This past week has been pretty rough for Paula Deen. After being accused of using racial slurs in the past, Dean came forward and confessed that it was true. She claimed she had used those words in the past, but no longer used them.

The media criticized her harshly, she lost her job and some important endorsements, and plenty of people have declared her a horrible person.

Now, I don’t actually know Paula Dean. I’ve never eaten at her restaurant in my home state of Georgia, and I haven’t even watched her show before. While I’m sure she has certainly made mistakes in the past and I won’t defend or condone what she said or did, I am somewhat alarmed at the way she is being treated. Continue Reading…

Last weekend, Erin and I had the opportunity to go out together and see The Great Gatsby in 3-D. We were pumped because, like many Americans, we had read the book back in high school, but forgotten just enough of the plot to be surprised. Plus, the trailer was so epic that we had to experience the film.

Leading up to it, I talked with friends that had already seen the movie, and all of their responses were strange. They said things like, “I’m not sure if I liked it or not,” or “It was weird.” It was as if they couldn’t figure out how they felt about it.

I didn’t understand their uncertainty until I sat there in the theater, watching the final credits roll at the movie’s conclusion.  I was completely unsettled. Emotionally torn. Just like my friends, I sat there confused.

There was incredible acting (Dicaprio was made for this role), beautiful cinematography, and superb music (mostly hip hop). It had all the right ingredients, but I sat there unsure if what they created together was good at all.

Then it hit me. The cause of the confusion boiled down to one thing: There’s no redemption in the end.

I won’t go into detail because I don’t want to spoil it for those unfamiliar with the story. But that’s really it. This tale offers no hero, no victory, and no redemption for us to grab hold of, and that’s why it’s so unsettling.

It’s the lack of redemption that makes the story of Gatsby so profound and provocative! It reveals our deep longing for redemption, for heroes to emerge, for things to be made right. Our humanity cries out, “Just give us something redemptive to cling to at the end!”

But Gatsby gives no such thing. And for this reason, it’s brilliant. It tells the truth of life without a greater hope or meaning. It honestly portrays the selfishness of humanity. And it leaves you right there in the middle of it. In that mess, I personally found myself full of gratitude for Jesus, for redemption, and for the hope and meaning we find in following Him. #LiveFully

It’s time for the 2nd annual photo contest here at #LiveFully! Last year’s was a huge success with lots of great entries. Here was our winner:

This year we want to see even more awesome photos. So grab your digital camera, smartphone, or polaroid and see what you can do.

What We Want: You are allowed to submit up to three photos. The theme this year is “Unleash Your Imagination.” That means you can submit just about anything you want, but if you want some ideas perhaps these will help: An image in nature that inspires you, people laughing together, someone working creatively, a fun activity, time with family, or anything else, we want to see it!

How You Enter: Simply e-mail your pictures to [email protected]. Include a tweet sized (140 characters or less) description or explanation of why you chose that picture and what it means to you. You must submit by 11:59pm on June 19. Since the theme is Unleash Your Imagination, feel free to use some special effects or editing, but remember they may not give you a special advantage.

How You Win: We will select up to 5 finalists and post them on June 21’s Fave Five, and then you will vote on the ultimate winner! Voting will take place here on #LiveFully and last until 11:59pm on June 24 and we will announce the winner on June 25. The choice will be yours, and may the best photo win!

What You Win: The Winner will receive a $50 Amazon gift card. Sweet! Plus, we’ll feature your image here on the site and tell the world about how great you are at photography. The contributors here at #LiveFully will also select a second place winner, based on our own judgment, and you will win a #LiveFully t-shirt!

Other Cool info: We will post ALL pictures on the site and on our facebook page. Also, by e-mailing us a photo for this contest, you give us permission to post your submitted picture(s) online.

This is going to be so fun! Submit your work as early as possible. Seriously, don’t wait just do it now before you forget and the world misses out on your art! And please, ask any questions in the comments below:

We encourage Christians to engage with pop-culture, to reach out to non-believers and build relationships. If you do this, it won’t take long before you meet someone who hates religion because they believe it is the root of all evil in the world.

And their belief actually has a legitimate foundation. Families have been destroyed, wars have been fought, and genocide has been committed, all in the name of religion.

Does this mean we should ban all religion? Are all religions the same in that they create conflict? Does it just boil down to extremists in every camp?

I’ve been thinking about this a lot lately, and I think a few things must be said.

Five Observations:

First, I argue that it is illogical for an atheist to blame religion for the evils of this world. Why? Because if they believe there is no God or spiritual force in the world, then people are the direct cause of religion. It is not religion, then, that causes evil in the world. People are responsible.

Second, removing religion does not solve any problems. The best example, of course, is the Soviet Union. They outlawed religion and worship, everyone was to be equal and live in harmony. Only problem was, if you didn’t agree with this Communist paradise, then you were killed.

