Last Sunday morning we baptized 8 people and celebrated what God had done in each of their lives. Each person's baptism was an expression of God's grace and power that changes lives.
Sometimes baptism doesn't go the way we planned. Jeff Dillow found this video on YouTube called Cannonball Baptism.
Thursday, May 21, 2009
LIVE LONGER -- GO TO CHURCH!
Deanna Cignetti ran across something in the St. Louis Post Discpatch that is worth reading. It is an article by Dr. John Morley from St. Louis Univeristy about how going to church helps you live longer.
Dr. Morley said: "While the United States remains one of the most religious nations in the world, an increasing number of people fail to see the need to regularly attend worship services. This raises the question of whether there are secondary benefits of religious attendance. The answer is a resounding yes, with studies showing that people who regularly attend church have a reduced risk of death. An article by Dr. Daniel Hall, a surgeon from the University of Pittsburgh, explored whether attending religious services was more cost-effective in increasing longevity than taking statins, which are drugs that lower cholesterol and prevent the development of plaque in the arteries. Using a sophisticated mathematical analysis, he concluded that regular church attendance extended a person's life by two or three years while cholesterol lowering agents increased lifespan by 2½ to 3½ years. More dramatically, even if a person followed the Old Testament edict of giving a "tithe" of 10 percent of his or her income to God, it actually was more cost-effective to go to religious services than to use a statin. His analysis did find that physical exercise extends life even further — by three to five years — and costs even less per year of life gained.The reasons why religious attendance increases lifespan are unclear. Emerging evidence from Duke University and other places suggests that being spiritual helps people deal with stressful life crises, an important factor in survival. People who regularly attend church tend to take better care of their health than those who don't. For those who are older, simply getting out of the house is associated with improved physical function. The importance of this is underlined by the finding that those who "attend" televised religious services do not have the same improvement in lifespan. Going to church provides both an interactive community and social support, which can help in times of illness. However, studies that have examined these factors tend to find that there remains an X-factor as part of the explanation for these findings. Dare we suggest that this is a belief in God? Despite the robustness of his analysis, Hall did not suggest that health professionals should recommend going to church along with exercise and statins. He also made it clear that he did not support managed care paying for the church's 'tithe'."
Live longer! Be healthy! Worship at New Life Sunday!
Dr. Morley said: "While the United States remains one of the most religious nations in the world, an increasing number of people fail to see the need to regularly attend worship services. This raises the question of whether there are secondary benefits of religious attendance. The answer is a resounding yes, with studies showing that people who regularly attend church have a reduced risk of death. An article by Dr. Daniel Hall, a surgeon from the University of Pittsburgh, explored whether attending religious services was more cost-effective in increasing longevity than taking statins, which are drugs that lower cholesterol and prevent the development of plaque in the arteries. Using a sophisticated mathematical analysis, he concluded that regular church attendance extended a person's life by two or three years while cholesterol lowering agents increased lifespan by 2½ to 3½ years. More dramatically, even if a person followed the Old Testament edict of giving a "tithe" of 10 percent of his or her income to God, it actually was more cost-effective to go to religious services than to use a statin. His analysis did find that physical exercise extends life even further — by three to five years — and costs even less per year of life gained.The reasons why religious attendance increases lifespan are unclear. Emerging evidence from Duke University and other places suggests that being spiritual helps people deal with stressful life crises, an important factor in survival. People who regularly attend church tend to take better care of their health than those who don't. For those who are older, simply getting out of the house is associated with improved physical function. The importance of this is underlined by the finding that those who "attend" televised religious services do not have the same improvement in lifespan. Going to church provides both an interactive community and social support, which can help in times of illness. However, studies that have examined these factors tend to find that there remains an X-factor as part of the explanation for these findings. Dare we suggest that this is a belief in God? Despite the robustness of his analysis, Hall did not suggest that health professionals should recommend going to church along with exercise and statins. He also made it clear that he did not support managed care paying for the church's 'tithe'."
Live longer! Be healthy! Worship at New Life Sunday!
Tuesday, May 12, 2009
TURN THE TELEVISION DOWN
Lou has been after me lately to turn the volume on the television in our bedroom down. I like listening to ESPN in the shower -- what can I tell you. In order to hear it, I have to turn it up really loud. Unfortunately I'll forget to turn it down before I turn it off. When Lou turns it on, it almost blasts her out of the room. I'll admit I haven't given her request very much attention. But all that changed today when I read this newspaper article:
There were too many similarities to be ignored. I have a wife who is irritated with the loud volume. I love to watch the Cowboys play with the sound up. We have knives in our kitchen. And our neighbor has a big rock in his yard. I'm not taking any chances. Sorry about the television volume babe -- I'm turning it down now.A horrifically terrifying woman admitted yesterday that she stabbed and killed her husband because he turned up the volume on a Dallas Cowboys game. The woman, ironically-named Kimberly Shanks, said her husband turned up the volume "knowing it would keep her awake." She then went into the kitchen, got a knife, and "tried to stick the knife in his heart." She then proceeded to run into a neighbor's yard, pick up a big rock, and whack him on the back of the head with it. Then she stabbed him some more.
Friday, May 08, 2009
WHEN GOING BALD IS A GOOD THING
A big shout out to the Overtons and Hannah Lovekamp for the money they raised for cancer research. They had their heads shaved last Sunday as part of an annual event to raise funds for St. Baldrick's Foundation which funds research to help find cures for childhood cancer. You can see the Overtons shaved heads by clicking here. The Overton's team raised over $3000 while Hannah raised more than $500. Awesome!
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