Words To Throw Away

by Dean Denby
I find myself reading a lot of church literature including blogs, books about church growth and leadership, and church websites or religious websites. I also find myself reading a lot of non-church literature and realizing that church literature is actually getting on my nerves.
First, all church literature uses the same language and colloquialisms rather frequently and annoyingly. Why does every church website have to say stuff like, “for the glory of the kingdom,” and, “to reach the lost?” There are many more that I read and hear in, to coin a term my pastor uses, churchianity. At what point did non-churchgoers need a Church-English dictionary to understand just what we’re talking about. I’m sure you could find some express instances on this very blog to bolster my own point. Its the most time-honored and indoctrinated habit brought about through our induction into churchianity. When you are in the church long enough you begin to speak, pray, and ultimately act like them. Its somewhat inevitable but in my opinion kinda creepy.
So from now on I’m going to try and keep myself clear of heavily church-centric jargon in favor of a much more unchurched-friendly linguistic tradition.
Second, its much more prevalent in the actual church services where this church jargon is so thick half of the things that are said hardly have any outside meaning. The problem is that the language that our grandparents spoke is still being used in the church and what we speak at home is totally absent at church. Its slowly creeping its way in but sort of unintentionally and by sheer happenstance. We need to make it a priority to drop the 1950s church lingo in favor of more modern and dare I say more meaningful rhetoric. Now some thing will be unavoidable and I understand that but we need to remember that if we are patterning our churches in such a way as to create a church that people who don’t go to church would want to go to that church(which my church is) we need to remember that there are going to be people in our audience who have no clue what we are talking about. We have guests in our house. Lets be welcoming and inviting to them and keep the inside jokes to ourselves. Church is much more fun when it includes everyone and not just those of us who have been going to church our whole lives. I’m looking forward to the day where our church is filled with people don’t care about churchianity but only care about God.

Josh Cribbs Walks With Late Coach's Son On Senior Night

by Chris Chase, Yahoo Sports

In a dismal year for the Cleveland Browns, wide receiver/returner Josh Cribbs has proved to be one of the only bright spots. Last month he showed he's equally good off the field.

The Pro Bowler traveled to Berea, Ohio, to walk onto the field on senior night with the son of one of his former college coaches. Michael Drake, a senior receiver at Stow High School, lost his father, Mike, in 2005 to lymphoma. He had assumed he'd be accompanied by his mother and sister for senior night introductions and was stunned when he saw Cribbs arrive minutes before the game.

''I looked, then looked away, then said, 'Why are you here?''' Michael recalled. ''I was shocked.''

A receiver, cornerback and holder for extra points, Michael said Cribbs offered advice before his final game.

''He said, 'Play your heart out. This is it. Give it your all. Don't ever stop on any play. Keep pushing,''' Michael said. ''I almost felt worried. I didn't want to look bad for him.''

Michael's late father recruited Cribbs to play at Kent State and served as a father figure to the D.C. native during his time at Kent. Mike Drake was the offensive coordinator for the Golden Flashes during Cribbs' freshman and sophomore seasons. Cribbs played quarterback in college and credits Drake for helping him drive home the fundamentals that he still uses today. So, when the idea of returning for senior night was pitched to Cribbs this summer, he didn't hesitate.

It's a small gesture, but it says a lot about the character of Cribbs. He apparently didn't feel the need to talk about it publicly; this happened Oct. 30 and, as far as I can tell, yesterday's report in the Akron Beacon Journal is the first it's been mentioned. Similarly, Drake's mother is quoted in the piece as saying that Cribbs took great pains to underplay his presence at the game for fear of taking away the spotlight from Michael and the other seniors. This shows a humility that other professional football players could sometimes stand to emulate.

Okay, So Now I Am a Joe Girardi Fan

I USUALLY CAN'T STAND THE YANKEES, BUT THIS WAS PRETTY COOL.

ESPN.com news services
2009 MLB Playoffs

Hours after guiding the New York Yankees to a World Series championship, manager Joe Girardi stopped along a suburban parkway on his way home to help a woman whose car had crashed into a wall, The (Westchester) Journal News reported.

Early Thursday morning, Westchester County police officer Kathleen Cristiano congratulated Girardi on the World Series win as he passed through a drunken-driving enforcement checkpoint, according to the newspaper. Yankees left-hander Andy Pettitte, who had started in the Series clincher, had passed through the same checkpoint earlier, she said.

