Henry Ford once enlisted an efficiency expert to examine the operation of his company. While his report was generally favorable, the man did express reservations about a particular employee. "It's that man down the corridor," he explained. "Every time I go by his office he's just sitting there with his feet on his desk. He's wasting your money." "That man," Ford replied, "once had an idea that saved us millions of dollars. At the time, I believe his feet were planted right where they are now."
- From the book So You Don’t Want To Go To Church Anymore
by Wayne Jacobsen and Dave Coleman
The Father revealed in Jesus Christ calls us to friendship with himself and with others. Religion often becomes the tired performance of rules and rituals. This old email was said to be sent to Dr. Laura in 2000. Though written with tongue firmly in cheek, it does highlight the difference between following Jesus as a friend and seeing Christianity as a religion.Dear Dr. Laura,
Thank you for doing so much to educate people regarding God's Law. I have learned a great deal from your show, and I try to share that knowledge with as many people as I can. When someone tries to defend the homosexual lifestyle, for example, I simply remind him that
I do need some advice from you, however, regarding some of the specific laws and how to best follow them.
a) When I burn a bull on the altar as a sacrifice, I know it creates a pleasing odor for the Lord
b) I would like to sell my daughter into slavery, as sanctioned in
c) I know that I am allowed no contact with a woman while she is in her period of menstrual uncleanliness
d) Lev. 25:44 states that I may indeed possess slaves, both male and female, provided they are purchased from neighboring nations. A friend of mine claims that this applies to Mexicans, but not Canadians. Can you clarify? Why can't I own Canadians?
e) I have a neighbor who insists on working on the Sabbath.
f) A friend of mine feels that even though eating shellfish is an Abomination
g) Lev 21:20 states that I may not approach the altar of God if I have a defect in my sight. I have to admit that I wear reading glasses. Does my vision have to be 20/20, or is there some wiggle room here?
h) Most of my male friends get their hair trimmed, including the hair around their temples, even though this is expressly forbidden by
i) I know from Lev 11:6-8 that touching the skin of a dead pig makes me unclean, but may I still play football if I wear gloves?
j) My uncle has a farm. He violates Lev 19:19 by planting two different crops in the same field, as does his wife by wearing garments made of two different kinds of thread (cotton/polyester blend). He also tends to curse and blaspheme a lot. Is it really necessary that we go to all the trouble of getting the whole town together to stone them?
I know you have studied these things extensively, so I am confident you can help. Thank you again for reminding us that God's word is eternal and unchanging.
Your devoted disciple and adoring fan
Christians have certain phrases that are understood by other Christians. One word that is familiar to many is "ministry." We speak of the ministry in which we participate or the ministries of our church. The idea is that when we are ministering we are intentionally doing something spiritual. The problem with this is that following Jesus is something we should intentionally do all the time - not just now and then. It isn't a tool that we pick up and use in some circumstances. The ministry of Jesus is the life of Jesus. Your ministry is your life. Being spiritual is nothing more than living consistently in the Father's love and sharing that love with others. Today, as you live a life of love, you will minister in your home, in traffic, at the office, at QuikTrip and wherever else you happen to roam. Each time you treat others with respect, each time you genuinely listen and each time you offer hope and forgiveness, you are walking with Jesus. (Photo by Christopher Azzopardi)
The things that are important in the world are things that we often take for granted within churches. The core issues of forgiveness, acceptance, hope, salvation, reconciliation, mercy, etc. are not just “givens” in the real world. In the church, we often see these as so obvious – obvious to the point of being neglected. We talk about them a lot, but rarely take them seriously. But, if you want to follow Jesus into the real world, these are truths that matter. In the world outside your door, your doctrinal statement doesn't matter whatsoever. But, living a life of love, forgiveness, acceptance, mercy and hope will set you apart.
There is a difference between searching for truth and accepting predetermined truths. One begins with an honest attempt to discover what is real and the other is an attempt to bolster preconceptions. In religion, truth is defined as adherence to whatever that religion has already decided is the truth. The longer the religion has been in existence, the longer the list of doctrines, tenants and declarations. A new convert is not asked to search for the truth, instead he is told that these are the truths he must accept. Following Jesus is a search for the Truth itself. In Jesus we find truth living and embodied. He is not a list of doctrines to be studied and believed. Jesus is the truth meant to be followed and lived.
