For
week of May 18, 2008
Connecting man to man to God
Issue
208
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"I know that my Redeemer lives, and that in the end he will stand upon the earth."
Job 19:25
CONSIDER
“I can take my telescope and look millions of miles into space; but I can go away to my room and in prayer get nearer to God and heaven than I can when assisted by all the telescopes of earth.” Isaac Newton
SERVING GOD IN THE ORDINARY BUSINESS OF LIFE
by Francois Fenelon (1651-1715)
How can I offer my common daily actions to God -- visits received and paid, dressing, reading, the business which comes upon me on behalf of friends and relations, amusements, shopping, and the like? I want to learn how, by some kind of prayer, to offer all these things to God.
The most unimportant acts cease to be so, and become important, [as soon as] they are done with the intention of conformity to God's will. Indeed, they are often better and purer than what may seem more religious acts; first because they are less self-chosen, and more according to the order of God's providence; secondly, because they are simpler, and less exposed to self-complacency; thirdly, because if performed in moderation, and with a right intention of heart, we may find more means of self-abnegation than in actions where excitement or self have a larger part; and lastly, because these trifling matters are continually recurring, and furnish a constant opportunity for unobtrusively serving God.... Read this in full at
http://www.navpress.com/EPubs/DisplayArticle/1/1.87.19.html
JOIN THE RECIPE OF HOPE CAMPAIGN
Bread for the World is calling on people of faith everywhere to respond to the growing global hunger crisis by adding their voices to the Recipe for Hope campaign, which began Mother’s Day and will run through Father’s Day. The campaign highlights a series of simple but critical actions that anyone can take to end hunger now. Learn more at
LIFT UP JESUS
“Jesus is Lord not because Christians say so but because he is. His lordship is not a truncheon with which to beat other people; it's a biblical truth best understood when offered with as much humility as we can muster. Christians who believe that gratuitous offensiveness against other gods is a mark of Christian witness should make a special note: Paul did not rubbish the goddess Diana (see Acts 19:37). Our primary calling is not to put down other people's gods. It is to lift up Jesus Christ.”
Joel Edwards, An Agenda for Change: A Global Call for Spiritual and Social Transformation
OUR CHOICE
This is the great choice every human being has to make: Is the resurrection account true or only a myth? If the latter, it is an abomination, taking away any validity to the Christian claim. Believing that the resurrection was merely symbolic doesn't create liberal Christianity or a more enlightened version of our faith as many argue; it reduces Christianity to something utterly vain, a belief system like paganism. For if we were to believe Christ was not bodily raised, then Christianity would rest on the belief in a human sacrifice -- offering an innocent man to die for our sins. This is not enlightened thinking; it is barbaric. It is why so-called liberal Christianity is untenable, no better than paganism.”
Charles Colson and Harold Fickett, The Faith: What Christians Believe, Why They Believe It, and Why It Matters
PERSONAL EXPERIENCE
“Belief in God is not just about evidence, or at least not in the sense that we usually think about evidence, where, say, data from science, history, or some other source are used to justify a position on an issue. Most of us believe in God because of personal experience. Yes, the reality of God is confirmed by everything from design in nature and big-bang cosmology to near-death experiences and the commonsense belief in moral values. But what really compels most of us is our sense of God's presence with us.”
James S. Spiegel, Gum, Geckos, and God: A Family's Adventure in Space, Time, and Faith
FEARLESS
“David, the composer of Psalm 23, had marched into combat with Goliath, exclaiming, "The battle is the Lord's" (1 Samuel 17:47). Since his first battle, David had continued to lead armies and had witnessed God orchestrating victory after victory. Following this life of victories, no wonder David declared, "I will fear no evil, for you are with me" ( Psalm 23:4). He has spent a whole lifetime learning the truth about fearlessness. David's courage came from realizing that God ultimately strengthens and empowers us to accomplish whatever frightening or challenging tasks lie before us. David's fearlessness came from knowing that he was never alone. And neither are we.” from the New Men's Devotional Bible
RESEARCH EXAMINES THE FAITH OF MORMONS AND JEHOVAH’S WITNESSES
Two religious groups, in particular, are known for knocking on people’s front door to discuss religious beliefs: Mormons and Jehovah’s Witnesses. While both groups consider themselves to be Christian, many organizations have labeled each a cult in response to some of their unorthodox beliefs and practices. A new study from The Barna Group explores the religious and demographic background of these two groups and shows that they differ significantly from the born again Christian population in a variety of respects.
About the only perspective that Jehovah’s Witnesses share with the larger body of born again Christians is a belief that their religious faith is very important in their life, a view held by 9 out of 10 people from both groups. After that point of concurrence, the gap widens.
It begins with the fact that only 7% of Jehovah’s Witnesses meet the criteria for being born again. Most Witnesses say they have made a personal commitment to Christ that is important in their life, but only 1 out of every 10 of those adults base their hope of salvation on a confession of sins and acceptance of Christ as their savior. Interestingly, the issue is not that Jehovah’s Witnesses believe in earning their way to an eternal reward: in fact, they are significantly more likely than born again adults to reject the notion of salvation earned through good works.
