job | Craig T. Owens

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Links & Quotes

July 21, 2014 — Craig T. Owens

Some interesting reading & watching today…

“The treacherous enemy facing the church of Jesus Christ today is the dictatorship of the routine, when the routine becomes ‘lord’ in the life of the church. Programs are organized and the prevailing conditions are accepted as normal. … That would be perfectly all right and proper for a cemetery. Nobody expects a cemetery to do anything but conform.” —A.W. Tozer

John Stonestreet reminds us that even in the scientific community, Macroevolution Has No Clothes.

“Father, we fear our deadly fondness for floating toward the falls when we ought to be swimming against the current. Oh, God, have mercy to waken us again and again to the perils of drifting in the Christian life. Help us heed Hebrews 2:1, ‘We must pay much closer attention to what we have heard, so that we do not drift away from it.’” —John Piper

I love this story: Communion On The Moon.

“Hamas are terrorists pure and simple. The Egyptians get it. Why doesn’t the Western media get it? Why don’t Western leaders get it? And why don’t Christian leaders get it?” Read more about the Israeli battle against Hamas in Middle-East Meets Middle-Earth.

[VIDEO] Ken Davis has a hilarious take on airplane restrooms.

The Wall Street Journal rightly sees the situation at Gordon College as The Next Religious Liberty Case.

Dr. Tim Elmore lays out The Messages We Must Send To Millennials About Life After College.

7 Bible Study Ideas From D.L. Moody

July 20, 2014 — Craig T. Owens

As I read D.L. Moody’s book Pleasure & Profit In Bible Study, I made note of several ideas that could stimulate a great Bible study. Check out my review of this book by clicking here, then check out these great study-starters:

“If you are impatient, sit down quietly and commune with Job. If you are strong-headed, read of Moses and Peter. If you are weak-kneed, look at Elijah. If there is no song in your heart, listen to David. If you are a politician, read Daniel. If you are getting sordid, read Isaiah. If you are chilly, read of the beloved disciple. If your faith is low, read Paul. If you are getting lazy, watch James. If you are losing sight of the future, read in Revelation of the promised land.” —Richard Baxter

“Every chapter [of Mark] but the first, seventh, eighth and fourteenth begins with ‘And,’ as if there was no pause in Christ’s ministry.”

“Matthew begins with Abraham; Mark with Malachi; Luke with John the Baptist; but John with God Himself. Matthew sets forth Christ as the Jew’s Messiah. Mark as the active worker. Luke as a man. John as a personal Savior.”

“[In John’s Gospel] the word repent does not occur once, but the word believe occurs ninety-eight times.”

“Dr. A. T. Pierson says: Let the introduction cover five P’s; place where written; person by whom written; people to whom written; purpose for which written; period at which written.”

“Some time ago a man wanted to take my Bible home to get a few things out of it, and when it came back I found this noted in it:

Justification, a change of state, a new standing before God.
Repentance, a change of mind, a new mind about God.
Regeneration, a change of nature, a new heart from God.
Conversion, a change of life, a new life for God.
Adoption, a change of family, new relationship towards God.
Sanctification, a change of service, separation unto God.
Glorification, a new state, a new condition with God.”

“I was wonderfully blessed by taking the seven ‘Blesseds’ of the Revelation. … Or you may take the eight ‘overcomes’ in Revelation…. I have been greatly blessed by going through the ‘believings’ of John. Every chapter but two speaks of believing. … Take the six ‘precious’ things in Peter’s Epistles. And the seven ‘walks’ of the Epistle to the Ephesians. And the five ‘much mores’ of Romans 5. Or the two ‘receiveds’ of John 1. Or the seven ‘hearts’ in Proverbs 13, and especially an eighth. Or ‘the fear of the Lord’ in Proverbs.”

“No scripture is exhausted by a single explanation. The flowers of God’s garden bloom, not only double, but seven-fold: they are continually pouring forth fresh fragrance.” —Charles Spurgeon

Poetry Saturday—Everything On It

April 12, 2014 — Craig T. Owens

Too good to share just one, here are five from a collection of Shel Silverstein poems printed after his death in the book Everything On It.

