Monday, August 30, 2010

Numbers Game

I can’t tell you how many discussions I’ve had with people who advocate the various techniques churches use to bring people into the doors. From softball and soccer to pumpkin sales and musical bands, we’ve discussed the merits of various enticements to get people in the church door. There is such a focus on filling the pews and the collection plate. The strategies to accomplish both seem endless. But, I keep asking the question. “Okay, you’ve got them in the door. When does the discipling of the people begin?” I’m not talking about the soft and cushy “I’m okay; you’re okay” theologies. I’m talking about the teachings of what used to be known as the tenants of the faith: The rights and wrongs along with the fundamentals of the faith. It seems we’re afraid to teach the tenants of the faith because we’re afraid of offending people and thus decreasing our Sunday attendance. Once again, we see that attendance numbers are more important than what the church attendees are actually taught and believe. This creates a couple of main problems. Not only does it create and empower “Christians” who don’t follow the Christian principles, but it also creates vapid church services which are geared toward retention and recruitment rather than purifying people’s souls. Further, it leaves those who seek a congregation with which to truly worship feeling like they are attending a church production rather than a worship service in which to be discipled in the faith.
Seeking to always be balanced and fair as a primary motivation is not good. Often times what is Right is neither balanced nor fair. It’s just right. Our quest to be politically correct in our teachings and have high church numbers despite what is taught may seem balanced and fair…but it isn’t Right.

Monday, August 23, 2010

Shame

I was chatting with a friend who raised a very poignant question. She asked, “Where is the shame?” As we look at television advertisements, TV shows, and movies, her question bears due consideration: Indeed, where is the shame? Too, as we look at our politics, we should wonder, “Where is the shame?” When we consider our sliding moral values we should consider, “Where is the shame?” As I wrote last week, it seems that our focus is far enough away from what is right, moral, and value-based that it takes a lot to elicit our shame. We should consider that a people who have a diminished sense of shame are a people who are on a path away from the moral fiber which founded this country. When we consider where this country’s morals have gone, we should feel shame.

I want to thank everyone for your response to the book. Although I’m offering the books at author cost, a friend ordered from the publisher the moment he got the publisher’s notice. He wanted to be the first to order a book. He told me that I need to challenge people to buy multiple copies. Well, he has some more buying to do if he wants to enter such a challenge. A friend has ordered ten copies!! Whether it’s one copy or ten, we deeply appreciate your interest in perpetuating the message of the book. We also deeply appreciate your support.

Thursday, August 19, 2010

Book Release

The official release date for my book is October 9, 2010!!
I'd like to be able to give all of you a free copy of the book, but that won't be possible with the cost of the book. The retail price is $34.95 for the 344 page book while my price (author's price) with shipping is $25.00 ($24.96) per copy. As you can deduce, the cost would get into the hundreds of dollars if I gave very many away. However, you can order your books through me at my cost of $25.00 per copy. Of course, you'll need to add a few more dollars if you want me to ship them somewhere else. The publisher is offering a pre-release discount for the public at it's website for 20% off ($27.95) plus shipping ($3.99) with "Discount20" code. Again though, my blog readers can order it through me for $25.00 instead of the $31.94.
I sought to have this book published in response to many of your suggestions. It's my sincere hope that the message it contains will be a blessing to everyone who reads it. Some people have told me that they will be giving the book as Christmas gifts. I hope you will consider doing the same. Of course you can order them all through me at my cost ($25.00). If every book that sells, gets sold at my cost, but gets the book's message out, I'd be well pleased.
Thank you all for your support. I'll probably post this blog post again when the book is actually released.

Monday, August 16, 2010

Centered World

If we were asked what are lives revolve around, most would either say their jobs or families. Some might say their hobbies. Would that be your answer too? Well if it is your answer, you’ve identified what I believe is at the center of our nation’s problem. Rather than being a people who centers everything on our Judeo-Christian values, we have become centered on other matters. Thus our values and principles have become secondary. Although it sounds reasonable to say our lives revolve around our families and jobs, values and principles are supposed to lead everything in our lives; values are not supposed to follow behind. If values are secondary, then we lose our moral center and our morals become dependent upon what we subjectively need or want for our families and jobs. Therefore, our values and morals become something society manipulates so as to live the life it wants, rather than what changes our lives to fit righteousness. Does that make sense? In other words, when our lives are centered on something other than moral value, moral value is reduced into an afterthought. When political correctness, tolerance, family decisions, and career choices are at the center of a society, that society will lose its moral compass. Our moral values should be at the center of our lives, with all else gathering in around it.
As for me, I'm in a phase of sleeping very well. In fact, most nights I am sleeping 10-12 hours with and without naps. Although I've never slept that much in my life, it sure beats the few hours of sleep per night I was getting!!

Friday, August 13, 2010

Book Update

This is the cover of the book. I'll be getting an advanced copy of the book soon but I don't know when it will go to full press. It is 344 pages and its size is 6 x 9. I saw at the publisher's website that it will sell for $34.95. It seems like a lot but I know from looking into self-publishing that publishing is very expensive. If you've purchased books lately, you know what I mean. Anyway, it's our prayer that the book will be a blessing to everyone who reads it.

