{"id":808,"date":"2009-06-30T04:01:26","date_gmt":"2009-06-30T04:01:26","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.beliefnet.com\/markdroberts\/2009\/06\/andy-crouch-at-laity-lodge-what-keeps-us-from-being-creative.html"},"modified":"2009-06-30T04:01:26","modified_gmt":"2009-06-30T04:01:26","slug":"andy-crouch-at-laity-lodge-what-keeps-us-from-being-creative","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/2009\/06\/andy-crouch-at-laity-lodge-what-keeps-us-from-being-creative.html","title":{"rendered":"Andy Crouch at Laity Lodge: What Keeps Us From Being Creative?"},"content":{"rendered":"

We had a fantastic lineup at Laity Lodge last week. Our musicians were Ashley Cleveland and Kenny Greenberg (for the second retreat in a row). Our speakers were Dr. J.I. Packer and Andy Crouch.
\nI expect most of you have heard of J.I. Packer. His book, Knowing God<\/em>, is one of the most respected Christian books of the last half century.\u00a0 It has sold well over a million copies, which isn’t bad for a book of serious theology.
\n
\nJoining Dr. Packer in the teaching role was Andy Crouch.\u00a0 Andy is not as well known as J.I. Packer, but he might well be in the future. (He’s just about exactly one-half Dr. Packer’s age, so he has plenty of time to catch up.) I first became aware of Andy through his work with InterVarsity at Harvard. I never knew him personally, but his name was familiar to me. His name continued to surface over the years in association with interesting projects, such as the Christianity Today<\/em> Christian Vision Project.
\nIn 2008, Andy’s first book was published: Culture Making: Recovering Our Creative Calling<\/a> <\/em>(InterVarsity, 2008). This book has been highly praised, winning a “Best Books” award from Publisher’s Weekly<\/em> and the Christianity Today<\/em> 2009 Book Award in the”Christianity and Culture” category. In this outstanding book, Andy urges Christians to be involved in culture making, rather than settling for condemning culture, critiquing culture, copying culture, or consuming culture. Culture, in Andy’s perspective, isn’t limited to “big” things such as major motion pictures or bestselling novels. Nor is it something that only fine artists can produce. Rather, all of us, in some way or another, have the opportunity and responsibility to make culture in our segment of the world.
\n<\/a>
\nAt Laity Lodge, Andy summarized the key points of his book. But he also broke new ground. One of his messages addressed the question of why we don’t engage in creative culture making, even when we feel passionate about a certain project or called by God to do it. Several of his points struck home for me, including:<\/p>\n

1. We are distracted from cultural production by cultural consumption<\/em>. How often do I fail to create because I’m watching some mindless television show or following the trivialities of my friends’ lives on Facebook.
\n2. We fail to invest in culture making because it is hard work<\/em>. Oh, to be sure, there are times when I enjoy writing and find that words flow from my fingertips. But, most of the time, I have to work hard at writing.
\n3. We don’t engage in culture making because we’re afraid of failure. <\/em>I find it so much more comfortable not to put myself out there because, when I do, there is always the possiblity (indeed, the likelihood) that I’ll get something wrong. And if I do, I will be criticized. And then I’ll feel bad.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

I was not surprised by the fact that Andy Crouch presented many thoughtful and challenging ideas. I expected that from the author of Culture Making<\/em>. And, though I hadn’t heard Andy speak before, I was not surprised by the fact that he is an excellent oral communicator. But I was surprised to discover that Andy is also a fantastic musician (pianist, singer) and worship leader. He integrated his music into his messages in an unusual and powerful way. He also “sat in” at times with Ashley Cleveland and Kenny Greenberg. If Andy was “just” a musician, I’m sure we love to have him back at Laity Lodge. But he is also one of the most interesting, thought-provoking, and personable speakers we’ve had at Laity Lodge. I look forward to Andy’s next time with us (July 22-25, 2010, along with Michael Lindsay).<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

