New Blog

I have a new blog. Check it out.

Tibbs Blog

Nice skills

I found this while I was surfing the web tonight. Hope you appreciate the skill, talent, and technical precision of this group. Also, I hope it takes you down memory lane.

The View

Last night at 10:34 PM my wife and I went to the backyard and look toward the southern sky. The international space station and the space shuttle were to fly across the sky. We waited with anticipation and excitement. We scanned the sky. Then two bright objects began to come into view and move east.

We watched with pure amazement. I have seen satellites go across the sky. But to watch the space station and the space shuttle was truly a treat. For those brief moments the world became a much smaller place and the universe became a much bigger reality. And Julie and my response was wonder and amazement.

Sure we thought it would be really cool to be up there but I believe our wonder and amazement was rooted in the vastness and mystery of God.

For those few precious moments God was immanent and transcendent. Wow! I must say the View from Earth was truly awesome and I wonder how the view is from God's perspective?

What have been moments like this for you?

Honesty and Conversations

I am curious to see what other people think.

Is it possible to be too honest in a conversation? Or is complete honesty the best way to converse with someone?

You know the Bible 100%!

 

Wow! You are awesome! You are a true Biblical scholar, not just a hearer but a personal reader! The books, the characters, the events, the verses - you know it all! You are fantastic!

Ultimate Bible Quiz
Create MySpace Quizzes

Soccer Goal

This soccer goal is pretty amazing. Enjoy this guys hardwork and dedication.

Thoughts on Easter 2007

It is a wonderful privilege to be able to journey with a group of people that have the same faith in God. We are able to call each other brother and sister and truly mean it with love. This is all possible by the resurrection of Jesus. Death no longer has it's power of people. It doesn't loom in the distant future over individuals. It doesn't reign any longer. Life has replaced death. Resurrection has brought new life--life they way it was meant to be lived. Because of the resurrection of Jesus, relationships mean so much more.

Driving home from some friends house, we were behind a lady driving. She was all over the road. I was getting pretty frustrated because she hardly ever drove the speed limit. I did what most people do--tailgated her. It didn't help the situation. All it did was get my frustration higher. We turned onto Meridian and she was still all over the road. Meridian is a four lane road. Once you drive into the city of Milton, there is a concrete divider separating the lanes. I began to think she was drunk (she was all over the road that much). Bang! We watched with unbelief. She drove onto one of the concrete dividers and blew the front left tire. She slowed and switch into the right lane (without looking and causing the truck driving up to press the brake pedal rapidly). She pulled of into a parking lot. My frustration level changed immediately. I knew I should help. Honestly, I didn't jump out of my vehicle with a smile on my face. It was raining and I knew that I was going to get soaked. I asked her if she needed help, she did. As I am changing her tire, I am conversing with her and it dawns on me that this is an opportunity to live out the resurrection. It is an opportunity to live in the power of unconditional love from God. And most importantly, give that love to a woman who needed some. Who knows what God will do with the flat tire today. I know he is already changing me because of it. Maybe He will do more. . .

We took Reese over to see the Wolfes. Terri didn't make it to worship this morning and we know how much she enjoys the pretty Easter dresses kids wear. So, we took Reese over in her outfit (from Ginger). We spent some time talking and laughing. They are some of the best friends we have here in Washington and it was a joy to spend some time with them. We experienced the resurrection by our friendship. Truly a joy!

I hope your Easter had resurrection experiences throughout the whole day. May the God of peace be upon your house today and forevermore.

Raising Kids

Found this on YouTube. Thought is was funny. Enjoy.

NCAA Tournament

I am pretty excited the Jayhawks made it out of the first and second round for the first time in a few years. They played Kentucky on Sunday and Kansas looked real good! They are playing the best ball I have seen them play this year. I am hoping this is the year. Unfortunately there are plenty of other good teams still in playing.

If you are wondering what I will be doing Thursday at 4:10 PM, well it won't be that hard to figure out.

Spiritual Formation

I found this quote by Dallas Willard on spiritual formation. Enjoy!

Spiritual formation in a Christian tradition answers a specific human question: What kind of person am I going to be? It is the process of establishing the character of Christ in the person. That's all it is. You are taking on the character of Christ in a process of discipleship to him under the direction of the Holy Spirit and the Word of God.

Random things

Here are some of my random thoughts lately. . .

