Free Calvin on Prayer & the Christian LIfe

Here's free audio you should take advantage of. The folks over at Christian Audio have free downloads of Calvin's "Of Prayer & the Christian Life."

Be sure to enter in NOV2008 for the coupon. Enjoy.

Wow!

Story.

Creating margins in our lives to be missional

There are a couple of great posts by Tommy Brister over at Provocations + Pantings under the title: Missional Margin: Too Busy Not to Evangelize? (Part 1, Part 2). Both are well worth your time and reflection.

Here are a couple of nuggets:

Those of us who are too busy not to evangelize need to throw away our door hangers and put up the open and welcome sign. We need to practice personal hospitality which says to a broken world, “You’re welcome here. Please come and sit a while.” The first step for us is to repent of our me-centeredness and get on board with God’s program so that it governs our lives. Is this not what “seek first the kingdom of God” is about? The kingdom of God should be top priority in our lives, period.
---
Indeed, we miss out on the mission of God because our mission (or minutia) takes precedence. We don’t love our neighbor because we don’t welcome them. It is disturbing to us. And we don’t welcome them because we are simply too busy.
---
Missional margin is all about creating white space in the life of a 21st century Christian who has more than enough distractions to anesthetize him from the call to be actively on mission with God.

The article concludes by asking, So how can I cultivate missional margin in everyday life? How can I remove the “please do not disturb” sign with one that says, “you are welcome here”?

Brister offers some suggestions. Check it out, Part 1 & Part 2.

Looking at an African-American as President

Conservative commentator Al Mohler has some good insights about the election. He writes,

For others, the night was magical and momentous. Young and old cried tears of amazement and victory as America elected its first African-American President -- and elected him overwhelmingly. Just forty years after the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King, an African-American stood to claim victory as President-Elect of the nation. As Sen. Obama assured the crowd in Chicago and the watching nation, "We will get there. We will get there." No one hearing those words could fail to hear the refrain of plaintive words spoken in Memphis four decades ago. President-Elect Obama would stand upon the mountaintop that Dr. King had foreseen.

That victory is a hallmark moment in history for all Americans -- not just for those who voted for Sen. Obama. As a nation, we will never think of ourselves the same way again. Americans rich and poor, black and white, old and young, will look to an African-American man and know him as President of the United States. The President. The only President. The elected President. Our President.

Every American should be moved by the sight of young African-Americans who -- for the first time -- now believe that they have a purchase in American democracy. Old men and old women, grandsons and granddaughters of slaves and slaveholders, will look to an African-American as President.

Maybe for a good segment of the population, this change will finally bring the emotional healing they have been looking for.

Maybe, maybe not.

Now, let's move on to the key component of Dr. Martin Luther King's dream that is much greater than an African-American in the White House: A color-blind society that doesn't judge people by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character. And let's all move to the point where we could care less about the color of someone's skin!!!

[*The author of this blog post does recognize the fact that the President-elect is only half African-American, but hopefully the symbolism will have the same effect.]

Praying for the President-elect

The wife has a great call for us to pray for the President, and to honor those to whom honor is due.

As the Scriptures teach us, "First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all people, for kings and all who are in high positions, that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way. This is good, and it is pleasing in the sight of God our Savior..." (1 Timothy 2:1-3)

Justin Taylor reminds us,

No matter who you voted for--or whether you voted at all--it's important to remember that, as President, Barack Obama will have God-given authority to govern us, and that we should view him as a servant of God (Rom. 13:1, 4) to whom we should be subject (Rom. 13:1, 5; 1 Pet. 2:13-14).

     * We are to pray for Barack Obama (1 Tim. 2:1-2).
     * We are to thank God for Barack Obama (1 Tim. 2:1-2).
     * We are to respect Barack Obama (Rom. 13:7).
     * We are to honor Barack Obama (Rom. 13:7; 1 Pet. 2:17).

Let's hope he breaks his promise

President Barack Hussein Obama. It's official. Our duty (at least one of them) is to pray for him.

As for me, I'm praying that he will break at least one of his campaign promises. He said in a speech before Planned Parenthood, "The first thing I'll do as President is sign the Freedom of Choice Act."

Do you remember what the Freedom of Choice Act is? According to Senator Barbara Boxer who is a co-sponser of the bill: "The Freedom of Choice Act supercedes any law, regulation or local ordinance that impinges on a woman’s right to choose. That means a poor woman cannot be denied the use of Medicaid if she chooses to have an abortion."

