All posts by mikethestrand

One Family?

I just read this fantastic article titled ‘One Family Under God‘ at the Ligonier website. The article is challenging the assumption that churches should have a separate children’s church because we are called to be one body. This is something that I have felt at can often struggle with at the church I serve now, especially as I help out with the youth group ministry.

I think the most powerful point in the article is:

A church that ministers effectively to all age groups will keep the gospel alone as the foundation for church life and unity. Believers of all ages must be taught that our union with Christ, regardless of age, is what makes us one body. A tenyear- old Christian has more in common with an eighty-year-old Christian than with ten-year-old unbelievers. Where this is recognized and celebrated, real gospelcentered community thrives.

I’ve said this since I came to this church! We cannot have each different age group spending time only with that age group. I think this has changed the landscape of the church and has contributed to the decline of twenty somethings going to church. We are to be one body for a purpose-not fragmented pieces of a body spread throughout different locations.

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by mikethestrand on March 6, 2013  •  Permalink
Posted in Bible, Blog, Church, Life, Relationships
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Posted by mikethestrand on March 6, 2013

https://pastormikesmusings.com/2013/03/06/one-family/

The Consequences of a Liberal Lifestyle

I found a very interesting story about how the culture is pushing a 10 year old to become a gamer as well as watch explicit videos on YouTube. You can read the article here. This is a very sad commentary on what is going on in the world today. This is something I experienced in going to public school in rural North Dakota, with people showing me pornographic pictures in 7th grade. Thankfully, gaming wasn’t as big of an issue, and the only online interaction we had was MSN Messenger and AOL Instant Messenger, and I even had to sneak onto those to use them!

My only concern with the article is Rod’s response. As he explains why this is the very reason he homeschools his kids, he goes on to say that parents are alone in this struggle:

Your kids’ school is not going to help you, and may not be able to even if it wanted to.

Your church, lacking an awareness of the seriousness of the cultural situation, and perhaps having lost confidence in its message, is probably not going to help you. Your community is probably not going to help you either, because people either choose not to see what’s happening, or understandably feel so powerless against technology and the deeper cultural forces it carries with it that they tell themselves it’s not as bad as all that.

It’s just you. What now?

I find this even more sad than a liberal culture negatively affecting children! Of course the culture is going to continue to push Christians away from what is good right and true, but does that mean families need to pull in even closer to their “bubble” to protect themselves without any concern for what is going on around them? NO! This is the very reason we have the church and community around us to lovingly support rebuke and encourage us in our growth in holiness. Yes, the church hasn’t always done a good job of reaching out to families and helping to protect them, I’m struggling with this at the church I serve in as well, but there are many good families who are together doing the best they can to help each other as they raise their children to, Lord willing, become godly men and women. If we don’t have the church to support us in this, who do we have? I’m incredibly grateful for families who took an interest in me as I was growing up. Even when I go back home today I’ll stop and visit those parents just to catch up. That is what the body should do as we live in a broken culture. Don’t withdraw, but engage and show how we interact with the world around us in a godly way.

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by mikethestrand on March 6, 2013  •  Permalink
Posted in Church, Life, Technology
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Posted by mikethestrand on March 6, 2013

https://pastormikesmusings.com/2013/03/06/the-consequences-of-a-liberal-lifestyle/

What’s Wrong With “The Bible”

I had the opportunity to sit down and watch the first part of the new TV series The Bible last night. After seeing many commercials for it and even reading a tweet from Tim Tebow himself, I thought I better sit down and watch it. To be completely honest, I don’t think too highly of it. I missed the first about 20 minutes of it, and came in when Abraham and Sarai are trying to figure out how to have kids, Sarai finally admits that Abraham should try with her servant, Hagar.

For those of you who know the biblical story, there are many things that happen in the beginning (Genesis). The story felt so rushed as it pointed out the things the filmmakers viewed as important, but it seemed to me to leave many things out.

One of the things I appreciated about the show was that it really made me see things from the humans perspective as it was telling the story. For example, Abraham had tears streaming down his face as he offered his one and only son as a sacrifice to God. It’s really easy to read through these stories and causally pass over the emotional side that the biblical figures had to deal with.

The other thing I noticed was that it actually does a pretty good job of ultimately pointing to God. God wasn’t portrayed as a big bad guy or someone hell-bent on destruction but as the God who continually cares for his people.

