THE VIEW

I'VE MOVED

2008-01-31T10:09:00.001-05:00

There's still a few bits and pieces to be done to it's appearance, but from this morning my blog has movied to -

www.churchatthemovies.com/blog

- or you can simply go to www.churchatthemovies.com and hit the BLOG tab.

See you over there in the brave new world of WordPress!

THE FINAL FOUR

2008-01-30T22:08:00.000-05:00

Okay, so I'm still a relative novice when it comes to U.S. politics, so what I have to say about it all may do little more than make public my total ignorance. Then again that never stopped me commenting on any subject before, so here goes ...

There are 300 million people in this nation - and that's only counting the legal ones - so couldn't we come up with a better choice for leader of the free world than Clinton, Obama, McCain or Romney?

From all I'm reading it's just about down to these four now, despite Huckabee's smile, so when I come to voting on this issue later in the year, I wish they'd add another choice, like None Of The Above!

SCHIZOPHRENIC FEW DAYS

2008-01-30T19:49:00.000-05:00

While our church's new website has been up and running for a few days now - though a lot more information still needs to be added to it - I am still working on shifting my blog over there and am practising with a new program.

If you want to check it out, my blog is also at -

www.churchatthemovies.com/blog

I'll let you know when it's finally fully moved over there.

DARNED EMAILS

2008-01-29T14:28:00.000-05:00

This has been a good day - well so far anyway!

It was the day that I committed to doing something I am not too good at - I answered all my emails.

For many years now I have worked with a very simple administrative routine. I have a big in-tray on my desk and that's where I toss items that need my attention, constantly adding to the pile. When all those papers are so top heavy they are at risk of falling on the floor, I go through them and toss out around 75% of them because they are no longer relevant.

Which all goes to show why I'm the visionary and Charlotte is the admin pastor!

I approach emails slightly differently. If something requires a one or two sentence response, I reply immediately, but other than that I leave it in my incoming mail folder, which today had 57 emails sitting in it for periods ranging from days to months.

So I've been working my little fingers to the bone, dispensing information, maintaining relationships and generally being a very helpful and sociable person.

The current count is 16, all of which are there for reference rather than awaiting a reply. I could switch them over to my Saved Mail-In folder but the chances are they'd be lost there for ever and a day.

So if you got an email from me today - congratulations.

And if you're still waiting, I guess I was too enthusiastic with the delete key!!!

Sorry!

NO FOOL LIKE AN OLD FOOL

2008-01-28T16:45:00.000-05:00

Since I weigh in at Weight Watchers on Monday mornings, I normally push myself that little bit more at the gym so that I sweat off a few more ounces before standing on the scale. That was a big mistake today.

My right knee has been giving me some minor pain for the past five or six days, but thinking it was pretty much okay now, I ran 7.5 miles this morning and then did another 2 miles on the elyptical. When I was done I could hardly walk and that's the way it has been ever since. Ibuprofen seems to be helping, but the best solution may be to avoid the gym for a day or so.

Guess the old bones are fighting back!

DOUBLING UP

2008-01-27T22:11:00.000-05:00

Today we publicly announced what most folks have seen coming for quite a while now, that from Easter Sunday onwards we are going to two services on Sunday mornings. I watched a number of people awkwardly looking around for seats this morning and while there were spots all over the place, to all intents and purposes we are full.

Church growth gurus used to say that you are full at 80% of capacity, but nowadays that has been pulled back to 66% for two reasons - firstly that people like their own space more nowadays and secondly most Americans need more space as they're bigger than they used to be.

I like the idea of two services for a lot of reasons -

1. If my preaching sucks in first service I can fine tune it for the second.

2. We give people options as to which time slot best suits their lifestyle.

3. We create a lot more space for a lot more people and since I don't expect the trend of the past few months to slow down, we're going to need those seats.

4. It presents a load of fresh opportunities for folks to plug into serving as we'll need to double up volunteers in a whole bunch of areas.

5. It stretches us, which is always a healthy thing. Personally I enjoy the challenge of change - probably something to do with the ADD that's part of my DNA - some don't. It'll be interesting to watch them sweat, try to convince them they can do it and celebrate with them when they discover they really can!

Fun times ahead!!!

SHAPING UP

2008-01-27T15:08:00.000-05:00

I was on a tricky topic this morning as I taught the next part of our Getting In Shape Series - Getting in Shape Physically. The difficult part was motivating people without laying a guilt trip on them and I think I succeeded to a great degree.

I'm no health nut or fitness fanatic, in fact inside me there's still a 332lb guy wanting to make a comeback. I'm just someone who has decided that I want to enjoy this life to the full and that in order to do so, I'd better eat more smartly than I have done thus far and exercise a little more than walking to the garage and back.

As I mentioned today, the trouble is that as Christians there are a load of things we don't do socially and so that tends to limit our options. So a ton of stuff we do centers around food, whether it's small groups, covered dish meals or men's breakfasts. Now food is all around us, so the key is learning to eat wisely and in moderation, or as I heard someone put it a while ago, we have to find out how to peacefully co-exists with food.

So that was church today.

Great crowd - our cafe was cleaned out by the time service started, which means we need to up all the goodies for next week. Lot of new faces again, which leaves me sinking in a sea of folks I don't know. Maybe I should content myself with not knowing everyone's name, but I'm not at that point yet!

IT ONLY TAKES ONE

2008-01-25T19:21:00.000-05:00

It's amazing what damage one self-righteous bigoted idiot can do to the work of God in this country. I'm not talking about any old unbalanced Bible thumper sitting in the pew, I'm particularly focused on the insane, iuncompassionate statements emanating from the pastor of Westboro Baptist Church in Topeka, Kansas, Shirley Phelps.

It seems this upright, obnoxious servant of God has declared that she will picket any and all memorial services for actor Heath Ledger who was found dead in his Manhattan apartment earlier this week. She even plans to protest anything done to honor Ledger at next month's Academy Awards ceremony, because of his portrayal of a gay cowboy in Brokeback Mountain.

Thanks Rev. Bigot, I'm sure you're doing what Jesus would do. He wouldn't be trying to console a grieving family or lamenting the passing of such a young man either, he would have been right in there ranting and raving about the judgement of God with caring statements like yours -

"And then the other place I'm going to picket him is when they prop him up to worship his dead, rotting carcass further at the Oscars. I'll be right outside by the red carpet."

It's a pity that this one off-the-wall lunatic who really should be institutionalized is instead being quoted in the media, because for millions of Americans she will fuel their disdain for Christians and their conviction that churches are gathering places for hypocritical religious zealots.

There's no getting away from the fact that the church in America has a very real image problem and the only way around it is for every real follower of Jesus to deliberately and unconditionallylove people the way he did.

However at this moment - as you may have gathered - I'm having a tough time loving a certain pastor from Kansas!

WE'RE BACK

2008-01-24T20:55:00.001-05:00

You can check out our new website here -

www.churchatthemovies.com

It's still in its basic form with a lot of stuff to be added, but at least there's something up there and its new and fresh.

FRIENDS

2008-01-23T19:44:00.000-05:00

I read a lot nowadays about pastors feeling lonely and isolated, guys with no one to talk to who understands their world and who have been known to flip out, or burn out at least.

I hear all this and I come to the conclusion that I am just plain spoiled.

I was thinking of listing some of my friends in ministry that I interact with, but I wouldn't know where to start and would certainly tick some of them off because they didn't appear as high on the list as they thought they should or because I forgot them altogether. Some of them have real insecurity issues!!!!

Here's the deal -

Pastoring is a unique calling.

A ton of people can encourage you - and thankfully they do.

Everyone can offer their opinion - and unfortunately some of them do.

But only those who walk the same road have the faintest idea of what it is like to do what we do.

So here's to my friends - I thank God for you all.

And here's an old proverb for those that may be lonely - He who would have friends must show himself friendly.

MONDAY ROUND UP

2008-01-21T22:13:00.001-05:00

Martin Luther King Day wasn't a holiday here, plenty of odds and ends going on -

+ Started the day with a good workout - ran 7.1 miles and then did 1.5 miles on the elyptical.

+ Stopped by WW with Gill on our way to a doctor's visit to try to sort out the issues that have been plaguing her this past couple of weeks. More tests scheduled!

+ Al is marginally improved today. Still in a very serious condition, but very slightly better. Please keep praying.

+ It was cold today.

+ Tony Dungy has decided to coach the Colts for at least one more season - let's hope they win the big one next year, which might well be Dungy's last.

+ Straightened up the storage room in the basement this afternoon. Our offices are down there and we accumulate a heck of a lot of stuff from books to cafe supplies to old cassettes, seasonal decorations and used banners. It was a mess.

+ There's no way the Patriots wanted to face the Giants in the Super Bowl. A New York victory would be a great end to the season.

+ Saw The Bucket List tonight. The fictional characters in the movie did two things that are on my list - driving a very fast car and visiting the Taj. The Taj is the most beautiful place I have ever seen.

+ Trying to plan some vacation time this summer before my calendar fills up with other stuff. At this time of year the thought of sunshine is very attractive.

+ Finally finished John Grisham's book Playing for Pizza - lightweight, but a good story.

HOW ABOUT THAT?

2008-01-20T22:20:00.001-05:00

After being trashed all season by the New York press and a certain English pastor who clearly knows squat about football, the Giants are off to the Super Bowl.

Few people really rated Coughlin, Manning and crew, but while all the other NFC teams have tidied away their gear till September, this rag tag and bobtail bunch are on their way to Arizona.

Am I glad I saw the light!!!!

I HAVE SEEN THE LIGHT

2008-01-20T21:02:00.001-05:00

This morning I was bold enough to suggest during our service that I wasn't sure if I wanted the Giants to win tonight. I was torn by the fact I would like to see Brett Favre succeed and I guess I immediately alienated half the church.

Let me now make it clear that in response to the combined efforts of threatening emails and prayers for my enlightenment, I am in fact sitting here rooting for the Giants!

BALMY NORTH EAST

2008-01-19T19:48:00.001-05:00

Am I glad we don't live further south, like in Georgia where several of my friends have already cancelled service tomorrow because of severe weather down there.

Wimps!

Just kidding. It's never smart to expect your folks to put themselves in harm's way to get to church. No one is going to seriously lose their relationship with God because they were compelled to sleep late and watch Creflo Dollar on the TV. Although on second thoughts ....

But it's not so much living in the south (which I wouldn't want to do) that's on my mind this evening, as much as having to cancel service. We've had to do that a number of times, at least once every winter, but I'm glad we don't have to do that tomorrow.

Tomorrow is a key day in the life of our church. It really maps out where we're going from here. It's a day for our congregation as a whole to rise up and prepare to move to the next level or stay where they are and head for stagnation.

I have every confidence that the former will happen, but I am still approaching the day with a little apprehension.

Huge morning ahead.

I love this!

CHIPOTLE CHURCH

2008-01-18T19:35:00.000-05:00

I had an epiphany today that I feel compelled to share with whoever might stop by this page over the next few hours or days - I finally discovered what a chipotle is.