Two things:
(1) States will lose any right to determine issues re: abortion. They won't be able to restrict it, or try to make it rare. They can't insist on parental notification; they can't protect doctors & nurses who refuse to perform abortions from losing their jobs. Freedom of Choice Act trumps everything.
(2) Your tax dollars will pay for abortions.

And Obama promised that the first thing he'll do as president is to sign this into law. Let's hope and pray that this is one campaign promise that he'll break.

Tim Keller on Why Plant New Churches

Tim Keller says,

"The vigorous, continual planting of new congregations is the single most crucial strategy for the 1) numerical growth of the Body of Christ in any city, and the 2) continual corporate renewal and revival of the existing churches in a city. Nothing else - not crusades, outreach programs, para-church ministries, growing mega-churches, congregational consulting, nor church renewal processes - will have the consistent impact of dynamic, extensive church planting."

If you have the time, and have been bitten by the church planting bug, or at least have your curiosity piqued, you should check out these lectures by Rev. Keller.


Part 1: 9:06



Part 2: 9:00



Part 3: 9:06



Part 4: 7:16

"Genuine Incarnation Living" means what?

"I would argue that in today's society, any attempt to model your life on the life of Christ must include a genuine attempt to hang out regularly in third places. Genuine incarnational living demands it. Missional proximity can best be developed in bars, pubs, gyms, grocery stores, beauty parlors, community groups, and coffee shops."

- Exiles: Living Missionally in a Post-Christian Culture, p. 59.

Praying the Psalms

Filed under: "I couldn't have said it better myself"
-----
Christianity Today has a good, brief article on Five Ways to Pray the Psalms.

1. Say them out loud.
2. Festoon them.
3. Paraphrase them.
4. Learn them by heart.
5. Marinate in them.

Enjoy the article. Put it into practice.

New Communion Hymn

Filed under: "You've got to check this out...."
-----
We live during a time where much music that is written for worship is simply impoverished (and that's putting it very nicely). But, every once in a while, a new hymn(!) comes along that is simply amazing.

"The Communion Hymn (Behold the Lamb)" is one of those. Contemplative. Filled with faith & hope. Celebrative. Near perfect. We've been singing it lately at Westminister during our weekly celebration of the Lord's Supper.

Click here for audio & read the lyrics.

Behold the Lamb who bears our sins away,
Slain for us—and we remember
The promise made that all who come in faith
Find forgiveness at the cross.
So we share in this bread of life,
And we drink of His sacrifice
As a sign of our bonds of peace
Around the table of the King.

The body of our Savior Jesus Christ,
Torn for you—eat and remember;
The wounds that heal, the death that brings us life
Paid the price to make us one.
So we share in this bread of life,
And we drink of His sacrifice
As a sign of our bonds of love
Around the table of the King.

The blood that cleanses ev’ry stain of sin,
Shed for you—drink and remember
He drained death’s cup that all may enter in
To receive the life of God.
So we share in this bread of life,
And we drink of His sacrifice
As a sign of our bonds of grace
Around the table of the King.

And so with thankfulness and faith we rise
To respond, and to remember
Our call to follow in the steps of Christ
As His body here on earth.
As we share in His suffering
We proclaim Christ will come again!
And we’ll join in the feast of heav’n
Around the table of the King.

-----

We'll be singing this all over Calgary in our new church plants. Would that Jesus' church would sing more substantive stuff like this. Would that Jesus' church would long to celebrate Communion more often.

[Stuart Townend and Keith & Kristyn Getty, © 2007 Thankyou Music, Administered by worshiptogether.com (USA) and Kingsway Music (UK).]

Happy Reformation Day!

After Darkness, Light:
William Farel, John Calvin, Theodore Beza, John Knox

Thank you, my fathers in the faith, for shining the light on the Gospel
& upon the Lord Jesus Christ!

"Since they did not know the righteousness that comes from God and sought to establish their own, they did not submit to God's righteousness. Christ is the end of the law so that there may be righteousness for everyone who believes" (Romans 10:3-4).

Photo of the Reformation Wall

Audio from Shepherding a Child's Heart

Resurgence has posted the audio from it's recent Shepherding a Child's Heart Conference. Says their site:

Everyone wants to be a great parent—the biggest responsibility of parenthood is teaching your children to love Jesus with all of their heart, soul, and strength. For parents with children of any age, Dr. Tripp's insightful, biblical teaching provides perspectives and procedures for shepherding your child's heart into the paths of life.

