Christian Carnival 334

christian_carnival_lion.jpgWelcome to the 334th edition of the Christian Carnival. There is some great reading here and I’m sure you’ll enjoy working your way through the list of posts.

The weekly Christian Carnival is an opportunity for Christian blog writers to share their best posts from the previous week. The topic of the post doesn’t necessarily have to focus on Christianity but it must reflect a Christian worldview, and the writer must be Christian to qualify.

As always it’s a real honour to be able to present such a diverse range of great posts.

Please take the time to read through each post … it’s worth it. You might also like to link to this week’s carnival so that your blog readers can enjoy the variety of styles and thought. Another way to spread the word about the Christian Carnival is to click any of the buttons below this post to share the carnival on Facebook, Twitter, StumbleUpon or any of the other sites represented.

Let’s get started!

Have any major figures in business or the media gone to a Christian College? Phil Lopez answers that question with his post Famous Christian College Alumni at Christian Colleges and Universities.

Meghan Macy has a lovely devotional post titled He rejected spiritual wisdom. It’s well worth heading over to 1:41 Ministries to read what she’s written.

Robert Fenn writes that while it may sound strange, a Christian entrepreneur needs wisdom first and not money. Read the post A Christian Entrepreneur Should Pray For Wisdom and Not Money at Christian Entrepreneur.

It’s sad but true that many people feel most alone when they go to church. Quite a few are made more aware of their singleness at church and feel so alone there. That doesn’t necessarily mean that they feel unloved but it’s something that we all need to understand. Susan L. Prince tells her story with the post Acutely Aware of My Singleness…at Church? over at Sisters’ Weblog: It Bloggles the Mind!.

The title that Henry (Honzo) Imler chose for his post had me intrigued from the start. Guilty fabergé eggs is a great read at The PoMo Xian.

Those of us who choose Christian schooling for our children know that the extra cost can sometimes be a strain.Jim Huinink has written the post Deciding If You Can Afford Christian School Tuition for Christian Personal Finance. His conlusions may surprise you.

“The framed envelope hanging on our kitchen wall is nondescript reminder of God’s goodness.” What’s the story behind the envelope? Joe Plemon explains in the post The Envelope Story: A Reminder of Hope posted at Personal Finance By The Book.

Should we take out insurance? Does rellying on insurance send the message that we’re not rellying on God? Does the Bible advocate having insurance? FMF presents The Seven Pillars of Financial Success, Pillar 6: Get Insured at Free Money Finance.

Have you ever wondered what people really mean when they talk about ‘fellowship’? That’s what Crystal Rodli has written about in We Only Need To Have One Thing In Common posted at In A Clay Pot.

Paul Manata presents a very detailed review of Michael Sudduth’s recent book, The Reformed Objection to Natural Theology. The book has been recommended by Alvin Plantinga, Richard Swinburne, and Paul Helm. Read the post The Reformed Objection to Natural Theology at Triablogue.

John Fraiser presents Which Would You Rather Do Without: Science or Theology? posted at Chaos & Old Night.

It’s a question that just won’t go away and one with which we all need to wrestle. Anthony Delgado asks Did Creation Take Place in 7 Literal Days? at eInquisitive.

Kids can ask some pretty tough questions. How do we answer? Annette presents Question asked tonight posted at Fish and Cans.

In the US the Supreme Court has allowed public colleges and universities to ban religious groups from campus if they require a statement of faith for membership and leadership. How should we respond? Jeremy Pierce presents Free to Ban Religious Groups at Parableman.

Sarah has written a thought provoking post about being a writer and expressing values that may not match your own. I encourage you to read From Head to Hand: Being a Christian Writer at This is what Sed said.

Sadly, there are people who believe that a life of faith doesn’t stand up to intellectual investigation. Russ White believes that the Christian life begins with thinking. Taking Every Thought Captive at Thinking in Christ draws out that theme.

Somebody once said that you are what people think of you, that perceptions are reality. Ridge Burns thinks that is true, but he also thinks that perceptions can get us in trouble. Find out more by reading Perspectives posted at Ridge’s Blog.

A biologist says that science proves human free will is an illusion. Really? Where is the real illusion?Tom Gilson presents the post Free Will: Where’s the Real Illusion? at Thinking Christian.

Andrew has been thinking about Our Needs. He’s posted his thoughts at Rely on God in Your Personal Development.

We need to be so careful in the way we handle the scriptures and today Barry Wallace presents what he thinks is a helpful word of caution in the post Arguments from Silence at who am i?.

If you’re a Christian and you missed out this week, how about choosing something to contribute for next week’s edition? It doesn’t have to be a masterpiece, just a post that outlines your point of view or is designed to get others thinking. Being part of the carnival could be a great way to gain a little extra traffic at your blog.

The easiest way to get involved is to submit your article through the Blog Carnival Submission Form. Otherwise, you can email the submission address.

