21 September 2008 by Brian.

Our oldest son (age came home the other day and told us about his assignment at school that day, which was to write about his hero.  My wife proceeded to inquire as to who he chose for his hero and his quick reply was, “Oh, that’s easy.  Jesus.  I didn’t even have to think about that one.”

So, his school celebrated parents, grandparents, and other heroes with a special assembly to which parents were invited and my wife and I dutifully attended.  Several of the children’s papers were read aloud by one of the teachers and some children came forward to read their own paper.  To my surprise, Kaleb’s name was called and he chose to come forward and read it, himself.  He stood at the podium and read: “My hero is Jesus because he loves us and died for our sins.  He is our Savior and Christ.”

I couldn’t have been more proud and didn’t waste any time after the program in telling him that he had the best paper in the entire school!  I thought you might be encouraged by his simple, powerful testimony, too.

Posted in Missions, Missionaries, Trinitarianism, Trinity, Spirituality, Community, Contemporary Christianity | 1 Comment »

10 September 2008 by Brian.

Check out this article on the murder of babies after they are born.

It’s a good thing we’ve got Obama around to protect the ’sanctity’ of Roe vs. Wade and abortion “rights”.  Without his vigilance, the lives of the defenseless and weak might actually come to mean something!

If the facts  - not to mention the conclusions drawn therein - of the article are true, Obama (or Abubaba…see yesterday’s post) holds some horrific beliefs and seems to subjugate the sanctity of human life to his own political agenda.

Posted in Abortion, Humanism, Naturalism, Social Injustice, Community, Politics, Leadership, Evil, Taxes, Social Medicine, Social Justice, Radicals, Biblical Worldview, Contemporary Christianity, Relativism, Sanctity of Life, Spirituality, False Doctrine, Radicalism, Morality, Morals, Secularism | 2 Comments »

5 September 2008 by Brian.

I was reading Psalm 50 and was struck by the statement God makes at the end of this selection:

17     For you hate discipline,
and you cast my words behind you.

18     You make friends with a thief when you see one,
and you keep company with adulterers.

19        “You give your mouth free rein for evil,
and your tongue frames deceit.

20     You sit and speak against your kin;
you slander your own mother’s child.

21     These things you have done and I have been silent;
you thought that I was one just like yourself.
But now I rebuke you, and lay the charge before you.

The passage describes a community made up of people who have no regard for the righteousness of God.  They live according to their own rules, satisfying their appetites, and obeying their whims.  They disregard God’s corrective action in their lives, they disregard the moral law and freely accept injustice among them.  They speak evil, even of those to whom they should be most loyal - their own family.  So, they speak up in matters they shouldn’t and keep silent when they should speak up in opposition to evil.

God states definitively that He is completely different from this society of His supposed people.  God does not keep silent in the face of evil, but opposes it.  He does not speak evil, but doesn’t back down from the truth, even when it is uncomfortable to the hearer.  As His people (I refer to believers here), we are expected to glorify Him by living His character by the transforming power of the Holy Spirit.

So, if this is true, then why do I so often hear those who speak up against evil, injustice, or sin referred to as “mean” and those who keep silent and go with the flow as “nice”?  People tend to feel guilty for trying to do the right thing or requiring others to hold to a standard, whether it is simply a business policy that is the standard or its an issue of right and wrong.

We must be careful, always realizing that our judgment isn’t perfect and that humility and grace should always be present in the believer’s life.  But, there are many issues in our society about which God would have us speak up on behalf of Right and righteousness.  If God is who He says He is, then we should be faithful to do so.  The weak and vulnerable in our society need our voices.  People need to see us living the life of Christ at work, in our families, in politics, and, yes, even in church!

Do we dare to ask God to show us just how far short we fall and then trust Him to re-mold us in His image whether it’s comfortable or not?

