Church

This weekend I'm teaching on the opening lines of the Lord's Prayer: "Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name."  A few random thoughts (and hopefully they won't be so random this weekend): The prayer begins with the word "our" and the community/relational aspect continues throughout the remainder of the prayer.  "Give us this day ..."  "Deliver us from evil ..." The way Jesus teaches us to address God is a radical departure from the way the religious leaders of his day prayed. Beyond the generic sense of "God created everyone" therefore he's our Father, when we accept his gift of salvation we are "adopted" into his family.  He becomes our Father by choice, not by accident. The word "hallowed" has survived in most English translations from the time of the King James (1611) through the New International Version (1970's) even though it is not used much in common conversation.…

I go through these phases when I decide to cut my own hair ... partly to save money, partly because it's convenient.  Wielding electric clippers with attachments, I park myself in front of the bathroom mirror and begin crafting a work of art.   Most of the time, it's pretty straightforward and the end result is acceptable.  I've often thought of warming up a towel, placing it on my face, and pretending I'm in one of those fancy salons ... but that would feel a bit weird if someone walked in. Along the way, I've learned a few lessons: Have someone you trust trim the back.  This is as true for life as it is for haircuts. Always trim longer than you think you want it.  You can always go shorter but adding length is impossible. Try to not to trim your hair after drinking mass quantities of coffee.  One little…

This past week in Denver has seen the weather go from snow to a balmy 70 degrees back to snow and now ... rain.  Technically, I believe we are in the spring season. One of the things I appreciate about the different seasons is the rhythm it brings to life.  Spring marks the return of baseball and fall brings the changing of the colors.  Summer is for cookouts and day trips.  Winter is for ... well ... shoveling. We also experience seasons in our spiritual lives.  We may find ourselves in a season of growth or it may be a season of simply holding on.  It may be a season of new awakenings.  Or a season of uncertainty. What season best describes your spiritual life right now: Winter, spring, summer or fall?  And what are you learning?

We had a great launch to E4U at Mountainview – over 100 adults participated in a class during the first two sessions.  To keep momentum building before the upcoming fall semester, I would like to offer a series of E4U “Super Saturday Seminars.”  These would be one-time classes/seminars/workshops designed around a 3-hour format (9 AM to noon).  Ideally, I would like to offer three seminars on each Saturday – each running at the same time as the others. The Saturdays I’m considering are June 19, July 17, and August 21. Would you be interested in teaching one of the Super Saturday Seminars.  Here are potential topics: Healthy spiritual habits Renewing your spiritual passion Evangelism The mission of Jesus Who is the Holy Spirit? Discerning God’s will Parenting/marriage topics Servant leadership Understanding worship God and the arts Marketplace success and kingdom significance And others that you may be interested in teaching! …