Founder and speaker of iGETitLIFE, Robin Bryce and her pastor/husband Chuck present "He Said, She’s Sad" No wait that’s "He Said, She Said" a topic on marriage at Central Cities Church in Copperas Cove, TX in the center of the greater Ft. Hood area. If you’re in the area, come for the fun and laughs and leave with inspiration for a better marriage.
June 27-28th, 2009.
Have you ever synced with the wrong data? Or old data? It’s a pain to get rid of that we don’t need. And it can even break us, like when I accidentally Bluetoothed my Blackberry contacts to my daughter’s regular phone. Her phone locked up with all the “wrong stuff.”
Do we synchronize our faith? Do we plug our God into the USB port of our need or personal world and blend it until nothing is true, definable, or authentic? Could we be guilty of religious syncing with wrong stuff?
Us? We’re believers, right. Worshippers of God. We couldn’t be guilty, could we?
Do we worship the institution called church? Do we give our everything to our children, spouse, or family? Do we worship our selfish interests, or “this is the way I am” and “this is the way I do things.” Could we be guilty of setting our desires and longing on stuff, yet blend all this worship with a religious nod toward God?
Do we synchronize our faith in the One True God with all these culturally acceptable behaviors?
I’m guilty.
The last part of chapter 17 in 2 Kings describes how groups from various nations were settled in Israel bringing their culture with them, blending worship of God into their life’s mix. “And though they worshipped the Lord, they continued to follow their own gods according to the religious customs of the nations from which they came” (2 Kgs. 17:33).
The people practiced a spiritual acknowledgement of God without a commitment or change in their life. How can we not be guilty of the same thing? How can we be totally given to God? Without mixture? How can we be a true, definable, and authentic Christ follower?
What insights can you share from your journey?
Relax. Live in the Moment.
My life whizzes by in increments that seem like decades instead of minutes. Moments slip right by without even a nod. I’m too busy, preoccupied, or focused to relax and live in the moment. And I hate it. I don’t like how I’ve become. Are you like me, missing life’s little joys, or do you have a sure fire way to enjoy your moments?
This Memorial Day, it was all I could do to simply sit and enjoy the sun, family, and rest. My mind ran through all the stuff needing to be done. Writing projects. Speaking preparation. And event planning. The pace threatened to consume my moments relaxing with family. Guilt ridden, I managed to keep away from the computer and work, but when I relaxed I was horribly sleepy.
I needed a “debriefing” after the previous two week run. Each day piled more stuff on the list, and left no time to accomplish anything I spent five days at the Colorado Christian Writer’s Conference and came home with lots of requests and new friends needing follow up.
During a brief unload, wash, and reload of my suitcase, I watched my super-organized daughter destroy all that was sacred about my office space as she “moved my cheese” to another room.
I tried to be organized with the hotel information in Dallas/Ft. Worth where I was headed, but I couldn’t find the name, address, or metro area of the hotel in which I was supposed to sleep. (Many thanks to Twitter friends and husband’s work associates who helped me find my way.)
On the road again to Thelma Wells and the Ready to Win Conference, I spent three days with my dear friend Lou. We met more friends, experienced great worship, and yes, more stuff piled on. I can’t even see the top of the to do list any more.
When I got home, I put my suitcase into another car along my family’s luggage and off we went for Memorial Day at the lake with my mom and brother’s family. One would think I would want to relax, enjoy the moments with my little nephew and other family members. And I did, but I couldn’t turn my mind’s switch off and never fully engaged the moment.
Did I tell you I hate feeling this way?
Now, I’m back at home in my new space that still has my “old cheese smell” with stuff piled high on this to do list. I want to throw the list away and start over. Can I ignore all that stuff on the calendar, the sticky notes, the promises to deliver, and e-mail alarms?
What’s this? A jury summons! (sigh) Maybe they’ll arrest me for contempt of court or whatever for not showing up. Then I can rest.
What helps you relax and enjoy the moments of life? How do you deal with life’s stuff that piles up stealing from you that little something precious?
Oh, by the way, I was instructed to “Relax. Enjoy the moment” in the Colorado Rockies when this two week run started. A shoot ‘em straight kind of girl shared pointedly that I needed to live in the moments, enjoy the mountains. She’s a truth-filled friend, Suzie Eller. You might want to look her up.
Suzie’s counsel was profound, but I’m still trying to figure out the how. I need all the help I can get. Please send me your tips.
Climbing the ladder to glimpse the top of stuff to do. . .Back to sorting the priorities and work . . .
