Rick Nier...Woo!

I used Psalm 42:1-2 as a call to worship yesterday, but as I said then, it wasn't the whole story. The first 2 verses might seem like a nice scripture to put on a pillow, or a painting with a deer in a forest, to simply indicate we love being with God. But if you read the rest of Psalm 42, this is written by a guy who has felt abandoned by God and longs desperately to be in His presence. Better than picturing a deer, peacefully roaming the forest, we might rather picture a critically wounded person reaching out for one last grasp towards life. He recalls a time when he was happy, singing praises to God. He was with all of his people, singing, dancing and generally having a great time. Now, in verse 5, he asks his soul 'why are you so downcast?' One can almost hear the painful mock, as he knows why he is disturbed. Unlike many who abandon any hope to be found in God, this guy reminds himself that hope is eternally to be placed in God. Though the times are tough, a...

I couldn't believe it, even as it was happening. We bounced a rubber ball against a bell for an hour. Before you scoff, I believe you've been there yourself. Maybe it was before Netflix was a thing, and there were no Olympics to watch. Perhaps you were bored beyond belief. But all of the sudden you found yourself doing something that should be simple over and over again. Add a twist, and you suddenly find yourself challenged to do something admittedly less than spectacular. I doubt Whaley Ball will ever find its' way into the Olympics. (The game is named after the person at camp whose memorial bell we were using to play the game. Yes, we played on a memorial bell.) I also don't see myself training to get better. But on that last night at camp, teens and leaders worked together to bounce a small rubber ball against a bell. How was this challenging? We couldn't let the ball drop to the ground. And we had to throw the ball again while the sound of the bell still ...

There's something that I have never fully come to grips with in youth ministry. It's how there don't seem to be enough opportunities to eat pizza. Just kidding . It's parents. Sort of.... Let me explain. When I was a teenager, I was in church whenever the doors were open. Actually, my parents were such sticklers for time management, that I was often there even when the doors were not yet opened, because we would beat the pastor there. Eventually, my parents received keys to the church. Now, instead of simply waiting for others, we could be useful  and set up chairs or tables for whatever event was about to happen. Thanks mom and dad! Now, don't get me wrong. I wasn't rebelling against anybody and not wanting to go to church. I had friends there and I liked my youth pastor and I wanted to be there, generally speaking. But I also knew that it didn't really matter what I wanted  to do. Unless I was sick, I would be in church. Fast forward a couple o...

The Atonement of God; Building Your Theology on a Crucivision of God is the latest book I have read. Written by J.D. Myers, it is about a new way to view the crucifixion of Christ, which Myers argues is actually a very old way to view things. Starting out by arguing why the Penal Substitution theory is incomplete, Myers presents to us the Nonviolent view of atonement. For the sake of space here, I will drastically over simplify things this way; the nonviolent view of atonement says that God did not will Jesus to the cross, but we humans did. God then used the sacrifice to defeat sin and death, but apparently this was not necessary for forgiveness, since God had already given us that. The theory is needed, of course, to help us make sense of a God who is love but also demands justice. At least, this is what J.D. Myers argues.  The book is set up with alternative views of the atonement, with some discussions, some very important discussions, left out, ostensibly for other book...

I turned 40 over a year ago. I'll give you a moment to process that. I know you're not supposed to ask a youth pastor how old he is, but I offered. Why is that significant? Except for the increasing pain in my knees, it's not. Really . I think I handled turning 40 better than I did turning 30. Don't ask me why. The best I can venture is that by the time I reached 40, I understood I was viewed as older by the teens I work with and I simply stopped caring what other people thought. I feel good. Honestly . The worst part is increasing the exercise to compensate for the amount of cookies I eat. One might wonder why I don't just eat less cookies, but I don't really have time for people who ask questions like that. Here is what has changed. I now have 2 of my own children who are part of my youth ministry. So when other teens look at me and marvel that I'm old enough to be their dad, they're not wrong. In fact, I'm older  than some of their parents....

Hey Rick, remember when you used to post more than just book reviews to your blog? Ummm....yeah? So, what about that? Are you ever going to do that again? What? Are you ever going to blog an original thought again, or are you simply going to review other people's thoughts for us? When you put it like that, it sounds kind of harsh. It's the voices in your head, so you should be used to that by now. Good point. So, stop avoiding the question. Are we ever going to see you blog regularly again? This question leaves so much room for disappointment. In my head, there are 3 groups out there. Those who fear I'll say no and be faced with a blogosphere without my drivel. Those who are scared I'll say yes and be faced with reading more of my drivel.  Those who wonder if a 'yes' from me is only temporary. So I am going to answer with a maybe. I intend to. I have some more thoughts to inflict on share with the world. But if you're looking for a...