Marc’s Musings

The secret of a good sermon is to have a good beginning and a good ending, then having the two as close together as possible. - George Burns

This was my wife’s quote-of-the-day today.

I didn’t know George preached…but than again, he was God in a few movies…

Anyway, maybe I’ll try to remember this recommendation on Sunday.

This is the kind of church I’d love to have. Church Marketing Sucks: 24/7 Church

So…what are we waiting for?

Here’s an interesting development: since my previous post about the flood dream, three other people have told me about flood dreams too.

One of the people in our church had a very similar dream to mine. He was at the other end of the parking lot from where I was but same amount of water.

And a friend from the Auburn area I haven’t spoken to in months read my post and told me about a flood dream involving our families.

I’m slow to catch on to things but I think God may be on the move…Or as my friend Rich likes to say, God may be a foot!

Come Lord!

Even if this is a promise for years from now, this convergence sure is encouraging!

The first discussion at the Forum in downtown Waterville on “What can history really tell us?” is…history. *grin*

We had three people, one that said ‘hi.’ (He’s one of my biggest cheerleaders. A real blessing.) And two others that came a bit later. Great discussion. They enjoyed it so much they’re inviting their friends.

I’m glad this is a four week series!

I mentioned this series to some intercessors and got this response back from my friend Wendy Dow:

Three people may seem like a small #…but you don’t know who those people are going to impact…so it could be a HUGE #.

She’s so right!

I’d like to see this type of thing take off. I feel there’s something fundamentally “right” about holding these types of discussions in non-church buildings. I could see doing things like Dwight Pryor’s “Behold The Man!” series on Jesus. (But 12 weeks may be too long…)

Interestingly, Wendy’s comments reminded me of a dream that woke me up yesterday. I was dreaming that the parking lot area near the Forum was totally flooded. (Locals call this area “the Concorse.”) Water was almost up to people’s hips. It was something to do with a water main breaking. (It was still sunny out, unlike the numerous overcast days we’ve been having.)

I remember people scurrying and emergency personnel doing their thing. And I remember being totally at peace.

When I woke, I wondered if the dream and the Discussing The Da Vinci Code were related.

I’d like to think they are.

Come Lord. Please flood this area with Your Presence.

[Note: the few dreams I have are largely symbolic. While floods can wreak tremendous devestation, in my dreams, they often speak of an overwhelming presence of God's Spirit. They bring life and freedom, not the destruction we've seen in "real life."]

I went to see the Da Vinci Code on Friday, but the movie sold out while the local paper was interviewing me.

Does this count toward my 15 minutes of fame?

The entire article is at: ‘Da Vinci’: Love it, or leave unimpressed. In case they pull the article from the site, here’s the part that quoted me:

Marc Pitman, pastor of Vineyard Church of Waterville, located in the former Harris Baking Co. thrift store, was looking forward to seeing the movie, after having read the book. He acknowledged that historically, the facts are far off, but it is a work of fiction.

“It is a good read as a novel,” said Pitman, the chief fundraiser at Inland Hospital. “I was forewarned. It is a page-turner. One of my questions is, how can we present truth in such a compelling way?”

Pitman is leading discussions about “The Da Vinci Code” from noon to 1 p.m. on four Tuesdays at The Forum in The Center downtown, he said.

He said he did not know what to expect from the movie.

“I’ve actually heard it’s not good,” he said. “I want to see it because I’m going to be doing the discussions and I want to see the differences between the book and the movie.”

Pitman contends there are three ways to deal with cultural happenings: boycott them, ignore them or get involved and discuss them.

“I think questioning is healthy,” he said.

Wasn’t it nice of them to plug the discussions that start tomorrow?

..the more they stay the same.

I’m pretty unconvinced that our time in history is any worse than any other time in history. People are people and there is nothing new under the sun.

And quotes like today’s “Quote of the Day” help reinforce my belief:

We hang the petty thieves and appoint the great ones to public office. - Aesop

Tradition says Aesop lived 2500 years ago.

I find that incredibly refreshing.

I have an incredibly cool sister-in-law who sent this.

Ok, so this may not be really funny.

But it did crack me up!

(Click on the picture to enlarge it. It’s particularly funny to see the obligatory pink flamingo leg sticks.)

What an incredible story.

Moshe and Mali are a couple trying to live out their faith in the best way they know how. They’ve repented of their past and they’re trying to move on.

But life throws it’s curves. And they still slug it out. Always trusting God. Yelling and questioning but God is always the center.

I think all of us can relate to this story of raw faith.

Check out this movie. I got a copy through interlibrary loan.

Em found this but said I could have blogging rights.

After all these years, one of my favorite ice cream makers meets up with one of my favorite beer drinks.

Isn’t that a beautiful pint?

Even the cow is into it!

“Cream Stout Ice Cream Swirled with Chocolate Ice Cream”

I’ll let you know how it is once I’ve tried it. I’m about to put in a new Isreali movie called Ushpizin. Hebrew with English subtitles. Nothing like a laid back evening in Waterville with a black and tan and a movie starring Orthodox Jews celebrating Succot.

Hhmm…maybe I oughta lighten up…

Ice cream update: It’s good. A bit scary when I realized I’d almost polished off the pint. That’s like 1000 calories!! I left a couple spoonfuls in there for tomorrow.