Wednesday Link List

Featured Stories

Churches Without Buildings – “Church attendance and construction boomed in North America during a time when having your own building was expected. For churches, businesses and families. In my parents’ era, owning real estate was a sign of success, status and stability. So churches that wanted to be seen as reliable and successful bought buildings. Often before there was a congregation to fill them. When someone started their own business, they would leave their house to sit in a building behind a desk all day long – even if every aspect of that business could have been done from their house. The brick-and-mortar building meant reliability and permanence… Brick-and-mortar may not be dead, but it is on life-support… The church should be leading the way in this idea… We already lose more churches every year from inability to pay the mortgage than from any other factor.”  Speaking of buildings…

The Ecology of Worship Gatherings – Every so often I find an article that is a few months old that should not have been missed. Such is the case here on the physical space we use for worship: “The very spatial mediums we use to communicate those messages shape and architect us in powerful ways. In fact, as a medium, the literal physical spaces we use may actually subvert the very messages we are preaching. What if the arrangement of spaces are actually speaking louder than what we are saying in our sermons? …  Ecology is the branch of biology that looks at how organisms relate to one another, and to their physical surroundings. If we apply this field of study to our worship gatherings… The premise of an Ecology of Gathering is that the non-living components dynamically interact and stimulate the living components (biotic), creating a living spiritual climate. This climate communicates a message, and over time, this climate controlled message trains us into a certain way of thinking and behaving.”

Pew Research on Religious Growth to 2050 – “In the United States, Christians will decline from more than three-quarters of the population in 2010 to two-thirds in 2050, and Judaism will no longer be the largest non-Christian religion. Muslims will be more numerous in the U.S. than people who identify as Jewish on the basis of religion…” As to the world as a whole, “by 2050 there will be near parity between Muslims (2.8 billion, or 30% of the population) and Christians (2.9 billion, or 31%), possibly for the first time in history.” The Nones continue to grow also: “At the same time, however, the unaffiliated are expected to continue to increase as a share of the population in much of Europe and North America. In the United States, for example, the unaffiliated are projected to grow from an estimated 16% of the total population (including children) in 2010 to 26% in 2050.” There is much more to the report, presented in text, graphs and tables.

Getting Your Hands Dirty – “I was speaking, learning, teaching, and advocating for mentoring without actually doing it. In anthropology, there are two types of field research: Etic and Emic. Etic researchers make their observations from outside the culture. Emic researchers get up-close to local customs, traditions, and beliefs. Our temptation is to stay on the outside. To be Etic but not Emic. To attend endless conferences, read endless books, buy endless t-shirts. To dump cold water on our heads, take a selfie and hashtag it. To be about the latest ideas, like those on Mars Hill, to be waiting to see something new, like the newest post or picture online. Ideas, when used this way, can be very self-indulgent. All the while, we remain outside the issue, and quite possibly, outside of our own story. But the great ideas – love, justice, intimacy, reconciliation – require something of us.”

CBS Profile of Crossmaker Runs 22 Years Later – On Easter Sunday, CBS ran a profile of a man that was scheduled to appear in 1993. If you’ve driven the interstate highway system, you’ve seen Bernard Coffindaffer’s work: Crosses erected within sight of the freeway. “Coffindaffer has spent his own money on this project — close to $3 million … to buy the wooden poles, to hire road crews, to perform routine cross maintenance.” But the video never aired when he died of a sudden heart attack. Years later, his legacy continues: “There are 48,000 miles of interstate highway in America,” Sara Abraham of Crosses Across America said. “We will have crosses every 25 miles all across America.”

Editorial / Devotional on Christian Maturity– “Jason and I have often wondered what a foreigner or alien would think the church believed if they simply judged us on the books we buy and sell. As I walked through the aisles, I started to worry that they would perceive a church that is weak and powerless, so consumed with our own needs and self-esteem that we constantly battle the same issues, and never become effective agents of God’s mission in the world… Sadly, may of us in America are “grown up,” in that we’ve been serving Christ a long time, but we have not yet reached maturity. Like it says in Hebrews, we should be teachers, but we need someone to teach us the basics over and over again.”

Church History Lesson: The Non-Jurors – “[T]he new order was demanding that all clergy and office holders take oaths to the new king. Many clergy, including some of the church’s greatest spiritual and intellectual beacons, found that they simply could not accept. They refused to swear those oaths, and by dint of that, became non-swearers, “Non-Jurors.” They began a domestic schism from the established church, and ordained their own succession of bishops…They agonized over issues of ecclesiology, and at the same time sought new ways of leading a pure Christian life… you have very likely encountered portions of their writings or hymns. It was for instance Thomas Ken who wrote the famous Doxology.”

When Sharing Your Faith is Costly – The woman in the story works for the government-run National Health Service (NHS) in the UK: “Miss Wasteney had discussions about Christianity and Islam with a junior colleague, Enya Nawaz, and offered to pray with her when she became upset about health problems. She also invited her to church and gave her a book called I Dared to Call Him Father, about a Muslim woman who converted to Christianity. However, Miss Nawaz accused her of trying to convert her to Christianity and made a formal complaint. Miss Wasteney was suspended for nine months while the East London NHS Foundation Trust investigated.” In a story update, the Employment Appeals Tribunal ruled against her.

On My Own Blog – A look at what I call Spiritual Recidivism and a review of Did God Kill Jesus by Tony Jones.

Finally… – How younger leaders can gain credibility, from Brad Lomenick who tracks up-and-coming Christian leaders, 11 suggestions. Sample: “Become an expert NOW, even before you need to be. Set a standard of excellence way before you’re the leader in charge who is expected to. That way when it’s your turn to come off the bench you are ready.”