Session 1: The Call to Formative Instruction

   * Download the audio
   * Download the video

Session 2: Giving Kids a Vision for God's Glory

   * Download the audio
   * Download the video

Session 3: Helping Kids Understand Authority

   * Download the audio
   * Download the video

Session 4: Helping Kids Understand the Heart

   * Download the audio
   * Download the video

Session 5: Overview of Corrective Discipline

   * Downlod the audio
   * Download the video

Called to business???

In ByFaith Online, Dick Doster writes an excellent article on Christians being called to business. Entitled, "Kingdom Work in the Corporate World," Doster amplifies the doctrine of vocation by saying that business is how we (1) love our neighbors, and (2) care for the poor.

As we think about “kingdom work” and jobs that have value, it’s helpful to remember that only business — not the Church, not government, not ministry, nor non-governmental organizations (NGOs)—creates new wealth. And wealth is the only cure for poverty. We must, therefore, encourage believers to go into business, to create new products and wider distribution (in obedience to the cultural commission) in order to create new wealth (good stewardship), which creates more jobs (loving our neighbor, caring for the poor). Adam Smith, the 18th century economist and philosopher, once said that new wealth is the road to “universal opulence,” which he defined as “the condition in which the real wages of workers keep growing over time, until the poor live at a level that in 1776 even kings and dukes did not enjoy.”

Then he adds,

God’s people can, as agents of His redemptive plan, transform business, stripping it of selfish ambition and pursuing instead what’s best for their neighbors. Through business, God’s people can harness mankind’s creativity, and with it nurture His creation, developing products that make the world more satisfying. Through the economic power of commerce, Christians can make the world safer and healthier. The members of Christ’s Church, distributed in offices around the world, can transform greed into good stewardship, showing the world that business has a biblical responsibility to create new wealth and provide a fair return to investors (Matthew 25:14-28). But, with an eye toward the consummation of Christ’s kingdom, we also create wealth in order to create new and satisfying jobs, which offer the hope (and perhaps a glimpse) of a coming world where there is no poverty.

Question: what happens when the idea of vocation--and specifically business--is divorced from Christian ethics? Two things, I suggest: (1) business feeds our innate selfishness; (2) government takes over the pretends to care for the poor through the redistribution of wealth.

Stetzer: Simply Missional

Ed Stezter insightfully writes,

Most churches build big warehouses and shelve a bunch of Christians (those rows look suspiciously like shelves). They design attractive programs to "retain" people in the sacred warehouse, keep precise records of how much inventory (people) is on the shelves, and brag about their warehouses being constantly open. And warehouse managers love to show other warehouse managers their newest warehouses while dreaming together of bigger and better warehouses.

God is calling churches to shatter the warehouse myth, to change their warehouses into strategic distribution centers, where people are distributed as salt and light to the world--sending them out on mission. Some churches are strategically challenging their people to be out there, and these churches have a strategic and simple process that moves people from the warehouse to the street. These churches are simple and missional.

Read more here.

Keeping the Heat ON!

Check out this video of folks who are making a difference. Its the story of Mark Richt (Georgia football head coach) & his family and their journey into adoption.



"Religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father, is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world." - James 1:27

I think I might even cheer for Georgia now!

[HT: Vitamin Z]

The Failure of "The War on Poverty"

Filed under: You've Gotta Check This Out
-----
Fascinating video on the failure of the government's "War on Poverty," and how it has actually made things worse. Well worth your time: 6min 38 sec.



Anthony Bradley writes,

Please send this clip to unconstrained vision folks who believe that government is the best way to deliver help to people in need. If there's one lesson from the "war on poverty" programs the US government instituted in the 1970s it is that government programs were the primary source of the destruction of the black family and the erosion of the dignity of the black men in particular in low-income urban areas. Good intentions ain't enough. The federal programs pushed out the church and destroyed many black communities. It took about 20 years to see the effects of well-intended but stupid government programs. The crazy notion that "we just need to get the right government program" is fantasy.

[HT: BTW]

Just Voted!

Just exercised my right to vote or not to vote by voting. I'm proud to be an American, but deeply worried about the homeland.

At any rate, after lunch my wife and I took Justin, our oldest son, to go vote. Justin went with me to the booth and saw how it was done. Then on the way home, we had a civics lesson--or really a pep talk--about the privilege of living in a land where we have the right to vote for our / against our leaders.

