I follow countless blogs through my Google reader and am constantly amazed at how regular so many of the post-ers are. I try to stop short of judging them (probably not very successfully), but wonder if these folks get anything else done. It seems that the best bloggers are those who have cool stuff to say and make you think . . . but I always wonder how much they actually do. Makes me think of this anecdote I came across in my reading this week from Scott Bessenecker:
“If there is a problem somewhere” he said with his dry chuckle, “this is what happens. Three people will try to do something concrete to settle the issue. Ten people will give a lecture analyzing what the three are doing. One hundred people will commend or condemn the ten for their lecture. One thousand people will argue about the problem. And one person-only one-will involve themselves so deeply in the true solution that they are too busy to listen to any of it.” Now asking gently, his penetrating eyes meeting each of ours in turn, “which person are you?” That’s from . Living Mission: The Vision and Voices of New Friars (p. 165).
This quote has left me really asking myself where I spend most my time – we’d all like to think we’d be the one actually doing something, but more likely I find myself talking, lecturing, or blogging about it. There’s nothing wrong with talking, lecturing, or blogging . . . but there’s got to be more.
This is kind of a weird beginning to a blog post, but I’m in the process of some real internal wrestling. I remember when I was younger and finishing college I always had the perspective that I was too young to really have much to say. So I stayed in school. Got my master’s degree, was still young to have much to say, and then didn’t have much experience to say it from.
I know find myself at the age Jesus was when he was involved in his ministry pretty hot and heavy throughout Palestine. It seems like it’s a pretty good time to start having something to say . . . and, of course, more important to find something to do.
I don’t know how the coming months are going to go, but I feel the spirit of creativity and expression moving within me. I have read more books in the last 15 months or so than I’ve read in the previous five years. I’ve been filling my mind with different ideas, fostered by seminars with Fuller’s DMin program. I leave for class next week which will put me over the midway hump and into the stretch. I continue to focus determinedly on the ministry I am a part of at the Alum Creek Church.
What I’m trying to say is that I’ve got a lot to say and I just hope it’s not a bunch of crap, that it makes sense, and that it can be beneficial to many people. I’m hoping to blog much more regularly soon, and focus on writing. I’m discovering that I really enjoy writing and that have a style that’s a little unique – I don’t tend to stick to the cordiality that is so often espoused among professional writers. As a case in point, I’ve been wrestling with a blog post that would explore the theology of farts. Now there’s that youth ministry flare coming out from within me.
My biggest problem – as evidenced in this post – is that I don’t do succinct well. Teachers have always told me I talk too much, and I have always had problem staying under the maximum page allotment in assignments. So . . . I’m going to work on that.
In any case, here’s some things I’ve got in the hopper that will be (hopefully) coming to this blog soon!
* I’m polishing off my 3,000 pages of reading for my upcoming D Min class in Oxford, England. The reflections here are multifaceted. It’ll be my first trip to Europe. We’ll be in London, Oxford, and later in Paris. Seems like there will be plenty to post about from that experience. In addition, the topic of the class is “New Ways of Being Church.” The reading has connected to me in many ways and I am excited about the conversation that will ensue. Our class is small and comprises of a Canadian, a New Zealander, a Brit, a Californian, and me from Ohio. The diversity should provide great spice to help initiate a great class.
* This puts me in the beginning stages of putting together a final project proposal. As I’ve stated in previous posts, my interest remains with sports and religion. My mind has been spinning vociferously as of late with ideas of what all this would entail. I’ll be using my blog as a sounding board for various ideas. Currently, I’m thinking that I’ll be pulling ideas from a theology of the powers, sociological realities of sports, and youth ministry and the culture of sports. That’s vague – but hey, I don’t want to give my idea away!
* At Alum Creek, we continue to experiment and pray and work through what it means to be Jesus in an affluent culture of the suburbs. There’s several aspects of our ministry that I hope to work through in the coming months.
* The Church of Christ continues to draw my attention as well. I plan to publish an updated take on my role in the Churches of Christ before we leave for Europe next week (or maybe on the plane) that connects some of my experiences at Fuller and what I see taking place in our churches.
* My interest in politics and the role of a Christian in them won’t go away. This remains a constant burr in my butt and something that I think and reflect on often. I don’t figure I’ll ever be able to get that all out of my system.
So . . . stay tuned . . . hopefully we’ll see some of these things come to fruition . . . but don’t expect me to offer many posts from Europe!
Theological Vacillation 