On the Prowl

DISCLAIMER: This post was not proofread or edited.  What you have here is all raw, thus grammar and spelling will be terrible!  FYI I will be putting this all into a Vlog on youtube.

I have never been so amazed at the lack of Biblical Literacy and application on the church as I have been for the past year or so.  There is a somewhat famous individual floating around the church who is proclaiming . . . well a lot of stuff, but the biggest flaw in this individual's claims is his lack of Biblical literacy.  Now sometimes this guy uses the Bible, but when he does, he uses it WAY out of conext or from a very traditional bent.

Don't get me wrong: There are Apostolic traditions that have been handed down to the church through the years which are also seen in the Bible (elder selection, gatherings with other believers, communion, etc), however Traditionalism has made its way into Christ's church, and this guy sticks to those human traditions in his Scriptural hermeneutic. 

Let us forget about his hate of Christians using hip hop has a vehicle to reach an unreached people group (I do understand that hip hop is NOTHING but a vehicle, but the Gospel of Jesus Christ is the only way a person will be saved).  Let us also forget about the fact that he can preach his hate of hip hop (because his messages are never really central on Jesus Christ, thus I am afraid of what he calls "The Gospel") until he is purple and if the Lord wills no one in the audience will be saved.  Let us forget that.  Let us forcus on one thing.  His inaccurate use of the Bible and the resulting incorrect application to Christian life.

First let me mention that I do pray for this man as I also pray for my own pastors as well as myself.  I pray that we would all have an accurate understanding of the Scriptures and hold them in high regard as they are the exact Words of God (2 Peter 1:20-21, 2 Timothy 3:16, 2 Peter 3:15).  I pray that our teaching would be so much more than just lip service but that our lives would match (James 2:14-26) not out of morality, but out of a love for Jesus Christ (John 14).  I pray that we would not say maliscous things behind the backs of our brothers and sisters, but that we would have a sincerel love of the bretheren (John 13:34, Romans 12:10, 1 Peter 1:22-23).

Second I do feel as though it is only wise for me to mention this individuals name as others may want to ask him questions or just be a little more cautious when they hear him speak (I am not saying dismiss him because I have actually taken excellent Biblical principles from this man as I am sure he has taken excellent Biblical principles even from his brothers in Christ who he preaches against).

Our brother's name is G Craige Lewis.  He is the founder of an organization called EX Ministries, and I believe that he is my brother in Jesus Christ.

Now again, I am not here to argue with my brother or any of his followers on the issue of hip hop, but I am here to have an open-minded Biblical discussion on my brother's use of the Biblical text.  That being said, I now need to find a starting point on which to discuss some of these issues.  And though I have seen some rather awkward videos of Mr. Lewis preaching on youtube, I think his blog would be the best place to start as it is open to the public.  As far as picking a starting place in his numerous blog entries, I will randomly begin with the one entitled "Beast Markings".

This blog entry opens up with a mention of the last days and the mark of the beast being given to those who inhabit earth.  Upon first glance I did not take arms against this idea because I know that this is true and that it will eventually happen.  The problem came when Mr. Lewis said that we are living in those times right now.  Well to be honest with you, I wouldn't even have a problem with him saying that if he were saying it figuratively and in light of 1 John 1:15-24.  I believe that the spirit of the antichrist was around back in the first century anno domini.

The issue is the fact that Mr. Lewis uses Revelation scriptures at the end of his blog that speak of the mark of the beast.  Now let me be honesy with you, I take the Revelation 13:16 passage literally.  I understand that at this time there will be 2 individuals who will rise up in power and start to flex their authority by performing miraculous signs and wonders.  One of those individuals will then start proclaiming that people will need to take a mark upon themselves if they want to live.  I can say this with confidence:  We are not living in the Revelation 13 times.  Thus that was not the wisest way to begin a blog and it's also not the best lense with which to view the music industry.

The next few things he has to say are decent as he discusses the real fact that people have risen to highly visible positions amongst the Lord's Church, but are not truly in love with Jesus and couldn't care less about His glory.  He says that people are quiet about these sin issues in order to rise up to higher places or to try to become as famous as these sinful leaders.  He says "You have to be silent about the musicians homosexuality if you wanna get the lead in the choir or sing the solo. You have to ignore Bobby Jones flamboyancy to get on his stage. You have to allow Tonex to use foul language if you want to interview him to boost your ratings. You have to accept Oprah's god to be on her show."  These facts are true (except for maybe the Oprah thing.  I'm pretty sure that is not a requirement to be on her show)!

