thank you

thank you to everyone who was able to make it out to Wide Open '08!! the night was a great success on so many levels, and the stories keep coming in . . .everything from kids who were inspired to create their own art, to friends who are interested in the whole God-thing, to pastors who were intrigued to connect their congregations to giving financially in new ways this christmas season. this is what happens when church people and non-church people come together and lay their agendas aside, instead opting to open their minds, hearts and eyes to the needs of each other. this is what happens when churches from more than 5 different denominations gather together under one roof to remember that everyone matters to God. 

is that to say that all the feedback was positive? no way! there were several people who felt that the art presented was "out-of-bounds" with one man in particular questioning the validity of a parable that included voodoo in it's story. there were several people who felt the songs were too "christian" in nature and were not reflecting the openness that invites all people to explore spiritual awareness. one friend was honest enough to say that the song "truly jesus" was offensive to him, and felt more like a "butt-scrunch" moment than a welcoming invite into a spiritual conversation. so what does all this mean? it means we're right on track :-). 

great art does all of the above and more. it provokes emotion, inspiration, creativity, and exposes sensitive areas where we disagree. and all of this happens--hopefully--so that we learn to embrace people with different viewpoints from  our own. along the way, if we're willing we can also learn to express our own point-of-view with gentleness and respect, even when that means we need to lovingly disagree. 

and we will disagree, that's a given. the key is not to see people who disagree with you as your 'enemy'. remember art is always about the transmission of ideas. and when we share our ideas, we must constantly remind ourselves that IDEAS ARE NEVER MORE IMPORTANT THAN PEOPLE. rather, ideas are the framework around which we learn to communicate our differences with grace and in the process love each other fully. disagreeing is a part of life, but it should never disintegrate into 'name-calling,' 'eye-ball rolling,' and worst of all 'polarizing' of others. 

so if some churched & non-churched people were upset by different creative elements within the night . . . that's to be expected. and if that was you, the challenge is to a step-back and consider the words of Yeshua

"I tell you, love your enemies. Help and give without expecting a return. You'll never—I promise—regret it. Live out this God-created identity the way our Father lives toward us, generously and graciously, even when we're at our worst. Our Father is kind; you be kind.

Don't pick on people, jump on their failures, criticize their faults— unless, of course, you want the same treatment. Don't condemn those who are down; that hardness can boomerang. Be easy on people; you'll find life a lot easier. Give away your life; you'll find life given back, but not merely given back—given back with bonus and blessing. Giving, not getting, is the way. Generosity begets generosity." --luke 6:35-38