Wednesday Link List

Photo: Drew Dyck

A fresh crop of October links! Mind you, they’re all dated September. But they’re new to you.

• Campus prayer focus See You At The Pole turned 24 last week.
• MGM has acquired a 55 percent stake in the film and television production company owned by Mark Burnett and Roma Downey, the executive producers behind the Emmy-nominated “The Bible” series.
• The family of Calvary Chapel’s Chuck Smith have launched a lawsuit against the church over distribution of the late pastor’s property, royalties and life insurance; and also elder abuse…
• …Staying with Orange County, CA megachurches, Christ Cathedral, the former Crystal Cathedral, will see a $113M renovation including reworking the glass panes “which create excessive heat and light and bad acoustics” to be replaced with “new, white panels, called petals, that will open at varying degrees.”
• How reading demographic trends should lead to churches asking some serious questions, at a ratio of three questions to every stat.
• Essay of the Week: A response to the purging of Christian-themed and Christian-published books in a California charter school.
• The locations are sometimes called ‘third spaces’ and the ministry style is often termed ‘incarnational’ but in Seattle these churches take many forms.
• ‘Team Soul Surfers’ on reality show The Amazing Race consists of shark bite survivor and Christian author Bethany Hamilton and husband Adam Dirks. While Bethany’s handicap has sparked some media attention for Season 25, the pair finished last Friday in 5th place out of 11.
• Tuition = $0.00 — Ranked #1 on a listing of top Christian colleges, the school operates tuition-free.
• “Every pastor is an interim pastor.” New book deals with leadership transitions and succession.
• Canada’s national television network reports on the rise of The Sunday Assemblies, a network of atheist churches.
• Leviticus births an app as the eScapegoat roams the internet searching for sins to atone for at Yom Kippur. (No actual Halachic atonement implied.)(I like the site URL, escgoat… escape goat… eScapegoat.)
• Preaching Place: Ten things to consider when drafting the introduction to your sermon.
• Missions: If a particular part of scripture is not available in the language of a particular region, English is the next best thing. But all the easy-to-understand English versions of the past fifty years are protected by copyright. So Wycliffe Bible Translators offers fifty open-source, copyright-free Bible stories.
• The “Sinner’s Prayer” is the latest dividing line, brought into focus because of remarks David Platt made that some considered inflammatory, even prompting this response in song.
• 

  Click the image to read about the outcry over the updated design of the VeggieTales characters on Netflix

  Sunday nights at Willow Creek now include The Practice, an 18-month experiment which came out of asking, “What if a church was more like a gymnasium than a classroom? What if the church gathering was a time when we came together to practice rather than just listen?”
• Some Christian radio stations may be “safe for the whole family,” but following Jesus is dangerous. (Wait ’til you see the title of this one.)
• Online congregations can watch rebroadcasts or on-demand. Saddleback had 162 rebroadcasts, one almost every hour of the week, but switched last month to on-demand for several reasons.
• Zondervan author Christine Caine is launching Propel, a digital magazine for women in leadership.
• Last week we noted four reasons why church choirs are dying; this week we’re given nine reasons to keep the choir going.
• If you missed it, last week CT launched a new page, Third Culture with Peter Chin, “a term used by sociologists to describe individuals who don’t fit neatly into one cultural category or another, be it ethnically, racially, or culturally.” Or, as the tag line suggested, the faith of the hyphenated.
• Two weeks ago Pope Francis spoke about resurrection causing one writer to wonder if the Pope believes in the rapture?
• What were the odds? Not only did this blog’s print equivalent, Leadership Journal do a cover story on ‘Neuro Ministry,’ but so did Youth Worker Magazine.
• Yet another Christian film to report, this one opening in select markets on November 7th. As I dig deeper, Wayward: The Prodigal Son seems to have a Mormon connection.
• There are so many ways I could introduce this link; so may different ways you could tag this. Perhaps sufficient to say our children are entering a time of rapidly shifting paradigms.
• John Piper’s four reasons why people don’t open their Bibles between Sundays.
• Jamie Wright is suffering from Post Short Term Overseas Trip Disorder (PSTOTD) and finding it difficult to go shopping.
• Another church does the “reverse offering” thing; this one handing out $500 checks.
• They shall drink deadly gasoline and it will not harm them. Like it or not, there are strange things done in the name of Christianity.
• A company that sells domain names reported last month that .CHURCH was in eighth place among top level domains…
• …Speaking of cool addresses, there’s forgive.me one of many from the Billy Graham association.
• Parenting Place: Carlos Whittaker wants to remember to tell his daughter five things.
• Even pastors sometimes skip over the genealogies. Here’s six directives to slow down.
• In the UK, children under the age of consent were tested for sexually transmitted diseases, without parents being informed.
• …Also in the UK, Catholic and Jewish schools are being forced to teach the tenets of other faiths as part of a religious studies program that allowed them to simply teach their own doctrines.
• Statistically, at most of your churches, the issue of mental illness doesn’t come up in a sermon.
• …Also at Huffington, a pastor pledges four things if he has gay children.
• If you need something for Facebook today, copy/paste or link this one.
• On my own blog this week, getting inside the culture of restaurant-abstinence.
• This time it’s a member congregation of the Mennonite Church USA that’s leaving the denomination over… the usual issue.
• Finally, when successive church building programs go vertical instead of horizontal.

