Conference Blogging From Resolved This Weekend

Well, this should be interesting.

This weekend I’ll be attending the Resolved Conference in Palm Springs, hosted by John MacArthur’s Grace Community Church. Some of you will know that my theology is at significant odds with much of what is (vehemently) preached by John MacArthur and others in his camp. It’s safe to say that my understanding of the gospel will be in many ways subtly, yet significantly, different than many of the 3000 or so people expected to be in attendance.

Still.

These folks are my brothers and sisters (I’m pretty sure women are allowed at the conference). They proclaim Christ and they are singularly devoted to understanding Christ accurately and living and preaching that understanding faithfully. That means that I have the most important thing possible in common with them; it means that we are united by one Spirit. I mean that in all seriousness.

Of course, I’m not sure many of them would agree – especially if they discover that I’m a Fuller student…or a charismatic, an egalitarian, or an anarchist Anabaptist for that matter. I guess we’ll see : )

I will be blogging through the course if the weekend with some of my thoughts on the conference. Speakers include, John MacArthur, Al Mohler, C.J. Mahaney, and Steve Lawson.  It’s been a long, long time since I attended something like this, so I’m likely to experience a bit of culture shock at the outset.

Technorati Tags: John MacArthur, Resolved Conference

Pick My Summer Classes – Update #2

UPDATE #2: You’d think I would have learned from last quarter, but no. Again, one of the classes I wanted was full. So instead of Theology and Pop Culture, I’m taking the next runner-up in the poll: Ministry Issues in Gender and Human Sexuality.

UPDATE: Well, the results are in and the winners are:

• MD524: Advocacy For Social Justice
• FS:529: Ministry Issues in Gender and Human Sexuality
• MN536: Urban Immersion: Transforming the City

Thanks to everyone who voted! Classes start Monday. I’m looking forward to these courses and will keep you posted on the content as the quarter progresses.

___________________________________________

Yesterday I finished my two Spring classes at Fuller Seminary, which means it’s time to pick my classes for Summer. As with last quarter, I’m going to invite you, the readers of Pastoralia, to choose my classes for me. I only have 3 courses left to complete my masters degree (woot!), which means this is your last chance to help choose the courses I take in seminary.

Please make three choices in the poll below. However, one of the three must be a one-week seminar, so choose one of the Seminars in the poll. You have until Tuesday, June 15th the vote.

Scroll down to see the syllabus summary of each class and a link to the full description:

Remember: Pick 3, including 1 seminar!

Seminar #1 – Urban Immersion
This course is designed as an interactive, participatory learning immersion that will connect participants with the historical and contemporary socio-cultural and ministry dynamics of Los Angeles. Using the city as our lab, we will journey through city streets, exploring both the urban context and faith responses to the context. We will engage both heads and hearts, using a model analysis guide, as we encounter various approaches to community and city transformation.

Seminar #2 – Advocacy for Social Justice
In civil law, advocacy is the act of pleading for, supporting, or recommending active espousal of someone’s cause. Social justice is a reference often used to talk about the structuring of a just society in order to address and correct instances of poverty, racism, sexism, or human oppression and exploitation. Advocacy for social justice is arguably an integral, though often ignored, part of the Judeo-Christian moral and spiritual mandate to speak up for or take up the causes of those who suffer yet have no advocates. This course explores what it means for every Christian–whether working in a ministry context or in a secular calling–to observe God’s call “to act justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.” Participants will explore various biblical, theological, and historical traditions of social justice. We will investigate detailed examples of injustice as well as models of advocacy, both in the United States and internationally. Finally, students will research and uncover specific and tangible ways in which ordinary Christians can intervene individually and organizationally in order to help remedy instances where injustice exists.

Ministry Issues in Gender and Sexuality
This course will deal with the spiritual, psychological, sociological, and physiological aspects of gender and human sexuality. The focus will be on specific issues relevant to persons in Christian ministry.

Perspectives on Christ and Culture
The Christian community has long debated the appropriate ways for Christians to relate to their cultural surroundings. This course will focus on some key perspectives, beginning with a critical examination of the typology made popular by H. Richard Niebuhr in his classic study,

Theology and Pop Culture
This multi-disciplinary course will engage students in a two-way dialogue between pop culture and theology, with emphasis upon music, movies, TV, art, fashion, and sports. Students will develop a biblical, theological, and sociological understanding of these art forms and a critical understanding of the advertising, consumerism, and globalization that drives pop culture.