Posted in Naturalism, Humanism, Abortion, Homosexuality, Eurabia, Social Injustice, Bible study, Inductive study method, Inductive Bible study, Social Justice, Community, Politics, Missions, Missionaries, Europe, Leadership, Evil, Environmentalism, Social Medicine, Trinity, Trinitarianism, Israel, Religious fanaticism, Sex, Biblical Worldview, Postmodernism, Postmodern Philosophy, Contemporary Christianity, Relativism, Sanctity of Life, Islam, Marriage, Postmodernity, North Korea, Morality, Religion, Radicalism, Radicals, Morals, New Age Spirituality, Spirituality, New Age, False Doctrine, Secularism | No Comments »

20 August 2008 by Brian.

Ravi Zacharias has edited a very helpful book entitled, “Beyond Opinion.”  I found one chapter in particular especially intriguing.  It was the chapter on, “The Role of Doubt and Persecution in Spiritual Transformation.”  You see, I’ve read a lot, studied a lot, and even done a little teaching on the topic of evil and how its existence can best be understood within the Christian worldview.  However, the author of this particular chapter (Stuart McAllister) does a great job of addressing the existential reality that we would often prefer to avoid.  In fact, I would argue that God attributes great value to the growth and the glory produced in the “desert experiences” of our lives, while those experiencing them (at certain stages, at least) are under the impression that nothing has any value whatsoever.  In order to understand the context, you need to know that earlier in the chapter, he shared his experience of having been imprisoned in a Czechoslovakian prison after being caught trying to smuggle Bibles behind the Iron Curtain.  Here are two brief paragraphs, which I hope will motivate you to read the entire chapter:

“The Trinitarian vision of God has served to sustain me in many different ways.  What do I mean?  As I journeyed into my life of faith I came to grasp (not very well) the historic teachings regarding the nature of God.  To see that God is a community of love, that he existed in self-giving relationships before the creation, and that he took on himself flesh in order to redeem us, was an awesome discovery.  The gift and life of the Holy Spirit was the final link in tying together what was for me, a vague notion.  This universe is a relational order, and I was now tuned in by virtues of God’s grace, mercy, and enabling love.  This understanding of God allowed me to dwell on God the Father, the Sovereign, the ruler, the God who humbled Egypt and led his people in the wilderness.  It also allowed me to consider Jesus as the incarnate one, the suffering servant, who although God in the flesh, restrained himself, sought out sinners, and gave his life in such an unselfish way.  The Father ruling, governing, guiding; the Son in his example, service, and sacrifice, followed by the Spirit in his comfort, keeping, power, and presence (John 14:26).  All these have been vital in my reflections.

How has this helped me practically?  It has meant that many times I could rest in the assurance of God’s ultimate and good control over life and circumstances.  Even though I had to face questions, I recognized my limitations and found comfort in the sense of God’s sovereign rule.  The example of Jesus continues to inspire and fuel a longing to be more like him: to follow his way, to respond as he responded, to treat people as he treated them, to love as he loved.  The assurance of the Spirit’s presence and help has met me in many ways, as I travel, preach, face questions, and seek to wrestle through issues.”

Posted in Humanism, Homosexuality, Community, Politics, Naturalism, Eurabia, Bible study, Social Justice, Social Injustice, Social Medicine, Taxes, Missionaries, Europe, Leadership, Missions, Evil, Trinity, Trinitarianism, Environmentalism, Religious fanaticism, Radicals, Sex, Biblical Worldview, Postmodernism, Postmodern Philosophy, Contemporary Christianity, Relativism, Sanctity of Life, Islam, Marriage, Postmodernity, North Korea, Morality, Religion, Radicalism, Morals, New Age Spirituality, Spirituality, New Age, False Doctrine, Secularism | No Comments »

11 August 2008 by Brian.

It’s been a while since I offered a decent post.  Let’s be honest, that last post was an exhausted, weak attempt to get something on the board…certainly not my best effort and you have my apologies.

Anyway, on to tonight’s business.   A big part of my job at Effectur, Inc. where I am currently employed is to manage our Net Promoter Score program.  If you’re not familiar with the term, it’s a simple measurement designed to place a numerical measurement on the quality of a company’s relationship with its customers and it is based upon the response to one simple question, “Would you recommend the company to a friend or colleague?”  The score takes into consideration those customers who are actively promoting the company to others (think of your average Apple Macintosh user), as well as those who hate the company and rarely miss an opportunity to tell others how badly it sucks (think just about any mobile phone service provider’s customers).  Our company is doing pretty well with our NPS right now, with many more of our customers loving us than hating us, with a lot of customers in the middle, satisfied, but not exactly overwhelmingly pleased.

So, I was thinking about my witness for Christ in my various contexts each day and I was wondering how I would score if people were asked if, based upon their observance of my life, they were attracted to Jesus or persuaded to reject him.   It’s a sobering thought.  What would my co-workers say?  Is my witness consistent to each of them, or are there some who see more of Jesus, while others see more of my weaknesses emerging?  What about my wife?  My children?  Are they drawn to Jesus’ life in me?  Do they see him at all?

