Chris Folmsbee Blog

I'm in Chicago meeting with Chris Folmsbee and the Sonlife folks. If you haven't already you need to go to .Chris' blog
I started using his book, "A New Kind of Youth Ministry" on Monday night with a Youth Ministry Leadership Team in Northern Virginia and they really connected with it. More than I had even hoped. Go buy his book.

The Blog

Gerrard Fess has named my blog one of the top 20 youth worker blogs.
Thanks Gman!

Link

Emergent Malaysia

Sivin sent out this link today.

EmergentMalaysia.org

Prodigy

Check out this video. A self taught artist who are very spiritual who is 12 years old. She grew up in an atheist home and says she had visions from God about who he is. link Simply incredible.

On to Bethlehem

On to Bethlehem
by Bill Mallonee and Vigilanties of Love

so i'm at this wheel it's three am
waiting for the caffeine to come around
and life rears it's ugly head again
they say your radio's cool and retail's way down

and i'd like to say i'm faithful
to the task at hand
speaking gospel to a handful
and others with their list of demands

it's cold this year and i'm late on my dues
it's cold in here ah but that's nothing new
my heart's electric with your love again
so it's on to bethlehem

you might surmise that i ran there
but i really only crept
lead me to the place where love runs wild
and then it dogs your every step

you know how fickle my heart is
prone to wonder my Lord
yeah it's hot but it's at arms length
always got one eye on the door

God wraps Himself up in human skin
for those who want to touch
and God let them drive the nails in
for those of us who know way too much

You come bearing all our burdens
and take Your lovers for a ride
but we stay holed up in our cages
fashioned by our own design

so tell me what is your secret
what's on your blister soul
what is that one little secret
you know the one that has taken its toll

'cause daddy's banging on your gate again
yeah he won't leave you alone
got a whole lot of dry warm rooms
and the finest of homes

Today is One of those Days

Vulnerable Post ahead:...

Today the world feels heavier. I've felt it's weight for a while. Some of it belongs to a soul that needs more attention than I'm giving it. Some of it belongs to a deep felt need for community that I don't feel I have right now. Some of this heaviness is my personality... I'm finding that I'm most healthy when there is stability in my life. Ironically it's what accompanies stability that is difficult for me as a creative ideas oriented guy. But I'm finding the wrestlessness that gives life to my creative, relational side of my life also feeds a dark side of my life when I feel unsafe. The main thing on my mind is money, income and bills that need to be paid. The Riddle Family is currently living outside our means and it's primarily my fault. I am struggling with God on some level about this. I feel like most of what the Riddle Group is doing is what I'm supposed to be doing. I know we are making a difference in the lives of teens via partnering with churches and pastors. I feel like the ideas are revolutionary to youth ministry rediscovering it's soul and supportive systems for youth pastors that the church has rarely seen. (of course everyone thinks their ideas are revolutionary don't they) But I am not a businessman. I'm not savy to marketing or image. In fact, I've spent much of my life running from dealing with perception and marketing. The rhythmn of business is feels foreign to me and while I'm learning it I still feel like I'm Animal in the Muppet band, beating drums like crazy, as fast and hard as I can, and missing the beat everytime. I also don't like to self-promote, which is obviously a problem for someone in the business I'm in. The Riddle Group doesn't advertise, mostly because I believe that it betrays something about the nature of the kingdom of God and what I think churches should be about. (This is the same reason I never asked the Jump5 kiddos to sign any autographs for me when I toured with them as their Pastor. It's hard to speak truth into someone life when you are asking for the autograph. It's hard to tell a church that relationships and evangelism are more important than advertizing.)

So I'm in a place where I could be wreckless. It's taking a certain amount of discipline not to become impulsive or throwing myself into constant activity (see the Animal illustration above).

As I'm writing this I'm wondering how it will be perceived. Will it hurt business? Should I write it? Will it help business?? Is that why I'm writing this? I hope not. I need to share this. I need to get this out there.

