good things laid up for many years. Take life easy; eat, drink and be merry." But God said to him, "You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?" This is how it will be with anyone who stores up things for himself but is not rich toward God." (Luke 12:13-21)

Even though I have read this passage before and have even used it in lessons that I have done, I was still convicted with the truth of the verse. Ben challenged all of us in the room that in the grand scheme of things, the only thing that matters in our lives is our personal relationship with God.

This point was so convicting for me because after recently getting married, I have found myself thinking about many things that I would like to have for myself, my wife, and Lord-willing my future family. I have often thought: “One day I would like to have a house; One day I would like to go on family vacations; One day I would like to have a Big Screen T.V. to watch Sports on (I know that it sounds shallow, but I love Sports! Go UW Huskies!); etc.” Even though these things are not bad or sinful in themselves, if I am not careful, it is easy to put more time and effort into acquiring these things than it is to strengthening my relationship with God. Why is this so important? It is because when I stand before God one day, trivial things like how much money I had while on earth or how much equity did my house accrue won’t matter for anything. The only thing that will matter, like Ben said, is how much time and effort did I spend building up a love relationship with God. In other words, if I put more stock into earthly desires and possessions than I put into my relationship with God, than I, like the rich man in the story, are being foolish! This is, was, and will always be a good reminder for me about what really matters in my life. Praise God for this most needed reminder on Saturday afternoon.

Where were you on 9-11?

I was driving my son Stephen to the school bus stop in lower Somerset @ 7am. When he left the car, I turned on sports radio and heard Mitch Levy talking about the world trade center having been hit by an airplane--I thought it was a sports radio prank at first.

Back at home, I shouted to Lynne to look at the news and I'm assuming we tuned into CNN. We were seeing a replay without really being aware of it and, not knowing that the towers were coming down or that even a second plane had hit, felt the incredulous shock of seeing the second tower struck and the awful instantaneous realization that this was no accident.

Six years later, despite the din of military and political debate regarding our subsequent retaliation, one undeniable reality looms large: we live in a world in which Satan is real and evil--not just sin, but deliberate evil-- is at work. Hearts can be darkened, consumed with hatred and resentment, and go places none of us want to countenance.

And so, where are you on 9-11? Wanting comfort and ease, do we see the world, including our Seattle cocoon, through lenses of "peace, peace, where there is no peace," or do we daily don the full armor of God, humbled by our own sin, yet ready to take our stand against evil, calling it by its name, and fighting with spiritual weapons to help cleanse the souls of men? Say a prayer today for the victims of 9-11, and say a prayer for yourself--a prayer of rededication to the fight that must precede eternal peace.

City Campus/Mingles Midweek

Pictures from our first midweek in the new building:

Singles and campus wait in excited expectation. People arrived early and were ready to go for our first midweek atop Queen Anne. The city young marrieds were also there and ready to get inside!



The singing was inspiring and spirit-filled. The acoustics were an obvious improvement over past building (naval reserve... need I say more?), and Sunday mornings with Darin Ford, Danny Figgins and co. will surely be amazing. Bernie is going to have us crying often! This building even made the campus sound good!!!



Jay holding the keys to the kingdom... we could all be in trouble!

It'll be alright

Tonight Stephen and I fly to the other Washington where he will officially start living his own movie (I think teens start this unofficially a few years earlier). The last 18 years have authored so many amazing memories that I seriously struggle to envision life here without "31."* But just when I am in the middle of feeling sorry for myself, a certain irony helps me laugh at myself: the kids are SO excited to get going and are NOT looking back! Well, at least not much. I'm reminded of the lyrics of Peter Cetera's "One More Story," which I used to sing to Stephen when he was a wee bairn:

One more story, then it’s time for bed
One more fairy tale, then rest your weary head
One more kiss, and I’ll turn out the light
Everything’s gonna be alright
I’ll still be here when you wake up in the morning
Close your eyes, say goodnight

I can’t believe just how fast you’re growing
I’m gonna cry when you’re old enough
To go and be on your own
But until that very moment
Everything’s gonna be alright
You’ll still be here when I wake up in the morning
Close your eyes, say goodnight
Everything’s gonna be alright

And so there are new verses that need to be written, for the time that for my family starts tomorrow morning, when Stephen will be gone when we wake up in the morning.

