tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9069383265589057862024-03-12T18:40:01.739-07:00Life In ProgressKEVIN DOIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06585250255089002614noreply@blogger.comBlogger142125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-906938326558905786.post-72209305667677521062012-03-08T10:22:00.001-08:002012-03-08T10:26:19.298-08:00Ugh.<br /><br />Sometimes life just seems busier than usual. Case in point, right now:<br /><br />Preaching, reading groups, office move, vacation planning, high school transition, D.Min papers and reading, ministry assessment, taxes, birthdays, fundraising proposals, fundraiser event, new study group, meeting with people, conferences.<br /><br />I asked the Lord this morning to speak into these things. He says, "Lo, I am with you always even to the end of the age." I say, "I hope this is not the end." He says, "Abide in me." So I spent some time in prayer committing these things to Jesus.<br /><br />He is the end.KEVIN DOIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06585250255089002614noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-906938326558905786.post-1077809740063992162012-02-16T21:26:00.000-08:002012-02-17T00:17:51.076-08:00Church From Meal to MealI have a theory that you can tell a lot about a church just by observing how often and with whom it eats.<br /><br />The common meal has always been at the center of what it means to be the people of God - from the story of manna in the desert to the disciples breaking bread in homes to the banquet as a sign of the age to come - the meal has a sacramental quality about it.<br /><br />J.H. Yoder writes that when Jesus said, "Whenever you do this, do it in my memory" what he couldn't have meant was "Whenever you celebrate the mass" or "the Lord's Supper." What Jesus was referring to, what his disciples took him to mean was "whenever you have your common meal." "The meal Jesus blessed that evening and claimed as his memorial was their<span style="font-style: italic;"> ordinary</span> partaking of food for the body" (<span style="font-style: italic;">Body Politics</span>).<br /><br />With that in mind, I was thinking about the meals I've had recently. What if I strung those meals together, what would they tell me?<br /><br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-zWHbsMmaSbo/Tz3xO1qwmqI/AAAAAAAABE0/I3e6ecpQkow/s1600/Tacos.jpg"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 237px; height: 102px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-zWHbsMmaSbo/Tz3xO1qwmqI/AAAAAAAABE0/I3e6ecpQkow/s200/Tacos.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5709985139802544802" border="0" /></a><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Taco Lunch. </span> A few weeks ago Epic held its worship service in our host church's sanctuary; this is something we do once a year as we swap spaces. Because we have a late start and are in the sanctuary, we always desire to do something that says "Epic," which usually means we eat. This year we decided to have a local taco guy come out to cook on the plaza. As soon as our formal worship ended, we would continue to worship through the sharing of food - that was the plan. What we didn't anticipate was the line of people waiting for the food pantry to open across the street. The line proceeded just several steps from the taco grill. Though we didn't plan for this many extra people (and realized we may not have enough food) we also thought it would be terrible to not share either. I have to admit, for a second I saw the situation as a potential problem, but soon realized that it was a good problem to have. It was a mercy. So before service let out, we decided to limit the number of tacos for our church community. This left plenty of tacos for everyone, including our unexpected guests. As J.H.Yoder reminds us, "Bread eaten together<span style="font-style: italic;"> is</span> economic sharing. Not merely symbolically, but also in fact, eating together extends to a wider circle the economic solidarity normally obtained in the family." In the end it sure was nice to extend the family table.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Special Parents</span> Dorene and I really enjoy this group. Right now there are three couples with special needs children that get together every quarter to share a meal, and talk about the struggles, challenges, and heartbreak of raising our kids. We also share the many joys. Together we extend an encouragement and "withyou-ness" that only we can for each other. Sharing and understanding - that's what this group is all about. Not wanting to keep all this good stuff to ourselves, we are extending the group to include two other families next quarter.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">House Church</span> Our Fullerton house church eats together for every meeting. Following Yoder we understand that, "Every meal in the Jewish household was an act of worship." We potluck it. And we celebrate birthdays. This particular week we celebrate Abraham's birthday. Abraham is newer to our church, but he is family here. What is neat is that our meal organizers Sandee and Fiona ask the birthday person(s) what their favorite foods are, and that becomes the theme for the evening. We also kick off conversation about our race & culture series, sharing a bit of our ethnic backgrounds and our hopes for the series in small groups. We pray for one another and for the church. It is a good Friday.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Valentine's Day</span> For a day devoted to love, it can be awfully anxiety inducing, a nuisance, or ironically exclusive - maybe all of the above. Like New Year's eve, I wonder if the biggest effect of Valentine's Day is to remind people of their feelings of aloneness. Which is why I liked this Feb 14th so much. We were invited to spend a casual dinner with other friends from Epic - as families, marrieds, singles, children. It was nice to be inclusive. We enjoyed our chicken and waffles, shakes, and desserts. We chatted and laughed around the table and then strolled basking in the knowledge that God is good to give us one another.<br /><br style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;"><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Dinner for 6</span><span style="font-style: italic;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"> </span></span>Dorene and I hosted a dinner at our house to get to know people in our church. It is something we do from time to time in this form. Though there were only six of us, we marveled at discovering the differences, but also connections we shared: Beside Dorene and myself, the others were single. Among us were two Filipinos, an African American, a Chinese American, an Okinawan, and a Japanese American. Two of us had familial roots to a small town in Mississippi. Two of us were part Cherokee Indian.<span style="font-style: italic;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-style: italic;"> </span></span></span></span>We shared our stories. We asked each other questions to better understand the struggles we faced living in our shoes. In many ways we dove into our Race & Culture series right there. It was beautiful and enjoyable. One of things that struck both me and Dorene, however, was something that was said as we sat down around our dinner table to begin the evening. Someone mentioned, "Wow, this the first time in months that I have sat down like this for a family meal." Then someone concurred. Then another. Dorene and I realized that what we take for granted every day (i.e. eating dinner as a family) was something very rare for these single friends. They elaborated that because they rent rooms with others, they usually eat alone in the house or eat in their rooms by themselves. I was struck by this. I never knew. Craig Bartholomew writes, "The home is above all else about the inner community of the family, and the home will need to be developed to facilitate deep relationship...Mealtimes will have to be recovered as slow times of reflection and enjoyment" (<span style="font-style: italic;">Where Mortals Dwell</span>). For me, this meal took on a whole different meaning. It was not just about convening to have a conversation with food as a good excuse, it was the actual practice of eating around the table as a family that became such an ordinary, yet powerful experience.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Lunch with WAC</span> Once a year, our staff takes the staff of our host church Wilshire Ave out for lunch to express our appreciation. We did this on Wednesday. Two different churches. Two different staff teams. But very much one in mission. One in Christ. And it so happens, on one campus. They are so good and generous to have never treated us like guests, but like family. Thank you Wilshire Ave.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Entering Houses</span> As I write this, in the midst of all this goodness, I am also aware of a way I would like to partake more of in the future - something that is missing here in this link of meals. Alan Roxburgh, in his book <span style="font-style: italic;">Missional: Joining God in the Neighborhood</span>, presents a theology of eating in Luke 10:1-12 that is compelling as it is challenging. He writes that "entering and eating lie at the heart of the message." But with a twist. "In this Luke 10 context the location of the 'church,' if you will, is in the homes and at <span style="font-style: italic;">the tables of the people in the towns and village</span>s, and the stance of the 'church' is that of <span style="font-style: italic;">receiving their gracious hospitality</span>" (emphasis mine). There is certainly a place for gathering and hosting, but I would also like to grow in going and receiving. I wonder where that will lead me? Where is Jesus present through a meal in a place I am unfamiliar, in which I am the stranger, guest, or foreigner? I will pray about that one.