Questions.

I knew the questions would come.  But I didn't know they would come from Cora at 4 years old, on a drive to my favorite Mexican restaurant.  Here's how the conversation went down...

C - Dad, is Santa real?
R - Well...what do you think Cora?
C - Hmm, I don't think he is...
R - Why?
C - Well, because he wears a costume...
R - Hmm, well, I didn't think about that.

(at this point, I'm kinda sad I could be missing out on all of the Santa fun this next year.  I'm not going to lie to Cora to preserve this myth, so I figured I would just answer with questions)

...and now she makes the theological leap that I didn't expect from my 4 year old!

C - So is Jesus real?  
R - Yes he is...
C - But how did he die and come back to life?
R - Well, because he's part God and part man, and God is more powerful than death...
C - But doesn't God not want to hurt anyone?

...and depending on your theology, the answers here will vary.

R - God did this because He loved the world so much!
C - But why did God want to hurt Jesus?

...yes, God killed His son...heck, He killed Himself...how do I answer in truth for a 4 year old and not tame away the implications of the cross?

R - Well, God had to die for us.  But God knew that He couldn't stay dead, because he's more powerful than death...and in His life, He gave the whole world life.
C - Hmmm...So, is Santa real?

Cora was onto some crazy-awesome questions.  She's my kid for sure!

She proved my notion that the myth of Santa confuses kids with the truth of God and Jesus.
Which one is all seeing, knowing, etc?  And when the Santa myth disappears, does God also crumble?

I'm looking forward to lots of long, fun, interesting conversations with Cora and Olive.

Peace,
Ross

Outsourcing God - book excerpt #20

Yesterday I found myself in a conversation/debate about leadership styles. I argued that a true and healthy leader does not provide 100, 80, even 50% of the answers for those following, but that we must push back with more questions to create a desire and make the vision that of the person questioning (so as to not live out the other man's faith). My friend argued that we must present our position with certainty and confidence; that anything short of it is un-true, and does no good to the one asking. I could go on and on, but I thought that this section of my book spoke to the subject:

(c) 2010 Ross Christopher Donaldson

To those of us that currently call ourselves leaders…here’s permission to not always having the answer. If you don’t feel permission to leave things a bit unhinged and untidy, I’m sorry. It’s the nature of the beast – plus it feels good when we/I have all of the (right) answers. I quickly gain public persona and become the _________ answer man (you fill in the blank).

I tend to believe however, that Christ came to demonstrate a new type of leadership. His new leadership is completely counter-cultural that it leads people to scoff terms like radical, crazy, otherworldly, revolutionary, and un-realistic. But what we know of Christ is that he rarely did things in the assumed way.

When He should have ridden a stallion, He rides the colt of a donkey. When He can raise a legion of furious militant angels, He turns His cheek and remains silent. When He has the power to assemble the most just and righteous government known to man, He instead compels young fisherman to take up His cause. Jesus does little in the likeness of your standard leadership self-help books and gurus, but Jesus taught a better and holy way.

Jesus, our model leader, was asked a slew of questions throughout his three-year ministry, and from the four gospels, he responded over 50 times with questions – not answers. Jesus spoke often through the use of parables: quick, pithy, succinct questions or stories that strengthened the community by fostering deeper thought and conversation. Perhaps our response should be similar...

...It seems like in a world where people gravitate to either black or white; Jesus poses a question to blend the two. We all know our friends that see the world in total black and white. There’s no middle ground. It escapes nothing. Not politics. Not sports. Not foods. Not entertainment. Not religion. And in this world that is painted in stark contrast, Jesus is leading out of the gray. For it's in the fog of gray that we truly search for our way(s) and discover truth.

Peace,
Ross

Book Excerpt #12 (Ask the Right Questions)

Here's another quick book excerpt from my upcoming book, Outsourcing God. Enjoy!

© 2010 Ross Christopher Donaldson.

I’ve since learned that surrounding myself with passionate people and giving them freedom to take chances (win or lose) is the way to truly lead. One specific area that excels in this arena is our creative planning and brainstorm process. This is the team of people that are passionate about communicating vision, mission, and making a difference through art and beauty. But the group is also intentionally composed of individuals that are first, second, and third time visitors.

What I soon learned was the more I could tap the mind of our un-churched and dis-churched community, the more accurate questions we could ask, the closer our language resembled the community’s, and the more authentic we were. Not to mention, there is immediate buy-in when you’re on the creation side of things.

And in one afternoon huddled around dry erase boards and empty pizza boxes, I know without a doubt that this amazing network of people are asking and addressing the questions that are on the minds of our un-churched and dis-churched community.