I spoke on Sunday night at the 2010 NRB Convention about Desiring God’s policy of “Making it Free”: Giving all of our content away online for free, without requiring registration.

One common question was a concern about continuing to see revenue. “If we are giving away all of our content for free, how will we be funded? (And thus be able to continue operating.)” This seemed to be a common concern, perhaps bordering on a fear.

I do not believe this was expressed out of greed or lack of faith, but rather it is a radical concept that is not often trumpeted in the world of business (though it is in small and influential circles). Ministry fundraising consultants are not often recommending that you do not charge for your “products”. It is in fact counterintuitive to general marketing wisdom.

All I have to say in reply is that Desiring God has seen continued growth of our donor base, increase that is perhaps even directly linked to the fact that we give everything away online.

Speaking personally (not as an official representative of DG, if that is possible), I believe we even have a Biblical promise as Christian ministries for providence for a God-given task.

2 Corinthians 9:6-12

The point is this: whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that having all sufficiency in all things at all times, you may abound in every good work. As it is written,

“He has distributed freely, he has given to the poor;
his righteousness endures forever.”

He who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will supply and multiply your seed for sowing and increase the harvest of your righteousness. You will be enriched in every way to be generous in every way, which through us will produce thanksgiving to God. For the ministry of this service is not only supplying the needs of the saints but is also overflowing in many thanksgivings to God.

Do you see it? God will supply us in order that we be generous! This particular verse is in the context of Christians giving to meet the need of a suffering and needy church. I think it applies very directly to every God-given ministry. (I say God-given because I suspect there are many out there doing “ministry” that they cooked up in their head. We aren’t promised providence for that.)

Bob Lepine, who was moderating the panel where I expressed this promise, expertly and incisively replied: “I’ve seen ministries shipwreck themselves on the rocks of that verse.” His point is excellent. I believe there are three possible replies (perhaps there are others I do not see):

1. I am mis-using this passage.
2. The ministries that were ship-wrecked were operating outside the will of God.
3. The ministries were operating precisely inside the will of God, and that “shipwrecking” was in fact God’s providence for that ministry, for the good and (spiritual!) prosperity of the people involved and the world.

We so often mis-define success. We have short-sighted ideas about what is good. And we have selfish expectations about God’s providence.

I want to encourage you, brothers and sisters, to continue to walk joyfully by faith, even through a valley that is dark as the shadow of death, because He is with you.

To The Band of Bloggers,

One of the most exciting aspects of creating and keeping Web sites that have a large, engaged user base is seeing an immediate impact from even small changes. Our traffic and profits can rise from a well-executed interface change, but they can also plummet from a misstep. This makes it incredibly important to consider all of our design modifications very carefully, taking into account research, convention, and intuition that comes from years of training.

This phenomenon extends into the business and social spheres as well. A bad product review from a high-profile site can cause stock prices to fall (a good one can cause them to soar), and it can be argued that vicious blogger paparazzi were responsible for the downfall of Britney, and other pop stars. Relentless photographing, cataloging and commentary on a star’s every move can lead to a destroyed life.

I am reminded of one of the most difficult to swallow (personally) sections of the New Testament.

James 3:8-10

“…no human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison. With it we bless our Lord and Father, and with it we curse people who are made in the likeness of God. From the same mouth come blessing and cursing. My brothers, these things ought not to be so.”

With the same tongue we curse…

As bloggers, we can be especially guilty of this. We are very quick to criticize, judge, and state our opinion on how the latest author or speaker is “off” doctrinally or in practice. We often sensationalize their error, creating the sense that they are extremely far from orthodoxy and perhaps even heretics. In fact, we wield the word heretic in a very cavalier fashion, discouraging and wounding the reputation of people who are not only made in the likeness of God, but are coworkers in the gospel, co-heirs to salvation and glory.

My brothers, these things ought not to be so.

When words are many…

Indeed, there is much godless preaching, possibly even heresy coming from some pulpits in the American church. There is unsound doctrine being written every day (and our “Christian” bookstores are full of it.) Some bloggers, perhaps desiring to protect the flock of God, call it out at every opportunity, but, “When words are many, transgression is not lacking…” (Prov 10:19a). Lacking the benefit of context, relationship, or perhaps understanding and discernment, harsh criticism is aimed in the wrong direction from time to time.

In an abundance of counselors…

When wielding pastoral authority (which is given by God and recognized by a council of other leaders, and is not assumed based on blog readership, and for which the one who wields it will answer to God), especially in the area of pronouncements of doctrinal positions and error, community and an abundance of counsel is critical. “Where there is no guidance, a people falls, but in an abundance of counselors there is safety.” (Prov. 11:14).

Major industry leading blogs are already moving to a team-blogging model. I believe this is the future of blogging. A team of individuals who together are able to produce a much higher quality product than the individual.

