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The Worldview Issue

This is the second part of a series on developing a biblical worldview. Make sure you read Part 1: The Need For A Biblical Worldview.

Before we dig into this too much, we need to define the term worldview.  What is a worldview?

A worldview is our governing mindset based upon Biblical presuppositional beliefs that are convictional, which filters, approves or disapproves all matters of life.

Worldview

And the most primary of those presuppositional beliefs are the answers to four questions:

Origin – Where did I come from?
Purpose – Why am I here?
Identity – Who am I?
Destiny – Where am I going?

Biblical worldview development is difficult for us today because there are two competing presuppositional belief systems, both claiming to have the truth, the answers to those four questions.  But both are mutually exclusive, and both were separately designed by the primary spiritual figures, who are battling for our souls:  God and Satan.

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Leadership 101 Giveaway: And The Winner Is…

Congratulations to Joe Lalonde who is the winner of the contest to give away a copy of John C. Maxwell’s Leadership 101.

Leadership 101

If you didn’t win this time, you might consider picking up a copy of Leadership 101 for yourself.  It is an excellent resource!  You can grab a copy for yourself at Amazon.com..

 

Note: The winner was determined by using Random.org’s generator.  I entered the total number of legitimate comments and it gave me a random number to determine the winner.

 

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The Need For A Biblical Worldview

This is the beginning of a three part series on the need for a biblical worldview in America today.  In this post, I will address the need for a biblical worldview.  The the next two posts I will take a look at the worldview issue, and the battle for a biblical worldview.

People who have a biblical worldview are rare in America.  I firmly believe that to be the case.  I’ve been in youth ministry for over twenty years, and I’ve watched our society spiral downward in that very short time.

Earth

I believe that this is due, in part, to our humanistic educational system.  I’m not necessarily talking about the local school systems, although they could take a stronger stance on what they do and don’t teach. No, the problem reaches much higher than that, into the higher educational systems, and even the government board of education.

It’s been like this for decades.  And it shows very little indication that it will get better soon.

Our culture has thrown away the Bible.  It no longer has any authority in our lives.

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Memorize The Sermon On The Mount – Week 5

Memorize the Sermon on the Mount along with me!  Here’s week 5!

The Sermon on the Mount is probably one of my favorite passage in the New Testament.  There is so much practical advice packed into these three chapters.  It’s definitely worth committing to memory.  If you’d like to join me in memorizing the Sermon on the Mount during 2011, here’s the first week.

Here’s my method:  I write the verses on an index card and keep it in my pocket.  Each time I reach into my pocket for my keys, I feel the card.  Every time I feel the card, I pull it out and read it.

Here’s our passage for this week:  Matthew 5:11-12.

Matthew 5:11-12

And here’s a link to the passage at Bible Gateway.

My strategy is to use the index card method as I described.  How do you memorize Scripture?

 

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The Earthquake In Japan: What We Can Learn

As you probably already know, a major earthquake hit the islands of Japan on Friday.  With a magnitude of 9.1 on the Richter Scale, this places this earthquake within the top five worst earthquakes since 1900.

Tokyo, Japan

Hundreds are dead.  Thousands are unaccounted for.  The quake caused massive tsunamis that added to the devastation, and reached as far as the west coast of North and South America.

The quake also caused damage at the nuclear energy facility in the city Fukushima, resulting in a radiation leak that is growing more ominous by the moment.

And added to all of this are the aftershocks and additional earthquakes that continue to hit the islands.

This is a terrible tragedy.  The loss of life and property is staggering, even horrific.

But there are a few things we can learn from this catastrophe.  Here are a three things that come to my mind.

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Contest Giveaway! Win A Copy of Leadership 101 by John C. Maxwell

Recently I’ve written a blog series called The Secret To Growing As A Leader.

In this series, I identified fourteen things I’ve discovered to be true as I strive to grow in my leadership abilities.

You can read all three of the posts in the series here:

The Secret To Growing As A Leader – Part 1
The Secret To Growing As A Leader – Part 2
The Secret To Growing As A Leader – Part 3

In order to wrap up this series, I’m giving away a copy of Leadership 101, by John C. Maxwell.  Maxwell has been a tremendous source of encouragement for me, and has taught me a lot through his books, his InJoy Life Club lessons, and at the conferences where I’ve seen him.

Leadership 101

John’s material has been a significant influence in my leadership development.  You can follow John on Twitter, or through his website.  You can also find tons of John’s leadership resources through his company website, Giant Impact.

Because John has been so influential in my life, I’m going to give away a copy of one of his books.  In order to be eligible to win, you need to take the following two actions:

Leave a comment below. Tell me what leadership book or resource you’ve found most helpful.

Tweet a link to this post. If you don’t have a Twitter account, you can use FaceBook.

The winner will be selected at random from the comments section of this post using an automated generator, such as Random.org.  Multiple comments will not increase your chances of winning.

The comments must appear on this post at The Randleman Review, and not on the copy of this post that is posted on my FaceBook account.  Comments on the FaceBook note are appreciated, but will not be considered as entries into the contest.

The contest will end at midnight on Thursday, March 17th.  The winner will be announced on Friday, March 18th.

 

Comment away!

 

If you are interested in reading Leadership 101, and are not the winner of this contest, you can purchase it at Amazon.com.

 

Disclosure of Material Connection:
Some of the links in the post above are ìaffiliate links.î This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will add value to my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commissionís 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.“

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Book Review – The Chasm by Randy Alcorn

The ChasmI sat down and read The Chasm, by Randy Alcorn last night.

I’ve wanted to read some of his work for some time now, so when the chance presented itself to read this one, I jumped at it.

The Chasm reads a lot like John Bunyon’s Pilgrim’s Progress.  It’s the tale of one man on a journey to Heaven.  But his travels are interrupted several times, both intentionally and unintentionally.

There are a lot of references to major classic Christian works throughout The Chasm, including allusions to Augustine’s City of God and a reference to C.S. Lewis‘ concept of Shadowlands, among others.

I found The Chasm to be an easy book to read.  The story was a bit hard to follow occasionally, due to the fact that it was inspired by Alcorn’s book, Edge Of Eternity.  Since I haven’t read that book, I’m sure there are several things I’ve missed in this one.  My curiosity is piqued; I’m going to have to pick up a copy and jump into it now.

The Chasm is a book about a man on a journey to find Christ; and it can inspire you in your own journey as well.

If you are interested in reading The Chasm, by Randy Alcorn, you can purchase it at Amazon.com.

Disclosure of Material Connection:
I received this book free from Multnomah Books as part of their Blogger Review Program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. Also, some of the links in the post above are affiliate links. This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will add value to my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.