He then proclaims "You have to accept same sex civil unions to support Barack Obama."  Ok, we have a problem.  Let's first begin with Romans 13 and 1 Peter 2:13-15.  Romans 13:1 will tell us that God sovereignly appoints rulers.  Not the electorial college or great marketing campaigns.  God chose Obama over McCain in His infinite wisdom.  We must then submit to his authority and live lives pleasing to God so that when our lives are seen, he will have no real charges to bring against us.  Also we have the wrong hearts if we didn't pray for those who God has placed in authority.  We would be wrong NOT to pray for President Obama's salvation AND sanctification.

Another issue with the Obama comment is the fact that one sin is chosen over another as it relates to the democratic vs republican debate.  We all know that democrats are historically liberal in their views of marriage, life, religion, etc.  We also know that republicans are conservative when it comes to the widow and orphan.  The old republican ideals are that one would pull himself up by his own bootstraps and not look for a handout.  But how does that relate to the Bible?  What of Luke 4:17-19, Exodus 22:21-23, Deuteronomy 10: 17-19?  Alas, what was the sin of Sodom and Gomorah as we see in Ezekiel 16:49-50?  One of the most famous stories in the Bible.  We see two cities destroyed because they oppressed the widow and the poor.  This is what you see with the republican party.

So the fact that Mr. Lewis decided to point out same sex unions pails in comparison to the fact that God destroyed a region for doing things that John McCain most likely would have done.  Thus another vital error in Mr. Lewis' blog post.

Next Mr. Lewis moves to the Stellar awards and begins to proclaim that an entertainer and his choir dancing on stage was a "beast marking".  Now you must understand that Mr. Lewis paints the picture of the director doing a Ru Paul impression and the choir "dropping it like its hot".  He then says that the people in the audience want fame so bad that they will clap for such things so that they in turn will become popular.  Mr. Lewis states that "The devil has orchestrated it so strategically that these very artists that won't stand up for truth are the ones that are ministering to the next generation, setting the stage for the antichrist and the mark of the beast. Kirk Franklin, Tye Tribbett, J Moss, DA Truth, and all the other youth ministers that were there clapping . . ."

Though these are some flaws with this statement (the antichrist issue, the "beast marking", etc) I wanted to point out two specific issues:

1. Background: I see DA Truth weekly.  I know what he teaches as well as how he leads his family and I can say that he is above reproach.  Having said that, it's a rather bold statement to proclaim that he was there in hopes that some gospel choir director would see him there amongst the dimly lit crowd of many people and say, "Oh, I want to make DA Truth popular because he is here to see ME and only ME."  I would even go as far as saying that he was there . . . because he was nominated for an award (which he was).  And knowing that the music business is not above reproach (he will tell you that himself and then pray for specific people as well as his own ego and pride) he was probably proclaiming the Gospel of Jesus Christ and pulling out the Bible every chance he had even in the midst of what should have been an event that uplifts the name of Jesus Christ.  So that was probably not a wise statement made by Mr. Lewis.

2. Again I want to briefly discuss DA Truth's character.  If you don't know his personally, I would encourage you to take a look at the lyrics of his songs.  Compare them to the Bible.  I will guarantee you will see the name of Jesus Christ lifted high.  You will also hear admonishment to live lives that are holy and acceptable to God and to despise sin.  Keeping that in mind, what do you think a person like this is going to say to a youth group?  I guarantee you he is going to stand up for the truth and not turn a blind eye to sin.  Thus another false and unloving statement made by our brother Mr. Lewis. 

Sidebar: Let us continue to pray for Biblical literacy amongst God's people because and illiterace Christian can do much hurt and damage (James 3).  Also let us remember that just because a brother or sister is in the midst of a crooked and preverse people doesn't mean they have become like those people.  There is a good chance that our strong siblings are being a light to that crooked and depraved generation (Matthew 5:14-16).

