No. 1 down!

No. 1 down! Last Sunday was the one year anniversary of Afterhours. We have handed out 2600 lunches to the great guys at El Centro and then in the last four months given out 750+ lunches to the homeless folks down at Civic Center park....and I gotta say we have had a pretty good time doin it. This does not even include the pasta, diapers, water bottles, clothes, Ramen noodles, and and and....What an amazing this community has turned into in the last 12 months. AfterHours is a weird bird, no doubt about it, but I think there are a lot of people out there that like weird birds and still want to connect to God. I can't help but think there are people that want to wrestle with trying to figure out life/God/themselves but traditional church just ain't cutting it for them. Hope we helped fill that void this year.Who knows what the next year will bring, but I sure am thankful for the chance to serve/love/laugh with all of you this way, this year. Here's to more love, more laughs, & less judgment. See ya in 2010!

A lot can happen in three months...

Well, Civic Center park is up and running. Afterhours is handing out food & water and socks and communion there on Tues @ 1:30. Fridays, the FOUNDATION from DU is in the park at noon and Rusty Butler w/Arvada UMC are feeding the folks in the park on Mondays.

We have people from as far away as Cleavland, California and Florida asking how they can do the same type program in their cities. Very, very cool.

Christmas is going to be awesome here in Denver. As of now we have dozens and dozens of sleeping bags (thanks to Carolyn Waters and her crew at Christ Church), we have 50 box lunches donated by MiMi's Cafe in Broomfield (eat there when you can!), we have people who have donated hundreds and hundreds of dollars worth of clothes. A couple people pitched in and bought over $300 worth of gloves. The gift bags that will have the clothes and such in them are all handmade and reuseable. It is amazing to me what happens when you let the spirit loose!

In my last post I mentioned that we didn't do "Communion"...but we did communion. We are doing "Communion" now twice a week. About 60%-80% of the people I offer it to accept. Some get down on there knees. Some won't touch it so I have to put it in there mouth. Some folks come every week ONLY for the communion.

By the end of this month, we will have feed over 600 people in Civic Center park.

Funny, when I started AfterHours, I thought we were starting a worship service that had an outreach element. I am starting to wonder if we have started an Outreach with a worship service element.

Time will tell...

The Least of My Brothers at the Table...

I was down in Civic Center park last Tues handing out food for the homeless with Paul Howard who runs Redemption Fellowship out of Trinity United Methodist church downtown. Paul has a heart for the homeless and those who have hit a rough patch. Paul and I went down there with the intention of handing out the sandwiches, having a communion service and then packing up our stuff and heading out. God had a different plan. After we had set-up our folding table with a cross and a chalice of juice and a loaf of bread we started handing out sandwiches. We also handed out some bagels and apples that got donated from some of you here at AfterHours. We never did a communion service, but make no mistake, we had communion. That’s what we had. Paul and I agreed that even if we don’t do a communion service, we would still set up the table. We love the idea that over time, the homeless in that park will know that when they come to the Lords Table…they will be fed. Towards the end of our time, as we were packing up, a gentleman came up to me and asked what I was going to do with the juice that was in the cup. I asked him if he wanted it and he said yes. For an instant, my old Catholic roots rose up and I thought, “should I do this?” Now it wasn’t even consecrated but just the idea of the juice going from the Chalice into a common water bottle gave me pause. That vanished pretty quick as I started to pour. I had to fight back tears as I poured the juice from the chalice into his water bottle held by his cold, weather-worn hands. This was as much communion as anything I had ever been a part of. This might not have been the traditional way of "getting rid" of the juice from the chalice but if I was to follow Jesus’ teachings, I realized I needed to put human need over traditional orthodoxy. It gave me chills.

As you do to the least of my brothers…

Have a great week.

Schools of Thought...

There are two schools of thought (probably more but I am going to run with two) when it comes to being a Pastor. One is that you show the world how much you know. Show them how strong a leader you are, that you can provide answers and are always certain. The other school of thought says struggle with your people. Show them your desire to lead, your willingness to go where you feel God is calling you but you don't need to act as though you have it "all figured out.". You let them know that you too get frustrated with the church and sometimes with God. You lead with your passion, not your intellect. Both models are successful. Both models work. A Pastor just needs to know which one he or she is. If you are ready to struggle with God and your faith and your Pastor who doesn't have all the answers...I look forward to seeing you at AfterHours.

I'm going to try again....

I am going to make another attempt at blogging. I get why people do it and I follow at least five blogs. As a writer though, it feel pretty...self indulgent (as if preaching isn't!) Now I know when it is done perfectly, preaching is an awesome expression of a way to connect people with God...both the preacher and the preachees. But it is a razors edge between that and a HUGE ego stroke. Keep an eye on me. I don't want to fall off the tightrope.

Having said ALL that, I will try to keep up and write in this blog as often as possible. Today I am just here to tell you the latest news with AfterHours.