All of this bittersweet experience must tell us something about God's own experience with us--what is it? I will be searching for the answer.

Gotta go; my eyes are leaking...

* 31 was S's football number

Prayer and Love

Today we started our staff meeting with a half-hour or so of sharing as a response to James 5:16ff--each of us shared things in our lives for which we coveted the group's prayers. We promised to pray for one another in a very specific way and then spent another half hour actually doing that.

This seemed like an old treasure dug up anew. I was amazed by how something as simple as getting specific with our vulnerable needs & then praying for them could engender real concern, affection and love. As my life has become more complicated, I tend to find myself praying for me and mine more, rather than praying for others. The more I "get out of myself" in prayer, and put others' concerns on my heart, the more I actually feel for them--my love seems increased. I'll bet it is.

If a relationship seems stalled, find out what you can be praying for about that person. Ask them what they need and pray for it. Better yet, pray with them. This will not only increase your faith, it will increase your love.

The Mob of Faith

[Jay & Tully are part of my personal faith mob.]

Last week, as my daughter Ariel, just minutes away from being baptized, listened to friends and family share about her love and life, I looked around at the large crowd of witnesses perched on the breezy banks of Lake Washington and thought about how "it takes a church" to raise a child. Ariel's spiritual growth & spiritual decisions, like those of all disciples, are a mysterious blend of influences: the Holy Spirit, her parents & brother, other teen Christians, even her kind school friends and mentors, and, of course, her own spiritual work.

We know God has conspired to make the church an orchestra rather than a one-man band. Every part of the body affects the rest and no man is an island. Our collective spiritual gifts make the church a beautiful team. As Brian Felushko once said, "none of has 'has it all,' but together we 'have it all'--all that we need."

Watching the M&M program last week, painstakingly organized by Alex and Dani Whitaker, I was struck by how much this observation applies to our faith as well. The participants of the week long evangelistic training program were, it seems to me, transformed. Their faith became contagious to one another and to me. We wound up all afire.

Have we tricked ourselves into thinking our faith is a one-man-band responsibility? We see great profiles of individual faith in the scriptures of course, and it's also true that a crowd can spread doubt as well as faith (remember the 10 spies), but experience says to me, as I consider evangelizing "two by two" with my wife, that our faith isn't really designed to stand alone; instead, our personal faith, as with our spiritual gifts, is a piece of a bigger faith puzzle, and when the body of Christ combines all its faith pieces, great miracles come forth. It's a mob of faith.

Shall we test my hypothesis this fall? Let's gather together in prayer, in faith-talk, in vision-sharing, and see what happens.

A Word Upon the Graver Teachings of the Mountains:

“See yonder height! ‘Tis far away – unbidden comes the word, ‘Impossible!’ ‘Not so,’ says the mountaineer. ‘The way is long, I know; it’s difficult – it may be dangerous. It’s possible, I’m sure. I’ll seek the way, take counsel of my brother mountaineers, and find out how they have gained similar heights… we know that each height, each step, must be gained by patient, laborious toil, and that wishing cannot take the place of working… and we come back to our daily occupations better fitted to fight the battle of life and to overcome the impediments which obstruct our paths, strengthened and cheered by the recollection of past labors and by the memories of victories gained in other fields.’”

– Edward Whymper, Scrambles Amongst the Alps

The current Westside building campaign, Elevate Your Faith, has afforded me the opportunity not only to examine the faithfulness of my giving to God and towards this cause, but also to evaluate all areas of my life. Am I a faithful person? Am I a spiritual risk-taker? As far as the faith is concerned, am I a mountaineer?

As Jesus emphatically stated, "I tell you the truth, if anyone says to this mountain, 'Go, throw yourself into the sea,' and does not doubt in his heart but believes that what he says will happen, it will be done for him.” (Mark 11:23).

It is essential that each disciple have this same attitude of faithfulness, for it is God’s attitude.

