Celebrating Christian Discipleship

 

The Christian Discipleship Committee at College Hill Presbyterian Church when I was Minister of Discipleship.

Book Now On the Web

I am publishing many of our writings on the web. E Books are easier to distribute, cheaper to develop and available to a much wider audience. I currently have several papers and two books available on the Sweeten Life ministry web site.

The first book we published online was Healing Souls, Touching Hearts. It is a summary of some of our most personal and passionate beliefs about ministry, caring, counseling and healing. Steve Griebling and I wrote it while we were teaching regularly in Singapore on the importance of Cell Groups. In many ways it is the slogan for all the major ministries we have founded and directed.

The second book by Steve and myself, Hope and Change for Humpty Dumpty, is designed for those who are called to be Peer or Para Professional Helpers. It is, in fact, very powerful for even Professional Therapists because so few get really great practical training in Graduate school. In this book you will find and integration of counseling research and Bible truths like you have never seen before. If you are involved in trying to help people make good decisions, read Hope and Change for Humpty Dumpty.

These are easy to download and it is easy to donate to Sweeten Life Systems, if you are so inclined. We hope that http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=8208149333766966737 people all over the world will use these books. They are great tools that God has developed for us. Now we can more easily spread the good news of Jesus Christ and His abundant life through the Internet.

Go to the web page and then to Resources and take a look.Download a book and some other materials such as the check lists we wrote for anxiety, depression and marriage satifaction. We also provide a paper that help Pastors and Peer Helpers know when to refer to a Professional.

Models of Ministry

I am in Copenhagen with Dr. Galina Chentsova, head of the Liferoute.ru ministry in Moscow, Russia. We are headed for a meeting with Peter Dyhr of DAWN to discuss setting up teleios training for 400 new church plants.

Then we go to Randers to be with Peder Poulsen to do a workshop on healing and growth.

For three days I have been with the brilliant and effective Kirsten Callesen. If you want to change the world with Christ's word, works and love, you need a good model of ministry. The current models are not doing so well. They are based on one person lecturing others who learn to be helpless, powerless and dependent.

I suggest that you read a book on a different model now used widely in businesses, internet companies and non profits. The book is: "The Spider and the Monkey.

it is easily read and well written with lots of examples and stories.

i saw the model being used in Denmark by Dr. Kirsten Callesen who heads the Asperbeger's Institute in Copenhagen. She is training the parents of disabled kids to help their children progress. The meet in small groups to learn, share and practice the new insights. the new insights are spreading like wild fire and helping hundreds of families.

The decentralized approach is the only way new ways of behaving can quickly sprad to others. read the book and get trained. Move out for God to touch others.

The Jesus Model of Witnessing

Are Strangers Aliens to the Church?

I have been teaching and writing about the best ways to influence people. I am an educator so I was trained in what is called, Pedagogy, or the study of "The Art and Science of Teaching".

I went on from elementary and secondary teaching to Influence in Higher Education. That is where I was taught the theories of immersing college students in the importance of creating a good educational Paideia or "Pedagogical Environment. As a former coach I already knew the social context was critically important. That is why we had cheerleaders at games.

It was here I also learned more about the Psychological and Emotional components of developing a powerful educational environment. I studied small groups, adult stages of development and the power of positive emotions to affect positive behavior but negative or punitive behavior to bring about regressive behavior.

I was a Christian and had studied the Bible through and through. I was struck by the fact that its central focus is on building positive relationships. That was not my experience at church or among Christians who often, in fact, chose warfare metaphors rather than those of peace and love. It seemed to me that our best evangelistic customers were seen as the enemy not friends we wanted to woo as prize customers.

When I moved to Cincinnati I learned a lot about Procter and Gamble. It was, I found, the largest marketing spender in the world. P&G created the very first serial TV shows and that is why we call them, "Soap Operas".

I was fascinated by the P&G advertisements. They were designed to make customer WANT the P&G products. they never said, "You people are dirty, stinking outcasts. Buy our soap and you will be saved." Whey then did so many Christians seem to adopt negative, accusatory and demeaning things to say about unbelievers?

The fruit of the Holy Spirit in Galatians 5: is all positive (Love, joy, peace, gentleness, patience, etc) and the fruit of the flesh is all negative (Anger, bitterness, divisions, etc). Jesus said we would know His followers by our fruit. A few years ago I discovered the Jesus Model for Witnessing. It is found in Luke Chapters 9 and 10.

