Aggressive judgementalism

Man, this Saturday posting is out of hand. Here I am watching The University of Oklahoma play some football and I just can’t resist passing this story on.

I Kissed a Girl and I Liked It
I’m sure a few of you out there have heard the toe-tapping tune, “I Kissed a Girl”. Well, apparently the Reverend Dave Allison heard the song too. He decided to do something really positive and reach out to the gay community in love. Wait, no he didn’t! He decided to use his church’s sign to say this:

“I kissed a girl and I like it, then I went to hell”

Nice work pastor Dave. In an interview with a local newspaper he threw out quotes like this, “It’s not something that is really a shock if you’re a spiritual person” and this gem too, “We meant that as a loving warning to teens”.

“A loving warning to teens”? Oh jeez.

So fellow readers, what do you think? Is this the way to reach out? Deeper question, would you invite a gay friend to your church?

-Rex Barrett
image via ia7mad

I hereby reject your tithes

Two quick Saturday morning questions for you out there in ProjectOKC BlogLand.

Let me give you the scenario and then pose the questions. A guy in Florida won $6 million bucks, crazy right! So, like any good Christ follower (yeah right), he whipped out that check book and filled it out for $600,000. Now, you’d think the church would rejoice in their “hitting it rich” too. You’d be wrong. DENIED! The pastor of the church turned down the check.

First, what a great guy to actually decide to pay tithes on the winnings. I doubt many people would have the guts to hand over $600,000 to anyone, much less a church. Second, the pastor of the church really stuck to his convictions.

So, pastors and leaders reading this post. Would you have taken the money? And you church attenders, would you pay tithes on huge winnings?

Have a great weekend friends!
-Rex Barrett
image via noahwesley

The only answer for the world is Jesus

Jesus is the only answer to the world’s woes. The kingdom that God wanted to build in the Old Testament was one without a king though. It was people coming together, meeting each other’s needs with no king, no major welfare system, no president. Every seventh year all debt was demolished, and riches were shared with everyone. (is that the Kingdom we are ready to live in?) The people wanted a king and God’s promise was that they would feel the brunt of trying to do it man’s way. I’m tired of trying to do it the “powerful” way. To say that America = Christianity is not true at all. America does a lot of damage in the name of God. Stuff God would never do in this New Testament life we are to live.

I know there are people who disagree about a recent post of mine.  Christians need to have dialogue and we should be the best example of civil debate to the world because of our faith in Christ. So here goes! 

From a recent post, I want it to be clearly stated that I’m not playing down the abortion issue, I am playing up the death through war issue.  What I am saying is that I AM SO PRO-LIFE I think it grieves Jesus when we begin to say that one kind of death (war) is not as horrible as another (infanticide). They are both disgusting and wrong. Do you know how many INNOCENT civilians have been killed in the name of God and Patriotism in Iraq? On 9/11 3000 Americans were killed. In response America has killed and killed a lot. Documented deaths are at 100,000 Iraqis and undocumented conservative estimates are at approaching 700,000 dead Iraqis.(Lancet Medical Journal, Oct. 21 2006 *it is one of the most well known peer-revied journals in the world*)

Eccl 3:8 does say there is a time for war, but it also says there is a time of killing and hate too. Those aren’t of Christ at all and to justify hatred and death by those same verses doesn’t compute to me. These verses don’t condone war, hate or killing but offer insight into the evil of man. It will happen, but as Christians we are not to be a part. When war is directly spoken of in Ecclesiastes we see:

Eccl 9:18 Wisdom is better than weapons of war, but one sinner destroys much good.

I believe in a pro-life ethic in life. I am SO CONSERVATIVE I’m saying that killing even one death row inmate is wrong. Life in prison as a punishment, go for it, but to return violence with violence is NOT what Christ shared on earth.

What were our Leader’s words? The Sermon on the Mount states Love is the only way! “Love your enemies. Return good for evil” Please, help me know how war, killing and destruction fit into those words? Jesus ROCKED our world, He turned it all upside down, he didn’t change the rules, He completely redefined the game. And Luke 6:28 says “Bless those who curse you”

The New Testament Church 300 years after the ascension of Christ went through three horrible times of persecution and stayed nonviolent. If there was EVER a case for rising up and retaliating this would be the time, but PEACE was preached. I’ve heard it said that when Christ disarmed Peter he disarmed all Christians. -Tertullian

What were the founding fathers of our faith’s words?
Paul repeats Christ in Romans 12:14 “Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse”.
It says in 1 Peter 2:19, 23 For it is commendable if you bear up under the pain of unjust suffering because you are conscious of God… When they hurled their insults at Him, He did not retaliate, when he suffered, He made no threats. Instead He entrusted himself to him who judges justly.

