Great stuff…
“Diversity’s Symphony” Poem by David Bowden, davidbowdenpoetry.com, @davidbpoetry
Video Directed and Edited by Samson Varughese, emanatemedia.com, @samsonvarughese
Based on the Book, “Church Diversity,” by Scott Williams, churchdiversity.com, @ScottWilliams
***Shown at NORTHchurch on Sunday, July 17, 2011.
Kevin Durant walked into his postgame news conference following the Oklahoma City Thunder‘s Game 1 victory over Denver and climbed to his seat atop a podium with three things in hand.
His cellphone, a pair of headphones and a Bible.
The first two, Durant has always carried. The third item was included only recently.
For the past 44 days, Durant, the Thunder’s two-time All-Star and reigning two-time scoring champ, has become a Bible-toting ballplayer. Since March 8, Durant has read passages each day from the black leather Bible he carries with his name engraved on the front cover.
Durant has been spotted digesting passages at his locker before games, which is not uncommon inside NBA locker rooms. Teammate Serge Ibaka has done the same since he entered the league. The sight of Durant thumbing through the Good Book, though, represents just another reason why many observers have labeled Durant a special kind of superstar.
“I just want to grow spiritually with the Lord,” Durant said. “It’s something I always talked about, but I never really got into it.”
Durant finally decided to commit himself to a covenant of daily worship on March 7. The Thunder was in Memphis for a game against the Grizzlies. During a trip to pregame chapel, which more than half of the Thunder’s roster attends regularly before each game, Durant found his final source of inspiration.
The team chaplain for the Grizzlies, like Durant a Maryland native, stressed what a difference daily reading can make. The minister told the young man that even a scripture a day can change his life.
The next day, Durant began his devotion.
“I’m keeping strong at it, just trying to make my walk with faith a little better,” Durant said. “That’s making me a better person, opening my eyes to things and I’m also maturing as a person. I’m just trying to grow.”
(From NewsOK - http://www.newsok.com/article/3560862)
15 KEYS FOR YOUR FULL POTENTIAL…
(From “Uncommon” by Tony Dungy)
The world is trying to sell us a backwards view of sex. From TV, movies, commercials, music, media, to Internet, we are constantly being bombarded with this backwards view of sex. It’s everywhere.
And we are living in a Christian community with the simple message of “don’t do it” and “just say no”. Why? Because you could get pregnant. Because you could get a disease. Because you will sin.
Growing up with this constant message of “don’t do it”, I began asking myself, “Why in the world did God create sex? It has to be more than just making babies and populating the earth.”
In this state of questioning, God began to reveal something (about the purpose of sex) that I had never heard before. And it all starts with creation.
In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.
Most of us are familiar with the creation story described in the first chapter of Genesis. God creates light, sky, land, oceans, trees, plants, the sun, the moon, stars, birds, fish, animals, and everything else on Earth. After everything God created, the Bible says that he looked down and declared “THIS IS GOOD!”
But God was not done creating.
God saves his best creation for last. He (along with Jesus and the Holy Spirit) decide to make something special. Something different than everything else they had already created. Something they could love and have a relationship with. Something made in the image of God. Something that has all of God’s attributes.
So they make man (Adam).
And after God makes people, the Bible says that God looked down and declared “THIS IS VERY GOOD!”
Then God looked down at Adam and said, “You know what would be even better? Ladies!” So God puts Adam into a deep sleep, amputates a rib, and forms Eve (woman).
Here’s the point…
If man was made in the image of God and encapsulates all the great attributes of God and then God creates woman out of man, suddenly the COMPLETE image of God is now two places. Suddenly man does not have all the attributes of God – woman has some. Now there are two separate things that have different attributes of God – men don’t have the women’s and women don’t have the men’s.
Like those old school, cheesy best friend necklaces that are torn in half (one half saying “Be / Fri”, the other half saying “st / ends”), now the image of God is in two places.
Then God creates this awesome thing called sex. And the 2 become 1 by this adhesive that is so strong that it can put the image of God back together.
So the purpose of sex is so much bigger than making babies and populating the earth. Sex is the super-strong adhesive that puts the complete image of God back together.
(Material used in the REVOLUTION series – XES. Major thanks to Gateway Church student pastor Ben Pirtle for hooking me up with a lot of this material.)
(From “Uncommon” by Tony Dungy)
(This blog post was originally posted on February 18, 2009…)
I have subscribed to Sports Illustrated for years. As a subscriber to Sports Illustrated, the annual Swimsuit Edition (first published in 1964) gets sent to my house every February.
