Tuesday, August 29, 2006
heaven
What will heaven be like? Randy Acorn explores this topic in his book 'Heaven'. A book summary can be found at http://www.christianbooksummaries.com/library/v3/cbs0313.pdf
who is a christian?
Who is a Christian? If you're interested in understanding some biblical teaching on this subject then I encourage you to get out your bible and follow through this diagram.
(1) Points out the centrality of Jesus Christ.
(2) Looks at the role of believing.
(3) Considers the obedience step the bible teaches we should take in response to our belief decision.
(4) Considers the beliefs we need to accept to be a follower of Christ. If we reject any of these core beliefs then we are rejecting Christ.
(5) Considers the idea that belief is not a static thing. We need to be walking toward Christ and growing.
(6) Looks at the teaching that we can walk away from our salvation.
(7) (8) (9) (10) Look at four positions we can be in. (7) Is a person who is headed in the opposite direction and who does not believe the central beliefs ie they are outside the boundary (blue line). (8) Is a person thinking about and considering Christ. They are walking toward him but have not yet committed themselves to the core beliefs of Christianity. (9) Is a person who is committed to Christ and walking toward him. This person is where each of us should be. (10) Is a person who is committed to the beliefs but is now walking away from Christ. They have decided to reject the implications of what it means to follow Christ. This person is in danger of completely rejecting Jesus Christ.
The implication of the biblical teaching is that a Christian is a person who both BELIEVES and who ACTS in accordance with those beliefs.
Hope this is helpful.
Monday, August 14, 2006
quizzes
Need quiz questions for a games night or the like. Check out the "Monthly Trivia Quiz" link at this site for 12 quizzes of 50 questions. http://www.travelmate.com.au/FunTrip/FunTrip.asp
'the experiment'
IN MY VIEW by Pastor Pete (Newsletter of CMP for 20 August 2006)
In my view we tend to over estimate what can be done in the short-term and under estimate what can be done in the long-term. Let me explain.
I'm not sure how many times I heard someone say some variation of the following: "If everyone was to just invite 2 other people and they invited 2 others then ..."
It's true, that if this were to happen then big things would happen, the problem is that its trying to do quickly that which can only be done over the long-term.
So I want to encourage you to do try this experiment and I think you'll be amazed at just how much God can do through your life, it's not a short-term fix, but in the long-term your life will have an impact that will astound you.
THE EXPERIMENT:
Step 1: Spend some time with God and ask him this question. "What is the one habit, behaviour or attitude you most want me to change in my life?
Step 2: Make a decision that for the next 30-60 days changing this one habit, behaviour or attidude will be your major priority in your spiritual journey.
Step 3: Share your decision with one other person and ask them to pray for you and ask you regularly how you are going.
Step 4: FOCUS on making this ONE change. When the new habit, behaviour or attitude has become part of you THEN go back to Step 1.
FINAL NOTE: People who try to change too many things at once mostly change nothing. People who focus on ONE thing at a time and keep on repeating that process achieve tremendous change over time.
In my view we tend to over estimate what can be done in the short-term and under estimate what can be done in the long-term. Let me explain.
I'm not sure how many times I heard someone say some variation of the following: "If everyone was to just invite 2 other people and they invited 2 others then ..."
It's true, that if this were to happen then big things would happen, the problem is that its trying to do quickly that which can only be done over the long-term.
So I want to encourage you to do try this experiment and I think you'll be amazed at just how much God can do through your life, it's not a short-term fix, but in the long-term your life will have an impact that will astound you.
THE EXPERIMENT:
Step 1: Spend some time with God and ask him this question. "What is the one habit, behaviour or attitude you most want me to change in my life?
Step 2: Make a decision that for the next 30-60 days changing this one habit, behaviour or attidude will be your major priority in your spiritual journey.
Step 3: Share your decision with one other person and ask them to pray for you and ask you regularly how you are going.
Step 4: FOCUS on making this ONE change. When the new habit, behaviour or attitude has become part of you THEN go back to Step 1.