I am looking for ways I can upload my Power Point slides to the web for you to see. Maybe I can do it on Face Book. Can you help me with it?

Kurt Warner Retires

I just posted my thought about Kurt Warner's new career on my Seasoned Believer blog. Some of you may not know I have blogged in this topic for a couples of years. I have promoted the notion of encouraging "Lay Persons" to get deeply involved in practical ministries. My blog tells testimonies about that topic as well as theological and human reasons why volunteering is important to Believers.

We are currently experiencing an enormous increase in Christian volunteering. Just think about one example, Haiti. The situation in Haiti has focused the attention of the world on the importance of ordinary men and women to help victims of natural emergencies. Millions of people have organized themselves into bands of helping hands to gather, organize and send supplies to the people affected by the earthquake.

But something else has also happened. The chronic situation of poverty, pain and abuse has been suddenly revealed to millions of TV watchers. For most it is the first time they ever heard of the decades of evil just a few miles from America. Who would have thought that there is widespread child slavery a stone's throw from the wealthiest and freest nation on the earth?

I heard on TV that between 45,000 and 50,000 Americans are in Haiti at any time. What are so many Americans doing on that tiny country? Many if not most are volunteers from US charitable organizations. WOW! That is incredible.

Here is another amazing statistic. Some 80% of the Gross National Product of Haiti comes from charity. Here is my question. How much of this volunteering and charitable giving comes from Agnostics and Atheists?

How much comes from secularists?

How much comes from Christians?

What do you think?

A Model of Healthy Growing Churches

There are few congregations that seem to understand what is necessary to build a church that actually transforms Unbelievers into Believers who are fairly functional and above average in mental, emotional, relational and physical health. In fact, it seems to me that there are few Christian leaders who even think such a thing is possible or even desirable. Otherwise there would be Ministers and Elders clamoring for someone to show them how to accomplish growth and healing.

The little image above is an attempt to draw interlocking and overlapping circles that show the major dimensions of church systems. Overall we can think of a church as being system of systems. Each system and sub system has different roles and different goals.

First the church is a Hospital for broken, wounded, fallen and falling Christians. A hospital means that the hurting people come to a place where there are well trained and loving people who will assist them in getting better. Every born again Christian has birth defects that can be healed but healing and growth requires a great deal of hard work, expertise and prayer.

Second, the church must be a school. Every other system depends upon the school system to train people who can carry out their jobs with insight, wisdom and skill.

A church is also an army that must be well trained to repel the enemy of our soul and occupy the Kingdom of God.

At the center of all is the family that provides new babies, care, love and nurture.

All there activities are ongoing and concurrent. When every part works together the congregation becomes a healing-growth community.

Why Are Churches so Dysfunctional?

There are several POSSIBLE answers to this question:

1. Churches are NOT dysfunctional; members are holy

2. It is due to bad preaching or short sermons or poor theology

3. The members are not willing to change by submitting to Christ

4. Sin is worse now than ever before

5. Sin is deep and change is difficult requiring God's direct interventions

6. Women refuse to submit to husbands

7. Husbands refuse to love and lead their wives

8. Parents refuse to disciplining their kids

9. I do not know and do not want to talk about it

10. All or most of the above

What do you think? Write me your answers.

Danes Place Obama Higher than Jesus

Here we go again. A Danish newspaper has printed a story that attempts to make Mr. Obama a contemporary Saint and Jesus a very common man. Will it work to cause Believers to rise up and protest? Will it work to get atheists and their friends stand up and shout because they think they have won the battle? Probably, but does it matter?

These kinds of things matter little to real spiritual life. It will not change when, and how many people find eternal life in Jesus Christ. Back in the Seventies when sex, drugs and rock music were rampant, many preachers practically mad ea living by preaching against all three plus beards and lack of bra's. But we saw the greatest revival in history fall from heaven despite the earthly appearances of widespread evil. Maybe we pray harder in hard times.

It is easy to think that God acts on what He reads in the papers and sees on TV. When a confessing Christian becomes President we all cheer and sing the National Anthem as though God was finally going to run the rascals out of Washington, D.C. But, it did not happen that way when George W. was in the Oval Office.

Today is the day of salvation. No need to wait for a better day. There has never been a better time to preach the good news, teach God's word and witness to God's love. We are in the days of great harvest. I know that the prophets of doom will disagree because they are often caught up in news headlines not God's headlights.

There are most Christians alive today than ever before. There are most Spirit filled Seasoned Believers who know God's word and have maturity and experience in leading than in all history. I wish I could live another 100 years.

