Thy Will Be Done

For obvious reasons, the biblical doctrine of hell has never been
a favorite theme for Christian people, even amongst the most
fervent of puritan preachers. The very thought of an endless
separation from God and his presence, where communication
and community are utterly negated, is an intolerable thought
to the one who loves God. It is a doctrine we do not like and
often do not understand, especially since scripture identifies
our moral barometer as broken.

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The World Speaks

It is a question I ask when I find myself in a defeated
place of miscommunication, when I see two parties
completely misunderstanding one another, or when
I am studying Greek: Is language really worth the
trouble? Of course, even in a defeated place, most
of us would recognize the irony of the question itself;
to voice the trouble of communication is still to utilize
the form of communication. But if it is difficult to
imagine a world without the presence of language,
it is altogether sobering to imagine a world without
its benefits and joys--a conversation with a friend,
the power of the written word, the importance of
banter, reasoning, and debate.


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The “Other” World

There is a place you can go through life without anyone
knowing who you “really” are. You can do things that
you would normally be totally scared to do as they could
damage your reputation, ability to work, or even cause
you physical harm. Social pressures to be a certain way
or act in a particular way are removed. You have the
freedom to create yourself in anyway you want and
present yourself as any kind of person you want to
be. What would you do? How would you act? What
places would you go?

I am not speaking about a psychological experiment
or even the Internet in general but about a place online
called Second Life. This virtual world allows you to create
yourself in any way you can imagine. So how are people
“living” in this virtual world? Some are making life long
friends who may (or may not) meet in the outside world.
Others are living lives that they feel they can not in the
“real” world. Moral and ethical values (and lack there of)
have moved from the “real” world into this virtual reality.
I’ve even read that Second Life recently had a “terrorist”
attack.

But in this “world” where you can have total anonymity,
there are people who are using this cover to seek out
answers to the spiritual questions that they have. That’s
why its so cool to hear about a church who has decided
that this will be one of their mission fields and have
“bought” 16 acres and “built” a church. LifeChurch.tv
has spent quite a few hours developing a safe environment
for people who are seeking answers to their questions
and are searching for them in this world made of ones
and zeros.

People who are in need of knowing God’s love are every -
where including the “virtual” worlds. If we are to reach
the whole world, these places are to be included.

To know more about Second Life, see Wikipedia’s page.

To know more about LifeChurch.tv’s virtual campus on
Second Life, see their blog.

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*Please see "comments" for
additional pertinent & germane
information.

What Do You Want?

"Wait a minute; what do I really want?" a friend asked himself in my
presence as if speaking the language of epiphany. He found himself
initiating new interests in things, filling his time with pastimes--pining
after that new thing that would change everything--when suddenly he
realized that there was a search behind all of his searching. Why am I
doing all of these things? What am I really looking for? The questions
were something of an awakening.

Someone once told me that all behavior is goal-oriented. It is a simple,
but incredibly rich thought. Indeed, walking through my week with the
idea in mind was as striking as it was enlightening. Looking at my words,
my actions, even my prayers in light of my goal, inquiring as to the
motive, I realized how easy it is to be unaware of my own heart.

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The Empirical Demonstration Of Truth

The first and most important step to understanding the
nature of truth is exemplified in a conversation between
Jesus and Pilate. The conversation began with Pilate asking
Jesus if indeed he was a king. The very surprising answer
of Jesus was, "Are you asking this of your own, or has
someone else set you up for this?"

In effect, Jesus was asking Pilate if this was a genuine question
or purely an academic one. He was not merely checking on
Pilate's sincerity. He was opening up Pilate's heart to himself,
to reveal to Pilate his unwillingness to deal with the implications
of Jesus' answer. Intent, in the pursuit of truth, is prior to content,
or to the availability of it. The love of truth and the willingness
to submit to its demands is the first step.


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Will Muslims Inherit The Earth?

Muslim populations are growing in Europe, Russia, and elsewhere.
High birth rates among Muslims, increased immigration, and new
converts to Islam are all factors that some experts believe could
eventually radically transform the Western World.

According to new research church attendance has been falling all
across Western Europe. In Great Britain, for example, only 6.3
percent of the population attends Christian services on a weekly
basis. The group also projects that around 4,000 churches will
close over the next 15 years. However while church attendance
is on the decline, religious participation among Muslims has
increased dramatically. According to the study, even though
Muslims only comprise around three percent of the British
population, in 35 years there will be twice as many Muslims
in mosques on Friday as there are Christians in churches on
Sunday. This trend can be seen throughout Europe. In France
there are now more than 4,000 mosques, and new mosques
and Muslim prayer centers have been popping up at an
exponential rate. Meanwhile, it has been projected that
Muslims will be the majority population in Germany by 2046.


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The Only Hope For A Dying Heart

David Letterman has been one of the kings of late-night
television for years. His offbeat sense of humor has given
him a prime spot in America's entertainment constellation
for a long time. But one day, suddenly everybody stopped
laughing. David Letterman, whose family has a bad history
when it comes to heart problems apparently, went in for
some seemingly routine cardiac tests. Suddenly, this comic
king was rushed into surgery by his doctor and given a multiple
bypass operation on his heart. The doctor saw major blockage
in David Letterman's heart and he took radical action to save him.


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