What are the best books to pass on to our children?  A parenting website called parenting.com (the home of parenting and baby talk) gives us some ideas.  You have probably read a lot of books on their list: The Polar Express (Okay, I admit I only watched the movie); Where the Sidewalk Ends; The Very Hungry Caterpillar; Corduroy. Here is the entire list they compiled: Best Books to Pass Down to Our Children







There are even a few religiously toned books that made the list including the Quran and the Holy Bible.  Tell the truth; it makes you feel more spiritual to call it the Holy Bible instead of just the Bible. So do parenting.com.  Here is what Jason from Owosso, MI--a reader I assume--wrote about the Holy Bible on the website:

"The Bible. It's God's word, preserved over thousands of years for us. Great stories, excellent advice, true wisdom and above all, the answers to all of life's most challenging questions." -Jason, Owosso, MI

I am sure Jason is a nice guy.  Is there anyone who is not nice that lives in a place called Owosso?  After all, it is "a pleasant, unpretentious community of fewer than 20,000 people, with solid midwestern values--a place where residents clearly take pride in their property."  These people take care of their property so you know they are nice.  But I don't know.  There is something unsettling about Jason's idea of the Holy Bible.  If it were just the Bible then maybe I would agree, but this is the Holy Bible, brother.

Excellent advice?  Jason, do you mean like Dear Abby?  True wisdom?  Okay, I can go along with that, but something tells me he is thinking of Proverbs.  Confession: I can only read so many Proverbs at one time.  Proverbs overload kicks in.  What about the wisdom of Paul: No, ‘if your enemies are hungry, feed them; if they are thirsty, give them something to drink; for by doing this you will heap burning coals on their heads.’ Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good (Romans 12:20-21).  Still, Proverbs is wisdom and it is in the Holy Bible.  So, rock on, Jason.  Now, the "answer to all of life's most challenging questions" is difficult.

Are life's most challenging questions answered in the Holy Bible?  Which ones do you think he is talking about?  Sometimes it feels like the Holy Bible spurs more questions than it does give answers.  Please do not misunderstand me.  The Holy Bible is God's word for God's people (Liturgically correct church goers should say, "Thanks be to God.")  Which of life's challenging questions are answered?  I wonder if it is fair to say that the Holy Bible--man, I'm feeling pretty spiritual right about now--gives inspiration.  The answers come to us.  That is why we struggle.  Each of us can come up with different answers, and many times we have scripture as our basis.  How many check list answers are there in scripture?  I'm not quite sure there are that many. 


In the end, Jason thanks for your description of the Holy Bible.  I am sure it mirrors what a lot of people think about it.  However, it just seems like I could say some of the same things about fortune cookies and the Learning Channel.  Isn't scripture a little more than that?

What do you think?  I am off-base?  What books do you want to make sure to pass on to your children, or children's children.  Or what Bible stories are most important for you to share with your children?

This isn't just any Holy Bible.  It is a KJV Holy Bible, baby!

+another shout-out

June was a good month.  Gloria and I celebrated our 15th wedding anniversary; plenty of softball and tee-ball games; and we surpassed 10,000 hits on the blog.  Nice going, June.  You were a bit hotter than any of us expected you to be, but thanks anyway.  Anything special or out of the ordinary happen to you this month?

Well, I have compiled the top post from this past month.  This list does not reflect any sense of superior writing or content, and neither does this blog.  These are the posts that got the most hits during the month of June.You can reminisce, or see what you missed.  And remember, sharing is care.

5) Let's see, what was I doing in 1961?  Well, what were a lot of people doing in 1961?

4) Oh, the things you see while preaching a sermon.  You should try it some time.  You need a good laugh.

3) Shhhh!  I am trying to mute myself.  Yea, that only sounds like a good idea to you, Gloria!

2) This was a great story.  You remember the pastor who gave away most of his game show prize money?  He taught us to be full of surprises.

1) I knew this lamp was cool.  That is why I wanted it to go with our stacked book end table.  Apparently, a lot of other people want it, too.  Coming in at #1 is the Spilled Milk Lamp.

Thanks for reading.  We will do our best to make July just as great!

I feel like I just did this!  We finished printing our church's newsletter a little while ago.  It seems like it was only last week I was printing and mailing last month's copy.  July is a five-Sunday month so I should get a little bit of a break.  I have been able to recruit a new newsletter team member, but I will not have them help until next month.  This newsletter business can be tough stuff.  Newsletter editors sing together:

Clip-art and photos, and VBS logos
Birthdays and telling what the choir’ll sing
These are a few of my favorite things.

