Pastor + Author
Do you ever have those one or two people who just don’t seem to participate in your group discussion time? Does it ever feel like pulling teeth when you try to get them to talk? Okay, maybe it’s not that bad, but in this video I suggest a few different ideas as to how to up the level of participation in your group. I also talk a bit about adult learning methodology.
For more information about groups, check out the website of the church I’m the Groups Pastor at: http://groups.beulah.tv
I don’t know about you, but I face temptation daily. Sometimes I overcome it, and other times I fall into the temptation and sin. There is no way to get rid of temptation completely, but God always promises us a way out of temptation:
“No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it.” (1 Corinthians 10:13)
The awesome thing is, God uses temptation to transform us and develop us:
“Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.” (James 1:2-4).
However, what practical things can we do to develop self-control in order to overcome temptation when it hits us? This is the question I asked myself while reading Kenneson’s Life on the Vine, and here’s my answer.
[Read more…] about finally overcoming temptation?
Being a father of a toddler and a baby, working full time, and working on my masters degree takes up a lot of my time. As a result, I asked myself this question while reading Life on the Vine, “How do I grow in patience when there are so many demands on my time?”
First things first – we need to alter our own understanding and perspective of time! Instead of seeing time as our taskmaster, we need to view time as a gift from God (Chapter 5, Location 1427).
We also need to change the way we view success. Productivity is not how success should be measured in our life, instead it should be the evidence of the fruit of the Spirit – in this case, patience (Chapter 5, Location 1451). As a result, we need to resist the temptation of measuring our day’s worth by what we have or have not accomplished. Instead of asking ourselves, “What have I accomplished?” We should ask ourselves, “Have I loved and responded to interruptions with sensitivity to what the Holy Spirit may be doing?”
We will also need to change the way we view and label our relationships and interaction with others. Instead of “investing” time in others, we should “devote” time to others, since investment expects a return, whereas devotion is to acknowledge the other’s worth. (Chapter 5, Location 1596). It’s a small change of semantics, but makes a huge difference!
That’s how we grow in patience QUICKLY – and yes…I know that phrase is a paradox.
Philip D. Kenneson’s Life on the Vine: Cultivating the Fruit of the Spirit stands as a powerful message to the Church, especially the North American church. In addition to preaching the word, Kenneson emphasizes the importance of the church living out the word by bearing the fruit of the Spirit. After all, there needs to be a greater harvest of the Spirit’s fruit in order to continue to advance God’s mission in the world, not because it will make God love us more or because our salvation is at stake (Chapter 1, Location 130). Every fruit of the Spirit finds its origins in the character of God. As a result, Christians become more human and are shaped more into the image of God as the fruit of the Spirit is developed in their lives. As much as cultivating the fruit of the Spirit is something that needs to be done individually in every Christian’s life, the single most important venue for this to take place in is one’s local church where one can practice living out the fruit of the Spirit in relation to God and others.
[Read more…] about Book Review: Life on the Vine by Philip D. Kenneson
If you are wanting more of an academic definition of globalization, check out the definition given by the Stanford Enyclopedia of Philosophy.
If you are wanting more of a reachable definition, read mine below:
Globalization is about being connected to others, irrespective of one’s geographical location. Globalization is lived out when an individual goes to their supermarket, which is owned by someone from another country, and buys a mango that was imported from Thailand. That individual got to the grocery store by driving in their car, which was assembled in Mexico, while listening to music, playing off their music player designed by a company in Cupertino, California, but which was assembled in China. Since the mango was so delicious, the individual tweets and facebooks, “Thai mangoes are the best!” Afterward, a farmer from Thailand sees that tweet and responds back, “thanks!” This illustration is a glimpse into globalization.
In essence, globalization is the process by which market economies have more of a direct impact on each other, nations develop more of a reliance on one another for resources, individuals from around the world begin speaking the same language, and pollution in one country affects individuals half way around the world. Consequently, the world suddenly seems a lot smaller.
How do you see globalization on a daily basis?