So what are we going to do today?

I have to admit, because of my sons and Netflix, I now have a secret addiction to the Disney cartoon Phineas and Ferb. The premise of the show is to create the best day of summer vacation ever...and they do this each day. I find myself singing the songs and quoting the show at random times to my wife and kids. Every show has a similar flow and one statement that is made in each episode is "Ferb, I know what we're going to do today!"

Well this past week was the last week of school for my boys and I was looking forward to Saturday. It had felt like an exceptionally long week. I was thinking everyone would sleep in on a lazy Saturday morning. My wife works out of town most Fridays and Saturdays and so I have a few extra hours of "craziness" to contend with. My daughter has a 6:30 a.m. internal alarm clock that malfunctioned this past Saturday. It went off at 5:10 a.m. I wasn't ready for that. My sons were both out of bed and ready for Saturday at 6:45 a.m. The cartoons aren't even on yet!

I later asked my oldest, why did you get up so earlier? Why didn't you sleep in? His answer was perfect. He said, "Daddy, it's the first day of summer, I didn't want to waste it."

He nailed it!

Paul tells us not to waste time as well in Ephesians 5:15-17.

There is nothing wrong with resting. In fact we need to have a Sabbath. But we do not need to be wasteful of the time God has given us. Don't waste today! Or maybe the motivating question is what Isabella from Phineas and Ferb always asks, "Whatcha doin'?"

God has and will continue to do His part, now it's up to us. Go ahead and do what you can to make today a great day.

all about Christ,

David

Seven Deadly Sins of Today

I've been working on a modern list of the Seven Deadly Sins. The name, Seven Deadly Sins, comes from the Catholic Church and there is no "biblical" list of seven deadly sins. Proverbs 6:16 does includes a list of 6 sins God hates and 7 that are an abomination and Galatians 5:19-21 includes a longer list of sins (15 specific and a broad 16th). The Seven Deadly Sins, according to the Catholic Church, are Greed, Sloth, Pride, Wrath, Lust, Envy and Gluttony. They are deadly, again according to the Catholic Church, because your soul is in extreme danger if you commit these.

All that aside, sin is sin and any sin separates you from God. What I wanted to do is update the list for today. I will keep the name "deadly" because I believe these sins will KILL the Church if they go on unattended. You will notice some sins on my list are similar to the original. I need help adding the 7th so here are my Six Deadly Sins (just doesn't roll off the tongue). Some of these deadly sins may need to be regrouped with others. Just let me know what you think!

1 - Opinion (Which is nothing more than pride repackaged. Opinion says I'm right, you are wrong so it includes judgment. Opinion is not fact.)

2 - Gossip (This is fake or immature knowledge. When you pass on knowledge/information that is not known or not yours to share that is gossip. If you wonder if what you are sharing is gossip, then don't share it.)

3 - Apathy (Apathy says I don't care. Faith without works is dead. Is your faith active or dead? There is no place for Zombie Christians, they may move but they are actually dead. We must care. We must live out our faith!)

4 - Intentional Ignorance (Some have a fear of being responsible for the knowledge they gain. There is little to no (or know) personal study, no desire for personal growth, always asking others if they ask at all. Grow so you can share!)

5 - Cultural Attrition (The culture has a definite affect on us. The culture determines for too many people what boundaries they can and cannot cross. The nation becomes more sexual, our language deteriorates as we sound more like flash celebrities and theology is replaced with philosophy.)

6 - Habitual (So many buy into the "healthy habit" lie. Habits are broken all the time. We don't take habits serious. People say, "I got out of the habit of 'prayer', 'church', 'study', whatever…these are not mere habits, these are lifestyles that must be lived.)

7 - 

Well, as you can see 7 is blank. Help me out.

all about Christ,

David

What are you going to do?

What are you going to do?

As I write this, Brian and members from Galilee Christian Church are in Haiti working with an orphanage through Imagine Missions. I had the privilege of taking a team from Long Hollow Christian Church last year to do the same. Last year about this time Brian was leading a team from Galilee to Nashville to do flood work. I was also taking a team from Long Hollow on a trip to Nashville for the same reason. We worked through the same organization. Just a few weeks ago the tornadoes devastated areas near both of us so we took groups from the churches we serve to help in these areas (Brian in Alabama and I in Virginia). He and I talk about various opportunities to serve.

I love the fact that Brian and I desire to "spur one another on to love and good deeds" and we do this out of Christ' love. 

When God's people see others hurting, then we, as God's people, need to respond. Often, many sit idly by and let others go and do. Let me encourage you to go. If you can't go physically, you can go financially by donating even $10. Maybe you are physically unable to go, or financially unable to support, could you organize a goods drive? People need the supplies and basic necessities (from toiletries to clothes to food) we may take for granted. Most importantly, don't go at it alone, but do go at it!