Now my hesitations with the show: it seemed like they focused far too much on the human side and how mankind was continually doing good things and missing many of the effects of sin. Sodom and Gomorrah especially felt very off to me. The angels who escorted Lot and his family out of the city strike the men trying to get into Lot’s house with blindness, then run down a street and turn into ninjas with swords single handedly killing 10 men. As I’ve read through Scripture, I don’t see a need to add any violence to it-there’s quite enough in there to fill an R-rated film as it is. Finally, I didn’t understand why they picked the stories they did and spent the amount of time they did. The story of Sodom and Gomorrah was given 10-15 minutes of the 2 hour movie that covered creation through the crossing of the Red Sea. I understand that there’s only so many events they can cover from the Bible in a 10 hours mini series, but it seems that instead of majoring on the major themes, they majored on some of the minor stories to make it more exciting.

Overall, I hope this pushes people to read Scripture for themselves and explore more of the greatest story ever told, but am afraid that it will do the opposite. Why read the book when you can see the movie, after all? So the way I’ve described the movie to a few friends is: it was better than I expected, but not as good as it could have been or I was hoping it would be. It has the potential to be a great conversation starter, but ultimately I think it could do a better job of pointing to the God who has worked all of history to be HIS story.

ADDED:

I just read a great blog here on some more hesitations with this series. I completely agree that the writers missed the great theme of the Bible as a whole and instead focus far too much on the human side, missing the story of GOD redeeming His people for His purpose and His glory.

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by mikethestrand on March 4, 2013  •  Permalink
Posted in Bible, Movies
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Posted by mikethestrand on March 4, 2013

https://pastormikesmusings.com/2013/03/04/whats-wrong-with-the-bible/

Zion – Hillsong United

One of the things about being a musician and leading the worship through music at a church is that many of the songs start to sound the same. There was a funny video put on youtube that is incredible true: How to Write a Worship Song in 5 Minutes or Less. All it takes is 4 chords and some popular “catch phrases” that people like to sing. Is this enough? As I’ve said before, I’m tired of Christians writing bad music, and the popular worship music that has been written recently has all started to sound the same. Yes, the words are good and I think many of the songs are very good songs, but I’ve been hoping and waiting for a little innovation. Enter: Hillsong United with their new CD Zion. This is the exact kind of worship CD I’ve been wanting to write!

I was first introduced to Hillsong United after my senior year of high school with the song “Mighty to Save” which I still do regularly at my church. I think Hillsong has tended to be on the front lines of worship music. We’ve gotten used to the music at church being: an acoustic guitar, an electric guitar, piano, keyboard, bass, drums and a couple singers. I think Hillsong is starting to push back to that a little on this album. Someone on my facebook commented that it sounds like a mix of Passion Pit and Mumford & Sons. The Passion Pit comparison I can see, but not so much the Mumford & Sons one (side note: for a good Mumford & Sons comparison, listen to Rend Collective Experiment, another one of my recent favorite worship bands). Sure the guitars and pianos and drums are still there, but the main focus musically has been shifted to the electronics, which I think is a good change. In my first listening, my favorite songs are: Relentless, Oceans, Scandal of Grace, and Mercy Mercy. This CD is a must buy for those who are tired of hearing the same songs used for worship. Get the Deluxe Version too-the remixes are fun to listen to.

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by mikethestrand on March 1, 2013  •  Permalink
Posted in Blog, Church, Music
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Posted by mikethestrand on March 1, 2013

https://pastormikesmusings.com/2013/03/01/zion-hillsong-united/

Blueberry Donuts – Caught Not Taught

I’ve been reading and hearing a lot lately about why students are leaving the church, and even last week wrote a blog on it. Yet as I’ve been doing more reflecting on it, I really think it gets back to the responsibility of the parents. No where in Scripture do I see church leaders being held responsible for what is going on in kids’ lives. Sure, James 3:1 says, “Not many of you should become teachers, my brothers, for you know that we who teach will be judged with greater strictness” but I don’t see the teachers being held accountable for another persons sin, but I do see it being the parents responsibility for their children (Eph 6:1-4, Deut 6:6-9, Titus 2:4, Proverbs 22:6). Now I want to be careful to not cross into legalism here, and I think many times the phrase “it takes a village” to raise a child is very true. We need the church and the support of the people in the church to help raise children-parents need to be willing to admit they can’t do it on their own. Yet what I see throughout Scripture and in my own life is a very important phrase to remember in being a parent. What kids learn is often caught not taught.

This morning I went to the grocery store to buy some more creamer for my coffee. Every time I go to get creamer I grab a donut on my way. This donut it a blueberry donut, which is my favorite donut for one reason – that’s the exact kind of donut my dad always used to get when I was growing up. I remember there was a donut shop in La Crosse, Wisconsin that my dad would take me to (I don’t remember the name of it) and they had a blueberry donut that my dad apparently really liked and would get every time. Because of that, I would also get a blueberry donut, and they continue to be my favorite to this day. So parents: what are you teaching your kids today? Do they see someone who is following Christ with their whole life, or someone who just goes to church because it’s what they are expected to do? Children are a lot more observant than you might think so be careful: your actions speak a whole lot more than your words.

