Photo: Carlos Paes

Whether you are a person at risk seeking help or a good neighbor who wants to help at-risk families in your community, there are tools available to you to do something, whether it is for one household or many.

1.There is a web site called LIHEAP that lists all of the available assistance programs:

It briefly describes the specific help available and gives contacts in your area, including the Federal and state programs, and the local utility companies that have set aside money or established special policies to help people in need.

2. Another webpage has information for each state and community regarding the laws that govern homes being disconnected for non-payment of utility bills and the disconnection policy of each utility company.

Emergency Fund

You can use this information to help your own family, an aged relative or a family you know through your church or in your neighborhood. Maybe you should consider doing what many churches and community organizations have done–form an Energy Emergency Committee. If your group or congregation will provide a modest emergency fund, that money can be used to leverage assistance from the utility companies themselves, community action agencies that run LIHEAP programs for the government and county or state agencies. Perhaps your congregation should take a special offering or your civic club or neighborhood council can set aside a percentage of your most recent fund-raiser for immediate needs this winter.

Intervention can save lives! Older people and single mothers often despair as the bills pile up and bureaucrats tell them to call elsewhere when they phone for help. It is easier to just let things take their course. When people freeze to death they just go to sleep and the cold slowly takes them. Don’t be afraid to get involved. This is an important issue in our community.

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By Monte Sahlin. Copyright © 2012 by GraceNotes. All rights reserved. Use of this material is subject to usage guidelines.

Citeste mai mult la sursa: Out of the Cold

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Photo: Studiomill

One warm and sunny day when I was nine years old, my younger brother and sister and I were playing in front of our house. I still remember seeing my six-year-old brother race by on his bike heading straight for my two-year-old sister who was sitting on the sidewalk. To this day, nobody knows why he didn’t stop or drive around her. Instead, he ran over her and broke her leg. The best explanation I have been able to come up with is, he was in a hurry and not paying attention.

In a Big Hurry

The frightening thing is that we all do this from time to time but not always with disastrous results. The truth is that many of us function in a frenzy. We have so much to do and only so much time to do it in that we think we have to rush everywhere. Whether driving the freeways, pushing our baskets through the supermarket or hustling down the hallways of our workplace – we’re just in too big a hurry to get where we’re going. And once we get there, we don’t even pause long enough to enjoy it. Instead, we speed on to the next appointment, errand or task.

Life is not meant to be lived this way! Every moment is meant to be savored and enjoyed. Take a deep breath. Look around and notice what the Creator has put before us to enjoy this day: the warmth of the sun, a gentle breeze, a baby bunny darting into the bushes, a butterfly flitting from flower to flower, the smile of a friend, a delicious meal, a full moon. The list is endless. But some of us miss it all in our stampede to accomplish and acquire.

One day each of our lives will be over. When that time comes, it is my guess that we won’t wish we had spent more time rushing. Instead, we will wish we had spent more time enjoying.

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By Kathy A. Lewis. Copyright © 2012 by GraceNotes. All rights reserved. Use of this material is subject to usage guidelines.

Citeste mai mult la sursa: Rush Hour Remedy

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Photo: Charlie Balch

There was a well-known self-help article that featured letters from people who touted themselves with monikers like “single and looking,” “frazzled and fickle,” and yes, “hurried and hopeless.” And whoever wrote with that last name must have chose it to signify a sense of living in frantic, rushed mayhem with no hope of rescue in sight.There are many of us who can relate. If you are a student with ten exams and six term papers looming; a mom with three children all under the age of five; a professional with a family in pursuit of a graduate degree while holding down a full time job and serving on endless church committees; well you get the picture.

In the midst of all this frenzied activity that robs us of precious time, how does one include a consistent, meaningful prayer life? I venture to say the answer lies in thinking outside the box—trying something a little unconventional. By that I say, having a prayer life that connects you to God and feeds your spiritual soul does not equate hours spent in prayer and supplication at the crack of dawn (though there is a time and place for that too.) Let’s just cut to the chase: you can talk to God anywhere, anytime.

