BabuLife

The Blogging Church Arrived

Just got my copy of The Blogging Church by Brian Bailey with Terry Storch. These two guys had a great impact on why I blog and why I believe it can be a great tool if used properly for churches.  As a matter of fact, there's a rumor that our senior pastor will be unveiling his own blog over the next couple of weeks.  Stay tuned.

I've been blogging now since June of 2005 and have met and networked with so many church leaders that I otherwise never would have had a chance to meet had it not been for blogging.  The exchanging of ideas, ministries, successes, failures at ministry and stories has inspired and encouraged me many times over.

Thanks to this guy for passing the bug along to me.  I remember being at Fellowship Church's C3 Conference with my friend Brian when he jumped in the van full of people and he mentioned the word "blog" after spending a session with Terry Storch.  I think we were all like...huh...that's interesting.  Sounds to me like a strange cult.  Man how things have changed.

Since that time back in January 2005, there are several Grace bloggers taking part in the online community.  Mommy bloggers (including my wife), a youth director, Men's ministry director/pastor, and my folks over in Gaza are all part of this growing community at Grace. I know when our senior pastor gets it rolling, our communications of vision and purpose is going to continue growing.  I'm going to enjoy reading The Blogging Church and using it as a resource to help explain blogging to other people within the Grace Church community.

So do you remember the first time you heard about blogging?  Did it take you a while to catch it?

Thank You Whoever You Are!

Somebody ordered me a subscription to a magazine.  I don't know who it is but THANK YOU!  I've been reading the first two issues throughout the day.  "Step Inside Design" magazine showed up in my mailbox at the office this week.  And I kept racking my brain trying to figure out how I signed up for this and it hit me...someone out there actually extended a kind gesture through buying me a nifty little magazine subscription.  COOL! 

So thank you whoever you are!  I'm enjoying it!

Are You Open to Change?

I'm really enjoying my current read "Radical Reformission" by Mark Driscoll.  I'm being challenged in my reading of this book about my "ideas" on how to reach people effectively.  While telling a story about a church that once had a weekend attendance of nearly 9,000 and dwindled down to 100, Mark explains how this church was stuck in a rut.  Here's a little nugget:

"The result of traditionalism is a Christianity that has all of the right answers to all of the wrong questions, because the questions that were once pressing are no longer being asked.  The dying church I mentioned desired to attract the multitude of non-Christians who lived close to them, so they hosted a debate between an atheist and a Christian.  They went to great expense only to have no one from the community attend.  Why?  Because the church did not know that atheism, popular a generation or two ago, is virtually dead today.  This church believed that people are either Christians or atheists and because they didn't know their neighbors, they wrongly assumed that, since their neighbors were not Christians, they must be atheists.  Actually, their neighbors were very spiritual people who spent great amounts of time praying but had no idea to whom."

Thinking outside my "traditional" box is a challenge at times.  What I think and believe works may not really be working for the rest of the world.  Do I conform my approach to reach them?  Or do I attempt to change the world into believing what I think? The world is a fast changing place...we need a church that continually thinks outside the "traditional" box. Are you open to change?

-Babu

Get "The Radical Reformission" by Mark Driscoll

Light Reading

Well my earlier post must have sparked some reading interest in me.  I picked up a couple of books that grabbed my attention.  Let me know if any of you have read these:

The Worship Answer Book by Rick Muchow - This looks like it addresses so many questions people have about worship from seeker friendly to dancing as a form of worship.  It's made for an ADD type reader like me.  Lots of colors and it's small. 

The Radical Reformission: Reaching out Without Selling Out by Mark Driscoll - I was looking for something about strategic church growth and the sales man recommended this. In many Christian circles the word "marketing" is a bad thing.  I think there's a lot of confusion as to what that really means.  Marketing is what Christians should be doing all the time.  I guess if that term is uncomfortable you could call it "sharing the gospel".  Anywho...looking forward to reading his thoughts on church growth.

Has anyone read these?

Tagged

My blogging friend Rich has tagged me for a little reading list thingy.  Let me first preface this with a comment...I am NOT a great reader.  I wonder sometimes if I have ADD.  I have several books that I've started and have put back on the shelf.  So...here goes...

