They Like Jesus - Not the Church

I picked up Dan Kimball's, They Like Jesus But Not the Church, for many of the same reasons that I read Brian McLaren's book, The Secret Message of Jesus. I had read some controversial reviews of Kimball's book, plus I had heard his name mentioned with the Emergent Church movement which I wanted to learn more about.  If you remember from my post on McLaren's book, a friend had challenged me to read the books for myself, rather then basing my opinion on Internet talk.

The controversial piece I had heard about Kimball's book was a story in it where Kimball had ripped out pages of a Bible because he was giving it to a new believer.  Supposedly, Kimball was concerned that the new believer might be offended by some of the passages that discussed sexual sin (this new believer was still living with a girlfriend).

Needless to say, I went into this book with a bias, much like the bias I had starting McLaren's book.  However, unlike McLaren's book, Dan Kimball's book won me over.

If you're a pastor reading this book, it might be hard not to take offense at times.  Dan Kimball is brutally honest about how as a church, we have failed to keep up with the culture.  We have not failed in the message, for the message never changes, but we are failing with the method.  We've created a Christian sub-culture that can repel rather than attract those that need to learn about God's saving grace.

As I mentioned, I went into this book with a bias.  However, as I read it, I noticed I kept shaking my head in agreement.  Even though I am in the Christian sub-culture he describes, I can see the problems and understand how this can cause barriers to others.

A list of non-Christian perceptions of the church addressed in this book are as follows (taken directly from the table of contents):

• The church is an organized religion with a political agenda


• The church is judgmental and negative


• The church is dominated by males and oppresses females


• The church is homophobic


• The church arrogantly claims all other religions are wrong


• The church is full of fundamentalists who take the whole Bible literally

Kimball points out that many of these perceptions are misperceptions and exaggerations.  His main point of the book is that we Christians need to step out of our sub-culture and engage our culture around us so that people can see Jesus' love through us in their lives.  Most of what they see today is what they see in the news, which is rarely going to be accurate or reflect the true heart of the church.

What about tearing out offending pages of the Bible?  That turned out not to be an accurate portrayal of the story.

What really happened, was that Dan Kimball had been sharing his faith with a young man for some time.  One day, the young man said he'd really like to read the Bible for himself.  Kimball excitedly drove to the church and grabbed one of the new believer New Testaments fresh out of a box and rushed back to the coffee shop.

Before he went in, he flipped through the pages and noticed that throughout this version of the New Testament there were commentaries on what you could no longer do as a Christian.  He started to try to tear these commentaries out but there were too many. So he went back and got an non-editorialized version of the New Testament and gave that to the young man instead.

I totally understand Kimball's concern with giving a seeking non-believer a Bible full of commentary on what you must now give up as a Christian.  I've had this discussion with my brother in the past over his concerns about Christianity.  It's hard for non-Christians to graspbelieve that Christianity is not about rules.  Everything that needs to be done for you to be saved has already been done by Jesus on the cross.

We should share the good news that there's a better way.  However, let God's Word speak to the heart about one's sins.  Let the Holy Spirit do the convicting.  This does not mean condoning any life style or actions that are contrary to God's Word.  The point is, as Christians we need to be able to point out the need for salvation without making is sound like holy living is a prerequisite.

Jesus died for us, while we were still sinners.  The transforming of the heart comes afterwards.  It comes not through rules but through the miracle of grace.

I highly recommend They Like Jesus But Not the Church. It's not flawless and you may not agree with all of Kimball's points.  However, if you follow each point to it's conclusion, you'll find that he keeps his doctrine sound.  As with any Christian book, weigh what you read against scripture.

Joyful Meditation

I have seen blog posts dedicated to Wordless Wednesday. I think this is a type of meme but then I'm not 100% sure I understand what a meme is all about. In any case, similar to Wordless Wednesdays, welcome to Scripture Thursday.

