Have you ever heard the phrase "Crowd Mentality"?
Think back with me, have you ever been innocent of something but the crowd was stirred and it made no difference what you said?
Ever read Matthew 27:11-26?
It was Pilate versus the crowd.
Pilate found no fault and even washed his hands of the deal.
The crowd wanted Jesus, and Pilate was fearful of a riot.
How many times do we stand up to crowds?
How many times do we find ourselves on the crowds side even when we know it is wrong?
How many times are we in situations where outside forces cause us to "feel" a certain way or hold a position we may not even believe in?
There are many things in the world today that the "crowd" (world) wants you to believe and back. Where are you on those issues?
Is it a matter of feeling or a matter of principle?
How do you feel about life? are you fighting for it?
How do you feel about the elderly? Are you defending/helping them?
How do feel about lying and injustice? Are you taking a stand or taking a number to blend?
Pilate found nothing to condemn Jesus with...he tried to pawn him off on Herod.
Pilate buckled under pressure from the crowd. Jesus quit talking.
God gives us no more light when the light is rejected.
MANY see the light, but FEW respond.
Who are you following day to day? The crowd or Christ?
It IS a matter of life.
It IS a matter of principle.
Make your life matter, no matter what the crowd says. It only matters that God's will is being pursued through you.
Peace
B
Monday, October 20, 2008
Thursday, May 22, 2008
Please Pray for this wonderful family
Daughter of Gospel Star Steven Curtis Chapman Hit, Killed by Car
Thursday, May 22, 2008
AP
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — The 5-year-old daughter of contemporary Christian music star Steven Curtis Chapman was struck and killed Wednesday by a sport utility vehicle driven by her brother, authorities said.
The girl, Maria, was hit in a driveway on the family residence Wednesday afternoon by a Toyota Land Cruiser driven by her teenage brother, said Laura McPherson, a spokesman for the Tennessee Highway Patrol.
McPherson said no charges are expected.
"It looks like a tragic accident," she said.
She said several members of the Chapman family witnessed the accident, which happened in Williamson County just south of Nashville.
The brother apparently did not see the little girl, McPherson said. She did not have the name or exact age of the brother, only that he is an older teenager.
The girl died later at Vanderbilt Medical Center, hospital spokeswoman Laurie Holloway said.
Chapman, originally from Paducah, Ky., and his wife have promoted international adoption and have three daughters from China, including Maria.
Chapman has won five Grammy awards and 51 Dove awards from the Gospel Music Association.
The singer's Web site said that Chapman and his wife, Mary Beth, were persuaded by their oldest daughter to adopt a girl from China. The experience led the family to adopt two more children and create Shaohannah's Hope, a foundation and ministry to financially assist thousands of couples in adoption.
The Chapmans did missionary work at Chinese orphanages in 2006 and 2007, according to the Web site.
"After our first trip to China, my wife and I knew our lives were changing — our eyes and hearts were opening to how big God really is, and we have wanted to experience more of that," Chapman says on the Web site. "We've really wondered whether or not we should just go to China and stay there. But I don't think so. I believe God is saying, 'I want you to go, get your heart broken, your eyes opened, and then take this story back to the church in America and around the world."'
Chapman also has released a book about being a father entitled "Cinderella: The Love of Daddy and his Princess."
Let us all just come together and pray for this family. They have done so much for all with Steven's songs and in raising awareness and support for overseas adoptions. Let's use our words to intercede on their behalf during this time of loss that they are experiencing.
Thursday, May 22, 2008
AP
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — The 5-year-old daughter of contemporary Christian music star Steven Curtis Chapman was struck and killed Wednesday by a sport utility vehicle driven by her brother, authorities said.
The girl, Maria, was hit in a driveway on the family residence Wednesday afternoon by a Toyota Land Cruiser driven by her teenage brother, said Laura McPherson, a spokesman for the Tennessee Highway Patrol.
McPherson said no charges are expected.
"It looks like a tragic accident," she said.
She said several members of the Chapman family witnessed the accident, which happened in Williamson County just south of Nashville.
The brother apparently did not see the little girl, McPherson said. She did not have the name or exact age of the brother, only that he is an older teenager.
