by Chris Doyle | Mar 4, 2013
I watched the first show of The Bible on the History Channel last night. I was fairly satisfied. Alas, I didn’t get out my Scofield KJV black-cover Bible to analyze every line that I heard, nor every scene that I viewed.
However, one potential popular criticism I could see occurring throughout this five-week series is that they might leave out portions of the individual stories, but to cover the entire 66-book story of God’s Word would be impossible for a 10-hour synopsis. Plus, there are certain parts of Leviticus I don’t know if I could endure watching.
Therefore, I’ll allow some latitude as long as there isn’t blasphemy or a clear steering away from what is told in Scripture in order to promote an alternative message.
The beginning of the show was interesting. It’s basically Noah, his family and a WHOLE bunch of livestock on the Ark, enduring a major storm. Noah recaps the Creation story plus Adam and Eve’s temptation, which leads to sin and corruption of all humanity and God destroying the world through the flood.
The visual effects throughout Noah’s narrative are impressive. The highlight for me was watching the formation of Adam from dirt.
Then comes Abraham’s story with his wife Sarah and his nephew Lot and their journeys and experiences. Lot’s wife is pretty snooty, which means she does an excellent job of making me not feel sorry for her eventual result (I’ll try not spoil it for you. Let’s just say she’s pretty salty).
I did enjoy the two angel “warriors” going through Sodom and thrashing up the Sodomites. This almost had a Matrix feel while I was watching it.
Here’s my first criticism. The portrayal of Sarah when Abraham was going to sacrifice Isaac was weak. I can understand the purpose of this “literary latitude” was to appeal to moms and women in general, but Sarah should not have been a focal point in this part of the story.
This was about Abraham demonstrating his faith in God. Sarah’s hysteria made Abraham look like a crazy man, and this deemphasized God’s purpose.
The final part of the show focused on Moses. This had a few variations from the literal story. Growing up, Moses is portrayed as being a rival to the heir apparent to Pharaoh. Also, Moses is never shown to be the coward he actually was when facing God during the burning bush (another impressive visual effect).
Turning the Nile into blood was an exciting scene, and making the conversion while Pharaoh was in the river was a nice touch. When Pharaoh got out, he reminded me of Darth Maul.
Various scenes are displayed of all the plagues, and they seem to cover them all, from frogs to flies to livestock dying to boils to hail to locusts. Then came one of the most significant scenes of the night… with a commercial break and everything.
Moses reveals to the Israelites the final plague, death of all the firstborns. This causes panic to all the listeners, and then Moses gives them the instructions for the Passover.
What I found interesting about this part was the emphasis that everyone was going to be affected by this death plague. The only distinguishing mark for the Lord to pass over a house’s inhabitants was the animal’s blood displayed on the doorpost. This was an excellent depiction of the Gospel that hopefully viewers would come to understand.
Of course, the parting of the Red Sea was dramatic and effective. From there, Moses obtains the Ten Commandments and eventually gives advice to Joshua who becomes Israel’s new leader, which ends the show. It will be continued next week.
I am sure there are many other opinions on this show, so I welcome your thoughts. Tell me what I left out, or where I am incorrect.
(By the way, I actually don’t own a Scofield KJV black-cover Bible.)
Read all reviews of The Bible here.
by Chris Doyle | Jan 10, 2013
Have you seen Lou Holtz’s commercial on Catholic faith?
If you watched any of the bowl games on New Year’s Day, you probably did. If you didn’t, click on this link so you can be familiar.
So what did you think? Coach Lou gives a solid message doesn’t he? When I first heard the ad on TV, the phrase that hooked me was, “for victory in life we’ve got to keep focused on the goal, and the goal is heaven.”
That’s a phrase you don’t normally hear during a football game. What you usually hear on football game commercials involve some alcoholic beverage, an overpriced vehicle, a comical remark that is unrelated to the product the commercial promotes (i.e. “tape a cheetah to her back”) or something else we shouldn’t promote on this site.
