The Alliance Defense Fund organized a protest this Sunday, in which preachers across the nation stood in their pulpits and told their flocks who to vote for. Not only is this illegal, it is incredibly insulting (to me anyway). One of the preachers in this CNN video said, “there’s no way a Christian could vote for Barack Hussein Obama.” Watch me.
Your thoughts?
This is fun!
After playing around with this my conclusion is that Obama must win Ohio. What do you think?
Oh, and the electoral college system sucks. It’s time to go. Hoorah for preferential voting!
On the recommendation of a friend, I found this sermon called “The Gethsemane Prayer,” part of a series on praying like Jesus at Mars Hill Church in Seattle.
Wow. Meaty stuff. Be prepared for a serious 74 minutes.
While reading The Purpose Driven Life, I was intrigued by the mention of a 17th century Frenchman named Brother Lawrence. He was a layman who served as a cook and shoe repairman in a French monastery. He developed a lifestyle of living in God’s presence, every moment of every day. He mentored many people later in life, one of whom compiled several letters and short essays of Brother Lawrence’s into a small book called The Practice of the Presence of God.
I picked up a copy of the book and am reading it now. I like the straightforward, clear yet profound exhortations. Lawrence explains how he made a habit of speaking to God constantly, even in the middle of everyday tasks. I was a little skeptical at first because I believe that God sometimes chooses to hide himself from us (Ps 10:1, 13:1, 89:46). But Lawrence acknowledges this truth, explaining that God uses these spells to strengthen our faith in him. God asks us to believe in him even when we can’t see his hand working in our situation, to continue to trust his goodness even when we can’t hear his voice. Lawrence encourages us to keep talking to God, to keep praising him, and to keep asking for grace to live a life that pleases him.
Here are some excerpts:
If we knew how much He loves us, we would always be ready to face life, both its pleasures and its troubles. You know, the difficulties in life do not have to be unbearable. It is the way we look at them – through faith or unbelief. We must be convinced that our Father is full of love for us and that He only permits trials to come our way for our own good.
…
The first way in which the soul is united with God is through salvation, solely by his grace. This is followed by a period in which a saved soul comes to know God through a series of experiences, some of which bring it into closer union with Him, and some take it further away. The soul learns which activities bring God’s presence nearer. It remains in His presence by practicing those activities.
I think I may read this book several times… maybe once a year.