I'm wondering; how much feedback do most church newsletters produce? That is part of my aim, to generate feedback, or to make people want to tell me something. To get there I include, I hope, useful information about our local church and the larger UMC. Also, I think pictures of what we are doing are very important as well, especially for readers who might happen across a copy decades from now. I have not figured out a way to provide a percentage rate, but I do get a few people here and there tell me something about each edition. Recently, people have loved the Blast From the Past special. What about your newsletter?

++If you are reading by email click here to view our church newsletter.++


Thanks for reading.

Yesterday, during the Sunday school class I am leading, I read two passages, and told the group they could pick which one we would discuss together.  First, I read Romans 6:12-23.  This is a great passage.  The wages of sin part is probably familiar to you.  After I read that passage there were no comments or questions.  Moving right along.  Then I read Genesis 22:1-14.  This is the story of the binding of Isaac.  I finished the last word of the passage and before I could take another breath the questions began.

We went with the binding of Isaac.  I think we had a pretty good discussion.  There were some parts of the story people had not noticed.  I am glad we stayed with that story.  That was the text I preached from as well.  I used it to began our new sermon series entitled Family Matters.  Over the next few weeks, you can read ahead if you would like, the lectionary texts tell of a certain family.  This family has its issues.  So, I thought this would be a series people would appreciate because, let's face it, our families have issues too.  So far, I think they have.

This sermon is entitled The Lord Will Provide.  After you listen to the sermon, this is what you are supposed to consider and do:

How have you “messed up” with your family? What does your family need God to provide for reconciliation? Pray that God would allow you the opportunity to make amends, or that you could find a way to make an important relationship new.

++Click here to listen if you are reading by email.++



I would appreciate your thoughts.

We are beginning a church-wide prayer initiative soon.  You will hear about it in the next week.  However, in the mean time, I have asked a couple of people to begin praying with me for very particular things as we lead ourselves into that initiative.  My hope is that this group will include more people in the future, and that their task will remain a most important one.  I am confident that will come to pass.

We are praying for several things including: church leadership; community issues; health and life concerns of members and friends, etc. Yesterday, however, I sent this group their first prayer specific assignment.   The assignment was taken from a line from a book I am reading now--Missional Worship.  It is not a novel prayer request, but it is one important for us as we begin our prayer commitment.  There are two parts:

1) God, bring me people who need to talk about faith.  That is, bring to me (john, for example) these people.
2) God, bring us (Oak Haven UMC) people who need to talk about faith.  Let our church be a place for people to seek God.

That is pretty straight forward.  You may not know me; I'm just another John.  So, let me tell you that I believe in the power of, trust in, depend on and encourage prayer.  I know what prayer can do to those being prayed for and those who are praying.  That said, I sent the email at 4:30 pm and within two hours had the first answer to my prayer approach me! 


I wanted to share this story for a couple of reasons.  One, this is the kind of prayer that our churches--that includes yours, too--need to be committed to.  We are getting there!  Secondly, I'll confess, I was sure one of the other group members would have their story to share first.  Thanks, God; now I get to tell how awesome you are first.  Finally, I want you to be in prayer.  You can join us in our first prayer assignment, or pray about anything else.  Just pray.  Would you like to join us?

I have always enjoyed watching computer animated movies ever since Toy Story.  Of course, as far as animation goes, they have only gotten better and better.  I would like to think I have seen most of the major productions, but who am I kidding?  If you have any suggestions let me know.

Now, really, who does not love Sheriff Woody? He is a great character, and Tom Hanks does a great job of bringing him to life.  Here is a recent interview with Tom Hanks about his voice overs.
++If you are reading by email click here to watch the video.++




Hanks' thoughts about being in the enclosed sound room reminds me of preaching. During a sermon you see all kinds of things. Husbands nudge their wives to communicate something with their eyes. Yawns abound. I usually want to laugh when I see people do the nod back to life after a quick trip down Nap Ave. Some people "Amen" or nod and shake their heads yes and/or no with whatever is being preached. People are funny. Then after it is all over they tell you things like, "That was a great sermon." or "Thank you for that." "You were talking straight to me."

What goes through your mind as you hear a sermon?  As a sermon writer myself I often find that I am paying attention to sermon structure and accurate references.  I also count illustrations and wonder if this sermon has been preached before.  Then I tell the preacher, "That was a great sermon."

What a Wonderful World


Yesterday was Trinity Sunday and Father's Day.  What to preach?  What to preach?  I am not convinced people are dying to hear another sermon on the doctrine of the Holy Trinity.  Are you?  I do my best to include references to the Trinity often.  Those references might not be specific or direct, but illustrate God's work through the Father, Son and Holy Spirit.  I am not even excited about preaching a specific sermon on the Trinity.

