Finding truth in Jazz

Last week I went to see Rob Brown play with his jazz band called Rinsethealgorithm. If you want to check out their music go to : www.myspace.com/rinsethealgorithm.
It was a little Jazz club in Toronto and the atmosphere was really cool. The band began to play and I was amazed. Now I'm not a huge jazz fan, but I think I can appreciate good music and this band kicked.
Their was lots of solos and the talent was amazing. The neat thing about Jazz is that you have a lot of freedom to improvise and create. Their is a basic musical outline that the band follows but when you are playing you can create new flows and solos within that basic structure of the song. So although their is a definite song being played their is still the freedom to improvise within that song.
The leader of the band was Rich Brown, Robs big brother (I bet that wasn't a quiet house growing up). He would give the band subtle cues when to go to a bridge or come to a close. It was really cool to see how the whole thing came to create an amazing song that may never be played the exact same way again.
It reminded me a lot of my life. God is the one directing the band, he will give me cues of which direction I should go in, when I should go in this direction or not in this one. The melody is laid out in the Bible, and I have all the freedom in the world to create and explore as long as I stay with in the framework of the scripture. My song is unique and beautiful to God, and the really cool thing is that my life is lived only once and it cannot be played again.

Yeah Wednesday night was a great musical and cultural experience for me, but on some level I discovered more truth about how great God is. So I had a spiritual experience too, while listening to Jazz.

Keep up the great work Rob and Rich, you never know what God will do with your talent.

PJ

I'm back from my Ho, Ho, Holidays

Hi everybody! We just got back from a week of vacation and it was great! We got all of our Christmas shopping done, and we are close to being ready to celebrate Christmas. It took a whole week! We are really busy today at the church because we are decorating the church for Christmas. Man Christmas is alot of work. I'm sure you are in the middle of your Christmas time crunch as well.
Today I just want to encourage you to slow down and enjoy Christmas this year. I have been known in the past to be a bit of a grinch at Christmas. It's so busy and so expensive that you can begin to detest it. However this year I vowed not to do that and so far so good. Remember it's not about the presents and it's not about getting the nicest Christmas tree (and then seeing it on sale somewhere else). It's about celebrating the mercy of God to us. He loved us so much that he sent his only son, to live as an example of what God is like and then die as a sacrifice for our sin. That's really what it's all about!

I know this is kind of a cheesy keep the Christ in Christmas thing, but although the saying is way over played, it is true and it's help's us keep perspective when were standing in the line at Toy's r Us.

Merry Christmas?

PJ

Miracles for $49.95

Last night was a rough night. Aiden decided to wake up to eat at 3:30am. So we fed him and then put him back to bed. However seeing he had slept for most of the evening he was up and ready to party. (this is what you have to look forward to Jeff and Cydele!!) Anyway, seeing I was wide-awake with my buddy at 4:30am we decided to watch some TV. Have you ever seen what’s on TV at 4:30am? Basically TV consists of 2 things at that time: infomercials and TV evangelists. So I watched them for a while. First there’s a guy selling a real estate course. He promises that if you will send him four easy payments of only $49.95, this course will train you how to make big bucks in real estate. Then come the testimonies of all the people who have made thousands of dollars through this life-changing course. One thing I noticed was the little legal line in fine print that was displayed during the testimony time that said results not typical.
After a few minutes of this commercial I turned the channel and caught a late night TV evangelist. So I decided to watch him. He was telling people the promises of God’s Word to heal them through prayer. He said that if you were willing to give a gift to his ministry of $50.00 or more then he would send you a vile of miracle spring water. This was special water that he and his team had prayed over and when you receive it you could dip your finger in it or pour it all over yourself and you could receive a miracle. Then came the testimonies of people that had been in this man’s services. They were testifying to how God had healed them and touched them in that service. (No legal line this time, I think there should be one)
Both the infomercial and the evangelist promised miracles that would change your life, if you would send them a mere $49.95. It’s interesting that both of them promised miracles for money. I have to admit I turned off the TV and felt rather ill. I hate it when I see these Jesus infomercials. First off Jesus didn’t die so a man like this could make money. In fact he didn’t die simply to provide miracles for $49.95. He gave his life so that we can have relationship with God and walk with him.
Don’t get sucked into this world, so many people do. Be wise and discern what is real and what is not. The miracles that Jesus can do for you are not for sale, all you have to is give him your life

When I was watching the evangelist I wished I had a Magic Bullet. (Ha, Ha)

PJ

Obsession for Men

So last week I saw the movie "The Prestige" Great Film! It was about two magicians that compete against each other and spend there lives in seach of the greatest trick. The moral of the story is that the greatest trick was the fact that they wasted their lives in pursuit of a trick, instead of living them. (there's alot more to the movie then that).
Good point! It really makes you think about what is important enough to spend your life pursuing. Money, education, fame, power, what about happiness?
The reality is that all these things may come and go, but there is one thing that is constant and only one thing GOD. We are designed to spend our lives pursuing after Him.
Romans 9:17 "I raised you up for this very purpose, that I might display my power in you and that my name might be proclaimed in all the earth"

We can chase after many things in life, but if we don't chase after God all those other things will disappear.
In the final scene of The Prestige, the magicians are finally face to face and one of them has been shot, and is about to die. At that point he realizes that he had been tricked and then dies. Some day we will be standing before God. I hope that you will read his word and chase him now, or you will be like that other magicain that found out the truth too late!

