Most Memorable Sports Moment #5

USA Wins Ryder Cup/Payne Stewart Dies



One of the sports I have learned to really enjoy watching over the last few years is golf. I have always liked to play golf and sometimes would watch an occasional major tournament, but never really followed golf until September 1999. One of the main reasons for that year was I had started to really follow the career of Payne Stewart. Payne had been a great golfer for many years who struggled to win the major tournament. He won the PGA championship in 1989 and the US Open in 1991. However, his win at the 1999 US Open at Pinehurst had tons of drama. He beat out up and coming golfers David Duval and Tiger Woods and won an epic battle against one of my now favorite golfers, Phil Mickelson.

I had never really followed the Ryder Cup until 1999. The Ryder Cup is a golf format held every two years featuring the best gofers in the US against the best golfers in Europe. Prior to the 99 Cup, Europe had dominated for several years. The US entered with some hot golfers - Tiger, Payne Stewart, Duval, Jim Furyk, Davis Love, and Mark O'Mera. Europe had a strong field as well. The US started the competition on Friday with the foursomes and was throughly trounced by Europe, ending Friday down 6 points to 2. (Each team gets a point for a match win, 1/2 point for a tie). In the Saturday competition, the US failed to make ground and ended with a 4 point defecit (10-6). This meant that the European team only had to grind out 4 points in 12 individual matches on Sunday, a seemingly easy feat. However, the US guys came out on fire! They dominated the singles matches, winning the 8 of the first 9 matches. The competition came down to a late match between Jose Maria Olazabal and Justin Leonard. Leonard fought back to come to the 17th hole needing to drain a 45-foot putt to secure 1/2 point and win the Ryder Cup for the US. He drained it and all America went crazy! It was the kind of drama that makes sports so entertaining.

One of the key players in keeping the American hopes alive was Payne Stewart. He jumped and celebrated with his teamates and wrapped up an incredible year for him - US Open and Ryder Cup wins. One month later, Stewart would board a small plane headed to Dallas, TX. On route, the plane lost pressure, killing all inside. The world watched in horror as this plane randomly flew off course and then crashed in a South Dakota field. Payne would be a guy who in his later years on tour would be known as a strong family man and a devout follower of Jesus Christ. Through some friendships with other Christian golfers on tour, Payne had come to a personal faith in Jesus and had an influence on many on the Tour in his life and an even greater impact on the world after his death. Watching those events - the US Open win by Stewart, the Ryder Cup comback (with Stewart), and the subsequent plane accident that took Payne's life - would have a dramatic impact on me and became together one of the most memorable sports moments of my life.

Most Memorable Sports Moment #6

Pete Rose Breaks Ty Cobb's Hits Record

When I was growing up, Pete Rose was my baseball idol. This was when he was just known as "Charlie Hustle", not as Pete Rose "The Guy Who Bet on Baseball", or "The Guy Who Went to Prison for Tax Fraud", or "The Guy Who Lied About It for Years", or anything else. I agree that now as a much older man with kids of my own, I am very troubled by much of the sad saga of Pete Rose's life. However, all of the character deficiencies do not take away from the fact that, between the lines, Pete Rose was one of the best players of his time and played the game with a passion and a intensity that few have ever shown. Good or bad, Pete was a winner and was consumed with everything he could do to win.

I was fascinated as a young kid with the "Big Red Machine" of the 70's and their impressive cast of players. I got the chance in 1978 to go to Riverfront Stadium to see a game and watch Pete, Joe Morgan, Dave Concepcion, George Foster, and Tony Perez play. My 7 yr. old team growing up was "The Big Red Machine" of Columbus, MS, and I did everything I could to emulate my hero Pete. I had more of his baseball cards than any other player. I remembered wanting one every time I opened a pack of cards I had bought from Templeton's Superette just a few blocks from the house. I followed Pete from Cincinnati to Philadelphia to Montreal in that ugly Expos uniform and back to Cincinnati in 1984. Pete was a 17-time All-Star, Rookie of the Year in 1963, NL MVP in 1973, and World Series MVP in 1975. In his career he played all three OF positions, 2nd base, 3rd base, and 1st base. He played all of them with every ounce of energy he could. Pete Rose holds the MLB record for most career at bats (14,053), most games played (3,562), and most career hits (4,256), as well as the NL record for most consecutive games with a hit (44).