Short Takes

** Some viewers may be seeing a giant space here, we have no idea why, there’s nothing in the HTML code to account for it **

• Ravi Zacharias’ sister wrote him on National Siblings Day: “Dad always thought you would end up in jail.”
• Speaking of Ravi, a book by Walter Martin which he edited made news this month. Originally published in 1965, The Kingdom of the Cults has reached the 1,000,000 copies milestone.
• This 44-second video is a win on several counts: It involves members of the church family, it provides a unique ending to the sermon, and it offers a fresh way to hear the text.
• On March 1st, a new devotional blog launched and because we know what that’s like we want to offer some encouragement to Rhetorical Jesus.
• Have you heard of The Passion Translation? …
• … Unrelated, we have a new nominee for The Worst Bible Ever.
• Thom Rainer’s reason why, in spite of growing local populations, churches don’t jump over the 350-attendance hurdle.
• Oh, oh! We seem to have fallen off the latest list of the Top 300 Christian Blogs. (An oversight, I’m sure; right?)
• Christian Fashion Week. That’s a thing. No it’s not about modesty, rather the organizers “see it instead as an issue of industry ethics and environmental responsibility.”
• A different type of crowdfunding: These are not the type of solicitations that draw headlines or go viral, but browsing this website shows some needs that are very real.
• A Vermont man refuses to pay for health coverage, knowing $1 of each month’s premium is directly set aside for abortion funding.
• When churches have silent rules and unspoken expectations.

Wow! We’re trending on Twitter:

Seven Years of Thinking Out Loud

The first post, February 24, 2008 – We began this journey as a response to comments I was getting from an email newsletter I produced that people “liked the articles.” The first post was titled “Honestly! The world DOES need another blog page!” and consisted of some excerpts from the 2003 book A is for Abductive by Leonard Sweet, Brian McLaren and Jerry Haselmayer. Interesting to look back and consider that aspect of the blog’s beginning alone.

…It appears that God may be more active outside the church than in it. In other words, “inside the church” may not be the best place to share in God’s work, and if we want to be involved in God’s work, we may need to get out more.

…It may be more valid to celebrate this idea of God’s activity outside the church, because perhaps God’s purpose for the church all along has been to equip people to be agents through whom God works in the world.

…It may be helpful for us to distinguish between “church work” (i.e. our work inside the church to keep it going) and “the work of the church” (i.e. the church fulfilling its mission in the world). …The old complaint about 20% of the people doing 80% of the church work in this light may be misguided. If the minority (20%) can do church work, then maybe the majority (80%) can focus on serving God outside the box and boat.

First Anniversary, February 24, 2009 – Noted the day before that the first year I wrote 660 posts, an average of two a day.

I figured I wouldn’t write anything; I’d just use a huge backlog of articles I’d developed in other places for other reasons.    Boy, did I get that one wrong.   As every Israelite knows, the manna doesn’t stay fresh for long.

I also figured I’d read more stuff online, but didn’t realize that other bloggers would spur me on to read more books as well.   Do I get a diploma for doing this?   A little academic credit perhaps?”

Second Anniversary, February 23, 2010 – Had to celebrate a day early because the midweek link list was already becoming a priority.  It was noted that:

Thinking Out Loud began the same week as two other blogs, 22 Words and Stuff Christians Like…

…It’s also interesting to note that — as far as Canada is concerned — each day, I get to speak to six times as many adults than half of all pastors here see on Sunday morning…

Too bad those other two blogs never amounted to anything! My statement of purpose at this point was:

I also want to continue to make this a blog for the ‘spiritual commoner.’   That’s the person who feels he or she has a real contribution to make to the life of their church, Christian fellowship or broader community…

Third Anniversary, February 24, 2011 – Christianity 201 had launched that year…

I remember years ago participating in a discussion about the “emerging” internet where the main concern ran something like this, “How are they ever going to get enough content to keep those websites supplied with fresh material?”

How indeed?

In 2011, a better question might be, “How does one find enough hours in the day to read all the sites they are subscribed to or have bookmarked?” I figure a typical week lands me on about 1,000 different types of internet sites, and I don’t consider myself a heavy online user. Every single person reading this actually has a completely unique internet experience weekly.

Today, this blog enters year four. I have mixed feelings about that. I’m happy that this blog has become a voice albeit in a crowded room of voices all talking at once. I’m continually amazed — and somewhat humbled — that hundreds of you show up here every day, many just to see what’s been posted recently…

…There is much to be thankful for today. I actually oversee seven blogs now, of which the latest, Christianity 201, has arrived on the scene since we celebrated this time last year. It keeps me humbled. Very humbled. While some endeavors in the Christian life remind you how far you’ve come and what you have accomplished, C201 reminds me of how far I’ve got to go.  Jesus set the bar rather high.

A handful of you also read my book industry blog, Christian Book Shop Talk… Yesterday’s post had someone suggesting bookstores are going the way of record shops and video rental stores. Sigh. In that setting, I get to be a voice in an increasingly empty room…

Fourth Anniversary, February 24, 2012 – A rather light and concise post:

I decided to check the blog’s dashboard to see what other meaningful statistic I could parade out before you on this solemn occasion, and I found this:

Akismet has protected your site from 294,600 spam comments already.

I don’t know how that compares with the big boys, but I’m honored just to think that on 294,600 occasions Russian models and manufacturers of imitation European handbags found this particular blog so worth spamming. And while the rest of the blog stats may pale in comparison, just think how quickly they are about to rise now that we’ve used the phrase ‘Russian models.’

