CeaseFireStrategies Blog

I love Netflix! If only the movie industry didn...

2012-02-09T19:40:23.086-05:00

I love Netflix! If only the movie industry didn't fight it, it might have an even better and bigger selection. I wrote a blog post back in 2009, on the business trends and models of TV.

Alas, Poor TV!

In it, I pointed out that Netflix and Hulu are steps in the right direction to give the consumer more control over their viewing. I like your point, Tim, that this can help us be more discerning.

Netflix has an excellent selection, and is very re...

2012-02-09T19:29:17.139-05:00

Netflix has an excellent selection, and is very reasonably priced compared to cable. Some might see ditching cable programming as a leap of faith, but your right in the sense that it inspires a more interactive environment for the family.

I think they are catching on though. Soon you'll see them bundling cable as a "free perk" for your network subscription. So the catch here is, being a consummate consumer only means service providers only find ways to milk the trends. So I hope, for both our sakes, the world keeps watching the Kardashians.

I am an avid fan of Terra Nova, and appreciate you...

2011-10-31T17:20:05.641-04:00

I am an avid fan of Terra Nova, and appreciate your encouragement to look in it for examples of good living practices. I just ran across this website from Facebook and am really enjoying it so far! Thanks and blessings!

I still need to check out Terra Nova. A friend of ...

2011-10-10T15:41:46.860-04:00

I still need to check out Terra Nova. A friend of mine told me about the premise and it sounds like a show worth watching. Great Post!

Also, in 2009, I wrote about the Green Bible Movement. Here is the link to that post:

http://www.ceasefirestrategies.net/2009/01/c-copyright-fox-news-corp.html

Wow, Timothy! What a recollection of the past as r...

2011-09-19T18:41:18.466-04:00

Wow, Timothy! What a recollection of the past as relevant to the present. Great post!

Very nice reflection. I was moved by your comparis...

2011-09-12T23:51:42.852-04:00

Very nice reflection. I was moved by your comparision of the memorial to the cleansing nature of baptism.

Thank you. We hope to get the show up and running ...

2011-08-09T07:41:10.267-04:00

Thank you. We hope to get the show up and running again in the near future. http://www.ceasefirestrategies.net/search/label/Cultural%20Diplomacy

I've been following the ICD for sometime now, and would love to include them in our upcoming episode explaining Cultural Diplomacy. Would you happen to know of whom I might contact when the time comes?

Hey! Really enjoyed your post. If you would like ...

2011-07-29T06:23:19.591-04:00

Hey!

Really enjoyed your post. If you would like to read more about cultural diplomacy, please check out http://cdnews1.wordpress.com/

I feel your pain here, my friend! Boy do I ever fe...

2011-04-25T14:55:58.724-04:00

I feel your pain here, my friend! Boy do I ever feel your pain. I'm right there with you and I have had many conversations along the lines of the one you had with your friend Robert. At the time, those conversations are so incredibly discouraging because we feel misunderstood, we questions the validity of what we're going through, or we at least feel frustrated that a friend like Robert who definitely means well and whose heart is in the right place at the the same time can so completely misunderstands the Kindgom of God.

But let me encourage you that you are NOT ALONE! In fact, I believe the most fruitful and rewarding life for followers of Christ is a life that dares to live in tension, in between the proverbial "rock and a hard place." Think about it, that's exactly the life Jesus lived out on earth! He was liberal and relational for the religious people around him. And yet he called those who wished to follow him to rise to a standard of righteousness people who loved their money and power could not stand or comprehend.

The Christians I look up to today do the same. To their non-believing friends they some times look too "churchy," while at the very same moment to their stage 2 Christian friends they look like rule-breaking back-sliders. I have had this experience myself.

And yet the truth is, this is the best place to be. Because life is a journey (as you mentioned above) and not just about a moment of conversion. So we're all growing. And over time, our non-believing friends who think we're churchy might come to see us differently. And our Stage 2 Christian friends might come to understand what we who life this life of tension are doing.

I think it is important to appreciate too that new Christians, people who recently have found Christ, tend to cling to rules. I know I sure did. It can be conforming initially. And in our excitement as new believers, we can be a tad overbearing, thinking we've got this figured out. Thank God that in fact this is really about relationship with him. And as we progress through life in that relationship, my hope is we all grow and shed our dependence of formulas and rely on close friendship with Christ.

Thanks for reading and commenting!

I've been a christian for about 33 yrs and hav...