• One book that changed your life: Matt Redman's Unquenchable Worshipper. (This book reached into my gut and inspired me to become a better worshipper of God first...then a leader of others in worship through music.  I was going through a valley in my life a couple of years ago and this book encouraged me through that time of job loss and unclear future.)
• One book that you've read more than once: Louie Giglio's The Air I Breathe (You'll notice a theme here with my reading list.  They are typically about worship and they are really short/easy to read.  This one is an awesome explanation of worship.  Louie is gifted at defining worship.  I pull this one off the shelf at least once a year.  Also our worship team went through this together in 2004...I think this was the beginning of a new era in our worship ministry. It really brought us to another level.)
• One book that you'd want on a desert island: I'll avoid the basic Christiany answer of the Bible (wait, did I just actually say the christiany answer by saying I'm not going to say the christiany answer?) I would love to take the Star Wars Clone Wars Comic series with me.  (What good is a leadership book or anything like that if you're all alone on an island?  Give me mindless entertainment with cool pictures please!)
• One book that made you laugh: Rob Bell's Velvet Elvis (Just had some great points that made me laugh at myself and the traditions of men.)
• One book that made you cry: Matt Redman's Unquenchable Worshipper
• One book that you wish had been written: How to be a father of three girls from 0 to 18.
• One book you wish had never been written: hmmmm...
• One book you are currently reading: Steve Stockman's Walk On: The Spiritual Journey of U2 (I picked this up at the Willow Creek Leadership Summit a couple weeks ago.  I've always been intrigued by the rumors of Bono's faith and a couple of the other band members.  As a matter of fact I was one who doubted.  This book has been interesting as it walks through the history of U2's recordings and their spiritual journey and struggles with organized religion.  If you're a fan of U2, you should pick this up.)
• One book you've been meaning to read: The Heart of the Artist by Rory Noland

MMMMMkay...so you know the tagging drill...here are my 5 tags to post the same info from their libraries:

Tom, Heath, Dan Ohlerking, Bobby Marchessault, Pete Kim

Gettin' Geeky wid It

Well I've noticed that I haven't had any kind of Star Wars posts for more than a month.  That's just not right.  So to all you Star Wars folks who hit this site through google searches and even those who just like it, here's a post for you.  And for those who have no interest whatsover in this aspect of my blog...you've been forwarned...see you on the next post.

Pete over at Transitionpete asked me if he were to start reading any of the Star Wars books where should he start? First of all, let me congratulate you Pete on your step into a bigger world.  There's a lot more to the Star Wars world than the movies alone.  But there are areas that you really don't need to waste your time with if you're a casual fan.

All merchandise such as books, comics and anything that tells stories within the Star Wars universe is ultimately approved by Lucasfilm.  They have parameters set up and subjects that they do NOT allow authors to talk about.  This is to protect the story and any future projects that Lucas decides to pursue in his little galaxy far, far away.  If a book creates a story and then the movies (or future TV shows) tell a different tale about a character, the movie gets the override and the written story by an author is negated.  Example: Boba Fett was supposed to have been a Stormtrooper gone bad per a book in the 90's.  However, the movie "Attack of the Clones" revealed the true nature of Boba Fett.  Book negated.

So for the person looking for a place to start reading in the Star Wars universe, I would go to the books that were tie-ins to the movies themselves.  There are a couple that you could read.

Labryrinth of Evil takes place between Episode II (Attack of the Clones) and Episode III (Revenge of the Sith).  It tells the story leading up to the events in Revenge of the Sith.

Dark Lord: The Rise of Darth Vader takes place immediately following Revenge of the Sith.  It's a fun read if you'd like to entrench yourself in the Star Wars world after Vader kills most of the Jedi and continues his Jedi purge.

To learn more about my Star Wars fixation, you can check out my first movie review post here from last year. I actually considered a whole Star Wars category when I started the blog, but...I just wasn't sure if I wanted the world to know I was this GEEKY!!!!

So....Geekfest is complete.  There's all kinds of geeky Star Wars information that I'm full of.  My gracious wife puts up with it...and most of my friends do.

Read This! "Choosing to Cheat"

There's a book written by Andy Stanley that someone gave me earlier this year.  It blew me away!  Choosing to Cheat challenges the workaholic to weigh how his/her time is spent.  When work and the family collide, which do you choose? 

I've seen many books that just tell someone what the problem is with their priorities then simply throws out a solution saying "spend more time with your family."  Choosing to Cheat doesn't accuse the workaholic of being a loser, it also presents a strategic plan for resolving tension between work and family.  It challenges the choices we make when we cheat our family out of time that they deserve.

I've found that my kids always know if I care based on the attention I give them, not by how many times I tell them I love them.  You can usually identify what you hold most important by measuring the time you spend and where. If you struggle with balancing work and family, this book could be a great help. Get it and read it!

Read This! "The Air I Breathe"

"The Air I Breathe" (Louie Giglio) is a great book that tears down the ideas that worship is all about the types of services in a church (traditional or contemporary), and also debunks the thought of worship being about music.  Just as the title indicates, worship is about each breathe made in your life. 

Worship is a way of life as taught by the apostle Paul in Romans 12:1 "...present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service."  Singing songs and "doing church" are simply not enough for a holy God.  It's only reasonable that we worship Him with all we are and have.

Last year the Grace praise team went through this book together.  It gave the group a new perspective on what it means to worship God.  It inspired us to consider our roles as worship leaders at Grace Church as more than just leading from the stage.  But to lead with our lives as we help lead the congregation to worship the living God. 

Buy it, read it, and live it!  It's a great read!