reyes-chow :: FAITH

The Jesus Wii keeps going and going and going

Pending any more big news about this, this will be the last specific post on the ruckus raised by our 2008 Easter graphic.  I have always understood the viral nature of things, but this is still surprising on so many levels about the activity still being generated.  It will be interesting to see how much it moves with only one more day left before Easter.

Obviously we liked the postcard, but not everyone does or will.  We have moved out of the gaming community and I found the first Christian church blog to take us in the negative,

Observe the profane manner in which the Savior of the world is treated by Mission Bay Community Church

And looks like the Aussies have picked up on it as well as Ubuntucat alerted me to this Podcast by what looks like a pretty well known gaming crew.

This [podcast] from www.australiangamer.com captures a general feel from the gaming community about all of this hubbub about out Easter Card. 

I am also keeping a running list of posts with unique commentary and or good conversations over on the MBCC Blog if you want to keep up with the buzz.

Kanye West's "Jesus Walks With Me"

[h/t: I Geek Rev]

Take a look at this video.  Kanye West is sharp.  I have always liked his stuff and at first glance thought this was a tad bit trite.  But as I built up my list of, "but what about . . ." he touches on them towards the end.

2008 Baseball Wisdom from Bruce

Last year I made a pretty good case for, Why Jesus Would Play Baseball, so I don't feel like I have to rehash that, so for the 2008 season let me make a few judgmental and inflammatory statements.

• Like a good cult-follower, I trust Billy Beane to the ends of the Earth or at least to the end of October.  Our chant goes something like this with Kool and Gang's "Celebration" playing in the background.
    Rebuilding is good for the soul. 
      Rebuilding is good for the soul. 
        Rebuilding is good for the soul. 
          Rebuilding is good for the soul. 
• Baseball stories are so much better than all that college basketball crap.  I was giddy when I opened up Today's SF Gate with no less than five baseball stories.  The skies opened up and everything.
• Not sure that that other Bay Area team is playing or getting ready to play, but it sure ain't the national pastime.
• Jesus still does not like the Yankees and I must say that last I talked to him, the BoSox and Angels are moving up the list.
• Fremont does not exist in my universe.
• Small markets ROCK!
• Fake nacho cheese IS baseball.
• Mt. Davis sucks.
• The A's win the World Series in 6.
  I didn't say what year ;-)

PLAY BALL!

WWJD about comments?

After reading 9 Tips for Dealing with Idiots on the Internet over at Internet Duct Tape, I began wondering if there are is also a Christian perspective that can be brought to the table regarding internet interactions that are less than fun.  A kind of WWJD for blogging. Yeah . . . I am THAT cheesy.

So . . . if pressed, here are a few ways that Christ-centered bloggers may articulate dealing with commenters who are difficult to love.

Conversations that lead nowhere really are not conversations.  Sometimes people may just need a place to vent, you have touched a raw nerve or folks are simply trolling for places to leave their opinions and are not really up for an exchange of ideas.  That's fine if that is what they want to do, but this blog is your house, so you get to decide at what level the exchange happens.  So dust off that blog and move on.

Christ is indeed in all people.
You just never know what is going on with folks who act less than appropriate and/or seem like they have lost their mind figuratively and literally.  While your first inclination - I know mine is - is to think of them simply as dolts and want to declare, "Off with their heads!" this should not be our response.  While you do not have to engage in hopeless back and forth or encourage abusive interaction, you should always be asking the question of, "Where is Christ in this person?"  Who knows how that perspective can influence our interactions and what kind of impact we can make now or later on said dolt ;-)

Speaking the truth love goes both ways.
For good or bad, I begin with the assumption that all people who leave comments - obvious spammers excluded - do so for the greater good and out of some place of discernment.  I think we have to begin there lest we risk writing someone off who just may be the one that God intended for me to listen to.  So . . . even in the worst of comments or personal attach, try to first think about ANY nuggets of truth that might be contained in the comment.

And of none of that works, stoning is still legal right?

The Day Jesus Came to Preach

h/t: Heather

Courtesy of The Ongoing Adventures of ASBO Jesus

Stop hating, Yelp loves Jesus

I won!  I Won!  what did I win you ask?

• Dad of the year?
• Jesus worker of the week?
• Cafe Hanger-Outer of the City?

While all would be bring sweet medals to hang around my neck, alas all pale in comparison to today's [July 26, 2007] Review of the Day from Yelp.  Yes, if you click on over to Yelp today, yours truly has the ROTD for a stunning review of Bruno's Club and Restaurant in the Mission.  Now other than the huge cheese factor and slew of Yelp Complements that accompany this honor, the other thing that happens is that folks interact with the church in new ways.

While some may mock and dismiss some of these new fangled ways that the church may share its presence in the world, I respond with a healthy "Neener neener neener" to you all!  We have seen a great number of people use Yelp when searching for a church.  After all, many of the important things in their lives are found there, why not church. 

Not only are our visitor numbers on the rise, but our website hits mainly come from Yelp along with traditional search engine results.  This unconventional "outreach" happens in two distinct ways:

one, I am a pretty active reviewer so folks who check out my reviews often read my bio and click on my favorite sites.  I often get notes from folks commenting on my job as Pastor so I know that folks are intrigued by the religious tone/content
two, folks write reviews of MBCC and then others click on them to see what all the "hype" is about.  If they may not be looking for a church then, we are now in their conscience.