Yes! The links are still also at Parse, the blog of Leadership Journal, a division of Christianity Today. Click here to read there!

For our closing graphic we return to TwentyOneHundred Productions’ Facebook page, the gift that keeps on giving. 2100 is the media division of InterVarsity Christian Fellowship.  (We poached another one from them for tomorrow…I feel like I should make a donation to my local IVCF chapter…) Click the image to link, or follow them at this page.

Wednesday Link List

from Church is Stranger Than Fiction by Mary Chambers an IVP book from 1990

If it’s Wednesday, it’s time for another list of things you may have missed from the Christian corner of the web.  Clicking anything below will take you to PARSE where the list officially resides. Then click the story you wish to read.

• Jonathan Wilson-Hartgrove comments on the botched execution in Oklahoma two weeks ago.
• The same word-for-word approach The Visual Bible took is now being applied to a graphic novel with the Word for Word Bible Comic. The project is currently seeking funding, and BibleGateway interviewed the creator.
• After some technical hiccups, the videos from the Q-Conference are available for viewing.  For more conservative conference stalking, there are always videos of the featured talks from Together for the Gospel.
• The results of the Kentucky Derby clearly indicate that the world has been taken over by the anti-Christ.
• If you’re reading this before noon today, God and the Gay Christian author Matthew Vines and popular bloggers Rachel Held Evans, Tony Jones and Jay Bakker have a one hour live chat on Patheos.
• For one writer, a funeral was the high point in his church’s week.
• As you read this, it’s midway through the first of several regional editions of the National Worship Leaders’ Conference.  One worship writer explains why we need new songs.
• Just when you thought you were on top of all the faith-based movies on the big screen, you need to know about Calvary.
• A small church pastor is surprised at what he learns from the pastor of one of Canada’s largest churches.
• One of the most dangerous men in the UK tells of life transformation through taking the Alpha Course in prison.
• How “legal” is your church when it comes to honoring copyrights? Here are some reasons why you should.
• What to do when the congregation is simply standing there, not singing.
• Has your church covered some of the R-rated sections of the Bible? Many churches avoid those passages, one pastor sees value in including them intentionally.
• With a Reformed perspective, this list of 20 tips for using commentaries gave rise to this collection of links to lists of the best ones. (With typos as no extra charge.) For a more Arminian perspective, I’m reminded of this list.
• With a movie that released in time for Mother’s Day, CNN hails a new genre, Christian comedy…
• …And heading off a Mother’s Day tempest at the pass, Perry Noble discusses his choice of Lysa TerKeurst as guest speaker.
• The Atheist Church is holding its first general assembly. Can district superintendents be next?
• Under what circumstances might you ask a member of the worship team to step down?
• Charismatic Corner: Lee Grady offers six really strange Charismatic doctrines that should be scrapped.
• Demographics Department: Some interesting consequences for the church in the wake of mass Baby Boomer retirement.
• Meditation Moment: A look at classic writer Andrew Murray’s favorite hymn.
• It doesn’t happen until January, but the three amigos from the Reformed, Pyromaniacs blog are going into the conference business.
• Got your WJRtMW bracelet yet? It stands for Would Jesus Raise the Minimum Wage? (And no, there’s no actual bracelet that I’m aware of.)
• You know a Christian bookstore is valued in a city if the Mayor steps in to keep it from closing.
• At long last, a writer has noted the Christian fascination with board games.
• Using the excuse that it was overdone the previous year, students are told they can’t thank God at the grad ceremony.
• As I promised last week, we finished the AHA curriculum with Kyle Idleman, and the church kit offers various possibilities for use.
• If you missed it, HGTV axed a real estate reality show before it ever aired because of the hosts’ faith convictions. As CT points out, another HGTV show with Evangelical hosts is still scheduled.
• This was fun: Imagine being a young woman writing a novel for young adults with scenes set in a high school when you, yourself were home-schooled.
• Are you a parent? In Kidmin? This rather sobering article is worth a read: Five signs your child is not saved.
• Music Video of the Week: The title song from Michael W. Smith’s Sovereign.
• When I think of people walking a prayer labyrinth, I tend to think of Anglicans, but some Baptists are now utilizing them.
• Now that the whole series is available for purchase, watch one of the four video studies based on the epic-length biography, Bonhoeffer by Eric Metaxas.
• Introducing ServePoint, for coordinating volunteers with scheduled events.
• Moving from the city to a Christian farm community helped this writer’s children learn about the reality of death.
• Love or hate the Noah movie, it’s ideal for cinema.
• In a busy world, when is the last time you phoned someone (a real voice call) just to say thanks, with no catch?
• Crooner Michael Buble, complete with ukulele, guitar, piano and brushes on a snare drum, proved that a Jamie Grace song could easily be converted into a big-band hit.
• Female pastors who wear clerical garb will want to track this new line of vestments.
• The Passion 2014 conference album tied its own previous record for highest debut of a Christian album on Billboard.
• This fall a British reality show will see couples tie the knot after a single meeting: Marriage At First Sight.
• Finally, a personal note: If anyone has playable tapes of the demos of classic Jesus Music radio shows like The Rock That Never Rolls with Brother Dale or The Scott Ross Show please contact me.  (Or a good recipe for Peach Crumble.)

