Eric Ebbinghaus and I have been having this back and forth conversation about the Sabbath. He’s currently doing a youth series on the topic and I’m starting one in April. In previous posts(1 and 2), I’ve discussed the “rest side” of the issue, but now I want to look at the other side. This was all prompted by something I heard a pastor say on TV the other day. “Ladies, the Bible says to work 6 days and rest on the 7th, but if the man you’re seeing is too lazy to get off the couch and get a job then you need to send him packing because he is a LOSER.” It was Valentine’s Day message on the type of man a single woman should be looking for. What caught my attention was the “work 6 days” part. Here’s what Genesis 2:2-3(NIV) says:
2 By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing; so on the seventh day he rested from all his work. 3 And God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it he rested from all the work of creating that he had done.
Two things I see. First, God had been working hard and secondly, He had finished His work. He clarified His position in Exodus 20: 8-11(NIV):
8 “Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. 9 Six days you shall labor and do all your work, 10 but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the LORD your God. On it you shall not do any work, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your manservant or maidservant, nor your animals, nor the alien within your gates. 11 For in six days the LORD made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but he rested on the seventh day. Therefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.
“Labor and do all your work…” God spent that first Sabbath enjoying a tremendous sense of accomplishment at what He had created. When the next week rolled around He wasn’t worried about what He put off doing the week before. He was ready for new challenges, tasks, and adventure. It seems to me that procrastination wasn’t part of the equation until after the Fall. It seems to me that we can’t fully enjoy the Sabbath until we’ve given ourselves fully to our work. Why aren’t we giving ourselves fully to our work?
- Lack of Focus/Distractions
- Procrastination
- Laziness
- Lack of Passion
- Health Issues/Fatigue
- Unrealistic Expectations placed on us that discourage our effort
- Family Issues
- Depression
What did I leave out? What are you struggling with? My prayer is that all of us would be passionate and focused about what we have been created to do. That’s what chasing your lion is all about. God was the inventor of Work Hard, Play Hard. Over the next few weeks, I’ll break down these issues and find solutions to get us all on the right track. Thanks for reading.
Sabbath Resources:
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Finding Your Maximum Happiness A Study of the Ten Commandments
By Wilbur G. Williams Maximum happiness! That’s the subject of this study. How does one get it? After one gets it, how is it kept? If one has it and lost it, how is it regained? These are questions we will try to answer. Basically everyone wants happiness out of life. God wants everyone to be happy. Then why are so many lacking in this area? One might expect poor people – who have little of this world’s goods – not to have it, yet many of them do. One might expect people who have everything money can buy to possess happiness but many of them don’t. To study how God planned for us to obtain happiness, let us first ask, on what does true happiness depend? In brief, maximum happiness depends most heavily on one thing: relationship. It is the by product of that and that alone. In the focus of this book, it is a law guided relationship based on a covenant made with God first and foremost. There is a sense in which we never “find” happiness by seeking it. But by seeking God, happiness finds us. |
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Sabbath: The Ancient Practices
By Dan Allender Does resting on the Sabbath mean to cease all activity? In his new book Dan Allender presents an insightful and fascinating look at the origins and purpose of the Sabbath day. Serving as volume three in The Ancient Practices Series, Sabbath examines the key issues of this oft-misunderstood day of the week. This “day of delight,” as instituted by God, has become a dirge for millions of believers. For many, it is simply a break from the busyness of the work week. So, what keeps us from properly understanding, sanctifying and celebrating this important day? Allender looks at not only the history of this discipline, going all the way back to ancient Israel, but also at the modern manifestations and misunderstandings of its practice. Drawing upon the Hebrew word Menuha, Allender bases his premise upon the forgotten definition for this word (best translated as joyous repose, tranquility, or delight) and what it truly means to rest. |
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The Year of Living Like Jesus: My Journey of Discovering What Jesus Would Really Do
By Ed Dobson Pastor Dobson chronicles his year of “walking in Jesus’ sandals.” He eats what Jesus ate. Prays as Jesus prayed. Observes the Sabbath, attends Jewish festivals, and reads the Gospels every week. It’s a journey that takes him into bars, inspires him to pick up hitchhikers, deepens his understanding of suffering—and changes his life forever! 304 pages, hardcover from Zondervan. |