FINAL NOTE: People who try to change too many things at once mostly change nothing. People who focus on ONE thing at a time and keep on repeating that process achieve tremendous change over time.
have your say
The Australian Democrats have an online survey at http://www.democrats.org.au/survey2/survey/GodGovt_v2 seeking people's view about the relationship between Government and Religion. Have your say be completing the survey.
classic books
If you're interested in reading some of the great book from history check out the link for a great selection. You can download them for free. Many can be read on a PDA or what I do is print them in a booklet form which is easier to read.
I'm personally currently plowing my way through "The Divine Comedy" by Dante.
I'm personally currently plowing my way through "The Divine Comedy" by Dante.
Friday, August 11, 2006
engaging the world
Following are some excellent excerts from the linked article.
The mission of the church is paramount, and what propels the mission forward is an awakened mind; a mind ablaze with God and the things of God. This is the heart of the cultural commission within the Great Commission. The Great Commission calls us to reach out to every person with the gospel of Jesus Christ; the cultural commission calls us to lay hold of every nook and cranny of our world for the kingdom of God. They are not separate endeavors-they are the two edges of the single sword we are called to wield. Though frighteningly few Christians embrace the true dynamic and practice of the Great Commission, even fewer take hold of the cultural commission. Too often we retreat into our Christian sub-culture, with its books and magazines, radio stations and bumper stickers.
This brings us to the heart of the mind applied. It is not simply thinking Christianly, for to know is to do. Our goal is to think in such a way as to know how to live. So what does it mean for Christ to lay claim to medicine? To law? To politics? To the economy? To a child in the womb? To sexuality? Consider the words of the prophet Micah: "And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God." It is not enough to simply understand the nature of justice and love from within a Christian perspective. Then "we must go on," writes Dennis Hollinger, "to think about the strategies of justice and love in issues like poverty, race relations, abortion and political life."
This is the vanguard of Christian thinking-knowing how to live, and then working to make the kingdom of God a reality for others to be able to live as well.
The mission of the church is paramount, and what propels the mission forward is an awakened mind; a mind ablaze with God and the things of God. This is the heart of the cultural commission within the Great Commission. The Great Commission calls us to reach out to every person with the gospel of Jesus Christ; the cultural commission calls us to lay hold of every nook and cranny of our world for the kingdom of God. They are not separate endeavors-they are the two edges of the single sword we are called to wield. Though frighteningly few Christians embrace the true dynamic and practice of the Great Commission, even fewer take hold of the cultural commission. Too often we retreat into our Christian sub-culture, with its books and magazines, radio stations and bumper stickers.
This brings us to the heart of the mind applied. It is not simply thinking Christianly, for to know is to do. Our goal is to think in such a way as to know how to live. So what does it mean for Christ to lay claim to medicine? To law? To politics? To the economy? To a child in the womb? To sexuality? Consider the words of the prophet Micah: "And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God." It is not enough to simply understand the nature of justice and love from within a Christian perspective. Then "we must go on," writes Dennis Hollinger, "to think about the strategies of justice and love in issues like poverty, race relations, abortion and political life."
This is the vanguard of Christian thinking-knowing how to live, and then working to make the kingdom of God a reality for others to be able to live as well.
losing the need to pretend by John Burke
If we say we have no sin, we are only fooling ourselves.- 1 John 1:8 NLT
When my wife, Kathy, was in preschool she fell in love with a comic strip character, Zelda. Kathy wanted to be like Zelda. She wanted to do everything Zelda did. Then Kathy decided she was Zelda. Her teachers came to her mom concerned because Kathy would no longer answer to the name Kathy, she wanted to be called Zelda. We've all pretended to be someone we're not. It's fairly common for kids to pretend they are someone else. And it's acceptable if kids pretend because they are still forming their identities. But the goal is to learn to be yourself by the time you are an adult. Unfortunately, few adults seem to be comfortable enough with themselves not to pretend.
