wholly jesus [an interview with mark foreman]

Some guys just seem to get it. But let me back up a little bit first…

When studying Bible history it doesn’t (or shouldn’t) take long to pick up on some cultural differences between the ancient Eastern culture of the Hebrews and the modern Western culture that we now live in. Yet so many people read the Bible as if it were written by and to a modern Western culture. Doing so causes us to miss the point of much of the Holy Scripture. The sad thing is that too often this happens in churches all across America.

So it’s special when you meet someone who not only knows about these differences, but also understands how to apply them to our modern lives.

Mark Foreman is one of those dudes.

Mark is the author of a new book called Wholly Jesus: His Surprising Approach to Wholeness and Why It Matters Today. He’s the lead pastor at North Coast Calvary in Carlsbad, CA, and an associate professor at Bethel Seminary San Diego. He’s also the father of Jon and Tim Foreman of the band Switchfoot.

I recently had the opportunity to chat with Mark about his book, and you can catch all of that interview right here…

What do you think about what Mark shared? Is his challenge something that you’re up for? Is it something that you even agree with? What steps do you need to take today to make the kind of changes that he talked about?

Bonus links: You heard Mark share about his favorite Swtichfoot song, and many of you probably also enjoy my personal favorite… Dare You To Move.

the truth about sex [an event with @theideacamp]

Last summer in Uganda I heard about an injustice that absolutely broke my heart for a couple of reasons. First, because of what was being done to take advantage young men and women (really boys and girls). And second, because the church was being used as the tool to make it happen.

Essentially, I was told about how sex trafficers would use the prosperity gospel in the church to lure in poverty-stricken teenagers. The promise of a better life was dangled only for the teens to later be sold into the sex trade.

But this isn’t the only sex problem facing the church today. It doesn’t take much time watching TV to pick up on the fact that sex drives much of our culture. There are also questions about how homosexuality is dealt with in the church. And divorce rates are just as high in the church as they are outside the church. The list goes on…

That’s why I’m thankful for guys like Charles Lee and his The Idea Camp events.

The next Idea Camp conference (Sept 27-28) is on the subject of sex. Check out what Charles has to say about it:

In a culture formed and broken by tainted views of human sexuality, what should followers of Christ embody?

Join us for fresh, honest and transformative conversations with leading thinkers on topics including sexual identity, orientation, abuse, gender perceptions, porn, marriage, family, prostitution, and slavery.

The issues related to human sexuality are too often misunderstood, ignored, or avoided in far too many churches. The Idea Camp will facilitate a safe and transparent environment of learning, sharing of insights from the respective fields of focus, and practical insights and examples of holistic care.

See sex for what it could be, not what we’ve made it.

I’m excited to be a part of the team that will bring this event to you. I’ll have more details soon, but we’re planning to have some pretty exciting blogger opportunities surrounding this conference that you may be able to get involved with. So stay tuned for more information on that…

Whether you serve in ministry in your church, or just have a heart to be a part of the conversation around these issues, then I would challenge you to make this conference a priority. There are fewer conversations in the church today that are more important than this.

And if you register now, you can still get the early-bird rates! It’s a great venue, and we have some great facilitators! Don’t miss it!

5 current google trends [and the church]

One of my favorite things to do is to check out Google Trends. It’s not only interesting to see what other people are searching, but sometimes this stuff actually gives me ideas on things to write!

The amazing thing about tools like Google Trends (and Twitter’s trending topics) is that there are few ways to get a better understanding about what people want to know.

The reason I think this is important for the church is that we must be skilled in how to talk about these topics from a Biblical Christian worldview.

So here’s the top five searches from Google Trends from earlier today, and some Christian discussion on each of these topics.

1. ovine

O-what? Yeah, me too. There apparently were lots of searches by people just trying to understand what that word means. Well, it means ‘sheep-like’. It’s a word used to describe Dolly, the first cloned mammal. It turns out that the six year-old cloned sheep died of a disease normally only common in sheep twice her age.

It seems like it would be a blow for advocates of cloning. But does that give the church a reason to celebrate? Be careful how you answer this one. While the event may help support the Christian position, we still need to be careful to focus on doing the right thing rather than trying to ‘be right’.

2. trap or die 2 mixtape download

This one makes me feel old. This is a new release by Young Jeezy. It seems that the first one was a bit controversial, making this release pretty highly anticipated. Young Jeezy seems to be very loyal to the streets and the way of life that he’s come from.

While the loyalty is admirable, it saddens me that people feel stuck in that place. I don’t know that I’m saying that the church should try to provide a ‘way out’, but it’s probably more important to think about how to bring life to places where there is the lack of hope.

3. phillies fan tasered video

Okay, the video of this one was actually pretty funny to me… for about a minute. Then I think about what this says about our culture. I guess that the dude even called his dad about this stunt before he did it, and his dad told him that it wouldn’t be a good idea.

Not only did this guy not heed his father’s advice, but he exhibited a ‘me first’ mentality that too many people seem to take these days. His attitude showed complete disregard for anyone other than himself. Sure, there’s the question of excessive force, but does anyone else see the problem with this guys lack of respect for anyone or anything other than his own selfish desires?

4. stephanie miller

I don’t follow her at all, but Stephanie has a liberal news/comedy radio show. I think that she started trending in searches because of a guest appearance by MSNBC’s Contessa Brewer. Brewer expressed frustration over the fact that the person arrested for the Times Square bombing (attempt) is of Pakistani descent.

Interesting… rather than be frustrated by people attempting to blow up heavily populated areas, she’s concerned about the nationality of the criminal that tried to do it. She’s upset because of how people might react towards Pakistanis. Sounds like a little misdirected anger if you ask me.

