Canal street and its pastor sound a wee bit like our church; a church that I found every excuse under the sun not to attend-until said pastor accepted the call. He was humble and real. Still is, just a heck of a lot busier. He may ruffle feathers-but as I said, he is REAL. Not some holier-than-thou hypocrite, but a down to earth, common sense man that understands that God is working through him to bring our church to where it needs to be; not a man that takes credit for his aptly times sermons that speak to our souls (and at times hit us between the eyes and make us squirm-now that is a great gift from our Father). Not an easy task with a huge congregation...who can make everybody happy and still keep an iota of sanity? There will be many that whine and complain and bail for more 'upbeat' or 'accepting' rivers/venues...but how long can smoke and mirrors sustain the soul? They will be back. We have all been the prodigal son to one degree or another. I for one am grateful for the humanness of our pastor.
But I must say that it is a sad sign of CRC insularity that you didn't know who CJ Mahaney was (or Curtis Allen at this point)
[/quote]
is feeding the 'blaming/I'm better, or more open than you' sterotype...I do not know of CJ Mahaney or Curtis Allen's music/message either- and I am Catholic. My United Church friend has not heard of any of these musicians either. Although we did enjoy the rap, and we did find it to be different than we are used to--we decided to save the judgement work for God. Your statement honestly made us feel like we had no business to have an opinion on the subject, let alone the join discussion... I am a rebel, then, I suppose. My 15 and 16 year old children loved the music, but feel frustrated because they know that our man-made rules regarding who hasthe only and right way to worship will never allow anyone to openly admit it's cool. May I ask what kind of insularity you are putting forth as a Christian example here?
This video reminds me of those off-beat Old Spice commercials (youtube them if you have a moment-they are funny). We need to be able to laugh at ourselves! Just not at someone else's expense. We all have one goal here, to worship our Lord. Just because some prefer the new way, does not make them superficial...and the old fashioned supporters are not always stuffed shirts. Tolerance-we need to be taught this skill-it will get us far.
Posted in: Confluence for Congregational Leadership — or a River Runs Through It
Canal street and its pastor sound a wee bit like our church; a church that I found every excuse under the sun not to attend-until said pastor accepted the call. He was humble and real. Still is, just a heck of a lot busier. He may ruffle feathers-but as I said, he is REAL. Not some holier-than-thou hypocrite, but a down to earth, common sense man that understands that God is working through him to bring our church to where it needs to be; not a man that takes credit for his aptly times sermons that speak to our souls (and at times hit us between the eyes and make us squirm-now that is a great gift from our Father). Not an easy task with a huge congregation...who can make everybody happy and still keep an iota of sanity? There will be many that whine and complain and bail for more 'upbeat' or 'accepting' rivers/venues...but how long can smoke and mirrors sustain the soul? They will be back. We have all been the prodigal son to one degree or another. I for one am grateful for the humanness of our pastor.
Posted in: A Wrap of a Rap on the Heidelberg Catechism
I must say that your statement,
[quote=Dave Watson]
But I must say that it is a sad sign of CRC insularity that you didn't know who CJ Mahaney was (or Curtis Allen at this point)
[/quote]
is feeding the 'blaming/I'm better, or more open than you' sterotype...I do not know of CJ Mahaney or Curtis Allen's music/message either- and I am Catholic. My United Church friend has not heard of any of these musicians either. Although we did enjoy the rap, and we did find it to be different than we are used to--we decided to save the judgement work for God. Your statement honestly made us feel like we had no business to have an opinion on the subject, let alone the join discussion... I am a rebel, then, I suppose. My 15 and 16 year old children loved the music, but feel frustrated because they know that our man-made rules regarding who has the only and right way to worship will never allow anyone to openly admit it's cool. May I ask what kind of insularity you are putting forth as a Christian example here?
Respectfully,
Hope
Posted in: "Contemporvant" Worship Video--Funny? Offensive? Satirical? Mean?
This video reminds me of those off-beat Old Spice commercials (youtube them if you have a moment-they are funny). We need to be able to laugh at ourselves! Just not at someone else's expense. We all have one goal here, to worship our Lord. Just because some prefer the new way, does not make them superficial...and the old fashioned supporters are not always stuffed shirts. Tolerance-we need to be taught this skill-it will get us far.