10 Money Insights

Life usually doesn't fit into nice neat little lists, but that doesn't keep me from trying.  Welcome to my Tuesday 10, where I try to fit the messiness of life into a list of ten.

Here are ten insights into money management from yours truly.  This isn't an all inclusive list and you may already be well on your way to wise stewarding and living; but trust me--if you're not already using these ten things--they will help.


1. Make a realistic budget and live by it.
2. Learn how to cook and eat at home more than you eat out.
3. Stay away from Starbucks, except on rare occasions.
4. Don't get caught up in fashion fads and trends.
5. Don't pay your bills late, ever.
6. Learn the difference between "want" and "need".
7. Tithe to your church.
8. Be generous, but practical.
9. Repeat after me, "Credit Cards are bad.  Credit Cards are bad.  Credit Cards are bad."
10. Student loans aren't free money, neither are scholarships.

Winter Retreat: Wrap Up - Moses or Joshua

This is a short recap of our Sunday morning "Wrap Up" session from Winter Retreat 2012.



After you've finished watching, go read the first chapter of the Book of Joshua for more insight.  Let God transform you into the kind of leader He has always meant for you to be.

Sssshhhhhaaaaarrrrrrppppp!

I've been reading a lot of Proverbs lately.  That's the point I am at right now in my regular reading plan.  Last night as I was finishing it up I came across Proverbs 27:17, which has long been one of my favorite passages.

Iron sharpens iron,
So one man sharpens another.
--Proverbs 27:17 NASB

I'm not going to even attempt to be long, academic, or eloquent here.  I think the Scripture speaks plainly, and pointedly, in that verse.

Being with other believers makes us better.  It makes us sharper and stronger.  It helps refine us for the purpose of God's good.  How are you being sharpened?  How are you helping to sharpen others?

10 Things About Home

Life usually doesn't fit into nice neat little lists, but that doesn't keep me from trying.  Welcome to 10 Tuesday where I try to fit the messiness of life into a list of ten.

This is my short list of ten thoughts about home.  For those of you participating in Campus Church this semester, these are some things you will most likely hear a lot more about in the coming weeks.

1. Home is where you're protected.
2. Home is where you're loved.
3. Home is where you trust.
4. Home is where you're fed.
5. Home is where you're made.
6. Home is where you get clean. (hopefully)
7. Home is where you rest.
8. Home is where you are familiar.
9. Home is where you can ask important questions.
10. Home is where no one is cool.

No One Greater

I've been thinking a lot lately about the incredible goodness of God.  About how awesome it is that I get to live a life and work a job that is designed around serving Him and His people.  About how incredibly blessed I am, in a way that is solely and completely apart from possession, property, and social success. 

I was having my own little private worship time in my office earlier and this was the result.  Hoping to get it added to my audio widget soon.

No One Greater

No rock is gonna take my place         

As long as I can say Your name

As long as I can sing Your praise

Though all creation lifts it voice

Angelic choirs still make noise

When the Book of Life adds another name

You see me, You know me

You love me, You showed me

There is no one greater

You lift me from the grave

There is nothing better

Than the power of Your blood,

The miracle of calling out Your name

10 Reasons Why I'm not Vegetarian or Vegan

Life usually doesn't fit into nice neat little lists, but that doesn't keep me from trying.  Welcome to 10 Tuesday where I try to fit the messiness of life into a list of ten.

10 Reasons why I'm not vegetarian or vegan
1. Whattaburger
2. Steak
3. Smoked Turkey
4. Fried Chicken
5. Bacon
6. Beef Brisket
7. Omelets
8. Crappie
9. Salmon
10. Crab legs

Jesus > Religion?

Ok, if you care enough about my little blog to venture here, then you have most likely already watched the now viral "Jesus>Religion" video. If you are one of the 17 people left on facebook that haven't watched it... well... here:



I have a lot to say about this video.  A lot.  I won't say it all.  You don't really want to read it, and I probably won't have time to write it, and I'm definitely not going to write it all here and now.  So let me just get to my point.

The statement, and title, "Jesus > Religion" might be the most obvious thing written.  Ever.  Of course Jesus > Religion because Jesus > Everything.  Hello!  Son of God.  God incarnate.  God with us.  King of kings.  Alpha.  Omega.  So at least in that respect, the title and some of what is being said is right on target.

