From Gary Haugen’s intro: St. Patrick was kidnapped and sold into slavery. He escaped, returned home where he found Christ. He returned to the “barbaric” Ireland to take the gospel where he had been enslaved. His efforts resulted in the “God does his miracles of transformation through the lives of transformed people.” Gary Haugen Pranitha Timothy leads people out of slavery. She has led more than 50 rescue attempts–4,000 men, women and children–who she knows by name. They once lived in brutal slavery but now live in freedom. She walks with them through years of restoration. When she leaves for a rescue operation there is not guarantee she will survive. “My friend, colleague and most humble hero.” Pranitha Timothy, Director of Aftercare, IJM, Chennai, India “Courage to Act” The restoration of people is not easy. Isaiah 42:1-7 spoke to her in chapel. “In faithfulness he will bring forth justice.” She is a brain tumor survivor. The tumor caused her to lose strength in her side, a lessened ability to swallow, and lost her voice. After two years God gave me this voice, feeble and yet powerful in his hands. [Her voice is very quiet and raspy.] The greatest miracle is not that God have me my voice, but that God changed my life. “In my hatred, my life became very dark. In my life I became aware that the only way to overcome the darkness was to embrace Jesus Christ whom I had rejected.” This calling is my response to the freedom I have in Christ. No matter what your sphere of influence, I think God wants you to hear this. 1. We are called to serve. I’m no hero. I’m simply called to serve a God who is already at work. Over and over I have talked to slaves who cried out to a God they did not even know his name and God sent our team in response. 2. This life belongs to God. My life is God’s and my strength is His. My husband, children and parents are safer in God’s hands than in mine. 3. I have learned the radical truth that God is good. There are many stories that ended good and it would be easy to tell you only of those stories. Men and women who were once slaves who are now elected community leaders. We trust that God is totally good, even when what we see in the world is painful. We are full of hope. If you ever have a chance to hear Pranitha Timothy, do it. She is a living example of God demonstrating His strength through weakness.”
Have you ever been in a blog comment thread like this? [VIDEO]
Forget about Godwin’s Law for a moment. There are a ton of blogs and news sites where comments degenerate about as quickly as “Publish” is hit by the editor. Well before either “Nazi” or “Hitler” are invoked disagreement and shouting abound, often like flinging darts into the darkness. No one is listening to the various points while most everyone is responding to what they “think” is being said. Maybe without argument (*cough) the Monty Python clip below is as brilliantly written and performed piece as ever seen in its medium. It’s the famous “Argument Clinic” with John Clinic and Michael Palin. Enjoy!
The Willow Creek Global Leadership Summit, Patrick Lencioni
Patrick Lencioni is as good as it gets on leadership and organizational effectiveness. My notes reflect his typically incomplete speaking style and the fact his slides were not always on screen long enough to copy the information. “People need to be reminded more than they need to be instructed.” Samuel Johnson Lencioni is an ENFP on the Myer’s Briggs scale. The things that Southwest Airlines does to make it successful are things other organizations seem to think are beneath them. Organizational Health is the most important competitive advantage a company can have.
Is Westboro “Baptist Church” a cult? Yes, it is
After my post asking that Fred Phelps’ family religious group be termed a cult a few people wondered at the wisdom of the media making such a designation. The Topeka based group refers to themselves as The Westboro Baptist Church and has since the 1940s. Why then, should the media refer to them as a cult rather than how they define themselves? In a word: accuracy. For many years Christ followers have equated cults with belief systems aberrant from orthodox Christianity. Christian Science, Mormonism, Jehovah’s Witnesses (aka The Watchtower), Armstrongism, and the Unification Church are such groups. However, Tal Davis, cult and sect expert, provides a framework clearly allowing for the inclusion of the Westboro as a cult. The Apologetics Index classifies them in just that way. Davis argues that cults (or “sects”) 1) claim to be biblically based, 2) deny or redefine one or more Christian doctrines, 3) have “official” adherence to Christian doctrine while having other cultic tendencies, 4) claim to have divinely inspired leaders, 5) usually claim to have other scriptures or supplements to the Bible, and 6) claim to be the one true, or most true, church. Only the fifth one is not clearly held by the Westboro cult. Their strict adherence to Fred Phelps’ warped interpretations, however, are held in nearly as high esteem as the Bible.