There is a common thread which unites all of the women and men of the past. The famous and the infamous, even the obscure and unknown, are united by one thing: they are dead. What they did or didn't do or what they accomplished or didn't accomplish can be debated from now until the end of time. But, they themselves cannot enter into the debate. We sometimes live as though we will be aware of what others say of us. We believe that we will know whether or not we become famous (or infamous). But this kind of living is living for another world. We live in this world. We live in this time. It is to the Father to sort out our "legacy." It is to us to live faithfully in this age.
"So far as the Evangelical Confessions are concerned we are determined to put an end to existing divisions, which are concerned only with the forms of organization, and to create a single Evangelical Church for the whole Reich….""Christianity means community through Jesus Christ and in Jesus Christ. No Christian community is more or less than this. We belong to one another only through and in Jesus Christ."
For the first 300 years of its existence, the church was comprised of small bands of believers who met in homes and who shared their lives. This unity within community is recorded not only within the Scripture; secular historians writing of the sociology of the first several centuries also highlight this phenomenon. Eric Dodds writes in Pagans and Christians in an Age of Anxiety: “Christianity was open to all. In principle, it made no social distinctions; it accepted the manual worker, the slave, the outcast, the ex-criminal….In the second century and even in the third the Christian Church was still largely (though with many exceptions) an army of the disinherited. Christians were in a more formal sense ‘members of one another’: I think that this was a major cause, perhaps the strongest single cause, of the spread of Christianity.”
This was not a conceptual love and concern for one another. This was genuine love that prompted action.
Rodney Stark remarks:“Pagan and Christian writers are unanimous not only that Christian Scripture stressed love and charity as central duties of faith, but that these were sustained in everyday behavior.”
How times change.
"For with what judgment you judge, you will be judged; and with the measure you use, it will be measured back to you.”It is easy for me to make judgments about people – especially if I am unconcerned with the truth. In order to feel better about myself, I can remotely determine the deeds and motivations of others. But, such harsh judgment is in profound contrast to Jesus’ teaching. He tells us that we will be judged with the same standard we judge others. When I look at my life, I know that I must be judged mercifully, compassionately, understandingly and surrounded by grace. If this is what I know I need, then this is what I must give.
One of the reasons that I had such a struggle with gossip was the desire to want to know everything that was going on. As the REO Speedwagon song says, "Talk is cheap when the story is good." Hearing about the faults and outrages of others gave me some amount of smug self-satisfaction. But, as I have tried to work diligently on taming my ears, I have discovered two cool things about not listening to gossip. First, those that really love me don't listen to gossip about me and I don't listen to gossip about the people I love. Love always protects. Secondly, it is good to be ignorant about some things. Yes, there is a benefit in being clueless. If someone really wants you to know about a struggle in their life, they'll tell you. If they don't, it may mean that they don't want your help or they have no desire to change. I'm liking this!
“The first service that one owes to others in the fellowship consists in listening to them. Just as love to God begins with listening to His Word, so the beginning of love for the brethren is learning to listen to them. It is God's love for us that He not only gives us His Word but also lends us His ear. So it is His work that we do for our brother when we learn to listen to him. Christians, especially ministers, so often think they must always contribute something when they are in the company of others, that this is the one service they have to render. They forget that listening can be a greater service than speaking.“Many people are looking for an ear that will listen. They do not find it among Christians, because these Christians are talking where they should be listening. But he who can no longer listen to his brother will soon be no longer listening to God either; he will be doing nothing but prattle in the presence of God too. This is the beginning of the death of the spiritual life, and in the end there is nothing left but spiritual chatter and clerical condescension arrayed in pious words. One who cannot listen long and patiently will presently be talking beside the point and be never really speaking to others, albeit he be not conscious of it. Anyone who thinks that his time is too valuable to spend keeping quiet will eventually have no time for God and his brother, but only for himself and for his own follies.” – Dietrich Bonhoeffer
"If the only tool you have is a hammer, you tend to see every problem as a nail." 
Steve McDowell was my 8th grade English teacher. He was young, cool and an incredible teacher. He was the one who encouraged and guided my interest in writing. But, he doesn't know. His guidance made an incredible difference in my life, but he has no idea how much he helped me. Who has made a difference in your life? What friend or mentor helped you in a positive way? Has there been a Steve McDowell in your past? Do they know?
Have you ever thought about how many people have come and gone in your life? If you think about it, there are hundreds of folks we have met. Most have been acquaintances, but some managed to breech security and become a significant part of our lives. Of those who made the leap from acquaintance to friend, how many are you still in contact with? How many are still friends?
A boat docked in a tiny Mexican village. An American tourist complimented the Mexican fisherman on the quality of his fish and asked how long it took him to catch them. "Not very long," answered the Mexican.