5. bret michaels press conference

So I’m a child of the 80′s and loved the rock music from that era. And if you’re anything like me, then you surely know all about Bret Michaels from the band Poison. More recently you may have seen him on The Celebrity Apprentice raising money to help find a cure for diabetes (a disease that both he and my son have).

Bret is one crazy (and successful) dude, but he’s been in the hospital recently with a brain hemorrhage or something. I find it hard not to pray for someone with the influence that he has. I pray that God would draw him close, shake him up, and use this experience to draw other people closer to Himself.

final thoughts/questions

What do you think about these trending search topics? How would you address these things in conversation with someone who doesn’t hold the same worldview that you have? What do you think about this exercise of occasionally reviewing search engine trends?

tebow, barna, and culture [an interview with sam van eman]

The editorial team for HighCallingBlogs.com is really a pretty amazing group of people. I feel quite honored to be able to serve with this group as the Social Media Editor. I believe strongly in our mission to glorify God through the high calling of our daily work.

Another person I know that believes in that mission is Sam Van Eman. Sam is the Culture Editor for the network. In addition to that he is the Staff Resource Specialist for Coalition for Christian Outreach, and he blogs at A New Breed of Advertisers.

Recently I had the chance to chat with Sam about his role with the network, and to get his thoughts on some recent advertising and related research.

Dan: Sam, dude, tell my readers a little bit about who you are, what you do for HighCallingBlogs.com, and what your blog New Breed of Advertisers is all about.

Sam: Thanks for asking, Dan. I’m a father (just finished a game of Dutch Blitz in which I got crushed by my eight-year-old daughter) and a husband (enjoyed Pad Thai and spring rolls with Julie on a little I-was-out-of-town-for-four-days-and-left-you-home-with-the-kids date). I also think of myself as a teacher.

Writing is a way for me to teach, and at HighCallingBlogs.com that means writing about culture on Fridays and finding other writers to help me do the same.

My blog? Inviting marketers to become good neighbors to the consumer next door.

Dan: So you are a self-proclaimed critic and fan of advertising. How do you connect your faith to your interest in marketing and advertising?

Sam: As a critic, my faith says, “Taking advantage of a car driver’s insecurities may be funny but it isn’t any more than middle school bullying. Christ calls us to care for the disadvantaged and hurting, not run over them.”

As a fan, I’m fascinated by displays of creativity and technology and speaking clearly to a target audience. Add honor and dignity to those displays and I’ll sit up and pay attention to a vacuum ad.

Dan: You actually wrote a book on this theme…  On Earth as It is in Advertising?: Moving from Commercial Hype to Gospel Hope. What can you tell me about the book and the message that you try to send through it.

Sam: On Earth is mostly a critique. It describes how advertising often employs the “SimGospel” by simulating elements of the biblical narrative for the purpose of selling products and ideas. Essentially this means the SimGospel uses the only stuff anyone really wants: love, belonging, efficacy, tranquility – the stuff of heaven, if you will. Which is brilliantly devious for advertisers and oddly complimenting to the Gospel.

Most folks know the basic problems with pop culture advertising, so I thought it would be good to provide a deeper analysis for readers who care about the nuances.

Dan: Recently during the Super Bowl, there was an add that was a bit controversial. It was the Tim Tebow Focus on the Family ad. I’m sharing it here, but what are your initial thoughts on the ad?

Sam: I remember watching for it and then waiting for something significant to happen during it. But “nothing” happened except the airing of a decent and respectable TV commercial.

Dan: The Barna Group just released a study that they did on the effectiveness of the ad. In their analysis they mentioned that, “the ad shows the power of mainstream celebrities, like Tim Tebow, to garner attention and the related challenge for evangelical groups to get on people’s radar.” Is that a statement that you agree with? Why or why not?

Sam: Tim seems like an unusual case. In the football world, he’s enormous and he proclaims his faith in the same way. Few could garner the same attention and even fewer with this level of controversy. Having said that, plenty of Christian athletes could address this challenge but how many organizations have $3 million to shell out, or see the value in 30 seconds even if they did have the money?

Dan: The Barna analysis also pointed stated, “Faith and values intersected mainstream culture in a significant new way.” What do you think about that? Do you think that the ad had a significant impact, and what should other faith-based advertisers (and the church) learn from this ad campaign?

Sam: I should have asked David Kinnaman why he said this when I talked with him at the CCO’s Jubilee Conference last weekend! That would have been helpful, eh?

I don’t think this ad placement was terribly significant. Faith wasn’t discussed and even though a faith-based organization stood behind it, not many viewers made the connection between Tebow and Focus, as the study showed. On the other hand, college commentators always talked about Tebow’s faith during games.

And regarding values, we see PSAs frequently. Perhaps it’s more significant that so much buzz came from this particular spot.

Hmm, now I’m wondering if the same buzz would have occurred if Focus had paid for a spot on something less controversial. Like Stouffer’s, for example. Stouffer’s is doing a campaign called Let’s Fix Dinner [http://www.letsfixdinner.com/] and I think it’s great. Nobody would have cared if Focus were making ads about the healing value of eating lasagna together and yet it would have fit well with their ministry.

So (now that this answer has gone on way too long) perhaps all the buzz was really about the use of TV space as a discussion board for ethics. I’ll be interested to see what happens in 2011. Will others follow suit? The answer to that may end up being the real measure of significance.

Dan: What can people look forward to from you on HighCallingBlogs.com?

Sam: Life-changing experiences. Ha! Okay, how about cultural observations. My mom didn’t trust me to buy the right jelly, and for good reason, but folks have said I have a way of making observations. So that’s what I’ll bring to the table. Some bring organization; others, stamina, or conviction, or grace. As the culture editor for HCB, I’ll bring connections and try to share them as well as I can, either directly or through the writers I pick.

Dan: Thanks Sam! I look forward to following along more with what you do!

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