Hellooooo Sunshine!

For the third day in a row the weather in Seattle has been perfect. No rain. No clouds. Much sun and warmth. Light breeze. Absolutely PERFECT! (If you're from California, then I'm lying. Don't move here!)

On days like these, there is no way to stay cooped up inside doing work. I've been taking my books to the park, the porch, anywhere I can soak in God's grace through the Seattle sun.

I'm currently reading two books. One is Blink by Malcolm Gladwell, the author of the Tipping Point (a must-read!). Gladwell's basic argument is that we think and analyze too much before making decisions. One of his main illustration was a massive $250k war game conducted by the Pentagon before the first Persian Gulf War. The Blue Team ("America") waged a mock war versus the Red Team, a rogue terrorist dictator in the Middle East. Within a day the Red Team had crippled the Blue Team, though the Blue Team had every conceivable ounce of information available to them. What went wrong (or for the Red Team, what went right)? Instead of allowing war instincts make decisions in the "blink" of an eye, the Blue Team burdened themselves with too much information, too many policies, too many procedures, whereas the Red Team used stripped down, in-the-moment decision making and war strategy. The main point being that our brain computes enough information to make a sound decision immediately, but we usually allow more information and analysis to cloud the decision-making process.

I'm really considering whether this could be a breakthrough approach to how I pastor Church on the Hill. Like most pastors, I spend a lot of time strategizing culture, church models, organizing data to present a pretty vision to the congregation. But really, Jesus' style in His Middle Eastern War was to be like the rouge commander of the Red Team. Would Capitol Hill be more effectively reached by being engaged by a "blink" type of ministry. It seems this would give much more permission to everyone being poured into relationships and seeking training based on real-time missional living.

The second book is Experiencing Prayer by Henry and Norman Blackaby. I've just begun this book, but I can say that I love the approach they are taking. Instead of randomly ripping off a prayer from an obscure passage in the Old Testament (sorry, I just had to take a shot at the Prayer of Jabez), their foundation is a rich examination and emulation of Jesus' prayer life. After one chapter, I'm already finding my heart being called to deeper prayer with the Father.

Soaking up sun, reading, downing Otter Pops...the only thing that could add to this moment is a latte from Espresso Vivace!