Things to think about this weekend

Do you ever wonder why God wants to be glorified? John Piper really makes me think. And I think he’s right about this. Read "Why God is not a meglomaniac in demanding to be worshipped."

Ever wonder why God commanded Israel to wipe out the Canaanites in the OT? God often gets a bad reputation because of this. Scot McKnight posts a good blog on this difficult issue. He references Christopher Wright’s book, The God I Don’t Understand. One way to seek some understanding is to think about God's sovereign justice. God acts against injustice both with Canaan and with Israel. He often uses nations to judge other nations. Israel was used to judge the Canaanites. (Wright points to OT texts that speak of Canaan's sinfulness like Lev 18:24-25; 20:22-24; Deut 9:5; 12:29-31). And don’t forget that Babylon was later used to judge Israel. This is part of God's sovereign control of history. And don’t forget that God is still writing history. One day we will see how every event – even the judgment of the Canaanites- fits into God’s big plan to restore all things to Himself. He will ultimately bless all nations. Our problem is that we want to judge God’s activity before He’s finished with His plan.

Scrooge lives? Yes and he lives in our churches. We’re not as generous as we should be.

I found something that will no doubt yield some very rich rewards as I seek to grow as a communicator of the Word. Want to learn more about preaching?

How do you think a pastor should handle it when people want to leave the church? Here’s how one pastor, Steven Furtick, says we should handle it. He says, “Let’em walk.” Sometimes, I wish I could be more the way he describes. But when people leave CVC, it rips out my heart.

This is at once a funny, sad, and all-to-familiar reflection on how guys get into the doghouse. It’s an ad for JC Penny’s jewelry department that basically says you can buy your way out of the doghouse. I’m not quite sure all that it’s saying about men/women relationships in our culture. But I’m pretty sure it’s not saying something good. Still, it’s funny, sad, and all-to-familiar.

While we’re on the male/female topic, check out How To Talk To Girls. Sound advice from a 9 year old. I wish I knew this stuff.