I am not a Baptist, at least not formally, but I like the Baptist sign above. (My Baptist Church gave me the "left foot of fellowship" way back in 1969. I was too innovative back then too.) I am still an entrepreneur who wants to see new, exciting and cutting edge ideas prevail in the Kingdom of God. Why should Procter and Gamble have all the creativity?

Let's face it. Most churches and most of its leaders are stuck in a village church mentality that leads them to desire to be the best church in the first Reformation. They are still trying to be Luther and Calvin instead of God's leader in the current Reformation.

The model is that of professional football: 22 exhausted professional men who desperately need rest entertaining 20,000 non professional men who desperately need exercise.

See my web page sweetenlife.com for more exciting ideas about Christian growth and influence.

Christianity and Faith in American at Christmas

A few super sensitive, left wing Atheists are complaining that any display of an angel, a tree with ornaments or the nativity scene assaults them and makes them feel deep emotional pain. As a therapist with several degrees in counseling, psychology and interpersonal communication I want badly to communicate love and acceptance to all persons and especially non Christians. However, it does seem that such claims by Atheists are a bit far fetched and meant to provoke Christians.

On the other hand, some who profess to be Christian are, outraged and offended themselves. The right wing politicians especially are vocal about their inner pain and some people suggest that such public attacks by non believers will destroy Christianity. It might be good to see how Christians are faring in America to see if martyrdom is a common occurrence in our churches. According to The Rasmussen Report, Christians are not feeling very assaulted. Or, if they are, they just keep on following Jesus to church. The following are from their news report on Christmas Day 2009.

1. Forty-four percent (44%) of America’s adults attend Christian church services at least twice a month, and 92% of these regular churchgoers believe the God of the Bible is the one true God.

A Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey found that another six percent (6%) of adults attend church about once a month, 17% attend occasionally, and seven percent (7%) profess a religious belief other than Christianity.

2. As Christmas approaches, 18% of regular churchgoers read the Bible daily, 32% read Scripture several times a week, and 20% about once a week. However, 26% say they rarely or never read the Bible. Thirty-seven percent (37%) reflect on the meaning of Scripture in their lives on a daily basis.

Forty-nine percent (49%) pray to seek guidance on a daily basis and 43% pray to confess sins daily. Just seven percent (7%) say they don’t pray for guidance at all in a typical week, and 13% don’t pray to confess sins.

3. Thirty-seven percent (37%) say that, over the course of the past month, they have had a meaningful discussion about their faith with a non-Christian.

Sixty-two percent (62%) of regular churchgoers consider themselves to be born-again Christians. This figure includes 91% of Evangelical Christians, 63% of other Protestants and 25% of Catholics.

Among those who are not “born-again,” 37% say someone in their church has talked with them about accepting Christ as their Savior over the past month.

To my mind, these statistics sound very promising and encouraging. Even the Rasmussen data on the ages of church goers is positive. But, we males are lagging behind the females. Why are we harder for God to grab? Or, are Christian leaders missing the mark when it comes to attracting males?

4. Fifty-six percent (56%) of regular churchgoers are women, 44% men. Women tend to attend more, volunteer more, pray more and read the Bible more than men.

Forty-one percent (41%) of regular churchgoers are under 40 years old, 38% are between 40 and 65, while 22% are 65 or older.

The Jesus Movement

What difference does it make that we are in the midst of The Fourth Great Awakening? Well, it makes a big difference. Every world wide revival brings major changes. Revivals have babies called Awakenings where spirit filled believers grow up and change society. This means that everything we have grown used to in church life is changing before our eyes.

Here is the problem, most Bible schools, seminaries, books and media are still operating on the old paradigm.

Pastors, Professors and Church Leaders are stuck in an outmoded, old fashioned and failing approach to life and ministry. Starting in the rebellious Sixties and continuing in the Seventies, Christianity made some radical shifts in focus, practice and process. The anti-authoritarian mood of students, radicals, Viet Nam protesters and young believers turned everything upside down. The result was dramatic, especially in college campuses.

Campus ministries shared the good news of Christ with millions of students and many came to faith in Christ. Inter varsity Christian Fellowship, the oldest of all the groups, increased its focus on college Campuses and their annual missionary gathering at Urbana grew to over 20,000 in attendance. The world is a different place because of IV and their emphasis upon missions. And, the IV students took their new ideas overseas.

The radical Students for a Democratic Society (SDS)drew about two hundred students at their conference. That paled in comparison to Urbana but received all the publicity from a media interested in promoting politics.

