I'm just coming off a dessert and soda fast for Lent and it really helped prepare me to experience Good Friday and Easter in a deeper way this year. I don't think I've ever anticipated Easter more. And it's not just because I couldn't wait to drink soda and eat desert :) I've found that when once sense is deprived another sense is heightened. Animals who can't see as well often have a keen sense of smell for example. They see with their nose. In the same sense, when my flesh is deprived my spiritual awareness is heightened.

Something is rumbling in my spirit. I've been reading a book titled When Heaven Invades Earth and it's stretching me to believe God for the supernatural. I've accepted what is abnormal (the lack of miracles and wonders) as being normal. I want my life to be a testimony not just to God's grace but his power as well.

This year I'm experimenting with different spiritual disciplines. I think I know what my next experiment is going to be. I'm going to do a ten day Pentecost Fast. Pentecost Sunday is May 15 and I want to fast and pray for ten days like the 120 who met in the upper room.

This traces back to something God put in my spirit a few weeks ago that I can't get out. I feel like God wants to do something unplanned and uncontainable in my life and the life of NCC. I'm already seeing pockets of revival. I feel like we're on the verge of God doing something supernatural. By supernatural I simply mean something that man cannot produce. I don't want to pastor a man-u-factured church. I Corinthians 14:25 has been my true north when it comes to planning services. It says that people will fall down on their faces and declare "God is really among them." Anything less isn't good enough. We put alot of planning into our services. And that's a good thing. But planning without prayer is a prescription for predictability.

I had a thought a few weeks ago: you can't plan Pentecost. All you can do is pray. But if you pray with intensity for ten days, pentecost is bound to happen!

I'm going to read the gospels in the month of April as a way of walking in the disciple's footsteps. Adn then I'm going to read the book of Acts during my ten day fast. I've never done a "Pentecost fast" but I'm excited to see what God is going to do in my life and the life of our church. If that resonates with your spirit I invite you to join me in a "Pentecost Fast." It doesn't have to look just like mine, but I'm believing God will speak to us and heal us and fill us and empower us in unique ways!

We held our fourth annual Easter Eggstravaganza at Lincoln Park today. I think somewhere between 1300-1500 parents and kids showed up. It was a-mazing. And I was reminded that it can all be traced back to one good idea and lots of planning and hard work! I was so proud of everybody who invested so much time and energy and love into it.

I know I'm biased, but I honestly think it may be the most enjoyable two hours of the year for not just our family but many families on the hill. It is pure fun and unadulterated joy. One of the reporters commented on the positive energy. The volunteers do such an amazing job of showing the love of Christ. It's like it oozes out of their pores! What I love is that I don't have to do a thing. I just come as a parent and soak it up.

When Josiah got up this morning he said, "I'm going to get five eggs." Dream big! He ended up getting a few more than that. It was funny how long it took for the pre-K kids to get all the eggs and how fast the older kids did it. There is nothing like seeing hundreds of kids running around picking up thousands of easter eggs! It is my definition of chaos. It is also my definition of joy.

I think there is huge potential to play off of the life stage of twenty-somethings and really meet some legitimate needs. What if we started our own "young professionals" groups. They could be by vocation. For example, hill staffers or journalists or ministry. But we view them as "roundtables" where we mentor emerging leaders in a variety of culture-shaping vocations. We view them as leadership development for people inside or outside of NCC. Maybe we bring in some people who can speak into their lives. That may be reinventing the wheel, which we don't want to do, but it may also touch a nerve ending. Or what if we did "conferences" or "seminars" that were targeted toward the unchurched or dechurched on topics that were relevant to their lives?

What if we did a quarterlife conference at the coffeehouse that just helped twenty-somethings deal with the issues they wrestle with. I've wanted to do something like this for years! I'm speaking to about three hundred twenty-somethings at a similar conference in Pennsylvania next month. We need something like that in DC. We could even start small groups out of that conference. I'm so passionate about helping twenty-somethings that I'd love to invest my time and energy into it. I have a heart for graduating seniors and twixters! I think that is what motivated me to write ID: The True You. And that is what is motivating another book to help twenty-something navigate the third decade. The stakes are so high! We make most of our major decisions in our twenties and spend the rest of our lives managing those decisions. We need an alternate to the quarterlife crisis. It's an awesome book, but it is spiritually-neutered.