At least for the time being, I am going to dedicate Thursdays to a post on a particular bible passage. One of my goals will be to help improve my own discipline of reading my bible and then meditating on what God is telling me. If I can do this daily, I should have something worth sharing at least once a week.

This is not a meme, in that I'm not asking anyone to post their own Scripture Thursday (although anyone is welcome to it).  This is just a devotional post with the benefit of allowing you to promote your link.  Leave your name and link if you enjoy what you read here. Please post a comment as well and share your thoughts. Commenters are more likely to have others check out their site.

What better scripture to start off Scripture Thursdays than Psalm 1:2.

Psalms 1:2 (ESV) 2 but his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law he meditates day and night.

There are two sides to this verse and it is easy to miss one or both sides.

1. You can read God's Word everyday, memorize scripture, and meditate on it. However, does it "delight" you? Or is this a discipline that is a burden?

2. You can delight in God's Word but fail to meditate on it day and night. Life can get too busy and even though you delight in God's Word you don't have time for it.

I usually fall into the second camp. I delight in reading and studying the bible but I often neglect it for life's other "must do's".

• I miss in the morning because I had to leave the house by 5:30am.


• I fail to stop and pray during the day because I drown myself in email and meetings from the time I walk into the office until I leave.


• I don't spend time in the evening in God's Word because time is already short with my family and after the kids are in bed I'm too tired.

None of these are good excuses.

Father, thank you for "delighting" my heart with your Word when I do spend the time in it. Forgive me for not giving you the time that I should. All 24 hours are yours to give and take away. Help me to remember to start my time each day with you.
Amen.


Scripture Thursday Participants

1. Mandy 2. Jena Isle

3. Christina W. 4. GPARTHA

5. BunGirl 6. carol

Learn more about Scripture Thursday here.
View More Scripture Thursday Participants

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Wordpress Envy

The grass is always greener, isn't it? When I first signed up for blog space I went with Blogger.  I didn't do a lot of research.  My wife was reading blogs from some of her friends in College Station and they were all using Blogger.  Best of all, it was free.

So, I signed up with Blogger and started blogging away.

For whatever reason, I cannot stay satisfied with my blog layout.  I quickly tired of the standard Blogger templates and started trying out various custom templates.  What I have noticed, is that the best customized blogger templates are actually modified Wordpress templates.

After tinkering with various customized, modified for Blogger, Wordpress themes, I thought I should just get a Wordpress account and try it out.  After all, Blogger is ok but Wordpress is for the serious blogger.

What I found out with my new Wordpress account is that just like real life,  the grass is not really greener.  It's those green envy glasses that make everything else look so green.

Wordpress (the free Wordpress.com version) did have some nice clean and professional looking templates but the variety was not as plentiful as I expected.  However, what really got me is that you can't just open up your template and modify it however you want.  I've spent a lot of time at Blogger Buster and now I'm spoiled.  I have to be able to tweak my template to make it unique.  My current template at Seeking Above is an extremely modified Cool Blue 2.0 template from Blogger Buster.

So, my Wordpress account just sits unused.  I might do something with it someday just to learn it better.  However, I really don't have time for experimenting right now.

All this said, there is one feature in Wordpress that I truly wish we had available in Blogger.  I really wish we had the static Page feature.  It took me awhile to figure out how to fake this in Blogger by using a back dated post pages.  However, it's really not the same.

I'd love to have this feature to add additional web pages to my site.  I could set these pages up to be in the same theme as my current blog but look and behave more like a static web page.  Off the top of my head I would replace my "Who Am I" and "Testimony" pages with these static pages.  However, I would also like to build some additional resource pages with widgets and links that I don't necessarily want on my homepage sidebar.  Maybe I'd start my own customized template download page.

I'm sure there are at least of dozen or more creative uses for these "pages" if only Blogger had them.  I don't even see it listed as a possible future option on the Blogger Wishlist.  Sometimes the grass still looks greener.

Seeking Above Gets an Award?