The most memorable moment for me though was September 11, 1985 - the day that Pete broke Ty Cobb's career hits mark. Much like Rose, Cobb was a fierce competitor who won at all costs and was not liked much by his peers. On that day in September, Rose was tied with Cobb 4,191 career hits. Considering that by most standards having 200 hits in a year is a great season, that means that someone would have to average 200+ hits a year for 21 consecutive seasons to reach that mark! On that day in September, a much slower, heavier Rose entered the batter's box to face Padres pitcher Eric Show. On his first AB of the night, Rose laced a single into center field. He had done it. My hero had taken down the mighty Cobb. At that time, I was a 17-year old Senior in High School who had just witnessed history. I don't remember if I cried or not, but I remember the pride I felt for Pete. I remember being emotional during the long standing ovation the Reds fans gave him and seeing him cry and hug Pete Jr. on that base.

Later on I would watch my hero fall. Much like David in the OT and many of the epic heros of Greek mythology, Pete would become a victim of his own undoing. He would fall into public disgrace. He would be banned from my favorite sport forever and become ineligible to it's hall of elite players. The greatest hitter who ever lived has no place in the one place he most deserves from his play between the lines. I cannot judge whether Pete deserves the Hall or not. Like most, I know there is no dichotomy between who a person is and what a person does. But on that September night, I witnessed something I will remember for the rest of my life and that's the Pete I choose to celebrate.

Most Memorable Sports Moment #7

Cal Ripken Breaks Lou Gehrig's Iron Man Streak

I am an avid baseball fan and have been since I was 6 years old. Much of my generation of baseball however is defined by steroid allegations, labor strikes, and cancelled World Series. Baseball in my generation has given us some of the greatest talents to ever play the game - Arod, Jeter, Griffey Jr., Brett, Clemens, and Nolan Ryan. However, one of the greatest has got to be Cal Ripken Jr. Ripken defined baseball for much of this generation. Rookie of the Year, 2-time AL MVP, and 19-time All-Star. He was the face of the Baltimore Oriole franchise in an era marked by free agency and players leaving for higher dollars. He was a sure fielder at shortstop without possessing great defensive skills. He just seemed to always know where the ball would be hit.

Cal will best be remembered as this generation's Iron Man. He broke a record that many believed would be impossible in this baseball generation - the consecutive games played streak of Lou Gehrig. Gehrig played 2,130 consecutive games for the Yankees in his career. Ripken's streak began on May 30, 1982, as a rookie. Few had any idea how many games he would play and how much of an impact he would have on the game. On September 6, 1995, much of the world watched as in the middle of the 5th inning, the game became official and Cal had played in 2,131 straight games. 13 years with no visits to the DL, no games sat out to rest. He just wanted to play each and every game. He played through injuries and slumps. He played in the late season games when the Orioles were long out of the postseason picture. He played because he loved to play, just like when we were kids. On September 20, 1998, Ripken quietly ended his own streak at 2,632 games.

Growing up, I wasn't a huge Ripken fan. He didn't play on my favorite team or put up incredible stats. It wasn't until later that I began to appreciate the significance of Ripken on the game. Like most, I was watching an otherwise uneventful game on September 6. It wasn't a huge game with postseason implications. However, it was the opportunity to tell my kids that I saw one of the greatest moments in sports. Thanks Cal for showing us all not only how to play the game, but how to treat it right in the process.

Most Memorable Sports Moment #8

Duke/Kentucky 1992 NCAA Tournament Regional Final

I had to try and put at least one college basketball moment in my top ten and it's hard to find a moment in college basketball that was more memorable than the 1992 NCAA Regional game between Duke and Kentucky. This was one of those games that any basketball fan knows what he was feeling as he watched it. It featured 2 national powerhouses battling it out. Kentucky was on it's way back from a prolonged period of decline. Duke was trying for it's fifth Final Four in a row. Kentucky had legends like Jamal Mashburn, Travis Ford, and John Pelphrey. Duke had player of the year Christian Laettner, Bobby Hurley, and Grant Hill.

