A Journey through ACTS

For well over a year now I have been hitting the alarm clock at 4:45 on Wednesday mornings so that I can hit the ground running (actually more like crawling that early) with my Wednesday routine. A quick shower, a quick mostly unnecessary shave, a quiet tip-toe down the hall in a futile attempt to not wake my wife or daughter, a drive through Starbucks for my steaming dark black venti drip (cup of heaven), and a journey to the YAC to meet a group of High School & College-Age guys for a study through the New Testament book of Acts which I lead. I don't know what's most surprising to me; the fact that an average of 20 guys still faithfully come each Wednesday or the fact that we are still in that book almost a year-and-a-half later!!

This time has been like a soul-refresher to me for many reasons. The guys gather around a coffee tin the size of a nuclear bomb while fighting over vanilla nut creamer and sugar packets. After this we head into the YAC, usually giving somebody a hard time for showing up to a Bible study without a Bible! After the athletes in the group finish their discussion about the games they won or lost the night before we begin. It's all about relationships! It's been awesome taking a few verses at a time to slice & dice. It has been so incredible getting these guys' perspective on these Holy Spirit-filled 1st Century followers of Jesus. Over the months we have put ourselves in the samdals of guys like Peter, John, Stephen, Philip, an Etiopian eunuch (ouch), Barnabas, James, Paul, Seven sons of Sceva (ouch), a jailer, a couple of Roman centurions and even some Pharisees & Sadducees. The scriptures have come to life as we've asked ourselves tough questions like "Would we be willing to die for Christ?" and "Why would a guy wana become a eunuch or marry his sister?"

Each time we close our time in prayer I am reminded of a couple things. One, I love High School students. Contrary to popular belief they are far from hopeless. And, two, ministry isn't ever as rewarding when it's about the "BIG-SHOW". You can have all the theater lights, fog machines, jumbotrons and prayer segways. Let us not forget....a guy named Jesus just needed twelve to turn the world upside down forever......and He didn't even have a microphone.

What are the results of beginning this Bible study? Well, where do I start? A bunch of high school guys are growing into the disciples Jesus wants them to be, my wife Heather just started one at the same time (6:15am) on Thursday morning for the girls of ACCESS & they already average more than we do, one of our graduated college student visiting from his school in Chicago recently said to me, "That Wednesday morning ACTS study is what I miss most about Modesto." along with a ton of other things, both measurable and immeasurable.

May ACCESS never be a ministry that's a mile wide but an inch deep. As long as I keep hitting that alarm each Wednesday morning before the angels are even up it hopefully won't be.

Two into One

It blows my mind every time I look at my daughter and realize the LORD'S Great Creativity in merging two people's traits, looks, and personalities into one. I am reminded of that really cool part of Psalm 139 when it says,

"For you created my inmost being;
you knit me together in my mother’s womb.
I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
your works are wonderful,
I know that full well."

Over the past 10 months I have observed how Annabelle is a lot like Heather and yet a lot like me! I was thinking about this as I watched her play today. Some examples of this are:

HOW SHE IS LIKE HEATHER:

1. She really loves sleeping & she could probably sleep through nuclear fallout on the nights she's really tired! Exactly like her mommy!!

2. She has an incredibly sweet disposition around everyone! Just like her mommy! I wish I was more like them.

3. She's into everything! Like Heather she always has to be involved in some sort of activity or project!! She's constantly crawling to see what lies beyond the next corner!!

HOW SHE IS LIKE ME:

1. She hates shoes! Just like daddy she needs to have her feet free from the constraint that shoes bring! The minute they're on she tries to take them off! If only they made baby flip-flops!

2. She loves books!! NO REALLY!! MORE THAN USUAL!!! Heather literally has to read her about 10 books first thing in the morning because the second one is finished she is reaching for another! She already knows how to turn the pages!! I think she'd rather read than eat!!

3. She is a total movie buff!! Although we only let her watch one about two or three times a week she gets totally dialed in when it's on!!(Baby Einstein)

HOW SHE IS DIFFERENT THAN BOTH OF US:

1. She actually has rythym! She's always rocking or patting her hands and feet to the music. Nothing like me or Heather (even though we like to pretend sometimes!).

2. She doesn't really seem to like cheese a whole lot yet.... me & Heather are addicted to it.

3. She has two different colored eyes! It's the coolest thing I've ever seen! Incredibly rare!!

It's amazing to see how the Lord can bring two people together and create a beautiful & unique life from it. Though she is similar to us she is still different than us in so many ways. But she will forever be our daughter. I think of exactly 12 year ago today when Heather and I first started dating & I think of all that has happened in our lives since that day. And that makes me happy.

Nice Try Guys.

