Manly Financial Management

The goal line moved again!? I finally got close to putting the ball across the line, and now it’s farther away. Just a moment ago, the goal line was within reach because we had a good game plan that was well executed. I was getting close, and the goal line moved.

Have you ever felt that way financially? The best laid plans are set, the game plan is working, and then the washer breaks, the roof has a leak, or the hospital bills become due from an unexpected illness (is there ever an expected illness?). Has that ever happened to you? I hate to say it, but if it hasn’t happened yet, it probably will. So how do we lead our household when it comes to finances in hard times?

The number one thing to remember is that your wife and kids will be looking to you for reassurance when finances get turned upside down. Things around the house may start to look a little different (less eating out, the cable is off, more meals with ramen noodles, etc.). Or should I say, if you are managing your money well, things should look a little different around the house. When the questions come asking why those things are different, lead your family to understand the reasons. Proverbs 13:16 says that “a wise man will think ahead.” Remind them that the best use of the family’s funds is to pay off what is owed so that the plans for the future might be met. Make sure they understand that their basic needs are being met and that they do not have to worry about those things they need. Remind them that they are loved and that you will lead them through this with courage and godly wisdom.

The second thing you can do to lead your financial household well is to make sure your needs are always secondary to the needs of your wife and kids. Spoil your wife, get the kids what they need (notice I did not say “want”). Work hard to give them their basic needs and then some. If that is all satisfied, then you might spend a little on your own needs and wants. Putting them first will not always be easy (especially when that new rod-and-reel combo is on sale), but it will always be the right thing to do.

There’s a great scene portrayed in Charles Dickens’s A Christmas Carol depicting a timeless example of fatherly leadership in a family going through great financial strife. The mother and kids are clearly homeless and have gathered around a fire to keep warm. The father walks up with a loaf of bread, and the kids’ eyes gleam and their mouths begin to water. The kids asks joyfully where the father got the bread. The father’s response is telling. He says, “Well, I didn’t steal if it that’s what you think!” After taking a deep breath, he tells them the loaf fell off the back of a baker’s truck and he ran and picked it up. This scene portrays the example I’m trying to convey. We need to be in constant pursuit of every means possible to make sure the basic needs of our wife and kids are being taken care of.

When the hardship comes, it’s always good to remind our family what’s really most important. Our relationships with each other can grow deeper and sweeter without a single penny to our names. Our very lives, for those who have accepted the forgiveness of Jesus, were bought with the blood of Jesus Christ. All of this and more are more valuable than any paycheck. Reset those priorities in good times and in bad. Keep your family focused on things above.

The last piece of advice on this topic is probably the hardest thing for most men to do: ask for help. If you find yourself unable to meet the basic needs of your wife and kids, swallow your pride and ask for help. There are numerous government programs that can help, but also ask friends. Most men will understand and most will help. Seek out those who can help you rearrange your output (expenses) and add to your input (income). There are so many people who have been able to help others, and most want to help more. Man up and ask them if they would be willing to help if your basic needs are not being met.

God tells us that the whole Earth is His and that everything that is in it is also his (Psalms 24). Let’s be responsible with what He gives us, living well within our means and giving back to Him what He asks. He already owns it all anyway!

Author: Jason Arnold

Do You Have a Plan?

We don't have a long time on this earth when you think about it. We’re all aware that our time flies by. As we get older, it seems that it moves at hyperspeed each day and we can’t slow it down. Some pressing questions that I think men need to ask are: “Where am I going in life? What am I doing with my life?” So often in the hurried pace of life, men get lost in the current. We go with the flow without having a direction or plan for intentionality along the way. We wander aimlessly through life. We don't have time—or more like make the time—to chart out a course. Then one day we look back and think, “This isn't where I wanted to end up.”

It’s a well-known, scientifically studied fact that men have better directional sense on average than women. We can get from point A to point B seemingly easier than our female counterparts. But you probably also know that women tend to ask for directions much more than men do. Have you ever been lost on the road and your wife says, “Just pull over and ask someone for directions”? Or: “Let's use Google to find a better route”? How many times have you started to put together a project with 200 pieces and didn’t pick up the directions for help until things didn’t fit together correctly? I am guilty of all the above.

There are signs and directions and warning labels all around us, but often as men we ignore them, thinking we can make it on our own or without any help or a plan. That’s likely why women live longer than men too.