No one knows for sure, but most believe that Stalin had 20 million people killed during his reign. Clearly, removing religion from a society did not promote peace and solve problems.

Third, some religions promote peace more than others. I haven’t researched every religion in the world enough to flesh this out, but some religions clearly promote peace or violence more than others. In other words, you cannot blame all religions for the wars and problems of the world.

Fourth, we must analyze each religion’s actual teachings. I recently heard someone say, “you can’t tell me that, at its core, Christianity doesn’t promote violence.” Why did this person say that? Because of historical events like the Crusades, in which Christians did some pretty horrendous things. But history does not demonstrate the core of what a religion is. People can twist religions to their own benefit and lead others astray. For this reason, we must look at the original texts.

Fifth, as a whole, I don’t believe religion is necessarily good or bad. Religion is simply something that unites large groups of people. Similar to country, family, race, or favorite sports teams, people have formed their identities around things that unite them.

Those united groups often have leaders who are often capable of leading people to do good or ill. Religion, then, is a tool in which the leaders can call people to action. The Crusades were not the idea of peasant farmers, rather the priests called them to a Holy War.

So does religion cause war? It absolutely can be used to cause war, but so can any other thing that we unite around. The Holocaust, for example, was not the idea of a German baker, but rather people united around a national identity and under a leader who they believed would be the savior of Europe. Unfortunately, he used his power to lead them to evil.

Lastly, I want to answer a more pertinent question for Christians. As I said, we can’t assess all religions equally. The question we must ask ourselves, then, is this:

Does Christianity cause war and violence and evil?

As we established, we need to turn to the original text. Here are a three key points of the Christian religion:

1) Jesus, the son of God and savior of the world, did not lead a revolution against the Romans as Israel expected. Rather, he gave himself up, like a lamb led to slaughter. Jesus died to save people. He did not fight back, he was entirely peaceful, and he calls his people to do the same.

2) Jesus commands us to love our enemies in Matthew 5:44 – “But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.”

3) Romans 12 is a revolutionary passage about the way we should live, and verses 17-21 directly apply here: “Repay no one evil for evil, but give thought to do what is honorable in the sight of all. If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all. Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God, for it is written, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.” To the contrary, “if your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink; for by so doing you will heap burning coals on his head.” Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.”

At it’s core, then, Christianity does not call us to violence. It calls us to live like Christ, peacefully and lovingly towards all. We will be persecuted for what we believe, but we should never persecute others for what they believe. We are not to convert people with the sword, we are not to burn people at the stake we disagree with. Christians have done this in the past, but they have been wrong to do so.

It’s time we started to change this perception. We cannot change the past, but we can influence the future.

How will we change this perception? Simple. By following the words of Romans 12. When people accuse you and insult you, then respond in love. When someone persecutes you for your beliefs, then respond in love. When your enemy needs help, then offer it to them. When you disagree with someone, let them know you disagree, but make sure they know they are always welcome to your house for dinner. When you meet someone who has been judged or persecuted by “christians,” make sure you apologize to them and start demonstrating what true love should be.

You won’t be able to do it in your own power. You can’t. You need the grace and power of Jesus. Then, and only then, will you be able to live peaceably with those you disagree with.

And if we all learn to love the way Jesus loved, then I am convinced the world will be a more peaceful place.

What do you think? Does religion encourage violence or help bring peace?

This past weekend saw the release of one of the biggest films of the year – Star Trek Into Darkness. Historically, Star Trek has had a rather narrow audience, but the newer films have worked hard to create stories that can be enjoyed by everyone.

First off, I highly recommend this movie. It’s a fun ride, with an incredible villain and one of the most gripping climaxes I’ve seen. I won’t discuss it here, but the film has some great things to say about leadership. JJ Abrams (the director) does an incredible job of actually creating meaningful characters and surrounding them with incredible action. We need more films like this – where characters drive the story instead of special effects.

And while most people don’t expect deep philosophical themes to appear in action flicks, I believe the newest Star Trek has done this very well. It asks a very important question: Is it morally right to do evil in order to overcome evil?

3 Different Answers

The responsibility to answer these questions is given to the different leaders in the film, and each one answers the question differently. One chooses the path of vengeance. Another chooses to do whatever it takes to earn victory, even if it means giving up the very thing he fights for. The third chooses to do what is right, and it costs him everything.

Instead of ruining the film for people who haven’t seen it, we’ll discuss the Biblical message that surrounds this question. The Israelites lived at the center of their modern world. For centuries they faced enemies, many who were more wicked than we can imagine.