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Rest: Living in Sabbath Simplicity
By Keri Wyatt Kent In today’s fast-paced society, we’ve forgotten an essential truth . . . that the Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath. Inviting you to find a balance between work and refreshment, Kent explores six aspects of this Christian spiritual practice—resting, reconnecting, revising, pausing, playing, and praying—to help you experience renewed energy, grace, and joy. 224 pages, softcover from Zondervan. |
Music is a great resource to motivate and encourage your spirit. Here are the latest releases:
![CD99849: No Changin" Us](http://ag.christianbook.com/g/thumbnail/c/cd99849t.gif "CD99849: No Changin" Us") |
No Changin’ Us By Point of Grace |
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Satellites & Sirens CD By Satellites & Sirens |
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My Paper Heart -Deluxe Edition By Francesca Battistelli |
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As Long As It Takes By Meredith Andrews |
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WOW Worship (Purple) 2 CDs By Various |
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Rock-N-Happy Heart By Yancy |
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More Than Noise CD By Pocket Full of Rocks |
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My Best Days CD By Danny Gokey |
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Of Men And Angels CD By The Rocket Summer |
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Adoration CD By Brenton Brown |
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The Saving One CD By Starfield |
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Healing 4 Haiti |
Or, if you prefer, you can Shop at the iTunes Music Store.
In taking a page from the old playbook, here are some great posts from the ole Google Reader. As the title of the post suggests, they cover a broad range of topics.
- Vitamin Z with the Play of the Day
- Rhett Smith on Educating Adolescents on Technology and Pornography
- MIchael Hyatt on Leaders creating Alignment
- Ed Stetzer’s with part 6 of his Monday is for Missional series
- Religion, Wealth, and Faith chart from Church Crunch
On a separate note: am I the only pastor who hasn’t already attended 3 great conferences this year? The Southern Area Minister’s Conference was canceled at Southern Wesleyan University and I imagine they won’t have it next year either because of the denominational Gathering next January. I do miss the traditional lunch at Keith Street Bar and Grill in Clemson with a van full of youth pastors. We went to Unleash last year, but it’s sold out this year. So, if you had to pick just 1 conference to go to every year what would it be?
Currently Reading:
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Financial Peace: Revisited
By Dave Ramsey Want to get out of debt and stay out? Financial Peace Revisited gives you the tools to understand why you are in debt, create a budget you can stick to, set goals you can achieve, and make things right for you and your family emotionally, spiritually, and financially, for good. Updated version of the bestseller Financial Peace includes new chapters on marriage, singles, kids, and families. |
It’s been awesome getting to spend more time with my good friend, Tim Kirkpatrick. He recently moved to Asheboro, NC so we are able to see each other once a week or so and dream about ministry together. We helping each other Chase Our Lion. Here’s what happened when we were hanging out at Mcdonalds the other day.
Sometimes people are leary of clicking ads and affiliate links or purchasing products they see on blogs. Blogging is fun if your doing something your passionate about, but it’s a lot of time and effort to build it. Most bloggers quit. I was going through a list of Wesleyan blogs the other day and found that most of them were no longer there or hadn’t been updated in over a year. The first blog I ever started had one post. I don’t even remember where it is. I got fired up about something, wrote about it, and posted it for the world to see. Then I went back to my life. I don’t even know if anyone read it. I’ve learned a lot about life and blogging since then. Here are some cool and free ways you can support your favorite blogs, keep them going, and help other people find them.
1. Install the Alexa toolbar or status bar. Here’s a little about them and their partnership with Amazon. Why do this? Alexa ranks websites based on traffic and visits made to the site by people using the Alexa toolbar. For example, when I first started Chase Your Lion dot com it was unranked by Alexa. Now, I’m ranked #937,145 out of all the sites in the world(google is #1). Alexa helps people find out more about sites while providing site owners with valuable information that will help them reach their target audience more effectively. I have the status bar and it takes less than 10 seconds to download and install on your browser.
2. Comment on posts. Whether you agree or disagree with what’s said please join the discussion. Sometimes, as a blogger, it’s just nice to know someone’s reading.
3. Subscribe to the feed. Look for this symbol 
. This insures you don’t miss any posts. Many blogs also allow you to sign up for email updates/newsletters. This normally requires you to confirm your subscription and doesn’t lead to spam. My feed is located on the handy dandy toolbar at the bottom.
