This summer our family had the opportunity to vacation with some of our extended family in the Bahamas, and we had a great time. While the white beaches were nice, the crystal blue water was beautiful, and the cooler temperatures were a relief, one of my favorite parts of visiting Nassau was the opportunity to meet more of my brothers and sisters in Christ, encourage each other, and worship God together on Sunday at the Highbury Park Church of Christ. When we asked the people at the front desk of the place where we were staying how to get to the address of the church, they said that it was on the other side of the island and that it would take at least 25 minutes to get there; they thought we were quite strange for wanting to go there. We had to charter a special bus to take us, and the ride seemed to last forever; we began to wonder if the driver knew where he was going and if we should have just had a family devotional together in our room. Once we arrived at the church building, several members of the congregation warmly greeted us and asked where we were from and what we were doing in Nassau. Though services were a bit different from what we were used to, the church was perhaps the kindest I have ever visited.

Sometimes we neglect to consider the fact that neither God nor his church is confined by geographic or linguistic boundaries. We often understand church and Christianity only as we have experienced it. Visiting churches in foreign places should enlighten us to the reality and blessing of being a part of a worldwide community of faith. If you ever get the opportunity to visit Nassau, be sure to meet the wonderful Bahamian people at the Highbury Park Church of Christ on the “other side of the island”. And, by the way, after we got back on the bus to leave the church building, we all agreed that we were glad to have chosen the long bus ride and the opportunity to meet more of our spiritual family over the devotional in the room.

Alisha and I, along with everyone on our mission team, attend Memorial Road Church of Christ. MRCC is also serving as the overseeing congregation for our mission to Vienna, Austria. As a member of a congregation of approximately 2500 people, it becomes easy, if not convenient, to criticize the problems of ministry which accompanies being such a large group of Christians. What about the people who fall through the cracks? Should they be encouraged to find a smaller congregation because “big congregation” just doesn't fit them? I don't know of anyone who thinks that's acceptable. How large to we get before we decide that we're too big for effective ministry? Edmond, Oklahoma is growing so quickly, surely if MRCC broke into several medium sized congregations, these, too, would soon become large churches.

As I begin to work more closely with the leadership of MRCC I am impressed by how these issues and concerns are neither ignored nor disavowed. These are the real struggles of being a large congregation and ministry to our fellow Christians, as well as to those who don't know Christ, weighs heavily on the hearts of the church leaders at Memorial Road.

Memorial Road is known as a great missions church: they build strong relationships with their missionaries, they seek to give good care to their missionaries, they desire for their missionaries to be successful. As someone soon moving to proclaim the Gospel overseas, it is comforting to have that type of congregation supporting you, praying for you. But, the most exciting thing about Memorial Road, the reason that really makes me thrilled to be a member of this congregation, is that the church never fails a challenge that our leadership sets before us. I don't think you'll hear anyone apologize for us being a large congregation, but we do acknowledge the challenges that our sheer size brings, and we seek to meet those challenges with Godly solutions.

July 16 was the day for our Special Missions Contribution. The goal that was set and the dollar amount reached are not important. But what is important is that every year our leadership challenges us to give to missions, and every year we surpass the goal. That's exciting. Every year our church members are compelled to give money for one explicit purpose: missions.

At a time when many churches of Christ are reluctant to engage in European missions, and are even pulling support from European missions, Memorial Road is expanding their European missions. In 2007, we will depart for Vienna, Austria, and in 2008, MRCC will expand their current mission effort in Warsaw, Poland by sending a new mission team there as well. There's a challenge in European missions and we need churches to accept those challenges. We need churches that aren't afraid of being challenged so that those who don’t know Christ may find him.

I’ve been thinking about community a lot lately.  I recently finished reading The Shaping of Things to Come by Frost and Hirsch, which talks a lot about developing community to bring people into a relationship with God and followers of Christ.  I’m not talking about community outreach ministries that spend a lot of time developing programs to help bring people into the church – or at least the church building.  I’m talking about living Christ in the community, becoming a part of the community and every day letting your light shine, which will prompt people to worship God (Matthew 5:16). 

I think we’ve started to rely on church as our sole community and as a result we have lost our connection to the lost.  Frost and Hirsch state that when many people become Christians they change so much to fit into the church culture and community that they lose their standing in their former communities – communities that are full of people that need God!  Of course you are going to change when you become a Christian, but I wonder how much of that change is turning away from an ungodly past and how much of the change is adapting to the church culture. 