Bill Bright's Campus Crusade for Christ recruited thousands of staff and started aggressive evangelism programs on hundreds of campuses all over the USA. Their Four Spiritual Laws and disciplined follow up studies showed all of us how to reach out with the gospel.

Young Life joined Youth for Christ as dynamic forces for evangelism, Bible study and good works in high schools across the land.

These changes were powerful because millions of young people came to Christ. However, the impact was much greater than simply evangelism. I think they did something that was even more far reaching and it led to The Fourth Great Awakening.

What could be more important than reaching millions for Christ? Establishing a new, focus with a new process of discipleship and growth for those who had come to faith. The new process proved that young, lay persons could do effective evangelism and discipleship. These campus groups were led by non clergy and proved that the Bible's call to "Equip all the believers to DO the WORK of MINISTRY" works. It is possible, effective and essential.

In the First Reformation, God took His Word out of the control of the few and gave it to all His people.

In this New Reformation, God has taken His Works out of the hands of the control of the few and given it to all His people.

This is the essence of the Fourth Great Awakening and it is largely due to the outpouring of the Spirit on young people and their leaders in the Sixties and Seventies.

Healing Minds/Touching Hearts

I am enjoying the good things happening as we cooperate with Tri-County Assembly of God. Pastor Brad Rosenberg went to Cincinnati Christian with my kids and is now Senior Pastor of one of the most influential congregations in the Tri-State region.

Here is a video on YouTube of a neat program called TCA Hope Fair being held next week. Take a look at it.

Go to TCA's home page to read about a seven week series I will be doing there on Wednesday nights starting in October. We will teach Christians how to "Take every thought captive to the mind of Christ" and put an end to their fears, anxieties, depression and anger. Sign up and attend all the classes you can.

Marriage Mentoring

Almost every day news media cover some terrible and tragic stories about the results of sex outside marriage and babies/children without two parents in the home. For example, today in the Cincinnati Enquirer there is a story about a mother and father who are fighting over the custody of their daughter.

Mom and Dad were never married but had one child, at least.

Mom had another child earlier with another man who is living with a foster family.

Dad got a court order to have visitation rights but Mom disagreed.

Mom is currently living with a man with whom she is not married.

Mom kidnapped the child and hid her from Dad and the police.

Mom was arrested.

Police found the child.

Police took the child into custody and would not allow Dad to have her despite the court order.

This is a mess and is costing our government many thousands of dollars. It will damage all the children involved and very likely result in several generations of damaged, addicted, traumatized adults and cost millions. Few of these kids will get an education, keep a job or make enough money to take care of themselves. Many will be involved in violent crimes and end up in prison.

Almost 40% of all children born in America are to single Mothers who are on welfare. the kids will be on welfare their entire lives. Medicare is broke. Medicaid is broke. But the financial, social and psychological destruction of this epidemic is far worse than either Medicare or Medicaid.

What is the answer? Marriage before sex or at least before children. Husbands and wives staying together and rearing their children, making sure kids get a good education.

These are critically important.

This requires churches and Christians who know how to minister healing and wholeness to their people. Every church needs 12 Step Groups, Peer Care and Healing, Divorce Recovery and Prayer Groups.

Contact

Sweeten Life Systems

to learn how to be a healthy church. On August 29 I will teach a seminar on Mentoring Marriages. Sign up at the web site.

Memories

Many years ago the Lord showed me that Jesus approach was unique. Instead of using only His gifts knowledge and talents to change the world. He actually said,"it is better that I go away."

To our ears, that just doesn't make much sense. We love powerful people. We love to place humans on pedestals. Even though Jesus was and is the Son of God He said, "You will do greater things than I."

How is it better that Jesus went away? He was the greatest. He was Messiah. He healed, He delivered, he turned water into wine.

He established a system to multiply Himself over and over again so the entire world could hear the good news, be healed, receive deliverance and have eternal life. How? By sending us into the world to teach and do everything that He did.

At Christmas I receive many cards, emails and letter from friends living next door as well as ten thousand miles away. It is great to see how many of them are still using what they learned from our equipping travels. We took the words of Jesus to heart and decided not to try to heal and minister to everyone individually but to multiply ourselves over and over again.

It is tempting to try to be the Savior/healer/rescuer to all people in need. I am very co-dependent. I need to be needed. But God has challenged me to stop riding my white horse and allow others to serve, teach and heal.