Technorati Tags: Fuller Theological Seminary, School

Announcing the Winners of the Pastoralia Membership Giveaway!

Today we conducted the random drawing of members for our April membership drive giveaway! First and foremost, thank you to everyone who bacame a member of Pastoralia! Your contribution will help us continue our mission to bring the gospel to post-Christian people in North County San Diego in creative and non-traditional ways. We ended up bringing in the equivalent of 189 memberships. Not quite enough to give away an iPad (250), but enough to make a difference for our mission. Thank you!

Now, a quick word about how we conducted the giveaway:

Everyone who contributed as a member during the month of April was entered into this drawing. Those whose donations were over $25 were given multiple entries depending on the donation amount ($50 = 2 entries, $200 = 8 entries, etc.). Beginning with the iPod Touch, we drew one name randomly per prize until all prizes were assigned. In the case of multiple entries, we limited one prize per person (so people with multiple entries couldn’t win more than once, even if their name came up more than once). Each name was assigned a number and drawn blindly using the engine at Random.org. With the print book giveaways I drew 10 names at random, then tried to match titles with what I thought the winners would find most useful or interesting (it helps that I know all of you somewhat!).

Here are the results:

Grand Prize Giveaway

iPod Touch: Erin Thomsic

Audiobook library giveaways from christianaudio.com

Library of Classics: Sean Campbell

Postmodern Church Library: Dave (from saintsofvirtue.com)

Library of Contemporary Theology: Jacob Evans

Church and Culture Library: Jesse Schroeder

Renovaré Library: JR Rozko

Audiobook download coupon from christianaudio.com

christianaudio Download Code #1: Tracy Wilcoxen

christianaudio Download Code #2: Linda Orem

christianaudio Download Code #3: Krysten Case

christianaudio Download Code #4: Peter Kipley

christianaudio Download Code #5: Christie Harwood

christianaudio Download Code #6: Jason Clark

christianaudio Download Code #7: Carin Pollack

christianaudio Download Code #8: Aaron Boerboom

christianaudio Download Code #9: Jaeson Ma

christianaudio Download Code #10: John Hindes

Print Books Giveaways:

ViralHope copy #1: Jason Dougherty

ViralHope copy #2: Cynthia Taylor

Practice Resurrection by Eugene Petersen: Rick Dumas

Practicing Greatness by Reggie McNeal: Duke Lancaster

Urban Christianity and Global Order by Andrew Davey: Geoff Hsu

Experiencing the Trinity by Darrell W. Johnson: Denise Lawson

Christ Based Leadership by David Stark: Bryan Dormaier

Imaginary Jesus by Matt Mikalatos: Peter Coker

Soup, Soap, Hugs, and Hope by Harold Kutler: James Loesch

Formational Children’s Ministry by Ivy Beckwith: Joshua Hopping

Details, details…

If you won a hardgood item, such as the iPod Touch, audiobook libraries (which are on audio CD’s), or the print books, you should expect to receive delivery of these via USPS within 7-14 days (we need a little time to pack everything up). If your prize is a download coupon for an audiobook through christianaudio.com, expect to receive an email this week with your coupon code and instructions.

Condolences

Obviously not everyone won a prize. For those who didn’t win, my sincere condolences. Perhaps next year I’ll have enough prizes for everyone. At the very least, I hope you’re comforted by the fact that you received the coolest t-shirt on the planet : )

Technorati Tags: audiobooks, Books, christianaudio, Giveaways, Membership drive, Pastoralia

[UPDATED] Hurry! The Membership Drive Ends At Midnight!

UPDATE: Our first ever membership drive is now closed! Thank you so much to everyone who joined and became supporters of our missional efforts here in North County San Diego. The winners of the drawing will be announced later tonight.

Our month-long membership drive is about to come to a close! In just seven hours you’ll lose your chance to win great prizes like a new iPod Touch, and tons of great print books and audiobooks from christianaudio. For only $25 you can support our missional work, get a great t-shirt, and be entered into the drawing we’ll be conducting tomorrow!

Click here for all the details or just go straight to the membership page to become a member!

Technorati Tags: Membership, Pastoralia

Only Two Days Left To Win An iPod Touch at Pastoralia.org!

