Life in the Big Potato

You can tell a lot about a man by looking at his desk. See if you can spot the following items: Thick academic looking books to make me feel smart Quirky nose-shaped tissue dispenser USB powered  Secret knock candy dispenser I built myself using Arduino technology Ancient clock radio Spare capo just in case someone shows up in my office needing to quickly change keys Books I actually use stacked horizontally on top of books I rarely use Remote for my remotely controlled electrical outlet (completely unnecessary, but everything wireless is better right?) Bag of Skittles to refill candy dispenser Spoon for eating soup at my desk Contigo coffee cup that will keep my coffee warm until about 11:34 Powered USB hub with seven  USB connections Wireless Mouse Christmas lights with fade effect 5-year-old laptop still awesome Bluetooth connected speaker streaming Pandora Family pictures  I also have a mood light I built myself using Picaxe technology. ...

NPR did a story on how More Young People Are Moving Away From Religion . In the piece David Greene asks six "young people" (they're all about my age) about their move away from the religion they were raised with. I think you should go read or listen to the article. If you are not moving away from religion then you should think about why. If your religion is not meaningful or true then it is about time you give it up and look for things that are meaningful and true. My heart is moved toward those in my generation who are seeking answers and not quite getting them. I took the time this morning to consider how I would respond to the concerns of these six people. I share these thoughts now addressed directly to them.: Thank you all for openly sharing part of your story with the world. I'm offering these responses not to offend or take advantage of your openness but simply to continue the discussion. None of you are alone in your doubts, but not everyone comes to the sam...

Today is Protestant Reformation Day. I’ve also been reminded that it is Halloween and my friend Dave’s Birthday. On top of all that, there is a giant meteorological event being dubbed “Frankenstorm” and an impending presidential vote of evidently unheard-of historical consequence. I’d like to take this opportunity to address what I see as a major problem facing America (a.k.a. U.S.A.). This problem is fear. random art I found on the side of the road, unrelated to this post I’ll start with the presidential race as an example of why fear is a big problem for us. This election is being trumpeted as a fork in the road for this country. I cannot count the number of times I’ve heard someone say something like, “This is the most important presidential election in our lifetime.” Let’s pause and reflect on that logic for a moment. What is that phrase meant to portray? It implies that if the election goes the wrong way then the unthinkable will happen. Never mind that the unthinkab...

I break my blogging silence only because I have found a piece of newsworthy information that I bet few other people would ever come across. If you are a religious statistic enthusiast...um, let me be more realistic. Almost none of you are religious statistic enthusiasts. BUT, chances are 9 out of 10 that you have seen or heard religious statistics used in a discussion, a sermon, a classroom or maybe scratched into a public bathroom wall. I'm skeptical of 93.6% of all statistics I hear. It is not that I mistrust the statisticians. It is that I mistrust most people's interpretation of findings. Using a statistic in a quote generally leaves out all the *'s and †'s and other marks of exceptions, conditions, and caveats that accompany complete and well documented statistics. FOR EXAMPLE The ARDA's 2010 data for Kootenai County is available on their website. I've poured over the 2000 data for a few years, so I was very interested to finally see the changes for 2...

I'm working on a team within the Utah/Idaho Southern Baptist Convention exploring how to mobilize our churches to impact our region through new churches (we call it "church planting). Over the last decade there has been, among church and denominational leaders, an increased emphasis on church planting. Statistics show (trust me) that starting new churches is one of the best ways to reach more people with the Gospel. You can argue that point if you want to, but it is pretty clear no matter what numbers you look at that there is a need for more churches. NorthStar was launched seven years ago. We were started with the vision of not just becoming another SBC church in a place where there are few, but to become a church planting church. Along the way that vision has never been lost, yet still we seem to have made little headway in fulfilling that vision. There are plenty of excuses I could offer, but forgetting the past I'd like to explore with honesty in introspection why w...

I'm simply posting to assuage the guilt I feel over having not posted anything since October. I don't have anything striking to report. I'm not feeling especially creative. There are plenty of things going on, but I'm lacking the creative juices to get it typed out at the moment. In short we've been very busy with traveling and suffering colds and whatnot. Life is absolutely beautiful in everything it brings to us and each day it is a blessing that life goes on. In lieu of a proper post I'll do the next best thing and toss up a cute picture of some of my kids.

Did I forget to mention that we have our certificate of occupancy? We'll we've had it for three weeks now. I've been busy getting settled in to a new office and trying to find all my stuff. More to Come.

