the intention for the exorcist

On the heels of Halloween, I'm intrigued by this quote from the writer of "The Exorcist" - the book that the pop culture movie was based on:

"That I am regularly hauled out of my burrow every Halloween like some furless and demonic 'Punxsatawney Phil' always brings a rueful smile of bemusement to my lips as I lower my gaze and shake my head, for the humiliating God's-honest truth of the matter is that while I was working on The Exorcist, what I thought I was writing was a novel of faith in the popular dress of a thrilling and suspenseful detective story—in other words, a sermon that no one could possibly sleep through—and to this day I haven't the faintest recollection of any intention to frighten the reader, which many will take, I suppose, as an admission of failure on an almost stupefying scale. But it's true! … Every [Halloween] I put out the pumpkin with the cutout eyes and nose and face, and the basket full of Snickers and Mars bars beside it; but I do keep wishing—oh, ever so wistfully and—let's face it, hopelessly—that The Exorcist be remembered at this time of the year for being not about shivers but rather about souls, for then it would indeed be in the real and true spirit of Halloween, which is short for the eve of All Hallows or All Saints Day."

—The Exorcist author William Peter Blatty. This October marked the 40th anniversary of his book's publication. And about his inspiration for it, Blatty says, "When I first heard, in 1949, of an actual case of demonic possession and an exorcism going on nearby while I was a junior at Georgetown University, I remember thinking, 'Someday, somebody's got to write about this, because if an investigation were to prove that possession is real, what a help it would be to the struggling faith of possibly millions, for if there were demons, I reasoned, then why not angels? Why not God?'"

[10/28/11]

a friday quote: rich mullins on hypocrisy

"I remember, you know, you go to these parties on Saturday night and people would say, about 8:00 on Sunday morning 'Whoa, I have to go - I gotta get to church!' 

People would say, 'Why do you want to go to church, all those hypocrites?' 

And I say, 'Look, why do I want to stay here with all you hypocrites?'

I never knew why going to church made you a hypocrite. They'd say because you go to church and you're all 'Holy, Holy, Holy' for two or three hours, and then you go home and sin. I'd say 'exactly!' For two or three hours you're doing pretty good! 

Maybe the problem isn't that you go to church, maybe the problem is that you go home! 

I never understood why going to church made you a hypocrite either, because nobody goes to church because they're perfect. If you've got it all together, you don't need to go. You can go jogging with all the other perfect people on Sunday morning 

Every time you go to church, you're confessing again to yourself, to your family, to the people you pass on the way there, to the people who will greet you there, that you don't have it all together. And that you need their support. You need their direction. You need some accountability, you need some help." 

- Rich Mullins

a friday quote: extraordinary words from an ordinary guy

I sometimes quote famous people to consider their thoughts on life and random things, but today I'm quoting a friend.

"I used to feel there is a heavenly realm, and an earthly realm. And I never really put the two together. But it's clear that my understanding now is that God puts everything in this world into place. That everything that we experience, every act we do, every conversation we have is because of Him and by Him and He's working through us and we're working with Him.

And that's caused me to sort of examine how I act in the workplace, and how I interact with other people. I truly hope and pray that I've become a beacon of my faith for other people."

- Chris Jones, via a night of "Pizza and Prayer"

a reality check regarding young men and their impact on young women

Here is piece of an interview from Relevant Magazine.with Mark Driscoll, pastor of Mars Hill church in Seattle. Take note of this particular gut-wrenching slice regarding young men in our culture and the way their auto-pilot lives impact young women:

You’ve talked a lot about twentysomethings today living in a sort of extended adolescence. Why do you think that is?

I think, in particular, it’s young men. Perhaps to some degree it is young women as well, but we’re finding more women are getting better grades, more women are graduating high school, more women are graduating college, more women are buying homes, more women are doing things that are more adult and responsible. We’ve created this. It’s a sociological category. It used to be you go from “boy” to “man,” and now you go from “boy” to “guy” to “man.” There is this whole new creation of a “guy.”

It’s just extended adolescence, where 20s, 30s, sometimes even in his 40s, he doesn’t really want to get married, doesn’t really want to have kids, doesn’t really want to pursue a career. He has a lot of hobbies, got a lot of buddies, watches a lot of porn, gambles, has a lot of fun, maybe plays in some band or is in a guild of World of Warcraft, or something ridiculous like that. And they’ve even got little [mottos] like, “It’s all good” and, “Bros before hos.” It’s just this whole adolescent, juvenile culture. Kind of the Adam Sandler-esque view of life, and there is this whole genre of comedy movies built around these kind of inept, irresponsible, immature guys, and I think part of the problem is, as well, that the Church in large part has accommodated that.