Every Christmas I get letters telling how folks from my past are still using what they learned from Teleios, EMI, Life Way Ministries and Sweeten Life Systems. It is another proof that Jesus was right. The call of is to "Go into all the world and make disciples" not "Go make sermons."

My Christmas email from Kjell Aanenson of Norway sparked this post when he wrote: 2008 has been a year of change and celebration for us. I, Kjell, is not anymore employed by Teleios Norway. But I still have a partnership with TN. I now have two jobs. (With) a Christian health organisation to develop and lead courses for Pastors and Christian leaders, to help them prevent burnout and to teach and counsel them for a healthier life, marriage and ministry. It is a 6 days course at our new Center. We also will develop this course for teachers, nurses, doctors and police.

I... continue to teach in Churches, and to counsel Christian leaders, people in general and couples. Both jobs is a blessing to fulfil what the Lord has called me to do!

Kjell was in a group led by Larry Chrouch in Norway in 1978. His life was changed and he has ministered to thousands since. Thank God for Larry and Ellen Chrouch and Kjell and Magnhild Aanenson

Gary Sweeten

http://www.sweetenlife.com/

How to Win and Influence People

In June of 1958 I had a fearful and wonderful encounter with God's Spirit. It changed my life and I Ford I heard the still small voice of the Spirit say, "Go to college." That was amazing because I was not really "college material" nor did my family and friends encourage such flights of irresponsible fancy. (Working in a factory was responsible and practical.)

So, I quit my factory job and applied to Mt. Vernon Community College. I had to learn to study and learn how to interact with educated students and teachers. I loved it and discovered that I was not as dumb as I seemed. I was newly motivated and newly interested in studying.

I studied to be a teacher and that led me to what were back then called, "Teachers' Education Classes" at Southern Illinois University. Those classes helped me a lot because they focused on how to not only understand math and reading but also how to transmit it to the kids. In other words, how to see to it that the kids learned from me.

I was a pretty good student in Elementary School. I read well and remembered a lot of it. So, I thought it was all about remembering the data that was put in front of me. I was wrong. I found that it was important to get the pupils engaged in the materials in such a way that they WANTED to remember it. How could I motivate the pupils to be learners.

You can lead the horse to water but you cannot make him drink.

This old saw was right. I knew it but I had never studied how to make the horse thirsty before I took those classes in Educational Psychology. Now here is my point. How do we help people outside the church desire the living water?

This is an issue of great importance to us. People will not come to faith in Christ or attend worship, read the Bible or practice the charitable activities of the Christian life unless they are attracted to those things. So, how do we become more attractive while holding to the foundations of our faith?

What do you think? What has helped you draw others to Christ and His life?

Gary Sweeten

http://www.sweetenlife.com/

Starbucks Marketing

Want to see a fun video about marketing in the church?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D7_dZTrjw9I

What About Getting A Coach?

I have always enjoyed sports and was actually a coach for some years. I was not a very good coach in most sports but was pretty good as a basketball coach. I liked BB a lot and played it myself. I studied BB and learned the basics enough to teach others.

There are some things that can not be taught to a player. No one could teach Tiger Woods to be so focused and competitive. It was in his DNA from birth. His father, Earl Woods, taught Tiger a lot as did other coaches but the internal drive to win was inside this young man all his life. In fact, Tiger brags that he constantly pushed Earl to let him practice more.

I am a professional Counselor/Coach/Consultant. A Counselor combines the ability to assess the strengths and weaknesses of a person with the gifts of healing, discernment and acceptance. A Counselor knows that something is broken and needs to be fixed. He or she also knows how to fix the broken things of life in the soul, relationships and how to deal effectively with guilt and shame.

A Coach is similar but focuses on fixing/healing broken hearts he focuses on getting people unstuck from ineffective living. I cannot give you the drive to succeed but I can help you understand your gifts and talents better as well as your opportunities for healing and growth. One of my gifts is Encouragement. Many of the people I Coach mention that they feel more confident after we meet. .

A Consultant adds the area of organizational development and system's thinking to Coaching. If the system is dysfunctional it will impede the people no matter how smart or skilled they are. A good Consultant is able to assess the places where the organizational system is stuck and then teaches the leaders how to push the right levers to get it moving again.

I love to meet with Christian leaders and assist them as a Counselor, Coach and a Consultant. Sweeten Life Systems has been called by God to "Heal the broken hearted and set the captives free." We sometimes do that one on one but we mostly work with leadership teams. How can we help you?

