JR Woodward :: Feeds
July 06, 2008
Praying with Karl Barth
Dear Heavenly Father,
We thank you that today is Sunday. You now allow us to rest from our work, that you may be able to speak to us and rightly work in us. You have gathered us here through your living Word, our Lord, Jesus Christ.
So remain with us and draw us in the Spirit to your Son, that he may draw us in that same Spirit to you. We cannot build ourselves into his community; only you can do that. To that end, hallow, enlighten, and bless our human action, our praying and singing, our speaking and hearing. To that end, reign in our midst. Amen.
From Fifty Prayers
via Dream Awakener
July 05, 2008
update on rex miller
Just a note on Rex Miller’s new website. Rex is a respected leader to both the church and business world. His book, The Millennium Matrix, provides a great roadmap for navigating the digital era. The website is full of resources and is updated weekly. The daily blogs provide leading edge insights on digital culture and tools along with thought provoking questions and links to interesting thought leaders. Enjoy.
Finding Indie Bookstores in Your City
If you love reading and like to support independent bookstores, then you would probably like to visit the IndieBound website. Like the picture to the left, you can put in your zip code and a map will pop up to indicate where each of the independent bookstores that are at in your city. I have been to a number of independent bookstores, but I wasn't aware of all of them in my area. This picture to the left is a map of all the independent bookstores in Los Angeles.
At the IndieBound website you can not only discover all the independent bookstores in your city, but you can join the community, learn about the best selling indie books, get some indie gear as well as read the Declaration of IndieBound. You could also just watch a bunch of different independent booksellers read the declaration on this YouTube video.
via Dream Awakener
July 04, 2008
This Week with Henri Nouwen - A Courageous Life
"Have courage," we often say to one another. Courage is a spiritual virtue. The word courage comes from the Latin word cor,
which means "heart. A courageous act is an act coming from the heart. A
courageous word is a word arising from the heart. The heart, however,
is not just the place where our emotions are located. The heart is the
centre of our being, the centre of all thoughts, feelings, passions,
and decisions.
When the flesh - the lived human experience - becomes word, community can develop. When we say, "Let me tell you what we saw. Come and listen to what we did. Sit down and let me explain to you what happened to us. Wait until you hear whom we met," we call people together and make our lives into lives for others. The word brings us together and calls us into community. When the flesh becomes word, our bodies become part of a body of people. - Henri Nouwen
via Dream Awakener
July 03, 2008
the pharisees: them is us
In Matthew 23:29-32
Jesus blasts those who are determined to maintain the illusion that they represent Israel’s righteousness (the pharisees) because of their failure to acknowledge the role of the prophetic in their midst. Here is a powerful series of comments on this text by Stanley Hauerwas in his fantastic commentary on Matthew (highly recommended).
This is a sobering list of failure and judgment, with descriptions of hypocrisy and failure in which we cannot help but see ourselves. It is surely the case, for example, that many are kept from entering the kingdom by the lives we lead as Christians. Our problem is very simple–we simply do not know how to live as a people who believe that Jesus is the resurrected Lord. the joy and freedom that should name the lives of those freed from the demons become lost amid attempts to make our difference depend on matters that do not matter. We become adept at praising the prophets of the past, having lost the ability to discern the prophets among us.
Jesus describes the scribes and the Pharisees as “blind guides”. That they are blind is not unrelated to their desire to be guides. Those who would lead others often fear those they lead, and in particular they fear hurting those they lead. They think it is their task to make the life of those they lead secure. Yet a people who depend on prophets can never live lives of safety. A people required to remember that they area people whose forebears have murdered the righteous cannot live lives of safety. Those who would lead too often must hide from themselves what they know to be true because they think that those whom they lead cannot bear the truth. The blindness of the Pharisees and the scribes is a blindness that threatens the church no less than any people. The only difference between the Pharisees and those who would lead Jesus’ people is that the latter lead a people who have no reason to fear the truth.