"I have been used for many years to study the histories of other times, and to examine and weigh the evidence of those who have written about them, and I know of no one fact in the history of mankind which is proved by better and fuller evidence of every sort, to the understanding of a fair inquirer, than the great sign which God hath given us that Christ died and rose again from the dead."
-Professor Thomas Arnold, Chair of modern history at Oxford and author of History of Rome


There is a story floating around out there about a guy named Simcha Jacobovici. Apparently this guy has found the casket of Jesus Christ and his family (including the son of Jesus & Mary Magdalene named Judah.). Actually....in all seriousness the casket was allegedly "discovered" in 1980 when workers at a Jerusalem construction site accidentally busted through into a really old tomb. They found an inscription of Jesus' name on a box, did some DNA tests & what do you know.......IT WAS JESUS!! Apparently this guy along with James Cameron, the director of the blockbuster movie Titanic, will hold a press conference on Monday to "clear up things" for everyone. Especially the poor pathetic people who follow Jesus Christ.


The only problems I see with this guy's claims are as follows:





1. 10 out of the 11 disciples were murdered because they refused to deny the resurrection of Jesus Christ took place. The 11th, John died in exile on the island Patmos because he refused to deny the truth of the resurrection.





2. The resurection was not something kept hidden for centuries. Three days after Jesus' crucifixion people in Jerusalem knew about the resurrection and were going crazy about it!





3. The reasons outlined in this paper: http://72.14.253.104/search?q=cache:YvsSLOAce48J:www.greatcom.org/resources/areadydefense/ch20/default.htm+quote+about+resurrection+from+Josephus&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=3&gl=us





4. The conversion of Saul of Tarsus (the Apostle Paul) who went from being one of the most militant persecutors of the followers of Jesus into the most outspoken evangelist for Christianity in a Jewish & Greek Culture of 1st Century Asia Minor (who would just assume kill you as to look at you if you preached about Jesus.)





5. The tomb of Jesus was never worshipped by Jewish Christians. The tombs of religeous icons were always worshipped. Why not Jesus'? He wasn't and isn't in it!





It will be interesting to hear the talk in the next few weeks about this new movie coming out. Throughout all of it, though, I hold fast to historic evidence from both Christians & non-Christians alike. He is risen! Or as Paul wrote to the church at Corinth:



"Now, brothers, I want to remind you of the gospel I preached to you, which you received and on which you have taken your stand.  By this gospel you are saved, if you hold firmly to the word I preached to you. Otherwise, you have believed in vain.
 For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures,  that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures,  and that he appeared to Peter, and then to the Twelve.  After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers at the same time, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep.  Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles,  and last of all he appeared to me also, as to one abnormally born." (1 Corinthians 15:1-8)

Cup of Heaven

How come Starbucks coffee tastes so much better than any other coffee at 5:30 in the morning. It's not just in my head either! There is something seemingly sacred about the rich aroma filling my office. I take a taste & the steaming hot black taste of roasted whole beans from Ethiopia brings my senses to life. I think the only coffee better than Starbucks is whatever they serve in Heaven. Starbucks is soooo good.....mmmmmmm.

I feel as if I'm going on a journey with every sip. I'm on an excursion with Juan Valdez battling the evil dragon DECAF. We travel over hills and through valleys with a mission to spread coffee love to all nations! We cross a great river called Espresso in order to reach the nation Barrista. Once in Barrista we are attacked by the froo-froos. The froo-froos are a dangerous people who have been hypnotized by coffee imposters called FRAPPUCCINOS. We are forced to destroy them immediately before they infect other innocents with their deception. I am exploring villages filled with people who desperately need to be freed from their lack of true coffee-enjoyment.....they have been slaves all their lives to an evil master named Maxwell House and his depraved wife Folger. We shall set them free, however! Nothing can defeat the power of Starbucks wielded by Anson & Juan Valdez!! WE SHALL OVERCOME! We shall battle them with our plethora of flavors! Our arsenal is quite diverse!!! YUKON!! ETHIOPIA SIDAMO!! COLUMBIAN!! SUMATRA!! GUATEMALA!! VERONA!! AND DON'T YOU DARE MAKE ME HAVE TO USE THE FRENCH ROAST!!! AND IF THOSE DON'T WORK I SHALL CALL ON MY STRONG KOMODO DRAGON!! WE SHALL..........

Um.....

Sorry.

What I meant was.....Starbucks is really good.

Now back to my cup of heaven.

Almond Festival

Heather, Annabelle & myself attended the city of Ripon's annual Almond (pronounced a'-mon-d not all-mon-d! according to Riponites!) Festival today. I learned some valuable life-lessons there that I would like to randomly blog about now. They may help you in the future. The life-lessons are as follows:

- NEVER mispronounce "almond" to an almond farmer!! They take it personally! "It's an a'mond NOT an all-mond!!!" Unfortunately these same people can never explain why the commercial calls the candy bar "ALMOND JOY"!

