New Website

Hey there everyone. We have a new website. Mindy will still be writing on this blog but we wanted to have a way to share more pictures, videos, etc. We just started the site so it is still a work in progress. The site now has a video of Cade (from yesterday 12/17) and our family newsletter. Just go to this site and have fun!
http://web.me.com/twobedards2

Buckets of Thanks

Well, I have been up to my ears in reading and writing papers. I am on the home stretch of myr first semester of grad. school and find myself staring another Thanksgiving/Xmas Holiday right in the face. We have been in Virginia the past 8 Holiday seasons so this year will be a bit different for us. I love holidays. I love food. Now combine the 2 and you got something. I would start listening to Xmas music in August if Mindy would let me. Anyway, I wanted to write about some of the things I am very thankful for this season. So here goes...

I love Mindy. She is a rock star to me. There is no way I could have done or do anything without her love, support and constant encouragement. She is my best friend and my number one fan. I am thankful for her more than words can say.

I love my kids. They are different everyday. Cade is becoming a little boy more and more. Parker's smile lights up the room. We have been so blessed to have such sweet, smart, beautiful children. I am thankful for them.

I cherish my chance to learn more about helping marriages and families. I could never have imagined how challenging it is to be in graduate school again. I forgot about the reading, writing, reflecting, discussing, and sleeplessness. But I love every minute of it (ok, I don't always love the writing part!! I am thankful for this opportunity to grow and learn.

I am so thankful for many other things. My friends. My family. I am not sure I could ever thank them enough for all the support and love they have given me in my life. Without support from friends and family, its hard to accomplish much (in my opinion). I hope I can become better at being a friend and family member.

Overall, I am thankful for so much. What are you thankful for?

Interesting, church and state still seperate I guess

Mindy and I were talking on Saturday. She was telling me about something that happened on my favorite show, Oprah. She had a guest on there on Wednesday. It was a lady who writes for the Wall Street Journal (I believe). The discussion about the Presidential election and the challenges that face our new President. There was also a brief mention by the lady, about how the place to be this Weekend would be at churches all across the country. I was like, "why did she say that". Mindy explained that this lady thought most churches would at least mention something about how our country has come such a long way in electing an African-American president. I thought that was very interesting and didn't pay much attention to it. Then we went to church Sunday.

There was no mention of the election or the new President. I went to class and no mention of it. Now, I know it is not necessarily PC to bring up such things in a church setting. Well, except when we are praying for our current Republican President and such. I also realize most people in the town I live in did not vote for President-Elect Obama (nor did the state). However, the fact it was not mentioned is interesting. Why is it interesting you may ask? Or you may be wondering why it is such a big deal. Well here are few reasons.

One, 80% of our country is white. He received over 52 million votes. I am assuming some of the white voters voted for him. Two, he is African-American, he is part of our country's minority of folks. African-Americans (and other minorities including women, Hispanics, Asians, etc) have been looked down on and had rights taken away/withheld because of the fact they are not white or male for generations. Three, he is African-American and is now going to be President of the USA. Four, again 'the world' we as Christians so long to be UN-apart of has recognized how instrumental and historic and Grace-Filled this election has become to so many while WE in 'church' have simply gone on business as usual.

I am upset but also know we still have a long way to go as a 'church'. Probably some of you will take offense to what I say. I am sorry. But think about it. How many of us would have been talking about this in church if McCain had won?

Community Conversations

I love a good conversation. I even love having that conversation with someone or someones I don't see eye to eye with. As long as it is civil and rational and not so filled with heightened emotion. I have been able to have a few of those conversations in the past couple of weeks. With my classmates and with people via blog sites and on my Facebook account. I am so grateful to have all the conversations. I was having a great conversation with a classmate last night. We were talking about different aspects of Barack Obama's past and the presidency and such. It was great because it was 2 people with differing views honestly trying to learn from each other. We really ended where we started, shook hands and said, "See you tomorrow". I have had several great comments on my Facebook account from a little note I wrote. I love it.

I have not always been that way though. I used to get pretty riled up with those that didn't see things the way I do. I still get very bothered by that but I guess I have learned to control those emotions and start seeing people as just that, people. I am pretty sure there was a time when I would have jumped up in arms with some of the folks I have talked with over the past week or so about the Presidential race. I know there was a time in my life when I wondered how anyone could possibly be so wrong while I was so right. I hope those days are gone...they probably pop up from time to time (right Mindy??!!).