"But then, why didn't you stay out longer and catch more?" asked the American.
The Mexican explained that his small catch was sufficient to meet his needs and those of his family.
The American asked, "But what do you do with the rest of your time?"
"I sleep late, fish a little, play with my children, and take a siesta with my wife. In the evenings, I go into the village to see my friends, have a few drinks, play the guitar, and sing a few songs. I have a full life."
The American interrupted, "I have an MBA from Harvard and I can help you! You should start by fishing longer every day. You can then sell the extra fish you catch. With the extra revenue, you can buy a bigger boat."
"And after that?" asked the Mexican.
"With the extra money the larger boat will bring, you can buy a second one and a third one and so on until you have an entire fleet of trawlers. Instead of selling your fish to a middle man, you can then negotiate directly with the processing plants and maybe even open your own plant. You can then leave this little village and move to Mexico City, Los Angeles, or even New York City! From there you can direct your huge new enterprise."
"How long would that take?" asked the Mexican.
"Twenty, perhaps twenty-five years," replied the American.
"And after that?"
"Afterwards? Well my friend, that's when it gets really interesting," answered the American, laughing. "When your business gets really big, you can start buying and selling stocks and make millions!"
"Millions? Really? And after that?" asked the Mexican.
"After that you'll be able to retire, live in a tiny village near the coast, sleep late, play with your children, catch a few fish, take a siesta with your wife and spend your evenings drinking and enjoying your friends."
And the moral of this story is: ......... Know where you're going in life... you may already be there.
(From http://www.toilette-paper.com/jokes/racial/lifeexplained.html.)
There are some moments where the best thing to say is nothing. This is harder for some than it is for others - and even harder for someone who tries to provide a new blog entry every day. Yet, words are limited and the search for the perfect answer can lead to silence.
Do you worry about what other people say about you, too? Are you concerned that others are spreading rumors or saying things about you that aren't true? Well, rest assured, they are. Sometime today, someone somewhere will make a comment about you that is not entirely accurate. It will probably not be meant to be malicious, but the remark will not have all of the facts straight. Most likely, whoever hears the remark will not question it, but just accept it as fact. Now that you know that, where is the needle on your Paranoia Meter? 
I don’t need someone to give me all the answers; I just want someone who will let me ask questions. I don’t need someone who will make things better, just someone who will help me see how things are.
I don’t want someone to lift me up; I want someone who will climb with me.
I don’t want someone who carries me; I want a friend who will walk with me.
I don’t want someone to dress my wounds; I need someone who will share their bandages.
I don’t need inspiration; I need dedication.
I don’t need platitudes; I need candor.
What I need is a friend.
I have waged this war against myself for many years.
From National Public Radio... Julio Diaz has a daily routine. Every night, the 31-year-old social worker ends his hour-long subway commute to the Bronx one stop early, just so he can eat at his favorite diner.
But one night last month, as Diaz stepped off the No. 6 train and onto a nearly empty platform; his evening took an unexpected turn.
He was walking toward the stairs when a teenage boy approached and pulled out a knife.
"He wants my money, so I just gave him my wallet and told him, 'Here you go,'" Diaz says.
As the teen began to walk away, Diaz told him, "Hey, wait a minute. You forgot something. If you're going to be robbing people for the rest of the night, you might as well take my coat to keep you warm."
The would-be robber looked at his would-be victim, "like what's going on here?" Diaz says. "He asked me, 'Why are you doing this?'"
Diaz replied: "If you're willing to risk your freedom for a few dollars, then I guess you must really need the money. I mean, all I wanted to do was get dinner and if you really want to join me ... hey, you're more than welcome.
"You know, I just felt maybe he really needs help," Diaz says.
Diaz says he and the teen went into the diner and sat in a booth.
"The manager comes by, the dishwashers come by, the waiters come by to say hi," Diaz says. "The kid was like, 'You know everybody here. Do you own this place?'"
"No, I just eat here a lot," Diaz says he told the teen. "He says, 'But you're even nice to the dishwasher.'"
Diaz replied, "Well, haven't you been taught you should be nice to everybody?"
"Yea, but I didn't think people actually behaved that way," the teen said.
Diaz asked him what he wanted out of life. "He just had almost a sad face," Diaz says.
The teen couldn't answer Diaz — or he didn't want to.
When the bill arrived, Diaz told the teen, "Look, I guess you're going to have to pay for this bill 'cause you have my money and I can't pay for this. So if you give me my wallet back, I'll gladly treat you."
