Battle of the bands...
Dear Friend,
So I was at Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf just yesterday. I was drinking one of my favorite teas there just relaxing. I was sitting in my usual seat right by the door. There is this table that seats 4 people but I always take it anyways even if it is just me. I like the extra room. I sit in the same chair every time. This is mainly because it is right by the plug-in so that I can charge my PowerBook.
It was a great day for tea yesterday…it was raining. I love rainy days. They are so special. They completely change the mood of everything and everyone (I wonder sometimes if a rainy day to us is like a Sunny day to people who live in Seattle?).
I got to thinking yesterday about my past. I don’t know about you, but one thing rainy days do for me is cause me to think about my past. Maybe cause it doesn’t rain very often and so I naturally think about what I was doing the last time it rained and that just starts the little mice in my head running on their little silver wheels of remembrance. I thought back to this lunch I had with a few guys and we were talking about the church. The church we were discussing was new…I would even call it refreshing. There were a few of us sitting around this table and the topic of experience came up. It was brought up that the church that I have grown to love puts to much emphasis on ‘the experience’ and not enough emphasis on the bible. He was referring to a couple of different churches but one of them that he referred to was Flood the Desert. This was a church that I co-founded in the Valley almost 2 years ago and so since I didn’t feel comfortable commenting on the other churches that he had mentioned I did however welcome the open discussion about Flood…and this ‘experience’ that he spoke of. He mostly referred to the worship services (which by the way he had never been to one) and more specifically the prayer station, and the inclusion of art during our services, and the major emphasis on the band and music.
So he asked if I thought that there was too much attention placed on these various things?
(I should probably mention that our conversation was great…very open…and loving. There was not any arguing, or loud talk. Just healthy discussion)
My answer was no. I didn’t think so at all. I began to name some churches. Actually as many as I could think of. And I not only named the church but also the senior pastors at those churches. I began to name the books that they had written, or the sermons that you could get online. I then began to name some local churches…really big ones and their senior pastors as well.
I told my friend…those guys (senior pastors) are damn good guitar players if you ask me…
I said this because a lot of people say that the type of church I love places to much emphasis on the experience. One of those experiences being the band. And I wanted to make sure that my friend understood that while his church and all the churches that I named might not of had as great of a band as Flood, they still place just as much emphasis on ‘the experience’, theirs just came in the form of a senior pastor.
So while it can be said that the emerging church places to much on the band or the experience, I however think that you could say that the modern church places to much emphasis on their Senior Pastor. Either way you look at it we both have great guitar players, just one has a instrument and the other has a pulpit.
Anyways…I love tea and rainy days. Don’t you?
heart.soul.mind.
kyle diroberts
So I was at Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf just yesterday. I was drinking one of my favorite teas there just relaxing. I was sitting in my usual seat right by the door. There is this table that seats 4 people but I always take it anyways even if it is just me. I like the extra room. I sit in the same chair every time. This is mainly because it is right by the plug-in so that I can charge my PowerBook.
It was a great day for tea yesterday…it was raining. I love rainy days. They are so special. They completely change the mood of everything and everyone (I wonder sometimes if a rainy day to us is like a Sunny day to people who live in Seattle?).
I got to thinking yesterday about my past. I don’t know about you, but one thing rainy days do for me is cause me to think about my past. Maybe cause it doesn’t rain very often and so I naturally think about what I was doing the last time it rained and that just starts the little mice in my head running on their little silver wheels of remembrance. I thought back to this lunch I had with a few guys and we were talking about the church. The church we were discussing was new…I would even call it refreshing. There were a few of us sitting around this table and the topic of experience came up. It was brought up that the church that I have grown to love puts to much emphasis on ‘the experience’ and not enough emphasis on the bible. He was referring to a couple of different churches but one of them that he referred to was Flood the Desert. This was a church that I co-founded in the Valley almost 2 years ago and so since I didn’t feel comfortable commenting on the other churches that he had mentioned I did however welcome the open discussion about Flood…and this ‘experience’ that he spoke of. He mostly referred to the worship services (which by the way he had never been to one) and more specifically the prayer station, and the inclusion of art during our services, and the major emphasis on the band and music.
So he asked if I thought that there was too much attention placed on these various things?
(I should probably mention that our conversation was great…very open…and loving. There was not any arguing, or loud talk. Just healthy discussion)
My answer was no. I didn’t think so at all. I began to name some churches. Actually as many as I could think of. And I not only named the church but also the senior pastors at those churches. I began to name the books that they had written, or the sermons that you could get online. I then began to name some local churches…really big ones and their senior pastors as well.
I told my friend…those guys (senior pastors) are damn good guitar players if you ask me…
I said this because a lot of people say that the type of church I love places to much emphasis on the experience. One of those experiences being the band. And I wanted to make sure that my friend understood that while his church and all the churches that I named might not of had as great of a band as Flood, they still place just as much emphasis on ‘the experience’, theirs just came in the form of a senior pastor.
So while it can be said that the emerging church places to much on the band or the experience, I however think that you could say that the modern church places to much emphasis on their Senior Pastor. Either way you look at it we both have great guitar players, just one has a instrument and the other has a pulpit.
Anyways…I love tea and rainy days. Don’t you?
heart.soul.mind.
kyle diroberts
posted by Kyle DiRoberts at 12:59 AM
2 Comments:
:) tea, rainy days, and a good book are some of my favorite things
just to let you know, I signed up for this blog thing just so that if I wanted to leave a comment I could..... And now I can. haha.
Also, I was thinking...the "experience" part....when theres something relational its an experience...like when we talk to someone, its an experience, not a concept or idea. Its something that we're involved in. So, funny how people get worked out about church being an experience, because...don't we want it to be? I mean its not suppose to be a "show" or anything...but isn't it suppose to be relational? Just like its not about what's on the walls or in the room (object wise) but whats "going on" in the room just like something is suppose to be "going on" in people hearts....isn't Christ suppose to be relational, I mean we learn about him and read his words...but even so, isn't HE an experience? Isn't his love an experience? am I just babbling here? Have I drank too much caffine or had a lack of sleep? (ha, probably)...anyways...
love your thoughts friend, and you will be getting a phone call from the del mar.
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