Jesus wants to save Christians.....

I am not sure if you agree with Rob Bell on everything but thats not the point of this post. The point of this post is to say that i think his products are the best looking stuff the 'christian' market has seen over the last few years. The Nooma dvd's are packaged brilliantly, as was his first 2 books and the Everything is Spiritual dvd. I have to applaud the guys who come up with this stuff, they rock. I know, you may want to say that we should never judge a book by its cover, and that is quite correct but i am JUST talking about packaging here! I should add i do like the synopsis for the new book (pictured). It says: "There is a church not too far from us that recently added a $25 million addition to their building. Our local newspaper ran a front-page story not too long ago about a study revealing that one in five people in our city lives in poverty. This is a book about those two numbers." The fact that the book is titled "Jesus wants to Save Christians" is rather controversial, or at least it will be in N.Ireland. Perhaps i have a different sense of humor but when i hard that i laughed, i know some others who have gasped at the sheer awfulness of such a title! I am pretty sure that Rob is well aware of the criticism he will receive when he titles a book, film or sermon in this way. Anyway, the title is interesting to say the least BUT its another product from Rob that looks great.

God & The Rolling Stones.....

I love this song, i love that Mick & Keith wrote a song about various people in history who had converted to Christianity, notably St. Paul and St. Augustine. Mick sings that he will never be a saint but he also sings that he believes in miracles and he wants to save his soul, i wonder does he mean this or is it just lyrical word play?



I wonder sometimes when we are a fan of someone in the public spotlight do we take time to stop and pray for them? It is crazy that we can write off a film star or musician due to their excessive lifestyle or at least some part of their life we do not agree with. We sit in judgement and never stop to pray that God would touch their life. I wonder who is praying for Mick & the boys? Who are you praying for?

My day off and 'new job'........

Ok, i am off work today BUT i have been finding that when i am off from my day job that i am seldom actually off from work of some kind. Last weekend we had a great couple of days off, switched off the phones, didnt look at emails etc etc. The thing was when i checked back into normality on Tuesday last week, the emails and messages had just piled up and left me with even more to do! Today, i am working on another Open Uni assignment and believe it or not i value the course and the qualification that i will hopefully gain at the end of it so i want to devote proper time to it, not just cram it in hurriedly. 10am is my start time so i thought id blog first! I also have some news which i am being cautious about announcing or dramatizing but it is quite exciting, i think it is anyway. The last year has brought about massive changes in my workplace, changes that are for the best and are constantly improving the business and our customer service. The one thing that has been slow to happen and has been an uphill struggle for those involved has been the website and online shop. To cut a long story short, it is non existent right now and over the past few weeks after some discussions and prayer i have decided to take on the role of managing this project. Once we are up and running i will technically still be managing a Christian Bookshop, but an online one, with less shelves to stock!! The hope is that i can utilize all that the web has to offer as a means to raise our profile and get you guys to buy books from us, Faith Mission are about to go all web2.0!!! As yet there are lots of details to sort out BUT i am very excited and enthusiastic about this challenge. I will still work from ballymena, so i have no major upheaval in that regard. So, as i get more news i will let you know.......................

I'm not very good at the Bible

This book landed with me today and i have to say i am quite excited by it. I guess its the first person i "kinda" know who has written a book. Though i hadn't actually ever spoke to him until the book was finished so i feel a bit lame for mentioning that now! I love that the first words of the "first" Chapter say "I'm not very good at the Bible." Its a sentence that i can relate to and often you don't get that in the first line of a book. I blogged about it here, you can buy it here and you can read his blog here. So, i am not very good at the Bible and like Dave i am trying to be honest about that and many other things. Perhaps i'll write the sequel for him!

Death of an Alpha Leader.........

Last week i got a mention on Hugh Hewitts's blog! In the wake of that and in connection with the ongoing discussion about The Evangelical Manifesto, Randy Elrod wrote a guest post on Hugh's blog. You can read it all here . I have just downloaded the Manifesto and haven't quite read it fully yet but my initial reaction on all of this is to agree with Randy, for the most art anyway. I love this quote:

"Alpha leaders value control, servant leaders value collaboration. Alpha leaders value individualism, servant leaders value community. Alpha leaders value affluence, servant leaders value influence."

There is a lot of discussion around the manifesto right now, as someone rightly pointed out though, the input of Randy and Hugh seemed to be more about the form of the document and not its substance. I guess when i read it i will be better qualified to comment. Is it needed though? Do we need to "affirm our identity" in a document/manifesto? The reputation and standing of many Church Leaders will no doubt be judged on whether they sign something like this or not, is that right?

I'm Fine with God, Its Christians i can't stand.....