The teen "didn't even think about it" and returned the wallet, Diaz says. "I gave him $20 ... I figure maybe it'll help him. I don't know."
Diaz says he asked for something in return — the teen's knife — "and he gave it to me."
Afterward, when Diaz told his mother what happened, she said, "You're the type of kid that if someone asked you for the time, you gave them your watch."
"I figure, you know, if you treat people right, you can only hope that they treat you right. It's as simple as it gets in this complicated world."
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=89164759
Paying attention to the condition of your soul is different than constant self-examination. We think about what is most important to us. When we are constantly thinking about ourselves - our motives, our intentions, our desires - we are declaring clearly what is most important to us: ourselves. This constant self-scrutiny takes away from energy properly spent on the Father and others. Self absorption leaves little for others. 
As I continue my walk with Jesus away from religion, I remember various incidents that have happened along the way. Some of this is reminiscing and some is therapeutic. One of the things I have been thinking about are the number of "prophets" that I have met along my journey. Typically, these are people with a burning desire to tell what they consider to be the truth and they tell it without any regard for the impact their "truths" will have on those who receive these revelations. They judge thoughts and intentions. They rebuke and challenge. They deliver many "hard sayings." And then they leave. Their objective is to enter a life, throw the Holy Hand Grenade of Antioch into the midst of someone's life and then hope someone else picks up the pieces.
Scott Adams writes “Dilbert.” It is some funny stuff. Last week he did a series in which there is a new worker named “Jesus” which is pronounced as “hay-soos.” Like clockwork, several Christians wrote in to complain. Below is one of the emails Scott Adams received. Please pay attention to the response. Hello! Mr. Adams,
Mr. Adams I just want to tell you that I don’t really appreciate you making a mockery of my faith. I used to think that your comic strip was funny, now I think it is very disgusting and not funny at all. I have found your last comics strips in reference to my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ very offensive. There is a place for everything and there is a place for humor and humor has its limits, especially when it comes to those things and issues that some of us hold as sacred. I will pray for you and that some day you may come to know Jesus as your Lord and Savior. Otherwise you will find Him some day as your judge, and He will justly judge you for your sins and whether or not you believe in Hell that day you will believe and you will repent when you see Him face to face, but then it will be too late. Repent from your wicked ways and stop making fun of my Savior.
Thanks for your time.
Pastor (name deleted),
California
The Response from Scott Adams:
Thank you for taking time out from feeding the poor to complain about comic strips. I know Jesus would have played it the same way.
Scott
Last night some friends and I watched a movie about the holocaust. It traced a young boy's trek from freedom to captivity to freedom in about two hours. The wonder of cinema was able to condense several years into several minutes. Similarly, on my bookshelves I have a number of biographies. In just several hundred pages, they condense decades of life. Television, too, routinely summarizes hours, days, weeks, months and years into bite size segments. 
Faith is not always believing that the Father will do something for us if we "believe enough." It is not some sort of cosmic positive thinking. 
You cannot help someone who doesn't want help.
This morning, as she was getting ready to go to work, I could tell where my wife had been because the lights were on wherever she went. In each room where she had stepped, the light was on. In the bathroom, the bedroom, the closet and in the kitchen, she left a trail of light. (To her credit, she did turn them all off before she left...Kathy is environmentally friendly.)
I was visiting the hospital recently and I began to think about the ways we like to separate ourselves from suffering. We place sick people in hospitals, we ship older folks to rest homes, we institutionalize the severely mentally and physically challenged and we confine the poor to certain areas of the city. Out of sight = out of mind.
“Listening is a magnetic and strange thing, a creative force. The friends who listen to us are the ones we move toward. When we are listened to, it creates us, makes us unfold and expand.” - Karl Menninger“You cannot truly listen to anyone and do anything else at the same time." - M. Scott Peck
French philosopher Blaise Pascal is the author of Pascal’s Wager. It is the argument for belief in God that essentially states that you should live as though there is a god because if God exists, you go to heaven and you gain everything. If there is no God, you gain nothing and lose nothing. You may have heard this as “if I am wrong and there is no God, then I lose nothing. But, if I am right that there is a God and you are wrong that there is no God, then you lose everything.”In a relationship, faith is an active quest. Our faith is tested and stretched, but it is our desire to see it grow and deepen. Such confidence does not grow haphazardly. Faith in a relationship does not grow simply by not giving up. Real faith is a decision made over and over and over.
