Intentional Faith

What someone has called the pleasure explosion has overtaken us so that in the United States alone the pleasure business has been growing at an average rate of 6 billion dollars a year since 1965. Thrills and chills are available on demand. Popular amusement parks offer themes and thrills of all sorts, including spectacular shows and breathtaking rides. And there are the video games, which rival TV itself, one of the most pervasive sources of amusement. One estimate is that 5 billion or more is spent in a single year on video games and that during a single year people play them for the equivalent of 75 thousand manned years. Over and above that something like an additional one billion dollars is spent annually on games that can be plugged in and played on television sets and computers in our homes.

There can be little doubt that we have become a generation addicted to pleasure, that this is a generation addicted to pleasure more than to the things of God. The United States probably has the greatest percentage of people going to church on a more or less regular basis. The spending habits of the American public make it quite evident that token attendance to religious duties is in no way allowed to interfere with most people’s pleasures.

One survey taken some years ago, that is still relatively valid today, showed that in one year Americans spent 16 billion dollars for amusements, 10.5 billion for alcohol, 5 billion for tobacco, 2 billion for travel, 325 million for cat and dog food, 304 million for chewing gum, and 76 million for lipstick. During the same period, the total given for foreign missions by all Protestant churches of the United States was said to be only 145 million dollars–less than half of what Americans spent on chewing gum. 

 

In a world where we only hope our children come back to church when they have children, there is a report you need to read and remember.

The Barna Group – Does Having Children Make Parents More Active Churchgoers?

From Michael

Jack Martens is a fifty-six year old teacher who has spent 33 years teaching music at Ben Franklin Middle School in San Francisco.

"Over 50 percent of Martens’ students are from broken homes. The same number are on welfare. Nearly that many come from families where English is not the primary language. To that score, add the reality factor that funding for the arts has been all but cut off in Jack’s school district."

He sees himself as Father Christmas bringing joy to girls and boys all year long. Jack’s ultimate desire is to help kids in his band see God’s love. Although Martens keeps a Bible and other Christian symbols on his desk, "it is his interaction with the kids that gives his witness a melody line."

He eats lunch with them to give them a chance to talk through their problems at home with somebody. He stays after school to help with difficult fingerings with their instruments and difficult passages in life. Through the mechanics of music, he is able to communicate with disadvantaged and academically struggling students that they are capable of doing something beautiful with their lives.

Every December as the Band from Ben’s performs in the Nordstrom Plaza dressed in their nicely pressed white shirts, black slacks and skirts, it’s not only the Christmas shoppers that feel the spirit of the season. The kids in the band (who otherwise might be in a gang or in the juvenile detention center) feel the joy of God’s love incarnated through a man they love and respect.

Jack Martens "is a "minister" who marches to the beat of a different drummer. He is not ordained, has never been to seminary, and doesn’t preach from a pulpit. But he is a pastor nonetheless. Ask the over 10,000 students who have benefited from his ministry on the other side of a music stand."

According to results from a new report released last week, the face of motherhood has shifted significantly during the past two decades. Today’s mothers of newborns are older and better educated, they are less likely to be white, and less likely to be married. Among the key findings of this report:

• Age: Mothers of newborns are older now than their counterparts were two decades ago. In 1990, teens had a higher share of all births (13%) than did women ages 35 and older (9%). In 2008, the reverse was true — 10 percent of births were to teens, compared with 14 percent to women ages 35 and older.

• Marital Status: A record four-in-ten births (41%) were to unmarried women in 2008, including most births to women in their early 20s. In 1990, 28 percent of births were to unmarried women. The unmarried-mother share of births has increased most sharply for whites and Hispanics, although the highest share is for black women.

• Race and Ethnicity: White women made up 53 percent of mothers of newborns in 2008, down from 65 percent in 1990. The share of births to Hispanic women has grown dramatically to one-in-four.

• Education: Most mothers of newborns (54%) had at least some college education in 2006, an increase from 41 percent in 1990. Among mothers of newborns who were ages 35 and older, 71 percent had at least some college education.

• Attitudes About Parenthood: When asked why they decided to have their first (or only) child, the overwhelming majority of parents (87%) answer, "The joy of having children." But, nearly half (47%) also say, "There wasn’t a reason; it just happened."