Masks

She had blue skin,

And so did he.

He kept it hid

And so did she.

They searched for blue

Their whole life through,

Then passed right by—

And never knew.

Losing Pieces

Talked my head off

Worked my tail off

Cried my eyes out

Walked my feet off

Sang my heart out

So you see,

There’s really not much left of me.

I Didn’t

I didn’t do it

That’s a lie

I didn’t do it

No, not I

I didn’t do it

Hear me cry

I didn’t do it

Hope to die

I didn’t do it

I’m not that bad

But if I did…

Would you be mad?

New Job

Just two hours workin’ in the candy store

And I don’t like candy anymore.

The Problem

Jim copied the answer from Nancy

Sue copied the answer from Jim

Tim copied the answer from Sue, and then

Anne copied the answer from him

And Fran copied Anne and Jan copied Fran

The answer kept passing along

And no one got caught, but the problem was—

Nancy had it wrong. —Shel Silverstein

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: job, masks, poetry, relationships, school, Shel Silverstein. Leave a Comment »

Links & Quotes

March 13, 2014 — Craig T. Owens

These are links to articles and quotes I found interesting today.

[VIDEO] Great challenge from John Maxwell about being our best.

It doesn’t matter what you do … Your Job Is More Important Than You Think.

“You see Agape is all giving, not getting. Read what St. Paul says about it in First Corinthians Chap. 13. Then look at a picture of Charity (or Agape) in action in St. Luke, chap 10 v.30-35. And then, better still, look at Matthew chap 25 v.31-46: from which you see that Christ counts all that you do for this baby exactly as if you had done it for Him when He was a baby in the manger at Bethlehem: you are in a sense sharing in the things His mother did for Him. Giving money is only one way of showing charity: to give time and toil is far better and (for most of us) harder. And notice, though it is all giving—you needn’t expect any reward—how you do gets rewarded almost at once.” —C.S. Lewis

Parents and teachers, this is good advice from Tim Elmore on working with ‘difficult’ students: How To Lead An Outlier.

David Wilkerson has a solid word for those in a difficult marriage: Is There Any Hope?

John Stonestreet addresses Generation XXX: Responding To Our Pornified Culture.

Don’t let him get away with it! How Harry Reid Is Trying To End Debate In The Senate.

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: agape, Bible, C.S. Lewis, David Wilkerson, Dr. Tim Elmore, Harry Reid, hope, job, John Maxwell, John Stonestreet, marriage, parenting, personal best, politics, pornography, quotes, students, teaching, video, work ethic. Leave a Comment »

Links & Quotes

February 10, 2014 — Craig T. Owens

These are links to articles and quotes I found interesting today.

“Once we receive the revelation of God’s glory, we cannot continue in our old ways of treating others. That must all change.” —David Wilkerson

“Do we regularly think ‘WHAT’S RIGHT WITH IT?’ instead of ‘what’s wrong with it?’ Do our opinions, as naive as they may seem to be, lift the spirits of others and promote thankfulness, joy and love? Is this how we approach our relationships, our jobs and our church? Do we look for the negative and annoying? Will we drive away from service tomorrow saying, ‘I didn’t like that song’ … or, ‘I thought that message lacked substance’ … or, ‘_______ was really rude today’ … or … something else unkind or unnecessary? I’m guilty of negative opinions too… I’m not proud of this fact and I’m determined to see it radically change in 2014.” —Chilly Chilton

West Michigan is great place to live, and find a job, and get involved with a great church: Why Unemployment Is High In Parts Of Michigan

“No Christian and, indeed, no historian could accept the epigram which defines religion as ‘what a man does with his solitude.’ It was one of the Wesleys, I think, who said that the New Testament knows nothing of solitary religion.” —C.S. Lewis