If our building quest sheds any light on the faithfulness of our God, I believe we will find a generous God, a bold and unpredictable God, and a God that is taking risks! As we look out on our city, the mountain of work that remains undone (for wishful thinking cannot take the place of hard work), what will we see in God? Certainly a God that is prepared to get us up the mountain… But more so, A God that has given us the whole thing!

Oops I forgot...

...to add that it seems that most churches I've encountered who have not publicly agreed to the UCP actually do everything in it. They seem to have privately agreed, and to have signed with their hearts, and I mean that as a compliment.

May we celebrate our cooperative unity!

Why the Plan for UC was needed

Got some interesting comments yesterday about Vancouver, Seattle, and the whole "unity proposal" idea. Obviously, many folks "don't get it" (and I don't use that phrase pejoratively)regarding why the Plan for United Cooperation (UCP) was written and offered. That may be because these two reasons don't really apply to their personal or congregational experiences:

First, because of an enabled culture of slander that accompanied very needed reforms, many, perhaps most of our worldwide congregations spun into temporary confusion, including regarding basic doctrine. At such times of confusion, where almost everything we've believed was subject to emotional question, those of us who publicly agreed to the UCP felt the need to specifically and pertinently clarify where we stood. Yes, eventually, as the fog lifts, such a public banner becomes less and less prominent and important. Sola scriptura endures as an authority.

Second, in our relatively paranoid fear of "structure," many, many churches felt paralyzed on how to relate to one another in a given geography. The UCP jump started some basic brotherhood structure.

Speaking for myself only, I think it's helpful to see the UCP less as a "document" and more as a "call" to clarity and standards--the equivalent of having all leaderships in a room and asking, "all in favor of _____ raise your hands." This has been nice to know and has given us a good place to move forward.

In other words, in my opinion, we needed the UCP but we do not need a UCP.

And now, on to other more important things, like WEDNESDAY MY DAUGHTER IS GETTING BAPTIZED!!

Cooperation Makes It Happen (Sesame Street)

My cooperating kids from Hong Kong days...

The Brumleys and the Greens got to spend great time yesterday with Brian and Sara Felushko, who lead the Vancouver church in our family of "Northwest Churches." Even though Vancouver did not "sign" the "Unity Proposal," (well, um, there really wasn't anything to literally sign anyway!), the fact of the matter is that the Vancouver church practices healthy cooperation: 1) they subscribe to the same basic convictions that needed temporary underlining & emphasis in the Plan for United Cooperation (you can find the doc on Disciples Today); 2) they believe in and practice regional synergy, fellowship, and mature accountability--they are dedicated partners in building up the NW leadership group and the NW membership's maturity convictions; 3) while they do not believe that trans-congregational affairs (missions, leadership conferences, etc.) must require that we send regional representatives internationally, I believe they are not opposed to others doing this by any means.

I'm saying all this just because I'm inspired by Brian and Sara's maturity and humility. They came down last weekend to build better partnership between V and Seattle. They have much to offer but have a strong commitment to learning as well. Awesome!

It's hard to imagine congregations staying strong without cooperation--and that's all the old "unity proposal" is: a call to minimum but effective cooperation. We have so much to offer one another! I am reminded of a Sesame Street skit that my kids used to sing, "Co-op-er-ation, makes it hap-pen..."

Books for August & September

To the left is an oldie of Ariel and Tully...

Here's what I'm reading these days:

The Story of Philosophy by Will Durant
A History of the English Speaking People Vol. I by Churchill
Please Understand Me by Keirsey (personality analysis)
How People Grow by Cloud 'n' Townsend

I suppose it would be nice to finish one at a time, but I've always found that really difficult.

One bro asked me this week for any "all time" recommendations; here are three:

The Road Less Traveled by M. Scott Peck
Celebration of Discipline by Richard Foster
The 7 Habits of Highly Successful People by Stephen Covey

"300", Socrates and Body Parts

When "the 300" finished their feat at Thermopylae, and, teaming with the city-state of Athens, repelled the invading Persian Empire, those civilizations enjoyed a short time of peace. But Sparta and Athens were at one another's throats 50 years or so later in the Pelopennesian War. That conflict featured a political crossroads we still debate today: Sparta believed in aristocracy while Athens practiced a pervasive democracy. The oligarchic party in Athens quietly supported the Spartan-style aristocratic way of governing, believing "democracy" to be too chaotic, too egalitarian, and fated for mediocrity. Athens lost, and so did the leaders of the oligarchic party.

