God made us just a little shy of heavenly beings and crowned us to rule over creation on God's behalf. via Jesus Creed

Creation is immense and God made it all, and the psalmist leads anyone listening to the majestic distance of God -- and yet, yet, yet, even though immense and majestic, God both notices and pays attention to humans. The immensity contrasts with seeming insignificance -- until one pays attention to the task of humans. 

The psalmist says these things about the task of humans:

1. They are just shy of God (8:5). Yes, that is exactly what the psalmist says.
2. They are crowned -- surely here the psalmist is thinking back to Genesis 1-2 -- with "glory" and "honor" (8:5). That is, humans -- Eikons of God -- are kings.
3. They are assigned the task of ruling over all things in creation: sheep and oxen, birds and water creatures.
4. The Fall did not undo this task.
5. Any NT reading shows that Jesus did precisely this: as Lord (1 Cor 15:27; Heb 2:6-8).

This is the task of humans in creation: to rule on behalf of God as God's gloried and honored Eikons. This is not the task of exploitation but the task of governing God's good world on God's behalf.

Scot McKnight reminds us that we were created just shy of God for a reason. We were created to rule over creation on behalf of God. Our exploitation of that good purpose is sin.

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The Barna Group says Americans Feel Connected to Jesus, but the younger you are the further away your feel.

In the age of Facebook, Twitter, and texting, many Americans feel more connected to people than ever, but a new national survey by The Barna Group shows that Americans are not just connected to each other. One of the dominant connections in people’s lives is with Jesus Christ. In fact, more people claim to be closely connected to Jesus Christ than have a Facebook page or Twitter account.


Close Relationship

The Barna study, conducted among a random sample of 1,002 U.S. adults, discovered that two out of every three adults (67%) claimed to have a “personal relationship” with Jesus that is currently active and that influences their life.

While a majority of most demographic segments said they had such an active and personal relationship with Jesus, some segments were more likely than others to claim such a connection. For instance, women (72%) were more likely than men (62%) to do so.  Protestants were more likely than Catholics to cite such a relationship (82% versus 72%). People who describe themselves as mostly conservative on social and political matters were far more likely than those who see themselves as liberal on such issues to connect with Jesus (79% compared to 48%). And one of the most instructive findings was that the younger a person was, the less likely they were to claim to have an active and influential bond with Jesus. Specifically, while 72% of adults 65 or older and 70% of Boomers (i.e., ages 46 to 64) had such a relationship in place, 65% of Busters (i.e., ages 27 to 45) and only 52% of Mosaics (ages 18 to 26) did, as well.

The Barna Group always offers an interesting take on the cultural views of Americans. I am not surprised to see that women, Protestants, and social conservatives are more likely than men, Catholics, and social liberals to talk about a personal relationship with Jesus. It is very interesting to see one more piece talking about the decline of a personal faith among the next generation (see David Kinnaman's and Gabe Lyons' work unCHRISTIAN). What other surprises do you see in this article?

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Instead of quitting, why not try quilting. I am thinking of the artful quilts my wife creates. via Seth Godin's blog

"I quilt"

When you've had enough, can't tolerate your job any longer and are ready to quit, perhaps you could try one last thing.

Quilt instead.

You've got nothing to lose, right? I mean, you're going to quit anyway, so what's the worst that could happen to you?

So quilt. Spend hours every day integrating the people you work with into a cohesive group. Weave in your customers as well. Take every scrap, even the people you don't like, and sew them together. Spend far less time than you should on the 'real' work and instead focus on creating genuine connections with the people you work with. Including your boss. After all, once you quit, you're never going to see them again anyway, right? Might as well give it a try.

Careful... it might change everything.

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58% of Americans pray every day. Your faith tradition, gender, age and income reflects you tendency to join in prayer. via the Pew Forum

Seth Godin challenges us to expose ourselves ... its not what you are thinking. via Seth's Blog

Expose yourself...

With so many options in media, interaction and venues, you now get to choose what you expose yourself to.

Expose yourself to art, and you'll come to appreciate it and aspire to make it.

Expose yourself to anonymous scathing critics and you will begin to believe them (or flinch in anticipation of their next appearance.)

Expose yourself to get-rich-quick stories and you'll want to become one.

Expose yourself to fast food ads and you'll crave french fries.

Expose yourself to angry mobs of uninformed, easily manipulated protesters and you'll want to join a mob.

Expose yourself to metrics about your brand or business or performance and you'll work to improve them.

Expose yourself to anger and you might get angry too.

Expose yourself to people making smart decisions and you'll probably learn how to do it as well.

Expose yourself to eager long-term investors (of every kind) and you'll likely to start making what they want to support.

It's a choice if you want it to be.

Posted via web from allen bingham's posterous