Fifth Anniversary, February 24, 2013 – This one is probably the most interesting and the only one I’ll actually link to here. I listed, in no particular order, ten things I’ve learned in the course of reading and writing Christian blogs. I might re-run this item later in the week, but in the meanwhile, here is the link. There was also a regular anniversary column the day before:

I am really happy that I launched Thinking Out Loud all those years ago. I have met some of the greatest people, been encouraged to read some of the most interesting books, have been kept abreast of some of the most bizarre religious news stories, and mostly, I have been forced to think about things that I might have never considered.

Sixth Anniversary, February 24, 2014 – At this point the Wednesday Link List had become part of what is now called PARSE, the former Out of Ur blog.

I’m also thankful that this summer, Thinking Out Loud gained a greater platform itself by becoming a weekly part of life at Leadership Journal, a division of Christianity Today. I still believe it’s a greater thing to make the news (in a good way, not the weird stories) than it is to simply write the news. But I don’t mind playing scribe if it means I get to choose some things I think are worth noting as part of each week’s passing scene.

I am truly grateful for being able to be in online contact with an organization I have always respected and some people who I was already aware of. Thanks to Skye, Drew, Paul P. and Tim for your encouragement.

…which brings us to Seventh Anniversary, February 24, 2015 

 

I thought of including a screenshot of the first column, but like the McDonald’s logo, not much has changed here visually. 3,094 published columns later, I’m still happy I started this little project.

As blog readership continues to wane as people have so many choices online, I’m pleased to report that Christianity 201 continues to attract new readers. If you ask me which blog I think about first thing in the morning, it really does vary. I enjoy doing both, and while I could have kept both types of articles on a single platform at Thinking Out Loud, I’m glad that separating them forces me to look at both types of writing on a daily basis.

If you read widely on the Christian internet, you know that the definition of evangelical is currently under the microscope, but I want to keep the writing at Thinking Out Loud somewhat mainstream evangelical as I believe that the voices from the margins tend to dominate. That said however, those voices have much to contribute.

There’s an adage that “even a stopped clock is wrong twice a day,” and I feel that instead of looking for the thing to criticize, we ought to look for the little gems — the nuggets of gold — where writers we might otherwise disagree with actually do get it right. Unfortunately, there isn’t a lot of grace online, even among Christians. This always saddens me.

I think that’s why doing the link list is so much fun. Again, I am forced to read the widest variety of Christian news and opinion pieces from a vast field of writers I might not otherwise consider. I may disagree totally with what they wrote Thursday and Saturday, but if they make some good points on Friday, I want to be able to celebrate that.

I’d like to think that I am capable of sitting down for coffee with any writer who has trusted in the atoning work of Christ on Calvary for salvation. I do know that some of them might not want to reciprocate that. That is unfortunate and I believe grieves the Holy Spirit.

In conclusion, I guess I’m just grateful for what this writing platform had done for my own Christian growth and understanding of the Church, the body of Christ. I’m also thankful for the books it compels me to read which enhance my understanding of God and His ways. And last, I’m thankful for you, the faithful readers whose page views and link clicks demonstrate a shared interest in these things.

Thinking Out Loud: Matters of Faith Because Faith Matters

Year 8 begins tomorrow with the Wednesday Link List

 

 

 

 

Wednesday Link List

I was looking around for pictures of the 2014 Wild Goose Festival, and found this one from 2013.  Anyone know the backstory on this?

Now that the eye burn-in from weekend fireworks has faded, it’s time to see what people have been reading over the past few days:

• Meet Bibliotheca, the 4-volume esoteric Bible edition that’s taking Kickstarter by storm. You have 18 days to order for Christmas.
• “She was forced into prostitution and suffered unimaginable abuses for twenty years. Miraculously, she survived” Lynne Hybels on Lisa’s Story, and how blog readers made a difference.
• Imagine this: You’re a nurse applying for a job and you get this response, “Due to the fact that…you are a member of AAPLOG [American Association of Pro-Life Obstetricians and Gynecologists], we would be unable to move forward in the interviewing process.”  A lawsuit is in the works.
• …In other legal news, WWJD is now a registered trademark.
• Under changes made last week, Anglican Priests in Australia who listen to parishioners confessing to serious crimes are no longer under obligation to keep the confessional confidential.
• Charts and Diagrams Department: Learning to distinguish between cardinal beliefs and non-cardinal beliefs, and how your choices describe you.
• Just when I thought I’d sorted out all the issues in the Supreme Court Hobby Lobby decision, it turns out to be more complex.
• Two thought-provoking articles on Internet Monk this week. First, Mike Bell looks at the migration that takes place between Evangelical and liturgical traditions…
• …Days later, Chaplain Mike (different writer) looks at the idea of Patriotic Sunday as seen through the lens of a broader worldview.
• Quotation of the Week: Former Chicago Bear Israel Idonije on his communion cups business; “Its not about how many people I tackle each day. It’s not about how many hundreds of millions cups we sell at the end of the day, it’s about the platform.” Coming soon: A pre-filled wine option.
• For Missionary Kids, returning to life in North America can be a challenge.
• Missions meets technology. To be in the know of what’s taking place in Bible translation and distribution is to be aware of Galcom and MegaVoice and Faith Comes By Hearing.
• Essay of the Week (1): Brian Zahnd on listening to the echoes of voices from another time and another place; the not so pop blasts from the past.
• Essay of the Week (2): Gospel Coalition, meet the Anabaptists. Sample: “Due to its reluctance to crown any one theological voice, Anabaptism is multi-voiced and dialogical.”
• Essay of the Week (3): An in depth analysis of the “rave sermon” at the 2014 Wild Goose Festival. (Sermon meets dance party; you do that at your church, too, right?)
• Let’s all take a deep breath and try this one on: Women can’t teach but they can give sermons…
• …The book was certainly the most-talked-about book this week. In a subsequent blog post, Jeremy Bouma excerpted author John Dickson’s main points.
• Re-post of the Week: Renee Robertson’s letter to her boys on why they are the only ones not clutching a phone or iPad…
• …However, if your parenting style varies, YouVersion reports the latest from Bible App for Kids is Two by Two, the story of Noah…
• …And then there’s “the fence metaphor;” useful in talking sexuality with your kids…
• …Finally in our Parenting Department: I wish I’d seen this three weeks ago, in time for Father’s Day. Then again, I wish I’d seen this ten years ago.
• Practical Pastoring: How to organize your library; a 3-minute video.
• As Christian publishers continue to offer specialty or boutique imprints, Thomas Nelson introduces Refraction.
• Millennials may long for transcendence more than coolness. Honestly, I read the entire article before I noticed who wrote it.
• At least he was honest: Singer Shaun Groves is asked by a retired financial planner, “What’s the least I can give?”
• Jesus welcomed everyone to the city: This pre-World Cup poem can just as easily be adapted post-World Cup…
• …and while we’re on the topic of poetry, how about a sample section of The Psalms of David in Metre, first published in 1991. (Great for adults who never outgrew their Arch Books.)
• Missed this one a month ago: The President of Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary granted admission to a practicing Muslim.
• In Sudan, another church is bulldozed as members watch.
• First, John Piper wrote, “Farewell, Rob Bell.” Now he writes, “Goodbye, Burger King.”
• Last week a blogger posed a good question: If we do things in ‘heaven,’ will everything we do be right the first time, or will some things require a do over?
• According to Facebook data, Momastery is the number two Christian blog.
• Dealing with homelessness: A tale of two cities.
• Video of the Week: Tye Tribbett wins this week for so many reasons. (Turn up the volume and get on your feet!)
• Also making sound waves this week, all 7-minutes of This I Believe, a new video from the new Hillsong album.
• Video classic: Just rediscovered the band Adam Again and the song Life in the First Degree, from 1986.
• Links to more links: Another month-end list of young influencers from Brad Lomenick.