I recently was fly-fishing, alone, in the cool waters of the Lower Mountain Fork River (LMFR) in SE Oklahoma. There are two dams that are located on Broken Bow Lake that feed the LMFR. One is the spillway dam, and the other is the hydroelectric dam. The river flows from the spillway dam about 3–5 miles downstream to the hydroelectric plant dam. I have fished countless hours on that upper portion of the river above the hydroelectric plant. There are warning signs plastered all over stating “When you hear the sirens, be aware of rising water levels.” I’ve heard the sirens almost every time I’ve fished there, but I had never seen a change in the water levels. I couldn't figure out why, but it didn't seem to concern me at the time.

This last month, I ventured out beyond the power plant farther downriver, about a mile, to a more secluded section, away from most other people and other fishermen. It was so peaceful. Smooth-flowing water, small rapids here and there, and plenty of space to cast and catch some fish in deeper pools by large boulders. I made my way across a 40-foot section of smaller 10-inch rapids to a small rocky berm with some trees for shade and then across another 2-foot rushing rapids to a small 500-square-foot grassy island.

I was catching fish and having a good time. After about 2 hours of fishing, I heard the familiar sirens going off. They’re similar to our tornado sirens in Oklahoma. As I always had, I looked around for any water rising but didn't see anything. At this point, I thought those sirens were all for nothing. Five minutes went by, and no change of the water level. Ten minutes went by, and nothing different. Fifteen minutes, then twenty minutes without anything changing. Then, suddenly I heard what sounded like a little more of a roar than what I heard before. I looked back, and the water was rising! My little grass island of 500 square feet was now about 50 square feet—and shrinking fast!

I looked back at the way that I had crossed over, and the water was 2 feet higher and rushing fast. My heart was pounding, but I had to react quickly to make it safely to the bank. I waded back through the slower but deeper water, behind some boulders where the water didn’t flow as fast, then climbed up on top of the rocks. I had another 10 feet from the large rocks to the bank through some deep, swift water and fallen trees. I was afraid that if I slipped I might go under the branches and get trapped, but the situation wasn't going to get any better. I quickly jumped as far as I could and landed a few feet from the bank in waist-deep water and was able to climb up the back successfully to dry land. Whew! Out of breath and adrenaline pumping, I just sat and stared at what had happened. I was amazed at how fast the situation changed and how I wasn't prepared at all. I didn't have a plan, even with all the warning signs.

My kids make fun of me because I take lots of pictures wherever I go. This time was no different. Luckily, I had taken some pictures before of the little grassy island and rocks where I was headed to fish. Then once I went through the experience, I took another few pics and videos to show the change in water levels. The islands and rocks that were a few feet above the water before were now hidden about 1–2 feet under the fast-flowing river. My heart still pounds to this day as I think back to getting out of that situation. I learned that they rarely open the spillway dam and open the hydroelectric dam almost daily. Lesson learned.

There were so many warning signs. I didn’t have a plan. I was going with the flow, literally. Luckily, the story ended well for me to fish another day. In life, we don't get do-overs. When we look back over our life, we can’t change it. However, we can change how we live in the future. It’s time to stop wandering around aimlessly in life. Christ had a focus and was intentional wherever he went. That came from being close with His Father.

When we listen to our Father’s voice, we have purpose and we no longer go with the flow. We no longer get lost on the path. We have our directions from the source of life. We have the warning signs for our protection. As men, we don't like to stop and take time to ask for directions, but I implore you to change that today. Stop and carve out time to seek the Lord and ask for His direction in your life. I believe he will give you a better marriage and teach you to be a better father and a better friend. You will be more at peace and gain wisdom from knowing and seeking Him.

The Psalmist wrote in chapter 86 verse 11: “Teach me your way, O Lord, and I will walk in you truth, give me an undivided heart that I may fear Your name.” Jesus often withdrew to isolated places to spend time with His Father. How much more do we need to do that in order to gain direction and a plan for our lives?

Author: Garrick McAnear

What the Heck Is a Millennial?

If you are reading this, chances are you’re a millennial. If so, you might want to skip this part of the newsletter. This is being written by a guy who is on the tail end of the Baby Boomer generation. So read on at your own risk!

If you start looking through the internet (which is a big part of being a millennial), you can find all sorts of similar but slightly different definitions for what it means to be a millennial. What I found was most definitions include something about being born in the ’80s or ’90s. In that case, I’m somewhat of an expert because my four now adult children were all born in the ’90s.

