Below, in no certain order are 10 Great Organizations where people are truly seeking to help people far from God become fully devoted followers of Christ. I am honored and blessed by the hundreds of people leading and serving in these organizations.
When my daughter was about 3 years old she was singing Frosty around Christmas time.
“Frooooosty, the snowman . . . “
She couldn’t remember the next line, so she sang it again, then added what she thought it said.
“Frooooosty, the snowman . . . was a very sorry soul!”
Servianity is when we serve in order to make ourselves feel better, to relieve guilt, or claim to be serving someone for their sake but never ask what that person really and truly needs from us; service for our own glory rather than for the glory of God.
Eugene Peterson
From Eugene Peterson‘s Living the Message
It is both natural and appropriate to be excited about a person’s conversion. It is the most significant event in life–to be born anew, to be a new creature in Christ. But that significance and the excitement accompanying it do not excuse ignorance and indifference to the complex process of growth into which every Christian is launched via this new birth. Because growth involves so much–so much detail, so much time, so much discipline and patience–it is common to dismiss it and turn over attention to something we can get a quick handle on; the conversion event. Evangelism crowds spirituality off the agenda. But having babies is not a vocation; parenting is. It is easier, of course, to have babies. But a church that refuses or neglects the long, intricate, hard work of guiding its newborn creatures into adulthood is being negligent of most of what is in Scripture.
You’ve had a tast of God. Now, like infants at the breast, drink deep of God’s pure kindness. Then you’ll grow up mature and whole in God.1 Peter 2:2
The Kibo Group is a group of Americans and Africans seeking local and sustainable solutions that wrestle with issues of poverty and injustice in East Africa. We partner with communities on development projects, such as planting trees, digging water wells, and building fuel-efficient stoves.
We enjoyed having Bobby and Candice Garner with us at Garnett once again. Thanks to everyone who helped raise funds for Kibo, including the “One More Well Project” and Ken Hager and Chuck Pearson. To hear Bobby speak about Kibo click here.
Here is the link to a news piece done by Bobby Cox about Garnett Church of Christ and Connection Church partnering on children’s ministry and welcoming each other to worship together. We are learning from one another and fellowshipping together with great joy, but it also takes lots of effort and intentionality. Most of all it takes surrender to God through prayer and fasting. Both our churches are this week praying and fasting in different ways. Oct 9 is the Grand Opening of Connection Church.
One Traditional, One Modern, Two Tulsa Churches Come Together – NewsOn6.com.
Saw this truck on 169 in Tulsa, Oklahoma with the intended warning, "Not *Responsible* for Broken Windshields" but it read, "Not Reasonable for Broken Windshields." The photo is taken through a cracked windshield (not from said truck).
from left, Anna, Jacob, Christina at the "Escape from Turkey Mountain" in Tulsa
Soccer is a great sport. See this guy having fun?
While some sleep off Friday Night Football, the soccer and cross country kids and parents awake and head out for matches and meets. That’s what we’re doing this morning. My sister, TT, is here with us and will go with us to Jacob’s cross country meet then to Anna’s soccer game.
Chris Erdman's Countdown to Sunday is not a book that is incredibly attractive by looking at the cover, looks gimmicky, and the excellent content does not match the airport time-management self-help looking cover. So if you are a preacher or aspiring to be one and you've seen Erdman's book, and written it off, pick it up. You'll be glad you did.
I like Chris Erdman’s surprisingly good book, Countdown to Sunday. The chapters are short, reflective, punchy, practical, and sock you in the gut when you are not least expecting it.
Today this encourages me:
Here’s why trying to be good or thinking you are good is no good for the preacher. When you’re trying to be good, you spin off mental and spiritual energy that you need to rightly handle the Word. You split your energies between preaching the Word and evaluating how you’re doing at preaching. When you’re preaching you must inhabit the moment as fully as possible. You cannot afford to split yourself. When you do, something becomes false, rings hollow . . . When you try to be good, you are not good. You may be good in that veneer sense of being good that tricks only the undiscerning, but your drive to be good means that your gifts and personhood (which are part and parcel of the way God wills to reveal the Word in our world) get all gummed up–they can’t work well at all because you are constantly worrying and evaluating and fretting, instead of living free, released to live in this moment, just this moment, asking only, “Lord, what’
