The Parenting Challenges of Boys!

Amazing Grace

I think this movie has a lot of potential to change people's hearts. Can you imagine the conversations it can spark?

Catching Up on Reading

Several recommended columns and essays:

Harry Jackson advocates more Christian mission work -- helping the poor with practical economic, health, and environmental problems in the name of Jesus -- as a means of combating Islamic terrorism.

Ken Conner points out that we are still in a battle against atheism (and its horrible fallout). We have fought successfully against it in the past, and need to continue.

Dinesh D'Souza continues to hammer away ("facts are stubborn things") that there are two clashes of civilization -- one within the West, and one within the Muslim world.

Ways to Maintain a Healthy Level of Insanity

From Mark Batterson's blog:

1. At Lunch Time, Sit In Your Parked Car With Sunglasses on and point A Hair Dryer At Passing Cars. See If They Slow Down.
2. Page Yourself Over The Intercom. Don't Disguise Your Voice.
3. Every Time Someone Asks You To Do Something, Ask If They Want Fries with that.
4. Put Your Garbage Can On Your Desk And Label It "In."
5. Put Decaf In The Coffee Maker For 3 Weeks . Once Everyone has Gotten Over Their Caffeine Addictions, Switch to Espresso.
6. Finish All Your sentences with "In Accordance With The Prophecy."
7. As Often As Possible, Skip Rather Than Walk.
8. Order a Diet Water whenever you go out to eat, with a serious face.
9. Specify That Your Drive-through Order Is "To Go."
10. Sing Along At The Opera.
11. Five Days In Advance, Tell Your Friends You Can't Attend Their Party Because You're Not In The Mood.
12. Have Your Co-workers Address You By Your Wrestling Name, Rock Bottom.
13. When The Money Comes Out The ATM, Scream "I Won!, I Won!"

Self-Esteem Is a By-Product of Competence, Not a Precursor

“You can tell a lot about an educational system by its vocabulary. When Calvinistic terms like grace and works are replaced by educantisms like self-esteem, you know the system’s in trouble. Or is even to think on grace and works now considered a violation of the separation of church and state? The mere mention of a religious idea in public has been known to make some of our more advanced thinkers break out in hives and litigation. As for those of us inclined to sneak a biblical allusion into our prose now and then, we need not fear; our ‘educated’ classes may no longer recognize it. The theory behind the Cult of Self-Esteem is simple: First get the cart, then put it before the horse. Just feel good about yourself and achievement will follow automatically. It would be too much to call this approach instant gratification; it’s really more like pre-gratification... Want to build real self-esteem, the kind that is the fruit of self-respect and not just an inadequate substitute for it? Expect, even insist on, competence. Don’t pretend it’s there when it isn’t. If that sounds too hard, that’s the catch with self-respect—it has to be earned. Self-esteem, on the other hand, costs little or nothing. And it’s worth just what you pay for it.” —Paul Greenberg

Great Quote

“Any fool can criticize, condemn and complain and most fools do.” —Benjamin Franklin

Expect Unbelieving People to ...

John Lehmberg give us good counsel in this MMI post:

"If I could teach Christian people one thing in life it would be this….

Expect unbelieving people to do unbelieving kinds of things.

The only reason for people to behave morally in our world, when it comes down to it, is because of Jesus inside them. Absent of Jesus, people will continue to sin.

It’s high time that we begin to expect these kinds of things from folks who don’t know Jesus and follow their sinful nature. They don’t know any better because Jesus is not in them. I would hope that seeing unbelieving people in this plight where they are living by their flesh would begin to well up in us compassion for those people, and love, instead of judgment and critique from us.

I think that if our world began to demonstrate compassion and love for those folks, they might actually want to return to Church, where they could find the love of Jesus…. "

Defining Work

Amy Scott shares this insightful observation:

"Things aren't work unless you'd rather be doing something else."

Physicists, of course, define work as moving mass, which is true no matter which mass you are moving or why. But Mrs. Scott's definition fits the human heart well, and reinforces what I believe about our coming experience in heaven -- there will be work for us to do, but we won't call it that.

Curing Souls

Eugene Peterson writes eloquently about recovering the pastoral work of curing souls, which has largely been swamped with our expectations that pastors run churches. This will warm your heart as you see the essential right-ness of it.

5 Big Questions About Health Care

Health care, and who/how it is paid for, is a complicated issue -- there are multiple questions to answer, the complexities of human behavior, and multiple stakeholders? Let's not be left to the sound-bite solutions of the political left or right, because those solutions as described do not address all the questions, nor

I really appreciated the approach Arnold Kling used in this article. He lists these five questions for health care reformers:

1. What will we do about the large projected deficit in Medicare?
2. What can we do to reduce government subsidies for extravagant use of medical procedures with high costs and low benefits?
3. What should we do about the health care needs of the very poor?
4. What should we do about the health care needs of the very sick?
5. What should we do about a scenario in which both income inequality and the share of average income devoted to health care rise sharply?

And then he works through some political, economic, and behavioral dimensions. He outlines things systematically, using good questions to guide his thinking along the way. (You don't have to agree with his conclusions, by the way, to learn a lot about how to think through a complicated problem.)

Read the whole article here. Recommended.

"Just Show Up"

John Stanford gives us good counsel in his recent AO post:

We heard a phrase recently that Win has been using: "Just show up". For example, one day I was to meet with someone over a difficult issue. I didn't know what I would say or how to handle the situation.

Win encouraged me by saying, "Just show up!" She pointed out that itwas God's business and that He would be working. I prayed for myselfand my friend, and then went in a relaxed mood, anticipating that the Holy Spirit would be in charge.

The results of encounters like this don't depend on my somehow saying the right words or acting in the right manner. It is the Holy Spirit, not me, helping the person and/or situation, working for good and giving wisdom.

Thank You, Lord, for this freeing thought, that serving and helping others depends on _Your_ presence, power, working as I "just show up".
John
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(c) 2007 J.L. StanfordJohn Stanford (stanford@iastate.edu), Pete Boysen(pboysen@iastate.edu)
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The Problem with Celebrity

The Grammy Awards were passed out last night, so there is lots of celebrity news coverage this morning -- Dixie Chics this, Justin Timberlake that, and so on. And if you look at news reports and blogs covering various gatherings of preachers and Christian writers, you see a pattern of men and women using celebrity as a platform to speak to the issues of the day.