<br /><br />Until then. <br /><br />Food. Family. Jesus. Mission.<br /><br />We're Epic, Let's Eat!KEVIN DOIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06585250255089002614noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-906938326558905786.post-67279758785331395382012-02-07T09:53:00.000-08:002012-02-16T23:28:44.342-08:00Race & Culture<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-9bvmmERzbT8/TzFlOF_-yAI/AAAAAAAABEo/Jr9tURVQscY/s1600/Race%2BBooks.jpg"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 232px; height: 232px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-9bvmmERzbT8/TzFlOF_-yAI/AAAAAAAABEo/Jr9tURVQscY/s200/Race%2BBooks.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5706453495658235906" border="0" /></a>Our long-awaited series on Race & Culture is finally upon us. In a diverse congregation such as ours, we want everyone to feel good about who God has made them, and to appreciate the differences among us that enrich our community. We also want to look at race as an issue of justice, and what that means for our church in addressing corporate and systemic racism. Lastly we want to imagine Epic as a concrete expression of a new humanity where Christ makes a difference in how we see, relate, and live. There will be an 8-week series on Sundays, and a 4-session conversation in house churches and reading groups.<br /><br /><br />Here are some of the resources we will be referencing for the series:<br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">Exploring Culture </span>- Gert Jan Hofstede, et.al.<br /><span style="font-style: italic;">Mujerista Theology</span> - Ada Maria Isasi-Diaz<br /><span style="font-style: italic;">Churches, Cultures & Leadership</span> - Mark Lau Branson & Juan Martinez<br /><span style="font-style: italic;"></span><span style="font-style: italic;">Divided By Faith</span> - Michael O. Emerson & Christian Smith<br /><span style="font-style: italic;">The Next Evangelicalism </span>- Soong-Chan Rah<br /><span style="font-style: italic;">More Than Equals</span> - Spencer Perkins & Chris Rice<br /><span style="font-style: italic;">Mirrored Reflections</span> Young Lee Hertig, Chloe Sun, et.al.<br /><span style="font-style: italic;">No Partiality</span> - Douglas Sharp<br /><span style="font-style: italic;">Santa Biblia</span> - Justo Gonzalez<br /><span style="font-style: italic;">Race: A Theological Account</span> - J. Kameron Carter<br /><span style="font-style: italic;">RACE: The Power of an Illusion</span> (video series) - www.pbs.org/raceKEVIN DOIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06585250255089002614noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-906938326558905786.post-24822703422688481392012-01-04T15:03:00.000-08:002012-01-04T15:11:20.007-08:00Voice of Vocation<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-5Bm994nrwxk/TwTciSoAECI/AAAAAAAABEQ/ynag2EntI-w/s1600/let%2Byour%2Blife%2Bspeak.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 148px; height: 200px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-5Bm994nrwxk/TwTciSoAECI/AAAAAAAABEQ/ynag2EntI-w/s200/let%2Byour%2Blife%2Bspeak.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5693918310576427042" border="0" /></a>Led devotionals this morning with the AA Colloquium group. Spoke about my sense of call - past, present, future. Began with a "I cannot not do this" moment back at Evergreen in the late 80's, to something evolving from what I and others expect from myself during the early to mid-ministry years of my calling, to now gradually something that I listen for from within the contours of my own life and context.<br /><br />Resonated at several points with Parker Palmer's journey chronicled in his book, "Let Your LIfe Speak" - a required read for my D.Min program at Northern Seminary. I shared the following quotes this morning with the other pastors, ways that Palmer's journey seemed to parallel my own:<br /><br /> Vocation at its deepest level is, <span style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0);">“This is something I can’t not do</span>, for reasons I’m unable to explain to anyone else and don’t fully understand myself but that are nonetheless compelling.” (p.25)<br /><br />Vocation does not come from willfulness. It comes from listening. I must listen to my life and try to understand what it is truly about – quite apart from what I would like it to be about – or my life will never represent anything real in the world, no matter how earnest my intentions.<br /><br />That insight is hidden in the word vocation itself, which is rooted in the Latin for ‘voice.’ Vocation does not mean a goal I pursue. It means a calling that I hear. <span style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0);">Before I can tell my life what I want to do with it, I must listen to my life telling me who I am.</span> I must listen for the truths and values at the heart of my own identity, not the standards by which I must live – but the standards by which I cannot help but live if I am living my own life. (p.4)<br /><br />Our deepest calling is to grow into our own authentic selfhood, whether or not it conforms to some image of who we ought to be. As we do so, we will not only find the joy that every human being seeks – we will also find our path of authentic service in the world. True vocation joins self and service, as Frederick Buechner asserts when he defines vocation as<span style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0);"> “the place where your deep gladness meets the world’s deep need.” </span><br /><br />Buechner’s definition starts with the self and moves toward the needs of the world: it begins, wisely, where vocation begins – not in what the world needs (which is everything), but in the nature of the human self, in what brings the self joy, the deep joy of knowing that we are here on earth to be the gifts that God created. (p.16)KEVIN DOIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06585250255089002614noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-906938326558905786.post-34026726106932470592012-01-03T22:04:00.000-08:002012-01-04T15:16:51.435-08:00Viablity of Virtual Church?<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-qfStmvrQ510/TwPsBLn7IBI/AAAAAAAABD4/JFxZHxUTPFI/s1600/11949856821440773765flat_screen_gino_rivera_01.svg.med.png"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 185px; height: 200px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-qfStmvrQ510/TwPsBLn7IBI/AAAAAAAABD4/JFxZHxUTPFI/s200/11949856821440773765flat_screen_gino_rivera_01.svg.med.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5693653858970705938" border="0" /></a>Had a parking lot conversation recently about virtual church. A friend asked me what I thought about the prospects of community via social media and the like. I told him if you were on a deserted island, then yeah, community through computer screen, whether "attending" a worship service, fellowship through ichat, or communing via e-mail or Facebook is better than nothing. But how many of us are really in those circumstances? My fear is that this option becomes the convenient choice to the more difficult but ultimately more rewarding and essential task of actual relating.<br /><br />To state the obvious, virtual community has its limitations. For one, it seems to me that much of the New Testament cannot be lived out without a real physical community that you literally bump into. Though it is admittedly possible to experience aspects of connection virtually, it is ultimately a challenge to break bread together, to forgive one another, comfort one another, speak truth, and encourage one another short of actual presence with one another. There is something to be said that the Son of God became human in Jesus and came to dwell among us. At precisely this point, Christian spiritually is enfleshed, it is embodied. Godliness looks human, not digital. God becoming flesh and walking in this world was in direct opposition to gnostic abstraction of the day. Arguably, both the Old and New Testaments describe God's people always as a very real people who gather together. Location and physicality are inherent in the expression of authentic faith.<br /><br />Which leads to the related, and possibly bigger issue: Without a real, particular community that assumes a specific context, it is impossible for a church community to bear witness to the particularities of Christ in its midst. In other words, church is always socially located. If (and I assume it is) the church is the apologetic for faith, then that church is a real people who paint the outlines of the kingdom via their mutual life together, a life that can be seen, touched, and heard as a gathered reality, not just an abstract or idealistic one. For Christ to be made believable (trustworthy, verifiable), there must be a real visible community that gathers, worships, serves, and celebrates the Lord's Supper together - not just a virtual one. This goes directly to the issue of mission. Without a gathered body, bearing witness to Jesus in its very life as the people of God, in a particular social context, the church can barely be called missional. Virtually, the church at best is a mere shadow of itself.<br /><br />This is the limitation of an on-line community. I am not saying there are not vestiges of community made possible through virtual means, certainly there are. But at the same time it must be said that it falls short of mitigating the tendencies of modernity to mimic true relating where physicality is necessity, not ancillary to true spirituality. The I-thou encounter of the first humans in Genesis 1 suggest that we are always ensouled bodies and enbodied souls, and that this flesh-to-flesh encounter with one another is partly what it means to be fully human and fully alive to God.KEVIN DOIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06585250255089002614noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-906938326558905786.post-89872506363250942172012-01-02T11:07:00.001-08:002012-01-02T11:07:53.470-08:00What's new?