Not sure of the origin of the picture below. It was captioned, “What Happened to the Dinosaurs” and the picture file was labeled “Shoo!”

Six Years of Thinking Out Loud: A Blogversary

Today Thinking Out Loud begins its seventh year.

Whoda thunk it? What does one say on such an auspicious occasion?

I guess today I’m struck by the contrast between this blog and most of the others I personally read, which are written by pastors and Christian authors. Is the difference here what brings in so many readers each month? I don’t really think so, but I think it’s important that other people have a voice at the online table. I also know that six years (plus a few reading others and writing an e-newsletter that predates this) of delving into the various issues that occupy space in the Christian blogosphere have been like a graduate school education in both theology itself, ecclesiology and the tension between Christianity and culture.

I have allowed myself to be shaped by the writers I read, but by also trained myself to unlearn some things some of them have said when, with the passage of time, their perspectives have become questioned. To paraphrase something my wife’s brother said on Twitter, ‘I’m not here because of what I have to say, rather because it gives me a reason to eavesdrop on so many interesting people.’

I’m also thankful that this summer, Thinking Out Loud gained a greater platform itself by becoming a weekly part of life at Leadership Journal, a division of Christianity Today. I still believe it’s a greater thing to make the news (in a good way, not the weird stories) than it is to simply write the news. But I don’t mind playing scribe if it means I get to choose some things I think are worth noting as part of each week’s passing scene.

So with all the writing that happens here, do I wish I was a published author? I think everyone has a book or two in them.  But not six. The Christian publishing establishment loves to take someone who has a hit title and make a brand out of it. But often the spinoffs are never as vital or passionate as the original. Still, I tried it once, the material is now dated, and I enjoy simply giving away content here each day as long as people come by even though this, combined with my equally non-remunerative vocation was recently calculated to represent a loss of income over the past 20 years in the neighborhood of $1,000,000.00

The phrase “Do Not Attempt” should be at the bottom of each page.

Do I wish I was a local church pastor? Not a senior pastor, though I often wonder about the church plant I did before starting this blog. What if it had been allowed a longer run than its 18-months existence; if a few more months might have made it into something more sustainable, or if a co-leader would have appeared on the horizon to boost the project and give me an occasional break?

As it stands, my local church participation is limited, as in non-existent. Am I a prophet without honor in my own community? That sounds noble. Maybe the supply of able-bodied people willing to serve outstrips the demand — at least for my gift set — so the opportunities go to the younger and better looking. (Think about it, when have you actually seen my picture here?) Heck, they don’t even hand me a plate and ask me to help take up the offering. I think the pastors here have banded together to create a no-fly zone where I’m not allowed to come within 20-feet of a live microphone; a sort of restraining order only I wasn’t served with my copy.  This would explain why all the pulpit supply requests I get are from out of town.

But again, to return to where I began, I think that living in that tension is what gives Thinking Out Loud its unique perspective. Most people who come here have never written a book or preached a sermon, or even served on a church board.

Pastors and Christian authors are great. I’m a fan of many of them, and of the process that gets them their platform. I do truly believe the cream rises to the top. But interacting with your Christian friends and your small group also provides an “iron sharpens iron” experience that can be equally enriching.

In that sense, I think the group of bloggers called “Mommy bloggers” have it right. These women — some, but not all of whom are also home-schoolers — share a ‘Christian life in the trenches’ experience each day that might be dismissed by the academics and Biblical scholars and religious ‘professionals,’ but feeds them daily with spiritual nutrition enriched by everyday life and the lessons that our children and extended families teach us.

So with that in mind, for year seven, I thought I’d devote this space exclusively to recipes and laundry tips. What do you think?

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Okay, so that was more personal this year, if you want to know my blog values, there’s this post from last year’s birthday, where you’ll also find I had the energy to write a double post that day.