There is a fundamental problem with confusing celebrity and moral authority. Celebrity can come from recognized skill, lucky circumstances, heroic deeds, eloquent speech, even sinful notoriety. Moral authority comes from connection with Christ, and long shaping of character, with full awareness of of our natural depravity. If you want a blunter comparison: moral authority only comes through confession and repentance, but you can be quite a celebrity just by admitting sin without repenting of it.

"This is the one I esteem: he who is humble and contrite in spirit, and trembles at my word." (Isaiah 66:2)

Let's lead our families to understand whom is worth listening to.

How Do YOU Pray in the Morning?

Here's a wonderful story -- Eugene Peterson praying Luke 1:68-79 each morning. Don't miss the beauty of this example. Let's think, men, about how we can take our own prayer lives to the next stage.

Valentine's Day -- Special Message to Wives

Hey, I know there are several wives who read this blog periodically, so I have special message just for you. Help your man out with ideas for gifts! He can add a surprise gift in addition.

Valentine's Day Coming Up

Guys, don't put off planning for the big day next week!

And this top ten list (original source) feels a little too real for comfort.

Top 10 Ways to know your wife didn't like your Valentine's gift:

She accidentally backs over it with the car...twice.
The next time you see it is in your garage sale.
She goes upstairs to try it on and never comes back.
She calls her sister to talk about it...and you.
She opens it and says, "Seriously, where is my real gift."
The next morning you find it out by the curb with a big FREE sign next to it.
She opens it and says, "I wonder if this will sell on Ebay?"
For the next 25 years, she refers to the gift as the year you blew it.
She breaks into hives.
She says after opening it, "You're kidding, right?

Great Quote

"God uses tragedies teaches us to fear the right things."
Pastor Kent Wagner

Guide to Digital Outreach

Here's a nice starter guide if you are interested in ministry outreach via blogs, website, or podcasts.

I firmly believe that God leverages the content He creates through us for broad ministry potential over space and time. These technologies expand greatly on the written word for ministering at a distance, or over years.

Sorry for My Absence

Folk, sorry I haven't been posting recently. I traveled to my grandmother's funeral -- she's Home now after 91 spunky years in the Lord's service. Since then I've been battling the stomach flu. I'll get back to regular postings soon.

John Stott Interview

I recommend this intriguing interview with John Stott. He has some excellent insights into the evangelical church today, biblical preaching, and pride. Stott's book "Basic Christianity" was very helpful for me as a new adult believer.

Catching Up on Reading

Traveled yesterday by plane, which gave me a chance to catch up on some reading. Recommended information:

Chuck Colson reminds us that the 200th anniversary of British abolition of slavery is coming in March -- but an estimated 27 million people are still in slavery today.

Dennis Prager writes intelligently about judging religions. "I don't judge religions; I judge practitioners."

Nathan Smith points out that there is a political and operative difference between absolute poverty and relative poverty. Government efforts to help the truly poor and helpless (e.g., wipe out malaria) are altogether different than government program designed to reduce the relative gap between those who have more and those who have less (raise the minimum wage).

You Mean That's Not True?

Dinesh D'Souza points out that some commonly accepted "facts" aren't true:

We did not provide weapons to Saddam Hussein or Osama Bin Laden.
The Sunni - Shia conflict is not about religious differences.

Read the whole article here.

Whose Side Are You On?

"The devil doesn't need an advocate. The brave need supporters, not critics." -- Seth Godin

Two Measuring Systems

I listened to the SOTU speech last night, and the Democratic response by James Webb. Webb acknowledged that by many measures the US economy is very strong. Then he simply stated that his party has other ways of measuring economic strength. (The first measure he listed was the ratio of CEO to worker pay.)

Many political divides can be characterized by different measuring systems.

If you think about Iraq as an war the US launched in one country four years ago, and measure success by absence of US-killing conflict inside that country, then it's unlikely that we will succeed soon.

If you consider the conflicts on the ground in Iraq as part of a much larger, much longer war that we did not begin, but was thrust upon us even before 9-11, an asymmetric war against ideologues whose passionate hatred of the Judeo-Christian values we hold (and the smutty culture we promulgate), then the war in Iraq looks different.

[I hold to the latter view. I think we should learn enough from history (ancient and recent) to know that it's only a question of where and when you want to fight this evil.]

Consider other political divides. Abortion. First Amendment issues. Taxation. Regulations. Responbilities of parents, and schools.

Different measuring systems are used. So the key to engaging in productive dialogue is to help one another understand those measuring systems.

There's another key -- realize that actions and inactions have consequences. Play chess, think more than one move ahead, and remember that we have many, many historical examples to consider.

Swedish Maxim

"There is no bad weather, just bad clothing." -- Hat tip to Seth Godin

It is amazing how with the right clothing, you can be comfortable in some challenging situations -- snow, rain, under water, outer space.

Now meditate on this:

"You are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus, for all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ." -- Hat tip to Paul

Listen to the Navigators

A friend pointed me to the Discipleship Library, a nice audio resource from The Navigators -- you can listen to quite a few talks there from some excellent teachers and leaders.

Dealing with Sexual Failure

John Piper has an outstanding message you need to read today: "How to Deal with the Guilt of Sexual Failure for the Glory of Christ and His Global Cause"

"The great tragedy is not mainly masturbation or fornication or acting like a peeping Tom (or curious Cathy) on the internet. The tragedy is that Satan uses the guilt of these failures to strip you of every radical dream you ever had, or might have, and in its place give you a happy, safe, secure, American life of superficial pleasures until you die in your lakeside rocking chair, wrinkled and useless, leaving a big fat inheritance to your middle-aged children to confirm them in their worldliness.

"1) Theology can conquer biology. Or another way to say it more specifically: Justification can conquer fornication.
2) Trust Christ to the hilt with gutsy guilt."

Read it, and fight on.

Christian "Left" and "Right"

Kevin McCullough has some stern words for the leaders of the so-called Christian Left.

I think he has a good point with this statement: "There is a divide between liberals and conservatives over the relief of poverty, the easing of suffering, and setting the enslaved free. The divide is not the substance however, but rather the methods."

He also speaks to issues of homosexuality and abortion. There is a greater divide on those issues, because there are few "methods" questions to discuss.

