approaching lombard on the train…

…just before the storm hit yesterday evening.

purple state of mind

A couple of weeks ago I mentioned the documentary, Purple State of Mind, that I was planning to see at Wheaton College. I was negligent in posting a review of the film (that whole moving thing), but my friend Bob Davidson has come through over at rednoW.com.

When “a Christian and atheist walk into a bar” sounds like the beginning of a joke - it is a sad reality - and very much the setting of Purple State of Mind. And this is the beauty of the film: two friends with different labels walk into a bar together (along with a handful of other places). The result? A film that is not so much about who is right or wrong, but a film that embraces the wonder of conversation and coexistence.

I really enjoyed this film and would highly recommend you pool some spare change with some friends and order the DVD. Also, head over to rednoW and read the rest of Bob’s review.

Related…

• After watching the documentary, a few of us spent the evening (and early morning) talking and laughing. Craig Detweiler (who along with John Marks was featured in Purple State of Mind) has a recap of that screening and subsequent conversation on his blog.

a first for me

Yesterday afternoon I had a chance to record four conversations with Skye Jethani and Matt Tebbe for the inaugural Leadership Journal podcast. Skye is Leadership’s managing editor and Matt is a pastor at Life on the Vine in Long Grove, a church I’ve watched with interest from a distance. Skye’s idea was to have 4 conversations around 4 different articles from the spring issue of the journal. Each conversation was about 15 minutes and, aside from the mics, it was easy to forget we were being recorded. Skye and Matt are insightful guys and it was a privilege to be in conversation with them.

I’m not sure when the podcasts will be up, but I’ll try to remember to mention it here when they go live.

godtube gets $30 million

The blog has been quiet this week, mostly because I’ve been knee-deep in packing and cleaning preparing for our Saturday move into Chicago. And while I should probably be doing something moving related, I couldn’t ignore this headline: Hoping For Ungodly Returns, Christian Video Sharing Site GodTube Gets $30 Million Funding.

$30 million. That’s a lot of money. To me, anyway.

Is it a good investment? A good use of money? Do we need a Christian version of YouTube?

In (un)related news, deaths in Myanmar from the recent cyclone may reach 100,000. The U.S. has pledged $3.2 million for relief efforts, about 10% of GodTube’s new-found funding.

kilbourn park

After dropping some boxes off at our new apartment in Chicago yesterday, I drove a couple of blocks to Kilbourn Park. We should be able to easily walk or ride our bikes to this little neighborhood park.

It’s a bit hard to see, but in the foreground of this photo from the park is a children’s organic garden. In the background are a bunch of guys (mostly of Polish descent I believe) playing soccer. It’s certainly not Lake Ellyn, our current local park of choice, but I think it will suit us just fine.

sigur ros, “hoppipolla”

I watched the Sigur Ros documentary, Heima, with some friends a few weeks back. Gorgeous. I’ve been listening to their album Takk a bunch since seeing the film. Here’s one from that album, Hoppipolla.

Don’t you love all those Icelandic words?

What about this video is so intriguing?

Update: make sure to read Keith’s comments on this video.  Really nice.

live blogging the last day of work

I’m live-blogging my last day in the PCC office. No real reason, just for kicks. The most recent updates will be a the top.

[5:17] Time to call it a day.  Probably have a bit more tweaking to do on the sermon, but it’s getting close.  Maggie and I are off to celebrate (if that’s the right word) my last day in the PCC office.  Think we’re going to see Horton Hears a Who and have some dinner.

[3:43] Sermon is down to 40 minutes… getting closer. The new laptop has arrived!

[2:53] Yep, that was the ticket. Some Metropolis coffee from Honey in downtown Glen Ellyn. I think the sermon is beginning to make sense. At least to me.

[1:59] Need caffeine . Taking my sermon notes out for editing and coffee. That should help.

[12:00 PM] Working on a few slides for Sunday; taking a break for some lunch with Maggie.

[10:34 AM] Just talked through the sermon for the first time. It’s 20 minutes too long. The editing begins.

[9:11 AM] At my desk, feeling sleepy and wearing my lucky Wheaton Popcorn Store t-shirt. The office is quiet today; most of the staff has the day off or is taking their quarterly reflection day.

