CNN Heard Me?

In my last post, I wrote about CNN's breathless promise to deliver the Democratic National Convention Live!, Unfiltered! and Gavel to Gavel! I also noted that they promptly began to break that promise by breaking in, filtering out speakers on the platform, and using their political analysts to opine in real time what the Democrats should be doing as opposed to what they were actually doing on the platform.

Apparently CNN read my blog.

I have carefully noted (to myself) for the past three days that these Live! and Unfiltered! graphics are no longer on the screen. Nothing else has changed about the broadcast except this aspect. The commentators are adding their views and not all the speakers on the platform are being heard for their full speeches.

CNN has more money and influence than I do. It can certainly do as it wishes. Just do what what you say you are going to do. Now they are.

Did CNN hear me?

CNN Is A.D.D

When i returned this evening from a night out on church visitation- on my birthday, no less!- the Democratic Convention was LIVE! on my television. A graphic on the screen proclaimed that the speeches from the floor would be Live!, Unfiltered!, and Gavel to Gavel!

"At last," I thought, "A gavel to gavel convention with just the facts." As Sen. Ted Kennedy took the platform to speak and as he spoke, CNN did just as it promised. It broadcast his speech Live! and Unfiltered! The evening was promising.


However, it didn't take long for the network to shift its focus and exercise Attention Deficit Disorder. After the senator from Massachusetts spoke, others also took the platform to make their speeches. All of a sudden, the expert commentators at CNN began to speak out and criticize the choice of speakers and the message of the convention. A couple of them complained about Jim Leach's speech. All of this was done with the commentators' sound bites drowning out the speaker.

The panel of commentators then offered their suggestions for what the Democrats should be doing on prime time television. Everybody is an expert on somebody else's business these days, it seems.

Not only that, but CNN took the liberty to cut away and show commercials and promos, something that interloped between the promised gavel to gavel bookend coverage.

So what CNN did was the exact opposite of what the graphic promised. Live? Yes. Unfiltered? No, as long as commentators "filter" what is being said on the floor. Gavel to gavel? No, as long the network breaks away for commercials.

Oh well. Two out of three ain't bad.

Singin' With The Perrys

I've hosted, attended, and watched Southern Gospel music concerts too numerous to mention. Sometimes I was thrilled, other times moved, and occasionally bored. I am now blogging, having just turned the lights off at the church after hosting the Perrys. This concert came with only about three weeks notice and only because the original host had a fire in their building.

Well, the fire was burning tonight. It's been a long time since I've hosted a concert here with the crowd clapping, standing, and raising hands like this one did. It was an outstanding concert. The program was just right and the Perrys sang their hearts out.

But what I appreciate most is their spirit. After the concert, I did an interview with them for my radio show. I asked them about being plugged into a local church and how it has benefited their ministry. They told me how they had actually moved in order to be a part of a church in the Nashville, TN area. Bass singer Tracy Stuffle and his son attend a Bible study there each Tuesday morning at 6:00 am. The Perrys have a deep commitment to the ministry of song and to the propagation of the Word. It shows- it shows in their music and in their attitude. They are not up there to thrill the audience with how high the tenor can sing or how low the bass can go. They are there to minister.

Libbi Stuffle told me how important it was for them to be grounded in the word. Some would suggest that singing gospel music got you in church several days a week. Not so, says Libbi. You've got to be grounded in God's word. I admire that attitude.

No wonder they are considered by many to be the best mixed quartet in the business. Talent they have, but commitment to ministry is their greatest asset.

Time To Run

With a nod to the Olympics, I offer this bit of wisdom:

The apostle Paul used the metaphor of athletic competition to describe the Christian life, saying in effect: "Run the race, believer, the prize is waiting." (Philippians 3:12-14)

In Hebrews, the writer encourages Christians to run the race which God has set before them. Jesus ran, even though his course included the cross (Hebrews 12:1-3)

Every day in Africa a gazelle wakes up. It knows that it must run faster than the fastest lion or it will be killed.