These two teams battled it out for 40 minutes and finished tied and needed overtime. The overtime was epic. The two teams exchanged the lead 5 times in the last 31 seconds. With 2.1 seconds Sean Woods makes a shot over Laettner. Duke coach Krzyzewski draws up a play for Laettner that will forever be known as "The Shot." Grant Hill threw the ball into Laettner at the foul line. He took one dribble, faked right, spun left and then threw up a shot that seemed like it hung up for hours. Swish, game over. Thomas Hill's shocked look said it all. So ended an epic game and created probably the most memorable college basketball moment of the last 30 years.

Most Memorable Sports Moment #9

Buster Douglas Defeats Mike Tyson

I remember when I first heard about an unknown guy named Buster Douglas defeating Mike Tyson. I was in college at MSU and my roommate Sam came in and said, "Did you hear that Mike Tyson got knocked out?" I thought for sure he was egging me on. For those of you who remember Tyson's early career, this guy was a monster. He was the most dominating boxer in the world and on a fast-pace to be the greatest boxer ever. He didn't just beat opponents, he destroyed them. He won 26 of his first 28 wins by knockout. He knocked out 16 guys in the first round! He was so dominant they made a video game out of him that everyone had - Mike Tyson's Punchout.

In February 1990, Tyson went to Japan to fight an unknown guy named Buster Douglas. This fight was such a mismatch that it wasn't even on TV to my recollection. I didn't even know he was fighting. We all assumed Tyson couldn't be beat. However, he was destroyed in the 10th round by Douglas and knocked down and out for the first time in his career. It was the beginning of the end for Tyson's boxing career. It was later revealed how much of Tyson's personal issues (losing his trainer, marriage and divorce to Robin Givens, etc.) could have contributed to his being distracted. However, at the time, this was a monumental upset.

Most Memorable Sports Moment - #10

Josh Hamilton's HR Derby Tirade

Ok. This won't make a whole lot of Top 50 moments in the grand scheme of sports, but for me, last year's Home Run Derby performance by Josh Hamilton was one of the greatest individual sports moments I have ever seen. It was made all the more special by the knowledge of what this dude has been through since being the #1 draft pick in 1999. After an accident took him out of baseball for a while, Josh turned to drugs and hanging out with the wrong crowd. It eventually destroyed much of his life and led to a suspension from the one thing that mattered most to him - playing ball. He was chased by his demons for several years until he finally surrendered to Christ in his grandmother's home. He then began his long journey back to the major leagues.

As if Josh's return to baseball wasn't enough of a story of redemption and grace, he began the 2008 season on a tear knocking the cover off the ball. He received an invite to play in the HR derby at Yankee Stadium. After watching several other competitors, Josh strode to the plate, and the fun begins. He began to belt monster shots all over Yankee Stadium. He hit three hr's that were measured over 500 feet! He averaged 453 feet per homer. When the first round ended, Josh had 28 hr's - the highest ever in one round - and the story of grace had another amazing chapter. Josh signed autographs and high-fived teammates between swings and obviously had a great time. Unfortunately, he hit a power outage in the final, losing to Justin Morneau. However, even Morneau had to admit that the night was all about Josh Hamilton. This story of grace, power, redemption, glory, and salvation left all who saw it in awe. So this makes my Top Ten Most Memorable Sports Moments.

Ten Most Memorable Sports Moments

I was thinking a few weeks ago about how much I love sports and what great moments I have been able to witness in my lifetime. Like a lot of guys, I am an avid sports watcher and usually cannot rest at night until I have had my SportsCenter fix. I have long loved baseball as my primary sports (the reason why a lot of my moments are baseball related). I also have a great affinity for football, golf, college basketball, and others.

Starting tomorrow, I will start posting about the Ten Most Memorable Sports moments I have witnessed. Remember, this is a personal list of the most memorable to me. You will probably not agree with all of this. I did not pick the Top Ten Sports Moments. I didn't try to necessarily include the moments that changed sports. I just compiled a list of the moments that I remember watching or hearing about that fixated my attention. There were lots of moments that didn't make the list and deserve to be mentioned - moments like the HR chase of Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa in 1999, Kirk Gibson's World Series HR, The Cal/Stanford play, Doug Flutie's Hail Mary, Montana to Clark "The Catch", NC State winning the NCAA tourney, and much more. These are all great moments that I love to watch, but they didn't have the personal impact to me.

Should be fun and I'd love to hear your interaction.

Way to go Alabaster Red Sox!