While more than 9 out of 10 born again adults believe that God is the omnipotent and all-knowing creator and ruler of the universe, just three-quarters of the Witnesses (76%) concur with that view.... Read this in full at
http://www.barna.org/FlexPage.aspx?Page=BarnaUpdateNarrowPreview&BarnaUpdateID=298
LEADERSHIP TIPS (BUSINESS, FAMILY, LIFE)
Use tools to help manage information overload
Managing information overload in e-mails, RSS feeds, text messages, and more can be overwhelming, but using search tools to find things can help, as can using services such as Instapaper.com to keep track of online articles you want to read. Also, make "unusable" time usable by listening to audio books during commuting or exercising time…. Read tis in full at
http://adage.com/article?article_id=126812
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VERSE
TO PONDER
“Then Jesus came to them and said, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age." Matthew 28:18-20 (NIV)
CONSIDER
“Obedience to Christ includes obedience to his commission to go into the world, to preach the good news, and to make disciples. But we cannot do this without taking account of the context in which people live their lives, or of the alternatives to the gospel which they find attractive. Some of our evangelism has been very superficial on this account. We need to develop new strategies of evangelistic penetration that will take seriously the cultural bondage in which people are held and the need to soak ourselves in their culture in order to interpret the gospel to them from inside.” John R. W. Stott, "Obeying Christ in a Changing World"
PASTOR STARTS NEW PROGRAM TO PUT CHAPLAINS IN BAR
The last person most people expect to see at a bar is a pastor. But for one city that’s about to change. A story by T.W. Burger in the Patriot-News reported that Chuck Kish, 44, a senior pastor at the Bethel Assembly of God in Carlisle, PA is launching a program at the Market Cross Pub to put chaplains in bars. They'll offer help to people who want it. Kish said the Patriot-News that he and the chaplains will not be there to preach against what he called “the evils of drinking.” Neither will they be there, he said, to evangelize. “We're simply going to be there to help anybody who wants it. Sometimes people really just want somebody they can talk to who is not going to be judgmental, but be sympathetic,” Kish told the Patriot-News from the dining room of the Carlisle pub. “Some people may think this would be a strange place to find a chaplain. But we need to go where the people are.” Kish said chaplains will work in teams, one male and one female.... Read this in full at
http://www.crosswalk.com/news/religiontoday/11566203/
AN OPEN-HANDED GOSPEL
by Richard J. Mouw
We serve a God whose generous ways with others are beyond our capacity to grasp. But that same generosity has been clearly displayed in the marvelous grace that sent our Savior to Calvary -- an abundant grace that is greater than all of our sin. The proclamation of that overwhelming generosity must not be muted, even as we live in the presence of mysteries we cannot comprehend.... The obligation of nurturing a gentle and reverent spirit toward those with whom we disagree takes on a new urgency for us today in engaging those who represent non-Christian religions and lifestyles. How do we convey our Christian convictions while displaying a spirit of generosity in our relationships with others? The challenge here is profoundly spiritual in nature. We evangelicals have often failed to show a proper spirit in our public relations because we have not displayed a proper spirit toward our private selves.... Read this in full at
http://www.christianvisionproject.com/2008/04/an_openhanded_gospel.html
GETTING BACK ON COURSE
by Ajith Fernando
It’s time for Christians to return to the priority of evangelism. Those wanting to follow Christ in seeking and saving the lost will always be despised for their supposed arrogance.... Read the full article here.
http://christianvisionproject.com/2007/11/getting_back_on_course.html
TODAY IS THE FIRST OATMEAL OF THE REST OF YOUR LIFE
by W. Bruce Cameron
I am afflicted with high cholesterol, a waxy substance that causes millions of dollars a year in pharmaceutical-company revenues. And it's getting worse: My doctor used to frown when he reviewed the results of my blood test, but now he frowns, sighs, and shakes his head. (The only level worse than that is when your doctor makes the sign of the cross and gazes at you in stark disbelief.)
Now, I've done some research on this cholesterol stuff, determined to discover why my high levels are not my fault. For one thing, the condition can be inherited -- I apparently picked the wrong parents. (I already knew this from when my mother tried to liven up a sullenly dismal teen party at my house by attempting to get me to dance with her and then, when I refused in horror, doing a little shimmy by herself to the song American Woman.) For another, cholesterol is actually manufactured by the body, in the liver, which has no control knob you can set to "off." The simple solution to the problem would therefore seem to be to a) get different parents, preferably Rockefellers, and b) have your liver removed.
Obtaining different parents isn't actually that easy; if it were, my kids would have done it a long time ago, believe me. And it turns out you can't actually do very well without a liver, which is sort of the janitor of the body, constantly sweeping up the garbage you have ingested. The liver processes alcohol, as an example, so if you have the thing surgically removed, any liquor you drink will just stay there in your bloodstream all day long, sort of like what has happened to Ted Kennedy.