Critias headed that party in Athens, and he--a ha!-- was a pupil of Socrates and the uncle of Plato.

Though Socrates was executed for "polluting the youth" of Athens, his advocacy of "rule by the wisest" (aristocracy) made his death there a virtual certainty.

2400 years later, what is the answer? Pure democracy--let's all vote on everything, appeals to our desire for participation and equality. No one actually practices this because of the obvious inefficiencies--the molasses rate of decision-making. Most "democratic" governments overcome with with Representative Democracy. Aristocracy may (or may not) actually produce rule by the wisest and most apt, but it seems elitist and given to exploitation of those ruled.

Was this perhaps on Paul's mind when he wrote in 1 Corinthians 12 that the body is composed of many different kinds of gifted parts; did a little history dovetail into this definitive discussion of our varied spiritual gifts? Who knows. But his treatise on how the Body works together finds a leadership place somewhere, in my opinion, between Sparta and Athens. In the church, we don't "democratically" cycle-in and cycle-out our elders, ministers, deacons, but neither do we want those leaders to lead like an aristocracy. We want voice, process, participation, discussion--mature decision-making.

Perhaps the key really is in keeping The Body, and how it physically works, in mind.

OK, enough of this superficial blathering!

Hong Kong is HOT

Flew into HK late Friday night (July 13)--the whole trip is about 22 hours door to door. On Saturday, "the 300" HK disciples who had been converted before 1992 hosted a "tea time" remembrance for me since this fall is the 20th anniversary of the founding of the HK church of Christ. You can imagine the emotion in that room. I adapted my teen Sunday sermon and spoke about HK heroes for tomorrow and what it will take to fulfill their new motto, "the best is yet to come"

Preached Sunday as well on "The Calling" and this went very well. The rest of the week has been appointments and time to think and write. My batteries are charged and I can't wait to return to Seattle! I hear we are on the verge of a wonderful building...

Thrilled too that Mark and Annie will soon be here: in addition to Ron and Linda, the Eastside deserves a 100% dedicated "E-side-only" Evangelist and wife--Lynne and I have loved the Eastside and felt it a privilege to serve, but recognize that we have been unable to provide that dedicated focus for Eastside only. Here, I have been recalibrating my weekly schedule to reflect a more congregational (and including South Sound) approach to strategy and appointments.

I recommend visiting Hong Kong and China, but NOT in the summer! HK is so hot and humid that you can stand outside, completely still, and be completely soaked in sweat in about 15 minutes. It's kind of a negative miracle. Some of you Miami types might love it.

See you all soon...

Not Home Yet, by Jay Kelly

I'm amazed that we are so close to moving in to a new church home on top of Queen Anne. The contracts are being drawn up right now by our amazing church real estate specialist Bryan Mangum. We'll have 30 days to make sure it will work for us, and two more weeks to close. We almost have the entire down payment committed and our monthly payments seem within reach. If all goes well we could be worshipping this September in our own church building in one of the nicest neighborhoods in Seattle. It's also possible that we could have this building completely paid off within three years. God has truly elevated our faith.

Check out our most recent video at the below link.

http://web.mac.com/jay_kelly/iWeb/Not%20Home%20Yet/Elevate%20Your%20Faith.html

"Call Now!"

I'm busy right now, aren't you? Lynne just got out of surgery yesterday and is recuperating well--she had a hysterectomy as a pre-emptive to cancer that has been gentically correlated to her family. Both of us are fried, and so we are watching lots of inane TV.

I'm amazed at the number of commercials that advertize something and then say, "Call Now!" breathlessly. Have you ever "called now"?? Does anyone? I never have. The closest I came was a call from me and Stephen the night of the September 11 concert to pledge money. Even then, we waited and discussed for about an hour before calling.

