Christians Face Rising Persecution

Well, even CNN has discovered that there is persecution of Christians in the world and that it is rising in many places. Not news for some of us, but at least it is being covered.

"There does appear to be an upsurge in violence directed against Christians," said Leonard Leo, the chairman of the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom. He says part of the problem is that "governments are not cracking down on sectarian violence the way they should."

"We've got to have governments taking ownership of these problems and enforcing the laws that exist," he said. Whether it's "Christians in Iraq or Afghanistan, or Copts in Egypt, the government has to prosecute (people) and put them in jail for killing people on account of their religion."

Click here to read more.

Asia Bibi, a Christian pictured here, is facing the death penalty for blasphemy in Pakistan.

Seattle the Most Charitable City

So, it appears that Seattle is the most charitable city in the US. Interesting to both see and hear.

Check out the full article about it here. San Francisco and Portland also made the top seven which might raise some eyebrows among those who think that highly churched populations determine giving. All three of these west coast cities have the least amount of people attending church.

Hong Kong!!

No one picture captures this city, but this gives you a small overview of the dynamic city of Hong Kong. I was here earlier this month for Board meetings of ChinaSource, an organization which catalyzes partnering in China.

This city of 8 million feels even larger and is known for its "vibe" as there is always something happening somewhere -- and the super efficient transportation system means you can usually be there in just a few minutes!

It has been named the best city for business in the world. Two of the top 3 business hotels in the world are here (The Peninsula and the Four Seasons). However, even more amazing is that it has also been named one of the best leisure destinations as well!

And then there is Macau, its neighbor to the southwest where we took a ferry for the day. I was here in the mid-1990s when I was moved by this Portuguese refugee city in the east, but the change now is astounding. Think, Vegas on steriods. The amount of development -- hotels, casinos, restaurants and the like are unbelievable and immense.

But we were not here to visit the casinos or see the shows, we went to see the Protestant Cemetery and the grave site of Robert Morrison, the first modern missionary to China and the translator of the Bible into Chinese. Also here is the grave of Samuel Dyer, the father in law of Hudson Taylor.

The setting is quaint and even the taxi drivers were unsure how to get there (we showed them on the map!). The streets are quite narrow and many are cobblestone. Once there Morrison Chapel stands as a still in use Anglican church with the cemetery in the back.

Why is it Hard to be Broken in Church?

Been asking this question for about 15 years. I think it explains why the greater Seattle area (which has always been one of the lowest in church attendance) has so many followers of Jesus outside traditional structures. The church is rarely a safe place.

Anne Jackson asked the question: "What can't you say in church?" on her blog and was deluged by the responses. So much so that she wrote a book called Permission to Speak Freely. The purpose was to show people that they were not alone in the battle with fear and secrets.

The bottom line is that the church (and the community in which we live out our faith) should be a place that helps us wash away our sh#@. But our normal default is that we cover it up; we hide. Ans the church has rarely been the place where we feel safe. In reality, it has been a place where people have often been ostracized for their "failures."

As Anne says, when something in our spiritual life is broken or is confusing, we hide. If a relationship is broken, we hide. If there’s an unhealthy habit we fall back on, we hide. If there’s a controversial political or social issue confronting us, we hide. We ultimately want to hide what’s broken, whether it occurs individually or in a community.

Several of our friends (non-regular church goers) have decided to meet regularly for what is called the MSM. The Monthly Sh#@ Meeting. There we feel like we have a place to be safe; to share our challenges, our frustrations, our sh#@. We eat together; have fun together; laugh together; and yes, even cry together.

Should church not be that? Or is the MSM just a variation of church!?

Working in the Margins

I see many people wrestling with how to bring balance, fun and fulfillment to our professional lives. It is easy to get consumed by what we used to call the "tyranny of the urgent." Need to respond to that e-mail, write that report, phone calls to return, meetings to attend. Needless to say, there are times when we DO need to be responsible and work through our to do list
Sadly, however, sometimes these things capture us and we don't even realize that we often play outside the margins of our lives. Stress, anxiety, chaos all seem to follow. That is, WE FAIL!

That is, I fail.

I have adopted (as have a few of my colleagues) these three guidelines to help me work within the appropriate margins:

1. Work with likeminded people and not assholes. The latter drain energy (and yes, the description is necessary).
2. Have fun! When possible, make your play your work and your work playfull!
3. Work together so as to make a greater impact. This, of course, is what I strive to do through REACT Services.

The funny thing is, once you follow rule number one, everything else seems to come together nicely!

A book I read a while back had these helpful comparisons:

Marginless is fatigue; margin is energy
Marginless is red ink; margin is black ink.
Marginless is hurry; margin is calm.
Marginless is anxiety; margin is security.
Marginless is culture; margin is counterculture.
Marginless is the disease; margin is the cure.

So, today I am going to "schedule" escape from e-mail, reports, telephone calls and the like.

Maybe I'll sleep in.
Soak in my hot tub.
Go out to dinner with friends.
Play my guitar.
Walk on the beach.
Write more.
Tennis would be great

Wow, there is much to choose from!

For a great perspective on this topic, see my colleague, Chris Bruno's excellent paper called, "The Danger of Christian Drivenness."