We moved! we are now at 7562 S. University Blvd. 1/2 block south of Dry Creek in the Southglen Square mall. We are in the LifeSpot location right in the corner. LifeSpot is a youth center and they have been cool enough to let us invade their world every Sunday night. Table, chairs, couches, barstools. all add to the vibe. We used breadsticks from the pizza joint a few doors down for communion. It was fantastic. A very relaxed cool vibe.

We talked about what do you think of when you think of the word "church". for some it was a great memory, for others not so much and others had no feelings at all. What are your thoughts?

What do you think when you hear the word...church?

Suffering

So last Sunday night we talked about suffering. Sorry to say, we didn't figure it out. Drag. I thought FOR SURE we would have that nailed after a 12-minute sermon and a 6-minute discussion. Oh well. What we did discuss was whether we believed in an all powerful God, an all loving God, or whether or not evil and suffering exists (some people don't believe that eveil really existst.)Hard to explain how all three exists at the same time.I think based on the discussion we were all over the board. Me? I can't let go of the all-loving God. That would be a deal breaker for me. I believe that evil exists so....yep, I don't believe in an all-powerful God. Before you throw tomatoes at the screen, hear me out. I think the reason God isn't all powerful is because God gave up some power to give us free will. God wants us to CHOOSE to be in relationship with God. It is in this space where free will exists that evil and suffering can, and has, taken root. There you have it. What are your thoughts? You can read the whole sermon at www.afterhourschurch.com.

Free Will...really? Predestination...huh?

Talking on the phone one day with my dad, he told me that he believed that EVERYTHING is already planned out by God. I told him, "So God knew I was going to to call today?" he told me that not only God knew I would call, God knew what we just said before we said it...AND knows what we are about to say. This was YEARS before I went to seminary. It still seemed...odd to me. Then again....do we REALLY have free will? Is ANYTHING already decided? Some folks believe that before you were BORN it was already decided what your life would be....after your life? What you do MAKES NO DIFFERENCE. This means Mother Teressa could be in "hell" and Hitler could be in "heaven"...This....blows my mind. So what do you think? How much free will do we really have? How much is really decided ahead of time? Come figure it out with us Sunday Feb. 22nd. @ 5pm (for the record....we won't figure it out...but the conversation should be good.) Relax...it's just church...Afterhours

do you know why you're here?

On Feb. 15th I will be talking about why we are here. Do I claim to know? Not really. But I will give you my take on it. I think it is the question we all ask at one time or another. What does the good book have to say? I struggled for years trying to refine my purpose. Am I there yet? Nope. But it has been quite a trip. The trip has been a trip. What do you think the meaning of life is? What is your purpose for walking around this earth? Have you found your purpose? What do you do in the mean time? At the end of the night we might not have the answers, but we will have moved that much farther down the road. Come ask the questions with us...and relax...it's just church...afterhours.

Here comes the Judge...

So this coming Sunday I am preaching on Judgement. I am going to talk about how important it is not to judge and how lousy the people are that do judge others...HOW JUDGEMENTAL OF ME! I TOTALLY get the irony of judging people for judging people. The thing is; there IS too much judgement in the world. Jesus said, "I did not come to judge the world." I think it is pretty clear if it ain't HIS gig, it sure as heck ain't mine. Truth is, it is SO much easier to judge than love. maybe thats why Jesus dropped in on us. He said, "you will totally screw this up unless I come down and show you, step by step, exactly how to do this." We still screwed it up. Come on by AfterHours to see if I get even a fraction of this right. I might get it right...or not. Come judge for yourself...(AfterHours @ 5 pm 3350 White Bay Dr. Highlands Ranch @ St. Andrew United Methodist Church)

It's all worth it...

We have had our preview services, made adjustments with every service...and probably will continue to do so. We don't have a road map. Other services around the country have church at tables but don't have the 5-10 minutes of quite time. Other services I know of have 30-60 minutes of contemplation time but no tables. Still others have all the elements except the secular music (we don't use traditional Christian music.) Very few I know of have a service outreach element right in the service. We are starting a new thing here. Spread the word. If you know people that "don't do church" or were burned by church, tell them about it. It might be their thing. If you have a church community, good for you! This might seem very different to you. It might not even seem like church...for some people, that is a good thing!
We have had enough success to make us happy, enough challenges to keep us humble. Great turn out. Maybe people just want to see what all the fuss is about but that's o.k. I think people dug the vibe. What I know is that our service project (making sack lunches for day laborers) fed over 100 people the NEXT day. THAT made the whole service worth it. Anyway, if you came by to experiance it last Sunday I would love to hear your thoughts...even if it hurts. Thanks to all for the support. Next service will be Sunday @ 5pm. Hope to see ya then. For people that don't want to go to the website, the services are at St. Andrew Untied Methodist Church 3350 White Bay Dr. Highlands Ranch, CO 80126 ( on University Blvd. a few miles south of C-470 on the right)

What are folks looking for....

