Thoughts on “Love the Way You Lie” by Eminem featuring Rihanna

“Love The Way You Lie” has been viewed on Youtube a staggering 250,000,000 million times.  In the 24 hours between the first and second time I watched the video, it was viewed 4 million more times (after months of being on air I couldn’t believe it’s still so popular).  It is “liked” 556,000 times compared to 16,000 dislikes.  So, what is the song about and what is there that needs to be discussed?

The song is about

New Year’s Resolutions: Love ’em or Hate ’em?

I’ll admit it: I like making new year’s resolutions.  I believe they are helpful even when I fail in them.  Why?  Because setting goals is at least as important as reaching those goals.  If you are not willing to set goals, you simply will never reach anything.  There are many famous quotes out there about that sort of thing, but I’m not going to go searching for them – suffice to say its’ just plain true.  As I was browsing the web to get stats on NYR’s, two numbers were repeated on several sites

Living a Worthy Life

“Only let your manner of life be worthy of the gospel of Christ…” Phil. 1:27

What does it meant to live a worthy life?  That’s the question that struck me as I was reading this morning in Philippians 1.  And, even if we can figure out what it means to live a worthy life, what does it mean to live a worthy life of the gospel of Jesus Christ?  Aren’t we always and forever unworthy of the gospel of Jesus Christ?  This was haunting me for a while this morning, and as I have been thinking and praying about it, I believe

Reverse Engineering Your Life

What are you going to do with your life next year?  How are you going to accomplish it?  I’m not just talking about New Year’s Resolutions here people, but real “move your life forward” kind of stuff.  A few years ago I was introduced to a concept called “Reverse Engineering Your Life” by pastor Mark Driscoll, who started Mars Hill Church in Seattle.  The concept is a down-to-earth look at how to go about working on your life instead of just in your life.  And because Noelle and I are

Video: Mark Driscoll, Francis Chan, and Joshua Harris together

Here is an insightful video by Mark Driscoll, Francis Chan, and Joshua Harris. In it, Chan describes his reasoning for leaving the church he was at for many years and his heart for the Gospel.  The video is a rare chance for people to see three well known men talk as friends, ask penetrating questions, and see raw and real answers.

Christmas Recaptured: The Conclusion

“For unto you is born this day in the city of David, a Savior, who is Christ the Lord”  Luke 2:11

Whenever I hear the story of Christ’s birth read from the book of Luke, I always think of two things: “A Charlie Brown Christmas” and my great-grandpa JP.  In “A Charlie Brown Christmas”, Linus recounts the story of Jesus’ birth with the spotlight on and his blanket over his shoulder.  My great-grandpa JP would always read the story on Christmas Eve, just before we’d open presents.  JP was all tatted up with tattoos that had smeared due to his wrinkly skin; he was

Devo: Participants In Grace

“for you are all partakes with me of grace…” Philippians 1:7

It is one thing to experience grace for yourself, and it is still another thing to participate with others in the grace of God.  Experiencing grace is essential for understanding and believing the Gospel of Jesus Christ.  Have you experienced this grace yet?  Have you known that time (maybe it was a period of time, maybe one point in time) when Christ has called you, by grace, and you responded in faith?  Have you felt the mighty peace of God invade your soul, calling you his child and making you a new creation?  These are experiences of grace that are intensely personal – they are not to be entirely individual, however.

God never saves you into an individual Christianity.  He saves you into a community of people who believe with you, who are participants of God’s grace.  An isolated Christianity, one in which you believe you are to go it alone, the “me against the world” mentality, is the exact opposite of one major blessing of knowing Christ.  A participant, or partaker, of grace is someone who shares their life with others, as God has shared his life with you.

How do you participate in grace?  For the apostle Paul it meant the church in Philippi was willing to stand with him through the shame of imprisonment, and also to share in the work of the Gospel in the city.  For us it can mean many things:  Extending grace to those who have hurt you; confessing to believers your sin, not so that they forgive you themselves but so that they can apply the Gospel of grace through Jesus Christ to your soul; praising God for someone’s growth in Christ and love for him.  Participating in grace includes sharing in trials together – weeping when it is necessary, doing all that you can to comfort those in pain; it is also sharing in joy together – celebrating God’s kindness and mercy, his provision and his timing.

There are endless ways to participate in grace together.  Please comment below about a time you have been able to share in God’s grace with believers – those are the stories that build one another up and indeed can be a way of participating in grace together!

De-Mythologizing the Nativity Story

Warning:  this article may be an assault to many ideas you have assumed to be true relating to the nativity scene sitting in your living room or, if you are a super Christian, the life-sized one you have in your front yard.

Just what was the birth of Jesus like, anyways?  If we look to traditional nativities in churches or in our homes we will be

Christmas Recaptured, part 4

“And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in swaddling cloths and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn.”  Luke 2:7

There are times when I wish the Bible gave just a little more detail about events – how they happened, exact sequence of events, stuff like that.  Have you ever noticed how often in the Gospel accounts one of the writers finishes a story and then starts the next story with “One day…”  Well, Matthew, exactly

Christmas Recaptured, part 3

Part 1 Part 2

Zechariah had to be anxiously awaiting his son’s birth.  Not only was this his first and only child, but he had been mute because of his unbelief and perhaps he had figured out that another test was awaiting him to see if this time he would get it right.  Nine months ago he had been visited by Gabriel with the promise of a child – God had heard his prayers, prayers likely not only for a son of his own but for the promised Messiah to come soon.  But, he was not