Gospel Centered Discipleship writes and produces some great content regarding discipleship and living out the Gospel.
They recently wrote a 3 part series called, Kids in the Family of God that’s a worthy read:
I came across an article in the Chicago Tribune called: Cardinal wades into fray about Chick-fil-A
In light of the recent controversy surrounding Chick-fil-A’s stance on gay marriage, Chicago mayor Rahm Emmanuel made a statement saying that the company’s values “are not Chicago values.”
Chicago Cardinal Francis George weighed in on Mayor Emmanuel’s declaration of Chicago’s values:
Recent comments by those who administer our city seem to assume that the city government can decide for everyone what are the ‘values’ that must be held by citizens of Chicago. I was born and raised here, and my understanding of being a Chicagoan never included submitting my value system to the government for approval. Must those whose personal values do not conform to those of the government of the day move from the city?
The Cardinal further quips:
Approval of state-sponsored homosexual unions has very quickly become a litmus test for bigotry. … Surely there must be a way to properly respect people who are gay or lesbian without using civil law to undermine the nature of marriage.
What I appreciate about Cardinal George’s words are that they challenge the imposition of values by the government. I understand that Mayor Emmanuel might be frustrated with Chick-fil-A’s stance on a particular issue, but it’s hardly a governments (no matter how big or small) place to determine to establish a set of values (regardless of origin). I also understand that the mayor may not be advocating governmental imposition of values, but words spoken from a position of government need to be weighed carefully.
No matter what the mayor’s intention was, I’m thankful for an influential voice in the controversy that brings caution to our government in weighty matters such as this. I thought the Cardinal handled the situation gracefully and wisely.
You can read Cardinal George’s blog post here: Reflections on “Chicago values” and an amazing follow up post here: Chicago Values, Revisited: it’s not about chicken!
I just came across a resource called:
Youth Group Games
It’s got almost 100 games in a searchable database by category or by age range and group size.
As a children and youth pastor, I need games and am always looking for new (and renewed) games. I’m building quite a list of games on this blog. I also need the games to be tried and tested in a ministry setting. So many of the games I seem to find online are great ideas, but don’t really work in real life. These do.
I found some that I had forgotten about as well as some different twists on games I was already familiar with.
Have fun!
Catchy title, eh?!
Justin Buzzard, author of Date Your Wife
Hot Monogamous Sex
Here is an excerpt:
Many people (especially men) think marriage is a cage, a cage that prevents you from enjoying this kind of extraordinary sex. This way of thinking makes sense. Marriage (as most would define it) means a lifetime of sex with the same person, so it’s easy to conclude that novelty, variety, adventure, passion, and heat would fade when you’re simply having sex with the same old person for multiple decades. How interesting could such sex really be? “It’s a cage,” the masses seem to cry.
This infographic shows the increased connectivity through the generations: Millennials, Gen X-ers, Young Boomers and Older Boomers. It confirms what we all know: we are more and more “hyper connected.” I wonder what would be said (in further research) for this current “digital” generation…?
It’s no secret that Millennials (loosely classified as people born between 1977 and 1993) are the generation on the go. Mobile phones, tablet computers and wi-fi are technologies used every day, and these technologies enable Millennials to take all their networks, friends, and data with them. With 95 percent of Millennials online, it’s safe to say being connected is a daily part of their lives. In fact, compared to other generations, they are the most plugged in to the digital world around us.
source Good.is
I just finished reading a book by Justin Buzzard called: Date Your Wife
source justinbuzzard.net
My oldest daughter starts Kindergarten this year.
And our involvement in the public school system begins.
Let’s start at the beginning…
In Genesis 12, God begins the process of fashioning a peculiar people, a people with a promise of descendants, land, and God’s presence. The only condition required of this people was faith.
Abraham was first. Then his son Isaac, then Jacob, and on and on from there. We know them as the Israelites, the group of fickle people that God had his hand on, and the unique people we read and tell stories about to our children from the Old Testament. God’s goal with this people was (and is) to show the world what He is like. His people were (and are) to represent Him in this fallen and broken world. And the only condition required to be a part of this people is faith.
In the Old Testament, this group of people was mainly of one people group, one nationality. But God’s heart was (and is) for His people to be a “light to the nations”, a group of spokespeople who display and tell the world who God is. Israel didn’t do a great job of proclaiming the name of God to the world.
In the New Testament, we find God sending His one and only Son, Jesus, to do for the world what Israel failed to do. He suffered for this world. Jesus emptied himself and died. He was the sacrificial offering. Jesus was the new and successful Adam.
Thus, faith in Jesus Christ means that you are a part of God’s redeemed people group, apart from nationality, dialect, or geographic location. This faith produces a life that is emptied of our old self and filled up with the Holy Spirit who guides our new self. “Christians”, little Christs, as they are known, is the renewed family of God.
One cannot even begin to engage with families in the mission of God in this world if we do not even know what the mission is: faith in Jesus Christ, to empty ourselves, and allow the Holy Spirit to fashion out of the empty vessel a people who look like God.
Ministry with families need to look like engaging with them in the mission of God.
NBC’s “Minute to Win It” Instructions
Game requirements
- 2 breath mint boxes
- ruler
How to play
- Secure breath mint boxes to the ends of the ruler so they stand lengthwise.
- Remove piece of the lid so that opening is unobstructed.
- When the clock starts, player picks up the ruler with their mouth and begins to move their head in an attempt to empty both boxes of mints.
- To complete the game, player must empty both mint boxes within the 60-second time limit.
source Vimeo
This is a video I made to introduce myself to the WI Kids Camp 2012 staff. I placed it on our webpage that contained our training materials.
It’s amazing the wonderful media creation tools that exist in our pockets! I just grabbed my iPhone, switched the video recorder to the front-facing camera, and filmed myself talking in my office chair (I tried not to swivel from side-to-side too much!). Then I uploaded that video directly to Vimeo, which has amazing embedding tools. And viola! Done!
Amazingly simple way to both introduce myself digitally to people I haven’t met in person yet!
source Vimeo
