the green room:

nashville nywc recap

this past weekend, i had the chance to head down to nashville for the NYWC.  first off, nashville is great city where one local told me that through the months of september and may there are upwards of 120,000 college students present.  there were a number of great coffee shops i wanted to check out, iron and wine played right next to the convention (bummed i missed that show) and a number of great things happening throughout the city that weekend like the titans losing their first game...

there is something beautiful about walking into a room filled with interns, key volunteers, and student pastors of all denominations.  you get this sense that the majority of them breathe a giant sigh of relief that they can just spend a weekend learning, laughing, resting, growing, listening, and worshipping together.  the venue was amazing, much better in my opinion than pittsburgh because they were able to contain the space and create an environment in an arena that felt very intimate.

everyone i talked to could not stop raving about Francis Chan's talk.  i picked up his book, crazy love and am half-way through it already.  a couple of things that really surprised me was the number of practical contemplative books that were available at the conference.  i flipped through a few books, one by Lilly Lewin and Dan Kimball called sacred space that looked fascinating.  i didn't buy the book because ys doesn't allow you to purchase books during a session; so when i came back the next day it was already sold out.  so i'll order it on amazon today...

yesterday, Corrie Boyle and i led a breakout on creating a junior high ministry that believes students can change the world.  as i sat there and listened to the questions many pastors and volunteers were asking i realized again how important having the right kind of volunteer is to having a ministry that believes in students.  

this weekend to me is all about conversations.  some that are continuning between pastors and volunteers, starting between various leaders, and deepening between God and self.  i loved walking back to my hotel and watching a number of people engaged in conversation that seemed genuine and honest.  whether they were laughing together, huddled around praying for one another, or comparing notes from breakout sessions you could see many were maximizing each moment of this weekend. my prayer is that these kinds of conversations continue to be fostered because we deeply need them in ministry. 

biz markie + sampling + stolen teachings part 2...

this topic really has connected with some people.  i love the thoughts that were shared in the comments section and also from those that emailed me directly. it forced me to begin thinking about what if more people could weigh in on this issue?  so i sent a few people that i deeply respect and admire (only 2 are pastors) and asked if they would share their perspective on this topic.  my hope is to have seven guest bloggers share their thoughts in the coming weeks...

i've already received from one of them their piece and it's simply amazing!

NYWC

Anyone in Nashville for the national youth workers convention want to connect for breakfast on Monday morning? Shoot me an email at scarter@marshill.org and we'll set something up...

biz markie + sampling + stolen teachings.

last week i was checking out my friend Ryan Guard's blog and he wrote this post about a book recently released by zondervan entitled, Should we use someone else's sermons?  i thought it was a great little post and haven't been able to stop thinking about it.  over the weekend, i started looking into a few other mediums that have to deal with the issue of sampling...

on november 29, 1981 hip hop changed forever.  Biz Markie was accused in a US district court of copyright infringement for sampling portions of a 1972 Gilbert O'Sullivan song, "alone again," for a track on his I need a haircut album.  court documents show that Markie did make contact with O'Sullivan to get permission to use the original composition; but permission was never granted.  Biz Markie's decision to go ahead with the sample incited this response from presiding Judge Kevin Thomas, "'thou shalt not steal' has been an admonition followed since the day of civilization." Judge Thomas then issued an injunction against Cold Chillen/Warner Bros. Records for the distribution of the album and the song.  the album disappeared and cost Cold Chillen/Warner Bros a lot of money in loss of sales.*

one of the best known cases of sampling gone wrong is when the band "the verve" stole from "the rolling stones" with the great song bittersweet symphony.  the stones sued and won.  they were awarded all royalties from the song which at that point had grossed 5+ million dollars.

major record labels have now hired specific people to ensure artists are not sampling material without permission.  sampling became so prevalent in the 90's that many artists began charging between 10k - 50k per song.  many in the hip hop industry feel that sampling has become a rich man's game with only artists like Kanye West and Jay-Z being able to front the funds to get a beat approved. 

but what does this all mean for teachings? 

recently, i spoke at a high school conference and told the students what the hebrew word for "chaos" was and what it meant.  two weeks later, i received an email that was forwarded onto me from the mars hill info booth that a high school pastor thought i had plagerized Rob Bell in sharing and defining a specific hebrew word. this was my response:

Blank,

 thanks for your email.