I met with a guy today who told me about how a group of five guys who started a young professionals group in Washington State. It was attracting a hundred people in no time via word of mouth and word of mouse. The evites are forwarded fifteen times because it is such a vast network! I think we're already the church for twenty-somethings based on demography, but we can take it to another level. This is "the" felt need for this generation. They need help with choices and transitions and relationships and occupations and identity and boundaries and finances and spirituality. They are trying to find themselves. And the only way to find yourself is to find God. God is the key that unlocks all those other doors. I think the coffeehouse would be an awesome venue for a "young professionals" group that could meet over lunch or dinner. If we did a lunch group downstairs, we'd have a captive audience :)

By the way, I love one idea the group in Washington State is planning--a party at an airport hanger. I've never been to one of those :) But it sounds like fun.

My synapses are firing in lots of interesting ways today. Here are a couple ideas that are percolating. I'd value help with these ideas. I'd love for someone to turn hope me them into reality.

Idea #1

I have an idea for a unique coffee cup that would be a fun "signature" for Ebenezers. I'm often torn between two drinks when I'm thirsty. Could we design a cup with a divider down the middle that would enable people to order two drinks in one cup with two sippy holes. I think we'd need someone to engineer it and design it. But I think it'd be a fun feature. I think we could use the two-dimensional cup for hot drinks or smoothies. And it'd be sort of fun for people out on a date to order one cup, but still enjoy the hygiene of two holes. Imagine the romantic possibilities :)

Idea #2

We use a popcorn box for our connection point. We put all of our "goodies" (including an individually wrapped bag of microwave popcorn) in the box. And we give it to guests. I'm seeing two adaptations. I'd love to design a popcorn box that we can mail our resources in. I'd want it to look and feel authentic. It'd have to be a stronger box and make space for address info. But I'm seeing "Fresh Popcorn, delicious, crisp" on it. I think it'd be a fun way for theaterchurch.com to mail stuff. I'd also like to design a book cover that looks like a popcorn box. Please don't steal this idea :) I think it'd scream "buy me" or at least "notice me." And I'm seeing a "scratch-n-sniff" on it :)

I'd welcome any ideas on engineering or manufacturing either of the above!

I sound like a mad scientist don't I? For what it's worth, my kids sometimes say, "You're weird, Dad" when I say something or do something crazy. And I respond "thank you" of course! Normality is overrated. I've had enough or normality!

I was praying outside Union Station one night this week and I was reminded of the simple fact that everything we've ever said is somewhere in the universe. According to the science of bioacoustics, our words are floating in space somewhere and if we had the technology and equipment capability, we could recapture everything we've ever said or done! I have two reactions to that. One, it strikes fear into my heart :) I've said and done lots of things that I wish didn't exist any longer. But God promises to forgive and forget. There is this little part of me that wonders if those things we confess end up in a black hole never to see the light of day again! Here is my other reaction: all the prayers I've prayed are still out there somewhere! That is so powerful to me. It makes me think of Isaiah 55:11. It says that God's word will not return void. As I stood praying outside Union Station I couldn't help but think of all the prayers that have been lifted up in that place. How many times have I done a Jericho walk around those walls? How many times have I laid hands on the cornerstone? How many times have I done prayer walks through the station? How many times have I sat outside interceding for the station and the city? And all of those prayers are still out there. I have unanswered prayers like everybody else. But they are still out there somewhere. And they won't return void.

I just had the most amazing two block walk of my life! We got a Mr. Incredible suit today complete with fake muscles. I wore it home to surprise the kids. I thought I'd "play it cool." I called off that plan when people blocks away started cat calling at "Mr. Incredible." I couldn't keep a straight face so I just went into character. As I passed people on the street I said, "At ease." I said to people on their porches, "The Neighborhood is safe, folks." "No fear, Mr. Incredible is here." I have to admit. I felt incredible after that two block walk. I think everybody needs to don a superhero suit every once in a while. I think it's good for your health.

I just had a great meeting with someone who is inspecting or investigating what Christianity is all about. I love meeting with people who have genuine questions. I see the same themes everytime I meet with someone who is trying to find their way back to God. They have questions that need to be legitimized. Jesus wasn't afraid of questions. In fact, he often answered questions with questions.

I have lots of unanswered questions. I try to start from a position of humility. I don't have all the answers! I don't have everything figured out yet. And I never will. Isaiah 55:8 is my theological starting point. It's my a priori. Our best thoughts are 12.3 billion light-years removed from God. And I love I Corinthians 8:2. The more you know the more you know how much you don't know. That is usually where I start. I try to level the playing field.

