Chalk one more up for the Republicans: John McCain narrowly defeated Barack Obama in the state of Missouri by 3,632 votes, an astounding .12% of all votes cast!
Just goes to show that Republicans ARE winning at some things this post-election season...
By the way, this makes the margin
Obama: 365
McCain: 173
And even if we doubled McCain's score he STILL couldn't win. Dang it... =)
Thursday, November 20, 2008
Monday, November 17, 2008
Colbert Report - War on XMas
Hey guys, tell me what you think:
Personally, I love the line about "If there's one thing Jesus cares about, it's semantics!"
Personally, I love the line about "If there's one thing Jesus cares about, it's semantics!"
Saltiness
In the ancient world, salt was one of the most valuable commodities. Much like gold or oil today, salt was desired by all of the nations of the world. Wars were fought over salt; black market deals were made; wealth was made and destroyed… all based on this little white crystal. In many nations salt was better than currency. Roman soldiers were often paid in salt; indeed, the root of our term “salary” is derived from salt!
Salt had many uses in ancient times. It acted as a preservative for meat and other foods, allowing food to be stored for longer periods of time. Salt was also used for flavoring, giving new dimensions to regular foods. And unbeknownst to people in the ancient world, salt is a necessary part of life. It is the basis of the electrolytes that each of us needs for our bodies to function properly. Salt in the right quantities is needed for the body. Interestingly, too much salt is bad for us. It adds to high blood pressure and heart disease. However, most people in the ancient world yearned for salt; it wasn’t readily available or accessible to most people. Indeed, most people couldn’t afford enough salt to meet their needs; they were simply too poor to be able to afford it. Thus, salt was strongly desired by all people.
During Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount, Jesus tells his disciples that they are this precious commodity. “You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled by men” (Mt. 5:13). In Luke 14, Jesus makes a similar statement: “Salt is good, but if it loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is fit neither for the soil nor for the manure pile; it is thrown out.” Jesus reminds his disciples that they are the salt of the earth: they have come to bring goodness, taste, and life to people who need it. They are called to be salt so that people can come to know God. Jesus reminds them to always remain distinct and “salty.” The last thing the world needs is for the disciples of Jesus to lose their saltiness and start becoming bland, like the rest of the world. We are called to season, not to “bland” in. Intriguingly, Luke’s version of this story comes amidst the discussion of counting the cost of being a disciple. Jesus tells his followers to decide whether or not it is worth it to them to continue to follow him!
The question still stands for us today: Do we want to be salt or do we want to be bland like everyone else? Jesus calls us to remain salty, and to use this nature to show the world what real life is like. But we have to decide: Is it worth it to be different? Is it worth it to us to NOT be like everyone else? Simply put, are we willing to be salt or do we want to become lifeless (and worthless)? What the world needs is salt. The students of KU need salt in their lives. So do members of your family, your coworkers, your neighbors… The world needs to taste what salt is like through our lives. Ultimately, our example will bring goodness, flavor, and life into a dead, dull, bland world.
Salt had many uses in ancient times. It acted as a preservative for meat and other foods, allowing food to be stored for longer periods of time. Salt was also used for flavoring, giving new dimensions to regular foods. And unbeknownst to people in the ancient world, salt is a necessary part of life. It is the basis of the electrolytes that each of us needs for our bodies to function properly. Salt in the right quantities is needed for the body. Interestingly, too much salt is bad for us. It adds to high blood pressure and heart disease. However, most people in the ancient world yearned for salt; it wasn’t readily available or accessible to most people. Indeed, most people couldn’t afford enough salt to meet their needs; they were simply too poor to be able to afford it. Thus, salt was strongly desired by all people.
During Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount, Jesus tells his disciples that they are this precious commodity. “You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled by men” (Mt. 5:13). In Luke 14, Jesus makes a similar statement: “Salt is good, but if it loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is fit neither for the soil nor for the manure pile; it is thrown out.” Jesus reminds his disciples that they are the salt of the earth: they have come to bring goodness, taste, and life to people who need it. They are called to be salt so that people can come to know God. Jesus reminds them to always remain distinct and “salty.” The last thing the world needs is for the disciples of Jesus to lose their saltiness and start becoming bland, like the rest of the world. We are called to season, not to “bland” in. Intriguingly, Luke’s version of this story comes amidst the discussion of counting the cost of being a disciple. Jesus tells his followers to decide whether or not it is worth it to them to continue to follow him!
The question still stands for us today: Do we want to be salt or do we want to be bland like everyone else? Jesus calls us to remain salty, and to use this nature to show the world what real life is like. But we have to decide: Is it worth it to be different? Is it worth it to us to NOT be like everyone else? Simply put, are we willing to be salt or do we want to become lifeless (and worthless)? What the world needs is salt. The students of KU need salt in their lives. So do members of your family, your coworkers, your neighbors… The world needs to taste what salt is like through our lives. Ultimately, our example will bring goodness, flavor, and life into a dead, dull, bland world.
Friday, November 14, 2008
Way too talented...
This guy is amazing. He is really, really good. It's hard enough to TALK as a ventriloquist, let alone sing. And... to sing like anybody else is almost impossible. This guy is AH-MAZE-ING! Seriously...
Thursday, November 13, 2008
Worship and Social Justice (part 1)
Too many of us think that worship is all about our time with God. It's about the songs we sing, the sermon we hear, the Lord's Supper... These are (some) of our acts of worship. We believe that worship is what we do on Sunday mornings when we assemble together. Or, if you were to ask another (more well-informed) Christian, he/she would tell you that worship is more about a lifestyle. Romans 12:1 tells us: "Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God—this is your spiritual act of worship." Thus, worship is about a lifestyle, the way that we act in the various aspects of our lives. It's about bringing God glory and honor in whatever circumstances we find ourselves in. It's about the way we treat our co-workers, our friends, our family, the guy we see standing on the street corner... It's about our reaction to homeless people and the poor... And about our reactions to those where God is the furthest thing from their mind.
Let me see if I can illustrate it a little better... If you were to ask an Israelite during the period of the Divided Monarchy, he would tell you that worship involved (1) following the Law of Moses, and (2) offering the proper sacrifices to Yahweh. However, when God was talking to his people he told them that the sacrifices and the Law were a good starting point, but without a life of mercy it was all worthless:
Isaiah 1: ""The multitude of your sacrifices— what are they to me?" says the LORD. "I have more than enough of burnt offerings, of rams and the fat of fattened animals; I have no pleasure in the blood of bulls and lambs and goats. When you come to appear before me, who has asked this of you, this trampling of my courts? Stop bringing meaningless offerings! Your incense is detestable to me... wash and make yourselves clean. Take your evil deeds out of my sight! Stop doing wrong, learn to do right! Seek justice, encourage the oppressed. Defend the cause of the fatherless, plead the case of the widow."
Micah 6:6-8: "With what shall I come before the LORD and bow down before the exalted God? Shall I come before him with burnt offerings, with calves a year old? Will the LORD be pleased with thousands of rams, with ten thousand rivers of oil? Shall I offer my firstborn for my transgression, the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul? He has showed you, O man, what is good. And what does the LORD require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God."
A host of other verses make the same requests. God does not need the sacrifices; they are for men, not for God. What God wants is for us to make a difference in the lives of other people... But, let me make a confession: this is REALLY difficult for me to live by.
More to come tomorrow!
