this makes me so angry and sad.
look at lesson 11 small group application:
http://www.childrendesiringgod.org/documents/samples/rggd_journal_sample.pdf
Wednesday, August 10, 2011
Monday, August 8, 2011
The KCB
How do you get through the day when the Kingdom of Corporate Business pays your salary?
...When this kingdom appears to be trampling the Kingdom of God?
'The Man' has set itself up in my chair, as king of 40+ hours of my week.
Oops, I don't mean 'my' week.
This is God's week.
See.
I'm starting to think things are MINE.
The weight is so heavy.
I keep forgetting the world is not black and white.
...When this kingdom appears to be trampling the Kingdom of God?
'The Man' has set itself up in my chair, as king of 40+ hours of my week.
Oops, I don't mean 'my' week.
This is God's week.
See.
I'm starting to think things are MINE.
The weight is so heavy.
I keep forgetting the world is not black and white.
Friday, July 15, 2011
New Good Music of 2011
Paper Route -- especially their song "second chances"
Azure Ray
Bon Iver
Arcade Fire
Rosie Thomas
Motopony
Allen Stone
Beach House
Gregory Alan Isakov
The song "Laughing with" by Regina Spektor
The song "Lights" by Rihanna and Kanye West
Albums of the last year (last July - July '11):
--"Age of Ads", Sufjan Stevens
--"The Suburbs", Arcade Fire
--"King of Diamonds", Motopony
--The National
--"The Valley", Eisley
--"Recovery", Eminem
--"Neon Bible", Arcade Fire; particularly the song, "My Body is a Cage"
Azure Ray
Bon Iver
Arcade Fire
Rosie Thomas
Motopony
Allen Stone
Beach House
Gregory Alan Isakov
The song "Laughing with" by Regina Spektor
The song "Lights" by Rihanna and Kanye West
Albums of the last year (last July - July '11):
--"Age of Ads", Sufjan Stevens
--"The Suburbs", Arcade Fire
--"King of Diamonds", Motopony
--The National
--"The Valley", Eisley
--"Recovery", Eminem
--"Neon Bible", Arcade Fire; particularly the song, "My Body is a Cage"
Tuesday, May 31, 2011
Give to Caesar what is Caesar's
"Frequently as Christians, we want to jump in with answers to questions without really thinking about the assumptions in people’s minds concerning the issue at hand. In Matthew 22, Jesus is asked whether it is right to pay taxes to Caesar or not. Jesus knows that the question is a trap.
Israel was under occupation by the Romans, who were regarded by the Jews as the evil oppressors. To pay taxes, and certainly to collect them, was seen to be strengthening the hand of the enemy. Was not Israel God’s chosen people? Was this not their land? Surely to help the Romans was to go against God himself? In the minds of the listeners, if Jesus is going to be on God’s side, he is expected to say no. If he says no, it will get back to the authorities, and he will be arrested - which is what the questioners want. If he says yes then he will loose the respect of the people. As far as the questioners are concerned, it is a win / win situation."
[http://www.bethinking.org/what-is-apologetics/intermediate/the-biblical-mandate-for-apologetics.htm]
---
So was Jesus actually telling them to pay their taxes?
Is the interpretation really that obvious?
Given the context, it seems just as likely (if not more likely), that if this weren't a trap, and there were no consequences to how he answered, he would have said 'No' to paying taxes. He says, "Give to Caesar what is Caesar's and to God what is God's." And doesn't Jesus, more often than not, always say that EVERYTHING is God's? So would not all money be God's money as well?
--> Look into the possibility that "High Priest" was written on the back of the coin; the blasphemy of this.