To the best of my knowledge or at least within my personal tiny world, I lived at least the first 55 years of my life without ever having tasted chipotle sauce. Then suddenly it appeared on a menu in some restaurant or other, some place or other - and it tasted pretty good (bit of a kick to it). Next thing you know, everyone and his brother serves some kind of sandwich, burger, or fried chicken livers, complete with chipotle sauce. It's like it's mandatory.

So what is chipotle?

Are you ready? - A chipotle is a fully ripened and smoked jalapeno pepper.

Anyway, this rambling is going somewhere, so hold tight.

Did you know that one of the most succesful restaurant chains in this country at present is Chipotle Mexican Grill?

Did you know they only have three - yes three - items on their menu? You can have a burrito, a taco or a salad and that's it. There's no cookies, ice cream or even flan to go with it. No sandwiches, fries or vegetarian alternatives.

The success of this chain is put down to one simple principle - they stick to doing three things well.

I know a church like that. Okay I'll tell the truth, I pastor it. One of the reasons our church continues to flourish, when decline is the national trend, is we stick to doing a few things well. We're not full service, we don't try to cater to every taste, we offer what we offer and do those things increasingly more effectively.

1. Our main Sunday event and all it entails.

2. Our small groups.

3. Our outreaches at home and overseas.

That's it.

We're focused - the Chipotle Church!!!

VANISHING WEBSITE

2008-01-17T13:16:00.001-05:00

If you try to go to our website in the next 24 hours, you'll find nothing, but do not be alarmed because we have definitely not been vaporized. We're getting ready to put up the basic version of our new website (we'll be building it over the next couple of weeks until everything we need is up there) and apparently in the transition it takes some time to switch everything from one server to another.

I have no idea whatever of what that all means, but thankfully we have a good website designer who either is an outstanding computer geek (in the nicest possible way that is) or gives a good impression of being one.

So check back!

RANDOM RAMBLINGS

2008-01-16T21:35:00.000-05:00

+ Was waiting for someone coming for a counselling appointment tonight and started watching American Idol while they were on their way. They didn't turn up - so I'm still watching these insane auditions - funniest thing on TV!

+ Had a very good lunch today with the rest of the pastoral team, all thanks to someone in the church who brought it over for us. A great gesture. (We meet every Wednesday until 12.00 noon in case you were feeling left out of the catering loop!!!)

+ Changes on the horizon - have to do something different to accommodate the growing Sunday crowd.

+ I loved the story of the guy who came in Sunday because he was passing and saw our signs and then went on to give his life to Christ.

+ Having postponed our Ministry Leaders' meeting on Sunday because of the Giants-Packers game, it's getting tough rescheduling it as there are some busy Sunday evenings ahead.

+ Spent an hour on a conference call to Saddleback Church this afternoon, discussing the Pastors' Forum I help to moderate for them. It's tragic how many pastors find the forum to be their sole connection point with other leaders - I guess I'm just spoiled to have so many real people I interact with.

+ Started making some initial plans for our 10th Anniversary on October 5th. That's insane. Where did those years go? I guess we're not new any more - but I feel like we are.

+ Have everything booked for the Church Planters' Conference in Mountain Lake, GA next month. Was there last year for the first time and found it very motivating. There aren't too many church planters on Long Island, so I don't resent having to go to Georgia to hang out with five or six hundred other guys with a passion to plant churches, even though most of them talk funny.

THE BUCKET LIST

2008-01-15T21:37:00.000-05:00

The trailers for Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman's new movie, The Bucket List, look mildly amusing even thought the critics pan it. It's about two aging men who make a list of things they want to do before they kick the bucket and I guess it tweaks the interest of a guy like me who has celebrated more birthdays in the past than he will in the future.

Don't worry I'm not in a morbid frame of mind or even mildly depressed, but just for the heck of it here's my Bucket List as of January 2008 -

1. I want to celebrate my 60th wedding anniversary.

2. I want to see my grandchildren graduate and dance with my granddaughter at her wedding (which will be quite an achievement as I can't dance now!).

3. I want to run a half marathon.

4. I want to drive a car at 200mph (I wonder if my Mustang is up to that???).

5. I want to establish three other Church At The Movies campuses in our county so that none of its 1.5 million residents is more than 20 minutes drive from one of our locations.

6. I want to see the Taj Mahal again.

7. I want to visit Iceland.

8. I want to see the summer Military Tattoo at Edinburgh Castle.

Not much to ask is it? I'm a simple soul!!!

THINGS THAT GET ME OUT OF BED

2008-01-15T19:49:00.001-05:00

My old friend Gary Lamb struck a cord with me when he wrote this -

http://www.garylamb.org/2008/01/15/things-that-get-me-out-of-bed-in-the-mornings/

Then again, maybe he's a young friend!!!

AL

2008-01-15T16:49:00.000-05:00

Today I broke one of my own rules!

I realized several years ago that if I wanted as many people as possible to be actively involved in the life of the church there were a lot of things I had to take my hands off myself. Hospital visitation was one of those and rather than do it all myself, we established a team of folks - The Barnabas Network -who have the right kind of disposition for this kind of ministry and we handed it over to them.

People in our church know that they don't want to be so sick that they see me approaching their bedside!

I have several excuses for breaking that rule and visiting one of our members in hospital today. One is that he is in Sloane Kettering and I didn't expect any of our Barnabas Network to hike all the way into Manhattan.

The second is I've known the patient, Al, and his family for getting on for twenty years now. I've done a lot of things with Al, especially when it comes to serving the homeless and those in need. He's a worker, a prayer, a man of faith who shares that faith fearlessly.

We've served hundreds at a time on the streets of Manhattan and we go out together more locally nowadays on Saturday afternoons with all the other volunteers who make our mobile soup kitchen happen.

I like Al. I have no favorites, but some people are special.

Please say a prayer for his complete recovery before you move anywhere else online.

MONDAY

2008-01-14T19:41:00.000-05:00

Gill is still not up to par, so I picked up some of her load today, changed the bed, did the laundry, went to the store (and back again for the stuff I forgot), cooked a couple of dinners to cover us for the next few days and made a pot of soup for lunches.

She works hard!

We were meant to have serious snow overnight, but it never materialized, so that was a relief. I knew when I woke up today that I would either be going to the gym or shovelling snow. Thankfully I got my exercise on the treadmill.

Yesterday I had visitors to my blog from Australia, South Korea, Holland, Poland, Italy, Brazil, India, UK, Ireland, Canada and of course the USA.

One of these days I'll work out what it is I write that's worth reading!!!

THE OTHER MANNING

2008-01-13T22:15:00.001-05:00

Well, well, Eli will be playing next Sunday but big brother Payton won't be in action until the start of next season. I thought the Giants might pull this one off, but never expected the Colts to be knocked out by the Chargers.

So who am I rooting for now?

I'm torn to tell you the truth. The fact I would like someone to beat the Patriots is pretty obvious - most of America is loooking for that. I don't expect San Diego to do that, so it's Brett Favre and the Packers or the Jersey boys.

I'd love to see Favre go all the way this season, but then the Jersey boys are our neighbors, so maybe I shouldbe supporting them.

Put me down as undecided, however one thing's sure, we may have to re-think the ministry leaders' meeting we have planned for early next Sunday evening!!!

PROBLEMS

2008-01-13T15:22:00.000-05:00

Thirty five years ago, or thereabouts, when I was a young pastor leading a church that had been struggling for decades, I was invited to speak at a conference.

One of the other invited guests was a far more experienced minister than myself and he asked me how things were going with my congregation. I told him they were okay, but we had a few problems, to which he replied -

There will always be problems, but there are two kinds of problems. There are problems of growth and problems of decline.

We have problems at Church At The Movies, but I am happy to report they are the right kind. We have growth problems and the truth is the theater where we do the main service is pretty much full. Sure there are seats here and there and you could find places for a family coming in twenty minutes after the start if you split them up and put them in odd spaces in the middle of different rows. But for all practical purposes we're full.

Great problem - we need to address it quickly.

WHY WE DO WHAT WE DO

2008-01-13T14:41:00.000-05:00

We had an outstanding service this morning. Great crowd, loads of new faces and best of all, eleven people indicated they had committed their lives to Christ.

... and that folks, bottom line, is why we do what we do!

Great day!

ONE FOR THE OLD GUYS

2008-01-12T20:48:00.000-05:00

Did you see Brett Favre leading the Packers to victory in a blizzard today? Considering this time last year his record-breaking career was in the toilet, watching him resurrect it has been one of the highlights of the season.

I guess he proves the wisdom of the great philosopher Yoggi Berra - It ain't over till it's over!

Hope the Packers make it all the way to a Superbowl appearance against the Colts before they lose.

I'm half watching the Patriots now hoping the Jaguars hurt them, but that isn't going to happen! I should go to bed and will soon.

LIFE'S INTERESTING!

2008-01-12T20:32:00.000-05:00

Spent six hours in the ER last night with Gill, who was experiencing severe back pains. Our chiropractor, a longstanding friend who is part of our church, said it wasn't a back issue and guided us to our Primary Care Physician. He said to come over straight away and then said he wanted a bunch of tests done, so we should go to the ER.

Bottom line, nothing too drastic, an infection that is still causing serious discomfort, but should clear up once the ant-biotics kick in.

Got to bed at 3.35am and was up at 6.30 for a crazy morning at Weight Watchers. We had 275 people there in total today, which among other things meant that by the time I got home I was shot.

But I'm rested now, Gill's on the mend and I'm ready to roll tomorrow!

See you there!

DREAMING TOO SMALL

2008-01-10T11:18:00.000-05:00

I just read this prayer written by the British explorer Sir Francis Drake over 400 years ago -

Disturb us, Lord, when we are too well pleased with ourselves. When our dreams have come true because we dreamed too little. When we arrive safely because we have sailed too close to the shore. Disturb us, Lord.

Man, that's a bold prayer - and I love it. It's good for me personally and it's so suitable for us as a church.

In this, our tenth year, it would be so easy to look around with a sense of contentment, because the truth is God has been very good to us as we have grown to become one of the largest protestant congregations in our town of half a million people.

We survived.

We got established.

We get a good crowd on Sundays.

We have some great programs running.

We're making an impact in other countries.

We're helping other church planters.

But if that is the end of the line, we dreamed too small. If you put having a building into that mix and then think we would totally have arrived, you got it all wrong.

By the fall of this year when we celebrate our 10th Anniversary, we will need to have made some bold decisions. Most of them center around whether we are going to consolidate or move forward. It's a question of whether we've fulfilled our dream or dare to dream bigger.

Has God done all he can do around here or is there a heck of a lot more that he wants to be done?

Pioneers or settlers?

There is always the danger that yesterday's radicals become today's diehards. Trust me, that's not what will happen!

GETTING IN SHAPE PART DEUX

2008-01-09T21:54:00.000-05:00

Today I got everything squared away for my Sunday teaching and I'm all ready to go - pity it's only Wednesday.

