Category: faith

Everything Glorious

Everything Glorious

Scott and the band have been rocking out to this song the last couple weeks at encounter and I’ve loved having it stuck in my head throughout the week. Jose suggested that Scott needs to grow a long goatee and a fro like David Crowder though to really do the song justice. Not sure I can imagine that but either way — God makes EVERYTHING glorious — so what does that make you?

The day is brighter here with You
The night is lighter than it’s hue
Would lead me to believe
Which leads me to believe

You make everything glorious
You make everything glorious
You make everything glorious
And I am Yours
What does that make me?

My eyes are small but they have seen
the beauty of enormous things
Which leads me to believe
there’s light enough to see that

You make everything glorious
You make everything glorious
You make everything glorious
And I am Yours

From glory to glory
You are glorious You are glorious
From glory to glory
You are glorious. You are glorious
Which leads me to believe
why I can believe that

You make everything glorious
You make everything glorious
You make everything glorious
And I am Yours
You make everything glorious
You make everything glorious
You make everything glorious
And I am Yours

From glory to glory From glory to glory
You are glorious. You are glorious.
You are glorious. You are glorious.

You make everything glorious
You make everything glorious
You make everything glorious
And I am Yours

Senate votes

I’m sure you’ll all have your opinion on this. Positive and negative.

Here’s what scripture tells me:

“Here’s another old saying that deserves a second look: ‘Eye for eye, tooth for tooth.’ Is that going to get us anywhere? Here’s what I propose: ‘Don’t hit back at all.’ If someone strikes you, stand there and take it. If someone drags you into court and sues for the shirt off your back, giftwrap your best coat and make a present of it. And if someone takes unfair advantage of you, use the occasion to practice the servant life. No more tit-for-tat stuff. Live generously. – Matthew 5:38-42

Here’s an e-mail I received from a family member:

“All the great things are simple, and many can be expressed in a single word: freedom, justice, honor, duty, mercy, hope.” Winston Churchill

Shocking Senatorial Votes

“Never argue with an idiot; they’ll drag you down to their level and beat you with experience.” ~ anonymous

The following senators voted against making English the official language of America :
Akaka (D-HI)
Bayh (D-IN)
Biden (D-DE)
Bingaman (D-NM)
Boxer (D-CA)
Cantwell (D-WA)
Clinton (D-NY)
Dayton (D-MN)
Dodd (D-CT)
Domenici (R-NM)
Durbin (D-IL)
Feingold (D-WI)
Feinstein (D-CA)
Harkin (D-IA)
Inouye (D-HI)
Jeffords (I-VT)
Kennedy (D-MA)
Kerry (D-MA)
Kohl (D-WI)
Lautenberg (D-NJ)
Leahy (D-VT)
Levin (D-MI)
Lieberman (D-CT)
Menendez (D-NJ)
Mik ulski (D-MD)
Murray (D-WA)
Obama (D-IL)
Reed (D-RI)
Reid (D-NV)
Salazar (D-CO)
Sarbanes (D-MD)
Schumer (D-NY)
Stabenow (D-MI)
Wyden (D-OR)

Now, the following are the senators who voted to give illegal aliens Social Security benefits. They are grouped by home state. If a state is not listed, there was no voting representative.

Alaska: Stevens (R)
Arizona: McCain (R)
Arkansas: Lincoln (D); Pryor (D)
California: Boxer (D); Feinstein (D)
Colorado: Salazar (D)
Connecticut: Dodd (D); Lieberman (D)
Delaware: Biden (D); Carper (D)
Florida: Martinez (R)
Hawaii: Akaka (D); Inouye (D)
Illinois: Durbin (D); Obama (D)
Indiana: Bayh (D); Lugar (R)
Iowa: Harkin (D)
Kansas: Brownback (R)
Louisiana: Landrieu (D)
Maryland: Mikulski (D); Sarbanes (D)
Massachusetts: Kennedy (D); Kerry (D)
Montana: Baucus (D)
Nebraska: Hagel (R)
Nevada: Reid (D)
New Jersey: Lautenberg (D); Menendez (D)
New Mexico: Bingaman (D)
New York: Clinton (D); Schumer (D)
North Dakota: Dorgan (D)
Ohio: DeWine (R); Voinovich(R)
Oregon: Wyden (D)
Pennsylvania: Specter (R)
Rhode Island: Chafee (R); Reed (D)
South Carolina: Graham (R)
South Dakota: Johnson (D)
Vermont: Jeffords (I); Leahy (D)
Washington: Cantwell (D); Murray (D)
West Virginia: Rockefeller (D), by Not Voting
Wisconsin: Feingold (D); Kohl (D)

The e-mail requested I share the information with everyone I know. For some reason they failed to include the scripture I included up top. Thoughts?

Attend church for 52 weeks in a row

Blogger Kyle Pott at Lifehack.org has put together a list of ways to help you overcome the urge to sleep in on Sunday mornings and attend church every week for a year.

I think it’s safe to say that many people have the desire to attend church more consistently and improve their spiritual life. On this date last year, I was not a member of a church and I rarely attended any church services. On February 26, 2006 I set a personal goal for myself to attend church for an entire year without missing a single week. This coming Sunday, will make it 52 weeks in a row that I attended church without skipping even once. I will give you tips on how to find a church, and how I to find the motivation to attend every week for an entire year.

His list suggests you:

  • Keep in mind that your church won’t be perfect
  • Get to know the members
    Get involved with the church
  • Substitute Saturday night for Friday night
  • Promise someone
  • Go with a friend or loved one
  • Rationalize the time

What have you done to make sure you’re in church every week? Or do you even see a need?

How environment can affect church goers

Rick Warren, author of the Purpose Driven Life and pastor of Saddleback Church has six pointers on how your church building can affect your worship.

  • Lighting
  • Sound
  • Seating
  • Temperature
  • Clean, Safe Nurseries
  • Clean Restrooms

As Brian mentioned last week at encounter there’s a church in our area that has a $30,000 a month note. That alone should make you really consider how you’re designing or building your church facilities to be sure you’re not adversely affecting your church goers’ attention. This list is a good list to consider and take note of.
Read the full list here.
Via Churchrelevance.com

Newt admits affair

Newt Gingrich admitted to James Dobson that he had an extra-marital affair while in office.
Gingrich the guy who led the charge against Pres. Clinton and his “affair” now admits he had one as well.
Gingrich said his affair was going on at the same time he was leading the charge against Clinton. He’s now married to the Congressional aide.
He also said Clinton was wrong because he lied about his affair to a grand jury.
Here are the highlights from the CNN story:

• Former speaker led charge against Clinton over Monica Lewinsky affair
• Potential ’08 candidate discusses issue with conservative Christian group
• Republican may enter 2008 presidential race
• Leading Republican candidate, Rudy Giuliani, also had an affair

Here’s another interesting part of the CNN story:

Critics are likely to call the lot of them hypocrites, however, noting that religious conservatives make allowances for people they agree with politically, like Gingrich, but not for Giuliani or Clinton.

I think either way, this should be rule #1 for politicians: Keep it in your pants.