Those guys tend not to go to church. If those guys do show up at church, it’s usually just to find a couple of gals to break the commandments with. And the Church doesn’t really know what to do with them, so the least likely person in America to go to church is a guy in his 20s who is single. Without knowing what to do with those guys, they commit crimes, they get women pregnant, they’re a drain on social services, they don’t raise their kids, they don’t contribute to church, they’re not getting ready to lead the next generation. I’d say it’s nothing short of a crisis, it’s a real problem.

What do you think has created this “guy” phenomenon?

Part of it is the unintended consequences of divorce. Forty percent of kids go to bed at night without a father. Not to be disparaging toward single moms, but if you’re a single mom and you’re working 60 hours a week, and you’ve got a boy, and he’s home all by himself with no parents and no dad, he’s just going to be hanging out with his buddies, feeding himself pizza rolls.

The number one consumer of online pornography is 12- to 17-year-old boys. What that means is he’s home eating junk food, drinking Monster energy drinks, downloading porn, masturbating and screwing around with his friends. That really doesn’t prepare you for responsible adulthood. That’s a really sad picture, especially if you’re a single gal hoping to get married someday. You’re like: “Seriously, that’s the candidate pool? You’ve got to be kidding me.” That’s why 41 percent of births right now are to unmarried women. A lot of women have decided: “I’m never going to find a guy who is actually dependable and responsible to have a life with. So I’ll just get a career and have a baby and just intentionally be a single mother because there are no guys worth spending life with.”

what to do in the meantime

Every once in a while we catch a whiff of a huge opportunity in front of us.  We don't have words for it, and yet we sort of "know" that something big is about to happen.

Only because we can't see it just yet, we go crazy wondering what your next step "should be" and "could be."  We wonder if it's all written in stone or if it will only happen if we make the "right" decision.  I know from personal experience how tremendously frustrating this can be.

What do we do in the meantime?

How can we go somewhere when we have an idea of the destination but can't adequately explain how we will get there? I've learned that the clear answer to the unclear question is daily faithfulness.  Dee Hock explains it this way: 

One need not know and be able to prove in advance what could be accomplished. One need not have a precise plan about how to get there.

In a complex, rapidly changing world, a clear sense of direction, a compelling purpose and powerful beliefs about conduct in pursuit of it, seemed to me infinitely more sensible and robust than mechanical plans, detailed objectives, and predetermined outcomes.

(p. 169, One From Many, Dee Hock)

I dig this concept, and yet I find that this isn't easy for most people.  I used to be one of those guys who needed to know every step of the way, and today I'm more willing to throw myself into the moment and trust that what I am giving my best swing at is somehow linked into whatever needs to happen down the road. Meaning, if I love God and others completely in whatever I'm doing (and without reservation), the rest doesn't matter because that moment absolutely does... and it becomes the metaphorical pebble that creates the ripples into the rest of the pond. 

And the secret of that?  One must live for something that actually lasts so that the details (which don't seem to last and yet demand so much of our attention) don't choke the life out of us.

a few kicks in the right direction

Today I received a one-two-three combination punch from Rick Warren, pastor of Saddleback Church and author of The Purpose Driven Life.  Lean in and hear the truth contained in this nugget:

The church that is content with not growing is saying to the rest of the world "You can go to hell"

I was going to compile a list of other quotes that spoke to me this week, but it turns out Todd Rhodes at Monday Morning Insight already did it for me.  He included Rick's, as well as these others from his list:

“It's much easier to act like a Christian than to react like one. Anyone can put on an act. But your reactions reveal what is really in your heart.”
- Mark Batterson

“I do not want to be guilty of leading a church passionate about reaching the saved, but fanatics reaching the lost. I have noticed, that every Christian wants to see the lost saved, but not every Christian wants their church to cater to the lost.”
- Shannon O'Dell

“I can't Christianize this culture. The god of this world is Satan – this is his culture. He is the god of this age. I'm to preach the gospel... God is calling a people for Himself. I don't know whom He's calling, I just have to be faithful and preach.”
--Franklin Graham

“Being a leader does not mean that we will never be in situations that make us shake in our shoes; in fact, it means quite the opposite. When a leader allows the fear of a circumstance to trump the fear of God in his life... he ceases to lead.”
- Perry Noble

“A leader is a person who is always on the lookout for other potential leaders to discover, develop, and deploy. But if we are not careful, all our energy can leak out to passion stealers, stranding us on a sandbar of mediocrity and ineffectiveness.”
- Dave Kraft

