It is so easy to get caught up in stuff about Jesus, or for Jesus. The more of a “leader” you are, the easier it is to get excited about stuff. From doctrines to interpretations, from models to methods…

We have made faith and practice into so many things, burdening them with layers of complexity. One of the things I am learning about “church planting movements” is that for something to go viral, the message must be so focused and simple that it can be caught and passed on by anyone.

This book is a wake-up call to return to your first love. It has infected my thinking, my meditation, my conversations… Here’s a teaser from the introduction:

So what is Christianity? It is Christ. Nothing more. Nothing less. Christianity is not an ideology or a philosophy. Neither is it a new type of morality, social ethic, or worldview. Christianity is the “good news” that beauty, truth, and goodness are found in a person. And true humanity and community are founded on and experienced by connection to that person.

Continue Reading…

When I shared on Twitter about the free showing of Lord, Save Us From Your Followers, my friend Angela replied, “can’t wait to read your blog thoughts on this”. I turned the tables and said, “You write it, and I’ll post it.” So as a follow-up to my review, here you go, a guest post by Angela Spain:

Movie logo from Lord, Save Us From Your Followers

It has been three years since I have been in a Sunday morning church service. I don’t even go on holidays anymore. I think my family is more concerned than they let on. I don’t blame them. I am concerned as well. This has been the longest stretch of my life where I haven’t been involved in a spiritual community. I miss the community. (But that is a topic for another time.)

This last week, through a Facebook posting by Roy and through some major encouragement on my spouse’s part, I watched a new documentary: Lord, Save Us From Your Followers.

The last thirty minutes of the movie I was basically in tears the entire time.

I have seen my fair share of documentaries. However, I refuse to watch faith-based documentaries. In my opinion they are usually so biased in one direction or the other they end up being one person’s opinion; no, thanks. Not to mention the discussion of faith, spirituality, God, Jesus, Mohammed, Buddha, Judaism, and all those I have failed to name, is such a large topic that it can never be fully covered in 120 minutes.

That being said… I think this documentary is a fantastic and accurate snapshot of the state of Christianity today. While, as previously mentioned, there was not a lot of time to cover every area of Christianity since the beginning of time, it encompasses many of the thoughts of generations past and some of those in the present.

Continue Reading…

Last week, there was a free online showing of a movie called Lord, Save Us From Your Followers. I didn’t know anything about it but I liked the title, so I decided to give it a try.

Dang. It fits blog one another like a glove. Check it out:

The movie is about the role of Christianity in the “culture wars” of the United States. Although the creator and Michael Moore-style narrator of this film is Christian, folks of various stripes and backgrounds would benefit from watching it — especially if they watched it together with people whom they view with suspicion for being “against us.”

One thing I really like is the way the narrator, Dan Merchant, takes all these hot-button issues, and disarms them with both humor and humility. I mean, it’s hard not to laugh as he walks around asking people for their opinions of bumper stickers. Did I forget to mention that he’s wearing an outfit covered with bumper stickers and various types of battling fish?

Publicity shot from Lord, Save Us From Your Followers

The first two acts focus on how Christians are perceived, and whether civil discourse might be possible if people would stop demonizing each other. But the last act… well, I don’t want to spoil it. Let me just say that it will humble and inspire you, regardless of your faith.

A dear friend who stopped going to church services also watched this film. She shares her thoughts in a separate post…

Movie poster from Alice in Wonderland

We are starting to go to the movies more regularly as a family. As Kay put it, “It’s something we can do to make us feel like we’re not as poor as we were.” So although Trevor had already seen it with his buddies, we all loaded up to go watch the new Alice in Wonderland movie, in 3D. It was a pleasure, with many visual treats and a story that surprised me.

Partway through the movie, I thought: How about that? For a change, I am just enjoying a movie, without seeing anything about the kingdom of God.

That thought did not last. It’s just a disease I have, a twisted way of seeing the world.

A madness.

Some other movies I’ve written about:

• Avatar, cross-cultural communication, and incarnation
• The Missional Sound of Music
• Whale Rider: first posting, and second posting
• In America

Me (sharing this video over family dinner): Here’s a person who hears different things than we do.

Erin: Oh! When I watched “The Making of Coraline,” they said that they had a dog toy. Most anyone who looks at it would see a dog toy. But this one person looked at it and said, “If we cut it open in this way, it will look like a flower.” And that’s what they did, they used a dog toy to make a flower. That person saw things differently than we do.

Me: That’s because artists are insane. And that’s why there’s a connection between artists and prophets.

Kay: Because they’re both insane.

Me: Right. Artists and prophets see a different world. That’s why we need them both.

What art, or artists, reveal and invite you into a different world?