<br />In 2011 took up road biking, got a new kitchen, first time to NYC, and went back to school for a D.Min. What new things will emerge in 2012?<br /><br />Already looking forward to Hawaii in July with the family. But before that, my first winter in Chicago coming up in a few weeks and great stuff around culture and connecting points this year at Epic.KEVIN DOIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06585250255089002614noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-906938326558905786.post-26363436737050036542012-01-01T19:33:00.000-08:002012-01-01T19:47:54.239-08:00<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-kgLaCF5rFhc/TwElhQpqOrI/AAAAAAAABDs/shZ0FwTCmIg/s1600/new-years-2012-new-years-2012.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 135px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-kgLaCF5rFhc/TwElhQpqOrI/AAAAAAAABDs/shZ0FwTCmIg/s200/new-years-2012-new-years-2012.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5692872657308629682" border="0" /></a>Hello 2012. But first, goodbye 2011.<br /><br />Went biking yesterday with Brice, Charlie, and Lodi, third time this week after resting my knee for about 3 months. Beautiful ride with climbs up and behind Fullerton Road. Want to make this route part of my regular repertoire. Since purchasing my first road bike this past June, hope to ride more in 2012.<br /><br />Two goals that I set out to do in 2011 finally come to an end (though their impact will hopefully continue)...<br /><br />I took a sabbath from clothes shopping having been convicted of 1 Timothy 6:6-8, "But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it. But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that." I had vowed to not purchase any clothing unless it was somewhat necessary or if I already a gift certificate for it. Overall, I did fairly well; though I must confess that I did make a few purchases: As I said above, I bought a road bike in June and with that needed some legitimate bike clothing; I also bought two pairs of jeans because they were 50% off - jeans are both my everyday and work clothes; and this December I purchased an on-sale REI down jacket with a gift certificate anticipating many trips to Chicago in winter…this first being later this month. During this self-imposed sabbath from shopping, I noticed I tended to stay away from malls and places I know I would see something enticing; I also realized I simply shopped less because I knew I couldn't buy anything anyway. Interestingly, the next verse in 1 Timothy say this, "Those who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction (v.9). I learned one way to deal with a temptation is simply not to indulge it, to stay away if physically possible.<br /><br />A second 2011 goal was to reflect on "abiding" based on verses from John 15:5…"I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing." Couple of thoughts: I tried to pray more, or more deeply; one of my practices every morning is to recite the Lord's Prayer as a framework for my prayers. I tried to make room for more praise of God and also to think more deeply about my real concerns and hopes, to lift those up and trust God with them. I also felt that I was able to let go of results more this year; maybe this is part of getting older and realizing that there is much to this life that I will never be able to control or will into existence. Whether this is part resignation from being tired or just a bit of wiser living, I let more things be. This year also involved a season of loss (mostly of people moving away), but also of new growth (particularly going back to school - a doctoral program at Northern Seminary). <br /><br />For 2012, I need to reflect a bit more, but in addition to reading through the New Testament I am considering what Proverbs 3:3-6 might mean for me, "Let love and faithfulness never leave you; bind them around your neck, write them on the tablet of your heart. Then you will win favor and a good name in the sight of God and humankind. Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight." I thought of these verses the last week because they came up on two separate occasions: the first time was when Luke Mason read those verses on the bottom of his strawberry shake cup from In 'N Out; the second time came a few days later when my friend Eddie told me a funny story about a friend of his who was considering whether he should date a gal who wasn't a Christian; this young believer was getting advice from Eddie while he was driving (Eddie was in the back seat listening and texting at the same time). Eddie encouraged his friend to read the Bible and ask God what He thought; almost immediately the guy said, "Proverbs 3:5-6". Eddie, without looking up, replied, yeah, that's a good one. The friend said, "Whaaat? I was just reading the license plate of the car in front of me!" Eddie exclaimed, "Dude, that's God speaking to you!"<br /><br />Maybe God was speaking to me, too, when Eddie told me that story. Verse 3 is about focusing on growing in love and faithfulness. The result is favor with God and others. I'd like that. Verses 4-5 is about trusting God with everything, letting things go to him, resting in the knowledge that He will make my paths straight as I (we) move into the future. I'd like that too.KEVIN DOIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06585250255089002614noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-906938326558905786.post-22443978822266667502011-09-20T20:09:00.000-07:002011-09-20T20:48:13.786-07:00A Child Will Lead Them<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-fAAOj5Ji6zc/TnlViaGBj-I/AAAAAAAABDM/Vt0xsgL65lk/s1600/photo.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 150px; height: 200px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-fAAOj5Ji6zc/TnlViaGBj-I/AAAAAAAABDM/Vt0xsgL65lk/s200/photo.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5654644856748871650" border="0" /></a>Two Sundays ago, Epic had the privilege of having Mike and Jill Lowery, missionaries serving in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, share during our worship service. When Jill came up to speak, she spoke directly to all our kids who were sitting in their usual seats in the first few rows. She told our kids that the women in Congo knew them as the <span style="font-style: italic;">To Lingana</span> <span style="font-style: italic;">Kids</span> ("love one another") because of the Sunday school campaign to raise funds for new sewing machines. You see, these enterprising Congolese women were starting a restaurant but needed to sew curtains and such for the restaurant's interior, but had no way to do this without the proper equipment. At the beginning of the year, our kids had raised enough money through their own efforts that Jill was able to purchase a first sewing machine and have enough spare change to repair several others.<br /><br />But what Jill really wanted to communicate was that she in turn shared about this small Sunday school program's efforts in a newsletter that is circulated among supporters. After reading about our kids, other Sunday school classes were so inspired that they followed suit. Less than a year after our kids responded to this need, Jill said they had received enough money to purchase 9 sewing machines to date. She told our kids that they had started a movement!<br /><br />As I sat listening to this amazing story, I was reminded of the prophet Isaiah's eschatological vision of the coming Messiah who would reign with righteousness, justice, and peace for all the earth and among all the nations. Isaiah said that this Messiah would come to God's people as a child and that this "little child would lead them" (Isaiah 11:6). I couldn't help but see how true that was in this moment: The children of Epic were leading us adults in the act of thoughtful and generous giving.<br /><br />It also happened to be the final official day for Kristy Prince as our kids director. It ended up being a nice way, I think, to honor her by hearing publicly of the tangible fruit of her ministry with our kids. That might have been the sweetest thing of all.KEVIN DOIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06585250255089002614noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-906938326558905786.post-52518015500715499742011-09-18T20:42:00.000-07:002011-09-22T13:15:06.050-07:00WE+<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-k863hCewNto/Tna9ae4iSLI/AAAAAAAABDE/pdGH4y-t6xc/s1600/WE.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-k863hCewNto/Tna9ae4iSLI/AAAAAAAABDE/pdGH4y-t6xc/s200/WE.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5653914644874676402" border="0" /></a><br /> <style> <!-- /* Font Definitions */ @font-face {font-family:Cambria; panose-1:2 4 5 3 5 4 6 3 2 4; mso-font-charset:0; mso-generic-font-family:auto; mso-font-pitch:variable; mso-font-signature:3 0 0 0 1 0;} @font-face {font-family:"Helvetica Neue"; panose-1:2 0 5 3 0 0 0 2 0 4; mso-font-charset:0; mso-generic-font-family:auto; mso-font-pitch:variable; mso-font-signature:3 0 0 0 1 0;} /* Style Definitions */ p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal {mso-style-parent:""; margin:0in; margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ascii-font-family:"Helvetica Neue"; mso-fareast-font-family:Cambria; mso-hansi-font-family:"Helvetica Neue"; mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman";} @page Section1 {size:8.5in 11.0in; margin:1.0in 1.25in 1.0in 1.25in; mso-header-margin:.5in; mso-footer-margin:.5in; mso-paper-source:0;} div.Section1 {page:Section1;} -</style>This list and following comments were part of my message on community given at Epic (9/18/2011). I got feedback that people wanted the list, so here it is:<br /><p class="MsoNormal"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal"><style> <!