Category: reflections

You too can change the world – 50 words or less

“We may not be able to change the whole world, but we can change the whole world for one person.”

Shaun Groves and his band of bloggers are returning from the Dominican Republic today. Take some time to learn what they’ve learned.

(What are other folks saying this weekend in 50 words or less?)

Things I’ve learned from Twitter (in the last 24 hours)

What we do

I was sharing with my life, Laurie, the other night that it’s amazing how intentional folks are on Twitter (and many on Facebook) about relationships.

I can send a txt message to 30 people and I don’t typically get any responses. I can share one message on Twitter – and within minutes 10 people from literally around the world let me know they’re praying for me. (UPDATE: I don’t mean that to say that folks who get my txt messages don’t care — see comments — but to hear or see someone actually say it does me good. I guess that’s why one of my big love languages is verbal/encouragement 🙂 ).

You really do have to be intentional about building relationships on Twitter. Otherwise it probably seems really pointless and a waste of time.

If you’re not into building relationships – you probably wouldn’t care that Jonny Baker is planning to live blog from an emerging worship conference in Oklahoma City.

Olly says girls have skills when it comes to putting on make-up in all sorts of situations.

Tripp Fuller and Chad Crawford scored an interview with Phyllis Tickle to discuss The Great Emergence. I’m looking forward to hearing the interview on their Homebrewed Christianity Podcast.

Mark Batterson is working on a new book – and likes to do it early in the morning.

Many people are still super buzzed about Obama’s election. However I think things are a little different for my friends over on Facebook. Does that make Facebook more conservative and Twitter more liberal? Or is just my friends?

Kevin Hendricks has written over 12,000 words in the novel he’s writing for nanowrimo.

Bruce Wagner has created a network at unitysocial.com. Looking forward to checking it out in a few minutes.

Sara Jane is going to UMHB’s homecoming this weekend.

Thomas went to see Sigur Ros last night while his wife stayed at home making Christmas cards and many of us on Twitter gave him a hard time about it. Today he found out he’s hosting a quiz for his team at work.

Trucker Frank is loading his truck in Shakopee MN, where it’s snowing a bit and then he’s heading to KC.

And that’s just the tip of the iceberg! If you’re still reading this, you should probably be on Twitter. If you’re not – well then I’m talking to myself – and my friends already on Twitter ;-).

True to Scripture and true to God

Mark Batterson (see something beautiful 1.15) took a quick trip to Germany last week with a group of other pastors and leaders, including Chris Seay of Houston.

He was able to stand at the place where Martin Luther posted his 95 Thesis nearly 500 years ago on Reformation Day (last Friday). Very cool.

He posted a short followup on Sunday:

Here’s the table where Martin Luther had his infamous table talks. I got in trouble for taking a flash photograph. Oops! Pretty amazing to think that much of our theological thinking today can be traced back to some of the theological conversations around this table. Luther’s five solas and 95 Theses and Augsburg Confession reshaped 16th century theology. But his table talks were the bread and butter of a simple parish priest that was trying to be true to Scripture and true to God.

I really like Batterson’s comments here. Imagine, theology that shaped our view of God and religion discussed around a simple table by folks trying to be true to Scripture and true to God. Not one individual but a community of believers, sitting around a table, probably enjoying a meal and drinks and discussing the activity of God within their world.

What theology will be discussed and shaped around your dining room table this week or in your living room?

Can theology still be shaped and molded for our day and time – or has it been set in stone now that Martin Luther and his peers have said all that they could say?

Happy Reformation Day!

Happy Reformation Day?

Some of you are thinking “What the heck?! It’s halloween! Or maybe at least All Saint’s Eve or All Hallow’s Eve.”

And yes that’s true – but you can find out about that other holiday somewhere else.

Instead – we’ll celebrate Reformation Day around this here blog. Reformation Day is the celebration of the anniversary of Martin Luther posting his 95 Thesis on the church doors of the Whittenberg in Germany.

What was initially posted as a Luther’s hope to start a debate in the things he was learning and reading about as a Biblical professor, started a revolution (reformation) in the church – leading to his excommunication from the church and the protestant movement.

Out of love for the truth and the desire to bring it to light,
the following propositions will be discussed at Wittenberg,
under the presidency of the Reverend Father Martin Luther,
Master of Arts and of Sacred Theology, and Lecturer in
Ordinary on the same at that place. Wherefore he requests that
those who are unable to be present and debate orally with us,
may do so by letter.

I doubt Luther had any idea that his 95 Thesis, posted on Oct. 31, 1517, would end up being spread so rapidly to “the people” with the help of a recent invention of Johann Gutenberg, known as the “printing press.”

Who would have thought that the masses would begin reading, thinking about and debating these “high level theological thoughts” like sacramental penance vs inward repentance, the fallacy of the pope, the remittance of sin by the pope and indulgences used to build sanctuaries for the church? I mean seriously, ordinary folks can debate these kind of things?! “That’s heracy!” — or so the church thought at the time (and many continue to think today).

Imagine what might happen if folks started talking about God and debating theology in the bars and pubs of today? Imagine if there was some sort of medium that might spread these ideas and discussions around the world? Imagine if suddenly our theology stopped coming from trained pastors and priests who study for years at schools of higher education and suddenly started coming from Joe Six Pack at your local pub and was shared with folks via Twitter or Wikipedia or other emerging websites to Joe Plumber who lives in Russia or Idaho? Imagine if theology was debating and discussed and lived out in community rather than simply handed down by one central source?

Yeah we wouldn’t want that to happen today. Far from it.

I heard a couple great thoughts today while listening to some of Martin Luther’s bio today via Tripp Fuller and Craig Atwood (hint – you should listen to this great podcast as well and these are loose quotes from memory) ::

“I came to see Christ as my Savior rather than the hangman.”

“Folks got real nervous when Martin Luther began to take his faith seriously.”

“The priests and religious leaders start to get real nervous when people get excited about religion.”

So today I celebrate Reformation Day. Today I celebrate Priests in the Hood (aka the Priesthood of the believers) and hope you do too.

Here are Martin Luther’s 95 Thesis translated to English (and in the original intention of these thesis, your debate, comments and discussions are welcome here) ::

Continue reading Happy Reformation Day!