As you may have heard, a few days ago the California State Supreme Court upheld a statewide ban on Gay Marriage.  Obviously, this is, and will continue to be, a hot-button issue in this nation, and people from all walks of life are weighing in.

So, the question I'd like to ask is pretty simple: what would Jesus think about all of this?  In attempting to answer that myself, I managed to engage myself in a conversation with Jeff Pearlman, a fantastic author and writer for SportsIllustrated.com, who just so happens to be the polar opposite of myself when it comes to how we see the world.

The result is this: on his blog, he has four posts on Gay Marriage; one of them is an e-mail I wrote attempting to defend a Biblical position.  His posts illicited quite a bit of conversation, which we, as Christians, desperately need to hear.  Additionally, Billy Johnson, my friend from college and preacher in Maryland (who I have more respect for than I can adequately describe), linked to that blog and my e-mail on his blog, leading to a conversation there as well.

So here's what we have: one blog by a non-Christian with his opinions and discussion, and another blog by a Christian with his opinions and discussion.  I invite you to check them out, participate if you'd like, post here if you'd like, or if nothing else, think about it and see what you think.

One warning: you may be surprised at my position and completely disagree with me.  That's fine - you'll find someone who is likeminded on one of these two blogs, whether it's me or not.  Disagreeing and dialoguing is healthy, and it's needed, especially in a case like this, where there is no 'thou shalt not' from God.  Therefore, I'm begging you to keep any and all conversations respectful, knowing that the people who disagree with you have their reasons for doing so.

But promise me this: if political talk is going to get in the way of your fellowship with anyone at Ashland Christian Church (including your preacher), please stop reading and go do something else.  These are valuable conversations, but they are not worth the potentially hazardous consequences that can arise.  At the end of the day, regardless of our politics, we're united in Jesus Christ, and that's what's truly important.

You can find Jeff Pearlman's blog posts here, here, here (this one is my letter), and here.

You can find Billy Johnson's blog discussion here.

Think away!

I'm not 100% sure when it began, and I'm fairly sure that it's not going to end anytime soon.  So, I feel that it's time for your preacher to make a confession:

I am absolutely addicted to Red Bull.

It's true - I'm sick.  I can go all week without one (though I certainly don't prefer to),  but once Sunday morning rolls around, I absolutely must consume no less than twelve ounces of the famous energy drink.  And while I'm sure that it's destroying some vital internal organ, I don't care - whatever they put in there makes me feel ready to preach.

'Whatever they put in there' my be the problem.  According to this article, the German goverment is considering a nation-wide ban on Red Bull Cola because they have found traces of cocaine in the drink.  Now, obviously this is not my beloved Red Bull; the Cola version tastes absolutely dreadful, like if your cat threw up in a bottle of Pepsi and then you left it in the sun.  The cocaine hasn't been found in my Red Bull, and it never will (please, please let me believe this), but there's a lesson to be learned nontheless: sometimes you get more than you bargained for when you injest what the world has to offer.

The world around us just LOVES to indoctrinate us with their views and opinions without us even knowing it.  Didn't you know that dinosaurs died out 65 million years ago before we evolved?  Sure you did - you learned it from the hit movies, 'Ice Age' and 'Jurassic Park.'  And it's perfectly normal and ethical for unmarried couples to live together and have children, right?  I mean, just look at Jim and Pam in 'The Office.'  And the proper way to converse with people around us is in chat rooms, blogs and message boards, protected by our anonymity and our awful linguistic skills... right?

The fact is that whatever we spent our time around will rub off on us.  I remember when I first discovered my potty-mouth: I was hanging around with all sorts of people who seemingly only knew a handful of words, and they could be used as nouns, verbs or adjectives.  And I can remember when my potty-mouth got cleaned up: the precise time I spent more time with people who felt that nouns should be nouns and verbs should be verbs.  It's a very simple principle: who and what you inundate yourself with will affect who you are as a person.