All the trends above reflect a complex mix of demographic and behavioral factors. For example, the higher share of college-educated mothers stems both from their rising birth rates and from women’s increasing educational attainment. The rise in births to unmarried women reflects both their rising birth rates and the shrinking share of adults who are married.

This report examined the changing demographic characteristics of U.S. mothers by comparing women who gave birth in 2008 with those who gave birth in 1990 and is based on data from the National Center for Health Statistics and the Census Bureau, as well as results of a nationwide Pew Research Center survey. [PewResearch.org]

A father was filling out an application form for his daughter, who was seeking entrance to a very exclusive college. He came to the question on the form which asked whether the applicant was a leader. In honesty, he wrote, "No, but she is a good follower."

The application was sent in, and a month later a letter arrived notifying him that his daughter had been accepted. At the bottom of the page, the dean had written, "Since the entering class of 500 has 499 leaders, we thought that there ought to be room for one follower."

Here is to the followers.  Michael

May 10, 2010 – Spring is graduation season for millions of students. What are the aspirations of today’s teenagers as they think about their future? A new research study from the Barna Group examined a representative, nationwide sample of 602 teenagers, asking them to describe what they think their life will be like roughly 10 years from now, when they are young adults. To help teens respond with a specific time horizon in mind, the survey asked them what they believe their lives will be like when they are 25-years-old.

College and Career
The most common aspirations of teenagers were related to college and their professional pursuits. Finishing a college degree was their top-rated future priority. A majority of teenagers felt certain that they would accomplish this goal by age 25. In all, 93% of teenagers said they would either definitely or probably obtain a college degree by their mid-twenties. In terms of career, 81% of teenagers felt they are likely to have a “great-paying job” by the time they are 25. Displaying their we-want-it-all perspective, 80% of teens also believed they would be serving in a “job where they can make a difference” by that age.

God and Global
Having a connection with God and international travel emerged as second-level priorities. Nearly three-quarters of teenagers felt they would have a close, personal relationship with God (72%) in the next decade or so. About seven out of 10 youths (71%) said they will definitely or probably have traveled to other countries by their mid-twenties.

Family and Church
Marriage and church involvement were on the third tier of aspirations. Most American teenagers expect to be engaged in these traditional institutions (58% and 63%, respectively). However, only a small percentage felt certain about these outcomes in their own lives: 29% of teenagers felt they would definitely be “actively involved in a church or faith community” and just 12% of teenagers felt certain about “being married” by age 25. Teenagers are even less likely to entertain traditional goals regarding parenting. Less than half of teenagers (40%) felt they may have children by age 25 and only one out of 11 (9%) said they would definitely become a parent in their early adult years. Of course, considerations of marriage and parenting are dependent on finding a willing partner; nonetheless, these pursuits are not top priorities for most students.
Fame versus Service
Media are filled with celebrity news and obscure-turned-famous individuals often made stars via reality television. Given the cultural fascination with fame, perhaps it is not surprising that one-quarter of teenagers (26%) said they expect to be “famous or well known” by the time they reach age 25. To their credit, teens are more likely to express the desire to be “regularly serving the poor” (48%) than to be famous, although that priority is less flattering considering that only 7% of teenagers said they would definitely be doing such other-oriented work as a young adult.
Matters of Faith
Faith seems to influence what teens want in their lives. In terms of denomination, students who attend mainline churches were more likely than average to aspire to travel to other countries, while Protestant non-mainline attenders were above average in terms of their spiritual priorities (wanting to be close to God and active in a church). Non-mainline youth were also more likely than the norm to want to regularly serve the poor, yet they also were more interested than their peers in becoming famous. 
Strong interest in staying connected with a church was most common among non-mainline teenagers (49%). Only one-quarter of mainline students (25%) and one-fifth of Catholic teens (20%) said they definitely expect their life to include active involvement with a faith community or church by age 25.
Current church attendance appears to be a better predictor of future religious activity than is a teen’s religious affiliation. Among weekly attenders of religious youth groups, 60% said they definitely will be involved in a church in the future, which compares to just 22% of teens who attend less frequently and 14% among teens who never attend such religious functions.