Pray without ceasing

So do it. In your head, out loud, in song, however you feel moved to pray–do it! You can read His word anywhere, anytime. Keep a Bible in your car to read verses while waiting in the parking lot of your child’s school. Take a small devotional book to work and take breaks with it. Read it in line at the DMV, in the waiting room of the doctor’s office, etc. You get the picture. When something pops into your head to tell God about, don’t put it off until your designated prayer time before bed—speak to Him right then and there.

What works for me at the moment (and the moment consists of me being a stay-at-home mother of two/freelance writer/partner in hubby’s business/church communication director) is talking to God in my head as soon as the alarm goes off, and sending him quick notes from my heart as they occur. I also try to keep easily digestible spiritual reading material close for any moment that time permits. What I believe these shortcuts enable us to do is tune our minds to connecting with God at any moment of the day that we can. The beauty of this method is that we can find ourselves communing with God all day long. What better goal can we achieve than that?

The tried and true methods of having daily devotion time are important. All I am saying is that life’s circumstances sometimes prohibit us from spending time in the more traditional formats we are accustomed to. But one who loves God cannot neglect God-time. So make tuning your head and heart to God as often as you can, a priority. Then reach for Him in any way possible. He’ll work with what we have. He always does.

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By Wilona Karimabadi. Copyright © 2012 by GraceNotes. All rights reserved. Use of this material is subject to usage guidelines.

Citeste mai mult la sursa: Prayer Solutions

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Photo: Brad Harrison

My seven-year-old son chatted happily with me as we made our way, hand-in-hand, down the shaded dirt road that would lead to our destination. The dusty lane meandered toward the small beaver pond near my parents home where we would spend a few quiet moments together at the beginning of the day; groggy parent, and wide awake child.

We were on vacation for a couple of weeks, and arising early to walk together was a welcome change of pace from our usually busy morning activities. Without worry or care for what the day might bring, we allowed the morning to simply happen and enjoyed the relaxation of skipping stones across the quiet waters. I “breathed in” the morning, and thanked God for the precious gift of life and for time alone with my child to enjoy the simple pleasures of an unhurried day.

After skimming dozens of flat stones across the pond’s short expanse, and observing a tireless beaver hard at work, we made our way back to my parents home. The peaceful calm that this small excursion brought to my soul is indescribable, and I was reminded of the importance of stepping back from life to enjoy the quiet solitude of an ordinary morning.

“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest” (Matthew 11:28).

Rest For the Weary

I have pondered those words of Christ many times, but after that peaceful morning walk with my son, it hit me;  God wants to bring rest into my life through time spent together.

We were designed for that objective, but the frenzied pace of our daily existence often steals it from us. Schedules get so hectic, that the busy-ness of life often eclipses the true desires of our hearts for spiritual wholeness and perfect oneness with our Creator.

The invitation to “come to God” for rest still exists, and we need only to embrace that reality, that we might enjoy the tranquility that comes from the quiet moments spent with a Heavenly “parent.” We are promised joy, rest, and contentment if we will set aside quiet moments with our Creator, and all it takes…is time.

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By Michael Temple. Copyright © 2012 by GraceNotes. All rights reserved. Use of this material is subject to usage guidelines. Scripture taken from the NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION ®.

Citeste mai mult la sursa: Quiet Time

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Photo: Justyna Furmanczyk

I never thought I would be working in an advertising agency located downtown. But I do.

I work in bustling downtown Orlando, Fla. It’s nothing compared to New York City or Atlanta, but I definitely feel the sense that I’m walking downtown when I conveniently take my two minute walk to Starbucks. It’s filled with parks, restaurants, cafes, coffee shops, sandwich shops, boutiques, hair salons, and the list can go on and on.