This generation is the first one to basically become an adult in the age of the internet. This generation really doesn’t know much about how life was before the internet. Some of the older millennials grew up drinking out of the water hose and within a few short years found themselves holding a strange thing called an iPod. This generation has grown up with almost unlimited information basically at their fingertips. Millennials are noted for their elevated use of social media, mobile devices, and all things internet.

Millennials tend to see the world through a more socially minded viewpoint. They are more concerned with how businesses spend their money and how they contribute to society as a whole. According to one article I read (probably written by a millennial), most millennials tend to be more optimistic than other generations. They tend to desire to make a difference on every level, professionally, socially, politically, and economically.

In some circles, millennials get a bad rap for not being committed to the end or for quitting when things get hard. I do not agree with this view. I am so grateful for the millennials in my life. Especially when I need help with something technical like posting this newsletter!

At Council Road Baptist Church, the millennial generation is alive and well. They are the future of our church and are assuming leadership roles. They bring a level of excitement and stability to our congregation. It does this Baby Boomer’s heart good to see such a vibrant group in our community. I don’t have the numbers to support this statement, but it is my belief that they are the fastest growing demographic in our church. Not to mention all the new babies being brought into our fellowship.

It has been my privilege to work with and even mentor some of these young’uns in our church. I am confident that they will keep the faith and expand our influence in our community. I am eager to see this generation take the lead and show us new ways to share the love of Christ with others.

So, what exactly is a millennial? Well, if you are a member of CRBC, just take a look around. You will see them on stage leading us in worship. You will find them working in the sound booth. You will find them volunteering with the kids. You will find them teaching a connection class. You will find them just about anywhere you look at CRBC. They are young, smart, enthusiastic, dedicated, excited, committed, and they love Jesus. And that is the most important thing.

Author: Dr. Curtis Brown

RETIREMENT PART II: What Am I Going to Do?

Last month, we started this series on retirement by discarding the dictionary definition and crafting our own, which, simply put, is just a season of life when you feel the freedom to choose how you spend your time. 

The fact is, you shouldn’t retire from something—you should retire to something. There’s got to be something you want to do more than what you’ve been doing. Whether it’s work or play, some of each, just one thing after another, or nothing at all, it’s the choosing for yourself what you’d rather do than what you’ve been doing and doing it. 

If you don’t have something you’d rather do than what you’re doing now, you may not be ready for retirement yet. But for those who do, let’s get started. What will we do?

How about nothing? How does nothing sound? When you first retire, I highly recommend that you do nothing for a while. Even if you’re thinking of retiring to another job, like one with fewer headaches or hours, or just something you enjoy, like working in a fly shop if you fish, or a quilt shop if you’re a quilter; if you’re going to travel, or if you want to volunteer in places that are doing work you think is important—whatever it is, I still recommend you create a gap before you start.

It might make you feel a little weird (or guilty) at first. But I think it’s important that you give yourself some time to get into a new rhythm and adjust to your newfound freedom. The fact is, it won’t be easy. You won’t “do nothing” unless you put “do nothing” on your to-do list. You’ll still have plenty to do (remember the “get up with nothing to do and go to bed with half of it done” quote?) because life intrudes on your “do nothing” plan. 

I’m talking about clearing your calendar so you have time to be spontaneous. Your old work life had you tied down to office hours, weekly planners, phone calls, customer demands, etc.—not much room for spontaneity. Deciding to meet your wife at a coffee shop on the spur of the moment was out of the question. So now, give yourself some time to be spontaneous. Savor a second cup of coffee. Read the paper (remember those things?). Watch a movie in the middle of the afternoon (or better yet, take a nap!). Call that friend for lunch. Start a jigsaw puzzle. Learn to do Wordle. Start one of those books you’ve been putting off. Get started on that woodworking project you haven’t had time for (but don’t give yourself a deadline!). Take a walk. Visit with a neighbor or introduce yourself to one you don’t know. Feed the birds in your backyard. Watch a sunset (or a sunrise, if you’re up anyway). Browse around a local bookstore. Look for old vinyl records at a flea market. Clean out your garage. 

See what I mean? Give yourself permission to do whatever sounds fun at the moment. You can still get all your errands run, but do it after that second cup of coffee and the Wordle. Be spontaneous.

Okay, so after you’ve created some space and reprogrammed to your new lifestyle, what next? What do you really want to do with all this time and all these choices? Deciding may be the hardest “job” you’ve ever had. What could I do with my life? 

