Mental Musings

I have a confession. Today I did something that I almost never do. It is not that I have a philosophical problem with doing this or believe that doing this is counterproductive. It is something that I have done in the past, just not something that I typically do. And I think I know the reason why. As I was driving through Baltimore on my way to a meeting, I rolled down my window and motioned over a man standing with a sign so that I could give him some coins. I didn't have much on me, but he was thankful for what he got. The light turned green and I rolled my window back up and drove on my way. I didn't judge him for his condition. I didn't assume that he would just take the few dollars in coins that I gave him and go buy alcohol with it (probably costs more than that anyway). I didn't insist that he let me tell him about Jesus if I was going to give him money. There wasn't enough time between lights to even get to know his name or hear his story. I ...

Many churches in our area closed today due to extreme cold and dangerous driving conditions. With modern technology, churches can afford to be more concerned about their members safety, especially young children and the elderly. Plan in advance for inclement weather options: Stream a simple worship format using single worship leader or prepare some advance video footage from a previous worship service. Stream sermon using a laptop camera from the safety of your own home. Share in advance how members can find your streamed service or post links using social media, website notice, mass email, etc. at least 10 minutes in advance. If streaming is not possible for you, record the sermon using your laptop camera and post on YouTube, GodTube, or Vimeo. Share info with church. If video is not possible, post the sermon text as a blog for others to read. If you just do not use online tools, provide printed family worship guides that can be used when church is canceled for inclement w...

As with most anything else in our culture, romance has become commercialized. According to television, romance is a glass of wine as you cuddle on the floor beside a crackling fire. Reality is that floors are often hard and your body starts to ache within minutes. Just try propping yourself up on one elbow so that you can look longingly into your love's eyes. The pain in your elbow is going to show in your eyes and they will be saying, "Please can we just sit on the sofa?" Have you ever tried to hold a drink in one hand as you prop yourself up with the other arm tilted slightly to the side so you can stare into someone's eyes? If you drink enough alcohol maybe you can ignore the painful positioning and the cold floor, but you also will have much less coordination and likely spill your drink everywhere. I guess you could make a roaring fire and the floors will not feel so cold. But my wife and I are asthmatics, so sitting that close to a roaring fire is...

I think it is great when God challenges a church or individual to contact me and offer to help with events that we are planning. They almost always start off with an apology about not being able to support our church plant financially, but... While financial support is important for our church plant during the first 3 years, please don't feel that you need to apologise for not being at the point where you can help. There are 3 important parts of supporting church planters and church plants: Give - if you can do this, wonderful. God has given some the resources with which they can bless others. Some people are called by God to stretch themselves spiritually by sacrificially giving more than they thought they could. Many people start with our Dollar a Day challenge and commit to something that costs them less than a cup of coffee for the sake of reaching the lost and unchurched in Annapolis. Pray - This is the most important thing you can do to support church planting. We ne...