- There is no such thing as a healthy low-carb corndog, funnelcake, churro or peppersteak sandwich!!

-It's ALWAYS a rip-off to pay 25 cents in order to get a penny with an almond imprinted on it!

- You should never talk bad about a school in Ripon while standing behind a financial supproter of that school in the Teriyake Chicken Bowl line.

- 6 bucks is way too much to pay for a lemonade no matter how "cool" the 16oz. cup looks.

- People dressed up in almond costumes are always frightening to small children!!

- The sidewalks in Ripon are way too small for 4 strollers side-by-side. Why do we always try to make it work anyway?!

- There are 4,899 ways to prepare an almond.

- Young 17 year old gangsta-wannabe's should never hang out trying to be cool and scope out girls at an almond festival....it simply doesn't work, fellas.

- Don't eat the yellow snowcones.

- Giant blow-up bouncers may be fun for the children but they are always a bad idea when they are made to look like a horrific national tragedy.....for instance let's say THE SINKING TITANIC!!!!! SHEESH PEOPLE!!

REMEMBER: THOSE WHO DON'T LEARN FROM THE PAST ARE DOOMED TO REPEAT IT.

HOME DEPOT CHURCH

I went to Home Depot this morning to buy a wheelbarrow. Have you ever noticed that you can't ever seem to find an employee at Home Depot when you really need one? I had to walk up and down aisles stocked with millions of abstract items I know nothing about simply to find one 17 year old with an orange apron tied around his waist over his velcroed back-brace.

My conversation went like this:

"Where are your wheelbarrows?"

"Uh....Over there." (17 year old pointing back the exact way I had come from)

"K.....Thanks" (me feeling stupid)

Finally I found them......unassembled!! DOH!!

A sign posted at the top of the 40 foot scaffolding declared in large Sharpie-font "BUY ASSEMBLED! ASK AN EMPLOYEE!!

DOH!!! Not again!!

After an excursion to the carpet section I found a lady with the orange apron identifier.

"Excuse me.....where are the assembled wheelbarrows?" (I ask frustrated at 8:30 in the morning)

"Out front. Go get one and bring it inside to pay for it." (she says clearly frustrated that I'm speaking to her at 8:30 in the morning)

"K.....thanks." (I say wishing I was at LOWE'S)

After kicking an assembled wheelbarrow out front because it was locked to 23 other wheelbarrows and a large stone pillar I set out to find a third Home Depot Disciple. This time one was standing near the front of the store. A 19 year old girl with fresh highlights chewing gum.

"Can I please get a wheelbarrow?" (I ask sheepishly resigned to their soveriegn will)

"Sure" (she said in a way where I could tell she meant "DUH!")

"They're locked up" (I say in a way meaning "DUH!!!!!")

"Oh"

Rolling her eyes she calls for help on a really loud red phone.

A frustrated manager stomps to the front, walks speedily past me, looking back once to make sure I was following her the way a small starving pup would, unlocks them and waits for me to let her get back to doing whatever it is she wants to do.

FINALLY! I HAVE IT!! NOW ALL I HAVE TO DO IS PAY!!

Inside.....the checkout person isn't a person at all. It's a machine. A robot checked me out at Home Depot. I must admit though.......it was more helpful.

Sometimes when I have experiences like this I can't help but to think about how often I must treat people this way. I know there have been many times when I have treated people as a burden. Many times when I have been less-than-helpful to others who just need a bit of leadership and care. I make excuses for myself during these moments as to why I treat them this way. Excuses help to seperate me from the people who treat me this way. Excuses help me feel better.

I wonder how many people have visited a church body on a Sunday just to leave perplexed and confused and undervalued.

May we always be people who give Christ a good name in the way we treat others. Whether we're the church or a manager at Home Depot.

What I'm Reading now....

I'm the type of guy who has to be reading a few books at one time. It's weird & probably one of the signs that your an ADHD-bookworm-psycho! I'm really psyched with what I'm reading these days, though! It is as follows:

AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF VALUES by Charles Lindbergh
(Currently on page # 297. I've always been fascinated by this man. In case you didn't know he was the first guy to fly non-stop from the U.S. to Europe in the late 20's. He became a cultural icon for that generation, experienced horrible personal tragedy, and was a tremendously flawed man. Not a Christ-follower from what I can tell. This is his story in his own words. I visited his grave in Maui on the road to Hana & ever since then I've been fascinated.)

THE TIPPING POINT by Malcolm Gladwell
(Currently on page # 122.A bestseller that takes a look at the power of epidemics and how word of mouth advertising & other elements helps to get movements started. Didn't know I'd enjoy it as much as I am right now!)

THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD by A.W. Tozer
(Currently on page # 157. How could you not love Tozer? I've been immersed in thoughts of what GOD is really like because of the current teaching series I'm leading at ACCESS high school ministry. An amazing reminder of who my GOD is at His core. Tozer is the type of guy who knew firsthand!)

THE ADVENTURE OF WORSHIP by Gerrit Gustafson
(Currently on page # 40. Pretty interesting book my worship leader buddy Joel Goddard gave to me recently. It's kind of a look at the Biblical history of worship and how it translates into our lives today.)

I love books! They're like extremely low-maintenance friends who are really wise and interesting!

Hit me Baby, One More Time

Two days ago I turned on my television in order to get some sort of update regarding the war our nation is in on two fronts- Iraq and Afghanistan. The news has been inundated of late with stories from the battlefield as well as the vain repititions of the U.S. Congress, unjust massacre in places like the Sudan and nuclear threats from both Iran and North Korea.

One can imagine my surprise, therefore, when the top story on all the news shows (seriously.....ALL the news shows) was a bald picture of Britney Spears. Yes...Britney Spears...the "Hit me Baby, One More Time, Ooops I did it Again, Lucky"-Pop Diva! It's bad enough when the news breaks away from real news in order to cover a low speed car chase through the hills of Ventura......but Britney Spears HAIR?!

The weird thing is that I have thought about that experience over the past couple of days. I thought about the hollow promises of fame, fortune & big homes. I thought about her two children who will now grow up without mommy & daddy together. I wonder whatever happened to the Mickey Mouse Club Britney. Whatever happened to the girl from Louisiana who broke onto the scene not only singing & dancing, but also unashamedly talking about her faith in Jesus & her commitment to stay sexually pure until she was married? What has happened in her life to take her from that "commitment" to kissing Madonna in front of the whole world, to text messaging her hubby a divorce message to checking in & out of rehab in less than a day to completely shaving her once stylish head of hair? And in the midst of all this, when does she have time to be a mother?

When I think about Britney Spears it saddens me. I obviously don't know her but it does sadden me. Maybe it's because I see how far she has fallen from her "commitment" to Christ & chastity. Maybe it's because I'm reminded that a little bit of compromise each day really multiplies and builds up over the months & years until one day you wake up and wonder where the real you went. Maybe it's because I work with High School Students all the time and I'm broken by the thought that girls like this are the heroes that teenage & 20something girls of today esteem & hold in high regard. Maybe it's because words like "character" and "integrity" are being replaced by words like "style", "popular", "sheek", "sexy" and "fashion". Maybe it's because I wonder what will happen next.

As I watch Britney I am reminded of a story that Jesus told one time about a young man who basically told his father "screw you" and took his inheritance with him to a land far away. Jesus tells us that the young man squandered his wealth on cheap sex and "wild living". He was having fun. Sin is always fun for the moment. Then one day the young man woke up & wondered who he had become. He found himself literally living in the mud with the pigs. A jewish boy in a pig pen. Jesus' point was well made.....this boy couldn't have gotten any lower if he tried!! Jesus tells us that one day the young man "came to his senses". He was unworthy and knew he needed to return to the father he disowned but how would his father ever take him back. As always, though, Jesus makes a scandalous point about what GOD is like!! The story ends with an embrace & a party. The father sees his son returning, runs to him, throws his arms around him and kisses him!! The father restored his rebel-son to the family. All the son had to do was return....the father did the rest!

Britney is just one example of many who have run. None of us are immune to becoming runners-from-God ourselves. The truth, however, is that the FATHER loves His children. He will always be right there for His children. If we will just come to our senses and realize that there is no peace, hope, fulfillment or real life apart from the Father we can be restored!

My hope is that Britney will realize that Jesus is still there....waiting for her return....he loves every single one of his children. Bald or not.

Playing with my daughter

These are the moments that matter most. Even though she is only 10 months old she is establishing a bond with us that will last a lifetime.

As I watch my wife play with our baby girl I am struck by how GOD created moms to be such nurturers. I am overwhelmed by how the LORD has blessed us so that Heather is able to stay home to love, teach, correct and feed our little girl each day. Many people aren't able to do that & I don't want to take it forgranted.

I have to go now.....my baby just said "dadadadadada-DAAA!" again & my heart is melting!

PS- Wish they had toys this cool when I was a baby!!!!

I started a blog?!

I'm not even sure what I'm doing.......See, I wouldn't consider myself to be the most technically-literate guy alive. (I may actually be the only Student Pastor in America who still prefers voicemail over email!) I don't even know if I'll post anything else after tonight. I guess we'll see how long this thing remains a priority.
I guess I figured I better have a blog just in case it's actually a prerequisite to getting into Heaven. KIDDING.