“i’m talking bout the man in the mirror – ooh yeah – i’m askin him to change his face... ooh wa... and no message, could have been, any clearer... if you wanna make the world a better place, take a look at yourself and change your face” [Michael Jackson, adapted by plastic surgeons anonymous] yes i know that’s not the line but it’s the one i always sing when i hear of that song – [...]
the combined talents of the beautiful Val (aka tbV) and Michael-John (aka Muscle-John, agent of the stars) and brett FISH anderson (owner of the world's most famous stuffed dolphin, No_bob, who still doesn't!) bring you the new word that is about to sweep the world... are you ready... for... "HIGH-FIVEABLE" "Astonishing" [time magazine] "Mouth-wateringly cathartic" [the daily post] "if it was a tangible thing, i'd have one under every chair" [oprah] that's right - your [...]
why is it so hard to live a Jesus-following life? the things i want to do i don’t do and the things i don’t want to do i find that i can’t stop myself from doing. Woe is me this wretched man, chief of sinners, sucker of note, i might as well... STOP! [not hammer time] Romans 12.2-3 ‘Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing [...]
THE SETUP so i have been thinking about this quite a lot lately, especially after i received a mail immediately after my last you-got-to-be-kidding-malema post from my friend mel lovingly rebuking me or at the very least challenging me on my bash-the-leader stance [if the Bible says respect and pray for your leaders who God has putten over you...] which was really great and a whole thort in itself [the confrontation from Mel i mean, [...]
so this teacher of the law comes up to Jesus and says, “So what is the most important command in the law?” it’s a trick question and yet Jesus floors the gang of them by summing up the whole law as “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your mind and with all your strength. and love your neighbour as yourself.” [paraphrase, Matthew 22.37-38] and since then, christians through the [...]
when looking for a local church to become part of... don't look for a church where you can grow. find a church where you can serve. then you'll grow.
‘...and the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.’ [Acts 2.47b] what comes just before the ‘and’ of that passage that caused such huge growth in the early church? was it their amazing evangelism plans or ABC steps of getting people to follow Jesus? none of the above! it was meeting together, eating together, loving God and loving people together – basically just being church – listening to preaching, seeing miracles [...]
so i read in the newspaper today before church (stocking up on caffeine and chocolate crouissant at the bp) that Jacob Zuma (our president) has fathered another child. i never used to like Zuma. i heard a lot of bad things about him and saw him involved in some criminal cases with various accusations and he made some infamously bad statements about showering preventing AIDS (after being head of some AIDS council or something) and [...]
so this morning we had an Oikos gathering at Seattle coffee shop in Century City where all good Oikos gatherings happen - basically the idea is for an informal setting for people passionate about Jesus (yet maybe not so passionate about church or struggling with church in its current form and style) to have a space to talk openly about loving God and loving people and struggles with church and new exciting books or ideas [...]