by Ross Middleton

The Pendulum swings back and forth in the church.

Back in the day it was called “The Social Gospel” and it was more about meeting physical needs than preaching the gospel. Don’t read into what I’m not saying. I’m not saying that’s not important, just saying that there should be balance.

Then later it became all preaching the gospel and very little if any meeting of needs.

Fast forward to modern day 21st Century American Christianity.  Social justice is more en vogue than ever before. While I am a huge fan of many of the amazing groups out there pulling people out of sex slavery, digging wells and what not, we cannot neglect the preaching of the gospel.

We don’t need one and not the other, we always need both.

Ross Middleton is an Every Nation campus director in Florida State University, Tallahassee and is the author of  Collide Leadership.

by Ross Middleton

Just finished A.W. Tozer’s Knowledge of the Holy. One of the things that stuck out to me was how he talked about language.

What’s amazing is that there is no language on the planet that can even come close to describing God. Our words fall short, very short, of even giving to description to who God is, its just an amazing thought to me. We are bound by our language in the description of God.

When you look at Ezekiel or John when they were having heavenly vision’s, they began to have trouble even describing what it looked like. They would say things like, “it looked like….” They compared it to something else they were familiar with because language itself could not contain the vastness of God or explain what it was they were experiencing.

The more you get to know God, the more you realize you don’t know Him and I believe it will take an eternity to figure out who He is.

Ross Middleton is an Every Nation campus director in Florida State University, Tallahassee and is the author of  Collide Leadership.

by Paul Barker

I used to get Dominos as a present when I was a kid, and I loved them. But I never learned to play the game until a few years ago. I spent all my time setting up intricate and complex patterns – and then watching the chain reaction after I pushed the first one.

So I was intrigued to learn that the World Domino Toppling record had recently been shattered. An international team of 90 people from 13 nations eclipsed the former record of 4,002,146. Their total? 4,079,381! That is a lot of dominos!

I have always been interested in chain reactions, how one small event leads inexorably to a conclusion – often an unexpected and unplanned conclusion. For example…

On July 11, 1976, I heard the Gospel explained in a clear and convincing way – at a meeting that I never planned to attend. I stepped forward in response to that message, completely unsure where that step would take me. Thirty-one years later, I am in awe at the adventure, and the joy, and yes, the difficulties, that step led to. God pushed a domino that night, and my life has never been the same!

Paul Barker is the Director of the Every Nation Leadership Institute-North America and the author of PaulBarker.org.

by Myra Watkins 

Sometimes life feels like a juggling act where one wrong move could send everything crashing in bedlam. Be kind to others. Look your best. Serve with excellence. Be smart. Use your talents well. Tend to all of your relationships. Meet deadlines. Stay fit. And all the while still smiling. But I am tired of excellence at the moment and want to spend a bohemian summer reading some great books, writing and loving people, maybe even wear hemp clothing and funky jewelry. And as I am encouraged by God, I want to consider how to encourage others better and how to reach the young generation more effectively. And of course I want to get out and exercise in the beautiful summer weather and have fun with family and friends. And play my flute. But wait, this is starting to sound like the same list, only packaged differently. The difference is that it is grace-oriented, not task-oriented, and fueled and refreshed by love. I am a choleric artist, an oxymoron, I know. Don’t try this at home. I am as driven as a race car driver with an idealism that is always elusive. I think I understand how Thoreau felt when he wrote: “Our life is frittered away by detail. . . Simpilicity, simplicity, simplicity!” This morning I ran four miles and ate a bowl of cherries. Ukrainian cherries are the best. I am writing this in my “Drops of Jupiter” jeans and flip flops at one of my favorite neighborhood coffee shops. I think I will spend the summer this way and take it on into the fall, simplified and streamlined, not wearied by the minutiae of detail. Hey, maybe I can even spell something out of it. You know, one of those acronyms: S eek God I nvest talents wisely M ake disciples P lay often L ove others E njoy life Real SIMPLE, that’s it, she writes with a smile as she sips her cappuccino and spends time with the important people in her life. (Painting of our region, Podol, in Kiev.) “But the Lord said to her, “My dear Martha, you are worried and upset over all these details! There is only one thing worth being concerned about. Mary has discovered it, and it will not be taken away from her.” (Luke 10:41-42, NLT) “Steep your life in God-reality, God-initiative, God-provisions. Don’t worry about missing out. You’ll find all your everyday human concerns will be met.” (Matt. 6:33, The Message)

Myra Watkins is a missionary, a fisher of men, and the author of the blog Encouraging Thoughts.

by Ross Middleton

Its just this simple. Either God is good and faithful or He’s not, and He doesn’t exist and this whole thing is a big sham.

I think he’s good and faithful.

No matter how I feel.

No matter if I think life is fair.

No matter if I have enough money.

No matter if things aren’t how I want them to be.

God is not as concerned with how I feel, but rather how I respond to my feeling.

Ross Middleton is an Every Nation campus director in Florida State University, Tallahassee and is the author of  Collide Leadership.