More practical solutions to cholesterol include exercise and diet -- in other words, don't visit the drive-thru every single day for lunch, but heave your lazy body out of your car and actually WALK to get your cheeseburgers. And for breakfast, eat oatmeal.
Oatmeal is good for you because regular consumption can assist your body in developing its gag reflex. It tastes like what would happen if you came across a burlap bag full of horse feed and decided to eat the bag.
Apparently I am the only person to see irony in the fact that in order to lower my cholesterol, a waxy substance, I must consume oatmeal, a waxy substance. To me, this is like trying to control itchy lips by eating poison ivy.
Oatmeal can be delicious if for some reason you find yourself in a Soviet concentration camp. Otherwise, the only way to make it edible is to add edible things to it, like brown sugar, milk, and pork.
My doctor has sternly informed me that if I want to have a long life I must stop enjoying it. He has ordered me to add nothing to my oatmeal even though I had recently stumbled upon an intriguing variation involving caramel syrup and Cap'n Crunch. Per his instructions, I'm eating the "old fashioned" kind of oatmeal, which was developed before the invention of taste buds. It sits on the stove for twenty minutes, bubbling malevolently, looking like you've decided to make a stew out of glue and newspaper.
After 90 straight days of oatmeal every morning, my cholesterol has fallen by several points, probably because my liver is so despondent over breakfast it can't get out of bed in the morning, which precisely matches how the rest of my body feels. My arms barely have the strength to raise the spoon to my quivering lips. My stomach wants to know if it can become an organ donor -- like, today.
I'm supposed to be exercising, but who can run on a treadmill with what feels like a cement block in his belly? The other day I got a call from a radio station telling me that I'd won a fabulous vacation in Hawaii. "No thank you," I sighed. "I'd just have to eat oatmeal there, too." My doctor has stopped frowning. He tells me if I keep this up, I'll add years to my life. Years. Of oatmeal for breakfast. I can hardly wait.
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From The Cameron Column, a free Internet newsletter:
Copyright 2008 W. Bruce Cameron. Permission is granted to send this to others, with attribution, but not for commercial purposes.
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CONSIDER
“Never undertake anything for which you wouldn't have the courage to ask the blessing of heaven.” G. C. Lichtenberg (1742-1799)
VERSE TO PONDER
“Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.” Matthew 6:9-10
THIS WEEK'S HYMN: A BEAUTIFUL LIFE
Words & Music: William M. Golden, 1918
Each day I’ll do a golden deed,
By helping those who are in need,
My life on earth is but a span,
And so I’ll do the best I can,
The best I can.
Refrain
Life’s evening sun is sinking low,
A few more days and I must go
To meet the deeds that I have done,
Where there will be no setting sun.
To be a child of God each day,
My light must shine along the way;
I’ll sing His praise while ages roll
And strive to help some troubled soul,
Some troubled soul.
Refrain
The only life that will endure,
Is one that’s kind and good and pure;
And so for God I’ll take my stand,
Each day I’ll lend a helping hand,
A helping hand.
Refrain
I’ll help someone in time of need,
And journey on with rapid speed;
I’ll help the sick and poor and weak,
And words of kindness to them speak,
Kind words I’ll speak.
Refrain
While going down life’s weary road,
I’ll try to lift some traveler’s load;
I’ll try to turn the night to day,
Make flowers bloom along the way,
The lonely way.
Refrain
>from CyberHymnal at
http://www.cyberhymnal.org/htm/b/e/beautlif.htm
A
PRAYER
“Help
me, Lord, to take Your Word seriously and not to sentimentalize
it.”
PRAY
FOR PERSECUTED CHRISTIANS
TODAY
http://christiansincrisis.net/
DAILY
BLESSING PACT
Use
the following list as your daily prayer guide. Think of a brother
or situation that applies and lift them up in prayer.
I am
agreeing in prayer with you for God’s blessings to overtake
you!
PERSONAL
Marital harmony
Family unity
Children
saved
Faithful pastor
Spirit-filled church
Real
friendships
Relatives redeemed
Educational
benefits
Recreational time
Fulfilling career
Favor with
God and man
Be in God’s will
FINANCIAL
Better
Jobs
Raises or bonuses
Benefits
Sales &
commissions
Business Growth
Settlements
Estates &
inheritances
Investment increase
Rebates &
returns
Checks in the mail
Gifts & surprises
Money to
be found
Bills decrease while blessings increase
"And
all these blessings shall come on thee, and overtake thee, if thou
shalt hearken unto the voice of the Lord thy God" (Deut.
28:2).
[As you travel on business or vacation, let me know
if you'd like the church guys to pray for your safety and
spiritual effectiveness. I'll add your name to the list for
the time you'll be away.]
CLASSIFIEDS
Are
you looking for something or do you have something to sell?
Let me know and I'll put it in this
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“I cannot recall, in any
of my reading, a single instance of a prophet who applied for the
job.” A. W. Tozer
Min. Frank Coleman,
Editor
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