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by mikethestrand on February 28, 2013  •  Permalink
Posted in Bible, Blog, Life, Relationships
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Posted by mikethestrand on February 28, 2013

https://pastormikesmusings.com/2013/02/28/blueberry-donuts-caught-not-taught/

Frozen By Indecision

I found an article this morning (thanks to Tim Challies who posts links to blogs every day) titled ‘Are You Worshiping the Idol of ‘Open Options.” It’s a fantastic article that says a lot of things that I’ve been saying for years! I have struggles with this issues throughout my life as well when trying to figure out which college to go to, who to date, what to major in, where I should work and a host of other questions. In the middle of these struggles, Kevin DeYoung wrote a book called Just Do Something that has become my go-to book on God’s will and making decisions. The title of the book is so helpful in determining the will of God in your life: just do something! Anything! God will continue to guide you! My Senior Pastor uses the picture of a car, it can’t change direction if it’s standing still.

I can think of many people my age who just refuse to make decisions and try to spiritualize it by saying, “I’m just waiting to figure out God’s will for my life.” I hate to say it, but by not doing anything you’re outside of God’s will! Paul says in 2 Thessalonians 3:10 “If anyone is not willing to work, let him not eat.” And in 1 Thessalonians 4:2, Paul again says, “For this is the will of God, your holiness.” Stop and read that last word again. HOLINESS. If you are living in a Christian community, submitting to the leadership of the church, regularly learning and growing in the Word and continually being conformed into the image of Christ, then go make some decisions! Find a good spouse and get married and have some kids, take a job across the country that helps you provide for your family, grow up and move out on your own, make some mistakes and continue to be made more like Christ! Trust his faithfulness as you continue to walk in a manner worthy of the calling you have received.

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by mikethestrand on February 22, 2013  •  Permalink
Posted in Blog, Life
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Posted by mikethestrand on February 22, 2013

https://pastormikesmusings.com/2013/02/22/frozen-by-indecision/

Introverted Evangelists

Found this article titled ‘The Introverted Evangelist‘ yesterday and found it very insightful. On every personality test I’ve ever taken I’ve been an extrovert to the extreme! I love people, I love being around people and never like being alone. Talking to people is generally very easy for me and the instant I walk into a room I have new best friends. Because of this it is often hard for me to identify with introverts.

The main point I liked from the article was:

What is an evangelist anyways? An evangelist isn’t a personality type or a personality disorder, but an evangelist is one who brings good news, both in the proclamation with the mouth and their actions. If this is the case, where does it say that an evangelist is going to be an extrovert or introvert? What if God’s plan was for everyone to do the work of an evangelist? (2 Tim 4:5). Think of the power of the church if we empower both the extrovert and the introvert to be the representation of the good news in the way that God has made them? How many more people would be reached for the sake of Jesus?

We took the youth group to a Dare 2 Share conference a couple weeks ago that fell into the extrovert evangelism camp. During one afternoon we had to go to a mall and share the Gospel with a stranger. Many of the students weren’t very comfortable with this, especially the introverted ones. I don’t think trying to talk to strangers is always the best way to evangelize.

The church needs both introverts and extroverts to be the body. We are different and can and should use our gifts and personalities to God’s glory. I hope and pray I’m able to reach out and influence the introverts I know, but continue to encourage them to live out their mission to make disciples.

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by mikethestrand on February 21, 2013  •  Permalink
Posted in Blog, Church, Life, Relationships
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Posted by mikethestrand on February 21, 2013

https://pastormikesmusings.com/2013/02/21/introverted-evangelists/

Top 10 Reasons Our Kids Leave Church

Last week I did a blog titled ‘Resisting Being Cutting Edge‘ and included a link to another blog titled ‘Top 10 Reasons Our Kids Leave Church‘ Today I’m going to interact a little with that article. This article says the 10 reasons are:

10. The Church is “Relevant”

9. They never attended church to begin with

8. They get smart

7. You sent them out unarmed

6. You gave them hand me downs

5. Community

4. They found better feelings

3. They got tired of pretending

2. They know the truth

1. They don’t need it

It’s worth reading the explanations in the article, but the thing I don’t see on here is family upbringing. I think this is the key to all these other issues. We have professionals who take care of every need we have. There are teachers who are professional educators, doctors who are professional health care providers, shouldn’t we have professional Christians too? I hate to break it to you, but there is only one professional Christian who we can read about in the Bible. His name is Jesus. Ultimately we need to trust that God is going to work in the students lives as we do our best to instruct them, but I think it’s almost completely up to the parents. The parents are the ones who have the option of spending the most time with their kids, and the ones who the kids will most often imitate.

