The Magic of The Kingdom

Disney World, what can you say? Love it or hate it one has to concede to the sheer brilliance of it all, it is without a doubt a demonstrative witness to the creativity audacity on the part of those who Walt himself dubbed, “Imagineers”. They are the masters of making “seem” real those things which are not. (emphasis mine).

From the minute you make contact with Disney (Inc.) either by internet or mail they’re totally into the business of doing business. Everything you need to get there, everything you need to get from here to there once you are there, is taken care of and of course getting you back home again is just as easy. Your greeting at the airport, transportation to your resort, shuttles from park to park or how you are treated by Milly, the lady who wipes down the tables on the outdoor patio is all consistently Disney. And if you ask them, they love working for Disney and some have easily been there beyond twenty years.

A fascinating thing to observe is the tourists (guests, as Disney calls them), maybe it’s just me looking to see the cup being half full but people seem to be having a good time, even with each other! There’s no shoving, crowding, or impatience with one another, they’re polite in spite of the fact that it can get a little crowded at times plus the fact that each has his or her eyes fixed towards that much anticipated experience be it Thunder Mountain Railroad, Expedition Everest, or Pirates of the Caribbean. The atmosphere is enjoyable, now I’m not saying everyone is melodically strolling through the park holding hands singing “It’s a Small World” (because if you do people start to stare and your wife manages to lose you in the crowd) but engagement in conversation with others is relatively easy. This is true of being IN the Kingdom, how you’re greeted or treated by people in the airport who may have just come from the “Happiest Place On Earth” can be all together different, getting down the jet way and to that coveted overhead compartment takes on a whole different social value.
Another neat thing to observe is the way Disney has “figured us out”, they really have. They are the masters of getting us to “believe”, to buy in, to act in agreement with the world they have created all within an encapsulated period of time. They know how to literally “take us for a ride” and transform us into true converts of the experience. It’s amazing how many adults are wearing flashing LED Mickey ears, stripped hats with Goofy ears flopping down to their shoulders or Pirate of The Caribbean bandanas tied around their heads.
Presentation is the key to their success, from the moment you step onto the property everything is intended to engage your senses especially sight and sound. The facade is the biggest grab, Space Mountain, Tower of Terror, Indiana Jones Adventure, Test Track, you name it you can see them at a distance and as you draw nearer the attraction the sidewalks, trees, ropes, and costumes worn by the “cast members”, are designed around the theme, even the trash cans all take on the “effect” of what’s to come, everything creates anticipation. The closer you get the less they let you see of the “outside”, “forgetting what lies behind and looking forward to what lies ahead” Total immersion, everything is about the attraction, truth has now become a space launch, a jungle safari, a dusty haunted hotel or imaginary flight. Let’s call this the draw, if the draw or theme of the ride is a space launch everything the Imagineers can possibly have thought of to cause people to “believe” that a real space launch is happening is thrown at you. Walls, floors, sounds, air temperature, stairs, ramps, steam, colors, text, signs, you name it, all is totally focused on the “truth of the draw”. One thing Walt did different at Disney World than at Disney Land was to build an underground area which allows anything and everything to be moved from one part of the park to another without being seen by the guests. He did this because one day he saw a cast member of Frontier Land walking through Tomorrow Land in order to get to his assigned post, Walt felt it totally destroyed the “experience” of Tomorrow Land and thus designed Walt Disney World in such a way as to eliminate this distraction. Nothing is allowed in the presenting of the kingdom which would cause us to be distracted from what they want us to perceive as being true.
All this, and more than I can blog at this time, has caused Disney World to be the most popular tourist destination on the planet followed by the Bahai Lotus Temple in India (who’s mantra of the perfect world isn’t that much different from Disney’s).