Also, I am not a big holiday preacher.  I cannot remember the last time I preached a Mother's Day or Father's Day sermon.  When I used to go to church and hear other preachers' sermons, it always bothered me when I knew what they were going to say beforehand.  That is to say, for example, a typically Father's Day sermon will include a sappy story and tell me a good father reminds me of our Heavenly Father.  Snooze.

Now, please do not get me wrong.  That is something worth saying.  Father's Day is like the hanging curve ball the preacher drools about, waiting to knock it out of the park.  Tell me in November, though.  Surely Father's Day is not the only time we should be reminded of God's great care for us, and that we should be imitators of God's love.  Surprise me, then, preacher!  Also, we are trying to learn to be more like Christ.  It seems like the words and deeds of Christ would be able to cover Father's Day or any other secular holiday.  So, I do not need to perform a Father's Day sermon that reminds me of Jesus.  Instead, I would rather offer a sermon that faithfully presents Jesus' life and ministry and allows for a Father's Day reference here or there.

All that said, yesterday's sermon did not sound like either a Holy Trinity sermon or a Father's Day sermon.  We recalled the Creation story of Genesis 1, and read from Psalm 8.  The point of the sermon is that our life stories often differ greatly from God's Creation story, the story of God's life for us.  So, sometimes it is good for us to go back to the beginning and remind ourselves of what God intended for us.

++If you are reading by email, click here to listen to the sermon entitled Back to the Beginning.++




Now, you be like God, and do some creating. What comments would you create?  And just in case you thought I forgot or do not care, I hope you dads out there had a Happy Father's Day!  Now, go be like our Heavenly Father.

• This is one instance where it is okay to laugh at the boy with tape on his face. (+link)
• Amazing little tea candles.
• Nintendo guns like they were intended.
• is it a vase or two faces?
• Remember to think simple. 
• This is what keeps us alive.
• Does this sum up free will?
• King of the Hill preaches!

Hitler finds out the Miami Heat lost to the Mavericks.

You are about to read another bold prediction from another religious leader:

I guarantee you something amazing is about to happen!

Well, it may not be amazing to you, but it is for me.  You won't find this announcement on any billboards or buses, and I highly doubt there will be any come-to-Jesus moments because of it.  Then again, who knows? Within the next week--see how precise I am--this little blog that could, yes anotherjohn.com, will pass 10,000 page views.  That prediction is less likely than others to stir controversy.  And I know that 10,000 is a small number compared to others, but so what?

This blog began as a small way for the congregation I was serving to connect outside of Sunday morning.  With over 600 posts I think it served its purpose, and continues to do the same. In the last couple of months the amount of page views has steadily increased.  Welcome aboard, new readers!  Now that I have no more class work to complete--only internship and commissioning material--I am able to write more.  That said, as we move into the 10,000+ era there are two specific goals I have:

      1) Create more posts that generate dialogue from readers.
      2) Allow for others to guest post.

That means I need to think deeper and write better, and you need to comment.  We do have email readers, which is something I never thought of when the blog first began.  How do we incorporate their statistics into our celebration?  Perhaps creating a larger email base should be another goal.  Apparently, considering our milestone, someone is reading.  All these goals, then, involve you.  So, I hope I can anger you enough to join the discussion, or encourage you enough to do the same. 

Finally, I thought I would share with you the five posts that have received the most page views.  They are not anything theological or world-changing.  I would have hoped for others to make the list, but you take what you can get: 

• Coming in at 5th place: Gotta Love Those UMW
• anotherjohn.com readers must have great style because many wanted this: Spilled Milk Lamp
• And who can forget the pastor who preached: F you
• Really?  This came in second?  Really: Our Netflix Queue
• Talk about the underdog.  This cannot be my best post, but the one that got passed around: Another Linkdump, June 12, 2010

I'll do my best to make sure more posts with more content make the next list--does this post count?  You do your best to keep reading.  

Our church is excited once again to be working with Trietsch Memorial UMC.  We have our Vacation Bible School planned July 11-15.  The theme is Shake It Up Cafe.  I am sure I will have much more to say about this partnership in the coming weeks.

In the meantime here is a look at the promotional video, and, if you are interested, our online registration form.

++Click here to watch the video if you are reading by email.++


VBS 2011 - Shake It Up Cafe Preview Video - Cokesbury Vacation Bible School from CokesburyVBS on Vimeo.

Yesterday was a busy day. As usual, I was at the church by 7am. Yes, there is an important routine I follow. I led a Sunday school class with a small group; we had, I think, a great discussion. From there it was time to put on my dress and get ready for our worship service.

