Sunshine's Spirit Club kids

Let's Help Our Neighbors

Well, I'm writing this post from then International Soul Winning Workshop in Tulsa, Oklahoma. I've really been fed these last few days and am thinking that when we get back home, we need to work on a workshop of our own for Sunshine. I'm brainstorming a little bit here and could use as many ideas as I can get. I would like to work on increasing the PASSION of reaching out to people in our community with the love of Christ. Ways to establish relationships with lost people who need to know the Lord. Feel free to post any ideas you might have in this area.
We seem to rely on inviting people into the church assembly as the main way of teaching the Word, when actually the Word says we are to GO into the world with the word. GO does not mean we have to go to the other side of the world to reach people, it could be GO down the street. The story of the good Samaritan is a good example of how to be a good neighbor. I always thought of this story as applying to me as an individual, but what could we accomplish if we took this view of our neighbor as a group and apply the lesson to areas where the need is in our community now!

The source of stress

From Landon Saunder's Day Enhancers:



The source of stress in our lives is not from the usual suspects: relationships, job, finances, etc. The greatest source of stress is the living I don't do; that deep inner tension that comes when I feel I'm not fully living the life I was meant to live.



The greatest source of joy is the living we do well.



I'm making peace among the waring factions within myself.



Heatbeat: Life that Loves to Happen / Day Enhancers

New Website...

I want to apologize to Jennifer and Jason for posting on top of their very worthy posts – and I want to encourage you to scroll down to read the 3 or 4 quality posts under this one that have been shared the last few days.

My purpose for posting here today is not nearly as important… but I hope you’ll be patient with me.

I have a new website… jjriley.net. And I just wanted to invite everyone over for a visit.

It will - at least for now - go by the name “For What it’s Worth”, and the Blogger site I have used in the past will be put on hold… probably permanently. (I know you thought it was put on hold many times - ha-ha)

I changed the link on the sidebar of this page to go directly to my new site, so if you click the “For What it’s Worth” link it will take you there.

The site will still be undergoing more construction in the next few days…but it’s pretty much ready to go. I hope you enjoy visiting, and that you do so often. And while you’re there feel free to comment – talk to me and tell me what you think. I appreciate all of you, and hope we can be renewed in using the means of the internet to encourage each other on a daily basis.

Now to Matt Cram…thank you for all the work you did in getting “For What it’s Worth” up and running. You're a great man... and I really appreciate you bro.

So Beautiful

Someone in our adoption travel group sent this youtube video to me and the rest of the group. It's adorable and I as I watched it, I couldn't help but think of what God must be feeling as she sings.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MS93Q4jQAO0&feature=related


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AR4PQ30VkBk

A great link

I apologize for the multiple posts in short time; however, this short essay is worth the trouble.

Check out-> Atonement: A Primer

This essay provides a review of the concept of atonement and a quick history of how Christians have answered the question, Why did Jesus have to die on the cross?

Maybe you didn't realize that the answer to that question is very difficult to nail down (with precision).

the least of these

In Matthew 25: 31-46, we have the commonly known description of the Great Judgement Day. All people will be divided as sheep from goats. The sheep, to the right, will go away to eternal life. The goats, to the left, will go away to eternal punishment.

We all are familiar with this passage.

But, what is the prime issue, the key matter that differentiates between sheep and goats? It not the things to which we often give great attention in our religious discussions. No, it all hinges on how we have behaved regarding "the least of these".

Jesus says that the least of these is he. What we do to them we are doing to him. What we don't do them we are not doing to him. This revelation caught both the righteous and the unrighteous off-guard.

The righteous did not treat the least of these well because they anticipated this form of judgement. They did it naturally. It was an expression of their walk with Christ. In the midst of their religiosity, they found and lived Love. Others did not. That proved to be critical!

The heck with love, let's try kindness...

I found this, from Richard Beck's Experimental Theology to be quite be simply profound--

The troubling thing for me is how so few Christians view kindness as being at the heart of their religious practice. I see this as a serious problem. I think this is becausethe Christian moral vision is often too heroic. Christians say that love--that big and heroic vision--is at the heart of their practice. But as they say this they tip waiters poorly, criticize co-workers too harshly, and smile too infrequently. In my mind, kindness is love with training wheels. We need to work on smiling more. Work on tipping well. Work on complimenting frequently. Work on thoughtfulness.

