Inviting People to Church - an hilarious video

Check this out.

If Mom's are lonely

More from my reading - this makes me think that if Christians are making friends, our friends will come to know the one a friend "closer that a brother".

Moms are More Lonely These Days

With the frenzied pace of today's moms, many women find friendships and relationships often fall to the wayside. With just 19% living in the community where they grew up, moms desperately seek new connections and they struggle: 58% report experiencing loneliness in the past month, and 4 out of 5 need more friends in their lives.

Engage Moms, 10/21/09

Real Life & Death Issues from ER

A friend of Lynn's posted on her blog this from ER and Ray Comfort. I plan on using it in our Bible Study next Sunday night. So Ben if you check this blog before Sunday you can see it twice!

UnChristian or Unchurched?

I get a "church report" via e-mail and there are a lot of facts and figures. The one below finally says what I have been sensing a long time, and in fact, it marks the way I approach people who say they believe. In my mind I do not want to lose an opportunity to share the gospel with someone who thinks they are saved but does not understand the gospel. Like me, in my early years I thought I was a Christian because I went to church when I was a boy with my Mom. It had nothing to do with who Jesus was or if he really was alive today.

Those who are not living out the gospel - need compassion and evangelism. They are unchurched - in the Biblical sense.

By the way, I disagree with the last sentence below. If you are unchurch - there ought to be big doubt is you are a Christian at all!

Post-Denominational?

Church historian Rodney Stark reports between 1960 and 2000, the Episcopal Church declined 55% in terms of members per 1,000 U.S. population. The United Methodist Church declined 49%, and the Presbyterian Church (USA) declined 49%. Megachurches have doubled in number and size in the past five years. This leaves the churched population among Christians at about 40% attending regularly. It also says, with about 85% nominally Christian in the U.S., only about half of them regularly attend church. They are not unChristian; they are unchurched.

A funeral, contacts and contacts

Today I went to a funeral for a long time friend, Max Stanton. As I was waiting for the worship to start I read from the Book of Common Prayer the following:

² Before the mountains were born
or you brought forth the earth and the world,
from everlasting to everlasting you are God.

³ You turn men back to dust,
saying, "Return to dust, O sons of men."

⁴ For a thousand years in your sight
are like a day that has just gone by,
or like a watch in the night.

⁵ You sweep men away in the sleep of death;
they are like the new grass of the morning-

⁶ though in the morning it springs up new,
by evening it is dry and withered.

⁷ We are consumed by your anger
and terrified by your indignation.

⁸ You have set our iniquities before you,
our secret sins in the light of your presence.

⁹ All our days pass away under your wrath;
we finish our years with a moan.

¹⁰ The length of our days is seventy years—
or eighty, if we have the strength;
yet their span is but trouble and sorrow,
for they quickly pass, and we fly away.

¹¹ Who knows the power of your anger?
For your wrath is as great as the fear that is due you.

¹² Teach us to number our days aright,
that we may gain a heart of wisdom.

The pastor did a great job of pointing to Max's Savior while at the same time honoring the life of my friend and comforting the family.

Teach us to number our days aright, that we may gain a heart of wisdom.

From the funeral I returned home to have my lovely Rebekah look deep into my eyes showing off her new contacts - she is thrilled.

Before the funeral I met with some fellow church planters and pastors and we had a brain session on ways that I can contact people in a winsome way during the summer with the goal of sharing the good news of Jesus. I am very encouraged with their ideas and the synergism that it sparked in my mind.

So - a funeral reminded me of the limited days we have here, Rebekah's contacts reminds me that simple joys should be enjoyed like a happy little girl and contacting people for the Kingdom can really be fun - I will share some of the ideas in another post!

Evangelism, or the lack of it - a quote I like!

I  have been reading a lot lately and have appreciated Ed Stetzer's analysis of the church. Here he makes a good critique. This is from a larger article you can read here.

Now, I am not willing to say that a lack of converts is a sign of unfaithfulness. But, I am willing to say that too many change movements are not seeing lost people's lives changed. And I think that is the wrong kind of change.

So, my Reformed friends, let's not only read 1st, 2nd, and 3rd John (that is, John Calvin, John MacArthur, and John Piper), let's go plant some more churches. My emerging church friends, let's take a pause from the theological rethink and head into the neighborhood and to tell someone about Jesus. My missional friends, let's speak of justice, but always tell others how God can be both "just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus." My house church friends, let's have community, but let's be sure it is focused on redemption. My Baptist friends, let's focus more on convincing pagans than Presbyterians. And, my charismatic friends, let's focus less on getting existing believers to speak in tongues and more on using our tongue to tell others about Jesus.

Is Evangelism out of style?

It seems to me there is less emphasis on evangelism (sharing your Christian faith) today and more on on simply good works. I am in favor of both but it is my experience that you must encourage evangelism first and good works/discipleship ... second. Why? Well, I am a Presbyterian and we are known for training people in theology - good theology - no, great theology. We love that stuff. But, in reality, we will train people to death and they never get around to sharing their faith.
Those of you who know me - know I love to be around questioning, seekers, young christians and believers that are listening to what God wants in their lives. The hear sermons differently that Christians that fell that have all that is required in this lifetime. You h

ave heard that it is easier to steer a moving ship that one dead in the water - same thing with a growing Christian. Point them in the right direction with the right attitude (Faith) and they will please God.

Listen to this from an atheist about a recent experience when a man cared enough to share his faith.

This video