I am reminded of several instances in my life where I have had conversations with someone and thought that person was crazy. Looking back those are the ones I have learned from and grown from the most. It is easy to agree with people and get on a bandwagon of good ideas and similar thoughts and aspirations. It is very hard to be challenged and have to think for yourself. Heck, it isn't even real fun to have spend the energy to think for yourself sometimes. But that is how we are made. We are made to take in, process, and act on information and experiences. The taking in and processing can be done fairly easily but the acting on the information is where I have had trouble (though it does take me a while to process info too). I am working hard at being better and having community-minded conversations with people...especially those that believe differently than me.

"Hello, Change"...he said as he watched Barack's speech and took in the moment.

I have only voted in 6 presidential elections. The first was in 1992 and the latest was yesterday at 4 pm. Mindy and I took Cade and Parker, strolled up to the polling place, and cast our votes for Barack Obama. We live in Texas. We used to live in Virginia. We were party of the minority of voters that cast ballots for Obama in Texas but would have been one of the majority that, for the first time in 44 years, voted for a Democrat for president. There were so many things about this election that are different than the first one I voted in.

I guess you could say I have liked Barack from the start. I know that in the state and town I live in now, that is not the most popular thing to say. I know there were a lot of skeptical people (and still are) who say and said he was a communist, socialist, closet Islamic radical, non-Christian, etc. There was so much smear from the far right fundamental Republican side. There was so much fear spread from that area. Yet, through out the campaign the person that stayed steady and rock solid was our President-Elect. Even last night he was in command and was poised to take on a role that is not going to be easy nor 'fun'. He can not please so many people but that is one of the reasons I like him so much. He is not trying to please people, he is trying to lead a nation into a new time. This is the first President elected that is of a new generation. He is the first 'postmodern' President. He ran on a platform of change. His platform was so powerful and effective, his competitor tried using that word change in his speeches and stumps and without much success.

So now what? I noticed today that the sun came up. I also saw that the world is still spinning and the wind blows. My kids were still sleeping safely in their beds as I left the house. Mindy was just waking to drink coffee. I got to school and began reading for the day. The stock market is just cranking up. Trucks are traveling and trains, planes, and people are going about their day. Nothing has changed really, but everything has changed. I am in awe by the events of the past months and it hit me last night as I watched and listened to both speeches. Sen. McCain was gracious and humble and just like I thought he would be. I have tremendous respect for him and I believe I even like him more now. Barack was clear and direct and a breath of fresh air. He is the first African-American voted to our nation's highest office EVER in our history. I am awed by that. I am proud of his being elected. I know some of you have trouble with that and will continue to have trouble. Some of you will never like him and I want to give you permission to NOT like him. But don't be fooled. Times have and are continuing to change. Change is not just coming anymore, it is here.

Just A Kid

So I have been on a 'blogging about church' kick lately. Today will be more of the same. I am going to blog about the Presidential race but not yet. I guess maybe my blog today is not so much about church as it is about people. I like people. I think they are interesting. I have a heart for people that other people kind of give up on. I have spent the past 12 years working with people that a lot of the world either doesn't understand or doesn't want to try to understand--kids/teens/young adults.

One of the things I have noticed in working with this age group has nothing to do with them but with the adults that surround them. For the most part adults want kids to do well and they are willing to help out. But there are occasionally some that look at kids in a very ineffective way (I am putting this nicely).

CASE IN POINT: A lot of times if an adult has a negative encounter with a kid when they are, say, 8 or 10, they often look at the kid through negative lenses for the rest of the kids life. No matter how much the kid changes over the next 10-15 years of their life, they have this stigma around them that they just can't shake.

I don't really like this kind of attitude. I wish people could look at kids as they WILL be not as the ARE. This type of vision is the exact vision God has when it comes to his children. I am so glad that God does not look at me and see my worst days and my sinfulness but instead sees a restored life.

I think short sidedness is a problem in our churches but its really more a problem in our world. People are generally judged by what they have been not what they could be. At some point, we have to realize that it doesn't have to be that way. My wife has me watching this Entertainment shows based out of Hollywood. I think they are waste of space and time but find myself watching them. Right now one of THE stories over the past year or so has been Brittany Spears. I mean all these shows have something about her or her family pretty much every day. I am actually finding myself feeling more and more sorry for her. I sit there and think, 'why don't they just leave her alone so she can get out of this cycle'. It is the same way I have felt as I have had conversations with certain adults over the years that put certain kids in a box that they don't deserve to be put in. The kid isn't given a chance. And at some point the kid just gives up and doesn't try and change or grow and just becomes molded into the person that everyone thinks he/she will forever be--its called self-fulfilling prophecy.