Jesus’ condemnation of the scribes and Pharisees is sobering, but we dare not overlook the fact that the criticism Jesus makes of the scribes and Pharisees assumes that the people he is calling to be his church will need to be a people like the Pharisees and scribes. He even says that he will send prophets and scribes to the synagogues and towns of Israel. The church will need persons called to positions that help the church avoid hypocrisy through agents of direction to keep before the church the vision of the kingdom; the church will needs agents of memory to help the church read its scripture and tradition; the church will needs agents of linguistic self-consciousness to guard the church from mental laziness; the church will needs agents of order and due process to isnure unity and encourage participation in the decisions of the church (quote from Yoder, 1984,28-34)
Each of these agents will be tempted to hypocrisy. There is no guarantee that ensures we will lives lives of integrity. Hypocrisy can be avoided only if the church is a community capable of truthful speech. If such a community is missing, then those who would lead are doomed. Jesus’ condemnation of the scribes and Pharisees is severe, [but his]…description of how those called to help Israel live faithfully have come to lead false lives is suffused with pathos. His condemnations are harsh, but what could be worse for the scribes and Pharisees, like any of us, to get the lives they think they wanted.
Stanley Hauerwas, Matthew: Brazos Theological Commentary of the Bible (Brazos; 2006) 199-200
Rating the Top 25 US Newspaper Websites
Because of the future of on-line newspapers, 24/7 Wall St. in this article, took at look at the top 25 US Newspapers, based on their current circulation and then graded each of their websites accordingly. As Douglas McIntyre writes in the article, "The sites got ratings of "A" through "F" based on: 1) Strength of content, 2) ease of use and navigation, 3) use of new web technology including comment sections, message boards, and multimedia, 4) lay-out, 5) presence of a strong set of current advertisers, and 6) the size of their audience based on the measurements from the complete website visitor database of April this past year." The Wall Street Journal and USA Today are not included because they are national properties and have access to corporate budgets.
Here are the top 25 circulated newspapers in the US and their website grade:
1. The New York Times - A
2. The Los Angeles Times - B
3. The New York Daily News - B -
4. The New York Post - C
5. The Washington Post - B -
6. The Chicago Tribune - D
7. The Houston Chronicle - B+
8. The Arizona Republic - B -
9. Newsday - B +
10. The San Francisco Chronicle - A
11. The Dallas Morning News - D
12. The Boston Globe - C
13. The Newark Star-Ledger - D
14. The Philadelphia Inquirer - B -
15. The Cleveland Plain Dealer - C -
16. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution - A -
17. The Minneapolis Star Tribune - B -
18. The St. Petersburg Times - B +
19. The Chicago Sun Times - B
20. The Detroit Free Press - A -
21. The Oregonian - C
22. The San Diego Union-Tribune - B -
23. The Sacramento Bee - D -
As I mentioned earlier, the Wall St. Journal and USA Today are not included, though they are in the top 25 in subscribed newspapers, which is why Doug stops at 23. Doug writes about a paragraph about why he gave the grade he did to the various websites in the article. So what do you think about these grades? Do you think they are accurate? Which site do you visit the most?
And my last question for you is this: What do you consider to be some of the best non-mainstream media news sources on the web?
via Dream Awakener
July 02, 2008
Around the Blogosphere - The Best of This Week in Blogs
So here is my attempt to gather the best blog entries this past week that link to many other interesting posts across the blogosphere. So if you are into some good links, here is my around the blogosphere - the best of this week in blogs. Click on the link to find many more interesting links.
Random Acts of Linkage with Brother Maynard
Brother Maynard over at Subversive Influence has been reading a lot, for he has 30 interesting links for us to investigate from this past week.
Weekly Meanderings with Scot McKnight
Scot at Jesus Creed always has good links, but this week was especially rich. A Pastor who knows his words link was pretty funny and the link to Barna's new article on the American dream as well as "never heard this before" and "your brian" were fascinating reads.
Link, link, link with Ben Myers
Ben at Faith and Theology always has interesting posts and links. He links to N.T. Wright on Colbert, some articles by John Milbank and he points two a couple new blogs as well as some other interesting links.
via Dream Awakener
July 01, 2008
God's Missionary People: Rethinking the Purpose of the Local Church
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Van Engen is Professor of Biblical Theology of Mission at Fuller Theological Seminary. He is a prolific author and was a missionary in Mexico in the area of theological education. He served as President of the Reformed Church of America for a year and is involved in the American Society of Missiology.