The office is mostly packed up except for a few reference books that I need out for Sunday’s sermon. The sermon that I haven’t finished yet.

Also, waiting for the FedEx guy to deliver my new Mac Book.

links

• My photographer friend Brian MacDonald is currently visiting Africa. You can see his photos and some thoughts about what he is experiencing on his blog.
• Catherine takes the new green marketing machine to task. I am wholeheartedly unimpressed by what has become of our nation’s “green effort,” as well as the green efforts of nearly everyone I know - myself very much included. And here is why. Our environmental efforts have been subtly turned on their head. The whole point is to stop consuming; or at least, to consume less. But daily now I receive print ads encouraging me to be green, or email ads suggesting that I buy this or that latest green product.
• Gareth makes some observations about the American media diet. Most of us would like to believe that we have come a long way since the Roman circus – where human beings killed people for our entertainment - or even the Victorian circus - where we only abused the disabled and disadvantaged. Today’s circus may look like it only mocks the powerful – with the fabulously wealthy being humiliated as they emerge drunk and bloodied from a nightclub, or photographed while getting an embarrassing haircut. But I think we’re kidding ourselves if we think people are not harmed by the pornography of social humiliation offered up 24/7. Amy Winehouse’s visible bruises and alleged substance abuse problem, and Britney Spears’ obvious mental illness are not legitimate fodder for our entertainment, no matter how economically powerful these two women may be.
• I’ve been hearing a lot about the Ben Stein documentary, Expelled, from Christian friends who are excited about it. Here’s a website that is less enthusiastic, Expelled Exposed. In promoting the creationist propaganda film Expelled, Ben Stein managed to stick his foot in his mouth over and over again, issuing what seemed to be a ceaseless stream of ignorant, offensive, and just plain daffy claims.

why i’ll miss parkview (2)

This is my last week as a staff person at Parkview Community Church and I’m listing three of the things I’ll miss about the church. On Monday I wrote about the diverse and eclectic nature of the Parkview community. The second thing I’ll miss about PCC is the staff.

Those of you who are Parkview people are aware of the funny and wonderful group of folks that make up the staff. There are folks who have been doing ministry for many years. Others of us have had our first experience as paid ministry staff at Parkview. We’ve got a senior pastor who, by his own admission, looks a bit like a thug. We have a former overseas missionary and a former salesperson. We’ve got a guy who could be making a living as woodworker. And on it goes.

To be honest, there is not a lot about these folks that should make us like each other. We don’t all like the same movies or vote the same way. Some are young and some are not as young. Our strengths and experiences are very different.  But, we really do like each other.

I think this is a good thing, and it’s another thing I’ll miss about Parkview.

I’ll miss this diverse team of people who are united by their love for Jesus and his church. I’m thankful that I got to be a part of it for the past 5 years.

purple state of mind at wheaton college

For those of you Chicago-landers, I’m highly recommending that you go see Purple State of Mind at the Billy Graham Center on the Wheaton College campus. The documentary will be screened at 7:00 PM on Thursday. I had a chance to see an advanced copy of the film a few months ago and was really impressed. Here’s a description from the website,

Welcome to a conversation between two old friends. Welcome to a real conversation about the things that divide and unite all of us: our memories, our identities, our beliefs, our choices.

Craig Detweiler and John Marks have known each other for twenty-five years. When they roomed together as sophomores at Davidson College, they were devout Christians. It was Craig’s first year in the faith, John’s last. After college, they parted ways, and when they met again, years later, they never talked about what happened… until now…

Their conversation starts as a bull session between pals and becomes a story about how people make friends, and how they lose them; how people change, how they grow, and how they deal with the big stuff: death, sex, the meaning of life, God. The conversation between Craig and John captures in all its intimacy and difficulty a one on one reckoning between two people who want to understand each other but won’t compromise their beliefs.

At a time when the country is ever more divided over questions of faith and doubt, welcome to a new way of talking… welcome to a new territory of the heart. Welcome to a Purple State of Mind.

I’m particularly interested in the honest conversation on display in this film. I hope you can make it. Here’s the trailer…