Enjoying Christmas Story Time w/ @joshjackaway at Restore's Christmas Eve Service.

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I had no idea Mary & Joseph had Aflac...

via patternsrus.com

...or perhaps the goose is their supper. That would make a nice Christmas dinner!

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Merry Christmas from my Non-Angry Family...

Sunday night I uploaded our family Christmas newsletter.  This year's theme: Angry Birds (and overcoming challenges).

If you haven't had a chance to see it, just go over to TheBirdnest.net.

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Super excited for Restore's Big Give launching today

If you are a part of Restore's church family (or even if you aren't), feel free to make this your smartphone's background.

Because this year's Big Give is gonna truly be BIG!

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Just call me John... Papa John

Tonight, I made our Friday night pizza (LeAnn is out of commission with a bad back). I must say, it was quite tasty.

But that's probably because I made it with love (as you can clearly see in the photo!).

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This is a creative way to honor your leaders & families

Every year in December, rather than do a normal Leadership Community, Restore honors their leaders in a creative way. This year: Bowling!

Enough said. :-)

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You Can Do That!

Late this morning, the staff of the Liberty campus of Restore started a discussion group about the book Exponential by Dave & Jon Ferguson.  One of the things we discussed from Chapter 1 was how empowering it is when someone hears your dream and says to you "You can do that!"

Just a few hours later after a great discussion, I was blessed to watch the video above.  Now, the video is a TED talk - and most TED talks are 18 minutes.  To many people (including you), 18 minutes is a lot of time to give.  But while you might give up 18 minutes of your life to watch it, you might also gain a year's worth of inspiration as you hear the story of how an 8-foot hooded woman empowered a 14-year-old poet and got her to believe "You can do this."

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Another great morning of baptisms @Libertyrestore

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Hey @patrickoconnell I found you a new bike helmet

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Reproduction - A Blog Series

Over on The RiverTree Project blog, I am beginning a 12-part series on the topic of Reproduction.  Six of the posts will be about the difficulties I am seeing with Reproduction.  And six of the posts will be about the "positives" of Reproduction I am observing through my Leadership Residency at Restore.

I will only be posting about 3 times each week, so the series will end up going through the first week of December.  But hopefully the short posts will serve me well in the future when I go back to read what I have been learning and observing during this time in my life.

So feel free to head over, learn with me, and leave a comment if you so desire.

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Church Planting, Swimming, & Comparing

I swim 3 days each week for exercise.  I'm not saying this to brag - but I am almost always the fastest person in the pool.  I like it when there is someone about my tempo in the pool to push me - but it rarely ever happens.

But just when a guy starts to get a big head...

The other day I happened upon the website of a college swim team.  Their "latest news" shared results from the team's most recent meet.  Now, keep in mind, this is a Division II school, so it isn't exactly spitting out Olympians.  But in a recent meet, one guy set a school record in the 100 Free.  His time was under 50 seconds.  I saw this and groaned - I can't even get under a minute!  Right now, in an all out sprint, I might get under 1:05. (I don't even want to go see what times Olympic swimmers can post...)

Comparison Swimming

If I compare myself to others, I am bound to "lose."  Those guys swim 3000 to 5000 yards each day, 6 to 7 times a week, with good coaching.  I am coach-less, swim only three times each week, and MIGHT do 3000 yards in a workout.

But if I compare myself to myself, things look differently. 

More is NOT Always Better (for Clouds or Churches)

I learned yesterday that Box.net is giving away 50 Gb (that's right - gigabytes!) to users of iOS 5.  I have a free 2 Gb Dropbox account that I use a little bit, but the allure of 50 Gb was too much. I downloaded the app (to my "old" iPhone 3GS - the budget can't support my 4S phone-lust right now), preparing to move my cloud-based items to Box.

However, after downloading the app and beginning to set things up, I learned that Box.net does not offer free syncing to those who only have Personal accounts.  I know they are a business, so I don't blame them one bit for this - they need to make money. And, they owe me nothing, so I am not entitled to free syncing for my 50 Gb account (I'm not even entitled to 50 Gb!)