"A nationwide survey by the Barna Research Group found that very few adults outside of Christianity have a positive view of Christians. In fact, in comparison with other groups, evangelicals were ranked only slightly more favorably than prostitutes. Bickel and Jantz agree—Christianity has an image problem. They take an unflinching look at the sometimes humorous, but often offensive, behavior of some Christians. With a refreshing call to authentic Christianity, they help believers and non–believers alike get past the peripheral issues so they can communicate openly and honestly about God." (from the publisher). So, I just picked this one up, here's hoping i do not upset anyone with my thoughts on this book! It is a VERY important subject i have to say. The fact that "we" are often regarded as judgmental, hypocritical, irrelevant and obnoxious is not something i like to be reminded of but it is fact and truth is, Christians need to know this and need to think long and hard about it. That includes me, who can be all of the above and more quite often. Stay tuned

The Full Story........

When i saw this picture it reflected a few conversations i have had recently. It has become obvious that more and more, we need to tell the 'full story.' My dad was telling me about some guys he knew who were setting up a forum/meeting that catered for people who were not aware of the 'full story' of Scripture. I think many of us are starting to realize that we are surrounded by people who do not understand the 'phrases' and 'cliches' that often get lost in our 'evangelism.' As well as this we often assume too much about what people around us already know in relation to creation, fall, redemption & restoration..............



These are only 2 reasons why we need to tell the full story

H/T *The Blogstar

Take me Anywhere : Chris Taylor

A couple of years ago the album 'Open' by Jason Morant defined my spring in work, it played many days and we loved it. Well, spring 2008 may have an album of equal importance! Take me Anywhere by Chris Taylor came in on friday and i said to Andru "lets give it a spin and see what this is like." Yes, sometimes i love those random unknowing moments that surprise us! BEC have some pretty good artists and this guy has given us another great sounding album with a bit of an edge. I like a "bit of an edge." You can read the CM Central review here, they even use the word edgy! They say "If you’ve been waiting for the next fresh take on the Christian music scene, you won’t want to miss Chris Taylor’s Take Me Anywhere" which is a similar sentiment to the one i held about Morant's album Open and, well, it didn't really make any great waves in Ireland as far as i know. We don't like change but on the basis of this album we should really try to embrace it more often, we might be impressed.

HOPE....................

Hope is a buzz word this year, it keeps coming up. I read an article today regarding this HOPE, please bookmark the link or take a few minutes to have a look around the details of HOPE08. In short it is an initiative of the churches of Britain and Ireland which is helping to demonstrate Christian faith in action and to explain the meaning of that faith in villages, towns and cities throughout the UK. The article i read today was asking the question why nobody is hearing much about this, why people are backing away from this and it is in danger of disappearing into a black hole. In Northern Ireland it has been ignored.
Last night saw the start of this HOPE in belfast and there was 10,000+ people in attendance. Can you guess what my question is? I am not sure how many people will attend tonight and tomorrow but my guess is that the Odyssey Arena will be full over the next two nights. Thats 30,000 people in 3 days, impressive eh? Remember the 'other' HOPE i mentioned? The web details show lots of partners and support in the UK mainland but on the ground here in Northern Ireland did i mention that we have backed away and left it out to dry? Oh yea i did! I don't even want to mention the amount of CD releases due in the first half of 2008 that feature the word HOPE, its definitely a favorite word right now!
In the words of Silvio Dante, "Here's the thing;"
It sickens my sensitive little stomach when i look around and see groups and organizations tripping over each other to declare what is seemingly the same HOPE. I can hardly make an appeal for unity when 30,000 people will grace the seats of the premier arena in Northern Ireland this weekend, that is an unprecedented achievement at an 'evangelical' event BUT nobody in these circles EVER seems to know what each other id doing or planning and if they do there is little thought of uniting. I "hope" i am not being harsh but after reading the article today and then hearing about the crowds supporting the Belfast event i was angry and a little gutted for the organizers of the 'lesser HOPE' that is indeed, or at least in my opinion, the same HOPE!! I did hear one person say that the HOPE08 initiative hadn't enough fundamentalists around it to get it support in Northern Ireland but i would be best to avoid that line of thinking, unless you want to buy me a Grande Americano in Starbucks, il discuss anything over a free coffee :)
In conclusion, i do not know enough about the politics of how these 2 HOPES are working but i find it sad that HOPE is being declared here and on about 25 CD releases this year and there is no apparent collaboration anywhere. If you know otherwise please let me know to cheer me up...............................

Nobody likes a 'Lousy' T-shirt......

Sometimes a book title just says 'read me' and this is probably one of those times. I had heard about this somewhere so when Trevor mentioned it this week i was eager to have a look. I have read the first few chapters even though i haven't finished the Ken Wilson book yet. Raised by a Jewish mother and abandoned by his professional poker-playing father, Antonucci found Jesus at age twenty after studying the New Testament. When he finally started meeting Christians, he was disappointed to discover a "boring, stale religion." Sound familiar? Well, instantly i have engaged with this book, thats a good start for me! It gets a glowing recommendation from loads of "popular" authors & speakers which is not always a good reason to buy a book but in this case they seem to be warranted. I will come back to this when i get finished with Jesus Brand Spirituality which i have to say, so far i have had several reservations about, but thats another blog post!!