I guess this ties to something else I’ve been thinking about a lot recently – Why do we feel compelled to be so busy?  In life in general, but specifically in the church.  Our churches are overflowing with programs and activities and get-togethers and whatever.  What happened to having time to rest?  I’m going off on a tangent now, so I’m going to stop this all together.  Maybe I’ll write something more coherent after I think about it some more – maybe not.  In any case, I highly recommend The Shaping of Things to Come.

In 2002 the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals determined that reciting the Pledge of Allegiance in public schools was an unconstitutional endorsement of religion because of the phrase "under God." To express their dissatisfaction with the ruling, the U.S. Senate passed a resolution 99-0 in order to express support and asked Senate counsel to intervene. Also, on the day of the 9th Circuit's ruling, more than 100 U.S. Representatives (mostly Republican) gathered on the steps of the Capitol building to recite the Pledge of Allegiance--"under God" in tact.

Of course, as you probably know, the ruling was overturned, but the "under God" issue is not one that has faded away. Many people feel that it is indicative of a much larger "culture war" brewing between liberals and conservatives. Personally, I don't buy into the "culture war" but it does make for good television. The "under God" debate is, however, indicative of a very serious issue in America: politicians using God for their own purposes. The strategy of most conservative politicians is to appeal to the voter's sense of Christianity and then convince him or her (the voter) that he or she (the politician) is God's candidate. This happens on some level with the liberal politicians as well, but they aren't so concerned about owning the exclusive rights to God as are the conservatives.

Personally, it won't bother me if "under God" is removed from the Pledge of Allegiance. I believe the reason it was initially placed in the pledge was purely political. America wanted to further establish its position on the correct/better/preferred side of the U.S. versus U.S.S.R dichotomy; our godly capitalism versus their atheistic communism. It won't bother me if "under God" is removed because I'm sick of politicians using God to grow their political power, and that's why the phrase is in the Pledge at all. Christianity can thrive no matter the government. I'll write more than that before the month is over, but for now, I'll leave it at that.

Here's a good webpage on the "under God" debate: /www.undergodprocon.org

Music is one of my favorite things, and it seems one our favorite things to discuss is what bands are the greatest, what albums are the greatest, what songs are the greatest, what guitar solos are the greatest, who is the best drummer, frontman/frontwoman, etc. I thought I'd put together a list of my all-time favorite albums. I'm not saying these are the greatest or the most influential, they're just my favorites. And, of course, this list could change next week. So, here they are...

10. Led Zeppelin III by Led Zeppelin--I'm a huge Zeppelin fan, and while they had they're limits (vocals and lyrics come to mind) there was no one who offered straight ahead rock 'n roll they way these boys did. III is awesome because of it's diversity. There's acoustic, there's electric. There is blues, there is English folk music. If you're not familiar with Zeppelin, I recommend you start with this one.

9. Surfa Rosa by The Pixies--This album is where you can find our (Brian and Alisha's) wedding song ("Where is my Mind?"). Also, you'll find the blueprint for bands like Nirvana. The screams, the melodies, the random talking...this album is just plain fun.

8. Viva Wisconsin by The Violent Femmes--This is a live acoustic album recorded during a tour of the Femmes home state. This is first album that Alisha and I really listened to after getting married--it was almost always in our car CD player. To this day, if you happen to pass us in the car, you're likely to see us unashamedly singing along to "American Music."

7. Francis the Mute by The Mars Volta--This is an album beyond description. It's bilingual (English and Spanish), it's a concept album, it's an "unconcept" album, it's just amazing. During our survey trip to Vienna last year this was the only CD we brought with us. Every time we listen to it we think of Vienna and that's exciting for us.

6. The Colour and the Shape by The Foo Fighters--This is hands down one of the best albums of the 90s. There isn't a boring note here. "Everlong", "My Hero", and "Monkey Wrench", just to name a few. If you don't know, then I can't explain it to you. You have to experience it.

5. Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band by the Beatles--This was the first Beatles album I ever owned. I bought the cassette tape when I was a senior in high school. My junior year in college Ira borrowed and when I got it back, it was broken (what a punk). Alisha and I bought the CD on our honeymoon.

4. Achtung Baby by U2--Don't let anyone fool you with talk about The Joshua Tree, this album is U2's preeminent album. The electronica, for which they'd be known throughout the 90s, is here, as well as the guitar layered music, for which they were known throughout the 80s. The subsequent tour, The ZooTV tour, was a commentary on consumerism and media inundation that, ultimately, even their most devoted fans had difficultly understanding. Still, no band is as successful at challenging they're fan base and coming out on top as is U2.

