Tuesday, September 30, 2008

sin: part 2

The psychiatrist M. Scott Peck wrote the best seller The Road Less Travelled. As a psychiatrist it's his job to try and understand what makes people tick. Here's what he says in another book, What Return Can I Make:

"Sin has not been a very fashionable word these past few years...It would seem the doctrine of the day is that all that is needed in this world is a little more affirmation. I'm OK, You're OK is the title of one of the leading pop psychology best-sellers. But what happens if I'm not OK?... The reality is that this world is not all OK. Evil is not the figment of some medieval theologian's imagination. Auschwitz and My Lai and Jonestown are actual places and actually happened. Human evil is real.The reality is that we do betray God and ourselves and each other. We do it routinely. The worst of us do it blatantly, even compulsively. The noblest of us do it subtly and self-centeredly, even when we think we are not trying to do it. Whether it is done consciously or unconsciously is of no matter; the betrayal occurs."

Monday, September 29, 2008

red floor chronicles | sin

I began a new series yesterday: RED FLOOR CHRONICLES. The title is in reference to the epic drama of the cross that came to light for me standing on the painted red floor of Pier 1 Imports in 1983. I'll never forget hearing the Gospel for the first time, how God changed my heart and the resulting overflow for the next 25 years.

In this series, I'm exploring the theological and practical aspects of the Gospel. I believe that the Gospel can be told in four "movements." The first is SIN. The good news is good because the bad news is so terribly bad. Sin is a universal, ungodly, ugly obstacle to God's Divine design for our lives. It all started with Adam [I read today that Adam went "off sides" and the whole team was penalized]. Sin has been imputed [passed on] to every person. Our lives are a mess and, left alone to ourselves, we are desperately lost and without hope.

Check out the sermon page on our church website to see hear the larger message: http://www.pantego.org/. Better yet, feel the desperate darkness that describes our condition in Romans 1-3 and Isaiah 53:6.

Monday, September 15, 2008

follow my blog

If you follow my blog, please be sure to click "follow this blog" on the bottom of the right column. I'd like to know who's reading. Thanks!

Sunday, September 14, 2008

Saturday, September 13, 2008

i'm filthy rich

Many years ago, I took part in a Poverty Simulation with Mission Waco. In one of the sessions, my friend Jimmy Dorrell explained the incredible gap between American affluence and the rest of the world. If my memory serves me correctly [and my recent data gets me in the ballpark], the United States comprises 5% of the world's population but consumes almost a quarter of the world's resources. We are users, hoarders, getters.

In my research for the My Simple Life series, I stumbled across a sobering website that puts my personal income in context with the rest of the world [see Global Rich List here]. I won't spoil the surprise for you. But, when you're finished inserting your annual salary and review the results, you might start tithing to your church, giving to a local compassion agency or checking out Kiva to see how you might put some of your dollars to work as a blessing to those much further down the wealth continuum.

On a related note: The compelling reason why my financial riches should pour over into the world is because of the spiritual riches that I enjoy in Christ. Paul writes, "For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, so that you through his poverty might become rich" [2 Corinthians 8:9]. I don't just make a decent annual income, I enjoy a marvelous eternal income. God has "met all of my needs according to His glorious riches in Christ Jesus" [Philippians 4:19]. I'm filthy rich. So much so...I can afford to give so much away.

guess it #2

Here's another Grant Daniels pic. Guess it.

Thursday, September 11, 2008

blast from the past




OK. So, I was noticing the tags on my blogs and realized that it's been a while since I've posted anything under the category "humor." So, when my son told me about a new creative website [yearbookyourself.com] where I could import my current pic to recreate a yearbook photo, I couldn't resist. I've posted Grant's too, I'm so proud of him. Create your own and let me know when I can see your nostalgic self. I'm thinking of posting Tiffany's picture next. Then we'll get counseling.

guess it #1

Grant has been taking some extraordinary photos. I love his artful eye and the ability to abstract the simple. I'm going to post a few of my favorites. Can you guess what it is? You can see more of my son's pics at Grant Daniels Photography.

Tuesday, September 9, 2008

simplify

I turned off the television a little more than a week ago. I have filled my time with several good books. If you are like me --trying to get a handle on your time and stuff and simplifying your life so that you can find the margin to do what really matters -- I'd like to recommend a couple of good reads. Two books are helpful resources for our simple life: Simplify by Paul Borthwick (105 ways to simplify your life) and Simplify Your Spiritual Life by Donald S. Whitney (practicing the spiritual disciplines in a way that brings simple pleasure to your spiritual pursuit of God). They can be purchased online or in the Pantego Bible Church Connection Bookstore.

Sunday, September 7, 2008

entropy

Our Home Group just retired for the evening and I thought would reflect on our great conversation together. We enjoyed a delicious Mexican food dinner chased by homemade spice cake. Brandon Swinney gave us a mini-concert showing us all how much he has progressed on guitar (Grant is his teacher). Then, we talked about the new sermon series I started this morning: My Simple Life. Each of us shared our perspective on one or more of the four points that I presented from Ecclesiastes 3:1-15. To live the simple life, we must:

1. Know who controls time
2. Say "no" until the right time
3. Go to our gladness
4. Zero in on the glory

One of the points of discussion was the law of entropy. In science class, I learned (and this is a non-scientific, simple explanation) that items will move from a condition of order to disorder, if left alone. This is a law of living too. If left alone, my schedule will naturally move from order to disorder. I will suddenly find myself overwhelmed and overloaded. In other words, I must wisely and intentionally set about to guard my schedule and watch my decisions every day. Otherwise, I may wake up to discover that my simple life has become chaotic. That's entropy.