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I heard this prayer earlier today by Sir Francis Drake called ‘Disturb Us, O Lord”. It’s a good one.

I urge you to read this, reflect on it, and pray it when you’re ready for God to disturb you.

Disturb Us, O Lord
when we are too well pleased with ourselves
when our dreams have come true because we have dreamed too little
when we arrived safely because we sailed too close to the shore

Disturb Us, O Lord
when with the abundance of things we possess
we have lost our thirst for the Waters of Life;
having fallen in love with life, we have ceased to dream of eternity.
And in our efforts to build a new earth,
we have allowed our vision of the new heaven to dim.

Disturb Us, O Lord - to dare more boldly
to venture on wider seas where storms will show your mastery
where losing sight of land, we shall find the stars.
We ask you push back the horizon of our hopes,
and to push us into the future with strength, courage, hope and love.”

Merry Christmas Eve to you all!

Being a reader of RELEVANT Magazine and its associated newsletters I got word of a sale they were having. All of their books were $5 a piece regardless of the retail price. Three days ago with debit card in hand (credit cards… boooo!!) I was ready to shop. I set a six book limit for myself and had at it. Too bad I’m late talking about this as the books are back to retail price.

On the other side of the transaction is today when the package estimated to arrive next week got here. (Go USPS!)

Everybody Wants to Go to Heaven But Nobody Wants to Die by David Crowder and Mike Hogan

The conflict between the here and now and the ever after is a familiar one. Death and life are forever intertwined, as a life lived to the fullest includes pain and grief. Even more, it requires dying to self, which frees one to experience a greater joy: community. Thus explains bestselling recording artist David Crowder as he explores the complex relationship between life, death, grief and community. Drawing from personal experience, Christian theology, the science of pain and the ?¢‚Ǩ?ìhigh, lonesome sound?¢‚Ǩ¬ù of bluegrass music, Crowder applies his often hilarious voice to an inspiring message?¢‚Ǩ‚Äùdeath is not the ultimate calamity … it is just the beginning.

The Naked Christian by Craig Borlase

Ever think there must be more to a relationship with God than a list of dos and don?¢‚Ǩ‚Ñ¢ts? That church should be more than a slick Sunday morning production? That religion isn?¢‚Ǩ‚Ñ¢t just a patch for your insecurities or candy for your hunger? Strip back the bulky layers of religion with The Naked Christian and step into something more comfortable. It?¢‚Ǩ‚Ñ¢s called relationship.

Written by Craig Borlase and rooted in biblical principles, this book lays bare our human weaknesses and daily struggles. It blinks in amazement at the blinding grace, love and mercy of God. It will inspire you to chase after Him, to shun the fake stuff and to do one of the hardest things within a church community: BE REAL. CHOOSE AUTHENTICITY. GET NAKED.

The Man Comes Around: The Spiritual Journey of Johnny Cash by Dave Urbanski

The Soul of an American Legend

Who Was Johnny Cash? Rock star? Preacher? Drug addict? Saint? In truth, the Man in Black lived long enough and hard enough to embody all of the above?ɬ?and much more. He was a musical legend, a one-of-a-kind communicator, an American icon?ɬ?but someone that could never be pigeonholed.

Cash’s faith in God was no different: “I’m still a Christian, as I have been all my life,” he once said. “Beyond that I get complicated.” Cash’s faith was raw, challenged, broken and messy. But it was real. Unlike any other book written about Johnny Cash, The Man Comes Around explores with vivid detail the wild highs and lows that took place during this man’s lifelong spiritual journey. It illuminates the deep, unending love he had for his music, his wife and his God.

Painstakingly researched and adorned with vivid, narrative detail, The Man Comes Around shows the impact this American legend has made not only in American music, but in eternity. After hearing his story, you’ll never hear his music the same again.

Pocket Guide to the Bible by Jason Boyett

It’s the world’s all-time best seller. It’s the most influential book in Western civilization. It’s sitting in practically every home in America. Yet few of us have a clue about what’s going on within our Bibles’ gold-lined, onionskin pages. Until now. In Pocket Guide to the Bible: A Little Book About the Big Book, author Jason Boyett hilariously spotlights the events, characters and themes of the Old and New Testaments.

All the Hits So Far by Bradley Hathaway

This book and CD capture the outrageous stories, experiences and observations of Bradley Hathaway, a fixture on the international festival and concert scene. All the Hits So Far combines his bold, honest poetry with commentary and original artwork, resulting in a rare glimpse into the mind and heart of a sensitive, hardcore “manly man” living life out loud through the microphone.