Graphic: The banners that never were; these are actually from other blogs with the not-so-original name!  (We could have added this one, but you don’t steal images from photographers, at least not consciously.)

If you’ve never done so, be sure to visit this blog’s companion page, Christianity 201. Both are published 365-days a year!

Wednesday Link List

A lot of people are critical of short-term missions, but right now, a plane ticket to somewhere warm would look really appealing. In the meantime, here are some links to keep you warm, clicking anything that follows will take you to PARSE at Christianity Today and then you can click through from there.

• Our opener this week is from Soujourners, a list of ten things a true Jesus-follower should never be caught saying.
• It’s a major programming shift at the Trinity Broadcasting Network. Some longtime shows are off the schedule, with replacements not yet known.
• Finally! At last! Someone is planting a Bible-believing church in Atlanta. A few days later, the blogger who posted that one responded to comments.
• What’s most interesting about the man who was molested by a Florida Baptist pastor is the size of the settlement: $12.5 million.
• Missed this one earlier this month, five questions with veteran missionary Don Richardson, and some surprising answers.
• You know him as Hercule Poirot, but actor David Suchet has just finished a complete audio recording of the NIV Bible.
• Clemency: An eight-letter word meaning Iran could release imprisoned U.S. Pastor Saeed Abedini on its own terms. (Keep praying.)
• Did the onstage actions of a former CCM artist cause a current CCM artist to get up and leave the Grammy Awards?  Could have been several reasons.
• Say what you want while touring the holy land, but don’t try to convert Muslims or knock Allah, warns a billboard.
• Essay of the Week: Asking someone about their ethnicity isn’t just politically incorrect; it’s also spiritually incorrect.
• Book industry behemoth Amazon — already publishing and marketing its own original titles — has now entered the world of Christian publishing with Waterfall Press. (Wow! Too close for comfort to Random House’s Christian imprint Waterbrook Press.)
• The final episode of Bible Secrets on the History network dealt with what the Bible says about sex. Unfortunately, the Bible doesn’t say what the producers suggested.
• “Translations can also be a window to our heart and theology and preferences.” The Bible you choose probably says much about your tribe…
• …And how many Bibles do you have at home? This video reminds me the value of something we take for granted.
• This link, ooh ooh, takes you, la la la, to an article by Bob yea-ah! Kauflin about these extra, whoa-oa-oh, generic syllables added to some worship songs.
• If you’re the kind of person who gets their kicks out of reading all the inane comments in your blog’s spam filter, you might also enjoy the insights on the Bible Students Say… Twitter feed.
• In a 40-minute Skype interview, Greg Boyd describes his journey to identify as an Anabaptist.
• An alternative to the dominant theory: What if Bonhoeffer stuck to his pacifist guns? (Pun intended.)
• Just for Women: Clothing matters, but it’s not what’s at the heart of modesty.
• The Pentagon is now allowing military personnel to request time off for prayer or to attend a religious service, and also allowing the wearing of religious clothing, as long as these things don’t impair the country’s defense mission.
• I never thought of those long lists of genealogies as The Traffic Jams of the Bible.
• From the same Jesus People who brought you the Cornerstone Festival, a new Covenant Church launches in The Wilson Abbey.
• After 40 years, a CNN reporter notes six changes evident in this year’s March for Life.
• Seven signs the book you’re reading was written by a prosperity preacher.
• Spiritual abuse in church can take many forms, and sometimes, it’s pastors who are the victims. One church owned up to this, and took steps to repentance. (Be sure to click through all five pages.)
• Well, one unhappy customer has filled in his comment card, and thinks that John Piper’s books and weekly YouTube Encyclicals take personal opinion and transmit it as doctrine.
• Liberty University has just posted a video that at least one writer might consider watching, Avoiding Plagiarism. (But skip the one on formatting essays, for 28 painful minutes the person operating the camera didn’t format his screen, and we miss 100% of the slides the lecturer keeps referring to!)
• Christian singer Jamie Grace discusses her new album and being a performing artist with Tourette Syndrome.
• Deep and Concise: We often say that “God exists outside of time;” but perhaps he allows himself to submit to it.
• You never know what’s around the corner online. This week it was SeekFind.org, a Christian search engine that seems both functional and discerning in terms of what sites are included.
• Steve McCoy asked his Twitter followers what they would choose if their future reading was limited to 3, 4 or 5 books, and got lots of responses.
• From the poet laureate of worship in the UK, Graham Kendrick, a beautiful worship song from three years ago with Good Friday applications.
• In all the excitement over the music in the forthcoming Alone Yet Not Alone movie, it’s easy to forget that before there was a movie, there was the book…
• …However, where one writer says the book and movie stand in relation to sectarian movements within Christianity may surprise you.
• KidMin Corner: Even if it’s not related to this week’s lesson, how can you deprive the kids of a chance to make an Elijah Taken up to Heaven Mask?
• I hate when this happens: You’re the Pope and you go to release a couple of peace doves and they get attacked by seagulls and crows.
• Unconventional Canadian Christian broadcaster Drew Marshall reflects on the recent antics of two of Canada’s favorite sons.
• Finally, another pair of silly articles highlighting Arminian and Reformed differences. No chickens were injured in the making of these, I trust.

We leave you today with “the thrill that’ll gitcha when ya get your picture on the cover of the Rolling Stone.”  In this case, Pope Francis in the current issue; click the image to read the story.

Paul Wilkinson is based in Canada — “You liked the first Polar Vortex so much we’re sending you another one” — and blogs at Thinking Out Loud and Christian Book Shop Talk. 

Wednesday Link List

Foxtrot circa 2003

Been away all summer? In July the Wednesday Link List was the victim of a corporate takeover…. to see the version of this containing the links, you have to click over to Out of Ur, a blog of Leadership Journal, a division of Christianity Today.

