paradoxum

I have two incredibly good friends who have merged their two businesses into ONE GRAND ADVENTURE. I am so excited for you to meet them and learn about their incredible ministry. The name of their company is: The Redesign Company.

Their motto? "redesign your home, redesign your marriage...because life doesn't have to suck." If you have Facebook please be sure and find them and become a fan! They are "northerners with southern souls"...the best kind of folk.

Anyway, I wanted you to know about them and I encourage you to check them out!

I love this video. I love it for lots of reasons.

First, I've had my share of "wide left" moments where God uses my failure to bring me back to him.

Second, I am praying my kids have their "wide left" moments and that I am there to love them. 

Third, I can only hope that someday, we will all realize that God is in the business, not of fixing things, but REDEEMING them. I pray I can learn to join him in that mission.

I don’t like writing about death. I like it even less when I write about the death of something I love. I believe it was Mark Twain who said, “The reports of my death are greatly exaggerated.” Unfortunately I can say the same thing as it has become more and more evident to me that I am ANYTHING but dead to my self. My self is very much alive. My “wish dreams” still play in my head and heart with the energy and passion of a teenager at an all night party! Sigh, I’m tired just thinking about it!

What is a “wish dream”? I have an answer to that question, but if I tell you my answer, you will no longer have ears to hear me. So, let’s answer that question by telling stories and asking questions.

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I love this video. I resonate with much of what is said. I don't post this to disparage the "traditional church" although some of it sounds disparaging. I don't want to do anything like that, but I do want to explore what it means to recover the idea that "church" is a people and not an event or place. I want to understand what Yoder meant when he said, "the church is the new world on the way."

Foundational thoughts about Church...

#1: Jesus Christ is the head of the Church...not a pastor or a board.

#2: Every believer is a "priest"...not just those who are ordained.

#3: We are the Church...we don't go to church.

#4: The Gospel is Good News...not good advice.

#5: The Bible is a Story...not a manual for living.

I know many of these need explanation, etc. I don't mean to imply that we shouldn't gather with other believers as the Church or that the Bible is a fairy tale or that we shouldn't have pastors, etc.

I know what my thinking is behind each of these "foundational thoughts", but have chosen not to explain my meaning in hopes that you will ponder it and offer different ways of thinking. If you want to dialogue about it, I'd love to hear from you.