Blocking, Tackling, and Gadget Plays

"Blocking and tackling" - it is a term you hear a lot, not only if you follow football, but also if you are in the corporate world. The term signifies all the basic things you need to do well to have a well-oiled machine, one that runs successfully no matter what is happening in the world. It identifies the fundamentals. Obviously, it means the same thing in football. Blocking is necessary on offense to make sure that your skilled players can do what they do - run, pass and catch. You know, make positive yardage and score. Tackling is necessary on defense to ensure that the other team neither moves the ball nor scores. They are the unglorious tasks to be executed by all players to make sure that the team can win its championship and get the glory.

At times, a team may also toss in the element of surprise by doing something non-traditional, non-fundamental. They may throw in a flea-flicker, a Statue of Liberty play, or something else like that. Those plays are termed "gadget plays". Why? They are not normally in the basic arsenal - you don't want to use them too much - but they are available as necessary. Teams usually use them for one of two reasons: 1) They are desperate and out-manned, and are not good at the blocking and tackling components of the game, and 2) A game is so evenly matched, so tight and difficult, that a team needs to do something different to shock its opponent.

But, when life is consistently bad for a decent football team - my local professional variety notwithstanding - coaches talk about going back to the basics, blocking and tackling, and repeating those basics until the team again gets them right, and becomes the well-oiled machine it once was.

Believe it or not, this is not a football post.

I thought about this last night as our family was in church, celebrating the birth of Jesus, our Lord and Savior. Our confessional Lutheran congregation is not glorious. It does not have any gadget plays in its repertoire. Spiritually speaking, it is a well-oiled machine, and blocks and tackles to full effect. The sacraments are distributed. Hymns are sung by the choir and congregation, with wonderful playing by our choir director and our substitute organists. Visitors familiar with the basic blocking and tackling of our confessional team can participate without question of what is going to happen next. No gadget plays. We don't need to sneak up on our rival - he knows Christ takes care of us through his Word and sacraments. We do not need the gadget plays of the modern Christian church - contemporary worship, bands, or topic-based sermons.

At our congregation, we just keep ungloriously blocking and tackling. The newborn Savior of the world does everything for us. He shows us our imperfection, yet through his death and resurrection, has saved us so that we can experience his glory. We don't need any gadget plays. Do you?

Merry Christmas!

A Takeover

Pastors and Pastorettes,

Do you have an awesome vision for your church and the way it should work?

Is your church membership bucking your vision, you know, the one given directly to you BY GOD?

Are your members acting like Christianity started some two-thousand years ago and actually has a history behind it?

It's up to YOU to do something about it!


Okay, enough of the gibberish. I stumbled across what looks like a rational view not of what happened to Issues, Etc., but the "why".

This is an excellent article by someone who has seen this before. I think the confessional congregations ought to tell their members - even those that do not have computers - about it.

This Isn't What Christmas Is About

I won't steal Scott's thunder. Just go to his post to see the sacrilege that is masquerading as a "cute Christmas message" in the Lutheran Church Missouri Synod (LCMS). Scott's comments are excellent. I, like he, fail to see the cuteness in this bit.

Train Wreck

A train traveling to Los Angeles leaves New York City at 10:00am, due west, at 100 mph. Another train, traveling from Los Angeles to New York City leaves at 2:00pm, due east at 110 mph. Assuming that neither train makes any stops and are traveling on the same track, at what time would they crash? (Note: all times are EST.)

That would be quite a train wreck, wouldn't it?


All things considered, Running in Circles had a pretty good gig last night. We were more pit crew than band prior to the gig, because the venue was hosting a benefit that ran 45 minutes late. Instead of staging our equipment and then setting up, we went into fast-forward mode. Hence, we were not allowed to bring in any equipment until folks cleared out. This worked against us in two ways:

- The place was packed...for the benefit. Which means it looked full before we started, and anyone who popped their head into the venue would see there were no tables available, and go elsewhere.

- We were hurried and not in good form on a couple songs in the first set. We recovered, but were somewhat frustrated. Our cover of American Girl, by Tom Petty, always goes over well. This time, we got our wires crossed during the intro, but too far into the song to declare a mulligan.

The result...train wreck. It was the only one. Looking back, I realize we hadn't had a good train wreck in over nine months. I guess we were due, but I would have preferred it to happen in the last set, and not in the first.