But I know what this means: I will revert back to Dropbox as my default "cloud-based" account.

Yes, I only have 2 Gb with Dropbox vs. 50 with Box.  But the syncing efficiency of Dropbox, even though it has less, will tilt the scale in their favor. #more

I'm a pastor, so you knew the spiritual twist was coming...

I think many American churches and Christians make the mistake mentally that I did with Box. They think:

• More programs = better
• More Bible studies & classes = better
• More opportunities = better
• more money, more people, more "success" = better

But sometimes, the "more" we have, the less effective and efficient we are.  All those wonderful programs and studies and classes can be good things, but they often fill our schedules, thoughts, and lives so much that we miss the better task of making disciples.

The allure of "more" is real - as I experienced when I clicked the download button for the Box app.  But sometimes, getting more isn't the better option. Sometimes, more isn't really more.  Sometimes, "less" is more.

 

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Restore Community Church at Liberty Fall Festival

This past Sunday, Restore Community Church was asked to hold their Sunday morning service outside at the annual Liberty Fall Festival.  It was a GREAT morning.  Here are a few photos I snapped with my phone:

 

See the full gallery on Posterous

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Awkward Relationships (video)

As part of our teaching series "Love At Last Sight," my friends Miguel and Lucas shot a video of them lip-syncing the song "Jenny" by Flight of the Conchords.  The song fit perfectly with the topic for the day: "The Art of Risking Awkwardness."

Is there a relationship that is broken or hurting in your life?  Perhaps you need to risk a little bit of awkwardness to begin reestablishing the relationship.  Hopefully your conversation won't be as awkward as the one in the video.  But that awkward conversation might just lead to the best relationship you've ever had.

Enjoy the video and the laugh!

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At a KC Royals game. The Royals are celebrating St. Patrick's half-birthday:

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A Little Coaching Goes a Long Way

Last Saturday, I had the chance to hit some tennis balls around with my 14-year-old daughter.  She is a freshman on her high school tennis team, but we never seem to find the time to go play together.  So instead of going to a homecoming dance, she chose to hang with her dad.

We got to the courts, and she asked if I would help coach her on her serve.  I'm not an expert, by any means, but after 4 years of high school tennis and occasional games as an adult, I knew enough to recognize some fundamentals she was lacking in her game.  I asked her if her coach had ever given her help, and she said, "Dad, our team is so large.  The coach never has time to give me any tips."

So we spent some time working on her serve.  She was erratic at first, but eventually she started getting some serves in.  Then not only were some balls landing in, but that had more zip than she's ever had before! I could tell she was feeling really good about this.  We left the courts as the sunset, but confidence rising within my daughter.  But that confidence was going to be put to the test.

Church Planting Movements (book review)

In September of 2008, I heard God call me to plant a church that would help plant other churches (I tell the story a little bit here).  For two years, my wife and I prayed, read books, listened to podcasts, followed blogs, and absorbed as much as we could about church planting to help us sort out this crazy idea. Church planting was not new to us as we had helped with a church plant in the Denver, CO area for three years.  But because I felt deeply inadequate to this calling of leading a new church, I wanted to know as much about church planting to help me sort through what I heard God say to me.

But what I read and learned during those two years has been completely unsettled by David Garrison's book Church Planting Movements.

Your attention please - (37signals)

Your attention please Jason F. Sep 07

I used to think time was the most limited resource. It’s so limited that you can’t even save it for later. Every day you spend more time, and tomorrow you have less than you had yesterday. You can’t make more, and you can’t really buy more, so it’s limited and fleeting and those are the rules.

But there’s something even more limited than time. It’s your attention. Attention is a subset of time, therefore it’s more limited. How you spend your attention is more important than how you spend your time.

Attention is about focus and careful, thoughtful consideration. Unlike time – which can be broken into convenient chunks of 15 minutes – attention doesn’t divide quite so neatly or easily.