Age and Gender
Demographic differences played a significant role in teen aspirations. Teen girls were more likely than boys to define priorities and objectives. Girls were more likely to picture their lives with nine out of the 10 elements assessed in the study (the exception was being famous, an aspiration equally attractive to both sexes). Young women were twice as likely as young men to want a difference-making job, to be married, to have children, and to regularly serve the poor.

In terms of age, the youngest teens were much more idealistic than older teens in many ways. One of the biggest gaps is their predicted connection to a church: 41% of middle schoolers expect to be actively involved in a congregation, but that drops to 26% of high school freshman and sophomores and 24% among juniors and seniors.

High school students were also less likely than middle-schoolers to believe they would have a great-paying job, be married, have kids, be serving the poor, or experience fame by the age of 25.

The Romans sometimes compelled a captive to be joined face-to-face with a dead body, and to bear it about until the horrible emanating smell destroyed the life of the living victim. Virgil describes this cruel punishment: The living and the dead at his command Were coupled face to face, and hand to hand; Till choked with stench, in loathed embraces tied, The lingering wretches pined away and died. Without Christ, we are shackled to a dead corpse—our sinfulness. Only repentance frees us from certain death, for life and death cannot coexist indefinitely.

Give thanks today that Christ and liberated you to walk spiritually.  Michael

An old Italian lived alone in New Jersey. He wanted to plant his annual tomato garden, but it was very difficult work, as the ground was hard. His only son, Vincent, who used to help him, was in prison. The old man wrote a letter to his son and described his predicament:
Dear Vincent,
I am feeling pretty sad, because it looks like I won’t be able to plant my tomato garden this year. I’m just getting too old to be digging up a garden plot. I know if you were here my troubles would be over. I know you would be happy to dig up the ground for me, like in the old days.
Love, Papa
A few days later the father received a letter from his son:
Dear Pop,
Don’t dig up that garden. That’s where the bodies are buried.
Love, Vinnie
At 4:00 A.M. the next morning, FBI agents and local police arrived and dug up the entire area without finding any bodies. They apologized to the old man and left. The same day, the man received another letter from his son:
Dear Pop,
Go ahead and plant the tomatoes now. That’s the best I could do under the circumstances.
I love you, Vinnie

A man in North Carolina bought a new car with a voice-warning system. … At first he was amused to hear the soft female voice gently remind him that his seat belt wasn’t fastened. … Edwin affectionately called this voice the "little woman."

He soon discovered his little woman was programmed to warn him about his gasoline. "Your fuel level is low," she said one time in her sweet voice. Edwin nodded his head and thanked her. He figured he still had enough to go another fifty miles, so he kept on driving. But a few minutes later, her voice interrupted again with the same warning.

And so it went over and over. Although he knew it was the same recording, Edwin thought her voice sounded harsher each time. Finally, he stopped his car and crawled under the dashboard. After a quick search, he found the appropriate wires and gave them a good yank. So much for the little woman!
He was still smiling to himself a few miles later when his car began sputtering and coughing. He ran out of gas! Somewhere inside the dashboard, Edwin was sure he could hear the little woman laughing.
People like Edwin learn before long that the little voice inside, although ignored or even disconnected, often tells them exactly what they need to know.

Follow these instructions to the letter and wear leather gloves, long pants, and a jacket.

1. Put any make toilet cleaner into the bowl and flush it three times to prep the instrument.

3. Put both lids of the toilet up and add 1/8 cup of pet shampoo to the water in the bowl.

4. Pick up the cat and soothe him/her while you carry him/her towards the bathroom. Note: Unspayed males are more effectively cleaned using this method.

5. In one smooth movement, put the cat in the toilet and close both lids. You may need to sit down on the lid.

6. The cat will self agitate and make ample suds. Never mind the noises that come from the toilet, the cat is actually enjoying this swim in their own private swimming pool.

7. Flush the toilet at least three times. This provides a “power-wash” and then a “double rinse”. The spin cycle is cat-o-matic.

8. Make sure there are no living things between the toilet and the front door. You can hold down the toilet seat by leaning in from the shower or tub. Make sure to stand as far from the toilet as far as you can and quickly lift both lids.

9. The cat will rocket out of the toilet, streak through the bathroom, run through the house, and out the front door where he/her will dry him/herself off.

10. You will find that both the commode and the cat will be sparkling clean.

Sincerely,
The Family Dog