Proverbs 22:6 says, “Train up a child in the way he should go; even when he is old he will not depart from it.” This is not a universal truth, but it is a general trend. Ultimately children have their own minds and identities, but in the grace of God those who are raised in Bible believing and God fearing homes will grow to be the same. Parents need to start stepping up and setting an example for their children as they grow to be more Christ like in their lives. If the parents are nominal Christians the students will be that AT BEST, and most often will completely fall out of church.

The other issue I see with these top 10 reasons is that we NEED community in the church. We all have these spiritual blind spots and sin issues in our lives that we aren’t aware of until someone else points them out in our lives. Were it not for the church people would follow their own thinking and reasoning right into sin. Community may be a buzz word in the Christian circle today (just as “Gospel” is), but that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t value it. The call to Christianity is a call to community. We need the body around us to support encourage and hold us accountable.

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by mikethestrand on February 20, 2013  •  Permalink
Posted in Blog, Church, Life, Relationships
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Posted by mikethestrand on February 20, 2013

https://pastormikesmusings.com/2013/02/20/top-10-reasons-our-kids-leave-church/

“Christian” Music

I so often struggle with “Christian” music. I grew up at a time where “good” Christians only listened to music by Christians, and one of the first CDs I ever got was ‘Jesus Freak’ by DC Talk. I still really enjoy that CD, and still regularly hear the title track on the radio…it came out in 1995. If I listen to non Christian radio I’ll hear the top tracks from today, yet the “most current” Christian radio station still plays songs from when I was 7. If that’s the best Christian music has to offer, we’re doing something wrong.

1 Corinthians 10:31 tells us that everything we do should be done to God’s glory, which means we should do the best we can for him. I think this applies to music as well! Christians should be on the forefront of musical trends and setting the example for others for how to do music well! Yet too often I see Christians copying whatever the latest trend is (Eminem gets popular, and we get KJ-52, Black Eyed Peas get big and we get Group 1 Crew). Granted, there are some people, like Lecrae, who are on the forefront of their musical genre and using it as an opportunity to spread hope, but overall we seem to be stuck in a rut musically.

This isn’t something I have a quick and easy fix for how we can get better music, and I’m still working through all the ramifications of this as well. But my overall sense is that Christians are greatly failing in so many areas to do things to the best of their ability. I’m honestly tired of the charts that compare “secular” artists to “Christian” artists – if the music is good, listen to it and use it as an opportunity to talk about different worldviews.

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by mikethestrand on February 18, 2013  •  Permalink
Posted in Blog, History, Life, Music
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Posted by mikethestrand on February 18, 2013

https://pastormikesmusings.com/2013/02/18/christian-music/

Gay Is an Adjective – Review of Washed and Waiting

Gay is an Adjective – My Review of Washed and Waiting: Reflections on Christian Faithfulness and Homosexuality

Adjective: a word or phrase naming an attribute, added to or grammatically related to a noun to modify or describe it.

Noun: a word (other than a pronoun) used to identify any class of people, places or things (common noun).

Many people use nouns to identify themselves, for example, I regularly tell people, “I am Norwegian.” Today, many people define themselves by their sexuality. This leads to many people saying, “I am gay.” I just finished reading Washed and Waiting by Wesley Hill who says Christians need to begin switching the use of that word to an adjective, so he describes himself as a “celibate, gay Christian.” Christian is the noun and the other two words are adjectives. He has, through many trials, learned to place his whole identity in Christ, making Him the head of his life, as he battles his homosexual attraction.

This is a much needed book in our culture today. Is there room in the church for people who struggle with same sex attraction, yet are willing to call it a sin and trust Christ in their struggle against this sin? I hope that churches are able to see this book as a wake up call to reach out to those who are broken by sin, as the church is supposed to do. And if you look at Scripture, that’s all of us.

Wesley does a fantastic job of bringing us along with him in his journey through life and relentless pursuit of Christ. There were a couple occasions that the book brought me to tears as I was able to see this struggle through his perspective. I hope and pray Wes is able to continue to find strength in the only one who can give it, Jesus Christ.

 

“Faithfulness is never a gamble. It will be worth it.”

-Wesley Hill

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by mikethestrand on February 15, 2013  •  Permalink
Posted in Book Review, Church, Life, Relationships
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Posted by mikethestrand on February 15, 2013

https://pastormikesmusings.com/2013/02/15/gay-is-an-adjective-review-of-washed-and-waiting/

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