That's why Paul wrote what he did in the book of Hebrews: it is important for us to be involved with a local church which can help us grow up in our faith.  It's eternally wonderful that we're saved, and it's fantastic that we have our own personally unique relationships with God.  But it's also vital that we stay connected to a body of other believers who can help influence our character and personality in the opposite way the world does.  We can never get away from the world completely - after all, 'The Office' is just too good to pass up.  But we CAN maintain a proper perspective of its worth, and that comes from placing spiritual principles primarily important.  And that comes from spending time with people who can help you do just that.

After all, in this world, you're never quite sure what you're drinking.

It is, apparently, 'like an asteroid hitting the earth.'

After two years of study, an international team of scientiests is unveiling to the world this Monday night Ida - the most complete fossil of a 'human ancestor' that anyone has ever found.  At 47 million years old, Ida is the newest 'missing link,' the fossil which will, hopefully in scientific community, once and for all give Darwin's theory of evolution credibility in the eyes of most ardent critics.

Now, usually I keep my nose out of these sorts of things.  After all, my job is to share Jesus with people who need to know Him, and it is possible (contrary to popular belief by many Christians) to believe in secular science AND trust Jesus as your Savior and Lord.  However, after reading about this particular 'finding (which I encourage you to do, here), I can't help it.  According to the article on history.com, 

 "Scientists have worked to identify the fossil and place it within the primate family tree. Ida was originally thought to be a primitive lemur, but comparative tests revealed her to have anthropoid features. This indicates that she is a transitional species between primitive primates and the human lineage."

In other words, guess what Ida is?  A monkey.  An ancient, pre-historice, somewhat unique monkey.  That's it.  The scientific community is excited about finding a very old monkey.  Neat, huh?  It reminds me of the time I learned about the previous 'missing link,' Lucy.  She is supposed to be, just like Ida, an ancestor of you and me.  Her scientific name is australopithecus, which is Latin for 'southern ape.'  In other words, at one point, scientists were excited about finding a very old ape, and now, they're excited about finding a very old monkey.  Awesome.

Look, I'm not trying to mock anyone (well, maybe a little..), but the fact is this: the theory of evolution is a theory which is baseless when it comes to the fossil record.  Could it be true?  Sure.  But so far, the evidence has not led anyone to shift the title from a 'theory' to a 'fact,' and sorry, but Ida isn't the evidence which will do so. 

As Christians, it's important that we're aware that what the media and secular science tells us is often contrary to what the Bible teaches.  And when something like this comes up and everyone is doing backflips of excitement, it's best that we observe with a critical eye and a humble attitude.  The bottom line is that the secular scientific theory of evolution is, purposefully or not, a direct contradiction to the foundational principle that God made the world, and He created you and I in a special way for a special purpose.  That doesn't mean we shouldn't interested or intrigued, but rather, we should be careful not to be entangled by 'empty philosophies or high thinking nonsense' (Colossians 2:8).  The clear, Biblical teaching of both the Old Testament and the New Testament is that God made you and I without using evolution as a mechanism.

And no old monkey is going to change that! 

"What will you do with your dash?"

And so it began again.  If you've ever been to a graduation ceremony, you know what's coming next: 'this is the end of an era... blah, blah, blah... you should treasure these moments... blah, blah, blah... don't waste your future... blah, blah, blah..."  They wouldn't be so bad if they weren't so utterly predictable.  I mean, what is there to say about graduation that hasn't been said before?  The students went to class.  They passed their classes.  Now they're done.  It's pretty simple.

Now, this is not meant at all to disrespect the speaker that I listened to this weekend at my brother in law's graduation from Heritage Academy in Columbia; he did a fine job, talking about tombstones and mission work and floating and all that.  That's not the point - the point is that the hundreds of people gathered for the graduation this past Saturday simply didn't care.  A large part of me (the part that gets paid to speak) actually felt bad for the guy, because he seemed intelligently enough to understand that everyone was simply biding their time until we saw the graduates get their diplomas and we could all eat cake.  The bottom line is that no matter how well he spoke, not one person in the audience was there to see him perform or hear his words of wisdom.  The day was intended to honor the hard work of our friends and family members, and that's what we cared about.

All of this leads us back to the church, and if we're doing our job correctly, each Sunday, you should feel the same way about me that I did this weekend about the graduation speaker: you are not here to listen to me.  No matter how well I preach or how much you personally like me, if I am the focus of your Sunday morning experience, then quite frankly, your priorities are completely and utterly out of whack.  The same can be said for the music or communion or Sunday School or special music or anything else - you should not be coming to church to experience any of those things.