The girl died later at Vanderbilt Medical Center, hospital spokeswoman Laurie Holloway said.
Chapman, originally from Paducah, Ky., and his wife have promoted international adoption and have three daughters from China, including Maria.
Chapman has won five Grammy awards and 51 Dove awards from the Gospel Music Association.
The singer's Web site said that Chapman and his wife, Mary Beth, were persuaded by their oldest daughter to adopt a girl from China. The experience led the family to adopt two more children and create Shaohannah's Hope, a foundation and ministry to financially assist thousands of couples in adoption.
The Chapmans did missionary work at Chinese orphanages in 2006 and 2007, according to the Web site.
"After our first trip to China, my wife and I knew our lives were changing — our eyes and hearts were opening to how big God really is, and we have wanted to experience more of that," Chapman says on the Web site. "We've really wondered whether or not we should just go to China and stay there. But I don't think so. I believe God is saying, 'I want you to go, get your heart broken, your eyes opened, and then take this story back to the church in America and around the world."'
Chapman also has released a book about being a father entitled "Cinderella: The Love of Daddy and his Princess."
Let us all just come together and pray for this family. They have done so much for all with Steven's songs and in raising awareness and support for overseas adoptions. Let's use our words to intercede on their behalf during this time of loss that they are experiencing.
Wednesday, May 14, 2008
This space intentionally left blank
We are told to "be still and know that I am God" in Psalm 46:10.
You ever wonder about that scripture?
Do we always have to be thinking about something? Does something always have to be going through our minds?
Is it wrong to just Veg? to "Chill"?
How many of us in today's world even take a moment to ourselves these days?
It's always something: work, family health, car repairs, bills, kids sports, home repairs, in-laws, out-laws, safety, etc... Whew! I think you get the picture. To answer the question i asked...we don't . We don't have much downtime in this day and age.
But...we need to. We need some down time. We're told to "Be still".
How can we be still if we're running around like a chicken with its head cut off?
There is a time for everything....(Ecclesiastes 3:1-8)
We need to make sure we are making time for ourselves. Time to draw nearer to God. Time to be still. We NEED those quiet moments. I am talking about down time.
Ever wonder why camps and retreats are so effective? It is because you get away and you can't help but have some down time.
So if the space is blank.....
Take it for what it is.
Take a deep breath........That is better.
Never be too busy.........
....for God to speak.
---- This Space was intentionally left blank----
You ever wonder about that scripture?
Do we always have to be thinking about something? Does something always have to be going through our minds?
Is it wrong to just Veg? to "Chill"?
How many of us in today's world even take a moment to ourselves these days?
It's always something: work, family health, car repairs, bills, kids sports, home repairs, in-laws, out-laws, safety, etc... Whew! I think you get the picture. To answer the question i asked...we don't . We don't have much downtime in this day and age.
But...we need to. We need some down time. We're told to "Be still".
How can we be still if we're running around like a chicken with its head cut off?
There is a time for everything....(Ecclesiastes 3:1-8)
We need to make sure we are making time for ourselves. Time to draw nearer to God. Time to be still. We NEED those quiet moments. I am talking about down time.
Ever wonder why camps and retreats are so effective? It is because you get away and you can't help but have some down time.
So if the space is blank.....
Take it for what it is.
Take a deep breath........That is better.
Never be too busy.........
....for God to speak.
---- This Space was intentionally left blank----
Friday, April 18, 2008
Perspective
What is your perspective when bad things happen?
Is it positive or negative?
Case in point:
Last week while I was traveling in Oklahoma, my truck (in my driveway in Texas) was set on blocks and its wheels and tires taken. Yes stolen. The general reaction to something like that might be anger.
My 5 yr old Caden however had a different perspective. His statement, "Someone must have needed them more than daddy did."
I love innocence. Can't we all just take a more positive look at things and know that just because bad things happen to us, we really have no reason to get "all bent out of shape". God is still in control.
Peace, Love and happy driving (if YOU still have your wheels)
B
Is it positive or negative?
Case in point:
Last week while I was traveling in Oklahoma, my truck (in my driveway in Texas) was set on blocks and its wheels and tires taken. Yes stolen. The general reaction to something like that might be anger.
