I appreciate his take and agree with Justin on this. I’m not saying it means anything, but I also can’t dismiss it as pure coincidence. Was God trying to get our attention? If so, what was he trying to say? What should we be hearing? Take a look at this story, it’s only a few short paragraphs, and comment on the discussion going on at Justin’s site, or comment here. Either way, join in the discussion and share your thoughts. And above all, seek God and His Truth in all things.

At approximately 2 pm yesterday, a tornado touched down in downtown Minneapolis. It was the first tornado to hit this area in nearly 90 years. Even more profound is that the agenda for the churchwide assembly stated that discussion surrounding the proposed human sexuality statement would begin at, you guessed it, 2 pm.

via Tornado Hits Near ELCA Assembly Hall During Vote | BeDeviant.com.

It is in the valley that we slog through the lush grass and rich soil, learning and becoming what enables us to summit life’s next peak. – Jones, The Noticer

The situation in which you find yourself is fraught with difficulty, yes. It is also piled high with benefits. – Jones, The Noticer

Remember, whatever you focus upon, increases. – Jones, The Noticer

What is it about me that other people would change if they could? – Jones, The Noticer

These are a few lines from the latest book by Andy Andrews titled The Noticer. And this is just in the first chapter. I knew I was in for some good stuff.

If you don’t know Andy Andrews, you should. He is quickly becoming one of America’s most influential and in-demand speakers. Speaking for four different US presidents certainly gives him credibility as someone with something important to say. Having read his previous best-seller, The Traveler’s Gift, I could appreciate his easy style and masterful storytelling. He draws you in and takes you on a journey; teaching, guiding and providing wisdom like a kind and loving father that is tough at the same time. I started reading The Noticer with the belief that this was but another great story with a great message. And it is. But it’s so much more. It’s real. This is Andy’s story. And it will blow you away.

Check it out. You can purchase it at Amazon.com by clicking on the book cover to the left. you can also purchase The Traveler’s Gift by clicking on it in the Amazon Books ad in the sidebar on the right.

Church’s radical act: Sell building, use money for outreach

“I’m afraid if we become a church of bricks and mortar, we’ll cease to be a church of flesh and blood.” – Pastor Frank Mercer

via Church’s radical act: Sell building, use money for outreach | ajc.com.

SAN DIEGO — A local pastor and his wife claim they were interrogated by a San Diego County official, who then threatened them with escalating fines if they continued to hold bible studies in their home, 10News reported.

via Couple: County Trying To Stop Home Bible Studies – San Diego News Story – KGTV San Diego.

Did I wake up 30 years ago in the Soviet Union? Is this still America? What in the world is going on here? If you read the whole story, something most definitely ain’t right. While on the surface this appears to be a case of the State interfering with the right of an individual to practice their religious beliefs in the privacy of their own home, don’t miss the forest. If the government can come and tell you that you can’t have a bible study in your own home, they certainly will be able to tell you that you can’t have a regular poker night. You won’t be able to have a movie night or a regular tailgate party during football season. You can’t host home owner’s meetings if they meet on a regular basis. Or can you? If you read the article, note the line of questioning by the county official to the couple hosting the bible study.

Attorney Dean Broyles of The Western Center For Law & Policy was shocked with what happened to the pastor and his wife.

Broyles said, “The county asked, ‘Do you have a regular meeting in your home?’ She said, ‘Yes.’ ‘Do you say amen?’ ‘Yes.’ ‘Do you pray?’ ‘Yes.’ ‘Do you say praise the Lord?’ ‘Yes.’”

The county employee notified the couple that the small Bible study, with an average of 15 people attending, was in violation of County regulations, according to Broyles.

via Couple: County Trying To Stop Home Bible Studies – San Diego News Story – KGTV San Diego.

What specifically is it about having a bible study with 15 or more people that is problematic for the county? What exactly is the ordinance, code or law that is in place? Why is it in place? This may be about more than the state just infringing on religious freedoms, but it certainly does seem to have that slant based on the specific questions asked by the official.

Does this concern anybody out there?

Daniel’s court-appointed attorney, Philip Elbert, called the decision unfotunate.