The Biblical Answer

Sometimes, the Israelites would trust in the Lord when trouble came. Other times, however, they attempted to make deals with their neighbors like the Egyptians or the Assyrians. Here is how God responded to this notion in Isaiah 31:1-2 –

“Woe to those who go down to Egypt for help and rely on horses, who trust in chariots because they are many and in horsemen because they are very strong, but do not look to the Holy One of Israel or consult the Lord!”

At our core, many of us hold to an untrue belief. If we did not have this belief, we would never need to ask if it is morally right to overcome evil with evil.

What is that wrong belief?

We think that evil is more powerful than good. We even believe that the powers of evil are greater than God.

If we did not hold this belief, we would never be tempted to fight evil with evil. We would never seek to join forces with “Egypt,” but instead we would always seek after the Lord.

At first glance, evil can seem more powerful than good. Evil is savage, self-centered, and takes everything it can. The ultimate example of good, however, is a beaten man humbled on a cross.

Is evil more powerful than good?

And yet, Christ’s act of sacrifice was the most powerful event in history. Billions of lives were saved and changed for the better. Christ proved the true power of good by conquering the grave, not only for himself, but also for all who believe in him.

While evil may look more powerful on the outside, it cannot hold a candle to the power of righteousness. Walking righteously often requires personal sacrifice of varying degrees, but as Jesus himself said in Matthew 16:26, “what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul?”

Back to Reality

Few, if any of us, will make decisions that could cost hundreds, if not thousands of lives. The people in Star Trek and the Bible did not always ask to make those decisions, however, so you never know when you will be faced with one.

More likely, however, you will meet people in the business world who lack integrity and cheat their way to the top. You must ask yourself, “do I deal with such a colleague by doing what is right? Or is it OK to cheat myself to keep him or her from winning?”

Or perhaps you will vote for someone – will you put someone in power who is defined by integrity? Or vote for someone who cuts corners? Perhaps you play sports and you want to be a starter, but you compete with someone who uses steroids. Does it make it ok to level the playing field by taking them as well?

When we face those who do wrong, we must remember who holds the ultimate power in the universe. While evil will win some battles, the war has already been won by God. It is not always easy to do what is right, in fact it can be downright costly, but it is always worth it. Because in the end, we’ll be on the winning team.

Have you or will you see Star Trek Into Darkness? What do you think?

In Colossians 4:5-6, Paul offers us an incredible challenge: “Walk in wisdom toward outsiders, making the best use of the time. Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you ought to answer each person.”

At first glance, Paul’s words may seem like common sense, but Christians have struggled with this call for centuries. As a group, believers (or those claiming to believe in Jesus), have had some rather explosive relationships. For instance, there is a long history of war in conflict between Christians and Muslims.

A second and rather prevalent example over the last decade is the relationship between Christians and homosexuals. Christians have not always spoken graciously to homosexuals, and there is a lot of hurt and angst between the groups, with millions of people caught in the middle, not sure what to think. Continue Reading…

I find this passage to be one of the most inspiring passages in Scripture:

For the love of Christ controls us, because we have concluded this: that one has died for all, therefore all have died; and he died for all, that those who live might no longer live for themselves but for him who for their sake died and was raised.

From now on, therefore, we regard no one according to the flesh. Even though we once regarded Christ according to the flesh, we regard him thus no longer. Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation; that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation. Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. (2 Corinthians 5:14-21, ESV)

Two definitions: 

1) Reconcile: Restore friendly relations between people, to bring about harmony

2) Ambassador: A diplomatic official of the highest rank, an authorized messenger or representative

3 questions:

1) Have you been reconciled to God? If so, are you living as a new creation? Why or why not?

2) Where has God placed you as an ambassador? What would God tell the people around you, and what is stopping you from telling them yourself?

3) As an ambassador, are you seeking to reconcile people to God? Or are your actions distancing people from God? How can you join in the ministry of reconciliation today?

I implore you to think about these verses and questions today. God has chosen you specifically and put you in a place of honor. Whether you like it or not, if you call yourself a Christian, you represent Christ.

That means you can make a dramatic difference in this world. Why not start living as one reconciled today?

We often bring up cultural topics here on #LiveFully. We’ve discussed all sorts of music, from Katy Perry to the Avett Brothers. We’ve brought up movies, from the Hunger Games to the Hobbit. We’ve focussed on athletes, from Gabby Douglas to Tiger Woods. We’ve explored television shows, from the New Normal to, most recently, the Bachelor.

Why do we discuss these things so often? Good question, and there are a few important answers:

1) Culture is interesting

Culture constantly changes. Time and location have massive effects, and because of the internet, culture can change at faster rates than ever before. Frankly, we find the evolution of culture fascinating, and so we write about it.