2011-04-23T23:23:27.468-04:00

I've been a christian for about 33 yrs and have been inching into stage 4 for quite a while. I remember going through the other stages and to be honest, at times, I'm not 100% secure about whether I'm doing the right thing. It's pretty scary and lonely when you start to step away from the herd.

Anyway, the difficulty is in communicating with the other stages, in particular stage 2. I come away from such interactions doubting myself and my direction. For example, I've noticed that some stage 2's, especially the newly converted ones, are very dogmatic and black-and-white in thinking. I don't in any way mean to be degrading, but quite frankly, some tend to come across as real overzealous know-it-alls, assume if you are not just like they are you are not saved, and want to be your guru.

I recently met a man who is a newly-converted Christian after a life spent in drugs and prison. I know that God has done a great thing in his life and has placed him in a postion to do great things. That being said, I have a hard time talking to him because he acts as if I'm not "saved." He asked me last week if I was "saved" and I told him yes. I said "Robert, I was first baptized when I was 7y/o and that salvation for me is both a one-time event and an ongoing daily conversion in that I am learning to die to myself and become more Christ-like everyday." He replied(more like butted in) and said, "Okay, okay, but I really need to know is when you were baptized, did your pastor say the 'x,y,z' formula for baptism." I asked why were my pastor's exact words so important at my baptism?" He said, "Well, if your pastor did not say such and such, then, you were not given remission for your sins and you are not saved." I finally said, "Robert, you know, God is really doing a wonderful thing in your life and he is going to use you to reach many people. Good luck with your ministry." Robert then replied, "Yeah, yeah I know, but you really need to consider going to my church and getting together for a bible-study because you need more and you can really learn a lot from me." He's already assumming guru-like status and he keeps calling and texting me. It's getting annoying.

I guess I'm using my experience with Robert as an example of the difficulty of communication between the different stages. I know where he's coming from, but from his point-of-view, I am a lost sinner no matter what I do, say, or explain to him.

I do like Kristina's comments above about the ...

2011-02-05T16:05:19.632-05:00

I do like Kristina's comments above about the sort of nuances, or layers, to each stage. The stages over all help us better understand where we might find ourselves as well as people we're talking to. But there is more complexity to this too in that not everyone who is stage 3 is perfectly alike, for example. So the various stages are no monolithic either.

I like the distinction of hard stage 2 and soft stage 2. So in response to Eric's questions, I would say that CFS is best served by trying to focus efforts and attention on reaching out and communicating with people who are essentially soft stage 2. These are people more often open to conversation and discussion, in my experience.

I would also say the same of hard stage 3 or soft stage 3. Hard Stage 3 folks can easily be more interested in winning arguments and shaking things up and asserting their intellectual depth in questioning everything rather than engaging in thoughtful discussion that is mutually beneficial. Soft stage 3, on the other hand, might be more open to asking genuinely good questions and trying to find answers, even if their stated position is skepticism or rebellion.

So I think CFS needs to go after the softies of the world. =P

And as difficult as it can be, I think individual engagement really helps! People tend to act very differently when they're in their group of like-minded folks as opposed to when they interact one-on-one. For a perfect example of this, check out the documentary, Lord Save Us From Your Followers (specifically the game show section). So I think Kristina's suggestions are quite apt. And this is precisely a major reason I love running a film forum.

Thank you for your suggestions Kristina! I've ...

2011-02-04T23:54:07.118-05:00

Thank you for your suggestions Kristina! I've actually got many of those ideas in waiting, like the seminars, workshops, book and film discussions, etc.

Right now, I'm concentrating on getting our podcast, "Cultural Diplomacy", back up and running; and developing a program idea with Mikel... I love the suggestions and appreciate any ideas you wish to share.

Excellent observations by the man who first taught...

2011-02-04T16:45:00.750-05:00

Excellent observations by the man who first taught me to examine life! These kinds of modals all suffer from limitations for sure. But they can bring us some level of understanding and perspective. But we have to start with ourselves and figure out where we are, then we can help each other. I couldn't agree more.

Thank you, Dad!

Very well put and thought provoking. I see paralle...

2011-02-04T14:14:42.334-05:00

Very well put and thought provoking. I see parallels with Lawrence Kohlberg's Stages of Moral Development that I studied in Dr. Joy's CE class at Asbury Seminary in 1972-73. (note, I confess I did not remember his name, but through the wonder of internet search I easily found it and a brief review of his stages at: http://www.xenodochy.org/ex/lists/moraldev.html

It seems to me that the value of these models is, first of all, to understand myself better. Where am I in terms of these ways of understanding moral and/or spiritual development? And, how can I make progress toward the place God wants me to reach?