My point? There is no way to love as Christ and the early church loved and simultaneously kill other people or support the killing other people.

Who do we find safety in? In America’s guns or in Jesus Christ & Father God our protector.

“The divine banner and the human banner do not go together, nor the standard of Christ and the standard of the Devil. Only without the sword can the Christian wage war: the Lord has abolished the sword.” -Tertullian (aka the first protestant, google it)

I’ll close with a quote from Peter Maurin:
“If I am crazy, it’s because I refuse to be crazy in the same way that the world has gone crazy.”

Multiple references from “Jesus for President” and the Pax Christ Conference.

-Rex Barrett

Serving a community is a lifestyle

Social justice issues are all the rage right now.  All the cool kids are doing it.  I’m pray we are not dealing with a fad!  With more and more people feeling the call to social justice, here is a warning:

Serving a community isn’t an event it is a lifestyle.

Sometimes the lifestyle isn’t pretty and sometimes you will go to sleep with tear stained cheeks because of the pain you will see, but your help is NECESSARY.  Get involved today.

-Rex Barrett

Does rain fall on the just or unjust?

Is it okay to have people pray for it to rain on Obama’s parade? Religion and politics, the fast way to become “The Worst Person in the World”.

Deut. 10:17-18

For the LORD your God is a God of gods and Lord of lords, the great God, mighty and awesome, who shows no partiality and accepts no bribes. He defends the cause of the fatherless and the widow, and loves the alien, giving him food and clothing.

The road less taken

“But My people would not heed My voice, And Israel would have none of Me.
So I gave them over to their own stubborn heart, To walk in their own counsels.”
Psalm 81:11-12

As I read those verses this morning, it reminded me that I have a choice. I can either follow what I want to do independent of God or I will follow what God wants me to do despite my wishes. And as the Scripture above indicates, when someone chooses to be independent of God He gives them over to their own stubborn heart.

As a friend of mine says, God is not a cosmic rapist who forces his love on people, because that isn’t love. Nor is He a cosmic puppeteer programming his creation to love Him. No, service to God is truly a volitional choice, a choice of the will, when we say to God, “Not my will be done, but thy will be done.”

Maybe this pic? Up to you…

-Luke Barrett
image via raptortheangel

Decentralized organizations

Tony Morgan has written quotes from a book he is reading called “The Starfish and the Spider“. The book is a great read, take a look at the summary on his blog.  I’m actually more interested in you all jumping in on the comments, that is where the action is right now.

I’d love to see where you all stand on the idea of decentralization of the church.  Here are some of my favorite quotes from the book as noted by Tony.

“It’s not that open systems necessarily make better decisions. It’s just that they’re able to respond more quickly because each member has access to knowledge and the ability to make direct use of it.”

“Because the decentralized organization mutates so quickly, it can also grow incredibly quickly.”

“A catalyst…is someone who every time they have a conversation with someone they’re actively thinking, How can I help this person? Who can I introduce this person to? I just want to help this person, I just want to make this person better.”

“Great ideas come from people who are closest to the ideas.”

“The “sweet spot?” Create “enough decentralization for creativity, but sufficient structure and controls to ensure consistency.”

-Rex Barrett

True consumerism

A follow up to “The epidemic of consumerism”.

-Rex Barrett
via nakedpastor.com

Blow up your flickr

A great new new web app has hit the internet for all you photo lovers out there.  It is called Blow Up Your Flickr, basically it allows you to see people’s Flickr galleries full screen in a fancy format.  What better way to foster community and connection than checking out your pal’s public photos.

If you have no Flickr friends put my name in the box, Rex Barrett, and you’ll see my photo albums.  It takes a few seconds to load, but worth it if you’d like to peruse your friend’s photo albums.

If you’d like to see the rest of that massive fish I caught just follow this link.

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