Indy Christian .com -- Daily Internet Starting-line: 02/01/2005

Barna Report... Parents & Children...

Barna Research Reports:
Parents Describe How They Raise Their Children

"Parenting is a controversial and complicated issue. Our latest survey examines some of the key elements on which parents focus. The survey describes the most crucial outcomes parents are striving to help their children achieve, the most important qualities parents feel they must have to be effective, and some of the tradeoffs they make in their parenting efforts. The role of the family’s faith commitments is also explored to discern their impact on the parenting process. " [continue at Barna.org]

Five-Minute Video of Terri Schiavo...

A five-minute video is now available online of Terri Schiavo, showing interaction (with her mother)... while sitting up, awake, not comatose... Judge for yourselves...
[continued at Hyscience]

[hat-tip, keep up on the very latest at... ProLifeBlogs Aggregator]

March 8th 'Transform Indiana' meeting...

Jimmy Dorrell, Mission Waco

The March 8th meeting of Transform Indiana will again coincide with the "Community Faith Forum" series. This time, the special guest speaker will be Jimmy Dorrell, from Mission Waco. He'll speak in the morning for the forum (open to the public), and then will join us for our lunchtime meeting of Transform Indiana (open to Christian pastors, elders, prayer warriors, webmasters, etc.... from noon til 2pm).

The meeting rotates to Neighborhood Fellowship on east 10th street, where Outreach Indiana is co-located. It should be yet another great meeting. [Thanks Scott & everyone involved with CCDA Indy 2005, for collaborating like this, to impact lives & communities in the ONE name of Christ!]

See you all on Tuesday the 8th .

Quote of the Day Award goes to...

La Shawn Barber, blogging about Terri Schiavo's judge who seems to be tiring of the case & motions...

"Judge Greer’s got better things to do. March Madness must be on the horizon."

[Stay up with the latest Terri Schiavo case developments & conversation at ProLifeBlogs.com aggregator.]

Indianapolis Star features church sites online...

John Shaughnessy did a couple of excellent articles this morning for the Indianapolis Star:

"Web opens a new window on religion"

"Yet nearly everyone agrees about the dramatic impact that computers and the Internet are having on religious faith."

"Using a computer for online religious activity could become the dominant form of religion and religious activity in (this) century," says Brenda Brasher, author of 'Give Me That Online Religion' "

"Computers now a part of church life"

"Alton Clark uses computers to open a new world to members of Second Baptist Church in Indianapolis. The black church has 10 computers that are used to teach skills to children and train adults in keyboarding, the basics of the Internet and use of e-mail."

" 'We wanted to help people in our congregation get the skills they need to compete in the work force,' Clark says. "We know how fast the information highway is, and we don't want them to get caught in the slow lane. About 40 people have been through the class. It's helped some of them get a job.' "

Other Christian sites referenced in these articles:

[Btw, there are hundreds, not dozens, of Christian church websites in the Greater Indianapolis area. We've cataloged many of the 'Bible-believing' churches & ministries here at IndyChristian.com -- See the RH nav-bar section called... "Where Are Great Churches & Neighborhoods Around Indy?"]

[Your church interested in teaming up city-wide for collective impact? Networking? Prayer? Job-skills training? Mercy ministry? Evangelism? Contact us, or come to the Transform Indiana and/or CCDA meetings this week. Connect! And stay tuned for Internet Evangelism Day, April 24th.]

Lincoln Roundtable Breakfast... Mar.3rd

The Lincoln Roundtable

March 3rd, 7am.

Guest Speaker: Michael "Mickey" Maurer
President of the Indiana Economic Development Corp.

details & RSVP at... http://www.thelincolnroundtable.org/roundtable.html

Judy's Visit Video...

Last summer, Indiana's former First Lady visited the Unleavened Bread Cafe with a camera crew for her WFYI tv show, "Communities Building Community".

photo, WFYI

The show's video is now online. Enjoy seeing the cafe through Judy's eyes.

Visit UBbloggin.com where we've highlighted the story & link. And while you're there, check out the 'U.B.bloggin' innovative computer outreach we do down there at the cafe. And come join us some Saturday morning as a volunteer. Can you surf? email? Would you like to know how to 'blog'? Build some multi-cultural relationships?

Judy enjoyed 'the cafe' and you will too.

Pearly-gate Accounting Problem...

[per email from Old Scouter]

A man dies and goes to heaven.

Of course, St. Peter meets him at the Pearly Gates.

St. Peter says, "Here's how it works. You need 100 points to make it into heaven. You tell me all the good things you've done, and I give you a certain number of points for each item, depending on how good it was. When you reach 100 points, you get in."

"Okay," the man says, "I was married to the same woman for 50 years and never cheated on her, even in my heart." "That's wonderful," says St. Peter, "that's worth three points!" "Three points?" he says.

"Well, I attended church all my life and supported its ministry with my tithe and service." "Terrific!" says St. Peter. "That's certainly worth a point." "One point!?!!"

"I started a soup kitchen in my city and worked in a shelter for homeless veterans." "Fantastic, that's good for two more points," he says. "Two points!?!!"

Exasperated, the man cries. "At this rate the only way I'll get into heaven is by the grace of God."

"Bingo, 100 points! Come on in!"

We often try to fix problems with WD-40 and duct tape. God did it with a nail. AMEN!

User News...

We now want to 'open the floor' daily, to additional local news for Greater Indianapolis Christians... contributed by our users.

So leave a comment about church news, links etc. that could be important to our growing base of daily readers.

Disclaimer: IndyChristian.com cannot be held responsible for the accuracy of such info. Upon review, comments may be deleted if, in the opinion of the editor, they do not serve the mission of IndyChristian.com. Abuse of this feature should be reported at... 490-1255.

Breaking News... Anglicans headed for split

[continued at Wired News]

John Maxwell Simulcast... April 29...

[This, from Crossroads Bible Church...]

"The Influential Leader" seminar... April 29th, via live feed.

[continue at Crossroads Bible Church site]

Right-to-Life Legislative Update...

[continued at Indiana Right To Life]

Prayer Across America... Today is Indiana...

"Every State, Every Capital"

"Dear friends of the vision, we made it through our 21st capital prayer meeting. It was very challenging with 30 degree temperature and a major snow shower just before our 1:00 PM prayer time. We were so excited about coming to Columbus, OH because of the vision a group of intercessors experienced in 1999. Their vision was that coals of fire would be planted in every capital city and the wind of the Spirit would blow across them and a great awakening would coming to America from sea to shinning sea. "

"We are now headed for Indianapolis.... Keep praying for us as we are diligent to this great call from the Holy Spirit."

[Come and pray... 1:00pm on the steps of the Indiana capitol]

[continue at PrayerAcrossAmerica.org]

Judge extends Schiavo stay for 48 hrs...

[continue at CNN.com]

...and continue to pray.

"Changing Times, Changing Ethics"...

Editorial, by Neil Cox, LovingChange.com

Their conclusions are just wrong. At least as a broad brush-stroke over all of us.

"Quentin J. Schultze, professor of communication at Calvin College in Grand Rapids, Mich., says society’s love affair with the Internet reflects the “increasingly frenetic, chaotic and morally impoverished lives” of North Americans—lives that leave precious little time to consider ethical concerns about Internet use."

