John March

Author: webadmin

  • Just Fasting

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    On the heals of the Affluenza posts, I read this scripture this morning: Is this the kind of fast I have chosen, only a day for people to humble themselves? Is it only for bowing one’s head like a reed and for lying in sackcloth and ashes? Is that what you call a fast, a…

  • Affluenza: Shopping and Spending

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    Some sobering stories and stats about consumerism in America (all quotes from the book Affluenza): “We spend more on shoes, jewelry, and watches ($100 billion) than on higher education ($99 billion).” pg. 13 “nearly 30 percent of Americans buy Christmas presents for their pets; 11 percent buy them for their neighbors.” (pg. 13) “In 1986,…

  • Affluenza

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    This is an excellently researched and thought-provoking book that looks at America’s capitalistic, consumerist society as sickness not salvation.  The authors cite story and statistic ad nauseam to make their point — our excessive consumption of every sort of good is not filling the void in our hearts or satisfying the hunger in our soul.…

  • No such thing as a bad question?

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    This is a laugh-out-loud funny article about the ridiculous questions people hear in job interviews.  It was compiled by career builder from user submitted comments.  I encourage you to read the whole article, but here are my favorites: What are your hobbies and interests? “[He said] ‘Well, as you can see, I’m a young, virile…

  • Taming the Tongue

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    Words can wound. In a few short moments, words can be uttered that have the power to inflict irreparable harm. The mouth is like a machine gun loaded with hateful sayings from the storehouse of a hurt heart ready to unload on a close friend, colleague or spouse. When we open fire on those around…

  • Collins the Christian (and Scientist)

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    An excellent assessment by John Stackhouse of the cultural response to Collins’ appointment to NIH.  Money quote: Francis Collins, former head of the Human Genome Project, has been named by President Obama to head the National Institutes of Health. What makes this news is the breathtaking idea that someone could be both a scientist and…

  • Prophet, Priest, and King

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    It can be argued that there were three primary offices or stations of leadership within Ancient Israel.  They were prophet, priest, and king (included here is the role of judge, which was the precursor to king).  When Jesus came, he fulfilled all three of these roles.  He is called the prophet in the gospels, he…

  • Whose Religion Is Christianity?

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    In this interesting book, Lamin Sanneh explores the nature of expanding world Christianity.  Sanneh explains how missionaries, who first took the gospel to non-western contexts in places like Africa, brought more than just Christianity.  Their efforts to educate peoples in the ways of Christianity’s God were done in conjunction with attempts to educate them in…

  • Community as Mission

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    This sums up  the driving metaphor behind what we want our church plant to be.  This quote explains why our church is named New City Covenant Church. Key images of God’s alternative community, the missional church, are found in the Gospel’ descriptions of the people of God as “the salt of the earth,” a “light…

  • The Church for the Good of Others

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    This is an excerpt from a post written by Erwin Raphael McManus at the Origins Project site: When researchers try to break down what is happening at Mosaic, far too often they see the skin and miss the heart. They see nine gatherings in seven locations, and so we are a multi-site congregation. Or they…