Christmas Eve…A Glimpse

You may be one of 14,654 who got a ticket for today's Christmas Eve services at Granger. Or you may be planning to watch online tonight at 11:00pm EST. Whichever group you are in, I bet you didn't know…

• There are over 40 cast members.
• Hundreds of others helped with design, construction, costumes, make-up, parking, childcare, food for the volunteers, guest services and more.
• The financial cost to the church for this production: About $5,000.
• Phil McMartin (aka "Ebeneezer Scrooge") has been attending Granger for twenty years.

Here is a glimpse of what you will experience (thanks to the photography of Mark Beeson for these great pictures):

Taking the X Out of Christmas

Last year I wrote "Xmas" instead of "Christmas" on my blog and didn't think much about it at the time. However, a man caught me in the hall at church and expressed some deep disappointment in my sacrilegious language–taking "Christ" out of "Christmas."

For those who have had the same concern, you might find this article, by R.C. Sproul, interesting:

The simple answer to your question is that the X in Christmas is used like the R
in R.C. My given name at birth was Robert Charles, although before I
was even taken home from the hospital my parents called me by my
initials, R.C., and nobody seems to be too scandalized by that.

X can mean so many things. For example, when we want to denote an unknown quantity, we use the symbol X.
It can refer to an obscene level of films, something that is X-rated.
People seem to express chagrin about seeing Christ's name dropped and
replaced by this symbol for an unknown quantity X. Every year
you see the signs and the bumper stickers saying, "Put Christ back into
Christmas" as a response to this substitution of the letter X for the name of Christ.

First of all, you have to understand that it is not the letter X that is put into Christmas. We see the English letter X there, but actually what it involves is the first letter of the Greek name for Christ. Christos is the New Testament Greek for Christ. The first letter of the Greek word Christos is transliterated into our alphabet as an X. That X has come through church history to be a shorthand symbol for the name of Christ.

We don't see people protesting the use of the Greek letter theta, which is an O with a line across the middle. We use that as a shorthand abbreviation for God because it is the first letter of the word Theos, the Greek word for God.

The idea of X
as an abbreviation for the name of Christ came into use in our culture
with no intent to show any disrespect for Jesus. The church has used
the symbol of the fish historically because it is an acronym. Fish in Greek (ichthus)
involved the use of the first letters for the Greek phrase "Jesus
Christ, Son of God, Savior." So the early Christians would take the
first letter of those words and put those letters together to spell the
Greek word for fish. That's how the symbol of the fish became the
universal symbol of Christendom. There's a long and sacred history of
the use of X to symbolize the name of Christ, and from its origin, it has meant no disrespect.

Taken from Now, That's a Good Question!
©1996 by R.C. Sproul. Used by permission of Tyndale on the blog of Ligonier Ministries.

Did this article change your mind at all?

Video Games Are Cheaper Than Couples Therapy

At least, that's the title of a recent news article on MSNBC.com. It was a great article written by Winda Benedetti about her marriage struggles and how gaming together is actually helpful for their marriage. There were a few quotes I really enjoyed:

"As everyone knows, there’s nothing like gunning down post-apocalyptic
psychopaths and bloodthirsty alien creatures to bring a couple together."

"When I surprised Richie with the news that “Borderlands” was going to
be delivered in a matter of hours and then told him that I was looking
forward to playing it with him, the look on his face went from kid-on-Christmas-morning excitement to you-just-backed-your-SUV-over-my-kitten disappointment."

"Rather than bickering about who gets to empty the dirty diaper bin, we
now spend our evenings discussing how to take down homicidal humanoids
with names like Nine Toes and Bonehead and Sledge. Rather than debate
who it was who was supposed to have returned the “Winnie the Pooh”
movie that's now two weeks overdue, we chat about whether a submachine
gun, a sniper rifle or maybe a rocket launcher is the best weapon for
completing the mission we’ve just accepted from some nefarious-looking
character."

As much as I enjoyed the article, I even more enjoyed the commentary provided by Jack Magruder (who forwarded me the article). His words were insightful and humorous and, well, classic Jack:

• I found it interesting that she finds two-player first-person shooters to be just as wise an investment for “standard wear and tear” marital ills as two hours of counseling at a family therapist.  And honestly, I kind of agree with her–so long as the issues aren’t “big ones” (i.e. affairs, etc).  Even though the environment isn’t “real”, it can nudge some real-world issues that cause other things to rise to the surface.

