A Pair of Jacks

This week, two long standing shows came to an end. For several seasons now my wife and I have been watching both LOST and 24. At the center of each show was a character named Jack. In LOST, we had Jack Shepherd. In 24, Jack Bauer. As each show came to an end, I had very different feelings about both. As LOST came to an end, there was a sadness, and yet a sense of satisfaction for me. And as 24 came to end, there was a sense of relief - that this show was finally over.

I've been thinking about why I grew to love LOST, and grew to loathe 24. For me, it was all about the characters.

First, Jack Bauer. 24 used to be one of my favorite shows. I was caught up in the plot twists, the character development, and all of that. I think the issue though was that Jack never seemed to develop. He was always the guy who would do whatever it takes to save the day. If that meant self-sacrifice, great. If it meant torture, great. In his wake was an endless sea of bodies. It seemed like they tried to redeem him a bit this season, starting out a changed man who was looking forward to being a grandfather and retiring from this kind of life. But within the hour he was killing people again - so it all seemed rather fake. The violence of the show continued to increase, constantly trying to outdo the season before. In the end, it just seemed to lack any kind of creativity. The plot was pretty much predictable. I did actually think they were going to kill off Jack Bauer in the end, but I heard there's a movie in the works, so I suppose they can't do that just yet. Speaking of predictability - here's something you can take to the bank: The movie will be about someone getting a hold of Jack's daughter and/or grandchild and Jack will come out of hiding to once again save the day.

And then there's Jack Shepherd. In six seasons, Jack also plays the hero. He's a surgeon who is constantly saving the day, healing people, and fixing whatever is broken. He's also struggling with the death of his father, and his feeling that he's never been good enough for him. He stands for reason, and struggles with anything mysterious that can't be explained away by rationality. Over time he comes to accept the idea that there is a larger calling and purpose on his life. He's a leader that fails at times and struggles with what that means. But Jack is growing, he's learning, he's changing, and he's becoming more transparent. The show itself is building with all kinds of mystery, unexpected turns, questions that don't seem to have answers, and characters that continue to develop. There's nothing predictable about it. In the end, there are still lots of questions. But one thing is certain - as Jack's eye closes there's a sense of peace in me the viewer. His is a story of redemption that came not as a result of violence but as a result of love.

So my conclusion? Jack Bauer will be back for more in a blockbuster summer movie, but Jack Shepherd's story is the one that will live on.

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Story Church - 4 months old

I've realized that if I don't stop to reflect every so often on the life of our young church it would be easy to forget the things we are learning and seeing take place. So here's a quick update on what we're seeing four months in.

• People keep showing up. That's a win. I know it doesn't sound like much but when you start something like this you aren't sure that's going to happen.
• New people keep showing up. So not only are people coming back, but we continue to see new faces just about every week.
• Community is happening. This is one of the highlights for me. I keep hearing about families that are hanging out, couples getting coffee together or playing tennis, play dates happening, and friendships forming. It's exciting to see people forming relationships as a result of Story Church.
• Continued opportunity to serve our school. The more we develop a relationship with the school where we meet, the more opportunities we are having to be a blessing there. We've had people volunteer at book fairs, in classrooms, and to proctor tests. We've brought breakfast to the teachers on multiple occasions. We've been able to help out with school wide events. And at the end of the year I get the opportunity to speak at the 5th grade graduation.
• Community involvement. A key part of our vision is to be a blessing to our community. So it's been pretty neat to have been able to sponsor a local 5-6 year old soccer team, to give a single mom a fun day with her kids, and to bless some random people with cold water or a free car wash.
• Global involvement. In our short time together as a church we've built a well in Central Africa for a community that previously didn't have access to clean water, and then when the earthquake in Haiti hit in our second week as a church, we ended up giving away our entire offering toward relief - more than $1,600.
• Learning together. It's been so cool to be able to lead our people through the Scriptures. Many in our church are either unfamiliar with the Bible or have been away from any kind of church for many years. Together we are learning and growing and trying to understand what it means to be active players in the Story God is writing in the world.
• Firsts. We've had a number of firsts now. Our first service, our first Easter, our first time of communion, and this last week - our first child dedication.

We continue to face our share of challenges as well:

• As we grow, the need to organize ourselves and multiply leaders is an ongoing issue.
• Keeping the vision simple. It's so tempting to add layers to what we're doing. It's also easier to do that. The harder thing is to stay true to the vision and keep it simple.
• Of course there are financial challenges as well. We have some margin in place that is keeping us going for now, but to grow this church and pursue the vision we have we will need to grow in our finances as well. The church will need to be self-sustaining within a year or so, and we aren't there yet. We're paying the rent, but we can't afford any salaries for any staff at this point - myself included.

Anyway, lots to celebrate in these few months. I'm really glad I sat down and typed this up. As a leader, it's really easy for me to think about the future and to be a little bit bummed that we aren't yet what I see in my mind. But we have accomplished so much already. And in the grand scheme of things, we are still brand new!! 4 months in and we're just getting going!

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Reading

For the last 30 days I've been attempting to follow a 90 day reading plan that will have me reading the entire Bible in those 90 days. It's been crazy. As of today, I am completely on pace - but I've been playing some serious catch up over the last couple of weeks. The thing is, the plan has me reading about 10-11 pages a day (roughly 15 chapters). So when you miss a day, or two, or three you suddenly find yourself 40 chapters behind.

Anyway, here are a couple of things I've been learning.

#1 - Scripture is amazing. I mean the whole story is just amazing. And I think when we read it in bite sized pieces we lose out on that fact. Reading huge chunks at a time has helped me to really appreciate the story.

#2 - There's a definite story line. God is clearly seeking a relationship with his people and they keep messing it up. And yet he keeps pursuing them, and they keep messing it up, and he keeps pursuing.

#3 - I don't know squat about the Bible. I mean I was a bible major in college. I've been a pastor for 10 years now, regularly teaching the Scriptures. And yet there is so much here that I feel like I know almost nothing.

#4 - God's mercy never ends.

#5 - The default setting on man is to seek after a story about himself.

#6 - Living in pre-Jesus times sucks. Seriously, the law is so frustrating. It's so detailed, so all encompassing that it's literally impossible to keep it. I suppose that's the point.

#7 - Seven is a better number than six, so I had to add one more.

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