favorite christmas movies of all time

One of my favorite things about Christmas time are the movies. There are so many great ones, and unfortunately you only get to watch them one time a year without getting depressed... So, in the spirit of Christmas, I'd like to share my favorite Christmas movies of all time.

1. Home Alone

2. Elf

3. The Santa Clause

4. The Grinch

5. Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer

6. The Muppet Christmas Carol

7. Jingle All the Way

What are yours?

unconditional love for sinners

One of my best friends is a self-proclaimed non-believer. She doesn't know if she buys into the whole idea of Heaven and Hell, and she can't come to grips with the fact that faith, not works, establishes a relationship with God. She believes there is a Creator, but she struggles with the concept of eternal life and justification. How is it fair that "good" people would ever have to endure Hell? We've talked for hours and hours about all of these things, but in the end she just isn't sure if she can ever "believe" that.

We've remained best friends despite our differences, and I've told her multiple times that I will love her and do my best not to judge her whether she ever becomes a Christian or not. That is true, but then yesterday this thought ran through my mind: "Nate, you're being so patient and gentle with her, you're doing your best to explain Scripture to her, you're remaining her friend even though she disagrees with you... It's about time she became a Christian! You've done everything right, and God needs to reward you for your faithfulness to this girl."

After having that thought, I became extremely convicted. Was I only being her friend and loving her because I thought it was the best strategy for her to become a Christian? Was my love based on an expectation that because of my hard work she would naturally accept Christ?

Jesus loved sinners expecting nothing in return. God remains faithful to us even after we turn the bride of Christ into a whore. Who are we to base our love for nonbelievers on the condition that they become Christians as a result of our love? We should love sinners because Jesus loved us... not as a strategy for them all to become Christians.

As you attempt to love people, remember that the reason you love them is because of your uncontainable gratefulness for what Jesus did for humanity on the cross; not because you think it's the best strategy for evangelism.

I'm going to love this girl whether she ever believes in Jesus or not, because Jesus is never going to stop loving her... in fact, He is jealous for her love!

true life change

One of the most frequently used buzz phrases in church world is "changing lives". A lot of people would claim that the way you determine a successful church is based on the lives they are changing. Numbers don't mean anything if people's lives aren't being changed.

But what does it mean to be "changing lives"?

For a long time I thought that life change meant a person's life was improving. If a person was able to apply principles to their life and as a result "live better", then their life was being changed.

The more I study it, though, the more I think my definition was way off. Spiritual life change is not a life that is improving, it's a life that is being swapped. Life change is literally a change of lives. It's not one life that is gradually becoming different; it's changing from my life to Christ's life... meaning there were TWO lives to begin with.

Teaching principles to improve behavior and lifestyle is great, but it doesn't help someone truly change their life. A person will gradually begin to improve their life once the life swap has already occurred. Before principles can improve a person's life, their life must FIRST be changed.

structure of the local church

One question I've been wrestling with since I've been at Moody is what the local church in America should look like. Since being here I've received some opposition towards the way Grace does church in Clarksville. I've gotten lots of questions like: Do small groups provide accurate means for discipleship? Is the governmental structure too corporate, and as a result too secular? Do topical messages truly teach the Bible? Should the environments be tailored for believers or non-believers?

Honestly this has made me question a lot of the ministry principles I've learned the last few years. Last week at Catalyst Chuck Swindoll made a cool statement about church structure.

"We must be willing to leave the familiar methods without disturbing the Biblical message."

In other words, the method should not be unwavering, the message should be. The church should be structured in a way that reaches people without changing the message of Christ.

The problem, however, is that a lot of the modern church models are being attacked for their lack of Biblical basis. Questions arise over whether or not these new models are holding firmly to the New Testament's teaching. Today at Missions Conference a missionary from eastern Europe made this statement, "Our experience of church is not based solely on Biblical teaching."

Every church has a system and structure. That system is never FULLY Biblical, because the Bible doesn't fully describe what the system should look like. Therefore, anytime a church clings to a system, they are clinging to a man-made idea.

Here's where I currently land on the issue of church structure/systems:
There is no perfect system, BUT some do work better than others.

It is generally accepted to do church differently in other countries because of culture, so why should it be critiqued when the American local church creates a system to better appeal to culture? Craig Groeschel says it this way, "To reach people no one else is reaching, you have to do things no one else is doing."

Our ministries should be designed to make the message of Christ as relevant as possible. If that means the structure of the local church in America needs to change, then let's change it.

welcome to college life nate dog

Lots of thank you's go out to all of you who have informed me that I haven't updated my blog in a while. While I was aware of the fact that I hadn't written in a while (which seems decently obvious to me considering it is my blog) it still means a lot that you missed reading Moons From Burma.

I took a month off from the blogging world so I would have time to adjust to my new life. It's easy to think you know a lot and have a lot to write about when you're a senior in high school and lots of people look up to you, but being at the bottom and having few friends makes you realize exactly how little you know.

This next chapter of my life is going to be one that teaches me a lot of humility. I think God is trying to teach me that true satisfaction is found only in Him. I've known that as truth for a long time, but I've never had to deal with the reality of that emotionally. What's your first move when the friends you've had for four years are gone, the parents that used to get on your nerves aren't there to get on your nerves anymore, and you have to do your own laundry? I think the answer is get to know Jesus more.

