On Sunday we worshipped at the Well in Feasterville (again with Evan’s group).  When  we were in between churches, my wife and I would worship there.  I have a great deal  of respect for Todd and Gary (the pastors) and loved the community and vision of The  Well. 

Generally, Todd and Gary take turns preaching.  This Sunday was an exception however.  A woman gave the message!  (I hear you gasping).  I had to laugh because in school we just read Community 101.  Gilbert Bilezakian would have been so proud.  Frankly, she did very well although she wasn’t very dynamic  (not a criticism).  Her sermon had fantastic content, out of Ephesians 1, and she quoted Dallas Willard.  I can’t complain and regarding a woman preacher – so far, I haven’t heard any complaints from my church!  We’ll see but certainly the best woman I heard preach since … hmmm …. trying to remember the last time I heard a woman say something from the platform that wasn’t a song or an announcement … wait, wait, … got it – “missionary moment”.   Hmmm …

That evening, we went to Bethel Church in Philly to hear Shane Clairborne.  Our students connected with a lot of what he had to say. Still waiting for them to digest it all bc I am eager in hearing their thoughts and reactions.

To say that you can’t agree with everything Shane says is about as obvious as saying that I breathe oxygen.  No one should agree with everything any moral says.  That said, I personally have a great respect for Shane’s ideas and it keeps growing.   One day, I may summon the courage to express my personal differences and questions I have with some of Shane’s ideas.  But if you asked me, should we live more like Joel Osteen or Shane then I’d throw out my hair gel, smash my LCD, give my possessions and my teeth to the poor so that no part of me would have mistaken for any influence coming from Lakewood.  (Don’t be offended, this is hyperbole.  If you are legalistic, you may have misunderstood some of our best passages of Scripture, you walking gravestone).  

So where was I?  Oh, it was good.  I took notes and plan on sharing more later.

One last thing, I’d like to express my admiration to Bethel Church for taking the heat from those I would call “narrow-minded”.  It takes some courage for a conservative senior pastor of a conservative church to bring on a guy like Shane who isn’t as conservative (although I’m not real sure that “liberal” is an appropriate term for him).  Lastly, at the church (which was converted from a movie theater) had a little book-store area and among the 30 or so books was Brian McLaren’s, Everything Must Change.  I was encouraged by Bethel.

Saturday morning we served at the Sunday Breakfast Rescue Mission in center city Philadelphia with Evan’s students at Great Valley Pres.  (Back in August, Evan and a several students from his church joined us on our trip to New Orleans).

At this mission, some students helped cook the good, distribute to the homeless, while others were cleaning up the foot pantry room, organizing shelves and still while others were loading their truck with the stuff that they needed to clear out.   Not a lot to say aside from it was a good experiencing reminding us of several important matters.  

This year we went wanted to go to Philly for a number of reasons.  But before we set out to the place allegedly referred to “The City of Brotherly Love”, we did a worship service at the Good Shepherd Mission in Paterson, NJ we on Friday night.  Our new Jr. High Youth Pastor, also named Tim (we have heard all the jokes) led worship, a student gave a reading and one of our shy freshmen girls summoned the courage to share what the Lord was doing in her life.  I preached a sermon on unity that was an extension out of what we’ve been speaking about in youth group.  Our unity must flow within us as a youth group and beyond us throughout the Body and outside the Body.  Following our time of worship we spent a couple hours afterwards hanging out with the men there listening to their stories and enjoing each other’s presence.