jordanpfowler

Pastors, stop doing weddings. Instead launch marriages.

It is joked around here that my agreeing to do someone’s wedding is a bit brutal. I don’t apologize. At the ceremony, I  stand in front of God and say to all listening that I sanction the marriage by the power vested in me by Him (and the Great State of Texas but that is another post). That is not a statement I make lightly. It has adjusted my approach.

Two things influenced me formulating this view.

1. A trip to Abba Love Church in Indonesia where they have a rigorous process that must be completed before the church will allow a wedding. The singles there joke, “It is easier to get into heaven than get married at Abba Love.” Another single said, “It is the second most important decision in your life. Shouldn’t you take it seriously?”

2. People asking me to marry them that know me pastorally at NorthWood but not as deeply personally. I don’t know their story or life situations in detail all the time.

Here is the document. Steal it and hack it anyway you want as long as it is for your own ministry use.

pre-marital-counseling-covenant-jordan
Do me a favor, if you have problems accessing this pdf, leave me a comment telling me what OS and browser you are using.

Does “glocal” start globally or locally? on a tweet/facebook status I did. Thoughts?

Style: Happy Pop

Why you should listen. Songs that make you want to dance with an upbeat strange blend of great melody, synths and real instruments. Very different sounding. It will draw you in where you find yourself humming them all day long.  Click here to listen on itunes. Suggest starting with Little Secrets.

Years ago a friend gave me a personal challenge that I have never forgotten. The acronym is TBN, ironic, I know. Speak only if something is:

1. True. Am I absolutely certain of the truth of something or is it simply hearsay. I don’t want to be trapped into trying to be the first to know something and getting the word out. Confession, I tend to fall prey to this at times. Don’t speak when 90% assured of truth but 100%.
2. Beneficial. How can I make what I am saying redemptive?   I shouldn’t just critique without bringing solutions and a means to hope. Is the person I am sharing something with the one who needs to hear it? I shouldn’t be talking to person X about person Y if I have no intent of ever approaching person Y. Even then, the only reason X needs to know is if I am honestly seeking counsel. I have to be super careful here. Most of the time people are seeking sympathy about how someone treated them, not wise counsel as to their response.
3. Necessary. Not everything is worth mentioning. What are the ramifications if I don’t say anything?

I am going to focus on this over the next several weeks. In some ways, it might mean that I become much quieter. However, I have found quieter people are usually perceived to be wiser. To be thought of that way would be just fine.

The Lost World of Genesis One: Ancient Cosmology and the Origins Debate by John H. Walton

Why I read it? I was looking for a strong non-concordist (meaning, not everything in Genesis 1 was written to be a metaphysical blow by blow account) defense after reading some works from a different viewpoint by Edgar Andrews in Who Made God and Christ and the Cosmos . Many of the defenses of the non-concordist position claim the Genesis account is poetic but don’t go on to give why the account is recorded with the structure of days.

Why should you read it? If you have struggled with wanting to take the Bible account in Genesis 1 seriously yet not discount scientific findings, this book offers a way through.

Cliff notes for the lazy or uninclined. Walton argues that we read Genesis 1 wrong when we read it as a metaphysical blow-by-blow account of how God created. It is this “how God created” reading that sets Genesis 1 in opposition to current scientific creation models. Walton argues that reading Genesis 1 this way is not to read it like a Hebrew. A Hebrew would have been concerned not with the how to of creation but with its function. What purpose did the things God made serve? What was the light for? What was the land for? Walton uses parallel text from other Ancient Near East cultures to show the question of function and purpose was their prime concern. He contends that Genesis 1 reveals God setting up a cosmic temple in which He would dwell with man.

What remains to be seen. Walton’s book is a new argument for non-concordists. I am not aware of any work that takes this strong of a position as to the why of Genesis 1.  Walton’s vast knowledge of Ancient Near East culture and parallel texts is undisputed. The functional  view is so new that it is yet to be be debated or refuted. I am looking for to the dialogue it will create. If the argument holds, it offers a clear way through for those taking the text and science seriously. Frances Collins, the genome mapper says,  “Walton elevates Scripture to a new level of respectful understanding, and eliminates any conflict between scientific and scriptural descriptions of origins.” To date, it is the closest published position to my thoughts on Genesis 1 that I have found.