...Shane Claiborne on this at http://www.redletterchristians.org/give-to-uncle-sam-what-is-uncle-sams-tax-season-war-resistance/
Israel was under occupation by the Romans, who were regarded by the Jews as the evil oppressors. To pay taxes, and certainly to collect them, was seen to be strengthening the hand of the enemy. Was not Israel God’s chosen people? Was this not their land? Surely to help the Romans was to go against God himself? In the minds of the listeners, if Jesus is going to be on God’s side, he is expected to say no. If he says no, it will get back to the authorities, and he will be arrested - which is what the questioners want. If he says yes then he will loose the respect of the people. As far as the questioners are concerned, it is a win / win situation."
[http://www.bethinking.org/what-is-apologetics/intermediate/the-biblical-mandate-for-apologetics.htm]
---
So was Jesus actually telling them to pay their taxes?
Is the interpretation really that obvious?
Given the context, it seems just as likely (if not more likely), that if this weren't a trap, and there were no consequences to how he answered, he would have said 'No' to paying taxes. He says, "Give to Caesar what is Caesar's and to God what is God's." And doesn't Jesus, more often than not, always say that EVERYTHING is God's? So would not all money be God's money as well?
--> Look into the possibility that "High Priest" was written on the back of the coin; the blasphemy of this.
...Shane Claiborne on this at http://www.redletterchristians.org/give-to-uncle-sam-what-is-uncle-sams-tax-season-war-resistance/
Sunday, December 5, 2010
Thank You for not hurting me
...
Thanks for not hurting me.
Thanks for not hurting me.
Thanks for not hurting me.
Thanks for not hurting me.
You are gentle with me.
you are gentle with me.
You are gentle with me.
You are gentle with me.
Thank you for holding me,
And saying I could be.
Thank you for saying, baby,
Thank you for holding me.
Thank you for having me.
Thank you for having me.
Thank you for having me
Thank you thank you for having me.
Thank you for breaking my heart
Thank you for tearing me apart
Now I'm a strong smart heart
Thank you for breaking my heart.
~Sinead O'Connor
...Wow. All of a sudden when she started singing, "Thank you for not hurting me," I felt I could weep. It went right to the core of my heart. Thank you, Jesus, Thank you, God, Thank you you Jesus, for not hurting me.
Thank you for not yelling and cussing at me.
Thank you for not cheating on me.
Thank you for not lying to me.
Thank you for not blaming me.
Thank you for not manipulating me.
Thank you for not sexually abusing me.
Thank you for not verbally abusing me.
Thank you for not degrading me.
Thank you for not demeaning me.
Thank you for not hitting me.
Thank you for not slapping me.
Thank you for loving me.
Thank you for loving me.
Thank you for loving me.
Thank you for not hurting me.
Thank you for not hurting me.
Thank you for not hurting me.
Thank you for not hurting me.
Thanks for not hurting me.
Thanks for not hurting me.
Thanks for not hurting me.
Thanks for not hurting me.
You are gentle with me.
you are gentle with me.
You are gentle with me.
You are gentle with me.
Thank you for holding me,
And saying I could be.
Thank you for saying, baby,
Thank you for holding me.
Thank you for having me.
Thank you for having me.
Thank you for having me
Thank you thank you for having me.
Thank you for breaking my heart
Thank you for tearing me apart
Now I'm a strong smart heart
Thank you for breaking my heart.
~Sinead O'Connor
...Wow. All of a sudden when she started singing, "Thank you for not hurting me," I felt I could weep. It went right to the core of my heart. Thank you, Jesus, Thank you, God, Thank you you Jesus, for not hurting me.
Thank you for not yelling and cussing at me.
Thank you for not cheating on me.
Thank you for not lying to me.
Thank you for not blaming me.
Thank you for not manipulating me.
Thank you for not sexually abusing me.
Thank you for not verbally abusing me.
Thank you for not degrading me.
Thank you for not demeaning me.
Thank you for not hitting me.
Thank you for not slapping me.
Thank you for loving me.
Thank you for loving me.
Thank you for loving me.
Thank you for not hurting me.
Thank you for not hurting me.
Thank you for not hurting me.
Thank you for not hurting me.
