The End of the World

Just this morning I turned on the radio to KGO 810 (it's the most listened too talk/news station in the Bay Area and one of the most popular in the world). What was the topic of Ronn Owen's first hour...you guessed it: The End of the World. As many are aware (I've received numerous inquiries and questions from those in my congregation and even those who aren't believers in Jesus but are just curious) Harold Camping founder of Family Radio, which is a world-wide network of radio stations, has predicted this Saturday, May 21st as Judgement Day (http://www.familyradio.com/). Of course this claim is completely bogus and ludicrous. He has made this claim twice before so hopefully the third time will completely discredit him and his ministry. Although if I was a betting man, which I can be from time to time:), I would bet Harold has already come up with a response that will spin why he really wasn't wrong again. If it wasn't for the fact that Family Radio has a net worth of over 75 million dollars this claim would be completely ignored but when you have money you can buy publicity. I want to mention two things that all of this has brought to my mind:
1) This is the slippery slope where those with fundamentalist views of Scripture can find themselves. When everything in the Bible is taken literally and everything in their faith is black and white, you will find all types of dogmatic views on fringe elements of Scripture like when and how Jesus is going to return,which particular translation of Scripture is perfect, and even going as far as to define what styles of music are acceptable. I don't mean to paint all fundamentalists with a broad brush but their approach to Scripture makes them vulnerable to extreme theological positions based on just one or two verses that they take literally (and usually out of context).
2) The Bible is exceptionally unclear on when and how Jesus is going to return. Over the centuries Christians have held numerous views on this issue (pre-trib, post-trib, amill, premill, postmill, historical amill, etc...). My job is not to be on the planning committee but to be on the welcoming committee. If you want more perspective here are two good articles on this subject that probably say it better than I can:

http://www.abpnews.com/content/view/6396/9/

http://www.abpnews.com/content/view/6296/9/

Track Meet Day

This past Saturday was a blast! Alanna participated in the Bay Area Lutheran Schools Track Meet. Her school, Prince of Peace, hosts the event and about 13 other schools from around the Bay Area compete in various events. There are about 500 competitors from kindergarten through 8th grade. We were especially proud since Alanna represented her age group for girls in four different events. She came in 2nd in the long jump, 3rd in the 50meter, 4th in both baseball throw and 50meter relay. I've attached some pictures so you can see how determined she looks while she competes.

8th Anniversary Celebration

This past Sunday, March 23, we celebrated the 8th anniversary of Morning Star. Sometimes its hard to imagine that it was only eight years ago that Cecil and I moved back here from Florida to start the MSC. Sunday was a great celebration service. It really reminded me of how far we've come over the years. We have great staff and volunteers that make it all happen. Which helps make my job so much easier and more enjoyable. I also had the priviledge of baptizing four after the service! I've included the group picture of those who stayed to watch the baptism and have lunch.

Date Night With Alanna

As the kids grow older, my wife and I have tried to find ways to connect with our children on an individual basis. Connecting with my son tends to be fairly easy since he loves to sports especially baseball. But connecting with my daughter is a bit more challenging. The older she gets the less interested she is in wrestling with Daddy :). So just a few months ago my wife suggested that Alanna and I should cook together because we both love to cook (and eat!). So here are a few recent pictures from our last date night. We went out together to the grocery store and bought what we needed to make Tiramisu. It was delicious! But most importantly I had a wonderful time with my totally awesome not so little, little girl!

CRAZY DAY at School

This is Lutheran Schools Week and our kids attend Prince of Peace Lutheran School in Fremont. So each day this week the kids get to do something fun or crazy. Well, today was Crazy Day so we had lots of fun this morning helping make the kids look very crazy. Alanna was totally into it but Ethan was a little more hesitant. He didn't want anything weird done to his hair (for some reason he has always been more into comfort than coolness...probably got that from his Dad) so we worked with limited options.

Hanging out with some pastors in the area

For those who don't know, our church is part of an association called Next Generation Churches. I lead the Alameda County pastor's cluster that gets together once a quarter for breakfast and fellowship. This morning we met at one of our churches in San Leandro. I just took on this responsibility about 9 months ago so this was our third time to get together. It was an especially good meeting because each of us took some time to share what was happening in our lives and then someone else in the group prayed for us. Here are a couple of thoughts that I had during our breakfast:

1. Everyone (even pastors) needs someone they can talk to about life. To often we think that the more spiritually mature we are or the longer we've been a Christian the less we will need to rely on others. The opposite is actually true. The more spiritually mature you are the more you will realize how much you need other people in your life.
2. Everyone goes through difficult times. Somehow the idea that good Christian people never have problems gained traction in the church. I'm not sure if its the Power of Positive Thinking Movement, or the Name It Claim It Theology Group, or if its the God Wants You To Be Rich Crowd, but regardless of where it came from, that idea is totally bogus and anti-Scripture. As I shared breakfast with these pastors I realized that all of us were just as human as anyone in our churches. Some of them are having serious health issues, others have financial problems, a few had family/relationship issues. Which validates what Jesus said, "In this world you will have trouble, but be of good cheer I have overcome the world."
3. Talking with other Believers about what is happening in your life is good for you. It may not fix the problem but it does seem to make it more manageable.

Relationships in the Church

We started a new sermon and small group series last Sunday that is studying I Corinthians 12:12-26. As the week as passed I have heard some really good comments regarding the small groups that have met. The major underlying theme that I am hearing is how enjoyable it is to spend a solid block of time in conversation about God and the Bible. I think this theme illustrates how seldom we set aside time to talk about God with other people. Usually our conversations focus on superficial things like weather, sports, or job situations. Sometimes we our close friends we discuss more important things like marriage, parenting, and financial pressures. The problem with this approach to relationships is that we focus all our attention on the outward. Whether those things be positive or negative, questions or answers, problems or solutions, they nevertheless are lacking since they bypass what should be the most central element of our life...God. So make some focused time to discuss God and what He is doing in your life this week with someone else.