Christians need to take a year to stop focusing on love and just practice kindness for a season. It could be a revolutionary change for us. Let's try hard for one year to make kindness central to our religion. And then maybe, if we get good at this, we can graduate to love.

I see myself as one often caught up in pursuing some heroic vision and missing the significance of what is directly before me. I am slowly realizing that the one very important trait of the godly person is recognizing the importance of the present moment. I wonder what the lonely Subway lady that faces the Sunday night church crowd thinks of me.

Youth Group Blog

A blog has been created for Sunshine's youth group in order to keep everyone up to date on the latest news. At the present time, there is a post about the youth rally coming up in April. This new blog will be a great resource for passing along information to other church of Christ youth groups that participate in activities with our youth.

Al, if you wouldn't mind adding this link to the list of blogs on here for easy access, we would appreciate it.

http://syginfo.blogspot.com/

"Speechless...Silencing the Christians"

Second episode of "Speechless...Silencing the Christians" to air Saturday night.


The second episode of "Speechless...Silencing the Christians" will be shown Saturday night. You can watch the program on the INSP cable network. Or you can watch it on-line at http://www.silencingchristians.com/

You can view the second episode on the web for free, but you must register to view the program. With traffic being heavy on silencingchristians.com, your computer may be slow. If so, we advise you to come back later and view it. The program will be up all week.

Be sure to forward your friends this alert and invite them to watch.

See if INSP is available on your cable system.


Thank you for caring enough to get involved.


Sincerely,

Donald E. Wildmon, Founder and Chairman American Family Association

Homosexual Day of Silence - Is Your Child's School on the list?

The American Family Association sent this alert to me......




Dear Jennifer,


Because of the action of concerned parents, hundreds of schools have removed their school as a listed participant in the pro-homosexual "Day of Silence." You can join the fight for your children too!



On, Friday, April 25, several thousand schools across the nation will be observing "Day of Silence (DOS)." DOS is a nationwide push to promote the homosexual lifestyle in public schools.



When AFA alerted parents of this public school classroom disruption by homosexual student activists, many took action immediately! If you haven't gotten involved, it's critical that you do so today!



A simple phone call or letter to school administrators, telling them your child will not attend school the day it observes DOS, may be enough to cause some participating schools to change their plans. Sample letter here.



Please listen to a 60-second radio ad warning parents about Day of Silence, then forward this email to your local Christian or conservative radio station. Ask them to broadcast it as a Public Service Announcement (PSA)! MP3 file or WAV file



Click here for Frequently Asked Questions about the Day of Silence.



In the past week alone, over 200 schools have announced they are dropping plans to participate. Please, get involved for the sake or your children, and all children, today!




Take Action!


What should parents do? Check with your local school principal to see if your child's school will be participating in DOS. If the school is participating, notify other parents about DOS and ask them to join in keeping their children out of school on that day.



Here is a partial list of schools which are expected to participate in DOS: If your school is listed, call your local school and ascertain whether they officially or passively allow students to observe "Day of Silence." If your school is listed, please double-check with your local school to see if the school is actually sponsoring DOS. Sometimes the "participation" turns out to be a handful of kids who are saying they have a homosexual club and are observing this protest day, but without school endorsement. We sincerely hope your school, if listed, is not actually an official sponsor. If it is not, we will take them off the list, if a school official asks us to do so. Please e-mail your correction to webmaster@missionamerica.com.



Some tips:


Be sure of the date that DOS is planned for your school. (The national date is April 25, but some schools observe DOS on a different date.)


Inform the school of your intention to keep your child home on that date and explain why. Click here for a sample letter.


Explain to your children why you're taking a stand: Homosexual behavior is not an innate identity; it is a sinful, unnatural and destructive behavior. No school should advance a physically, emotionally, and spiritually destructive sexual lifestyle to students.


Schools do not have to tolerate students remaining silent in class. Schools can adopt policies that require parental consent for students to attend any club, including those premised on sexual orientation or gender identity. Click here for more information from Attorney Mat Staver with Liberty Counsel who provides free information to parents, students, and schools regarding their rights associated with noncompliance on the Day of Silence.


Thank you for caring enough to get involved.



Sincerely,

Donald E. Wildmon,

Founder and Chairman American Family Association

Working with Hospice I am constantly reminded that life is short and the clock is ticking.