This drives me crazy.

Nothing Fancy

Ok so this blog is not fancy. I don't even take time to add cool fonts or tags or what not. Partly because I am too lazy to learn how and partly because I just want to come on here, write and be done. I have a rather impatient attitude with some kinds of technology. I love blogs and such but I don't take time to link articles or show pictures on this blog. Maybe one day I will.

So I was thinking about this today. About how impatient we can be. Or maybe its we get tired of waiting for something to happen that we wish was going to happen or we have been promised would happen but never happens because the genesis of this 'happening' lost focus on the what should happen and instead focus on something that should not be happening and forget that some people get tired of waiting for something to happen (I know I know that was a crazy sentence. But give me a break I just read Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy and I guess some of it rubbed off on me). My point is I get impatient waiting for things to change when it is so clear to ME that they should change. Then I get impatient with those people that don't think things should change because I'm like, 'how could you not see that this needs to change'. I bet you wish you knew what I was talking about exactly because I am talking about something specific. But alas I am not going to say. i will just keep rambling on.

It does have to do with churches and I am on a bit of a 'writing about church trip' right now. But what I am thinking is that I am not sure that fancy makes for good church experience. What I am saying is that I would rather be relevant than fancy. I would rather be authentic rather than holier-than-though. I would rather be theologically sound than numerically large but empty. That last one stings a bit because it is a shift in thinking for me. A shift that I didn't think I even needed to make.

I was talking with some people the other day about passing out salvation tracks and such. I did that when I was a teen. It didn't work at all for me. Maybe I was not a good salesman or not dedicated enough. Not sure. I don't think they work now but people still think they do. I have done door knocking too and hated it. I know people that love that and think it is what we should, as Christians, be doing. I don't think so. I compare both these 'techniques' to trying to take a tire off with a pair of pliers and a jackhammer. You get the tire off but its painful and you can't use the car afterward.

Why am I talking about this? I think our churches are still trying to 'hand out tracks' or 'door knock' in a world that doesn't even know who their neighbors are. It is such a stupid thing to do. What about this; just be nice to people. Nothing fancy. Just talk to people like you actually like them or better yet like you actually love God. I think most growth techniques of yester-year are stupid because they are forced and uncomfortable and too forceful. But we do the same stupid things now. WE have friends days where we ask for our members to invite their friends but how many of our members even have non-Christian friends ( I hate that term but can't think of another one--actually Leonard Sweet calls non-believers normal while we are the freaks. I kind of like that). I wonder how much time is spent on trying to convert Christians to other denominational churches vs. actually sharing the gospel with people that haven't heard it, don't know it, or are in real need of it? That would be an interesting survey.

We are behind the times when it comes to being relevant in this world and we are behind the times when it comes to really thinking and living theologically sound lives so that when normal people see us they wonder why we are different. Nothing fancy just God-revealing, God-bearing lives.

Revolution

You say that word Revolution and people just go, 'OK'. It doesn't quite have the punch it once had. I have been watching the HBO series John Adams and have learned a lot about the start of our Nation. First, the founding fathers were barely fathers at all. They were mostly young adults that found themselves in extraordinary circumstances. Also, they did not agree on any number of things: should we go to war against England, should states be separate or should we have one Republic, the wording of the Declaration, the wording of the Constitution, who should be doing what as far as the government offices go, the list goes on and on. Not only that, but its also important to note that we probably would not have won had the French not come to our rescue. Then we would have floundered in debt if other nations didn't pitch in to help us monetarily with loans. I guess I am naive but I always thought we just decided to be free, fought to have freedom, came up with an adequate system of government, etc etc. That is not what happened. The Revolution was more than just a few battles and a turning point in history, it was and is an ongoing living thing (for lack of a better word). So when I say the word Revolution, its no wonder people just think, "hey we fought the British, won and here we are". Not that simple.