• Why should the devil have all the good parties? An expert in block parties suggests that Christians should host the best street events.
• It’s hard to find a place where fracking isn’t a hot environmental issue. What if your church could register claim to the mineral rights underneath the church building?
• Duck Dynasty star Jase Robertson is kicked out of the Trump hotel when it’s assumed he is a homeless man, in another case of “facial profiling.”
• Dara Maclean’s video for “Wanted” is powerful both musically and lyrically, but the critics think the glamor/fashion element is overplayed.
• We’re not sure if it’s a King James Bible or just a generic Bible, but by 2015 you’ll be seeing .bible as an internet domain name.
• Last year over 13,100 churches participated in a growing national movement and on average saw a 38% increase in their attendance on Back to Church Sunday.
• Much of the week’s news focus was on Egypt, where the Defense Minister vows to rebuild damaged churches.
• What if we saw the Bible less as a prison sentence and more like a permission slip? Check out a 2-minute sermon highlights video where Steven Furtick takes a fresh approach to financial giving.
• When it comes to role of women in the early church, one author believes that part of the story has been “airbrushed from history.”
• What’s a former Saddleback worship leader doing in a Canadian jail? It could have something to do with things allegedly found in his luggage.
• Alise Wright drives nearly an hour to attend a church where, by her own admission, she doesn’t fit in.
• With great regret, in the wake of the loss of his wife and publishing ministry partner on May 8th, Keith Brenton announces the shuttering of Wineskins Magazine.
• Rick Warren is raising awareness, but one Canadian blogger thinks the church is generally skittish when it comes to mental health issues.
• A popular devotional blog provides some background to the forthcoming book Dying Out Loud by Shawn Smucker, the story of missionaries Stan and Ann Steward.
• When viewers phone in to respond to a Billy Graham television program, they don’t know where the calls are being answered. A call center might actually be a transformed Savannah, Georgia chiropractic clinic.
• The former Crystal Cathedral, now Christ Cathedral — home of the world’s 4th largest church organ — begins $53 million in renovations to bring it up to Catholic standards, I’m guessing.
• You may call them board members, or even, as one church in my area does “The Directorate.” But there’s still good application in this article about the ordination of elders.
• On the other side of the pond, it’s not just Presbyterians, but Anglicans who have trouble with that verse in In Christ Alone. [Note: BCP = Book of Common Prayer]
• The more the merrier: By the time you read this it’s already eight days old, but Phil Vischer Podcast #64 with Sara Groves and Todd Groves ranks as one my favorites.
• Worship Department: First, we followed the CCLI Top 25 song charts by country; but now there’s also the Praise Charts chart. (Not a typo!)
• A Chattanooga, Tennessee pastor offers five reasons why discipleship should take place in small groups.
• Not sure how long this will be there, but the full 70-minutes of Nick Vujicic’s Life Without Limbs video is currently available to watch online.
• Church History Department: Yes it was his real name. Pentecostal pioneer Smith Wigglesworth passed away in 1947, but like many classic authors his books still sell and he is still tweeting.   (C. S. Lewis tweets several times a day!)
• Ask the Doctor: A flashback to last year, where Dr. Russell Moore answered, Should a Christian wedding photographer shoot a same-sex marriage ceremony?
• Who needs videos of cute cats when you can join 600,000 people online and watch an Oklahoma pastor’s sermon where he takes a strip off some of his congregants by name.

Well, we could just keep on going, but we might lose some of you around link #50. The action stays here at Thinking Out Loud the rest of the week, or you can always join my rather anemic group of followers on Twitter.  And again, in case you missed it, the links are active at Out of Ur.  A final graphic — one of last week’s links — from Sacred Sandwich:

Wednesday Link List

I thought we’d kick off with something timely for back-to-school from Zazzle.com:

Here are this week’s links, and one or two I accidentally left off last week’s list.  As usual you need to scoot over to Out of Ur for the actual linking.

• Yeah, I know. Three links to Dictionary of Christianese in six weeks.  But how I could pass when the word was narthex? Meet you in the narthex when you’re done reading the rest of the list.
• A trailer is out for a movie celebrating 40 years of England’s Greenbelt Music & Arts Festival.
• Francine Rivers’ Redeeming Love is an all-time Christian fiction bestseller. Now, word that after many years, Bridge to Haven, a new title, will release in spring 2014.
• Essay of the Week: A Facebook fast isn’t fasting. Actress and writer Hannah Rivard guest posts at The Rebelution, the blog of Alex and Brett Harris.
• A Tennessee judge rules you can’t call a child Messiah.
• The above item reminds us of a story we did a few months ago: In New Zealand you can name a kid Faith, Hope or Charity, but not Justice.  (They turned down two Messiah’s there also.)
• Because your kids’ picture Bible storybooks tend to be family friendly, odds are that these five stories didn’t make the final edit.
• Related: A serious management feasibility study on how Noah got all the animals to fit inside.
• At Stuff Christians Like, a few lines of dialog that even your adult Bible is missing.
• The best articles on Bible translation are always written by people who actually do Bible translation.
• Despite being on record as not wanting to speak to certain topics, it turns out that C. S. Lewis actually did address homosexuality.
• You’ve heard him on radio, now meet the face behind the voice: Christian financial planning expert Dave Ramsey takes to video.
• If we believe in the priesthood of all believers, does that by definition diminish the need for structured leadership?
• Another outdoor concert stage collapse, this time involving Christian bands MercyMe and The Afters at the Cleveland County fairgrounds.
• The names have been changed to protect both the innocent and the guilty: A tale of two pastoral transitions.
• We may be on a journey to eternal life, but a Pew Research survey claims that only one in three of us want this life to last eternally.
• David Hayward aka The Naked Pastor is the latest Christian blogger to try the podcast thing.
• Confession isn’t just good for the soul, it’s necessary for taking steps toward a holy God.
• In the Assemblies of God denomination, growth is taking place, but their trademark distinctive, speaking in tongues, is on the decline.
• Is it blasphemous or just plain vulgar? A UK vicar claims the former Archbishop of Canterbury rode in her car and wasn’t disturbed by her edgy and controversial bumper sticker.  [Content advisory]
• Related: Describing her book as “a messy profanity- and prayer-laden theological memoir,” the Sarcastic Lutheran aka Nadia Bolz-Weber introduces Pastrix. No wonder reviewers like myself aren’t being given advance copies. Here’s a video trailer. [Much stronger content advisory: NSFCO (Not safe for church offices)]
• In your local church, do you have the gift of diapers or the gift of chairs?
• Hoping to flee what they consider U.S. government interference in religion; a family ends up lost at sea.
• I never know how to end the list each week, but the Canadian in me is drawn to this.