4. Tweet it! Most blogs now have the option for you to tweet/retweet their posts. This is kind gesture that shows your reading and that you feel others would benefit from the post. The button is normally located beside the post title.
5. Share It! There are lots of other places to share posts! Facebook, Digg, et. I have a share/save button with each post. It’s quick and easy to get the word out about your favorite posts.
6. Link Love. If you have a blog of your own then write about and link to posts you’ve been reading. Incoming links give a blog credibility and help generate buzz and discussion. I don’t recommend the blog roll and here’s why. How many people on your blog roll actually keep up with their blogs? What does it say to your readers that you’re linking to people who may have dead sites and old news? Plus, adding a link in a post gives a more personal stamp of approval.
7. Join the Facebook page/community. The wibiya toolbar has a button for people to join my Facebook group. It’s quick and shows your support. There’s also a place for more discussion there. No, I will not ask for your help with Farmville or other Facebook games.
8. Word of Mouth. I’ve tried to make my domain names easy to remember and easy to share. If a blog has been helpful to you then it might be helpful to others. Share the love. PS: I even bought a domain with a common misspelling of my last name so people looking for Heath Mulliken will actually find Heath Mullikin.
9. Give suggestions. Does my layout make your head spin? Is stuff too hard to find? Is there an herb you’ve found that will help a person get taller?
10. Last but not least…pray. Pray for bloggers to have wisdom and integrity in what they write. Pray for their families. Pray for their health. Pray for their churches and ministries. Pray that God uses the words they write to make a difference.
Thanks for your support! Blogging buddies, what did I leave out?
Currently Reading:
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Lost Art of Disciple Making
By LeRoy Eims “Every believer in Jesus Christ deserves the opportunity of personal nurture and development,” says LeRoy Eims.But all too often the opportunity isn’t there. We neglect the young Christian in our whirl of programs, church services and fellowship groups. And we neglect to raise up workers and leaders who can disciple young believers into mature and fruitful Christians. In simple, practical, and biblical terms, LeRoy Eims revives the lost art of disciple making. He explains:
“True growth takes time and tears and love and patience,” Eims states. There is no instant maturity. This book examines the growth process in the life of a Christian and considers what nurture and guidance it takes to develop spiritually qualified workers in the church. |
Currently Listening:
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Ocean Eyes CD
By Owl City From the quiet backroads of small-town Minnesota comes Owl City, the one-man project of keyboard wiz Adam Young. Ocean Eyes is awash in breezy electronics, light melodies, and crisp, sparkling textures, and includes the single “Fireflies” plus “Hello Seattle,” “Umbrella Beach,” “Vanilla Twilight,” and more. |
Mondays are normally days when our brains are mush. I am trying to reverse that and make Monday my most productive day of the week. I try to get ahead on Monday and stay ahead the rest of the week. I am trying to become the anti-procrastinator. Here are some posts that encouraged and challenged me.
How to Deal with with Change-Tony Morgan features a great message from his pastor Brian Boyle.
Thoughts on Momentum-Brad Cooper
Scott Uselman’s thoughts on Tiger Wood’s apology. A perspective on this I have not heard yet.
Hope these spark some motivation and creativity in your life today! Thanks for reading.
Currently listening to:
The Sing Off soundtrack on
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Disclaimer: Many people feel trapped in jobs and careers they don’t love because of their financial obligations. We have so much debt that we have left ourselves little career flexibility. Sometimes, laziness on our part is the biggest hindrance in our job. This list is meant as motivation to do something to make your life better.
The Forgotten 5 Signs You Picked the Wrong Career
5. You dread getting up in the morning because you hate going to work.
4. Your enthusiasm and passion for your job is directly related to your salary.
3. Your work schedule is slowly tearing your family apart…and you know it, but aren’t sure what to do about it.
2. Your boss is not too big on things like vacations, family time, encouragement, and a peaceful working environment.
1. You wouldn’t recommend your company, service, or trade to anyone.
So, where do you go from here?