Today is one of those days, I guess.

She's as cold as Ice!

Tulsa is still under 2-3 inches of ice. The kids weren't in school all week and it's not looking good for next week. I finally found some ice melt at the hardware store. Pam has taken the opportunity to put me to work around the house. Starting Friday I accomplished the following around the house.

1. Moved all guest bedroom (upstairs)stuff including Queen size bed and everything shoved into the two closets in that room into the hallway upstairs and the playroom upstairs.

2. Painted all walls, one closet and all trim. Trim is Polar Bear white. Walls are Happy Camper (green) I'm using a flat enamel for those keeping score at home.

3. Took the top bunk bed off the bunk in what is now Jaden's room, moved the pieces into Zach's room and reassembled it.

4. Took apart the boys computer desk in their room and moved all it's heavy pieces downstairs for Pam's home office in what would normally be a dining room for folks, but is Pam's office/playroom for the kids.

5. Took Pam's old desk (that doesn't come apart and is heavy as well) upstairs to Zach's room. Without breaking it or any walls.

6. Moved a few book cases from room to room.

7. Hung 3 new shelves in Zach's room.

8. Hung 2 new shelves in Jaden's room.

9. Shoveled a lot of the drive way. Shoveled is completely the wrong word here. You don't shovel a 3 inch layer of ice.

10. Cleaned the hallway (mostly)

11. Replaced a few lightbulbs with florescent bulbs. (thanks for the tip Ben!)

12. Felt sorry for myself more than once.

13. Felt manly more than I felt sorry for myself, but not by much.

14. Watched the Doyle kiddo's.

15. Called my wife a slave-drive once.

16. Pkayed the wii with the kiddos.

17. Made a big bowl of chili and looked out my window while I ate it.

It's been a good week. I haven't made it to the gym. But I think I'll be ok.

24

If you've DVR'ed 24 and have yet to watch it, SPOILER ALERT!!!!!
Stop READING now!!!! You've been warned.

------------


So their going to sacrifice Jack Bauer.
Cloe is upset about it.

Jack is wearing an oxford. I'm guessing he'll be in the normal "Urban Outfitters" garb before the end of the night.

Jack seems willing to do it.

Lame drama quote so far, "Jack Bauer has to be sacrificed in order for this country to survive."

Jack wants to die for something important of his choosing.

They're hand cuffing Jack to the grate in the colvert and leaving him there.

Back from commercial.
Who is this family?

Cloe just messed up big time.

They might not call.
Jack might have given himself up for the cause. But if they aren't going to call. Jack will fight back.

ouch. they are letting Jack have it.

CTU is looking to kill the wrong man! CTU is going to kill the guy who is going to stop it.

oh! This kid is with the bad guys.

Holy crap! Jack just bit a guy to death!

He's hiding in the drain!

7:00am to 8am

The terrorist are hunting for Jack.
They almost had him.

Jack found a cell phone.
He wants to talk to the president!

Do they believe Jack?

He's going to stop save the targets!

He made it!
3 minutes and 50 seconds to warn them.

Jack just hit a guy with a log then took his gun.

They blew up the house. Jack got the Assad out and a traitor to Assad.

Sondra Palmer is calling. She's won't the the FBI take personell records.

oh wow. So the kid next door is a suicide bomber.

Jack is busted! Cloe knows Jack rescued so does Jack.

Jack just stabbed a guy with a ball point pen.
Jack is having a moment of empathy for the guy. Jack Bauer empathizing???
Assad just stabbed a guy in the knew and got the info and then killed him.

Could a guy actually talk after getting stabbed in the knee?

Jack changes clothes like I said he would.

Assad want's Jack's help finding the real bad guy.

"I don't know how to do this anymore" says Jack.
[Is this the beginning to a whole new Jack Bauer??]

They just arrested the president's sister.

Maybe the kid next door isn't a suicide bomber.

