Ken

Twenty years ago the Berlin Wall came down, removing a barrier that had separated families and neighbors.  Built as a result of World War II, the wall cut through Berlin, dividing it into East and West.  People who had lived down the street for generations now lived in two different countries. A few years ago I had the opportunity to visit Ronald Reagan's Presidential Library.  It was Reagan, of course, who challenged the Mikhail Gorbachev with these words: "General Secretary Gorbachev, if you seek peace, if you seek prosperity for the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe, if you seek liberalization: Come here to this gate! Mr. Gorbachev, open this gate! Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall!" A piece of the Berlin wall is on display at the Reagan library.  I was quite disappointed.  It was just concrete.  Nothing more than concrete separated people from family members and neighbors. Often times,…

Snow shoveling ... spiritual gift or spiritual discipline?

Last year -- when I worked in downtown San Diego -- I walked down to the harbor and watched the Veteran's Day parade.  I stood behind an elderly veteran (probably 70'ish) who was seated in a folding chair.  He wore a ball cap, a Hawaiian shirt, and a pair of SAS shoes.  Every time a group of soldiers or the flag came by, he would push off with one arm and then the other, and struggle to his feet.  You could tell each time took tremendous effort.  It must have taken at least thirty seconds or so to get to his feet. But he stood up and saluted. It was one of the most moving things I've seen.

I grew up in the days when professional wrestling didn't have a national presence but had regional outfits.  The Wright brothers and I would go with their dad to Richwoods High School and watch sweaty men throw chairs at each other.  And we also watched the wrestlers, too. So, it was with great interest when I came across this story at Fast Company: "10 Things Corporations Can Learn from Pro Wrestling."  Here are a few worthy snippets: An Appropriate Level of Spectacle Is Crucial: In pro wrestling, steel cages are always 15 feet high. Tall competitors are nearly 7 feet tall. Crowds are always "hanging from the rafters." Wrestling shows pull out all the stops to make their shows as dramatic as possible. On the other hand, wrestling promoters can't overdo it. Case-in-point: the now defunct-World Championship Wrestling put on a live three-hour television show every week, with the announcers…

Whenever I'm not preaching at Mountainview, it's my privilege to give the communion meditation.  Or "communion med" as we call it in shorthand.  (Calling it a "med" makes me a bit queasy, like we're giving medication to the crowd). Typically, I will pick up a copy of our senior pastor's outline on Thursday and look it over between then and Saturday night.  That allows me to get a good feel for his main points and then be able to tie-in the communion thought to the theme of the message.  I feel like it helps to create a worship gathering that flows and fits together. This past weekend, I had my "prepared" communion meditation in my pocket and used it on Saturday night and at our first service on Sunday.  At second service, God was gracious to bring to mind a story that  fit well with the theme of the message…