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48 Days Career Set By Dan Miller Don’t see your job as mundane anymore, but rather a calling God has put in your life. Get excited about work once again as you understand your skill sets and the career that God has best suited you for. Along with the book 48 Days to the Work You Love, the set also includes an interactive workbook with two CDs. It’s an individualized process with poignant questions to help you succeed on the career path with boldness and enthusiasm. Disc 1: Disc 2: |
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48 Days to the Work You Love, Trade Paper Edition By Dan Miller 48 Days to the Work You Love is not about finding a new job. It is about finding out what you are going to “be.” According to Dan Miller, failing to make that fundamental discovery is why so many people find themselves in jobs they hate. But the great news is this book will lead you to the vocation you will love. As a leading vocational thinker, Dan Miller helps you better understand and organize your God-given skills, personality traits, values, dreams, and passions. In turn, you’ll see clear patterns forming from which you can make successful career and job decisions. With creativity, insight, and timeless wisdom, 48 Days to the Work You Love presents a step-by-step process for creating a Life Plan and translating it into meaningful and fulfilling daily work. |
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48 Days to the Work You Love: Preparing for the New Normal By Dan Miller Still deciding what you want to be when you grow up? Whatever your age, let Miller guide you to the vocation you long for! Learn the God-given talents, personality traits, values, dreams, and passions that are your compass to follow. Includes career-search tools, a step-by-step process for creating your life plan, and more. |
![091853: Your Ministry"s Next Chapter: Restoring the Passion of the Mid-Career Pastor](http://ag.christianbook.com/g/thumbnail/0/091853t.gif "091853: Your Ministry"s Next Chapter: Restoring the Passion of the Mid-Career Pastor") |
Your Ministry’s Next Chapter: Restoring the Passion of the Mid-Career Pastor By Gary Fenton As a pastor, you are not immune to the career struggles of midlife. The pressures of your ministry, the dynamics of your congregation, and the challenges to stay devoted can easily weigh you down. At times like these, the tendency is to slow down, retire, or stop growing. What’s worse, these symptoms are hard to detect, and their effects are destructive to both you and your church. But there is a way to rediscover your call to serve God with passion and focus. With candid insights and personal examples, longtime pastor Gary Fenton will help you overcome the changes in your ministry, help you use your gifts to their full potential, and revitalize your confidence in your calling. |
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The Fred Factor: How Passion in Your Work and Life Can Turn the Ordinary into the Extraordinary By Mark Sanborn Is your professional commitment wavering? Do you just want to get the job done and go home? Find fresh energy and creativity for your life and work by imitating the example of Sanborn’s postman, “Fred.” Four Bible-based principles will help you make a difference every day, excel in your career, and make your daily life extraordinary. 114 pages, hardcover from Waterbrook. |
![973726: Shifting into Higher Gear: An Owner"s Manual for Uniting Your Calling and Career](http://ag.christianbook.com/g/thumbnail/9/973726t.gif "973726: Shifting into Higher Gear: An Owner"s Manual for Uniting Your Calling and Career") |
Shifting into Higher Gear: An Owner’s Manual for Uniting Your Calling and Career By Tom Siciliano and Jeff Caliguire This book will create a pathway to minimize the stress and confusion of seeking the right job. It presents a comprehensive three-stage program for discovering your calling, turning that calling into a career, and sustaining your passion once you’re in the job of your dreams. Grounded in Biblical wisdom, yet highly practical, this book is packed with field-tested advice, worksheets, self-assessments, and creative questions for action and reflection. It will become a trusted “owner’s manual” for a lifetime of meaningful work. |
![45400X: Better Than Good: Creating a Life You Can"t Wait to Live](http://ag.christianbook.com/g/thumbnail/4/45400xt.gif "45400X: Better Than Good: Creating a Life You Can"t Wait to Live") |
Better Than Good: Creating a Life You Can’t Wait to Live By Zig Ziglar On the subject of living a life on purpose, passion and peak performance, nobody tells it better than Zig Ziglar. In Better Than Good, Zig goes several steps beyond other “success” books by not only helping the reader get motivated, but stay motivated by confronting and transforming the things that stand in their way. Written in Ziglar’s trademark style, this book isn’t just about success now, excellence tomorrow or even motivation for next month, but about making a lasting impact – an impact that goes beyond financial gains and creative partnerships. Everything we are and do, he says, must be seen in the bigger perspective of continuously investing your spirit, mind and spiritual vision for what life can be when we allow the power of purpose and passion to permeate our soul. |