I lean in the conservative direction (probably not a surprise to readers of this blog). Part of this is because of the track-record of government vs. private initiatives. The evidence, I believe, is overwhelmingly in favor of private initiatives, except for the constitutionally-mandated "common defense" government spending.

Is Your Church or Favorite Christian Group a Lobbyist That Needs Regulation?

This is alarming information about the proposed Lobbying Reform Bill. Anyone have confirmatory information?

It's Just a Question of WHERE the Fighting Will Occur

David Strom argues that there are two perspectives on the war in Iraq:

"One group looks at the war as being primarily about who rules Iraq. We went to war to evict Saddam Hussein, we stayed in Iraq primarily to replace Hussein with a friendly Democratic regime, and should stay or go largely based upon the probability of success and a judgment about how much we are or should be willing to pay in lives and treasure for that outcome.

"The other group looks at the war in Iraq as not being primarily about who rules Iraq, but instead as the primary battlefront in the so-called “war on terror,” or as I would prefer to call it the war on Islamic fascism. In this view, successfully replacing Saddam Hussein’s tyrannical regime with a Western-leaning Democracy would be a huge blow to Islamic fascist movement, but ultimately winning the “war” in Iraq should rightly be seen as an important step in winning the larger conflict, not as an end in itself."

And here's the best statement in the column: "...Americans do not really have the power to choose war or peace with Islamic fascism; the war has been declared and is going on as we speak. Choosing to leave Iraq will only change where the war is fought, not whether there will be fighting."

Read the whole thing here.

Is Your Intuition Trustworthy?

"How do the two tables compare in size and shape? If you're like most people, the table on the right appears to be more of a square than the one on the left, which looks longer and skinnier. Why bother taking out a ruler to measure the dimensions, since the difference is obvious?

If this is what you think, you're wrong. Your intuition has failed you, as it fails most people who look at this diagram. If you don't believe us, trace the top of either table on a piece of paper. Now line up your tracing over the other table. As you will see, the two surfaces are identical in size and shape!" (Source)

There are natural limits to the human visual interpretation system. We need this kind of humbling to remind us that we may not always be able to trust what we see, and often interpret events incorrectly the first time. And it should help us have grace and peace with one another, understanding that they, too, have limited capabilities to interpret accurately my words, actions, and intentions.

Thought Experiments

Here is a nice thought experiment about the modern nation of Israel. If you could miraculously transplant the people of Israel to New Mexico, what would be the conditions in 10 years. The author correctly extrapolates from recent history -- New Mexico would boom with economic and technical success, and have a low crime rate. The original territory of Israel, however, would likely descend into madness and decay.

It's a product of the mindsets of the people involved.

Understanding Islam, and the Enemy

The WSJ published an excellent article by Peter Wehner outlining the history of Shia and Sunni groups in Islam, and the terrorist groups spawned from them. It's helpful to see how little these groups are interested in national boundaries.

Honor One Another

Our pastor preached out of Romans 12 yesterday, and I wanted to pass along a useful idea.

Many men are competitive. The picture of the Christian life in Romans is that I don't have to compete with others. I can be content with the work Christ is doing in my life, and genuinely happy to be with others without comparing myself to them.

If we want to compete, let's compete on this command: "Honor one another above yourselves."
(Rom 12:10b)

Puzzle or Mystery?

Being a strong Christian leader means developing good thinking skills. (I firmly believe that Christians should be the best thinkers on the planet.)

So I recommend the "Open Secrets" article to you. Malcom Gladwell (of Blink and Tipping Point fame) looks at the Enron case and some WWII intelligence history to help us distinguish puzzles from mysteries.

Puzzles are solved when you get all the pieces. Puzzles -- like the location of Usama bin Laden -- are solvable when you get critical pieces of information and see how they fit together.

Mysteries -- like the Enron financial collapse -- are situations when all the facts are actually in plain sight (years of SEC filings, and company officials giving loads of interviews about what they were doing), but people fail to interpret the facts or make actionable information out of them.

Very readable, good points. Recommended.

Wrapping up 2006

Doug Phillips gives us three important things to do to wrap up 2006:

1. Outline and chronicle the many providences of God
2. Say ‘Thank You’ to Those Who Have Invested in Your Life
3. Forgive those who have wronged you

"Life moves fast. If we don’t take the time to chronicle the providences of God, we forget them. If we don’t take the time to say thank you to those who have invested in our lives, we actually cultivate a spirit of ingratitude in our own hearts. If we don’t stop and make sure that we have a spirit of forgiveness towards others we grow bitter, we lose the capacity to move victoriously into the future, and our prayers are hindered."

You can read the full column.

"We are Legion"

Mark Batterson writes one of the best "I'm going to really focus this year" columns I've ever seen. It's less than 1 page. He has a very helpful insight: "Busyness is laziness."

Read it.

Bible Teaching blog

For those of you who teach the Bible -- in any setting -- check out my other blog, Teach to Change Lives.

The Bible is at the Center of the Culture War

Dennis Prager nails it: the Bible is at the center the culture war. He has a useful insight as well -- we speak of Judeo-Christian values (not theology) because it is the values that are determined by conviction of the divine truth of the Pentateuch. Read the whole column here.

"Reaching the Disconnected Male"

Check out this good article about setting (or improving) your outreach efforts for men.

For several years now I have been asking God for 500 men within sight of our hilltop church building -- knowing their families will follow -- to come under the discipleship of Jesus.

Happy New Year!

Milestones and rhythms seem terribly important to us. You feel this tangibly as you move into situations where there aren't the patterns you expect. I suspect, but cannot prove, that this need for rhythm is part of our makeup.

Certainly we look forward to a new year, a fresh start, and blessed hope of bright futures. Let's keep on following Jesus, men!

Rejoice With Me!

20 years ago today, under a tree on the campus at Northwestern University, Cathy said "Yes!" when I asked her to marry me. I am a blessed man. God is so good!

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

I'm going to be enjoying the Christmas week with my family, and not blogging. So we'll see you again in 2007.

Be bold, be gentle!

What Do We Worship?

Cal Thomas points out that for many people in America, politics has become religion.

Reading this, I'm reminded of the elevated state of politics in Rome (and other empires) before they collapsed. This is a correlated factor, not a causation, but we should see it as a key symptom of spiritual problems.