NEXT………. IT’ ABOUT THE KINGDOM

A Band of Brothers? (*see disclaimer)

* I just had my fiftieth birthday and had a chance to sit around the table with our kids for dinner. I love having everyone together at the table. I had a chance a once again to let our kids and our son-in-laws know how much I love and appreciate all of them. One thing I’ve come to learn after half a century is that good, solid, honest relationships rarely happen outside of family, aside from my wife and kids I have to say there are a modest amount of people I would consider really good relationships. (Interesting thing most non-christians are more likely to give of themselves in a relationship looked upon as being a “good friend” than most christians).
When we sit around the table as a family I lean more towards being quiet, really, I love to listen and take in the banter. It’s not that I don’t have anything to say but I listen to what’s being said and use that time to gain insight into “where they are”. I get to see maturity happen, and the way they get tighter with each other as the years pass. At the table nothing is off limits, you can say whatever you want, it allows honesty to happen. Just because mom and dad are there doesn’t mean you can’t have an opinion, I’m not the leader or the pastor, I’m the patriarch. I don’t make everyone follow MY vision, they can disagree with me on an issue and I’ll still ask them to sit at the table where I can guide and direct them in the ways of Christ, I do everything I can to help them be successful in their independence from me and stronger in their dependence upon Christ. I desire them to live a fruitful, joyful life “out the door” if you will, beyond the limited parameters of what I have and can offer. But of course I want them to come back for more, not because they’re dependent upon me but because they like being in the presence of their father. (now when I say this I’m speaking inclusive of my wife because we do everything I have mentioned together.) There’s a devotion that holds it together.
Jesus enjoyed this kind of setting as well and got a lot of teaching done “around the table” during dinners.
Jesus was also interested in another aspect of family as a teacher and leader, he had huge numbers of people following him from various areas of the regions he preached in. Some were of the curious crowd, some were devotes as a result of having been healed by him in one manner or another, regardless of their devotion to following him all were recent converts (if you will) Oddly enough there is one thing Jesus continued to do, he progressively made it harder for those who were following to do just that, follow him. He publicly demanded that those who were “along for the ride” must be totally devoted to him, or they could have no part in him. I’m talking some really hard stuff. As a result many turned away and discontinued their pursuit of “dinner and a show”. He was constantly thinning the increasing crowd down to those who really “meant it” not allowing the crowd to get bigger just for the sake of a big crowd. He was looking for devotion.

It’s interesting how past successful military leaders would spend time with their troops, they got to know them on a personal level. The reason they did this, I believe, was so they WOULD be better leaders. When you “see” those entrusted to your care on a personal level you “war” smarter, by this I mean you make a conscious effort to do things a certain way in order to suffer the least number of losses among your troops, to get them all home safely. The impersonal leader throws men at a cause like so much water to a fire for no better reason than gaining the recognition and credit as the one who was able to extinguish the flames. I see the latter all to often in the circle of christian “fellowship”. Even within the last week a senior pastor and part of his leadership team gave little or no consideration to one of their own troops for the sake of winning the numbers war, commonly referred to as “the ministry”.
Our son was asked to head up the worship of a saturday night service at a local church here in West Salem, it was a new thing, something “cutting edge”, geared towards the younger college age demographic. The leadership met with him and told him he was “their answer to prayer” and that they “recognized his gifting” in worship. The senior pastor referred to him as a “blue chip” and wanted to encourage him to “do what ever he wanted to in the area of worship” and that he had a “blank check”. Now I know where our son’s heart is when it comes to serving God in the area of worship, and we talked about what he wanted to do with his blank check. Our son has spent the last seven years in YWAM and I know how they do worship, I told him not to believe for one minute they were going to let him do worship on that honest and intimate of a level, it would eventually come down to “program”, and in program there’s no room for an honest expression of worship focused directly toward God, which was the way he was intending to do it. Program is focused around the preaching of the word by the senior pastor. Well it only took about two months but this week they called him in to “let him go”. (actually it was just the associate pastor not the senior pastor who had spoken the “blue chip” stuff) He stated that the kind of worship our son was doing wasn’t something the people they were trying to reach could understand. Not that it wasn’t good but it just didn’t work with the vision or the direction they were going as a CHURCH in making the church service a comfortable environment for reaching out to the non believer, they might feel uncomfortable, nor did they think the infant Christian was mature enough to get it. So the soldier was asked to “stand down” from honoring God in the midst of a corporate gathering for the sake and honor of those in attendance. Turns out they wanted a song leader not a worship leader.
Seems these day it isn’t polite to offend people with the public adoration and affection of God when the “saints” gather in the name of Jesus. I know of at least three different ways people are drawn to God, there are more in scripture but I’ll mention three:

1. Proclamation
2. The love of the saints one for another
3. The witness made to the unbeliever in the midst of the corporate worship of God by the saints

It’s okay to offer someone salvation, you know, getting them to accept Jesus by raising their hands in total anonymity, “no one will see you do it because we’re going to ask everybody to bow their heads and close their eyes”, wouldn’t want to let the saints see something as private and personal as this, it might embarrass you or make you uncomfortable”. Once you’re saved we’ll see to it no one makes you feel uncomfortable by having to publicly praise the One who gave you the gift you just received, the One who loved you enough to nail His pulverized, naked Son to a freak’n tree in a public execution!
(I can just see the apostle Paul trying that one in the midst of an angry mob, “Now I know we’re all just a little weird with this and some of you are afraid of getting clubbed to death with the decision I’m going to ask you to make, so I’m going to ask everyone here to bow your heads …..”)

Some where in this fellowship God has been compromised for the sake of accommodating the lost, allowing impersonal leadership to justif that the program they’ve developed for reaching the lost is what’s important and that one soldier is expendable for the sake of winning the war of numbers. He says to himself, “I can afford to loose one of our own for the sake of gaining ten in attendance”. This is a critical calculation especially if you’re trying to fund a multi-million dollar facility. Trust me numbers matter.

So it’s business as usual, just so long as no one’s uncomfortable with it, after all, we’ve got a war to win.

So we meet around the table again this week as a family, stories will be shared, encouragement and love for on another will be freely given, and because of it trust in God and in one another will be rooted even deeper. For God is their focus and they know that He alone is their hope their life and their breath and that dad will NEVER keep them from praising Him when we gather as family.

Church Building Site

Memo from leadership:
We are pleased to announce a piece of property has been selected upon which the church will be built, it’s not a large piece of property but from it the church can be expanded at any time. It’s conveniently located just outside the city limits. and although it isn’t easy to see a first anyone can find it if lead in the right direction.
We don’t really don’t know for sure what the finished church will eventually look like at this time but the ground has already been prepared, leveled and cleared by the owner with the foundation and initial framework already established.
The good news is it’s being offered to us for free, however, to have and maintain it will require a huge sacrifice by everyone who is and wants to be a part of this fellowship.
Everyone must visit this place at least once and claim it in the name of Jesus.
From here we believe lives will be transformed and that people will receive healing, deliverance and wholeness as well as wisdom, knowledge, maturity, teaching, gifting, and revelation,
We believe this is the place from which the world can be reached and people from every nation, tribe and tongue will be drawn.
We believe we’ve heard from God and that we must move forward in this call as a people.

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Fly Paper

There are some things in life I have a hard time trying to understand. Maybe others have a better grasp on these things and that’s cool but still, things pop up from time to time that make me walk around with a question mark over my head most of the day.

Why is it a few thousand people can spend 35 – 75 dollars to listen to a comedian at a concert make fun of everyones ethnicity and that’s funny, but share excerpts from that same show around the water cooler and that’s enough to get fired.

Why is it you can get a ticket for honking your horn at another motorist for being an “aggressive driver” but baseball players can be spitting sunflower seeds in the dugout one minute and the next they’re running out on the field after a stray pitch and start throwing punches at players on the other team in front of seventeen thousand witnesses and no one gets arrested or fined for assault?

A basketball player throws a punch at another player and not only does he get fined but is suspended for three games.

Why is it the Rev Al Sharpton seems it’s his business to fly to California to speak personally with the sheriff who let Paris Hilton out of jail for one day? He already set Imus straight after his fifteen minutes of fame, what ever happened to Dr. Phil?

As a matter of fact why is it the REVEREND Al Sharpton when he has the microphones and cameras from every major network shoved in front of his face never takes the opportunity to speak of Christ, repentance, or salvation?

