Gay Scientists Isolate Christian Gene

My Pastor's daughter came across this. It's 4 years old, has over a million views, and is simply funny...

A Cool "Flash Mob"

 I think that this would be fun to do....

Redefining Success with You in Mind

This is a video of a seminar that a woman named Bryn Drescher did. I watched it and it had me rethinking things when it comes to Success and other things. I will post a blog about my thoughts soon on my other blog, but I think that it is worth watching. It’s about an hour long, and open you mind as you watch, as it could make you a better person.

You can find out more about Bryn at her website http://mylifegps.com/

After watching this video, please click on this link and rate it... http://speakerrate.com/bryndrescher

15 Signs That A Church Is In Trouble

I found this on another website and just had to share it here....

15 Signs That A Church Is In Trouble November 4, 2009

#1 – When excuses are made about the way things are instead of embracing a willingness to roll up the sleeves and fix the problem.

#2 – When the church becomes content with merely receiving people that come rather than actually going out and finding them…in other words, they lose their passion for evangelism!

#3 – The focus of the church is to build a great church (complete with the pastors picture…and his wife’s…on everything) and not the Kingdom of God.

#4 – The leadership begins to settle for the natural rather than rely on the supernatural.

#5 – The church begins to view success/failure in regards to how they are viewed in the church world rather than whether or not they are actually fulfilling the Great Commission!

#6 – The leaders within the church cease to be coachable.

#7 – There is a loss of a sense of urgency!  (Hell is no longer hot, sin is no longer wrong and the cross is no longer important!)

#8 – Scripture isn’t central in every decision that is made!

#9 – The church is reactive rather than proactive.

#10 – The people in the church lose sight of the next generation and refuse to fund ministry simply because they don’t understand “those young people.”

#11 – The goal of the church is to simply maintain the way things are…to NOT rock the boat and/or upset anyone…especially the big givers!

#12 – The church is no longer willing to take steps of faith because “there is just too much to lose.”

#13 – The church simply does not care about the obvious and immediate needs that exist in the community.

#14 – The people learn how to depend on one man to minister to everyone rather than everyone embracing their role in the body, thus allowing the body to care for itself.

#15 – When the leaders/staff refuse to go the extra mile in leading and serving because of how “inconvenient” doing so would be.

Nominations Wanted by The Diocese of California

Please consider downloading a PDF version of this letter to distribute to your congregation. Click here to download. June 16, 2011 To: Congregations in the Diocese of California, The Episcopal Church Re: Nominations to Convention The diocesan Committee on Nominations is doing a new thing. The job is ages old. This diocesan-wide committee has been charged with finding willing church members with useful experience to be nominated to run for various positions at the diocesan level. At Diocesan Convention this coming October 21 and 22, delegates must elect one clergy and two (usually one; a vacant term must be filled) lay persons to the Standing Committee, two representatives from Convention (one must be lay) to the Executive Council, one Secretary of the Convention and one Treasurer of the Diocese. And it’s a challenge. The 2010 Convention elected to change the make-up of the Nominating Committee. It is now comprised of one clergy and one lay member elected from each of the six deaneries; most deaneries did this at the end of last year. There are twelve members, and two liaisons, from Executive Council and Standing Committee. A process is evolving and has begun. Members of the Committee have been and are attending their spring deanery meetings to spread the word and encourage deanery attendees to find amidst their own congregations people to nominate. You may have attended one of these meetings. Notices from the Committee have appeared in DioBytes. Your help is so important. We know that within the diocese are many good people whose knowledge, talents and experience should be brought to light. This diocese needs the skills and viewpoints of a wide range of Episcopalians — “cradle” to “converted,” “eco” to ecumenical, quiet to querulous — as we work to make our church vibrant in the near and far future. Please assist us in finding these people. Time is of the essence. Go to the diocesan web site, www.diocal.org, and select the “Convention” tab clicking on “Nominations”; you will be able to access the nominating form. And, you can read descriptions of the positions to be filled and the lengths of the term of office. The form should be filled out and submitted on line. Once someone has been nominated, he or she will be contacted by the Registrar of the Nominating Committee to obtain further information about the potential candidacy. The deadline for receiving applications is July 17, 2011. Have you a question? Read the web site material. Consult the members of the Committee on Nominations from your deanery listed under the “2011 Diocesan Convention” tab. Go to “Nominations” and click “Committee on Nominations.” Ask for inspiration and insight. Share the Committee on Nomination’s quest with your congregation and other groups of Episcopalians by announcement and weekly prayer in words of your own choosing. Lord Jesus Christ help us to see the ones you are choosing for diocesan work in your Church and to do our part to make their way easy and their burden light that they may give and receive your Love on earth. 1055 Taylor Street San Francisco, CA 94108 415.673.5015 (phone) 415.673.9268 (fax) convention@diocal.org (email) Click here for a direct link to the online Nomination Form.