-- /* Font Definitions */ @font-face {font-family:Cambria; panose-1:2 4 5 3 5 4 6 3 2 4; mso-font-charset:0; mso-generic-font-family:auto; mso-font-pitch:variable; mso-font-signature:3 0 0 0 1 0;} @font-face {font-family:"Helvetica Neue"; panose-1:2 0 5 3 0 0 0 2 0 4; mso-font-charset:0; mso-generic-font-family:auto; mso-font-pitch:variable; mso-font-signature:3 0 0 0 1 0;} /* Style Definitions */ p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal {mso-style-parent:""; margin:0in; margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ascii-font-family:"Helvetica Neue"; mso-fareast-font-family:Cambria; mso-hansi-font-family:"Helvetica Neue"; mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman";} @page Section1 {size:8.5in 11.0in; margin:1.0in 1.25in 1.0in 1.25in; mso-header-margin:.5in; mso-footer-margin:.5in; mso-paper-source:0;} div.Section1 {page:Section1</style><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal">What's the point of church? One argument is that we can’t live out the Scriptures, particularly the New Testament, without a community. </p><p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight:normal"> </b></p> <p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.5in">Speak truth in love (Eph 4:15)</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.5in">Bring things into the light (Eph 5:8)</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.5in">Submit to one another (Eph 5:21)</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.5in">Build one another up (Eph 5: 29)</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.5in">Carry each other’s burdens (Gal 6:2)</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.5in">Resolve conflict with one another (Matt 18:15)</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.5in">Discern and make decisions together (Matt 18:18)</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.5in">Eat together and partake of the Lord’s Supper (1 Cor 11:33)</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.5in">Confess our sins to one another and pray for each other (James 5:16)</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.5in">Encourage one another (Heb 10:24)</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.5in">Love one another (Heb 13:1)</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.5in">Extend hospitality (Heb 13:2)</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in;">Forgive one another (Eph 4:32)</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.5in"><br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal"> </p> <p class="MsoNormal">The ethical invitation to live in the kingdom of God assumes gathering, relationship, that we know one another, that we are in each others lives. We can believe the right things, but we cannot actually follow Jesus without belonging to a distinct, real, visible, community. It is impossible to truly live as a Christian or function as the church outlined in the New Testament without a deep commitment to the body of Christ.<br /></p><br /><p class="MsoNormal"> </p>KEVIN DOIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06585250255089002614noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-906938326558905786.post-73414512978993203202011-09-08T23:23:00.000-07:002011-09-22T13:15:46.346-07:00Letter to Time<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-k5ypQjL73HA/TmmzlEOSdsI/AAAAAAAABC8/EpFMmoXgmG8/s1600/20110919_107.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 107px; height: 142px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-k5ypQjL73HA/TmmzlEOSdsI/AAAAAAAABC8/EpFMmoXgmG8/s200/20110919_107.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5650244656883201730" border="0" /></a>I resonated with the aspect of <span style="font-style: italic;">missed opportunity</span> in Kurt Andersen's back cover story, <a href="http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,2092213,00.html">"Terror Has A Half-Life"</a> in this week's commemorative 9/11 edition of Time magazine. So yesterday I wrote the editor the following letter:<br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(51, 51, 255);font-size:85%;" ><br /><br /><br />Dear Time,<br /><br />I appreciated Kurt Andersen's back cover story (Beyond 9/11 Issue). Having visited Ground Zero just a month ago, I came away with similar reflections. What if instead of entering two wars as a response to the 9/11 attacks, we had invested that $2-3 trillion on what makes America so resilient in the first place: its people. Not only could President Bush have made the urgent call to wean us from oil, but the opportunity was there to inspire all of us to invest more heavily in education, the arts, technology, and housing for the homeless - or to volunteer - all investments in citizens by citizens that would have made us stronger as a country. In the end, our top political officials governed by the very thing they wanted us to overcome: fear.<br /><br />Sincerely,<br /><br />Kevin Doi<br />Diamond Bar, CA<br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(204, 0, 0);font-size:100%;" >Postscript: My response ended up being published in the <a href="http://www.time.com/time/subscriber/article/0,33009,2093337,00.html">9/26/2011</a> edition of Time (Rick Perry cover).</span><br /></span>KEVIN DOIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06585250255089002614noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-906938326558905786.post-48292769109130993582011-09-03T01:46:00.000-07:002011-10-03T16:04:37.740-07:00102 Minutes<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-5Oi-FhjBKzI/TmHqSrcmddI/AAAAAAAABCk/3h4P745Oi2k/s1600/102minutes.jpg"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 180px; height: 272px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-5Oi-FhjBKzI/TmHqSrcmddI/AAAAAAAABCk/3h4P745Oi2k/s200/102minutes.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5648053014320543186" border="0" /></a>I had the privilege of visiting Ground Zero less than a month ago while on vacation to NYC. Next week on the 10th anniversary an unveiling of the memorial pools will take place, but construction dominates and looms large as surrounding buildings near completion. At the visitor center, this is one of the few books that I assumed met stringent standards and was worthy of offering. And I can see why. Written by reporters from the <span style="font-style: italic;">New York Times</span>, it is at once haunting and beautiful. <span style="font-style: italic;">102 Minutes</span> recounts the fate of those inside the twin towers from the moment the first plane struck until the last tower fell. It is enthralling reading (I couldn't put the book down). At turns both horrifying and heroic, the authors effectively expose how decisions - both small and large, by employees and politicians - made in seconds or over decades - saved or doomed thousands of lives during that hour and a half. <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-jLLCUzmimzY/TmHtskGxhMI/AAAAAAAABCs/ruZh0XH-F3U/s1600/IMG_0374.JPG"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 179px; height: 179px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-jLLCUzmimzY/TmHtskGxhMI/AAAAAAAABCs/ruZh0XH-F3U/s200/IMG_0374.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5648056757561427138" border="0" /></a>Right up there with <span style="font-style: italic;">Devil In the White City</span> and <span style="font-style: italic;">In the Heart of the Sea</span> as absolutely riveting accounts of history.KEVIN DOIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06585250255089002614noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-906938326558905786.post-87430469900113510192011-06-02T14:03:00.000-07:002011-06-02T15:47:13.427-07:00Steak and Eggs<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-HMdxl4Z7K-I/Tef7Av5ERPI/AAAAAAAABBg/9Ro1YR85viY/s1600/steak_eggs_425.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 132px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-HMdxl4Z7K-I/Tef7Av5ERPI/AAAAAAAABBg/9Ro1YR85viY/s200/steak_eggs_425.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5613731450815005938" border="0" /></a>I was walking in downtown Fullerton this week on my way to meet Kristy at Tranquil Tea lounge to talk kids ministry when a homeless man on a bike stopped me. He immediately went into his story about losing his job, wife, life and was now on the streets. He was going on and on so I stopped him and asked, "What do you need?" He said he was hungry and wanted money to get a bite. As I usually do, I told I couldn't give him cash but could buy him breakfast. So on the way down the street to Rialto Cafe, I asked him about his life - where he was from, what he did for work, where he was currently living. When we got to Rialto, I told Becky, the waitress, that I would buy Dennis (the guy's name) anything he wanted, but that I had a meeting next door and would come back for the bill. I told Dennis I couldn't stay, but to order whatever he wanted.<br /><br />After my meeting with Kristy, I came back to Rialto to pay the bill. It was $17! A little startled, I asked Becky what he ordered that cost that much? She told me, "Steak and eggs." I laughed.<br /><br />Truth be told, after the initial shock, I was a little bit miffed at the audacity. Mostly, because I know I couldn't have done that. It would have gone against every Japanese bone in my body. I also felt a tinged taken advantage of. But the more I thought about it, I was really glad Dennis ordered the steak and eggs. After all, I told him anything on the menu. Who knows when the last time he really had a good meal, let alone a T-bone steak? I was even smiling at the fact that he had the shamelessness (and appetite) to order exactly what he wanted.