So here is the deal- I am hoping AfterHours fills a void for people that think you have to "do church" a certain way. It is about appealing to people that think they "know" church people because...well...they, "knew a guy once who was a racist and he said he was a Christian." What do we need to do not to be painted with the same brush stroke (and no, you can't say, "don't be a racist"...that is a given) In short: WHAT ARE PEOPLE LOOKING FOR??? Here's hoping we can create a "third place" for people (Home and Work being one and two). A place where people look forward to coming to all week long. A place of connections...no not the sleazy, Hollywood, "have your people call my people" kinda connections. More like the "connnect to others/connect to God" kinda connections. We are making connections Sundays @ 5:00pm...See you AfterHours

Hoping the cops don't show...

I have been at this gig for about a year and a half. Almost two years of full time God work. Whew! I didn't break anything (to the best of my knowledge.) They have let me stay...so far. Now we are starting this new thing. A new service. Sorta church for people that don't like church. How do we prep for welcoming people (and God) in, and, at the same time, not be so polished that it looks slick and well...slick. I wanna do enough work but not so much that EVERY...SINGLE...THING is timed out and choreographed perfectly. Who wants to worship in perfection? I get the idea that Jesus focused on the relationships...you know...the love thing. I don't know how much he cared who sang out of tune. He was just glad they came to the party. That's kinda how I hope Afterhours is. I want people to know we are just glad they came to the party. I have thrown a lot of great parties in my life....I just hope this one doesn't end with the cops showing up. Here's hoping I make it to my second anniversary!

[NOTE: I was going to tag this with some sort of clever "Afterhours" tag line...but I am already tired of that...that means you were tired of it WAY before me]

And let's welcome to the service....God!

I was telling my wife Laura that back in my previous life, I opened for all kinda big shots...now I am opening for the ultimate big shot...I am opening for God! I am thinking our job is to create an environment that makes it...well...easy for the Holy Spirit for the come on in. We are to create an environment of joy. I believe this is where the spirit lives. If you are enjoying yourself...well...I think that is an open invite for the spirit. It is never about the opener or the venue. It is about creating a space that makes it easy for the main act to shine. Here is hoping that we are able to create that space...keep us in your thoughts...pray for us...send us good vibes....toast us...whatever works in your world. Know we are going to do our best to create a space of joy....here's to joy...laughter...and the spirit...and doing it all Afterhours...

doin it different...

Well, lets give this a try. Let's TRY to do something different with church. But not just to "do" something different. Can we begin to listen to the voices that say, "church just isn't for me" and instead of trying to convince them that it is, listen to them. Maybe the church they don't like is the same church you and I don't like. Judgemental, holier than thou, hypocritical...mean. Don't blame them a bit. Maybe we can show folks a different way to do church. Keep the things that we think are really important...and lose the stuff we don't quite understand why they are there. Does a service HAVE to be one hour? Does the preacher HAVE to preach 20-25 minutes (dear sweet God say no). Do we HAVE to sit in rows, all facing forward? Let's find out...

After all, things are always a little bit different afterhours...

Bringin' the happy...

Tonight we talked about how it seems every book in the world right now is about happiness. In fact, I read that in 2000, there were 50 book published about happiness. Do you know how many were published in 2008? 4,000! Clearly, we want to get happy...and we are looking to Harvard Ph.D.'s to give us the answers. The bible actually has very little to say about what will make you happy. Has a TON to say about what will bring you joy. Happiness starts on the outside. Joy begins on the inside. Joy is an attitude, Happiness is a response. We talked about the fact that, in my book, it is o.k. to believe that money buys happiness...it is when we think that money (and, as a result, things)will bring us joy that we will be deeply disappointed. Personally, a whopper with cheese, minus pickle, a double double (for you In-and-Out fans), a full wine rack, and some cool new shoes make me happy...I don't feel guilty about it...I just KNOW they won't bring lasting JOY. Too many people I think, believe things will bring them joy when the truth is, thing just bring you happiness (and even then, it is a crap shoot.) So I ask the questions...
1) What makes you happy? (things) and 2)Who is the most joyous person you have ever met...The sermon and more stuff is on the website at www.afterhourschurch.com. Come check us out. Love and Laughs, jerry

Where do you belong?

Last night we talked about belonging. What does it mean and why is it important? Abraham Maslov was famous for his levels of needs and how important they are for people to become "fully human". After health and safety, BELONGING was next on the list. I talked about how much Jr. High was torture for me early on until I found a group to belong in. We talked about when we were in a relationship with people that just clicked. We talked about who gets kicked to the curb in society now. We are a little light on lepers and tax collectors these days so society found immigrants and the GLBT community to push out of the circle. We talked about a God that is so big that the circle is large enough that EVERYONE is in it. In God's house there are MANY rooms. Those from other lands and the gay community are not the only ones pushed out by society. I ask you: Who else is pushed out of the larger community and ends up on the margins? Hope to see you soon. Love and laughs, jerry

Annnnnnd we're off....

Going to be doing our first weekly AfterHours in about an hour. Hoping to reach out to any and all, but specifically those that just can't "do church". We believe in connecting to others, connecting to God and reaching outside our doors. God only know how much of this we will get right...but God knows what we are tryin to do here. Drop by when you can...Sundays @ 5pm 3350 White Bay Dr. Highlands Ranch, CO. Wish us luck!