If you got a moment (yeah, I know), please pray for me to live in my moments.
May the blessings of moments be alive and real for us all.
Are churches engaging the culture, making changes to spread the news and share the hope of Jesus? Or are they just twittering?
In business, I’ve tweeted quotes of conference speakers. And, when attendance wasn’t an option, I’ve watched tweets of twitterers at the conference. Their twittering created a feeling of connection with the event and gave the most impressive information almost like I was there. I’ve also taken conference notes on my iPhone and scheduled noted events in my calendar all while listening to the speaker. I’ve seen speakers reading scripture from their Blackberry and following their presentation notes from the same. Mobile devices aren’t just phones to those who utilize their great functionality. They’re cool tools!
Should these awesome devices be used during church? For a long time I’ve thought how Twitter can be used to create a community that is involved rather than spectating during church. Christ followers want to interact, make a difference, and worship. They don’t want to watch church. They want to engage. Those who use mobile devices and Twitter in their everyday life will naturally want to do so during church.
Twitterers heralded the prayer request for the shooting of Pastor Fred Winters of Maryville, IL that happened during a church service. My husband and I received the real-time tweet and brought the request to the attention of our church meeting a thousand miles away. Real-time prayer needs. Should we twitter in church?
I wonder if the question of twittering in church could be rephrased, “Should church engage the culture?” When we send missionaries into a culture, they study it to learn effective ministry in it. We live in a post Christian culture that needs engagement for the purpose of sharing Jesus. My previous post with great video, Twittering Ministry, shows how today’s business world has changed and the implications for necessary change in ministry.
Once I had a friend jokingly tap me on the shoulder during the service and whisper, “Are you texting in church?” Me, a preacher’s wife, texting in church? I’ll admit to nothing. At that time I was only taking notes.
It seems taboo to utilize a different way of making notes than scribbling on a piece of paper. Wasn’t there a time when scribbling on paper was considered prep for passing notes in church? Now churches have fill in the blank outlines and other methods of engaging attendees with note taking. Why not the PDA? It won’t get lost or tossed as scrap.
Churches could teach their parishioners how to engage each other and their community during church with these not-so-new tools and alleviate the stigma of “not paying attention.” The fact is users may be even more engaged in worship and ministry than those sleeping or staring blankly at the wall behind the pastor. (Do you know how many ceiling tiles are in your church?)
Time magazine released an interesting article worth reading, “Twittering in Church with the Pastor’s O.K.” Certainly our world gets it, and some churches are getting on board as well. Check out a worship leader’s perspective “Using Twitter the Phone in Church.” by Chad.
“What is Twitter?” some ask. It’s micro-blogging, or broadcast texting. You can say whatever to whoever wants to listen in 140 characters. You can use text messaging on phones, applications on PDA’s, and online computers to Tweet. For a better description of the what and how of Twitter, check out Michael Hyatt’s step-by-step posts or peruse Social Media Strategies and Tools Explained blog by Beth.
Oh, and tweet me, @RobinBryce. Let’s engage for the glory of Christ.
Starting is “the first step toward success,” said John C. Maxwell, international leadership expert in business and ministry. Starting is the hardest step because it’s a commitment to begin something. Dedication is difficult. Our lack of risk taking and jumping off with that first step often causes success to elude us.
“False starts and weak foundations can be ruinous,” said Maxwell. We rehearse first impressions, opening statements, and initial handshakes because how we start is important. Here’s a summary of Maxwell’s five insights to a positive start.
Now, where do we begin? Oh yeah, with myself. See you in success corner. Summarized from Maxwell’s post on the "Starting – The First Step Toward Success" on the Catalyst blog. Hop on over there to read his article and get started toward success.
Ready to win? We have opportunity to gain the encouragement we need to rise above, get over the hump, and get out of the slump. We’ll find inspiration to take charge of our lives. And it’s FREE! Let’s go, girlfriends.
On May 22-23, 2009, join Thelma Wells at her Ready To Win Conference in Garland, TX (Dallas area). It’s free! Register for your free tickets and get more information at ThelmaWells.com.
Thelma’s the real deal, an authentic Christ follower that’s been in the slump, at the bottom of the hump, and in need of rising up. She knows how to win in difficult situations. Come join in, if you’re Ready To Win. You’ll be blessed.
I’ll be there. Tweet me @RobinBryce, and we can have a Tweet-up for fun. if you’re unsure what Twitter is click Twittering Church? for links of explanation. Look forward to seeing you there.
