Praying for your cold, dark heart

What comes out of a person is what defiles him.  For from within, out of the heart of man, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, coveting, wickedness, deceit, sensuality, envy, slander, pride, foolishness.  All these evil things come from within, and they defile a person." 

Mark 7:20-23

Grace for Sandusky???

I have watched the revelations surrounding Penn's State's football program with horror and sadness.  This week, Jerry Sandusky, a former coach at Penn State and founder of Second Mile, a charity for underprivileged boys, was charged with 40 counts of criminal sexual assault. Over the last few days, Penn State's President (Graham Spanier), Athletic Director (Tim Curley), Sr. VP of Business (Gary Schultz), and legendary football coach Joe Paterno have either resigned or been terminated. I believe that this is just the beginning, and could lead to the resignation of the governor of Pennsylvania.

What is your authority for "Truth"

This article, originally posted on the church leaders.com website, is a great example of why Mars Hill Church in Grand Rapids scares me. My comments follow the article.

David Wisen: Investment Manager

I alway struggle answering the simple question: "What do you do"? I have worn several different hats and been involved in several businesses, and over the past 20 years the answer to that question has included analyst, stock/commodity trader, real estate developer, baker, and president of the Van Kampen Group. Add to that husband, father, coach, elder...and now Pastor. For the past five years, my business card has simply listed my title as "Bondslave of Jesus Christ". This created a platform for my testimony in the business community. Now that I am a pastor, I think I am going to use reverse logic and refer to myself as an "Investment Manager". I am beginning to realize that the roles of managing money and pastoring are similar in many ways.  For instance;