My friend Brent Thomas from seminary has a cool new podcast out called the Habanero Hour. It plays some really great music and features some cool interviews. It tries to look at music from a Christian perspective without playing cheesy Christian music. The first podcast features Steven Delopoulos (Burlap to Cashmere), with the second featuring Glen Phillips (Toad the Wet Sprocket)– both artists I really enjoy. Check out the website along with Brent’s blog, one of my favorites.

Check out this link to read more about our fall 2008 home.  We’ll be moving into the newly renovated Missouri Theatre, and it will be fabulous!

This Friday, Karis will be holding its annual Good Friday Gathering in the Tiger Hotel Ballroom downtown. We’ll begin at 7:00 p.m. There will be lots of singing and reading of Scripture. Luke and the band have some great things planned.  We’ll also partake of the Lord’s Supper together. We’ll consider as a group the significance of Jesus’s death on behalf of us. It truly was “Death by Love.” Join us in downtown Columbia this Friday!

Who said stay-at-home moms have it easy? Who said it doesn’t take the best and the brightest and the toughest? Someone not too smart, I’d say. Read about Amy’s Tuesday. When she said all of this, I was joking with her, saying, “When are you going to quit sitting around and do something?” I then said, “Can you write all of this down?” Check it out. This is not an atypical day. If the vision of Karis continues to flourish, it’s a) due to God’s Spirit, and b) due to Amy’s love.

• Up at 7:00 a.m.
• Fed and readied 3 children four and under
• Left at 8:20
• Dropped Hadley off at preschool
• With Melia (2) and Kylen (8 mos), visited:
  • the bank
  • Aldi to stock up on a month’s food
  • Moser’s to grab other groceries
• Came home and then unloaded all of that, of course putting it in its proper place carefully
• Then went to Toys R US to return a broken toy
• Then visited Wal-Mart to get some stuff not carried at either store (paint, tools, etc.)
• Picked Hadley up at school early at 11:25 (Have you done that much before 11:25? I haven’t.)
• Came home to feed the kids lunch (again three of them under 4!)
• Made stew in crockpot for the evening meal
• Fixed bathroom doorknob
• Touch-up painted the kitchen chairs and Melia’s bed (she decided to chew on it)
• Checked and sent emails to Mom’s Club people, Karis folks, etc.
• Printed Mom’s Club business meeting stuff
• Played Legos with the kids
• Put two kids down for nap
• During nap time, made banana bread for Wednesday Mom’s Club meeting
• Folded 2 loads of laundry
• Balanced checkbook
• Read Bible
• Did outline for Elders’ Wives meeting that night
• Called Mediacom and complained about their rising prices and saved us $30 a month
• Put together Mom’s Club secretary notebook
• Somewhere in the course of this, got up kids from nap
• Taught through the ABCs of God study from Children Desiring God with the three kids
• I arrive home for dinner at 5:30
• We eat stew, clean up together
• Played with kids, caught up with me
• Put kids to bed at 8:00 p.m.
• Elders’ wives arrive at 8:25 to talk through book, pray together (while I’m at elders’ meeting downtown at 8:15 p.m.)
• Checks kids at 10:30 after wives leave
• “Makes silly list of daily tasks for cute husband”
• Goes to bed at 11:00 p.m.

(And to add something I forgot in the first edition: she wrote, “In all of this, diaper-changing, fight-stopping, toy-helping, and phone-call making.”)

Dude!

This is my lovely, intelligent wife who could have done anything with her life– medical school, Air Force officer, whatever– taking seriously the highest calling of all! What a joy to see a woman throw down narcissistic, individualistic ways and labor for the kingdom. And she’s mine!

