We are the body of Christ. And we are not all the same, but we should have equal concern for one another. 

For we were all baptized by one Spirit into one body—whether Jews or Greeks, slave or free—and we were all given the one Spirit to drink
...
But God has combined the members of the body and has given greater honor to the parts that lacked it, so that there should be no division in the body, but that its parts should have equal concern for each other. - 1 Cor. 12:13, 24, 25

There is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. - Galatians 3:28

Why are we so segregated into our different ethnic groups? White, African American, Latino, Asian, etc. Wouldn't God be glorified by our unity? What's keeping us apart?

For sure, we'll all be together in heaven, praising Him together. What's keeping us from being unified here? Can we fix it?

There's been a sudden rash of celebrity deaths. Farrah Fawcet, Billy Mays over the weekend, and - most notably - Michael Jackson.

This is a reminder that TIME IS SHORT! Our life is but a vapor! (James 4:14, Psalm 39).

Jesus counsels us not to live for our comfort, our selfish desires. Instead, if we give-up our life, we will truly gain it. (John 12:25)

God has given us a mission, and time is short, so let's get crackin!

Are you afraid of stepping-out and following the vision he's given you? Me too! LET'S DO IT ANYWAY!

This world is not our home, and we will have to stand before God and give an account for how we used our "talents" (Matt 25:14-30) and, remember: "To whom much is given, much will be required," Luke 12:48.

GO! GO! GO!

(But it's really, really hard to give-up your life, sacrifice for others, and do the things God wants you to do! Ok, fine, let's encourage each other daily to do these things Heb. 10:24).

"You can have a 'successful' church without loving God or People." - Francis Chan

"Successful" meaning large, growing and popular.

Is this true? If so, how so? If not, how not?

Francis Chan will be speaking at Catalyst this year. Today is the SUPER EARLY BIRD DEADLINE! Register today to get the best rates on Catalyst Atlanta!

This week is the Catalyst Super Early Bird Deadline for the Catalyst Conference - October 7-9, 2009 in Atlanta. It's our Ten Year Anniversary- it’s going to be an incredible year with an amazing speaker lineup.
 
So we’re showing some love to our twitter friends by giving you all a special discount rate + an awesome gift!
 
This week only, register using the promo code “TWIT” and we’ll give you a $209 rate (that’s almost 20% off the regular price!). Not only that, but we’ll send you Andy Stanley’s new book: The Principle of the Path, when you register.
 
In order to receive the book, register using the code & then please retweet this offer: “RT @CatalystLeader SAVE BIG on Catalyst Atlanta! Special Twitter discount + gift! http://bit.ly/kff5I”
 
Thank you for following us on Twitter! You guys are in the trenches, doing the work. We love you and we love your feedback!
 
NOTE: the “TWIT” discount + gift only applies to new tickets, purchased from now until Friday. You must use the “TWIT” code at time of purchase. This offer may not be used with any other discounts or offers.

The original quote: "We will do anything short of sin to introduce people to God" (this is actually a paraphrase, a google search reveals about 5 different versions).

There seems to be confusion over the phrase "anything short of sin." To some it means, "we'll get as close to sin as we can," to others, it means "anything that's not sin is negotiable."

Hopefully we all agree that the philosophy of trying to get as close to sin as we can is not honoring to God.

I think the more accurate interpretation of the original quote is "Except for sin, we'll innovate wherever necessary, cast off tradition, and do whatever it takes to bring more people to Christ - all without sinning or disobeying God's Word."

If you're concerned that this philosophy is leading Christians astray (Irmler family) - what are the non-negotiables that you're concerned (or noticed) that are being lost, and why?

If you agree with this philosophy, what negotiables do you think may hold a church back from reaching more people for Christ?