<br /><br />During this past Easter season, P.Erin and I were talking in the office about how Evangelicals often view Lent as a time to make sacrifices (i.e to suffer without) to identify with the suffering of Christ. People will forgo caffeine, television, chocolate. But that assumes we have, so that we can go without for a time. But for others, Lent might be a season to actually indulge in what they cannot otherwise partake or afford. For the poor or oppressed, that might mean enjoying that delectable sweet or out-of-reach treat as a celebration of what Jesus has done. I was thinking about this when reflecting more on Dennis. Jesus often told stories about the kingdom of God being like inviting those on the street to a great feast, to a banquet his Father was throwing.<br /><br />I can see steak and eggs being on the menu.KEVIN DOIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06585250255089002614noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-906938326558905786.post-85933181895334812302011-04-19T11:57:00.000-07:002011-04-19T12:23:50.595-07:00Santa Rosa HikeOn Saturday AM we headed out to the Santa Rosa Ecological Reserve with close to 30 other Epic folks, with our own resident botanist Ranger James Harrison leading the way. Turned out to be a warm day, but it was well worth the effort...beautiful pools, native flowers, and great company. Probably the neatest thing was seeing James in his element...giving us commentary about the various types of shrubs and flowers that grow here , warning us about the poison oak along the path, and even a bear story or two. When you see people at church, most of the time you have no idea what they do at work, and how many people are so good at what they do. That's why it's always a treat to see people doing what they love. When it was all said and done, and we were pooped (I was proud of our kids for making the trek), stopping off at Tom's Farms for a burger on the way back really hit the spot. And then we were off to a wedding.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Vh0RydxutMk/Ta3bh1ylovI/AAAAAAAABAw/M6Z6PKtlvP0/s1600/IMG_1766.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 200px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Vh0RydxutMk/Ta3bh1ylovI/AAAAAAAABAw/M6Z6PKtlvP0/s200/IMG_1766.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5597371286312821490" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Ad6ASvh7bA8/Ta3bxwdBSwI/AAAAAAAABA4/tB5zczlAQxk/s1600/IMG_1771.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 200px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Ad6ASvh7bA8/Ta3bxwdBSwI/AAAAAAAABA4/tB5zczlAQxk/s200/IMG_1771.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5597371559758088962" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-YJVSzYXk498/Ta3czIskueI/AAAAAAAABBQ/F5zkCCctPuY/s1600/IMG_1775.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 200px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-YJVSzYXk498/Ta3czIskueI/AAAAAAAABBQ/F5zkCCctPuY/s200/IMG_1775.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5597372682957273570" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-GV6ajrHqAnM/Ta3fd2umWLI/AAAAAAAABBY/iLOsFU1M7YA/s1600/IMG_1778.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 200px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-GV6ajrHqAnM/Ta3fd2umWLI/AAAAAAAABBY/iLOsFU1M7YA/s200/IMG_1778.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5597375615891560626" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-nXVHRQOgeOg/Ta3cNZHQ3CI/AAAAAAAABBA/kV9fsx80-oY/s1600/IMG_1772.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 200px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-nXVHRQOgeOg/Ta3cNZHQ3CI/AAAAAAAABBA/kV9fsx80-oY/s200/IMG_1772.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5597372034529156130" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-g2Mce2mZfhI/Ta3cgdrH6HI/AAAAAAAABBI/dpfqny83rZE/s1600/IMG_1774.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 200px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-g2Mce2mZfhI/Ta3cgdrH6HI/AAAAAAAABBI/dpfqny83rZE/s200/IMG_1774.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5597372362170820722" border="0" /></a>KEVIN DOIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06585250255089002614noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-906938326558905786.post-75416405398239693112011-04-18T14:13:00.000-07:002011-04-18T14:45:29.768-07:00Red Rock Canyon National Conservation AreaOver Spring Break we traveled to Vegas to visit my dad, which is where he makes his home. Beyond the swimming and eating that is the standard fare, we decided to get outside and exercise a bit by hiking in the Red Rock Canyon area, where they just completed an amazingly creative and interactive visitor center. We didn't hike all that much, but there was plenty to see and admire on the 13-mile loop with its vistas and changing landscapes. All in all, a beautiful way to spend the morning with grandpa. We finished our day, of course, with a buffet lunch at the Red Rock Hotel completely erasing any benefit we made by hiking.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-palCY66AeoU/TaytoTjmqAI/AAAAAAAABAo/yRqIERMHcXk/s1600/IMG_1748.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 200px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-palCY66AeoU/TaytoTjmqAI/AAAAAAAABAo/yRqIERMHcXk/s200/IMG_1748.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5597039344870664194" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-g-72djIl8mo/TaytN2n52lI/AAAAAAAABAY/Bd3jYnyoUTU/s1600/IMG_1745.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 200px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-g-72djIl8mo/TaytN2n52lI/AAAAAAAABAY/Bd3jYnyoUTU/s200/IMG_1745.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5597038890427472466" border="0" /></a><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-OrOK1qzoaMs/Tays4kbi9OI/AAAAAAAABAQ/MqaHDLCU5mc/s1600/IMG_1743.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 200px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-OrOK1qzoaMs/Tays4kbi9OI/AAAAAAAABAQ/MqaHDLCU5mc/s200/IMG_1743.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5597038524766549218" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-eNM-IPoioeo/TayrnDkM_7I/AAAAAAAAA_w/wQpNm_SxBJw/s1600/IMG_1734.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 200px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-eNM-IPoioeo/TayrnDkM_7I/AAAAAAAAA_w/wQpNm_SxBJw/s200/IMG_1734.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5597037124375084978" border="0" /></a><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-TROcfXBLxrY/Tayr0pxDO4I/AAAAAAAAA_4/C9OVktJkbZk/s1600/IMG_1737.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 200px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-TROcfXBLxrY/Tayr0pxDO4I/AAAAAAAAA_4/C9OVktJkbZk/s200/IMG_1737.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5597037357967817602" border="0" /></a><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-X1Liqji2bIA/Taytb3q7rkI/AAAAAAAABAg/Gjfi3XTUSWg/s1600/IMG_1746.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 200px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-X1Liqji2bIA/Taytb3q7rkI/AAAAAAAABAg/Gjfi3XTUSWg/s200/IMG_1746.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5597039131226779202" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-OrOK1qzoaMs/Tays4kbi9OI/AAAAAAAABAQ/MqaHDLCU5mc/s1600/IMG_1743.JPG"><br /></a>KEVIN DOIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06585250255089002614noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-906938326558905786.post-27773055820024394542011-03-10T22:53:00.000-08:002011-03-10T23:42:47.902-08:00Thailand?<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-PuMXyA4JYSg/TXnHJSurzKI/AAAAAAAAA_g/UKVi0nqWB_A/s1600/3548-Thailand_Travel_Guide_Large.png"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 150px; height: 251px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-PuMXyA4JYSg/TXnHJSurzKI/AAAAAAAAA_g/UKVi0nqWB_A/s320/3548-Thailand_Travel_Guide_Large.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5582712175562837154" border="0" /></a>I am one who believes God is always trying to get our attention. Most of life is just paying attention.<br /><br />Yesterday, our staff went out to lunch at CafeWest in Fullerton, a great little place in downtown. After we finished our meal, we moseyed to the back of the cafe where they have an eclectic mix of art, a rack of women's vintage clothing, and a single bookshelf of used books, which patrons can help themselves to (like "on-loan" forever). To my surprise, I saw Lonely Planet's Thailand. (I happened to be at AAA just the weekend before, looking for a something on Thailand to no avail). But this was my lucky day. So I lifted it, legally.<br /><br />The backstory is that just a few weeks before, I had received an e-mail out the blue that <a href="http://www.itdpthai.org/">Becky Mann</a> wanted to meet with me. I had heard about her, her husband Mike, and their wonderful and important work in Chiang Mai as American Baptist missionaries. Mike and I had corresponded briefly two years before as I inquired about their ministry, particularly their clean water projects, but had lost communication. Then to my surprise, Becky had instructions from Mike to hunt me down while she was back visiting in SoCal.