Now this is a testimony of faith and perseverance. When you blog just to share your faith, it can be discouraging, wondering if anyone is bothering to read what you have to share. Karen from Karen & Gerard Zemek has been an ongoing source of support and encouragement. I thank her, not only for this award, but for her gracious comments and support in general.

The Arte y Pico award was created and to be given to bloggers who inspire others with their creativity and their talents, also for contributing to the blogging world in whatever medium. When you receive this award it is considered a "special honor". Once you have received this award, you are to pass it on to 5 others.

"What a great way to show some love and appreciation to your fellow bloggers!!!

The rules for passing this honor on:

1) Pick 5 blogs that you would like to award this honor to.
2) Each award has to have the name of the author and also a link to his or her blog to be visited by everyone.
3) Each award winner has to show the award and put the name and link to the blog that has given her or him the award itself.
4) Award-winner and the one who has given the prize have to show the link of "Arte y Pico" blog, so everyone will know the origin of this award. http://arteypico.blogspot.com.

Here is my list of recipients:

Hipp is my middle name: OK, this is my wife and I know she really does not want me to give this to her - but I really like her blog. Check it out; you'll see what I mean.

Truth in Context: Theology 101. Lots of good information if you're looking for insights on how to get deeper in your scripture study. Alan is preparing to start seminary. It will interesting to see his posts as he takes on the challenges that lie ahead of him.

The Bobo Files: Great conservative political commentary. Definitely a minority perspective in blogland from what I can tell. However, it is a much needed perspective for balance if nothing else.

Investigations and Ruminations: This is not a theology blog. It is just a great blog about daily, real life spiritual issues. I enjoy reading the authors "ruminations" on her daily journey.

Lofty Matters: A blog about important events happening around us, that for the most part go unnoticed in the mainstream. You'll find interesting posts here about new inventions and world events that you probably won't find on the nightly news.

Identity Theft - Are you protected?

I work in the computer services industry. As part of that industry I am well aware of the regulations imposed on businesses to protect their customers' data. I'm not a big government fan. However, I do believe one of the responsibilities of the government is to protect its citizens. To that extent, I believe most of these regulations are at least justified in spirit, even if they have holes in practicality.

These government regulations are better than not having any regulations at all. However, most of these regulations simply require companies to self-monitor themselves. They require companies to put together an identity theft program, but the requirements of that program are fairly vague. Even more vague is any means that the government has to make sure any such program is being followed. Take a look at what is required by the Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act (FACT Act) and see how safe it makes you feel.

Personally, I think the government has done what it should do. It has set minimum guidelines and expects companies to be responsible and put these programs into place. The companies need to be responsible and do what is needed to protect their customers' information. If a company does not do what is needed, they'll eventually get burned and then have law suits and a damaged reputation that may destroy their business.

It is all well and good that the government and the business community are taking some measures to address the identity theft risks. However, the real responsibility for protecting your personal information and your identity falls on you. You're the one with the most to lose if someone steals your personal information and proceeds to wreck havoc with your life.

The FTC released a report last year that showed 8.3 million people were the victims of identity theft in 2005. In discussing the report, Lydia B. Parnes, the Director of the FTC's Bureau of Consumer Protection, had this to say:

"Whether you're from Malibu or Manhattan, Tacoma or Tallahassee, no one is immune to identity theft. The important thing is that people learn how to deter identity thieves, detect suspicious activity on their financial records, and defend against the crime, should it happen."

Notice that she did not say that the FTC is going to increase its efforts to protect you or that businesses are improving their consumer information protection processes. I'm sure that the government and responsible companies are going to do what they can. However, even a government agency is sending a clear message that the ultimate responsibility for the protection of your personal information falls on you.

If you do a Google search you can find many sites providing advice on how you can protect your identity. I found a nice summary on the Sallie Mae web site.

