tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3507667585977156590.post6599747083786295140..comments2023-03-19T03:45:38.315-07:00Comments on Adventures of BigKat: Shining EyesBigKathttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00965296514466216108noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3507667585977156590.post-11782614718521332482008-07-08T10:06:00.000-07:002008-07-08T10:06:00.000-07:00Thanks Mike. Your point about not having a limited...Thanks Mike. Your point about not having a limited timeframe is a good one. I think it would be nice if Children's Ministry and Adult Ministry could have some coordinated overlap in a dedicated Family Ministry. Where both parents and kids could get really excited about something they learned at church, and work together to explore it during the week. I would really like to see the parents at our church taking a larger role in the spiritual development of their kids. I don't know how similar our congregation is to others, but for us, this is an area that definitely could use some help.BigKathttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00965296514466216108noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3507667585977156590.post-86613936300546369082008-07-05T06:45:00.000-07:002008-07-05T06:45:00.000-07:00Your post is interesting and it touches on the key...Your post is interesting and it touches on the key matter of communicating the Gospel in any culture. This matter is one of values and the problem we face (as every culture does) is that our society does not value the things God values most. <BR/><BR/>The teacher you mention conveys the value of a piece of music (or works to instill an appreciation for it in others) by getting them to look at the music as the composer did. The Bible, from start to finish, is trying to do that. It shows the story of man's relationship with God from God's perspective. In seeing that, we can find what God values. <BR/><BR/>The goal of a minister or teacher of the Bible, then is to help his or her students understand the value of those things too. It's very hard to do in our society because we usually get one to three hours a week with each other. The rest of the time the members of our churches, largely through the media, are buried in powerful messages that push the culture's opposing values.<BR/><BR/>From what I see in churches I've visited is that we rarely ever address this directly. Some churches ignore this important front completely. They are mostly stagnant. <BR/><BR/>Others try to slip the Gospel in along with things the culture does value. The example you gave about friendship illustrates this well. We can agree with our culture that friendship is important, so along with it we try to put in some Jesus. I see my own congregation falling into this trap as they've changed over to a "seeker friendly" format in our Sunday services. The end result might be a growing church in terms of numbers, but leaders deal with lack of commitment. There's little depth. What generally happens is people get their eternal life in order, so they believe, and while they're here they get on with chasing the same things everyone else chases after.<BR/><BR/>Ultimately, when our world keeps telling us, "Get more for yourself" and Jesus said, "He who loses his life for my sake will find it" we are completely at odds with the world at the fundamental level. The church that takes this matter seriously and addresses it in creative ways will be filled with Christians who are alive and making a difference. How do we do this? I don't have any answers at this point. I'm just encouraged to hear of people like yourself that are on the right track and seeking God for guidance.mpetty39https://www.blogger.com/profile/14509233705224792025noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3507667585977156590.post-8687194353604314712008-07-03T13:01:00.000-07:002008-07-03T13:01:00.000-07:00Wow....and amen! That is beautiful and amazing an...Wow....and amen! That is beautiful and amazing and convicting. Thank you so much for sharing that!Tarahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13234713187726991085noreply@blogger.com