From CBD, for women who don’t have the joy of the Lord:

 

Wednesday Link List

Here’s this week’s collection, with the hope that you’ll be my Valinktine.  Click anything below and you’ll find yourself at PARSE, the link list’s exclusive official owners and operators! (Or just click now, it’s easier to read there.)

• The Christian Song Competition at Praise Tracks is narrowed down to the top twelve finalists.
• It’s like a flash mob, only everybody ends up at church, so I guess it’s actually a flash mass. (Or a mass mob. Take your pick.)
• Know someone who is questioning their faith? Here are eight important questions to help them qualify what they mean.
• Canadian Christian TV host Lorna Dueck travels with a group of journalists to bring a Christian perspective on the Burning Man Festival. (see pic below)
• Church Appreciation 101: A writer for the National Catholic Review sees some things her church can learn from Willow Creek. Days later at the same site, a Willow Creek-er turned Catholic responds.
• Last week we linked to a confession by Donald Miller that he skips church more than occasionally. This week, a lengthy reply to the many comments received.  (And a long-form sample of those comments.)
• You may choose a church because you like its music, but blogger Tim Challies is somewhat drawn to a church that sings poorly.
• Maybe there are atheists in foxholes, but not in plane crashes, as in the plural crashes, as in one near miss and two crashes.
• As my kids would say, “I didn’t know that was a thing.” But this week we went to a U2charist. The music of U2 and… I’ll let Wikipedia explain.
• Missional Moment: An interview with Michael Frost on the release of his newest, Incarnate.
• Singer/songwriter Darlene Zschech provides a health update on her blog after her first round of chemotherapy.
• Increasingly, church leadership and participation is a young man’s game (or women’s) but there are advantages to getting old and ugly at church.
• Speaking of which, you didn’t seriously think I was going to link to that NBC story about the nudist church in Ivor, Virginia did you?
• Prognostication of the Week: Could organ music at church be ripe for a comeback? Actually, the article is about more than music.
• This is a recurring theme lately, but this UK article has some hard stats: Children no longer know the most basic Bible stories.
• Was some grassroots campaigning effective? This year’s Superbowl ads were a lot less sexist.
• You won’t find it on the Zondervan website yet, but the company is releasing Faith Commander, a 6-week curriculum based on Duck Dynasty with editions for children, teens or the whole church.
• Church Growth Department: The atheist church in Tennessee has added a second service. (There’s also a documentary airing in May on CNN.)
• The MovieGuide Awards, sometimes called “The Christian Oscars” were handed out last Friday.
• Nadia Bolz-Weber gets into the topic of jargon, and while I always like what she writes, you gotta read the comments on this one.
• Allegory of the Week: Author Tyler Blanski teaching a friend how to drive with a manual transmission on his Honda Civic is likened to moving beyond his Baptist roots.
• How to create a marketing strategy like Steven Furtick’s, so that your book ends up on the New York Times bestseller list. (For at least one week.)…
• …and now NBC News in Furtick’s hometown is tracking sales of the book at the church.
• Carlos Whittaker on how the nature of (and demand for) worship leadership is changing.
• Perry Noble definitely has his detractors, especially when he teaches on tithing. This one spares no punches.
• More links: I meant last week to include Brad Lomenick’s latest list of young influencers.
• Kidmin Korner: I didn’t get paid for this, but Phil Vischer’s What’s In the Bible is now available as a church curriculum. (But they know where to mail the check.)
• Pastors burnout and bloggers quit often because they’re living a top-heavy life.
• When President Obama’s State of the Union address had ended, one pastor presented God’s State of the Union address.
• Been invited to a same-sex wedding yet? Check your mailbox. And then check these three articles to consider your response.
• Okay, one last response to Donald Miller, but only because you insisted. Unless, of course, this isn’t how you learn.
• Finally, a Christian fiction title for serious readers who normally don’t touch fiction.

After winning the silver medal in linking at the 2008 Bloglympics, Paul Wilkinson settled into a quiet life of writing at Thinking Out Loud.

If you watch all four parts of the documentary about Burning Man linked above, you discover that all photographs taken at the event become part of a commons that photographers agree to share. It’s part of an overall philosophy that guides the event and why there’s no photo credit here.