Confessions of a Recovering Pharisee

What can you accomplish in 45 seconds?

I’m reading Bill Hybels book, “Just a Walk Across the Room,” and he says we should be able to tell our “story,” or “testimony” in 45 seconds. He gives 4 criticisms that “Christ-followers” do when they try to share Jesus with others:

1. Long-windedness
2. Fuzziness
3. Religionese
4. Superiority

I’m talking about The Parable of the Pharisee and the Tax Collector (Luke 18:9-14) this Sunday and this chapter seemed to go with the passage of Scripture I will be teaching on.

The truth is we call all be guilty of all four but # 4 was my problem for many years. Of course that is the theme of this blog. How about you, what seems to be your stumbling block to sharing your faith with others?

They want kids, houses and sex. And they want women, too — but not in the form of wives. Not until they’re older.

So says the latest study to probe the minds of America’s young men, aged 25 to 33. The study found 10 reasons men won’t commit — from the ease of finding sex partners to the desire to avoid financial risks of divorce. Read about it here.

Intersting if our society would do as the Bible says it might change this. The number one reason young men don’t get married is the ease of finding sex.

What do you think?

The Hope Community Church in Dover, N.H., is spreading the word it has a new Internet address - one not linked to pornography.

Pastor Steve Spearing said Friday that a pornography company bought the church’s old domain name without the church’s knowledge.

He said the sale happened a few weeks ago when the church changed Internet service providers and changed its Web address. He said he didn’t realize the site had been sold until he got a call from a Massachusetts woman who was interested in moving to the area and was doing research on the Internet about local churches.  Read about it here.

This is so outrageous!  It is bad enough that porn ruins the lives of 1000’s of people each day but to stoop to this low is horrible.

What do you think?

Hundreds of Pagans serving prison sentences in the United Kingdom are to be given the day off work for Halloween out of respect for their religious beliefs.

Prison Service bosses have instructed staff to grant the convicts, who include Devil worshippers and Satanists, special privileges on Tuesday.

While fellow prisoners sew mail bags and undertake other jail work, the Pagans will be allowed to celebrate their ‘holiday’. Read about it here.

Unique Johnny-Light™ toilet seat floods the bowl with soft, green light when the lid is lifted, preventing nighttime accidents. Helpful for potty-training children, and a great reminder to lower the seat when finished. Uses 2 AAA batteries (included). Plastic. Fits standard toilets.

Don’t you just love modern technology!