THESIS
Van Engen in God's Missionary People contends that local congregations are in essence God’s missionary people, and as they understand their identity and purpose and are built up to “reach out in mission to the world” they will become what they already are by faith.
OVERVIEW
In part one, Van Engen goes to Ephesians and the history of the church to uncover the essence of the church. He takes the four marks of the church and helps us to see them as “planetary orbits of the churches missionary life in the world.” He identifies the essence of the church as one (unifying), holy (sanctifying), catholic (reconciling), apostolic (proclaiming) missionary church. He also identifies some new words to describe the local church, which include being for the world, identification with the oppressed, mission, proclamation witness and yearning for numerical growth. In part two, Van Engen looks at purpose of the local congregation: koinonia, keryma, diakonia, martyria, the relationship of the congregation to the kingdom of God and the role of the local congregation in the world - continuing Jesus’ roles as prophet, priest, king as well as healer and liberator. In part three, he talks about how the local church becomes God’s missionary people with missionary goals (priorities, goals, plans), missionary members, missionary leaders (defining, indentifying and determining style) and a missional administration (spiritual activity and evaluating facilities).
THOUGHTS ON BOOK
I appreciated Van Engen sharing the historical development of missional ecclesiology and his basic movement from the essence of the church toward the practical way that the church lives out her missionary nature. His turning the four marks of the church from adjectives into adverbs was brilliant!
I also appreciated his thoughts on the relation and distinction of the kingdom of God and the church. In this section as well as most of the other chapters, he includes rich quotes. For example, this last part of Hans Küng’s quote is helpful: [The Church] is not the bringer or the bearer of the reign of God which is to come and is at the same time already present, but its voice, its announcer, its herald. God alone can bring his reign; the church is devoted entirely to its service” (111). I have been thinking a lot about how to express the role of the church in light of the kingdom. Sometimes I have used the expression “expanding the kingdom of God” yet if God is Lord of all, do we really expand his Kingdom? Heralds of the kingdom or being agents of the kingdom seem more appropriate. Our choice of words is important, because it deals with understanding our role and God’s role. I will be contemplating how to flesh out this idea better in my local context as well as with the book I am currently writing.
Figure 8 (128) will be a helpful diagram to go back and visit, as it summarizes the first two parts of the book quite well. I appreciate the shared-ministry model (158), for I was looking for an organization chart that would best reflect shared leadership. I plan to adjust ours accordingly. I also deeply appreciate the servant-messiah concept of leadership, which I plan to use in a forth-coming church planters conference. Seeing lists of various styles of leadership was helpful (Ch. 11), though it is important to practice theology in order to keep from falling into pure pragmatism. This book is a rich read.
via Dream Awakener
June 30, 2008
A stroke of (Apostolic) Genius
Missional church requires a missional ministry and leadership system. For the most part, the Christendom church obscured the need for a fully fledged missional leadership system because the self understanding of the church became fundamentally non-missional. Because all citizens were deemed to be Christians all what was really needed were the pastoral and teaching ministries to care for and teach the congregation. These were eventually instituted as offices in the church and became the principal metaphors for church leadership. The net effect is that the whole system weighted itself in favor of maintenance and pastoral care and that these became hegemonic in practice and therefore and both fragmented and distorted the total mission and ministry of the church in favor of only part of its calling.
A direct consequence of this was that the apostolic, the prophetic, and the evangelistic, ministries and leadership styles were marginalized and effectively ‘exiled’ from the church’s official ministry and leadership. This is not to say that these ministries have totally disappeared. Far from it: many within current and historical church life have exercised these ministries without specifically being tagged ‘apostles’ or ‘prophets’, but by and large these lacked formal legitimacy and recognition and they have tended to be exercised outside of the context of the local church, denominational systems, and seminaries. This ‘exiling’ in part gave rise to the development of parachurch agencies and missional orders, each with a somewhat atomized ministry focus. E.g. the Navigators arose out of a calling to evangelize and disciple people outside of the church structures because the church was not effective (or interested?) in this. Sojourners emerged to represent the social justice concerns that the church by and large ignores. World Vision as an Aid and Development agency, etc. But in these were generally initiated and maintained the APE type leadership styles. This divorce of APE from PT has been disastrous for the local church and has damaged the cause of Christ and his mission.