You hear a lot about “quality time” being valuable, but I think quality attention is invaluable. Giving someone your attention is giving more than just giving your time.

The greatest things you make and do are the ones that get your full attention. It’s helpful to take an inventory of what you’re doing and then ask yourself where you’re spending your best attention. You can fill your time, but you have to spend your attention. How you spend it is probably a better measure of priority than anything else.

Next time you say yes to something, ask yourself if yes means “yes, I can do that” or “yes, I can spend my attention on that.” If you’re not willing to spend your attention on it, is it worth doing? Maybe, maybe not, but it’s a good thing to think about the next time you take something on.

via 37signals.com

This is an excellent post from 37Signals about the importance of attention.

As I read it, I thought of the story from Luke 8:40-48. Jesus is on his way to heal the daughter of Jairus, a synagogue leader. On the way, a woman who has been bleeding internally for 12 years touches the fringe of Jesus' robe, believing that it will finally heal her of her hemorrhaging.

In the middle of the crowd's traveling with him, Jesus stops. No one saw the woman touch the Savior's robe. Peter tells Jesus that everyone is pressing in on Jesus - they are all touching him! Yet Jesus knows one person touched him with faith and purpose, not selfishness and rock-star awe.

In that moment, Jesus gives the woman his attention. He gives her his ears as he listens to her explain her past predicament. He gives her his eyes as he looks upon this precious and desperate woman. He gives her his blessing because of her well-placed faith. In the middle of the busyness, in the middle of traveling with purpose, in the middle of the crowd, Jesus gives the gift of his full attention.

I'm teaching at Restore on September 18th about "The Art of Acting Intentionally" as part of the series on relationships entitled "Love at Last Sight." Despite how the title sounds, this is not a "marriage series." You can learn the art of acting intentionally to help ALL of your relationships. Learning how to give your full attention will help you live life with relational excellence - and live like Jesus.

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The History of Redemption (more than a sermon)

The_History_of_Redemption_[The_History_of_Redemption].mp3 Listen on Posterous

This is one of the most powerful, moving, and beautiful sermons I have ever heard.  The reason?  It is ALL the words of Scripture.  Ronnie Smith does a masterful job weaving the totality of the Christian Scriptures together to help his listener capture the grand epic story of creation, fall, redemption, and restoration.

So give up a TV show for one night, set down the newspaper, and quit playing on your iPhone so you can give 30 minutes of your attention to sit and listen to Scripture being recited, allowing your heart to get caught up in the true story of God's plan to redeem His creation back to Himself.  If you prefer video, I encourage you to go to this page, find the sermon entitled "The History of Redemption" from November 28, 2010, and click the "related video" link.

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College Students: Will you give up two years to take Jesus to the world's unreached? (A video interview)

My friend Andy hits a home run in this video.  If you are a college student or single young adult with a heart for Jesus, I HIGHLY recommend you listen to this in it's entirety.  And if you are a parent of a college student or single young adult - you should listen to this as well.

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Are you resting?

I just read a really cool story about a 61-year-old farmer, named Cliff Young, who won the Australian ultramarathon in 1983.  (That's 573.7 miles!)  Before the race, everyone laughed at him because he wore goulashes-covered boots and overalls.  But after the race, he became a hero.  Not only did he win a race most people can't even complete, he crushed the opposition, strolling in almost 10 hours ahead of the 2nd place finisher.  Of course everyone wanted to know his secret.  And the simple answer was this...

Who do you allow around your Bends?

I swim 3x/week at a really nice indoor pool.  But despite how well maintained everything is, there is one thing that unsettles me.

In the locker room, the entrance to the showers is just five or six steps away from the entrance to the pool deck.  And there are always a couple of female life guards sitting watch just a few feet outside the door.  As I make the birthday-suit walk to the showers with my towel and shampoo, I am all-too aware of the door just steps away and the people just outside that door.

But what keeps them from seeing me and being scarred for life is... a bend.

