the drum|rob fairbanks

This Boy is Just Sick

I just couldn't help but to post this.  The last one on the clip is flat out crazy.  I know, I know, this has nothing to do with the subject matter for this blog, but sometimes you just have to break out.  Bam!

 

On being Missional: Finding the Person of Peace

We often talk about the “Person of Peace” strategy that Jesus clearly outlines in Luke 9 & 10 and then see playing out in the rest of the Gospels and in the early church. Admittedly, this can be difficult to wrap our minds around if we have only ever seen blitzkrieg evangelism used. Understanding that Jesus meant for evangelism to be deeply relational and keenly strategic seems a bit off if you’ve never seen it done before.

via mikebreen.wordpress.com

I am always looking for ideas on how to be on mission. This short blog from Mike Breen is not only insightful, but gets quite practical.

A Thanksgiving Prayer

Oh God, when I have food,
help me to remember the hungry;

When I have work,
help me to remember the jobless;

When I have a warm home,
help me to remember the homeless;

When I am without pain,
help me to remember those who suffer;

And remembering,
help me to destroy my complacency
and stir up my compassion.

Make me concerned enough
to help by word and deed,
those who cry out
for what we take for granted.

by Samuel F. Pugh

 

HT JR Woodward

 

CHURCH PLANTING IN THREE FLAVORS

I am sitting on a plane as I type this, on my way back home from Madrid. We have just had our annual Advancement Team retreat. The Advancement Team leads CA's church planting work in Europe. I lead this team together my friend and colleague Kevin Johnson. The team consists of 6 people: five of us serve as regional 'facilitators (we prefer the word 'facilitator' to 'director' as it emphasizes the serving nature of the role more). The sixth person is Al Dyck, our HR liaison.

via ourjourney.typepad.com

A three-lensed look at church planting CA style from Rogier Bos, our Europe advancement team leader.

A Justification Debate Long Overdue – The Gospel Coalition Blog

A record crowd of more than 2,500 turned out in Atlanta this week for the annual meeting of the Evangelical Theological Society, focused on “Justification By Faith.” The conference’s main event—three papers and debate over justification between New Testament scholars Frank Thielman, Tom Schreiner, and N. T. Wright—might be about three years too late to slow the spread of controversy over justification that has gripped evangelicals. Unfortunately, a planned face-to-face discussion between John Piper and Wright fell through when Piper took an extended sabbatical. But the novelty of pairing Wright on a panel with Schreiner, another key critic, still riveted an audience that enjoyed more than two hours of sustained debate over New Testament texts, Greek terminology, and ancient Near Eastern and Roman society.

via thegospelcoalition.org

An important and continuing conversation. The question is what is the scope and location of the theological tenet of justification? This would have been reason enough to be at the this years ETS conference.

Feedback from Eric Blauer about our CA North American Gathering

I’ve had the privilege of attending and speaking at the Christian Associates International Missional Leader gathering here in Portland, OR this week. Great people, involved in good works across the globe. We’ve had way too much fun, feasted on some fantastic food & drink and laughed way more than I have in a long time. It’s been a full schedule and I’m pretty tired but I’m so glad I got to be a part of this endeavor.

via fcb4.tumblr.com

This event was fantastic. So grateful to all who attended.

10 Commandments of Scripture Interpretation | Out of Ur

IV. You shall honor the Church as the recipient and the guardian of the Scriptures.

via www.outofur.com

Ten helpful keys for interpreting Scripture from CT's Out of Ur. Definitely worth a look.

Ted Koppel: Olbermann, O'Reilly and the death of real news

Back then, a policy against political contributions would have aimed to avoid even the appearance of partisanship. But today, when Olbermann draws more than 1 million like-minded viewers to his program every night precisely because he is avowedly, unabashedly and monotonously partisan, it is not clear what misdemeanor his donations constituted. Consistency?

via www.washingtonpost.com

Ted Koppel speaks some sense...I wish it were catchy. This issue may be near the core of what I coined in my last entry as the loss of civility.

Os Guinness: Civility in the public square

Christianity has lost three important guide wires: integrity, credibility and, most pressingly, civility, said Os Guinness, co-founder of The Trinity Forum. Guinness believes that Christians must abandon political bitterness and fulfill Jesus’ commands to love one another. His approach to the intractable differences among world religions is to create a “political framework of rights, responsibilities and respect to which all agree.”

via www.faithandleadership.com

I have had a growing concern about the polarization of the U.S. and the loss of civility. It is becoming increasingly difficult to discuss any issue, let alone loaded ones in a civil manner. Disagreements abound. That is not the heart of the issue. We live in a pluralistic country, which means there is room for different perspectives, approaches, ethics and lifestyles. The problem lies in the fact that it is more and more difficult to disagree within civility. I was told yesterday by someone that Glen Beck has said that we are headed toward a civil war. Without reaquiring the ability for civil discourse (which he along with scores of other media personaliies on the right and the left injure daily) he may be right.

Lord have mercy!  Christ have mercy!

Os Guinness' words might be a good place to begin the long road back. Click the link to read the full interview.

The CA Video Invite: starring, well, me!

CA Invitation from Christian Associates on Vimeo.

If you would like more info on what we are doing click here: Christian Associates  It takes to a web portal of the awesome opportunities that are available to you.