<br /><br />We sat down at Starbucks and I learned about the Mann's work with Burmese refugees in Thailand, near the mountainous hills in Chiang Mai. Firstly, the Mann's teach the Burmese how to farm their land with coffee beans, which they sell direct to Starbucks in a FairTrade exchange. Secondly, the Mann's help whole villages access clean water by setting up projects, often with the aid of teams from the States, who pay for the materials and dig the trenches from the water source to the villages. Finally, the Mann's discovered that the Burmese would often send their children into the city with the promise of work, only to never see their children again, victims of human trafficking. So the Mann's began building schools in the villages so that the children could stay and get an education. The hope is that as the children graduate, the Mann's will scholarship further study at the University if these students will return to their villages to teach at least two years.<br /><br />I left that meeting amazed and inspired.<br /><br />During our conversation, I had been invited to come and see their work as part of a scouting trip, having in mind the possibility of taking a team(s) over from Epic at some point.<br /><br />Ever since, I have been in prayer about going, even sending out feelers to some of my friends to see if there is any interest in going with me.<br /><br />And then I saw the book.KEVIN DOIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06585250255089002614noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-906938326558905786.post-52843154113315694912011-03-09T23:54:00.000-08:002011-03-10T23:51:55.346-08:00Story<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-9hDH42_dLWQ/TXnUc4eoSmI/AAAAAAAAA_o/kO7hDCZmzXo/s1600/alice-in-wonderland-240x300.jpg"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 177px; height: 221px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-9hDH42_dLWQ/TXnUc4eoSmI/AAAAAAAAA_o/kO7hDCZmzXo/s320/alice-in-wonderland-240x300.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5582726805764721250" border="0" /></a>Some cool things I've read lately about story...<br /><br />"The very first thing I tell my new students on the first day of a workshop is that good writing is about telling the truth." - Anne Lamott, <span style="font-style: italic;">Bird by Bird</span><br /><br />"We were created for stories, not propositions; for drama, not bullet points." - James K.A. Smith, <span style="font-style: italic;">Who's Afraid of Postmodernism?</span><br /><br />"If I have a hope, it's that God sat over the dark nothing and wrote you and me, specifically, into the story and put us in with the sunset and the rainstorm as though to say, <span style="font-style: italic;">Enjoy your place in my story. The beauty of it means you matter, and you can create within it even as I have created you.</span>" - Donald Miller, <span style="font-style: italic;">A Million Miles in a Thousand Years</span><br /><br />"We are not outside observers, as if we were watching a movie. We stand within the landscape. We are affected by the landscape. Since we are people of faith, we can even say that we are defined by the landscape. We are also part of the view that other observers see, from their own perspective. And they too are part of the total landscape that we see. Part of the beauty of a landscape is that it draws me, the observer, into it, so that I am engulfed and in a way defined by its greatness. In the case of biblical interpretation, we are people who stand in faith, who believe that the Bible speaks to us, and who therefore are quite conscious that what we are describing is not simply a landscape "out there," but rather, something that is at the very heart of our lives. We are not speaking of the biblical text as if it were dead letter, ancient history, distant memories. We are speaking of a text in which we find ourselves, our very lives." - Justo L. Gonzalez, <span style="font-style: italic;">Santa Biblia<br /><br /></span>"The rabbit-hole went straight on like a tunnel for some way, and then dipped suddenly down, so suddenly that Alice had not a moment to stop herself before she found herself falling down a very deep well." - Lewis Carroll,<span style="font-style: italic;"><span style="font-style: italic;"> Alice in Wonderland</span><br /><br /></span>KEVIN DOIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06585250255089002614noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-906938326558905786.post-603128753244725042011-03-08T22:59:00.000-08:002011-03-09T23:23:52.178-08:00American Baptist AA Colloquium<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-xzBfF8JHkz8/TXclisCVPvI/AAAAAAAAA_Q/xAfE5wJ7SpQ/s1600/Seattle%2BGroup.jpg"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 283px; height: 189px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-xzBfF8JHkz8/TXclisCVPvI/AAAAAAAAA_Q/xAfE5wJ7SpQ/s320/Seattle%2BGroup.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5581971541015740146" border="0" /></a>Last month I had the privilege of spending a week in Seattle with a wonderful group of American Baptist pastors, all of us part of the denomination's first Asian American Colloquium. For one week each year, the AB Ministers and Missionaries Board treats us to a time of learning, community, and R&R. It is quite a treat.<br /><br />For me, it's a refreshing opportunity to get away and enjoy another city, and also to be around such a wise group of seasoned pastors. It's fun and enriching to hear their stories, to ask questions, and to glean from their experiences. I am continually amazed at what they and their churches are doing. My soul is always full by week's end.<br /><br />During this year's trip, I was struck by two "firsts" regarding my AA identity and history:<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-egQu47Kmwcs/TXclu-mSQXI/AAAAAAAAA_Y/O26b4RAU2mg/s1600/IMG_1595.JPG"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 283px; height: 213px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-egQu47Kmwcs/TXclu-mSQXI/AAAAAAAAA_Y/O26b4RAU2mg/s320/IMG_1595.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5581971752156807538" border="0" /></a>The first came on a tour of the Japanese Baptist Church of Seattle, where our colleague Paul Aita is senior pastor. As we moved from room to room we got a sense of the history of the place. When we arrived in the church's gymnasium, Paul told us the story of former senior pastor Rev. Emery Emerson, who was minister at JBC from 1929-1976, which included the years during WWII.<br /><br />As American citizens of Japanese decent were being rounded up to spend the next several years in internment camps all along the West, Rev. Emerson transformed the gym into a storage warehouse. To make ready for camp, each Japanese American family was allowed only what they could fit in a suitcase. So Pastor Emerson took masking tape and marked off 4X4 squares on the wooden floor in which Japanese American families from the community could come and leave keepsakes and possessions that they were unable to take with them. Looking at the floor, I wondered if each square contained belongings that were impractical, unnecessary, or too valuable for the unthinkable trek toward an unknown future. How difficult those decisions must have been. Yet, this small act of kindness surely brought some measure of relief knowing that what little remained of their former lives would be kept safe until their return. <br /><br />I was moved upon hearing this story for the first time. Immediately I was both proud to be a fellow AB pastor and deeply grateful for what this Anglo American Baptist pastor had done - surely not without severe dissent and criticism from the majority - to extend love and care to so many Japanese during their time of dislocation and disillusionment. Remarkable.<br /><br />The second was a reflection I had upon returning home. In the history of the American Baptists, the M&M Board has had the foresight and generosity to invest and thank pastors for their service to the Lord and to the denomination. Because of this, over 30 years ago the first colloquial was formed. Subsequently, a colloquial for pastors serving Black congregations and another for Latino churches was birthed. I am part of the first colloquial for senior pastors serving mostly Asian American churches. I was struck that although the denomination is nearly as old as our country, here I am in the 21st century still part of "a first Asian American..." On one hand, I thank my lucky stars I belong to a denomination that is attempting to include and give voice to the minority in their midst, while also realizing how far we have yet to go.KEVIN DOIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06585250255089002614noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-906938326558905786.post-77831763110047028022011-02-02T00:43:00.000-08:002011-02-02T00:47:38.403-08:00Currently Spinning<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_tNJR8QW2E9c/TUkZ8aVvoPI/AAAAAAAAA-g/0fduC1bHltQ/s1600/The-Go-Team-006.jpg"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 192px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_tNJR8QW2E9c/TUkZ8aVvoPI/AAAAAAAAA-g/0fduC1bHltQ/s320/The-Go-Team-006.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5569010939873698034" border="0" /></a><br />The Go! Team's<br />"Rolling Blackouts"KEVIN DOIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06585250255089002614noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-906938326558905786.post-75152756372981133332011-01-26T19:30:00.000-08:002011-03-10T23:57:49.518-08:00Photo ChallengeI've taken up the photo challenge for this week that Kristy proposed on her <a href="http://storyandwonder.wordpress.com/">website</a>. One of the first things I realized was that there is a lot more beauty in the world if I actively look for it. The second is that I couldn't take a photo of the many things I wanted because I was in the car driving. I realized that I spend way more time in the car than out and about on foot. That's a sad reality. I wish I lived and worked in the same place, but I don't. And I wish that I lived in a walkable city, but I don't. But that's what I love about working in Downtown Fullerton: Many weeks I get to stroll around the city, but not this week (so far). Anyway, here are my photos by day:<br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0);">Day 7, Fullerton: </span> Once a year in January, our church gets temporarily displaced from our usual worship space at Wilshire Ave. Looking to try something new, we decided this year to meet atop Hillcrest Park, in a rustic log cabin decorated prominently with a big American flag and game trophy throughout (hey, there's one behind Art our bass player!). Despite the rain and unfamiliar surroundings, we had an great time discussing and praying about what God is doing in our midst, and had a wonderful lunch together. Proving once again that church is not about a building, but about the heart of its people.