Just a little talk with Jesus

Now let us have a little talk with Jesus,

Let us tell him all about our troubles,

He will hear our famished cries,

And he will answer by and by,

Now when you feel a little prayer wheel turnin,

Then you’ll know a little fire is burnin,

You will find a little talk with Jesus makes it right

I love this old song.

What worship song makes you want to stand to your feet and raise your hands in surrender to Jesus? What song makes you want to open your heart up?

Just a Little Talk With Jesus, is still one of my favorites, it still makes me want to raise my hands.

Now for all you Southern Gospel fans out there, and I think there may be two or three that read my blog that love Southern Gospel, this is probably one of my all time favorite Southern Gospel Quartets, The Gold City. I love the harmonies.

And I’m throwing this one in just because it’s my blog and I like the song.

The last video was the Cathedrals, I lost count of how many times I had seen the Cathedrals and the Gold City in concert when I was a teenager. Southern Gospel music still stirs my heart and brings back so many memories of when I first got saved.

What old hymns or gospel songs do that for you?

taking a stand or an eye for an eye?

I asked this question a few days ago on Facebook, “when is it ok for a Christ follower to defend themselves against slander?”

I got very mixed responses.

All of them made sense, all of them were scriptural.

Here are a few of the comments, I’m gonna leave the names off of the comments.

If it comes from another believer, we are to go to them and confront their sin… The Old Testament gives us many examples of God’s people praying against those who were trying to hurt them, I would consider that how we are to act against unbelievers

  

When you get that answer… let me know. Jesus didn’t even fight back as he was being beaten, spit on, made fun of, cursed, and nailed to a cross. He allowed it all to happen even though he could have disemboweled each and every person who was hurting Him. I think that’s your answer. Paul got back up after being stoned and went right back to preaching the Gospel. Suck it up, Jason. It takes balls to be a Christ Follower, man. Big hairy ones!

 

So… while Jesus did accept all of the insults without fighting back during his “time” (crucifixion), he did not back down from a fight any other time. His ministry was filled with him taking on the religious leaders who were calling him names… If it affected my family, livelihood, or ability to serve God, i would take it on , but make sure you can stand before God with your actions in doing so. if it doesn’t affect one of those things, who cares?

 

fighting back and standing up for yourself are two different things–never hesitate to stand up for what you believe but I agree with (name deleted)–don’t lower yourself to negative behavior, be solid and confident in what you believe. Let other people “be stupid”

 

ignore critics who are cowards and don’t have the nuts to say something to your face. read Nehemiah. don’t come off the wall. sword in one hand. trowel in the other. critics detract from mission. if they get in your face. fight back but don’t get bogged down.

Who’s right? All of them? None of them?

 

What do you think, weigh in and tell me is it ok for a Christ follower to defend themselves against slander?

 

I’m going to post a follow-up with a blog friend and get her point of view, I’ll link it when it happens.

 

 

 

 

What did you want for your life?

I didn’t want kids when I was 18…..

I didn’t want them when I was 22….

When you are that young and extremely selfish you don’t want anything that will eat up your time, money, or anything else that you thought you had.

God has a funny way of changing that around, when my first child was born I was 22. I’m 33 now and have four kids, my youngest just had his first birthday.

All four of them are unique in their own way and all the same in others. I couldn’t imagine my life without them.

You might be a stupid Christian if….

Kevin dusted off his blog yesterday and wrote a post about continuing on with the series Stupid Christians. I’m not one to steal an idea and I’m not sure that I am since I am modifying it a bit.

I love the Jeff Foxworthy ‘You might be a redneck if’ jokes, I wrote a post about ‘You might go to Crosspoint if’ a while back and it is still my most popular post. One of the things I think we as Christians do that give us a bad reputation is we take ourselves entirely too seriously. I am willing to bet you (oh no he’s gambling) that most people would be highly offended at being called a stupid Christian. So here goes, I am going to start the list and, it will only be about how I am/was a stupid Christian, so if you add to the list it has to be about you, NOT anyone else.

You might be a stupid Christian if….

You ever thought secular music is an evil influence.

You thought the King James Bible is the only translation you should use.

You voted against the lottery because it WILL ruin families.

You flip someone off on your way to church.

You sleep with your girlfriend and think it is OK because God wants you guys to get married.

You think drinking is a sin and get drunk on the weekends.

You think Jesus actually cares about who is President and that it was a surprise to Him.

You gossip about some one and disguise it as a “prayer request”.

You really believe that Jesus was a white guy with long hair dressed like a hippie.

You think that there are plenty of other people paying their tithes, the church doesn’t need mine.

And to finish it off…….

You think everyone from “that church ” is going to hell.