Also, this video, and it's REALLY fast spread across the net, illuminates a glaring problem in Christianity today--people have no idea what the word religion actually means.  You probably don't even agree with what you just read, you may think you know what religion means...and you might.  But today when people think of the word religion they are usually actually thinking of the meaning for the word dogma.

Religion is not an invention dreamed up by men, and actually, neither is dogma--but men have often misused both to ill-affect.  The word religion only appears in the KJV in the New Testament and under a variety of meanings, but you'll see that the meanings for these words are actually really common themes throughout the Old Testament as well.

The Greek word for religion in Acts 25:6 and James 1:26-27 refers to ceremonial worship.  In Galatians 1:13-14 Paul was writing about the Jewish faith. 

Religion is not a set of rules.  Religion is not dogma.  Jesus came to seek and save what was lost (Luke 19:10).  What was lost?  Relationship with God was lost, but so was religion--along with a lot of other things.

Not all, but some of the Pharisees and Sadducees abused their positions.  The ones that did grossly warped their responsibilities and violated their trust.  That's part of what Jesus came to save.  God became man to fix everything, even religion.  Jesus didn't and doesn't hate religion.  He came to fix religion.

I find it incredibly sad when I read/hear things like Jesus hates religion.  That's like saying "Jesus hates people worshiping God."  For my part, I love religion, though I'm not overly fond of dogma.  Jesus died so we could connect to God, so we could worship God, and so we could experience God.  That is religion.  If you call yourself a Christian then what do you think worship and following Him is?  It is religion.  You can't follow Jesus without relationship, but you can't have a relationship with Him without religion.

Please, stop confusing religion with dogma.  Please, stop confusing religion with legalism.  Please, stop confusing religion.

Belief

Rich Mullins wrote this great tune years ago which put an even older Christian creed into a melodic singable format. Years later (after Rich's death) Third Day would revamp the song, stamping it with their own southern-rocker style. The words of the song are fantastic. The theology superb. The theme--vital!

We live in the era of willfully illiterate Christianity, at least that's largely how it is here in the States. Many Americans profess Christianity, depending on which source you go to some put the number as high as nearly 75%--and yet out of that number there is an overwhelming majority of people that cannot simply and coherently explain what they believe about God, Christ, the Bible, and the Church; and there are even fewer who can effectively explain why they hold those beliefs.

Belief is powerful. It is the foundation of faith. The instigator of trust. The polar North by which we all explore our souls and do our deeds.

Even those who practice the near-militant nonreligion of skepticism are staunch adherents to what they don't believe about belief, which is only a confusing way of stating what they do actually believe.

Those of us who classify ourselves as "Believers" owe our souls, brains, conscience, and Savior--at least the simple courtesy of developing a practical means by which we can articulate, not only what we believe--but also, why we believe.

But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect... - 1 Peter 3:15 NIV

10 Tuesday: Make College Life Better

Life usually doesn't fit into nice neat little lists, but that doesn't keep me from trying.  Welcome to 10 Tuesday where I try to fit the messiness of life into a list of ten.

College life is complicated, challenging, and awesome.  With school set to start back here this week--here are ten bits of advice from yours truly that will help make it better.

1. Rarely turn on your TV.
2. Make homework a priority.
3. Never procrastinate. Don't do it.
4. Throw away or delete all credit card solicitations instantly.
5. Don't spend a lot of time in your room, especially alone.
6. Join a campus organization. I can point you to a great one!
7. Develop deep relationships with a small number of people.
8. Learn how to effectively manage your time. If you have a lot of free time something is wrong.
9. Exercise often. Your heart will thank you twenty years.
10. Cultivate healthy a diet.  Your waistline will thank you now.

Kill Your TV

No, that is not a picture of anyone in my family.

When I was a kid I remember endless summers with my dad.  Very early into my adolescence he started growing watermelons commercially during the summer--but prior to that it was a much smaller scale and we would do a lot of traveling.  One of our regular stops was my great uncle's house about sixty miles from our family farm.

Usually we'd begin our visit by meeting at a small local diner for burgers, fries, and shakes and then venture on to his small house where he and dad would oooh and ah over the enormity, density, and vivaciousness of his vegetable garden.  Inevitably we would seek to escape the hot humid Arkansas summer and find ourselves indoors.  My great uncle did not own a TV.

He passed away just a couple of years ago, and as I sat at the funeral listening to great men of the faith talk about this great man of the faith that I honestly didn't know that well, but loved and admired just the same, I kept thinking about those summer visits and how he didn't own a TV.  I honestly can't remember when I realized that Uncle Eldon didn't have a TV--or "One-Eyed Devil" as he'd been known to call it as he preached--but I remember distinctly that in all those summer visits to his house with dad it never once mattered.  I would always find some other way to occupy my time and mind.

