2 Things...

Your Love Is Strong

lyric by Jon Foreman (Switchfoot)

Heavenly Father
You always amaze me
Let your kingdom come
In my world and in my life
You give me the food I need
To live through the day
And forgive me as I forgive
The people that wronged me
Lead me far from temptation
Deliver me from the evil one

I look out the window
The birds are composing
Not a note is out of tune
Or out of place
I look at the meadow
And stare at the flowers
Better dressed than any girl
On her wedding day

So why do I worry?
Why do I freak out?
God knows what I need
You know what I need

Your love is
Your love is
Your love is strong

The kingdom of the heavens
Is now advancing
Invade my heart
Invade this broken town
The kingdom of the heavens
Is buried treasure
Will you sell yourself
To buy the one you've found?

Two things you told me
That you are strong
And you love me
Yes, you love me

Our God in heaven
Hallowed be
Thy name above all names
Your kingdom come
Your will be done
On earth as it is in heaven
Give us today our daily bread
Forgive us wicked sinners
Lead us far away from our vices
And deliver us from these prisons

be God's!

Brian O

Lead Pastor dude, ECHO

The Luck of the Irish...Slainte!

St. Patrick's Day...man I love this holiday...one of the best holidays of the year in my opinion. As the Irish say, "slainte". Slainte is a Gaelic term... kind of like "cheers"... but it literally means, "to your health". It seems appropriate, not only as a toast, but also in reference to St. Patrick's Day. For those who don't know, St. Patrick's Day celebrates a lot more than a pint of Guinness at your local pub. There is more to the story, much more. Now it's not only my favorite holiday because I am Irish, but also because my parents were raised in Ireland, and yes most of my relatives live there. In fact my family and I went a few summers ago for the very first time. Wow, what a great experience! Seeing where my parents grew up, tracing family roots, visiting extended family (many I've never met before, face to face). But also gaining a greater understanding of my Irish history and a great appreciation of the most famous of Irishmen...St. Patrick! I know most of us in America see March 17th as a holiday full of drunk folks pretending to be Irish as they drink green beer, eat corned beef and cabbage, and wear a variety of embarrassing green accessories. But you see, St. Patrick's Day is much more significant when you know the true story. First, St. Patrick wasn't even Irish. He was captured and enslaved by Irish men and forced to work for them in Ireland. After years of slave labor he received a vision/dream from God. God directed him to take a certain escape route that would lead to a harbor where a man in a boat would be waiting for him, and that man would take him safely back to his family. Sure enough, Patrick did as directed and there was a man with a boat waiting. Shortly after, he was indeed a free man reunited with his loved ones. Patrick soon came to know God personally and became very devote, even training for the priesthood. After seminary, he was serving as a priest with the usual "churchy duties", when he received another vision/dream from God. This time the vision was a picture of the Irish men who had enslaved him begging him to return to Ireland to tell them about Jesus. Patrick humbly said "yes" and returned to the very people who had hurt him, used him, abused him & cruelly took him from those he loved. Patrick was used by God to bring the truth of Jesus to the barbaric Celtic tribes warring throughout Ireland. Due to his willingness and God's grace, St. Patrick's legacy is responsible for Christianizing the nation of Ireland! That is why the Irish celebrate St. Patrick. He is the patron saint of a nation, that is responsible for millions of people sharing in the blessings of the Kingdom of God for generations. I don't know about you, but that story motivates me. To think a humble man, simply being willing to do as God directed, could be part of such a miracle! Wow, I want to be like that dude! Were the Irish just "lucky"? Right place, right time? Coincidence? Heck no, they were blessed by God intentionally through a man that said, "yes, I hear their cry, and I'll go do something about it...personally!" You see, Patrick probably was real uncomfortable going back to Ireland. He probably hated the Irish for what they did to him. He probably feared for his safety, feared for his life even. Yet he trusted God, and went anyway...to a people most of the church establishment in his day thought was a lost cause. I love that...God does miracles in the midst of lost causes! God loves to transform lost causes! Our prayer is that ECHO would be a church that is willing to go to people that the "church establishment" may see as lost causes. Our prayer is that we can be a part of "lost cause miracles!" Our prayer is that we would be willing to be uncomfortable... hang with those we usually don't...reach out to those we may even fear...or don't understand...or maybe don't even "like"... and learn to love them as Jesus does. Because somehow in the midst of that, God's love grows inside us and spills out on those people around us, as we learn to "love others as we love ourselves". As we serve people, with tangible expressions of God's love, grace & compassion, God shows up in us and through us! Because no one should be left out. I love that! It's God's heart, His desire...that no one should be left out! I see that in the life story of St. Patrick...and I feel its a great example to us of what a church can be...an ECHO of God's love from generation to generation! Because God's heart is that no one should be left out...can you hear the ECHO...Slainte!

be God's!

Brian O

Lead Pastor dude, ECHO

So Where Do We go From Here?