Our generation longs for something authentic. They are searching for "the real thing," though they don't really know what "the real thing" is. Because this generation has endured so much "me-ism" and letdown from those they were supposed to follow and trust, they want to see a genuine faith that works for less-than-perfect people before they are willing to trust. They want to know this God-thing is more than talk, talk, talk. They desperately want permission to be who they are with the hope of becoming more. They aren't willing to pretend, because hypocrisy repulses them. Most have yet to realize that every person is a hypocrite to some degree-the only question is whether we realize it and are honest about it.
It Starts with AuthenticityWhen we launched Gateway Community Church in 1998, the first service was entitled "Losing My Need to Pretend." Everything we did that morning contrasted the inauthentic ways of the religious leaders whom Jesus deemed hypocrites with an authentic spirituality of the heart. The religious leaders of Jesus' day were focused on religious rule-keeping. Jesus reserved his harshest words for these pretenders: "Woe to you Pharisees, because you give God a tenth of your mint, rue and all other kinds of garden herbs, but you neglect justice and the love of God. You should have practiced the latter without leaving the former undone."(Luke 11:42 NIV) The religious leaders of Jesus' day were so focused on the traditions they had formed around the heart of God's message that they were neglecting the things most on God's heart.
That September morning in the delivery room of our new church, I told our newborn congregation that these stories are a warning against inauthentic, incongruent living. Jesus is basically saying, Lose the religious pretense; it's destructive to authentic faith. Shed the mask of hypocrisy you hide behind. I want honest, authentic people-not hypocrites who pretend to be something they're not. I asked the congregation a question at the end of the message: "Can we be this kind of a church? The kind where people don't have to pretend? Where we can be ourselves and stop pretending we're more or less than what we are right now? That's the only way we can help each other grow to be all God intended us to be. If we can't do this, we're just playing church!"
Authenticity is hard work. It always works from the inside out. It begins with the inner life of the leader, being authentic with God. It manifests itself in personal vulnerability before others as an intimate connection with God displaces the fear of transparency. This opens for others a view into an authentic spiritual life of a real human-not a religious salesperson. Finally, it becomes embedded in a culture so that authentic, growing communities of people can be formed and transformed.
Hear John discuss strategies for creating a "Come-As-You-Are Culture" at the A2 Conference: Innovating with Acts 2 Thinking on October 25-27 at Willow Creek Community Church in Chicago. (www.willowcreek.com/A2)
When my wife, Kathy, was in preschool she fell in love with a comic strip character, Zelda. Kathy wanted to be like Zelda. She wanted to do everything Zelda did. Then Kathy decided she was Zelda. Her teachers came to her mom concerned because Kathy would no longer answer to the name Kathy, she wanted to be called Zelda. We've all pretended to be someone we're not. It's fairly common for kids to pretend they are someone else. And it's acceptable if kids pretend because they are still forming their identities. But the goal is to learn to be yourself by the time you are an adult. Unfortunately, few adults seem to be comfortable enough with themselves not to pretend.
Our generation longs for something authentic. They are searching for "the real thing," though they don't really know what "the real thing" is. Because this generation has endured so much "me-ism" and letdown from those they were supposed to follow and trust, they want to see a genuine faith that works for less-than-perfect people before they are willing to trust. They want to know this God-thing is more than talk, talk, talk. They desperately want permission to be who they are with the hope of becoming more. They aren't willing to pretend, because hypocrisy repulses them. Most have yet to realize that every person is a hypocrite to some degree-the only question is whether we realize it and are honest about it.
It Starts with AuthenticityWhen we launched Gateway Community Church in 1998, the first service was entitled "Losing My Need to Pretend." Everything we did that morning contrasted the inauthentic ways of the religious leaders whom Jesus deemed hypocrites with an authentic spirituality of the heart. The religious leaders of Jesus' day were focused on religious rule-keeping. Jesus reserved his harshest words for these pretenders: "Woe to you Pharisees, because you give God a tenth of your mint, rue and all other kinds of garden herbs, but you neglect justice and the love of God. You should have practiced the latter without leaving the former undone."(Luke 11:42 NIV) The religious leaders of Jesus' day were so focused on the traditions they had formed around the heart of God's message that they were neglecting the things most on God's heart.