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Who Are You? What Do You Want? Four Questions That Will Change Your Life By Mick Ukleja, Ph.D. & Robert L. Lorber, Ph.D. Based on the authors’ decades of work as executive coaches and leadership trainers, the insights, real life anecdotes, and exercises in Who Are You and What Do You Want? allow readers to shape their own unique life plan, tailored to their own needs and to gain clarity about their purpose, passions, and values. |
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The Encore Effect: How to Achieve Remarkable Performance in Anything You Do By Mark Sandborn Everyone wants to make a difference in the world, but most have no idea how to maximize their impact. In The Encore Effect, best-selling author and leadership expert Mark Sandborn provides the answer. He leads readers in six practices that will move them beyond excellence to distinction and from mundane to memorable. These principles guide readers to draw on their passion and devote themselves to preparation, practice, presentation, polishing, and finally, avoiding pitfalls. When readers follow these principles they will find that people are attracted to them. More importantly, they’ll find that they now have an influence over others that can impact lives for eternity. |
Our youth group is starting a 7 week series tonight called “What’s the difference?” We are going to be looking at various world religions and the differences between them and Christianity(hint: it’s Jesus). The goal is not for them to know more about other religions but to know what and why they believe better. Here are two of the main resources I’m using for this study. Fritz Ridenour’s book has some great stories about the various founders. It’s as informative as a text book, but is a fun read because of the style.
![718982: So What"s the Difference? How World Faiths Compare to Christianity, Revised and Expanded](http://ag.christianbook.com/g/thumbnail/7/718982t.gif "718982: So What"s the Difference? How World Faiths Compare to Christianity, Revised and Expanded") |
So What’s the Difference? How World Faiths Compare to Christianity, Revised and Expanded
By Fritz Ridenour In easy-to-understand chapters, the author explains the basic beliefs of Protestantism, Roman Catholicism, Judaism, Islam, Hinduism, Jehovah’s Witnesses, Mormonism, New Age and a dozen other belief systems of the world. It will help you recognize the real differences and make it easier to explain and share your faith with others. Completely revised and updated. |
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Christianity, Cults & Religions: Compare 17 Religions and Cults with Biblical Christianity
Compare the beliefs of 18 world religions and cults at a glance, including Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism, Mormonism, Jehovah’s Witnesses, Christian Science, and more! Learn what each group believes about God, Jesus, salvation, and other basic points of Christianity. Laminated pamphlet measures 5.5″ x 8.5″ and unfolds to 33″—ideal to keep in your Bible or briefcase. From Rose. |
In April and May, we’ll be studying the 10 commandments to continue the process of strengthening their faith foundation. More and more I am finding that many students’ Biblical knowledge is sorely lacking. There are several factors for that but I believe the main culprit is the breakdown of the family unit in our society(more on all that later). The church’s responsibility to make disciples often falls on the local organized body, but I believe that Christ intended for every believer to be and make disciples. I’m not sure when showing up for an hour on Sundays started passing for being a disciple.
Here’s the latest music out this week.
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Beautiful Things CD By Gungor Michael Gungor’s musical creativity and passion for worship are on full display with Beautiful Things, a thirteen-song set of refreshing original compositions. Featuring a guest appearance from Israel Houghton, Gungor breezes through alternative worship styles on tracks like “Dry Bones,” “Please Be My Strength,” “People of God,” and others. |
Gungor also at
Ohio Avenue at
Vicky Beeching’s new EP at
Saw the preview for this book. Just had a conversation with someone about this very thing.
![316888: Why Is God Ignoring Me?: What To Do When It Feels Like He"s Giving You the Silent Treatment](http://ag.christianbook.com/g/thumbnail/3/316888t.gif "316888: Why Is God Ignoring Me?: What To Do When It Feels Like He"s Giving You the Silent Treatment") |
Why Is God Ignoring Me?: What To Do When It Feels Like He’s Giving You the Silent Treatment
By Gary R. Habermas * Have you ever cried out to God when you were in trouble and felt like he’d abandoned you? Sharing personal experiences, heartfelt insights, and biblical truth, Habermas asks tough questions, shares wise answers—and reveals where we can find our heavenly Father in the midst of suffering and sorrow. 256 pages, softcover from Tyndale. |
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