Letters from Dad (4/20/09)

In the video, I shared some things I’ve done to preserve memories from my parents…and to do the same for my kids. I’d love to hear your stories as well. Also, has anyone written letters to their spouse? If so, was it worth it? You can respond on this blog or send an email to tom@faith360.org.

Finding Nemo (4/11/09)

This is a time when it would be really nice to include film clips in my videos. I’ve looked into this before and struck out. If you’re a church using film clips in a live worship service, you can easily get a license that allows you to legally show the clip. But if you’re showing the clips on the web, it’s a different story. As far as I know, it’s impossible to get permission to do this. I just thought I’d let you know this.

I don’t about you, but I alternate about which story is greater: Easter or Christmas. I usually came down on the side of Easter because of what Jesus accomplished on the cross. But Christmas—the fact that God decided to come to earth, as a baby no less—is an equally remarkable story. So, yes, both holidays are incredibly special.

If you have any friends that are Disney fanatics (I’m sure you do), maybe this is a good video to tell them about. My goal is always to find new ways to explain and bring the Gospel to life for modern people. If the story of two pretend fish resonates with somebody, then I’m happy to use it!

Your Sacrifice Headquarters! (4/1/09)

I don’t know about you, but I find the ancient system of sacrifices to be somewhat interesting. It’s challenging to read about it in the Old Testament (check out Leviticus), but it’s still intriguing. When you gain a basic understanding of what the sacrifices represented, it helps you to better appreciate Jesus’ “sacrifice” for us.

That’s not the main point of the video, though. I just wish you could have attended my church on Good Friday 2008. As I mentioned, the fellowship hall was set up like the Temple with stations and actors in various places. You really got a sense of what it might have been like 2000 years ago. But what was particularly effective was how the Gentiles were treated. When the actual church service started, the Gentiles were not allowed in the fellowship hall. There were seats set up out in the narthex (lobby). I forgot to mention that everyone received a card when they came into the church informing who they would be (e.g., a Gentile, Jew, Nazarite, Leper, etc.).

Anyway, the Gentiles’ chairs were set up outside, and there were signs on the wall warning about entering the Temple. If Gentiles tried to enter, the punishment was death! Well, I think the Gentiles were pretty good sports until……When the service started, the church closed the doors into the fellowship hall and the Gentiles were truly shut out (I think the service could be seen on TV monitors, but the point was well made). Gentiles were not special like God’s chosen people.

We then had the service. Eventually, the big veil (curtain) was torn in the temple at the time of Jesus’ death. All of a sudden, the doors into the fellowship hall swung open and the Gentiles were invited to come in with the Jews. I’m not sure if you can picture this scene, but let me say it was very effective.  The death and resurrection of Jesus changed everything, and all people were clearly welcome into the family of God. While most of us accept this intellectually, I wonder if some people still think there are exclusions based on race, sexual preference, behavior or something else. For instance, we’ve all heard someone say, “That person is going to rot in hell!” after committing a horrible act.

Until next time…