and had to retweet, but it would have taken too many characters. Maybe you believe retailers are in an all-out war on Christmas. Maybe you don't. I'm thinking this writer was reading my mind when he wrote the following paragraphs:
It would be easy to get sidetracked into debating the merits of the War on Christmas. Why, for example, is the phrase "Happy holidays" so insufferable to Christian fundamentalists, but not the vulgar, surfeiting exploitation of Christ's name to sell smokeless ashtrays, dessert toppings, Droid phones and trampolines? I'm not a theologian but I think the Gospels are pretty clear that Jesus was no fan of merchants. And since China is in the news this week: Why not go after Gap and other retailers for trading in Chinese-made goods, since the Chinese government actively oppresses the Christian faith? Seems like building a case on religious tolerance would have more resonance. Oh, wait. Never mind.
The rest of the article delves into the backfiring of a boycott against Gap. You can read it here.
I have no idea where to begin. Be warned. This post isn't just about the National Youth Workers Convention. It's about a long journey that has been largely private until now. I offer the story now because I have finally found peace in the new directions I am taking. We learn from each other's stories so maybe someone can learn from mine. I am also, as Donald Miller would say, preparing to write a better story with my life as God has created me so why not share it from the beginning?
I've attended the National Youth Workers Convention four times now, dating back to 2002. Each one has taken on a different flavor, attitude and inspiration. For the first one, I was a relatively new youth worker. NYWC was an overwhelming revelation. Overwhelming in the sheer breadth of information, ideas, conversation and -yes - commerical messages I encountered over the course of a long weekend. Overwhelming in the realization that there were other people out there who didn't cringe at the thought of hanging out with teenagers. Overwhelming in hearing Mike Yaconelli reassure us that there was no such thing as "just a volunteer."
In 2005, the theme was jump. I remember with amazing clarity a moment in the general session when Tic Long led us in prayer, saying that maybe God was calling us to jump into something or maybe God was calling us out of something.
That was the first inkling that God was calling me out of youth ministry.
That couldn't be. I protested. I argued with God. I've worked hard to build the ministry and you want me to leave? Subsequent positive changes in my ministry context that made me think that first inkling was way off base — a result of a long schedule and a dangerous lack of sleep. There's no way God could be calling me out of youth ministry.
Then came 2008 and the 'seriously ridiculous' theme. By this time, I had been a few months into my first non-volunteer (read: salaried) position as a part-time director of youth and family ministries. What was seriously ridiculous was that I again came away unsettled. It's hard now to describe it. I was still energized and excited by my new position but still there was this nudging to something different, something more. I once heard the phrase divine discontent to describe that time when God was making you unsettled to the point that you would be propelled into the next phase of ministry. That was me then.
After quite a bit of struggle, I acknowledged that my ministry of 14 years was not my identity. I had been clinging to what I knew in ministry instead of what might be. By the time the 2009 convention rolled around. I had already stepped down from my position after only a year and was exploring what God's next steps were. A surprise invitation found me in Cincinnati, wondering why exactly I was there, what it could possibly have to offer me and what I could possibly have to offer the youth ministry community since I was heading for the exit.
The shape of the following days revealed an answer. Friday's Big Rooms and the lab I attended reminded me of who I was as a child of God, that change doesn't come without pain and that the basis for all of this has to be rooted in Christ alone. From the prayer walk in the morning to the sounds of the Daraja Childrens' Choir at night, Saturday was about mission and justice. Sunday's recurring theme revolved around creativity and taking chances. By Monday, the question that remained on my mind was: What are you going to do?
And now, here we are post-convention 2009.
Creativity, missions, justice and mentorship — the four themes that wound their way through that convention have given way to a new determination not to waste what God has given me. In the coming weeks, I plan to make changes to my blog site (not this Posterous) to reflect those changes. I will be mentoring a student as she helps organize a mission trip for her high school graduation project. Longer term, there will be more mission trips and service projects in my community — a community that includes all ages in the church but will inevitably engage the youth.
pieces of Tony Campolo's message - the eternal now, Christ is on the cross absorbing our sun even as we commit it - was mingling in my head with what Donald Miller said in his talk on the Million Miles tour. If he hits the same themes this morning, you'l understand how a mix of the two would render you sleepless.
Look out, Cincinnati! Next weekend, a couple thousand youth workers are heading your way. For this week's edition of Music Monday, I put together a list of songs that in one way or another remind me of past experiences at NYWC.
Reign In Us by Starfield (Pittsburgh 2008. No particular reason. Just landed in a special way) Alive In This Moment by Starfield (Pittsburgh 200?. I thought I remembered it from 2002, but the CD didn't come out until 2004. What I do remember is how this song meshed with the spiritual refreshment/rejuvenation I was experiencing at the time.) Tunnel by Third Day (Pittsburgh 2005. Great song, but double fun because I think it was during this one that Mac Powell called someone out for talking on the cell phone while he was singing. He asked for the phone, had a conversation with the person on the other end and finished the song.) Bring the Rain by Mercy Me (Pittsburgh 2008. I was having an all-time, awful sinus episode, but this song broke through the fog.) Best of My Love by The Emotions (Pittsburgh 2008. You had to be there. Or watch this: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SPXFmb4tcPw) Our Love Is Loud by the David Crowder Band (Pittsburgh 2002. First time I ever heard of them. Loved it. Have seen them at least 9 times since thanks, in part to volunteering at Passion ... see next entry ...) My Glorious - Chris Tomlin version (Pittsburgh 2002. Without a doubt, this song came at the height of one of the most profound worship experiences I had experienced up to that point. For one night at Pittsburgh 2002, Chris Tomlin, Louie Giglio, DCB and — if memory serves — Matt Redman revived the Passion Experience tour which had visited 25 cities starting on, of all days, Sept. 11, 2001. That, combined with Louie Giglio's I Am Not But I Know I Am talk and a video previewing OneDay 2003 led to an ongoing volunteer relationship with Passion events. By the way, they need volunteers at Passion 2010. If interested, send me a tweet @living3368 and I will send you to the right spot to sign up.) Undignified by DCB (it's just so youth workery.) Your Grace Is Enough by Matt Maher (Originally Pittsburgh 2002 when Chris Tomlin led this song in worship. Came to love in more in Pittsburgh 2008 when Matt Maher led it.) And two I hope to hear this year if the house band is comprised of the same people I saw on video feeds from LA.Lord of All by Kristian Stanfill Beautiful Jesus by Kristian Stanfill And a few suggestions from Twitter: shawnmichael "No One Like You" by Crowder (rock fists in the air!)