• Guard your Social Security number - don't carry your SSN card or print your number on your bank checks


• Pick passwords carefully - avoid using personal names, birthdays, consecutive numbers and use a mix of letters and numbers


• Pay attention to your mail and trash - tear or shred charge receipts, copies of credit card offers, insurance forms, and bank statements


• Check your credit reports for unauthorized activity - the three national bureaus must provide you a free credit report every 12 months if you as them each year for it


• Common sense




• be careful with online shopping. Only use secure sites


• Don't sign-up of unfamiliar contests


• Be wary of telephone solicitors

So what happens if you do all of these precautions and still become a victim of identity theft? You need to notify all of your credit card companies, banks, the credit agencies, etc... You'll need to work it out with any businesses where the thief used your identity to purchase goods with your credit. You'll need to work with the banks and credit agencies to try to repair your credit history if damaged.

I've decided get professional help to assist me in protecting myself and my family from identity theft as well as assisting me in dealing with the problem should it ever occur. I think of it as a $1,000,000 identity theft insurance policy. I have decided to subscribe with LifeLock for identity theft protection for my entire family. Yes, even your children are at risk. It can be even worse for your kids because identity theft could go unnoticed for a long period of time.

Whatever you decide to do, you need to do something. Your identity protection is ultimately your own responsibility. Educate yourself on the risks and then protect yourself and your family.

Fields of the Fatherless by Tom Davis

A couple of months ago our church encouraged all of us to take a faith assessment test. This was not the typical "spiritual gifts" test that churches offer from time to time. It was a test that asked many questions about what you believe along with an equal number of questions asking if you were living out what you said you believe. The tests were then graded and provided an assessment on where each individual stood in their faith and where we stood as a church.

We scored high as a church on basic church doctrine. We clearly understand salvation through faith alone. We clearly believe that the bible is God's inerrant and infallible word. The test showed we stated that we believed it was our responsibility to share the gospel and care for the poor and the oppressed.



The test also revealed that as a church we fail miserably in living out what we believe. The good news was that as a church we were honest in answering questions about our actions (or lack thereof) when it comes to our beliefs. The bad news was that as a church, we are not living out our faith.

One of the lowest scoring areas was in compassion. This was also my lowest score personally. I don't know if I should be encouraged or discouraged that I'm not alone in this weakness. I remember when I took the test that I was giving myself low scores on the questions that related to living with compassion. I was rating myself low because I knew that on a day to day basis, I was not thinking much about those in need, not to mention actively working to help the needy.

Fields of the Fatherless, by Tom Davis, speaks directly to this weakness in the Christian walk for many of us.

This book was recommended to my wife by one of our close friends. This friend has a heart for orphans so I figured this to be a book that encourages readers to become involved in international adoptions. I started reading it with this expectation. I was already wondering what God was trying to say to our family about adoptions (see posts labeled under "Moses"), so this this seemed to fit with what I was already seeking.

Fields of the Fatherless, however, is about much more than just an encouragement to adopt orphans. This book is about living out compassion for all those in need. Davis points out that God calls Christians to be compassionate as he is compassionate. This means being active in the lives of all those that are hurting. This includes the orphans and the widows, but it also includes the homeless, the struggling single parents, people struggling with addictions, people that need to experience God's love and compassion through God's people.

The most powerful message in this book to me was that compassion equals involvement. Davis says that just looking at this world, tells us that we need to rethink our understanding of compassion. If we are really as compassionate as we think we are, why do we still have so many people suffering all around us? He quotes Henri Nouwen to further define how we should think of compassion:

The word compassion is derived from the Latin words pati and cum, which together mean "to suffer with." Compassion asks us to go where it hurts, to enter into places of pain, to share in brokenness, fear, confusion, and anguish. Compassion challenges us to cry out with those in misery, to mourn with those who are lonely, to weep with those in tears. Compassion requires us to be weak with the weak, vulnerable with the vulnerable, and powerless with the powerless. Compassion means full immersion in the condition of being human. - Henri Nouwen, Compassion: A Reflection of the Christian Life (New York:Image Books, 1983), 4.

