I intended to renew my mind each and every day. And by “intended to”, I really mean “purposefully avoided.” It’s not that I don’t want the benefits of a renewed mind. Obviously I do. It’s that I don’t want to put in the work.
Or even more precise, I don’t want to sacrifice the time it takes to renew my mind. That’s precious downtime. More precious than gold, actually.
There are questions from every side about Rick Perry’s decision to spearhead a call to prayer that resulted in 35,000 people gathering to pray for the nation at Reliant Stadium in Houston, Texas.
As a Christian, the primary question that crops up is this:
Obviously, we will never know the answer to that question. Only God knows Governor Perry’s heart on the matter. It could be that the prayer event and Perry’s announcement to run for President could be a fortunate chronological coincidence. Then again, it could have been planned far in advance as a stepping stone to gain majority Republican votes. Or, honestly, it could have been an undesirable coincidence.
As soon as the question of Governor Perry’s motives pop into your head, meditate on this passage:
It is true that some preach Christ out of envy and rivalry, but others out of goodwill. The latter do so out of love, knowing that I am put here for the defense of the gospel. The former preach Christ out of selfish ambition, not sincerely, supposing that they can stir up trouble for me while I am in chains. But what does it matter? The important thing is that in every way, whether from false motives or true, Christ is preached. And because of this I rejoice.
Ultimately, as Paul notes, it is not our responsibility to fact check everyone’s motives. He doesn’t just choose to not complain about it. He rejoices! The Kingdom of God is going out! The gospel is being preached! The Church is achieving unity! The greater good has been served by having Christ preached and saints unified. Look at the fruit. Christians from a dozen or more denominations gathered under one roof to call out with singular purpose.
Jesus is only coming back for a pure and spotless bride.
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I just wanted to ask. If there was ONE thing you could do for a living, what would it be? Assume nothing is impossible. Nothing is out of reach.
With my minimal web design knowledge, I’ve helped a few small businesses and one church with their design. During the course of discussion and revision, it occured to me that I don’t really believe in promoting church brands.
I finished the project and I’m proud of my work, because I gave the church new functionalities and opportunities to reach people. That’s what matters.
Would I ever do another ministry / chuch website again? Hard to say. Never say never.
I’m all for promoting Jesus and healing the sick and loving the downtrodden. But I don’t agree that you have to market your ministry in order to be effective.
Maybe I’m a purist. I know I’m an idealist. But idealism is a valuable commodity in a world of compromise. If we’re ever to see God’s Kingdom come on earth, it will be at the expense of our own.
It’s time to start thinking about the long haul. It is time to be proactive and make decisions that ensure you’re prepared for tougher times. The United States has already skirted one colossal depression in the past five years. We’ve gotten a glimpse into the vulnerability that is our American economy. The uncomfortable reality is that things could swing the wrong way at any time.
Despite the fact that I’ve overloaded some of you with details on new social networks, I’m most envious of people who live relatively simple lives with simple technology. If they have joined a social networking site, they use only one and they don’t care if they don’t update on a daily basis. I envy those people because they’re the exact opposite of me.
As a person who has owned 30+ different blogs on unique domains, I’ve asked myself this question over and over again. Not because I’m necessarily getting deeper into the answer, but because I’ve repeatedly caught myself getting derailed and not pursuing what’s most important.
Matt Cutts of Google fame presented at TED on the 30 Day Challenge. It was inspiring and motivating. Over the past few years, I’ve learned that every worthwhile change in my life came because:
We all know this one. Basically, this means that what you actually have is worth more than what you could have. You can miss a lot of REAL life while you hold out for a possibility. So let’s tweak that cliché a bit:
“It’s better to realize potential than to talk about it.”
I get chills when I hear this song. It’s so powerful, it permeated my dreams after listening to it a few times yesterday. That’s a pretty major deal.
How do I explain it? There’s a moment as each chorus begins that raw heart is conveyed. I can capture her emotion. I am moved by her passion. This will go down as one of my favorite songs of all times.
I’m reminded of how I was affected the first few times I heard The Fray’s “Cable Car”.
Click the link below to listen. It’s worth it.