[Editorial (and article link) continued at LovingChange.com]

Schiavo husband, parents to argue in court...

[continue at IndyStar.com]

...and pray.

Tippecanoe Community Impact Workshop

Eldon Kibbey, State Dir., CBMC -- "Connecting Businessmen to Christ"
Moderator, Transform Indiana ministry network

An action item at the Midwest City Impact Roundtable in October 2004 was to set up regional meetings around the State of Indiana, in order to connect people involved with transformation ministry.

The first of these meetings, called Community Impact Workshops, has been scheduled in Lafayette, IN, on Wed, March 30, 2005.

It will serve Tippecanoe and the surrounding 7 counties (Fountain, Warren, Benton, White, Carroll, Clinton, and Montgomery.)The invitations are not restricted to these counties, so all of you are welcome, but the Panel members, and other speakers will focus on regional matters.

[continue at TransformIndiana.com]

'This Hope'... Coming to Indy...

EAGLE CREEK GRACE BRETHREN CHURCH
7001 W. 46TH St.
293-3372
PRESENTS:
THIS HOPE IN CONCERT
SUNDAY, MARCH 13TH, 2005
Dessert Café and Coffee Bar open @ 5:45pm
Concert begins @ 6:30pm
Bring the whole family for this free concert. Join us as This Hope proclaims the love of Christ through praise and worship with their unique style of a cappella and accompanied music.
A LOVE OFFERING WILL BE TAKEN

[click for details & map]

Indiana Senate OKs ban on gay marriages...

"Change to state constitution expected to pass House next."

[continue at IndyStar.com]

Abortion foes look up to anti-slavery hero...

[Great article, Russ!]

Russ Pulliam, IndyStar

Abortion foes look up to anti-slavery hero
Black History Month is a good time for Americans to become familiar with a British political hero, William Wilberforce. Wilberforce led the movement to abolish slavery in the British Empire. Although he is not well known in America, a historically black college near Dayton, Ohio, is named after him. "

When your child says he doesn't believe anymore ...

An interesting entry written to parents whose children say they don't believe anymore.

As a youthworker, I can only imagine how gut-wrenching it must be to have your child, whom you sought to bring up in knowing the Lord, declare his / her unbelief.

Civil unions are not an option...

Editorial:

Christians... loving our God and loving our neighbors is our basic mandate.

With respect to the issue at hand -- proposing a Gay Marriage Ban (including a 'civil union ban'), how do we live out our Christianity?

W.W.J.D.?

When Jesus encountered the person caught in sexual sin, he defended her from the undeputized posse of lawyers & Pharisees... and lovingly, but clearly sent her on her way with the censure to 'sin no more'.

A society seeking to wipe out every person who sins... will eventually be a society of 1. Then 0. Conversely, a society that accepts all behaviors & propensities... will eventually be a society of 1. Then 0.

So let's follow Jesus' model: Let's love each person as someone made in God's image... and now innately scarred by sin. Let's humbly recognize we're all sinners ourselves. But let's not try to void God's rule-set as our basic guide. To do so is to fly in the face of God... and frankly, also in the face of the common sense that He instilled in us.

To try to re-label the basic family unit as 'civil unions' is a poorly-veiled attempt to get God on a technicality ...not to mention, imposing an artificial and temporary solution to just one particular sinful propensity. Which would be next?

None of us are sinless -- we were all born with sinful proclivities. So how about each of us proposing an end-run that legitimizes our particular behaviors & propensities? Why favor just one group because they're willing to openly oppose God?

The practical outworkings of recognizing 'civil unions' are to legislate a specially protected classification... thus opening the door yet wider for all sorts of specially protected classes.

Admittedly, it wouldn't be the government's first foray into protecting certain counter-productive behaviors & propensities which operate against an excellent society. After all, we have legislation allowing (and 'benefitting' from) gambling, etc.

But at least we haven't established them as a specially protected class in our state constitution.

We respectfully disagree with today's Indianapolis Star editorial. We do not need the 'flexibility' of civil unions built into our state constitution.

TI Planning Meeting... Tues, Feb.22nd...

Just a reminder: Those who are actively involved in reaching our cities throughout the state, and who can afford a couple of hours Tuesday afternoon to pray & plan together... you're welcome to join us at 3:00pm. [...at Eldon's conference room, near 86th on Georgetown. Call him at 871-4098 for directions or further info.]

[continue re other agenda items at TransformIndiana.com]

Btw, those of you who may be interested in 'putting your neighborhood on the map', so to speak, would be welcome to contact us. Our objective is to pervasively network the state, city-cluster by city-cluster, neighborhood-by-neighborhood, for great Christian communications. Our goal is 5,000 neighborhood-contacts across the state, accelerating prayer, care & share.

Stealth Bible: TNIV

Changing God's Words...

photo, World Magazine

'If the TNIV should gain wide acceptance, the precedent will be established for other Bible translations to mute unpopular nuances and details of meaning for the sake of "political correctness." The loss of many other doctrines unpopular in the culture will soon follow. And at every case Bible readers will never know if what they are reading is really the Word of God or the translators' ideas ..."

[continue at World Mag Blog]

For an interesting, but not yet definitive perspective, read today's post from one of the Christian web's most notable bloggers... Pastor Mark Roberts' "Is The TNIV Good News?". While we doubt that he'll concur with our conclusions about re the TNIV, we at least believe he makes a valid point directly from scripture:

"Wherefore putting away lying, speak every man truth with his neighbour: for we are members one of another. Be ye angry, and sin not: let not the sun go down upon your wrath: Neither give place to the devil. . . . Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers. And grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption. Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice: And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ’s sake hath forgiven you."

Finding... and Adopting...

photo from 'Bright Mystery'

Y'gotta love this new-found ability to find new friends via the net. But it's more than that. If they're bloggers, the rules have changed -- the guard is let down and it's way easier to get to know 'em from the inside-out. So you get to know folks much more quickly than if you sat beside them in church for a year.

Example: I just found a new local (Christian) blog & blogger... "Bright Mystery" (Robert Talbert). It was so interesting that I backed up and read through a lot of his archive there. [Btw, let's see you do that at the Indianapolis Star!] So in no time at all, you find him to be a '5-pointer' with a wife of 4.5 years and an adopted Chinese daughter of 1.0 years, and who revels about (almost) solving the 'twin prime conjecture', posts pics of his wife on the internet (shoveling his drive while he plays pirate --Aye Mateys!)... and later goes to a church where he enjoys smelling tortillas and hearing mariachi music. ***smile***some 'literary license' taken***

You can only imagine how very interesting Robert must be in front of his classroom.

So here's an interesting excerpt from 'Bright Mystery', with a generous helping of spiritual food for today.

"OK, so these big people have never failed to feed me, change me, play with me, keep me warm, protect me from the elements and from strange people. They've shown me new things and had lots of fun with me. Up till now I've never had any reason to think that things could be otherwise. But now the one with the deeper voice is walking out the door and leaving me in the arms of somebody else I don't know. I've not been left alone before like this -- except maybe one time before, long ago. So what do I do? Do I continue to trust? Is this person who he said he would be? "

"So here's where the spiritual lesson comes in...."