My prayer is a simple one: “Lord Jesus, transform me into your image more and more each day.  Fill me with your love and your grace, as well as your truth and holiness and grant me the humility to admit my failures and ask forgiveness when I hurt those around me.”

Posted in Politics, Community, Humanism, Naturalism, Taxes, Trinity, Leadership, Missionaries, Missions, Trinitarianism, Social Injustice, Social Justice, Contemporary Christianity, Relativism, Marriage, Sanctity of Life, Sex, Biblical Worldview, Religion, Morality, Morals, Spirituality, Secularism | 1 Comment »

31 July 2008 by Brian.

Dr. Henry Cloud says that great leaders learn to hate the right things well.

What is the role of ‘hate’ in your life?  When should we hate?  Care to comment?

Posted in Homosexuality, Community, Politics, Social Medicine, Abortion, Humanism, Social Injustice, Quotes, Eurabia, Naturalism, Taxes, Trinity, Europe, Christmas, Larry Norman, Leadership, Missionaries, Missions, Trinitarianism, Environmentalism, Evil, Social Justice, Israel, Biblical Worldview, Postmodernism, Postmodern Philosophy, Postmodernity, Sex, Contemporary Christianity, Sanctity of Life, Islam, Marriage, Relativism, North Korea, Spirituality, Religion, Radicalism, Radicals, Religious fanaticism, Morality, Morals, New Age, False Doctrine, New Age Spirituality, Secularism | No Comments »

19 July 2008 by Brian.

Malcolm Muggeridge (I believe it was in his book, “Christ and the Media“) predicted the abyss into which much of our mainstream media has sunk.  Ratings over truth.  If it bleeds, it leads.  Deliver an agenda rather than deliver an account.

This story pretty much reflects the depravity Muggeridge described.  The unsuspecting reporter thought he was just going to view a couple burglars being relieved of their limbs…nothing too shocking.  However, he soon realized he was about to see the execution of two women and he nobly attempted to stand between them and their grisly fate.  When that didn’t work, I guess he thought, “What the heck?  Might as well film it.”

Posted in Eurabia, Social Injustice, Social Justice, Religious fanaticism, Humanism, Politics, Europe, Missionaries, Missions, Evil, Radicals, Radicalism, Contemporary Christianity, Relativism, Islam, Sanctity of Life, Biblical Worldview, Spirituality, Religion, Morality, Morals, False Doctrine, Secularism | No Comments »

5 July 2008 by Brian.

“Modern liberalism for our elites is really a psychological state, in which an individual crafts an all-encompassing world view in the abstract to offset a rather materialistic and self-centered desire in the concrete.” - Victor Davis Hanson

Posted in Community, Abortion, Humanism, Politics, Social Medicine, Leadership, Environmentalism, Taxes, Naturalism, Quotes, Relativism, Marriage, Sanctity of Life, Contemporary Christianity, Sex, Social Injustice, Social Justice, Secularism | No Comments »

5 July 2008 by Brian.

Ron Smith posts on some interesting revelations from unChristian.

If only we could ban the ‘f word’! 

Posted in Naturalism, Humanism, Abortion, Social Justice, Bible study, Religion, Religious fanaticism, Homosexuality, Community, Missionaries, Leadership, Missions, Evil, Politics, Environmentalism, Morality, Morals, Contemporary Christianity, Sex, Relativism, Marriage, Sanctity of Life, Islam, Biblical Worldview, Postmodernism, False Doctrine, New Age Spirituality, New Age, Spirituality, Postmodern Philosophy, Postmodernity, Secularism | 1 Comment »

1 July 2008 by Brian.

So, are you hooked on Podcasts yet?  You should be.  I know this isn’t exactly breaking news, but there are hundreds of great resources to be found through iTunes’ Podcast library and I heartily recommend you avail yourself of them.  Here are a few I’m listening to these days if you need some help to get started.

Catalyst Podcast

Ravi Zacharias International Ministries: Let My People Think Podcast

Westover Church Sermons (Greensboro, NC)

CCL Leadercast (Center for Creative Leadership)

Businessweek Climbing the Ladder

Talking Toastmasters Podcast

I’m blessed with a 25 minute commute to and from work and I’ve enjoyed the opportunity to learn and grow through these great resources.  Enjoy!

Posted in Leadership, Community, Biblical Worldview, Contemporary Christianity | No Comments »