Blogger extraordianaire Kat launched a blogosphere-based fast yesterday. Each day a designated blogger will fast and blog about it and an area of need in the world. Shaun Groves and Andrew Osenga are in the line up.
If, like me, you missed the boat on this, you can still participate by spreading the word and fasting on the 40th day: July 31st.
Good friends are hard to find. We visited some of these hard-to-find friends this week and had a great time. In our conversation about what makes a good friend, our friend hit the nail on the head:
God and farts.
When you can seamlessly transition from your faith to poo, then you've reached a level of intimacy unrivaled by other friends.
This past weekend was senior recognition weekend at my church. The youth band and choir led worship and several of the seniors gave testimonies.
I got to sit in with the band (they needed an electric guitarist—you know, so they could rock out), and I was so impressed. The youth put in lots of extra hours this past week striving towards excellence, and their hard work and diligence was met with success.
Here's the catch: all of this hard work was not to make themselves look good—rather, it was a genuine effort to glorify and worship the Lord with their talents. This focus on the Lord is so rare that when you do actually see it, it shines like a bright light in contrast to the world around us. Thanks, guys and gals. You inspired me.
As I'm raising two young daughters, this kind of experience gives me hope. A hope that my girls will have a strong group of peers that aren't afraid to stand in their beliefs.
Several summers of my youth were highlighted with one week of fun at Pine Cove summer camp. Each night of the week was a theme night, and I recall a certain 50's sock-hop dance with the girls in poodle skirts and pony tails and the guys in white T-shirts with bad greasy hair.
After dinner and before things had really gotten hoppin', one of the girls made her way to our table and asked me to dance. This wasn't just any girl, though. This was the flamboyant, obnoxious, loud girl on campus. I was hesitant. My thoughts streamed all the reasons why I should say no:
…no one is dancing yet…we'll be the spotlight…I think that's what she wants…I should say no just because of her insensitivity to my fear of dancing in front of 100+ peers…she's not really my type…I have my eye on another girl…this spectacle will ruin any chances with her…if I do this, I'm gonna get so much flak from the guys for the rest of the week…can I even dance?…I don't think I can…
I said yes. And, despite my inhibitions, it was fun.
Most importantly, though, I made her day.
Every day is an opportunity to make someone else's day. That's what love is–laying down our inhibitions and selfishness for others.
Christ said, "This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this, that someone lays down his life for his friends." (John 15:12-13 ESV). He gave the ultimate sacrifice. I suppose I can start with just trying to make someone's day.
The morning is still and dark and peaceful and hopeful and renewing.
I try to start my day with the Lord. It doesn't always happen, but I cherish when it does. This is one of those mornings.
Being the computer geek, I don't grab my Bible or a book. Instead, I go online. Here are some of the resources I use:
What do you use?
Christians are up in arms about NBC's new show The Book of Daniel. You may have received one or more emails this past week from friends or family urging you to petition and boycott the show. I received more than one such email. And then I watched the premiere out of curiosity.
As a Christian, I expected to be appalled at the anti-Christian slant oozing from the show. At least, this is what I was led to believe. Except that's not what I felt at all. The show was so over the top that it was just goofy. If the writers' intention was to weave an anti-Christian agenda into the show, they failed with hyperbole overload. It was laughable: not in a "this is funny" way, but more on a "this is stupid" level. I wasn't offended any more than any of the other junk that's on television. Bottom line, the show just wasn't that good, and I won't be watching it again.
Real Live Preacher wrote a review for salon.com that sums up most of my feelings on the show. To read the whole thing you have to click through an ad, but it's worth it. Favorite quote from the article:
[Jesus] looks like one of the Doobie Brothers, and all he does is hand out Life Savers and say things like, "Life is hard, but that's why there's a nice reward at the end."
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