[continue at BrightMystery.net]

[Btw, we've now 'adopted' Robert's blog among our "Who's Who of Indy Bloggers" in the lower RH margin here at IndyChristian.com so you'll always be able to reach him when you think you've got an idea how to solve the 'twin prime conjecture'.]

Shield Law Proposal...

I enjoyed reading Dennis Ryerson's editorial today at IndyStar.com, "Shield law needed to protect public's right to know"... while at the same time wondering if he's philosophically including 'bloggers', to also be able to protect their sources.

Consider: As information-delivery becomes commoditized via the ubiquitous internet... if Dennis, Mike (Pence) and Richard (Lugar) get their way with a proposed 'shield law', won't pretty-much EVERYONE then be protected from having to tell the truth under oath?

Or will the Pence/Lugar legislation specifically only protect the MSM (mainstream media)? That is, the traditionally more liberal media stakeholders would be shielded, while still holding the new media -- a typically more conservative group -- accountable for truth-telling? It's an ironic twist, especially now that suddenly the new media is holding the MSM accountable for truth, lately.

It'll be an interesting discussion to be sure... and may raise exactly the question Ray Talbert's post raises, about discussing a distinctly Christian stance about privacy & security.

Thoughts anyone?

Two new films appeal to Christian audiences...

[continue at IndyStar.com]

Lesbian ordered to pay child support...

[continued at Indianapolis Star]

Northview's (WIRELESS) Cafe...

This morning was my first visit to the Capstone Cafe & Bookstore, on the campus of Northview Christian Life Center in Carmel.

Yeah, yeah, yeah, for sure, coffee & books. Really nice facilities. But importantly, the doors open to the OUTSIDE of the complex... not just inside. Looks like Northview is really headed somewhere with this as an outreach to their community. Hmmmm.

But another great part (IMHO) is what it represents to those of us who are pushing the paradigm by training e-capable Christians interested in community outreach... They're WIRELESS!!!

So imagine if you will, outreaching churches who are now perfectly positioned to train a great number of e-capable Christians to network for greater 'salt & light' impact in our new culture. In fact, that was part of my visit this morning -- to meet with a couple of Christian leader-types (who attend Northview), to empower them via some simple web-training using a laptop.

My mind runs wild... Perhaps Capstone could become a great partner with us, training & networking e-capable volunteers in the inner city, as we seek to help build relational networks throughout the metro area. Our objective, considering God's perfect sense of love & justice... is to bridge the 'digital divide', the multicultural divide... and all the while, seeking to help folks cross God's eternal divide. Could it be? [Stay tuned]

['U.B. Bloggin' is an inner-city outreach doing computer-training in the name of Christ. Our first location is the Unleavened Bread Cafe. Here's one of our early successes... a great urban pastor suddenly also empowered by simple e-capable skills and collaborating with the network... check him out now. And we'll be setting up at least 4 more locations, Lord willing, before the November CCDA Indy 2005 Conference.]

Pray with us, that solid suburban churches will catch the vision for collaborating with urban churches to create a citywide network of e-capable Christians focused on making it 'hard to go to hell from Indy'.

[hat-tip to Noah Kersey]

A Classic: Noonan on Blogs...

This is sure to become a classic...

Peggy Noonan boldly steps out from among the MSM (mainstream media) and defends bloggers...

"The Blogs Must Be Crazy. Or maybe the MSM is just suffering from freedom envy."

"Salivating morons." "Scalp hunters." "Moon howlers." "Trophy hunters." "Sons of Sen. McCarthy." "Rabid." "Blogswarm." "These pseudo-journalist lynch mob people."

"This is excellent invective. It must come from bloggers. But wait, it was the mainstream media and their maidservants in the elite journalism reviews, and they were talking about bloggers! "

"Those MSMers have gone wild, I tell you! The tendentious language, the low insults. It's the Wild Wild West out there. We may have to consider legislation. "

[continue at Wall Street Journal]

[LOL. Like I said, a classic. Hat-tip, Rudy Carrasco, Urban Onramps]

Judge Dismisses 'Philadelphia 5'...

“We are pleased and grateful that Philadelphia Judge Pamela Dembe has dropped all charges against the five Christians who were charged with felonies for preaching the Gospel to homosexuals,” said Traditional Values Coalition Chairman Louis P. Sheldon today. “These Christians should never have been charged in the first place and Judge Dembe clearly sees this."

[continue]

Speedtraps on the Information Highway...

It happens to all of us at one time or another. In fact, it happened to me the other night -- somebody had to pull me over and remind me...

"Slow it down, buddy!"

"Thank you, officer."

So this is similar, gentler, perhaps-funnier, reminder... about being 'quick to read, slow to become duped, and slow to forward'.... emails... and hoax-emails especially.

La Shawn Reporting from CPAC...

[It's always interesting to get the inside scoop from 'salt & light' Christians involved in the new media culture. Let's go to Washington with La Shawn today, as she's credentialed to cover CPAC.]

[continue at LaShawnBarber.com]

[previous IndyChristian posting re CPAC]

Today's National City-Reaching Teleconference Call...

Today was the regular monthly teleconference call among city-reachers, hosted by Mission America Coalition's city-reaching unit. The special topic was "Women Involved In City-reaching", and featured 3 notable Christian women... one of which visited Indianapolis recently... [continue at CityReaching.org]

Eason Jordan-gate: Confessions of a 'Salivating Moron'

[The bloggers vs. MSM spin-doctors continue. Excerpt to follow:]

"I did not realize I was a 'salivating moron' until Steve Lovelady, Managing Editor of the Columbia Journalism Review, informed me of that fact. His full quote was even harsher. Regarding the abrupt resignation of Eason Jordan, chief news executive for CNN, Lovelady wrote about us bloggers, “The salivating morons who make up the lynch mob prevail.”

I think he meant to write “prevailed.” His statement has become the signature quote in many publications from the New York Times to the Wall Street Journal on l’affaire Jordan. However inaccurate, that quote does embody the attitudes of the MSM (“mainstream media”) toward the “new media,” known as the blogosphere."

[continued at ChronWatch]

[Previously article from New York Times: "Resignation at CNN shows growinginfluence of blogs"

10 Bills Rekindle Abortion Debate

[continue article at Indianapolis Star]

Plant the seed!

by Becki Jenkins, Director, Missionary Connection

Matt 17:20 speaks of a faith the size of a mustard seed that can move mountains. Why then do we not see the mountains being moved? Perhaps the answer is in the verse before ( Matt 17: 17-19). The apostles were discussing with Jesus the reason why they were not able to drive demons out of a boy but Jesus was. His response to the apostles can be taken to heart in us today, “ Because you have little faith…”

But Jesus did not leave them there. He told His disciples what to do. He told them in verse 20 that if they would just have faith like the grain of a mustard seed they could move mountains.

I had the pleasure of speaking to a seasoned child of G-d who was discussing the mustard seed pendant around her neck. The seed was encased inside a small dome on a Cross. Though her discussion was one of faith I was stricken by the encapsulated mustard seed. I began to wonder if this did not carry some symbolism for the Church today and could it also be related to the lack of mountain moving on a scale that would represent the millions of G-ds people that reside upon His footstool today? I tried not to think about it but I could not escape the spiritual implication of it. I began to look to the word of G-d, intrigued by the question that arose within me. Is faith, faith, if the seed is not planted? It was not long before I ran across Matt 13:31 where Jesus likens the Church to a mustard seed that had been planted in a mans field. “ Though it is the smallest of all seeds, yet when it GROWS, it is the largest of garden plants and becomes a tree, so that birds of the air come and perch on its branches.”