“After wrestling with this for years, I'm slowly coming to the conclusion that a church building may not be the best location for church employees to do their work.”
- Erik Ullestad

“Have we created a theological ideology that eliminates any discomfort and marginalizes any element that would cause us pain or even death?”
- Brady Boyd

“Is the seductive, deceptive lure of some sin such as anger, bitterness, unforgiveness, and sexual immorality, creeping into your heart? Is there anyone you've been withholding forgiveness from? Do you secretly celebrate the failures of people around you? Have any secrets that you're working hard to keep from some of your closest friends?”
- Pete Wilson

“In my experience, once it's clear you're willing (not just willing, but itching, moving, and yes, implementing) without them, things start to happen. People are rarely willing to step up and stop you, and often just waiting to follow someone crazy enough to actually do something.”
- Seth Godin

 What nuggets have you heard recently that have kicked you in the right direction?

a friday quote: the test of an organization

What I really enjoy most about this quote is the relational component of it.

"No organization can depend on genius; the supply is always scarce and unreliable. It is the test of an organization to make ordinary human beings perform better than they seem capable of, to bring out whatever strength there is in its members, and to use each man’s strength to help all the others perform. The purpose of an organization is to enable common men to do uncommon things." - Peter F. Drucker, Management (HarperCollins), Reader’s Digest, p. 209

When have you seen the abundance of relationships or the lack of them affect a home, a company, a team, or a church?

a friday quote: the secret to her success

I don't normally quote the Oprah, but this statement (from an interview she did with ABC a few years back) is quite revealing. I believe it is her "key to success" as a talk show host, and has great implications for you and I... minus the book plugs and daytime deification, of course ;).

"The greatest running theme for me, aside from 'you are not alone' and 'you must take responsibility for your own life,' is that everybody wants to be validated. In every single interview for the 17 hours of that tape (the anniversary DVD), the theme for every single person, regardless of who it is or what the subject is, is 'Do you hear me? And did what I have to say mean anything to you?'"
- Oprah Winfrey, in a 2005 interview with Diane Sawyer

a challenge for every business person, and quite possibly every church

Seth Godin was recently talking on Dave Ramsey's show and gave this interesting insight regarding the risks it takes to be successful (and how risky it actually may not be). His book "Tribes: We Need You To Lead Us" explores this, but here's a transcript from a piece ofthe interview I was most intrigued by.

So here's what happens - choices went up, options went up, noise went up. But you know what went down? How much it costs. That the amount of money it costs have a successful blog online? Five dollars a month. The amount of money cost at 10,000 people following you on Twitter? Zero.

So since it costs nothing to be part of the conversation, you can afford to fail a lot because failure doesn't mean renting a place and having it empty. Failure means you're invested a week a month a year and no one "followed" you. But at least you went out there and gave it the shot at... and the shot at leading.

If we look at the history of organized religion we find that there were periods of time when dozens of religions were started a shorter period of time. There's a reason for that. Because when the world shifts - when changes occur - fissures open up. And inside those things new things grow.

And what's happening on the Internet now is this huge fissure. It means that somebody in Singapore can build a blog and have a million people read it in a month. That was impossible five years ago. It'll probably be impossible five years from now.

But in this moment there's the opportunity. If you really believe in something, if you really want to see a change in the world, this is your moment not to whine about it but to stand up and lead. Because people are just willing to follow you.

It would seem that there is a challenge in there for every business person, and quite possibly every church. What if we stopped worrying about "marketing" and simply believed in what we believed in... "out loud?" And as we found others who felt the same, we got them together and let something authentic happen - instead of something so forced and formal?

whether you realize it or not

You are a leader.

No matter what position you hold to another person from anywhere in a 360 degree perspective, there is someone else who is setting their life and decisions according to the patterns they see in you.

For instance, we all know that kids watch their parents. They will choose their language and base their consumption habits based on the patterns in their households. If mom or dad live inspirational lives, the general rule is the kids will be inspired; if mom or dad live reactionary lives, the general rule is the kids will become reactionary to life.

But have you ever considered how parents watch their kids? A young child can lead a parent to spend oodles of money on certain toys and activities (Chuck E Cheese, anyone?), not to mention the power teenagers have in influencing what is considered "cool" or not. This is why you will often find adults driving cars they can't afford and wearing clothing they shouldn' (or can't). You will also find, though, kids inspiring their parents to become more active, playful, and carefree about life when we begin to make the wrong things our top priorities.

You get what I'm saying? Everyone is a leader, whether they realize it or not.

There are those who add a little bit of direction to the overall climate of a group by the tiny contributions they make - for better or for worse. One person may comment how much they enjoy the gifts of another... and everyone is a little blessed. Another person can talk about how they "just don't get into" this one thing that another person does... and everyone is a little poisoned.
So the question is what are you leading people to do?