 a couple of things to think about…

 in my opinion, there is a difference between what one ought to cite and what one needs to cite.  to me it hinges on two things, intent of use and intellectual properties if you want to invite the legal system into this.

 if I had said for instance anywhere in that teaching that, “everything is spiritual” or had a huge whiteboard walking through the trinity found in Genesis that in my mind would have demanded a credit to Rob.  obviously I didn’t; but if I had used that phrase “everything is spiritual” with intent to act like I created it I would be legally stealing Rob’s intellectual property.  does this happen?  yes, all the time.  did this happen at CIY a few weeks back…I would highly disagree. 

 this is why:

a simple breakdown of what a word in Hebrew means in my opinion does not demand a citation.  Rob is not the creator of tohu va bohu.  this has been an ongoing midrash for thousands of years with the rabbi’s.  Rob popularized it for many; but he is not the creator.  the picture of chaos has been discussed repeatedly throughout the centuries and also the understanding of Genesis 1 as a poem is commonplace among OT and Hebrew scholars.   many have seen the parallels between days 1 and 4, days 2 and 5, and days 3 and 6 and written about it.  this isn’t a new thought. I actually first learned this from a prof in school, Dr. Holtzen. 

does this make sense?

I appreciate your deep concern; but I really believe that it is unwarranted.  I’ve known Rob for years, I lived in his basement while I interned under him and his own brother sat in the audience and heard that message I gave.  I respect him too much to take an intellectual property of his and use it for my own gain.  

 I’d love to hear your take.

 Steve Carter

what are your thoughts on how i responded? 

for me, the issue of sampling brings up an even deeper issue...

who actually owns the teachings? 

the church or the teacher?  what happens when a teacher samples another teachers/writers/artists material and makes money via weekend tithes or royalties from an article or blog post?  does anyone know has any church or publishing house ever approached another church informing them that a pastor has sampled an already existing intellectual property?

putting all business matters aside, more importantly this feels like a "presentation" issue.  as my friend Lori said, "what person is the teacher trying to present to the community, the one God made them to be or the one they think everyone wants them to be?" 

I'll dive into these questions more tomorrow.

*the info on biz markie was actually sampled from the latest spin magazine.

the advent conspiracy

The junior high ministry at mars hill, the.element, is doing this during the month of December. our staff is fired up about it...each LifeGroup will have the chance to choose a specific person, family or cause to bring some hope to together. we will be inviting our students to talk openly with their parents about their christmas budgets and see if they instead of having a number of gifts given to them can set aside some of that christmas budget to bring hope to someone else. i remember Don Golden telling me once, "you show me your view on money and sexuality and i'm pretty sure i can tell you where your faith lies." it will be a fascinating experiment.

How to destroy a teacher...

I read this quote recently on a plane, "better to save a person with a healthy critique than destroy one with a false compliment." who do you have in your life who can evaluate you in a healthy manner?

Over the past five years, there have been a few people who have done this for me. What I love about them is that they can clearly articulate what they loved and struggled with in regards to a teaching. They fundamentally believe in me and want my gift to be a compelling force for good in the world.

Last weekend, one of these people were with me at a conference in Springfield, IL. After one of the teachings he came up and affirmed not only what I shared; but how I said it. I usually let these kinds of things just float by; but this is the same person who has many times before told me honestly when I had missed it. Because he can articulate a healthy critique with great clarity, when he shares a true compliment it really sinks in...

These kind of people are rare. They are essential if you want to maximize your gift. What they share is not always easy to hear; but if you can listen to it and strive to make the necessary adjustments your art will be much more powerful.

If you don't have these kind of people in your life please go and find them. I have approached a couple of people who I respect and given them the invitation to observe and critique my messages. When looking for people keep these things in mind:

1) they must know you - not know you exist; but actually know you. Know your mannerisms, struggles, insecurities and heart. This is crucial if you want to get healthy feedback. Two years ago, a mentor of mine pulled me aside and said, "why do you teach on your tip toes?" I had never realized I did that and he offered some insights about why he thought I might be doing that. He was spot on...

2) they must believe in your art - this is crucial. You need people who can see the potential in you and want to do what they can to see that potential realized.

3) they must be able to clearly articulate their critiques - many people are too nice for this. You need those people in your life too; but find people who you have seen in a difficult setting express well their frustrations and feelings.