Muslims are finding Jesus! A Wind In The House Of Islam

Stunning Photos Of Earth From Above

A touching story about Hockeytown′s famous #9: The Best Gift Ever Given To Gordie Howe

A great reminder/challenge from Max Lucado: Someday

Tim Elmore′s helpful advice for anyone working with youth: Six Steps To Prepare For The Coming Culture Shift

“I used to ask God to help me. Then I asked if I might help Him. I ended up by asking Him to do His work through me.” —Hudson Taylor

My Mediator

March 19, 2012 — Craig T. Owens

If anyone ever felt his pain was undeserved, it was Job! His life is so invaluable for us to be able to answer the question, “Where’s God in the midst of my dark times?”

Job tried to makes sense of what was happening to him. Sometimes he thought God was so awesome and so powerful that He was completely unknowable. God was a faceless, unapproachable Being. At other times Job thought God was so righteous that He would have nothing to do with him. So in the depth of his despair he called out for someone to be his mediator (see Job 9:33-35).

An effective mediator has to be someone who can understand and relate to both parties. He cannot be partial to one side, nor unsympathetic to one side. He has to be able to relate to both parties. In this case, he would have to be able to relate to both God and man—he would have to be able to be able to understand this Indefinable Power and this Supreme Morality and man’s struggle to come to grips with both of these views of God. Jesus is that Mediator.

[Jesus] gave up His divine privileges; He took the humble position of a slave and was born as a human being. (Philippians 2:7)

God Himself chose to step into all of our pain!!

The Bible describes Jesus as a Man of sorrows, One familiar with suffering, One acquainted with grief.

Jesus knows your pain even more acutely than you know it yourself. He wants to take all of your pain, and bear it for you. Jesus is not some faceless, unknowable Entity; He’s not aloof, He’s not unapproachable, He’s not unmoved by your pain. Will you let Him carry your pain?

He wants you to know Him as your Mediator:

Jesus understands every weakness of ours, because He was tempted in every way that we are. But He did not sin! So whenever we are in need, we should come bravely before the throne of our merciful God. There we will be treated with undeserved kindness, and we will find help. (Hebrews 4:15-16)

What a Friend we have in Jesus

All our sins and griefs to bear

What a privilege to carry

Everything to God in prayer

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: Hebrews, intercession, Jesus Christ, job, pain, Philippians, suffering. Leave a Comment »

Thursdays With Oswald—A Strong Weakness

May 12, 2011 — Craig T. Owens

This is a weekly series with things I’m reading and pondering from Oswald Chambers. You can read the original seed thought here, or type “Thursdays With Oswald” in the search box to read more entries.

A Strong Weakness

Are not my days few? cease then, and let me alone, that I may take comfort a little, before I go whence I shall not return, even to the land of darkness and the shadow of death. (Job 10:20-21)

“I see no way out,” says Job. He lies down, not in weakness, but in absolute exhaustion. Job is not talking in a petted mood, but saying that unless God will be a Refuge for him, there is no way out, death is the only thing. In every crisis of life, as represented in the Old Testament as well as in the teaching of Our Lord, this aspect of God is emphasized—“God is our Refuge”; yet until we are hit by sorrow, it is the last thing we seek for God to be. There is a difference between the weakness of refusing to think and the weakness that comes from facing facts as they really are. Job is seeing for the first time that God is the only Refuge, the only way out for him; yet he cannot get at Him through his creed, it is all confusion; the only thing to do is to fling himself on God.

From Baffled To Fight Better

“The only thing to do is to fling [myself] on God.”

Alas, how many times does this become my last resort! Why don’t I learn to fling myself on God my Refuge as my first resort? I must remember this: For when I am weak, then I am strong. (2 Corinthians 12:10)

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: 2 Corinthians, job, Oswald Chambers, strength, trust, weakness. Leave a Comment »

Smile Away

May 9, 2011 — Craig T. Owens

Sometimes the shortest distance between two people is a simple smile.