But What If?

 In an earlier blog I talked about Howard Camping and the fact that I have learned from him and that I feel that I have actually grown stronger in my spirituality. I also said that I don't believe in his thing about the world coming to an end on October 21, 2011, which is something that he was saying long before much of the world even heard his Rapture words.

 For some reason the story of Noah came to mind a little bit ago, and then the story of the Boy Who Cried Wolf. Why they came to mind is something that I do now, then I began to think about Howard Camping. The story of Noah has been around for centuries, and one of the things that I remember about it was that he tried telling people what God was going to do, but they wouldn't listen. Over and over he told people, but they just wouldn't listen. Then there is the story of the boy, and even though the town did listen to him a few times, when their really was a wolf nobody listened.

 Now I wonder about Howard Camping? Yeah, I know that he was wrong in the 1990s, and that things didn't go as he said that they would this past May, but I wonder if he could be right about what he says is suppose to happen on October 21, 2011? 

 Now I know what the Holy Bible doesn't give an exact date as to when the Rapture will occur, but I am sure that it will happen, but I wonder if we are all missing the real point in that we really need to get our act together and live as though it will happen at any moment? Think about it. If the Bible did give an exact date, why wouldn't we just go out and do the things that we wanted to do, then days before ask God for forgiveness? What real purpose would it serve to live a life in Christ now if we knew that on a certain date it will all end and that we could be forgiven just by asking for forgiveness a few days before?

 Maybe the real message that Howard Camping was trying to get through to us is that we really should be living our life in Christ now? The lessons that I heard today in church seemed to have a theme that was around sin, mainly our own sins. Sit back and think about your life for a moment. Think about the ways that you have treated others. Think about the wrongs that you have done in life. If the Rapture were to come today, and you found yourself standing before God and your ancestors, how would you go about explaining the wrongs that you have done to others in the things that you did to them? Things like Apologizing for YOUR actions. You really can't blame others for the things that YOU choose to do, as they were YOUR actions.

 Now don't get me wrong, I am not claiming to of never to have done anything wrong to others. Believe me, I have done some stuff that I really regret and feel sorry for that I wish that I could make up to people in some kind of way. But with the help of the Holy Trinity, I think that I am trying my best not to hurt others in any way. Oh I know that I may screw up at some point, but I think that I am a far better person by being able to say that I am sorry to someone when I do error and not blaming things on others. 

 Oh I know that people will say that he should give all of the money back to folks who gave money to him, but I think that in this case if the world doesn't come to an end on October 21, 2011, that he should offer to pay back monies to those who gave it to him if they should request it. The thing is, I don't think that many people will demand any money back. I think that some will look at it like paying the lottery or betting on other things like a business stock, and they will simply accept it as something that didn't work out. I think that some will not want their money back, as they will feel that they gained something in there life. Maybe someone stopped doing drugs and committing crimes because of the words of Howard Camping, and now live a life where they are following the teachings of Jesus and leading a Christian life. Wasn't that money worth it?

 Maybe he does have it right, and we are being like those who didn't believe in what Noah was saying. Maybe God has put the date into the Bible and we are just to ignorant to see it, you know, like when you are looking for the salt shaker all over the table only to discover that it has been right in front of your plate the entire time. 

 Maybe he does have it right, and we are being like the towns people who didn't believe the boy when the wolf really came. Howard Camping has given several dates on things that people believed only for nothing noticeably happen.

 But what if this time he is right, you know like those that you didn't believe who said something would happen and it really did? Are you really ready for the world to come to an end and to face God to explain the wrong things that you have done to his creatures upon this planet? Are you prepared to look the person in the face that you did wrong to only to discover that person is really Christ returned?

False Beliefs

This blog isn't about really about false beliefs in any religion, but more about false beliefs in ones self.