Here is how I try to explain our knowledge. God knows everything about everything. We know so little about so little. The most brilliant and brightest minds among us fall 12.3 billion light-years short of God on his hypothetical worst day! We see one degree of truth. God sees three hundred and sixty degrees. He sees all the way around everything. And don't think in two-dimension terms. Imagine an earthlike sphere. And imagine the situation or person or idea in question is at the epicenter--the core of the earth. Omniscience is the sphere. God sees all the way around it--every angle. We see one angle, but it's not just one degree out of three hundred and sixty-degrees. It is much less than that because truth is latitudinal and longitudinal. We see life through a peephole or porthole.

Had a great time of prayer with some NCC guys this morning. I can only describe prayer as a "lock." When we used to go on boat rides on Lake Michigan we'd catch the boat on the river and we'd have to go into a "lock" to lift the boat to the level of the lake. I believe in "prayer lock" and "worship lock." It likes you start out at one level, but by the time you're done praying or worshipping you're at a different level.

I felt like the Lord asked me a question during prayer today. It's a question He poses in Jeremiah 32: Is anything too difficult for me? And the answer is, drum roll please, NO!

I've been thinking more lately about a youth group. It's been nine years without one :) I think the way to start something like that is to 1) pray that God raises someone up with a heart for youth and 2) start it as a small group within our semester system. I think it'd be an easy way to start something and grow it. I also think the coffeehouse will be a totally cool environment for a youth group to meet and hang out. It's on my radar screen.

My palm phone crashed and I lost my entire calendar and address book. And somehow, my computer has failed to backup. In the words of Forrest Gump, "And that's all I have to say about that." The joys of technology!

I read a touching story this week that is worth sharing.

Inscribed on five of the six pillars outside the Holocaust Museum at Quincy Market in Boston are stories of survivors. The sixth pillar is about a little girl named Ilse, a childhood friend of Guerda Weissman Kline. Guerda remembers that Ilse, who was about six years-old at the time, found a single raspberry one morning somewhere in the camp. She carried it with her all day long in a protected place in her pocket. That evening, with her eyes shining with happiness, she placed the raspberry on a leaf and gave it to Guerda as a gift.

It was the defining moment of Guerda's life. She said, "Imagine a world in which your entire possession is one raspberry, and you give it to your friend."

In his dissenting opinion in Abrams v. United States, Oliver Wendell Holmes wrote that truth ought to be arrived at in the free trade of ideas. He said, "The best test of truth is in the power the thought to get itself accepted in the competition of the market." He said that is the theory of our Constitution and the basis of free speech.

I love the way Paul competed in the marketplace of ideas. I think that is where the church belongs. As Jesus said, "Wisdom is proved right by her children." My translation of that is this: truth can stand on its own two legs. I think we've got to be in the Areopagus--the marketplace of ideas--competing for our truth claims.

By the way, Holmes closed his argument with these words: "All life is an experiment." I love that! I'd add one caveat. All life is a holy experiment.

My head has been swirling lately with thoughts. Here are a few of them.

I have a growing passion to help twenty-somethings. I feel like it is so central to my calling. I think the third decade is one of the toughest because there is so much uncertainty. What am I going to do with my life? Who am I going to marry? Where am I going to live? We spend our entire lives managing those major decisions. And most of them are made in our twenties. I'd love to do some quarterlife conferences to help twixters navigates those big issues.

I really would love to see NCC have a more "formal" mentoring program for different life stages and vocations. For example, married couples mentoring engaged couples. And I'd love to see vocational mentoring. For example, political veterans mentoring hill staffers. I'd also love to mentor church planters. And I'd like to do it on a large scale. I'm not sure how we get there, but God is putting that in my heart.

Here's the thing with mentoring. It is so hard to be a match maker. There is an old adage: when the student is ready the teacher will appear. I think people need to find their own mentors. I think there are potential mentors in all of our circles of influence. The way we can help is to formalize a mentorship or apprenticeship program. For example, I'd love to have a school for church planters where we are mentoring planters all the time.

So many twentysomethings want to be mentored, but its this nebulous feeling. It doens't just happen by osmosis. I think it has to be relational or vocational. I think twentysomethings need to hear lots of stories about how other people have navigated their twenties and survived the twists and turns and trnasitions!