Why the rush? Why not an honest pitch, followed by an appeal to "write down this number, discuss it with your spouse and your dogs, and then, if you feel so inclined, call us. We'd be happy to have your business..."? My bet is that buyer's remorse is proportional to the speed with which one obeys the call to "call now." For me, the more frenetic the pitch to call, the more certain I am NOT to call. Sometimes I even say out loud, "No. I'm not calling."

There is a spiritual insight in this about decision making--I'll bet you know what it is. If you figure it out, call me up. But don't call now. I'm busy;-)

Causes for Courage

By Ryan Flynn

My Quiet Times lately have focused on the theme of courage. Simultaneously, I have been reading John F. Kennedy's Pulitzer Prize winning Book, Profiles in Courage. From this I have thought through one quote. "Great crises produce great men, and great deeds of courage."

Here are some thoughts:

It Takes Great Crisis
With no battle, there is no place for courage; courage can only exist in the context of battle. Opposition and fear must be real forces. Again on the JFK kick, I picked up the most recent issue of TIME Magazine, interested in its feature story titled, "What We Can Learn From JFK." The article highlights lessons learned under President Kennedy’s leadership during the Cold War, and their relevance in today's War on Terror. The purpose of the article is revealed in the author's question, "What is the best way for America to navigate through a world where its enemies seem everywhere and nowhere at the same time?"

I found the War on Terror as an insightful analogy for our fight as disciples; an enemy that seems everywhere and nowhere at the same time. Satan, daily terrorizing our lives ("The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy...", John 10:10). My perspective on Satan and the crisis I’m daily a part of is changing! Often I see Satan kind of like the bad, but popular kid in high school, a rebel. He might get me into trouble, sometimes he's a jerk, but he's kind of cool, and honestly is sometimes more fun to be around. Certainly not as a thief (stealing from me!), or worse yet, a terrorist (out to kill and destroy... me!). So I let him around. I stay close, not too close, just around. NO, he's either one or the other. Is it Zack Morris, or Bin Laden? It is a big difference!

Anyways, there is no such thing as a small crisis.

It Takes Great People

When they saw the courage... they were astonished and they took note that these men had been with Jesus. (Acts 4:13)

Be on your guard; stand firm in the faith; be men of courage; be strong. Do everything in love. (1 Corinthians 16:13 - 14)

The church can get along without courage. It will survive for a time, but it will never be great. It takes courageous people to make it great.

Many are the fruits of courage in the church: changed lives (for both current and future disciples), changed cities, and a changed society. Courageous men and the courageous church are noticed by the world ("…they took not[ice]e…"). True Christians are easily recognizable people, heavily persecuted, strongly opposed, and viciously slandered, but in the end, they are victorious.

It Takes Great Deeds

So, here are a few that I’ll be doing:

• Initiate with someone who knows you well; confess specific sin in your life.
• Have a conversation about God with someone on the bus; invite them to church.
• Have a conversation about God with a co-worker; invite them to church.
• Do something memorable and unexpected for the poor you see each day.
• Lastly, be creative, even courageous, and make up your own!

Mind Change

This is a shameless plug for a new element on the website--Tom Jones' new website and service called "mind change," an effort to make practical the Romans 12 encouragement that we be transformed by "the renewing of our minds."

When I was younger, I read copious quantities of scripture, spiritual books, and commentaries. As I've aged (like good wine or bad cheese? Hmm), I have found that my actual ability to put into practice what I've read is almost miraculously poor! A little goes a long way. So now, in addition to whatever book in the Bible I'm studying, I also read "a Psalm a day," just to get that "one thought" I can use for Today.

The "Mind change" effort is similar. Give it a try. Tom and his wife Sheila have a way of putting things simply, poetically, and memorably--good spiritual thoughts to help you anchor your week.

A Thought On Vicarious Living

Last week, Stephen graduated from Lakeside School on a beautiful sunny day. The night before he and his friend Tony were the finale act at Baccalaureate--an amazing performance I must say as a biased parent. After graduation, we had a party at our house with some best friends coming over to congratulate Stephen and meet the grandparents. All of it filled me with awe.