Lastly, in his closing paragraph Mr. Lewis proclaims that "Taking the mark is an action. You won't be able to take it and believe in your heart that you didn't really take it! You won't be able to say 'I'll just take it outwardly, but inwardly I will still believe in Christ'. (Like sitting in the audience of the awards, but saying in your heart you are not with what is going on) . . . Where you sitting down clapping when you should have been getting up and leaving? Where you quite to keep fame rather than crying aloud and sparing not even your own desire to advance?"

Again we come to the idea that if we do not shine as lights in the World then our faith is garbage.  For those who may agree with this idea, please show me in the Bible where a believer is to abort a situation when he is not sinning.  I can say that for a believer to watch pornography is adultery and thus a sin.  I can also say that for a believer to go to a family Christmas party where cousins, aunts, uncles, and even siblings are getting drunk is not a sin.  Especially if that person has a heart to see Jesus Christ formed in those people and thus shares the Gospel with them.

Or let me give you a Biblical example: Acts 17.  The Apostle Paul observing a city full of idols.  Rather than leaving the city (as Mr. Lewis apparently suggests Paul should have done), Paul proclaims the Gospel of Jesus Christ as he is lead by God the Holy Spirit.

Conclusion: While my brother G Craige Lewis did point out some excellent issues that plague the church, he also made quite a few Biblically illiterate comments that led him to falsly accuse his brother in the Lord as well as potentially lead a few young believers into some incorrect thinking.

I would encourage my brother as well as any of my siblings in the Lord to carefully consider the Bible before making any bold statements concerning the Christian life.  Also, remember that teachers incur a stricter judgement (James 3:1), so make sure you are accurate and do not come with any agenda other than that of Jesus Christ.

Ok, that is all for this blog post.  I will comment on others in the future.

(Continuing) My Youth Ministry Vent

Honestly I don't know why I even care.  I gave up on youth ministry years ago (or so it seems).  The Lord closed that door and I found myself in the business world and LOVING IT!  But deep in the cracks of my heart there is a small spark.  And just today, that spark was given a little fodder.

A quick history:  I graduate from Philadelphia Biblical University with a degree in youth ministry.  It was my desire to watch teenagers grow from spiritual death to life.  After graduating I began to look for opportunities to work with teenagers (it didn't have to be in a youth ministry setting), but the door was always shut in my face.  I really didn't understand this odd phenomenon because I was a black male with a youth focused degree looking to work with urban youth!  That means Instant Job, or so I thought.  After about a year of NOs I found myself working as an administrator in corporate America.  And now I work in a marketing department and love the world of Corporate America.

So what happened?  Today I was checking my email and saw a random banner ad that was advertising a youth ministry curriculum.  My curiosity got the best of me and I clicked on the ad to see what this curriculum contained.  I was not disappointed . . . at first.

http://www.146ministries.com/index.html

The first thing that caught my attention was the fact that the curricula were very inexpensive.  I thought this was an excellent idea because so many youth ministries break the bank trying to purchase curricula.  Next I wanted to research the "14:6" moniker and found it to be a reference to John 14:6, which was also an attention grabber.  After viewing the descriptions of a few topics I actually found one curriculum that showed me a sample lesson.  This is where that spark turned into a small flame.

The topic of the lesson revolved around appropriate responses to God when facing trials (an EXCELLENT topic, especially for teens).  The curriculum offered a 5 minute video for the lesson, promotional ideas, room decoration ideas, a game idea, and the lesson.  The lesson points to three (3) passages of Scripture and skims the surface of two of those passages leaving just one contemplative question for the third passage.  And you know what?  That's actually not that bad.

The curriculum ends with 6 focus questions that begin to scratch the surface of the lesson, but do nothing more than that.  And you know what?  That's really not that bad!

The bad part comes with this quote taken directly from the website: "We simply want to supply youth workers with the tools to put together a solid program without having to spend half the week doing so. So now that you have 14:6, print out your lesson plan for this coming week and go spend some time with your students."