Another value is how it may help to better understand where others are coming from and why they think and react as they do. As I understand this I will not look down on others because they are behind in development. Instead, I should have more compassion and perhaps even sometimes insight to help them make a breakthrough.

These were my first thoughts upon reading your article.

My first thought on Eric's question is that th...

2011-02-04T11:27:21.362-05:00

My first thought on Eric's question is that they have to want to be communicated with. If you spend some time with Dave, which I have, he adds another layer to Stages. He refers to some people as Hard Stage 2 or Soft Stage 2 and then, of course, Hard Stage 3 and Soft Stage 3.

In Dave's estimation, if a person is hard anything, they aren't going to talk. They have to be soft or they are going to - forgive the expression - hate you.

But beyond that, my next thought is: education. For a person who is already soft, you will end up giving them words to something they've suspected all along but haven't been able to pinpoint.

So how do we educate people? Well, we start doing what we're doing now. We present and we discuss. You get people in the same room or on the same webpage and you say, "What if...?"

If you're really ambitious and capable, you host seminars & workshops.

You have book discussions, film forums.

As far as how they communicate, well, the ground rules have to be that everyone listens and tries to learn from everyone, even if you don't agree on everything. No matter what stage someone is, it's likely that they can teach you something.

So a Stage 2 will have to let it go and not judge the Stage 3 for swearing (for example) and the Stage 3 will have to understand that the Stage 2 is living where they are because they are petrified that not following the rules will have eternal consequences for them. Everyone needs to give everyone a break.

As for Stage 1s, in my experience, you are going to have to clearly communicate the rules and parameters so that they know how to operate.

And when someone becomes hostile, mean, etc, you let them go. We have a phrase: It sounds like this might not be the place for you.

I've had to learn that it's okay if someone just can't take this sort of philosophy. I want to educate as many people as are willing because there is freedom! But if they don't want what you are offering, I've had to learn that it's okay for them to leave mad and decide that we're a bunch of heretics. I just have to learn how to not take that personally.

Very nice, Mikel! Thinking that the majority of t...

2011-02-03T20:32:33.958-05:00

Very nice, Mikel!

Thinking that the majority of the intended CFS audience would be Stage 2 and/or Stage 3, how would CFS communicate with those in the stages that would likely oppose the mission of CFS? Having a mission statement of "Encouraging positive Christian involvement with media & culure", how could we help Stage 2 Christians embrace this challenge?

Also, how could each stage seek to communicate with those in different stages -- a sort of diplomacy internally as well as externally?

You bring up some good points, Mikel. The compl...

2011-02-03T16:46:37.021-05:00

You bring up some good points, Mikel.

The complication of actually being stage 4 is so much more of a process than we even realize. Often we go through the rebellion stage only to find ourselves right back in the rules stage, unwilling to sit next to so-and-so because they are too different from me.

I recently had a friend decline to work with me on a project because my friend disagreed with another friend's work. I was so frustrated. Both of my friends would agree that they love Jesus with everything in them and that they are following Jesus as best they can tell.

But we put up these nasty dividing lines, often for fear that we might get corrupted somehow. We might get dirty. Some sort of slime might get on us.

As if God's protection can't cover that stuff...as far as I'm concerned, it can.

But both of my friends would also be aspiring to stage 4, too, so you see it is hard to define.

Also, it's hard to find the lines. Presumably we do have some lines that we need to hold. Standing in the tension of not judging while you hold your own line because you think that God has called you to that line is no easy task. Often if we feel that God has called us to a line that God means to call all of us to that same line. Maybe. But maybe not always. Your sins are different than my sins. We may need different lines.

I could go on... (Kristina Kaiser)

"As any lighting designer or cinematographer ...

2011-01-27T15:22:00.840-05:00

"As any lighting designer or cinematographer will tell you, turning the lighting to 100% intensity right away will almost certainly cause the lamps to blow. We start the lamps at 5-10% intensity, let them warm up a little, and then gradually take them up to full intensity."

This really stuck out to me. I love it. It shows me three things:

1) Our lights have been off for a long time, and they need to not only be on, but warmed up.

2) We must be careful to not over intensify our involvement at the start. It is a gradual process.

3) We must not be afraid to work up to a higher intensity. We start out at 5-10%, but some are afraid to let their light shine beyond that.

So, in short, we either leave our light off (under a bushel), we turn it on but never intensify, or we become overzealous and blow our light out and thus cause damage to ourselves, and to those around us. Instead of doing these three, we should turn our lights on and gradually warm them up until they illuminate at full brightness.

Very poignant intro to a great blog!!