Sobering Statistic

1 in 32 people in America are monitored in the criminal justice system -- in prison, on parole, etc. See this Prison Fellowship article for more about sharing the Gospel with this huge group of people.

Comparing Perspectives

Francis Chan suggests a good thought experiment: Imagine that someone interviews your friends and relatives and coworkers and asks what they see in you. Then that same interviewer contacts God and asks what He sees in you.

What's the comparison?

This is a good way to assess how much we're hiding from people, and the congruence of our inner and public lives.

Christian Worldview and Pacifism

I occasionally get drawn into discussions about whether Christians should participate in or support military action. There's a lot of shallow thinking today about pacifism. If this topic interests you, check out this article. You don't have to agree with everything, but this is a good example of someone diligently working through facets of a big issue.

I am not a pacifist, just so you know. I do not think violence is a first solution, but there are times when protecting innocent lives requires it. Let's consider a personal level. If some man is beating on my daughter, and doesn't stop when I ask, then as a father I need to step in and remove him to protect my daughter. I will use whatever force is needed to stop his action.

On a national level, in this fallen world, sometimes war is the only means of stopping evil. I am not arguing that all wars are ok, or that wars begun for noble purposes always remain noble, or that individual actions in the midst of wars are excused.

What happens after the war is also critical. I sat next to an elderly Japanese man on a plane trip once. He had been a teenager during WWII, and expected to die defending against a US invasion of Japan. He told me that the forgiveness of the Americans after the war, and their willingness to help rebuild, shocked his family to the core. This was so unexpected of a "conqueror."

Post # 1005

I just noticed that I passed 1000 posts to this blog. This reminds me how much we underestimate what we can do over a period of time!

Looking for Good Men's Ministry Books?

The Man Church has a great compilation of books on masculine Christianity. Check it out.

Did Jesus Have Bad PR?

I recently gave a Christmas devotion for the seniors group at our church. I tried to help people think about the terrible public relations job around the birth of the Messiah. From a human perspective, this was a PR disaster! Listen to it here.

Leveraging into Prayer

For years I've struggled against rage, anger, and bitterness. Oh most people who know me would probably be suprised by that statement, but I assure you it's true.

Strong emotions like anger arise naturally when we experience a gap between what is and what we think/know should be. Or could be. I believe anger is a God-granted emotion designed to motivate us into action.

So things happen, or don't happen, especially in family life, that are just not in line with what I think should be. And since the friction of sin making life in community hard isn't going to evaporate this side of heavenly glory, I need a strategy to help me operate constructively and wisely when anger surges.

I've been training myself to jump from the first feelings of anger into prayer. I short-circuit the positive-feedback loop that leads me into sin by shifting a significant amount of energy into conversation with my Master, Teacher, Savior, Friend, and Lord.

I have a low success rate to date, but I am persisting.

Hey, I'm the Person of the Year!

According to Time Magazine, bloggers and others contributing to the content of the web are the Person of the Year for 2006. Wow! I'm honored :-)

Would You Like That in Mauve or Taupe?

Bible publishers are doing a booming business as they repackage the Bible into a astounding array of formats, covers, and colors. And sales are up! There is a tremendous consumer hunger for the Bible -- that's good news. We're so affluent that you can get a Bible that fits the image you want to project to others. (Reminds me of ladies shoes.)

Soon you'll be able to get a Bible for your ipod -- more good news for those who are ipod-centric.

One part of my brain is celebrating the proliferation of Bibles. Making it interesting and accessible to more people should be a good thing.

Another part of my brain is concerned that we pay more attention to format and show than to absorbing the content. Let us be careful to avoid feeling good about a Bible format, but denying its power. (See 2 Tim 3:1-5)


P.S. To consider for Christmas giving: support the Wycliffe Bible translation ministries. There are over 6000 languages in the world, and over 5000 do not have the complete Bible translated.

Focus!

I'm a guy with an easily fractured span of attention living in a culture that rewards short attention spans. We've got a gazillion distractions coming at us (as if we needed them -- most of our focus problem is OUR problem -- I'd have the same problem, really, if I were by myself in an empty quiet room.)

The solution is to train our minds to focus. To be truly present with an issue, a person, an experience. I have a lot of learn in this area.

Check out this short article for some helps getting started.

Seeing the Many Opportunities for Prayer

I love this story about a man who prays for lots of people, looking for opportunities all the time. What a model for us, men!

Good words from Psalm 139:23-24

Investigate my life, O God,
find out everything about me;
Cross-examine and test me,
get a clear picture of what I'm about;
See for yourself whether I've done anything wrong—
then guide me on the road to eternal life.
(The Message Translation)

The Cambridge Declaration

My friend Kevin Nelstead points us to the Cambridge Declaration -- excellent work on the centrality of the Gospel, biblical inerrancy, and stewardship of the earth.

Clear thinking takes work. But it's worth it.

Thinking about Joseph's Righteousness

John Ortberg has a wonderful essay about Joseph's righteousness, and his decision to sacrifice his reputation to take Mary to be his wife. Recommended. We don't have a single recorded word of Joseph in the Bible, but he is a rich example for us to study.

Computers Enable People to Live Forever?

Ray Kurzweil is a very smart man, and has written extensively about his confidence that computers and medical technology (e.g., nanobots that will repair human tissue) will effectively allow humans to live forever. See this blog post for a good jumping off point on that theme.

A few thoughts on this idea:

1. This is a sad idea. Given the frustrations of life, and the grinding nature of sin in human relationships -- irrespective of the perfection of the human body and our thinking capacity -- I suspect such "eternal" life would be a Faustian bargain. There is no way these technologies address our fundamental problems of being.

2. This is an arrogant idea. There is a Creator, and He is sovereign over all our steps. One car accident, one tornado, one slippery kitchen floor... there are damages to the human body that cannot be overcome by technological repairs.

3. May our Lord save us from situations where we are tempted to sin because we have technological options that far outstrip our wisdom.

4. I can hear Thomas a Kempis speaking: "What good is it to live long if we do not live well?" (from The Imitation of the Christ)

5. We have not learned the lessons from the Tower of Babel. I'm certainly in favor of medical advances to help people. But we have a strong tendency to pursue these things because we want to become gods.