With my first child on the way, I have spent many, many hours over the last three months evaluating every facet of my life and weighing my values.  You know what I've discovered?  My television means nothing to me.  In fact, I don't like it.  At all.

Maybe you are reading this and don't know me very well, but that's a huge statement coming from a video game junkie, pop-culture enthusiast, and former video department manager for a huge entertainment company.  I own hundreds of DVDs, dozens of video games, and have spent an astronomical amount of money and time (something I would probably rather not quantify) on TV.

Lately though, I'm looking for the things that add value to my life.  I'm looking to simplify.  My fifty-three inch flat screen 1080p DLP television doesn't make the cut.  Have I enjoyed my TV?  Of course, and that's part of the problem.  I have enjoyed and would continue to enjoy it too much.  I want my son to grow up in a house where it's more common to set around the table with mom and dad than it is to fight over the remote, or venture off to separate rooms and individual televisions.

Just to be clear, this doesn't even really have anything to do with religious conviction.  I just see no redeeming value in a device designed to distract me from cultivating deeper relationships.  Television is thoughtless, mindless activity.  Relationally, emotionally, and spiritually I can't afford to indulge anymore.  Now, I'm not going to go get my shotgun and end my machine.  I may not even get rid of it, God knows my wife won't be happy at all about my change of heart about this too-expensive device, but my TV days are done.  I will no longer engage in TV as a substitute for actual human interaction, and by default the same is true for my computer, video games, and facebook.  There a lot of important people in my life, the most important one is only seventyish days away, and I can't afford to be distracted anymore by Storm Chasers, cable news, or even *gasp* Captain America.

Do yourself a favor; join me in killing your TV.  Your brain, your soul, your wallet, and eventually probably even your family will thank you.

Resolutions

Raise your hand if you made a resolution for 2012. Many do. Ok, so how many of you have already broke it?

I'm going to be short and to the point. Most New Year's Resolutions are destined to fail. Why? Usually because they are based on some kind of guilty feeling predicated by an unhealthy self-perception. Let me clarify.

John doesn't think he's buff enough so he heads back to the gym to pursue movie star abs his physique and habits cannot maintain. Jane wants to look like all the Hollywood-harlets starring in all the raunchy dramas she watches on cable so the starving begins.

Now let me highlight the same thing through the lens of religion.

John (or Jane) feels guilty because they don't read their bible very often so they commit to reading the bible through this year.

Often resolutions begin with the wrong motives. One shouldn't wish to read through the Word simply because they failed to last year. I read my bible cover to cover every year, sometimes twice in a year, but not because of some misguided sense of correction. I read it because I love it. I read because it is vital to my spiritual health.

For this same reason I maintain an active life. I try to watch my diet, and I exercise regularly--not to assuage guilt or espouse covetousness--but to safeguard my health.

Resolutions should not be a once a year commitment made in a guilt-ridden moment of Holiday hype. For the believer resolutions should be an every day prayer.

"God, make me better today than I was yesterday."

Not so that we can better fulfill society's shallow expectations, but so that we may better reflect the Father's impeccable creativity, masterful sovereignty, and unimpeachable holiness.

2012's Rereads

I read the Bible through cover to cover annually, but I also enjoy revisiting some of the books that have meant a lot to me over the years.  Here's a quick list of some excellent books I plan to read again in 2012.  If you're looking for something challenging to read this year try one of these greats.

Wild at Heart 
by John Eldredge
Wild at Heart is one of my favorite books, ever.  I read it for the first time during a period of deep heartache and depression and it's encouraging message breathed a powerful breath of fresh air into my relationship with God.  This is a fantastic read for anyone and everyone.  Man or woman, you NEED to read this book.

Mere Christianity
by C.S. Lewis
Widely regarded by many as the best Christian book of the 20th century, this is a classic masterpiece of the faith.  You will want to own a copy for highlighting and all that fun stuff, but for a preview, you can read the entire volume here for free.

Radical 
by David Platt
The American Church is spoiled.  We have really mixed up our priorities in a big way, often to the point of idolatry.  David Platt's book does a great job of pointing out--not just the how's and why's of this--but also the way that you can begin to correct some of this in your own life.  This was the most challenging book I read in 2011, and that's why I'm reading it again this year.