Growing up in Miami you get used to the hustle and bustle of city life and city lights. There’s city traffic and a city way of life. But even though I grew up in one of the fastest growing cities I never felt a part of the city life. My life was filled with church and church events and going to my church school with my church friends. I went to my church university and then I was thrown into reality. The reality that there’s a real world filled with people who haven’t heard about church and God and might not even care to know that He exists. It’s a reality I wasn’t prepared to face and in all honesty I wasn’t sure that I wanted to accept.

Amazing People

It’s been a harsh awakening for me to realize that there’s an ENTIRE world of people who don’t live a God-driven life. I work alongside people who don’t believe in God, or maybe they do but they don’t have the same convictions I grew up with. It’s hard not to pass judgment. But the truth is a lot of my coworkers are amazing people. Nice, giving, caring people. They might not have given their lives to Christ, but in their own way they practice Christ-like actions. I wonder if they think the same of me? I wonder if they have seen kindness and a “what would Jesus do” attitude in me. I wonder if I’ve touched their lives as much as they’ve touched mine?

Jesus worked around the hurting, the searching, and the lonely. He concentrated his ministry in this target audience. I think it’s time we do the same. I think it’s time we become roaring lambs. Roaring lambs that happen to work in the city, play in the city and make a difference in the city.

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By Andrea Torres. Copyright © 2012 by GraceNotes. All rights reserved. Use of this material is subject to usage guidelines.

Citeste mai mult la sursa: Roaring Lambs

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Photo: Stefan Krilla

What had happened to my radio? For several days, I had noticed that my favorite Christian radio station was a fading jumble of music and speech. The signal had always been loud and clear. How dare that other station crowd out my usual listening choice! It was even evident that the offender was another Christian station with different music selections. Had something happened on a certain date to change the transmission power? 

I traveled a few miles hoping that would put me closer to a signal-transmitting tower and I would again hear my music. At one point, I moved the tuner ahead a few notches but then I totally lost my station. I bounced to another station selection but that was not inspiring. I shut off the radio and started to formulate the letter or email that I would send to my station: Do you realize that we are losing your signal? Is someone stealing your frequency?

I had started to believe that I would never enjoy radio again. My town would not feel as friendly or comfortable without those sounds. Finally, as I drove to a weekly Bible study class, I overheard a weak station promo with the familiar tune and their call numbers, Z88.3! As I glanced at the small radio display, I could see that I had been driving around with my radio set on 88.7. I hit the tuning button several times and my station returned with bright and clear reception. What a difference a few tenths of a number can make in radio reception! Perhaps another family member had driven my car earlier that week, and had changed the radio setting. Or I might have carelessly moved something while playing a compact disk. Anyway, I was glad I had not written to the station to complain, or mentioned it to my friends. I was thankful to have my music back, and the familiar voices of the announcers.

Lessons From a Radio Frequency

My journey with Jesus is so similar to tuning a radio station. Sometimes I am driving around feeling abandoned and uncomfortable. I lose the God signal, or only dimly hear Him. I have only moved a few tenths of a point away from Him, but the interference is incredible. Other Christians might even distract me! Sometimes I get careless or allow someone else to mess around with my tuner—I quit praying, reading the Bible, or fill in the time with worries or entertainment.

I do not even have to mess up big time to make a huge difference in how I am able to hear God in my life. Sometimes I am just racing around town with a lot of noise coming from the wrong settings. Then I move around trying to find a clearer message. I get aggravated with God and start to complain—”do you realize I am losing Your signal? Do you care that others are stealing Your frequency? Do something!”

Thankfully, about then, I open the Bible, I talk to a Christian friend, or I stumble along to church. I might even faintly hear Him give the familiar call letters:

“I am the Light of the World. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life” (John 8: 12).

“We must pay more careful attention, therefore, to what we have heard, so that we do not drift away” (Hebrews 2:1).

