Is there a church for everyone?

Yes and no.  I believe in the one (small "c")  catholic church.  All Christians are able to agree on the "major" items like the divinity, Jesus death on the cross, and that he will come again.  The "minor" items like infant/believer baptism, ordaining men/women ministers, communion, purgatory, indulgences, etc. I don't believe we should be splitting hairs over.  Some people may have the theological background to decide for themselves one way or another, but I myself choose to focus more on having the "personal" relationship with Jesus and living it out.  I have learned recently that this aligns well with the "Pietist" movement that has influenced the style of Newsong church so for now it seems like a good place for me to be, especially since it's roots come from the Lutheran church, which also happens to be the church I grew up in.  I will continue to study theology and church history, and if I feel called to make a stand on any of these issues, then I may have to choose another church.  But for now, I pray that I can both grow in my faith through the Newsong community and continue to serve with them on efforts like the burrito project (http://community.newsong.net/group/burritoprojectfullerton) among other things.

My Walk finding a Church

Born and raised, baptized (Holy Cross) and confirmed (St. Paul's) in the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod (LCMS).  St. Paul's Lutheran in PB was where I attended 1st-8th grade and where my family went to church after we transferred membership from Holy Cross after some "pastoral issues". Coming to UCI for college I struggled finding a church home.  For some time during freshman year I went to Concordia's service as I had a friend (James Wilson) going there at the time.  At some point during that first year I found a church that some of my dormmates were going to called Newsong.  Although not Lutheran, it appeared to share the same core beliefs.  The style of worship was very different to me - what I call ultra-contemporary.  St. Paul's had a contemporary service (at least for a while) but Newsong was at a whole different level.  Incorporating video, lighting, song, dance, and skits among other arts - seemed to speak to the college-age generation very well.  I attended their regularly for some time and eventually went through the "Connections" class to become a member.  I became involved in ministries like "Front-line" helping with ushering and parking.  I also joined the mountain bike ministry where I met my friends like Ted and Edgar.  I soon met Travis and started a surf ministry with him also.  With my newfound community I felt as though I really made this church my "home".  I felt energized and "on fire" for Jesus, singing and dancing undignified. Within the past few years I became introduced to the (Roman) Catholic Church and am now realizing that I had many misunderstandings of the Catholic Church.  I have been going weekly to "Inquiry" sessions where I can ask questions I've had regarding the church.  Many of the church's teachings regarding Saints, Mary, Purgatory, Confession, and even Indulgences make "sense" although maybe not necessary and at times even seem a little "scary" in the sense that I feel they might detract from that which is at the root of our faith, Jesus. But in the words of an old friend "However you get your Jesus on".  So now I come to the final question: "Who has ultimate authority".  I feel that if I can be convinced that Peter was truly given this supernatural ability to bind and loose and that the Pope and bishops have attained this also through Apostolic succession, then I would be need to become Catholic.  At this point however, I am not convinced, and I am in regular discussion with members and leaders within various other churches including Pastor Bill from Christ Lutheran Costa Mesa and Ed Salas from Newsong to ensure that I do my due diligence and am able to make a knowledgeable decision.  My prayer is that God can lead me to the church where I can best grow in my relationship with Him and serve him here on this earth.

Geese

Cool intro to the church sermon yesterday...Ever seen Geese (or other birds) flying in the "V" formation?  Did you know that they can go over 70% further because of this?  You probably would see a similar percentage if you studied road bikers...My point is - we are made to live in community.  We can be so much more effective with others by our side.  Ok, it gets better, when one goose gets sick, shot, etc. and goes down, 2 geese go with them to the ground and stay with him till he either gets better or dies.  Then they rejoin another group and go towards the common goal.  Beautiful, isn't it?