One Thing by Dwayne Roberts

We?¢‚Ǩ‚Ñ¢re created to crave. The advertising industry knows this. The entertainment industry knows this. The self-help industry knows this. We spend the bulk of our time pursuing things, feeding our own appetites for the stuff that brings us pleasure. We?¢‚Ǩ‚Ñ¢re driven by desire, and that desire is steering an entire generation away from God.

By following our endless fascinations, we?¢‚Ǩ‚Ñ¢re cheating ourselves. Why? Because we?¢‚Ǩ‚Ñ¢re called to pursue one fascination, and one only: God. Not empty religious buzzwords or trivia or a superficial 10-step program to “successful spirituality.” Nope. Just God Himself, experienced through the person of Jesus. When our true purpose is as simple as that one thing, anything less is misguided.

Join Dwayne Roberts as he issues the rallying cry of a generation seeking to look past the disillusionment, apathy and boredom with religion, and refocus on one thing: the pursuit of God.

Hopefully I’ll have these done soon and maybe write a review or at least a solid suggestion to buy the book yourself or not.

I just posted a request for prayer for my dad (please read it if you haven’t), but this was also on my radar.

Today, Sunday, November 11, is the “International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church” (IDOP).

I don’t have anything to add to what I am posting from their website. So that said, please pray for the persecuted church and my dad.

The International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church (IDOP) is a global day of intercession for persecuted Christians worldwide. Its primary focus is the work of intercessory prayer and citizen action on behalf of persecuted communities of the Christian faith. We also encourage prayer for the souls of the oppressors, the nations that promote persecution, and those who ignore it.

We believe that prayer changes things. Exactly what happens is a mystery of faith. God invites us to present to Him our requests and to pray without ceasing. Persecuted Christians often plead for prayer to help them endure. The most we can do is the least we can do — pray.

We also encourage continuing prayer and educated involvement on behalf of persecuted Christians. Visit our partner Web sites to discover further ways to get involved.

Prayer is a mystery and difficult to measure. However, we can look at some of the changes occurring in the past and draw inferences from them.

• Over 100,000 U.S. churches, representing nearly every U.S. denomination, are estimated to have taken part in the IDOP.
• Christians in over 130 countries remembered the persecuted on the IDOP.
• Christian churches are growing in awareness of the problem and coming together in unity to pray for fellow believers.
• Christian leaders in restricted nations report that they are experiencing a new boldness in their witness to others.
• There has been increased media coverage of the problem of persecution in both secular and Christian publications. (In the U.S., such publications include The Denver Post, The Los Angeles Times, The New York Times, Focus on the Family with Dr. James Dobson, Christianity Today, and Message of the Open Bible.)
• IDOP/USA staff participated in over 100 radio/TV interviews, reaching more than 7,000 stations nationwide. This does not include stations reached through associated organizations which also promote the IDOP in their radio addresses.
• Public Service Announcements (PSAs) have aired on radio stations nationwide featuring Bill Bright, Chuck Colson, James Dobson, Shirley Dobson, Tony Evans, D. James Kennedy, Joseph Stowell, and Ravi Zacharias.
• Christian freedom groups experienced record increases in funding and participation and continue to see growth in church awareness and advocacy.

Please pray and remember to spread the word in your church if you read this before services today.

For more info, there’s a group on Facebook and there is an IDOP page on Voice of the Martyrs.

Thanks guys.

Will you pray?

Hey guys… it’s 2:45am and I just got back to the house and wanted to drop this prayer request.

Today my dad was in a motorcycle accident as he took turn number three on a dirt track while racing today in Washington, GA. In case you didn’t know, my dad races motorcycles. He’s 55 and loves it and is also really good at it. This being the last race of the year, he is ending the season with two regional titles. Luckily for his titles, this accident won’t affect them.

Now on to his injury. After getting knocked unconscious during the wreck he woke up about a minute later with people all around him. They then took him to the emergency place on site to check him out. They diagnosed some bone fractures and advised he go straight to the emergency room. Being the guy he is, he didn’t want to leave his friend’s two bikes for someone to steal. So he drove the four hours back from Washington, GA to his friend’s house outside of Jesup where he dropped off the bikes and his friend then took him to the emergency room.

The doctors diagnosed a broken clavicle (collar bone), three broken ribs, and slight (but stopped) internal bleeding. He is in a ton of pain and is being given medicine to help with that.

He last wrecked a motorcycle in 1985 when I was two. Someone pulled out in front of him and he t-boned them. He was able to jump the car and just hit the pavement. That put him in the hospital for a few weeks with some really bad breaks and life-threatening internal injuries and problems.

Luckily, this isn’t as bad but nonetheless is still pretty bad.

So please pray that problems won’t develop like last time (blood clots in his lungs among others) and that he’ll heal quickly and get out of pain.

if you’re interested, here’s pictures from February of this year of him racing. His number is 14c.

Will you pray?