So I’m sitting in a hospital room visiting with a member of our congregation last night, and he’s telling me about all the ways that our church has helped him get closer to God. We are, it appears, not very judgmental, so he felt at home and kept coming back, and feels closer to Jesus than he ever did before. We encouraged our people to start really digging into God’s Word on a daily basis with the Life Journal and he and his wife have been reading the Bible like they didn’t used to. It’s good to do what I do after all! It’s good to serve here. It’s good to be alive.

Look up Clara Barton. During the Civil War she couldn’t stay home. She had to get out and help those who were suffering and dying on the battlefield. I’m sure plenty of people told her she was crazy, that what could one woman do (especially a woman in those times when women stayed home). She ignored them, and of course after the war founded the Red Cross. All because she insisted on loving the least of these. Today, somebody might tell you you’re crazy, that you can’t change the world, that you can’t do what you’ve set your mind to. Don’t “stay home”. Get out there anyway.

Okay, for those of you who wonder where we get those really cool videos (the ones we don’t make ourselves) up at TCC, well here’s our secret. There’s a GREAT site that is sort of a clearing-house for all things cool when it comes to church video. It’s called SermonSpice, and you can check it out here! And yes, if you find something really cool you think maybe we should use, let me know! Or if you’re reading this and you’re not a TCC-er, let your pastor know about this great resource.

Here’s a thought. What happens if we really embrace a “book of James” style faith… one that goes beyond just doctrine as a measuring stick or list of distinctives and statements… and journeys towards the Word of God dwelling richly within us, so that we might show Christ to the world, and so that the world will know us by the way we love one another… I’m excited just thinking about that!

We had a MARVELOUS last day at Willow, hearing a couple of speakers who really inspired us to go out there and create for God. I especially was moved by Francis Chan’s talk, which reminded us not to rely on ourselves, but on the Holy Spirit to change lives. Also, this morning I was introduced to the music of a REMARKABLE young lady named Kendall Payne. I haven’t been so impressed with a songwriter since Rich Mullins. She is an amazing talent, and you ought to check out her music.

So there’s this great booth here from a great company called Sermon Spice. Our church uses their videos pretty often. Well, they had this deal where if you eat just ONE really really hot pepper, they give you a red t-shirt and a coupon for a bunch of their videos. Dave, my senior pastor, went for it yesterday. It hurt a little, but he’s got the T-shirt to prove “he’s a man”… Will I pony up and eat one today? Stand by to find out what kind of stuff I’m made of!

We all went our separate ways for our breakouts today at the Arts Conference… And we all learned so much that it is just about making our heads explode! My session on working with a Creative Team was just revolutionary. My other colleagues learned so much about their areas, too. Just wonderful. Learning is what it’s all about, folks. Learning is one of the great joys in life. So today was pretty joyful. It was neat to sit in a session with Nancy Beach, one of the teaching pastors at Willow, and learn that the challenges and failures and successes that they have and the ones we have are way more similar than I would have guessed. THANK YOU Nancy!

First off, what a great time we’re having here at the Arts Conference. Brian McLaren reminded us today how powerful we artists can be in changing the world. We can tell stories that remind people that all those numbers of people starving in places like Africa are not just numbers but are people. It reminded me of those pictures World Vision and Compassion give you to remember that your 30-some dollars a month is going to help a real person, not just give you an extra tax write-off. Anyway, we’re looking for good ideas for how to tell those stories better, good ideas for how to get our communities and our churches to really work to change this world God gave us for the better, by helping people, conserving resources, and just basically being good stewards of what we have. Any ideas? Not ideas about what to do, but ideas about how to encourage us all to do it!

So they asked me to be part of a lunch to talk about leadership challenges here at the Arts Conference. It was cool, because I’ve been to (now) three arts conferences, and this year will be my eighth Leadership Summit (Read about all this stuff at the Willow Creek Association website here.) They bribed me with Cheesecake, and the piece they gave the few of us that went to this lunch was so much bigger than the one they gave the rest of the attenders that I just had to take a picture. Here it is.

Nancy Beach’s first session was a great reminder that we need to retreat to be able to create art that redeems. We need that time spent with our Father to be able to use our time to encourage believers and encourage people who want to become believers. The time away in solitude seems like a waste of time to so many in this world, but it’s a great use of our time from our Heavenly Father’s perspective. Take some time today and just be quiet with God. More later…