saraeden Tears Of the Saints - Atl 2008, At Your Cross - Pitt 2009 :)
pattigibbons NYWC songs: Only a Fool (philly 97), Hand that Holds the World (char 07), and all things @crowderband anytime. Your turn. What songs remind you of NYWC?
I've been a little busy lately so I've only recently managed to make my way to Hulu to catch up on old episodes of House ... and didn't expect to find myself thinking about the moral dilemma it poses after the credits rolled.
To summarize up to the point in the clip below, House's team of doctors have been working to save the life of a dictator who reportedly will incite a genocide when he returns to his country. Throughout the episode, the characters struggle with the tension between saving a life as they were trained to do and saving lives, which would violate their ethics as physicians. Earlier, one of the doctors who had voiced strong opinions against treating the dictator was given a golden opportunity to carry out an easily-disguised murder. She couldn't do it. but as she left the room her husband, Cameron in the clip below, had a conversation with the dictator about what the media was reporting, what his own family thought of him and, ultimately, the revelation that he would indeed do "whatever it takes" for his country.The doctors begin a new treatment which leads to the death of the dictator. The clip below begins after Foreman has tried to go to the morgue to conduct an unauthorized autopsy on the dictator to determine if it was his stubbornness that caused the final fatal bleeding.Lots of choices to be made. Do you, like Cameron, commit murder? If you are the only one who knows about it, do you ignore the evidence?
Christy Nockels, formerly of Watermark, released the solo effort, Life Light Up, earlier this year to primarily positive reviews. Reading through several of them, I noticed many focused on her powerful, gorgeous voice. Her voice is all that ... and more ... but don't forget to pay attention to the lyrics that are full of praise in one moment, praying for purpose in the next.
Here's a sampling:I may live and I may die Either way You're glorified — Life Light UpNo greater call - You gave us all a reason to live No greater love - You gave us all a reason to give No greater life - You gave us all a reason to shine No greater love - forever mine! — No Not OneThe fallen back on their feet The fatherless now complete... The innocent suffering, rising from wounding, to find...You were there all along! — Song of the BeautifulThe time is now Come Church arise... Love with His hands See with His eyes... Bind it around you, Let it never leave you, And they will know us by our love... — By Our LovePersonally, I would like to see a few more of the tracks from Life Light Up be released as performance accompaniment tracks. I can think of girls in the youth group (and fairly recent grads ... you know who you are!) who would do an amazing job bringing some of these songs to the congregation as special music.In the meantime, listen to the album using the free Lala player below. You may have to sign up for a free account first. If you like what you hear, you can buy it from Lala or head over to Amazon where it is on sale through the month of October for only $5.
For my non-Twittering friends, MusicMonday is a Twitter meme in which you recommend music to your followers. I never really did much with it in the past because I was too darn lazy to get anything together.
Not anymore. I've always been a bit of a music explorer so it's only natural that I share some of it with whoever stumbles upon my various social networking sites. Thanks to Lala, you can listen to my recommendations using the embedded player. You will have to sign up for a free account to do so (click here to set up your account), but I've been using Lala for a couple of days now and it's a really cool service that allows you to listen to albums once in their entirety for FREE. You can buy a "web-only" version of the song for the princely sum of 10¢. Should you later want to buy an mp3 of the song, that 10¢ is credited toward the purchase price. It's altogether a cool deal.Anyway, enough with the introductory material. On to the music ...There's no better introduction to BiFrost Arts than the first line of the bio on its MySpace page: "Bifrost Arts is a sacred music non-profit that exists to enrich the church and engage the world with beauty and truth." The collective features a wide range of artists including Dave Bazan, Damien Jurado, Rosie Thomas, Denison Witmer, The Welcome Wagon (featuring Sufjan Stevens) and Leigh Nash. The result is a haunting, prayerful reflection of art and faith.
"Everybody thinks that it's a simple thing and everybody has the answers. This is not. What we're going through as a nation; it is not simple. It is we are reaping what we have sown, not for a presidency and not for the eight years previous to that, but for years and years and years. We're arriving at the destination we have been traveling to for many years. So, to blame a person is ridiculous, to blame an administration is ridiculous, to blame a Congress is ridiculous. That's such simplistic thinking, which is, typically, you know, every generation does that. But, we're where we are because this is where we've been headed. So here we are. And so, there is no solution in the sense of a fix. There are different destinations and there different paths we have to take to get to where we need to be and it'll take a long time. But people would rather blame, point fingers and go crazy over all the craziness."