Matthew 6:33 says, "Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need."

For a long time I was unaware that I had let my circumstances shape my faith. Are you letting your circumstances shape your faith, or are you relying on your faith in Jesus to control your circumstances?

rush hour 3

I was watching Rush Hour 3 last night with some friends, and for some reason the DVD froze right in the middle of the fight scene between Lee and his brother on the Eiffel Tower. So... basically I have no clue how the movie ends. If you enjoy being a spoiler, I'd love to hear from you!

relevant student ministry

In September of 2005 6 students sat in my living room for the first ever Grace Community Church "youth group" time. Taylor Hughes, Austin Hughes, Lauren Grizzard, Clark Davis, Claire Davis, and myself. Parker and Jeremy came occasionally because they were a little older, but those were the core six. Now just four years later over 100 students gather at Remix every week. The only explanation for that is God.

I just got back from my last trip with Relevant Student Ministry. Four years ago this time Grace hadn't even started, and my view of God and ministry was so small. My last four years have truly been the best four years a high school student could experience, and I'm so incredibly thankful for all of the opportunities Grace has given students to plug-in and serve.

I ran across a journal entry from June 8, 2008 today, here it is: "We're down to about 40 kids a week now in Remix. We've gotta gain the momentum back. Please bless that God, and help make our hearts pure."

Obviously ministry is much more than numbers, but now I know that God answered that prayer. The fact is that God knew what He was doing with the six of us four years ago. It was a huge step for us to leave established youth ministries and come to something with 6 people, but God had a bigger plan in mind than any of us could even begin to imagine. My hope is that God will continue to raise up leaders at Grace who aren't satisfied with where the movement of Christ is in our city. The numbers have absolutely nothing to do with God's presence, but I hope SO BADLY that our student ministry never becomes a place that values complacency. Too many student ministries are content with maintaining their comfort with their church friends. Relevant is about connecting with students who aren't there yet. Hopefully that's what it will always be about. I'm going to miss Remix next year!

keep people informed: asg seven

As you begin to execute your already big vision, make sure you keep people informed along the way. This is probably my biggest weakness, and it hurt me in big ways. I'm really good at working things out in my head, getting a plan together, and starting work. The problem is you begin moving a fully loaded ship forward without giving the crew and passengers time to get ready. We've all heard the mutiny stories that take place on ships, and I'd bet a lot of them happened because a captain tried to move the ship without informing the crew.

Get someone on your team who GETS the vision and understands your mental direction who can put everything together in outline form. Make sure this person has skill sets that are opposite of yours. For me, I need someone who can think about small details. You may need someone different. The reason this is important is so you can walk someone through your plan before going public. If it's a person that's opposite of you, they can think about the aspects of the plan you haven't even thought of. I can't tell you how many times I tried to move something forward before getting buy-in from key people, and as a result the ship ended up going in reverse.

After you talk through your plan with the key person, then inform the rest of your team, and eventually the entire school or organization. You need to give people a little bit of time to get ready for the newness of your idea, and also to gain momentum before moving forward. While this is true, in school world the year goes by SUPER QUICK! Especially in hind-sight! So you don't have time to waste! Do the planning for the entire year during the summer if possible.

Keep people informed. Test your ideas before pushing them.

creating systems for worship teams

For any organization to maximize its potential, GREAT systems have to be in place. You can have poor systems and still reach your potential, but your potential will just not be very potent.

One of the most important areas of church world is the worship team. If a church wants to maximize the potential of their worship environment, then it obviously makes sense that a GREAT system would have to be in place. The problem is this: the system builder types are typically not on the worship team. Usually the worship team consists of extremely abstract/creative people and people who simply want to help setup and tear down stuff. Both are vital to the team, but neither are especially gifted at building systems.

The temptation is to just let the worship environment take care of itself, because after all, creative ideas are probably flourishing already. However, creative ideas are not a system. If your goal is to maximize potential, you need a great system; which means you need a system builder. You need someone who can sit down and figure out how to get every part of the worship team on the same page; someone who can build a framework in which the creative ideas can be executed. Every second of the worship time needs to have been thought through with an ultimate purpose in mind.

The reality is that most worship leader positions are filled based on musicianship and vocal ability, not on LEADING ability. There are multiple types of leading that must be done in order to truly LEAD worship, and I would argue that the majority of it takes place behind the scenes on Monday and Tuesday, not on stage Sunday. So, if you are going to really take your church somewhere in terms of worship, you need a system in place. What that ultimately means is that you need a leader in your worship area... in addition to an artist.

Systems can be hard to build for a group of abstract/unstructured people, but ultimately there needs to be a great one to maximize your potential. You need structure to succeed, which also means you need a structured person on the team.

apologize for mistakes: asg six

Even if you are making a conscious decision to do what's right and not intentionally take advantage of your position, there will be instances where your integrity is questioned. In those moments, apologize for your mistakes. Chances are you made one even if you don't know what it is.

Don't, however, allow anyone to wrongfully accuse you of anything. Be nice and apologize for the misunderstanding, but defend yourself if you feel you have done nothing wrong. Remember, if your character is questioned, your influence is soon to disappear.

**Also as a side note, a good way to formally apologize for mistakes is through a letter. It shows you are sincere and puts your side on paper so it can't be lost later in a "he said, she said" argument.

Apologize for mistakes. Protect your character.