Every morning a lion wakes up. It knows that it must outrun the slowest gazelle or it will starve to death. It doesn't matter whether you are a lion or a gazelle. When the sun comes up, you'd better be running. (Media Management Newsletter)

Here's a news flash: The sun's up

Church Slogans

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They used to be a bit more popular than they are today. Church slogans. You'd see them on letterheads, the sides of church vans, in the bulletins, and on other printed material. I have not been one to get on the church slogan bandwagon. Frankly, most of them seem to me to be a bit on the cheesy side.

For example:

"Where Everybody is Somebody and Jesus is Lord."
Why is this true at this church? Is this not true EVERYWHERE? Whether you attend that church or not, you are still somebody and Jesus will always be Lord.

"Where Jesus is Lord."
See the above

"Where the Bible is believed, preached, and taught."
Ok. Is there a valid New Testament church that would actually say that it doesn't believe the Bible, preach it, or teach it?

"A Going Church for a Coming Lord."
Actually, I like this one a bit better. It has a nice balanced ring to it. However, no one has bothered to define exactly where this church is going.

"The End of Your Search for a Friendly Church."
I learned a long time ago that most people are not looking for a friendly church; they are looking for friends. In fact, I read some research material this week that suggested that churches are not perceived to be as friendly by outsiders as those inside them perceive them. But who among church members will not say that theirs is a friendly church? Besides that, I also learned a long time ago that if you have to say it yourself, it probably 'taint so.

My Favorite:
"Home Of the Crater Of Diamonds."
Most churches use some sort of spiritual, biblical, or Christological theme. This slogan was printed on the side of the church van in Murfreesboro, AR when my friend, Rick was pastor. He enjoyed pointing out that his church followed a more chamber of commerce theme over something more theological. It certainly was unique, and Rick endlessly enjoyed pointing out that he was from the "Home Of The Only Diamond Mine In North America."

In fact, a favorite memory has Rick and I in that van returning from one of our Doctor of Ministry classes in Little Rock, AR. For some reason which I now cannot recall, he was in a hurry to get home.

Hurry means speed, and speed he did.

Right down the Interstate.

Right past a prominent deacon in the church who was also returning home from Little Rock in his car.

I have often wondered what this deacon must have thought as he watched his pastor and a fellow pastor, in church van, speeding down the highway.

Fortunately, I'm told, the subject never came up.

It reminds me of a slogan I used to see on bumper stickers many years ago: "Speed on, brother....."

I'll leave the rest to your memories.

Politics In The Church

Last Saturday night, pastor Rick Warren hosted the "Saddleback Civil Forum." There he featured the two potential candidates for president this year, Sen. Barack Obama and Sen. John McCain.

To my knowledge, this was the first time a live forum featuring presidential candidates has been broadcast from a church. As the Forum began, Warren said that he does believe in separation of church and state, but not separation of faith and politics.

One commentator, coming from a Catholic background, criticized the choice of a church setting for such an event stating that it would best have taken place in a fellowship hall. He did not believe that a place dedicated to worship should be used for any other purpose other than worship. He noted that the Vatican has outlawed the use of the sanctuary for even such things as concerts.

I can respect his view on the sanctity of space. He viewed the place of worship as holy and set apart for no other purpose other than worship. I had to ask myself about our use of the auditorium. How many events have we held there that have little connection with worship? I don't believe the church should become just another stage, but I am not sure I have always considered just how some view the platform of a church as holy ground.

On the other hand, there are those who view the church auditorium, sanctuary, worship center, or some other term just as any other available space. They see nothing particularly holy about a platform inside a church.

I was taught as a child that the church building is God's house. As such, it should be respected and not treated like someone's living room. Today, people come to worship on Sunday morning chatting on cell phones, bringing coffee or drinks inside, or dressing in such ways as to leave little to the imagination. I'm not sure that this is showing proper respect to a place dedicated to the worship of God.

Still, I do not believe that hosting candidates for president and asking them publicly for their views on a variety of issues, moral and political, is inappropriate for a church. As Warren said, "We do not believe in separation of faith and politics."

