The R-Rated Church - A Must See...

John MacArthur talks about modern churches and the pitfalls of doing non-biblical, follow-the-trend, make-me-feel-good, looks-good, sounds-good activities in the church. Very thought provoking. And as church leaders, we ought to humble ourselves, watch, and let the Spirit lead us in some convictions that we shouldn't be doing some of the things exposed in this video in our churches. Likewise, for all believers to heed the call to really examine who we listen to in the preaching/teaching of the Scripture. It is never a bad idea to go back to the teachings of the Puritans. Here's the link - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6piZTThy4kk ...By His grace - Ronnie

Five Proactive Ways to Use Energy for Connecting

In the book, "Everyone Communicates Few Connect" the author, John Maxwell shared five proactive ways to use your energy for connecting (pp. 78-92).

• Connecting Requires Initiative...Go First


• Connecting Requires Clarity...Prepare


• Connecting Requires Patience...Slow Down


• Connecting Requires Selflessness...Give


• Connecting Requires Stamina...Recharge

Among the observations listed above, I can relate to three of them. First, connecting requires initiative. We are the ones to make the first move toward connecting with others. This is one area in relational ministry that I am diligently working on. If I have the opportunity to call someone now and see how he/she doing, I have to take that opportunity and not procrastinate. Why? It is because God gave me that blessed opportunity and I would not let it pass. I suppose this holds true to any relationships who is going through tough times. Misunderstandings happen, and in order to resolve that, someone needs to take the initiative to "go first" and make the first connection.

Connecting requires patience or slow down. This holds true when I am teaching or preaching. In my clean intentions of covering a wide area of topics to share with them, the result is reversed - I confuse them and I can easily tell. They have this look on their faces - huh? So, I have to slow down with my exposition preaching and make sure I am connecting with my audience. I believe this holds true with any relationships. The husband or the wife (vice-versa), needs to understand the importance of patience. Patience is a virtue and more so, it is a fruit of the Holy Spirit according to Galatians 5:22 that needs to be seen as a genuine sign of a regenerate.

Connecting requires selflessness. Our Father in heaven exemplified this perfectly by giving up His Son as a ransom for our sins on the cross. Selflessness indeed the Father showed us, and we ought to follow that. Same with any relationships I suppose, one can't just be a recipient of love but rather it should be reciprocal. We love others because He first loved us...

Have a great day and connect with someone today! Ronnie

Book 4 To Read for the Month of June 2010 - Christian Education Handbook by Bruce P. Powers, Editor

This is also a required book for my graduate program. One of the last few I need to read for academia. Reading for June - week 4. Almost there Lord.

Book 3 To Read for the Month of June 2010 - The Complete Book of Discipleship by Bill Hull

After the first two books, book 3 is one of my required books for my graduate studies. I need to write a 10-page essay on how the principles in this book can be applied to our current church (yehey!) and answer on-line questions. This book is for the 3rd week of June.

Book 2 To Read for the Month of June 2010 - Nothing But the Truth by John Macarthur

After I'm done reading book 1, I will supplement that reading with an older book of John Macarthur that somewhat teaches the same topic. This book is for June, week 2.

Book 1 To Read for the Month of June 2010 - The Truth War by John Macarthur

This is one of the books I scheduled to read for the month of June. Given to me by one of my dear brother in church Atty. George Carter. I will post some insights about this book as soon as I am done reading it.

Everyone Communicates Few Connect by John Maxwell

This book is the one I'm finishing right now. Another great work by John Maxwell and team. In this book "Everyone Communicates Few Connect," he stressed that connecting is crucial for leaders - why? According to the book, "If you want to become more productive and influential, learn to become a better leader because everything rises and falls on leadership. And the best leaders are always excellent "connectors." There are a lot of connecting principles that a leader can glean from this book. One of them is the topic "It's Not About Me" where he wrote;

"Maturity is the ability to see and act on behalf of others. Immature people don't see things from someone else's point of view. They rarely concern themselves with what's best for others. In many ways, they act like small children."