The kid just killed a neighbor who was beating him up after profiling him.

The Amed just pulled a gun on his friend.

Jack is following the Bomber.
Jack kicks the bomber off the train as he blows up.

"this is going to get much worse" - President Palmer

Ice Ice Baby!

Well Tulsa is under a couple inches of ice. Which means the city is virtually shut down. Everything is canceled and everyone stays home. I like these days. I've spent the day watching the movie Barnyard, with the kids and continuing to paint Zachery's new bedroom.

All is well as long as we don't loose power. If we loose power we'll be packing into the Riddle van driving the short .25 miles to the Doyle residence who has a kickin' Buckstove that heats their whole house.

I'm happy that I don't have plans to travel in the next 5-6 days.

Everyone is healthy. Live is good. Sloooooooooowing down is nice.

Middle School in the NY Times

Excerpt "But some research suggests that may not be the solution, either. So the age-old issues persist, with some variation from decade to decade: surging hormones make students irritable and sleepy. They struggle to relate to their peers and gain independence from their parents. To hear some parents tell it, one day their babies are innocent elementary schoolers in overalls, the next they’re dressing like Paris Hilton and simulating sex on the middle-school dance floor. How do you solve a problem like adolescence? Is there anything schools can do?"

Link

(ht marko)

Facebook

Last week I joined facebook and I'm glad I did. It's been a great tool for finding students from years past. I like it a lot more than MySpace. It's a cleaner layout (in more ways than one) and it's easy to interface with other folks. Today I have over 100 friends, almost all of them are students from previous Asbury or St. Mark's 6+ years ago. This has been really cool.

Wii are Family

The Riddle Family received a Wii for Christmas. Word has it that Santa likes to do an occassionally crazy thing and wait 12 hours at Target for it. Thanks Santa!

This is soo cool.
We've never owned a game console. My boys both have had game boys for years, and I always wanted an XBOX 360 to play games my kids would never be able to play.

We got a Wii for our kids to be active while they play.
And they are. standing in front of the TV boxing, bowling and shooting rabbits with plungers (a first person shooting game that is non - violent)... it's fun.

Though I can't tell you how many people mention injures when we tell them we have a wii, everyone who plays loves it!

I was sore the day after I first played it... but now i'm getting buff...

Myth #2 - The Search for the perfect church / model

I often disappoint myself. It seems my default for fixing problems is often to seek out the solution that will permanently fix the problem I'm facing. PERMANENTLY. Whether it be the program that is "just right" or a training rhythm for youth workers that equips them for success AND balances an appropriate use of their time. or just the right curriculum roadmap.

Regardless, my default setting, when facing something that is less than ideal, I want to make it perfect, for good. So that once I set in place a curriculum for 6-12 grades I don't ever want to have to look at it again. Maybe you don't have this problem. No. Problem isn't the right world... psychosis is the right word.

The driving underlying statement for me "If I can get to a certain point, it will be fixed."

What I'm still learning is that Youth Ministry and the church is always evolving. Always changing. Always rethinking itself. As I read the last two sentances I think "duh! no kidding riddle!" but I don't actually live like I believe this is true.

Humility is the key to great leadership in this regard. The drive to have the youth ministry or church that "isn't like the church or youth ministry down the street" or that is "different" is to approach ministry in arrogance.

Why? Because the model / church/ youth ministry you are seeking asylum from, running from, reacting against will be the oppressive model for someone else who is to come. In short, your solution will be someone elses problem.

This shouldn't keep you from trying new things, coming "over-against" as brueggeman says, but it should bring a strong dose of humility. Your program may actually solve a lot of problems for others, but it will not be perfect and it will need to evolve, change and one day die. Knowing this when you start something new, especially a new church, will save you some heartache in the future. It will keep you from having to guard and protect your model / church/ youth ministry in the future.

There is no perfect way to do church.

Therefore, church who learn to learn will be the churches who impact their world.

maybe more later... got go to a meeting.