I am a farm girl and have seen mustard seed plants go to seed. Each spurt of growth renders a large yellow plume of seeds that eventually burst to free the thousands of seeds encased within the stalk of the original plant. These little seedlings are then carried by the wind and will find good soil to grow then the process begins again and again. But the original plant keeps growing and as it grows, more yellow plums of seed develop and the process of growth and seed begin again and again on larger and larger scales. The plant, if left alone, will grow as large as a tree and around it will be millions of plants all growing at different rates but will all, if left alone, reach the heights of the original mustard plant.

When I think about this I am awed by the spiritual implication for us today. Especially since Jesus likened His Church to the growth cycle of a mustard seed. As we grow in faith we plant seeds of faith then the seed planted grows and plants more seeds of faith until the Church becomes a mighty tree of faith that no mountain could ever stand against in a forest of new faith growing stronger everyday. This small mustard seed, when planted, then becomes a faith that moves mountains!

Some of us have hidden our seed or have put it in capsule for safe keeping, therefore, no mountain responds to our command to move. Oh, we half heartedly trust G-d for our jobs and our houses/cars/food but we lack the faith to believe He can “Do all things” whatever that may mean. So we live with illnesses of the mind and the body for lack of faith to fight it. W e become victims to our lack of faith knowledge in any situation that confronts us. We fall to snares and we act as though we have no power. Though illness is a by product of sin we possess power against it. Though situations will come, we possess the victory over it before it began because of who He is in us. Because of who He is and because He lives within His people we then have the power to overcome any obstacle for the glory of His great names sake! If we could grasp this, we then can believe G-d when He told us in His mighty word, “greater things than these you will do…”

Think about what the greater thing would be? In our L-rds time on earth he performed many miracles as an example to us and for us. He healed diseases then told us that he “ would heal all of our diseases.” He gave life to those who had fallen in death . Tell me, what could be greater than that? But yet He tells us that we too would do these things but greater than He! Why? Because of Him and His power ,be assured, but in order for His word to be fulfilled we must allow Him to grow our faith by whatever means He deems needed so that His glory in our latter time would be greater. Because He said it, it has already come to pass in the heavenlies and we are playing catch up in the natural. All we could ever fight against is already won because of Jesus, the Christ! When we ask our L-rd for things according to His will and purpose we are simply agreeing with Him for things He has already released in Heaven!

Sometimes we will ask for things that are already ours because we are “joint heirs” in Him. I can almost hear our L-rd saying, “ Why do you ask for what is already yours? I am in you and You are in Me. What is mine is already yours. Praise me for what I have already done!” Yet, sometimes we keep asking for what is already ours. By asking Him again and again for what already belongs to us we are in effect saying, I don’t believe You. Or are we saying we are not in Him? My grandmother once said to me, “ Don’t worry the L-rd so. Once you have asked Him, believe Him and then praise Him for what He has already done.” She planted a huge seed of faith in me that day. It has grown and keeps growing. I see that the spirit of the L-rd, that prompted her to share that gem with me, was straight from the heart of G-d.

One of the greatest sorrows to G-ds heart is that He has given us His power to “do all things through Him who strengthens me” and we stand like weak land fodder for any enemy from the evil ones camp to come by and eat at will then we fall to the ground as waste by product of what had been eaten.

We were not bought and paid for nor were we called by the highest name in the universe, Jesus, to be land fodder! We are victorious warriors with mighty hands of faith if we would simply recognize who we really are. We are the extension of the hands, heart or our G-d if “we would just believe.”

What is our Father saying to us? Just as His word spoke of seed planting, “I planted, Apollo watered and You (G-d) made it grow” , G-d is saying to us, PLANT MY SEED OF FAITH! Water it with my word and knowledge of me and I will make it grow. Our ability to move mountains lies in the original seed, Christ. By His might and His power we will grow and become beacons for others to grow and to become beacons until the entire world is filled with His awesome glory.

Make the decision today! Plant the seed of faith in your heart and let G-d make it grow. Act upon your knowledge of Him on a journey of faith paved with His great mountain moving power, for the glory of His name and the salvation of the world that has already come in the heavens and only to be realized on Earth! Stop being a weak representation of faith ,mocked and scoffed by the world today. Stand up and be who you are in Christ! If you do not know who that is, there is only one way to find out. Ask the one who is the author of your soul, who formed you ,cell by cell in your mothers womb for His great names sake, Jesus, the Christ!

Forever in His service,
Becki Jenkins
Missionary Connection
Director
317-471-0156
becki5789@msn.com

Sample from Christian Headlines .com

Amazon activist shot dead as she read Bible to killers AP
School board allows Bible classes to continue AP
Keyes' daughter comes out as lesbian at rally Chicago Tribune
Getting tight with the Bible Belt Haaretz
'Shadowlands' is too tame for its own good ["The unlikely love story of British author C.S. Lewis and American poet Joy Gresham is one of those real-life events that's a natural for dramatization"] Houston Chronicle
South Texas installs archbishop: Catholics welcome staunch conservative as the top priest in San Antonio Houston Chronicle
Wave of Pro-Marriage Demos and Rallies Growing Across Canada Life Site News
Clergy who deny doctrine may face trial for heresy London Telegraph
Activists Hope Nun's Slaying in Amazon Is Catalyst for Change Los Angeles Times
Faith-Based Plan Lacks Funds, Ex-Official Says: White House overstates its commitment to religious charities, a former deputy director says in an online essay Los Angeles Times
Seeing a cult through a child's eyes National Post
Trying to Strengthen an 'I Do' With a More Binding Legal Tie New York Times
Scholars Examine the Humorous Side of the Bible PA
'Abnormally high' growth of Christians in NorthEast India Press Trust of India
A Faith-Based Mission for Change: White House Aide's Work With Mother Teresa Fueled Zeal for Church-Based Social Services Washington Post
Ex-Aide Questions Bush Vow To Back Faith-Based Efforts Washington Post
Family of slain Christians speaks out: Egyptian immigrants' kin confirm murder method comes from Quran WorldNetDaily
Presbyterians host 'anti-Israel' meeting: Event meant to justify PCUSA's divestmetn from Jewish state WorldNetDaily

The excerpt above is is but a small portion of the leading news stories found each day, by category, at ChristianHeadlines.com -- a great summary from Christian news sites around the web today. We appreciate the time they save readers each day, by effectively 'pre-surfing' news around the world.

[You can always see their link in our RH margin under "What's News In The World Today?"]

Resignation at CNN shows growing influence of blogs...

[continue story at New York Times]

Praying for Palmer...

[hat-tip Bill Bean, The Unnecessary Pastor]

"Everyone pray for Palmer today then drop by his site and let him know."

Women's Shelter... When You Need Someone...

Here's an important story today from Ohio... that really started in Indy.

It serves as yet another reminder: Would a well-connected & communicating network of Bible-believing Christians be a tremendous 'salt & light' resource for Greater Indianapolis?