You see, the door to the pool deck is a 90˚ turn from the hallway.  I am VERY thankful for that ninety-degree bend (as are those on the pool deck!).  But this physical bend got me thinking about the personal bends humans have inside.

Who do you allow around your Bends?

I swim 3x/week at a really nice indoor pool.  But despite how well maintained everything is, there is one thing that unsettles me.

In the locker room, the entrance to the showers is just five or six steps away from the entrance to the pool deck.  And there are always a couple of female life guards sitting watch just a few feet outside the door.  As I make the birthday-suit walk to the showers with my towel and shampoo, I am all-too aware of the door just steps away and the people just outside that door.

But what keeps them from seeing me and being scarred for life is... a bend.

You see, the door to the pool deck is a 90˚ turn from the hallway.  I am VERY thankful for that ninety-degree bend (as are those on the pool deck!).  But this physical bend got me thinking about the personal bends humans have inside.

So glad to have my boys home from four days at Grandma & Grandpa's.

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Here is my wife's amazing cake art

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Playing Life-sized Monopoly

This version was created by my 14-year-old for her over active almost-5-year-old who loves Monopoly but can't sit still. ;-)

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Spending my Father's Day evening w/ a big Daddy penguin.

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Not quite sure why they call these "warm-ups." That water is freezing!

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Ready to worship & pray w/1000s of believers for "What If The Church" & Global Day of Prayer @ Livestrong Stadium. #WITC

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Weeding, Sand, & Pride

See the full gallery on Posterous

I have a good kind of pride at the moment. My family, as part of the Kansas City "What If The Church" Serve Day, helped weed a sand volleyball court, and then lay new sand on top in an effort to bless the Gillis Center. The Gillis Center houses 36 boys in need of a home, plus has an emergency shelter for 10 boys who find themselves in desperate need. (We learned that in Kansas City, roughly a hundred kids need emergency shelter every month. Gillis is one place helping meet that need.) Gillis also runs a school for 120 kids who have been booted from other schools for behavioral issues. We got to hear a couple of stories of transformation that has taken place through the efforts of Gillis. So it was an honor roger to help clean the place up a little bit alongside Christ-followers from all over the KC metro area.

Here's the before and after photos of the sand volleyball court. To see some photos of my awesome kiddos at work, head over to our family website at thebirdnest.net.

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Changed lives change lives

My good friends, Zac and Erin Harlan, are featured in an article and I just want to take a moment to point the spotlight on them and on Christ.

I have been honored to watch Zac's life be transformed by the gospel, grow in his relationship with Christ, and marry Erin (which I had the privilege to officiate!). Then I've watched them together welcome Addie into their lives.  Zac and Erin were a bit taken aback when they learned their daughter had Down Syndrome, but I have been so touched watching the amazing way they have loved her and learned from God through her.

And now their lives, having been changed by Christ and by their precious girl, are about to radically change the life of another precious little girl.  But to learn about that, you have to read the article!

To me, this is proof once again that when Christ has truly changed a life, that life will inevitably change the lives of others.  I'm praying that the future church we get the honor of starting will have more Zac & Erin stories in it, so the changed lives we get to see will change even more lives around Iowa and the globe.

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The most beautiful "Groom's" cake I have ever seen!

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Now THIS is how a newly married couple should travel!

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The @restorecc / @Libertyrestore offices just got furniture.

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It was Hillybilly Hymn day @Libertyrestore. Nothing like worshipping to bluegrass!

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The End? (My weekend thoughts and plans in light of tomorrow's "Judgment Day")

The Twittersphere (at least the people I follow) has been a buzz of mockery about Harold Camping's prediction that true followers of Christ will be raptured tomorrow, May 21, and that the universe will be completely destroyed on October 21.  I know it doesn't really matter what I ultimately think, but I've had several thoughts.  So I decided to write a quick post just to get them off my brain so I can get some RiverTree work done.

I hope Camping is right because:

• I'd love to go be with my Jesus!