Our friend that recommend this book to us said that you really need to read this book at least once a year to refuel your desire for compassionate living. It's strange that the Bible is not enough to fuel this desire. However, as is often the case when we're not living out God's Word, sometimes it takes a fellow believer to come along side and help open your eyes, encourage you and inspire you all over again. Tom Davis does a great job of doing just that with Fields of the Fatherless.

Join the fight - stop TV violence

Join the fight to stop violence? Sounds like an oxymoron doesn't it? OK, so what I mean is, join the blog campaign to at least raise the awareness that violence on TV is hurting our children and our families.

If you're interested in joining the campaign, visit A Campaign for Non Violence on TV and submit an article expressing your concern. I've joined the campaign and have an article posted on the site. At a minimum, visit the blog to learn more about this important issue.

Thank you to Jenisle for sponsoring this important awareness campaign. Now that's a good reason to blog.


Visit Jenisle's other blogs while you're at it.

Random Thoughts
The Little Children
Working Abroad
The Clamor of Kalingna
Gewgaw Writings

Why high gas prices?

While many environmental enthusiast may be quite happy with the current gas crises, because it forces Americans to think more about gas and oil usage, I don't think our economy can survive letting oil prices get out of control. What we are accomplishing, is increasing our dependency on other countries that want to see our downfall. I'm not a political expert, but common sense tells me this is a bad idea.

What's my Christian perspective on this issue? My concern is that our environmental policies are aimed at glorifying the environment over God. Does God want us to take care of our environment? Absolutely. Does he want us to do it at the expense of ignoring real human suffering and real human needs? Out of control oil prices mean people will lose their jobs. This winter people probably will die because they will not be able to afford heating for their homes.

We can't solve this oil crisis by burning food instead of oil. We can't solve this oil crises by ignoring the need for oil. Yes, we should be looking for alternative energy resources, and yes we should all be doing our individual part to conserve energy and protect the environment. However, let's not sacrifice our country and our people today for the sake of an unproven hope in the future. By unproven hope, I mean that nobody has laid out a realistic plan to protect our environment without devastating our economy. When the economy collapses, it won't be the rich that suffer alone, if the rich suffer at all.

My faith is my secure hope in Jesus Christ.

Hebrews 11:1 (ESV)
¹ Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.

If our political policies are void of this same hope then we have no hope as a country. To the far right you have big Oil and big Money that want to make as much money as they can. Maybe that has gotten us to where we are in some measure. However, on the far left, you have big government and social activism where the cause is the god and real people are forgotten.

Romans 1:25 (ESV)
²⁵ because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever! Amen.

As this article below points out, the social left has just as much responsibility to bear on our current crisis as the the oil companies themselves.

The information below was passed to me by a friend. I mention this because this may be posted elsewhere and I don't want to pass it off as my own original post. However, I agree with the premise below that we have over-legislated environmental concerns to the point of crippling our country. Feel free to comment and dispute anything mentioned in this post, however please provide links to articles that support any counter points.

.... Email Text Below ....

Please take a close look at this map. Then print it out and place it on your fridge where you will see it every day. This November on election day, take a long hard look at it before you go vote!

Gas at $4.00 a gallon. Who's to blame?

Thanks to the environmentalist lobby and its influence on Democratic legislators in Congress, the U.S. has, for decades, been prohibited from drilling for oil in places that we know contain billions of barrels of proven reserves.

Check out this map:

All of the 'NO' zones are places where the U.S. , thanks to the Democratic Party, is prohibited from drilling for oil.

But wait . it gets better.

***

China, Cuba, Canada and others continue to drill off our shores where US companies are not allowed to drill because of Democratic policies!

Yes, that's right . China and Cuba are actively exploring oil fields 50 miles from Key West, Florida while U.S. companies are barred from working in this area because of U.S. policy . So, instead of allowing the most environmentally responsible companies to operate there and increase our domestic supply, China, who has a dismal environmental record, is preparing to suck our close, lucrative oil reserves dry.