I get to choose how this constant reminder of my own mortality will shape me.

It might make me anxious, fearful, and depressed. After all, it's not hard for any of us to look deeply in the mirror and admit that we were really hoping for better. Taken that way, this constant reminder of my mortality can be a curse.

On the other hand, it can be a great blessing! It can drive me to claim purpose, meaning, and significance in my day-to-day ramblings. This positive approach is anchored in believing that God has given me two fundamental things regarding my life: ability and opportunity. God has given me and you the ability and the opportunity. Yes, there are obstacles and barriers; but, they can be overcome.

"This is the true joy of life, the being used for a purpose recognized by yourself as a mighty one; the being thoroughly worn out before you are thrown on the scrap heap; the being a force of nature instead of a feverish selfish little clod of ailments and grievances complaining that the world will not devote itself to making you happy."
- G. B. Shaw

Follow the great part

This is an excerpt from Landon Saunders' ABC's of Being Human

Here are three questions to get you started with what you believe:


1. What do you believe about the world?



Is it good, or is it basically bad? Is it a place where human beings were meant to live and do well, or is it a place that is somehow hostile to human life? Do you expect things to work out well in the end, or do you suspect that everything is futile? It makes a great difference how you view the world. Why? Because the world you believe in is the world you will create for yourself. If you believe the world is hostile you will live with intimidation. If you believe there is love in the world you will find it.


2. What do you believe about God?



Not what do you believe about religion. Religious organizations come and go. They are divided among themselves. They represent all the strengths and weaknesses of human society. They are not God. I raise this question because it is there. It’s inevitable. It’s part of the whole question of being human. Do you believe God however perceived exists? And more importantly – what is the character of your God? Is God loving or does God despise human beings? It is so vital a question that you should not let others decide for you. In moments of crisis or when honestly seeking larger answers about this world, your view of God will make a big difference in the way you respond.


3. What do you believe about yourself?



If others don’t believe in you, it can be tough, but it can’t keep you from going forward. But unless you believe in yourself, nothing can help you. As a little boy, I can remember my father sometimes looking at me and asking, "Do you think you’ll ever amount to anything?" I can remember being a little puzzled by the question, but I would always answer, "Yes." I figured any other answer had to be wrong. As the years passed, that simple question has come to have great significance. It isn’t easy to feel you "amount" to something through your teens, into the twenties, past the thirties, forties, fifties, and now into the late sixties.


I’ve discovered a simple rule, however, that keeps me on track toward personal worth. The rule is this: To be great you must follow the great part that is you, not the small part; and you must follow the great part in others, not the small.

Home Schooling

I received this in my email and wanted to share it with you all. This concerns me a great deal because I am very pro-home school. I am seriously considering home schooling Zoe.

I want to add something.......

http://www.wallbuilders.com/LIBissuesArticles.asp?id=159

Jennifer



FALWELL CONFIDENTIAL
Insider weekly newsletter to The Moral Majority Coalition and
The Liberty Alliance http://www.falwell.com/

From: Jonathan Falwell
Date: March 7, 2008

Will Home Schooling Become Illegal?

The San Francisco Chronicle is reporting that “shock waves” have been sent throughout the state’s home-schooling community after the California Court of Appeals issued a ruling which found no legal right of parents to home school their children.

“Parents who fail to [comply with state school enrollment laws] may be subject to a criminal complaint against them, found guilty of an infraction, and subject to imposition of fines or an order to complete a parent education and counseling program,” wrote Justice H. Walter Croskey, whose opinion was joined by the other two members of an appellate panel. The opinion, which was issued February 28, reversed a superior court judge’s ruling that “parents have a constitutional right to school their children in their own home.”

In this case, the parents of a student had enrolled her in Sunland Christian School , a private home schooling program. In his opinion, Judge Croskey called this action a “ruse of enrolling [children] in a private school and then letting them stay home and be taught by a non-credentialed parent.”

Brad Dacus, president of the Sacramento-based Pacific Justice Institute (PJI), said it should be noted that this Christian school “has been in full compliance with the requirements of the law for more than 20 years.” PJI, which is a legal defense organization specializing in the defense of religious freedom and parental rights, is representing the family in this case.