Tuesday, August 31, 2010
Thursday, June 24, 2010
American Patriotism = Christianity
Today I opened my e-mail inbox to find the article, "Who Are Americans?
What Christians contribute to the search for a national identity," by Chuck Colson and Catherine Larson. I had to respond. This article epitomizes the deception that American patriotism = Christianity. Please see my brief response below, after the article:
"Who Are Americans?
What Christians contribute to the search for a national identity"
Nations around the world are suffering from identity crises. Perhaps it began two decades ago, when the last European holdouts were dragged in and the European Union was finally established, a move described by one journalist as "the triumph of the Eurocrats over the peoples of Europe." More recently, The New York Times reported on France's efforts to articulate its national identity. Soon thereafter, controversy erupted when Switzerland banned the construction of Muslim minarets. The Times and Forbes have reported on identity crises facing South Korea and China, as immigration makes largely homogenous nations increasingly diverse.
All these reports raise the question, "Who are we?"—which is also the title of scholar Samuel P. Huntington's final and most prophetic book. "The more general causes of these … questionings," wrote Huntington, "include the emergence of a global economy, tremendous improvements in communications and transportation, rising levels of migration, [and] the global expansion of democracy …."
There's also an identity crisis bubbling just under the surface in the United States.
Huntington documents several challenges to a cohesive sense of American identity. First, while early settlers and immigrants were never ethnically homogenous, they largely traded in the same Anglo-Protestant cultural currency. But as 21st-century demographic trends increasingly draw people from other quadrants of the world, shared cultural assumptions erode.
Exacerbating the problem is a rise in dual citizenship and more subnational identities, which have created divided loyalties. Meanwhile, in the business community, an increasingly globalized economy has caused leaders to adopt a more transnational identity, what some call "Davos man." And aside from a temporary resurgence of patriotism after September 11, Huntington documents how academic elites have led the way in devaluing patriotism and American history.
We rightly pride ourselves on our multiethnic, multiracial society. But as our society grows ever more diverse, how will we understand our national identity?
Huntington poses four possible solutions. The first is a creedal community whose identity exists only in a social contract embodied in the Declaration of Independence and other founding documents. This has historically provided cohesion. The next option is a bifurcated America, one that is bilingual and bicultural like Canada or Belgium. The third option is an exclusivist or imperial notion of America. And the last alternative, the one Huntington clearly favored, is a reinvigorated core culture and religion coupled with the earlier solution of a reinvigorated creedal community.
Can a Christian worldview inform us as we wrestle with our national identity?
Any kind of racially or ethnically intolerant society would be incompatible with Christian principles.
Further, we know that the core values of our creeds, which in particular promote the dignity of all people, resonate with Scripture and are worth preserving. American patriotism does not rest on jingoistic nationalism but on a universal creed that says, "All men are … endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights."
Liberty is one of those unalienable rights. And this core value, also emphasized in Scripture, teaches us that we cannot force beliefs on others. Our founders understood, however, that freedom of religion is not synonymous with expunging religion from public life, a problem that I and others addressed last fall in the Manhattan Declaration. So if Huntington is in fact right that the U.S. needs a reinvigorated religious commitment, it won't come from a nation-mandated religion but rather from a reinvigorated populace.
believe, then, that for national identity to be salient in the midst of our changing society, we need to promote a recommitment to our creeds, a respect for American history, and a proper role of patriotism, rooted in love of neighbor. Our founders' Judeo-Christian heritage helped produce a culture in which moral responsibility, transcendent ethical principles, and the dignity of all people could flourish—a culture in which our creedal values made sense. This is why our role as leaven within society is so important, and why we must continue to bring a biblical influence to the public square, reinvigorating society.