I’m sure I have offended you with something I have said, but this is how I was/am a stupid Christian.

Feel free to add your stupidity to mine….

the friend limit

Am I the only one that seems to have a limit on friendships?

That may sound bad or come across funny but think about it…..

How many friends do you have? At what level or tier of support would you say those friendships are?

You know, your tier 1 support is lunch and the occasional encouragement. Your tier two support is hey can you help me out with my kids while I go sign my divorce papers so they don’t see the bloody mess I’ll be later.

I think we all have those friends that are lunch companions and hey how are the kids, but how many of them do you have?

I Have 200 and some odd folks as friends on Facebook and I can honestly say that I don’t really know half of them. I have 170 some odd followers on twitter and I can say that I respond or relate to less than half. Most of the people I “social network” with I go to church with, some I went to high school with, while others might speak something into my life. How may of these people do I really know?

I did a count, and other than my wife, and my brothers’ family the count came out to 7 people. Seven people know me and I know them at a level higher than “hey how’s it going, how are the kids?”

What’s sad is I called one of them up the other day and had to ask him if we “broke-up”. My wife said that we had some kinda “bromance” going on.

Is it a time issue? Is it an issue of I can only have a few friends at a time? Or do you just loose interest in friendships or do interests change?

I have friends that I use to hang with everyday but after I got married, that stopped.

I use to have friends that I fished and hunted with every weekend but after I changed jobs and moved that stopped.

My point to this post is not to try and down the number of friendships someone might have, I guess my point is what are you doing with those friendships?

Are we intentional enough with our time to cultivate existing friendships and still grow more? Some one told me the other day that when your garden gets to big to tend by yourself your going to have weeds. Does that mean we should cull some of our friends?

A little story for you and I’ll quit. I play Mafia Wars on Facebook, I’m not sure why yet. At any rate, I made a friend on Facebook because of Mafia Wars that lives here in Decatur. I don’t know her, I’ve never met her. I’m pretty sure she thinks I’m a freak because I have invited her to church and told her we meet at a movie theater, but you know, I think she might come…..

Summer Mullett Season

LEEEEEETTTTTTTTTTTSSSSSSSSSS GGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEETTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT

RRRRRRRRRRRRREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAADDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDYYYYYYYYYYYY

TO

RUUUUUUUUUUUUUMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE

To all my Achey Breaky lovin, Joe Dirt havin, rebel flag wavin, fans of the greatest hair style ever, it is time once again for a mullett hunt, no holds bar style. The only rules to this are as follows: 1) Must be business in the front, party in the back. 2)Must be a mullett you shot from the time of this post until the contest is over.

BONUS POINTS!!!!!

If you can get them to pose for the picture=5 points

If you can get them to pose with their  favorite beer= 10 points

If you can get them to pose with you or an immediate family member while holding their favorite beer=15 points

If they threatin to “whoop ur ass” while you are taking the picture=20 points

SUBMIT YOUR ENTRIES EARLY AND AS OFTEN AS YOU LIKE, I WILL POST THEM AS OFTEN AS I GET THEM. GOOD HUNTING!!!!!

My e-mail address is jalack75@gmail.com

Last seasons undisputed champion of the world, the AUSTIN 3:16 MULLETT

buddha

Me and one of the guys I work with were at a local service station today and he made a comment to me that just grated every bit of me.

His comment was, “I can’t understand what they are saying in there it sounds like a bunch of ducks quacking”.

“They’re Vietnamese”, I responded.

He said “ya whatever, I just can’t understand them”.

I agree you can’t understand them.

The conversation goes on and he tells me that “they have some kinda Buddha shrine set-up in there and I don’t much care for that, but hey that’s for them, it ain’t for me.”

I almost responded ” hey it ain’t your store, it’s their belief and their culture.”

How many times have we seen an idol or shrine set up to a false god and we just say, “hey that’s for them, not for me”?

Or how many times have you wanted to defend someone because of their beliefs?

I don’t believe in attacking anyone because of how the believe.

But I do know for fact that we are to share the Gospel of Jesus, with everyone…..even Buddhist.

Chazzism’s

Closed out our Heroes series at church this week with a Rockstar.

Charles Hill is one of those guys that when he gets up on the mound all he is doing is throwing heat. So in the spirit of what would normally be Davism’s (borrowed from Tony Morgan about Perry Noble), we have Chazzism’s this week.