That September morning in the delivery room of our new church, I told our newborn congregation that these stories are a warning against inauthentic, incongruent living. Jesus is basically saying, Lose the religious pretense; it's destructive to authentic faith. Shed the mask of hypocrisy you hide behind. I want honest, authentic people-not hypocrites who pretend to be something they're not. I asked the congregation a question at the end of the message: "Can we be this kind of a church? The kind where people don't have to pretend? Where we can be ourselves and stop pretending we're more or less than what we are right now? That's the only way we can help each other grow to be all God intended us to be. If we can't do this, we're just playing church!"
Authenticity is hard work. It always works from the inside out. It begins with the inner life of the leader, being authentic with God. It manifests itself in personal vulnerability before others as an intimate connection with God displaces the fear of transparency. This opens for others a view into an authentic spiritual life of a real human-not a religious salesperson. Finally, it becomes embedded in a culture so that authentic, growing communities of people can be formed and transformed.
Hear John discuss strategies for creating a "Come-As-You-Are Culture" at the A2 Conference: Innovating with Acts 2 Thinking on October 25-27 at Willow Creek Community Church in Chicago. (www.willowcreek.com/A2)
Monday, August 07, 2006
leadership
"Institutionalizing a leadership-centred culture is the ultimate act of leadership."
This is a fantastic quote about the role of leadership. Thanks Ryan for passing it on to me.
I'm reminded of a quote I have on my wall that talks about the activity of a leader.
"Give yourself plenty of time to think ... and to reflect on just what it is that really needs to be accomplished. Delegate everything possible, and reserve for yourself only those things where your personal attention is needed to move the work ahead." - Ed Hanlon
This is a fantastic quote about the role of leadership. Thanks Ryan for passing it on to me.
I'm reminded of a quote I have on my wall that talks about the activity of a leader.
"Give yourself plenty of time to think ... and to reflect on just what it is that really needs to be accomplished. Delegate everything possible, and reserve for yourself only those things where your personal attention is needed to move the work ahead." - Ed Hanlon
Thursday, August 03, 2006
stem cell research link
This link will give you useful information if you're interested in Stem Cell research. http://www.stemcellresearch.org/
The Final Analysis by Mother Theresa
This is similar to previous blog entry, but has a different ending. (Thanks Ryan for sending it.)
People are often unreasonable, illogical, and self-centred;...Forgive them anyway.
If you are kind, people may accuse you of selfish, ulterior motives;...Be kind anyway.
If you are successful, you will win some false friends and some true enemies;...Succeed anyway.
If you are honest and frank, people may cheat you;...
Be honest and frank anyway.What you spend years building, someone could destroy overnight;...Build anyway.
If you find serenity and happiness, they may be jealous;...Be happy anyway.
The good you do today, people will often forget tomorrow;...
Do good anyway.Give the world the best you have, and it may never be enough;...Give the world the best you've got anyway.
You see, in the final analysis, it is between you and God;It was never between you and them anyway.
People are often unreasonable, illogical, and self-centred;...Forgive them anyway.
If you are kind, people may accuse you of selfish, ulterior motives;...Be kind anyway.
If you are successful, you will win some false friends and some true enemies;...Succeed anyway.
If you are honest and frank, people may cheat you;...
Be honest and frank anyway.What you spend years building, someone could destroy overnight;...Build anyway.
If you find serenity and happiness, they may be jealous;...Be happy anyway.
The good you do today, people will often forget tomorrow;...
Do good anyway.Give the world the best you have, and it may never be enough;...Give the world the best you've got anyway.
You see, in the final analysis, it is between you and God;It was never between you and them anyway.
Stem cells: A view from a wheelchairby Joni Eareckson Tada
Every night around 8 p.m., my paralysis forces me out of my wheelchair and into my bed. My body is wearing out after almost 40 years of living as a spinal cord-injured quadriplegic. It’s a good time to reflect on the day as well as watch some TV. Not long ago, I flicked on a PBS special called “Innovation: Miracle Cell.” When I learned it was about new therapies using stem cells, I asked my husband to turn up the volume.
