Please don’t think that the ideas have been ignored….they haven’t….they just haven’t happened yet:) Keep the ideas coming.

Also, if you have an idea and are prepared to drive the preparation of the event, let me know….I can help you & advertise it, etc.

Jeff.

where is the link bro?

Garth

Before we tackle any of the above suggestions, lets have a church picnic while the weather’s still nice.

So….
When: Sunday lunch time, 23 May.
Where: TBA, but basically a park close to the church at Mt Ommaney.
What: BYO food/BBQ’s. We’ll have a few games organised for the various age groups.

The barefoot bowls is a good idea. I also liked the rock climbing Jeff – we should do this again in a month or so.

Dana

Saturday 4 September.

Will there be an F-111 dump and burn this year for the last time?

(Although it could be a bit loud for a new baby)

http://www.brisbanefestival.com.au/Events/0,0,4646,0000906.aspx

They do barefoot bowls sessions (1½ hr sessions) on Fridays – 4.30pm until 6.00pm.

Then we could have dinner at the Bistro after (menu is on the website).

I think that Jindalee bowls club also does some barefoot bowling if you want something a little closer to church.
http://www.jindaleebowlsclub.org/

Not sure if there are any other bowls clubs in Mt Ommaney or Sinnamon Park where there is barefoot bowls.

http://www.sydneyanglicans.net/media/video/war_religion/

The first and second World Wars, arguably the largest conflicts in history, did not have religious roots. The Cold War and associated physical manifestations in Korea & Vietnam were not religious. Nor are many of the tribal conflicts in Africa.

Ideas (whether religious, atheistic/social or tribal) can be very potent tools for directing human aggression, but does that mean that they are inherently evil? It seems to me that the common denominator in these situations is not an idea or even brand of thought (such as religion), but rather humanity. We seem to be exceptionally good at hating and conflicting with one another.

Richard Dawkins thesis in The God Delusion is that faith is the enabler for the spread of destructive/divisive religion. He asserts that faith by definition must always shutdown independent thought, disregard evidence and thereby allow unchallenged dissemination of destructive ideas. This is certainly not my understanding of faith as expressed by Jesus and his followers in the Bible.

I’m looking forward to the talk.

In other words, it is impossible for us to keep the law. This leads us to the conclusion that we NEED a saviour because we can’t do it ourselves.

All this complexity means that there are lots of arguments, “loops holes” and ways of convince yourself your not a sinner if you really want to.

The simplest way (I think) is to take the Bible at face value (assuming you acknowledge it authenticity) and the fact that what it says is reflected in society.
A more specific way – on a personal level – that I could suggest is to read through some new testament letters such as Ephesians and see where the bar is according to God. It is not just about what it says not to do, but also what it says we should be doing. If anyone can honestly assess themself with sober judgment and conclude that they do this and always have, than maybe they are not a sinner. But I would really like to meet them!

Besides if you are a human being, descended from Adam, than I would say you are at least guilty by association if not by nature as well.

Thanks for your comments.

I have checked out the sites you recommended and share your concerns. However, I don’t think we need to find a conspiracy in CJ’s high profile… let’s face it, he is a great preacher!

As regards the leadership fiasco (really serious stuff) in the SGM affiliated churches, do you think that this can be laid at CJ’s door? I understood that he has been out of the active leadership of the organisation for some time now?

But I stand to be corrected….

Regards

Ian

Community Life When Christ Is All

Verses 12-14: “Put on a heart of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience; bearing with one another, and forgiving each other, whoever has a complaint against any one; just as the Lord forgave you, so also should you. And beyond all these things put on love, which is the perfect bond of unity.” When Christ is all, that is the way we will live with each other. And people will know that Christ is all when they see us living that way with each other.

It is not easy to live out such precious realities with each other when we are disconnected from each other. Small groups exist at Bethlehem because we think they are increasingly crucial in being the new community Christ is calling us to be. Daniel Runion is an elder at Bethlehem and is Overseer of Small Group Ministries.

I have much more to say on this text in this evening’s service as I challenge Greg Dirnberger to “Tend the peace of Christ” in his flock. But now here is Daniel to help us think and pray about our involvement in small groups.

http://www.desiringgod.org/ResourceLibrary/Sermons/BySeries/19/808_Living_Together_When_Christ_Is_All_in_All/

http://www.desiringgod.org/ResourceLibrary/Sermons/ByDate/1980/1954_The_Children_The_Church_and_the_Chosen/

Why? Well, I’d have many concerns but the major one is that you can’t practically love one another over blogs, forums and web pages. Yes, you can encourage and even challenge others but it is hard to serve others in a practical way or keep one another accountable. People love the anonymity of the internet and it does allow people to explore their faith in a non-threatening way. However it also means that people can avoid the accountability that only personal contact can bring. Many people in today’s day and age don’t like this concept (and I can see why, as there are many examples of abuse) but the Scriptures encourage us to keep one another accoutable in love, submitting to one another as we submit to God.

Online contact means we can avoid the people we don’t agree with, but when we are part of a church community we are forced not only to interact with them but also to serve and encourage them.

Yes churches are a place where we go to worship God but our religion is empty if it only includes prayer and praises and isn’t extended in practical ways (James 1:27)

There are some valid points in Garth’s discussion however in this new digital age most things are done online and I feel the old format is on the way out (so Kudos for starting an online discussion).

There is still/and will always be a need for face-to-face fellowship for some, but I get the feeling that a lot of people are happier doing things online, it may sound odd but I get the feeling that a lot of worship will be done online soon.

Also I feel the days of a lengthy one sided sermon doesn’t appeal to so many and online forums are a great way to involve and include people in discussions.

Religion is also often criticised for being hypocritical and people are often keen to point out its faults, and use that as an excuse to leave the church but everything in life has faults, the Simpsons have been good at pointing this out, particulary with regards to religion, but they make fun of everything. However many seem to miss the fundamental point, which to me is, that religion is about faith and it is not something that needs to be proved or disproved … the point is you believe, that you have ‘faith’.

Hope this helps shed a little light from someone who appears to have beef … but as I said, no beef here, just going digital.

http://www.sgmsurvivors.com
http://www.sgmrefuge.com

They tell another side.
Hope this helps.