Here’s the cool part…
I have not seen one picture or one article from the Swimsuit Edition in years. Every year my incredible wife gets that particular issue, rolls her eyes at the super models who are not wearing their swimsuits, and immediately throws the issue in the garbage.
My 2011 issue came on Wednesday. It went in the trash on Wednesday and I never knew it came to the house.
I love that she does this for me. The raw, honest truth is that I probably do not have the strength to do it myself. Granted, I might throw it away but not without first taking a peak. (I care here you thinking “but you’re a minister!” Yeah, you are right, I am a honest and real minister.) I cherish the fact that my wife cares about my purity enough to help me succeed. She gets it. She makes me a better person. She makes me a better follower of Jesus.
Some people might think “who cares?” or “what’s the big deal?”
Here the truth…
I know I am not missing anything. My eyes have better things to look at. I have better thoughts to think about. I got a hottie that I am madly in love with and who loves me back. Who needs the Swimsuit Edition? I know I don’t.
________________________
Here’s the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Challenge…
Follow my wife’s lead. If you get the Swimsuit Edition, throw it away. If your husband/son/brother/friend gets the Swimsuit Edition, take the initiative and throw it away for him (like me, he probably doesn’t have the strength to do it himself).
“You have heard that it was said, ‘Do not commit adultery.’ But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart. If your right eye causes you to sin, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell.” – Jesus in Matthew 5:27-29 (NIV)
We’ve all heard the statistics…
45-50% of marriages in the United States end in divorce. Also, Christian marriages (statistically) have the same divorce rate.
If you are married, engaged, or dream of getting married on day…those statistics should scare you to death. Seriously, it is crazy to think that every other person’s marriage who reads this blog will (statistically) end in divorce.
What if I told you that I drop that divorce rate to 0.4%? Would you be interested?
During his message yesterday at NORTHchurch, Rodney Fouts shared 3 steps (originally from Zig Ziglar) you can take that will lower divorce rate from 50% to 0.4%…
1. PRAY OUT LOUD EVERY DAY WITH YOUR SPOUSE.
2. READ THE BIBLE OUT LOUD EVERY DAY WITH YOUR SPOUSE.
3. WORSHIP AND SERVE EVERY WEEK AT CHURCH WITH YOUR SPOUSE.
______________________
CLICK HERE to watch this entire message.
In the book Essential Church, best-selling author Tom Rainer writes that some 70% of students between the ages of 18 and 22 dropout of church.
This is a statistic that I and the entire leadership at NORTHchurch want to change. That is why we have intentionality put into place opportunities for students to not disconnect from the church. Our desire is to reverse this troubling trend within our sphere of influence.
That’s where TWOFIFTYTWO comes in.
TWOFIFTYTWO is a part-time student internship for high school and college students (16-22 year olds) at NORTHchurch. This experience will add value to their lives and help them grow in their relationship with God like never before. This 12-week internship is designed to provide students with the greatest and most significant semester of their lives.
The Bible urges us to give our all to advancing the Lord’s work here on earth. However, even Jesus journeyed through a season of preparation before His ministry began. The only verse in the Bible that describes the areas in which Jesus was trained is Luke 2:52. That verse states Jesus-growth process in four areas: wisdom, stature, favor with God, and favor with men. For that reason, we focus specifically on the same four areas.
TWOFIFTYTWO is designed to disciple and help students grow through a variety of fun and exciting adventures, city-changing outreaches, dynamic classroom teaching, worship, prayer, Bible study, and active involvement at NORTHchurch.
Today started the second semester of TWOFIFTYTWO. Last Fall, 9 incredible students completed the inaugural semester of TWOFIFTYTWO. Here is a glimpse of their experience…
I am proud to say that 21 students have stepped up to the plate. These 21 high school and college students will make up the Spring 2011 class of TWOFIFTYTWO. It is going to be an amazing semester. I can’t wait to see them grow in their relationship with God, in their relationship with each other, and use their gifts to serve the local church.
At NORTHchurch, we refuse to let our students between the ages of 16-22 years become another stat.
Recently I read a sentence that grabbed my heart and I have not been able to shake it.
“IN A GIVEN YEAR IT’S ESTIMATED THAT AMERICAN ADULTS VOLUNTEER ROUGHLY 20 BILLION HOURS OF THEIR TIME.” (from Holy Discontent by Bill Hybels)
20 billion hours! That’s 20,000,000,000 hours!
My only response to this unbelievable sentence is…
Thank you.
To all the people that so selflessly give their time to churches, hospitals, ministry programs, nonprofit groups, schools, charities, and all other volunteer positions – THANK YOU. The world is better because of what you do. You are appreciated.
Thank you.
