Rescued From Death, or, Two Years of Sobriety!!

This is a re-post from a guy named Mac Mitchell. I don't know him personally, but I'm interested in his story. Not so much because of his clean life now, but, for my re-posting usage, and for the sake of the 'older brother of the prodigal' readers (those already in the family of God), I'm interested in the paragraph 1/2 way down, the one in bold type. I'm interested because this guy Mac saw something different in the Christians around him: joy that he himself didn't have. And its significant that Mac had Christians around him, they weren't tut-tutting from the sidelines. They were there with him in the trenches...at least as much as they could have I guess. Mac knew them as his friends. So they weren't tucked away in the cloister; they were in Mac's life. That's good but it can be scary for those still in the cloister. How do they get out, right? I think by opening the door and walking....and praying.

Happy Calvinist Valentines Day

Becca just sent this to me...I wonder if Calvin ever tried any of these awesome guaranteed fail-safe lines?

Jefferson on Cairo

What Thomas Jefferson said about toppling the regime of a tyrant:

To secure these rights, governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed—that whenever any form of government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the right of the people to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their safety and happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience has shown that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such government, and to provide new guards for their future security.

Declaration of Independence, July 4, 1776

 I'm glad the Egyptian revolution was so much less bloody than our own. It will be interesting to see who comes into power. The Egyptian people have shrugged off authoritarianism...will they establish a democracy in Cairo?

 

 

Being Missional May Kill Your Church

Ok, one more ditty on 'missional' church and then I'll stop for now. This is from the Resurgence and it quotes Ed Stetzer who is a church planting guru.

Stetzer gave the following list to help describe the missional 'shift' going on. I think it's a good thing, though some churches will be very uncomfortable with tweaking out their ministry paradigm or, for that matter, their very reason for existing. This is from Stetzer's book, Breaking The Missional Code. Please take your time; taste and digest slowly.

Missional Church Defined

Have you heard the term, "missional" in reference to a church and wondered what that meant? Here's a handy little guide.

Unconventional Church Plant

How many pastors like this guy have you met?



An Intentionally Missional Lifestyle from Acts 29 Network on Vimeo.