This morning I was at Quik Trip. While there, I saw a man who was noticeably short. He was vertically challenged. What made me notice was that he was standing next to a really, really tall man. It looked as if the scene could have been staged. The tall man's height was exaggerated by the stature of the shorter man next to him and the smaller man looked even smaller next to the giant.
The Dog's Diary8:00 am - Dog food! My favorite thing!
9:30 am - A car ride! My favorite thing!
9:40 am - A walk in the park! My favorite thing!
10:30 am - Got rubbed and petted! My favorite thing!
12:00 PM - Milk bones! My favorite thing!
1:00 PM - Played in the yard! My favorite thing!
3:00 PM - Wagged my tail! My favorite thing!
5:00 PM - Dinner! My favorite thing!
7:00 PM - Got to play ball! My favorite thing!
8:00 PM - Wow! Watched TV with the people! My favorite thing!
11:00 PM - Sleeping on the bed! My favorite thing!
The Cat's Diary
Day 983 of my captivity.
My captors continue to taunt me with bizarre little dangling objects.
They dine lavishly on fresh meat, while the other inmates and I are fed hash or some sort of dry nuggets. Although I make my contempt for the rations perfectly clear, I nevertheless must eat something in order to keep up my strength.
The only thing that keeps me going is my dream of escape. In an attempt to disgust them, I once again vomit on the carpet. Today I decapitated a mouse and dropped its headless body at their feet. I had hoped this would strike fear into their hearts, since it clearly demonstrates my capabilities. However, they merely made condescending comments about what a "good little hunter" I am. Bastards!
There was some sort of assembly of their accomplices tonight. I was placed in solitary confinement for the duration of the event. However, I could hear the noises and smell the food. I overheard that my confinement was due to the power of "allergies." I must learn what this means, and how to use it to my advantage.
Today I was almost successful in an attempt to assassinate one of my tormentors by weaving around his feet as he was walking. I must try this again tomorrow, but at the top of the stairs.
I am convinced that the other prisoners here are flunkies and Snitches. The dog receives special privileges. He is regularly released, and seems to be more than willing to return. He is obviously retarded.
The bird must be an informant. I observe him communicate with the Guards regularly. I am certain that he reports my every move. My captors have arranged protective custody for him in an Elevated Cell, so he is safe.
Over coffee at our regular haunt, I was talking with a good friend yesterday. In the course of our conversation he mentioned his frustration with having to wait on certain individuals – “important individuals” – who had to make some decisions before he could proceed with several important projects. Until these folks paid attention to his concerns, my friend was blocked. Unfortunately, these other people did not seem to believe that his project was as important as their agendas. I think all of us can identify with my friend. This got me to thinking about priorities. Doubtless the “movers and shakers” who were holding my friend’s desires captive believed that they had many, many important commitments. His concern was just one more thing on their list. But, when something so important to someone is buried in schedules and commitments, maybe the schedules are too crowded and the commitments are too numerous?
We often confuse busyness with productivity. The more we are doing, the more we believe we are getting done. But this is not the case. We live in a culture that desperately runs from appointment to appointment, commitment to commitment and place to place without any clear direction as to where it is going. We are busy, busy, busy and lost, lost, lost.
Perhaps we are trying to do too much. If someone would look at my schedule, would they be able to clearly see the priorities that I believe are important or would they see a clutter of activity? Would they be able to clearly discern the people who matter most to me or be able to see the causes for which I care? Or would they see a life that is busy with stuff and has no real substance? To do a few things and do them well is better than doing a lot of things poorly.
Fear keeps us from fully trusting in the Father's provision.
The great distinction between following Jesus and religion is that following Jesus is relational in nature. While religions prescribe various rites and rituals intended to bring humanity into contact with the divine, Jesus teaches that it was God who initiated contact with a lost race. Religious systems encourage pilgrimages and sacrifices as paths to God. The Bible reveals a God who lived among his people in the Old Testament and lives in them with the indwelling of the Holy Spirit in the New Testament. Old Testament laws and New Testament wisdom reveal the way and methods to initiate and develop a relationship with God the Father and with others. The “mission” has always been reconciliation. Reconciliation remains both the message and ministry (II Corinthians 5:16-21). Growth in relationship is the confirmation of real reconciliation. 
The fanboys of the internet have been breathlessly awaiting the revelation of the "Cloverfield" monster. For those of you who do not know, "Cloverfield" is a new movie which will be released this Friday (01-18-08). The brilliant viral marketing for the film has focused camcorder snippets from several friends who journey from an average night on the town into the chaos of New York City under attack by a giant monster. Tokyo has Godzilla. New York has...something.
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