This is the second weekend in a row where I have been to a gig that occurred right after a benefit. Last week, I watched Disco Inferno go thru the same thing; crowd loss, first set not tight as it could be. Fortunately for us, a number of patrons actually approached us and the venue manager to compliment us on our performance and song selection. The manager liked us, too. Can't complain about that.

But this is Sunday, Rick. Isn't this the time you craft some wily, wooly Idiots of the Week post?

Of course. Let's talk train wrecks:

• The one that almost happened by My Idiots, the Cleveland Browns. They forgot that the games run for four quarters again, and made a can't-miss win a nail-biter again. It seems to me the coaching staff is still learning on the job, too, based on some decisions they made in the second half. Neither the players nor the coaches know how to close out games they should win.
• The Detriot Lions season. The Lions were 6-2 at one time, and have since lost the last five. That is not significant from the sports perspective, but from another. After the Lions won their sixth game, QB John Kitna, a born-again Christian, declared that God destined their team for the playoffs. I hate when people do that. I will not go further here, but you can add your thoughts as you post your comments.
• The Miami Dolphins season. Terrible, absolutely terrible. The road to 0-16 is more interesting than New England's road to 16-0. It is ironic, too: the only team to go undefeated for an entire season was the 1972 Miami Dolphins.
  

Now, for the Idiots:

Win - The Browns defensive coaching staff, for playing the prevent defense for practically the entire fourth quarter. It almost prevented another victory; they gave up twice as many points in the fourth quarter as they did the rest of the game.



Place - John Kitna, QB for the Detriot Lions. Shut your mouth, and play football.




Show - QB Derek Anderson. for the second consecutive week. He has problems throwing passes in less-than-optimal conditions. He had problems in this game, and in the Steelers loss. No nail-biting this game if he throws a couple good passes in the third and fourth quarters.


Honorable Mention - The Miami Dolphins, who are redefining "incompetence".

Ninety Percent Participation

Man, when I read this, I got jealous. I know I shouldn't get jealous, being that we are talking about church participation. But the number looks really good.

I thought variations of the 80/20 rule applied everywhere. I was wrong. Talk about enthusiastic people looking to grow.

Virtual Pastors

Wow! And I thought this was just fantasy. (Snicker)

I first saw the story at Locusts & Honey.

Guitar Slingin' Pastors Scare Me

Not only do guitar slingin' pastors scare me, but so do hip-hoppin' pastors...and salsa dancin' pastors...and comedian pastors.

Yeah, they do, and it has nothing to do with their theology...okay, it does have something to do with their theology, but that's not the point of this post. It has to do with them.

What's my problem, you ask?

After giving it up for eighteen years, I've been gigging again for over a year now. It's a blast, a great release on the weekends without interfering too much with family life. The little side income helps, too. I have learned a lot so far, like:

• "Kids" of all ages can give you undue adulation. I had one tamborine-playing chick tell me she wanted to be a rock star like me. Hah! It was all I could do not to laugh out loud.
  
• People can tend to go crazy when you do well on stage. They like you, they try to flirt with you, they want to get your attention.
  
• And, if you're not careful, the attention and fanfare can really swell your ego.

I firmly believe that a lot of the contemporary movements of church growth have more to do with these three points than they do with any theology. We live in a needy society where everyone is compelled to make a difference and needs to see the fruits of their efforts. When Pastor Six String puts on that gee-tar and starts playing with the band, he is no longer a pastor (yes, small "p"), he is a superstar. He is a pop idol. He is loved, adored, admired because he is cool. People can relate to him, would like one day to be as fun and influential as he is, and tell him so. He gets exactly what he's looking for. Everyone gives him the thumbs up or the high-five, but he gives them nothing substantive.

I am thankful that my church's Pastors recognize their roles as called and ordained servants of the Word, and do not try to make themselves the main attraction. They preach the word and administer the sacraments, and don't get everyone all caught up in the emotional willy-nilly. They fulfill their vocations, as they should.

If these other pastors want to become rock stars or comedians, they are free to move on to another career, but they should leave it out of the pulpit.

Strange Bedfellows

As a confessional Lutheran, I tend to think of things as a confessional Lutheran would. One principle I espouse is the dual kingdom principle: There simultaneously exist a spiritual (right hand) kingdom, and an earthly (left hand) kingdom. I live in both, and therefore have to deal with the tenets of both.