When deciding on theological positions, church leaders submit their ideas to counsel. Bloggers would be wise to do the same when they venture outside the realm of observation or commentary into the area of pronouncing error. Submitting one’s writing to this type of counsel will go a long way in avoiding cutting down a brother who is earnestly trying to do God’s work.

“For you were called to freedom, brothers. Only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another.  For the whole law is fulfilled in one word: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” But if you bite and devour one another, watch out that you are not consumed by one another.”

-Galatians 5:13-15

I just read an interesting book by Ed Stetzer, Lost and Found: The Younger Unchurched and the Churches that reach them.. I consider myself a bit of a student of the culture we live in as well as a data geek. This book has some interesting insights into the “younger unchurched”.

“Younger unchurched” being defined as those not currently involved in weekly Christian church services. This of course is an important statistic if you believe that there is an eternal destination, and that destination is determined by your stance on Jesus.

You can read my review at my other personal site.

What is encouraging to me about this book is that churches are waking up to the fact of their hypocrisy (of course we’re hypocrites! that’s kinda what it means to claim to be a Christian…), but even more importantly waking up to the fact of their lack of concern for the individual story.

This book is a collection of mass survey studies and hundreds of personal interviews with very wise and caring observations made based on this research.

Written primarily to a Christian church leadership audience, I think many who care about such thing (whatever side of the argument you are on!) would enjoy reading it.

Lifechurch.TV, renowned (in emerging, evangelical, church circles) for their innovative use of the Internet and social media technology has implemented Google’s Translator API into their chat rooms. Make it possible for people from all over the world to talk to each other.

Pretty amazing, IMO.

It’s made possible by the API from Google Translator, which currently applies to 34 languages. The translation tool detects the native language from your browser or the words you’re typing and offers simultaneous translations for both the person speaking and the person reading.

Reasoning that “because we are like this so must God be like this. In brief, we are made in God’s image (in the true sense of the word: an image being a two-dimensional representation of a three dimensional reality… read “Flatland” for a more thorough philosophical explanation of this topic.)

The doctrine of Imago Dei usually refers to our capacity for reason, abstract thinking, relational need and ability, awareness of a higher power, and relational needs. Much more, however, it refers to God’s concern for us, as we are beings made in his image. And because of this, a human life is a very sacred thing.

Enough of that digression. here is part two of my 9 things. Read part 1 here.

4. Forgetfulness

He remembers his covenant forever, the word that he commanded, for a thousand generations… Psalm 105:8

I forget things. Namely I forget my promises. I miss meetings, forget birthdays, drop appointments, don’t follow through on many vows. This lets people down and causes them pain.

God always remembers his promises. He always follows through on them. He will never let you down.

Some people feel let down by God. There are many possible reasons for this. Some common ones are that one can expect something from God which he never promised. This is very dangerous to one’s faith. Another is that we are often let down by people and project this on God. This connection is usually strongest with parents, especially fathers.

This lack of faithfulness on my part continually reminds me that I am weak. It also makes me thankful that God is completely faithful.

5. Spatial Finiteness

For what great nation is there that has a god so near to it as the Lord our God is to us, whenever we call upon him? – Deuteronomy 4:7

And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age. – Matthew 28:20

I cannot be everywhere at once. I can only do so much. Very often I must make choices between two good things to be doing. Sometimes this lets someone down. Sometimes I have to let a good opportunity go by. This is a common experience. We like to typify it in action movies where the hero must choose between saving the girl or the crowd…

God is Spirit. He is not limited by space or time. He is near to his people. He is near those who call to him.

9. Doing Wrong

“You therefore must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.” – Jesus

This statement of Jesus (during the sermon on the mount) is crushing. In order to obtain heaven, you must be perfect. If you’ve never done a wrong thing in your life, leave a comment. (I thought not.)

God is perfect, by definition. He is righteous (that means, always right, never wrong…) Every time I screw up, I am reminded that I am not like God (I am a sinner).

More to come.

The last few weeks of reflection have brought something to mind that was a fairly interesting revelation to me. It wasn’t an all-at-once sort of realization, but more of a compilation of many thoughts I’ve had over the last couple of years. This post (series) is an exercise in thinking through it more clearly, and also is a type of confession.

I’m splitting this up into several posts, not as a traffic gimmick or something, but because of time constraints.

It should be known that the God I speak of is the God of the Christian Bible. This is the subject of another post altogether. Perhaps I’ll get there at the end of this. Hang with me.

The first three things that remind me that I’m not God:

1. Hunger

I dislike being hungry. It reminds me that I am a mortal creature that is dependent on the world around me. It reminds me that we have to work very hard to produce food (or produce cash to buy food, or earn cash to buy food). Ultimately it reminds me that it used to not be this way, and that someone else is in charge of my life.