It's weird, as I was reading some articles recently about how un-churched we are here in Eugene and in Oregon in general, I was unsettled. It seemed to say people here don't care or aren't "into" God. I didn't buy that implication. Eugene is definitely a "spiritual place". Most people I meet have some spiritual side to their life they are wrestling with...though some are definitely creative in their spiritual openness. In fact, spiritual concepts of almost any type will fly here. Not all may agree with you, but most people are open to "your spiritual journey" and admire your search. Some may feel they've arrived in a safe place. Some land in Eastern religious ideas like Buddhism or Hinduism or Taoism, for some, modern variations brought to us through New Age concepts are more appealing, for others, they look to more "natural" religious ideas such as Wicca and its variations, others like the feel of a Unitarian "all religions are equal...many paths to the same god" concept. In Eugene, where individualism reigns supreme, its no surprise that it carries over to spiritual things. We tend to pick and choose what works for us...kind of a spiritual smorgasbord. It all points to a spiritual openness, a search of the soul & spirit. I read where only 27% of Oregonians claim any affiliation with any established religion (not just Christianity). A percent or two each are Buddhists, Jewish, Mormon, Jehovah Witnesses, Unitarian etc... which left 20% of Oregonians affiliated with a Christian church. That means 80% of our population have not experienced a knowing of Jesus in a meaningful way (yet). So it makes me wonder. Is it that they are not interested? Most I talk to like Jesus, He seems like a pretty cool guy, someone we need to see more of in our world. Jesus-likeness and what He stood for, to most people is desireable. So why the disconnect? Is it that they have not seen Jesus expressed in a way that is attractive to them? Maybe they don't like what they've seen? Maybe what we "say we believe" isn't evident in how we live out our church life? Maybe the way we "do church" is only attractive to the 20%? So what about the other 80%? At ECHO we hope to be intentionally different for the sake of the 80%. Its a challenge, yet a privilege, to give people a safe place to "explore" the love of God...in the hope they may "experience" it personally...so they can "express" it authentically to others! We have to believe Jesus is not content to reach only the 20%...His heart aches for the 80% who have been wounded, disillusioned, or confused by what "church has presented". Our hope is to be refreshingly different for the sake of the 80%. Jesus spoke of the shepherd leaving the 99 sheep to find the one who had wandered off and was in danger. I have to believe He'd leave the 20 sheep to pursue the 80 who had wandered off as well. That's His hearts motivation and it should be ours!

be God's!
Brian O
Lead Pastor dude, ECHO

Another Brick In The Wall

I remember when I went to Europe several years ago. One of the most amazing things I consistently saw in the 7 countries I went to was the awesome cathedrals. Amazing works of art. Incredible architecture, stained glass, marble columns, carved altars and statues were everywhere. Every small village and town had them. The majesty, wonder and awe of these structures built hundreds of years ago, was so impressive, yet so sad. You see each weekend many of these cathedrals were empty. Hardly anyone attended their church services, and those that did seemed to take the wonder of the cathedral for granted...they were no longer impressed. Its a sad lesson. One I'm afraid we haven't learned yet. In our striving to "grow" churches we spend so much of our time, energy and resources on creating impressive programs and sprucing up our impressive buildings. Actually "we" may be impressing "ourselves", but the people we are trying to reach are not impressed! We've spent millions of dollars and countless hours of energy on things "we're impressed with", yet our churches are not growing. Oh sure, you may attract "other church people" to see your cool programs or spiffy new building...but statistics show we may actually be pushing the "not-yet-believer" further away. 90% of churches in America are shrinking or have plateaued. 10,000 "empty" churches a year are closing. Many churches look self-indulgent rather than like self-less servants of the community. I read where 91% of people do not think that churches care about their needs. Even more shocking is that 74% of Christians do not think their church cares about their needs. I think I hear God crying. How it must break His heart. Our church budgets are stretched to the max as we "compete" for the same believers, trying to out "wow" each other...while people with real needs go unattended...even unnoticed. Perhaps our "if we build it they will come" mentality is keeping people away, rather than attracting them. The "come and see" mentality to church is not working. Clearly the "not-yet-believers" are not impressed. In fact their first criticism is..."they just want my money." I wonder where they get that idea? Maybe, just maybe, our attempts to attract them is actually pushing them further away. Just another brick in the wall that separates them from a God that's crazy about them. There has to be a better way. At ECHO we are intentional about being different than most churches. Instead of being a "come and see" type of church, we choose to be a "go and be" church. We choose to invest our time, energy and resources in serving the people of our community in real, tangible ways that look and feel (to them) like we're loving and serving them as Jesus would. Tearing down the wall, brick by brick, one act of love at a time. Our hope is that as we authenticly care for our community, people will experience the love of God...as we do...when we experience it AND express it.

be God's!
Brian O
Lead Pastor dude, ECHO