Well, this is another place where your uniqueness has to take over. No one else can tell you what you should do. Moreover, whatever you decide to do today isn’t permanent. Tomorrow is a new day with new choices.

And you know the drill: when you graduated from high school, people asked you, “Now what are you going to do?” When you graduated from college, people asked you, “Now what are you going to do?” Now you’re retiring, and people are asking, “Now what are you going to do?” Meanwhile, you’re asking yourself, “What am I going to do?” 

When I was teaching in the business school at OBU (after my “retirement”), I was asked by the Business Students Association to create a life skills class for graduating seniors. The dean called it Senior Seminar in the catalogue for business majors; I called it “I Have This Degree, Now What?” When trying to decide what to do after graduation, students repeatedly said, “I’ve been told to follow my passion. But I don’t know what I should be passionate about.” 

Passion is a strong word and a little daunting. In your case, let’s simply call it that thing you want to retire to—that thing you wanted to do more than what you had been doing. 

Let me offer a suggestion for helping you make the ever-evolving decisions about how you spend your retirement. If there’s anything I’ve learned in my seventy-five years of living and twenty-two years of retirement about choosing pathways, it’s the truth of Psalm 37:4: “Delight yourself in the Lord and He shall give you the desires of your heart.” What I’ve learned, and my advice to you is, “Follow your heart.” Psalm 37:4 doesn’t mean God will give you anything you ask for.  What it means is that if you’re His child, He’ll put desires in your heart, He’ll create the desires in your heart. That’s the most common way He leads us.

Occasionally, it’ll be something cataclysmic or a sudden epiphany (“whirlwinds and fires” the Bible calls them), but usually, it’s the “still small voice.” It’s as simple as the thing you want to do, because God, unknown to you, put it there and you’re just now in a place to listen to the still small voice in your heart. 

When you’re deciding what’s next and you’re seeking God’s guidance, check your heart. What do you really want to do? Not what other people say you should do, or what the world says you owe it, and not what you have seen and admired in other people. Even if your inner critic calls it just fun and play, or time-wasting, or selfishness, or unimportant, that’s okay—just trust what your heart tells you. 

Over the years, my prayer has been, “Lord, I think this is what I want to do.  If I’m wrong, please close the door.” On two occasions, He has, in fact, closed the door. And I easily and confidently moved on to other things.  When He hasn’t closed the door, I trusted that He had put the desire there and I could and should pursue it. 

Here’s more of my retirement experience. I got off a plane in Helena, Montana, in 1977 (my first trip to the Mountain West) and immediately felt at home. Remember John Denver’s song “Rocky Mountain High,” where he says when he first arrived in the mountains, he felt he had “come home to a place he’d never been before”? That was my experience, too. 

Then in 1989, I was invited to fish Yellowstone National Park for a week and was completely and permanently hooked. Every year thereafter, I spent a week fishing somewhere up and down the Rockies. As time went on, I became more and more enamored with retiring and spending more time fishing and prowling the mountains. But I went through all the second-guessing: “Am I just being selfish? Am I just lazy? Is this smart? Do I have enough money? What will my family think? What will other people think?” and on and on and on. 

When the time seemed right, January 1, 2000, I pulled the trigger and retired. For the first few months, I decompressed, and then Millicent and I spent three months looking for a place in the mountains. We finally settled on a cabin one mile outside the Northeast Entrance gate to Yellowstone National Park. For the next twenty years, we spent three to six months every summer and fall at our cabin. My dream had come true.

They say we live life forward and understand it backward. I didn’t know at the time what God had in mind for Millicent and me, but I had that burning in my heart, and God didn’t close the door, so I followed what I often told myself was just a selfish dream. Looking back, I see what was going on. We became a part of a small but wonderful, loving, serving community and church. We got to share our cabin with more than two hundred guests over those years: family, friends, and strangers. We have heard and read their stories of how God used their time at our cabin and in His creation to change their lives. We were able to serve and build our little community in His name. We grew in our faith and knowledge of God. I got everything I had hoped it would be and so much more.