Get involved. Joplin, Missouri needs help. Glade Spring, Virginia needs help. Tuscaloosa, Alabama needs help, towns that used to be along the Mississippi River need help. Haiti and Japan still need help. There are so many more opportunities to serve that I didn't list. Maybe opportunities that are ongoing in your neighborhood or town. Just don't remain apathetic. Let me ask again, what are you going to do?

all about Christ,

David

P.S. About the picture. Yes, that is a door in the top of a tree. It was one of the most unsettling sites I saw on our trip to Glade Spring, VA. To me it illustrated the destruction and power of the storm.

Sick of the leadership hype?

Do you ever get sick of the leadership hype? Many times, I do.  All I hear, read and see is about leadership. How you must become a leader and develop your leadership skills. How you must be a leader, excel at leadership, read about leadership, and study other leaders and of course you must learn the 21 irrefutable laws of leadership and never break them. Everyone wants the fast track to being a leader.

Why isn't anyone teaching people how to follow well, or how to be a great follower? Nobody is talking about following, it's all about being a leader. Why is nobody training people how to be good followers? What are the 21 irrefutable laws of being a follower? The only following we want to learn is how to get more followers on Twitter.


Current books on Amazon under "leadership": 67,194
Current books on Amazon under "following": 10,952

Jesus first words to the disciples..."Follow me"...Why? So one day they they could lead.

Maybe you need to step off the leadership fast track, stopping listening to the leadership podcasts, quit memorizing the 21 laws and and learn to follow. .

Pause and Reflect

I celebrated my birthday this week. Kind of a big one for me, as a Christian minister that is. I’m 33. For some that may not seem significant but it is an age that has me very contemplative. Just this past week we celebrated “Holy Week” and Sunday was Easter. Jesus was 33 at the time of His crucifixion. So, here I am, 33.

Jesus’ earthly ministry (from baptism to crucifixion) lasted 3 years. He changed the world by making an impact on those around Him. While I’m not Jesus, I do serve the same God. So here I am reflecting. What have I done for the Kingdom, what kind of impact have I made on those around me?

As I have begun to do this, I would ask you do the same. Reflect on your own life, just for a moment. In what ways have you made an impact on those around you?

all about Christ,
David

Reality is better than truth...

Reality is better than than truth, here is why...

As a kid growing up in the 80's the commercials and hype about the original Nintendo NES, the 8 bit video game system that would change your life was truth. But it wasn't reality until you become a plumber and saved a princess, shot ducks and the dog that laughed at you, or found out why Zelda was a legend, using a controller with only an A and B button.

All games a side, reality is better than truth.

We read and hear the staggering statics of how many people are starving in the world, we even see pictures and videos showing this devastation. It's truth, it's fact, it's happening and we know it. But it's not reality till you have walked into a village in another country, or came in contact with someone across town and seen  it first hand, it's real and now is a reality.

It's truth that we are supposed to love our neighbor. Love your neighbor is directly after the golden rule, so it's the silver rule then right? It's part of our mission statement, a tag line in many churches, and something we seek to do . It's truth, love your neighbor.  But it's not reality, it's not real, till you actually do it.  It's not real till you have been wronged, and gossiped about yet you continue to love and forgive. It's not real until you love, those who curse, mistreat, and can't even repay you. Luke 6:32 "If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? Even "sinners" love those who love them." Real love is loving without expecting an thank you, a reward, or maybe eve a smile.

Jesus came to seek and save the lost. That's truth, that is the Gospel. But the reality is much better than the truth, I was once lost and was found, and Jesus saved me.

How Ya Feeling?

I'm sitting in the doctors office right now. Waiting. Thankfully, I'm not sick. The reason I'm here is for a check up.

I began thinking about how we fool ourselves. I'm ok on the outside, so everything must be okay on the inside. Then you hear things like high blood pressure, high sugar, cancer. You say, not me, I'm healthy. It's a medical denial. Chances are you have seen it too.

There is a temptation in Christianity to do the same. Look at the outside only. At church you are all smiles and you look like nothing ever goes wrong. Someone says how are you? You say fine or maybe something like too blessed to be depressed! We both know the truth though. Life isn't perfect. Are you blessed? Yes. Should we complain? Probably not. But a lie? I hope not!

The truth is things have gotten out of sync. Our Spiritual blood pressure is out of whack. We are struggling with a spiritual cancer we haven't addressed yet. Why? The sooner you address it, the higher the survival rate, the more effective the treatment will be.

If it is important that we not skip our check ups and physical examines, it is more important that we not forgo doing a spiritual checkup. Maybe instead of opening up our mouth and saying "ah" so much, we need to open up the scriptures and say "oh".

all about Christ,
David