WhenYouNeedSomeone.com -- "The Search-engine For Help & Friendship"
Here in the early stages, the WYNS 'engine' is designed to be a learning-engine... for Bible-believing pastors, counselors & other 'driven Christians' in Indianapolis, who care... but simply don't know how/where to help people. Help us become all we can be to a lost & hurting world... 'healing' people's needs as best we can, and sharing the most precious gift we could possibly share with them -- how to have peace with God and an abundant life, forever.

[Currently, a small pocket-sized resource book is available for $5.00 Every pastor/leader should have at least one copy, and perhaps several for their elders/deacons & others. Because it's been funded with an anonymous gift, all proceeds go toward an updated printing.]

The WYNS engine will also be designed to geographically locate Christian contacts in the closest neighborhoods... people who are actively praying for their neighborhoods... and who might be willing to serve as occasional contact-points for neighbors in need.

That's why the WYNS engine is said to operate 'at the corner of need & neighborhood'.

Christians can help in one capacity or the other.

Online signup is at http://whenyouneedsomeone.com.

From the Heart of a Birth Father

by Dr. Noah H. Kersey, Christian Psychologist

A day never goes by that I do not think of the son that I have never met.

Although it has been 37 years, the experience of his conception is forever embedded in my memory.

His mother and I both lived in an orphanage in Tampa, Florida. She was of Yugoslavian descent and a classic beauty. As teenagers do, we "fell in love" and our passions took over. We became sexually intimate. [Continue......]

Big hand on the 5, Little hand on the 0...

Opinion:

"The big hand is on the 5. The little hand is on the 0."

It's time to turn our clocks ahead.

If in the past news traveled slowly to Indianapolis, those are 'days gone by'. Like it or not, the speed of life is picking up and we're headed toward being on 'world time'.

I'm not necessarily talking about Daylight Savings Time. For the moment, I'm only alluding to the speed & power of the rank & file blogosphere, as demonstrated by this weekend's latest media casualty, CNN executive Eason Jordan.

If the clock debate in the Indiana statehouse today doesn't advance us onto world time, the 'blogosphere' is at least moving us all onto a quicker pace... providing truth & thought-exchange at the speed of light.

Over the last few years, while our clocks have been on Indiana time, "blogs" were invented and popularized (largely) elsewhere. Webster hailed it as '"Word of the Year, 2004". The Pew Internet & American Life Project says twenty-eight (28%) percent of Americans know what it is.

Now, less than two months later, we're looking up a new word -- 'MSM' -- a short bloggerism for the old media form, 'mainstream media'. And now, like EST, MSM continues to draw fire.

Today, for instance, blogger Michelle Malkin, (Christian) columnist for the New York Post says: "GET the mainstream media some smelling salts. The resignation of CNN executive Eason Jordan last Friday night caused near-fainting spells in the journalism world."

And Kevin McCullough's weblog is keeping score: "So far the Blogs are pitching shut out ball when it comes to stories that the media were all too ready to let die." [continue..."Blogosphere 5, vs. MSM 0"]

Broadband internet is quickly moving us all forward. Looks like we're at least headed for Speed-of-Light Savings Time.

Blog Corner of Conservative PAC...

"Blogs are the new media and flexed their collective muscles mightily in 2004. For the first time, CPAC 2005 will credential a modest number of bloggers to cover the conference from February 17-19, 2005 as members of the press. Not only will they bring a new audience to CPAC, they will provide a new perspective in their coverage of the conference.
CPAC will be held in Washington, DC " [continue at Blogger's Corner]

From CPACbloggers.com (aggregated CPAC blog):
"The Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) is the country's oldest and largest annual gathering of grassroots conservatives. For more than thirty years, CPAC has served as the annual reunion of conservatives from all across America. This year CPAC will be covered by credentialed bloggers. " [Stay up on the latest at aggregated blog page]

Some Credentialed Christian Bloggers at CPAC:

Hugh Hewitt (radio talkshow host, and author, "Blog -- Understanding the Information Reformation)
La Shawn Barber (La Shawn Barber's Corner)
Kevin McCullough (Weblog Crosswalk.com)

Barna Report: Church Priorities 2005

George Barna

"The most obvious differences were between white and black churches. Half of all white churches (50%) listed discipleship as their dominant priority, followed by evangelism (41%) and preaching (36%). Black churches, however, placed evangelism as their undisputed highest priority (67%)..."

[continue at Barna.org]

West Washington -- International Road...

The neighborhood addressed in this timely & interesting article in the Star this morning is where we're headed for key meetings tomorrow...

photo, IndyStar.com

"In Marion County, the Hispanic population quadrupled from 8,450 in 1990 to 33,290 in the recent census. But along West Washington, the Hispanic population multiplied by six from 1990 to 2000. As a neighborhood, West Washington has been home to wave after wave of settlers of Irish, German, Italian, Appalachian and African heritage. All went through some growing pains." [continue at IndyStar.com]

Noel Castellanos, President of Chicago Latino Coalition is also integrally involved in CCDA... and will be coming to Indianapolis for the February 15th "Community Faith Forum"... and the Transform Indiana networking lunch at Vida Nueva Church, 2801 W. Washington... [continue]

Newspaper man accuses bloggers of McCarthyism...

The Blog Herald:
"In an extraordinary attack, a leading international newspaper representative has accused bloggers of McCarthyism in a post to leading editors around the globe. Authoring the attack was Bertrand Pecquerie, an expert in newspaper syndication and press networks, who is the Director of the World Editors Forum, the organisation for editors within the World Association of Newspapers (WAN)." [continue]

CNN's 2/11/2005 Announcement:
CNN chief news executive Eason Jordan resigned Friday, saying the controversy over his remarks about the deaths of journalists in Iraq threatened to tarnish the network he helped build." [continue]

La Shawn Barber's Corner: "Eason Jordan Resigns. Truth!"

"Old Media, Mainstream Media, Big Media, Legacy Media, Fourth Estate, Dinosaurs — whatever they call themselves — they’d be the wiser to read BLOG: Understanding the Information Reformation."

Michelle Malkin:
"One of the members of Pecquerie's organization is the Newspaper Association of America..." [continue]

Rudy Carrasco, Urban Onramps:

"What happened is that CNN's Chief News Executive, Eason Jordan, just resigned a few hours ago after being held accountable by the blogosphere for devastating comments he made recently at Davos. Malkin's roundup will catch you up, in case you hadn't been following the affair. I think back to my post below about Blogs: The Pressure of Instant Accountability... " [continue]

"Truth will prevail. Truth at the speed of light will prevail at the speed of Light."
...Neil Cox, LovingChange.com

Heavens! Potlucks Illegal!

IndyStar.com

['Well done' article by Robert King, Indianapolis Star]

[But doesn't it make you wonder if we should consider having Health Inspectors inspecting how laws are made? Do legislators just bring 'em from home? Make 'em on the fly? Or maybe there's an ongoing shortage of 'salt' at the statehouse? In any event, this particular law seems to have been undercooked. Thank God for microwaves and our legislators' willingness to bring it up to temperature. Bon Appetit.]

"Pence star rises, but he does his job..."

Photo, MikePence.com

Excerpted from Russ Pulliam's column:

"I developed a very healthy skepticism of my ambition 15 years ago," [Pence] said in a recent interview. "There is a tendency when you are in a public position to begin to think more highly of yourself than you ought to."