Jesus said "You will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the uttermost parts of the earth." With modern technology (Google Maps Distance Measuring Tool) we can now easily measure what is physically the farthest point on the globe from Jerusalem. Turns out it is in the middle of the Pacific Ocean south of the Cook Islands. With a little work it seems to me the farthest point is 12,444 miles away from Jerusalem. Also, there are new pictures of the NorthStar Church Build at www.northstarchurch.us.

The building is going up so fast, I haven't even had time to update! I'll go get some current pictures and post them soon. Until then I can let you know that volunteers from North Carolina are putting sheet rock up inside, and the siding is going up outside. This is only our 5th volunteer team and we have 9 more groups coming to work. We are still praying for God to continue to provide the resources for the completion of this project. This year we have already raised over $46,000 dollars for the building fund. I am praying that God will provide an additional $54,000 by the end of the build, and that we will have unexpected savings on material, labor, and permits. I admit that both of those things would be miracles. But how exciting it would be for God to bless us with a new building debt free! Please be in prayer for our church as we push through this project during the busiest time of year for most families. Summer is usually when people choose to travel and enjoy all there ...

There's a lot going on. First, two quick links. You can read the latest update on our church building project at northstarchurch.us/thebuild. You can follow us on Facebook . I'm just back from spending a week in Mississippi visiting my family and helping my grandfather celebrate his 90th birthday. This time just my 15-month-old son and I made the trip, and it went pretty good. The little guy turned out to be a good traveling buddy and was pretty patient with the pains of air travel. He sure did earn us a lot of smiles walking through the airport. Make sure to follow those links and subscribe in whatever way you wish so you can know how best to be praying for us. As this project continues we are sure to face more and more resistance. So please pray for endurance for our church and its leaders as we raise the remaining funds, host volunteers, and ADVANCE THE CHURCH!

NorthStar has been approved for a loan to cover the construction of a new building! If you've been following our story you know that this has been a long time coming, and it is a major blessing. This means that construction can begin (barring any surprise setbacks) in a week or two. This means that volunteer teams that are planning on arriving in early May will actually have something to work on. This means that we could be worshiping in our new building by September...of THIS YEAR! Our church decided to seek this loan as a means of making the best use of volunteer labor to accomplish this build quickly and cheaply without delays due to a lack of cash. Our desire is to raise as much of the construction costs as possible before construction is complete, thus avoiding a large mortgage. When construction is complete we plan to move out of our rented facility as quickly as possible so that our lease expenses can go to cover any remaining monthly payments from the loan. As you can imagi...

When I am preparing for a sermon I sometimes just start writing speculative essays to get the creative juices flowing. I thought I would share this along with the previous two posts. Thanks for indulging me. Perhaps it will inspire you to write some of your own... ANGEL BLOG By now you’ve probably heard about the terrestrial events from yesterday. Most of you have been busy with HIS reception and the establishment of the Holy Ministry of the Light.   When you get a chance you should catch up on the story of HIS exodus from the earth. You can get a good play-by-play from Lucious’ post from last night. We both had a ring-side seat, and even got to be a part of the action. I won’t retell the story, but I would like to give my thoughts on what happened. Of course, all of us knew part of the story before it happened. We’ve been gazing at it for all of eternity. But what we didn’t get to know until now is what part the humans would really play in all of this. What amazing creatures ...

Maybe this is how the meeting went before they got to Acts 1:8... “Ok, friends, there are a few more things I need to share with you. I noticed some of you came prepared to be here a while. That’s good. I want you to stay in the city until you receive what’s coming. Don’t look at me like that. I’ve explained everything before. Its the gift from the Father that I spoke of. John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now. What I have to say is very important so could some of you lads go tell the latecomers to hurry it up! While we wait let’s sing! ****** Andrew, Peter, nice of you to join us. Peter! Your beard looks beautiful today. Thanks for washing up for the occasion.” “My beard is not nearly as clean as you have made my heart, My Lord. If you’ll permit, before you speak on, some of the brothers have a question.” “When have I ever denied the curious? Indeed, I am so amazed by the refreshed appearance of your groomed visage I could wat...

If they'd had text messaging in the first century... Ptr : Big Mtg @ Zchra’s house 4 lunch tomorrow Andrew : What’s up? Ptr : Not sure, but everybody’s gonna be there. He’s got something major to share. Andrew : Its about time. Everything’s turned out better than expected, but what now? Ptr : I’ve got a weird feeling. He’s been “finishing” things again if you know what I mean. Andrew : You mean like before Jerusalem? What do you think he’s planning? Ptr : I can’t get a thing out of him, but it seems like he’s been preparing us for something. He’s been asking me some weird questions ever since the day on the beach. Andrew : I’ll never forget that breakfast! What kind of questions? Ptr : He keeps asking me if I remember the things he did. He want’s me to retell the same stories over and over again. Its almost like he doesn’t remember. Andrew : Weird. Maybe he doesn’t want you to forget. He introduced me to some new believers as, “Pastor Andrew”. last night. Ptr : He’s been doing that...