Now obviously, I'm not asking you to mock my preaching or ignore what goes on in the service (in fact, here's what I am asking: please don't!) - but instead, your heart should be where Joshua's was.  As we look at the history of the nation of Israel, God promised them a special land to live in, and as it turned out, Joshua was the one God chose to lead the people home.  The night before they began (see Joshua 3), Joshua told them simply to get ready - not for what he was going to do, but to see what God was going to do.  In other words, Joshua wanted them to be focused on what God was working on; he didn't want to get the attention or credit, but instead, he wanted the people to focus all their consideration and thoughts on God.

When you come to church each Sunday, we want your attitude to be focused on what God is up to.  It shouldn't matter what the sermon is about or what music is played, because you're not here for those things.  Instead, you're here to, for one hour in your busy week, focus 100% of your attention on your relationship with God.  And my job isn't to make myself look good or do anything great on my own; my job is to help you focus on where you stand with God.  It's not about me, and it's not about you - it's about Him.

After all, you can pretty much guess what I'm going to say anyway: 'random video clip... blah, blah, blah... something about the Bible... blah, blah, blah... stupid jokes that only eight people laugh at... blah, blah, blah..."

"Our swagger is real nice, and our chemistry is gorgeous.' - Brandon Phillips, second baseman for the Cincinnati Reds

Full disclosure: I have absolutely no idea what the above quote means.  I mean, sure, I vaguely understand what it means for a professional sports team to have 'swagger,' and there isn't a sports writer in the world who hasn't wasted reams of paper discussing the mythical idea of 'team chemistry.'  So, on a certain level, it would stand to reason that an intelligent and knowledgable baseball fan could comprehend what in the world Brandon Phillips is talking about.  Unfortunately, it's been eighteen hours or so since I read the quote for the first time, and I am completely and utterly lost.

This fact, however, has no bearing whatsoever as to whether or not I love the Cincinnati Reds.  I am still obsessed more than I should be with baseball and the Reds in generally, and I will still dutifully follow the ups and downs of the team for years to come.  It is possible, therefore, to not understand an aspect of the Reds (in this case, the ramblings of their star second baseman) and still be a fan.

I bring this no-brainer fact to your attention for one reason only: we can understand this when it comes to everything except God.  There is nothing in the world that you understand everything about, and your lack of understanding does not disqualify you from being heavily invested in the things you care about.  And yet, when it comes to God, when people have questions that no one can answer, it seems that this is a roadblock to their relationship with Him.  Not having all the answers or full understanding causes people to avoid making a decision to follow Jesus, leads people to be discouraged in their faith, and perhaps worst of all, causes people to fall away in their walk altogether.

Yesterday I was presented with the day's mail for the church, and I got an extra special treat: three new books from a Christian organization.  I love reading, and I'm a fan of Christianity in general, so this should have been a good thing.  Unfortunately, as soon as I saw the title of the first book, I knew that this was anything but good:

A Geocentricity Primer: The Geocentric Bible #7

Yes, there are actually seven volumes of a book which has the distinct goal of convincing you and me that the earth, and not the sun, is the center of the universe.  Someone put all sorts of money, time and effort into producing professional materials with this aim in mind, and someone thought it would be a good idea to inundate me with this information, probably with the thought that if I would be swayed, then I would attempt to sway you as well.

The thing about, though, is this: IT DOESN'T MATTER IF WE LIVE IN A GEOCENTRIC OR HELIOCENTRIC UNIVERSE!  I really don't care what Isaiah or David wrote, or what science teachers tell us - no one really knows (note: nearly every person for the last five centuries has agreed that the sun is the center of the universe, and you probably should too.  This, however is beside the point.), and therefore, anyone who dogmatically teaches one way or another is making a huge mistake.

What matters to me, and what should matter to you, is this: Jesus Christ is God who became a man, and He gave His life so that you can live eternally with Him.  And no matter what the center of the universe is, that fact is unchanged.  We will naturally deal with a whole host of questions when it comes to our faith, but at the end of the day, the Kingdom of Heaven is not the SATs; the Kingdom of Heaven is about knowing God personally in your life, even though you will never have all the answers.