This week I have wondered whether or not that is a good thing--to continue to look to one's children for "inspiration." I have been blessed to live around sources of great inspiration all my adult life--from the college Boston years, to Hong Kong, to the church here in Seattle. The child-raising years have been equally inspiring: little kids are full of charm and make you feel warm inside at the end of the day. It's magical. And older teens bring you to the brink of thrilling vicarious living (a cliche I thought I could avoid) as you witness their sports competitions, their acts on stage, their academic achievements, etc.

But is it likely that they will, by dint of their college exploits, or by the first job they hold, or by whatever convictions they evolve, continue to fill you, the parent, with "inspiration"? I think this puts terrible and unwarranted pressure on them, and paints us, the parents, into a corner of limited meaning. The kids' lives are tempting, but I think we have to look first back to the life of God, and to His thoughts, His ways, His deeds, His plans for inspiration. We have our own individual journeys to complete with Him, and He promises that the journey will be inspiring indeed.

In a good way, let's leave the kids out of it.

The Truth About How Your Teens Are Doing

Raising teens is confusing. Run, don't walk, away from any parent that denies this! Probably even your teens would admit it. With this in mind, if "it takes a village" to raise a child, imagine how easy it is for the village to be thrown into confusion. It's parallel to the catchphrase, "too many cooks in the kitchen." How is your teen "doing?" Ask their parents. Ask a teen worker or big brother/big sister. Ask the ministry staff. Ask your teen. Don't be surprised if you find the recipe a bit garbled, because each cook brings a different snapshot to the table (to blend metaphors just to see if you're paying attention).

The Green family has been so blessed with good cooks--Ron and Linda, the Whits, Ben Richey, Haily Rose, Megan, Landon, the Kellys, Mack and Mike--and many others too hard to list and thank. We are proud of our kids--their own journeys, their struggles and triumphs, their character & courage--and proud of the village.

But here's a note to villagers: don't second-guess each other. Share your snapshots, pray, and keep serving. But don't use your snapshots to sketch portraits of one another--it's a losing recipe. Teen workers will be tempted to make deductions about the parents themselves instead of about the teen. Parents will be tempted to make deductions about the teen workers instead of about the teen. Satan wants the villagers to "find the root" of teens' problems not in the teen's heart, but in one another (quite a ruse!): "If only the teen workers would_____ my teen would love God more," etc., etc. "If only that parent would ____ it would change the heart of this teen," etc., etc.

Of course, parents, if you're an actual witness to something between a teen worker and your teen that doesn't sit right, go talk about it. Similarly, teen workers, if you're an actual witness to something between a parent and the teen, go ask about it. That's our role as disciples.

What about defensiveness? My view is this--if you're a parent, you should defend the teen workers and their efforts when talking to your teen (if that teen is nonplussed or critical). This is something we have vigorously striven to do. Similarly, if you're a teen worker, defend the parents when talking to the teen. This teaches the teenagers that someone else is NOT the reason for their problems.

In the end, young mentors and parents have some good and godly influence on the teens, but it is overwhelmingly up to the teen him or herself to make their choice for God. With love, gentleness, and encouragement, let's keep putting that responsibility where it belongs.

9 days until my wedding

As I write this blog, my head is literally spinning from all the things surrounding my wedding on June 16th. For anyone who has already planned a wedding, I have nothing but respect and honor for what you did. I can’t wait to get married! Anyway, I started off the day writing the midweek lesson tonight for all the college students and Single professionals within the greater Tacoma area of the church. God has recently blessed our ministry with a lot of visitors lately and I thought it would be good for us to do a lesson on sacrifice in order to focus on what it was going to take from this group to grow for the future.

After finishing writing the lesson, I prayed and then went over to Tacoma Community College to read and share my faith. Although it was sunny, the weather outside was still a bit windy. Mostly all the people I met didn’t seem interested in coming out to Bibletalk except this one guy I met named Judd. It was interesting because after he initially informed me that he was already going to a church, he started to ask me about the structure of our group and wrote down my cell number on a church card that I gave him. I pray that he will be open to studying the bible and build a relationship with me.