3.  Versus by Pearl Jam--For my money (all $10 of it), this is one of the best albums ever. What Exile on Main Str. was/is for the Baby Boomers, Versus was/is for Generation X.

2. OK Computer by Radiohead--OK Computer is about how technology dehumanizes people. The concept is marvelously interesting, but the music makes it the best album released in the last half of the 90s...maybe even the whole decade. I went to the record store one day and couldn't find anything, so I just picked out an album at random and it was this one. Radiohead have been one of my favorite artists ever since.

1. The Wall by Pink Floyd--This album is amazing. What can I say that hasn't been said? Only a band with a clear and concise vision could create an album such as this. Interestingly enough, the band was on the verge of breaking up throughout the recording of The Wall, and the keyboardist was actually kicked out before it was all said and done. Still, this is as good as they come.

I suppose that the AIDS epidemic is one that has never been handled very well by American Christian culture. Personally, I am haunted by the childhood memories of 1980s newscasts about junkies, homosexuals and the promiscuous heterosexual behavior necessary for AIDS transmission. AIDS was new then. Scary then. It's still scary, but in the '80s it was different. There were no victims then, only immoral people who got what they deserved. Unfortunately, this also meant that there were very few, if any, good Samaritans.

Perhaps the most striking quality of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10:25-37) is that he refused to judge the man nearly beaten to death by robbers. There is never any confusion about what the man deserved, nor did the Samaritan think it his place to contribute to the man's punishment is some capacity. The Samaritan gave of himself to help a man who, for all we know, very well may have received what he deserved. There was no judgment, only compassion.

During the commercial breaks of those 1980s newscasts was when I would occasionally hear my dad offer his commentary on the state of the nation and/or world. I was a young boy when I heard him say that he felt no compassion for those with AIDS because the only way a person attracts AIDS was to engage in sinful behavior. In other words, AIDS victims get what they deserve. I believed that for many, many years.

I don't know how much has changed today. I know that thousands die from AIDS and receive little more than judgment from Christians, but it's not our place to say who deserves what. It's our place to give of ourselves and help. It's amazing to me how many people complain about how "bad" things have become, but feel no inclination whatsoever to give of themselves, to personally sacrifice, to make things better. How can we expect things to change if we're unwilling to be a part of that change?

I only hope they never know how much punishment I deserve.

Brian and I have been a little lazy with the blog, but we hope to pick up the pace for the rest of the month.  I’ve been trying to piece together an entry, but I can’t seem to stay focused.  So for now, I just want to share a verse that has been in my mind a lot lately.

The letters to the Thessalonians have recently become some of my favorite reading.  What I love about the letters is the emotion that Paul expresses to the church of the Thessalonians.  I’m sure that Paul felt a bond with all of the churches to whom he ministered, but this group of people seem to hold something a little more.  This is my favorite part:

We were gentle among you, like a mother caring for her little children.  We loved you so much that we were delighted to share with you not only the gospel of God but our lives as well, because you had become so dear to us.  (1 Thessalonians 2:7-8)

Well, I leave you this month with a picture of Daisy our dog and the animal she will never be compared to SUE the dinosaur. In case any of you reading this are in OK, you can see a full size cast replica of SUE at the Sam Noble Museum in Norman. Tuesday of next week is of course Independence Day and for Austrians maybe the closest holiday that might compare would be National Day which is Oct. 26. Maybe if there are any Austrian's reading this they can comment and/or correct. Anyway, I want to wish all of those who read this (Ira's sister and the team) to have a safe and happy 4^th of July and eat lots of barbecue and watch “the bombs bursting in air”. For as of right at this moment twill be our last on US soil for awhile! Tschuess!!

Almost every time our team gets together I am reminded about how God has blessed each of my team members with spiritual gifts. I am so amazed to see how they work together so that each need is taken care of. It is like a microcosm of the church in that each function together in a fluid type motion as we are lead by Christ. It just makes me thankful that God has blessed me with friends such as these.

Now it comes time to hear from those that read the blog, tell me (or in essence cyberspace) if you have experienced this in your own life in the groups that you interact with.

My prayer is that the church that grows out of Vienna will function the same way!!

More pictures to come hopefully next blog...

Factoid of the day - Apparently it is really hard to cancel your service with AOL. Thank you and God bless.