Now if I was to use the word Revolution in the context of church or God or Christianity, depending on your age, you would think one of two things. One, if you were a baby boomer and above you would think about the saving Blood of Christ and how Jesus is the changer of lives and deliverer of hope and if you work hard enough you will know that hope and deliverance. Two, if you are Generation X and below, Revolution means a large public movement towards service, caring for others, grace, experience. Each response is right and a little off. Each responder thinks they are correct and the others are wrong. But that still leaves us with this word Revolution. It is defined: a radical change in something, a sudden and complete change, an overthrow and repudiation of a government. I have shortened the definitions. But they all go together to say the same thing. Revolution is sudden, complete, radical (different than the norm or status quo), overthrowing, and different. So why am I writing this?

I think our churches are in need of such a Revolution. I think people (myself included) are tired of the same language of churches with no results and no complete, radical, sudden change occurring. Am I saying that God is not working, ABSOLUTELY NOT. He is working and I think he is working through other avenues than churches. He works whether we think he does or not; whether we want him to or not; whether we think we are in control or not. God has, throughout history, used what ever means necessary to make his will be done. Whether it was through means of another country other than Israel or by using a young girl who was unmarried but engaged to someone making her pregnant knowing what people would think of that. He works.

I believe Revolution will come from young people, young adults, teens, whatever you want to call it. But there still needs to be older adults there to help guide, direct, mentor and LISTEN. We don't need micromanagement or controlling adults getting in the way but we do need caring, competent, and Christ centered adults to walk alongside those that God is calling to be the salt and light to the world. I am not saying anything earth shattering or original. But I am going to start saying it more. I am going to start saying it louder. I am going to start saying it forcefully. I am going to pray about it and for it constantly. Because I know that my son and (soon to be among us) daughter need to hear it and need to SEE it. Let's start the Revolution.

What Debate?

Ok, I just watched the majority of the Clinton-Obama debate on ABC. I have one word about it--LAME. The 2 goobers that moderated this debate are idiotic and should never be allowed to moderate a debate again. The morons that came with such idiotic and irrelevant questions should be fired. Charlie Gibson, whom I actually like, just lost major points in my book. He continued to interrupt Obama but let Clinton talk on and on not answering questions. They spent about .5 % of the time on the issues that are most pressing and 95.5% of the time focusing on issues that are stupid and illogical to even bring up. I mean cover the Rev. Wright and the Bosnia stuff but let's move on. Don't act like the American people really are interested--ONLY THE NETWORKS ARE.

I guess I would give Clinton and Obama A's for the debate. I give ABC, George & Charlie F-. I mean come on, George got his moronic 60's activist question from Hannity. I mean give me a break. If nothing else, it let America see again how articulate and effective Obama is as a debater and communicator.

I can not believe how idiotic and stupid most of the questions were and how the moderators and Clinton continued to pound Obama. It was for sure ABC, Gibson, George, Versus Obama. It is glaringly obvious where they stand. It seemed to me to be a Clinton campaign run debate that allows questions to come up to now be slurred over the TV and newspapers for the weeks to come. They had a chance to get to some issues but instead chose to remain elementary and (in my opinion) stupid and boring and idiotic. Did I mention that I thought the moderators should not be allowed to be on TV ever again?!?

Learning

I love to learn new things. But I am painfully slow to learn. I love to discover new things. But it takes me a while to discover them. I have never thought of myself as a slow learner but in view of what has been happening in my life over the past few months, I am have come to the conclusion that I am truly slow to learn. This is especially true when it comes to learning more about myself. It seems that when I find myself in certain situations, I know exactly what to do, what to say and how to act. But in other situations I am clueless. The catch is that I have pridefully always thought I know how best to act in all situations. This is just not true. And I have come to this painful realization very slowly.

There is no doubt that everyone makes mistakes. Though some mistakes produce tougher tolls than others. And sometimes mistakes effect one person, sometimes they effect many. But mistakes do something else as well. Something that I did not realize they would do until recently. They take a tremendous toll on ones self-confidence and self-worth. I would say that most of the time this loss of confidence happens without one even realizing it at the time. I know I did not or have not realized it until much later after the fact. And it is funny how loss of confidence paired with mistakes and slow learning can really take a heavy toll on someones life--it is a vicious cycle.

And so it is at this juncture you find out something very important about your life. You either move forward or stay put. I am coming to terms with the fact that learning is learning no matter how slow or fast its done. But I am also learning that learning doesn't have to be done alone. I have always been surrounded by great people I know and love and trust. But I have not always been open to listen to them--I mean really listen. I have tended to listen and accept only what is easier to accept. Again, I am slow learner. But I think I am learning none the less. More later.