After sharing for a while, I went to the library and finished reading a premarital counseling book that the evangelist of the South Sound Church of Christ, Daren Overstreet, suggested I read. After reading, I drove to Pacific Lutheran University (PLU) to share my faith with a girl in my campus ministry named Carla Gilmore. Carla just got baptized a few months ago and has already set the pace for faith in our group. Despite our fervor to share, by summer classes just starting a PLU (which already has a small number of students even during the school year not to mention even less during the summer), we were only able to meet two people on campus. However Carla and I both agreed that we would keep coming each week to share with anyone available on campus.

Next, I went back to my house, ate some lunch, and then had a counseling appointment with a single brother in the church. After the appointment, I talked to my roommate for a while, and then I met with my financee, Naomi Eberly, so that we could go over the details of our wedding/wedding reception coming up.

We finished all of our wedding planning just in time for midweek at 7:30pm. Everyone responded well to my lesson about sacrifice which of we all know (that being sacrifice) is not an easy thing to do. After fellowshipping for a while, I got a ride back to my house, started to revise the schedule for Teen Camp, and then talked to one of my best friend’s, Jafar Skinner, about married life before I started to write this blog. These 9 days cannot go fast enough! I hope to see you at my wedding…

-Marcus Wallace

U-N-I-T-Y

(Psalm 133:1)
“How good and pleasant it is when brothers live together in unity!"

The North Men had a camping trip that left us all refreshed and inspired. We enjoyed the beauty of God’s creation out on Camano Island, which is set along the Puget Sound.

Even though it was only an ‘overnight’ trip, it felt like an eternity of fellowship, fun and food….Oh, and fire! We did a little jump and dancing through the camp fire which added some adventure to our time. I was glad no one caught on fire. The weekend started on Friday night. We ate dinner together and sat around the fire telling stories of faith and sharing our past, present situations and some of our future goals. On Saturday morning, we ate breakfast together and went out in small groups to pray together. It was great to hear the prayers of my brothers and to be out along the Puget Sound hearing the waves and seeing the birds fly by.

We enjoyed a rock skipping contest and “baserock” another name for baseball. It was a blast. All the men were not able to make it, but we are planning on having a North Men’s camping three times a year so there will be other opportunities for those who could not be there this time.

It is good for brothers to live together in unity, because when we do, we are refreshed and inspired by God and one another.

Time Away Ordering My Private World, by Jay Kelly

What a time away with God does for me is hard to describe. Last Thursday and Friday I finally had a little getaway with God that I’ve been trying to schedule since December.

Taking the Edmonds/Kingston ferry in my pickup with a 40 pound backpack riding shotgun is a little glimpse of heaven. Driving to the Pacific coast gives me hours to unwind. There isn’t any radio station or cell phone reception once I pass Port Angeles and head into the Olympic National Forest. The forested areas are so thick and dark in the daytime that headlights must be on for safety. I prayed for each of the members of our ministry by name during the drive. I finally get to the Ranger Station at Lake Ozette and sign in. I get my bear-proof food container; I note the cougar confrontation warning signs, roll my eyes and head toward the coastal camping area.



The perfect camping spot was waiting for me on a grassy bluff about four feet above the beach with a perfect sunset view of the horizon with the waves crashing. I got set up and hopped in my hammock with my new favorite book, Ordering Your Private World by Gordon MacDonald. The author challenges our society’s trend toward honoring the most tired and “driven” among us regardless of the state of their inner private world. He asks the question, “How did we get to a day when stress and fatigue are almost a badge of success?”

He warns that outward success with inner neglect is like the ground deep under your feet being eroded by underground water movement. One day out of the blue a giant sinkhole can appear and swallow up everything that had been built upon that area. The bedrock of our lives is only as solid as the health of our hearts. Proverbs 4:23 says, “Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life.”

I felt called out, understood and challenged as the writer shared about his own life and how he deepened his private world in very practical ways. I’m only a few chapters into the book, but I’m excitedly writing in my journal again and praying more. I look forward to finishing the book and making some decisions that will help me find a depth and soulfulness to daily living that I have not known with any consistency.

Does God like camping? He must!

Okay, this is a random family picture from our recent Spring Banquet, but it's better than no picture. Anyway, back to the point...