[continue at IndyStar.com]

Visit MikePence.com

Bus O'Stuff.... departing for Nicaragua...

[Received this via email this evening regarding a multi-church effort of faith. Can you help them?]

Hello Brothers and Sisters:

This is your final email on the bus! It is leaving the 15th ofFebruary for Nicaragua and the ministry of Pastor Oscar CRUZ. It hasbeen a long 3 year dream coming true. The 66 passenger all WHITE bus will be parked at River Oaks Community Church this Sunday in Carmel. We will be available between 1:00 p. m to 3:30 p. m to take either new summer clothes, nice shoes, sports equipment, baseballs, soccer balls, wheelchairs, etc. We want nice items and in good condition. Please help us fill this bus for those in need in Nicaragua. Pass this email on to those you would think would like to help in this endeavor. Also, I have had some of you ask about helping with Diesel fuel, etc. Cash can be as little as $10 bucks up to $100or whatever you want to contribute. I know some of you can help in this way as we need several thousand just for fuel and driver expenses. Thank you in advance for your help. River Oaks is locatedat the North west corner of 131st (main street) and Old Meridian Street across from Stout's shoes. If you need better directions please email or call 513-1477.

Below is an example of someone's list that you can bring with you to accompany your items.

Thanks again!

The items in general that I have are:
Several storage totes, some of which will be full of special needsschool supplies. Some can be packed with anything else that you have that will fit.

A wheelchair for Walter's sister.
A small walker.
A small table and chairs
A few other pieces of equipment for the special needs classroom (noneof these are very large items)
A medium size bulletin board
2 gymnastics mats (folded)
A utility cart still in the box, not assembled
-JEFF CORNWELL

[Hi, from Traders Point]

A very huge event is happening this very Sunday at ROCC as a bus leaves this Tuesday, 2-15-05: for Nicaragua. This bus will be used for transportation in the Nicaraguan Resource Network(NRN) (the group that helped with the TPCC sponsored Special Education Mission Trip last month) system in Nicaragua; and will hopefully befull of items to help the children and families that are aided by NRN NicaResourceNet.Org(our Special Education students and families are just some of these).

The reason that I'm emailing you is that it has just come to our attention that the seats of this newly refurbished bus are likely to be damaged by our precious cargo.What we need is any old blankets, towels, or other materials that could be placed over the busseats to protect them on that LONG and bumpy trip through the U.S. andCentral America. Please respond to this email if you are able to help. The blankets or other padding materials could be brought to me at church this Sunday (2-13-05). I will place a box marked "blankets for Nicaragua" near our Special Needs ministry table (outside the worship center). This Sunday is the only Sunday that blankets andother protective materials can be collected since the bus leaves for Nicaragua on Monday, 2-14-05.

We also need your prayers for safety and speedy travel for this bus and the 2 or 3 individuals that God has lead to deliver this precious bus and its cargo. The special needs team from the TPCC sponsored mission trip last month is sending down several thousand dollars worth of therapy items and supplies for the special education classrooms westarted in a Christian school in Managua. Because shipping is so expensive and unreliable, this bus is the only way that some of these items could get to Nicaragua. One of our team members is following God's leading and traveling down on the bus. This is an answer to prayer for guidance and direction in his life; but because this trip can be dangerous, much prayer is needed. We praise God for using us and our resources, and pray that He will be glorified in it all. Thank you in advance for your prayers and if you are able to supply blankets or other padding materials for our precious cargo.

-JILL, Traders Point

This Thing Called 'Lent'....

"We have quite a diverse background when it comes to worship traditions. Some are familiar with the season of Lent and others of us not. Here’s some information I dug up and some links to others who are talking about it."

[continued at IndyChurch.org]

The Church...

"Get your pyres ready - I'm about to say something..."

"I am not in any way suggesting that we should get sloppy with our theology or doctrine."

"Our faith is IN a real, personal, living, and communing Father. To sit at his feet and argue about who He is and what He wants is tragedy. To never leave our classrooms where we AGREE about who He is and what He wants is no better. He wants us to BE OUT DOING HIS WORK. If your doctrine doesn't compel you to Love, Obey, and Worship - then your doctrine is false. I don't care how 'accurately' you can expound it. True faith is active faith."

[continue at Recipio]

Someday... when Christians are on the same hymn-page...

Editorial

Someday... when local Christians are more e-capable... and on the same 'hymn/home-page'... we can hope to have more impact.

Example: Wednesday's IBJ online survey re the proposed gay-marriage ban (will it hurt the local economy?). Overwhelmingly, from their responses, they concluded it would hurt the economy. Yet it's obvious there was a significant sector of people who didn't participate in that short survey. Who? And if the numbers were overwhelming, what sector MIGHT have voted in extraordinary numbers?

If local Christians only read the Star, they would have concluded from last year's front-page headline story, "Image of Intolerance May Cool Job Climate" that we're putting ourselves economically at-risk by not making our community more gay-friendly. Without a sizable alternative press... ie, a Christian portal in our community... they were able to pretty much dismiss our objections to their flawed article. [They omitted the key stat indicating that despite our 'poor' showing on the gay/diversity index, we beat the odds and finished 17th on the tech scale at issue... begging the bigger question: Why/How?]

But what if there were a significant alternative press?

Firstly, let me say... Praise God for the Christians on the staff at the Star and other secular media.

Further, despite occasional uncorrected flaws, I'm confident and thankful that Star management is not intentionally misleading their readership. We're simply encouraging an alternate voice that ultimately will even help the secular media as they seek accuracy in reporting.

Secondly, we praise God for Indiana Christian News! This monthly printed newspaper is found freely distributed in most Bible-believing churches & bookstores in our area. Sam, Derek & their staff have been a major blessing here in Central Indiana. Please support their efforts of faith in any way you can... and support their advertisers.

We're also very thankful for the number of Christian radio/tv capabilities here in the Greater Indianapolis area. Where would we be without them... and their supporting ministries & businesses?

But in the interests of DAILY, ONLINE INTERACTION with news & events...

...we can hope to grow IndyChristian.com as a centralized hymn/homepage for many thousands of our local Christians to start their internet day... and thus to help awareness, ability to impact, and to better glorify God and enjoy Him... together.

Pray for everyone involved here, and help get the word out...

...There is an alternative.

XXX Church...

Check out Anne Ryder's story at WTHR.... quoting our friend, Brad Grammer, Exec. Director of Hope And New Life Ministries. [And learn more about the subject, and how Hope & New Life can help your ministry, at their upcoming Focus On The Family Pastors Breakfast on Feb. 24.]

And here's the XXXchurch.com link to check out. And an excerpt from one of their articles:

"The sight of the Sweet Psalmist of Israel leering at Bathsheba from his rooftop must have been enough to make angels sit down and weep. How could the man with a heart after God stoop to such debauchery? It can happen more easily than you might think. READ MORE."

February.... Black History Month...

February is Black History Month. Christianity Today has a number of great articles & resources you'd want to be aware of... and enjoy. [continued]

Also...

Reminder: For those of us from other cultures, if we really want to try to understand our African-American brothers & sisters in Christ, reading this book can help jump-start that process. And/or get involved in some multicultural para-church ministries.