I love a scene in The Bourne Identity where Jason and Marie are hatching this highly-detailed plan to get an invoice from a hotel. Marie walks into the hotel lobby to execute their well-designed scheme, and before spy/assassin Jason Bourne has time to walk her through it, Marie is back outside. “What happened? What went wrong?” Jason asks. Marie simply replies, “The man at the desk was smiling at me, so I thought I would simply ask him for the invoice.”

When I was a kid we used to sing a little ditty in Sunday School that went like this —

If you’re happy and you know it clap your hands.
If you’re happy and you know it clap your hands.
If you’re happy and you know it then your face will surely show it,
If you’re happy and you know it clap your hands.

Here’s what the Bible says about smiling faces:

Smiling faces make you happy. (Proverbs 15:30)

What a relief to see your friendly smile. It is like seeing the face of God! (Genesis 33:10)

When I smiled at them, they could hardly believe it; their faces lit up, their troubles took wing! (Job 29:24)

Don’t just do what you have to do to get by, but work heartily, as Christ’s servants doing what God wants you to do. And work with a smile on your face. (Ephesians 6:6)

Why are you down in the dumps, dear soul? Why are you crying the blues? Fix my eyes on God—soon I’ll be praising again. He puts a smile on my face. He’s my God. (Psalm 42:5)

George Eliot said, “Wear a smile and have friends; wear a scowl and have wrinkles.”

So if people feel miles away from you, perhaps they’re just a SMILE AWAY.

Try it. Smile! You’ll feel better and others will feel better about you too.

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: Ephesians, Genesis, George Eliot, job, proverbs, Psalm, smile. 1 Comment »

Thursdays With Oswald—Don’t Explain; Pray

April 28, 2011 — Craig T. Owens

Don’t Explain; Pray

Eliphaz claimed to know exactly where Job was, and Bildad claims the same thing. Job was hurt, and these men tried to heal him with platitudes. The place for the comforter is not that of one who preaches, but of the comrade who says nothing, but prays to God about the matter. The biggest thing you can do for those who are suffering is not to talk platitudes, not to ask questions, but to get into contact with God…. Job’s friends never once prayed for him; all they did was to try and make coin for the enrichment of their own creed out of his sufferings.

From Baffled To Fight Better

Great reminder: The biggest thing you can do for those who are suffering is…get into contact with God on their behalf.

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: Bildad, Eliphaz, empathy, friends, intercession, job, Oswald Chambers, prayer, Zophar. Leave a Comment »

Progressing From . To ? To !

April 20, 2011 — Craig T. Owens

There is a progression that I believe Christians should be aware of as they lead others toward Christ.

First: .

Those who have been de-churched, or who have had a negative experience with another Christian, or who have become disenchanted with the Church, make factual statements about Christians and Church.

“The Church is….”

“Christians always….”

But if are truly the salt of the earth and the light of the world, we can season and shine in a way that will cause them to question their own factual statements.

Next comes: ?

“The Christian Church exists to reveal God and to utter forth His praise, to make God known to men who know Him not, that in the presence of the revelation they may be filled with awe, and wonder, and amazement—to make God known, that God shall be attractive to humanity.” —G. Morgan Campbell

“This is Church?”

“You’re a Christian?”

Which leads to: !

Jesus stated that the greatest of all commandments—indeed the fulfillment of all the commandments—was loving God with all of our heart, soul, mind, and strength and then loving others as we love ourselves. Once people see Christians as true representations of Christ … people so intent on loving God and loving others, they too will find what their hearts have been longing for.

“This is what I’ve been looking for!”

“Now this is what I call a real Church!”

Can I suggest an easy place to start? With your smile. Look at what Job said:

Men listened to me expectantly, waiting in silence for my counsel. After I had spoken, they spoke no more; my words fell gently on their ears. They waited for me as for showers and drank in my words as the spring rain. When I smiled at them, they scarcely believed it; the light of my face was precious to them. (Job 29:21-24)

Living in this way can move people from close-minded skeptics, to curious questioners, to enthusiastic followers of Jesus Christ. Let’s do this!