Last night, I had the privilege to be a part of my son Nathan's little league team wrapping up a very special season. The Red Sox won the championship of the Alabaster Minor league and capped off a perfect season. This very special group of boys won every game we played this season! It wasn't easy, but they fought hard and played together as a team each and every game.

None of us coaches could possibly expect at the beginning of the season when we got this group out on the field for the first time that perfection was possible. We knew we had some very good players, but it was rough at the start. Most of this team is composed of 9 yr. olds who are playing "kid-pitch" for the first time. The first time we did fly-ball drills nobody came close to catching one. Our first batting cage practices were mediocre at best. However, our head coach set the goal that every practice we just wanted to get a little better. These kids worked hard and did everything we asked, each and every practice.

We had games we dominated from the start this season. We had a game where we scored 12 runs in one inning to come back down late to win by 9. We had a game where we had to score 9 runs in our last inning to tie the game after the time limit had run out. We had a game where we were losing with 1 minute to play before time ran out. We started the next inning, scored 4, and won.

All in all, we are proud of this special group of kids, especially my boy Nathan. He ended the year with a great game, getting 2 solid hits. At the end, we brought all the boys out to the mound to give them their championship trophy. Thanks again boys for a great, fun year.

Put Your Dream to the Test - Review

Alright. I have now completed my second book review for Thomas Nelson Publishers book review bloggers. For this one, I selected a book by one of my favorite authors, Dr. John C. Maxwell.

I have been a big fan of John Maxwell's writing for a long time. I was a member of the Injoy Life Club for several years and gained a lot of valuable insight from his leadership teaching. His book, The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership is still one of the top 5 books I have read as a leader and one I refer to quite often.

Put Your Dreams to the Test is another inspiring read from Dr. Maxwell. His premise is that everyone has a dream at one time or another. He gives the reader 10 questions to take your dream from wish to fruition. Dr. Maxwell defines a dream as "an inspiring picture of the future that energizes your mind, will, and emotions, empowering you to do everything you can to achieve it." This definition alone is enough to draw the reader to explore this book further.

He believes that all dreams have the power to inspire and empower you. He helps the reader to clearly define the dream - creating a clear picture of an achievable future. He also helps the reader to identify if the dream meets with the passion of the dreamer as well as whether you have considered the cost to achieve it. The most helpful chapter to me was "The Pathway Question: Do I Have a Strategy to Reach My Dream?" One helpful quote was this: "The secret to your success is found in your daily agenda. If you do the right things day after day, then you will make progress, and you will eventually achieve what you set out to do." That's inspiring advice.

Another great piece of advice was implementing the "rule of five", doing five things every day that can move you closer to your dream. This helps to answer "The Tenacity Question." Most people fail to achieve their dreams because they fail to have the stick-to-it attitude necessary and put into practice small steps consistently to make it happen.

As usual, Dr. Maxwell writing is filled with plenty of inspiring stories and illustrations to make each point. Maxwell is an excellent story-teller and has an exhaustive illustration file drawing from Christian as well as non-Christian sources. This book is meant for anyone who has a dream, whether Christ-follower or not. It will have powerful potential for the kingdom of God if readers can develop a God-led dream to advance the kingdom. I wish that Dr. Maxwell were able to spend more time developing how dreams can have kingdom potential and not just a pathway for earthly success. There is tremendous inspiration and encouragement in Put Your Dreams to the Test for any and all Christ-followers. Get a copy for your library and put it into practice. You may find your dreams coming true.

Man Up Jon...

Ok. This will be painful to admit, but this last week I watched the season premiere of Jon and Kate Plus Eight. Now mind you, I don't normally watch this show. I promise you. I may have watched 10 minutes of 1 episode before Sunday night. However, with all the news plastered all over the place of Jon and Kate's recent problems, I was interested to see how it was going to be handled on the air. It was one of the saddest experiences I had ever seen.

Most of you probably know that Jon Gosselin is rumored to have had an affair recently. He denies it, but does admit to "making some mistakes." I watched as Kate and Jon were interviewed separately throughout the program instead of the usual together on the couch. Most of the conversation had little to do with the eight children and mostly to do with how they were handling each other.