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_tNJR8QW2E9c/TUX1FIVfSdI/AAAAAAAAA-Q/ZZmuY6DVKyU/s1600/Art.JPG"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 320px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_tNJR8QW2E9c/TUX1FIVfSdI/AAAAAAAAA-Q/ZZmuY6DVKyU/s320/Art.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5568125982799251922" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0);"><br /><br />Day 6, Long Beach:</span> Every wedding is lovely in its own way. This picture was taken at Dorene's co-worker's wedding reception on Saturday. However conscious the bride and groom may or may not be of God's presence, there is no union between a man and woman which does not somehow, often miraculously and beautifully, reflect the glory and image of God.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_tNJR8QW2E9c/TUXy8ZICSvI/AAAAAAAAA-I/5biQAvM2eV8/s1600/Wedding.JPG"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 320px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_tNJR8QW2E9c/TUXy8ZICSvI/AAAAAAAAA-I/5biQAvM2eV8/s320/Wedding.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5568123633664150258" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0);"><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Day 5, Fullerton: <span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">There is something to be said about a sense of place. Today, I showed a friend around town, first having lunch at Rialto Cafe down the street, then a walk over to PAS Gallery to meet Brian. It's good to be proud of the city you're a part of, good to feel the energy of it. There's been no more special place for Epic than the corner of Wilshire and Pomona. Our promised land where God has settled us.</span></span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><br /><br /></span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_tNJR8QW2E9c/TUXwchAayaI/AAAAAAAAA-A/6COGcccs7xY/s1600/Wilshire.JPG"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_tNJR8QW2E9c/TUXwchAayaI/AAAAAAAAA-A/6COGcccs7xY/s320/Wilshire.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5568120887000615330" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0);"><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Day 4, Diamond Bar:</span> I like the various meanings of this sign. The obvious one alerting motorists to children crossing. But I also like the fact that children represent hope...of what is good about the future, and the call to care and nurture these precious ones. I think about the children in our kids ministry at Epic, for instance, and smile because of all the good they will bring to the world because of their hearts, their enthusiasm, their creativity. The sign also makes me think of our JOYA Scholars too, kids who may be lacking some resources but who are nevertheless bucking all odds to get ahead, working to create a better future for themselves and their families. Maybe it's a call for all of us to heed who is ahead, to make an investment in our future by loving a child.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_tNJR8QW2E9c/TUH7dCEjHnI/AAAAAAAAA94/OUyChEQkD9I/s1600/Ahead.jpg"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_tNJR8QW2E9c/TUH7dCEjHnI/AAAAAAAAA94/OUyChEQkD9I/s320/Ahead.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5567007090597371506" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0);">Day 3, Diamond Bar: </span> The day after Obama's State of the Union address, this flag standing beside barren trees seemed an apt description of how many people feel about the state of their lives and the economy.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_tNJR8QW2E9c/TUDrRIuYuxI/AAAAAAAAA9w/yExj_1v1FE0/s1600/Flag.jpg"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_tNJR8QW2E9c/TUDrRIuYuxI/AAAAAAAAA9w/yExj_1v1FE0/s320/Flag.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5566707819062278930" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0);">Day 2, Chino Hills:</span> Rows of empty carts. It made me think of two things: 1) the hope that more people are shopping locally at farmer's markets, and 2) of all the people in countries around the world with empty stomachs.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_tNJR8QW2E9c/TUDqMos9LSI/AAAAAAAAA9o/GA93tv79g4o/s1600/Carts.JPG"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 320px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_tNJR8QW2E9c/TUDqMos9LSI/AAAAAAAAA9o/GA93tv79g4o/s320/Carts.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5566706642235239714" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0);">Day 1, Diamond Bar:</span> I took this near South Point Middle School while waiting to pick up my son. The sun was so bright shining over the canyon, a beautiful open space.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_tNJR8QW2E9c/TUDpr-5hbyI/AAAAAAAAA9g/v-0VIrMbnEs/s1600/Sun.JPG"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 320px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_tNJR8QW2E9c/TUDpr-5hbyI/AAAAAAAAA9g/v-0VIrMbnEs/s320/Sun.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5566706081257844514" border="0" /></a>KEVIN DOIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06585250255089002614noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-906938326558905786.post-50295576469391280592011-01-03T05:17:00.000-08:002011-03-10T23:53:45.295-08:00Contentment Challenge<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_tNJR8QW2E9c/TSHMfbpkqBI/AAAAAAAAA7w/W5fS8YUQ2gc/s1600/gp683781-00qlv01.jpg"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 202px; height: 270px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_tNJR8QW2E9c/TSHMfbpkqBI/AAAAAAAAA7w/W5fS8YUQ2gc/s320/gp683781-00qlv01.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5557948255522039826" border="0" /></a>So one of the challenges I've made for myself in the new year is <span style="color: rgb(51, 51, 255);">NOT to buy any new clothes or shoes for 2011</span>. I realize this might not be such a big sacrifice for some of you (say for instance, a certain P.Erin?). But if you know me, it's going to rob me of some quantifiable joy! (Sad, I know.) It's part of an attempt to live more frugally and save money where I can, but mostly part of a conviction that has grown out of something I preached recently from 1 Timothy 6:6-8<br /><br /><span style="display: block; text-align: left; text-indent: 2em;"><span class="sup " style="font-size:66%;">1Ti 6:6</span> But godliness with contentment is great gain. <span class="sup " style="font-size:66%;">7</span> For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it. <span class="sup " style="font-size:66%;">8</span> But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that. </span><br />A life structured around Jesus + contentment = great gain in things that matter; where "contentment" equals food and clothing.<br /><br />I need to learn contentment. And the Apostle Paul says if you have food and clothing, that is enough. In my mind, that's hardly anything. But I suppose that's the point. I have so much already. Clothes and then some. So I'm up for the challenge.<br /><br />One thing I can say is that I live consistently by the one-year rule: If I don't wear something within a year, I get rid of it, donate it. I had practiced the one-year rule after Christmas and cleaned out my closet prior to making this commitment, so my wardrobe is lean and mean, by my standards anyway. But even with that, the real truth is I still have plenty to wear for the year. It won't be easy, but I'll have to be content with that.<br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(51, 51, 255);">Anyone have their own contentment challenge? Anyone want to join me in a clothing fast for 2011?</span>KEVIN DOIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06585250255089002614noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-906938326558905786.post-13823882327464670882011-01-03T04:50:00.000-08:002011-03-10T23:58:47.185-08:00Wish List<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_tNJR8QW2E9c/TSHJJgTja-I/AAAAAAAAA7o/rzxEF9A0lDE/s1600/25.jpg"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 225px; height: 225px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_tNJR8QW2E9c/TSHJJgTja-I/AAAAAAAAA7o/rzxEF9A0lDE/s320/25.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5557944580279856098" border="0" /></a>Here's an uplifting way to start the New Year. I'm not yet 50, but P.Ken of Evergreen Baptist Church posted a link of this Huffington Post article on his Facebook page: <span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 0);">"</span><a style="color: rgb(51, 51, 255);" href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/rev-james-martin-sj/12-things-i-wish-i-knew-a_b_802687.html">12 Things I Wish I Knew at 25: Spiritual Learnings on My 5oth Birthday</a><span style="color: rgb(51, 51, 255);">"</span> by Rev. James Martin, a Catholic priest and author. Not sure why 12, but it's a really good dozen, and worth repeating and sharing if you haven't come across it already. Read it at any age since these lessons come hard, but especially if you're 25.