Does your name make you old?

Apparently my name adds 15 years to my perceived age. I’m not glad of that fact, but I have come to accept it.

A few months ago, I had a breakfast meeting with a man I had never met before. After we shook hands and started eating he said, “Its funny, you are a lot younger than I expected.” I responded, “Really? Why did you imagine that I was older?” “Well,” he replied, “to be honest, ‘Gordon Dabbs’ sounds like an old man’s name.” “Fair enough,” I said.

So, here goes. I’m giving my informal over/under on names. If someone hears your name, they will make an estimation of your age. Be prepared!

+15 Harold, Gordon, Wanda, Ethel, Beverly, Marge, Wilbur, Hazel.

+10 Fred, Hank/Henry, Leroy, George, Dwayne, Betty, Gloria, Frank, Raymond, Shirley, Carl, Dorothy.

+5 Cathy, Linda, Jerry, Don, Larry, Bill, Tammy, Randy, Dale, Ken, Joe, Nancy, Gail.

+0 Robert, Mike, Lisa, Steve, Debbie, Joan, Michelle, David, Sam, Wes.

-5 Nathan, Brian, Pete, Andrew, Jennifer, Craig, Rick, Jeff, Jonathan, Jeremy, Christi, Kyle, Trent.

-10 Chad, Austin, Ashley, Megan, Summer, Brady, Macy, Abby, Nicki, Miranda.

-15 Spencer, Kylie, Tucker, Chloe, Meredith.

NOTE: Girls names ending in ‘i’ or ‘ie’ (e.g., Kerri, Carrie) get an automatic -2 bonus.

Girl power

Move over Ward Cleaver, June is taking command!

In the home, the woman is the chief decision maker. In a study by the Pew Center, most Americans identify the woman as the person most responsible for making decisions in their homes.

http://www.usatoday.com/money/perfi/basics/2008-09-25-gender-power-main_N.htm?loc=interstitialskip

Creative anti-theft solution

Tired of co-workers stilling your chips, sandwich, cookies, etc., out of the fridge? Here's a sure fire anti-theft device. Just put your food in this specially designed baggie, place it at the back of the office fridge and relax. Your food is safe from pilchers!

Great political sign

You've gotta love this sign! It's 1/2 Godfather and 1/2 Sesame Street. Marcelo Piui is a candidate for Rio's city council. His slogan "Por um Rio nos trilhos" means Putting Rio on the Tracks. More likely, he is suggesting that if you don´t vote for him, he will throw you in front of a train. Incidentally, he is being charged with illegally placing his signs around town.

A twinkle in her eye

Irlene is one of my heroes of faith.

She is a person who has absolutely no reason to be happy if you look at her life from a worldly point of view. She is dirt poor and lives in one of Rio’s slums. Now an elderly woman, she was abandoned by her husband decades ago and was left with the duty of raising two daughters by herself. While she hardly ever mentions it, rarely she will speak of her daughter who committed suicide. By any standard of measuring, her life has been extremely, extremely, difficult.

In the great paradox of what it means to be a true disciple of Jesus, Irlene is one of the most joy-filled people I know. She blesses God for the fact that she is able to ride public transportation for free (senior citizens ride free). She arrives at the church building on Sundays a hour before everyone else so that she can pray for the morning worship service. At the entrance of the building, she hurries to great her brothers and sisters in Christ with a smile and a warm embrace. She is at peace with her life and in love with her Lord.

This past Sunday, she grabbed me and told me that she urgently needed to speak with me about how the Lord had blessed her. She shared that the week before, some anonymous member of the congregation had managed to slip R$ 400 (about US$ 200) into her purse. She told me that she was so overwhelmed with the generosity of her Christian family and her loving Father that she had to give glory to Him publicly. So, on her way home, she thanked the bus driver for being such a good driver and asked God’s blessings upon him, then, for all to hear, she gave a quick public blessing upon everyone else on the crowded bus.

No surprises for me. This is just the way she is 24/7.
Someday, you’ll see her on the front row in Heaven praising God with her arms lifted high. Her life continues to teach me about being long-suffering and centered on Christ instead of on the trappings of the world. She is a tower of faith.

The Sermon on the Mount: Be perfect!

The Sermon on the Mount is all about the HEART. God does not desire worship or discipleship when the heart is not involved.

In comparison after comparison throughout the sermon (murder, adultery, giving, etc.), Jesus goes beyond the letter of the law and toward the deepest level of fellowship with the Creator. His message calls disciples to desire righteousness and obedience because of the perfect character of the One they lovingly submit to, not because of a codified set of written regulations.

So, Jesus calls us to perfection. That’s right, absolute perfection. Sounds hard and uncompromising, huh? The secret is that he already purchased our perfection through his costly gift at Golgotha. Now, we are called righteous and perfect because of what Christ did for us. This, however, certainly calls us to the deep Father/Child fellowship that God desires. Consequently, it gives us the FREEDOM FROM SIN and the AMAZING MOTIVATION to live out Jesus’ message.

Freedom and Motivation: Sorry Satan, I have been absolutely saved and ripped out of your clutches by the Son of God. Now, I don’t serve God through coercion and law-keeping, but rather, I serve him because I am flat out head-over-heels infatuated with my Lord Jesus. I long to pray like he prayed. . . Love others as he loved. . . Cry for the lost as he cried for them. . . Experience the joy of fellowship with the Father as he experienced it. . .

“But,” you say. “Gordon, you said that Jesus calls us to perfection and I know for a fact that you can’t be perfect!” My response: “Hold on there my friend. I am perfect. Satan has been left without any accusation against me because of the Lamb’s blood.”

So, here we are, called to perfection and given the wonderful freedom to pursue it.

Let freedom ring.

Once you were alienated from God and were enemies in your minds because of your evil behavior. But now he has reconciled you by Christ's physical body through death to present you holy in his sight, without blemish and free from accusation. . . Colossians 1.21-22

Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect. Matthew 5.48