According to the 2000 Census for the cities of Coeur d'Alene, Post Falls, and Hayden combined there were: 1,790 Single Moms 1,326 Households living below the poverty line 5,833 Households of married couples living with children 2,433 Seniors 65+ living alone 6,138 Divorced (661 Separated) 423 Grandparents caring for their grandkids According to another report there are 644 homeless people in our county. In contemplating Christ's command to "love your neighbor" I've been doing a little research to better understand who my neighbors are. I know these statistics don't really tell me who these people around me are, but it is a place to start when I pray for my community. Instead of just praying, "Lord help all those people out there," I can pray for the 1,790 single moms who I know are facing difficult daily issues or the 2,433 seniors or live their days without much human contact. Please join me in praying for our community.

Report problems to embedding@chartle.net Coeur d’Alene Idaho is the largest city in the North Idaho Panhandle. Its cultural influence extends north into Canada, east into Montana, and south to Moscow and beyond. It is in some ways connected with Spokane, Washington, but maintains its own distinct culture and feeling of community. Coeur d’Alene along with adjacent towns (Dalton Gardens, Hayden and Post Falls) has been a major population growth area. With this explosive growth there has also been some addition in the number and size of some churches. However, Southern Baptists are sparsely represented. There is one other SBC church in Coeur d’Alene and one in Post Falls. There are currently no Southern Baptist churches in Hayden where we are planning to build and relocate. The spiritual climate of the area is one that for many people may include some church attendance, but there is often a lack of commitment in the form of church membership, tithing, or serving in the church. Also, beca...

We've been praying and seeking ways to minister to some of the thousands of people in multifamily housing in our area. It hasn't taken long for us to get connected to an apartment complex where one of our members lives. Our ladies took the first step by hosting a Christmas party for the residents. Now or men are hosting a Super Bowl party. As a result of organizing these events I've now met all of the apt. management staff (I think) and built a good working relationship with them. They are great people and seem to like us! After initiating this work I was surprised to find out that a man and his wife had been praying for a church to reach out to these apartments! God has already been paving the way for us and perhaps been waiting for us to follow his direction for a while now. In any case, our next step is to start a Bible study for ladies meeting in the apt. club room. Assuming no problems it will begin next Thursday. Please pray for a continued good relationship with the ...

In my last post a few minutes ago I referenced the efforts of the Women's ministry at our church.  I praise God for a group of women in our church who have followed God's calling on them to minister to the hearts of women. When planning 2010's Ladies Christmas party our Women's Leadership team had a problem.  They realized they had become too successful.  After a few years of great Christmas parties that were very well attended and memorable, they were yearning to do something that wasn't "all about us."  Someone suggested the simple idea of hosting the party away from the church and doing it in a way that could benefit some ladies outside the church.  What a revolutionary idea!  My wife asked me what I thought about them having the party at a nearby apartment complex.  I thought it was a great idea in theory, but I had my doubts about the possibility of it. Showing uncharacteristic optimism I went to the apt. management office to ask for permission to ha...

Whoa!  Over a month since I've updated.  As a result, I'll just give you some random summaries. The building process is currently delayed while we put in the work to discover the possibility of getting a loan should we decide to get one.  We have found that it is very difficult to get approved for a construction loan if you have already begun construction.  Good to know.  Fortunately, the weather seems to be keeping the door open for us to begin once we have the approvals, permits, etc. we need.  Also we have received some outside support for our building project.  In fact we've received more than $4,000 from donors whom we have never met!  This is very encouraging for our church to know that others are willing to support the work we are doing here.  Now all we need is another $246,000!  Actually, the final figure for our estimated need has not come in yet.  We have estimates from $150,000 to over $300,000.  We hope to have a more precise figure soon. In any case we are gra...

Several weeks ago NorthStar Church voted to embark on a building project. This is something that has been in the works for years. The dream of building a new building for a Southern Baptist church in this area predates the the planting of NorthStar. Since the land was purchased major new neighborhood developments have sprung up around the property ( satellite image ). The road just south of the land has become a major thoroughfare, and they built a Wal Mart nearby! Since the beginning of NorthStar plans have been made, funds have been solicited, the neighborhoods have been prayer-walked and surveyed. We had a meeting with the city of Hayden to get a special use permit. Still, after setbacks along the way, the dream of an established, church-owned place to meet seemed just out of reach. Well, now we have a set of plans and we have enough money to get started on them. God has provided us with funds to complete the "shell" of a building. Our roof, windows and exterior w...