But I'm certain Camping is wrong because:

• He's been wrong before in his end times prophecies, which means he is a false prophet.
• The Scriptures are quite clear we can't know the exact date of the end. (Acts 1:7, see also Matthew 24:36)

I'm grateful Camping is wrong, because:

• There are too many people I care about and am praying for that I want to be with Jesus.
• I really, really want to see the vision God has given me for a church planting movement in Iowa to become a reality.

So here is what I am going to do this weekend:

• Have a Half-Birthday Daddy Date tonight with my now-seven-and-a-half-year-old son
• Take my 13-year-old daughter out for breakfast tomorrow morning.
• Take my 11-year-old daughter out for ice cream tomorrow afternoon.
• Go to church Sunday morning to help set-up, greet people, and worship Jesus.

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King's Cross by Timothy Keller (Book Review)

I have noticed that I tend to write book reviews (and reviews for other products) for works that I have thoroughly enjoyed.  This one is no exception.

However, unlike my other book reviews, I am going to keep this one short and to the point.  I am not going to "review" the book, per se.  Instead, all I need to say about Keller's latest book is this:

• King's Cross is a simple walk-through of the highlights of the Book of Mark from the Bible.
• Like his sermons, Dr. Keller's insights into Mark and first century culture weaved with his expansive understanding of today's culture will delight your heart and mind.
• However, I found myself not falling in love with Keller's words as I read.  Rather, Keller's words helped me fall in love with Jesus even more.

I am recommending this book to just about everyone I interact with: those in full-time ministry, long-time Christians, spiritual seekers, and more.  This book really hits people no matter where they are in their spiritual journey, and truly will help multitudes of people go deeper with Jesus in their spiritual journeys, regardless of where they are in that journey.

Rating: 5 Crowns of out 5

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How God Mows Me

I'm told you should change the mowing pattern of your lawn regularly.  Doing the same pattern too much stresses the lawn, affecting the strength and quality of the grass.  Perhaps this is an "old lawn's tale," but I faithfully switch between north/south one week, east/west the next, and diagonals the third and fourth weeks.  I never repeat a pattern.

As I was mowing my lawn yesterday afternoon before the rains came, I got to thinking how God handles me like I do my lawn.  I have found He rarely ever repeats a test in my life.  While I learn through each trial, gaining wisdom that helps in future difficulties, each trial is different.  God is mowing a different pattern in my character so that I can grow stronger into the image of Christ.

If God allowed the testing of my heart to happen identically each time, I'm prone to think I'd stop seeking and trusting Him by faith.  Instead, I'd probably start relying merely upon the wisdom I have gained, leaning on my own wisdom.

But by allowing different trials into my life, God keeps building, growing, stretching, molding, and mowing me into the image He already sees me to be.  Like Michaelangelo merely let the famous image of David come out of the rock by chiseling away the parts that didn't belong, so God is bringing out the image of Christ through the various trials life brings.

This is why James 1:2 tells us to "Consider it pure joy when you encounter trials of various kinds."  Being cut by the mower blades hurts, but there is something far greater that awaits, so we can actually have joy in the midst of the blades whirling through our life.

Not only this, but we also rejoice in sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance, character, and character, hope. And hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us. (Romans 5:3-5)

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No Scripture "Buts"

I was working on re-memorizing Romans 8:28-30 the other day when the thought hit me: We read verses like these, but respond with "Yeah, but..."

For example:

---

"God works out all things for the good of those who love Him..."

Yeah, but...

"Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, when you encounter trials of many kinds..."

Yeah, but...

"We rejoice in sufferings because we know that suffering produces endurance..."

Yeah, but...

"I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me..."

Yeah, but...

---

I am trying to eliminate the "buts" in my Scripture reading and just simply say "Yeah!"

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The @Libertyrestore church family has "Brought It Home"

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The @Libertyrestore church family has "Brought It Home"

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Big day @Libertyrestore. First I got to do trailers (at 6:00 am!). Now I get to watch 3 baptisms!

movie.mov Watch on Posterous

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