About 15 minutes later, Cristiano was among the first responders to a one-car accident on the Cross County Parkway in Eastchester. She was surprised to again see Girardi, this time trying to flag down assistance, according to the report.
"The guy wins the World Series, what does he do? He stops to help," said Cristiano, according to The Journal News. "It was totally surreal."

Girardi told WFAN-AM that he was "really concerned" because of damage to the car. He says he had his wife call 911 and then approached the mangled vehicle.

The driver of the car in the accident, 27-year-old Marie Henry of Stratford, Conn., was able to get out of the car by the time police arrived, and she was shaken but unhurt, according to the report.

"She had no idea who I was," Girardi said. "I think the important thing is, you know, obviously there's a lot of joy in what we do, but we can't forget to be human beings where we help others out. I think that's the most important thing we can do in life."

Girardi, dressed in a T-shirt and jeans, then told them he "had to get going," according to the newspaper.

"The driver didn't know it was him until after I told her," Cristiano told The Journal News.

In stopping to help, Girardi took a risk by running across the eastbound lanes of the parkway near a notorious blind curve, county Sgt. Thomas McGurn said, according to the report.

"He could have gotten killed," McGurn said, according to the report. "Traffic goes by at 80 mph."

Should You Keep It?

A few weeks ago, I heard a story about a young woman who went to dinner with a few friends. She and her friends had a wonderful dinner and the service was excellent. At the end of the evening, she told her friends that she would pay the bill. She quickly gave the waiter her credit card and signed it when he returned. She liked the service so much she gave a generous tip of 25000. How much? Forgetting to use the decimals and accidentally adding a zero, she gave to waiter a 25 thousand (25,000.00) dollar tip. Due to fact that the credit card was her father's and he was a corporate executive with plenty of credit. The amount cleared and the waiter was cut a check. Days later when the error was realized, the question was asked, "Should the waiter return the tip?"

What do you think? This is not a legal question. The law is clearly on the side of the waiter. Thus, it is a question of ethics. The young woman, a college student, was well meaning in trying to be generous for the service rendered, but there was clearly an error. Should you keep something that is clearly legal, yet obviously unethical. I have heard of multi-millionaires and the like give extravagant tips/gifts. (Elvis once walking into a Cadillac dealership and gave a car to a woman who was window shopping.) But in this case, it was a mistake. The reason I bring this up today is this. What is legal and what is ethical?

Many Bible passages speak a great deal about money and possessions, but the one I want to highlight today is found in three of the four gospel stories in Matthew, Mark, and Luke. It goes like this, "...some Pharisees and followers of Herod tried to bait him, hoping to catch him saying something incriminating. They came up and said, "Teacher, we know you have integrity, that you are indifferent to public opinion, don't pander to your students, and teach the way of God accurately. Tell us: Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar or not?" He knew it was a trick question, and said, "Why are you playing these games with me? Bring me a coin and let me look at it." They handed him one. "This engraving—who does it look like? And whose name is on it?" "Caesar," they said. Jesus said, "Give Caesar what is his, and give God what is his." Their mouths hung open, speechless." (Mark 12:13-17)

The question today is... "What is God's?"

Every year at this time churches are wrapping up stewardship campaigns. Each is hoping to get enough to fund their church programs, staff salaries, and outreach. Some will increase, some will maintain, others will have to cut. But, most churches would have more than enough... if. That is a big "IF". If people gave unto God what is God's, most churches would have more than they need to operate. Our church and others are big on keeping tithing information secret. Only you and God knows what you give and how close your giving is in line with ten percent. Like the waiter, most folks can get away "legally" with giving any amount we choose. But what would happen if every Christian's tithing were to be published in a public way? Would it matter? Probably not, maybe embarrassment would help a few, but I'm not sure. I am sure of this. Jesus calls us to give to Caeser what is Caeser's (the government) and give to God what is God's. Funny isn't it... we seem to dread giving to the government through taxes and many Christians have associated that same feeling with giving to God. And since there is not a "K.R.S. (Kingdom Revenue Service)" to audit anyone, it might be easier to cheat on our tithe. Yes, you can get away with it... your wages won't be garnished or penalties added, it is legal... but as a Christian, is it ethical ?

Should you keep it? Isn't it God's?

I really dislike talking about money, but Jesus sure didn't so forgive me. Jesus calls us to live in obedience and giving is part of that life of discipleship. And no, if you give to the church, don’t expect to win the lottery or get money back, but you will feel better and know you are being a disciple.He does love you so. That is enough. Just like the $25.00 dollar tip to the waiter. Until next time, Blessings.