4) the majority of them should have a basic understanding of what goes into preparing and delivering a message - I think this will only help you trust what they say more.

5) be diverse in who you choose - comedians, artists, worship pastors, teachers, creative directors, professors, moms, business people, mentors, key leaders, key staff members, interns and students to name a few.

The whole kingdom wins when we take ownership of our gift. Look around you and find those people who will not only save your gift but also help you develop it in a much deeper, weightier and holistic manner.

direct mailings...

Ball State University center for media design recently surprised marketing agencies looking to reach teens ages 15-17. They found that teens actually prefer to get marketing messages via direct mail. -

58% of teens surveyed have been influenced by direct mail to make a purchase.

-42% of teens surveyed have been influenced by email to make a purchase.

-13% of teens surveyed were influenced by text messaging to make a purchased.

I'm a little shocked that direct mail still has that kind of power to influence almost 3/5 of the teens surveyed. I wonder if this is the last generation to be greatly influenced by direct mail? Do your students connect or ever comment on your ministry or business' direct mailing? Why? What kibds of things do they say? Are your mailings more geared for the parents or students? In your opinion, what makes a great mailing? I'd love to hear...

Thank you.

This past Sunday, I stood before the mars hill community and shared a decision that Sarah and I have made to move back to southern california. I was given an amazing opportunity to join the teaching team at rock harbor and will get the privilege to work alongside Mike Erre in preparing weekend messages. Even though this is an exciting opportunity; this quite possibly was the most difficult decision we have ever had to make. So I shared this decision and expressed my deep and sincere gratitude to mars hill. In many ways I have grown up in their midst. Everytime I speak at mars now, someone will come up to me and say something like, "I remember when you were 21 and gave your first sermon here...man, you have gotten a lot better!" Because of this, Sarah and I don't feel like we are leaving mars; but that this community has prepared us and is now sending us out to (like rob said a few years back) "change the world one west Michigan at a time." transition is never easy especially leaving a group of people you love, respect and adore; but I know this is the next best right step for Sarah and I. I also know that in many ways... I am who I am today because of mars hill.

healthy people.

someone i respect shared yesterday real quickly about their definition of a healthy person...

1) healthy people believe they are profoundly significant.

2) healthy people are self aware and authentic.

3) healthy people have the capacity for empathy and love.

which one best represents you? which one is hardest to achieve?

for many, i would imagine that believing you are profoundly significant is very uncomfortable. but we are profoundly significant. we each resemble a unique piece of God that the world desperately needs to see and experience. one of the things i've been trying to live by lately is, "act as if it all counted on you; but know full well you can't do it all."  i met Immanuel in Rwanda a few years back, he worked with world relief as a volunteer coordinator. he shepherded a number of key volunteers who went out into the squatter camps to meet with, serve, help, pray and bury those who were affected with aids. i asked him how he would encourage his volunteers and he said, "everything they do matters. it matters. so i tell them to do what they can, with what they have and trust that God will take care of the rest."

i think we often put more on God than he would like. this seems to go against how he wired and formed us as his image bearers. i love that verse in 2nd Peter 3:11, "you ought to live holy lives and you look forward to the day of the Lord and speed it's coming." speed it up? for so long, i didn't know i had a say in this. i thought i was waiting. just waiting. healthy people want to speed this up; not slow it down. i often will ask myself if this choice (gossip, certain purchase, escaping the pain, or sarcasm to name a few) would be one that will speed things up or slow things down? doing this helps me act as if it all counted on me, to own what i can do with what God has uniquely entrusted to me...

Mistake...

how does the culture you work in handle an employees mistakes? often you hear people talk about learning from their failures or how a mistake propelled them to make the necessary change so they didn't miss the target again. this all feels pretty individualistic and many years removed from real time.

what if each time you made a mistake, everyone on your team was privy to know and learn?  what if at your weekly team meetings you could spend five minutes and talk openly about your mistakes or failures?  what could this do for those leaders underneath you?  one of the things that frustrates me most is when i watch a leader make a mistake and choose to be selfish by holding that in only to watch a young emerging leader follow suit a couple weeks later.  when this happens an unhealthy culture is born.

if you have a chance, why not try this week to spend 15 minutes minutes asking your team to highlight the biggest success and biggest mistake made so far in the fall semester.  i'd love to hear how it goes.