Evangelicals Outraged Over Bush’s Views That Non-Christians Can Get to Heaven and Bible Not Literally True

Here is a post on Jonathan Turley’s blog referring to the same. Anyone surprised?

I Am Second

I  Am Second  – This is a movement where significance in life is a shared value among people of all kinds. Actors. Athletes. Musicians. Business leaders. Your next-door neighbor. People just like you. Their authentic stories on IAmSecond.com provide insight into dealing with typical struggles of everyday living. You’ll meet people who overcame destructive lifestyles. Plus you’ll discover those who’ve tried to go it alone and have failed, yet still found a life full of hope, peace and fulfillment. We all have needs and could use some help. You’ll find issues relevant to you as well as answers to challenging life questions. IamSecond is designed to help people discover their purpose in life.

This is not only a great place to go to remind you that you can make it. It is also a place to which you can point others. Some really great stories of amazing grace.

What, me vulnerable?

Ten reasons to come to the Christmas Eve service at Coastal

Here is a copy of the email I sent today to the church family.

Ten Reasons to worship at Coastal on Christmas Eve (6 PM):

 10. You don’t want to start drinking Christmas eggnog too early;

 9. You get to see what happens when a lit candle is placed in a child’s hand..

 8. It’s the only service dark enough that you can sleep and no one will notice.

 7. You can bring your Christmas Eve guests and let the church pay for the heat.

 6. A candlelight service is perhaps your only chance to see if the church sprinkler system works.

 5. You know the service has to be short because it’s Christmas Eve and the Pastor wants to get home as bad as you do.

 4. All the Christmas colors people wear remind you of the elves in Santa’s workshop.

 3. It’s one less hour family members have to rub one another the wrong way.

  2. If the Christmas/Easter people show up and you’re not there, they might think they are better than you..

 1. It’s probably the best time to hand the Pastor his Christmas gift.

Actually the best reason is still Jesus. 2,000 years after that amazing birth, the impulse to gather around the manger is still with us. The stars shine a bit brighter, the joy bubbles up with more fizz, the angels still sing, the shepherds still wonder and the wise still worship.

 Join with the Coastal family and let’s fill the room with our joy and worship as the family of God.

Obama’s Rev. Warren Inaugural Pick Sparks Gay Fury

Warren will offer the prayer for the inauguration of Barack Obama. See the story here. I guess someone has to do it, and better Warren than anyone else, especially Obama’s former pastor, Rev. Wright.  After all, Joseph and Daniel ended up in the courts of the mighty of the earth. But in the back of my mind I am saying, “here we go again.” Us evangelicals always get burned when we get close to power. There is something about the alliance between religion and the state that ends up twisting the power of the Gospel. Maybe it can’t be avoided, especially in a democracy. For better for for worse, evangelicals are a voting bloc and its leaders are going to be offered a seat at the table. But soon that leader is identified with a political party or political leader.

I often wonder why some evangelicals feel the need to be in that spot, that place. It will affect their spiritual leadership, most often in negative ways. In the long run they do not gain much and history demonstrates that they have very little influence by being close to political leaders. Actually it goes the other way.

I have great admiration for Warren. When I have visited his church and “tasted” its ministries, I have come away with a sense of the goodness of the place and the transformative power of the Gospel. I can’t but believe that this new place for him is not going to help.