In or out of the church.

What Michael Phelps And I Have In Common

I have long enjoyed the pageantry and athletic competition of the Olympics. My favorite events are in the track and field area. Here, athletes compete against one another and the clock. This is unlike, for example, such events as gymnastics where the athlete performs in front of a judge who grades the performance. And what's up with things like shooting? Pardon me, but it seems like such events as this are not truly "athletic competition."

One hero who has emerged during the 2008 games in Beijing is Michael Phelps. As of this writing, he has earned seven gold medals and is closing in on a record breaking eighth gold medal for one Olympics. One of the curious questions on the minds of many has been "What is Michael Phelps listening to on his iPod?" Just before his heat, Phelps can be seen with those ubiquitous white earbuds plugged in to his head.

In a recent article, Phelps revealed that he listened to hip-hop music to get himself motivated before a race.

Bingo. He and I have that in common.

Let's be sure of one thing- I can barely tread water, much less swim competitively. And I DO NOT enjoy hip-hop music. But I once donned football gear and banged bodies on the gridiron. In the afternoon before the game that evening, I would sit in my room with my record player and spin records and got myself pumped up. It did. In fact, just before a game, I came alive. I went wild with an red faced rush. Guys would wonder where I had been during practice. Truth is, I loved to play the game, but didn't like to practice. I learned the hard way that players who won't practice hard won't play in the game.

Nonetheless, I turned on the tunes to get me motivated. I specifically remember loving to listen to "Won't Get Fooled Again" by the The Who. (Yes, I said The Who. In those days the term "Contemporary Christian Music" was an oxymoron.) I could feel the pulse pounding and the adrenaline flowing. I was motivated and ready to play. Unfortunately, for reasons mentioned above, I rarely got to play in the game.

Later in life, as a pastor, when the music is right, when it flows, I am ready to preach. I think my best preaching is done when I truly worship during the music portion. A preacher friend of mine recently said that by the time he took the pulpit, the music had already prepared the way for the message and he was pumped and ready. I have told worship leaders with whom I have served on the platform, "If you will set the table, I'll serve supper, and we'll all enjoy dessert."

Music motivates the soul (and body.)

That is what Michael Phelps and I have in common.

A Saturday Bonus- Because I Like Signs

Somehow things get lost in translation....

Camp Disney

I have been offline here recently, as one of my "fans" has pointed out. I made a commitment to blog at least twice a week when I began to blog. Alas, I haven't kept my commitment. But I am sure my "fans" will forgive me this time.

It is due to a trip to Disney World and then to Children's camp. Not so much the busy activity, for I like to reflect and write. It is due to a lack of internet access.

At Disney, one could get on the 'net in one's room. However, the computer has a crazy interface that somehow carries you back to a screen advertising upgrades and Disney vacations. Based on their shrewd marketing techniques, I believe that this is no accident. The other option was to join the wifi network in my room. You could do that if you were willing to pay $5.00 for an hour or $10.00 for a whole day. I wasn't willing. I know it sounds silly, after things like a $45 plus 18% tip character breakfast with my son Caleb, who was delighted. But you have to draw the line somewhere. (Breakfast is a need; wifi a luxury.)

So not much time on the net means no blog entry.

We returned Saturday evening. I had many duties on Sunday, (I am still a pastor) and I had to repack for PreTeen camp. PreTeen camp is at Dry Creek, Louisiana. Not only is the creek dry, but so is the cell phone access. I had no bars in most locations. Now, if you stood on one foot and held the device just right in just the right place, you might get a bar to appear. Simple pleasures!

At Dry Creek, they frown on cell phones, iPods, radios, and such. Thus, no internet access there except for wifi near the office. But with a crowded schedule, the heat, and the principle of the thing, I didn't blog there either. Besides, there is something out of place about blogging from children's camp to me.

Anyway, I am back in the land of the living, sitting in my living room, blogging away.

Simple pleasures are the best.