So I will accept this award on behalf of the one who created us with a word of challenge for you to explore new ways to get the word out about your church.  Find out where people for your context search for and find information such as doctors, eateries, etc. and then get your church plugged it.  If nothing else, go ahead and review it yourself or ask others who have been there to review it for your. And while this is a bigger service in urban settings, getting out in small areas, why not be on the cutting edge?  I even did this with some friend's churches in Pennsylvania and Cleveland among others.

5 Things Jesus would say today

So not only does one get to generate some blog traffic via these silly blog tagging games, but you learn a little more about someone.

Tagged by Kairos . . . reinterpreted into "5 Things Jesus would say the world"

1. TO PRESBYTERIANS - "Really, homosexuality? THAT'S where your energy is?  Why don't you concentrate on training effect pastors and helping to nurture healthy communities?"
2. TO THOSE WHO THINK THEY ARE EDGY - "You keep talking about being "out of the box thinkers" what in the name of me does that mean?!?!?  There is no box!"
3. TO 3rd CHILD TODDLERS - "Yeah you're cute, but do you REALLY think tantrums work?"
4. TO THOSE WHO WISH TO CONTROL - "The friggin' world is not clean, pure or without interruption - nor are you supposed to make it that way!"
5. TO YOU KNOW WHO YOU ARE - "I am not a mascot, I am not American, I am not capitalist, I am not whatever what is convenient for me to be.  I am what I am.  Deal with it!"

Consider yourself tagged if you want.  I will be the buzz kill and end it here.

Dating Jesus

This has been on my "That's Blog" list for a while . . . someone sent me this article a few months back from Christianity Today, "Dating Jesus: When Lover of My Soul Language Goes to Far."  This particular article pokes fun at some Christian music and imagery that makes Jesus just a little too close.

I don't question the devotion of anyone who says she loves Christ intensely, whatever language she uses to express it.
But I have little patience for taking biblical metaphors too far and giving one's relationship with God an air of irreverent chumminess. Somehow, the scenario in which "his princess" shaves her legs for a date with Jesus seems to leave little room for fear of God.

I have always been a big proponent of "inclusive" or "expansive" language that helps us gain a broader understanding of who God is but I have always felt a little weird about a romantic Christ. 

There is one thing to love Jesus, but quite another to LUUUUUUUUUV Jesus.

The Cross as Occupational Hazard

So for those of you who have seen the cross we have at MBCC, you know.  This is thing is about 8 feet tall, made of two 4x4 solid pieces of treated wood and HEAVY.  Since we have so many events at the church we are constantly moving this thing around.  "Hey, can you hold my cross for a minute?" is inevitably uttered and is irreverently funny every time.

So let me add to the MBCC cross lore.   Today I was resetting our space after an event and as I was lifting the cross up over something, it slipped out of my hands and landed right on my flip-flop clad foot.  Ouch.  At first I noticed that I may have cut myself, but thought nothing of it.  Until . . . I slipped on something.  Upon closer examination, that something was a pool of blood that had gushed out of my foot.  Nice.

I dare not make any jokes, comparisons or snide remarks for fear of offending anyone further. Plus, the jokes are too numerous that I don't even know where to begin.   But . . . when I got home and told Robin, the first thing out of her mouth was something along the lines of, "I know Jesus didn't, but I wonder if you can get workers comp for that?"  So supportive, and oh so funny.

Why Jesus Would Play Baseball

Last night I went to the shortest A's Game in 30 years.  All my "dates" were unavailable so I went alone, just me, a couple dollar dogs and my blogging mind.  As I sat there reveling in the fact-paced pitching performances, I realized - again - that Baseball really is awesome.

No offense to you football, basketball, cricket, shuffleboard, spelling bee and hockey fans, but let me tell you why the baseball, the greatest sport IN THE WORLD, would be the sport of choice had Jesus had the opportunity to sign up for T-Ball.  And yes, while each sport may carry some of these traits, I dare say none has them all.

• Team Mascots // Angels AND Padres;  Jesus likes them.
• The Team // While all sports are team sports at some level, the baseball team is unique in that there are so many working parts on the field at one team each with pretty unique skill sets.  Jesus likes communities that bring all their gifts together for the common good.
• The Individual // In baseball, ones individual contributions and skills can both take over a game as well as be part of a team.  Each person plays a particular role on the team, but if need be can carry at team via pitching, hitting, defense, whatever. While this can go wrong sometimes, in the end Jesus likes Peter, the Rock Star!
• The Role Player // Not everyone can be great at all things, maybe not even great at one thing, but many really good at a great many things.  Outfield, infield, pitcher, catcher, you name it . . . there are a few folks who can do it all.  Bert "Campy" Campaneris was the first to do it.  Paul, all things to all people.
• The Long Haul // 162 games in a season requires a team to think with the Big Picture in mind.  Endurance and Hope.
• The Nuance // While some would think Baseball is boring to watch, the nuances of the game, if open to them, make every pitch, every play and exercise in imagining the possibilities. Sorry literalists, but I think Jesus likes a nuanced approach to scripture and faith.
• The Bodies // Short, tall, thin or chunky all are welcome on the diamond.  Surely there were disciples capable of stealing bases and/or hitting the grand slamaroni!
• The Beauty // Some of the most beautiful sights in sports: The 6-4-3 Double Play, the Suicide Squeeze, hitting the cut-off, OBP, The Diving Stop, the Triple Crown, the Perfect Game and the Screwball.  Jesus like beautiful things.
• The Movies // Best Sports Movies EVER: Bull Durham, Major League, For Love of the Game, Field of Dreams, 8 Men Out, The Babe, A League of their Own, The Natural, The Bad New Bears, The Sandlot and the ULTIMATE DOCUMENTARY, Baseball: A Film by Ken Burns.

Play ball . . .