This dual kingdom principle came to mind as I was considering earthly topics, namely modern Christianity (as evidenced by church growth principles) and politics. Church growth, when you look at its intent, is a secular concept. Today’s politics are also secular. In their separate evolutions, they both lost their focus on the individual, and now focus on the ongoing stability and growth of the organization.

Both of these operations exist in two “kingdoms”. One kingdom is the kingdom of principle, the one that caused the genesis of each operation. The other kingdom is the kingdom of consumerism, succinctly defined by the mantra, “The customer is always right”.

Can modern Christianity and politics successfully exist in these two planes? I don’t think so. In Christianity, doctrine is watered down to become acceptable to the consumer. This can only lead to a less educated “consumer” who either never has, or regresses in, the knowledge and doctrine behind their beliefs. In other words, the following generations of Christians will have less knowledge of the basis of their faith, and therefore, less ability to defend it. They will be more fervent in their unsubstantiated personal belief, because consumerism focuses on emotion and not on fact or belief, but when push comes to shove, they will not have the response or the gumption to defend their faith.

In politics, we are seeing the impact of consumerism now. The 2008 presidential campaign cycle is in full swing, with hundreds of millions of dollars exchanging hands without a viable exchange of ideas. Those citizens who cannot monetarily contribute, and those superior candidates that cannot raise the funds, are left out of the game…the most important secular game in the U.S. The “consumers” are redefined as those who contribute, not as those that are eligible voting citizens.

Both operations need to stop balancing the two kingdoms, and return solely to their kingdoms of principle. As long as we put any effort towards focusing on what the customer wants, we will always disdain principle and chase the almighty dollar instead.

American, and Proud of It

On three separate occasions over the last three days, I tried writing a post on the Virginia Tech situation. Each time, I couldn't get the right words out. My frustrations with politicians, the press and political advocates all made my blood boil over; I almost wrote things I wouldn't want my kids to read.

Watching academic know-it-alls make a quick transmogrification to ostriches has left me speechless. If you don't know what I mean here, imagine people living in a bubble, evangelizing about how perfect everything is. Then, someone breaks their protective bubble, and they continue to act as if the bubble is still there. You know, it's like they are saying, "Move along, there's nothing to see here, this isn't really happening. One day you'll wake up and see this was all a bad dream." Update, 4/19: my point here was aptly proved tonight by the academics in question.

I've seen Democrats cannibalize their own because not all of their issues are created equal - racism trumps free speech. I've seen Republicans not do anything while their enemies grab the spotlight. I watched the Supreme Court finally declare that murder IS murder, and that a baby half-delivered IS human and does have rights. I watched "moderate" Democrat presidential candidates decry the ruling, even though all but eight Senators voted for the partial birth abortion ban when it was a Senate bill.

Rumor on the local street is that my favorite communist in Democrat's clothing - Dennis Kucinich - is going to propose a bill that is tantamount to obliterating all handgun commerce in the U.S. I'm sure that Rocco, Guido, Ishmael and Mohammed are all shaking in their shoes, as is 50 Cent.

From all looks, the U.S. is going to hell in a handbasket. I said as much myself a couple of days ago.

You get the sense that this is an exponential growth in problems, that everything is spinning out of control. I won't argue with you. I hate it.

What are you doing about it?

What am I doing about it?

First, I am being an American. Not a scared American. Not one that will turn my back when someone who points a gun at me tells me to. I'm being a Proud American. I'm talking to my 10-yo Artist, who is old enough to start understanding this stuff, about what is happening and about what America stands for. Heaven knows, I need to teach her about right and wrong, truth and lies, morals and boundaries, because no one in any public institution will.

Second, I am exercising my rights as succinctly expressed in the Bill of Rights. Yes, all of them that I personally, at this time in my life, can exercise. All of them.

Third, I am raising my family by setting the example for them. Outsiders need not apply. I will gladly refute each and every point made over the airwaves. I will not turn off the TV or radio and act as though these problems don't exist. They do, and we need to talk about them in our household. Academics raise their children in a bubble; Proud Americans do not.

