So yesterday a group of us went to play pitch and putt. However we arrived too late and weren’t able to rent any clubs.

So we (all guys) went to the mall nearby to get some food, coffee, dessert and decide what to do next.

As we were walking through the mall i noticed something strange. I turned to my friend and said, “maybe it’s just me, but do malls feel like modern day church to you?” He looked at me a little confused so i explained.

Probably 75% of the attendees are woman; almost 85% of the stores are geared for women; there are lots of kids programs available; and all the men are just sitting on the chairs outside the stores just waiting for it to be over!

“But what about the teenagers?” my friend said.

I replied, “Sure great youth programs (kids seem to like hanging out in malls, although i suggest the young females have something to do with that), but when they get older they stop coming.”

He laughed as we passed 5 men all sitting on couches together, outside the store we passed, not talking to each other, just anxious to get home.

Our churches have become malls…

Derek has recently been hanging out with us at the open house.

Derek lives in east Vancouver, is into Folk music and is a decent muscian, listen here.

Today on his way to a physio appointment (bad wrist from construction) he took the bus as he always does and sat at the front. At few stops later a large man gets on the bus and while he is putting money in the box to buy his fair a small young asian girl gets on behind him and accidently bumps into him while trying to show the bus driver her bus pass.

Suddenly the large man turns around, and pushes the girl while insulting her with a racial slur. The smaller, fiesty Derek stands up to this guy, gets in his face and tells him to apologize for the slur. The large man attempts to punch Derek in the face, but only gets a portion of his cheek.

Derek then looks him in the eye…and pops him in the nose! Dude is bleeding everywhere and Derek jumps off the bus.

Derek would say that he shouldn’t have punched the dude in the nose…but whatever you think about that issue, to me Derek is a hero. I’m going to like getting to know this guy

Andriy Shevchenko scored on a penalty kick in the 70th minute to lead the Eastern Europeans to a 1-0 victory over Tunisia on Friday, making Ukraine the first former-Soviet republic to advance past the tournament’s group stage.

For those who know me, know that my mom is Ukrainian, and so I thought it only fitting for one of my teams to be the Ukraine.

Pretty fun

Via

All people of all ages are welcomed to participate on Canada Day, July 1 in a Walk of Reconciliation through China Town. Meet in Victory Square (the corner of Cambie and E. Hastings) on Saturday morning at 11:00 a.m. The event is expected to last about 1.5 hours and will include some symbolic gestures of reconciliation between the Chinese and non-Chinese Canadians.

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I am really wrestling with which book to give and go through with the interns at our church.

Our theme is going to be “creating a culture of community” but I am stuck for one book (let’s be honest, college students are not reading more than 1 book in 6 weeks). And my dilemma is for me to think of a book that sums up my journey so far as a planter…not happening.

I am hoping i can figure it out by the weekend in order to order the books…

Yesterday the interns arrived and we surprised them by meeting them at the airport, taking their bags and leaving them a note.

They had to then find their own way into downtown, take pictures of a number of different items in the downtown, as well on commercial drive and then meet us so we could show them their accomodations. They then joined up with us for church.

They struggled quite a bit with all the “locations” as some of them were quite hard, but i think that probably was the best part; for them to work through some of the issues with everything not working out as they may have planned it.

The funniest thing was at the end when we realized that they were an hour late. Kristin then called the cell we gave them and found out they were at 41st and victoria, when their last stop was at 11th and commercial drive. 40 blocks out of sync…hilarious.

today we are doing an overview of our church and the summer experience and I am running a small seminar on Canadian culture…should be fun.

Tomorrow our adventure begins as the interns join us for a summer of fun.

The theme for the summer is:

Creating a Culture of Community

More to come on this…

I have a friend who recently made a big decision in his life. And this decision centres on him being a Christian.

It is interesting the flack he is getting for making this decision. The flack is coming from those who are not totally clear on what it means to be a Christian.

It’s hard to explain why Christians make certain decisions, but it’s unfair to sum it up to “it’s because he is a Christian.” We all are led to make different decisions based on how God is leading us and yet it is our pursuit of following Christ that leads to certain decisions, it’s not a religion that gives you the “what and what not to do’s” in this world.

Christianity is a philosophy/relationship of life (not a neat and orderly religion) and practically the best way to live now. I commend him for making tough choices, all in an attempt to understand who God is, and how to follow Christ.

Kristin and I are sitting here working on items for our summer interns, and we were discussing titles for our positions. After spending some time with another church in LA who uses superhero names, we decided to try it…for fun…we really hate copying.

Anyway, I named Kristin “Rogue” for many of my own reasons…mainly that she is most effective when she is around other people (utilizing their powers), and Kristin named me Maximus (because i am a maximizer with people, and good at arranging systems).

Well…she was right!

You scored as Maximus. After his family was murdered by the evil emperor Commodus, the great Roman general Maximus went into hiding to avoid Commodus’s assassins. He became a gladiator, hoping to dominate the colosseum in order to one day get the chance of killing Commodus. Maximus is valiant, courageous, and dedicated. He wants nothing more than the chance to avenge his family, but his temper often gets the better of him. Maximus 79% Neo, the "One" 67% William Wallace 63% Indiana Jones 58% Lara Croft 58% James Bond, Agent 007 54% Batman, the Dark Knight 54% Captain Jack Sparrow 54% The Terminator 46% El Zorro 42% The Amazing Spider-Man 42%

Which Action Hero Would You Be? v. 2.0
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