Here's my problem with what's going on: First, Jon says this really isn't what he wanted with this reality gig. Evidently, he's having a hard time keeping up with the public scrutiny. Waaa! That's what happens when you put your family on the air to profit from them. If you can't handle it and it's tearing up your family, then find a way out of the contract dude. Second, when both Jon and Kate were asked where they were in the relationship, Kate responded she was there but Jon said he was "here for the kids." Come on! For the kids? Do you really think that what the kids need is a dad who isn't around when the spotlight is on and only comes around to tolerate his wife? Were the kids on your mind when you were photographed with that 23 yr. old in the car? Were you there for the kids too?

You know what your kids need Jon? They need a father who models for them what a man really is like. They need a man who will stand in the gap for his family and not dessert them just to please himself. You've got three boys who need a father to lead them through the difficult landmines of life that await them in the coming years. They need to know you can lead them through how to have a relationship with a woman based on integrity. They need a dad who can admit his mistakes and still place his family first. You have 5 girls who need a model for what they need to look for in a man. They need to see a father who loves their mother with all his heart, no matter how difficult the home may be. Your girls will get their model for a husband from you Jon. What are you going to show them?

Also, I heard several years ago about how Jon and Kate were Christians and the place of spirituality held in their family. Now, that may well be true. As Christians, we are no less immune to problems in our home, especially when that home has the child dynamics of the Gosselin household. However, it's time that Jon and Kate moved past being Christians and instead became Christ-followers who went back to the center of their relationship. It's time they focused more on God and His Word in their relationship. It's time they hit their knees in repentance and prayed for the brokenness of their relationship to be restored. It will take unconditional love and a heart that has been broken before they will survive.

It's time to Man Up Jon! You are failing your family. You are failing your wife. You are failing your children. You are a perfect picture right now of what's wrong in our culture with men today. Today's man is a perfect picture of passivity and selfishness. Today's man is confused and wandering. Too many men, including Jon, have sacrificed their families on the altar of personal fulfillment and happiness. It's time to man up and take your family back from the enemy. Your wife and kids are far too important. You stood on an altar and made a vow to your wife and to God. Vows may not mean much to us, but God takes them very seriously. If you really believe, Jon, that your life would be better apart from this family, I would have several guys that I know who would beg to differ with you. Take your family back. Don't let another opportunity arise for your daughter to say "When are you coming back daddy? Why do you have to leave?"

Men. It's time to take back our families. It's time to go to the Jon Gosselin's of the world and help them before they lose another family. It's time to hit our knees for our families and the families of our brothers-in-arms in the church. I am not trying to be critical of Jon. My heart breaks for him and his family. I am praying that at the end of the day, we will see a restoration of his family. I am sure that the media scrutiny will be so much that restoration will be unlikely. However, our God is faithful. If we seek him and honor him, he will lift us up. Jon and Kate, you can make it. It will take more out of you than you know. But if you are willing to pay the price, you can make it.

Summer begins - Family Updates

Well today is the first day of summer at the Haines' house and the kids are pumped. This morning my youngest, John David, graduated from 4K at Kingwood Christian School. We had a great time listening to them sing the books of the Bible, count to 10 in Spanish, say their memory verse, tell about long and short vowels, and lots more. He walked up and received a diploma from his teacher, Mrs. Vaughn. It was a very special time for us. He has made a lot of advances this year in 4K. We're looking forward to his first year in big school in the fall.

Nathan completed the third grade yesterday and ended his tenure at Creekview Elementary. He has really established himself as a leader at school and is still and excellent student. He especially likes science and art. He likes anything that he can tinker with or draw. He also participated this year in the gifted program at Creekview and had a great time. He is a thinker and GRC really helped him use those thinking gifts. Nathan is playing baseball with the Alabaster Minor Red Sox (9-10 yr. old) team. So far, our team is undefeated at 13-0 with 3 games to go. It's been a great group of boys and they have all made tremendous advances since the first practice.

Drew just finished second grade at Creekview and had one of his best years. Like his older brother he was tested and accepted into the GRC program starting in the fall. From the beginning, Drew's teacher Mrs. Roberson has said that Drew is "sneaky smart." He usually finishes his work faster than other students. He is an exceptional reader and is already on a 5th grade level. He has also developed a knack for writing this year. His teacher was very impressed with his ability to develop a story. Drew also has a passion for computer and video games. He bounces around between the computer, Nintendo DS, his PSP, the Playstation 3, and sometimes the Wii. Yes, we have too many video games around the house.