My 5 yr old Caden however had a different perspective. His statement, "Someone must have needed them more than daddy did."
I love innocence. Can't we all just take a more positive look at things and know that just because bad things happen to us, we really have no reason to get "all bent out of shape". God is still in control.
Peace, Love and happy driving (if YOU still have your wheels)
B
Thursday, March 27, 2008
Crazy Crazy Love
You know anyone who has a pet?
Someone who loves that pet more than the pet will ever love them?
They take it shopping with them. They take it to the movies. They let them eat the same food they eat, in fact they may even let them sit at the table during the meal.
That is not crazy love....that is just plain CRAZY!
You ever known a guy that falls for a girl in high school?
She will wrap him around her finger. He will do anything and everything she asks just because. He is like a puppy on a leash. He is infatuated with her. He is seeing what he can get in return for doing what she wants and asks. High School relationships never last.
That is not crazy love....that is selfish infatuation. It will pass quickly in these days all depending on what "personal things" they give to each other to make it last longer.
Have you ever seen an old married couple?
They have grown old together. He has cared for her through all the sicknesses, she has cared for him when he was on what was thought to be his deathbed. They have raised children in their house and cared for them as well or better than they cared for themselves.
That is not crazy love....but it is definitely love.
So what is crazy love?
What gets that billing?
Well we celebrated it all over the world last Easter Sunday. Some have called it "Amazing Love" while others call it "Wonderful Love". But crazy love is what i call it. God loves us. He passionately loves us. He knew exactly what we would do to Him, His people, His Son. But He loved. Not only did He love through everything but He sent His Son down here to be rejected, mocked, beaten and killed to conquer death for us. Amazing...yes! Crazy....definitely!
But God and only God can love so much that some would call it amazing, others wonderful, and yet others crazy. I am very thankful for the crazy love that God lavished on us. He shows us how to love. He helps us to even be capable of loving. In fact, He tells us to follow His crazy love example by loving God and then loving others. But don't just talk about it. Go do it.
If you haven't received and accepted this crazy love....It is a gift. God gives it, you receive it and grow in it. Don't let this day pass without experiencing this crazy love that is like no other you will or could ever experience.
"It's crazy when love gets a hold of you." Steven Curtis Chapman Something Crazy
Peace
B
Someone who loves that pet more than the pet will ever love them?
They take it shopping with them. They take it to the movies. They let them eat the same food they eat, in fact they may even let them sit at the table during the meal.
That is not crazy love....that is just plain CRAZY!
You ever known a guy that falls for a girl in high school?
She will wrap him around her finger. He will do anything and everything she asks just because. He is like a puppy on a leash. He is infatuated with her. He is seeing what he can get in return for doing what she wants and asks. High School relationships never last.
That is not crazy love....that is selfish infatuation. It will pass quickly in these days all depending on what "personal things" they give to each other to make it last longer.
Have you ever seen an old married couple?
They have grown old together. He has cared for her through all the sicknesses, she has cared for him when he was on what was thought to be his deathbed. They have raised children in their house and cared for them as well or better than they cared for themselves.
That is not crazy love....but it is definitely love.
So what is crazy love?
What gets that billing?
Well we celebrated it all over the world last Easter Sunday. Some have called it "Amazing Love" while others call it "Wonderful Love". But crazy love is what i call it. God loves us. He passionately loves us. He knew exactly what we would do to Him, His people, His Son. But He loved. Not only did He love through everything but He sent His Son down here to be rejected, mocked, beaten and killed to conquer death for us. Amazing...yes! Crazy....definitely!
But God and only God can love so much that some would call it amazing, others wonderful, and yet others crazy. I am very thankful for the crazy love that God lavished on us. He shows us how to love. He helps us to even be capable of loving. In fact, He tells us to follow His crazy love example by loving God and then loving others. But don't just talk about it. Go do it.
If you haven't received and accepted this crazy love....It is a gift. God gives it, you receive it and grow in it. Don't let this day pass without experiencing this crazy love that is like no other you will or could ever experience.
"It's crazy when love gets a hold of you." Steven Curtis Chapman Something Crazy
Peace
B
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