I am really pumped about some stuff I've been studying in Ephesians that I'm going to be talking about during our service as we look at Escaping The Treadmill Of Insanity.

I've been preaching since I was around fourteen years old, reading and studying the Bible daily for more than forty years, but the amazing thing about the book is that I constantly see things in it that I'd swear I never saw before.

It's amazing that although Ephesians is one of my favorite New Testament books and I've preached right through it several times during my years in ministry, I really never noticed what I am going to share on Sunday.

It's freeing, uplifting and pretty incredible.

Roll on Sunday!

GOD'S IN CHARGE

2008-01-08T22:37:00.000-05:00

I'm sitting here watching Fox News as the results are coming on from the New Hampshire Primary. I can hardly believe I'm writing this, but I am very relieved to hear that the Associated Press just announced Hillary Clinton as the winner (albeit it with a lot of votes still to be counted).

I can't see Barack Obama as the leader of the free world and would rather have Hillary there than the silver-tongued, opportunistic, single-term senator from Illinois. Not that I want that to happen either!

My problem is that I don't see a lot of promise on the other side of the political spectrum at the moment, though of course I'd go for a former Baptist Pastor before an actor, a mormon, an old man or a liberal.

Anyway, I don't really want to stir up political debate here.

My main point is this - whoever wins any if these races and the ultimate big prize, God's the one who is really in charge and so I can sleep peacefully tonight and every night.

PUNCTUALITY

2008-01-07T16:54:00.000-05:00

There has been an interesting discussion going on over the past couple of days on a Pastors' Internet Forum I help to moderate, centered on the issue of getting people to come to church on time.

For those who may be vaguely interested, my contribution to the accumulated wisdom of pastors from all around the country, was to suggest that there are certain things you can't change so you just need to get over them. Or in plain English, let it go!

We have a lot going on at The Regal Cinema on Sunday mornings and we have some great people who arrive at all kinds of different times.

+ There's a whole team who get there at 7.30 to offload equipment, lay wires, make coffee, set up tables and do 101 other jobs.

+ Other volunteers arrive during the next hour.

+ Our Cafe opens at 8.30 and from that time on folks start coming in for a healthy breakfast and to chat with friends.

+ Our service starts with the band's first song at 10.00am.

+ The teaching is generally underway by 10.30 or shortly after.

So what's late? Late for set-up? Late for fellowship? Late for the first song? Late for the preacher's opening comments?

The majority of our congregation are adults. They have busy lives. Many of them have children to get ready for the Sunday morning excursion. Some of our friends have other places they need to be before they come to us. Some stay in the cafe way after the first song because they are enjoying conversation with like-minded people in the cafe.

Church At The Movies is not a military base, it's a center of worship, motivation, teaching and mutual encouragement.

I'm happy for people to come and go as they please!

No one is ever late!

(Except the manager when he sleeps in and isn't there to open up for us)

SUNDAY REVIEW

2008-01-06T20:03:00.000-05:00

+ The New Jersey Giants won their wildcard game this afternoon and I was happy about that, but only because they beat the team that has such a foul-mouthed head coach that the TV cameras seldom cut to him on the sidelines nowadays. Plus of course the Tampa organization dumped Tony Dungy a few tears back. Next week I'll be rooting for Dallas to defeat the Jersey boys!

+ Church went well today. A lot of new faces and a good crowd for the first Sunday of the New Year. Our Big Screen Cafe was back in operation after a four weeks break. Some folks prefer to watch the service there on a plasma TV rather than go into the main theater and though I don't fully understand that, I realize we're all wired differently and am happy to accommodate them.

+ I am amazed at how many people are there 45 minutes before service starts, just so they can hang out with one another. Of course we provide coffee, donuts and bagels to help them pass the time.

+ Got another wedding request today. That's three we have coming up in the next three months. I love doing weddings.

+ Still finding out how my new Treo works. Downloaded some music to it today. I can't get over a phone that I can put my own music on. I reckon I was born too early.

+ Looking forward to putting the finishing touches on our new website this week. It's definitely time for a makeover and this has been in the pipeline so long now that our existing site is like a historic document. We'll change the format of my blog too so that it will have a similar appearance to the website.

+ Roger Clemens' interview is just coming up on 60 Minutes. Is there a single person in America who believes he didn't take steroids? Mike Wallace's credibility takes a knock by even conducting the interview.

+ We're compiling quite a list for our New Friends Lunch at the end of the month. We had over 70 people there three months ago and the number looks like being impressive again.

FEEDBACK

2008-01-05T18:52:00.000-05:00

I've had several very positive emails over the past couple of days from people who are new or new-ish to our church. Since I skipped the mind-reading class at Bible College decades ago, I appreciate the fact that some people share their journey with me by email.

I'll read some of these tomorrow as part of our look at the road we traveled in '07 and where we are at as we move into this new year.

Not a smart morning to miss!

NEW START FOR A NEW YEAR

2008-01-04T15:05:00.000-05:00

Sunday's approaching and I'm getting ready and counting the hours because we're poised to start the year with a bang with our new series Getting In Shape. It's the season of New Year resolutions and talk of new beginnings and that's definitely the direction we'll be steering folks in over the next few weeks.

We're planning to see what the Bible says about a wide range of topics to help us get in shape spiritually, emotionally, physically, sexually and financially. Contrary to one helpful suggestion I received, I will not be teaching while walking on a treadmill nor while pedalling an exercise bike, but we will have some fun as we delve into relevant and important subjects.

We're going to do a kind of self-assessment on Sunday, taking a good look at where we've been over the past twelve months, where we are and where we're going.

A whole new year - a clean page - exciting possibilities!

RADICAL MOVE

2008-01-03T13:15:00.000-05:00

Here's an idea a number of churches have tried lately. This account is by Margaret Pittman. I stole it from the Church Marketing Sucks website -

Occasionally churches get it right--they do something so significant that it makes you stand back in awe and amazement. And as a critic of the way most churches operate--as self-serving institutions, the event that occurred at my church did just that.

"Give Back Sunday" could have been a cheesy superficial marketing tool--allowing the congregation to take a little money out of the offering plate instead of giving money to the church. Whoopee. I get to take a buck and buy someone a cup of coffee--but oh wait, I can't even do that with a dollar. I can get someone a stick of gum ... maybe. What can I get someone for a dollar?

Anyway, everyone was invited to participate in taking an unmarked envelope out of the offering plate. There was a sense of palpable skepticism, as well as anticipation, in the congregation before we opened the envelopes. When we finally peeked inside, a stunned silence filled the pews. Wow. $20, $50 and $100 bills were in the envelopes--a total of over $13,500, with the instruction that we could not spend it on ourselves. We were told to bless someone this week because you have been richly blessed.

As the 300 or so people filed out after the service, many were crying, humbled and dreaming about how they could use their cash to help someone in need. Many were in need themselves, so the challenge will be for them to release the money to someone else in greater need. Perhaps for a large, well-established congregation this would not be so amazing, but this church is brand new and shares space with a Baptist church.

This church is able to give generously because it is not bogged down with building expenses and debt. This church is doing something right--taking the message of Jesus Christ outside the walls of the church and investing in the local community.

Stories of how folks have spent their 'talents' are being posted a on web site. The testimonies are pouring in.

This successful effort has made me think about what churches can learn from each other:

+ Don’t get bogged down in debt.
+ Give generously.
+ Take a step back now and then from frenzied ministry activities and ask yourself “Why? Why are we doing this? Why are we spending all this money?”
+ Make serving the poor a priority--no matter how big you get or how big your budget. It was important to Jesus (it was the topic of his very first sermon), so it should be important to us.
+ Oh, and yeah--it is more blessed to give than to receive!

INTO '08

2008-01-02T21:42:00.001-05:00

There's a lot to be said for getting back into routine, however much I enjoyed the interlude of priceless time with our family over Christmas.

So this was it. January 2nd. On with business!

We had a good pastoral team meeting this morning. They really are one of the highlights of my week because God has brought such a good team together. There's a great blend of personalities, each with their individual strengths and between us an unbelievable total of years of experience in pastoral ministry.

We talk a lot, laugh too, agree, disagree and above all else are in our fifth year as a team of spearheading what God is doing through Church At The Movies.

We spent a lot of time talking about the year ahead of us - even had some preliminary discussion about arrangements for Christmas 2008 - and when we parted at lunch time, I was very happy about what we had accomplished.

I'll be talking a bit about the year that's gone and the year before us on Sunday morning.

Good days ahead!

TROUBLING NEWS FROM INDIA

2008-01-01T10:53:00.000-05:00

I received an update today from Basil D'Souza about the unrest and persecution of Christians in some parts of the country, especially in the state of Orissa where Basil received this news from an outstanding pastor I know there -

Basil writes:
I spoke to DK on the phone yesterday and this is his latest report in regard to the 42 churches he oversees
* 6 Churches burnt
* 51 church members houses burnt
* 2 dead (a young lad and the husband of a woman and her family that attend one of the churches)
* Jissiah, one of DK's key pastors is still untraceable
* The north of India is experiencing a cold wave and in the hills and mountains of Orissa it is biting cold. Most of DK's work is in these areas.
* Many do not have food
* 7 days after the attacks first took place the situation seems to be under control. However with the curfew lifting, he will be able to personally visit these areas and assess first hand the loss of life and damage to property.

Please pray with us.
* For peace and normalcy to be restored
* For fear to be dispelled and faith to arise
* That this evil will turn out for good.....Gen 50:20
* That the Lord would stretch forth His hand with signs andwonders....Acts 4:29-31
* Restraint amongst tribal believers
* Wisdom and protection to rest upon DK and other leaders
* The government would rehabilitate those affected and ensure law andorder

THE BALL

2007-12-31T23:36:00.000-05:00

Spent a few hours earlier this evening at Celebrate Recovery's New Year Party. It was a fun time. We have some great folks in CR - real people facing real issues and overcoming them with God's help.

Quite unexpectedly, I'm still up, even though I anticipated an early-ish night.

Guess I may as well wait and see the Ball drop now.

Al Gore is doubtless thrilled that this year's ball is more environmentally friendly, sorry but does mine look like the face of someone who really cares?

GOODBYE

2007-12-31T23:12:00.000-05:00

Some good words here from T.D. Jakes for the end of the year -

There are people who can walk away from you.

And hear me when I tell you this!

When people can walk away from you: let them walk.

I don't want you to try to talk another person into staying with you, loving you, calling you, caring about you, coming to see you, staying attached to you.

When people can walk away from you let them walk.Your destiny is never tied to anybody that left.

The Bible said that,"They came out from us that it might be made manifest that they were not for us. For had they been of us, no doubt they would have continued with us." [1John 2:19]

People leave you because they are not joined to you. And if they are not joined to you, you can't make them stay. Let them go.

And it doesn't mean that they are a bad person, it just means that their part in the story is over. And you've got to know when people's part in your story is over so that you don't keep trying to raise the dead.