• Forward: Perhaps it's stereotypical - what we think of as a leader. You motivate people forward... toward something of worth. It could be your favorite cause or perhaps something even more important - their eternity with Jesus Christ.
  
  
• Backward: Maybe you're a backward leader. Your pessimism has become contagious in the circles you're in as the problems you have with "so and so" start getting taken on by others. If this is you, you may find yourself ranting a lot about everyone from celebrities to how the butcher at the grocery store cheated you out of two cents of ground beef. And you may even want everyone to be as ticked off as you are.
  
  
• Neutral: It could very well be that you are a neutral leader... you influence others "not to care" because you've chosen not to. You hear the same appeals that others do, but don't want to get involved. In fact, you may even assume that since you're not ranting or criticizing that you're better than the backward leader. Actually, you could very well be worse because you're setting the tone that it's okay to do nothing... to come and go as you please... to decide commitment to a community or a goal simply isn't worth your consistent energy.

Moses is one of the most popular leaders in history. Funny thing, though - the guy didn't think he had what it took. He was short-tempered and self-conscious about a speech problem he had. "Mo" didn't think God could use his life for anything significant.

Sound familiar?

Even if it's your first time up to bat, you are a leader. Leadership doesn't always require speaking in front of crowds, becoming the CEO of a large corporation, or leading an entire nation out of slavery (as Moses did). Often it's something that happens with your family during dinner, in your cubicle at work, how you handle an issue in your neighborhood, or the relentless commitment you offer someone who has caused you hurt.

Need some inspiration? Check out this guy from ancient Egypt who stepped up to lead at a time when his people needed hope.

Again, sound familiar? We all need hope, don't we?

The world needs leaders who will lead people into a deeper connection with God. This is something you can tear down, pour apathy into, or stir up some genuine motivation for.

"A community is like a ship; everyone ought to be prepared to take the helm." - Henrik Ibsen

a friday quote: are you gonna go his way?

Musician Lenny Kravitz says he's been celibate for four years. But he admits that it's hard to be both chaste and a rock star, and it took him a long time to bring his behavior in line with his Christian faith.

"It took years to get it right," he says, "to actually do it, and really try to walk the walk and not just talk it. It's not like it's not important—I think sex and intimacy and all that is very important. It's just that I'm going to do it with my wife, and not everybody else." Kravitz also said of his failures to stay true to those convictions earlier in his life, "I knew it was not consistent with my beliefs. So that's hypocritical, and I don't want to be a hypocrite. And I could just feel the emptiness ... it didn't feel good. The feeling afterwards. Just that empty sort of ... weird space. And I'd had enough." [telegraph.co.uk, 6/16/09]

a friday quote: where is this place for you?

Where is this place for you?

"Inside this room, all of my dreams become realities, and some of my realities become dreams."

- Willy Wonka, as portrayed by Gene Wilder

a friday quote: the next ten

"What would I do instead of run out in front of 80,000 people and command 52 guys and be around guys I consider brothers and be one of the real gladiators?"

– New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady, on his goal to play football for at least another 10 years, to Sports Illustrated

a friday quote: spiritual

Often I have conversations where people talk about the "spiritual" part of their life - as if it were a small piece/component of everything else. I tend to like the more organic perspective below.

A life is either all spiritual or not spiritual at all. No man can serve two masters. Your life is shaped by the end you live for. You are made in the image of what you desire.

- Thomas Merton

a friday quote: believing or depending

Many people today are in some form of crisis, whether it's one that seems new or another that all too familiar. Leaders are often exposed to this more than others, whether it's the crisises of the people they serve or their own. I'm reminded of this quote and the difference between believing and depending on God.

[After] nearly three weeks in Zimbabwe in Southern Africa, I was astonished at the dichotomy between extreme poverty on one hand, and extreme praise and passion for Christ on the other.

I asked one of the pastors from the town of Bulawayo where I had preached, “How can a people so poor and with so little to be thankful for, come a full hour early to the tent meeting simply to praise God with such zeal and gladness?” Praise and worship in the States sometimes barely appears as a “blip” on the radar of a 60-minute Sunday morning church service.

I will never forget his response. “Steve, in America you believe in God. In Africa, we depend on God.”

His words sank into my chest... believing but not depending. In crisis, Christ is magnified. He becomes the God who can do “exceeding abundantly above all that we could ever ask or think.”

I call Him the God of the ridiculous. However, we do not need the God of the ridiculous to do the same things we’ve always done before. I believe that somewhere in the crisis, Christ is calling us in all of our decisions to decide to depend on him even if it means doing the ridiculous.