Thanks for reading. Don’t forget to spread the word. Feel free to click any of the buttons below to share the carnival on Facebook, Twitter, StumbleUpon or any of the other sites represented.



Do you think some of your friends would enjoy reading Christian Carnival 334? Please use the buttons below to share the post. Thanks.

Christian Carnival Here Next Week

christian_carnival_lion.jpgWould you like the opportunity to have your blog promoted? Have you published a post that you’d like read by a wider audience?

I’m having some friends drop in next week. They’ll be visiting from all over the world and you’re invited to join us. The next Christian Carnival is being hosted here at RodneyOlsen.net.

The weekly Christian Carnival is an opportunity for Christian blog writers to share their best posts from the previous week. The topic of the post doesn’t necessarily have to focus on Christianity but it must reflect a Christian worldview, and the writer must be Christian to qualify. You may wish to consider that the readership of the Christian Carnival will be more varied than your usual readership, and you might do better contributing a post with broad appeal.

I’ve already received a number of contributions and I’m looking forward to offering readers of this blog some great links when the carnival is published.

If you’re a Christian and you’ve never contributed before, or if it’s been a while since you have, how about having a look through your posts for this week and choosing something to contribute. It doesn’t have to be a masterpiece, just a post that outlines your point of view or is designed to get others thinking. Being part of the carnival could be a great way to gain a little extra traffic at your blog.

The easiest way to get involved is to submit your article through the Blog Carnival Submission Form. Otherwise, you can email the submission address.

The deadline for submissions is Tuesday evening at midnight, Eastern (US) Standard Time. That means it’s midday Wednesday here in Perth, Western Australia.



Do you think some of your friends would enjoy reading Christian Carnival Here Next Week? Please use the buttons below to share the post. Thanks.

Privilege and Responsibility

Tomorrow my beautiful daughter turns 14.

Emily has brought me more happiness than I could have ever imagined possible, but not everyone gets to celebrate such milestones. It is only becuase she was born in a developed country like Australia that she has had the opportunity to grow up in the amazing young lady she is today. I don’t take that for granted and I can’t help but feel deeply for millions of parents around the world who battle to simply keep their children alive.

Tomorrow we’ll celebrate fourteen healthy years for our eldest child. In many countries it’s a major achievement for any child to just make it to the age of five.

Every day, over 24,000 children under the age of five die from mostly preventable and treatable causes, such as diarrhoea, malaria, measles, pneumonia and HIV/AIDS. They don’t die for a lack of knowledge or science-we know how to prevent thousands of these children from dying each day-we simply need to put our knowledge into action. It’s not up to philanthropists, non-government organisations, religions, governments or individuals alone: this will take all of our efforts, working together.

One of the things that I hope Emily has learned is that with privilege comes responsibility. We live in an amazing country and although we are far from being rich by Australian standards, when we look around the world and then at our circumstances we see how good things are for our family. That means we have a responsibility to help others in more difficult circumstances.

Our finances are pretty tight at the moment but we still have a very good roof over our heads, food in our tummies and a whole lot more. Millions around the world don’t have any of that.

Of the approximately 2.2 billion children living in the world today, more than half are living in poverty. That means they lack opportunity and options, and face challenges that can rob them of even basic rights: safety, good health, education and enough food to develop properly. Today’s children embody tomorrow’s world, and uneducated, malnourished, poor children are likely to become tomorrow’s uneducated, malnourished, poor adults.

One of the ways we help others is through Compassion Child Sponsorship.

I know that most of us don’t have too much to spare at the moment, but please consider helping others who have nothing. I’ve been to developing countries and seen the work Compassion does first hand. Believe me, they do amazing work. The money does get through and it makes a world of difference.

I’m so thankful that I have two healthy children. I want to ensure that other parents know what that’s like too so I’ll continue to support Compassion.

Please think about how you can change the life of a child and their family through Compassion Child Sponsorship.



Do you think some of your friends would enjoy reading Privilege and Responsibility? Please use the buttons below to share the post. Thanks.

Consumerism and Spirituality

Am I the only one who feels a little uncomfortable when people joke about retail therapy?

Did anyone else feel uneasy about the masses lining up for days to get their hands on an iPad as soon as they went on sale?

Is our happiness really dependant on the power to buy items that will soon be outdated or superseded?

I don’t have a problem with the iPad and would probably enjoy using one if I could afford it, but I was quite concerned by the hype that drove people to stores around the world to participate in a buying frenzy. The latest I heard is that they’re still selling at one every three seconds. They may be quite wonderful but they’re not the answer to the world’s woes.

Whether it’s shoes, clothes, electronic gadgetry, food or whatever else, we seem to repeat the process of purchasing as much as we can, growing dissatisfied with it, then going out and doing it all over again in the hope that the next purchase will bring the contentment we’re seeking.