The ruling, combined with Judge Croskey’s cautionary warnings, has had a chilling effect on home-schooling parents throughout the nation. Through the years, these families have seen examples of far-reaching efforts that attempt to quell the rights of parents to choose the way in which their children are educated.

“The scope of this decision by the appellate court is breathtaking,” said Dacus. “It not only attacks traditional home schooling, but also calls into question home schooling through charter schools and teaching children at home via independent study through public and private schools.”

He said if the ruling is not reversed, parents of the 166,000-plus students in home school programs in the state “will be subject to criminal sanctions.”

That’s a dire warning. And while this is troubling news for California ’s home-schooling parents, Michael Farris of the Home School Legal Defense Association (HSLDA) says there’s not yet a need for panic.

The HSLDA, noting that the appeals court ruling finds that “almost all forms of home-schooling in California are in violation of state law,” will file an amicus brief on behalf of its 13,500 member families in the state. The organization says that “a proper interpretation of California statutes makes it clear that parents may legally teach their own children under the private-school exemption.”

Parental Rights

I believe that parents should have the right to choose alternative education for their children. Specifically, Christian parents should have the right to choose faith-based schools or home schooling for their children, especially when one considers the accelerating focus on sex-ed in many public schools.

Just this week, we learned that a high school in Deerfield , Ill. , had assigned the book, “Angels in America : A Gay Fantasia on National Themes” — which includes vile language and graphic depictions of sexuality, including homosexuality — as a required student reading project. (After several parents complained the book was changed to an “optional title.”)

“It’s disgraceful for [education officials at the school] who have been entrusted to help mold the minds of Deerfield’s impressionable youth, to have abused those youth by ostensibly violating the very laws intended to protect them, said Matt Barber, Concerned Women for America’s policy director for cultural issues.

It’s no wonder that Christian parents are becoming more and more concerned about what their children are being taught in public schools.

While the teachers unions want control of all kids, we must work to ensure that parents retain the right to determine their children’s educations. I see this as a fundamental right for all parents and an absolute right of religious freedom for Christian families.

Prayer and Praise

Just a note to say that God is great and greatly to be praised! Read Isaiah 26 verses 3 and4 and praise Him for listening to our prayers, for caring for our needs, for working in our circumstances, and being the Lord of our lives. Praying with you is powerful. Praying for you is a privelege.

Jesus on Prayer and Fasting

Matthew 6:9-18

"This, then, is how you should pray:” 'Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us today our daily bread. Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.' For if you forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins

Fasting

"When you fast, do not look somber as the hypocrites do, for they disfigure their faces to show men they are fasting. I tell you the truth; they have received their reward in full. But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash your face, so that it will not be obvious to men that you are fasting, but only to your Father, who is unseen; and your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.

Matthew 11:23-25

In the morning, as they went along, they saw the fig tree withered from the roots. Peter remembered and said to Jesus, "Rabbi, look! The fig tree you cursed has withered!" "Have^[f] faith in God," Jesus answered. "I tell you the truth, if anyone says to this mountain, 'Go, throw yourself into the sea,' and does not doubt in his heart but believes that what he says will happen, it will be done for him. Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours. And when you stand praying, if you hold anything against anyone, forgive him, so that your Father in heaven may forgive you your sins."

Our 24 hour prayer vigil will begin tomorrow at 6:00pm. If you haven’t signed up for a time yet you still have that opportunity. If you can’t get to the building to sign up before then, just leave a comment to this post and I’ll see that you get on the list. Whether you’re praying at home or at the building – we would still like to know all who are involved in this prayer vigil. But if you would rather keep it between you and God we’re totally fine with that.

One more thing… if you have a prayer request that needs to be remembered and it’s something that can be shared in the comments of this post – please feel welcome to do so. If you would rather it not be so public please email me - jjriley@innermissionssu.com or call one of the Elders, Steve, or me – and we’ll spend time with God over your request.

24 Hour Prayer Vigil

Hey Sunshine... don't forget that our prayer vigil begins this Friday, March 7th at 6:00pm.

I want to take this opportunity to encourage everyone to participate as we plan to spend an entire 24 hours in continuous prayer to God. I know that when we pray God listens. I also know that when we pray together God listens and we grow closer in relationship with one another -- or should I say we're unified because of the time spent together in him.
So let's encourage one another to unite in prayer this Friday for 24 hours... and enjoy the blessings we receive from the time spent together with God.