[Connect with Transform Indiana and perhaps especially CCDA Indy to help determine a good 'fit' for you and/or your church.]

[more from] Lawmakers debate gay marriage bill...

WTHR

More news from Tuesday's state senate debate re a state constitutional amendment banning gay marriage.

Also... IBJ poll: "Would a constitutional ban on same-sex marriage have a negative effect on economic development in Indiana?" [vote and add your comments]

Web Evangelism Bulletin...

Here's the month evangelism bulletin from the global internet egroup leaders who launched the Internet Evangelism Day (April 24th). Great tips inside, including a feature of... MyGrissom.com in Miami County, Indiana!

http://www.gospelcom.net/guide/resources/webull05jan2.php

College Goal Sunday... Feb. 13th

IndyStar.com

This coming Sunday is "College Goal Sunday" -- with a wealth of helpful information and volunteers to assist as you and your students move down the important road toward a college education.

It's absolutely incredible these days, how inexpensively (free?) some students can get an accredited education... given the scholarships, grants and loans that are available.

Notwithstanding the other great choices in Central Indiana, Crossroads Bible College offers a unique Christian education as they train multi-cultural city-reachers. Recently, they've added an accelerated program for Christians to complete their degree. And because everything is fully accredited, all forms of state & federal student aid are also available. Contact their Financial Aid office for further information (352-8736).

[Pastors, CBC is conducting a luncheon focus-group among urban-driven ministry leaders this Saturday (Feb.12th, at 1:00pm), in order to ensure the best possible preparation of CBC students for ministries that make a difference. If you're willing to provide helpful inputs at that meeting, please contact Hosea Baxter, Academic Dean, at 352-8736 to RSVP for this 'priceless' lunch... and an inside opportunity to impact tomorrow's leaders. And if during the luncheon you hook-up with some other city-impact leaders for our future together in Indy, what a bonus!]

Museum Aims to Equip Christians With Bible-Based Science...

[News excerpt]

"Work continues on an exciting new educational facility designed to teach about how science supports the biblical view of creation. The 100,000-square-foot building that will house the Creation Museum is complete, but numerous displays for the project remain under construction. The 25 million-dollar facility, which sits on a major highway exit near the Kentucky-Ohio border, is set to open to the public in the spring of 2007. "

[article continued at The Conservative Voice]

[Visit Answers In Genesis]

[Visit Evangelism Explosion International]

Hollywood Billboard... LOL...

[Hat-tip, World Magazine Blog]

Fight Meth Through Community Action...

Editorial

"We prayed to our God and posted a guard day and night to meet this threat." (Neh.4:9)

For two years, the Transform Indiana network has proliferated the concept of regular 'community-focused' prayer reminder every Friday at 11am as we hear the "Community Prayer Siren" throughout the state. [Prayed4.com]

Further, we recently encouraged our surfing constituency to "Pray The Headlines"... with a sense of urgency as a result of the Katlyn Collman tragedy in Crothersville.

Notwithstanding the extreme importance of prayer, we also concur with the Indianapolis Star editorial today.... "Fight Meth Through Community Action".

Simply put, we desire to not only pray to our God, but also deploy a "guard" as they did in Nehemiah's time. That is, pray & act prudently, recognizing the times.

Being 'salt & light' in the communities & neighborhoods in which we live involves praying as Jesus taught us to pray... "thy will be done, on earth... as it is in heaven".... and following his directive to 'love your neighbor as yourself'. [And using the example he gave us, heal everything in our paths insofar as we possibly can.]

Indeed, let's be all that we can possibly be as 'salt & light' to the community. And if we live in low-crime suburbs while possessing high-income resources, recall Jesus' reminder: "To whom much is given, much is required." Thank God for your neighborhood and make a difference in someone else's.

We join our voice to that of the Star. Let's make a difference community by community. That's a recurrent theme & strategy of Transform Indiana. Join us for our next lunchtime meeting, Feb. 12th. We'll no doubt continue this conversation there and then. Special guest: Noel Castellanos, President, Chicago Latino Coalition.

[Continue reading IndyStar editorial]

Same-sex Marriage-ban progresses...

[News excerpts from IndyStar.com]

"An Indiana Senate committee voted on party-lines today to support a constitutional amendment that bans same-sex marriage."

The Rev. Andrew Hun[t] of Body of Christ Community Church in Indianapolis decried any comparison of the fight for gay rights to the fight for civil rights by African-Americans. "You can't contrast my God-given pigmentation with human-learned perversion," he said. "

[continue at IndyStar.com]

Demos Convene Group To Develop 'Faith Agenda'...

[Excerpted]

"House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi has convened a group of Democratic lawmakers to develop a "faith agenda" for the party..."

" 'House Democrats are people of deep faith and share the values of faith communities,' Pelosi told the newspaper."

"Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, D-N.Y., has made similar overtures in recent weeks, attempting to moderate her party's position on abortion in an effort to broaden support with swing voters."

[article continued at Religion News Service]

[Reflecting back to our golf illustration yesterday, are Nancy & Hillary now 'the two remaining ants'? ]

Why Blog?

"Top 50 Reasons To Blog"
by Neil Cox, Founder, IndyChristian.com

Before we start counting, perhaps you're wondering...

What is a 'BLOG' anyway?

Here's Google's definitive answer.

Now... onward... to the 50-bullet count-down... Why blog?

Some of you might only be persuaded after obtaining a thorough understanding of it by studying Google's entire "Top 23,000 Answers To: Why Blog?"

On the other extreme, others of you might simply jump right into it in the interest of developing a new capability 'on faith'... and obtain your understanding of blogging from the 'inside'. "Faith is taking the first step even when you don't see the whole staircase." [Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.]

But for most of you who fall in between the extremes, I've started summarizing some quick answers for you below:

Because you can.
Because everybody else is doing it.
[And in the future, twice that many will be doing it.]

[Continue reading the remaining 47 bullets at LovingChange.com]

The next generation

I revisited George Barna's April 26 Perspective piece and thought it might be good discussion especially as our government are looking to adjust the course of SSI to prevent a crippling disaster caused by the imminent retirement of baby boomers and the faulty way SSI has been allowed to exist until now. Read http://www.barna.org/FlexPage.aspx?Page=Perspective&PerspectiveID=1

The question for discussion is this: How does the average church begin to approach the issue to succession planning for all levels of spiritual, executive and administrative leadership? Are you concerned about the collapse of your church or ministry when your current leadership leaves? I would like to hear your discussion about your thoughts, experiences, challenges, approaches and practices (successful and unsuccessful) relating to "Handing the reigns to the next generation".

Indiana Home Educators Events...

Heads-up: There are some great events this month for Indiana's home educators... especially their 20th Annual Convention Feb. 25-26 here in Indianapolis.

Faith In A 'Blue' State...

Detroit News Special Report:

"Moral issues spark push to alter society"

'Moderate' Bayh...

Opinion

Gotta love Russ Pulliam's generosity today in the Indianapolis Star, referring to Sen. Bayh as a 'moderate'. The senator's recent extreme position taken against Secretary of State Condi Rice seemed to signal his apparent willingness to alienate his constituency in Indiana, not to mention his previous support by the African American community. [Evan, what were you thinking?]