To a great degree it doesn’t even matter what we’re buying. Consumerism is all about the purchasing. We gather together to worship at shopping centres that have become our cathedrals.

We need to purchase a variety of items just to live our lives but we can so easily cross the line and let that purchasing process become an end in itself.

My regular Wednesday morning guest on 98.5 Sonshine FM is Rev Dr Ross Clifford who is the Principal of Morling College in New South Wales and Vice President elect of the Baptist World Alliance. Each week we chat about a range of issues relating to spirituality and belief.

Today we talked about consumerism and the way it is affecting so many lives. We live in a world where millions are dying because they don’t have enough, yet just as many are dying due to excess.

If you want to hear what Ross had to say about the spirituality of consumerism just click the play button on the audio player at the bottom of this post.

It’s hard not to get caught up in consumerism when we’re surrounded by it constantly but I’m working towards the kind of attitude that Paul talked about in the Christian Scriptures.

I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. – Philippians 4:12

What we own or what we can buy shouldn’t define who we are. Satisfaction, deep satisfaction, doesn’t come from consuming more and more. Purchasing will never add more meaning to our lives.

Are you ready to fight back against the lie of consumerism?

[audio:http://mpegmedia.sonshinefm.ws/feeds/SPI060910_1056.mp3]

Do you think some of your friends would enjoy reading Consumerism and Spirituality? Please use the buttons below to share the post. Thanks.

Christian Carnival 327

christian_carnival_lion.jpgWelcome to the 327th edition of the Christian Carnival. There is some great reading here and I’m sure you’ll enjoy working your way through the list of posts.

The weekly Christian Carnival is an opportunity for Christian blog writers to share their best posts from the previous week. The topic of the post doesn’t necessarily have to focus on Christianity but it must reflect a Christian worldview, and the writer must be Christian to qualify.

As always it’s a real honour to be able to present such a diverse range of great posts.

Please take the time to read through each post … it’s worth it. You might also like to link to this week’s carnival so that your blog readers can enjoy the variety of styles and thought. Another way to spread the word about the Christian Carnival is to click any of the buttons below this post to share the carnival on Facebook, Twitter, StumbleUpon or any of the other sites represented.

Starting things off this week is FMF presenting Channeled Tithing at Free Money Finance, a post about being surprised by God when we remain faithful.

Can we still stand up for morality? Ronnica has started a great conversation at Ignorant Historian with her post Taking Liberties with Liberty.

I’ve enjoyed reading HARMLESS THOUGHTS for years. This time around Matt Harmless presents an interesting look at Abide in Christ, a book by the great Christian writer Andrew Murray in the post Abide in Christ.

Barry Wallace has presented a challenging post asking us What Part of the Gospel Is Optional? Check out the post with a very thought provoking video at who am i?.

Have you ever heard of the myth of chronic uniqueness? Deb W. explains what it’s all about in Myth of Chronic Uniqueness & God’s Word at All Things Being Made New.

The growth of atheism is something that is causing some Christians concern, but if we trust an almighty God there’s no need for us to worry. Andrew presents a thoughtful post titled The answer to atheists at Rely on God in your personal development.

Richard H. Anderson presents his post about Continuing Revelation at his blog dokeo kago grapho soi kratistos Theophilos.

Singing when times are good and the sun is shining is easy but what about when times are difficult? Violet N. has written an excellent post titled Singing through your stress test. Check it out at Other Food: daily devo’s.

Sarah has been thinking about the way that some people make plans and talk about future events without leaving room for our sovereign God. her post Not When, But If at This is what Sed said gives us some great food for thought.

A great reminder from Ridge Burns that Ministry Is Hard at Ridge’s Blog.

Weekend Fisher takes on one of the big faith issues, that of evolution and creation, with the post Controversies in the church: Creation at Heart, Mind, Soul, and Strength.

Diane R. has written a short but pointed post that should generate some interest. I think I’ve finally figured it out can be found at Crossroads: Where Faith and Inquiry Meet.

To finish this week Jeremy Pierce helps us get to grips with some would perceive as a conflict in Scripture. Read Proverbs and Wives at Parableman to see what Jeremy has to say.

If you’re a Christian and you missed out this week, how about choosing something to contribute for next week’s edition? It doesn’t have to be a masterpiece, just a post that outlines your point of view or is designed to get others thinking. Being part of the carnival could be a great way to gain a little extra traffic at your blog.

The easiest way to get involved is to submit your article through the Blog Carnival Submission Form. Otherwise, you can email the submission address.

Thanks for reading. Don’t forget to spread the word. Feel free to click any of the buttons below to share the carnival on Facebook, Twitter, StumbleUpon or any of the other sites represented.



Do you think some of your friends would enjoy reading Christian Carnival 327? Please use the buttons below to share the post. Thanks.