• We don’t have an accent, you guys have an ack-cent.
• Does it count if your mother was born in the south? Your Jewish if your mother is Jewish.
• When you look at the confederate dollar bill that’s my blood. (No he’s not a racist he was telling a story about a distant relative)
• I’m not Chris Rock like Dave is.
• Get your band-aids out, we are about to get a little wounded today.
• Ricky Bobby is a true Alabama hero.
• How many of you ever thought of Noah’s wife as a hero?
• Heroes act when called upon.
• Heroes are at the right place at the right time and they do the right thing.
• You better be doing more outside in this world than what you do for an hour on Sunday
• Are there such things as booger seeds? (A question his daughter asked his wife)
• Coming to church an hour on Sunday is not contagious.
• Going to church does nothing.
• Heroes are mission obsessed.
• You’ll be able to tell what your obsession is by looking at what you spend your time, your talent and your treasures on.
• Are you really willing to give your lives?

I really needed that band-aid Charles was talking about.

Are you excited?

I am a refugee of sorts.

Contemplating if I should even say what I am thinking right now…..

I am a refugee from boring church.

Is that wrong of me to say?

Ok, before anyone gets there panties (or manties if your a dude) in a bunch let me explain.

My church FREAKIN ROCKS!!!!!

Sad reality, not everyone that goes to a church, or has attended a church, or will attend a church can say that. I am not church bashing so hold your e-mails for just a sec um-k? Um -k. People get bored with church. Period. Whether it is the music the sermon or Sunday school. Going off on a tangent here, who ever thought up Sunday school? When I was in school I didn’t like it, why would I want to go on a Sunday? I mean, really? Back on topic, people get bored, they aren’t excited, does that mean they aren’t excited in their salvation, ya that could be a reason, but I think a bigger reason people get bored is because church can be boring. Oh is that taboo to say?

Here’s the deal, Jesus is Lord, without Jesus there is no church. The scripture tells us that he is the head of the church. So why would we want to tell people about Jesus in a way that most people would think is boring? No, not everyone thinks their church is boring, but there are some that are sitting in the pews at the First Bapticostal Methodoligistic Holiness Church of Our Lady in the Clouds Christ Episcolated Calvin Luther Assembly that might, next time when you catch yourself thinking about what buffet your going to head to for lunch look around you and see how many people aren’t paying attention either. If you love Jesus and truly believe that he is the savior of the world and that if you don’t have salvation you are going to hell wouldn’t you be jumping up and down trying to compel people to come to Christ? Would you tell people about Jesus in a way that would put them to sleep? Bore them? In a language that they can’t understand? Sing songs about deer panting for a drink of water? Or would you rather tell them in a way they could understand. In a way that would excite them.

Are you excited about your church? Can you honestly say that when you get up on Sunday that you are excited to hear the word of God from the man that is anointed by God to bring it to you?

I ask you all this for one reason. To pray.

I am not trying to compel you to come to my church. What I am trying to compel you to do is pray. Pray for your church, or for yourself. If your not excited about your church it is probably because your church isn’t exciting. I was talking to a friend of mine yesterday about church. He serves in his church but would love to come to ours full time, and ya know I would love to have him at our church full time. That is a selfish thought and it convicted me. What I should be praying for is his church to be excited. You see I’m pretty sure this guy is excited in his salvation or he wouldn’t be helping our church set-up on Sunday morning and them leaving to go and serve at his church. I want his church to be excited so he won’t have to look for a church that is.

Living in the world….but not of it

Show of hands of the people that have to “explain” their church to people.

Ok you can lower your hands.

I have had, to borrow a phrase from Pete Wilson, intense fellowship with several people that go to a more traditional church about how and why we do church the way we do.

I have been told numerous times that we are wrong because that is worldly and we are called to be better than the world. We shouldn’t be catering to these things because they are not Godly. Movies and rock music is not the way to reach people for Jesus. That we are set apart from these things. Essentially to not be relevant to today’s culture.

Are we called to be separate when we minister to people? Are we told to be an outsider and act above all these things when we witness and tell people the good news of Jesus?

Uh…..no.

In 1 Cor 9:¹⁹ Even though I am a free man with no master, I have become a slave to all people to bring many to Christ. ²⁰ When I was with the Jews, I lived like a Jew to bring the Jews to Christ. When I was with those who follow the Jewish law, I too lived under that law. Even though I am not subject to the law, I did this so I could bring to Christ those who are under the law. ²¹ When I am with the Gentiles who do not follow the Jewish law,^[d] I too live apart from that law so I can bring them to Christ. But I do not ignore the law of God; I obey the law of Christ.

 ²² When I am with those who are weak, I share their weakness, for I want to bring the weak to Christ. Yes, I try to find common ground with everyone, doing everything I can to save some. ²³ I do everything to spread the Good News and share in its blessings.

I think Paul explains it best, but to sum it up for me, when you live in a culture that doesn’t know Christ it is our job to bring Christ to that culture, using the things of that culture.

Stepping down off my soap box now.