- You may already know this if you read Jason's blog but the total for baptisms on Sunday was 19. There are more on the way for this week from people who wanted to ask some questions this past week.
- Man do I hate the way the church is already going into "political mode" for the coming presidential campaign. You would not believe the amount of e-mail and mail I get addressed to me as "Senior Pastor" offering voting guides and how I can say things to "walk the safe political line." Yes, Christians need to vote. Yes, being a Christian affects who I vote for. But the church's mission is not to get the right people in office. We have a much more important job than getting bogged down in "who runs the free world." This world is changed one heart and life at a time and we (the church) has been entrusted with that mission.
- Please keep praying out the location of our next campus. We are close to something very special happening. If it happens it will be a part of answering Jesus Prayer.
- GIVE ME YOUR ANSWER: I'm working on a message idea and would love your input. What are the things that we (Christians) do that you find the most irritating? I'll give you one of mine so you can get you started. I hate when Christians think everything can be explained with a simple phrase or a trite slogan. "'I'm really struggling with the fact that my mom has a terminal disease.' 'Oh, I hate to hear that. You need to just give that to God.'"
Tuesday, December 4, 2007
Monkey droppings
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16 comments:
There are a lot of things that bug me about Christians(don't get me wrong, im not saying i hate Christians, duh) but the number one thing that irritates me about Christians is that they prey for the stupidest stuff. "god please let me win the lottery tomorrow, i really need the money" or "god, please give me an A on my math test from yesterday, i really need it" I think some Christians get a little to caught up in them selves in there prayers. Our church seems pretty good at not, but a lot of people have told me what they prey for at night, or that they prayed for a A and the got and F and all i can think is, Why pray for such a selfish and stupid thing. There are more important things than just your self. Maybe its just me, but that is what i think.
Simon,
About an hour ago my son was praying out loud in the car "lord Jesus, please let me see in the dark. -amen"
Well I absolutely love politics, and religion. That is why I asked Anna for the book "God's Politics: Why the Right Gets It Wrong and the Left Doesn't Get It" for Christmas. I think as Christians our faith and values should influence how we vote, but I also think it is not the Church's place to tell the congregation who to vote for. I don't think endorsements should come from the Church, it seems to alienate those who have a different view. This some what ties into what irritates people about Christians. I think people outside the Church think people inside the Church only care about 2 things - gay marriage, and abortion. Probably the most irritating thing though is the appearance of hypocrisy. I recently found an article about workers in China who work up to 19 hour shifts in a factory at $00.09 an hour making crucifixs to be sold in the US. You would think that in a "Christian" nation such blasphemy would generate more outrage.
I also would like to see in the dark.
By the way Adam that book is a great book. I've been reading Jim Wallis for years. I don't have it any more or I'd give it to you. I do have another one by Greg Boyd I'll let you borrow called "The Myth of a Christian Nation: How the Quest for Political Power Is Destroying the Church". It's maybe my favorite book on the subject.
That would be great. I heard an interview with Greg Boyd not too long ago. I was realy impressed.
I may have possibly worded my comment wrong, and im sorry if it may have offended any one.
Simon, there is nothing wrong with your comment. I certainly wasn't offended. Keep commenting.
Simon,
I wasnt offended either. I agree that some people use prayer instead of actually trying. It would be a lot easier to pray for an "A" than to work for it.
What I hate almost the most is when someone asks: "Have you been saved?" or "When were you saved?" or "I remember exactly when I was saved" or a preacher preaching about "being saved". I am old and have been Christian all my life and yet I only recently think I understand what this means. I know I am not the only one out there who was/is confused and somewhat intimidated by this cliche. I think we need to stop using it and come up with a better way of asking this question.
foote,
That is a valid point. I hate it when I hear a group of Christians talk about someone, and say things like "well they are not a Christian" they tend to sound very condescending. What I dislike the most about this is how does anyone know what is in someones heart
It drives me nuts when Christians show cultural irrelevance or willful ignorance of the culture we live in. It drives me nuts when Christians expect non-Christians to conform to the social norms they choose to hold to (that often aren't even biblical.) "Don't swear around me - it offends me. I won't go with you to that restaurant because they serve alcohol. I make a big deal of praying before I eat and I somehow think it is a witness to you and I'm just going to ignore the fact that it makes you very uncomfortable." That kind of stuff really drives people away from Christians, from the church, and if we are the face of Jesus to the people in our culture, then it ultimately drives people away from Jesus.
Preach it, Some Guy!!!
We are saddend when a person shares a story of stuggle or pain and in response a Christian says, "I'll pray for you." instead of putting their hand on the person's shoulder and praying for them. We decided to try this years ago and the response by Christians and non-Christians has been overwhelmingly positive. The other thing that we try not to do is say, "I'll pray for you." if we're not intending to do it. Believe me, we don't think we've got it all together, we just have seen such a positive response from people that we'd love to see more Christians reaching out in this way. God bless, Chris and Bev O'Reilly
Some Guy,
I definately think that prayer is powerful. However, I am also bothered by those who make a scene when they pray in public. I am remided of a verse in Matthew : "And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by men. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full. But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you."
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