Hand-warmer

One of my delights is to be a greeter at our church. I stand outside one of the main doors, shaking hands with people, opening the doors, and escorting the older ladies who need an extra measure of honor and help. I pray for people as they come in. I pray for the people I don't see, too -- including those in the hundreds of homes that have been built around our church building in the past four years. I'm asking God for 500 men.

Yesterday we had a vistor from another church, a man who also greets and loves it. "I call myself a hand-warmer," he told me. "Everyone needs a warm hand in the morning."

I like the title. It fits. Hand-warmer.

Is Your View of God Big Enough?

Here's a fun joke sent to me by a friend:

The children were lined up in the cafeteria of a Catholic elementary school for
lunch. At the head of the table was a large pile of apples.The nun made a note,
and posted on the apple tray, "Take only one. God is watching."Moving further
along the lunch line, at the other end of the table was a large pile of
chocolate chip cookies.A child had written a note, "Take all you want. God is
watching the apples."

Made me wonder -- in what ways do I need to enlarge my view of God?

Be a Lion Chaser, Not a Scaredy-Cat

I highly recommend Mark Batterson's book, In the Pit With a Lion On a Snowy Day. He begins with the story of Beneniah, who chased a lion into a pit and killed it, then later became the leader of King David's bodyguard. Meaty, readable, thought-provoking, funny -- get it, read it, grow.

What Are You Filling Your Life With?

Like many of you, I struggle to enjoy family relationships as much as I know I should. So I was humbled to read this short article from a home-schooling mom who is intentional about caring for souls in her home.

A few excerpts:

"Everyone fills their lives. The question is, what will we fill it with? When most people consider simplifying their lives for the better, the first thing they restrict are the children. Children make noise, cost money, and wake in the middle of the night. They are hard work if you are going to raise them right. Yet I can think of no sweeter means to enjoy the simple, good things in life than alongside God’s gift of children.

Children are not the obstacles that keep us from enjoying the good life, so long as your definition of good things is not material. It takes careful thought to live simply, to nurture good character that will stand against a consumer-driven culture. I want our children to look back on their childhoods and remember family reading times that lasted too late and bowls of cherries that sat on the kitchen countertop. As I think through the things that fill our lives, I aim to purge the clutter and embrace the things that matter, especially the eternal souls in my care. "

Disturbing Decision by the Church of England

The Church of England is now saying it's ok to allow "severely deformed" babies to die by withholding treatment.

There's a whole run of rational arguments they offer, but I don't see any Scriptural support.

Check out this article for the full story.

Prayer Guide

John Piper compiles a list of what to pray for -- using your wartime walkie-talkie. Great resource, highly recommended!

Mayflower Compact

On this day in 1620 our forebears signed one of the most important documents in American history.

"IN THE name of God, Amen.
We whose names are underwritten, the loyal subjects of our dread sovereign Lord, King James, by the grace of God, of Great Britain, France and Ireland king, defender of the faith, etc., having undertaken, for the glory of God, and advancement of the Christian faith, and honor of our king and country, a voyage to plant the first colony in the Northern parts of Virginia, do by these presents solemnly and mutually in the presence of God, and one of another, covenant and combine ourselves together into a civil body politic, for our better ordering and preservation and furtherance of the ends aforesaid; and by virtue hereof to enact, constitute, and frame such just and equal laws, ordinances, acts, constitutions, and offices, from time to time, as shall be thought most meet and convenient for the general good of the colony, unto which we promise all due submission and obedience.
In witness whereof we have hereunder subscribed our names at Cape-Cod the 11 of November, in the year of the reign of our sovereign lord, King James, of England, France, and Ireland the eighteenth, and of Scotland the fifty-fourth. Anno Domine 1620."

What Would Jesus Tax?

There's a good bit of controversy between Christians about economic issues -- often boiled down into overly simplistic viewpoints of

Jesus wants us to help the poor, not the rich, so we should tax the rich and give to the poor!

Or

Jesus loves capitalists because capitalism is freedom!

Guys, it just isn't this simple. If it was, I think we'd have more specific economic direction (I mean specific macroeconomic direction that the Treasury Department should use) in the Gospels.

I appreciated this article because the author tries to work through some of the complexity.

US Elections

Most of the candidates I voted for in Iowa did not get elected. And most of the candidates I would have supported across the country did not get elected.

This was not a surprise.

Pundits and pollsters will spend days and weeks gloating, bemoaning, and interpreting the results. We also do, driven by an almost compulsive need to understand complicated systems in simplistic, linear terms.

But while disappointed I am celebrating, too. I'm very grateful to live in a free country, where I have so many civic privileges, even if this world is not my home. And I have a new list of leaders to pray for.

Quote of the Week

Kevin Nelstead points us to this one:

"People do not drift toward holiness. Apart from grace-driven effort, people do not gravitate toward godliness, prayer, obedience to Scripture, faith, and delight in the Lord. We drift toward compromise and call it tolerance; we drift toward disobedience and call it freedom; we drift toward superstition and call it faith. We cherish the indiscipline of lost self-control and call it relaxation; we slouch toward prayerlessness and delude ourselves into thinking we have escaped legalism; we slide toward godlessness and convince ourselves we have been liberated."
D. A. Carson, For the Love of God

Ministry Burnout? Run with Jesus Instead

Hey, if you're feeling a lot of burdens in your ministry, check out what I wrote to teachers on my other blog, Teach to Change Lives. This truth applies for whatever ministry work God has called you to, men -- including our husband and father roles.

Two Good Articles on Climate Change

I really appreciate the detail and approach in Climate Non-Conformity and Stern Review. The Nicholas Stern report from the UK got a lot of media attention -- not surprising given it's conclusions -- and so it's helpful to get some additonal facts and analysis about Stern's analysis and methods.

How to Be Spiritually-Minded

John Piper gives us excellent counsel about turning our minds toward God.

Santorum Speech Worth Reading

I'm not a Pennsylvanian, but I was impressed reading through this speech by Rick Santorum. I think he clearly "gets" that we're at war.

Coarseness of Speech

Words mean things. It has bugged me for years now to hear kids say, "That's so gay!" when they aren't referring to it being happy or homosexual. And now I hear adults saying it! Grrrrr. Political leftists co-opt the word liberal and anarchists trying to pitch themselves as progressives.

Leaders bear an extra responsibility for using words well. In today's world a man who doesn't use coarse words is the man who stands out for Jesus and respecting others.