You've got to know when it's dead. You've got to know when it's over.

Let me tell you something. I've got the gift of good-bye. It's the tenth spiritual gift. I believe in "good-bye". It's not that I'm insenstive or uncaring, it's that I trust. I know whatever and whomever God means for me to have and be a part of my life He will give.

And if a relationship takes too much sweat I don't need it.

Stop begging people to stay.Let them go!!

SUNDAY REVIEW

2007-12-30T20:37:00.000-05:00

+ Had a good time in church today. It's always refreshing to get the chance to sit and listen to someone else teach, especially when it's Lesaya's father Ivan Vorster, who's a guy with years of experience in ministry and in life and who always has something worthwhile to say.

+ Seems the cab of our truck was broken into during the week, so I guess we won't be parking it beside the theater any more. Pity! Thankfully nothing significant was stolen.

+ Before service I chatted with a great couple who have been with us for several weeks now. Seems they're visiting from another church and are not sure where they should be. I didn't try to influence them, but I do understand their quandry as it seems the church they've been in for years is now in a building project and suddenly it's all about the building. I'll stay portable the rest of my life before I let bricks and mortar take priority over unchurched people.

+ Had a call after church to say someone who was with us for a number of years had died in very sad circumstances. I visited the family this afternoon and while I don't intend to go into detail here, please pray for this grieving household.

+ Crazy lines in Kohls today. I visited three of their stores. There was a jacket I like on sale in the first store, but they didn't have it in my size and neither did the other two branches. One store left to try - will hit that tomorrow.

+ It's very quiet here - home alone. Sounds like the gang are having a good time down in Dallas, especially as it got into the 60's there today.

+ Someone asked me if I had any thoughts of relocating to Texas. Good question! No chance! Here's the deal - I reckon God got it dead right (He's currently batting 1,000!) when he guided us to Long Island. I feel so at home here. I really do love this place. To my mind it's a perfect fit - others may have different opinions!!!

+ Startes reading John Grisham's Playing For Pizza on the way home here on Friday. It's a good read.

+ Our attorneys have advised me that the new town board will definitely be reversing the iniquitous code changes enacted in 2005 to stop us building. The first meeting with the new board will be next week and I'll be there. They know me up there now and I'll be working hard to make sure they remember who I am and who I represent.

LATE NIGHT

2007-12-29T21:43:00.000-05:00

I go to bed early on Saturdays because I like to have a full night's rest before a Sunday morning, which after all is the high point we are working towards every week. But of course there are unavoidable exceptions to that rule - like when the Giants are playing the Patriots and endeavoring to halt the New Englanders' run towards a perfect season.

Now, I'm a former 49ers fan who switched to supporting the Colts two years ago. I'm no great fan of either of the so-called "New York" teams. Sorry, but I just can't get my head round the fact that both the Giants and the Jets play in Jersey and have opted to continue that practice with the construction of a new stadium over there.

So whatever anyone else says, as far as I's concerned they're New Jersey teams.

Anyway, the Jets stink and I reckon the Giants are over-rated.

But this evening I'm willing to set all my bias aside and I hope against hope that Eli Manning and Co will continue to kick the Patriots' butts and serve them a giant slice of humble pie.

Great first half - I can't go to bed now at half time, can I?

LOOKING BOTH WAYS

2007-12-29T19:44:00.001-05:00

This is a schizophrenic time of year when I find myself loooking in two totally different directions. With little more than 48 hours left in 2007, I have been reflecting on the year that has almost passed - and has done so incredibly quickly.

I want to take time to reflect on where we've been and where we're at next Sunday morning, January 6th when we start our new series Getting In Shape. In order to move forward, we need to be pretty clear and honest about where we're at and that's how we'll approach our review of the ups - and downs - of this year.

But before then. I'm glad to be able to spend the last Sunday of '07 with our church family tomorrow. It's a great opportunity for us to express our gratitude to God for his goodness, protection and provision and to encourage one an other as we look to the future.

Our last service of the year - hope you're planning to be there!

HOME

2007-12-28T23:31:00.000-05:00

Arrived home from Little Elm, Texas about 20 minutes ago. It should have been quite a bit earlier, but the flight was two hours late taking off - what's new???

It was tough to say goodbye to everyone today - especially as Gill is staying down there until Tuesday, but it is difficult to put into words how great it was to have all the family together under one roof for most of Christmas - priceless!

CHRISTMAS RETROSPECT

2007-12-27T11:54:00.000-05:00

+ Had breakfast in McDonalds today with the grandchildren. McDonalds is a smart company. They cater for kids and all these adults inevitably show up too.

+ Jonathan and Donna's church did a very good Christmas Eve service. We couldn't get a seat at their 4.00pm service, so went back at 6.00.

+ Christmas Eve was the church's first anniversary of being out of a movie theater and in their own building. It's a great facility, but from what I hear it's a cash monster. I wonder if buildings are over-rated?

+ We had our Christmas dinner one day late as we waited for Charlotte and Jace to be here too. Having family all together is not over-rated.

+ It was great to watch Ben and Emily's faces as they came downstairs on Christmas nmorning and saw all the gifts under the tree.

+ It's cold down here. I was hoping for something better than that. Not as cold as NY I guess!

+ I hear the Giants will field a pretty weak team against the Patriots on Saturday. That should hand New England an unbeaten season on a platter - darn!

+ I fly home tomorrow. The week has gone quickly - too quickly.

+ Got some good clothes for Christmas. It's always safe when your kids pick your clothes for you.

+ I ordered coffee in McDonalds and the guy behind the counter asked, "Is that a senior's coffee, sir?" I politely pointed out that would be a regular coffee. I'd rather pay 50c more and preserve my dignity than take a drink he thought I looked like I qualify for, but I maintain I don't deserve for a few more years.

OZ

2007-12-24T15:44:00.000-05:00

Got to Texas very late last night because of weather delays at LGA, but we got here and that's the main thing

Thirty two years ago on Christmas Day I sat and watched The Wizard of Oz with a three year old daughter on my knee who was terrified by the wicked witch, but insisted on seeing the end of the movie.

This afternoon I just finished doing the same with a seven year old grandson holding on tight to me at certain points.

I wonder who it will be in 2039 or whether I will even be able to see the screen by then!!

MERRY CHRISTMAS

2007-12-23T14:31:00.000-05:00

Great morning! The place looked good, the music was outstanding, we had some very clever videos and I preached half decent in the second service (no mention of the first you will notice!).

It takes a monumental effort to pull of a Sunday service of the calibre we aim for while using a movie theater. But due to the efforts of scores of people, we had an excellent morning.

Heading to Dallas in an hour or so and then on to Little Elm, Texas - that sounds like a Texas name doesn't it? Let's face it, you could never have Little Elm, New York - it's too pretty a name for around here!

Blogging may be sketchy over the next few days as I intend to enjoy being with my family to the full. But I will be here occasionally I'm sure.

Merry Christmas!

GIVING

2007-12-22T20:35:00.000-05:00

I was right!

I had more fun going out with our moboile soup kitchen this afternoon than I had sitting watching a very mediocre Christman presentation in Madison Square Garden on Thursday night.

We served a hot dinner to almost 40 guys in five different locations in Patchogue, some in rooming houses and others in sober houses. We also gave them pantry bags with some delicious goodies and everyone got two personalized bags full of Christmas gifts.

The men were so appreciative and especially those for whom what we shared was going to be their total quota of Christmas presents as they receive nothing from anyone else.

What a privilege to be able to do that!

GIVING AND RECEIVING

2007-12-21T17:42:00.000-05:00

It's a funny old life!

Yesterday afternoon Gill and I were all set to go into Manhattan to celebrate our 38th wedding anniversary, but the weird thing is that when it came time to head to the train, we were more inclined to stay at home and do nothing for the evening. Not that we did of course, because we had already paid for tickets to see Wintuk, Cirque De Soleil's Christmas presentation in the theater at Madison Square Garden.

We enjoyed a good dinner at one of our favorite Indian Restaurants, The Jewel of India on East 44th Street, though the act of eating was a little rushed as the service was slower than usual and we were working to a curtains-up deadline. That having been said, the food was very good!

The show was okay, but save your money if you didn't buy your tickets yet.

What am I talking about? It wasn't okay.

I was bored out of my skull and a few jugglers, basic acrobats and a hoola hoop twirler were not exactly what I was expecting from the spectacular Cirque De Soleil when I shelled out $100 a pop for our very good seats.

Don't misunderstand me, I know I am blessed and I am grateful for the opportunity to eat in the city and watch a Christmas show, but the truth is I'll have a lot more fun distributing Christmas gifts to the needy with our mobile soup kitchen team tomorrow.

I guess Jesus had it right when he talked about it being more blessed to give than to receive.

WHOOPS - CORRECTING MY HISTORY

2007-12-20T14:07:00.001-05:00

Sorry, the Queen is the oldest monarch, not the longest serving -

Elizabeth, who took the throne in 1952, is one of only five kings or queens since the 1066 Norman Conquest to reign for more than half a century. Currently the fourth longest-reigning English monarch, she would overtake King Henry III on March 5, and King George III in 2012.

THIRTY EIGHT YEARS AGO

2007-12-20T13:32:00.000-05:00

Today at around noon EST, Queen Elizabeth II passed Queen Victoria to become the longest serving British monarch in the history of the nation.

Two hours before the English people noted that milestone, an almost equal amount of reverence was given to the fact that at 10.00am EST on December 20th, 1969 Gill and I were married.

Liz was still on the throne back then of course, the Beatles had turned psychadelic and weird and no one on the planet could even conceive of iPhones.

My how things have changed - except for the conviction that has grown over the years that young as I was, I made the smartest move of my life that winter afternoon!

CHRISTMAS IS GETTING CLOSE

2007-12-19T15:46:00.000-05:00

+ I'm working on the graphics to go with my message this Sunday and have decided to give our professionals the day off in favor of continuing the tradition of my own stick men drawings that I started last year.

+ Had our staff Christmas lunch at the new JR's Steakhouse in Medford today. I really didn't want grilled chicken and brocolli, but I felt it might be wise in light of next week's impending foodfest.

+ Picked up a ton of toys from my friend Charlie Russo from Christmas Magic yesterday afternoon. Must have been several thousands of dollars worth and we'll be distributing them to our Grace Care Food Pantry families this week.

+ The Celebrate Recovery Christmas Party last night was a very good time. I could hardly believe the crowd. CR is intended for people with hurts, hangups and habits and it seems like God is sending us a lot of those folks. They're a great bunch!

+ Carrie is doing a magnificent job with CR. Her passion for hurting people has been the key to this ministry's explosive growth. She's even got stuff in place for Christmas Day, New Year's Eve and New Year's Day, which are all potentially trigger days for folks with life controlling issues.

+ I'm sick of hearing Happy Holidays - did I say that already?

+ Looking forward to Sunday. It's a good job we're doing two services as I've heard about quite a number of people bringing friends and family.