This causes me to try to avoid feeling hungry. Whenever I feel even slightly hungry, reflexively, I eat, to try and re-assert some dominance over my domain. Rarely, if ever, do I allow myself to simply sit with the feeling, and reflect on the fact that I am a dependent creature. This is why I am overweight (not grossly so… 225lbs at 6’2″, but enough that it reminds me of all these things.)

2. Sleep

At certain points during the day, especially in the evening, my productivity drops to nil. I am forced to cease activity, and surrender to an overwhelming urge to sleep. I can stave this off with drugs (caffeine), but not for long, and always with longer term negative consequence. Prolonged periods of wakefulness actually drive human beings insane.

This, like hunger, reminds me that I am a weak, mortal creature. It also reminds me that I serve a God who never slumbers nor sleeps, which is comforting. But ultimately humiliating (which is also a good thing).

3. Lack of Knowledge

I hate not knowing something. Deep down a part of me hates people realizing that I don’t know something. (Yes, this is ridiculous.) Two tendencies result from this.

1. I try to know a little about everything. Dangerous, and ridiculous.
2. At times, I will speak about something that I know nothing about as if I knew about it. Also dangerous and ridiculous.

I try to read as much as I can and have a finger on the pulse of “culture” (the world around me, current events, trends, fashions, music, etc…). This is an endless pursuit and can get a little out of hand for me from time to time. The funny thing is, I feel like a bit of a failure when I don’t keep up. The failure? Failure to be God.

This is a reminder that I serve an omniscient God.

More to come.

To start with, the only way I know that we can know for sure what God says on a subject is through the Christian Bible. How do I know that? That’s another topic altogether, I’ll get there, someday… in short, the last 7 years of my life have shown me, through academic research, and through experiential knowledge, that it’s true. Basically, everything I understand the Bible to say matches with the reality I percieve around me.

Anyway, here goes:

1 Thessalonians 4:3-8 (ESV) For this is the will of God, your sanctification: that you abstain from sexual immorality; that each one of you know how to control his own body in holiness and honor, not in the passion of lust like the Gentiles who do not know God; that no one transgress and wrong his brother in this matter, because the Lord is an avenger in all these things, as we told you beforehand and solemnly warned you. For God has not called us for impurity, but in holiness. Therefore whoever disregards this, disregards not man but God, who gives his Holy Spirit to you.

A couple of concepts to pull out of here.

Sanctification: = purification. Pure means completely one thing; not mixed…

Sexual Immorality: The Greek word here is Porneia. It’s where we get the word porn in the first place. In the bible, it means; adultery, homosexuality, beastiality, incest, and intercourse with a divorced man or woman. Hard stuff. Could probably focus a book or semester course on any one of those…

Passion of lust: lust in this context means craving, or desiring something that is forbidden. We all know what passionate means.

Impurity: The opposite of purity (fairly simple…)

Holiness: Same word as sanctification above…

Disregards God: Other translations say “Reject God”. So, if you choose sexual immorality, you are rejecting God. I was hit hard by this thought.

And now from the man himself:

Matthew 5:27-30 “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall not commit adultery.’ But I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lustful intent has already committed adultery with her in his heart. If your right eye causes you to sin, tear it out and throw it away. For it is better that you lose one of your members than that your whole body be thrown into hell. And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. For it is better that you lose one of your members than that your whole body go into hell.

Looking with lustful intent: Jesus turns the Jewish law, and our common sense on it’s head here. Has anyone reading this NOT looked at someone with “lustful intent”? At any rate, this is the very center of what porn is about, so here he is equating that with sleeping with someone’s wife (or husband…).

Drastic measures: Here’s where to end up. Jesus talked about this pretty strongly, as does Paul in the above Thessalonians passage. Literally gouge your eye out? Probably not, but realize the seriousness of what’s going on here, and take appropriate measures. That’s the message they are conveying. Do we take it seriously enough?

The crowd’s reaction was great, and I daresay that the posters had their intended effect, on Christians and non-Christians alike.

I made this flyer for my next Rock message. (in the flyer… “Dangerous Curves” refers to a local “bikini bar”, essentially a strip club where they don’t take ALL their clothes off, thus circumventing many city ordinances.)

Next week at The Rock I will be speaking about pornography. Specifically how pornography is creeping into the American mainstream (it has been for the last fifty years or so, but in the last decade it has made rapid and slightly disconcerting advances.)

One cannot turn on network television in the evening without sex, implied or actual coming up every five minutes (slight exageration). My message will be on a general level how this effects the way men view women. I’m also going to draw attention to the slippery slope from sex on TV to the sex slave trade in Amercia (estimates of over 100,000 AMERICAN girls and women currently bought and sold as sex slaves today…)

The reason there’s a market for sex on TV is the same reason there is a market for sex slaves.

I hope men come away angry at pornography.

Some great resources around this topic can be found at xxxchurch.com