In case you missed it, last week we talked about the Bible’s definition of “church”  and just how God intends for His church to be used…God’s plan for the church makes it clear that a healthy church is essential to taking Jesus Christ to our cities.

I cannot tell you how excited I am about all God is doing in our midst. Last Friday, we had hundreds of people come to our first friday event at the day|twelve gallery space downtown. (I know that Mike Olbinski and others blogged about the event.) The art and music were amazing and the conversations and connections made were tremendously encouraging. It was so cool to see our church interacting with our city in this way. On Saturday, we hosted a concert at the central location and, while I couldn’t attend, Brian Whitman told me that Ascend the Hill did an incredible job leading people in worship. Finally, on Sunday, I had a great time as we worshiped together and talked about a vision for our great city. It is so cool to see how God is going to continue to use us to take the message of Jesus into all of our neighborhoods.

This week we will be using the story of Jonathan found in 1 Samuel 14:1-15 to take a closer look at our mission, vision and values. There is tons to learn from that passage of Scripture so I hope to see all of you there this week as we worship together and continue to seek God’s will for this church and our role in this city.

Brian

Sarah of www.sirenmag.com… Sara is a journalist who is using her gifts to create this on-line magazine to speak to women’s issues in culture and the church.

Alex of www.avestyles.com … Alex’s is passionate about fashion design and desires to make an impact in a field that typically doesn’t see much of a Christian influence.

Mike of www.mikeolbinskiphotography.com captures large spaces unlike anyone I’ve seen. He is gaining quite the reputation for his brilliant images.

Chairth of cnorvellephotography.com tells stories through the faces of children like few others. Her heart for children, especially those in developing countries bleeds through her photos.

I hope you take a minute to check out the unique gifts that each has.  I’m looking forward to doing posts like this from time to time to tell the stories of those here at day|twelve and how God is using people to tell His story through the gifts He has graciously given.

our gallery space | photo by rick young

In one word: “wow.” That’s how I would sum up our first First Friday event last week. While we certainly planned and prayed for what happened on Friday, it was a little surreal to see the PHX community flooding into our, um, gallery.  We had so many great conversations with people from all walks of life. My favorite ones started with “what does day|twelve mean?” Ah…glad you asked! To explain the vision of our church to people was so much fun and seeing them begin to think of the church in a new way was so fulfilling. Truly, the vision that God gave us took a step forward on Friday night. So humbling to be used by God in this way. And, this is just the beginning and just a piece of how God is going to use us to tell people about Him. Our vision is to be a catalyst for personal and community transformation in the name of Jesus and this space is just a tool to do that. We will always keep the vision in front of us when we do anything…whether that is hosting an art exhibit or a worship service on Sunday morning. After all, as people of God we are called to do all things for His glory.  So, whether my title is Pastor, Professor, and yes, even Gallery Director (haha!), my mission and vision will not change.

Can’t wait to do it all again in just a few weeks, Friday, December 3rd! Stay tuned for details.

P.S. – Thanks to everyone who made the evening a very special night; there are so many who contributed. And, in case you missed it…the photographers were:

Mike Olbinski: http://www.mikeolbinski.com (more pics of the gallery here)

Dee Nichols: http://expressionsbydeenichols.com

Tiffany Egbert: http://tiffanyegbert.com

Charith Norvelle: http://www.cnorvellephotography.com

Rick Young: http://www.flickr.com/photos/ryoungphotog

Steve Lynch: http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=695378867

If you were there, please share you thoughts and comment!

The truth is, Halloween does have some Christian roots. It was originally celebrated as all hallows eve, or the evening before all saints day. Now, there is little arguing that  all saints day rivals Christmas or Easter, but still, it was an observance based, at least in part, on biblical principles. To me, Halloween is similar (not exactly the same thing) to St. Patricks Day. Just like jack-o-lanterns and candy corns are synonymous with Halloween, green beer and leprechauns have become the icons of St. Patty’s Day, the day that once celebrated the life of St. Patrick, the great Christian evangelist to Ireland.  These days on Halloween we get stuffed on cheap candy and on St. Patty’s Day we chug cheap green beer. Weird how the world has twisted things, huh? (big surprise!) What does make Halloween different is how many satanists (wicans and others) have adopted the day as a celebration of death and evil. This certainly is not worthy of observance or celebration and thus why many of my Christian friends choose not to observe. Totally get it and respect it.

Me? We make sure our kids know what Halloween means. We don’t allow fangs, blood, witches and any other things that we (as parents) view as a “celebration” of evil or demonic practice. But, we do let our kids dress up and trick-or-treat. That is our choice; you make yours. I will say this: whatever you do, be intentional. If you are a believer who observes Halloween, teach others the good roots of it. Take the opporunity to talk to neighbors and hang out with them. Be ready to give account for the hope you have in Jesus, whether you have green bear or candy apple in hand.

carry on…

Local talent includes:

Mike Olbinski, Dee Nichols, Tiffany Egbert, Charith Norvelle, Rick Young, and Steve Lynch.

Please join us and invite a friend to come along.

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After more than 20 years of experience, Keller has found that contextual city churches must, among other things,…

1. be extremely culturally sensative because the city is so diverse. It DOESN’T mean the Gospel is different but when you have Muslims, agnostics, atheists, Hindus, Unitarians, etc. in your community you have to know how to engage them.

2. understand the importance of the artists and mucisians in your culture…

3. be famous for how it cares for the poor…

4. understand the different values for urbanites vs suburbanites. diversity and change are common in the city whereas predictability and safety are more bedrock in the ‘burbs…

As we continue to push forward in Phoenix I am so encouraged that we are on the right track and that we are building something that will be part of a movement in the city. The challenges are many but the rewards are immeasurable…