Randy Ehle gives us good advice about our words.

The M Word

We have a lot of euphemisms and excuses and rationalizations on this topic -- guys, I encourage you to read Perry Noble's counsel.

I'm a Day Late!

Yesterday was a day to celebrate, but I missed it. Martin Luther nailed his 95 Theses to the church door in Wittenberg on October 31st, 1517.

I've always wondered what he was thinking about when he did that. I'm sure he didn't appreciate at the time where it would all lead to, for the Church or for him personally.

European Demographics

My friend Kevin Nelstead shares some interesting data on European demographics. I really appreciated this insight:

"Europe needs to be re-evangelized, or there could be a repeat of what happened in Asia Minor. The land to which Ephesians, Colossians, and Galatians were written (Turkey) is now 99% moslem. Don’t let the same thing happen to Europe."

Lions Everywhere

Leaders make the difference. Philip of Macedonia, the father of Alexander the Great, said this:

"An army of deer led by a lion is more to be feared than an army of lions led by a deer. An army of lions led by a lion is to be feared most of all, for it is unstoppable."

I'm going to follow the Lion of Judah. May we be lions, too!

Become a Man of Low Resistance

I'm not very good at fixing electrical devices or circuits. For years if I needed to fix something wired into the house my first thought was to turn off the master breaker. I had to call one of my friends, a professional electrician, to come over and help me figure out how to set up two lights in our basement. (I had wired two shorts in the circuit, so kept blowing the breaker.)

Resistance is a molecular property of materials. If electrical current flows freely through a material (e.g., copper), it has low resistance and is a good conductor. If electrical current cannot flow (e.g., ceramics) the material is an insulator. We exploit the properties of some metals that conduct electricity poorly to make space heaters and toasters -- high resistance creates HEAT. (See this nice left-brain description of resistance.)

God has transformed us from insulators to conductors by giving us a heart of flesh and making us conductive (receptive) to His Spirit. But in our stubbornness we often resist the flow of the
Spirit and the work of God in our lives, and that creates needless HEAT. Not passion for the Lord, nor passion to see His kingdom grow, nor love for those who do not love you back, nor zeal of any value -- but strife and discourse, anger and resentment, bitterness and jealousy, pettiness and selfishness.

May the Lord help us become men of low resistance, and little heat.

Weather Stone

There was a weather stone like this at a Boy Scout camp I went to regularly in the 70's. One of the Scoutmasters there used it as a way of reminding us that we need to pay attention to what's happening here and now.

Dead Cat Humor

I don't hate cats, but I thought this was pretty funny.

New Jersey Supremes Require Same-Sex Marriage

I'm a little suprised there isn't more news out about the New Jersey Supreme Court decision that forces the state to recognize same-sex marriages.

This article from First Things was one of the more useful analyses of this event.

Cultures throughout history have moved from treating homosexuality and sexual deviancy as an abomination to tolerating, and then exalting it. They have all ended in destruction. I'm not suggesting this is the only reason why. But I think it's an important lagging indicator of a society that will not thrive.

"Get Your Eyes In The Right Place!"

Men, we're visual creatures. We think in images, we love images, we lust after images.

We're wired for worship. We were created to worship.

So it's natural that in our flesh we're going to worship what we focus on.

I've told my kids that they are the first generation that couldn't believe an image just because they saw it. With today's digital technology, your can't tell if it's real or manufactured. Until recently there were pretty good ways to detect fake pictures and images. No longer.

Men, you would think we'd be better at spotting Satan's efforts at fake images -- where love and satisfaction and peace and success are tied to airbrushed models, stuff, career, "lifestyle."

"Fix your eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of your faith." If we get our eyes in the right place, on King Jesus, we will know, and be known, and be content.

I want to go blind to the crud of the world because my eyes have been burned by the glory of Jesus. Then I'll see the world clearly, and people compassionately.

Sunday Morning Song

We have a Land & Hildebrand album, and I pull it out occasionally on Sunday mornings just to listen to this song with the kids.

Sunday Morning
Words and Music by C.W. Kalb, Jr.

Life in Soddy Daisy was all laid back and lazy.
Six days a week we lived in peace and angelic harmony.
But then one day in seven, when our eyes should turn to heaven,
We’d oversleep and wake knee-deep in pure hostility

Chorus:
And there was chaos, mayhem, panic, and disorder,
Even worse when we were cursed with not enough hot water.
We broke most of the most commandments and a host of heavenly warnings
Just tryin’ to get the family to church on Sunday mornin’s.

Well, don’t just lay there in that bed,
I’ll snatch evr’y hair out of your head.
Backtalk me and know I’m liable
To slap you with my Holy Bible.
No time to bathe, no time to eat,
Just comb your hair and brush your teeth.
We gotta get dressed in our Sunday best
To sing ‘Just As I Am.”

By the time we reached the service
We were frazzled, frayed, and nervous.
We squirmed and stewed there in that pew
Till the final prayer was prayed.
Then like bats out of Hades
We elbowed kids and old ladies,
Tryin’ to beat the Methodists
To the Holiday Inn buffet.

Chorus

I know we’re supposed to love one another
But I think I know why Cain slew his brother.
They only had one bathroom in the Garden of Eden,
Cain was late to Sunday School and Abel was in there readin’…

Chorus

How God Uses Flawed People

I loved this story, from preachingtoday.com. I share it because I am finding many people know their flaws and misunderstand how God can (and does) use them.

* * * *
A house servant had two large pots. One hung on each end of a pole that he carried across his neck. One of the pots had a crack in it. At the end of the long walk from the stream to the master's house, the cracked pot arrived only half full. The other pot was perfect and always delivered a full portion of water. For two years the servant delivered each day only one-and-a-half pots full of water to his master's house.

The perfect pot was proud of its accomplishments, but the poor cracked pot was ashamed of its own imperfection, and miserable over accomplishing only half of what it had been made to do.After two years of what it perceived to be bitter failure, the cracked pot spoke to the servant one day by the stream."I am ashamed of myself, and I want to apologize to you."

"What are you ashamed of?" asked the bearer.

"For these past two years I have been able to deliver only half my load because this crack in my side causes water to leak out all the way to your master's house. Because of my flaws, you don't get full value from your work."