I liked the commercial. Yes, Coach Lou is hard to understand, and those of us who are familiar with his football commentary on ESPN have developed a sense of not taking him too seriously, especially considering his biasness toward Notre Dame.
There’s much I could say about the Catholic faith that I don’t find agreeable. However, there is much featured in this commercial I do find amenable.
“Sacrifice, discipline and prayer are essential,” said Holtz. “We gain strength through God’s word. And when we fumble due to sin – and it’s gonna happen – confession puts us back on the field.”
I left out Lou’s statement, “We receive grace through the sacrament.” The Southern Baptist in me wouldn’t be in agreement with this. Grace isn’t received through eating a wafer or drinking a cup. However, I am a firm believer (as well as a recipient) of God’s grace.
Also, it has been brought to my attention that terminology would be sketchy on how to view confession. But I do agree with Lou that sin does happen, and we ALL sin (Rom. 3:23).
Here’s what I really want to say about the commercial. I hope it is shown more often. More than that, I hope Evangelical Christian groups draw from its influence and make their own commercials.
I realize this commercial may have been spurred by the many Mormon commercials we have seen over the past years, and that’s fine. I would much rather see Lou in the locker room than the deception featured in those ads.
At a time when the Christian faith is being challenged by American culture, specifically in the political realm and the television and film industry, it would be a great encouragement from current leaders of our faith to send out a popular message to the masses during key television viewing periods, whether it’s the Super Bowl, March Madness or even Thursday nights “Must See TV.”
If the purpose of the Coach Lou ad is to encourage Catholics to “come home,” Evangelicals should be challenged to make a similar appeal.
by Chris Doyle | Jan 9, 2013
McGee has finished his first season as a defensive graduate assistant at WVU.
MORGANTOWN, W. Va.—The phrase is a common one that is told to every young person, especially when they are in a position of influence: “Remember that people are always watching you, even when you don’t think they are.”
Andrew McGee can attest to this for his own situation. He currently is on the football coaching staff at West Virginia University because of reasons he did not realize.
Many know WVU head coach Dana Holgorsen went to the Mountaineers after being the offensive coordinator at Oklahoma State. McGee was a defensive back at OSU, who rarely spoke to Holgorsen while both were with the Cowboys.
“We only talked a few times,” McGee said about his current head coach, but Holgorsen had much to say about his current defensive graduate assistant.
“Andrew is a really good, bright young man,” Holgorsen said. “When I was at Oklahoma State, I watched him, and he is a leader of the FCA (Fellowship of Christian Athletes) guys and is a tremendous kid. He has a bright future and has been working closely with (the football players) since he got here.”
All of what Holgorsen said is true. McGee is a leader with FCA, and it is one of the reasons Holgorsen wanted him at WVU. He wanted his spiritual leadership abilities to have an influence on his players.
“Along with my graduate assistant duties, I assist with the FCA pre-game chapels,” said McGee. “Sometimes I will speak or lead in music. The chapels are not mandatory for players, but we always have about 40 players attend. It is an amazing experience being with these men who desire to sing praises to God.”
McGee makes a tackle that caused his neck injury. He recovered to become an all-Big 12 performer at OSU.
McGee mentioned Mountaineers quarterback Geno Smith and wide receiver Steadman Bailey were among the many players who faithfully attended chapels. Mostly, McGee appreciated all the players who came, and he considers this opportunity he has as a unique one to speak openly with players about his faith in Jesus Christ.
“I have regular in-depth conversations with these guys about Christ,” he said. “It’s one of the blessings of this ministry I have. It’s not just seeing people on Sunday, but every day. And the players thank me for being here at West Virginia and for giving them support both on and off the field.”
Born in Jackson, Miss., McGee said his parents, Larry and Doris, were his spiritual leaders. He credited the disciplined lifestyle his father instilled in him as part of his understanding of what it means to live the Christian life in such a way that would help him grow into a man of influence.
Others he mentioned who provided influence were Joel Tudman, Travis Hartfield, John Talley, John Bugg, the Cochran family, Jamie Thompson, Coach Jason Jones and Will Rayburn.