 In my previous blog I talked a little about how people ask me how they can get involved in things in the church like I am. I mentioned the ezine Diobytes which is put out by the diocese that I live in. I am sure that there are other Episcopal and denominations that have there own ezine, and you should check to see if they exist where you live, and subscribe.

 But one of the things that I think causes people to invite me is that I don't spend much time talking about all of the things that I go to nor spend time boosting about the things that I can do. Now the Bible does teach against boosting, and I try not to, but at times I will.

 When I go elsewhere I try and listen to what is needed if something is brought up, and do my best not to insert myself into things because I feel that I have superior knowledge about what is going on. I think that if I were to do that, it would upset people. In the congregation that I am in, most of the time I listen to the people and if there is something that I can help with I do my best to help. When we switched over to using a computer for the music, it was because the organist had found a job that would require him to work some Sundays, and between his skills at being able to play and to put things into Midi format, and my ability to build computer systems, we went that route. It took a few weeks, but the congregation quickly came to love doing the songs via midi because one of the things that I was able to do with some of the traditional stuff is to change the instruments that they could relate to that our organ does not have the ability to do. What started off as an experiment turned into something that the vestry voted to be what is the now the official source for music in the congregation. The only time that they have had no problem with the music is when the now former organist would come back from time to time and I could talk him into playing something, as he knew how the congregation liked how something is played. Others have come in and tried to play either the organ or piano, but because they really lack the knowledge of what the people like, I have heard a ton of complaints. One portion of the congregation told me to NEVER let one of the people EVER play again for them, as they felt that the person was totally clueless as to how something is suppose to be played and did a really bad job with a number of errors. But going back to a non-midi format doesn't appear to ever going to happen again unless someone with top skills comes along.

 I think that another reason that they enjoy having me do it also comes to the music that I play before the service, during the communion and after service. I listened to what they had to say as to what they like, and I play what they like along with listening to what they have to say when it comes to what they don't like. I know that if I didn't listen to them, and played only the things that I liked or thought that they should hear, the church would become more empty than it already is. 

 With people who think that they have all of this knowledge about stuff and supposed skills, they really turn people off real fast if they don't bother to listen. They forget that the church does not revolve around them. They come upon a self importance that is damaging to the church. They impose what they want and really don't care nor see how they have really hurt the church. I think that the way to find a great Lay Leader in a congregation, or even a Great Clergy person in a congregation is to see how they interact with people. When they spend their time talking about themselves and all that they have done they really don't spend the time listening to learn about the people that they are dealing with, they turn people off real fast. When others come up with ideas and they claim to have knowledge and tell someone how wrong they are, they cause people to leave and go elsewhere. There beliefs can be so false that they not only hurt the church, but Christianity as a whole.

 Oh I can hear people saying something like "But when I was at (insert name of church here,) the people loved this, or it worked this way,) doesn't mean that they people in the congregation you are at now will want it that way, and it could be something that they did in the past and have no interest in doing it. Each congregation is different, and one really needs to get an understanding of the congregation first. 

 For some people they get a title and make more of that title than what they ask for. They ask for a title in order to do one thing, then think that they can do all a number of other things because of the title, but in reality they are claiming powers that they really don't have, then they get upset when it is pointed out to them that they don't have the power that they think they have. I feel sad for them, as many of them end up with hurt feelings and looking really stupid when it is pointed out to them. I'm watching someone now who thinks that the title they have means more than what they were given. It's really sad, as they will get hurt in the end.

 I think that some of the cults that exist today are because people who lead these cults have a false belief in themselves. These people have such self importance that it is really about them, not really about the Holy Trinity. But I also believe that some of these groups that we do refer to as cults really are being lead by the Holy Trinity and are doing the works that are needed.

 Want to get involved in your congregation? Learn to Listen, and if you have ideas on possibly improving things in some way or have something new that you would like to see happen in the congregation, have a conversation with people in the congregation and really hear what they are saying. Before you tell someone that they are wrong, wonder in your head if they can could be right. Open you minds and hearts to new ideas and ways of doing things. Ask where the congregation needs help, and step outside of your comfort zone to help in those things where you think that you can actually learn something new and build upon your skills so if needed you can step in and help. When you limit yourself, you limit the church. Always remember that the person that you think that you have more knowledge and skills than could be Jesus returned. Always remember that what did X number of years ago doesn't always apply to today. Always remember that the church doesn't revolve around you, but you revolve around the church.