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By Karen Spruill. Copyright © 2012 by GraceNotes. All rights reserved. Use of this material is subject to usage guidelines. Scripture taken from the NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION ®.

Citeste mai mult la sursa: Losing My Signal

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Photo: Brian Whit

“I have not placed reading before praying because I regard it more important, but because, in order to pray aright, we must understand what we are praying for.”

A friend recently sent me this quote by Angelina Grimke, a U.S. abolitionist and feminist, and I’ve been thinking about it ever since. This important quote highlights the necessity of understanding the gospel within a context. It is important to resist the temptation to believe there is a context-free gospel. This freedom from context is a myth of modernity. Even Jesus was incarnated in a context.

Eating, Walking, Talking

Once you understand the importance of context to understanding the good news of God, you can move on to realize the missionary importance of eating in local restaurants, walking on the sidewalks of your city, and talking to your neighbors. Equally important is reading the newspaper or other sources of news about your city in particular.

So, I really love this statement because for me it talks both about a Christian way of seeing the world and a “worldly” way of praying. To read first and then pray, or to walk our streets and then pray is to pray with our eyes open and our minds engaged. It is to bear upon our hearts the needs of our world and then bring those needs before God. Put in the negative, it is to avoid the characteristically Christian way of praying in the modern world – to pray in the abstract. We don’t live in an abstract world and we don’t worship an abstract God. The concreteness of our world and the God who created it begs for a life of prayer that is deeply connected to the reality all around.

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By Ryan Bell. Center for Metropolitan Ministries. Copyright © 2010 by GraceNotes. All rights reserved. Use of this material is subject to usage guidelines.

Citeste mai mult la sursa: Reading Before Praying

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Two thousand years ago in Alexandria, Egypt pagan temples competed for worshipers. In order to get the attention of the people, priests in these pagan temples had to come up with schemes and new inventions to create awe and wonder. One man named Heron of Alexandria created many devices for these temples such as flying chariots, moving statues, crying statues, automatic holy water dispensers, and many more. The temple that provided the best entertainment, intrigue, and astonishment received the most worshipers and, of course, the money through temple donations. Not only were these temples driven by greed, pride was a major factor produced by whose temple was the biggest and whose god was the most popular.

It sometimes seems that today’s churches are heading in the same direction. New churches are being built with attractive and unique architectural designs. Churches with gold trimmings and gold domes are popping up. Some churches have resorted to using the same things retailers use to attract customers; neon signs and digital displays. On the inside of some churches you can find fancy statues and ornaments encrusted with jewels. Some churches use large bands to entertain people while others use elaborate choir performances. Still, other churches have envelopes in the pews asking for a special donation on top of tithing that goes directly to the pastor–unchecked by the money counters or church board.

Feel Good High?

The question can be asked: Do churches do all of these things to attract people to Christ or to attract people to their congregation? Are greed and pride driving these churches to get larger and fancier? It is not our job to pass judgement on these churches so I guess a better question to ask is why do you go to church? Do you go so you can corporately worship the Creator or do you go to get that “feel good high”?

It seems like these ancient discoveries are now becoming entrenched into modern churches. Some Christians are being deceived by the very places they go to worship. At times we all find ourselves getting caught up in the hype of entertainment and something new. When this occurs we need to break free from the cultural norms and make sure our church attendance is motivated by a desire to grow spiritually and to give God praise. If a church is not moving us in these directions, it may be time to start searching for a new one.

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By David Wolstenholm. Copyright © 2012 by GraceNotes. All rights reserved. Use of this material is subject to usage guidelines.

Citeste mai mult la sursa: Modern Illusions

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Photo: Steve Ford Elliott

Does the term “green city” make any sense? There is a growing movement across the U.S. and around the world for cities to become more environmentally conscious. Some neighborhoods are committed to becoming an oasis of sustainable living, powered by the sun and surrounded by gardens.