Unbelievable.

Investor's Business Daily recently explained how irresponsible the Democrats have been on the energy crisis. They lay into what they consider to be the worst Congress ever for ...

• Failing to allow drilling in ANWR. We have, as President Bush noted, estimated capacity of a million barrels of oil a day from this source alone -- enough for 27 million gallons of gas and diesel. But Congress won't touch it, fearful of the clout of the environmental lobby. As a result, you pay through the nose at the pump so your representative can raise campaign cash.

• Refusing to build new refineries. The U.S. hasn't built one since 1976, yet the EPA requires at least 15 unique 'boutique' fuel blends that can be sold in different areas around the nation. This means that U.S. refinery capacity is stretched so tight that even the slightest problem at a refinery causes enormous supply problems and price spikes. Congress has done nothing about this.

• Turning its back on nuclear power. It's safe and, with advances in nuclear reprocessing technology, waste problems have been minimized. Still, we have just 104 nuclear plants -- the same as a decade ago -- producing just 19% of our total energy. (Many European nations produce 40% or more of their power with nuclear.) Granted, nuclear power plants are expensive -- about $3 billion each. But they produce energy at $1.72/kilowatt-hour vs. $2.37 for coal and $6.35 for natural gas.

• Raising taxes on energy producers. This is where a basic understanding of economics would help: Higher taxes and needless regulation lead to less production of a commodity. So by proposing 'windfall' and other taxes on energy companies plus tough new rules, Congress only makes our energy situation worse.

These are just a few of Congress' sins of omission -- all while India , China , Eastern Europe and the Middle East are adding more than a million barrels of new demand each and every year. New Energy Department forecasts see world oil demand growing 40% by 2030, including a 28% increase in the U.S.

Americans who are worried about the direction of their country, including runaway energy and food prices, should keep in mind the upcoming election isn't just about choosing a new president. We'll also pick a new Congress.

If you agree with the need to let the American people know who's REALLY responsible for the sky-high gasoline prices we're seeing today, please forward this e-mail to everyone you know.

If we elect a liberal Democrat as president in the Fall and keep the same Democrat-controlled Congress, nothing will change; except gasoline prices, which will keep going up.

Why do you blog?

Why do I blog?

That's a good question. Sometimes I'm not too sure. I have quite a few friends that know I blog but they don't bother reading it. I guess that's ok. So does that mean I'm mostly blogging for strangers? Do I really have anything to say that would interest a complete stranger?

I actually started to blog a few months ago with the intent of sharing my faith-based opinions with strangers and perhaps making new friends along the way. For the first couple of months I received very light traffic to my site. I probably had less than a half dozen visitors a day and probably most of those were family and friends. I was fortunate to meet a few fellow bloggers by posting on their sites. However, usually if I left a comment for someone, my comment would be the last one on that post. I guess once I shared my viewpoint there was nothing left to say.

Recently I started joining a few social networking communities in hopes of increasing the traffic to my site and increasing my network of online friends. Now I have between 75-100 visitors a day. Are they interested in what I have to say, or is everyone just stopping by to drop their card for points and add me to their friend's list for more link exposure?

I don't mind the random drops or being added to a friends list as part of another blogger's campaign to increase their exposure. After all, that's part of the game, right? Drive enough people to your site and you'll have some small percentage that click on an ad or leave a comment. Some bloggers make a good income on click ads.

I'm just as guilty about not stopping long on all the sites I drop on. If I drop 50-60 cards each night, I certainly can't read through 50-60 posts. I do skim the headlines however, and I do make an effort to leave a comment if I think I have anything useful to add. I also try, if time permits, to make it back to anyone's blog that has left me a comment and return the favor.

I think over time that is the way to build a blog community. Just like in the world outside of the blogosphere, you can't get to know everyone. However, if you treat everyone as a potential friend, your circle of friends will grow.

