"Today's Wolfram|Alpha is the first step in an ambitious, long-term project to make all systematic knowledge immediately computable by anyone."  - www.wolframalpha.com

Last Friday marked the launch of "the computational knowledge engine" Wolfram|Alpha.  After cataloging 10+ trillion data points and tens of thousands of algorithms and building a natural language interface, they have finally gone live.   There is perhaps no other single direct source of accurate scientific information, but also generally accessible processing power at this point in history. 

One of my friends who visited their site said, "the sad thing is, I didn't know what to ask."   It is amazing that all this knowledge and power is available, yet our lack of knowledge, imagination, or purpose will render it pointless to us.  As a Christian, I wonder if it is the same with God.  For instance, if we don't seek to have basic knowledge about God, can we really approach Him meaningfully?   Because I know nothing about genome sequencing, that whole domain of knowledge, which Wolfram|Alpha could produce, is nothing but gibberish to me.   However, to someone who has studied genetics, it is a goldmine.  

We can also be limited by our imagination.  Take some time and play with Wolfram|Alpha and you will find you can compute your diet, the number of days you have been born, or even what kind of workout may help you live longer.  Imagination expands our possibilities.  Conversely, if we approach God with no imagination or creativity, we actually place limits on how He can use us.  I think that Christians should be some of the most creative individuals and the Church should produce some of the most creative ways to improve our communities. 

Thirdly, one's purpose or direction unleashes the power of Wolfram|Alpha.   A scientist with a specific equation to solve would no doubt see the value in having vast computational power at her fingertips.   I think our relationship with God is similar.  When we are in a bind, we tend to look to God for resources and answers.  But let's get beyond this.  When we realize our greater purpose for everyday living, then we won't want to live detached from the source of all life, power, and creativity.  Discovering our purpose or calling in Christ gives increases our depth of relationship with God.  

It is my desire to see the Church connect with God beyond limits of their knowledge, imagination, or current sense of purpose.   To achieve this we must deepen our understanding through the scriptures, let the Spirit inspire our imagination, and listen to the voice of Jesus as he calls us to follow Him into new areas of life.  

The new Star Trek movie opened last weekend and was a major hit.  I really do enjoy the Star Trek series, though I'm not the type to dress up as a character or wear Vulcan ears to the first showing.  Nor have I ever been to a convention.  What I enjoy most about TOS (The Original Series) and TNG (The Next Generation) is that the shows often deal with the heart of what it means to be human.   They address deep social issues, and often re-frame the way we view reality.  The new movie was fun in that it introduced us to young versions of the original characters.  However, the intellectual and spiritual theme of the movie only touched down a couple scenes.   Are we more than the product of our upbringing and the events that shape our lives?  This theme was touched on in Kirk's desire to beat the un-winable final exam of Starfleet Academy and Spock's quest to define himself in relationship to both the Vulcan and Human parts of his heritage.  There was the lingering message that we should both embrace and resist parts of our reality.  I personally appreciate this complex view of reality, though I wonder if future Trek movies will ever be able to escape from having time travel as an integral plot device. 

From a church standpoint I think it is also important for us to realize that our DNA and our past does factor in to who we are.  Our heritage, our calling, and our personality can be a great advantage that we embrace.  However, sometimes we must forge ahead into uncharted territory, being willing to take risks so that we can move forward.  

Thank you everyone who participated in our Church Council.   I really appreciated the sense of teamwork and togetherness as we reviewed our mission statement and dreamed about our future.    This church has so many amazing opportunities, and I look forward to seeing God accomplish great things through our efforts.  

The Church Council idea comes from Acts chapter 15.   In the book of Acts the church has been expanding and occasionally they had times of disunity.  There were conflicting opinions on how non-jews should act when they started following Jesus.  Some teachers, without authorization, were putting legalistic and traditional requirements on people.  When this became evident, the apostles, elders, and the church body in Jerusalem were concerned.  After a long discussion they came to a conclusion.  "It seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us not to burden you...", they decided.  

God spoke, not through prophecy (though he sometimes does) but through a discussion of spiritually minded believers.   

As we engage in a process of community discernment for our future, we will have many of these kinds of discussions.  We build on what has been done on the past, but just as in Acts 15, we want to be careful to identify how God sometimes leads differently, and directs differently than what we may be used too.   It isn't that God has changed, but that He works out His plans according to his timing.   

I want to invite you into this process with us.  Please feel free to email me at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it with any comments or suggestions.

The slides from the Council are available here:  Church Council - May 3