Ideas for 2008

I saw this great list of things to think through on Bob Franquiz’s Blog today.  Here is the list that Bob has offered up for our consideration.

1. How can I be a better follower of Jesus, husband, dad, and friend in 2008?
2. How can I be a more faithful Pastor and leader in 2008?
3. Where do I want my time to go in 2008?
4. Am I doing things that either need to be delegated or deleted?
5. Am I planning to take a Sabbath every week?
6. How am I going to take care of myself physically in 2008?
7. Have I put together a budget that honors God and meets the needs of my family?
8. How many books am I going to read?
9. What is my Bible reading plan for 2008?
10. How can I take my service to God to the next level?
11. What are the relationships I need to nurture or cut next year?
12. How am I going to grow as a leader?
13. Am I committed to growing in giving and modeling generosity to my church?
14. How am I going to stir up my gifts and give those time and attention?

New Book Coming Soon

I received a note from Doug Pagitt today – he let me know about a new book that he is releasing soon, I have read an excerpt from the first chapter and am so looking forward to reading the rest of the book. If you would like to have a look at the book just go here: A Christianity Worth Believing

Notes

I was catching up on posts made by friends tonight on their Facebook sites – one note that was posted on Jason Evans’ site was of particular interest to me as it relates to the theme of my new blog, that being “behavior and the follower of Jesus.”  The post deals with tension points within the church as it struggles to relate to culture. As you read the points that are highlighted you will see quite clearly that each point of tension is, in essence a behavioral issue.  Here is the post  -  I will make a few comments  in a separate post later this week.

I ran across this article from Allelon which highlighted tension points as the church attempts to engage and relate to Western culture today. The article was prompted by recent work/statistics from the Barna Group as well as observations from a book entitled, “Jim and Casper Go to Church.” (the observations of and conversations with Matt Casper the friendly atheist as they visit churches across the U.S.)

What are the challenges facing the church in our culture? The article lists: The relative indifference of most churched Christians to unchurched people.

1. An emphasis on the personal rather than communal faith journey.
2. A tendency to perform rituals and exercise talents rather than an invitation to and experience of the presence of God.
3. The absence of a compelling enough call to action.
4. The failure to listen to dissident voices.

Observations – By Robert Webber

As most of you probably know, Robert Webber, an incredible resource on worship and the early church, passed away this past April.  Webber was a wonderful author and had a storied career in academia. Webber was the William R. and Geraldyn B. Myers professor of ministry at Northern Seminary in Lombard, Ill. He was also the president of the Institute for Worship Studies in Jacksonville, Florida, and professor of theology emeritus at Wheaton College in Wheaton, Illinois.

 

The reason I mention all this about Robert is due to a post that I read today on Scot McKnight’s blog.  Scot introduces an excerpt from Webber’s book “The Divine Embrace.” I found the statements posed by Webber to be interesting so I share them here with you for your consideration.

 

Robert Webber, in The Divine Embrace, points six negative influences shaping contemporary evangelical spirituality. Here they are –

A New Day

It’s a new day for me and it is wonderful! Part of my new day experience is the launch of my new blog titled “It’s a Beautiful Day.” The theme I am planning to maintain in this new journal is “how we should live as Jesus followers.” I have a number of good friends who deal primarily with matters of the church and from what I have read of their work, they do a much better job than I do.

I chose this theme because I believe that our behavior as followers of Jesus can do more to draw people to faith than anything else at our disposal. Conversely, our behavior can also serve to drive people away from Jesus and a life of faith. My prayer for all of us is that we live in a manner that is consistent with the teaching of Jesus. The sub-title for this blog came from long periods of reflection and prayer concerning how we ,as followers of Jesus, should live.

I hope that you enjoy the blog!