Paralyzed after a car accident, pretty 19-year-old Laura Dominguez looked up from her wheelchair and into my room through the camera and smiled. She had reason to. Recently she traveled to Portugal for an extraordinary operation that changed her life. First, Dr. Carlos Lima drew stem cells – her body’s own “repair cells” – from the lining in her nose, and then gingerly separated them. Those cells are like blank slates, able to turn into tissue that would “fit” into Laura’s spinal cord. Dr. Lima gently packed the cells into the damaged portion of her spine, and after three months of therapy, Laura was able to move her foot and regain a significant amount of feeling in her back and legs. Said Dr. Lima, “I will be able to say to somebody with a spinal cord injury, ‘Yes, you will walk again,’ as opposed to telling them life is good from a wheelchair.”
How ironic; me rejoicing in the success of another’s healing. Other success stories followed: a teenager with a punctured heart that was healed through a stem cell transplant from his blood; a little boy who no longer has cancer because of a transplant using stem cells from the umbilical cord of his little brother.
The same week Dr. Lima published his research in the Journal of Spinal Cord Medicine I picked up the July 24 issue of TIME and read “What a Bush Veto Would Mean for Stem Cells.” Rather than read the same line about embryonic stem cells being the Holy Grail of miracle cures, I read how “science has outrun politics. Adult cells, such as those found in bone marrow, were thought to be less valuable than embryonic cells … But adult cells may be more elastic than scientists thought and could offer shortcuts to treatment that embryonic cells can’t match.”
I and others with disabilities have been closely monitoring the debate between adult and embryonic cells, and we know there isn’t an embryonic cell treatment that heals even a rat – there are tumors, tissue rejection, genetic abnormalities and death; there are no miracle cures. Yet right now more than 70 medical conditions are being successfully addressed by adult stem cell therapies either in human clinical trials or human treatments. Laura Dominguez knows firsthand; she can now even walk a bit with crutches!
No wonder people like me are excited. True, many adult stem cell therapies are not yet bona fide cures, but so far, they have proven substantially more successful than embryonic stem cell approaches. That is why I am grateful that President Bush continues to uphold the ban on federal funding for embryonic stem cell research. Those restrictions are perhaps the only means of encouraging funding in the overlooked and less commercially viable field of research using adult stem cells.
Still, some people say we should wait and see what happens with stem cells gleaned from human embryos. Pardon me, I’d rather not wait. Besides, there’s something deeply unsettling about tearing into a human embryo for its spare parts. Is it really nothing more than a mindless clump of cells? Of no more worth than a potato to be used then discarded? I shiver when I hear politicians and so-called experts talk that way.
People like me are vulnerable in a society that disregards the rights of the weak, the infirmed, the unseen, and the very, very small. I don’t want to live in a world where the bio-tech industry sets the moral agenda. When we tamper with the essence of our human genesis – certain only of the uncertainty of our outcomes – we mock the God whose imprint we each bear, and we provide false hope to those whose hope sustains them.
I stand with countless Americans with disabilities who believe our cause is not advanced when human life is sacrificed in hopes of finding a cure. Our cause is uplifted when we take the common sense and ethical course to hope and healing. And if you don’t believe me, ask Laura Dominguez.
For more information about Joni’s thoughts on stem cell research, check out the new book co-authored by her and Nigel M. De S. Cameron, How to be a Christian in a Brave New World.
Paralyzed after a car accident, pretty 19-year-old Laura Dominguez looked up from her wheelchair and into my room through the camera and smiled. She had reason to. Recently she traveled to Portugal for an extraordinary operation that changed her life. First, Dr. Carlos Lima drew stem cells – her body’s own “repair cells” – from the lining in her nose, and then gingerly separated them. Those cells are like blank slates, able to turn into tissue that would “fit” into Laura’s spinal cord. Dr. Lima gently packed the cells into the damaged portion of her spine, and after three months of therapy, Laura was able to move her foot and regain a significant amount of feeling in her back and legs. Said Dr. Lima, “I will be able to say to somebody with a spinal cord injury, ‘Yes, you will walk again,’ as opposed to telling them life is good from a wheelchair.”