That’s right, only two days left to win an iPod Touch and a couple dozen great books in our first ever Pastoralia membership drive! Your donation of $25 gets you the coolest t-shirt in Christendom, plus a chance to win great stuff from Apple, Inc and the largest online audiobook publisher in the world, christianaudio.com. You’ll also have a chance to win some great hard copy books from my personal library, not to mention a copy of the book I recently contributed to, ViralHope, published by Ecclesia Press.

Our members drawing for these great prizes will be conducted this Saturday, so get your membership now before it’s too late!

Technorati Tags: Giveaways, Membership, Pastoralia

Love Has Many Stages

Here’s an inspiring and jolting quote:

Love has many stages. The highest level is when you cannot decide whether to love or not love because there is no room for hatred. The love of your neighbors comes naturally in response to obeying Jesus and God. Loving the neighbor is proof that you heart is full of love. When we say neighbors, we mean all of humanity. All people are brothers because we all come from God.

~ Sheik Nabil, The #2 leader in Hezbollah, excerpted from Tea With Hezbollah by Ted Dekker and Carl Medearis

Technorati Tags: Hezbollah, Jesus, Love

Galatians Series at Ikon Community Starts Today

This week at Ikon we began a series on Paul’s letter to the Galatian Christians. We kicked it off last night with a gathering centered around one of the major themes of the letter, and today I started the daily reading with an introduction of why I think this should be an important series for our little group.

As usual, any of you are welcome to join us!

Technorati Tags: Galatians, Gospel, Ikon Community, Paul

We’re Halfway Through Our Membership Drive, Help Us Reach Our Goal!

Two weeks ago, in order to raise support for our missional projects (and pay rent and grad school tuition), I announced the first ever Pastoralia membership drive, which will end on April 30 with the gratuitous giving of over 30 prizes, from an iPod Touch to dozens of great print and audiobooks – and hopefully an iPad (if we reach 250 memberships) and a MacBook Pro too (if we reach 500 memberships)!

We’re almost to the 150 mark, but we’d love to at least hit 250 memberships and give away that iPad. If you’re already a member, please tell your friends about us!

If you haven’t joined already, please consider becoming a member today for only $25. You’ll get a one year membership, a very cool t-shirt, and a chance to win some great stuff. You’ll also have first crack at other giveaways throughout your year-long membership including devotions, group book-study guides, and more books.

Technorati Tags: iPad, iPod, Membership, Membership drive, Pastoralia.org

iPod Touch Unlocked For April Membership Drive!

Today a friend donated a new iPod Touch for the April Pastoralia Membership Drive, meaning that particular prize is now unlocked! Someone from among the new members who join in April will now be guaranteed to win this new iPod Touch.

But because it also saved me the expense of purchasing an iPod Touch, I’ve decided to lower the unlock levels for the other major giveaways. We will now be giving away an iPad when we reach 250 members, and we will give away a new MacBook Pro once we reach 500 members.

So join today and invite your friends to join too so we can reach those goals give a way the rest of these great prizes!

Technorati Tags: Giveaways, iPad, iPod Touch, MacBook Pro, Membership, Membership drive

What Does The Gospel Really Look Like?

What does the gospel really look like in practice, on the ground, in the city, walking the streets, in the boardrooom and the legislative session, among the neighborhoods and schools of North America?

That was essentially the question asked by JR Woodward last year of 50 missional church practitioners, including myself. What would you write about the good news in your local paper if given the opportunity?

The 50 responses have now been collected and published in a wonderful little book called ViralHope: Good News From The Urbs to the Burbs and Everything In Between. It was humbling to contribute my small chapter to this book as many of the other men and women featured on the pages are people I have admired and emulated for years. Others I’m just discovering and getting to know. As Alan Hirsch writes in his endorsement of the book:

“ViralHope is a unique and enticing collection of postcards from a veritable who’s who of the missional church from across the Western world. It provides us with articulate and varied perspectives on how missionaries to the West are conceiving the good news in and for their various contexts. A worthy read.”

ViralHope would make a fantastic 50-day personal devotion, small group study reflection, or church-wide reading series. You can click here to get your own copy from Amazon.

Technorati Tags: Books, Christianity, Good News, Gospel, JR Woodward, missional, Missional Church, ViralHope