:(

my blog site is officially changing!! and will be updated much more regularly starting with the last post I posted here. I will repost it and add a few ideas to it. VISIT!! and comment.

The New Fundamentals

See ya there!

Assumptions and persuasion

So in DC I have a lot of time to pseudo-think while I am walking and on the metro. I get to think but not really completely because I need to be attentive to..... like..... cars, bikes, trains, other people. Alas, the last several times I have traveled by foot the same thought and idea has been stirring in my head so I figured I would blog away.

I have been thinking a lot lately about persuasion and specifically conversations and actions that we use to try and convince people that something we say or do is, in effect, the correct thing to say or do in that instant. Or the way we think about a particular religious, political, or social idea is the right way to think and we proceed to attempt to persuade them over to our side through what seems like logic to us.

I think we make some dangerous assumptions sometimes. The first is somewhat diabolical (not sure if this is the exact context but I really wanted to use that word). There are two separate spheres. The first is how strongly we feel about something. Are our passions and beliefs wrapped up in this? The second sphere is the actual thing that we would be passionate about (e.g. The libertarian party, serving the poor, religious beliefs) It is important not to assume that everyone has the same level of passion and conviction for the things they claim to believe in. For example, if a Christian is trying to tell a Morman why they should be a Christian or vise-versa. To this person the Christian Faith may be what guides, shapes, and directs the course of their life but to the Morman, maybe their Faith is not as significant to their life but regardless they claim it. It would be pointless to try to convince this person to "switch" religions because how they regard the Morman beliefs are not how you regard your Christian beliefs. Your levels of passion or significance are totally different. So you may be persuasive and have them consider your values but then they regard your Christian Faith as they did their Morman Faith which I dont think was your intention.

Anyways all that to say I dont think we are very good persuaders, and not just in a Faith sense. I think instead of finding out what people are truly passionate about, the things they devote their time and attention to, If we disagree with a person we assume they believe the opposite of what we are passionate about, regardless of the level of significance they give to it because I think we tend to see things as polar. Instead of trying to rechannel passion in someone we attempt to replace one for the other.

Another element of this is that you truly have to care about a person to find out where their heart is and what fulfills them.

Do we care about people? not physically but wholly.

Somewhat scattered but I needed to spit it out. What do you think?

Something New

Everytime I blog I feel like I start off by blogging about not blogging..... Oh well. Recently I've just begun a journey in Washington DC. After a great summer with the students at FBC Cleburne, whom I will miss very much, I moved to DC to begin as a protege with National Community Church. Its a place where I feel that I will be challenged, pushed, and expected to accomplish great things for the Kingdom.

One of their core values here is... "Everything is an experiment." I am free and expected to fail. No expectations to meet except that I really do go after everything fully. This frees me up to try things that I may not normally attempt because there is no cage. Not only am I able to be proactive and take initiative but I want to. I have found myself pursuing ideas and people that I never would have in other environments. The staff here are also amazing and fun, and intelligent.

Sitting on my hands

I really wish I would blog more.... but alas this seems to shuffle to the bottom of the turtle sand box (remember those). Anyone that knows me knows that I have a million thoughts going through my head at any given time. This often results in me going into a daze or totally missing elements of conversations. It would really benefit me to consistently put these thoughts down in a place such as this blog. I don't know why I neglect to do so.

Today has been a very thought provoking day and I have had a chance to digest some good stuff. As I sat in evaluation a few hours ago on my life and ministry several things came to mind. I have a bad tendency to be a "winger" where I do not allow much time for preparation to speak or to prepare for a meeting or most any other element of my life. I just go on accumulated knowledge and wit and lean heavily on it. As I sat tonight in a contemplative moment the parable of the talents was brought to my mind. God has given a set of gifts, talents, and responsibilities to me. I abuse them. Constantly. Without regard for the dependence that I have on the Spirit and the Word. In the parable I feel that my response would be eerily similar to the man with one talent. "I knew that you are a hard man, harvesting where you have not sown and gathering where you have not scattered seed. So I was afraid and went out and hid your talent in the ground. See, here is what belongs to you." Scary words. I wing it and am complacent and many times lack the desire to be a part of what God is doing. Scary words again. By winging it, I mean I bury my talent. With a little time spent sharpening the ax, a little time spent in study and in development of the things God has given me I could double the output and make however many talents I have double. Who am I to sit on my hands? Who am I to bury my talent?

In the Near Future

So I'm comtemplating becoming a vegetarian (except for fish)! I already only eat red meat and pork but once or twice a month. Is a total purge coming? It would be difficult to stop chicken. I LOVE chicken and all the injected hormones that come with it. yum. No, but seriously I really am. Let me know what you think.


Thoughts, jokes, insults, rash remarks, and comments are welcomed.

:)

Its been a while

Men, check this out if you want. Great appeal and preaching.

http://www.marshillchurch.org/media/trial/marriage-and-men

Wake up Church

Why do we insist on calling it a religion? As if we are bound by a system where we have to earn God's love. God loves us and we have to do NOTHING to earn it. God sent Jesus to set us free not to bind us to a system of dogmatic rules.

Wake up Church.

If we screw up, which is definitely me and I'm pretty sure lots of other people too, God still loves us. I know its true for me but when I was growing up and in churches throughout my life it was common for me to feel obligated to do something to earn God's love. I always felt guilty if I didn't tithe or didn't tithe enough, or if i did anything wrong, told a lie, said some things I shouldnt have to my parents, lust after a girl, anything. Really God loves me no less when that happens because His love is not dependant on ANYTHING that I do, good or bad. It is unconditional, that means no conditions. A lot of churches I have been in put conditions on God's love. Stop making God's love conditional, Church. If we could meet all the conditions and requirements placed on us or if we could satisfy God by any action that we do, then there would be no reason for Jesus to have come, died, and rose for us. Why do we need to trust in Christ righteousness if there is some way to acheive it ourselves? This is bogus. 

This means that God loves everyone.... Drug dealers, homosexuals, child molesters, people contemplating suicide, even people who think they have it all figured out. In the Bible we are told to love God with all of our heart, soul, mind, and strength and to love our neighbor as ourself. It also says these are the two greatest commandments. Then why do we insist on using our faulty measuring sticks of condemnation to measure other people up to some sort of pseudo-standard. Why do we have such a hard time loving people first. God doesn't require a sorted out life before he loves someone and we shouldn't either. 

Wake up Church.