In order to understand the different nature of each of these ministries we need to briefly explore the core task/functions of each, the effect when it monopolizes and dominates in isolation from the others, and the effect when it is integrated with the other ministries. The easiest way to do this is within a comparative table. It is as follows…
June 29, 2008
Praying with St. Benedict
O Lord,
I place myself in Your hands and dedicate myself to You.
I pledge myself to do Your will in all things:
To love the Lord God with all my heart, all my soul, all my strength.
Not to kill, not to steal not to covet, not to bear false witness, to honor
all persons.
Not to do to another what I should not want done to myself.
Not to seek after pleasures.
To love fasting.
To relieve the poor.
To clothe the naked.
To visit the sick.
To bury the dead.
To help those in trouble.
To console the sorrowing.
To hold myself aloof from worldly ways.
To prefer nothing to the love of Christ.
Not to give way to anger.
Not to foster a desire for revenge.
Not to entertain deceit in the heart.
Not to make a false peace.
Not to forsake charity.
Not to swear, lest I swear falsely.
To speak the truth with heart and tongue.
Not to return evil for evil
To do no injury, indeed, even to bear patiently any injury done to
me.
To love my enemies.
Not to curse those who curse me but rather to bless them.
To bear persecution for justice's sake.
Not to be proud.
Not to be given to intoxicating drink.
Not to be an overeater.
Not to be lazy.
Not to be slothful
Not to be a detractor.
To put my trust in God.
To refer the good I see in myself to God.
To refer any evil I see in myself to myself
To fear the day of judgment.
To be in dread of hell.
To desire eternal life with spiritual longing.
To keep death before my eyes daily.
To keep constant watch over my actions.
To remember that God sees me everywhere.
To call upon Christ for defense against evil thoughts that arise in my
heart.
To guard my tongue against wicked speech.
To avoid much speaking.
To avoid idle talk.
Not to seek to appear clever.
To read only what is good to read.
To pray often.
To ask forgiveness daily for my sins, and to seek ways to amend my
life.
To obey my superiors in all things rightful.
Not to desire to be thought holy, but to seek holiness.
To fulfill the commandments of God by good works.
To love chastity.
To hate no one.
Not be jealous or envious of anyone.
Not to love strife.
Not to love pride.
To honor the aged.
To pray for my enemies.
To make peace after a quarrel, before the setting of the sun.
Never to despair of your mercy, O God of mercy
- St. Benedict
via Dream Awakener
Learning the Craft of Forgiveness
One of the best books I have read on the area of forgiveness comes from the pen of L. Gregory Jones entitled Embodying Forgiveness. In this book he talks about forgiveness as a craft to be learned. Listen to how he puts it:
"Learning a craft is accomplished more by participating in particular activities under the guidance of those who excel than by studying texts (unless that study is conceived of precisely as a practice in which the apprentices and the exaplars are engaged together). To be sure, there is an important place for reading books: even so, they ought to be seen as aids to a much larger and more comprehensive craft rather than as a primary means by which someone comes to understand a craft such as forgiveness."
So let's go out and practice the craft of forgiveness and teach others to do this as well, so that we might be a sign, foretaste and instrument of his kingdom. Peace.
via Dream Awakener
June 27, 2008
4th of July in Los Angeles
The 4th of July is right around the corner, so it might be good to be thinking about what you might want to do this year.
If you live in Los Angeles, here are some of the options available.
HOLLYWOOD
Where: Hollywood Bowl
When: July 4th at 7:30 p.m.
Tickets: $10-14
Details: Each there the LA Philharmonic Plays, and this year Randy Newman will be performing and there will be a tribute to the LA Dodger's 50th anniversary. If you want some great fireworks with music in the background, this is a great place to go.
For more info.
PASADENA
Where: Rose Bowl Stadium
When: July 4th, 11 a.m. - 9:30 p.m.
Tickets: $13 (Parking $15)
Details: This is the 82nd annual show that draws over 25,000. Fireworks by Pyrospectaculars, known for their work at past Super Bowls and the Olympics.