+ We have a ridiculous amount of gifts accumulating under our tree. This evening I have to do a bit of shopping myself - the first Christmas shopping I've done and hopefully the last. My good wife takes care of absolutely everything. Not that shopping is a hardship to her!

+ Sunday evening we fly to Dallas. Christmas in Texas will be a novelty. Charlotte and Jace join us on the 26th, so we'll all be together, which is the best thing I could ever get for Christmas. I like my family.

NOTIFICATION OF ANTICIPATED CELEBRATION

2007-12-18T10:01:00.000-05:00

To All My Liberal Friends:

Please accept with no obligation, implied or implicit, my best wishes for an environmentally conscious, socially responsible, low-stress, non-addictive, gender-neutral celebration of the winter solstice holiday, practiced within the most enjoyable traditions of the religious persuasion of your choice, or secular practices of your choice, with respect for the religious/secular persuasion and/or traditions of others, or their choice not to practice religious or secular traditions at all.

I also wish you a fiscally successful, personally fulfilling and medically uncomplicated recognition of the onset of the generally accepted calendar year 2008, but not without due respect for the calendars of choice of other cultures whose contributions to society have helped make America great. Not to imply that America is necessarily greater than any other country nor the only America in the Western Hemisphere . Also, this wish is made without regard to the race, creed, color, age, physical ability, religious faith or sexual preference of the wishee.

To All My Other Friends:

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

MADE IT!

2007-12-17T20:06:00.001-05:00

So here I am, relaxing in my chair-and-a-half in my own den and watching ESPN's pre-game show, leading up to tonight's encounter between the Bears and the Vikings.

Traveling home today was pretty straightforward and one big plus from the extended stay in Canada was that I got to spend some more time with Brandon. There was also the fact that I found a shop selling British-style meat pies and brought some home to enjoy over Christmas (calories don't count from December 20th to 26th).

While I have ventured north of the border on five or six previous occasions, none of those has been in summer. Somehow I've only ever been in Canada when it's cold and there's snow on the ground. I hear it rumored that the sun does shine up there and the temperature soars above freezing on rare occasions.

I guess the fact that I haven't experienced that doesn't mean it's not true - it's just hard to believe!!!

STUCK IN SNOWY CANADA

2007-12-16T20:45:00.000-05:00

It's quite a while since last I was in Canada, but one thing I have been reminded of this weekend is they're hardy folks up here. Either that or they're barking mad!

It started snowing as we were leaving Buffalo Airport last night and I guess it continued through the night, because as we set out for Church at The Falls - http://churchatthefalls.com/ - this morning, the cold, white stuff was still coming down.

Now New Yorkers are a tough bunch, but we're not nuts. So we'd have made the call early today and cancelled the service if that was us (I doubt if anyone would have showed up anyway).

Not so here. By the time we arrived at the movie theater that houses this young congregation, the trailer with the equipment had already been offloaded and a bunch of people were getting everything in place for the 10.00am start. Despite the really bad weather, an amazing 50% of the usual crowd braved it through the elements and amazingly seemed in no rush to head for home once the service was over.

I enjoyed being there. I have got to know the lead pastor, Brandon Duff ,over the past couple of years and we have chatted regularly as he went through the preparations to launch and actually got this venture under way.

There's a great feel to this church. So many people who are hands-on, doing whatever needs to be done and above all sharing the vision to reach the unchurched in Niagara Falls for Jesus.

Some randon reflections on this visit -

+ Brandon, Brenda and their two teenage children are a great family.

+ Their theater is in a superb location and is in an outstanding condition.

+ They spend a fortune on Portable Church equipment, which I have backed away from because of the cost, but today I saw first-hand how well it works.

+ They have some really committed people - like, imagine the guys who pulled a 24ft trailer several miles through thick snow to bring in the equipment. And then took it back through thicker snow.

+ Their coffee's good - Tim Horton's might do well in the U.S.

+ Didn't preach my best by any means, but several folks said it helped them.

+ I love being with church planters - they're their own brand of insane.

+ This church is going to grow and impact lives.

+ Brandon's very smart - he asks a lot of questions.

+ I'm dumb so I pretend I know some of the answers.

+ Brenda served me my meal on a snack table while I was watching football - now if only she could train Gill!!!

+ People talk a bit funny in Canada - eh?

+ Hope I get home before Christmas - keep thinking of the movie Trains, Planes and Automobiles!

+ It's still snowing!

PARDON ME WHILE I BRAG

2007-12-16T19:38:00.000-05:00

This weekend I planned a quick 24 hour trip to Church at The Falls in Niagara Falls, Canada to spend some time with the folks there and the pastor who is planting this young church Brandon Duff - as it is, I'm still up there, snowed in, when I should be boarding a plane back to JFK.

It seems the storm that is still hitting this area dumped snow on Long Island during the night and then switched over to torrential rain, leaving a slushy, very wet start to Sunday back at Church at The Movies.

I was thinking it was a good job we had left our equipment truck in the movie theater parking lot for the week, about three hundred yards from the building. But maybe it wasn't.

I was talking to Charlotte on the phone this morning as she was pulling into the parking lot and she reported the truck was still where we left it, rather than in the process of being unloaded.

Turns out it had died - to be revived again later I am happy to report.

So here's who I'm bragging about.

In that downpour, our set-up guys and some ladies too offloaded every piece of equipment and pushed or carried it through the snowy, icey mess over to the theater entrance.

They must have been soaked to the skin and freezing cold, but they did it because in their minds what happens on Sundays is worth even that degree of sacrifice.

I am humbled to pastor people like this. I hope I am worthy of them.

CAMPBELL'S SAVE CHRISTMAS

2007-12-14T21:14:00.000-05:00

When I checked my emails this morning, I had mp3's of every song on my deceased Christmas tape - all the way from Scotland.

I love this global village we live in!

SAVING CHRISTMAS

2007-12-13T20:34:00.001-05:00

I am humbled at the international effort that is under way to save Christmas for me following the premature demise of my cassette, The Christmas Tape, at the tender age of 22.

+ One blog reader found it for me on Amazon.UK at a pretty ourrageous price, but she advised that since this was so important to me, I should go for it. I tried - they don't ship to the U.S. Thanks for trying Linda.

+ There was an almost immediate response from Oklahoma (thanks Danny) informing me most of the songs could be downloaded from iTunes. Several others passed on this information to me, including my son whose brief message could have been reduced to two words, iTunes, duh! Let me say in my own defense here that someone born in an era when one computer filled a whole room and who even owns a cassette of anything does not have a mind that immediately thinks - iTunes, so I do appreciate that nudge, though not the sarcasm from Texas!

+ Then this evening an unexpected superhero emerged in the shape of an old friend from Scotland, Pete Campbell, a great guy who was part of our church in Scotland for a while when taking a break from pastoring himself. Pete emailed me that he has a music buff for a son-in-law and that he will send me mp3's of all the songs.

Christmas has been saved!

I love it - help from all corners (except Dallas)!

The Christmas spirit lives on!

Santa is alive and well ... or something!

INTERNATIONAL DRUNKS

2007-12-13T20:27:00.000-05:00

Offers to relieve me of my bottle of Johnnie Walker Red Label are coming in from around the globe, to date exclusively from pastors and missionaries (well, just one missionary to tell the truth and I always had my doubts about her!!!).

All tongue-in-cheek, let me hasten to add.

Nearer home things have been much quieter, but my wife decided it might be good to remove the liquor from our kitchen counter before any visitor got the wrong impression!!!

HOLD EVERYTHING

2007-12-13T11:53:00.000-05:00

Nobody move!

Undeck the halls with bows of holly; delete your list and don't bother checking it even once; stop dreaming of a white Christmas.

There is a significant Christmas crisis in the Blackmore family that could mark the end of life as we know it.

Christmas is over - my cassette is broken.

Yes folks, I said cassette, the album released 22 years ago with the creative title The Christmas Tape broke yet again while I was playing it in the car this morning and I doubt if it can be repaired.

It contains classics like -

Band Aid : "Do They Know It's Christmas?"
Roy Wood with Wizzard : "I Wish It Could Be Christmas Everyday"
Slade : "Merry Xmas Everybody"
Wham! : "Last Christmas"
Elton John : "Step Into Christmas"
Mike Oldfield : "In Dulce Jubilo"
Gary Glitter : "Another Rock N' Roll Christmas"
Paul McCartney : "Wonderful Christmastime"
Shakin' Stevens : "Blue Christmas"
Chris de Burgh : "A Spaceman Came Travelling"
Jona Lewie : "Stop The Cavalry"
The Beach Boys : "Little Saint Nick"
Queen : "Thank God It's Christmas"
Mud : "Lonely This Christmas"
Johnny Mathis : "When a Child is Born (Soleado)"
Bing Crosby : "White Christmas"

You can't buy this anywhere, it's irreplacable. It's been part of my Christmas for more than two decades.

Cancel Santa folks - it's over!

ANOTHER CHRISTMAS DINNER

2007-12-12T22:57:00.000-05:00

Just got in from Medford Chamber of Commerce's Christmas Dinner. It was at a nice place, but I decided to eat in advance and pass up on everything but the salad as it's getting into that time of year when extra caution about food is essential.

They had a raffle and I won a bottle of Johnnie Walker Red Label, which caused a certain degree of hilarity among the assembled business persons. Haven't worked out who to pass it onto yet. Applications by email only please!

It has been a long day. Met Rick Mueller at 7.45am to do some video recording and it has been pretty non-stop ever since.

So words here are limited and bed is beckoning.

More tomorrow!

IT'S CALLED CHRISTMAS

2007-12-11T21:57:00.000-05:00

What is the matter with people? This country is going nuts.

Let's set the record straight - the thing in the corner of my den is a CHRISTMAS tree; hanging around our walls are CHRISTMAS decorations; we have strings of CHRISTMAS cards; in my car I listen to CHRISTMAS music.

And whether you like it or not, I'm going to wish you a Merry CHRISTMAS and not Happy Holidays!

If that offends you, go get a life, re-read your history books instead of trying to re-write them and deal with the fact that since the birth of Jesus has been celebrated at this time of year for centuries, your whining is not going to change that.

But then again, instead of rambling on myself, I'll leave you to check out how these guys say - or sing - about this nonsense far more eloquently than I could -

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IAckfn8yiAQ

DAY OFF

2007-12-10T22:13:00.000-05:00

The sabbath principle has to be a good one, because it was God's idea. If he needed a total break one day a week, then we do too. That's why I like Mondays - not that I rested in the sense of lazing around and doing nothing, rather I switched off from church stuff and focused on some things that are completely different.

Went to the gym this morning and then to Weight Watchers. I still attend Monday meetings as a member even though I lead four groups myself on Saturday mornings. I'll always be a member as I need to stay focused. This was not a diet that I succeeded with and can now give up, it is a new lifestyle.

Did a few things over at Charlotte's house this afternoon to help her out and then picked up my grandson from school. I don't do that often, but he likes it when he can ride with me in the Mustang and I know he enjoys our usual stop at the 7-11 on the way home.