The servant said, "As we return to the master's house, I want you to notice the beautiful flowers along the path." As they went up the hill, the cracked pot noticed the beautiful wild flowers on the side of the path. When they reached the house, the servant said to the pot, "Did you notice the flowers grew only on your side of the path, not on the other pot's side? That's because I have always known about your flaw, and I took advantage of it. I planted flower seeds on your side of the path, and every day while we walk back from the stream, you've watered them. For two years I have been able to pick beautiful flowers to decorate my master's table."

Reaching Out to Guys

Useful ideas here about reaching out to guys through movies, sports, hunting & fishing, cars, and sex.

Men need friends. Everything you can do to create environments where godly men can create friendships rooted in Christ builds massive anchors for families and communities. Individually men are toothpicks, easily shattered. But God's design is that we're toothpicks duct-taped together on a steel bar (Jesus).

Morning Prayer

"Father God, you are my great encourager! You give me everything I need, you are my rock, and your glorious Son Jesus sits at your right hand praying for me. What is your dream for me? What can I do (or not do) today that will make you smile at me, your adopted child? Who can I reach out today and encourage and bless, just as you have done for me?"

Here's a Man Calling Other Men to Rise Up!

Mark Batterson writes:

"Here's my New Year Manifesto:

Grab life by the mane. Quit living as if the purpose of life is to arrive safely at death. Set God-sized goals. Pursue God-ordained passions. Go after a dream that is destined to fail without divine intervention. Stop pointing out problems and become part of the solution. Stop criticizing and start creating. Stop playing it safe and start taking risks. Expand your horizons. Accumulate experiences. Consider the lilies. Find every excuse you can to celebrate everything you can. Don't let what's wrong with you keep you from worshipping what's right with God. Burn sinful bridges. Laugh at yourself. Keep making mistakes. Worry less about what people think and more about what God thinks. Don't try to be who you're not. Be yourself. Quit holding out. Quit holding back. Quit running away. And remember: if God is for us who can be against us?
Unleash the lion chaser within!"

Spiritual Constipation

Got your attention?

There is a very curious phenomenon where guys are "consuming" church and reading and listening and reading...but their service level (output) is pretty low. I'm not talking about a rhythm of ministry when a man has been working and serving, and then needs to take a Sabbath rest. I'm talking about the man who serves very little at any time.

If you eat and eat and eat, and nothing comes out the other end, you have constipation. It's painful. Your alimentary canal is not working as it was designed.

Spiritual constipation may not be immediately painful, but you will plateau in your spiritual growth. You're full up, and aren't going to be able to grow until you begin to act and use what you already have. I'm very impressed with the ministy described in Acts. People began their discipleship walk with Jesus -- including serving others -- with not a lot of experience or specific knowledge. They learned as they served.

Avoid constipation, guys. Assess what's going in (some of you may need to adjust that!) and what's going out.

Security vs. Freedom

I'm concerned about the systemic follow-through of our entitlement systems for health care and Social Security.

The facts are stark, even if there is debate about how many years we have before we're crushed in payment obligations we can't fund. I'm tremendously impressed with the strength and resiliency of the US economy (at least in the current world situation; China/India expansion can make some major impacts). But there are reasonable projections of taxes for entitlement payouts requiring being about 20-25% of the GDP!

Generally speaking, I'm in favor of privatizing health care rather than going with government-centric options. We've done the government experiement many times in history, and it has never turned out well. Many people argue that privatizing health care is unfair to the poor or that government (read: Someone Else) should be the sole payer.

So here is a helpful framework for thinking about this issue: Do we want security, or do we want freedom? Security is drawn toward the idea of entitlements and Someone Else paying for it. Freedom looks another way.

Rednecks!

Since I grew up in a holler in West Virginia, I tend to appreciate Jeff Foxworthy's humor. He says the definition of redneck is "the glorious absence of sophistication."

"You know you're a redneck if...

you have a set of salad bowls that say "cool whip" on the side!
you make change in the offering plate
fast food is hitting a deer at 65 mph
you have a race car on your prayer list
you stare at orange juice containers because they say "concentrate"
your mailbox is spelled male
your dad walks you to school cause you're in the same grade"

Marriage vs. Cohabitation

I'm disturbed by the common cultural acceptance of couples living together. Dennis Prager has a nice column arguing for the benefits of marriage from a secular perspective.

But just look at the words themselves for some insight.

Marriage comes to English from old French, most likely, and is always associated with joining, connecting, one-ness, and identified relationship.

Cohabitation means "being in the same space." You can cohabitate with dogs, ants, fleas, prisoners, or your weird brother-in-law Fred. There is nothing in the word meaning that implies a relationship at all!

Leading Ain't Always Easy

Leading is about doing the right things, not the easy things. I have this committee of voices in my mind, and half of them are whiners. I'm learning that as situations come up and I know what should be done, some of those committee voices will start saying, "But this isn't convenient!" or "That's too hard, and you're tired."

Men, we must learn to overrule those voices. Be the spiritual leaders of our families is not a microwave-popcorn-and-Barcolounger experience.

Quote of the Week

"Remember, for every mile on the road of truth, there are two miles of ditches."
-- Ed Gungor

Work-Life Balance

For years I've seen advice articles with titles like "Five Simple Steps to Balancing Work and Family" or "Keeping Perspective with Healthy Work-Life Balance."

Have you noticed that Work is usually listed first in the title, not Life or Family?

I'm not going to be able to give you my version of work-life balance advice. There aren't 'five simple steps,' and it is not a linear process.

How do you know you have the right "balance" between two things? I don't think you can. Biologically, we only have sensations that tell us we are out of balance. We respond to those by moving muscles in the opposite direction. So standing still and walking, for example, are the continuous (and after decades of experience, unconcious) exercises of moving away from the unbalanced state.

I can't honestly say that Jesus lived the 'ideal' of a balanced life. He paid attention to rhythms of work and rest, of prayer, and most of all kept his focus in the right place.

Work is good for us. And we need rest. We need purpose and focus, or we flounder in our flab. So I don't see that work is distinct from life.

Family and friend and neighbor relationships offer suffer from the way we have engineered work today. That's the real out-of-balance issue I struggle against.

What Should Christians *Do* About Global Warming?

My friend Kevin Nelstead -- a Christian and scientist and all-around clear thinker -- points out some evidence for global warming that we should pay attention to.