And that's really not that bad . . . until you start to think about what will usually happen.  Youth workers will start to become lazy meat heads who watch youtube all day, play World of Warcraft, look up stupid games, and hang out with students almost to the point of lowering themselves to a teenage boy maturity level.  On saturday night or wednesday afternoon they will print off the curriculum, look at it for 15 minutes, try to come up with a stupid game and video, and go back to playing Team Fortress.  He will teach the lesson to kids who have disengaged hearts but think he is a cool guy.  The kids will leave and the next day continue to be typical status quo teenagers at their high schools. {{{And repeat cycle}}}

Another problem that pops out to me is the fact that the curriculum doesn't really go deep (from what I can see).  And by deep, I mean it is not extensive.  If you look at the lesson plan, it feels like a 15-20 minute activity.  Now, I'm not the smartest individual in the history of time, but I feel as though must Sunday schools, Wednesday night Bibles studies, or Youth Clubs have meetings that typically last longer than 15-20 minutes.  I'm thinking more like an hour and 30 minutes.  An hour MINUMUM.  So guess what that other 45 minutes to hour and 15 minutes is spent doing?  Playing games!

I mean, it only makes sense.  Play games for an hour where you throw dodgeballs, shoot pool, play some basketball, throw a football around . . . and then for 10 minutes give out sugar filled snacks . . . finally try to calm down a group of 30 hyped up teenagers and give them a quick lesson on Jesus.  Guaranteed to move a hormone infested 16 year old boy from spiritual infancy to spiritual . . . infancy . . .

Let us consider one fact.  Teenagers spend around 6-7 hours a day in a classroom (NOT playing games), and then go home where they do homework for around 2 hours.  Keep in mind the focus of that homework is on those subjects they were taught earlier in the day (Not on "How to play awesome games!").  They spend 45 minutes a day in a class that inadvertently calls Intelligent Design a hoax.  And trust me when I say they don't have a 30 minute ice breaker in this class.

So why is it that youth ministry has been reduced to the social game club for teenagers?  Why not take that wonderful opportunity we have and inject our youth with Biblical ammo?  Why not teach them how to wield the Sword of the Lord like a Roman warrior?

My suggestions: 1. If you purchase the curriculum, use it as the bread of your lesson sandwich.  Beef up the lesson with more indebt study of the discussed passages.  Move that lesson from 15 minutes to an hour.  Don't be afraid to teach teenagers about Jesus!   2. If you don't buy the curriculum, don't stress on all the time it takes to create a lesson.  Rather, take all those lessons you created, buy yourself a filing system, and organize those lessons.  Trust me.  You will not only be able to use them in the future, but you will have your own curriculum that you can pass off to new youth pastors who come on board at surrounding churches and are still green behind the ears.     3. Which brings me to my third suggestion.  Partner up with others in your area.  Youth leaders meeting together to spur one another on toward love and good deeds is not a bad idea.

So having said that . . .

AH!  I'm spent.  I've said what I wanted to say.  Maybe I will post a rant on youtube.  Who knows?  Maybe a youth pastor somewhere will catch this and run with it.  That is my prayer.

Father, give us your children hearts to disciple others who have called on your Son's saving name.  Please allow us to concern ourselves not with whimsical games, or goofy gags, but with walking individuals from all walks of life from spiritual infancy to spiritual maturity.  Holy Spirit, please open our eyes to your Scriptures and allow us to teach so that young people will cry out "What must I do to be saved?"  And I pray that all glory will go to Jesus!

Amen.

Official Guide

Ok everyone.  It's official.  I am now the expert on Houston Texas and will help others discover the beauty of The Greatest City in The Greatest State in an acceptable country (heh heh heh).  Actually Texas should be its own country, but that's besides the fact.

I plan on setting up some type of website in which I can suggest things to do for people taking business trips to Houston, families vacationing in Houston, or people moving to Houston for work or school.  On the website you will be able to ask me questions that everyone will see and I will answer them for everyone to see (I will need my brother Dave Mackey, my good buddy Josh Benner, or my ninja Dave York to help me set up these functions (man am I glad to have friends who are computer savy)). 