PJ

I had a picture and everything but it doesn't seem to be working today!
Sorry, no spell check either:(

The Lie of Perfection

The last thing that I want to do is another blog about Ted Haggard! It seems that everywhere on the internet and in the media everybody is talking about Ted's indiscretion. Although I'm saddened by the news, I'm more saddened by the reaction of the Christian community, however I must admit the we do set ourselves up for it. As a Pastor I'm a professional Christian, you could almost say I'm paid to be good! So what happens if a pastor isn't good, well first thing we do is fire him! Why? Because he's not perfect like we made him out to be. I have lived through some tough stuff with pastor's that have been let go of their positions due to "immorality" and it's a really harsh reality. What other job can you lose if you sin? Sometimes you don't just lose your job, but you lose your reputation, and possibly your family. Wow! You can even be the president of the United states and get away with more.
Now with that said, I do think that as a spiritual leader I need to practice what I preach. I think that if I was struggling with some major sin issue in my life I would need to take time off to get things back together in my life. But don't think for one second that the image pastor's sometimes are forced to portray of perfection is true, because it's not. We all struggle with stuff and we all have sinned and gone astray. I love Life Church because I can be real with you, we believe in authenticity and that is something I value. In a book called Making Sense of Church the author Spencer Burk says this:
The church has trouble admitting we're sinners:
"As a culture, we've long since abandoned the idea of perfect leaders and perfect plans. When we see individuals and ideas presented in neat, airbrushed packages, we're cynical. ... The church, however, has been reluctant to admit this reality. Despite all our talk of sin and needing a Savior, we insist on looking like the exception. By fixing our attention on tightly worded tracts, well-executed programs, and other people's problems, we avoid having to see ourselves as we really are. People attending church today, however, have little patience for this kind of sanctified denial. Instead, we hunger for a place where honesty and authenticity are embraced." (37)

I thank God for my Church, and I thank God for his grace on all of us!

Jesus said "If any one of you is without sin, let him be the first to throw a stone at her." Again he stooped down and wrote on the ground.

At this, those who heard began to go away one at a time, the older ones first, until only Jesus was left, with the woman still standing there. Jesus straightened up and asked her, "Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?"

"No one, sir," she said.
"Then neither do I condemn you," Jesus declared. "Go now and leave your life of sin." John 6
Let's all work at abandoning our lives of sin, but let's not throw stones either!

PJ

Dancing with the Stars

Lately I have been watching the show Dancing with the Stars. Maybe you've seen it. I'm cheering for Joey Lawrence. (You know Joey from Blossom). Anyway I got this email from Jeff Marchant the other day and it made me think. Read this:

Dancing with God
When I meditated on the word GUIDANCE, I was drawn to "dance" at the end of the word. I reflected upon how doing God's will is a lot like dancing. When two people try to lead, nothing feels right. The movement doesn't flow with the music, and everything is quite uncomfortable and jerky. When one person realizes this and lets the other lead, both bodies begin to flow with the music.


One gives gentle cues, perhaps with a nudge to the back or by pressing lightly in one direction or another. It's as if two become one body, moving beautifully. The dance takes surrender, willingness, and attentiveness from one person and gentle guidance and skill from the other. My eyes drew back to the word GUIDANCE. When I saw "G," I thought of God, followed by "u" and "I." "God, "u" and "I" dance" . God, you, and I dance.

When we let God take the lead in our lives, the dance turns out beautiful. When we try and take the lead it becomes awkward, uncomfortable and messy. Jerry Springer was one of the dancers on show. He admitted that he can't dance but yet he made it into the top 5 teams, his secret was letting his professional dance partner lead.

Let me encourage you today to let God take the lead your life, then you're not just dancing with the stars, now you're dancing with the creator of the universe. How awesome is that!

PJ

Staying on Track

Sometimes you think about useless things. For me I have the most useless thoughts while I'm driving. Last week I was waiting for a train (tracks near the church), and I had this thought why did they make trains roll on two tracks instead of one. In fact the only train I know of that rolls on one track is the monorail at Disneyland. The reason for two tracks is balance, the weight of the train is balanced on two rails.
It makes me think about a verse I was reading in the Bible yesterday. One that I never really noticed before.
John 17:15 - My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one.
Jesus was praying for his followers because he was leaving earth soon. He knew that people would have a problem with his followers because they would follow kingdom principles instead of the worlds, yet he prays that we would remain in the world.
For us to be relevant Christians in 2006 we need to be in the culture of the world, we need to be able to relate to people in everyday life. As Pentecostals we have a tendency to separate ourselves in the name of holiness, but sometimes all that does is separate us from the people we are supposed to reach. The word for this fundamentalist behavior is sectarianism. Not allowing yourself to be involved in anything secular.
Jesus also prays that we would be protected from the evil one. Sometimes believers will become so immersed in the world that there is no difference between their lifestyle and the lifestyle of a non-believer. That is called syncretism.
Jesus prays that we would become neither a sectarian or a syncretist, he wants us to be real people that don't disengage from culture but yet stay away from sin.
If we don't, we either become irrelevant or we fall into a destructive lifestyle and either is a train wreck.

Just some thoughts to help keep our lives on track. I hope this blog helps you not get derailed (I had to say it)

PJ