As we do so, we must guard against the easy tendency to embrace xenophobic notions or fall into the equally perilous trap of promoting subcultural identities over national identity. People will not live with, let alone die for, a nation that has abandoned its religious moorings and adopted a creed that suggests we simply live together in cosmopolitan bliss. Millions of us, however, have been willing to live and die for beliefs rooted in our deepest convictions about God and man—convictions that were expressed so well in the stirring words of our national creed, the Declaration of Independence.
Copyright © 2010 Christianity Today. Click for reprint information.
http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2010/june/19.49.html
Anne-Marie's Response #1:
Was not Jesus absolutely clear about our allegiance being to the Kingdom of God and not to any earthly kingdom (in our case, the United States of America)? He was no proponent of His followers having or preserving a "national identity" or of patriotism to any empire, nation, or kingdom other than his Father's. He said his Kingdom was not of this world even though it was and is "now at hand," within this world. Jesus is Lord, Caesar is not. Jesus is Lord, America is not.
That to say, I do not understand why we as Christ’s followers should be interested in maintaining or "reinvigorating" our American, national identity. The author(s) warn of the “perilous trap of promoting subcultural identities over national identity.” Is not this, in fact, EXACTLY what Jesus taught us to do? Jesus charged us to live into our subcultural identity as Children of God, Disciples of Christ—Kingdom People who “promote”/share the Gospel of love and self-sacrifice, not the Gospel of America or any other worldly institution. I encourage readers to open the 4 Gospels again, read them beginning to end, and listen to what Christ says about our allegiance to his Kingdom.
Anne-Marie's Response #2 to God's Lion Posted: June 26, 2010 5:12 PM
God's Lion-- Isn't it God's love, compassion, and forgiveness that has the power to change humans' behavior much more so than the fear of God or the fear of punishment? This has been my experience--my heart and actions have changed way more because of God's love and forgiveness than from God's wrath; from His mercy, not shame. AND where are you getting your Biblical support from to "smash" the heathens as the way to illicit change? Wasn't Jesus always caught dining with them, healing them, forgiving them? Most of the time, it was pious, self-righteous Pharisees or Religious people (possibly like yourself?) whom he was condemning and calling judgment on. It is time we take the plank out of our own eye FIRST.
What Christians contribute to the search for a national identity," by Chuck Colson and Catherine Larson. I had to respond. This article epitomizes the deception that American patriotism = Christianity. Please see my brief response below, after the article:
"Who Are Americans?
What Christians contribute to the search for a national identity"
Nations around the world are suffering from identity crises. Perhaps it began two decades ago, when the last European holdouts were dragged in and the European Union was finally established, a move described by one journalist as "the triumph of the Eurocrats over the peoples of Europe." More recently, The New York Times reported on France's efforts to articulate its national identity. Soon thereafter, controversy erupted when Switzerland banned the construction of Muslim minarets. The Times and Forbes have reported on identity crises facing South Korea and China, as immigration makes largely homogenous nations increasingly diverse.
All these reports raise the question, "Who are we?"—which is also the title of scholar Samuel P. Huntington's final and most prophetic book. "The more general causes of these … questionings," wrote Huntington, "include the emergence of a global economy, tremendous improvements in communications and transportation, rising levels of migration, [and] the global expansion of democracy …."
There's also an identity crisis bubbling just under the surface in the United States.
Huntington documents several challenges to a cohesive sense of American identity. First, while early settlers and immigrants were never ethnically homogenous, they largely traded in the same Anglo-Protestant cultural currency. But as 21st-century demographic trends increasingly draw people from other quadrants of the world, shared cultural assumptions erode.
Exacerbating the problem is a rise in dual citizenship and more subnational identities, which have created divided loyalties. Meanwhile, in the business community, an increasingly globalized economy has caused leaders to adopt a more transnational identity, what some call "Davos man." And aside from a temporary resurgence of patriotism after September 11, Huntington documents how academic elites have led the way in devaluing patriotism and American history.
We rightly pride ourselves on our multiethnic, multiracial society. But as our society grows ever more diverse, how will we understand our national identity?