Vegging this evening - there's a pretty pointless football game involving two inept teams on the TV, but I'm not really paying much attention.

Back to it tomorrow. It will be a full week, but one day of rest is enough and I'm ready to get going as we build up to Christmas Sunday, December 23rd.

SUNDAY REVIEW

2007-12-09T22:39:00.000-05:00

+ I am proud of myself that I managed to steer clear of the chocolate chip bagels and chocolate chip cream cheese this morning, but man was I tempted!

+ We're taking a break from the live video feed in the Cafe for the Christmas period. This means the Big Screen Cafe closes when service starts and the volunteers have a chance to get into Theater 5 and hear most of the service live for a change.

+ Gave away three boxes of Godiva chocolates while I was teaching this morning - immediately alienated more than 300 people!!!

+ While we're doing Christmas Sunday services and not Christmas Eve, it looks like a bunch of people will be joining Penny at the Nursing Home to give out gifts to the old folks and spend time with them on the 24th. That's good stuff.

+ Pulling the Cafe crowd into the main service meant from a practical perspective the place was full. Nice problem. Good job we're doing two services Christmas Sunday. That will be a practice run for our next step as the crowd increases.

+ So many new people. Do I really need to reconcile myself to the fact I don't know the names of everyone in the church? I am certainly not comfortable with that.

+ Had a lady visiting today who has been in a very driven church for years. She just left there. I taught on grace today and I gather it blew her away - that's what grace does to you, it blows you away.

+ Our set-up team got everything in place in record time today. They are good!

+ We have a great giveaway for everyone next week. It involves chocolate of course.

+ I like the Hershey's t-shirt I wore this morning. I got a Reese's Pieces one at the same time. There was a bright orange one that had a Reese's Peanut Butter Cup graphic, but they didn't have it in my size. Pity - bright orange would look good on the DVD.

+ The Colts are anihilating the Ravens. The Ravens almost beat the Patriots last week, so does that mean the Colts could now pulverize New England? - I wish!

PRODIGAL HOUSE

2007-12-09T20:25:00.000-05:00

Early this evening Gill and I took a ride to Prodigal House in Port Jefferson Station, where Frank Summers is getting everything in place for a whole new area of ministry - providing housing for troubled teens. Long Island Youth For Christ is sponsoring this project and Frank will direct it, while continuing to be part of our pastoral team.

It's a great opportunity for Frank and Lucy to get stuck into something that has been on their hearts for decades. While his involvement there will reduce Franks hands-on participation in the life of our church, it is very much in line with our policy of being a church that reaches out to those who are hurting.

The house they have bought, largely through the involvement of TV political commentator Sean Hannity, is an amazing place. It's a historic building and is in breath-taking shape.

Tonight the whole house looked even better as Jill Hannity had decorated it throughout for Christmas and those interested in what will be happening there in the coming months were able to visit and enjoy the seasonal decor.

It's great to see Frank and Lucy's dream become such an amazing reality.

TYLENOL PM

2007-12-08T21:20:00.000-05:00

It's almost time to go to bed, because I can feel the Tylenol PM starting to kick in.

I get wired about Sundays, but one of the drawbacks of that is that if I wake up in the early hours of the morning, I find it very difficult to get back to sleep again. So often on a Saturday evening I take something to enhance my sleep experience (do you like that phrase?), so that I wake up refreshed and ready for the biggest morning of the week.

We're opening The Chocolate Box tomorrow and to add to the experience we've even discovered chocolate chip cream cheese to spread on the bagels.

Sounds like a lip smacking good morning ahead.

So now, to rest!

HUCKABEE SOUNDS INTERESTING

2007-12-07T13:48:00.000-05:00

I'll admit I'm pretty switched off to all the primary junk at the moment. I figure there's still almost a full year to give it some serious thought. But I did like what I found here today.

Scroll down to the video of Huckabee addressing pastors -

http://www.mikehuckabee.com/index.cfm?FuseAction=VerticalDay.Home

INSIDE THE CHOCOLATE BOX

2007-12-07T12:30:00.001-05:00

If our new series sounds interesting, wait till you see how it tastes! Chocolate chip bagels, chocolate donuts, hot chocolate, Hershey's Kisses, Reese's Peanut Butter Cups, Rolos, York Peppermint Patties, etc, etc .... and three boxes of Godiva chocolates to give away.

See you Sunday - with your appetite.

*This series is sponsored by Weight Watchers

GOOD QUOTE

2007-12-07T10:45:00.000-05:00

Craig Groeschel of LifeChurch.tv (Edmond, OK) recently turned 40 years old and in celebration has blogged 40 leadership tips for young pastors. Here is one of my favorites:

#18 - If you’re going to reach people that others aren’t, you’ll have to do things that others won’t.

PODCASTS

2007-12-07T10:25:00.000-05:00

Okay, I'll tell the truth, I really was going to post here last night, but then I went to iTunes to update my podcasts and discovered I was so behind that it took way past my normal bedtime just to complete that simple operation.

Podcasting is an amazing thing for someone whose first introduction to sound reproduction was the reel to reel tape recorders of fifty years ago.

I noticed this morning that two of the guys I listen to regularly are #4 and #9 on iTunes top 20 list of most popular Christian podcasts. That would be Rob Bell and Mark Driscoll.

Driscoll's current series on Phillipians is very good stuff - guaranteed to ruffle a few feathers, but of course that's what he does and it's probably why I like him. Kindred spirits???

I also listen to Erwin McManus, Andy Stanley, Bill Hybels, Mark Beeson, Perry Noble, Gary Lamb and a couple of folks few have even heard of - all of which probably explains why I get backed up fom time to time, especially if I skip going to the gym as that's where I do most of my listening.

If you don't have one already, I thoroughly recommend you ask for an iPod for Christmas. There's a world of good preaching out there!

HEAVEN IS RICHER

2007-12-05T13:34:00.000-05:00

You would never believe how many people my friend Agnel packed into and around this very modest church building in Calangute, Goa on Sunday mornings.

A few years ago, straight out of a small training school, he took on the task of building the congregation there from a handful of local believers and grew the church to an average attendance of around 120 people. In the course of doing that, he started to plant in Vasco - around 90 minutes away - and established an even bigger church there.

Every Sunday afternoon, when the service in Calangute was over, Agnel would get onto his motor bike with his wife and daughter and they would ride along the winding roads towards their second congregation which met in the evening.

Agnel took a shorter journey on Monday of this week. He stepped from time into eternity - in a moment - leaving this world and the great work he has done at the age of 42.

It has been a privilege to spend time with him and his folks in Goa on four different occasions over the past few years. Gill and I were there in February when he seemed his normal self, oblivious to the cancer that was already spreading throughout his body. On Monday he went home.

But cancer did not kill him. God took him and for the life of me I can't fathom out the why's and wherefore's. But I trust where I can't understand.

Please pray for Amelia and their five year old daughter Ashna.

PUZZLED

2007-12-04T14:45:00.000-05:00

I had a very nice email the other day from a lady who left our church earlier this year after being with us from the start. It seems her main issue was that we have changed and become "a salvation church".

Two things:

1. The day we launched I stood in front of the 154 people who showed up for that service and said, "This church exists for one purpose - To seek and to save those that are lost." I have to be honest and admit that phrase is not original. I read it in a book - a very good book. Those are the words Jesus used to sum up the whole purpose of his mission to earth. I figured if that was what he was about, maybe it's what his church should be committed to as well.

I am glad to report that we have not changed, nor morphed into anything different - maybe we just got a bit better at what we set out to do in the first place!

2. What the heck is "a salvation church"? I am tempted to go on a lengthy rant here, but will limit my comment to this - if indeed there are churches that do not have the salvation of lost men and women as their main focus and goal, those are not churches at all. They are bless-me social clubs.

Sadly I do know they exist!

TADD'S FAMOUS

2007-12-02T22:43:00.000-05:00

One of the young church planters I've got to know a bit in recent years made it onto NBC Nightly News this evening - and he came over very well. Check this out -

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9xoKIelVViM

WOW

2007-12-02T16:11:00.000-05:00

That was some morning!

When I left the house just before 7.00 there was no sign of the snow that had been forecast, but within ten minutes it was coming down and sticking. That is not the kind of sight that encourages people out onto the roads and it certainly hit our turnout considerably today.

But we had a great morning.

Kudos to our set up guys who worked in freezing temperatures to offload the truck and to put everything back on too when things were over. It still hasn't got up to 32 today (0 for our continental readers) and at this rate I guess it won't get there.

Outstanding song set by the band - superbly executed of course - on what I was told was a morning when boxes of Kleenex should have been handed out at the door.

As I taught on healing, it was inspiring to hear six stories from real people on how God had intervened on their behalf. I wove these into the message and every one of them was a faith-builder.

We go to a lot of trouble to make Sunday services special events, but there is one factor we always try to remember, what makes it all special is that Jesus is there.

He was with us today and as we prayed for him to heal people, I believe it happened and look forward to hearing some stories about what he did.

Okay, the teaching went long, but it was a very good time!

SNOW MIRACLES

2007-12-01T20:21:00.000-05:00

There's meant to be a bit of snow around in the morning - increasing as the day goes by. But I don't want to miss our final Miracles teaching, mainly because I'm not doing it all, we're going to be listening to six incredible stories of modern day miracles during the teaching too.

One not to be missed Sunday!

UNEXPECTED AWARD

2007-12-01T17:06:00.000-05:00

I was given an award for being Rookie Leader of The Year in Weight Watchers Eastern Suffolk Territory today. Not sure what I did to deserve it, but it is much appreciated.

On the left of the picture are Barbara and Nikki who are part of the Saturday staff team and on the right, Territory Manager Lucia Velardi, presenting the award.

NO GAME

2007-11-29T22:36:00.000-05:00

I know that in the grand scheme of things, this is not really one of the most important issues in life. I appreciate that it shrinks into insignificance alongside the President's efforts at a new Middle East peace accord this week.

But I want to go on record as saying that the NFL are out of their tiny minds giving coverage of major games to a network most of the country has no access to. So while the 10-1 Packers are playing the 10-1 bears tonight in Dallas, the game is unavailable to most football fans anywhere across the nation. Me included.

I'm ticked.

Take games off your own NFL Channel and give them back to the people - people like me!

MYSTERY SERIES

2007-11-28T22:30:00.000-05:00

We start our Christmas series, The Chocolate Box on December 9th. Chocolate donuts will be very prominent in our Big Screen Cafe, as will hot chocolate and our special seasonal offering - chocolate chip bagels.

People are asking what the series is all about and I'm enjoying keeping them guessing. You'll have to show up to find out, or to quote an Old Testament verse, Taste and see!!!

GREG

2007-11-28T14:25:00.000-05:00

It's always interesting to see what parts of the world blog readers are logging in from. Over the past twenty four hours we've spanned from Cancun to Turkey.

