I tend to disagree. A subculture depends on the culture that it is within to survive…. we are looking at this the wrong way… Following Jesus Is the SuperCulture…. It has and always will survive…we are not being called out of Christianity… we are apart… we are “Set Apart” as the disciples of Jesus we exist and function in whatever culture that we find ourselves yet we are not dependent on that culture for our existence… We are the SuperCulture that is the Bride of Christ.

How is that for a new perspective?

Comments anyone?

- JasonTheBaldGuy

jasonthebaldguy.com

This awesome worm was in the parking lot at work

Enemy,

I feel your hot breath on my neck,
you press down on my shoulders crushing my chest
my breath comes quick and shallow,
I feel your shadow clouding my vision
your fog obscuring my perceptions
you dangle fear in front of me hoping to weaken my resolve
you promise destruction, abandonment, heartbreak
you whisper lies and deceptive thoughts

Enemy,

Your friends are near
they smell the blood of saints ready to be spilled
they come close spoiling for an unfair fight
they hop from one foot to the other
waiting to watch the struggle
they click their tongues… leer… and kick
hoping to incite a reaction…
they savor every ounce of struggle

Enemy,

you’ve made a grave mistake…
you have missed my smile.
your feet may be on my shoulders
but my soul rests in the hand of God
his crushing grip will take you at the last
and it will cradle me like a baby…
Then I will rise in his strength
my sword will cleave the last of you
you will see the rage of the Almighty
as it courses through the veins of his warrior

Enemy,

You might want to think twice next time…

copyright   2010  jason carroll
jasonthebaldguy.com

So … about this song…  My wife was singing it this morning and said… “you need to look up this song online”  so I found it on youtube.com  and It just literally felt like the words had poured from my heart directly… I played it again and I was overwhelmed with the emotion of my present struggles…   I went to work… and going through my email… this song shows up as a free download  on Itickets.com I kinda shook my head… and listened to it again…  so I go on with my workday… for the past few months I have listened to pandora at work… today of all days, I decided to go to Air1.com and would you know the minute it comes on  ”Healing Begins”  starts pouring out of my speakers.   No doubt today I am hearing very clearly that God intends healing… how and when… and who that happens to is something that has yet to be seen… maybe it is you… or me… let me know… is it you?

on the flip side

our society is filled with “pretending christians” that have basically morally emasculated every action that has even the slightest possibility of not being “approved by God” I think they are missing the point… actually … I know they are missing the point… this is an individual heart issue… you cannot… must not take the stance that everyone must be ruled by your evaluation of how something should be /should not be understood. This was a problem with the pharisees, they made a vast network of moral laws that protected them from ever breaking God’s laws… in doing so they sterilized their perception of God so much that their hearts could not discern what was truth and was was a made up religion… and they ended up condemning the very God that they claimed to serve to death! It is very easy to forget that Gods word is life and his grace is very real and it is meant for all of these scary subjects that we would all rather avoid… let the Holy Spirit do the convicting and you make sure YOUR heart is right when you choose to participate or not participate in something.

I remember your first Mothers Day… I spent everything I had to buy you a KitchenAid  Mixer… and you made me take it back because you wanted jewelry… I knew right then and there I bit off more than I could chew by marrying you!   I swore to you there that you would not get one for 5 years I was so ticked off … here we are almost eight years in and it seems the elusive KitchenAid mixer is always just out of reach… I see every time you look at the bright red”Anniversary Editions” with all of their cool features… and I promise myself that it will be the next gift you get!…. but then there is the new house… and all the things to work on there… sometimes it seems so far away… but you are always so patient…

We have a good year ahead of us… debt free… a new home(the first with enough counter space for a Kitchen Aid mixer)… 3 kiddos and we are still going strong… looks like that Kitchen Aid is not so far off after all…

Happy Mothers Day

This little bible is fast and easy to navigate and gives you the option of reading several translations at once.  Its also really easy to adjust the text size and the size of columns you are reading  just using the familiar pinch motion on the Iphone.  If you are reading in the single column mode a simple swipe of your finger shows you the next translation and there are quite a few translations that you can buy in the in-app store to expand your library…

There is an excellent tutorial section for learning how to read your bible and  how to use the app itself.  In fact the developers of the Wave Study Bible are very committed to helping you get the most from your bible reading… providing free mini courses and an ebook .

one of the cool things that I found while exploring the app is that you can quickly zoom to an area of the bible like “NT Letters” or “NT history” or “OT Prophesy”   very nice!!!

the search function works quickly and is incredibly easy to use! and there is a share button for the verses you look up! I am totally excited about that!!! currently there is only an email option for sharing but I am pretty sure Facebook and twitter are probably in the pipes… and I cannot wait!

Another cool feature is the Bible roulette… hit the “shake button” or just shake your iphone and it randomly selects a book, chapter, and verse!

As if all of that stuff is not enough… the Wave Study Bible is Free!  so there is nothing to lose in trying it out!  I think once you try it it will definitely be one of your favorite if not THE Favorite bible app on your phone.

Guys I cannot say enough… there are many great  free Bible Apps on the Iphone  If you use one and like it please remember to support and to encourage the developers… let them know that their work is so valuable and important to the furthering of the kingdom of God!

once you use the Wave Study Bible for a few weeks come back and let me know if its everything I am raving about…

here’s the link  http://wavestudybible.com/wave-study-bible-iphone.html

Blessings,

Jasonthebaldguy

1John 1:7 says ” But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin.”

Also Read Ephesians 5

I believe that these passages perfectly describes authenticity… “walking in the light”  If we walk in the light our failures and shortcomings are exposed and we walk “as children of light”  loving the fruits of the spirit… in other words we embrace the exposure of our sins and transgression on one hand accepting our humanity and on the other hand we reach towards the saving grace of God and reject our human nature to be self serving.

Simply living a morally lax lifestyle and doing it publicly is no different from what the rest of the world does… calling it authenticity is a slap in the face to everything that Jesus sacrificed his life for… he did not die so that we could live as we pleased comfortably and flaunt it in the face of the world as “freedom in Christ” … but so that we could see that his sacrifice was in its purest form an example for us to live… or more accurately… die… by.

So in your quest to be… “transparent”… “authentic”…”relevant”… remember to honor the sacrifice that paid for your freedom… and be sure to read Ephesians 5!

so… what do you think?  lets talk about real authenticity!   are you brave enough to expose your life to the light and be set free… can you walk in the light?  lets hear what you got!