Why Do People Believe Weird Things

October 11, 2009 Bill Kerley

Dear Folks -

As is often the case, I feel the audio version of the talk I gave this week in Ordinary Life trumps the printed version that follows. One of the goals I have for all of my talks is to create open minds that can lead to open hearts and hands. Often our minds are closed to new truths because we believe weird things. One of the things I deal with in this talk is why do people believe in weird things. Often when people are confronted with facts that are contrary to the beliefs they hold they will say that they simply "have faith" that what they believe is true. So, this leads me to raise the question: What does it mean to have faith.

Much love,

Bill Kerley

Click here to Download text 20091011.pdf

Click here to Download Keynote presentation slides Weird_Beliefs.pdf

Click here to Download audio 20091011.mp3

Tell Me A Story?

October 4, 2009 Bill Kerley

Dear Folks -

The most powerful way to convey a truth is by telling a story. Stories both awaken and require the child-like qualities in us to come alive. Children never ask, "Tell me some facts." Rather, the ask, "Tell me a story."

I am continuing to lay the foundation for a series I am planning on the parables of Jesus. This talk is part of that preparation.

Much love,

Bill Kerley

Click here to Download text 20091004.pdf

Click here to Download audio 20091004.mp3

What Is The Gospel Truth?

September 27, 2009 Bill Kerley

Dear Folks -

As I mentioned in the Preview that went our last week, the presentation about our work in Bolivia couldn't be put on the Ordinary Life website. The audio makes no sense without the pictures and the PowerPoint presentation is too big to upload to the site.

Susanna Hooper has come up with a wonderful solution. She is willing to make CDs of the presentation with both audio and photos available to anyone who wants one. The CDs will cost $10. One hundred present of this money will go directly to supplement the milk and fruit money we are sending to our day care school program in Cochabamba. So, if you want a CD, respond to this e-mail and send your mailing address. An envelope will be enclosed to return your church for the $10. Feel free to send more if you like. After seeing photos of the work, you'll be tempted to do so.

This week, in an effort to lay a foundation for the talks to come, I raise the question: What is the "Gospel truth?" What we believe to be true is very important to know about because our beliefs shape our lives. I illustrate how things some people once held to be true but no longer do by referring to the book "The Help."

Religious and spiritual work that is wise and useful isn't so much about protecting the past as it is about providing us a way to envision and walk into the future.

Much love,

Bill Kerley

Click here to Download text 20090927.pdf

Click here to Download audio 200090927.mp3

There is a problem with the audio from this Sunday. About 13 minutes in, the sound goes out.

Presentation of Summer '09 Bolivia Trip

September 20, 2009 Bill Kerley

Dear Folks -

I am so grateful to be back teaching Ordinary Life.

As many of you know part of the way we spent the time when I was gone
- and by "we" I mean Sherry and myself - was to accompany 18 other
people to Bolivia. St. Paul's has a sister church in Cochabamba,
Bolivia. Most of the people who went on this trip were from St. Paul's
and many from Ordinary Life. Others went from FUMC in La Porte.

I have asked some of the participants on that trip to share pictures
and memories, impression and lessons learned from this experience this
week.

As you may recall, one of my rants has to do with the understanding we
have of God. I sincerely believe that if people would change their
notion of God from that of some superhuman being located somewhere out
in space to the much more useful notion that each and every one of us
resides in the Sacred Heart of God and, paradoxically, God resides in
the heart of each of us, it would transform our world.

Parallel to this one of the insights I had on this trip is that we do
not go so much to carry out our mission as we go to participate in
God's mission of compassion and justice. To think that we have a
mission runs the risk of our imposing our values on other people. Our
job is to get our egos and our agenda out of the way so that something
bigger than ourselves can be allowed to come into being.

I really want you to see and experience, insofar as is possible, what
those of us who went on this trip saw, did and learned.

Much love,

Bill Kerley

The audio of the participants of the Bolivia trip that spoke on this Sunday is available below.

Click here to Download audio 20090920.mp3

A DVD copy of the PowerPoint presentation with music created by Bob is available for a $10 donation to the fruit and milk food program for the children in the Emmanuel UMC day school in Cochabamba, Blivia. Please email your interest in a DVD and your mailing address to susannahooper{AT}mac{dot}com.