thank you red squiggly lines....

(random)

So I was hanging out with my little brother the other day and he was working on some school stuff, and on his desk there was this HUGE dictionary for kids. Keenan (that’s my brothers name) was telling me that he couldn’t find a word in the dictionary and he was asking for my help.

The first problem with this story is that those of you who know me well know that I can’t spell for the life of me. My argument though is that its genetics…my Dad can’t spell well either (sorry Dad).

So back to Keenan asking me to help him find a word in the kid’s dictionary. Because I am his older brother I figure I would let him struggle through it, so I told him…”keen, just look it up as you would spell it…or just sound it out and you should be able to find it.” Keenan then got all pissed at me and said, “how can I look it up if I don’t know how to spell it!”

--then it hit me-- I had just turned into my elementary school teacher that I used to get so frustrated/mad with!

I used to get so mad when I would ask my teacher what a word meant or how to spell it and she would always tell me to go look it up in the dictionary. I would tell her…“but I don’t know how to spell it…so how am I going to find it in the dictionary??!”

Anyways, do any of you remember that when you were a kid?

Or was it just me…and my Dad…and my brother…???

heart.soul.mind.
kyle diroberts

PS One of the top 10 invention of all time: those red squiggly lines under the misspelled words when you’re typing on a computer.

So Don Imus was fired today from his National Radio show because of some really stupid comments he made concerning the Rutgers women’s basketball team. This to me was interesting considering Imus once was named one of the 25 Most Influential People in America by Time magazine and a member of the National Broadcasters Hall of Fame.

I was speaking with my Mom today and we both agreed on two things. First, we both agreed that what was said by Imus was completely stupid and was very hurtful to everyone who has heard what he said (not just African American people). And secondly we came to the conclusion that we didn’t agree with Don Imus getting fired. We didn’t agree at all.

Simply said, I don’t think that he intended to be hurtful in what he said – I don’t think he is prejudice – because if he was, he would have never said those words – he’s not an idiot. He’s simply a shock jock that says things off the cuff (which doesn't give him the right to say what he did). Granted, he should have thought a little more about what he was saying, but I don’t think he meant to attack (key word) any group or gender.

Anyways…here are a couple of articles. One is from ESPN, and the other is from MSN.

ps I am aware that a lot of people won't like the fact that I don't agree with Mr. Imus being fired. But I am really curious to know if anyone else thinks, and has the courage to speak up that he should NOT have been fired (please note that I didn't ask if anyone thought what Don Imus said was right).

heart.soul.mind.
kyle diroberts

do you feel artistic? well...you should.

When you think about the areas where people can serve at church, what might come to mind is children's ministry, tech, media, meet and greet, set up, tear down, etc. All too often it sounds like service to the church is not much more than fulfilling a “honey do” list to make Sundays happen. Don’t get me wrong: those acts of service are really important! But what if, as leaders, we were to view our “servants” as artists rather than as workhorses?

First we need to answer the question, What is art? I offer this definition of art: “The expression or application of human creative skill and imagination...producing works to be appreciated primarily for their beauty or emotional power.”

I see art being very broad, regardless of whether you are a teacher, cook, athlete, lawyer, insurance salesman, pastor, or whatever…not just the more obvious painter, poet, writer, and photographer. These labels merely reflect occupations… “jobs”, if you will. But that doesn’t mean that the human behind each job isn’t creative in some way, even if their label might not indicate it. Art is beautiful because it shows the creativity of the human. Or in the Christian way of thinking it shows the creativity of the created, and only leaves the created to wonder just how creative the Creator is.

What if we viewed service to the church as using your artistic abilities in service to God and his church? What if we viewed the role of leader as being the Human Art Director? By that I mean, what would happen if we looked at the people around us and saw their skills and gifting as a form of art? What if we saw the person as art… and not just the thing they created or the skill they possessed? And as a leader, what if our job was to look at people in such a way that each individual had a skill or gift that needed to be exposed for the primary use of creating something…like art? I wonder what that church would look like, feel like, or sound like. I wonder how beautiful it would be to see all the different members coming together to create a masterpiece for all the world around to see. It reminds me of this picture that Paul paints of a body while describing the church:

You can easily enough see how this kind of thing works by looking no further than your own body. Your body has many parts—limbs, organs, cells—but no matter how many parts you can name, you're still one body. It's exactly the same with Christ. By means of his one Spirit, we all said good-bye to our partial and piecemeal lives. We each used to independently call our own shots, but then we entered into a large and integrated life in which he has the final say in everything. (This is what we proclaimed in word and action when we were baptized.) Each of us is now a part of his resurrection body, refreshed and sustained at one fountain—his Spirit—where we all come to drink. The old labels we once used to identify ourselves—labels like Jew or Greek, slave or free—are no longer useful. We need something larger, more comprehensive. (1 Corinthians 12:12-13, The Message)

I think in the end we find that art is passion and where there is passion, there you will find worship. It is just a matter of who is receiving the worship at that point: the object or God. Our place as leaders and members of the church is to redirect people’s passions so that worship to God is available and expressed in servanthood. At that point people become infectious…Worship becomes contagious…God becomes contagious…and the church becomes contagious.

What a beautiful thing.

heart.soul.mind.
kyle diroberts