<br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(51, 51, 255);">Anyone 50+ or pushing 50, what would you add to the list? Share your wisdom with us!</span>KEVIN DOIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06585250255089002614noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-906938326558905786.post-91705434735398418272010-12-30T01:07:00.000-08:002010-12-30T01:21:12.309-08:0010 That Made Life Sound Better In 2010<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_tNJR8QW2E9c/TRxOOTIqZ3I/AAAAAAAAA7g/yvYD6wG_6FU/s1600/Kanye-West-My-Beautiful-Dark-Twisted-Fantasy-Art-2-500x500-thumb-580x580-246873.jpeg"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 320px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_tNJR8QW2E9c/TRxOOTIqZ3I/AAAAAAAAA7g/yvYD6wG_6FU/s320/Kanye-West-My-Beautiful-Dark-Twisted-Fantasy-Art-2-500x500-thumb-580x580-246873.jpeg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5556402047830091634" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_tNJR8QW2E9c/TRxNvT9k-FI/AAAAAAAAA7Q/hwjcW0mGi0E/s1600/The%2BArchAndroid.jpg"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 320px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_tNJR8QW2E9c/TRxNvT9k-FI/AAAAAAAAA7Q/hwjcW0mGi0E/s320/The%2BArchAndroid.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5556401515476088914" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_tNJR8QW2E9c/TRxNnEvHVwI/AAAAAAAAA7I/hea7KAge4CU/s1600/mini.jpg"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 319px; height: 320px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_tNJR8QW2E9c/TRxNnEvHVwI/AAAAAAAAA7I/hea7KAge4CU/s320/mini.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5556401373949941506" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_tNJR8QW2E9c/TRxNgOjyKyI/AAAAAAAAA7A/3tYJ2GfI6S0/s1600/The%2BSea.jpg"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 320px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_tNJR8QW2E9c/TRxNgOjyKyI/AAAAAAAAA7A/3tYJ2GfI6S0/s320/The%2BSea.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5556401256327686946" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_tNJR8QW2E9c/TRxNSl35x4I/AAAAAAAAA64/s_dpKf8bOrI/s1600/Volume%2BTwo.jpg"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 320px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_tNJR8QW2E9c/TRxNSl35x4I/AAAAAAAAA64/s_dpKf8bOrI/s320/Volume%2BTwo.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5556401022067918722" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_tNJR8QW2E9c/TRxNGJ11qrI/AAAAAAAAA6w/h7Bo4C7AnbA/s1600/Plastic%2BBeach.jpg"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 320px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_tNJR8QW2E9c/TRxNGJ11qrI/AAAAAAAAA6w/h7Bo4C7AnbA/s320/Plastic%2BBeach.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5556400808384637618" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_tNJR8QW2E9c/TRxM0XuyocI/AAAAAAAAA6o/0M1hUGoJrCQ/s1600/Authenticity.jpg"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 320px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_tNJR8QW2E9c/TRxM0XuyocI/AAAAAAAAA6o/0M1hUGoJrCQ/s320/Authenticity.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5556400502875529666" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_tNJR8QW2E9c/TRxMojxHiEI/AAAAAAAAA6g/MgyvPFT6OSo/s1600/Lungs.jpg"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 320px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_tNJR8QW2E9c/TRxMojxHiEI/AAAAAAAAA6g/MgyvPFT6OSo/s320/Lungs.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5556400299948083266" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_tNJR8QW2E9c/TRxMXtgwCiI/AAAAAAAAA6Y/bmqpEvgjibs/s1600/Crazy%2Bfor%2BYou.jpg"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 320px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_tNJR8QW2E9c/TRxMXtgwCiI/AAAAAAAAA6Y/bmqpEvgjibs/s320/Crazy%2Bfor%2BYou.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5556400010506013218" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_tNJR8QW2E9c/TRxMLWe0VRI/AAAAAAAAA6Q/oMgw893VegE/s1600/Causers%2Bof%2BThis%2B%2528Bonus%2BTrack%2BVersion%2529.jpg"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 320px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_tNJR8QW2E9c/TRxMLWe0VRI/AAAAAAAAA6Q/oMgw893VegE/s320/Causers%2Bof%2BThis%2B%2528Bonus%2BTrack%2BVersion%2529.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5556399798165460242" border="0" /></a>KEVIN DOIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06585250255089002614noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-906938326558905786.post-89606395275203478752010-12-21T22:35:00.000-08:002010-12-21T23:11:03.458-08:00<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_tNJR8QW2E9c/TRGcdTopmrI/AAAAAAAAA6E/_pxeKQL8zAc/s1600/TRON_LEGACY_poster_1.jpg"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 274px; height: 400px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_tNJR8QW2E9c/TRGcdTopmrI/AAAAAAAAA6E/_pxeKQL8zAc/s400/TRON_LEGACY_poster_1.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5553391842825444018" border="0" /></a>Don't get a chance to see many movies in the theater, but saw Tron Legacy with the kids today. Considering I fell asleep during the original Tron (what 20-25 years ago? as second of a double feature with Blade Runner), this was a better movie than I expected, and actually a pretty good film. There were a couple of theological thoughts I had while watching:<br /><br />1) Why is it that every<span style="color: rgb(102, 102, 204);"> </span><span style="color: rgb(102, 102, 204);">"futuristic"</span><span style="color: rgb(102, 102, 204);"> </span>vision looks more apocalyptic, sterile, minimalist, and monochromatic than our current reality? Why doesn't our future look more human, not less? When I think of the trajectory of scripture, we are to be more like the nth century church than the 1st century church, with the future breaking into the present making us a new humanity. The question is, Does the church create a more promising and colorful future, or a more boring and monochromatic one? <br /><br />2) The main message of the film, I thought, was that <span style="color: rgb(102, 102, 204);">perfection is ruthless</span>, where perfection is the absence of mess, chaos, and what is ultimately human. It is perfection in a cold, steely, clinical sense - and ultimately dehumanizing. What to make of Jesus call then to "be perfect as our heavenly Father is perfect"? Jesus' call is not to perfection as our ruthless and merciless accuser, but as call to a higher love, where perfection is the expression of love for that which is precisely imperfect - that is us. It is a radical call to relationship, a call to embrace all that is imperfect in the arms of grace.KEVIN DOIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06585250255089002614noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-906938326558905786.post-69935235208675700212010-12-17T17:19:00.001-08:002010-12-17T17:29:59.263-08:00Currently Reading<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_tNJR8QW2E9c/TQwM0RE_orI/AAAAAAAAA58/RWcxrpK1Fho/s1600/Santa%2BBiblia.jpg"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 134px; height: 200px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_tNJR8QW2E9c/TQwM0RE_orI/AAAAAAAAA58/RWcxrpK1Fho/s200/Santa%2BBiblia.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5551826532718060210" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_tNJR8QW2E9c/TQwMgJ655jI/AAAAAAAAA5s/jeV5NzjITXM/s1600/Freedom.jpg"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 134px; height: 200px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_tNJR8QW2E9c/TQwMgJ655jI/AAAAAAAAA5s/jeV5NzjITXM/s200/Freedom.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5551826187199309362" border="0" /></a>In many ways, these two outstanding books could not be more different - one from an important Latino theologian, the other from a National Book award winner in fiction. But both are similar in one respect - they are about hermeneutics, about interpretation, about the dissection of culture. Santa Biblia about the topics of poverty and marginalization from a Latino-Christian perspective, Freedom about those same topics from the context of suburban malaise and loneliness, from the absurdity of contemporary life.KEVIN DOIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06585250255089002614noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-906938326558905786.post-90885460284240600902010-12-17T16:51:00.000-08:002010-12-17T17:04:16.144-08:00Pics From JOYA Benefit with Clara C<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_tNJR8QW2E9c/TQwGQb12f9I/AAAAAAAAA5k/qt5hz0iUQh0/s1600/IMG_1445.JPG"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_tNJR8QW2E9c/TQwGQb12f9I/AAAAAAAAA5k/qt5hz0iUQh0/s200/IMG_1445.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5551819320062279634" border="0" /></a>Thanks to Clara for an amazing show and for being so great to JOYA! Some of our students got to meet Clara backstage, where they were greeted with words of affirmation and encouragement for pursuing their education. Such a wonderful evening...thanks to everyone for coming out to support our students and our program!<br /><br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_tNJR8QW2E9c/TQwGI41hq4I/AAAAAAAAA5c/tO6vZmnvyIc/s1600/IMG_0643.JPG"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_tNJR8QW2E9c/TQwGI41hq4I/AAAAAAAAA5c/tO6vZmnvyIc/s200/IMG_0643.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5551819190406589314" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_tNJR8QW2E9c/TQwF4UhsMpI/AAAAAAAAA5U/DQU2z7e8gGw/s1600/IMG_0637.JPG"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_tNJR8QW2E9c/TQwF4UhsMpI/AAAAAAAAA5U/DQU2z7e8gGw/s200/IMG_0637.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5551818905781809810" border="0" /></a>KEVIN DOIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06585250255089002614noreply@blogger.com0