1. Reese changed everyday. My little girl is changing constantly. Slow down please.
2. I have given up being angry for Lent. It has been going mostly good. Still get angry some times but God is helping me realize it and overcome it.
3. My friend was diagnosed with breast cancer. I am always praying for you Terri.
4. Go Kansas Jayhawks! Maybe this is the year.
5. PMC went well last weekend. I am looking forward to the adventure.
6. Northwest Youthworkers retreat is this weekend. I need to finish up the material for the weekend. I am excited about God's presence.
7. I love my wife!
8. I am living in God's story. What part am I playing out right now?
   

Day 1

Day 1 of the rest of our lives with the three of us.

Heavenly Father, we praise You for Reese! God, we thank you for all the promise of this little new life. May you be the guiding light Reese needs to grow in goodness and grace, and love of You. We thank you for the love that hits us like a bolt of lightening when Reese looks into our eyes and for the reminder of how much You love us. May we always shower Reese with unconditional love from you. God, we are so grateful! Jesus, may she come to know you as Lord and Savior of her life. Jesus, please walk the road of faith and peace with her as she matures and grows into the woman she is to become. May she see the Father through you. Holy Spirit dwell in her for the rest of her life. Teach her the ways of holiness and love. Guide her into the peace that passes all understanding. Never leave her. In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Spirit of God Amen.

Welcome Reese JulieAnn Tibbles

Reese JulieAnn Tibbles

6 lbs. 2 oz.
20 inches long
January 31, 2007 at 11:26 PM

The Hospital

We have been here since 4:15 this morning. And it looks like we will be possibly having a birthday party later tonight. We will see. Don't hold your breath or anything. The baby has not been in a rush all day so why start now.

And so the end of "my time" and the beginning of his/her time has begun for the rest of my known life.

More Ready Than You Realize Chapters 1 & 2

In the introduction, McLaren begins to describe evangelism as a dance. Not a bill of goods, not a salesman, or not even a strategy to "save" as many as possible. Dancing allows for the individuals to move freely with the music. "Evangelism as dance begins with something beyond yourself"--a song. You begin to hear a note here or a phrase there. Once you hear it, the song seems so natural, it seems like it is the rhythm of life--life the way it should be. This song is so mysterious and grand that it points to a composer far greater than any one of us. Once you begin to harmonize your life to it, it is natural for you to want others to hear the song and dance with it.

Chapter 1
McLaren invites us to explore a "spiritual friendship" with him. In a multitude of emails, he allows her to question, express doubt, and grow in faith in God. He provided a friendship that allowed her to listen to the call of God and embrace it when she was ready instead of forcing a set of doctrines and rules upon her right then.

He walks through the first email pointing out questions and attitudes that would easily have been missed with our "twentieth century view of evangelism." Evangelism is not a "win-lose" argument, it is not a pressuring technique to "save" people.

McLaren introduces the idea that Jesus was a great conversationalist. Most of the interactions with people during his life were conversations. Jesus did argue and confront people but mostly that was the religious folk.

He closes chapter one with the metaphor that an evangelist is like a midwife. "The evangelist is never coercive, pushy, combative, rather, she is patient and gentle like a midwife, knowing that the giving of life takes time and cannot be rushed without potentially lethal damage."

Chapter 2
In chapter 2, McLaren tries to reconnect us with the Story. We have out doctrine that we try to teach others and have forgotten about the Story. He uses the doctrine of the Trinity as an example.

He presents again an email from Alice. Many 'born again" Christians become judgmental, condescending and arrogant. Alice does not desire to become a Christian because she doesn't want to have to change into that.

He also presents Dan. Dan is learning the "ways of Christ" but doesn't believe in God. He too doesn't want to be changed into an intolerant, unforgiving person. McLaren writes that one of the elements of good spiritual friendship is knowing which questions are helpful and which aren't. He asks Dan "why don't you believe in God?" Dan responds that his brother became a Christian and nobody can stand him. McLaren challenges Dan that maybe someday he will see a way to believe in God and become a better person instead of a worse one. Dan says he had never thought of it like that.

To close the chapter he ends with three questions. What elements of Alice's email strike you the most? In what ways can you agree with her? What would you have said in reply to this message?


Overall, I thought a decent beginning to the book. I like the concept of dance. How would you answer the above questions?

Scripture

I have been raised in the Church all my life. From the littlest of age, I have always had the Scriptures near me. Whether it be a picture Bible for babies or a Bible for children or a teen study Bible or an "adult" Bible, Scripture has always been around me.

As I sit here in my office typing this, I have 5 Bibles to the left of me on my desk (ESV, NLT, NIV, The Message, TNIV). To the right of me on the book shelves boasts another 8 Bibles, each in their own translation and emphasis on Scripture.

