Snarky much?
While individuals who consistently tweet critical comments may do so in the hopes others will look to them as people worth RT’ing, following, or being seen as a genuine source of insight, the truth more likely may be that those snarky comments are products of a cynical, jaded, or petty spirit. The result is a huge dichotomy between what the critical individual thinks is being said and what is actually being communicated in that it paints the person as someone with a small heart, mind, and character.
It’s been my experience that social media, especially Twitter, has a way of drawing out the critic in me. I invite you to take some time to look at your Twitter feed or Facebook page and read your last twenty or thirty posts. Are you often negative, critical, snarky, or cynical? If so, then read this post and consider whether or not there is underlying sin that needs to be repented of.
Further, if you read this post and immediately think of someone who “needs to read this,” then read the post again and consider whether or not there is sin that _you _need to repent of.
Speak Boldly
Charles Spurgeon, The Treasury of David, Psalm 4:
Surely we should all speak the more boldly to men if we had more constant converse with God. He who dares to face his Maker will not tremble before the sons of men.
Link List for July 25th, 2013
How Many Hours Must a Pastor Work to Satisfy the Congregation? | Thom RainerWow.
How to Hear a Word from God | Trevin Wax Redeem your commute! Adam Gabriel Cavalier in a guest post: “I believe we should value the reading of God’s Word, but we should also value the listening of Scripture being read aloud. I think this is a highly neglected and yet an equally valid means of valuing God’s Word in your life.”
Is Your Child a Christian? | The Gospel Coalition Blog Brian Croft: “Admitting the obvious—that we are not God and cannot see the heart—I maintain certain evidence can help us discern the legitimacy of child or teenager’s profession of faith.”
Near South Neighborhood Carnival
On Sunday, 2 Pillars Church took over a small, little–known park in Lincoln and put on a neighborhood carnival. In addition to serving food, we charged each of our small group Gospel Communities with the task of sponsoring some kind of booth or game.
The above photo shows our GC’s contribution to the event.
Overall, the event was a success. It’s difficult to estimate the number of people we saw, but I would guess it was close to 200 people or more. Further, the majority of those in attendance were not associated with our church in any way.
I overheard one woman say, “I haven’t seen anything like this happen here in the twenty years that I’ve been around.”
What a fun way to bless our neighborhood and get to know our neighbors!
Acts 29 Church Planting Statistics
Bob Thune on Acts 29 assessment statistics from 2006–2012:
So the Acts 29 Network has traditionally invested most of its time and energy into identifying, assessing, and training called and qualified men to plant fruitful churches. Since 2006, we’ve used a carefully built and rigorously maintained assessment process to “guard the gate” into church planting leadership. A recent audit of that process revealed the following data, which may be of interest to other geeky leaders like me who enjoy metrics:
Speaking in the Midst of Crisis
A recent trip to visit a friend in the ICU reminded me of a helpful LA Times article about how to avoid saying the wrong thing when speaking with a person in the midst of crisis. Susan Silk and Barry Goldman lay out a simple technique they call the Ring Theory:
Draw a circle. This is the center ring. In it, put the name of the person at the center of the current trauma. For Katie’s aneurysm, that’s Katie. Now draw a larger circle around the first one. In that ring put the name of the person next closest to the trauma. In the case of Katie’s aneurysm, that was Katie’s husband, Pat. Repeat the process as many times as you need to. In each larger ring put the next closest people. Parents and children before more distant relatives. Intimate friends in smaller rings, less intimate friends in larger ones. When you are done you have a Kvetching Order. One of Susan’s patients found it useful to tape it to her refrigerator.
Here are the rules. The person in the center ring can say anything she wants to anyone, anywhere. She can kvetch and complain and whine and moan and curse the heavens and say, “Life is unfair” and “Why me?” That’s the one payoff for being in the center ring.
Everyone else can say those things too, but only to people in larger rings.
In general, this is a rule I try to follow.