“I feel it’s a blow to families,” he said. “It marginalizes the decisions that parents face every day in regard to their children’s medical care. It really affirms the role that big government is better at making our decisions for us.”

via Judge Rules Family Can’t Refuse Chemo for Boy – ABC News.

If you haven’t heard about this case, you need to sit up and take notice. If it doesn’t concern you, you need to wake up. If this case stands it will set precedent that can and will most likely lead to more and more intrusion of the government into our lives. A government that thinks it knows what’s best for us. A government that isn’t interested in what’s best for you as an individual or you as a family. A government that thinks they should order you as a family to accept medical treatment that may not be best for you.

If you aren’t familiar with the story, follow the link above to read it. If you are, please engage in the conversation. If you are not familiar with what chemotherapy is and does to the body. Do some research. It kills good cells along with the bad. There are plenty of reports and studies that show different people respond differently to different types of chemotherapy. It doesn’t work for everyone and it doesn’t work the same in everyone.

The fact that several other young men, who went through similar situations as Daniel Hauser, took herbal and natural supplements and treatments instead of chemotherapy and are both, today, cancer-free encouraged and inspired the Hauser family to pursue alternative forms of treatment for their son. What right does the court have ruling that the family is being “medically negligent” and ordering them to take their son and allow him to receive the chemotherapy. Isn’t this a case in which the court is drastically over-stepping its bounds, or am I crazy?

The Christian Post fielded an article recently about a church whose membership dwindled to the point where they had to give-up their building and meet in homes.

Heres what they found interesting about meeting in homes:

via Orange County Church Dumps Building for Houses | Catalyst.

Interesting. And kind of poetic and right. Take a read and let me know what you think.

What would happen if we put less attention on organizing relationships and more attention on giving people something to organize around? For example, what if we focused on serving opportunities? Would people naturally gather around those initiatives to serve others? What if we focused on the content we were generating to help people better understand the Bible and its application to our daily lives? Would people naturally organize around that content for conversations together? And what if we embraced social networking to encourage people to find their own friends…like they’re already doing? Would people initiate their own relational connections? 

via The New Traditional Church: Community | TonyMorganLive.com.

Excellent questions by Tony Morgan over at his blog. Questions that hopefully get folks thinking about church and how we do it. And hopefully thinking about how we can do it better.

I like the direction he’s headed with these questions and I like challenging the status quo. I think there are quite a few churches that are leading the way in this regard, but I truly believe we are just scratching the surface of a radical change that is taking place in how church and organized religion is practice in this country. What do you think?

Twitter Basics

If you had no idea what Twitter was walking into this article, we’re going to start you off at the very beginning. To sign up for Twitter, go to twitter.com and click on “Get Started – Join!”. Fill out the information and voila – you have your own Twitter account. I set up two accounts; one on my personal name, and one for my business. It’s important to grab your names before someone else does, even if you don’t plan on using the account for a while.

via The Ultimate Guide for Everything Twitter | Webdesigner Depot.

For all my friends and family that are still unsure about “this Twitter thing”, here is a great guide that spells it out for you. Let’s call it Twitter 101 and class is in session. Enjoy. And you can follow me here.

The market is not free if it is not free to fail

via The Tragedy of the Commons | Krypted.

Excellent words and valuable insight by a colleague. I once heard, during the Clinton administration, from a Cuban immigrant, that he saw America “slouching towards Communism”. If we were slouching then, we’ve downright laid ourselves out prostrate on the floor with the current administration’s actions. Take a look at the post by Charles. What do you think?

Facebook, AIM, Google, Tokbox, Skype, Yahoo, MSN, IRC, Meebo and more all give you the ability to carry on conversation in real time with people from all over the world. I bet you didn’t even realize that you were also using a tool that allows you to pray for those people all over the world. Thats right, sitting right at the bottom of Facebook is a tool that allows you to pray for your friends, peers, online connections and old prom dates. Amazing technology that we take for granted – well not anymore!

via The Instant Message Challenge | Tony Steward:. Blog.

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[audio http://dial2do.com/l/fe544dd4-c570-4ac5-ab6b-bc9f9dfc205c.mp3 ]

So, everything above here is the post as it came from Dial2Do. I edited the word “WordPress” in both spots as well as added an “s” to the word “post” in the next to last sentence. Potentially very cool, since this also adds a link back to the actual recording of me speaking my entry.