Let me see if I can illustrate it a little better... If you were to ask an Israelite during the period of the Divided Monarchy, he would tell you that worship involved (1) following the Law of Moses, and (2) offering the proper sacrifices to Yahweh. However, when God was talking to his people he told them that the sacrifices and the Law were a good starting point, but without a life of mercy it was all worthless:
Isaiah 1: ""The multitude of your sacrifices— what are they to me?" says the LORD. "I have more than enough of burnt offerings, of rams and the fat of fattened animals; I have no pleasure in the blood of bulls and lambs and goats. When you come to appear before me, who has asked this of you, this trampling of my courts? Stop bringing meaningless offerings! Your incense is detestable to me... wash and make yourselves clean. Take your evil deeds out of my sight! Stop doing wrong, learn to do right! Seek justice, encourage the oppressed. Defend the cause of the fatherless, plead the case of the widow."
Micah 6:6-8: "With what shall I come before the LORD and bow down before the exalted God? Shall I come before him with burnt offerings, with calves a year old? Will the LORD be pleased with thousands of rams, with ten thousand rivers of oil? Shall I offer my firstborn for my transgression, the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul? He has showed you, O man, what is good. And what does the LORD require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God."
A host of other verses make the same requests. God does not need the sacrifices; they are for men, not for God. What God wants is for us to make a difference in the lives of other people... But, let me make a confession: this is REALLY difficult for me to live by.
More to come tomorrow!
Sunday, November 9, 2008
Christianity and Politics
Today we are going to tackle the two subjects you are never supposed to bring up: religion and politics.
At this point we all know that Barack Obama has won the Presidential election. The campaign has been going for over 18 months and has crisscrossed every state and territory of the
Many of you are excited over the outcome of the election. Others of you are disappointed. More than one person has told me that it is the end of the world, or at least the end of the American way of life. But I want to let you in on a little secret: who the president is matters very little in the
In Romans 13, Paul tells the Christians in
We must remember that ultimately our citizenship is in heaven. As Paul writes to the Philippians (another persecuted people), he tells them, “But our citizenship is in heaven, and it is from there that we are expecting a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ” (Phil.
We must remember that we are American Christians, not Christian Americans. The emphasis is VERY important. We are Christians first, and as such we are primarily concerned with the
So, fellow Christian citizens, remember to work for the
Thursday, November 6, 2008
KU Needs to start an AA meeting...
There is an astounding statistic in the University Daily Kansan today. The average KU student spends $999.04 on alcohol in a given school year.
Now, take into account this aspect of the statistic: approximately half of the 30,128 students are not legally allowed to drink. That's not saying that they don't, they just cannot legally. Whether you agree with the law or not, it is the law as it stands today. Let's go with the lowest number, 13,000 students who are not legally able to drink, and let's say that 70% (10,000) of our students do not break the law (whether by religion, preference, or indifference. That's probably a generous number, but go with it.) Thus, doesn't that mean that the average student actually spends closer to $1700.00 in alcohol in a ten-month period?
What does this mean for my ministry? What implications does this hold for my work with students? This is what I am trying to figure out...
I don't have a problem with drinking IF you are (a) legal, and (b) not drinking to excess. Paul tells Timothy that Godly men are not partakers of much wine. But Paul isn't a teetotaler; he tells Timothy to drink a little wine for his stomach.
So... I am struggling with where to begin. What do you think?
Now, take into account this aspect of the statistic: approximately half of the 30,128 students are not legally allowed to drink. That's not saying that they don't, they just cannot legally. Whether you agree with the law or not, it is the law as it stands today. Let's go with the lowest number, 13,000 students who are not legally able to drink, and let's say that 70% (10,000) of our students do not break the law (whether by religion, preference, or indifference. That's probably a generous number, but go with it.) Thus, doesn't that mean that the average student actually spends closer to $1700.00 in alcohol in a ten-month period?
What does this mean for my ministry? What implications does this hold for my work with students? This is what I am trying to figure out...
I don't have a problem with drinking IF you are (a) legal, and (b) not drinking to excess. Paul tells Timothy that Godly men are not partakers of much wine. But Paul isn't a teetotaler; he tells Timothy to drink a little wine for his stomach.
So... I am struggling with where to begin. What do you think?
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