Whether you're sunning yourself in Mexico, preparing for a European winter, or somewhere in between, there's good news here today.

This morning I took a quick trip to Stony Brook Hospital to check in with Greg Foley, the young man from our church who suffered serious brain trauma when he was hit by a car almost three weeks ago.

What a difference from my last visit!

A lot of the tubes and wires are gone, he's out of the coma and we had a conversation. Sure his speech is deliberate and he's reaching for some words, but Greg's on his way back folks. Please keep praying for him and his family as they continue the journey to complete recovery and thank God for his goodness to them all.

BIG WEEKEND

2007-11-27T21:42:00.000-05:00

We have seen people commit their lives to Christ on both of the past two Sundays and that is the greatest miracle of all. I'm expecting to end our Miracles series this coming Sunday on a very high note, with more lives being transformed.

As I teach on healing and we take time to pray for those who need their own personal miracle, I am anticipating that prayers will be answered and the Christ who never changes will be with us to bring healing and wholeness to many lives.

So if you know someone who's sick and needs a personal miracle, be sure to invite them to be with us.

HEALING

2007-11-26T21:39:00.000-05:00

For the finale of our Miracles series this coming Sunday, I'm going to focus on one of Jesus' healing miracles. Yesterday I invited our folks to share their stories of healing in an email of less than 200 words and I've had some great stuff come in already.

We'll share these testimonies on Sunday.

Man, I'm looking forward to the weekend!

HYPING IT UP

2007-11-26T21:03:00.000-05:00

At the gym this morning I spent some time watching ESPN's review of the weekend's football. It seems there were a few good games around the country, while we were stuck with the Giants having a really bad day on our TV screens.

What followed just after dawn today was something my marketing executive friend Ian Baer should take a look at and maybe add to his portfolio. It was ESPN's effort to sell this evening's Monday Night Football game between the Steelers and the 0-10 lackluster, underscoring, underperforming, not-worth-watching Miami Dolphins.

ESPN went back to some footage of a Monday night game they had in the archives when the Dolphins achieved a stunning come from behind victory. Will they surprise us all again? Will this be Miami's night once more?

No, of course it won't.

They're sad. A franchise with an impressive history that has spent more than enough seasons lost in space.

But kudos to the writers at ESPN for their great effort at selling this pointless game. Their creativity is truly amazing.

One thing I strive for when we put together promotional pieces for our church is truth in advertising. We have to be able to produce what we promise and avoid the trap of loading ourselves with superlatives that describe the way we wish we were rather than the present reality.

I can't deal with hype in what we put out for those not yet in the church, or with hype inside for that matter!

SUNDAY RETROSPECT

2007-11-25T21:29:00.000-05:00

+ It was cold early this morning, so I particularly appreciated the commitment of our set-up team who were out in the freezing temperatures to offload all our gear.

+ The theater opened for early shows at 10.30 today, but it didn't cramp our style too much. We couldn't have our prayer chapel or live video feed in the cafe, but apart from that it was business as usual. Good thing we have an excellent relationship with the manager.

+ After service I prayed with a young woman who wanted to commit her life to Christ. Great stuff - it's why we do what we do!

+ Good news from the hospital on Greg. He has come out of the induced coma and is showing signs of awareness.

+ More new folks around. It really is getting difficult to keep track. I don't know a lot of names, which is not good.

+ Watched the Giants this afternoon - waste of time as the Vikings blew them away.

+ My sister arrives on Tuesday. I'm looking forward to seeing her.

+ Peter Montana was in church today. He's the guy who raised the money for our Thanksgiving outreach which provided all the ingredients for a full dinner for sixty families.

+ We need to do another new friends lunch soon so we can get to know some of the folks who have started worshiping with us.

+ The house is weird without Maggie around. It's strange to come home and not have her jumping around as soon as you open the door.

+ This was the 15th consecutive dry Sunday - no rain yet since we moved to Ronkonkoma. Wet mornings would certainly make unloading and loading challenging.

LESSONS I'VE LEARNED WHEN LIFE STINKS

2007-11-25T14:37:00.000-05:00

Someone askied for the outline of today's teaching, so I said I'd post it here - for him and the world to see!!!

It's based on Jesus stilling the storm in Mark 4.

1. THINGS AROUND US CAN CHANGE VERY QUICKLY
Mark 4:37 - A furious squall came up, and the waves broke over the boat, so that it was nearly swamped.

2. IT’S EASY TO THINK GOD DOESN’T CARE
v38 - The disciples woke him and said to him, "Teacher, don't you care if we drown?"

3. THERE’S A SPIRITUAL BATTLE GOING ON
v39 - He got up, rebuked the wind and said to the waves, "Quiet! Be still!" Then the wind died down and it was completely calm.

4. GOD LOVES TO SURPRISE US
v41 - They were terrified and asked each other, "Who is this? Even the wind and the waves obey him!"

5. JESUS IS NEVER ANXIOUS, SO WE DON’T NEED TO BE EITHER
v38 - Jesus was in the stern, sleeping on a cushion.

6. THOUGH OUR FAITH SEEMS INADEQUATE, IT’S OKAY
v40 - He said to his disciples, "Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?"

7. JESUS ALWAYS TAKES US THROUGH
v35 - That day when evening came, he said to his disciples, "Let us go over to the other side."

ROUTINE

2007-11-24T17:56:00.000-05:00

There's a lot to be said for getting back to routine and that's how today has been shaping up - with the one noted exception that I didn't go out with our Grace Care outreach team this afternoon to bring Thanksgiving meals to the homeless men we serve every Saturday.

I resumed my Weight Watchers classes this morning and although the turnout was predictably thin (no pun intended!) on this holiday weekend, it was good to reconnect with those who did make it and encourage them as we move into a demanding season.

The rest of the day has been spent completing everything for tomorrow and I must say I'm really looking forward to teaching the third part of our Miracles series.

The countdown to Christmas now starts in earnest and we reckon our two Christmas Sunday services may well draw an even bigger corwd than Easter Sunday.

This time of year presents some great opportunities, so let it snow, let it snow, let it snow!!!

Just kidding about the white stuff God, honest!

SOUTHWEST ROCKS

2007-11-23T14:11:00.000-05:00

Got home about an hour ago from our Thanksgiving in Florida and I have to say that I was superimpressed with Southwest's service. Not only do they treat passengers like human beings and act as though they're glad to see you, but going both ways the flights arrived almost 30 minutes ahead of schedule - which beats at least 3 hours after the designated time that seems to be the pattern for any airline you'll fly out of JFK!

They've adjusted their seating arrangements too, but it's interesting that however near to the 24 hours in advance you get on line, you're still some way down the line!

Today I got an exit row seat, excellent service, a short flight and even the coffee was marginally less disgusting than what is served on most planes.

So that's us back. As far as I know, I don't have to get on a plane again for a while, which is a relief.

Tonight we're having a Thanksgiving Dinner at Charlotte's, though she's serving chicken as turkey isn't among her favorite meats.

Are you allowed to do Thanksgiving with chicken???

THE FIRST PROCLAMATION

2007-11-22T09:52:00.000-05:00

Thanksgiving Proclamation 1777 by the Continental Congress:the first national Thanksgiving proclamation

IN CONGRESSNovember 1, 1777

FORASMUCH as it is the indispensable Duty of all Men to adore the superintending Providence of Almighty God; to acknowledge with Gratitude their Obligation to him for Benefits received, and to implore such farther Blessings as they stand in Need of:

And it having pleased him in his abundant Mercy, not only to continue to us the innumerable Bounties of his common Providence; but also to smile upon us in the Prosecution of a just and necessary War, for the Defense and Establishment of our unalienable Rights and Liberties; particularly in that he hath been pleased, in so great a Measure, to prosper the Means used for the Support of our Troops, and to crown our Arms with most signal success:

It is therefore recommended to the legislative or executive Powers of these UNITED STATES to set apart THURSDAY, the eighteenth Day of December next, for SOLEMN THANKSGIVING and PRAISE: That at one Time and with one Voice, the good People may express the grateful Feelings of their Hearts, and consecrate themselves to the Service of their Divine Benefactor; and that, together with their sincere Acknowledgments and Offerings, they may join the penitent Confession of their manifold Sins, whereby they had forfeited every Favor; and their humble and earnest Supplication that it may please GOD through the Merits of JESUS CHRIST, mercifully to forgive and blot them out of Remembrance;

That it may please him graciously to afford his Blessing on the Governments of these States respectively, and prosper the public Council of the whole: To inspire our Commanders, both by Land and Sea, and all under them, with that Wisdom and Fortitude which may render them fit Instruments, under the Providence of Almighty GOD, to secure for these United States, the greatest of all human Blessings, INDEPENDENCE and PEACE:

That it may please him, to prosper the Trade and Manufactures of the People, and the Labor of the Husbandman, that our Land may yield its Increase: To take Schools and Seminaries of Education, so necessary for cultivating the Principles of true Liberty, Virtue and Piety, under his nurturing Hand; and to prosper the Means of Religion, for the promotion and enlargement of that Kingdom, which consisteth "in Righteousness, Peace and Joy in the Holy Ghost."

And it is further recommended, That servile Labor, and such Recreation, as, though at other Times innocent, may be unbecoming the Purpose of this Appointment, be omitted on so solemn an Occasion.

GETTING IN HOLIDAY MOOD

2007-11-21T10:42:00.000-05:00

I love this time of year. This morning I sat out on the front porch with a bowl of fresh fruit and a cup of coffee, watching the sun over the lake and letting my mind wander for a while.

You guessed it, I'm not in New York!

We're in Florida for a couple of days to have Thanksgiving with good friends down here in Dunedin, just north of Clearwater Beach, a practice we started a few years ago. I love watching the crowd shivering at Macy's Parade while it's 80 outside here!

I slept 10 1/2 hours last night, which I think means I'm catching up from the effects of my India trip, hopefully it will mean I'm totally coherent by the time we get home on Friday.

Sunday we're continuing the Miracles series and I'm really looking forward to this weekend when I'll be teaching on Lessons I've Learned When Life Stinks. Personally I think the word "sucks" fits better into that context, but I gather it's not really acceptable to use it in a church setting. So if you're reading this and will be there on Sunday, you'll know what I really mean!!!

I love pastoring a church where I can be honest. I don't have to pretend to be perfect, project that life is perfect and spend all my time beating on others for their imperfections. Lets face it, sometimes life sucks (sorry, I said it!), but it is often at those moments we get to know God better and see him coming through for us.

I think this will be a great Thanksgiving message, because while it's easy to be grateful for all the good stuff, it's another think to appreciate the bad times too.

WHAT DAY IS IT ANYWAY?

2007-11-20T16:30:00.000-05:00

Okay, so I haven't been around here for a day or more!

It has been a weird few days since I got back from India. I think the time difference has hit me more this time than on any of the previous nine occasions I've made a visit to that sub-contient. Could it be age I wonder??? Of course not!

