“Christian famous” pastor quits his church, moves to Asia

He pastored a 4,000-member church in California. He was a sought-after speaker at major conferences, wrote two best-sellers and launched a DVD teaching series.
Then he abruptly resigned and left the country.
But in Francis Chan’s unexpected journey there apparently is no hidden scandal, no money trail, and no ‘other’ woman.
“I just want to disappear for a while,” he said in late September as he prepared to leave Cornerstone Community Church in Simi Valley, California for an undisclosed location in Asia.
Before selling his house and packing up his wife and three children, Chan was becoming “Christian famous” in Evangelical circles.
“Even in my own church I heard the words, ‘Francis Chan’ more than I heard the words, ‘Holy Spirit’,” he said.
That was a big part of the reason he walked away at the peak of his professional career.
“I think there has been too much emphasis on me. I want to be used by God, but I think we have this desire to make heroes out of people rather than following God and the Holy Spirit.”
He quotes the apostle Paul, who told his followers “I didn’t die for you.”
In his world of big conference crowds, multiple services each week, and instant access to social media, the notion of pastoral care had begun to change. His fame was straining his work as a pastor.
“When there is a large constituency, there’s a lot of voices,” he said. “It makes you arrogant or it makes you want to shoot yourself. When thousands of people tell you what they think, how can I be quick to listen, like the Bible says? I don’t want to be a jerk and tune everyone out. At the same time you, can’t love every single person and answer them.”
So after lots of prayer and soul searching, Chan decided it was best to leave the church, country, and Internet behind to focus on serving others one-on-one.
Chan’s rise in popularity began with the founding of Cornerstone Community Church in 1994. Like many independent churches in the United States, Cornerstone is not tied to a larger denomination. Chan reluctantly calls it an Evangelical church, but says “titles on churches don’t always match up. You walk in with assumptions.”
His first book, Crazy Love: Overwhelmed by a Relentless God, has hit the New York Times best seller list since he left for Asia. His second, The Forgotten God: Reversing our Tragic Neglect of the Holy Spirit, offers a glimpse into why he left.
“I was giving a lot of people just five minutes here and five minutes there,” he said in an interview, describing the book’s central theme. “I need to get better at just saying no to people and no to the crowds...Jesus worked a lot with individuals and his twelve [disciples].”
Two DVDs in his four-part teaching series, Basic, have been released, with more to come in March.
In Basic: Fear God, Chan says he doesn’t think we fear God enough. He appears starkly lit in front of a black backdrop to hammer home his metaphor, in which a woman tied to a bed watches as water slowly fills the bedroom. The water level rises until she is completely submersed and struggling to get free. Only then does panic set in.
If we were to meet God in person, Chan said, “I think the first thing He would say is you don’t take me seriously. You have no idea how to fear me.”
It is just one way Christians miss the point of the messages in the Bible, he said, a notion he aims to correct in the DVD series.
The New Testament, for instance, calls for a much greater commitment than many churches reveal when wooing new converts, he said. “We almost simplify it. We won’t tell people how painful it could be. It’s almost like joining the Marines and saying how fun it will be. Yet Jesus says, I’m worth it, I promise you I’m worth it.”
Chan was not drawing a salary at Cornerstone before he left, and never made more than $36,000 a year. “I wanted to make sure I wasn’t doing things just because I was paid to,” he said. Mike Steinwender, the current administrative pastor from the church, told CNN in an email that “There were/are no budget or financial health issues that led to Mr. Chan leaving.”
Chan’s departure from his 9 to 5 gig to pursue his passion is something many cubicle dwellers can only dream about. But not every pastor agrees with his choice.
Joshua Harris is the Senior Pastor at Covenant Life Church in Gaithersburg, Maryland. He skyrocketed to fame in Christian circles with his book in the 1990’s I Kissed Dating Goodbye, which influenced many young Christians to do the same.
Harris and Chan have spoken at length about Chan’s decision, and Harris knows first hand about the rigors of the being “Christian famous.”
“Gifted people often become more the focus than the gospel,” Harris said. “But you can’t build a church around a personality. You get up and you preach a sermon and people walk away thinking what a great guy - and that’s a failure as a pastor. Our job is to proclaim Christ.
He said he understood Chan felt God was leading him in a new direction. But he hopes there won’t be an exodus of pastors from their pulpits. “There’s a tendency to idolize one person’s choices. We have to say, ‘you know what, there are a lot of ways to see what faithfulness [to God’s calling] looks like.’ Not every pastor of a big church should leave.”
Chan has been traveling across Asia, according to his website, where his wife Lisa has posted periodic updates.
She wrote that the family has been to India and Thailand, visiting small churches and missionaries. In an October update, she mentioned Chan was preaching again: “Francis spoke a great message of encouragement to this little body of Christ hidden away in a slum in India . 100 years from now we will be worshiping together. We will look each other in the eye and KNOW that it was worth it."
Chan plans to return to the states in January. He is already scheduled to appear at the Passion Conference in Atlanta, which has drawn a crowd of more than 20,000 in the past, and do a stint in the chapel at the NBA All-Star game in February.
Source:http://religion.blogs.cnn.com/2010/12/22/%E2%80%9Cchristian-famous%E2%80%9D-pastor-quits-his-church-moves-to-asia/

