Yearly Archives: 2006

There was a day when I thought all people just attended church.  Must have been when I was younger.

Of course, there were the bad kids.  They wouldn’t go to church because they were so bad.

Now I’ve grown up.  It’s not just bad kids who don’t go to church!

For a number of reasons, the institution of the church has hurt and disillusioned a number of Christians.  Not that they don’t recognize a need to be with other like minded people.  But they are afraid of the hurt that comes when they get invovled in a large group of people.

A small group, a house church, even a coffee klatch, is acceptable for Christian fellowship.  In fact, they will get involved with people who are involved in a church at any other time than during the “regular church service” time.  They will eat with, fellowship with, work with, serve with, and even minister with them.  But the church service time seems to hold them back.

OK, for some it is just a matter of stubbornness or laziness.  For others, though, there is a very tangible history that has invaded their reality.  I’ve been looking this over for the last few years.

So, here is where your comments would be helpful (as they have been in the past!).  How can a church change — what does a church need to change — in order to welcome back those who have been dechurched?

In 1974 I was introduced to Sam Polson.  He was a buyer for an national clothes chain.

Sam’s mandate was to outfit a singing group called Sound Alliance.  He made sure that we had ties and wool suits of the highest quality.  He also had to show us a few tricks for tying ties.

When you crossver the two ends of the tie, you find the seam in the tie and start looping from there.  I can tie a tie in less than 20 seconds.  And it looks good first time around.

Many men struggle with ties.  They leave them knotted.  Watch the contortions that happen as they try to remove the tie without pulling their heads off!

If we could get past the actual tying of ties, we would soon see that they are a good thing!  Let’s bring back the tie — for the following reasons

• Keep your neck warm
• Cover your buttons
• Work as a napkin
• Provide clothing decor
• Work like duct tape to tie things together

Any other reasons?  Add your comments as we attempt to resurrect the proper place of the tie in our society!!

A local girl who has been living in Calgary, Sheri Verhaeghe (oops — van Runt) got married to Michael today!!

Last night I spent time thinking.

If fact, most of the night I was thinking.  Not much sleeping.

Our church had been given a new computer (OK, not quite new — but “new to us”).  The library is to be the beneficiary.  All fine and well.  But the disk had been wiped clean.  Windows needed to be installed.  My learning curvewas more like a vertical wall than a slight slope.

I “side by sided” this computer with another of my own.  I would switch back and forth parts to make sure all was running.  In the midst of this both computers quite.  That’s where I stood at close to midnight.  Or should I say lay.  I was in bed determined to sleep.

Worked for four hours.  Then I was up for my usual devotional time with God.  I laid it out to him — but still couldn’t sleep very well.  At 6:30 I was up and moving again.  By 8:00 I was off to a ministerial meeting with a diagnostic in my head.  Had to be the power supply or the motherboard.

I picked up another power supply — that wasn’t it!  But in playing I found that a hard drive I was using to do my testng seemed to have a short in it — or perhaps it was drawing too much power trying to turn the drive.  I dispensed with that drive and soon things were running.

Now it is almost 9:00 in the evening.  Both computers are running.  I trust my midnight sleep tonight will be a little more restful!!