For more info.
DOWNTOWN AREA
Where: Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum
When: July, 4-8 p.m.
Tickets: Free
Details: A tribute to Bob Hope, musical guest and end in fireworks.
For more info.
MARINA DEL RAY
Where: Marina del Ray, main channel
When: July 4, 9 p.m.
Tickets: Free
Details: Fireworks over the water.
For more info.
THE VALLEY
Where: Hansen Dam Recreation Area
When: July 4th, noon - 10 p.m.
Tickets: Free
Details: The biggest celebration in the Valley. Picnics, 1.5 acre swimming lake. Life entertainment, food and fireworks.
For more info.
VENICE BEACH
Where: Muscle Beach
When: All Day
Tickets: Free
Details: A contest for Mr. and Mrs. Muscle Beach
For more info.
STUDIO CITY
Where: CBS Studios Lot, 4024 Radford Avenue
When: 4:30 - 9:30 p.m.
Tickets: Call 818.655.5916
Details: Musical entertainment on several stages, special tickets include a behind the scenes tour of the studio. Fireworks.
For more info.
REDONDO BEACH
Where: Seaside Lagoon
When: Gates open 2 p.m. Must reserve your parking and seating
Tickets: Purchase by groups (See more info below)
Details: Parade, live entertainment, fireworks.
For more info.
via Dream Awakener
June 26, 2008
hirschey in ye olde england
Just so that all my English mates are interested, I am coming to England with the Together in Mission folks (a number of events including their summer school) and will be doing something with the Baptists in Bristol. As far as I am away, these are open events. Feel free to contact the folks involved. Info on the WEBA event is here… forgotten-ways-info-form
This Week with Henri Nouwen - Words That Create Community
The word is always a word for others. Words need to be heard. When we
give words to what we are living, these words need to be received and
responded to. A speaker needs a listener. A writer needs a reader.
When the flesh - the lived human experience - becomes word, community can develop. When we say, "Let me tell you what we saw. Come and listen to what we did. Sit down and let me explain to you what happened to us. Wait until you hear whom we met," we call people together and make our lives into lives for others. The word brings us together and calls us into community. When the flesh becomes word, our bodies become part of a body of people. - Henri Nouwen
via Dream Awakener
June 25, 2008
Developing a Rhythm of Life - Series
I'm finally stringing together this nine part series on developing a rhythm of life. And I want to end where we began, by a short definition of what a rule or rhythm of life is by Marjorie Thompson. She says, "It is a pattern of spiritual disciplines that provides structure and direction for growth in holiness. When we speak of patterns in our life, we mean attitudes, behaviors, or elements that are routine, repeated, regular. Indeed, the Latin term for "rule" is regula, from which our words regular and regulate derive."
Developing a Rhythm of Life - Part 1
An introduction to the series
Developing a Rhythm of Life - Part 2
Continued introduction and looking at our relationship with God
Developing a Rhythm of Life - Part 3
In this part we look at the area of prayer
Developing a Rhythm of Life - Part 4
In this section we look at the area of work
Developing a Rhythm of Life - Part 5
Here we take a look at the area of study
Developing a Rhythm of Life - Part 6
In this part we look at the area of spiritual community
Developing a Rhythm of Life - Part 7
Here we talk about our body and its health
Developing a Rhythm of Life - Part 8
This section deals with reaching outward
Developing a Rhythm of Life - Part 9
This last part deals with the area of hospitality
So I hope you will read through the entire series and develop a personal or communal rhythm of life. As you do, keep these words by Debra Farrington in mind, "Two things are important to consider in setting a rule [rhythm] for yourself: paying attention to your heart's desire and being realistic. Taking both of these into account through prayer, meditation, and conversation with others, and using both of them to discern your rule, will help you develop a rule you can live with for a lifetime."
via Dream Awakener
My Friends in Kenya [Flickr]
dream awakener posted a photo:
1. Kenya Boy, 2. JR and Kids, 3. orphans, 4. tribal leader
Created with fd's Flickr Toys.
via Dream Awakener
Sunset in LA [Flickr]
dream awakener posted a photo:
Created with fd's Flickr Toys.
via Dream Awakener
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