The Trail 70

Here's a picture of the Trail 70 up next to my roommate, Tiger's monster of a bike (recently sold for lack of use).  Exciting news!  I passed the motorcycle exam yesterday so now I have my license!  I also got the Trail 70 registered and insured so now it is technically legal to ride on the road - no freeway though with a top speed of 45mph (which is pretty hard to get to!).  I've only taken it on a few local streets so far.  My goal is to ride it to Ted's in Fullerton after the weather clears up :)  I need to find some local trails that allow motorized vehicles so that it can be on the trails that it was made for...

Take up your cross

A friend asked me recently "Why would such a loving God allow us to suffer (and some seemingly more than others!)?"  I also just recently had a dream of being nailed to the cross - I could almost feel the pain, but I'm sure not even close to what Jesus endured.  I feel that we all have our crosses in life and that we all suffer in our individual ways.  Some physically, some mentally, some spiritually.  It is up to us to get through the "suffering".  God is there for us through it.  It is indeed most times a mystery as to why we suffer in the ways we do.  Sometimes I feel it is through our suffering that we can grow closer to God and even bring others closer to Him.

Joy comes in the morning

Woke up this morning 5am.  Couldn't get back to sleep.  Figured there must be a good reason why I'm up at this hour.  I pray.  God speaks to me.  Sometimes I think it's easier to hear God when it's quiet all around.  Maybe it's because everyone else is sleeping so he can focus on me - just kidding :)  I look out the window and it's dark.  I ask God "Where am I suppose to go?" thinking that I want to go out biking, or to the beach, or something but I realized I was actually asking Him where I am supposed to go "with my life".  I'm currently looking at the Catholic church to determine if it might have "the fullness of the truth" that it claims to have.  That would be a big move for me so I'm taking my time to learn the differences, and most importantly pray - I believe God will lead me down the right path.  For whatever reason, he just hasn't fully illuminated that path to me yet.  Or maybe he has and I just haven't fully opened my eyes :)  My eyelids are getting a little heavy after getting only 5 hours sleep :(  But overall I thoroughly enjoyed my morning spending some time with God, praying, reading, walking, singing, and dancing.

Eat your vegetables

Parent's tell their kids to eat their vegetables because they know it is what is best for them even if the kids don't know it yet.  I've heard of indulgences being the Catholic church's way of essentially telling the "lukewarm" of how to live a more holier life: praying, fasting, charity, etc.  This certainly seems better than the indulgences of old that (among other disagreements) ultimately caused Luther to post his 95 thesis in an effort to reform the church.  Back in the 1500's when the Reformation took place, the Catholic church was using indulgences as a way to raise money - through telling folks that they could purchase these indulgences granting their dead loved ones passage out of purgatory.

As I mentioned, it seems like the Catholic Church has definitely made forward progress in their use of indulgences (among other things), however I am still not convinced that it is the best way.  As a first step yes, we must tell our children what to do, but then very quickly we must explain to them the why so that they will not grow to be resentful but rather have the correct posture - desiring to do these "good works" as an outpouring of the love that we have already recieved from God as a free gift in the form of His son.  

It is my opinion that largely the Catholic Church has fallen down in it's attempts to ensure the correct posture but rather has primarily resorted to "scare tactics" to ensure that it's members do the right thing.  It is my opinion that we can do the right thing, for the wrong reason.  We do not actually benefit from the "good works" that we do unless done with the correct posture - and that is not that we would desire any reward here on Earth (like the prideful Pharasees) but rather seek that which is eternal.

Adam

It was hard.  I'll admit it.  Here I am, pulling up to the stoplight and there he is.  Adam - well I didn't know his name yet, but God knew.  God knew that I would take that particular path to get to dinner that night.  God knew that I would be out of granola bars.  Sometimes I think God had more to do with it then just "knowing" - but anyways.  So there I am, debating in my head whether to roll my windows up, lock the doors, and speed off - or....to stick my head out and ask the dude if he was hungry.  I don't know if this is the right excuse for what I did but "God made me do it" :) 

So I get us a 5-pack of chili dogs (with onions - yum) and am definately a little out of my element sitting down with the guy.  Before I can even ask to pray for the meal he folds his hands, bows his head, and we say a common table prayer together along with a prayer for his healing as it was obvious he had injured himself recently wearing a neck brace and all.  And then the story.  It all comes out, from girlfriend problems, to how hard it is to get a place to stay because places won't take him in with his injury, to how he hurt himself falling on the bus - he had a bad leg and the bus driver started going before he was seated :(

I ask all you readers to please help me in praying for healing for Adam.