God is so generous and so trustworthy that I absolutely believe Psalm 37:4 and have proved it over and over in my life. You can, too. Remember, no two people are alike. Your path is not someone else’s. There is no should, must, or have to that anyone else can impose on you. God has created you uniquely and He will guide you uniquely. Trust Him. Follow your heart. If your heart tells you to love God and serve people on the golf course, trust it. If it’s in a Sunday school class, do it. If it’s over your back fence, trust it. If it’s traveling the world, follow it. God says to love Him, get to know Him, and serve Him “as you go.” Follow where He leads your heart, and there will be unlimited opportunities to learn of Him, serve Him, and love people “as you go.”

I think retirement is a blessing from God that lets us slow down and live as we should always have lived: in constant fellowship with Him. God spoke the whole universe into existence with a single word. He doesn’t need us for anything. We were created for one reason: because He wanted to, for fellowship with Him. He wants us to spend time with Him. The world, life distracts us from our reason for existence and fills our days, nights, and minds with constant busyness. God didn’t mean for life to be without meaning or purpose, but His “yoke is easy and His burden is light.” By living close to God and following the desires He places in your heart, you’ll be doing retirement, and life, right.

Author: Dave Gillogly

Mr. T

It seems to me that I cannot listen to a sports talk show without being asked if I’m tired or not functioning as well as I want to. Between the commercials on the radio for men’s clinics and all the other advertising about sexual dysfunction, you would think everyone is low on testosterone. Maybe there’s an epidemic of men with empty sacks, but I don’t think so.

Being transparent with you guys, I have had my T levels checked. I mean, who hasn’t been tired or lacked some motivation from time to time? We are bombarded at every turn and every day with the idea that something is wrong with us. If you think you might be low, it is certainly reasonable to get your levels checked. The levels can vary from one lab to another, but generally anything above 300 is considered normal. It may be low but is still in the normal range. Our levels fluctuate throughout the day. The insurance companies generally want an early morning test to see if you have low levels. The upper end of normal is usually around 1,000. Again, there can be some variability from one lab to another.

I know of men who have been given testosterone replacement by their medical providers even when they have normal levels. I know we can argue over what’s considered normal, but taking testosterone is not without side effects. Testosterone supplements can increase the amount of red blood cells our body makes. Having too many red blood cells can cause a host of problems. One way of avoiding that is to donate blood regularly. Nothing wrong with donating blood.

T replacement can also increase the size of your prostate. If it takes you all day to take a leak, you might want to rethink T replacement. It doesn’t seem to increase your risk of prostate cancer, but it can potentially cause an enlargement of the prostate.

Any hormone replacement can increase your risk of developing blood clots. If you’ve had a blood clot, you really probably should avoid hormone replacement. Clots are what cause strokes. Strokes are bad! Don’t borrow trouble!

There is some conflicting evidence on heart disease and testosterone replacement. There have been some studies that seem to indicate an increased risk of calcium build-up in the arteries that feed the heart. There are other studies that show that testosterone replacement decreases risk of heart disease. I think the verdict is still out on this one.

So why would a guy want to take testosterone? I think the main benefit of testosterone replacement is to help the libido. If your sexual drive is really low, testosterone replacement can help. It can also help with energy and promote muscle growth. Some guys say it helps with mental clarity and even depression.

There are some natural ways of increasing your testosterone levels. The best one is to exercise. The more abdominal fat you have, the more likely you are to have all sorts of problems, including low T levels. Losing abdominal fat can raise your testosterone levels, and having extra abdominal fat can also increase your estrogen levels. (Yes, men have some estrogen!) Stress can be a big factor as well. Eliminating stress from our lives is impossible, but learning better ways of dealing with it can make a difference.

One of the things that’s somewhat weird to me is that men who watch a lot of pornography tend to have low testosterone levels. You would think with all that stimulation they would have higher levels.

I know a lot of men are taking supplements to help with raising their levels. There are many supplements on the market proclaiming to help. I do not believe any of them work. They are what I call “wallet biopsies.” If you’re taking a supplement and it’s helping you, I wouldn’t stop it. I simply haven’t seen any benefit in my practice to taking supplements to raise T levels.

If you get your levels checked and you are low, certainly consider testosterone replacement. But it’s not absolutely necessary to replace your testosterone especially if you’re feeling pretty good. As always, I would recommend you talk to your local doctor.

If you have some questions about this article or any other part of The Memo, please reach out to me at curtis@manupministry.net.