Nonetheless, Russ bears out a great Hoosier trait -- giving people the benefit of the doubt. And we'd have to believe he's right on target implying the need for the Democratic party to change.

It reminds me of an illustration I heard this week, about a golfer having a horrible day. At one point this duffer's bad luck seemed to change as his ball landed neatly on top of an ant-hill, perfectly teed-up for his next shot. But after killing thousands of ants with each subsequent swing-and-miss, finally only 2 ants remained. One looked at the other and said...

"If we don't get on the ball, we're gonna die."

Calling In De Bunk Squad... An update...

After posting our previous article calling into question the Indianapolis Star reporter's objectivity in 'news reporting' about fossil research 'disproving' creation theory, we got emails and calls from around the city & state... and even beyond.

One was an invitation to attend a local creationist group meeting that we didn't yet know about. Great find. I accepted their offer and enjoyed an evening at Post Road Christian Church. These are scientists & mathematicians who are willing to consider the amazing set of evidences trumpeting loudly for the obvious... intelligent design, by a Creator who loves us greatly.

[One portion of the meeting was devoted to a video review and analysis of what we learned from Mt. St. Helens eruption... and how quickly the earth can change, yet appear to have taken millions & billions of years.]

Further, this week I also heard an evening radio broadcast featuring Dr. Ravi Zacharias -- including answering the question: 'Where was God during the tsunami?"
[Praise God for Moody's Founders Week messages now archived online!] Dr. Zacharias is a leading Christian apologist very capably addressing important questions from a questioning world today.

And finally here's an apologetics blogger, a 'centurion' -- Dawn Treader -- to be featured at an upcoming conference. In the last few days, he's been collecting input regarding the value of 'apologetics blogging'. For those of you who would like to see our creationists & apologists build a local, formidable team for 'truth', you'll enjoy his article and comments from around the world.

Comments?

Freedom Between The Goal Posts...

"Sports is more important than our culture lets on."

"Where there is sports, there is scandal."

"Some recent examples: Football phenom Terrell Owens and sultry starlet Nicollette Sheridan glorified illicit sex in a pre-game network teaser. Baseball stars Jason Giambi and Barry Bonds (of the New York Yankees and the San Francisco Giants, respectively) admitted they illegally used performance enhancing steroids. And there was the All Star Wrestling Match (Ron Artest's Five vs. The Obnoxious Fans), for which the warm-up match was the Detroit Pistons vs. the Indianapolis Pacers." [continue at Christianity Today]

Pray the headlines...

[photo, IndyStar.com]

Reminder: This Evening... Feb 3rd...

2005 promises to be another exciting year in Indianapolis and Central Indiana as we continue to seek God's transforming presence in our communities!

Please join us this evening -- February 3rd -- to seek the Lord's favor for our city. We will be gathering at the Marriott Downtown, 350 West Maryland (by the RCA Dome) at 6:00pm to begin praying together for Indianapolis! Meet us in the Florida Room for two hours of fellowship & prayer.

Gordon Murphy and Cheryl Cornelius are joining us from the Chicago CCDA office as we prepare for hosting this annual gathering of ministries this November. We will be using this prayer gathering as a kick-off event for CCDA Indy!

[Remember: All citywide meetings & events for Christians are listed at... IndyChristian.com/events.htm .]

Where's the Church?

"Judge orders new vote on firing pastor" (AP story from Marion, Indiana)

Our apparent lack of enough humility to simply be the obvious, harmonious 'Church' that Jesus calls us to be in a given location, leaves these sorts of things in the hands of the civil courts... exactly what the Apostle Paul decried.

Imagine if there really were a well connected network of Bible-believing churches, pastors and other spiritually-gifted, qualified leaders... working together in some practical ways in a given city...

...Could we someday see a local ethics advisory council within the Church to help preclude such issues from going to a secular court?

Smog Alert...

Not BLOG alert. Smog alert. [continue at IndyStar.com]

Chruch Phishing...

Our Christian tech blog here in Indy -- Wireless Coffee Blog -- is leading us to a couple of great 'MeanDean' posts that every church (and every Christian) on the web will want to be aware of.

[continued at Wireless Coffee Blog]

Bayh in 2008?

Andrea Neal's editorial is probably voicing what many of us may have come to believe...

Andrea Neal, IndyStar

"What else could explain why Bayh would risk alienating so many constituents who see Rice as the quintessential American success story, a person whose intellect and capacity for public service have taken her to one of the most powerful positions on the planet?

Republican politicos have long described Bayh as a Teflon man whose popularity won't dip, regardless of what positions he takes. "

[continued at IndyStar.com]

Thousands of prayers answer Army Chaplain's plea...

Enjoyed Ruth Holladay's column today...

Ruth Holladay, IndyStar

"The [prayer email] author is Capt. Lyle Shackelford, battalion chaplain, HHD, 57th Transportation Battalion. His unit was in charge of delivering the voting machines and ballots to villages and cities throughout Iraq -- a potentially lethal assignment.

"Our convoys are prime targets for the insurgents," he wrote. He emphasized how badly those forces wanted the elections to fail and what a historic mission this was, in both a political and spiritual sense, he said."

[continued at IndyStar.com]

Atheists Plan To Bid On Proposed Commandments Site...

[Crawfordville]

"A man who says he represents an atheist group is planning to bid for a small plot of the county courthouse lawn that a businessman has said he wants to buy as the site for a Ten Commandments monument."

[continued at IndyChannel.com]

Christian Counseling...

You've taken a great first step. We hope we can help you in your search for someone to help. IndyChristian.com cares, and we're anxious to help if we can, by listing a wide variety of available resources.

However please understand we are in no way able to, or attempting to, evaluate the quality of these resources. It is YOUR obligation to evaluate their qualifications or suitability for your particular need... and choose wisely. You may also want to consider highly qualified secular counselors found elsewhere.

Hot-lines & Other Resources:

Hot-lines (social services -- not necessarily Christian resources)
Addictions (social services -- not necessarily Christian resources)
Pregnancy

The Christian (Yellow) Phonebook lists these counselors. [We understand that Christians among them who have signed a statement of faith are clearly indicated by use of a dove, fish or cross symbol.]

The Christian Blue Pages lists these counselors. [We understand that all have signed a statement of faith.]

Certified training facilities for Christian counseling includes:

Crossroads Bible College

And here are some topical Bible passages addressing how you may feel today.

Note: If you know of other resources for those who might be seeking Christian counseling, please advise us.

Local Associations:

While there are a number of independent psychiatrists, psychologists, pastors and other trained counselors, there is yet no general association of Christian counselors that we're aware of here in the Greater Indianapolis area. If you know of such associations, please advise us. We believe that such a coalition could provide great added value through fellowship and accountability. Such a group could also provide a platform for optional Christian arbitration that would be helpful in certain situations. If you are a trained Christian counselor and would like to participate in such an association, please advise us.
NATIONAL LINKS OF INTEREST
National Association of Nouthetic Counselors
Family Dynamics -- Contact Dr. Andrew Boswell, Indianapolis Region
IABC.net

Other comments? Please advise us.

Also visit the Indianapolis colloborative wiki page for Christian Counseling at CityReaching.org.

Indy Christian .com -- Daily Internet Starting-line

Monday, February 28, 2005