We had a fantastic lineup at Laity Lodge last week. Our musicians were Ashley Cleveland and Kenny Greenberg (for the second retreat in a row). Our speakers were Dr. J.I. Packer and Andy Crouch. I expect most of you have heard of J.I. Packer. His book, Knowing God, is one of the most respected Christian…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":214,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[23],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-808","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-sharing-laity-lodge"],"yoast_head":"\nAndy Crouch at Laity Lodge: What Keeps Us From Being Creative? - Mark D. 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Roberts","description":"Mark D. Roberts: Thoughtfully Christian Reflections on Jesus, the Church, and the World","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/#\/schema\/person\/1ff094a57b7e41f534434b1723df3d73","name":"Mark D. Roberts","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-content\/wphb-cache\/gravatar\/f2d\/f2ddf5f080861f66ea230384f9d1bab2x96.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-content\/wphb-cache\/gravatar\/f2d\/f2ddf5f080861f66ea230384f9d1bab2x96.jpg","caption":"Mark D. Roberts"},"description":"The Rev. Dr. Mark D. Roberts is a pastor, author, retreat leader, speaker, and blogger. Since October 2007 he has been the Senior Director and Scholar-in-Residence for Laity Lodge, a multifaceted ministry in the Hill Country of Texas. Before coming to Laity Lodge, he was for sixteen years the Senior Pastor of Irvine Presbyterian Church in Irvine, California (a city in Orange County about forty miles south of Los Angeles). Before his time at Irvine Pres, Mark served on the staff of the First Presbyterian Church of Hollywood as Associate Pastor of Education. (Thanks to Janel Pahl for taking the photo to the right.) Mark studied at Harvard University, receiving a B.A. in Philosophy, an M.A. in the Study of Religion, and a Ph.D. in New Testament and Christian Origins. He has taught classes in New Testament for Fuller Theological Seminary and San Francisco Theological Seminary. Mark has written several books, including No Holds Barred: Wrestling with God in Prayer (WaterBrook, 2005), Dare to Be True (WaterBrook, 2003), Jesus Revealed (WaterBrook, 2002), After \"I Believe\" (Baker, 2002), and Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther (Word, 1993). His most recent book is Can We Trust the Gospels? Investigating the Reliability of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John (Crossway, 2007). He is currently working on a commentary on Ephesians that will be published by Zondervan in 2014. Mark writes a devotional for The High Calling of Our Daily Work, a website associated with Laity Lodge. His \"Daily Reflections\" can be viewed online or sent as a daily email. If you wish to receive this email, just visit TheHighCalling.org and sign up. Mark serves on the editorial board of Worship Leader magazine, where he publishes articles and reviews, including his regular column \"Lyrical Poetry.\" Additionally, he has published dozens of articles in leading magazines and journals. He often speaks for churches and other Christian groups, and has been interviewed on over seventy-five radio programs nationwide. Mark is married to Linda, who is a Marriage and Family Therapist, a Spiritual Director, and a retreat speaker. They have two children, Nathan and Kara.For Publicity Photos and Bio Statements for Mark, please check here. Mark's Dossier Professional History: Senior Director and Scholar-in Residence, Laity Lodge, October 2007 to present. Senior Pastor Irvine Presbyterian Church, June 1991 to September 2007 Adjunct Assistant Professor Fuller Theological Seminary, 1994 to 2007. Courses: New Testament Theology and Exegesis. Adjunct Instructor San Francisco Theological Seminary, 1995 to 2001. Courses: New Testament Greek and Exegesis Associate Pastor of Education First Presbyterian Church of Hollywood, 1987-1991 Teaching Fellow Harvard University, 1980-1983 Education: Ph.D. in the Study of Religion. Harvard University, 1992. Area: New Testament and Christian Origins M.A. in the Study of Religion Harvard University, 1984. A.B. magna cum laude in Philosophy Harvard University, 1979. Phi Beta Kappa; Danforth Fellowship Books: Can We Trust the Gospels? Investigating the Reliability of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. Crossway, 2007 No Holds Barred: Wrestling with God in Prayer. WaterBrook, 2005 Dare to Be True: Living in the Freedom of Complete Honesty. WaterBrook, 2003. Jesus Revealed: Know Him Better to Love Him Better. WaterBrook, 2002. After \"I Believe\": Experiencing Authentic Christian Living. Baker, 2002. Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther in the Communicator's Commentary Series. Word, 1993. Contacting Mark: You can reach Mark at: E-mail: mark@markdroberts.com mroberts@laitylodge.org Phone: Laity Lodge: (830) 792-1216 Address: Laity Lodge 719 Earl Garrett Kerrville, TX 78028","url":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/author\/mroberts"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/808","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/214"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=808"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/808\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=808"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=808"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=808"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}