Now that summer is here, we are looking for some things to do. We'll spend some time swimming as well as try to get in some fishing trips for me and the boys. VBS will start in 2 weeks and Nathan is also doing a baseball camp at UAB one week.

I'm preaching at Westwood this Sunday. Looking forward to it. We are in a series called "Lost Words" and I am preaching on "Kindness". Much of the church will not be here as it is time for the yearly Memorial Day exodus to Disney or the beach. Whatever your plans, have a great weekend!

On the Road - Chicago

Well, my friend Jason just reminded me that I have been slacking up lately on the blog. Truth is, I have had lots on my mind and little time to unlock it. I'm on the road with my friend Jason Seales in Chicago. We're here for the "Entrusted with the Gospel" conference with The Gospel Coalition. It'll be three days based on the subject of being a faithful steward of the gospel. I'm looking forward to a great lineup featuring Tim Keller, Mark Driscoll, John Piper, and Bryan Chapell. It will be a refreshing conference.

It was a long ride today from Birmingham to Chicago. However, it went pretty fast and was filled with lots of laughs between me and my young friend. At one point, Jason tried some hot and spicy Chex Mix and accidentally inhaled it up his nose causing a painful burn.

Looking forward to a great three days here at the conference and a Cubs game Wednesday night. You can follow a live webcast of the conference here.

Go Barefoot!

Just saw this on the internet. It's about a campaign tomorrow to raise awareness of how many children around the world don't have shoes. I'm thinking about going barefoot, will you?

He Is Risen!

Hear the heart of heaven beating, "Jesus Saves. Jesus saves."
And the hush of mercy breathing, "Jesus Saves. Jesus saves."
Hear the host of angels sing, "Glory to the Newborn King."
And the sounding joy repeating, "Jesus saves."

See the humblest hearts adore Him. "Jesus saves. Jesus saves."
And the wisest bow before Him. "Jesus saves. Jesus saves."
See the sky alive with praise, melting darkness in its place
There is life forevermore, "Jesus saves. Jesus saves."

He will live our sorrow sharing, "Jesus saves. Jesus saves."
He will die our burden bearing, "Jesus saves. Jesus saves."
"It is done!" will shout the cross, Christ has paid redemption's cost!
While the empty tomb's declaring, "Jesus saves."

Freedom's calling, chains are falling, hope is dawning bright and true.
Day is breaking, night is quaking, God is making all things new.
"Jesus saves."

Oh to grace, how great a debtor! "Jesus saves. Jesus saves."
All the saints who shout together. "I know that Jesus saves."
Rising us so vast and strong lifting up salvation's song,
The redeemed will sing forever, the redeemed will sing forever, the redeemed will sing forever, "Jesus saves."
"Jesus saves."

Words by Travis Cottrell

It's Friday...but Sunday's a comin'

Thank you Jesus for your purchase of my salvation.

What???

Some things just don't need a comment. Go Red Sox!

Yeah baby!

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Portland Bound! See you Thursday!

Staying Faithful in Uncertain Times

Lately my pastor, Les Hughes, has been bringing it from the pulpit. He's in a series called "When God Gets Personal," and we've been hearing great things from the congregation about the messages. The last couple of weeks he's been talking about "When God Gets Personal With My Stuff." It's been a great two weeks of messages about the resources we have and our stewardship of them. He's also been able to bring some timely advice to the body about how to react during the stress-filled economic times we are in. As church leaders, we struggle just like everyone else with making ends meet, making wise financial decisions, trying to decide what to spend and what not to spend, etc. We've also had to react to giving patterns in the church and nationwide as we restructure our budget for this year.

Did you know that the average church member that gives will give about 2% of their income this year to any and all Christian charitable causes? George Barna reported that in 2008 one out of every five households have decreased their giving to the church compared to previous years. Of those who have decreased their giving, 22% stopped giving altogether. What do these types of statistics say about the Body of Christ in America, one of the most affluent nations in the world?

I know that times are tough for a lot of people and a lot of people I know have lost jobs due to no fault of their own. I see the same depressing news you do every morning as I get ready and have found that I have a lot more interest in the stock market recently. I didn't have much set aside in my 403(b) with Guidestone, but I looked at it recently and I have lost 53% of it since January 2008.