I managed to sleep until 4.20 this morning, which is almost two hours more than the previous two nights. Being wide awake at 2.30am stinks unless you're driving on the LIE at the time or pulling the night shift at Home Depot. With those exceptions - and maybe a few more - the night is definitely meant for sleeping.

Yesterday was traumatic of course, as I took Maggie to the vet and stayed with her while she was put to sleep. She was a great dog and the house is really weird without her around. The strange thing is that I protested loud and long that we shouldn't get a dog, but it turned out that I was generally the one she hung out with. She even sat on a chair in my office all day! I won't get too sentimental here - enough to say it was rough making that journey with her.

To add to the day's woes, I later tripped at home while I was carrying some boxes and fell face down on the floor, smashing my glasses and cutting my face. I put that down to weariness from the jet lag!

So it has been fun readjusting after the 10 1/2 hours time difference. Hopefully I'll be back in the land of the living by Thursday, but at the moment it's 4.30 and I'm tired!!!

SUNDAY REFLECTIONS

2007-11-18T20:28:00.000-05:00

+ It was great to be back at church today. I missed everyone while I was in India and it was good to catch up with them. I love our people.

+ The temperature was 44 today, but with windchill it was in the 30's. That takes a bit of getting used to after ten days in Indian heat.

+ Watching the Patriots winning again - this is getting boring. Thankfully the Colts got back to wining ways today - not to mention the fact that the two New Jersey teams both won, Giants and Jets.

+ I continued the Miracles series this morning, talking about Jesus feeding the 5,000. I took the opportunity to share a pretty straightforward salvation message and four people made a first time commitment to Christ.

+ Have been awake since 2.30am - jet lag is a wonderful thing!!!

+ Our ten year old little dog, Maggie has never been the same since her bowel surgery in June. She has no proper control of her rear end and we are constantly cleaning up after her around the house. I talked to the vet a couple of weeks ago and we have reluctantly agreed with him that neither her quality of life or ours is good. Tomorrow morning I'm taking Maggie on a one way trip to the vet. Say a prayer for me if you remember - it will be tough. I realize if you never had a pet you won't understand!

+ Met some more new folks today. Looked like a pretty full house. Good job we're doing two services Christmas Sunday.

+ Visited Greg Foley in hospital. He was involved in a serious accident nine days ago and suffered major head trauma. Greg's still in a coma and the doctors can't say a lot yet about how they expect things to progress. Please pray for him and his family, especially his mom Liz.

+ I'm falling asleep as I sit here - guess it's time to give in.

HOME

2007-11-17T20:01:00.000-05:00

Happy to be back. Had a great time in India - very worthwhile trip indeed. More on that tomorrow no doubt, but for the time being am very tired. Flight home was delayed considerably, which gave us 8 hours to wait in Mumbai airport before the 16 hours flight home - all that after a 5.5 hours drive to the airport in the first place.

Are you feeling sympathetic yet???

Looking forward to teaching tomorrow on the second Sunday of our Miracles series, but for now I can barely stay awake!

Later!

THE SKY IS FALLING

2007-11-08T05:57:00.000-05:00

One final thought before I actually say au revoir -

On the internet lately I've seen a lot being made of the results of a study Willow Creek Community Church in Illinois made to see how well they were doing. The main finding seems to be this, from founding pastor Bill Hybels, some of the plans they implemented for discipleship were not as fruitful as they thought they had been while some things they had not put a lot of effort into were being well received.

Some of the enemies of Willow - and yes the Christian world is full of critics, especially when you are getting the job done - have misrepresented that comment all over the place.

Radio talkshow host Bob Burney from Chicago is making a meal of it, saying that Hybels states his focus on the unchurched and "seeker sensitive" approach has been wrong for a whole generation.

In reality Hybels says nothing of the kind. What he says is that once people came to Christ, their discipleship plans could have been better in some ways - and he's not alone in that.

Lashing out at Hybels may bring some satisfaction to Burney, who gave up pastoring himself so he could sit in front of a microphone for three hours a day instead. But if the man could stick to reporting the facts and not his interpretation of them, we would all be better served.

Reaching the lost was not a cosmic new revelation brought to the world by Bill Hybels, it is the sole mission of the church, the subject of the Great Commission and what Jesus gave his life for. If we are entangled with anything less then we are not followers of Christ at all.

GOING SOUTH

2007-11-08T05:46:00.001-05:00

Things will be quiet here now for more than a week as I leave Mumbai tomorrow to travel to a remote former mission hospital outside of Pune for eight days of church camp. I'm doing the morning studies and evening teaching for the good folks from Covenant Blessings Church and there will be over 200 of them at their annual retreat in the hills.

There's no phone, internet, running water or a number of other basics there, so take a week off from my blog - but be sure to come back on the 17th.

WHAT NOW?

2007-11-08T05:39:00.000-05:00

Looks like the Town Board elections went well but not well enough. Three candidates were elected who support amending the Town Code to restore the right of churches to build, however there are six board members plus the Supervisor.

We will wait and see if the fourth person with the Conservative line, Timothy Mazzei now complies and votes for us or if he would rather lose the line next time around.

God knows and whatever happened Tuesday, he still reigns and his plans are still being worked out.

Getting into a building of our own will be a wonderful thing, but in the meanwhile we continue to pursue our major objective of seeing people brought to Jesus.

ALL PACKED

2007-11-04T20:13:00.000-05:00

I've got everything sorted out and packed, ready to board a Delta flight tomorrow night that will once again take me to India. Chris Kelly and I will be there for ten days, spending most of that time at the annual church camp of Covenant Blessings Church, pastored by our good friend Basil D.Souza.

After the fourteen and a half hours flight, we'll adjust to temperatures in the 90's and enjoy being with some very special people with whom we have developed a close relationship over the past five or six years.

I haven't counted accurately lately, but I think this will probably be my tenth visit to the country that I heard so much about growing up. I was born in 1950 and my father had served with the Royal Air Force in Calcutta throughout WWII, so the memories of this remarkable land were fresh in his mind and he often told us stories of India.

His wartime experiences added to what he could recall from spending the first nine years of his life in India while his own father served there in the British army during the glory days of the Empire.

So India was almost in my blood.

I guess it's not surprising then that I enjoy being over there.

Wish the flight was shorter though!!!

SOME DAYS

2007-11-04T17:49:00.000-05:00

There are days when we do church, have a good time but in all honesty there was nothing too special about the event.

Then there are days like today - spectacular. I drove away from the theater this morning just amazed at the privilege I have to be a part of what God is doing through Church At The Movies.

This was our quarterly Celebration Sunday when we share communion, have baptisms and today we even had the dedication of a beautiful baby thrown in there for good measure.

I didn't get the official count yet, but it looked to me like we had the biggest crowd yet since we moved into the Regal Cinema in Ronkonkoma and eight of the nine people who were baptized have joined us since we made that transition.

Eight weeks ago we didn't even know these people and some of them did not know the Lord, but today they have committed their lives to Christ and have been baptized. I love this stuff. There's nothing on earth like it and as I said on more than one occasion today, this is why our church exists.

It's not a safe-house for world weary Christians and it's not a social club for superior-feeling zealots, we're passionate people with purpose.

Some days we just do the business and that's okay, but then some other days God rocks our world.

This has been the latter!

MOMENT OF TRUTH

2007-11-03T20:09:00.000-04:00

Tomorrow afternoon the irresistible force meets the immovable object - the unbeaten Patriots travel to battle the unbeaten Colts. Of course this should have been the Superbowl, but never could be as both teams are in the same Conference.

The Patriots are full of themselves, arrogant, annoying and downright good.

I hope they get their butts kicked!

SLEEP WELL

2007-11-03T20:05:00.000-04:00

Dont't forget to set your clocks back tonight and enjoy that extra hour. Something terrible could happen if you forget - you'll be early for church tomorrow!!!

PARTY TIME

2007-11-02T21:09:00.001-04:00

Sunday's going to be a really special day - the first Celebration Sunday in our new location - and I'm really looking forward to it.

I love it when people get baptized, because it means they are taking a significant step forward in their walk with God and it also shows we're on target with getting the job done.

Working out all the logistics in Ronkonkoma could be challenging for this first time, but Frank reckons he has it all in hand. Doing communion in a theater with stadium seating will be a first too, which is why it's good that felxibility seems to be a built-in virtue with all of our folks.

FORGIVENESS

2007-11-01T22:20:00.000-04:00

I just got back from my small group at the Swaners' home and found it to be a fascinating evening of asking myself tough questions. We were continuing to look at some of Rob Bell's NOOMA videos and tonight's was entitled Luggage, focusing on the soul-searching subject of forgiveness.

Here are a few quotes I wrote as he went through his off-beat teaching in this short movie -

+ Everyone I know has wounds.

+ It's like revenge is part of our world.

+ To really forgive someone I have to be able to wish them well.

+ Letting it go is a long process.

You don't spend 57 years on this earth without several people having caused you severe pain somewhere along the way. In fact sadly there are plenty of kids who barely make seven years without significant suffering.

It's what we do with it that matters.

Forgiving, letting go and moving on are not only Biblical, they're logical - even though sticking it to the jerk is what you really want to do!!!

HALOWEEN REVISITED

2007-10-31T21:48:00.000-04:00

The Texas branch of the Blackmore family were all dressed up for action tonight and from what we hear, had a great time mixing with families throughout the neighborhood.

Here on Long Island, we spent a couple of hours with dozens of kids from our church at Fun4All, the huge indoor play center in Port Jefferson Station.

Halloween has presented issues for Christian families for years and now that our consumer society has blown it up into the second biggest spending event of the year (after Christmas) and the word "holiday" has actually been attached to it, it may be time to work out some way to live comfortably with this annual festival of costumes, dress and enough candy to sink the Titanic.

Though I may be accused of naivete and over-simplification, I think there are probably three levels to Halloween -

1. There's a whole Satanic thing that goes on at this time of the year, in dark places and away from public gaze.

2. There's a whole role playing, costume thing that glamorizes horror, blood, death and darkness.

3. There's a fun few hours when young children dress up as princesses, pirates or comic book heroes and collect candy from generous neighbors under the watchful scrutiny of their parents.

While #3 could lead to #2 and in turn #2 could become #1, that is not necessarily the way things progress.

We each choose what we do about Halloween, if anything ... and if you choose #3 I think that's a good way to go.

LOCAL GUYS

2007-10-30T22:37:00.000-04:00

Spent a good couple of hours with nine other local pastors this morning. we generally meet once a month, drink some coffee, talk about what's going on and then pray for a while. Nobody's there to impress, so there are no egos flying around and it's a comfortable place to share with others who are building church in the Patchogue/Medford area.

Of course, we're in a different town altogether nowadays, but these are some guys I've got close to over the past several years, so the fact we're in Ronkonkoma changes nothing.

Over the years I've had my fill of self-centered separatists who are so threatened by every other pastor on the planet that they fellowship with none.

We all need each other. I was blessed to be part of a small group of well connected pastors back in Scotland and it seems that at last something similar has developed here.

It's good!