2) Life with God fills all

This is a central theme of #LiveFully – “the redemption of Jesus transforms every area of personal life and positively impacts every channel of cultural life.” We are not called to merely dedicate our time at church to God, but then give our time on the sports field or with friends or at work to ourselves. Every single aspect of our lives should glorify Him.

For this reason, it is important that we recognize the work of God in culture. We also want to show people that, as corrupt as our culture can be sometimes, it is still possible to glorify Him in mainstream pop culture. The more of you who are artists or musicians or actors that believe you can honor Jesus through your gifts, the better.

3) Truth Filter

Calvin once said, “All truth is God’s truth.” In other words, everything that is true in this life originated with God. Practically speaking, that means we can learn truths about God from very unlikely sources. Marilyn Manson, for instance, is not a typical role model. But when asked what he would say to the kids behind the Columbine High School shootings, this was how he responded: “I wouldn’t say a single word to them. I would listen to what they have to say, and that’s what no one did.”

Those words contain a valuable truth and lesson for us. But at the same time, we don’t want to become Manson disciples. He also says a lot of things that are untrue, as does the rest of the world. Culture can throw unlimited lies at us, but we must listen if we hope to reach them. At the same time, we cannot forget our foundation of truth that comes from the Word of God.

The Bible should work as a filter for everything we hear – be it from friends, television, or music. We discuss culture and Scripture to help people learn and practice this ability, so that they can recognize God’s active voice in the world, but consistently reject lies that pull us away from Him.

4) It creates Gospel sharing opportunities

Effective evangelism often begins when you find common ground with the person you are sharing with. Have you ever started a conversation with, “here’s why everything you believe is wrong” that went well?

Of course not. But perhaps you and a friend love the Bachelor. After last week’s episode, you could easily begin a conversation with this friend about prayer. Or maybe you are on a baseball team. What if you brought up Josh Hamilton’s life transformation with your teammates?

There are countless opportunities to do this in the world. Paul even used the Greek gods to find common ground in Acts 17. Starting with common ground makes sharing about Jesus less scary for us, and helps lower the defensive walls other people build in their own hearts.

At the end of the day, if we look at culture and think nothing more than, “that’s cool,” then we are missing opportunities to be salt and light to a generation that desperately needs God. We hope when you read these posts that they inspire you to bring Christ’s light to the world around you.

#LiveFully.

I watch The Bachelor.  Unashamedly.  And I get judged because of it for 2 reasons.

1. I am a guy

2. I’m a Christian

The first reason is fair – it is definitely a show that caters more to the ladies, and the audience in the studio is 100% women.  I might lose some man points here, but I know there’s thousands of others that stay in the dark with their Bachelor addiction.

The second reason is actually the one that I feel more often.  When talking with fellow believers about the show, the typical response is one of complete disapproval – and usually they haven’t even watched it.

Don’t get me wrong, as a follower of Jesus, I understand why Christians could be prone to write it off.  The process seems a bit ridiculous, and by the numbers it’s not an effective way for marriages to be made.  Plus, there is all the making out and what about those “overnight” dates.

Before we get into the debate, I want to reflect on what occurred on tonight’s finale before MILLIONS of viewers around the world.

-When Lindsay (the woman that got her heart broken) and Sean reunited for the first time, they both mentioned that their last week on the show was defined by lots of PRAYER to God

-When Lindsay was asked how she handled the heart break, her response was that she prayed a lot, leaned on her family, and ultimately it was her faith that pulled her through

-When Sean was asked by Lindsay what happened, he confessed that he was praying like crazy, and finally God spoke to him and gave him the peace and direction he needed to move forward

-As Sean and Catherine spoke about the future, Sean replied that he’s learned that one can make plans, but sometimes God throws you a curveball and changes your plans.

Now I’m not sure how many of you have a platform of MILLIONS, but through the Bachelor, Sean, Catherine, and Lindsay were all given the opportunity to share their faith in God.

Not only that, but the night ended with an announcement that the next Bachelorette is Desiree, who also happens to be a follower of Jesus. She continually shares Bible verses to her 34k Twitter followers like this one on March 10th…

Proverbs 3:5-6 Trust in the Lord with all your heart and do not rely on your own understanding.. #GodisGood #PureWisdom #Amen

So here’s my questions to Christians – are you going to accept that perhaps God is big enough to use a show like the Bachelor for his plan of redemption?  Would it be better if no Christians were on the show?

These are serious questions to wrestle with because they are bigger than one show.  They point toward our own view of how God wants to reveal Himself in the world.

I believe that God wants His glory to fill the earth, and this happens by His followers filling the earth, shining the light of Jesus before all people. I’m not sure about you, but I think that filling the earth includes mainstream channels of culture, even reality T.V.

What do you think? Are Christians too harsh on shows like this? Could God use these for His plan? Should we write them off as stupid and “secular”?  Would love to hear your thoughts below…