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White House stresses strong anti-terror effort over holidays

As shoppers hit the stores, the White House says it's doing "all that we possibly can" to deal with the risk of potential terrorist attacks during the holiday season.
A top White House official said Wednesday that the federal government is stepping up its national security efforts to prevent potential terrorist attacks during the height of the holiday season.
Intelligence and law enforcement authorities are working closely with officials from other countries as part of a larger coordinated effort, said Deputy National Security Advisor John Brennan.
"We are going to be poised every day to respond" and "stop terrorists dead in their tracks," Brennan told reporters at the White House.
"We're doing all that we possibly can," White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs added.
Brennan noted that there are no specific, credible threats at the moment.
He also said that top national security officials have adequately addressed intelligence-sharing problems that contributed to the government's failure to prevent last year's attempted Christmas bombing of a Detroit-bound plane

"We're in much better position today than we were last year at this time," Brennan said.

Source:http://edition.cnn.com/2010/POLITICS/12/22/terror.threat/index.html

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Obama signs temporary federal spending bill

The bill President Obama signed will keep the government funded through March.
President Barack Obama signed a bill Wednesday that will maintain most funding levels for the federal government for another ten weeks, White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs said. The previous law funding the government -- a so-called continuing resolution -- expired Tuesday at midnight. The current extension will keep the government running until March 4.
While the so-called "continuing resolution" that Obama signed largely puts government spending on autopilot, it does include some adjustments to spending levels, including a two-year freeze in pay for federal workers that Obama called for in November.
The measure also leaves key Democratic legislative victories -- like health care and financial reform -- with less funding than if a massive $1.1 trillion "omnibus" extension had passed; Republicans killed that extension last week.
Republicans are set to take control of the House of Representatives in January, virtually guaranteeing a political fight over the budget for the remainder of the fiscal year.
Typically, lawmakers pass 12 appropriation bills for the president's approval. Those bills give federal agencies the legal authority to spend and conduct business.

This year, the Senate has not approved one of the 12.

Source:http://edition.cnn.com/2010/POLITICS/12/22/government.funding.bill/index.html

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Airplane deicing: The how and why

Accumulation of ice and snow on an airplane disrupts the airflow across its surface
If you've traveled by air in wintry weather, you've probably looked out your window before takeoff and seen vehicles circling the plane, spraying deicing fluid on the wings.
Passengers often ask me why it's so important to make sure the aircraft is free of snow and ice accumulation. Not just removing, but also preventing a build-up of snow and ice on the wings and tail of an airplane is crucial for a safe take-off. A plane's wings and rear tail component are engineered with a very specific shape in order to provide proper lift for flight. Snow and ice on these areas in essence changes their shape and disrupts the airflow across the surface, hindering the ability to create lift.
Whenever snow, ice, or even frost has accumulated on the aircraft, the pilots call on the airport deicing facility to have it removed. Deicing fluid, a mixture of a chemical called glycol and water, is generally heated and sprayed under pressure to remove ice and snow on the aircraft.
While it removes ice and snow, deicing fluid has a limited ability to prevent further ice from forming. If winter precipitation is falling, such as snow, freezing rain or sleet, further action needs to be taken to prevent ice from forming again on the aircraft before takeoff.