Here are a few of my personal thoughts about this mess:
1. The root of most of this economic collapse is spiritual and moral, not financial. Greed, excess, and discontentment have created the mess we are in. Bankers loaned money to people that couldn't pay, people bought more house than they could actually afford with money they didn't have, and financial investors took risks that were too big a gamble all because of the desire to add more to our personal worth - greed. I think God will and is using this time to show the Christ-followers and true church in this country that we need to be more dependent upon him than we are on Ameritrade or Edward Jones. Greed is at the heart of many of the problems with humanity and the church. If you bought more house than you could afford, it was not just because it was a good investment. It was more likely because you are greedy and being able to say "I live in ..." makes you feel better about yourself. Paul said "Now there is great gain in godliness with contentment, ⁷for we brought nothing into the world, and we cannot take anything out of the world." (I Timothy 6:6-7)

Greed is a heart issue, not a financial one. How much is enough for you? How expensive a house do you need? Could you possibly live in a smaller house and use the extra money from your house payment to sponsor a child through WorldVision or take a mission trip to share the Gospel? Everywhere I look, I see greed. But I see it most evidently in my own heart. I always want more. Bigger toys, nicer cars, bigger house. I bought a new TV last year for Father's Day and still find myself browsing through Best Buy looking at the bigger ones that are cheaper than mine now. Despite what Gordon Gekko said in the movie Wall Street, Greed is not good. Have you found thorough this experience that you are a greedy person? If so, what changes are you making to correct that?

2. While many have been seriously affected by the economic downturn through job loss, most of us have not. I would venture that the majority of Christ-followers in the church today are making close to the same amount of money they did this time last year. You may be in sales and get paid on commission, or your company may have recently had to cut costs and payroll by some percentage recently. However the vast majority of us are making very close to what we made last year. At the same time, while many of us are making the same amount of money, giving to churches has decreased. Loosely translated, people are more concerned about the economy and one of the first places they tighten up is giving to the local storehouse. Bottom line, if you are making about the same amount you did a year or two ago and you are giving less or have stopped giving to your local church, you are robbing God. Check out Malachi 3:8-10. If you give less to God during tough economic times, then who are you really trusting? Do you trust God to provide for you like he does the sparrows and the lilies (Matthew 6), or are you trusting in what you can put back on your own? Do you not remember that God rewards faith? What better time to test God and your faith in him than to faithfully give? Isn't God the same God when the stock market is 6,000 points as He is when its 11,000 points?

3. Finally, the consequences of lacking faith in God during tough times is much worse than the consequences of misplaced trust in Wall Street. If you trust in financial institutions for your security, then when those institutions fail, your security is stressed or destroyed. However, God is our sure rock during unsure times. The consequences of lacking faith in God will have spiritual ramifications long after the recession has subsided.

I would encourage you to be a trendsetter and not a trend-follower. Show the world that as Christ-followers, we may not know where Wall Street is heading, but we know where Christ is. Be faithful. Test God and show the world that His kingdom advances and His church in on the front lines.

Essential Church Retreat

Last weekend I had the opportunity to attend the Essential Church Retreat at Ridgecrest Conference Center in North Carolina. This event was sponsored by Lifeway and featured its president Thom Rainer and his son Sam who co-wrote the book Essential Church: Reclaiming a Generation of Dropouts. I am a big supporter of Dr. Rainer's books, and my ministry has been profoundly helped by his insights during his time both at Southern Seminary and now as president of Lifeway. My denomination is blessed to have Dr. Rainer leading the helm at Lifeway.

I picked this book up originally because every time I go to the bookstore and see a Thom Rainer book on the New Releases shelf, I automatically look inside. The staff at my church read Simple Church a few years ago and radically restructured a lot of our ministry around the four discipleship envriornments we indentified as part of reading that book. Essential Church is in many ways a follow-up to Simple Church. The research was done to show how to recapture and prevent the large number of church dropouts that occur between the ages of 18-23. Being a previous youth pastor, I have seen first-hand how many students walked away from the local church during this time, no matter how strong the youth program or their seemingly strong personal walk with God during the High School years. I was also intrigued reading the book because the research is part of the basis for my Doctor of Ministry Project that I am working on at New Orleans Seminary.