“God brought the right people into my life,” he said. “When I was in high school, my youth pastor (Rayburn) knew I was called to lead.“
And lead he has done and is doing. Stories have been written about McGee’s improbable journey at OSU. In 2009, he recovered from a broken neck to become an All-Big 12 cornerback a season later, leading the conference with five interceptions.
One of the things McGee credited for his amazing recovery was his faith, saying “it would be an injustice to God if he didn’t make the most of his second opportunity.”
McGee is now influencing players.
“I thought football was done,” he said during the 2010 season. “But I was just fortunate to have another chance to come back out here, so I just glorify God with it.”
Now, McGee has the chance to use his playing experience and the influence he received from his youth to share with those under his leadership. Some have the chance to play football professionally.
“They know they are going to have influence on others,” McGee said about his current WVU players. “They know they will have thousands of people watching them every Sunday, so I just hope what encouragement and support I can offer them now will make even more of a difference when they have that chance.”
And so goes the power of influence, even when people are unaware.
by Chris Doyle | Jan 9, 2013
Members of Timothy give away cold bottled water at a Muskogee intersection with the Gospel featured on the bottles.
MUSKOGEE—Theodore Roosevelt is credited for making this profound and challenging statement: “Nobody cares how much you know until they know how much you care.”
Teddy’s words could be used to rally today’s churches facing a common dilemma. By not attending, people demonstrate they don’t care what the church knows because they don’t believe the church cares about them.
So how can this change? Muskogee, Timothy offers an example through a service evangelism project they call “Timothy Treats Muskogee.” (TTM)
Pastor Kelly Payne leads his congregation in doing community service events. They take notice of needs around Muskogee that are not being met and do their part in filling voids.
“I went to a pastor’s conference at Woodstock, Ga., First, and saw that they had a community outreach program,” said Payne. “I asked questions and got ideas from that. We had our first TTM in 2010, and it was over a period of one week, doing different activities each day. It was a huge blessing to me, personally, as well as to our church.”
Last July when the annual fireworks show in Muskogee was cancelled due to expenses, Timothy provided fireworks on the church grounds. Church members walked through the crowd to share the Gospel with those attending.
On a hot summer day, Timothy bought out a local water park and provided free admission to everyone who came. Many church members also offered water bottles at different intersections in town on various occasions.
Approximately 3,000 people attended Timothy’s water park event. Timothy paid for admission and fed all attendees at the park.
“During our water park event, we gave out our tracts,How To Get To Heaven From Muskogee, Okla. We have seen many people accept Jesus, begin attending church or recommit their life to Jesus as a result of TTM,” Payne said.
In October, Timothy hosted a Fall Festival and used carved pumpkins to share the Gospel. In November, they provided 100 food baskets. Cars lined up a quarter-mile down the road, and when they pulled up to receive a basket, a church member prayed for everybody in the car.
“When we reach out in love without expecting anything in return the community notices,” said Payne. “TTM is a way to show people we care.”
Payne said TTM is based on the message from Matt. 10:42, “And whoever gives just a cup of cold water to one of these little ones because he is a disciple—I assure you: He will never lose his reward!”
Community outreach is not a new program for Timothy. Their first outreach was a block party in 2002. Payne said the church still has families attending who joined as a result of the block party.
How Timothy has enhanced this program is the frequency. At first it was seasonal, now they do something monthly.
And church members are regularly involved. Payne enlists people and has them recruit others to be a part of their teams. Timothy then mobilizes the teams to staff specific events.
Payne was asked how he would encourage other churches to follow Timothy’s example.
“Start! Don’t think about it forever and evaluate it to death,” he said. “Pray, get a word from God and start. Nothing is too small—nothing too big. God multiplies our efforts, and God always overwhelms us with blessing when we reach out to our community.”
Teddy Roosevelt may be credited for the statement of showing how much you care, but Timothy Church is putting the challenge to practice.