Barack's Speech

If you did not have a chance to listen to Barack Obama's speech today, please don't miss a chance to read about or see a replay of it. It was one of the best speeches I have heard in regards to faith, politics, race, religion, America and how those issues effect our lives. I am not going to spend too much time going through it right now but I want to make a couple of comments

He is so authentic and real and that is a breath of fresh air in today's world of politics. Is he perfect, no. And he even said as much at one point by saying his campaign is anything but perfect. I was also so impressed by his ability to stay above the chaos. He clearly wants this campaign to be about all of America not just certain areas or issues. Lastly, he was masterful in NOT bashing the 2 people he is running against. In fact he gave them credence as worthy people and worth candidates.

I am fastly becoming a very devoted fan of this man. I will make more comments tomorrow.

Change In the Air

Well so I haven't finished my thoughts from a couple of blogs ago. I wanted to pick up on something I was eluding to: the FORWARD THINK idea. In specific I want to talk a bit about churches. I am both scared and excited about the future of churches reaching the next generation of believers. Now by believers I don't mean current church goers only. I mean those that go to church and those that don't and those that have but don't now and those that never did.

Why am I scared? Because I am afraid that churches just don't get that the next generation of believer can not be reached in the same way we have done it for years and years and years and years. I don't know how many times (as a youth minister) I heard the phrases: "I just don't understand this generation" or "Things aren't like this when I was their age. I was respectful to others when I was their age." or "Why don't you just have a devo?" or "These kids just don't know their Bible" I could go on and on and on. Let me say here that I agree and have felt each one of these questions coming out of my mouth as well. I have become more patient with folks when they ask these questions or make points about their teen and their friends teen. But I am now beginning to see that we have to get beyond these comments to the heart of what is going on with teens. We need to get into their world and their friend's world and to their friend's family's world. It is not just about having another devo or another shaving cream fight or another bible class--those have their place and need to be part of healthy programs. But we can't keep doing what we have done for the past 20 or 30 or 40 years and expect for this generation to come around. Right now most stats will tell you that around 6 out of 10 teens will not only not go to church after high school but most of those will leave God altogether. that is a staggering number of folks. Add in the fact that the age group of 18 - 30 is the most neglected group as far as evangelism right now in America. I am afraid and scared that if current trends hold, we will have lost millions of teens in the next 20 years.
Now, why in the world would I be so excited after saying all that negative stuff. There are 2 reasons. One, Jesus Christ is the same today, yesterday and tomorrow (Hebrew 13:8--actually the writer says Jesus is the same today, yesterday and FOREVER). Isn't this something to be excited about. THE one constant throughout all generations is that Jesus is God's Son sent to save the world. Because of this I am very excited about the future. I have not always been this way. I can get pretty cynical at times but that doesn't change the fact that Jesus is still the healer of hurts, savior of sin, and lover of all people no matter who they are or what they have done. We have got to grab a hold of this and bring this message of hope to this next generation. This generation has witnessed (not just heard about) so many crazy, sinful, hurtful, and unbelievable things in their short life time. They need hope. They need reconciliation. They need people willing to walk beside them, listen to them, mentor them, love them NO MATTER WHAT.
Secondly, I am excited and hopeful because I believe this generation is ready, willing and open to this message of hope. I believe they are looking for someone to come in and love them for who they are. Why would I say this? Well lets take a look at the current political campaigns going on right now. Living in the DC area, I get plenty of politics and have become a bit numb to it all. However, there is something I have noticed lately. I actually heard MSNBC talk about it the other day. In the Democratic party there are 2 choices for Presidential candidate--Barack Obama or Hilary Clinton. I have already said I am a supporter of Barack and this is not a shout out to him or anyone. What I want to point out is that his campaign has struck some chord in the hearts and minds of young voters. Young voters have been coming out in droves. They have wanted so badly to have their voices heard. But why? I think its because Barack has hit a chord with them. He stands for change. Change in the political system, military, congress, white house, etc. Now we can debate 'til the cows come home if this will work or if its just empty words. I don't really care right now. Time will take card of that. My point is this: His message is resonating with a generation that is so callused and hardened and has the uncanny ability to sense UN-authentic messages. In other words he is offering a message of HOPE to a very hopeless world. Haven't we heard that message? Don't we know the originator of that message?
I get very excited talking about this. I wonder what you guys think? Let's hear it.

I Hope This Isn't Right

Ok, click on the title above and read that article. Then read this blog!