Captain Daniel Fahl has been a pilot for 10 years.
In these cases, anti-icing fluid is applied after the deicing process is complete. This fluid is of a higher concentration of glycol than deicing fluid. It has a freezing point well below 32 degrees Fahrenheit or zero Celsius and therefore is able to prevent the precipitation that falls into it from freezing on the plane's surface.

Anti-icing fluid also has an additive that thickens it more than deicing fluid to help it adhere to aircraft surfaces as it speeds down the runway during takeoff.
Pilots temporarily disable the aircraft's ventilation system during the deicing/anti-icing process to prevent fluid fumes from entering the cabin. Although the fumes are considered nontoxic for inhalation, we try to keep the odor out of the cabin regardless. Sometimes the scent, similar to maple syrup, does find its way into the aircraft cabin.
As the anti-icing fluids lose their effectiveness in flight, the aircraft is still equipped with systems that prevent frozen precipitation from building on the wings, tail and various sensors around the airplane. These systems are not only important in the winter months, but also in the summer months, because at higher altitudes, the temperature is well below freezing year-round.
Typically aircraft systems prevent ice buildup in one of two ways. On most jet aircraft, hot air from the engines is routed through piping in the wings, tail and engine openings to heat their surfaces and prevent icing.
Preventing ice formation in the engine openings is important, as ice here could dislodge and cause damage as it's ingested into the engine. This occurrence would be similar to throwing a rock into a running washing machine -- clearly not a good idea.
On propeller driven aircraft, balloon-like devices attached to the wings and tail are inflated and deflated with air from the engines, breaking up any ice accumulation.

We can't promise your trip to the airport will be ice-free, but there won't be any icy buildup on the plane getting you to your holiday destination.

Source:http://edition.cnn.com/2010/TRAVEL/12/22/airplane.deicing/index.html

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2 Chicago firefighters killed in blaze

 Firefighters killed in building collapse
Two Chicago firefighters were killed Wednesday and at least 17 were injured, when a wall and roof collapsed without warning in an abandoned building on the city's south side, the city's fire department said.

None of the injuries was life-threatening, said Fire Commissioner Robert Hoff in an afternoon news conference. One firefighter was in stable condition, he said.
Hoff identified those killed as Corey Ankum, who had been with the department less than two years, and 12-year veteran Edward Stringer. Both were inside the structure. Other firefighters were working the blaze from the roof.
CNN affiliate WGN aired footage of a line of firefighters saluting one body as it arrived at the medical examiner's office later Wednesday.
Chicago Mayor Richard M. Daley said in a statement, "The deaths of Firefighters Stringer and Ankum are both a sad reminder of how much gratitude we owe our first responders and a tragedy for all Chicagoans."
The deaths came on the 100th anniversary of the Chicago Stockyards fire, which killed 21 firefighters and the city fire marshal.
The fire was reported shortly before 7 a.m. in the office area of a commercial building on East 75th Street, said Larry Langford, spokesman for the Chicago Fire Department.
The routine fire call became a multiple-alarm blaze after part of the roof collapsed as firefighters were inside, he said. Four firefighters were trapped after the collapse occurred, and two of them died from their injuries, Langford said.
The building was boarded up in the front but the back was open, leading firefighters to think that homeless people may have sought shelter there, Hoff said.
The cause of the fire is under investigation, Hoff said.
Investigators will look at whether ice or weather was a factor, as well as the age of the building and its heavy roof, the commissioner said.
"There are things that happen when buildings are aged, and that could have been one of the contributing factors in this case," Hoff said.
The fire in the building's northeast corner had been brought under control, Hoff said, and firefighters were working on hot spots and "looking for homeless or vagrant people" when the collapse occurred.
A wall of the building collapsed into an alley, Langford said, bringing part of the roof down with it.
A search of the rubble found no one else, Langford said. Heavy equipment was being brought in to take the building apart.
He said it was his understanding that both of the fallen firefighters had children. While the loss of a firefighter is always a tragedy, he said, "it's been compounded" by the deaths occurring so close to the holidays.

Another firefighter died recently while battling a downtown blaze, he said.

Source:http://edition.cnn.com/2010/US/12/22/illinois.firefighters.injured/index.html

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