During the retreat and in the book, the Rainers show that "of those who dropout of the church, 70% will do so between the ages of 18-22." There are many reasons given in the feedback by the survey respondents, but the primary reason for their dropout is that they no longer saw the church as an essential part of their lives. They made a consumer decision of their time and energy and the church lost out. The Rainers also show that these young adults did not necessarily walk away from God or change their views of God, just His bride. While these trouble me, they don't surprise me. The authors also did a fantastic job in the retreat and the book showing that there are four elements that are necessary to create the type of Essential Church that will bring this generation back. They also showed that while the research was limited to a young adult population, the principles of the Essential Church transcend all age groups and will probably be necessary to reach the de-churched no matter what the generational identification is.

Another very interesting insight from the Rainers is that of the "Third Place" mentality. At one time, it was common in the culture that outside of the home and work, the church was the center of cultural life. That is no more. However, many places have started to capture this "Third Place" mentality. Starbucks is a prime example of this. The authors encourage the readers to begin to investigate ways to bring this Third Place mentality back to the local church. I think this is an effort that deserves some more research.

Overall, a great time the whole weekend. The insights from the retreat were great. Alison and I got to spend some much needed time alone together. It was significantly impacted by the fact that Ridgecrest doesn't have televisions in the rooms. Wow! That was an adjustment. We took a rainy tour through the Biltmore Estate on Saturday and then had a fun ride home in the sleet and snow that hit the Southeast on Sunday.

Christianity in Crisis: 21st Century - A Review

A few weeks ago I signed up to be a Book Review Blogger with Thomas Nelson publishers. The first book I choose to review was Christianity in Crisis: 21st Century by Hank Hanegraaff. Hanegraaff is the president of the Christian Research Institute and known as the “Bible Answer Man” because of his radio show in which he fields questions about cults and cultic groups. Christianity in Crisis: 21st Century is the author’s response to the popularity and subsequent dangers of the Word/Faith movement that has infiltrated the American church. He does a good job of not only showing the cultic nature of this dangerous movement, but also helping the reader understand that not all Charismatic branches of Christianity espouse this dangerous doctrinal poison.

The Word/Faith movement is not a new one. Hanegraaff shows how its seeds have been sown for over a century now. He also does a good job of showing how the ever-changing cast of characters have developed from its beginning with E.W. Kenyon and Kenneth Hagin to more current proliferators like Joel Osteen, Joyce Meyer, and T.D. Jakes. The movement lacks denominational structure and its teachers have differing emphases and dangers in their teachings. Hanegraaff shows, however, that most all of them have some consistent heresies in their doctrine and teaching. The author’s main points of dissention are that the movement redefines faith as a metaphysical force by which the believer can require and demand from God; a reduction of the deity of God and Jesus and a subsequent deification of man a sovereign over the earth; a redefining of the atonement of Christ in which Christ’s redemption is not won on the cross but in an encounter in hell; and a dangerous teaching that believers should never be sick or in want because of the force of their faith.

Hanegraaff’s book is well-written and well thought out. It exposes a very dangerous branch of the American church that very few in today’s society have had the courage to confront. The movement’s lack of structure and the vast bank of resources by its proponents have given it a strong foothold in the culture. Hanegraaff’s writing shows a well-crafted researcher who has spent many years studying the false teachers of the Word/Faith movement. The author has employed over 1100 footnotes and quotes directly from these false teachers, exposing the reader in a large scale manner to the depth of deception and deviation from the truth that characterize the movement. However, the author does not just expose false teaching, but shows sound theology by giving the reader firm answers to the deceptive teaching.

In addition to the solid research and sound theology, the author makes use of acronyms to present the material to the reader. While seeming a little cheesy at first, the use of these acronyms provides the reader with memorable handles to recall the dangers of the Word/Faith heresy. This helps boil down the information into memorable handles that will go beyond the reading of the book.

Overall, Christianity in Crisis: 21st Century is a much-needed and timely alarm to the church today. In a time when present day books for church leaders mostly focus on missional renaissance and leadership techniques, and rightly so, Hank Hanegraaff has given those same leaders a sound call for doctrinal purity. Whether they realize it or not, all church leaders are battling every day with the subtle decay of sound doctrine and proliferation of man-centered, greed-filled teachings of the Word/Faith leaders. To overlook this decay leads to a silent endorsement of its teachings and quiet approval of its results. Pastors, read this book.