Author: Dr. Curtis Brown

"Please Invite Someone to Church This Month"

We've all seen the signs before, alongside roads and streets, usually in front of a somewhat run-down church building. The signs implore all who see to "please invite someone to church this month." As someone who used to go to church, I understand this evangelistic effort quite well. It’s a gentle reminder to stay true to the mission of God by inviting people to experience the same grace and love within the context of church that the evangelizer has also presumably experienced. I get it. One of my favorite coffee shops has stickers that riff off these signs: "Please invite someone to Prelude Coffee this month." I find this to be a funny and clever way to advertise, but I also think these simple stickers expose the nature of the mindset behind signs that say, "Please invite someone to church this month."

Allow me to explain.

Within the context of a business, an advertising move like this would make sense. This coffee shop would like to sell more coffee and see more customers to increase their revenue, and perhaps, this coffee shop's mission is to create a friendly and welcoming place. Nevertheless, it remains the coffee shop’s benefits by seeing more customers visit their establishment.

What about church? What is it that the church is trying to "sell" by inviting people to church? Is it the "church experience” I can tell you right now, the Sunday church experience is not what most "non-Christians" need. What most people, including Christians, need is genuine community. A genuine friend who invests their life in the other person. Does this happen on Sundays? Perhaps. But I would argue it is cultivated in a different environment than the typical hour-and-a-half service on Sunday morning, where for most of the time, people are being told what to believe, how to feel, and what to sing.

Perhaps the sentiment behind the "please invite someone to church this month" signs is, as I have already mentioned, the genuine hope and desire to share something beautiful with those who have not experienced it. However, the sentiment expressed and the sentiment received can be vastly different. Let me use another example, that of the door-to-door salesman.

Have you ever participated in door-to-door evangelism? I have. As an introvert, it was truly unpleasant for me, as it was, I'm sure, for those who answered the door. What would you say is the difference between door-to-door evangelism and door-to-door selling? Perhaps the nature of the object that you’re trying to convince the poor accosted fellow at the door they should invest their time and money in, but I can't think of much else.

People can smell when someone is trying to sell them anything, and it smells something like this: "I will only continue to invest in this conversation/relationship if you choose to accept what I have to offer." Now, I am no legal expert, but I would call that the signs of a conditional relationship, and the church at large would benefit from removing any hint of this odor from its sanctuaries and small groups. Also, if I remember correctly, the idea of conditional relationships doesn't fit well within the nature of grace.

Allow me one final example of church as business, or evangelism as business that just always comes across distastefully. I was driving one afternoon along I-40 eastbound and happened to see one of those electronic billboards. The image showed a crucified Christ staring intently out from the extents of the LED sign. The sign in large text proclaimed, "I love you this much." At the time, I was still going to church, and as gaudy and unrealistic as the portrayal of Christ was (he was shown as full Caucasian), it moved me to some degree. While I began contemplating the love of Christ toward me in that moment, the billboard sign flashed to an advertisement for Ted's tres leches cake. The sign now proclaimed, "It's to die for."

This type of "evangelism" should make you deeply uncomfortable, dear reader. When the supposed savior of the world is peddled alongside a restaurant dessert for thousands of people to see every day, what do you think must be done to change this comparison? Whatever it is, I don't believe it will be accomplished by "inviting people to church this month."

I guess behind all this disdain for evangelism is really a disdain for the church trying to adopt "ways of the world" to reach people. If the church really is an institution from God that is separate from the world, shouldn't it be able to operate outside of the American business model? If the gift of God is as great as evangelicals say, why would the church need to be inviting people? Shouldn't sinners be running to church doors on their own? Why is it that so many of my friends, and myself included, begin to feel anxious as soon as we step inside a church? And no, I don't believe that's the Holy Spirit convicting us.

Door-to-door evangelism, the impetus behind "Please invite someone to church this month" signs, and tres leches/Jesus billboards all beg a question that desperately needs answering from churches everywhere: Is the church selling a "church experience"? Are they selling a belief system? Or do they care about human beings as human beings on this earth? Most people outside the church see and feel the former.

Let me ask one final question: If it’s true that just one person on earth, Jesus, would still come and die to save them, wouldn't it be worth it to spend your whole life trying to get just one person "saved"?

Please stop inviting people to church this month; instead, invite them into your lives, your homes. Invite them over for dinner, play some board games, go out for a drink (Jesus drank wine with prostitutes, FYI), and love them regardless of whether they choose to believe like you. Paradoxically, giving up on selling non-believers God, Christianity, religion, or what have you may be what leads them to a church door in the end.

Author: Anonymous