Gary Sweeten, Ed. D.

http://www.sweetenlife.com/

Go to Panera for Fellowship

Panera Bread is a great place to meet and have fellowship around the fireplace as we drink some tea or coffee and eat a roll, there is comfort and peace. I think we Christians all learn from Panera how to be a welcoming community.

People need to feel safe if they are to allow themselves to become open to God, self and others. Do strangers feel safe in your church fellowship?

The Dreadful State of Ministerial Training

I have focused much of my professional and personal life on supporting, counseling, coaching and consulting with Clergy. I have concluded that the preparation they generally receive before entering congregational life as a professional is woefully inadequate. Let me illustrate.

The primary context of clerical ministry is human relationships.

The primary issues of leadership and change always involve relationships and the need to motivate members to accept, lead and pay for change.

The problems that come to a pastor's office are heavily weighted toward a breakdown in human relationships and he/she is expected to resolve those problems and make the people better.

The thing that cause most ministers to fail is an inability to relate well with the members.

Despite these obvious facts, almost 100% of the training for ministry is about large group and mass communication and nothing about interpersonal communication. What are they thinking? Who designs such an inappropriate curriculum, someone who wants ministers to fail?

The result is disappointment, family conflict, burn out, frustration, blaming and shaming and churches unable to minister effectively. When will we ever learn?

Gary Sweeten

http://www.sweetenlife.com/

Honoring Mentors

Last Friday I attended the Memorial Service of Marge Miller. The sanctuary of College Hill Presbyterian Church was half full and it seemed that most of us were torn between grief over the loss of a wonderful friend and, at the same time, filled with joy because we knew she was now at the side of her husband Jim and son David.

The mixture was particularly strong when we sang some of Marge's favorite songs. She was Welsh and loved singing as much as anyone I ever met. The music brought back sweet memories of our great days together at CHPC as well as the reminder that some day a group will be singing that music at our service.

Marge Miller was on the edge of the huge shift in theology and practice of lay ministry. It is common today to see churches with numerous lay volunteers who do everything but the sacraments in churches. However, when I joined the staff at CHPC in 1973 it was unusual, especially in an Mainline Presbyterian Church.

Marge had been the Interim Minister of Christian Education when I came full time in that position. Marge took me under her wing and mentored me, coached me and showed me the ropes. I was a Baptist kid from a tiny village who knew nothing of Presbyterian polity, theology or practice. Marge was warm, caring, funny and straight forward. She was my life saver.

Thanks to Marge Miller and all the Marge Millers who labor in God's vineyards behind the scenes. They are the keys to how a church operates and few people recognize it. Most of the accolades and fame goes to the clergy who speak on Sunday mornings. They write the books and get quoted by Christianity. But it was Marge and Marie and Doris and Carole and Jim and Tom and Peter who made it all work.

Thanks Marge. The lights you lit in others will shine brightly for generations. God has blessed me and thousands more through you so now you can enjoy your reward.

1619-It Was a Mighty Good Year

I remember the first time Karen and I visited Virginia. It was a great learning experience for both of us. Although I had taken several American history classes, being on the scene offered us many powerful insights.

For example, it was in Williamsburg that I first saw how the people attended church in colonial days. Each of the well off families had a special pew set aside for them. They had to pay a tax to get the pew, of course. The American tradition of sitting in a special place each Sunday may go back to those early days in the Anglican churches. (No tax today but we expect tithes and offerings.)

Church membership was closely associated with citizenship. Just like England, the colonies had a close tie between a certain denomination and the colony in which it was located. There were two state denominations in colonial times. The Congregational Church Denomination dominated the North Eastern or New England Colonies and the Anglican Episcopalians had Virginia sewed up.

When the founders said there was to be no establishment of a religion, this is what they were talking about. They did not want any certain denomination to get public tax monies to support the clergy and buildings as they did in Europe. Nor did they want any denomination to dominate the membership of a state.

Today, religion is still seen as a dual membership in many countries, especially Islamic nations. Thus, conversion to an other religion is seen as not only heresy but as being a traitor to the nation. In America, religion was disconnected from patriotism so different churches grew and prospered according to how well they ministered to the felt needs of the community. So, America's freedom of religion has led to a very healthy state of Christianity.

But why was 1619 a very good year? What three historic things happened in 1619? See if you can guess what they were. I will post the answers in a few days. Anyone that gets all three of the answers right will get a free book. 2019 will be the 400th anniversary of these three huge events. Get ready to celebrate in 11 years.

Gary Sweeten

http://www.sweetenlife.com/