Mike Edmisten Follower of Jesus. Husband of Nicki. Father of Ryan & Brock. Communicator of the Word.

What Do Young People Think About Christians?

Got this from the Monday Morning Insight blog.

These statistics come from Gabe Lyons, author of unChristian. Non-Christians aged 16-29 years old were asked, “What is your current perception of Christianity?”

91% said antihomosexual

87% said judgmental

85% said hypocritical

78% said old-fashioned

75% said too involved in politics

72% said out of touch with reality

70% said insensitive to others

68% said boring

64% said not accepting of other faiths

61% said confusing

What do you think about these statistics?

'Tis The Season?

I had kind of a surreal experience last week. I went to Wal-Mart.

Wow. Life-changing experience, huh?

I went to a local Wal-Mart with my family to do some very general, and very boring, shopping. But all of a sudden, I found myself surrounded…by Christmas.

Christmas trees, Christmas decorations, Christmas music…it was out in full force at this Wal-Mart.

My first thought was, "Did I just take a month-long nap? It can't be time for this already."

I checked the date and it actually was October 17. But you would have never known it at this particular store.

Now, our son, Ryan, is compiling his Christmas list. I've got a serious need for some Christmas turkey and all the fixin's…

And it's only October!

What's up with Wal-Mart getting me all "Christmasy" when Halloween isn't even over yet?

Ground Floor

One of my favorite parts of my job is teaching a class called Ground Floor. I absolutely love it!

Ground Floor is an experience specifically designed for people who are new to the church. If you're checking out this whole God thing, then you probably have some serious questions. Even if you're already a Christian but you feel like you need a better grasp of the foundational truths of our faith, Ground Floor is the place for you!

Here is the Ground Floor mantra: no question is too hostile, too complicated, or too simple. Your questions don't scare God and they don't scare us. We welcome all open, honest questions.

At the end of Ground Floor, you will walk away with a good grasp on the basic truths of God, Jesus, the church, and Christianity in general. You don't want to miss it!

This session of Ground Floor starts on Sunday, November 2. It will run for four consecutive Sundays from 6:00-7:30 pm.

To keep the atmosphere comfortable, we limit Ground Floor to the first ten registrants. To secure your spot, you need to register today.

Fill out the registration form on our website and you're in.

Ground Floor changes lives every time it is offered. I'm not exaggerating. You need to be a part of this.

Trick-or-Treat Invites

Trick-or-Treating (Oct. 31st in most communities) is the ideal time to invite the children in your neighborhood to Amelia KidZone.

If you are interested in passing out printed invitations with your candy, please contact Melanie Presta to let her know how many you'll need.

Just do me a favor…if you're going to give a kid an invitation, be sure it's attached to some awesome candy! No attaching invitations to lame candy, like those little wax bottles with the weird juice in the middle. Also, no Circus Peanuts or Swedish Fish.

And definitely…whatever you do…do not attach an invitation to a box of raisins!

Remember…we want to make a good impression!

Drop the Devil

Who would have thought that the Tampa Bay Rays would go to the World Series this year? But that's exactly what will happen after they beat the Red Sox in Game 7 of the ALCS last night.

The Rays have been the laughingstock of the American League since the team came into existence in 1998. They were the consistent losers. But here's something interesting. Throughout this decade of losing, they were known as the Tampa Bay Devil Rays.

This season, they dropped the "Devil" from their name. Now they are just the Tampa Bay Rays. The result? Not only are they not the losers of the American League, but they're going to the World Series.

Is it a coincidence that all this great change came about as soon as the "dropped the devil?"

The spiritual parallel is obvious. Drop the devil from your life if you want to be a winner!

How's that for a corny spiritual parallel? I thought it was funny. If you don't, we can still be friends. I have lots of friends who don't have a sense of humor.

Well…Or Not At All

Let choirs sing well or not at all. Otherwise we merely confirm the majority in their conviction that the world of business, which does with such efficiency so much that never really needed doing, is the real, the adult, and the practical world; and that all this culture and religion (horrid words, both) are essentially marginal, amateurish, and rather effeminate activities. (C.S. Lewis)

Thanks to Josh for sending this my way. I've been wrestling with these words ever since.

You Can Look Like Sarah Palin

At least you can buy her glasses. They are made by Kawasaki. The total package, frames and lenses, will run you about $700. Of course, now you can buy knock-offs for a lot less.

People are flocking into optical stores, looking for these glasses. Stores can't keep them in stock.

Now, I think Sarah Palin is pretty. But I can't imagine walking into Lens Crafters and saying, "Give me the Palin look." (Yes, I could do that. She wears unisex glasses.)

In fact, I don't understand this thinking in general. Why do people want to look like politicians, athletes, or celebrities?

Can I remind us all of something?

They are people. Flawed, imperfect, sinful, messed up people.

It's interesting, and a little sad, to see that so many people want to pattern their looks (and often, their lives) after a few people who are in the cultural spotlight.

The Bible tells us to, "clothe yourselves with Christ." (Romans 13:14)

It commands us to, "Be imitators of God." (Ephesians 5:1)

I like Sarah Palin, but can we please remember that it's a lot more important to look (and live) like Jesus.

KidZone Drive-In

Just a reminder about our KidZone Drive-In this Saturday at 1:00 pm.

Check out Melanie's blog for all the piratey details.

Presidential Giving

I thought this was timely since we're entering into the last days of the presidential campaign.

How do the candidates stack up when it comes to charitable giving? Tim Stevens outlined all presidential and vice-presidential candidates' giving on his blog. It's worth a read.

But before you start clicking, let me answer your question…no, I'm not publicly endorsing any candidate. I do, however, think this is worth noting.

Here's why…"Charitable giving speaks to your belief in people. It reflects your heart and whether you truly want to help people who are less fortunate." (Tim Stevens)

Now that all that is out of the way, check out Tim's posts.

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It Matters

We're kicking off a fresh sermon series this Sunday. This new series is called It Matters.

This three-week series is based in the little-known, little-referenced, little-read book of Jude. This New Testament book is only one chapter long. But while the book may be short on length, it is long on importance.

God's going to rock us with his truth.

It Matters.