While were at it why doesn’t Al …… SHUT UP!?

click frog

The Company of Coffee Beings

I really like the public gathering place, I can remember sitting with my dad and grandfather at a tiny cafe near our state fairgrounds on a saturday morning (every day was the norm for my grandfather). People would talk, share news and make plans for the day over a cup of translucent thirty weight oil passed off as coffee served up in a weighty off white ceramic mug. The waitress was slightly mouthy and had a pleasant yet derogatory greeting for most of the regulars as they slid into “their” booth. Ordering of the usual was done with a slight lift of the index finger towards the counter accompanied by a subtle nod of the head, the waitress would acknowledge the request by scratching it on a small pad of paper, placing it on the metal merry-go-round thing and then holler something totally undecipherable to the cook .
I loved sipping my hot chocolate while listening to adults hang out, there was something cool about it but I didn’t know quite what, I finally figured it out years later and it’s what I love even today; a group of people who may not really know each other, hanging out being friends (or at least sociable).
Before I started doing the corporate Starbucks thing I would arrive at 6 am very morning at a little pancake cafe sit in “my spot” have a cup of “real coffee” and converse with people sitting across in the next booth or with the waitress who would occasionally call you “hun”. People were free to pick up their cup of coffee and join someone else at their table depending on the flow of the conversation. Ideas were shared, friendships were developed and sometimes we would help each other with things outside the cafe we shared in the wee hours of the morning. I might help someone on their home or someone may come and help me with mine. Everybody shared who they were with the rest. My wife and I were in Florida recently, I was sitting at a table outside a dinning area waiting for my wife to return from inside, there was a man sitting at the table next to us and he was having a conversation with his wife who he was handing some money to, after she walked off I leaned towards him and commented on how fast money can go on vacation. That was all it took, by the time our wives returned the two of us were in a friendly conversation and each introduced our wives to the other. The four of us spent the next few hours talking until it was to dark to see. They were from Liverpool England, I proved how inept I was at geography by trying to guess where Liverpool was in relationship to the rest of Britain, they had a good laugh over the whole thing. We saw them the next evening and again enjoyed wonderful conversation which led to them inquiring about how we became “religious”, my wife did a wonderful job of sharing our love for Christ and at the end of the evening they gave us their email address, a hug, and a kiss on the cheek. (it’s what Brits do with friends). Now I have to say it would be cool to spend some time with them hanging out in a pub in Liverpool downing a few pints with their “mates” and I just had to ask him, “Do you guys drink your beer warm?” “Are you kidding? It’s cold or not at all!” “Whew!”
I enjoy the people I meet in certain social settings. Those who are normally limited to being nothing more than background noise intruding through the earbuds of your iPod can become acquaintances who add a warm friendly greeting upon arrival at the coffee shop. The extra chair is always available to pull up and sit in and the conversation is easy and friendly.

My Mutts Muzzle

The other day I set out to find a muzzle for our dog, we want to keep him out on the deck during the day but after a conversation with our neighbor we discovered that he tends to bark during the day (the dog). Not good, I hate barking dogs and I sure don’t want to subject our neighbors to that. So my first stop was Wal-Mart it was right next to where I was at the time, no luck, tons of leashes, harnesses and collars but no muzzles. So I realized I wasn’t far from the local humane society (dog shelter). I walked in and took a quick look around not realizing I was standing right in front of a supply shop for pets. A lady approached me and politely asked me if she could help me find something (she had a real cute little society tag on) I said I was looking for a muzzle for my dog.

“Oh!?”, she said.

