An evotional blog ...

Thanks to Bruce over at His Method blog for introducing Pastor Mark Batterson, who has some really neat things to say. Here are some examples from his blog called "Evotional.com" ...

This one is an excerpt from a message called "Lame Parties" - to read the full post, go here.

Luke 15:10 is one of those verses that gives us a glimpse through the glass floorboards of heaven. There is a holy party happening. It says, "There is joy in the presence of God's angels when even one sinner repents."

One person putting their faith in Christ sets off a cosmic celebration. According to the latest research I've come across, approximately 100,000 people put their faith in Christ all around the world every day! And there are only 86,400 seconds in a day. Do the math and you discover this: there is a cosmic celebration of infinite proportions initiated every second or every minute of every hour of every day! Heaven is a non-stop celebration! The church ought to be a mirror reflection of that reality!

I'm absolutely convinced that our biggest problem isn't the fact that we don't feel bad enough about what's wrong with us. Our biggest problem is that we don't feel good enough about what's right with God. We let what's wrong with us keep us from worshipping what's right with God. Our gravest sin is under-celebrating the greatness and goodness of God. We don't celebrate half as much or half as well as they are celebrating in heaven. But that's the holy standard. Our church parties ought to approximate heaven's parties. We've got to throw better parties! In the words of Rob Bell: "The church has nothing to say to the world until it throws better parties."

I must confess I've never been to a really good party, except for my 40th birthday party! It was so good, I wished it would never end. Sad and tragic I know.

Here's another excerpt from another good one ... strangely titled "12,771".

I have a growing conviction: the Church should be in the business of redeeming technology and using it to serve God's purposes.

Isn't that what Johann Gutenberg did? He redeemed the printing press and used it to get more Bibles into more hands. Why not redeem the iPod and turn it into a high-tech tool for e-vangelism or digital discipleship? The message is sacred, but the medium isn't. The church needs to use any and every medium at its disposal to share the gospel with as many people as possible. It's a stewardship issue. We're far too analogical in our approach to ministry. We've got to carpe digital.

Who said preachers have to preach from behind a pulpit and parishioners have to listen while seated on wooden pews?

In 1728, John Wesley was ordained into the Anglican priesthood. It was assumed that preaching would take place behind a pulpit inside the four walls of a church sanctuary. The hierarchy within the Church of England considered preaching outdoors a violation of canon law. John Wesley broke the law and broke the mold.

And finally, here is the best of the bunch, IMHO ... from a post called "Ten Buzz Commandments".

I'll expound on them in a future blog, but here are the Buzz Commandments. I've got to narrow it down to ten commandments. Here are twenty:

Buzz I--Thou Shalt Hang Out at Wells
Buzz II--Thou Shalt turn Water in Wine
Buzz III--Thou Shalt Touch Lepers
Buzz IV--Thou Shalt Not Wash Thy Hands
Buzz V--Thou Shalt Offend Pharisees And Call Them Names
Buzz VI--Thou Shalt Be Shrewd as Snakes
Buzz VII--Thou Shalt Speak in Parables
Buzz VIII--Thou Shalt Wash Feet
Buzz IX--Thou Shalt Not Put New Wine in Old Wineskins
Buzz X--Thou Shalt Seek Lost Sheep
Buzz XI--Thou Shalt Not Wear Extra Long Tassels
Buzz XII--Thou Shalt Heal on the Sabbath
Buzz XIII--Thou Shalt Curse Barren Fig Trees
Buzz XIV--Thou Shalt Climb the Mount of Transfiguration
Buzz XV--Thou Shalt Defend Adulteress Women
Buzz XVI--Thou Shalt Turn Over Tables In The Temple
Buzz XVII--Thou Shalt Be Innocent As Doves
Buzz XVIII--Thou Shalt Ride Donkeys
Buzz XIX--Thou Shalt Withdraw To The Wilderness
Buzz XX--Thou Shalt Walk On Water

I highly recommend that you go have a look see on Mark's blog, and be challenged and entertained at the same time.

You liddle bewdy ...

Thomas is back home from Thailand, the shed is up and almost finished, the new landscaper is coming here on Monday, the new Hyundai Sonata car is soooo nice to drive, and my wife gets more beautiful every day! What more could a guy want?

No seriously, in spite of all the crap things that get thrown at us in life, God is consistently good. Full of mercy, and rich in love. I love the way our God is always exactly how He describes Himself in His word.

We have become overcomers because Jesus has overcome the world. It has absolutely nothing to do with us!

The trip to Thailand was the best ever, and it was such a blessing for Karen and myself to visit the Chiang Mai DTS (YWAM) base that Thomas has been staffing at, and to participate in the graduation ceremony. It was especially good to see the way the kids we met back in October at the beginning of DTS, and to see and hear about what God has done in their lives. Awesome stuff! It was also cool that Shane was able to get a leave pass for Friday arvo and Saturday to travel down from Chiang Rai with some friends and attend the graduation as well. It was so good to just hang out with him, and to share our hotel room with him on Friday night. In the house Shane !!! Sweet MacGregor.

On the Wednesday after Thomas had finished de-briefing from DTS, the three of us (Karen, Thomas and me) jumped on a bus to Chiang Rai, and went to visit Shane's DTS base. We got to meet with Paul Willcox - the base director - and met all of the crew. We stayed in CR for three days, and stayed (off base) with a young couple called Uab and Jesse Ford (who have the most delightful little boy named Silas). We were so blessed that they invited us into their home.

It is always awesome to see the way that God uses DTS to challenge and change peoples lives. In the few days that we were there, we saw how DTS can be a life changing experience. Karen and I both came away from there feeling strongly that we would like to do a DTS one day. In fact I think I would prefer to do a DTS rather than Bible College (in Thailand of course).

This week ended on a high note. I was invited to speak to two classes at Lumen Christi College here in Perth about building electric vehicles for the high school electric vehicle challenge coming up later this year. It was just so cool to be able to speak into these kids lives, and to impart something to them. Some of the heavy technical stuff went over their heads, but they were so keen to learn, and they blessed me at the end of it with a nice bottle of red wine, and the school photographer took some photos of me with the kids - which will be used in an article in the next school magazine.

And Thomas flew in from Thailand yesterday morning ... ready to go back to Curtin Uni to finish his degree. How much better can it get?

Oh well, I'd better go and finish painting the floor in my new 12m x 7m shed ...

Proverbs says that "the Lord's blessing is our greatest treasure, and He adds no trouble to it!"