Proverbs 31:10 An excellent wife who can find? She is far more precious than jewels. 11 The heart of her husband trusts in her, and he will have no lack of gain. 12 She does him good, and not harm, all the days of her life. 13 She seeks wool and flax, and works with willing hands. 14 She is like the ships of the merchant; she brings her food from afar. 15 She rises while it is yet night and provides food for her household and portions for her maidens. 16 She considers a field and buys it; with the fruit of her hands she plants a vineyard. 17 She dresses herself with strength and makes her arms strong. 18 She perceives that her merchandise is profitable. Her lamp does not go out at night. 19 She puts her hands to the distaff, and her hands hold the spindle. 20 She opens her hand to the poor and reaches out her hands to the needy. 21 She is not afraid of snow for her household, for all her household are clothed in scarlet. 22 She makes bed coverings for herself; her clothing is fine linen and purple. 23 Her husband is known in the gates when he sits among the elders of the land. 24 She makes linen garments and sells them; she delivers sashes to the merchant. 25 Strength and dignity are her clothing, and she laughs at the time to come. 26 She opens her mouth with wisdom, and the teaching of kindness is on her tongue. 27 She looks well to the ways of her household and does not eat the bread of idleness. 28 Her children rise up and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praises her: 29 “Many women have done excellently, but you surpass them all.” 30 Charm is deceitful, and beauty is vain, but a woman who fears the LORD is to be praised. 31 Give her of the fruit of her hands, and let her works praise her in the gates.

This is quite a find. See this 360 tour of the Missouri Theatre! Go to page 13 to begin seeing pics of the hall itself. But note that those and beyond are of the original theatre, before renovations. Scroll through those front page images, but click on one of those to take it into 360 mode, which is super!

Join us this Friday, March 14th at 6:30 p.m. in the Boone County Chambers room for a viewing and discussion of Into the Wild.  Rob Gaskin leads this key Karis event, “Movies and MindMaps”.  Come one, come all.  Bring friends.  Refreshments are provided.

Last night was super at the Cherry Street Artisan. Brady Didion gave a show on his guitar (and mandolin). He was supposed to be opening for Bill Mallonee, but he got stuck in Ohio in the snow. So Brady, along with Bobby and Michael Schembre, put on a show of their own. What an awesome privilege to have these boys playing music at Karis!

This article by Tim Bayly is one of the best I’ve read about why we need to reach men and how we can do it.

As you can see, I didn’t do a good job of live-blogging the Resurgence conference.  I’m not sure that was my goal anyhow.  But right now, I want to type up a few statements of reflection on the great conference Luke, Scott, and I went to in Seattle this past week.

1. The line-up of speakers was amazing.  Piper was Piper.  C.J. Mahaney, a late edition, gave a super sermon encouraging pastors to see the grace of God in their congregations.  Jim Gilmore, a well-known business speaker and a devoted brother, gave two great talks about the “experience economy” and “authenticity” and how they should be displayed first and foremost in the church.  Matt Chandler is a gifted preacher.  The main drum he beat was the calling to be missional, carrying the gospel, in overchurched, Bible-belt cultures.  And Driscoll was amazing.  His sermon calling pastors to preach and to do it in the church is an address you must hear.  On the last day, he decided to forgo preaching another sermon, and he opened things up for Q and A, even bringing in his wife for the last portion.  This was a fine slate of heavy-hitters.

2. The fellowship was encouraging.  I had the opportunity to reconnect with a great seminary buddy, David Stone, who serves a church in eastern Washington.  Luke and Scott went along, and we had some great times.  I was able to connect with a bunch of Acts 29 pastors, which was super.  There were more than 1200 people there, and most of them were under 35.  They were Bible-thumping, John Calvin loving dudes who want those around them to love Jesus.

3. Mars Hill was impressive.  I was most impressed that the church was incredibly simple.  It is a remodeled warehouse that now holds more than a thousand chairs.  There was no Starbucks inside or anything ridiculous like that.  They clearly went all out on technology stuff, but the building itself was very warm and comfy and simple.  But it was decorated and equipped in such a way as to be appealing to an artistic, tech-savvy crowd.

4. Seattle was beautiful.  We had 50 and 60 degree temperatures the whole time with lots of sun, which is apparently unusual this time of year.  The restaurants and sights were great.  Luke’s brother Jason, and his girlfriend Kathy, were very hospitable to us.  I can’t wait to get back to Seattle and take more guys with me.

The 2008 Resurgence Conference was even more than we hoped.  The Acts 29 movement, I’m convinced, is gaining momentum and will be used greatly by God to reform His church in America in the next hundred years.  Be encouraged.