The graphic below was located at The Master’s Table, where similar things can be found each Monday. (You’ll have to look up the verses.)

One thing I really miss with the new arrangement is the feedback from readers on particular links. So feel free to comment either here or at Out of Ur.

Wednesday Link List

Is it Wednesday already? Time for another list of links of interest to people like you from blogs and websites great and small. But wait! None of the links below actually work; you need to click through to the Wednesday Link List’s new home at Out of Ur, the blog of Leadership Journal.

• How about a 19-second video to kick things off? (Apologies to those who clicked!)
• Frank Viola offers a completely different take on the spiritual life of John Lennon.
• What did the Pope really say in that in-flight news conference? One writer thinks it’s not exactly what was reported.
• You thought there were fewer this year and you were right. Stats on why not as many churches are doing VBS.
• Got the standard 2.3 kids? John Wesley would not approve. I suppose you could call this an article about being procreative.
• A UK church organist, 68, was walking to a midnight Christmas Eve service as he had done for 40 years when two men, both 22, beat him to death in a motiveless attack. Now, his widow offers a message of forgiveness.
• Essay of the Month for June (but you may not like it): The atheist daughter of a noted Christian apologist shares her story so far.
• Related: An Atheism, Theism, Agnosticism, Gnosticism infographic.
• Essay of the Week: Ten things church worship leaders want the rest of us to understand.
• Related: What if we looked at our church’s corporate worship time as a spiritual discipline?
• The year isn’t even over and already we have a winner for the worst reporting of a religious story in 2013.
• I’ll let Michael Frost Tweet this intro: “The conservative journal Christianity Today makes the case for welcoming same-sex couples to church.”
• A blog to know about: Jesus I Will Follow You is a tumblr that answers questions from young readers on tough subjects.
• From my own blog this week: A blog summary on the Presbyterian Church USA’s “In Christ Alone” hymnbook controversy and a look at same sex marriage in the Anglican Church of Canada.
• It’s easy to deal with what’s appropriate beachwear for women when you’re on a Christian radio show. It’s harder when it’s your own 13-year old daughter.
• Rob Bell is offering two more of his 2-day conferences in September and October that are already renowned for their lunch break to go surfing.
• Music to brighten your day: Shine Bright Baby’s song from their new album Dreamers; enjoy Beautiful Love.
• A link that takes you to more links: An Arizona pastors offers a 6-part blog series on the sins pastors commit including letting their wives manage everything on the homefront.
• Here’s a March post which is a link to ten articles at the blog “Canon Fodder” by the author of The Question of Canon on — wait for it — ten things you should know about the New Testament canon.
• In searching through blogs I had bookmarked months earlier, I landed on this very succinct post which I offer for your prayer consideration.
• Before you hit the FWD button next time, here’s four reasons that Christians need to stop forwarding hoax emails.
• A historic Roman Catholic Church that is already a shrine to a saint whose legacy is devotion to animals plans to set aside a memorial space for Fido and Fluffy.
• Your assignment: Write a modern worship chorus utilizing the titles of television soap operas. [Warning: Consumes 4.5 valuable minutes]
• Finally, a reminder for the end of the week, end of the month, end of the summer, or anytime you need a reminder.

I have no idea where the first graphic — the premise of which I’m not sure I agree with — originated; but the comic books below are purported to be real.  For additional wit and wisdom, follow me (please!) on Twitter. And one last time, here’s the link to today’s Wednesday Link List without the Linkectomy.

Wednesday Link List

So, is Pope Francis a revivalist?

Now, on to the links…

Some very, very high profile Christian sites and at least one radio show get their news stories here. We know who you are…

• Jamie, The Very Worst Suburbanite reflects on life in the ‘burbs here vs. life in the ‘burbs in Honduras in The Color of Greige. 
• With help from a Gordon College professor, the classic handicapped icon/logo/thing is getting an entirely new vitality. 
• Knowing Nik Wallenda made it safely doesn’t make it any easier to watch, even in this 90 second summary video.
• Its been one year since Saeed Abedini said goodbye to his family to build orphanages in Iran. Help us bring him home.
• Got a son or daughter entering high school? It might be time to buy them a necklace.
• Publisher Thomas Nelson reports on Twitter that already six colleges have signed on to use Ken Wytsma’s Pursuing Justice as a textbook. But then, we predicted that.
  
• Find your pastor: Phillip Wilson invites you to play Top Twelve Preacher Styles. Hopefully your minister isn’t in this list at all. 
• Critics have accused the Scottish Government of following the same failed approach of ever-more sex education at ever-younger ages to lower the teen pregnancy rate. Now they’re talking preschool.
  