I still blog to share my faith-based opinions with strangers and and perhaps make a few friends from around the world, even friends that don't share my faith but enjoy discussing different opinions. It's not my job to win any arguments. It's just my job to share what I know.

Psalms 40:9 (ESV)
⁹ I have told the glad news of deliverance in the great congregation; behold, I have not restrained my lips, as you know, O Lord.

So, why do you blog?

Global warming - hype or truth and does it matter?

The reports that that in a recent poll only 51% of Christians and only 33% of evangelical Christians consider global warming a major issue. On the other hand, 62% of non-Christian religious people and 69% of atheist see global warming as a serious threat.

In 2006, some well known evangelicals signed a document called the Evangelical Climate Initiative. A couple of the more well known Christian leaders that signed the document were Rick Warren and Bill Hybels. However, World Magazine is now reporting another group of evangelicals have initiated a new campaign called, "We Get It." This new campaign is more in line with the majority evangelical viewpoint that there are more important world issues than global warming.

Does this mean that Christians and particularly evangelical Christians are not as concerned about our world that God created as those that those that think the whole world is a lucky accident in the first place?

I think what these numbers reveal is that evangelicals are more skeptical about global-warming hype because they are skeptical of the source of the information. If evolution is forced upon us without any scientific proof, is there really solid scientific proof for global warming?

The answer to this question depends on who you believe. Proponents for the global warming threat point to computer models that show the earth's temperatures are increasing at an alarming rate. However, there are problems with these computer models such as the unpredictability of weather patterns and that when applied to past years these models have a wide variance (wide enough to completely neutralize the results).

It is important that we care for our earth that God created for us. We should not be wasteful, we should recycle and we should think green in our daily lives. However, we should not spend millions of dollars on theoretical solutions for theoretical problems when there are real problems that need to be addressed today. People are starving and people are dying of AIDS. This is not a theoretical catastrophe that might happen in two or three decades. It is a catastrophe happening now.

You can find all the global warming hype you want just by doing a Google search. You can also find plenty of counter-arguments. If you want to read a good balance to the prevailing hype, try articles on these two scientific (not Christian) sites:

Skeptic Magazine - A Climate of Belief

Junk Science - The Real Inconvenient Truth'

I think I have to side with the majority evangelical view. The proponents of the global warming catastrophe theory are too political and the scientific counter-points are sound.

Let's take care of the world God gave us but let's set aside political agendas and focus on the world's real problems today.

What do you think?

Is it a sin to worship on Sunday instead of Saturday

I have posted a couple of times about worship on Sunday. It can be a hot topic among Christians.

Some Christians believe that the Sabbath is Saturday and that as one of the ten commandments, God has commanded that Saturday be our day of worship. Any other day is a compromise on God's commandmants and thus a sin.

Other Christians hold that the church moved the Sabbath day from Saturday to Sunday to recognize the day of Christ's resurrection as our day of worship.

Still some Christians don't hold to any particular day at all and many may not even feel that any day is required.

Personally, I fall into the Sunday camp. John Piper gives a great sermon explaining this point of view. I believe God still expects us to take a day of rest but that this rest now illustrates the rest achieved from Jesus' resurrection as opposed to the rest from creation. Pastor Piper cites John 5:17 as showing that God was no longer in the rest he declared after salvation but has started the work of redemption. With the death and resurrection of Jesus we have now entered and begun (but not completed) our final rest (Hebrews 4:9-10).

On my previous two posts I had a great contributer that takes the opposite view. Banner Kidd believes that God still holds the Sabbath as Saturday and the church has changed this law for their own purposes or conveniences.

See his comments to my posts "Saturday, Sunday, or any day" and "Has grace replaced the ten commandments".

You may agree with one of these views or you may have a completely different opinion. That's the point of this discussion post.

Remember, this is a discussion post and all opinions are welcome. However, I will use my moderators prerogative to delete any comments I deem as hateful or spam.