- Steve Fitzhugh, national spokesman for Fellowship of Christian Athletes

a friday quote: the present of presence

“Presence is the strongest form of leadership. Even today, when a nation is at war or some other crisis, its citizens feel assured when they see their leader on television. When leaders are absent, the population becomes anxious. Business leaders know that they need to get out of the office occasionally and be among their employees. They refer to it as ‘management by walking around.’ I would call it the blessing of presence.

In the same way, the presence of God brings peace in the midst of a crisis. We’re blessed when we sense his presence, regardless of the circumstances. What else could account for songs of praise in a refugee camp?”

–The Ultimate Blessing, by Jo Anne Lyon

a friday quote: doing the work of the Lord

This quote is from the commemoration of Mellitus, First Bishop of London, 624.

The Church has always found it easier to fulfill her priestly than her prophetic role. The temptation to institutionalism is always with us, and who will profess himself guiltless? We reduce Christianity to the service of an institution, the Church, for this enables us to be active in what is fondly called “the work of the Lord,” while at the same time failing to grapple with the fundamental problem for all Christians, that of winning our generation for Christ.

In our little circle of like-minded people we condemn outsiders because they do not come in. Perhaps we even make half-hearted attempts to get them to come in. And then we snuggle down again in the warmth of our fellowship, comforted that we have done all that might reasonably be expected of men in our situation. Fortified with this consolation we concentrate on keeping the institution, the Church, running as it should.

from a former newsboy

One of the more successful bands in Christian circles has been the Newsboys, who just this week made a transition of front-man leadership. It's not the first time, though, for about a decade ago the original front man - John James - transitioned out as well. His comments below are music-centered, but I dare you to read them in your context:

"You've gotta understand. You've got a bunch of young guys that one moment we're tanning on the beach in Mooloolaba and some years later we're in one of the biggest Christian bands around. The success, the fame, the money, the screaming girls, the autographs. It's like, how do you deal with that? How do you process that? You're in this schizophrenic lifestyle where you're surrounded by thousands of fans that are wanting to touch the very sweat that falls from your brow. They're wanting your autograph. They're wanting to reach out and grab you.

And then I'm meant to come home and make the transition from this surreal, schizophrenic, adrenaline-packed lifestyle to come home to be a dad and a father
and a husband. And I found that after a period of time I wasn't able to make that transition back to normality of lifestyle. There wasn't anyone mentoring or helping me to deal with this, mentally or emotionally. It's like you've got people that surround you and help you to become successful but no-one really mentored us in regards of how to keep our heads in check.

I don't care who you are, you put ANYBODY in that sort of environment for long enough and unless you have countermeasures to help you process and deal with that, man it's gonna mess you up big time! And over a period of time it began to take it's toll. Only in little things. It doesn't happen overnight. Maybe a value dropped here. A standard lowered here. But it began to eventually take its toll on my marriage - the pressure of it."

I can see the parallel in many professions, from my friends who once were in ministry but no longer are to people who defined themselves by a job or role in the household that no longer is the same.

Do you see it in your life? What would happen to your sense of worth and everyday purpose if you couldn't tell the difference between what you produce and how it affects people around you... versus who you are without it?

Even if whatever you were doing was a really, really good thing?

But Samuel replied: "Does the LORD delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices as much as in obeying the voice of the LORD ? To obey is better than sacrifice, and to heed is better than the fat of rams. (1 Samuel 15:22)

a friday quote:

Surviving and ministering during a crisis is more than just the crisis itself. Relationships are huge before, during, and after it happens. While we can't be there for everyone in every event to the same measure, we can be in quality relationships with others around us that help us truly minister. Here's one example of how it works:

After Columbine, one of the reasons we were so effective was that we were there before it happened. In fact, one of the members of our team was actually in the cafeteria when the shootings took place. A bunch of us joined with the parents who were waiting at the elementary school down the street. Then for the next several weeks, about 17 hours a day, we were just with kids. From attending funerals and memorial services with students to simply hanging out with them, we were just with them.

- Heather Snodgrass (former Young Life leader at Columbine High School,
'98-'04), taken from Youthworker Journal's article Caring Amidst Crisis, Mar/Apr 2009

a friday quote: greatness

I saw today's quote as a preface to an episode of Clone Wars.

Yeah... that's right... Clone Wars.

Great insights on leadership are often found in the oddest of places. That's something I've learned - don't ever put your mental notebook down, even when you put it down.

(That sounded like something Michael Scott would say)

In any event, here it is.

Great leaders inspire greatness in others.