And besides - even without the answers, our swagger is real nice, and our chemistry is beautiful... whatever that means!

I should have seen it coming.

There I was, minding my own business and enjoying a fantastic meal of El Rancho with my good buddy Joshua J. Pugsley, when the utterly predictable happened: I made a complete mess of myself.  I was almost done with my cheese enchiladas, rice and beans from Columbia's best place to get Mexican food (seriously - they won an award!), and as I was attempting to cut my final hunk of cheesy goodness into a couple of managable bites, my fork slipped and I accidentally forced my hand into what was left of the enchilada sauce.  The result was a red splattering on my arm, the table, and worse, my brand new House of Heroes shirt.

See, I left the house this morning donning my new favorite shirt (it's my favorite only because it's new, and frankly, I like new things), and I should have known this would happen.  After all, every time I wear new clothing and attempt to eat food, the two cross paths in a way I rarely intend. The worst part?  The shirt is (or at least, was) white, which means unless my wife can work her laundry magic soon, the shirt will be permanently stained.

As I sat there bemoaning my horrible luck/clumsiness/stupidity for wearing white and eating mexican food, it got me thinking: it's not just me.  This happens to everyone, in one way or another.  And even if it wasn't this afternoon that I splattered red sauce on my shirt, the shirt being ruined was inevitable.  That's the nature of what we have in this life: our possessions and treasures are fleeting and temporary.  They all, like Jesus said, are subject to moths and rust and thieves (see Matthew 6:19-34), and therefore, it shouldn't be surprising when bad things happen to them.  But it's not just our possessions; everything in this life is temporary.  Today's high school hero is tomorrow's 9-5 average joe, and the superstar climbing the corporate ladder in 2009 will be having his diapers changed in a nursing home in 2059.  It can be depressing to think about, but it's the truth.

That's why it's so important for us to prioritize eternally significant endeavors in our lives.  It should be more important to us to cultivate our relationship with Jesus than anything else, not because we have to, but because it's prudent; after all, at the end of the day, whether or not you know Him is truly all that matters.  So next time you drop a meatball on your dress or spill wine on your pants or you're splattered by mud from a particularly inconsiderate speeding car, don't be surprised - that's life.  Let it be a reminder that today, you have a chance to make an eternal difference in your life and the lives of those around you, by living a life for Jesus Christ. 

Besides - you should have seen it coming!

It was, without a doubt, one of the strangest shows I had ever been to.

A few weeks ago, I got word that one of my favorite bands was going on tour in May and June, and lo and behold, they were coming to Lee's Summit, Missouri, for one of their first stops.  The band was House of Heroes, and as I have mentioned before, they put out the world's most perfect pop-rock record in 2008, titled, 'The End is Not The End.'  We had seen them in January and been blown away, and so the two hour drive was in no way a hindrance for what would prove to be an insane night of music.

The venue was called 'Jerry's Bait Shop,' and even after spending an entire evening there, I'm still not sure what exactly it is.  Is it a bar?  I guess you could call it that; there is, after all, a bar in the place.  Is it a restaurant?  Kind of - they sell food (including 'Kansas City's Best Pizza'!).  Is it a club for concerts?  Somewhat - there's a small stage, and supposedly bands play most nights.  It was all three of these things without being any of them (if that makes any sense), a varitable hodge-podge of entrepreneuring endeavors that can not be described, only experienced.  The night began with music  from a local band which consisted of a three guys playing electric drums, a headless bass, and a guitar player with a headset mic, in true Garth Brooks style.  They were, to say the least, not good, and their hour long set of horrendous 90s radio rock covers lasted way, way too long.

Naturally, the place was packed for the terrible cover band, and, just as naturally, once House of Heroes (the non-awful, non-local, non-cover band) set up, most of the patrons left.    The people who were left to see the splendid 40 minutes of musical perfection could roughly be broken down into one of four groups:

* Fans There To See The Band: There were roughly 20 of us, and we could not have been more painfully out of place at Jerry's Bait Shop.