Here are a few of my other random thoughts:

Most people have their best ideas in the shower. I had one the other day. I'd like to invent and market a water-proof pad of paper and pen to write ideas in the shower. I'm half serious. If anybody is interesting in running with this idea let me know!

I'd always had a tough time deciding on shake flavors so years ago I had this idea to do some custom designed cup so you can get two flavors in one shake! Then I heard that 7-11 was doing it with their slurpees. And California Pizza Kitchen does it with their soup. So here's my idea for Ebenezers--a coffee cup with two sides and two sippy holes! Call me crazy, but I think it's a good idea. A new take on mixed drinks.

One more thought:

According to Leith Anderson, we're experiencing more than a Pentecost per hour! We are living in God's finest hour. More than 3,000 people per hour and putting their faith in Christ.

I'm thinking bigger these days. I'm always cautious about numbers, but I have it in my heart that the day will come that we're influencing five digits of people on a weekly basis. I don't know how long it will take to experience that kind of influence, but I believe that day will come!

I read an interesting article about Red Bull in Forbes this week. I think part of being "as shrewd as snakes" is learning from the marketplace. Dietrich Mateschitz is a brilliant marketer. Red Bull sold 1.9 billion cans last year generating $2 billion in revenue!

The article said he simply sells an ordinary product inventively. It is one of many energy drinks, but Mateschitz has created a cult following. How? I've never tasted it, but I think he designed it for the Western palate. But it's more than that. It's the slim blue-and-silver can. And they spend 30% of their income on marketing! There is an old adage in business: you've got to spend money to make money. I think more churches need to grasp that concept and invest more into "compeling people to come in." That phrase in Luke 14 literally means "to demand attention." How many of America's 340,000 churches are really demanding attention? Red Bull is very particular about the things they sponsor. For example, they've gone after the extreme sports market. They know their niche. I think churches need to come to terms with who they are and who they aren't. They need to niche themselves.

The church just needs to be a little more inventive in the way it markets the message. We've got the good news. It's a product you can't even man-u-facture. It's too good! We've just got to package it a little better!

Whenever I see a product that is really well packaged and marketed it challenges me to do a better job communicating the gospel.

By the way, here's a beverage idea. You know how there are what I'd call "cause" bracelets for everything under the sun now? For example, "live strong" benefits cancer research. How about a "cause" drink that benefits something? I think it'd be an interesting marketing tact in the world of beverages. Drink for a cause!

For what it's worth, Jesus marketed "living water" to the woman at the well.

I just got back from Arizona. The weather down there was amazing. I could blog about that all day!

We met with ten multi-site churches that represent more than 50,000 people! It is always inspiring to be around high-impact churches. You hope there is some osmosis!

Here are a few thoughts I picked up this week:

Voice

I think one key to writing and preaching and leading is discovering your voice. I think communicators need voice lessons, but I don't mean that in the singing sense. We need to develop confidence in the way we're wired. We need to be willing to say things a little differently. We need to dare to be different! I think this is in keeping with our core value: maturity doesn't equal conformity.

Deployment

Paul Evanson, a from Starbucks Corporate Trainer, shared about leadership development, but I love one distinction he made. They call it leadership deployment. That fits with our belief in baptism by immersion.

I think we need to develop a more comprehensive leadership deployment plan corporately as a church. We're doing leadership development extremely well in some pockets, but you can never do too much of it! I think it's one key to our continued growth and multiplication to new locations!

Exporting

I like to think of NCC as working in the research and development department of the Kingdom of God. I think we're called to be lab monkeys. We need to keep experimenting with new ways of doing church. But we also need to be in the export business. I want us to share everything we do with others as a way of equipping the Church-at-large.

Syncronize

Every so often I syncronize my cell phone with my computer. I think vision casting is syncronizing. One danger is "getting ahead of the body." Sometimes the mind is willing but the body is weak! I think we need to more consitently communicate our vision and mission. We're all about helping people find their way back to God. I'm thinking about a series on our core values because they are corporate, but they are personally applicable!

So Summer said to me yesterday, "Dad, why did God make mosquitos?" That's one of the toughest questions I've ever been asked. I made up some lame answer like, "Lizards eat them." But I'm not sure why God made mosquitos. I don't like them.

I don't lose sleep over it, but I think Summer sensed the uncertainty in my answer. She said, "I've been saving that question for God for two years." The burning questions of childhood!