Ken

This past weekend at Mountainview, Jim spoke about the nature of the church being a movement and used Paul's description of the church as a body.  We are all either eyes, ears, or elbows.  He reminded us that church is a verb and not a noun. During our communion meditation ("communion med" in our short-hand language -- but calling it a "med" makes me uncomfortable!) I used Ephesians 4:16 and focused on this particular phrase: "joined and held together by every supporting ligament."  As Christ-followers, we are each a supporting ligament to the body of Christ (the church).  We may hold different muscles together, but every ligament is important. During my junior year in college I tore the anterior cruciate ligament in my left knee playing intramural basketball.  I heard a loud "pop" and my knee just buckled.  Within minutes it was swollen and changing colors.  If you've ever strained…

As you may know, I received a home coffee bean roasting machine (Behmor 1600) from my former boss at Blue Haven Pools and Spas. For the last two months, I've been roasting my own coffee beans (on the back porch, since I smoked up the house on my first attempt).  I've been using the original beans that came with the roaster. So, yesterday I set out to find raw coffee beans here in Denver.  After a bit of research on the Internet, I found Kaladia Brothers Coffee near Denver University.  It's a small shop that roasts its own beans in-house.  They also sell the same beans raw and unroasted (green beans, but not those green beans). I have found my coffee roasting destination.  The guy behind the coffee didn't seem bothered by my questions; in fact, he lit up and seemed genuinely engaged.  He walked me through the different kind…

For those of you suffering from insomnia, podcasts of my recent sermons at Mountainview Church are now online.  Sorry -- no money back guarantee (they're free!).

Last Sunday evening, three of us from Mountainview Church flew from Denver to Tulsa.  Jim (senior pastor), Rick (executive pastor), and myself.  We spent Sunday night in Tulsa and drove the next morning to Joplin, MO.  We spent Monday and Tuesday interviewing potential new staff people.  Apart from the interviews, what I enjoyed most was the interaction between the three of us.  We spent a fair amount of time traveling in the car and just talking about the present and future of our church.  It was good to bounce ideas, share feedback, and dream together. As the newbie on staff, it was nice to have time to participate at this level.  Many of my fondest ministry memories are connected to team experiences.  At one point while I was serving in Walnut Creek, we had two other full-time ministers, an administrator, and a part-time staffer.  My greatest joy was getting to…

OK, we're actually flying, so technically it's not a road trip -- although there will be driving involved. Along with Jim and Rick (our senior and executive pastors), I will be traveling to Tulsa and then to Joplin, Missouri, to meet with candidates for staff positions at Mountainview Church.  I've only been to Tulsa one time, back in 1988 or 1989.  I had traveled there with some college buddies to attend a week-long conference.  My only lasting memory of Tulsa was driving by the Will Rogers Methodist Church.  Having grown up in a denomination that usually named her churches after either the street they were on or the town they were in, this church caught my eye.  Also, I happen to be fond of quotes from Will Rogers.  A few samples ... "Ancient Rome declined because it had a Senate; now what's going to happen to us with both a…