• Essay of the week: Go deeper with Michah Murray on the concept of Love The Sinner Hate The Sin.
• Photo essay of the week: A visit to the abandoned Holy Land theme park in Connecticut, closed since ’84.   
• This 2-minute video is the reason I part company with John MacArthur’s dispensationalism and anti-Charismatic rhetoric.
• The Dictionary of Christianese defines traveling mercies and the many variations on cradle Christian. Be sure to also see, bookmark and use their full index of terms defined so far.
  
• World awareness: Here are five quick facts on the problems caused by lack of access to safe drinking water.
  
• Author Max Lucado has formed a partnership with Thomas Nelson and The Salvation Army (SA), to produce a special SA edition of You’ll Get Through This: Hope and Help for Your Turbulent Times
  
• Have you or someone you know been hurt by a local church? Here are things to remember and steps to take. 
• Ever feel like God is ticked off with you right now? Here’s a take on the question, Does God get disappointed with us? 
• Warning: You may disagree with this 3 1/2 minute video on debunking rapture doctrine.
  
• Jen Hatmaker’s end of school year parent confessional went viral and is closing in on 4,400 comments. 
• The website of the Smithsonian Institute profiles the unique and often controversial ministry of Aimee Semple McPherson.
  
• A Baptist church in Georgia (the European country, not the US state) finds middle ground with its high orthodox neighbors by using robes and incense. 
• With a new album ready to release, Andrew Schwab talks to Matt Greiner of the band August Burns Red. 
• In other CCM news, usually the people who lead Holy Land tours are somewhat older authors, pastors or musicians. So… an Audio Adrenaline tour of Israel? 
• After at least four years, Paul Baloche is releasing another worship album in French. 
• Lamentable blog discovery of the week: Pimp Preacher, a collection of con artistry by minsters, from the Preacher Bureau of Investigation.
  
• Steven Furtick with a short piece on The Real Test of Worship, reblogged from 2010 for a new audience.
• Please note that if you have a blog and about 15 seconds after it opens it starts playing very loud music that you like but maybe nobody else likes, we will not link to it.
• That’s it for this link list; stay ‘linked’ during the week here and on Twitter.
  

The Wednesday List Lynx might be getting a new home as early as next week.

Stop the presses! Is this the last link list?

We’re cooking up a partnership that could mean more people than ever would get to share in what we’ve been doing here for five years. Just think of the larger number of people who would get saved just clicking on these same stories. They might not even have to click; conviction might come just by reading the teasers. 

Really, why are we considering this? It’s about power and the ability to take bribes to promote various blogs and websites.

So stay tuned. Same bat time. Same bat channel. But maybe not actually same bat channel.

Media Determines Message

When I started on Twitter a few months ago, my goal was to mirror the subject areas I write about here, since there are the types of things I’m truly interested in. But the 140-character maximum is truly limiting. Yes, I can simply link people back here, and I’ve done that; but in terms of having original content on the blue bird website, my thoughts go in a different direction, and some of these could never be fleshed out into full blog pieces. 

Here’s how the first few months have looked from oldest to newest, and not including some great re-tweets by others or quotes:

• First Tweet: So here we are, another voice spitting into the wind. God bless this Twitter feed and all who sail in her. Or something.
• I’m now receiving much classier email spam. The Russian girls who wanted to meet me have been replaced by people with stock market tips.
• Watching the show His Place on Cornerstone Television — it’s still on — and wishing I’d stayed in TV production. http://hisplace.tv
• Arriving late to the party, but finally discovering and really appreciating The Voice version of the Bible. http://hearthevoice.com
• If you want to make an impact with your charitable giving you should give to people doing ministry without the prospect of a weekly paycheck
• Everybody loves the bookstore, but nobody buys any books. http://edgecitycomics.com/comics/march-17-2013/ …
• I think all the people I’m following are male. In a ‘recommended for you’ list today, only three of 30 were female. This is different than blogging.
• Need encouragement? If you blog, read all the stuff in your spam filter. Those guys love you.
• “At or during which time water vapor condenses and precipitates downward from the upper atmosphere,such precipitation flows intensely and unabated.”  (figured it out?)
  
• I’m organizing a travel tour thing beginning in a Wesleyan college in western New York & ending in Jerusalem. I call it the Israel Houghton Tour.
• When shopping at the Salvation Army Thrift Shop, always double-check which side of the shirt the buttons are on. They mis-filed one!
• I think there should be a rule that for every book an author writes for the Christian market, they have to do one aimed at non-Christians.
• Keep waking up at 4 AM. Is mentally reciting the books of the Bible (alphabetically) helping me clear my head, or making my brain even more awake? Not sure.
• The next generation won’t be so concerned with mastering ‘knowledge,’ they will merely have to master ‘search.’
• My sister-in-law thinks that Facebook exists for the sole  purpose of posting pictures of food; specifically every lunch and dinner, both home and out
• Three conversations recently with people who assured me they’re attending church regularly, but when asked couldn’t remember the church’s name.
• In theory anyway, birthdays not ending in a ‘0’ or a ‘5’ are less traumatic.
• Worship leaders naturally find their spirits lifted by new songs; church congregations are naturally averse to learning new songs.
• Is always having music playing in the background all about our love of music, or does it say more about our fear of silence?

Some of this reminds me of the SNL segment, “Deep Thoughts With Jack Handy.” You can’t do a lot of depth in 140 keystrokes, so by definition things sound pithy or even trite.

Still, I finding this particular social media animal to be a good fit. I get to interact with the thoughts of people I truly respect, as I noted in this quotation which is actually my brother-in-law’s profile:

• I’m not on Twitter because of what I have to say, but because it allows me to eavesdrop on so many interesting people.