Wednesday, August 11, 2010

Eileen Report

Eileen saw her surgeon today, Dr. Suzanne Bush. Dr. Bush was exceedingly happy with how well Eileen has healed. In fact, even though Dr. Bush ackowledged that Eileen likes to work in the yard, she put NO restrictions on Eileen. None!! She told Eileen to "go live life." We are very pleased and thankful. Again, thank you for your many prayers and well wishes.

Monday, August 9, 2010

Welcome Back

Welcome back!! This has been a very busy week but also a better one. Of all the weeks in which I should have paid a steep physical price for what I have done, this is the one. However, I’ve done pretty well. The week began with my younger son and I figuring out and digging through the yard as we sought which sprinkler lines and wires went where in our attempt to get them working again, after the pool work left some of them like a bowl of spaghetti. Really though, I should say that I helped him because he did most of the work. We worked in the mornings and evenings because the heat index was over a hundred. I’m not supposed to be out in the sun much. After a couple of days we got it all done.
Then my book cover and text review came in. I had forty-eight hours to review it all and get it back to them. I was talking to our older daughter and told her that I may have to rely on my previous edit because I couldn't get through it all in that time, especially since I had a trip to Mississippi to make. She said she could do it, and she did. She did a great job of editing the text and finding my typos, etc. The book cover looks great.
On Friday, our son and a friend laid sod where the pool used to be. I helped but again they did most of the work. We laid one more pallet of sod on Saturday morning.
If you’ll remember, I’ve had a terrible time sleeping. Between my arm and the Gleevec side-effects, I’ve had trouble getting to sleep before 3am, even if I didn’t take a nap in the day. For an arm which often gets fiercely upset merely doing dishes or handling laundry, I expected the worse from my arm. However, it has been doing well enough and I’ve been sleeping pretty well. I’m also taking a high dose of melatonin. Dr. Tan had recommended it before and it helped. I guess when I was sleeping well that I forgot all about it. Eileen has also been able to work on my legs some. Cramping legs make it hard to sleep too. So, the melatonin and leg massages have helped my sleep greatly.
Eileen continues to get stronger and has her final doctor’s appointment on Wednesday. In some ways, it’s hard to believe that it has been six weeks since her surgery. We are thankful for her progress and all your prayers.
Our youngest daughter got her driver’s license. She’s in that phase where she volunteers to run any errand we might think of. We’ll see how long that lasts!!
Finally, and totally on a different track…I notice how critical people are when we learn that the CEO of a major company makes 30 million dollars a year. I’m not sure people need to make that much but that’s not my point. It was announced a couple of weeks ago that “Judge Judy” signed a new 45 million dollar a year contract. I wonder where the outcry is. I further wonder where the outcry is when movie stars, singers, and athletes make so much more than people running our major companies. I hope in this environment of attacking businesses and business leaders that we remember that they are the ones who generate our jobs. We are seeing in our economy what happens when they aren't expanding, growing, and innovating: They don’t’ hire.
I’ll talk to you next Monday.

Monday, August 2, 2010

On The Same Road

I’ve finally decided to change my blog postings to once a week. For the time being, I will post on Monday mornings. Of course if something stirs me in between times I’ll write. But for the most part the blog post will be on Mondays. So, please check back each week for updates and thoughts.
As we saw yesterday, when two people are communicating from two different motives or desired outcomes, we tend to generically label that as miscommunication. Said another way, when each person in the relationship seeks differing results, we are likely to encounter difficult communication. It’s as if one person is talking about traveling east while the other is talking about traveling west. It’s hard to get on the same road.
It’s important in our relationships that we seek a common outcome of our communications. How do we do that when two different people hold two different perspectives or are motivated by two different desired outcomes? As long as the two people seek what their own “Self” wants, communication will be very difficult. Instead, the two must seek the outcome which is “Right.” Only when both seek to go either east or west will we get on the same road. Only when we both seek what is right in our relationships, rather than seek our personal desires, will we get on the same road. Only when we both value “Right” over “Self” will we get on the same road.
Miscommunication is theoretically easy to solve, yet, very difficult in reality. Why? Proper communication requires a lowered sense of self, pride, and ego. It requires us to seek “right” above our personal motives, objectives, and rewards. It requires seeking “Right” above seeking to win our point of view or perspective. It’s only easy to travel on the same road when both want the same thing: That which is “Right.”
Finally, remember, the blog will now post on Mondays.

Sunday, August 1, 2010

Miscommunication

Miscommunication is a common malady of relationships. But what is at the heart of miscommunication? Usually one person is operating from a perspective of what he wants and the other person is operating from a perspective of what she wants. As a consequence, the two approach viewpoints from two very different personal perspectives. It gets worse when one of the perspectives is not merely what one wants, but what one wants from the other!! Did you catch that? It’s bad enough when we are operating from a perspective of what we want; it’s worse when we are operating from a perspective of what we want from another. At this point, we’re blatantly seeking to get our own way and get the other person to behave in a manner that gets us what we want too. When two people are operating from two entirely different motivations, is it any mystery as to why there is miscommunication?!