Logan's Lowdown

This week my son Logan wrote an article on his MySpace page that certainly challenged me. At times you will recognize that he is a 13 year old kid, fresh from a tremendous church camp experience. At other times I think you will feel that God is speaking to all of us through him. I felt I should share it with you.

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Yesterday I got back from Camp Adrian. It really was amazing. We listened to preachers, sang, and goofed off for a whole week. The very last night at the service we had communion. After communion, one or two kids came to the altar to pray (and cry.) Then two more came...then three...then four...until there were so many kids on the floor in front of the stage that you couldn’t see the altar. I was ok for a while until I started thinking...

"This is amazing. But imagine how many people aren’t here and aren’t having this one of a kind experience? Wait...why aren’t they here? Because...dumb people like me and you are just too lazy to save people's lives! It’s not fair."

Then I slowly walked to the altar. I knelt and began to pray...

"God...give me strength. Give me strength to spread your love to lost people. Give me the strength to not care if I look dumb or ‘over-passionate’ (if there is such a thing)."

Then came the tears.

"God help me not to judge people. I now understand that it isn’t my job to judge, it’s yours. Help me not to care if my friends make fun of me for trying to help people."

I then went to different groups and prayed for the individuals crying for about 20-25 minutes. Then I went off to myself again, and prayed for my brother and dad.

You see....some people don’t do things because they under-estimate themselves. Some are afraid of failure. But most...are simply lazy. And to tell you the truth...it ticks me off.

People die and go to hell, why? Cuz, we're too lazy to even try to help. I don’t know about you, but I intend to change the entire perspective of our so called Christianity. I’ve come to realize that our current “love for Christ” is fake. Please help...the world needs it.

-Logan

Man Up, Church

The future of any organization, community, country, or even church is frequently determined by what the men do. As the men go so goes the _____?_____ fill in the blank. Thankfully, women have often stood up when the men would not; especially in the church. Unfortunately, churches have seemed to either cater to women or just to not cater to men. For whatever reason many men have thought the church was more a place for a woman than for a man. While this may be another convenient male excuse there is some evidence for this. Just look at how most churches are decorated and compare that to every other thing out there attempting to attract an audience. Most churches (especially traditional ones) are either decorated by women or by the people that decorate funeral homes. But all restaurants and most everything else are decorated to get men to walk in the door. Name a restaurant that does not have a male theme, colors, items that attracts men. Look at commercials, billboards, ads...most are geared to men. It is as if the business world has figured out what the church has either refused to see or just can't see--get the men and you get everyone else.

I am convinced we have to appeal to and connect with men if we are going to reach everyone including men. Women will tolerate things geared to men much easier than men will for women. In fact I believe most women are hoping we will fix the men in their lives while guys are often hoping we won't mess their ladies up! The point is that a woman has a vested interest in anything that will help her husband and she will endure a lot to make it happen.

The message series that I am in right now is challenging the guys to Man Up and be all that God wants them to be. But I think churches needs to man up too. Name the women that Jesus pursued for spiritual growth? Now obviously there were women Jesus helped but they seemed to be come to Jesus while he was challenging the men. But Jesus began his ministry by pursuing 12 men to work with him. They were a cross section of blue collar and white collar, young and old, introverts and extroverts...but all men. Jesus pursued them, connected to them through their work, and called to them a great mission. And they responded with almost reckless devotion.

And the results are simply off the charts. Whatever The Crossing will be it has to connect with men and minister to them. We have to Man Up!

Posting challenges

For those of you that read my blog regularly I apologize for not having posted in a while. I am going to be more disciplined in the future. I am just learning the best ways to blog and have a little more work to do to get really good at it. Thanks for your patience.