Please, keep stepping on us spiders, because you are that much bigger after all, right?
And in your eyes, all that we have to offer is venom.

why I love Mark Driscoll

The following is from an old article in the evangelical magazine known as "Relevant". The basic premise of the magazine is that Christians can be cool too. A couple years back they asked some "leaders" in the church, such as Rick Warren and Erwin McManus, seven different questions about where the church was going. Despite a few gems to be found amongst the rubble (namely the following, as well as a quote from Warren), the answers were mostly uniform and cliche. Mark Driscoll, however, had much more thought-provoking responses. A few of them are listed here.


What is a negative tendency of this generation as it relates to the faith?

Mark Driscoll: This generation can be a whiny bunch of idealists getting together in small groups to complain about megachurches and the religious right rather than doing something.

Translation: me.


What trends in church and worship styles do you see? Are they positive or negative?

Mark Driscoll: I’ll be happy when we have more than just prom songs to Jesus sung by some effeminate guy on an acoustic guitar offered as mainstream worship music. Right now most worship music is still coming from the top down through such things as Christian radio and record labels. But the trend today in a lot of churches is writing your own music to reflect your culture and community, and I pray this trend of music from the bottom up continues.

I found the first part to be a rather humorous, but what really struck me was the rest of his quote. I can attest firsthand to this new trend that is starting in the church.

What do you see as the greatest challenge for young Christians in the next 10 years?


Mark Driscoll: There is a strong drift toward the hard theological left. Some emergent types [want] to recast Jesus as a limp-wrist hippie in a dress with a lot of product in His hair, who drank decaf and made pithy Zen statements about life while shopping for the perfect pair of shoes. In Revelation, Jesus is a pride fighter with a tattoo down His leg, a sword in His hand and the commitment to make someone bleed. That is a guy I can worship. I cannot worship the hippie, diaper, halo Christ because I cannot worship a guy I can beat up. I fear some are becoming more cultural than Christian, and without a big Jesus who has authority and hates sin as revealed in the Bible, we will have less and less Christians, and more and more confused, spiritually self-righteous blogger critics of Christianity.

Amen. It made me sad how most people have taken the quote, "I can't worship a guy I can beat up", out of context. His main point is that we need to see Christ as He truly is, not as we think He should be.

Where and how do you feel Christians can have the most impact on culture?

Mark Driscoll: Christians need to get upstream to have the influence to change what culture is made of. What I mean by that is, culture is like a river, and most Christians are a downstream bunch who tend to complain about the junk that flows down to them on TV, in movies, in politics. To change things, we need to stop just fishing junk out of the river of culture and get upstream where all the junk is being thrown in and sent downstream to the masses. The key is to get wise Christians upstream running record labels, TV stations, businesses and other places to be a force for good, like Joseph and Daniel.

Amen.

Toll Road.

Driving around this forsaken wasteland, I prepare make a left off of the wanderers highway and onto the toll road of redemption. I immediately realize that I don't have enough quarters to make it even through the first checkpoint. As I sit at the stoplight, my mind races frantically, pondering where to go. To go straight on the highway would lead me into the town of Judgement, USA. It was reported by unknown sources that the last people who tried to drive through there were found smoldering as they hung from the rafters of the town hall by barbed wire. The road behind holds nothing for myself except an angry mob that is more likely than not bent on seeing me in a similar state as those who went to the next town.

Left, expensive.
Forward, dead.
Back, dead.
Right...?

The right turn on the toll road of redemption stretches far off into the distance. The road itself is filled with pot holes and there are many road blocks established by dirty cops hoping to prevent those who travel on it from following it to its final destination. But instead of the numerous tolls that taking a left leads to, this only has one that must be paid before entering. However, this traveler has spent all that he has, and cannot pay what is required to pass through the on-ramp.

Riddled with despair, I go the only way that seems hopeful, to the right. I pray that the man at the toll booth will allow me to pass through for free.

"Excuse me sir, I have no means of paying for this toll. Do you think you could just let me pass anyway?"

"I can't", he replies. "However, there is an alternative to you paying the toll."

"What is that?" I inquire. "Most, if not all vagabonds such as myself are destitute and lack sufficient funds to travel this road."

"You're right", he states. I begin to realize that I am completely at the mercy of this man. If I can not take this path instead of the other ones, the doom that was once impending will soon become a painful, present tense reality.

"Please," I beg, "if you don't help me, those who hunt me will catch up and have their unspeakable way with me.

"There's one way for you to come through. It's the same way travelers before yourself entered the on-ramp. I'll pay your toll out of my own paycheck. I may work here all day long, but for someone who is willing to put up with the dangerous curves of this road, I'd pay their way through any day."

I thank the man, and enter the on ramp. Looking through my rear-view mirror, I see the mob that has been hunting me. The man at the toll booth steps out, shotgun in hand. He takes aim at the mob, and warns them to not even think of going on this highway. I drive. I hit a pot hole. I keep going.

mr. self destruct

How did I end up with nicotine in my veins?
Maybe those nights weren't so great after all.


Jesus, will you please help me?

"The Offense of Christmas"

http://www.reclaimingthemind.org/blog/2008/12/the-offense-of-christmas/

"It's time for healing time to move on
It's time to fix what's been broken too long
Time make right what has been wrong
It's time to find my way to where I belong
There's a wave that's crashing over me
All I can do is surrender"
-Sanctus Real

and in other news...

...the new guns n roses album finally has been officially announced after THIRTEEN YEARS OF WAITING.

mr. rose, please don't disappoint.