There are nature-friendly alternatives for your community no matter how urbanized it may be. Even poor residents of inner city neighborhoods are learning to grow organic vegetables and healing herbs, to build beautiful homes from recycled materials and adapt green technology for local use.

Especially among the large population in metropolitan areas, “there have to be initiatives to empower people to change their lifestyles in ways that will enable them to sustain their families,” says Dorah Lebelo, director of the Greenhouse Project in Johannesburg, South Africa. Her organization is just one of hundreds of nonprofits developing creative, “plant-friendly” approaches to community development “instead of inventing technologies that cost a lot of money or involve importing products from all over the world.”

Is it working? “This used to be a rough neighborhood,” Lebelo says. “It’s much safer now. People are also becoming more conscious about growing their own food. Women’s groups are emerging and creating coops for art and organic gardening to earn income.” The look of the community has improved too.

Turning Green

What would it take to make your neighborhood a “green” community? The first step is to talk to local residents and get their ideas. Find partnerships with other organizations and businesses. Start with a small, concrete experiment and let the concept snowball.

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Center for Metropolitan Ministries reporting by Kim Ridley. Copyright © 2012 by GraceNotes. All rights reserved. Use of this material is subject to usage guidelines.


Information and resources are available at http://www.sustainable‑city.org and http://www.planetdrum.org/green_city_calendar1.htm. The Institute for Local Self-Reliance is a major “think tank” on this subject. Its web site is at www.ilsr.org.

Citeste mai mult la sursa: What Is a "Green" City?

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Photo: Stephanie Syjuco

In case you haven’t noticed, sex is big business. It sells cars, clothing, food, furniture, jewelry, music, pharmaceuticals, and just about every other comsumer-oriented product you can think of. It immediately grabs our attention because we are sexual beings. God created us with hormones and sexual desires. There is nothing evil about sex! But like everything else, the Devil has figured out a way to prevert and cheapen it–to make it so ordinary, kinky or casual that it misses its intended purpose.

Sex was originally given by God as a means for populating the earth and drawing committed partners (husbands and wives) into deeper, more intimate relations. Hollywood’s version of love includes adulterous encounters, one-night stands, sex with multiple partners, recreational sex, and a host of other expressions that leave participants individually broken and lonely. Not everyone who engages in these will tell you they are lonely or sad, but if they only knew the joy they were missing by failing to experience sex God’s way, they would probably be heartbroken.

In our media-driven world it is easy to lose sight of God’s way. And it is especially easy for people to use sex as a way to keep from being lonely. How can you argue with something that often works?

Can you trust God?

The Apostle Paul says, “There’s more to sex than mere skin on skin. Sex is as much spiritual mystery as physical fact. As written in Scripture, ‘The two become one.’ Since we want to become spiritually one with the Master, we must not pursue the kind of sex that avoids commitment and intimacy, leaving us more lonely than ever–the kind of sex that can never ‘become one’ ” (1 Corinthians 6:16-17).

You may be tempted to embrace our culture’s view of sexuality–to find warmth, intimacy and companionship by whatever means. But God’s all-knowing wisdom and compassion cautions you to be careful.

“Don’t you realize that this is not the way to live? Unjust people who don’t care about God will not be joining in his kingdom. Those who use and abuse each other, use and abuse sex, use and abuse the earth and everything in it, don’t qualify as citizens in God’s kingdom” (1 Corinthians 6:9-10). 

The reason it is so important that we get it right with sex is that true sex illustrates the close spiritual bond that God wants to have with His people–those who will spend eternity in Heaven!

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By Rich DuBose. Copyright © 2012 by GraceNotes. All rights reserved. Use of this material is subject to usage guidelines. Scripture taken from THE MESSAGE ®.