The basic setup of the website will be like this:

I. Page for Individuals on Business
     A. 2 Days
          1. Activities
          2. Restaurants
     B. 3 Days
          1. Activities
          2. Restaurants
     C. 4 days or longer/Weekends
          1. Activities
          2. Restaurants

II. Page for Families on Vacation
     A. 3 Days
          1. Sights
          2. Foods
          3. Hotels
     B. 4 Days
          1. Sights
          2. Foods
          3. Hotels
     C. 5 Days or longer/Weekend
          1. Sights
          2. Foods
          3. Hotels

III. Page for Individuals Moving to Houston for Work or School
     A. Different Attractions in Houston
     B. Different neighborhoods within the city in which to live
     C. Different restaurants to frequent
     D. Different cities to visit within Texas
          1. Sights
          2. Foods
          3. Hotels

IV. Page for Families Moving to Houston
     A. Different neighborhoods in and around Houston
          1. Neighborhoods within the City and HISD information
          2. Suburban Neighborhoods and school districts
     B. Different Attractions in Houston
     C. Different restaurants
     D. Different cities to visit within Texas
          1. Sights
          2. Foods
          3. Hotels

These are all just ideas I am putting on the internet because I have no other place to put them right now.  This entry will probably be updated.  OK . . .

Klein High School 2001

My senior year of high school.  Wow.  What can I say . . . I miss those days.  It all began with a jobless summer and getting the drumline together to "practice".  Those were great times.  Sundeep, Guinio, Wallrick, and myself being idiots with our "wu-tang" and other antics.  Guinio and I actually had a summer class together where we discussed how stupid we were supposed to act as seniors, and he told me stories about the hot moms who came into the produce section at his job.

Then the year started.  My lineup was pretty sweet.  Music Theory, (I forget what comes next during this first semester) . . . spanish, english, math, economics . . . (possibly) and DRUMLINE (I know that one).  Well I am section leader for the drumline and I enjoy the leadership role as well as all those great football games.  Mr. Dean Scheuer made my 4 years in the KDL (Klein Drumline) a real pleasure.  Thanks Dean-o . . . wherever you are.  And even though that stupid band of ours was CRAP because they didn't care about winning . . . the drumline still proved to be the best in the area!

I remember liking a girl who will remain nameless.  Well actually . . . let's just call her . . . April Wims.  Meh heh heh.  We had gone to the homecoming dance together our Junior year and kinda talked as friends throughout the year.  Well over the summer I had taken a liking to her.  On the FIRST DAY of school I remember drinking my soda in the cafeteria, seeing her out of the corner of my eye, and choking on my drink out of nervousness.  I remember telling Sundeep because he was sitting next to me as was like . . . "What the crap?"  So I figured, what the crap, I'll just ask her to go to homecoming again.  This time I did it right.  I used a magic trick to ask her.  It was pretty cool I guess. 

* Just a side note: Though "April" was a great friend and an awesome date to both homecoming dances, My lovely wife Tish Buckholtz always takes first place in my heart!  If you think that magic trick was something, you should have seen me propose to Tish!  There were midgets with flaming swords and . . . well, I won't get into it now.

The first semester ends and I find myself enjoying a rather nice Christmas break.  At this same time I ask a lovely lady, who I will name Denise Rolise, on a date.  The date was going rather well when my car began to smoke.  Oddly enough Guinio pulled up along side of me and said, "Hey man, your car is smoking." To which I replied, "Yeah, it always does that." However when I attempted to accelerate again, the car gave up the ghost and died right there!  Denise's dad had to come get us.  HAHAHAHA!!!  That was a great night.  That was senior year, right Denise?

Anyways, I got some pretty hot gifts for Christmas.

Final semester at old Klein High consisted of Music Theory, Band, English, Spanish, Math, and Early Dismisal (If you do it just right, you can get away with only 5 classes your senior year.  That mess was HOT).  I remember that first day of early dismisal (or whatever the crap it was called) Matt Tomaselli and I went over to Mr. Nick Colunga's house where we watched "Clerks The Animated Series."  That was interesting.  Get on youtube.com and search for "clerks korean animation".  Thanks Mr. Colunga . . . wherever you are.  From then on, I usually found myself goofing off in the drum room until school was out.

2 Trips that year!  First we went to San Antonio for Honor Orchestra.  I remember watching Westfield's honor band performing and there was some random white box sitting on the stage.  My buddy Krystal Schroeder and I decided it would be great to have a laugh at April Wims' expense, so we were like, "Wow, is that a giano."  To which April's response was like, "What's a giano?"  To which we were like, "It's like an early form of a piano." To wich "April" was like, "Oh, cool." ********  A few months later we found ourselves in Washington DC (Tish and I were just there a few weeks ago celebrating our two year wedding anniversary).  That was a great time.  I remember buying like 5 disposable cameras and using them all.  Unfortunately I was rooming with some brass players rather than my percussion brothers, so we couldn't take advantage of the "Snibbits" like we usually do on overnight trips.