Growing up my parents always taught me to spend time reading God's word. I can't say I was always faithful to that teaching. Sometimes the Bible seemed so out of touch and foreign that it didn't appear relevant to anything much less my life. My youth ministers and teachers tried to reinforce the practice of reading Scripture. How do you grow to love reading scripture when the world you are reading about is stuck in the past? Where is the connection today?

I went off to college to study to become a youth pastor/minister. My first class I took was Hermeneutics (how to interpret the Bible). The class was steeped in rational thought and that all can interpret the Bible the same if they are "truly open to God." Even in a class of 30 where that was being taught, I bet not a one of us read and interpreted the Bible the same. We took our Greek classes to the learn the original language. We learned how to take a word and dissect it to the core and get at the original meaning of the word and by getting at the original meaning we would have the meaning for us today. I learned command, example, necessary inference and silence (even though that one was not taught verbally). Those were the rules of interpreting Scripture.

I left those classes with renewed vigor to dive deeply in to the Holy Writ and let the Spirit of God change me. But, again even though the intent is good, I left Scripture wanting more.

A transition has been happening over the past 6 years. I still value diving into the Word and looking at the original languages. When I have the time to really look at the cultural values and historical settings of the authors and recipients, I cherish it.

Recently I have been approaching Scripture differently. A friend of mine, a couple of years ago, introduced me to the practice of Lectio Divina (Divine Reading). The practice approaches Scripture with the intent on letting the Spirit of God speak through the passage. You are not trying to prove anything or let your presuppositions ruin an interpretation. You simply let the passage speak. The more I practice this type of reading (some would call it devotional), Scripture has been transformed into a living and vibrant Story that continues today.

Saint Jerome would write:

"In the field of Scripture multicolored flowers, ready for the picking, are to be found everywhere. Every species is present there, red roses, white lilies and flowers of every color: there is an embarrassment of riches. It remains for us but to collect the flowers which seem to us the most beautiful. And if we gather up roses we should not be unhappy that we have not picked lilies; and if we have gathered lilies, we are not disdaining the humble violets. All is beautiful and fascinating in the sweet land of promise to generous souls who have agreed to labor a little among the holy books."

Scripture truly has become a vibrant field of flowers to be enjoyed and savored! The world that was so out dated and foreign has transformed into a story that I am actively a part of. My life takes meaning and identity from the Story of God in Scripture. That meaning and identity gives me the part I am to play in God's story.

Thank you mom and dad for encouraging me to read the Scripture. Thank professors and mentors for providing new ways. Thank you Spirit of God for developing a love of reading the Words of Life in all their wondrous and magnificent colors.

How has the love of reading Scripture changed your life?

Missio Dei

I found this article on Western Christianity. Here is an excerpt. I would recommend reading it the whole article.

But behind all this stands God with a mission (the redemption of his whole Creation from the wreckage of human and Satanic evil). The mission of God is what fills the Bible from the brokenness of the nations in Genesis 11 to the healing of the nations in Revelation 21-22. So any mission activity to which we are called must be seen as humble participation in this vast sweep of the historical mission of God. All mission or missions that we initiate, or into which we invest our vocation, gifts, and energies, flows from the prior mission of God. God is on mission, and we, in that wonderful phrase of Paul, are "co-workers with God."

This God-centered refocusing of mission turns inside-out our obsession with mission plans, agendas, goals, strategies, and grand schemes.

We ask, "Where does God fit into the story of my life?" when the real question is, "Where does my little life fit into the great story of God's mission?"

Prayer

I came across this prayer. May you rest in peace.

While I sleep, O Lord,
Let my heart not cease to worship you;
Fill my sleep with your presence,
While creation itself keeps watch,
Singing psalms with the angels,
And taking up my soul into its paean of praise
Amen

St. Gregory of Nazianzus

Another Doctors Visit

Tomorrow is another doctors visit for Julie and baby Tibbs. We have now entered the every two weeks and will probably be told after tomorrow that we will be visiting every week from now on. I am so excited about the new baby! I can't wait to hold baby Tibbs in my arms. The countdown continues.

Discipleship

I was reading one of my new tomes, Presence-Centered Youth Ministry by Mike King and found this quote from Brennan Manning:

"Paschal says that the truest test of discipleship is the way we live with each other in the
community of faith. It is as simple and as demanding as that. In our words and deeds, we give
shape and form to our faith every day. We make people a little better or leave them a little
worse. We either affirm or deprive, enlarge or diminish the lives of other."

What are some encounters in your life with other people that have affirmed and enlarged your life?

Happy New Year

Happy New Year! I pray God blesses the new year. May he bring peace in Iraq and all the civil wars in Africa.

What is in store you in the New Year?