For now check out the Lousy T-Shirt website here

Tales from the workplace.....

I shall set the scene for you. I work in a Christian Bookshop, it is called Faith Mission Bookshop and it is not on a busy street in town. This means that if you are a visitor to the shop you will most likely have purposely arrived at our door, you will not be likely to stumble upon us as you browse the shops in town. Even if you missed the shop sign and wandered in you would doubtless hear the music, see the stock on the shelves and realize you were in a Christian Bookshop.
So, i am behind the counter where i sell a customer a book and imagine my surprise when he asks me "so, are you a Christian then?" Perhaps i shouldn't be surprised by this but i couldn't figure out why someone who was not a Christian would want to work in a Christian Bookshop.

OneRepublic...........

I had heard of these guys but have to say i didn't know the music, i still don't so i will perhaps acquaint myself over the coming days. I was sent a link to an article today and it makes interesting reading. Here are a couple of quotes from lead singer Ryan Tedder that have got me thinking again about the "christian" music industry.....

"I got offered a Christian record deal. I'm Christian, I grew up in the church. But I'm not going to tour churches."

"I was in Nashville for two years, (and) I quickly became friends with probably half a dozen of some of the biggest Christian recording artists. Every single one of them was absolutely miserable with the fact that they were "Christian" recording artists"

"I saw some stuff in Nashville that turned my stomach. Some of the most pretentious, insecure people I ever met were Christian recording artists."

Read the full article here
Visit the band website here

Little Preachers............

The preacher sat in the blue booth, lips pouted, arms crossed. His shirt was covered in Rocky Road ice cream, his shorts in cheese pizza sauce. It was a quarter past 5 on a Saturday. Nearly three hours had passed since Terry Durham arrived at a suburban skating rink, and the 8-year-old didn't want to leave. Yes, you did read that correctly, the preacher and the 8 year old are one and the same person! We are watching a documentary about this kid and two others like him, i am very troubled by this! I have had to see it to actually believe that it is not a hoax, im speechless. It is weird to see a preacher being naughty and get a spanking from his mother whilst on the way to preach at a conference though! On a serious note though this is absolutely awful, these kids are being destroyed by crazy parents with an agenda and God only knows what other mental problems, im disgusted!

Read more about Terry here
read about the documentary here

The Supremacy of Christ................

I am not sure if iv ever read a book so quickly! I flew through this in about 2 days so yep, you guessed it, i will most likely read it again. The book is essentially a series of messages/essays that came out of the Desiring God national conference of autumn 2006 so the style of writing and the relatively short chapters probably helped to make it a fast read. Coupled with my experiences as a "Mentor" (i hate that word) and from work i have recently been a little dejected with the state of us, the "Church" and our standing in this world. In chapter 5, Tim Keller quotes Martin Lloyd Jones and specifically a series of sermons on revival he gave in 1959. One of the expositions was on Mark ch9, where Jesus comes off the mountain of transfiguration and discovers his disciples trying unsuccessfully to exorcise a demon from a boy.

"This kind cannot be driven out by anything but prayer." Jesus said

So, Jesus was saying that in this case the "demon" was in too deep for the "ordinary" way of doing ministry that the disciples knew. He goes on to propose that our "ministry methods" are, in many cases, no longer good enough. The "demon" is in too deep. This is, in essence what Martin Lloyd Jones was saying in 1959 and boy oh boy have things changed since then? So, in our age when people are professing no religious preference, especially in "secular," Pluralistic Europe, what is our response? What is the response to "the Church" that is constantly changing, splitting and damaging what little respect followers of Jesus have left?

Well, the answer is in the title of the book and i have to say that within it's pages i saw some hope, i saw that hope through Jesus Christ, the dejection i was feeling has shifted slightly. Thats why i will re-read and ponder and pray about what iv read.
I will come back to this, but for now the Supremacy of Christ in this "postmodern" world is on my mind, perhaps it should have been in my thoughts a lot sooner.......

Christians & cuss words............

In the Jan/Feb edition of RELEVANT there is an advert on page 31 for the new cd by Ferraby Lionheart who until now i had not heard of. The advert says the following:

"You will probably enjoy the shit out of Ferraby Lionheart. I'm sorry, there's just no other way for me to put it." The Tripwire

So, technically RELEVANT didn't use the word, they just quoted someone else's use of the word. In the same way, i have quoted it for the sake of drawing your attention to it. I wanted to know what the general opinion on this was.................in Northern Ireland amongst "most christians" and amongst most customers i see, it is most definitely NOT acceptable! So is it ok? I reckon there definitely are other ways for the Tripwire to "put it"........don't you?