Boy was the band banquet ever fun!  Terrell Wood and I went together.  Terrell is a great friend.  Hi Buddy!  The best part of band banquet?  While the dancing was great and the food was excellent, nothing could compare to the awards.  One of our band directors received about 15 jars of peanut butter and one tube of peanut "squeeze".  And though it was commical, nothing could compare to the Drumline's Awards.  We had rugged balls for Mr. Gresens, Red Corvettes for myself, and the first ever (and probably last ever) Taco Awards.  Given to Richard Gary???, Jennifer "Leroy" Prine, and Lori's boyfriend at the time (Paul I believe). 

Freaggin Prom. I have nothing good to say here.  My prom would have been excellent if I would have followed Henry Chang's advice and gone with April Wims.  I beat myself up every once in a while because of my mistake in prom date choices.  For two years after I graduated I was trying to go back to prom with people I knew just so I could have some type of closure in that area.  It's the biggest dance of your freaggin life!  Oh well.  At least 2 things were right: 1. The Party bus was that joint!  2. APE (After Prom Extravaganza) was perfect (minus the date).  I won so much crap that I still use to this day!  Like the laundry bag.  Hm . . . where is that thing?  Ah, it didn't even look like Klein High School.  The APE committee did an excellent job of transforming our school into a casino/cruise/laser tag/moon bounce place of goodness.  They don't do that for the schools here in Philly.

Graduation was sad.  I stood next to Laura Bianco who had become a good friend of mine throughout the year despite our odd history.  I remember arriving late because I drove by myself thinking I was the man. Instead of being the man I ended up getting lost in Houston and randomly running into a guy from my church who showed me which way to go.  I remember my name being called and beginning to walk.  I don't remember shaking Mr. Grove's hand, but I do remember walking off the stage.  Everything else is a blur, but I do remember throwing up my hat at the end.  That was something to see!!!  It also puts a lump in my throat to this day.

We have all come a long way since Klein High School.  Some of you may read this with smiles, others with tears. We have made new friends, and we have lost others.  Some of us are in great seasons of our lives.  Others of us are in ruts and recession.  Mr. Grove once told us all, "It's not the size of the dog in the fight, it's the size of the fight in the dog."  As Bearkats, we were given a lot of fight.  I want alll of us to remember that no matter where we find ourselves in this life, we have fight in us.  The Bible presents us with the true story of David and Goliath. This young lad had fight in him and stood up to an enormous enemy.  He defeated the giant by the help of his God, and also with some fight.  So fight strong my friends.

I love you all!

Bernard "Boo" Buckholtz

Hope to see you in 2011!

(Forgive any errors you may read in this note. I am too tired and lazy to correct myself)

I'm American!

There's no way to deny the truth.  I am an American.  As much as I try to avoid being associated with America (I would much rather be associated with Texas), I find myself doing American things and liking American food.  Some of you might be like, "What the? . . .".  Well, I'll tell you what. 

This morning I came into work early to get some manual labour done.  That's right, I spelled it with a "u".  Anyways, I went to Wawa to get a Sizzli Pancake.  They are basically like a McGriddle.  I also picked up a Mach W . . . which is Wawa's version of Red Bull.  Well I looked at the Sizzli wrapper and noticed that they had the nutrition facts on it.  Let me share the TERRIBLE information with you:

(I hope I don't die from this stuff.  This is the last time I am eating one of these!)

Total Fat: 34g - 52% of my daily value!

Saturated Fat: 12g - 60% of my daily value!

Cholesterol: 225mg - 75% of my daily value!

Sadium: 1110mg - 46% of my daily value!

They make up for it in protein.  17g . . . not bad . . .

What can I say . . . I'm American.  But this is one American who is going to stay away from the Sizzlis!

Oh . . . No Becks, I never really made Jon Jon cry.  But there was a time when he almost made me cry.  But that is more of a guy story, so I won't put it up . . .

Thanks for Playing!