I've been reading a good book called "Charasmatic Chaos" by John MacArthur. There’s a lot in there to think about but two main things come to mind as of this writing:

By comparison to most small towns, the town where I live (Dumas, TX), has a pretty vibrant downtown. Now, it may not be as vibrant as it was in the heyday many imagine from their past, but I’d say it’s doing pretty well in that there are only a couple vacant buildings. In most towns that still have a town square (as in place, not person) there are many vacant buildings. And most of the occupied buildings are antique stores.

With one election cycle barely behind us, the politicians and the media are looking anxiously ahead to the next election. The Republicans are anxious because they lost the last one (big time!) and it looks like they might lose even more. The Democrats are anxious because they have racked up the lowest approval ratings in the history of polls and since being elected they have accomplished absolutely none of their promises (which I think is a good thing—I’m inclined to vote for any politician who can manage to get the government to do less).

OK, I’ve blogged (which sounds like a plumbing problem—and often is!) about the similarities between the comic industry and the modern American church and the struggles they face. Now, I want to examine some similarities of struggles faced by both churches and the Lions Club (and, presumably, the Rotarians, the Kiwanis, the Oddfellows, etc.).

author: Samuel Ben White rating: asin: 1424125707 binding: Paperback list price: $19.95 USD amazon price: $19.95

Alexander “Opie” Gates went to the big city on a mission trip, expecting to have proven all the negative stereotypes he had of New York. Late one night, in a shady bar on a darkened street, he meets the kind of woman he has only read about. The kind of woman he has always smugly avoided. A woman of the night, he believes. He soon finds out she's something else entirely, something a whole lot worse. Just knowing her will force him to make some difficult choices. He came to change the city, but how much will it change him?