After our service we had our monthly luncheon, followed by an Administrative Council meeting. So, we did not leave church until around 2pm. I had to be back at the church by 3:30 to make sure everything was prepared for session #34 of Disciple 1 (I'll post on that later). At the closing of our session the group headed to Spring Creek Barbecue (Can someone inform them it is no longer good practice to allow music to blare out loud automatically when someone visits their website?)  for a dinner together. Then there was some game on that everyone wanted to watch.

That is how we roll in Irving!  In between all that I offered a week's worth of consideration to our congregation.  That offering was my sermon entitled Unpacking Pentecost.

++Click here to listen to the sermon if you are reading by email.++



Stay blessed...john

•  
• Please do not let this walrus work out better than you. (+link)
• This prank is coming to a camping ground near you!
• It was only a matter of time before the inspirational bike kid brought his speech to the nation.
• This Dirt Devil is good.
• Is there truth here?
• You knew Knight Rider was cool, but did you know all this?
 

 

Warning: You will watch the video below, and you will get dizzy.

By this time next year, Lord willing, I will be commissioned as a Probationary Elder by the Southwest Texas Annual Conference, my home conference.  So, most likely, this week I attended what should be my last annual conference meeting as part of the North Texas Annual Conference.  Let me say it was one I will probably recall for some time. As far as meetings go this year's conference was pretty run of the mill. There were no pressing issues or dogfights. What?  Oh, you're church never has issues, right?

It was an election year.  This was the bulk of our work together.  We electronically voted for delegates to General and Jurisdictional Conference.  If you're not quite sure what those conferences are you can find some information here.  Every four years we elect delegates to these conferences, and I sure hope SWTX has already converted to electronic ballots! 

There were two comments that made an impression on me.  The first was by Bishop Bledsoe.  He said, "There are two things every Christian should be ready to do.  They should always be ready to die and ready to pray."  Luckily, no one was put on the spot to kick the bucket, but he did call on various members of the conference to pray before each delegate election.  I have already made use of this comment to our church in promoting and encouraging an upcoming congregational prayer initiative, of which I will let you know about soon.

The second comment was made by the conference Lay Leader, Richard Hearne.  His statement was actually a confession.  He said, "I am a great United Methodist Christian.  I am a lousy disciple of Christ."  This powerful statement was part of his response to evaluating the church's decline, claiming full responsibility as a member of the church.  It was a great reminder of what we are supposed to be.  We are called by Christ to be his disciples first, disciples that will live lives that look like his; our denominational choices, most often, represent more about us than God.

Also, the memorial service was inspiring.  I did not know any of the clergy persons or spouses who passed away, but the manner in which they were remembered and connected to God's light and God's story was an overwhelming experience.  It was at that service that I learned this song: With You, O Lord


The lyrics we sang were:

With you O Lord
is life in all it's fullness,
and in your light
we shall see true light.

I cannot express what a deep sense of worship I experienced with those words, and I cannot wait to incorporate them into Oak Haven's worship experiences.

So, if this is indeed my last annual conference here in the Dallas area it will be one I remember for some time. Thank you North Texas sisters and brothers.  What about you? Do you have any annual conference moments to share?  Have you been lately?  Hopefully, you understand annual conference to be more than a meeting.

Oh, and I did not even mention some of the funny moments!  Most of them had something to do with video equipment and/or presentation.  Here is one I think you will appreciate: North Texas Conference Video



Stay blessed...john

I have spent this week preparing for sermons, Bible studies and writing personal reflections and blog post. Sometimes, within all that work, I come across some things you might be interested in.

• When you are down, and wondering where to start again this is the best place.
• Pi is better with music (+)
• Life in a perfect world
• Speaking of perfect worlds, what about glow in the dark TP?
• What 9-year-old hasn't dreamed of breaking this record?
• Or what teenager hasn't threatened to do this?
• Did you know all ducks wear dog masks.  No, you can never unsee it. 
• This guy is the most famous MacBook thief.
• Think about your house and decide which wall will be your Lego wall.

Here is a dose of cute kids (Click on the title if you are reading by email):
Thumbs up, everybody.



Boy catches his first fish



















No, Momma won't kill you.

We have put out the latest edition of our church newsletter. I am not sure how often you read our newsletter, but I am thinking of implementing some design changes. It would be nice to have another regular feature as well. That may take a little more time to develop. People have had the best time trying to identify the Blast From the Past pictures. So, we will keep that up as long as we can.

++If you are reading by email, click here to view the June edition of Under the Oak.++

Does your church have a monthly (or otherwise) newsletter? What part do you typically like to have included? What do you think church newsletters are missing?

Five-week months are helpful; they give me an extra week to get the newsletter done. June is not one of those months. So, back to work I go.


Stay blessed...john