How ironic; me rejoicing in the success of another’s healing. Other success stories followed: a teenager with a punctured heart that was healed through a stem cell transplant from his blood; a little boy who no longer has cancer because of a transplant using stem cells from the umbilical cord of his little brother.
The same week Dr. Lima published his research in the Journal of Spinal Cord Medicine I picked up the July 24 issue of TIME and read “What a Bush Veto Would Mean for Stem Cells.” Rather than read the same line about embryonic stem cells being the Holy Grail of miracle cures, I read how “science has outrun politics. Adult cells, such as those found in bone marrow, were thought to be less valuable than embryonic cells … But adult cells may be more elastic than scientists thought and could offer shortcuts to treatment that embryonic cells can’t match.”
I and others with disabilities have been closely monitoring the debate between adult and embryonic cells, and we know there isn’t an embryonic cell treatment that heals even a rat – there are tumors, tissue rejection, genetic abnormalities and death; there are no miracle cures. Yet right now more than 70 medical conditions are being successfully addressed by adult stem cell therapies either in human clinical trials or human treatments. Laura Dominguez knows firsthand; she can now even walk a bit with crutches!
No wonder people like me are excited. True, many adult stem cell therapies are not yet bona fide cures, but so far, they have proven substantially more successful than embryonic stem cell approaches. That is why I am grateful that President Bush continues to uphold the ban on federal funding for embryonic stem cell research. Those restrictions are perhaps the only means of encouraging funding in the overlooked and less commercially viable field of research using adult stem cells.
Still, some people say we should wait and see what happens with stem cells gleaned from human embryos. Pardon me, I’d rather not wait. Besides, there’s something deeply unsettling about tearing into a human embryo for its spare parts. Is it really nothing more than a mindless clump of cells? Of no more worth than a potato to be used then discarded? I shiver when I hear politicians and so-called experts talk that way.
People like me are vulnerable in a society that disregards the rights of the weak, the infirmed, the unseen, and the very, very small. I don’t want to live in a world where the bio-tech industry sets the moral agenda. When we tamper with the essence of our human genesis – certain only of the uncertainty of our outcomes – we mock the God whose imprint we each bear, and we provide false hope to those whose hope sustains them.
I stand with countless Americans with disabilities who believe our cause is not advanced when human life is sacrificed in hopes of finding a cure. Our cause is uplifted when we take the common sense and ethical course to hope and healing. And if you don’t believe me, ask Laura Dominguez.
For more information about Joni’s thoughts on stem cell research, check out the new book co-authored by her and Nigel M. De S. Cameron, How to be a Christian in a Brave New World.
Wednesday, August 02, 2006
cool motivational verse
People are unreasonable, illogical, and self-centered –love them anyway!
If you do good, people will accuse you of selfish ulterior motives –do good anyway!
If you are successful you will win false friends and true enemies –succeed anyway!
The good you do today will be forgotten tomorrow –do good anyway!
Honesty and frankness make you vulnerable –be honest and frank anyway!
The biggest people with the biggest ideas can be shot downby the smallest people with the smallest minds –think big anyway!
People favor underdogs but follow only top dogs –fight for some underdog anyway!
What you spend years building may be destroyed overnight –build anyway!
People really need help but may attack you if you help them –help people anyway!
Give the world the best you’ve got and you’ll get kicked in the teeth –give the world the best you’ve got anyway!
If you do good, people will accuse you of selfish ulterior motives –do good anyway!
If you are successful you will win false friends and true enemies –succeed anyway!
The good you do today will be forgotten tomorrow –do good anyway!
Honesty and frankness make you vulnerable –be honest and frank anyway!
The biggest people with the biggest ideas can be shot downby the smallest people with the smallest minds –think big anyway!
People favor underdogs but follow only top dogs –fight for some underdog anyway!
What you spend years building may be destroyed overnight –build anyway!
People really need help but may attack you if you help them –help people anyway!
Give the world the best you’ve got and you’ll get kicked in the teeth –give the world the best you’ve got anyway!
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