It wasn’t just a simple Oh, it was one of THOSE kind of Ohs, the kind that everyone in the room suddenly becomes aware of. This OH meant, “he’s looking for a MUZZLE to put on his DOG!”
“We don’t sell muzzles here” she said in a tone much like you would hear if you had asked for a pack of cigarets at a convent.
She wanted to know why I wanted the muzzle, “was the dog vicious?”
“No, he pees in the house so I want to keep him out on the deck during the day but he barks so I want to keep him from doing that.”
“Well there ARE better things to do than putting a muzzle on him, here” She hands me a business card.
“What’s this?”
“It’s a lady who does behavior modification”
“It’s a dog. An OLD dog” Thinking she had surely heard the old saying that you can’t teach one of THEM new tricks.
“Well there is a product you can have him wear, now it’s not a shock collar, that’s inhumane, but it works like one, when he barks it sprays lemon scent, dogs don’t like that.”

“It’s a dog”

“Well it’s not good to put a muzzle on a dog it’s just not a humane way to treat them”
? ! ?? !
“Look, my dog isn’t a humane so I can’t possibly treat him in an inhumane manner. Okay? Trust me I’ve seen what inhumane looks like and it ain’t the way we treat our pets it’s the way we treat people”
What did I really want to say?
“Look, my dog is pissing in my living room making my house stink and I figured I would put a muzzle on him rather than shooting him with a rifle and stuffing him into the garbage can!”
I figured the mom with her little kids looking at kitty scratch posts wouldn’t want to deal with that kind of vision in their heads.

“Well you might try a farm and feed store”

I left and headed down the road to the local feed and farm store. I love those guys. You walk in and are greeted by country music the smell of horse feed and leather boots. A young kid in Wranglers and a big belt buckle saunters on over and asks if he can help me find something. I tell him I’m looking for a muzzle for my dog. He takes me down an aisle with what had to have been MUZZLE MECCA. Yeah, baby! THIS, is what I’m talking about! They had muzzles for every size and shape of dog. I thought wow! I could buy Christmas presents for at least three of my neighbors here!
I wanted to jump in the middle of them like a pile of money have my picture taken and send it to the lady at the HUMANE society.
My dog? Right now he’s adjusting to the inhumane treatment of having to wear his new muzzle sleeping quietly in his bed next to our couch.

Starbucks: “Beatle and Beans”

A few weeks ago I saw a poster at my local Starbucks stores promoting Paul McCartney (Sir Paul if you love the Queen Mum) I thought it was for an upcoming concert but actually it was for the release of his newest solo CD. “Memory Almost Full” What I didn’t realize is that it was a new venture for Starbucks, seems they’ve started their own record label and Paul just happens to be their first featrued artist in this new venture.
Yeah! Starbucks and Paul McCartney! Great combination! Or so one would think.
I was in Starbucks today and what were they playing? You guessed right, Paul’s new CD!
Uuugghh!
What a waste of time! It was terrible! I’m not saying I gave it a good earfull of my attention but from what I managed to hear I pitty the poor green apron gang having to listen to that all day! I doubt it will sell well. I just hope they don’t plan to feature it for very long, if not I can at least find deliverance between the earbuds of my iPod.
(I did managed to snag a few of their new Starbucks cards, the new ones have Paul on them, I figured if nothing else they might become collectible.)

“Tithe Shares” … and other stuff that could work.

The more I am out and about the more I see and hear evidence to support my biggest pet peeve.
While in California a few weeks ago I was talking with a lady about the opportunities within her local fellowship for people to go and do things in other countries for the poor.
She said, “They didn’t have things like that available at their church because they didn’t have the money“.
I said, “Really?“
Again she responded, “Yes“
Now this is in light of the fact that her fellowship is in the middle of remodeling their sanctuary at a cost of just over 1.5 million dollars (figure 1.75 – 2 by the time it’s all said and done)

While in Florida I was watching christian television, (let me take that back) “Religious Broadcasting”, (there that’s better) I was listening to a black pastor spewing forth the vision the Lord had given him about raising up 350 thousand dollars for a mighty work of God, at first he didn’t say what for, eventually he got to the point and it was for the beginning stages of a new building.

“We have to have the faith that God is going to do this great work among us!!!”
“Do you believe with me that God is able to do this!!??”
“Come on now!!!
“Lord have Merceeeeyah!!”
“I do believe He will do this!!!!”
“We are not going to let the devil have a hand in this and keep us from doing this are we?!!”
“Come on now!!”
“Hhmm! Hhmm! Hhmm!“
(at this point imagine him strutting across stage, stopping, bending down towards congregation, placing one hand on pulpit, stomping left foot on the floor a few times, shaking his head and wiping his brow.)