So I just read an article from USA Today

I really hope that this is not correct. I hope we have come further as a society but I am afraid we have not.
What do you think? (More on my last post later today).

What To Write About

Well, here I go. I am not even sure what I want to write about. I mean I have so much I want to write about but can't do it all in one blog. So this one will be random and crazy but should come clear in the end. So let me begin with politics. I like Barack Obama. No I don't think he is a member of Islam (but does that really matter; unless he is lying about being Christian then we have a problem in my view). But let's don't get caught up on that. A good friend of mine wrote a blog that I am going to reference. His wife pointed out the difference in the campaign signs that each Democratic hopeful uses. Hilliary uses the common everyday sign with her name there blah blah blah. Barach uses simply the word CHANGE in very large font. Now he has his name on the sign but what a glaring difference between the 2. One talks about change and uses her name to signify it and one uses the word change and then tells how things will be different. I believe there is something to this. I believe in him over her. Its not because I think she is evil. I know a lot of people that do not like Mrs. Clinton for various reasons. I am not necessarily one of those folks. I just happen to think he stands for something new, fresh, different and FORWARD THINKING. Notice I capitalized FORWARD THINKING. I did that ON PURPOSE because I think FORWARD THINKING is something that needs to be practiced on several levels of our world(myself included!!!!!!!!!).

What do I mean by FORWARD THINKING. Well, let me start by saying I don't mean: predicting the future, running over people to get things done because you think you can or should, change for change sake (though I am not always opposed to that), taking time to think through situations instead of reacting all the time. So what do I mean? I think FORWARD THINKING is looking beyond yourself to others. I think it means to make decisions based on what is right not on what someone else thinks is right. I think it means taking a look at the status quo and think about if it needs to be changed or adjusted then take the steps to do so. I could say more but I won't.

This brings me to the 2nd half of my time today. I will probably get a bit 'soapboxish' here in the next few lines so you may or may not want to tune this out. Let me just say that I am very passionate about our next generation. By next generation, I mean those young adults that are 30 and below. Their world is different from mine and the one they grow up in is different than the one I grew up in. I will argue with anyone that says different. The next generation grew up with: computers, cell phones, email, easy-access porn, TiVo, wealth, easy-access drugs/alcohol...the list could go on and on. The differences between our world now and 20 years ago are so glaring. Adults have more and more left these young adults/kids to fend for themselves, raise themselves, count on their peers more than their parents, etc. I will talk about this later. What I want to say right now is that it is time for some FORWARD THINKING when it comes to the next generation. In particular, its time for our churches to FORWARD THINK. The times are changing and have changed even faster when it comes to the way churches reached people 20 years ago versus today. And it is going to change even more drastically over the next 10 years. I believe that we could see hundreds and maybe thousands of churches either close their doors or be replaced by mega churches. I don't think this is an altogether bad thing but it is sad. I think for the most part most churches still think they can lure, reach, convert, save, minister to--insert your church's word here--the same way they were reached, lured, etc. Yet what worked 20, 30, 40, 15 years ago don't work and will probably not work again. It is time for some FORWARD THINKING. It is time for some FORWARD THINKING in the way the Jesus was a FORWARD THINKER or the way Paul, John, Mary, Phoebe, Esther, etc were FORWARD THINKERS. What do I mean? Tune in for more tomorrow.

Crazy Thoughts

So I have been reading A LOT lately. All kinds of books-fiction, non-fiction, churchy books, non-churchy books...you get the picture. Anyway, I haven't read this much in a long time; at least I haven't had the kind of time to read like I would like to. Let me just suggest: Kite Runner, Thousand Splendid Suns, Into the Wild, No Country For Old Men and The Collectors. I loved each of these for different reasons.

Now, if you want to read something that will challenge your spiritual life then I would suggest:
Everything Must Change: Jesus, Global Crisis and a Revolution of Hope

They Like Jesus But Not the Church


There are some others I am going to be diving into over the next few weeks. It has been great to catch up on some reading. I am going to be sharing some thoughts about these books over the next few days. I will tell you that I have been challenged in many ways (especially by the 'churchy' books).

New Life

Ok so it has been a while since I have actually blogged on my own. I have been spending time writing about Cade. So this blog was begun to get me back into blogging. I hope to do it fairly regularly. I will be writing about politics, religion, spirituality, culture, something I call the 'next generation' of believers/followers/leaders. Hope you enjoy it.