• This all goes back into my original pre-supposition that our world is changing… significantly.  The fact that your spouse covered your butt with her plasma-based pulse-rifle when you didn’t see that cannibalistic mutated store-clerk coming around the corner might actually have REAL world benefits of building trust and communication.  Who’d a thunk that virtual-world game-play could build real-world community and relational progress like that? But it can (not a guarantee, but “can”).  I think that we need to recognize that the bonds formed in virtual environments can, in fact, be just as powerful or more so than “real” ones.

His final sentence makes a pretty good case for online church, don't you think? Agree or disagree with Jack?

Already 11,500 Tickets Are Gone

Not sure what you are doing on Christmas Eve, but I think you should consider attending Granger's production of A Christmas Carol. Oh, and get your free ticket soon — they are going fast. Six on-site services to choose from (one is already sold-out) or watch it online live at 11:00pm.

A Christmas Carol | Christmas Eve 2009 from Granger Community on Vimeo.

I Already Miss Him

I had known about Butch for about a decade prior to interviewing him five years ago. Up to that point, we were acquaintances attending and serving in the same church. But that all changed in the winter of 2004 when I asked Butch to step in and help me lead through one of the most difficult staff challenges we had ever faced.

What Butch brought was stability. Healing. Comfort. His leadership gift and relational style was exactly what we needed at Granger these past five years.

A few months ago, Butch began to talk to me about a dis-ease. No, not a disease like cancer…but a dis-ease, an unsettled feeling and wondering if God might have something else on the path for Butch. He has always had a heart for the business community (from which he came)–and he ultimately made the decision to re-enter the marketplace where he can have an impact at a closer level. But don’t take my word for it–read what Butch said about this transition.

I’m happy and I’m sad. I truly like Butch, and I’ll miss the daily interaction with him, working through the highs and lows of ministry. He is fun–and he is funny. He is incredibly smart, and always has great insight on just about every challenge. But Butch isn’t going far. He’s going to continue to serve in the church, and even lead on the church Board. And for that, I am grateful.

A New Leadership Team

Today we announced to our staff the addition of three amazing leaders to the Senior Management Team (SMT) at Granger.

Kem Meyer — she's been in the church for 18 years and on the staff team for 7 years leading us in communications, web strategy and other creative projects.

Jason Miller — I introduced Jason yesterday as he has just assumed the role of Pastor of Arts and Teaching at Granger.

DC Curry — He was attending Granger while playing football at Notre Dame. After a short time in the NFL, DC came back to lead our student ministry and has been with us for 3 years.

All three of these leaders are big thinkers. They lead a ministry area well–but also have the eyes, heart and vision for the entire church. They join Mark Beeson, Mark Waltz, Rob Wegner and myself as the primary leaders of the strategic direction of the church. I ask you to pray for us as we strive to find God's best for our future together.

Trivia

• The age of Granger's senior team ranges from 27 to 56.
• The SMT now comprises 7 leaders with an average tenure at Granger of 11.6 years.

Uprising by Muse

This weekend the band at Granger performed my favorite song off the world's most awesome CD — this is Uprising by Muse.

Uprising from Granger Community on Vimeo.

A Rising Leader

Many exciting things are on the horizon for Granger, and it will be fun to tell you about them in the coming days. Stay tuned.

For today, let me introduce to you Jason Miller, the new Pastor of Arts and Teaching at Granger. He's not new to the team (perhaps you remember me writing about him three years ago). He joined us in 2004 as a worship leader, and more recently the pastor of our college ministry. But last week we announced to our staff his transition into this new role–leading a team of hundreds of volunteers and staff who help design and deliver more than 60 creative experiences every year to help people meet God.

Jason brings youth (he's 27 years old), wisdom, leadership and passion to the team. He also brings a love for God and commitment to the mission of Granger in our community. He started teaching at our weekend and midweek environments a few years ago and has quickly grown into one of our congregation's favorite speakers.

I love Jason's heart for diverse learning. One day he's studying for a test for his master's degree in theology at Notre Dame–and the next day he's reading a business book by Patrick Lencioni so he can be a better leader.

I hope you'll get to know Jason. I'm a better man because of his friendship and influence–I know you will be too.