Dear AT&T U-verse:

I just subscribed to your U-verse U200 primarly to get English Premier League Soccer (football in England). I did this by subscribing to your premium Setanta channel for an additional $15 a month. Now only two weeks in, I read that Setanta is going away and something called the Fox Soccer Plus is coming on March 1. I realize you are not behind these changes of venue. I get it. However, when I look to see how to get this via my U-verse, all I get is a black hole of communication. So I am going to call you and ask….hopefully you can still be my TV provider.

Okay. Nice AT&T Tech Lady told me that if I cancel Setanta ($15) and upgrade to U300 ($15, thus a wash) I would receive the Fox Soccer Network (soon to be in HD?) and the Fox Soccer Plus when they add it next month or two. This would be the best of news and makes me want to kiss AT&T U-verse full on the mouth. I pray you are right, Ms. Nice Tech Lady. If so, we’ll live in bliss. If not, a TV divorce might be happening.

Why move from the well traveled and greased worshiptrench.com? Because my role and life has changed. I am now the teaching pastor at NorthWood Church having handed the keys to Brent Minter for the daily driving of the worship ministry at NorthWood.  Since worshiptrench was a tips, tools and best practices blog for worship leading and leadership, I decided to leave all its free tools and leadership resources floating on the cloud. Feel free to grab any of the free tools, some which apply well beyond the worship ministry arena and could be used buy business people and others.

What will I deal with here? Whatever is clanging around in my brain. You might find it a bit eclectic but hopefully never boring or mean-spirited.

See the message.

Listen to the message.

Because everyone needs someone to love them when they are most unlovable. Some have blown it in life and thought, “I am such a disappointment to everyone who knows me.” Some have defiantly walked away from love rejecting the open arms of God who call us back to relationship. Some have given up, feeling unworthy to ever receive love again. Come find hope and restoration in the amazing love story of a man named Hosea.

Message 1 of the series.

Welcome to what clangs around in my head. As a thinker and teacher, not all my thoughts and reflections have a platform of expression. This is a place to get them into the light of day where they can become uncluttered, critiqued, and developed into useful ideas.  Some might find the topics here a little eclectic for their tastes. Others might think, “I am not the only one who thinks in such a crazed manner.”  Whatever my thoughts, I will strive to write with a tone of love and respect, even when critiquing,  so that I don’t become another cymbal clanging out meaningless communication in an already noisy world (I Corinthians 13) . Here is a bit more about some things that make my neurons fire more rapidly . . .

Favorites in no particular order

author: Thomas Watson and other puritans

teams: Liverpool FC, Dallas Cowboys, Texas Longhorns, US Olympic

ride: my two runs down Innsbruck Bobsled track (see about page bottom)

preachers: Alistair Beg also John Piper

ancient preacher: John Chrysostom

exercise: rowing/sculling/erg-rowing

upscale restaurant: Saint Emilion, Fort Worth

downscale restaurant: Fuzzy Tacos, Baja Mexican/Taco H

rock music you’ve heard of: Ani Difranco, Radiohead, Alanis Morissette

music you might not have heard of: check out good listens section

jazzers: Avishai Cohen Trio

composers: Prokofiev, Shostakovich and other Russians,

classical piece: Sonata for Violin and Piano II: Lento (d.2 trck.2) (A. Copland)

futbol players: Fernando Torres, Landon Donovan, Steven Gerrard

guy who needs a beatdown: Pretty Boy Floyd Mayweather

Stats

family: Piper and three kids (girl, boy, girl)

current calling: Pastor of Teaching, NorthWood Church (11 years)

past callings: worship and communications pastor NorthWood, leader of dropknee worship band, singles minister, college minister

other jobs: swimming coach, distance runners coach, triathlete (back when the knees were young), driving range golf ball picker-upper