* Leftovers From The Terrible Opening Band: They were either not done with their dinner or they wanted to check out the band (probably expecting another terrible cover act).  They stuck around for a song or two, and promptly left.

* Oblivious People At the Bar: I'm not convinced these people were even aware there was music playing.  Seriously.

* Employees Who Were Paid To Be There, But Not Happy About It: I don't think anything else needs to be said.  

It struck me as I was taking in all the musical goodness that House of Heroes brings that this is pretty similar to how things go at church.  Here we were, as huge fans of the band, having the time of our lives, and not thirty feet away were people who were oblivious, irritated, or planning their escape.  They were missing out on a fantastic set of music, and yet, they either didn't care or weren't aware that they were.

In the church, we encounter a whole host of different people, and as such, we garner a whole host of different responses.  Some people are immediately comfortable in a church environment, and receptive to the message of Christ - but those people are nowhere near the norm.  Most people are uncomfortable, hostile, unreceptive, or all of the above.  And this should come as no surprise to us - after all, this is exactly the situation Jesus described when He taught his closest followers about spreading the gospel (see Matthew 13).  Different people will respond differently, regardless of what we're doing.

At Ashland Christian Church, our mission is to carry out the job given to us by Jesus, namely, to Connect, Call and Cultivate.  But it is NOT our responsibility to dictate the decisions of other people, nor is it our job to judge the intentions of the people we encounter.  There are going to be people who will follow Jesus and be a part of this church for years to come; there are going to be people who make a decision for Jesus and go somewhere else.  Still others will make a decision and quickly abandon the path they've taken, while another group will fail to make a decision entirely.  There's nothing we can do to change this - if Jesus encountered it, so will we!

Our job, then, is simple: we must consistently and lovingly share Christ with each and every person we encounter... and we CANNOT worry about the results.  It is not our job to change people's hearts and minds, and it is not up to us to force people to grow up in their faith.  Instead, we are called to present the truth in the most effective way possible, and let God do His job.  That's a whole lot easier to say and do when the results are more positive than negative, but it's the truth either way - we need to do our job, and God will do His. 

Sunday night was one of the strangest shows ever, but it was fantastic nontheless.  And it  just goes to show that even the the greatest efforts are sometimes met with resistance, and even the truth can fall on deaf ears.  No matter what, though, the band would have put on the same performance for 2,000 fans or 20.  In the church, no matter who we're playing to, we need to do exactly what House of Heroes did:

Play the show.

To be quite honest, I am really, really excited to be writing this blog.  This blog is EXACTLY why we do what we do here at Ashland Christian Church, and it's the reason I decided to go into full-time ministry in the first place.

Our mission at ACC is to Connect.Call.Cultivate, and as such, we need to celebrate when we see people who have connected, answered the call, and have begun a life of cultivation.  In other words, it's time to celebrate the new additions to ACC over the last four months!  We have been blessed to see God work in wonderful ways in the first part of 2009, and as a result, we've seen ten new Christians give their lives to Jesus Christ, as well as one brother in Christ transfer his membership to this part of God's body.

As we've discussed at length before (and will continue to discuss), baptism should NOT be a point of contention in the church.  No matter what you may or may not believe about whether or not baptism is absolutely necessary to be a Christian, the Bible makes it clear that baptism is the point in time that each Christian can look back on as the point in time their lives changed for the better.  It is the symbol of the death of their past and the birth of their future, and it is a physical representation of the spiritual truth that God not only forgives our sins, but also lives within us.  Therefore, baptism is the ultimate celebration of a new relationship with God, and it is the most exciting part of our ministry at ACC.

Allow me to brag on God a little bit, and celebrate!  Listed below are the new members of ACC family, and I encourage you to pray individually for each of these people as they begin their walk with Christ in this life and their time with this family of believers in Ashland!

Baptisms January-April 2009:

- Jakob Warren (January)
- Chad Warren (January)
- Tammy Harrison (February)
- Dezon Snell (March)
- Josh Walters (March)
- Justin Williams (March)
- Patty Yeakle (April)
- Nicki DeOrnellas (April)
- Cole Morris (April)
- Patrick Ruessler (April)

New Member By Transfer January-April 2009

- Zane Oliver (March)