April 13, 2008

The Personalized Faith

I have generally responded negatively to much contemporary worship music for its individualistic tone. Much of it is “me” centered, and I have bemoaned the lack of worship resources that worship God in a communal context.

In researching a sermon on Psalm 23 today, I was struck by how often the Psalms use individualistic language in their worship. I haven’t done a comparison yet, but certainly the early Hebrew songwriters believed that personal expressions of praise to God were appropriate. Maybe I have been missing something along the way in my critique.  

March 30, 2008
This is something I definitely need!  » Pic of the Day Dept. Dvorak Uncensored: General interest observations and true web-log.

This is something I definitely need! 

» Pic of the Day Dept. Dvorak Uncensored: General interest observations and true web-log.

March 25, 2008
“ So the fact that 4,000 men and women serving in the U.S. armed forces have been killed in Iraq is somehow less compelling than the zillionth playing of snippets from a sermon that the Rev. Jeremiah Wright preached more than six years ago.
Eugene Robinson - 4,000 Dead for What? - washingtonpost.com
February 27, 2008
“ But there is something essentially countercultural about Christianity that should make evangelicals restless in any political coalition. Christianity indicts oppressive government — but also the soul-destroying excesses that sometimes come in free markets and consumerism. It teaches enduring moral rules — and an emphasis on justice for the least and the lost. It is often hard where liberalism is soft, and soft where conservatism is hard.
Michael Gerson - Faith Without a Home - washingtonpost.com
February 18, 2008

30 Day Sex Challenge

YBOR CITY, Fla. - A southwest Florida church issued a challenge for its married members this past Sunday: Hanky panky every day. Relevant Church head pastor Paul Wirth says the 50 percent divorce rate was the catalyst for The 30-Day Sex Challenge. ADVERTISEMENT “And that’s no different for people who attend church,” Wirth said. “Sometimes life gets in the way. Our jobs get in the way.”
February 7, 2008

Message from Lafayette UMC


I have been in contact with some of the persons responsible for the disaster response here in Lafayette. Today the community is in the process of discerning what is needed, and in what order. It is not possible to rush this process, even though there are so many persons who want to help. Please be patient and work through established channels or offers of help can become distractions for those who are trying to coordinate relief efforts.

To cite just one example of the need to be responsible: Lafayette Mayor Bill Wells, a member of Lafayette UMC, told me this morning that private parties using heavy equipment, and in a rush to help, are in danger of destroying infrastructure, such as gas and electrical connnections, that will have to be replaced at the eity’s expense. This, at a time when the city is facing a fiscal challenge with things as they are.

We are grateful for any and all help. We just need persons to make sure that they are helping in the most effective and constructive ways possible, and at the best time.

Blessings,
Michael Welch

Speaking Gigs This Weekend...

Saturday
Workshop leader for Warmth in Winter at the Nashville Convention Center

Sunday
Preaching at the Antioch United Methodist Church

Workshop leader at the Murfreesboro District Training Event in Tulluhoma 

“ We’ve elected two boomers in a row, and it would be surprising if America now jumped a generation, backward or forward. But Hillary inherits the nation’s ambivalence about boomers (at least the elitist, blue-state version) and their self-indulgence and self-absorption.
David Ignatius - Choosing Among Generations - washingtonpost.com
January 4, 2008
“ [Obama] talks about erasing old categories like red and blue (and implicitly, black and white) and replacing them with new categories, of which the most important are new and old. He seems at first more preoccupied with changing thinking than changing legislation.
The Two Earthquakes - New York Times
January 2, 2008
An update from the folks at Invisible Children