For some reason, which I have yet to figure out, Christians have managed to equate their ability to build a building as some kind of a testament to the world that God is able to do “great things among us”. I worked for a manufactured housing company for eleven years and we cranked out a home every ninety minutes but I never really considered it to be a witness to the world that Christ is who He said He was. I imagine if this were really all that important Jesus would have taught the kingdom of God “and” carpentry to his disciples; The parable of “The Trinity and the t-square”, but he didn’t.

Ok let’s stop the madness and get to a more realistic venture. Just a few thoughts on profits and property. Let’s set the statistical fact, the church spends 97 percent of every dollar tithed (or donated) on itself, true. The greatest amount going towards staff salaries and the mortgage on the building. So much money goes into buildings, we literally build them right next to each other and the faithful are asked to give more and more to support structures which are used for about ten hours a week. Ever calculate the per hour price on that one?
Here’s a few ideas that might be a little more realistic.

Rather than spending 1 to 2 million dollars on a building (plus interest) why not take that money and open businesses. Why not invest in a Dutch Brothers franchise and after a year or so we would have a return on our investment and it would become a “tither” itself. Heck it it’s successful open two more! Let’s say they net 50 – 75k a year, all from people who don’t even go to church! How about a hotel or motel with a large conference center which could double as a sanctuary on the weekends? If a church member losses his or her job they can find temporary employment during that rough time at one of the many church owned businesses. It would also be an opportunity to teach young people good solid business skills.

Here’s a thought; Let’s say a person attends a local fellowship and is asked to give money towards a new mega building supported of course by increased tithing (which happens all the time). Let’s also say a person attends this fellowship for ten years or so then things go south or the “vision” changes to a direction which isn’t agreed upon my said member. How many people do you know who put money into a property do so without wanting some sort of vested interest in it? Really?!
If a church builds a multi million dollar building on the shoulders of certain people and those people after a few years “sift” away to other fellowships and others after a few more years, who looses?
The “church” still has a multi-million dollar building but those who invested in it for ten years walk away with nothing. That’s not good business. I propose “Tithe Shares”. Yes, Tithe Shares, when a building is going to be built each person is able to buy into the property for so much a share. That way it’s owned by those who have a vested interest in it. Hey, if I throw a bunch of money towards a building why should someone else own it, let’s say a denomination? Heck, if the denomination wanted to build it in the first place why did they ask me to fund it? A bank would never go for that kind of deal, “give us the money but you don’t own it“?
Yeah right!
Tithe shares would always ensure that I as a member of a local church fellowship would have a vested interest in the property. Figure if down the road I decide to go onto another fellowship, I can sell my Tithe Share in this particular fellowship (at its current appreciated value) on E-bay or Craig’s List to someone who wants to join a church in my area:

For Sale: Tithe Share with ten years of vested interest in a main stream denomination in the Salem, Oregon area. Nice newly remodeled sanctuary, wonderful worship with great sound system, overhead projection screens and plush chairs. Action packed youth group with plenty of things for the kids to be involved in plus a no host espresso bar offered before and in between each service.
Preacher is light hearted and humorous always makes me feel good about myself and rarely challenges me to do anything beyond the Sunday morning experience.

The potential buyer could take a Sunday to come visit and if they like what they see a deal is struck and it’s sold! I then take my money invest it in either another fellowship or a new motorcycle. It’s my choice.

Changes in Latitudes Changes In ……

I’ve been gone for a little over a week checking out the turf of Orlando Florida. Needless to say it’s very flat. VERY flat!
I love tropical though, I really do. I made one mistake though, while gone I failed to have a margarita, dang! Sorry Jimmy.
I will soon be offering up more liberal offerings of all that’s conservative in a few days, soon as I have a chance to mentally digest the brilliance behind the meca called Disney.
Where’s my salt?