Romans 14:10 (ESV)
¹⁰ Why do you pass judgment on your brother? Or you, why do you despise your brother? For we will all stand before the judgment seat of God;

Decisions, Decisions, Decisions...

Everyone has choices to make every day. Some choices are easier than others. Sometimes they are easier because there are no lasting ramifications to whatever is chosen (Life Cereal or Mini Wheats). Some choices are more difficult because the ramifications are great or we have no idea what the ramifications might be.

Should I buy a new car or save the money?

Should I work longer so I can provide better for my family or should I work less so I can spend more time with my family?

Should I take the new job offer that will require our family to move?

How many children should we have?

The objective way to make a decision is to write down the pros and cons of each choice. Whichever choice has more pros wins. The problem is that the list of pros and cons is often very subjective and for sure, the importance of each is subjective. This makes the decision based on your own subjective prejudices and experiences which may or may not lead to a good decision.

A few years ago, my wife and I had one of those big decisions to make. We had just had our fourth child. We had surpassed the normal 2.5 child household. Our family felt complete. We decided to get a vasectomy ("we" - kind of like "we" had a baby). There were lots of good objective and subjective reasons on the pro side of the checklist to do it.

The problem was, my wife and I did not seek out God first. Four years later, God started laying it on our hearts that we made the wrong decision. Now we had a new decision. Do I have surgery to give control of our family size back to God? This time we did seek God and did the reversal.

God's Word is clear. We are to seek His will in all of our decisions.

Really? All of our decision? Even between Life Cereal or Mini Wheats?

I don't believe God intends to micro-manage your life. After all, in the Garden he did not tell Adam and Eve which fruit to eat each day. He only told them which fruit not to eat, ever. God gives us similar guidelines today through his Word.

Romans 2:18 (ESV)
¹⁸ and know his will and approve what is excellent, because you are instructed from the law;

For example, while he may not tell you which cereal to eat, he does tell you that your body is His holy temple so His will is for you to treat your body right.

1 Corinthians 6:19-20 (ESV)
¹⁹ Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own,
²⁰ for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body.

We unfortunately try to figure out God's ways based on our own understanding rather than seeking His way.

Isaiah 55:8 (ESV)
⁸ For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord.

So what are we supposed to do?

Pray...

Psalms 143:10 (ESV)
¹⁰ Teach me to do your will, for you are my God! Let your good Spirit lead me on level ground!

Obey...

Matthew 7:21 (ESV)
²¹ "Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.

These are the two areas where I usually fail. I either rush to a decision based on my own understanding and don't pray first or I don't like what God's Word says so I do it my way anyway. If I wasn't so stubborn I'd make much better decisions.

Romans 8:28 (ESV)
²⁸ And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.

What has been your toughest decision? Did you seek God or did you do your best on your own? How'd that work for you?

Please share your experiences good or bad, Christian or not.

Update on Moses

A couple of posts back I introduced everyone to Moses from Liberia (he's the one on the left). Since that time things have changed a little bit around this story.

The Hand Center wanted to make sure that Moses' visa could be extended before they performed any surgery. The most important part of his treatment will be the rehabilitation. If he could not stay in the U.S. long enough to do the rehab then it would not be worth doing the surgery.

God is working through this whole process. The visa was extended until November 2 which gives us plenty of time for the surgery and the needed rehabilitation.

The next big change in this story is that Moses has moved in with our family. He'll be staying with us until his visa expires in November. My kids, as well as my wife and I, are very excited about being able to share our family with Moses for the next five months.

So far, the transition with Moses living with us has been extremely smooth. Moses gets along great with our other kids, although the four year old is still playing shy with him. However, Moses is up for the challenge. I think he's made it one of his goals to win her over. It's really pretty cute as he tries to get her attention and she hides her face (with the smirk that only the baby in the family can have).

I'm sure the next five months will be go by as fast as they always do. Before long it will be late October and we'll be trying to figure out how we're supposed to say good-bye to Moses.

Are we supposed to say good-bye?

It will be interesting to see what God has in mind.