There are credible scientists who are concerned about poor data and poor interpretation of data from the "Inconvenient Truth" crowd.

I think it's reasonable to believe at this point:

1. The earth is warmer than it was. There have been cycles of warming and cooling in the history of the planet.
2. A warmer earth will be different than what we think of as 'normal' -- there would be higher sea levels, for example, and some species would be affected. Of course, we could also grow crops like corn, wheat, canola, and soybeans at higher latitudes in Canada and Russia, which might become significant for feeding a growing population.
3. It's still uncertain to what degree (pun intended) human activity has caused warming. Consider the estimate that Mt. St. Helens eruption released more "greenhouse" gases than all the automotive emissions in history. (Read that somewhere, can't locate a reference right now, so take that as 'volcanoes release a LOT of gases that contribute to warming.')

Update 10/2/06:
Kevin Nelsted corrects me on this one with a good source of data about CO2 emmissions:

In regards to your third point on your blog entry:Here are the numbers on human vs volcanic CO2:--annual volcanic production of CO2: 130-230 millionmetric tons--annual human production of CO2: 22 billion metrictons--therefore human production of CO2 is at least 100times greater than volcanic productionSource: USGS(http://volcanoes.usgs.gov/Hazards/What/VolGas/volgas.html) Other sources have similar numbers.I see the "Mt. St. Helens eruption released moregreenhouse gases than all the automotive emissions inhistory" concept on Christian web sites often, and asfar as I can tell it is completely untrue.

4. No one knows for sure what humans can do to create global cooling trends.
5. The economic price of the recommendations to limit warming, or create cooling trends, are staggering. The political reality of the Kyoto Treaty is that the worst polluters on the planet (China, India) are exempted. The US Senate unaminously refused to approve the treaty.

So what's the Christian to do?

We pray for wisdom. We celebrate God's goodness to us. We act as responsible stewards. We love people over things. We point people to Jesus. We remember that we are the created, not the Creator, and our Creator gives all things we need.

Those are important, but easier to say than do consistently. And they're general in nature.

What do we do, specifically?

I frankly am unsure what political leaders should do at any significant level. I'm concerned that the rational level of discourse is poisoned and almost impossible to get to with current media practices and a culture of people untrained to thinking. Reasonable people will point out that the demonstrable short-term impacts of Kyoto-type solutions are tremendously expensive when you consider there is NO evidence they will help the problem. [And what is the problem, exactly? What are you trying to solve or prevent? We need to define that better.]

I think Christians should be the best thinkers on the planet. So perhaps one specific thing that we do is insist on good data, humble interpretation, and rational discourse that does not dissemble into polarized half-truth. And is there some way to design an experiment to test possible solutions? (Computer models are only moderately useful, no matter what you see in scifi movies.)

I also recommend we pursue rational, clear thinking about how nations should adapt to higher sea levels and shifting growing zones. What would be a 25 year plan, for example?

Finally, we don't lose sight of Jesus.

Model Prayer

This prayer was posted as a comment on Pastor Mark Driscoll's (Mars Hill Church) blog. It's a wonderful model prayer for pastors and church leaders -- and husbands and fathers who are the spiritual leaders of their families.

I really like how this prayer begins with wonderful praise about God's character and power.

"Oh great God and creator of all things. The one who said but a word and matter and energy hurried into being ready to obey your command. To the God who lives in unapproachable light yet did come so near to know every hair on our heads...To the gracious Father of our Lord Jesus, who sings over his sheep during the night watch. To the coming Lord and Sovereign King invading the world with the ever present and expansive reality of your Kingdom...To the Spirit which searches our hearts and minds and intercedes for us...To you, very God of very God, to you we pray.
Hold up the arms of the elders and deacons of Mars Hill. Establish their feet again and again and again on the rock of Jesus...the lofty and risen Jesus who lives making intercession for his sheep in Seattle. Give them conviction, give them holiness, give them humility, give them love for their enemies, give them mercy and help in their times of need.
Father, whisper to your pastors in that great city, men who have been called to a wild and unpredictable ride in the northwestern realms. Let them feel the breeze of your sovereign grace as the hurricanes of the world, the flesh, and the devil continue to rage. Protect their marriages, protect their children, give them rest, give them peace, both break and build them, comfort and skill them...so that hands now set to a plow in the Kingdom shall never look back. Bring them safely into the care of your Kingdom - when Jesus comes, or when you call them home.
In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen"
Reid Monaghan, Pastor, Inversion Fellowshipwww.powerofchange.org

Resurgence of Calvinism

Nice to see this article about the resurgence of Calvinism in many churches and seminaries. And I agree that John Piper's preaching and writing has a lot to do with it!

Real joy flows from a right understanding of who God is, and who we aren't.

Perryisms Worth Repeating

Perry Noble says insightful things in fun ways. Mark Batterson captured these from a recent conference:

"Pastors, I have a word from the Lord. Get rid of the preacher hair."
"I was pagan of the year eight years running."
"Jesus powerwashed my soul."
"We wanted to create a culture where people were more concerned about the condition of your soul than the condition of your wardrobe. We wanted to create a culture where people where more concerned about Scripture than Robert's Rules of Order."
"Church ought to be the most engaging place on the planet. If the tomb is really empty we ought to act like it."
"Get out of his box or let God out of His. He wants to move."
"You better believe we're about numbers. Numbers represent souls."
"Don't shut the backdoor of the church. The church is a body. You shut the back door and you've got problems. You need a Holy Spirit enema."
"If you target the people nobody else wants you won't be able to stop from growing."
"Be more concerned about who is coming in the door than those who are going out the door."
"A church is not effective when a pastor ministers to the people. A church is effective when the body ministers to the body."
"I'm not teaching this church to depend on me. I'm teaching this church to depend on each other."
"People will sit on their blessed assurance as long as you let them."
"Your passion is not my burden."
Finally, I love the prayer the New Spring staff prays: "Dear Jesus, Yes. Amen." I love it.

Seeking to Understand

Bernard Lewis has a terrific speech here reflecting on the history of the Arab and Muslim nations, and how the West should understand it.

"Either we bring them freedom, or they destroy us. "

Christian Response to Muslim Outrage

John Piper shares some Bible-drenched wisdom about how Christians should respond to the Muslim outrage over the Pope's recent comments. Read it. Study it. Share it.