Fourth, I am setting active, strong, peaceful resistance to the status quo. I am not ranting for the sake of expending my hot air. I am making my voice heard within my sphere of influence, albeit a small one for now. I am checking under each rock, looking into the sky, listening closely. I am, as I explain to the Artist, being aware of my surroundings. This means knowing what scenarios I am walking into, what the goal is, the options for achieving victory or success, and the exit strategies. Sports teams fight for victory. So do politicians and businesses. I do, too.

I am a Proud American. I will stand up for myself, my family and my rights. If you won't, then get out of my way.

Turn this thing around
I will not go quietly
I will not back down
I will not go quietly
I Will Not Go Quietly, Don Henley

Civility Abused

I am labeling last week "The Week of the Dichotomy". What are the dichotomies so far?

1. Imus vs. Nifong
2. Rutgers vs. Duke
3. "Free" speech vs. bought speech
4. Free markets vs. controlled litigation
   

I now have a fifth to add to the list: civility appropriated vs. civility abused. Since my blogging life began last June - has it really been nine months already? And no evil post-partum - I've attempted to broaden my horizons by commenting or contributing at sites that are vastly out of my comfort zone from the political and religious perspective, all in the name of enlightenment. Which means, in all cases, I've attempted to converse politely with people having left-leaning political ideals and with liberal "theologians". I have left each venue frustrated, upset at myself for expending the intellectual and emotional capital.

My previous attempt (not Patriots & Tyrants), to which I have essentially pulled all my support, taught me the fifth dichotomy. I have never seen civility so skillfully used as a way to stop people from making well-founded points. I have seen right-leaning commentors use facts and true events to poke holes in left-leaning contributors' arguments, only to be told that those examples don't serve the intended purpose of the post. I have seen people use sarcasm and satire to prove a point - myself included - only to be lambasted for being outside the bounds of good taste. I've seen good people so thoroughly convinced that their points were wrong because they were not made "civilly", that they ended up apologizing for speaking the truth.

Don't get me wrong, more civility is needed in everyday life. Civility may have stopped the Imus situation from occurring, it would stop a lot of false political grandstanding, it would remove a lot of bad music from the airwaves and the internet, and it would lead to heightened respect for each other. However, when it is used as a tool for censorship, it is dangerous.

Double Standard

Here is an interesting article by an Aussie agnostic regarding the double standard between how people treat Christianity and Islam.

Uh...what?!?

Update: Scott and I have started a new site, Patriots & Tyrants, which is focused specifically on American politics. You can read about the premise here. We hope that you will find the site and the topics worthwhile enough to participate. Thanks.



You know that ever-so-tolerant, ever-so-loving evangelical Christian community? The one that would prefer to abolish all differences between the denominations? The one that believes that, as long as you believe in Jesus and hear him speak to your heart, that you're okay? The one that wants everyone to praise God and commit their life to Jesus? The one that wants to eliminate creeds?

Well...they have lines they don't cross, either. At least, James Dobson does, and he's going to use that line politically.

Talking about potential Republican Presidential candidate Fred Thompson, of whom I don't know much, and Newt Gingrich:

• Dobson "has never known Thompson to be a committed Christian—someone who talks openly about his faith." (Emphasis is mine.)
• "We use that word—Christian—to refer to people who are evangelical Christians...Dr. Dobson wasn't expressing a personal opinion," said Dr. Dobson's spokesperson.
• Gingrich was the "brightest guy out there" and "the most articulate politician on the scene today." Huh? Gingrich has skeletons falling out of his closet, but I guess he's been forgiven.
  

So the left/right litmus test is abortion, and the inner-right litmus test is evangelicalism. I was floored, but I shouldn't have been. Oy!

Church Test Answers

Thank you to all of you who anonymously took my church test. As I indicated in the test, your answers to the questions were not for eliciting right or wrong answers from you.

What was my point? To show the folly of how exact we Christians will be with our religion, but how quickly we throw away particulars in order to keep our favored political party in power. The differences we relish – relish! I say! – in the different Christian denominations are seen as stumbling blocks in politics. How can this be? I have non-denominational friends who are, in practice, anti-denominational. Heck, most denominations have orthodox and heterodox sects within the denominations themselves. You can’t even get these folks together over a pot luck, Martha’s award winning three-bean-salad be damned. :-)

While we Christians may lament that we are not one in the details, we defend the differences and are willing to explain them to each and every person who asks.

So, why do we succumb to the two-party political system in the left-hand kingdom, when we would never compromise like this in the right-hand kingdom?