Reading Time: 4 minutesWhen Helping Hurts: How to Alleviate Poverty Without Hurting the Poor and Yourself is a new book by Steve Corbett and Brian Fikkert that argues that there are four primary relationships that have been broken by the fall: our relationship with God, our relationship with ourselves, our relationship with others, and our relationship with the rest of creation. Another way to look at this is that these are four different types of poverty. All four of these types of poverty are part of the effects of the fall, and in Christ all four of these types of poverty are being reconciled back to their original place in the created order. Poverty of Spiritual Intimacy. This is the most profoundly and utterly devastating effect of the fall, because it severs us from God himself. Human beings are now profoundly estranged from the very source of all life. Conservative, evangelical Christians are…
Month: August 2009
TV in the Home
Reading Time: 2 minutesOne of my favorite blogs, Between Two Worlds, has linked to Randy Alcorn’s advice regarding how to take charge of television viewing in the home. Keep track of how much time you spend watching. Decide in advance how much TV to watch per week. Use a schedule to choose programs for the week–then stick to your choices. Keep your television unplugged, store it in a closet, and/or put it in a remote part of the house (prevents mindless flip-on). Periodically “fast” from television for a week or a month. Notice the “cold turkey” effects. (Avoids addiction, reminds you of all that can be done when TV off). Choose programs that uplift rather than undermine biblical values. Use the “off” switch freely. If it’s wrong and you keep watching, you’re saying “I approve.” (Unless it doesn’t present temptation and you’re critically analyzing it). Use the channel changer frequently. Watch and discuss…
10 Ways to be a Great Core Group
Reading Time: 1 minuteI am in the middle of planting a church, Christ the King Church. We are in the core group development phase, and so this post from Luke Simmons is very helpful. Read the whole thing here, but here’s the basic list: 1. Your primary job is to create a culture that you and God will be happy about 10 years from now. 2. Your new pastor and church will eventually disappoint you and let you down. 3. Work to create an evangelistic texture to every ministry environment. 4. Always talk as though nobody knows who your heroes are. Don’t use names of people like “Tim Keller,” “John Piper,” and so on without explaining who they are. 5. Be known by what you’re for, not what you’re against. 6. Don’t moralize your personal preferences. 7. Leave your current church on great terms (or go make it right if you didn’t). 8.…