I pray that I see him again, and that when I do he is better and that I can bless him with something a little healthier then chili dogs :)

The oppurtunities to help are there, all around us, it is really on us to take the oppurtunity.  Remember - it is not all about great things, but rather small things with great love.

Running with the grunion

If you've never been grunion running then it is time (March - August)...

Yes, you may make the trip and not get to see them but it's always fun being on the beach anyways...

Go to this page for the calendar and more info...

http://www.dfg.ca.gov/marine/gruschd.asp

Note: The times given for each date reflect the probable two-hour interval during which a spawning run may occur. The second hour is usually better. The best runs normally occur on the second and third nights of the four-night period.

Personal Relationship

One of the big questions I asked when first coming to NewSong was "What does it mean to have a personal relationship with God?" I have learned over the years that although I may have always "believed" in the Christian God - it was never truly "my belief". Because I was born and raised in the church - the Lutheran Church to be precise - it was easy for me to just kind of "go with it". It was my parents church, most of my friend's church, where I went to school, etc. Coming to college and moving away from all of that lead me to really "make it my own". This road lead to some doubt and questioning but in the end has lead me to really grow spiritually - embracing the faith that not only my parents hold dear - but more importantly really living it out among a new much more secular community of roommates, friends, and coworkers.

Life is Good

So I've recently discovered my new favorite brand of apparel - yes it is silly, but the guy's name is Jake. He also has a dog named Rocket - and yes I also want a dog and to name him rocket. I grew up with an Aussie Shepard  (Cory) and my buddy Edgar dog sits for this amazing Aussie named Alta so you can guess what kind of dog I'm getting...Anyways, here's one of the prints (on right) - you can check out the rest of their stuff here: http://www.lifeisgood.com/

The other Jake

I am teaching myself to play guitar and using thing guy for inspiration.  Yes, he is playing a ukelele but who knows even that could come some day...

Riding Centuries when you turn a Century

I was flipping through the "Southern Californian Bicyclist" earlier today - most of the paper is "roadie-focused" but I did find an article on "Fixing the Cycling Widow Syndrome". It was actually an excerpt from a book called "Bike for Life: How to Ride to 100" by a local Irviner, Roy M. Wallack.

It opens with a bit of dark humor detailing a T-shirt:

Front side: "My wife said if I do one more ultra cycling event she'll leave me."
Back side: "God, I'll miss her."

Although possibly a bit extreme, the joke describes emotions that are felt by many a cyclist's significant other. Feelings of jealousy, neglection, and possibly even disgust could come from the loved one of a cyclist who may not be "showing the love". In the article Roy quotes "Gottman, world renowned for his work on marital stability and divorce prediction, found that successful couples have three things in common:

1. They know a lot about each other - their opinions, their needs, their perspective;
2. The maintain respect/admiration for each other;
3. They maintain a high ratio of "emotional deposits" (thoughtful acts) to "emotional withdrawals" (self-centered acts). In fact, Gottman says, the highest predictor of a failed relationship is a low ratio

...Gottman found that the real number is at least 5 to 1."

Roy goes on to quote a sports psychologist, Charlie Brown (love the name) saying "Conflicts themselves are okay, a part of life. No two people agree on everything. The key to relationship bliss, however, is not making a big deal out of them."

For more info on the book check out his website at http://www.bikeforlifebook.com.