Citeste mai mult la sursa: Sex Sells

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Photo: Oleksiy Petrenko

I have the privilege of working with many angry people. They are angry because of all the hurt and abuse they have endured during their lives. Their stories are a testimony to the terrible sinful world that we live in. Only sin could treat children this way. Some have been sexually misused. Some have been hit.  Some have been stuffed in closets. Some have been emotionally mishandled. Others neglected and forced to run away from home to survive. And life for most didn’t improve. There have been a series of bad relationships that have left scars. Military time has left many with PTSD.

So, when I meet them they are angry. Their anger has enabled them to “survive” if that’s what we want to call it. Anger is their protection. It keeps everyone away. It lashes out to hurt before the hurt comes the other way. It sees the problem in every one else and never allows the person to see any problems in themselves. It harbors bitterness and unforgiveness as cherished friends and doesn’t allow the victim to find peace.

There is no doubt that their anger has a reason, but the anger is killing them. It is keeping them from all the great promises that God has for them. It is keeping them from the fruit of the Spirit…you know…love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, faithfulness and self-control (see Galatians 5:22,23).

Finding Release

When we “fess” up to our part in life…God gives us freedom.

Remember David’s famous repentance psalm? Here is just a part…“Have mercy on me, O God, according to your unfailing love; according to your great compassion blot out my transgressions. Wash away all my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin…create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me…restore to me the joy of your salvation…the sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise” (Psalm 51).

A contrite heart…that’s repentance. It’s the key to getting better in life…not bitter. Perhaps that’s why Jesus talked about the removing the log from our own eyes before we try to remove the speck from someone else’s eye.

So…anger…no matter how valid can’t save us…only repentance can!  

And for the people I have the privilege to work with…those who discover this find a new life…those who don’t are in a living hell.

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By Chad McComas. Copyright © 2012 by GraceNotes. All rights reserved. Use of this material is subject to usage guidelines. Scripture taken from the NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION ®.

Citeste mai mult la sursa: Anger is Hell

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This morning I set out on a walk just as night gave way to day. As I scanned the western horizon, twilight turned powdery blue frosted by a thin layer of pink cotton. Behind me the sun rose like a golden ball in the east spreading its glorious rays like warm fingers of love.

Suddenly my attention was drawn to a flock of birds flying in formation. I marveled as they arched, dipped and soared in perfect unison, winging their way north, then west, then north again, each bird intuitively knowing the moves. They reminded me of a seasoned Olympic figure skating couple who danced in perfect concert due to thousands of hours of practice spins.

And, all this, I might have missed had I not reluctantly risen at the crack of dawn to exercise. I am again reminded that there is beauty to have and to hold, each and every day. And, sometimes it appears in the most unlikely places. I’ve even heard it said that our smoggy city skylines make the most awesome sunsets.

I remember leaving the building of a former place of employment one evening, just in time to take in a brilliant crimson sunset on the western horizon. “Isn’t it beautiful?” I queried the woman by my side, as we made our way to the parking lot. “Wow, look at that red!” She responded. “Incredible,” I agreed.

It was at that point I finally took my eyes off the sky and noticed my colleague hadn’t even seen the sunset. Instead, she was admiring a shiny red sports car, fresh off the showroom floor! We were both in exactly the same place, at the same time, and had seen and experienced something totally different.

Too Busy to Notice

This experience convinced me that every day, you and I miss many beautiful and special gifts sent to us by a God who loves us and delights to bless us. We miss them because we are too busy, too preoccupied, or too focused on our plans and the busyness of this world to notice.

It is true that the ugliness of the city surrounds us too. Polluted skies, graffiti-marred buildings, trash and freeway stench are everywhere. But so is beauty if we look for it. Billowy clouds, budding blossoms, melodic birds, and grey squirrels darting up ancient oaks with treasures in their jowls – these are just some of the urban jewels we may unearth each day if we take the time to observe.

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By Kathy A Lewis. Copyright © 2012 by GraceNotes. All rights reserved. Use of this material is subject to usage guidelines.

Citeste mai mult la sursa: Sunsets or Sportscars?

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