Funny thing: one of Justin's friends told him that he should get a shirt that says, "If Obama wins, I'm moving to Canada." Really, he could have a shirt that says, "If McCain wins, I'm moving to Canada." Both of which are technically correct.

Oh well.

May God have mercy.

TWax is thinking about what we should be thinking about re: visitors....

Trevin Wax has some great meta-thinking thoughts about what we should be thinking about in terms of small groups & visitors. Do we welcome people who actually come? Strange thought for some, I know. He says,

Here are some ways to show visitors that your class is “open” on Sundays, and not closed to outsiders.

1. START TIME

Are parents able to drop their children off at their classes on time? Does the adult class start on time? If your start time is 9:00, but all the members know that things don’t really get going until 9:15, then your visitor (who might even arrive a few minutes early) feels like everyone knows a secret they don’t. How to fix this problem? Start on time. Or at least start your fellowship on time, so that a visitor doesn’t face the awkwardness of an empty room.

2. LEAVE EMPTY CHAIRS

Who do you set out chairs for? Leave enough empty chairs so that your visitors will feel they are expected and welcomed, not an intrusion.

3. NAME TAGS

Some classes laugh at the idea of wearing name tags. “We all know each other,” they will say. But such a mindset betrays the fact that the class is already closed to outsiders. We don’t wear name tags for each other; we wear name tags for visitors. If everyone has a name tag, then a visitor blends in better with the group. (Tip: If you are expecting a new visitor that you have invited, have their name tag already prepared before they show up!)

4. STAND ALONE LESSONS

Make sure that your curriculum provides a stand-alone lesson every Sunday. Don’t do an intensive Discipleship course in Sunday School. (I’m all for intensive Bible studies in other venues, but if you do a study like Experiencing God in class, your visitors are automatically behind in the lessons and feel like they have to play catch-up.) I usually go through books of the Bible in Sunday School, but I make sure that each lesson is “stand-alone” in the sense that someone who has never been before can jump right in.

5. DON’T HAND VISITORS A FORM

Do you want them to feel like they’re in a doctor’s office? No… don’t hand them a form. Instead, sit down with them and you fill out the form as you get to know them.

6. INVITE NEW PEOPLE AND INVITE VISITORS BACK

Nothing can substitute for a personal invitation. If you have a visitor, make a call and follow up with them and let them know they are welcome to come back.

And I would add a #7: Seek visitor feedback. We need to know how visitors experience our groups, what was / wasn't helpful. What would be more helpful. Now this is challenging, no doubt. There is an appropriate time and manner of doing this. But we need to be constantly thinking, how do new people experience this meeting?

Plus #8: Never assume an 'in-house' meeting. Not with our lingo, not with our customs. We must always be explaining things as if your broader community were present.

What else are we missing?

[See TWax's original post here.]

Great Quote on Community & the Need for Church Planting

Over at Take Your Vitamin Z, great quotes continue to be highlighted from "Total Church: A Radical Reshaping around Gospel and Community ."

"Too often, however, churches are not contexts for making disciples so much as occasions for acknowledging relative strangers. Experience teaches that there is also an inverse ratio at work: the larger the group, the more inevitable is the superficiality of our relationships. Instead of churches growing beyond the point of being able to sustain meaningful life-on-life family relationships, an alternative (and maybe essential) strategy would be to begin new congregations through church planting. G. K. Chesterton said, “The man who lives in a small community lives in a much larger world. . . . The reason is obvious. In a large community we can choose our companions. In a small community our companions are chosen for us.”

"Community has been insightfully defined as the place where the person you least want to live with always lives! Responding to this, Philip Yancey says, “We often surround ourselves with the people we most want to live with, thus forming a club or clique, not a community. Anyone can form a club; it takes grace, shared vision, and hard work to form a community.” We might also add that it takes a miracle that only God himself can perform. But it is in such a community that disciples are made. To be a community of light from which the light of Christ will emanate we need to be intentional in our relationships—to love the unlovely, forgive the unforgivable, embrace the repulsive, include the awkward, accept the weird. It is in contexts such as these that sinners are transformed into disciples who obey everything King Jesus has commanded."

- Tim Chester and Steve Timmis, p. 113.

I'm going to order this book soon.

Video Sketch: I am a Family Man

This video is simply cool. It's a series of sketches set to the tune, "I am a Family Man."



Life is sweet. God is good.

[HT: Between Two Worlds]