Doubt and Belief

As a human there are certain things that we "believe in". We might believe that the world is a sphere even though we might have never been all the way around it. Science among other things will tell us this - but unless we see something with our own eyes there is typically some element of doubt. As is in Christianity. There is a lot of proof and history behind Jesus and much else that is described in the Bible. In fact many people devote there lives to "proving" that which the Bible talks about. Since I am not one of these what you might call "theologians" I tend to focus on "core" beliefs and just living that out.

Question and Answer - Are Catholics Christian?

The question of whether Catholics are Christian is almost a bit funny to me. Not only have I heard non-Catholics describing the different denominations (sects, groups, etc) as 1. Catholic and 2. Christian. But I have even heard Catholics themselves many times referring to non-Catholics as simply "Christian" implying that they view themselves as not also being Christian. Again, this is almost funny - but I have to hold my laughter because it is quite serious.

So to set it straight once and for all - Catholics are Christian - period. Now that's not to say that they believe the same things as non-Catholics - what it means is that at least we all (Catholics & Non-Catholics - commonly referred to as Protestants) have the same core belief that Jesus died on the cross that our sins would be forgiven and that we would have eternal life. At least in my opinion that should be the main focus, but more on that in my next post :)

PotatoLand

Last week I adventured to PotatoLand (aka Boise, Idaho) where I implemented ACOM's EZContentManager product at some "Virtual Academy". Luckily I got to spend some off time sightseeing the local towns stuff and got to do some nice hiking up by the "Camelbak" trail as well as the infamous "Riverwalk" which is quite nice. Wish I'd had a tube! Even more I wish I had my mountain bike as I heard later that Boise was the fastest growing mountain bike area in like the universe :) Cool stuff....

Chumba Wumba

Since Ted didn't get in that last group pic - here's him at work on the beach connecting to his manufacturing in Taiwan via Skype-this guy loves his toys :)

So many babies!

Tonight at 9:57 pm my friend and "Ficher" Justin has become a father to this little guy: Javin Arlo Ugerio. Awww....Looks just like his dad :)

Whatever way you get your Jesus on...

A very wise man (we'll just call him the Mysterious Mr. A for now...) once gave me some very wise words: "Whatever way you get your Jesus on" and I have come to understand and even use this in my everyday life. Basically, I interpret this to mean that whatever type of Christian you are, that is cool. The only thing I have to add there is: as long as you are 'alive'. What all this means is that it doesn't matter what denomination you come from: Catholic, Orthodox, Lutheran, Baptist - as long as you have that "relationship" with Christ, believing that He is Lord and died on the cross for your sins then everything else seems to fit into place. Now many may ask, what about church, baptism, communion, yada yada yada, those things are VERY important also. But I truly believe (as quoted from Jesus)...the faith of a little child....is what we should all have. Now that means to me not only that we have to believe "without seeing", but also perhaps that we shouldn't be so worried about not only what I call "the details" but also "how everyone else is doing it". Now again I must say it is VERY important to know and live by these "details" like the laws, the sacraments, etc. but simply that if we focus more on the true core of the religion, that we might - just might - realize that we are all really getting at the same thing...that is, that by God's grace, we are saved, and that we are to live by His Word, and be fisher's of men. What this means to me is that we should really stop looking at all our differences (as Christians) and preaching to each other, when we really need to get OUT THERE and preach to the world. Now different types of preaching may certainly work better for different people, and that makes sense since there are so many types of denominations. Now that doesn't mean we shouldn't all be UNIFIED. I'm not saying that we should all be Catholic, Lutheran, etc. but rather that we should all be respective, acceptive, and understanding of each other. This means that not only do we have to respect those that practice in a different way, but also to accept them in to God's holy body of THE CHURCH, and in order to do this, we must finally understand how we each do that and why it is important. Perhaps in my next few blogs I'll try to focus on each of these individually and explain why they have become so important to me. God bless you all!

It's a boy!

That's right, Anthony and Joy just gave birth to their new baby boy yesterday afternoon, Dominick. So cute! I want one!