Back From Vacation: I had a little vacation time saved up and so our family went on a wonderful beach vacation for a few days with my wife’s family. It was sunny, slow, restful, and a ton of fun. I don’t know why I always bring books because it never happens! three kids do not want you to sit and read. However, I did manage to get up early, make a coffee, and read a chunk of 1 Peter. Now the secret is not to jump back into stress, etc., but to allow the restful vacation to impact me and carry over in the weeks and months to come. We don’t have to live stressed. We don’t have to live in a hurry. We can be busy with good things in an emotionally healthy way. That is what I want.
Scotland, Jesus, and the Church: Oh what an interesting article this is: ‘Jesus Has Left the Building’: Scotland’s Secular Slide—and Signs of Hope. In many ways, it is sad. In other ways, it gives hope. If the “organized” church forsakes Christ, seeds of the Gospel that have been planted for centuries will continue to find their way through the cracks. The life of Christ will find a way. May the Lork work mightily in this beautiful, wild, and rugged country that holds such a special place in our hearts.
Teachers Pay Teachers: Do you have expertise in an academic area? TpT is a great way to earn some extra money. It might not seem doable, but if you completed one product per week for one year, then you would have 52 items in your store by this time next year! If you continued to do this, then after five years, you could have over 250 items in your store. Is it theology? Literature? Math? History? A foreign language? Maybe you should test the waters. It could turn into a creative hobby that brings in some extra income!
A Christian Definition of Integrity: One of my go-to sources for a robust definition for terms in philosophical ethics and Christian ethics is the Pocket Dictionary of Ethics by Stanley Grenz and Jay Smith. They write the following for the term “integrity”:
As a general concept, the quality or state of being whole or complete. As an ethical term, uprightness in character, authenticity; the situation in which outward conduct arises out of and coheres with sound, inwardly held moral principles. To act in accordance with such principles is to act with integrity. The Christian vision of integrity suggests that personal authenticity entails living in accordance with moral principles arising out of God’s intention for human existence, or acting in accordance with personal convictions that are based on an understanding of God’s purposes for creation, humankind and the person as a disciple of Jesus.
Are you a person of integrity?
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BJ Condrey, Ph.D. 