One of the great blessings of living in the Northwest is the quick "flight" to nature you can experience anytime and in any direction from Seattle. I was once in the habit of celebrating my spiritual birthday (baptism anniversary) by going camping with God and no one else. The problem with that is that I was baptized on December 16, 1984. It's ALWAYS snowing in the mountains and raining on the coast when I'm eager to celebrate and have some time alone with God. I did it anyway and brought good rain gear. Well, I'm a little tardy this year, but I'm going tomorrow rain or shine (it's going to shine).

I have my pack packed and I'm ready to go. Lake Ozette is one of my favorite places in the world. It's a nine mile triangular hike: three to the beach, three along the beach and three back to the car. I can camp anywhere along the ocean and not see another person for days. There are ancient Native American stone carvings I'm hoping to see. They are famous traditional Haida Indian designs. My great grandmother was full Haida. My Mom's a fourth and I'm an eighth. I never knew my mom's father, Alexander Lee, as he died of TB when my mom was little, but I've enjoyed learning about his heritage as the son a Swedish Ship Captain who married a Haida Indian woman in Alaska nearly 100 years ago.

The City Ministry of the Seattle Church has so many great camping memories. I'll try to dig a few old pics up for my next entry. Please pray that God answers my specific prayers during this one night getaway.

Love you,
Jay

Look up, look down

I was reading my brother Mark's newspaper column on his recent trip to Austria (his son and daughter-in-law were there on Emily's Fullbright Scholarship) and in it he made a great observation: that seeing people up close, face to face helps open your mind to their otherwise seemingly obtuse policy positions. The world of ideas is important & exciting but without relationship it too easily becomes a world of hardened positions.

Europeans, for example, tend to look down on Americans because we "still" have the death penalty. We tend to look down on the French for, well, there's not enough space in this post to fill in the blank.

All of this reminds me of a dangerous creeping sin of our time: condescension. The automatic supposition that someone else's view is "stupid" or "ignorant" is a symptom. Similarly, when we find ourselves easily "outraged" (re-read the parable of the unmerciful servant in Matt 18) we skate on condescension's thin ice. It's condescending for leaders to get easily frustrated with God's non-full time servants, who usually have excellent observations and ideas on how the kingdom can mature and move forward! It's equally condescending for members to micro-manage or critique full time leaders while assuming "they don't get me" or the like.

So let's look up, not down (our pants may be falling down). Let's look up to one another, to emphasize what we admire about one another, what we can learn from and imitate in one another. Make it your habit.

The French make great champagne.

Memorial Day

I rarely stop to take holidays (and Greg Tacher has aptly pointed out this is NOT a strength...) and so I tend to be unaware of the smell of roses. But I worked hard (!) ahead of time to plan to truly, really take today off. Lynne and I had breakfast in the kitchen nook this morning while our kids slumbered like seals on the beach.

I couldn't get over how quiet the city world was this Memorial Day. No cars, no trucks, no FedEx rumbling down the street twice a day. No remodeling or construction noises in the neighborhood. No one out jogging. Soothing, strengthening serenity is the effect I'm trying to describe, and I realize I want more of that. While some people need to get out more, clearly I need to get away more. I will try.

Last night was Lakeside's senior prom and the parents had their own interesting "party" up on campus while the kids were chaperoned. We had dinner together and saw a great video featuring interviews with the Lakeside seniors, who communicated poignantly and purposefully about their experiences and their dreams.

It occurred to me, listening to some of their grateful comments, just how much has gone into their education. I don't mean money and worry. I mean the generations of painstaking conflict, discovery, and building that ancestors offered to make modern, relatively war-free societies even possible. Our children live in a sin-stained world, but still one amazingly blessed relative to most of times past. If they had been born in 650 A.D. in the province of Gaul, tied as a serf to backbreaking work, it's doubtful they would enjoy the level of blessing we take for granted today and in this country. We enjoy today what many have slaved, even fought and died for.

Spiritually then, but also historically and holistically, "freely we have received." With awe and gratitude in our hearts, may we keep the memory and gifts of soldiers and statesmen, farmers and scientists, teachers and storytellers, mothers and fathers fresh on our minds as we resolve to be those who "freely give."