Huntington poses four possible solutions. The first is a creedal community whose identity exists only in a social contract embodied in the Declaration of Independence and other founding documents. This has historically provided cohesion. The next option is a bifurcated America, one that is bilingual and bicultural like Canada or Belgium. The third option is an exclusivist or imperial notion of America. And the last alternative, the one Huntington clearly favored, is a reinvigorated core culture and religion coupled with the earlier solution of a reinvigorated creedal community.
Can a Christian worldview inform us as we wrestle with our national identity?
Any kind of racially or ethnically intolerant society would be incompatible with Christian principles.
Further, we know that the core values of our creeds, which in particular promote the dignity of all people, resonate with Scripture and are worth preserving. American patriotism does not rest on jingoistic nationalism but on a universal creed that says, "All men are … endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights."
Liberty is one of those unalienable rights. And this core value, also emphasized in Scripture, teaches us that we cannot force beliefs on others. Our founders understood, however, that freedom of religion is not synonymous with expunging religion from public life, a problem that I and others addressed last fall in the Manhattan Declaration. So if Huntington is in fact right that the U.S. needs a reinvigorated religious commitment, it won't come from a nation-mandated religion but rather from a reinvigorated populace.
believe, then, that for national identity to be salient in the midst of our changing society, we need to promote a recommitment to our creeds, a respect for American history, and a proper role of patriotism, rooted in love of neighbor. Our founders' Judeo-Christian heritage helped produce a culture in which moral responsibility, transcendent ethical principles, and the dignity of all people could flourish—a culture in which our creedal values made sense. This is why our role as leaven within society is so important, and why we must continue to bring a biblical influence to the public square, reinvigorating society.
As we do so, we must guard against the easy tendency to embrace xenophobic notions or fall into the equally perilous trap of promoting subcultural identities over national identity. People will not live with, let alone die for, a nation that has abandoned its religious moorings and adopted a creed that suggests we simply live together in cosmopolitan bliss. Millions of us, however, have been willing to live and die for beliefs rooted in our deepest convictions about God and man—convictions that were expressed so well in the stirring words of our national creed, the Declaration of Independence.
Copyright © 2010 Christianity Today. Click for reprint information.
http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2010/june/19.49.html
Anne-Marie's Response #1:
Was not Jesus absolutely clear about our allegiance being to the Kingdom of God and not to any earthly kingdom (in our case, the United States of America)? He was no proponent of His followers having or preserving a "national identity" or of patriotism to any empire, nation, or kingdom other than his Father's. He said his Kingdom was not of this world even though it was and is "now at hand," within this world. Jesus is Lord, Caesar is not. Jesus is Lord, America is not.
That to say, I do not understand why we as Christ’s followers should be interested in maintaining or "reinvigorating" our American, national identity. The author(s) warn of the “perilous trap of promoting subcultural identities over national identity.” Is not this, in fact, EXACTLY what Jesus taught us to do? Jesus charged us to live into our subcultural identity as Children of God, Disciples of Christ—Kingdom People who “promote”/share the Gospel of love and self-sacrifice, not the Gospel of America or any other worldly institution. I encourage readers to open the 4 Gospels again, read them beginning to end, and listen to what Christ says about our allegiance to his Kingdom.
Anne-Marie's Response #2 to God's Lion Posted: June 26, 2010 5:12 PM
God's Lion-- Isn't it God's love, compassion, and forgiveness that has the power to change humans' behavior much more so than the fear of God or the fear of punishment? This has been my experience--my heart and actions have changed way more because of God's love and forgiveness than from God's wrath; from His mercy, not shame. AND where are you getting your Biblical support from to "smash" the heathens as the way to illicit change? Wasn't Jesus always caught dining with them, healing them, forgiving them? Most of the time, it was pious, self-righteous Pharisees or Religious people (possibly like yourself?) whom he was condemning and calling judgment on. It is time we take the plank out of our own eye FIRST.
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