Just Charlie

A digital commonplace for a Regular Guy called Charlie Pharis

Month: June 2007 (page 3 of 3)

June 4, 2007 / 0 Comments

Of Figures and Liars…

You’ve probably heard the adage…

Figures never lie, but liars always figure.

That old saw just goes to show you that you can make statistics say pretty much whatever you want them to say. A recent case in point came from our local newspaper. The title of the article is…

County seniors expected to boom

…and it gives some pretty interesting statistics and figures that show our county is quickly becoming a haven for older adults. That article led to someone commenting to me yesterday – again! – about how perhaps we don’t really need to be focusing our church’s efforts on reaching “younger” people, etc.

But they missed the whole point of the article, in my opinion. Yes, the older-adult population in our area is expected to grow. But the very first line in the article says…

Cherokee County’s older adult population is expected to increase by 247 percent by 2030…

2030? That’s 23 years from now! That means the people the article references are only around 32 years old now! They are not “older adults” yet! And they aren’t your grandfather’s older adults, either.

June 4, 2007 / 4 Comments

Still Looking…

I’m still looking for that rocking chair, BTW…

(No, son…you cannot “jack one” from your school. They will miss it, and will probably track it down. They can’t keep your air running, and they won’t feed you dinner, but they’ve probably got ways of tracking old worn-out rocking chairs!)

June 4, 2007 / 0 Comments

Make Them Think? Heck, No!

Yesterday one of our folks approached me after our service and said something about how much she appreciated my message and the way I always say something “to make her think.”

After reading Acts 2 this morning, I’m praying that I’ll never again be satisfied with just “making people think.”

Nope, I want to be the kind of communicator that challenges people’s thinking and inspires them to do something with their changed minds!

When Peter – an untrained, unskilled orator – stood up in God’s power, he challenged the people’s thinking. But he also gave them something tangible and concrete to do. And he inspired them to take action. What kind of action?

Not-yet-believers crossed the line of faith. “Good” people became God’s people. Scattered people became fellowshipping people. Cynical, jaded, discouraged people became wondering, awe-filled people. Stingy people became sharing people. Consuming people became contributing people. Isolated people became belonging people.

Make ’em think? Nope, not good enough any more!

God, let me communicate in ways that give You a platform , a launching pad, to change lives!

June 4, 2007 / 0 Comments

Mighty Men…

David had The Three. He had The Thirty.

Men of great courage. Men of great loyalty – to God and to David personally. Men who were not afraid and who did not back down in the face of great adversity. Men who were used by God – and inspired by David – to undertake great exploits and achieve great things. Men who were willing to face overwhelming odds and impossible situations. Leaders in their own right – who subjugated their own sense of pride and ego for the cause of the king – and The King.

Everybody needs some guys like that in their lives. Guys who have your back. Guys who use whatever they have to win great victories. Guys who’ll stand in the lentil field – alone, if necessary – until the enemy is vanquished. Guys who’ll wield their sword until they can’t lift it – and win the battle. Guys who’ll charge through enemy strongholds to bring back a drink of water.

I wonder if I could ever inspire such a group of men. I’m wondering today if I’m really supposed be one of such a group of men. One of “The Guys,” and not “The Man”…

June 3, 2007 / 0 Comments

Sunday Night Unwind, 06.03.07…

WOW! A mixed bag unwind tonight! I was looking for something else and I came across a homemade CD simply titled “My Music,” and it’s just a bunch of stuff that I dumped from my hard drive from probably 2-3 years ago. There are some goodies! Everything from Todd Rundgren’s “Bang the Drum All Day” to the Big Bad Voodoo Daddy’s “You and Me and the Bottle Makes Three,” to Bill Chase’s “Get It On,” to The Blue Man Group to George and Tammy and everything in between! Good stuff!

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