Category Archives: values

The Christmas Gift Most Commonly Left Unopened

Posted on December 27, 2011 by Steve Simms

Every year some Christmas gifts remain unopened. They are lost and/or forgotten in the holiday hustle, buried under discarded wrapping paper, accidentally tossed with the trash. So what is the most commonly unopened Christmas gift? You would think it would … Continue reading →

Posted in alternative lifestyle, apologists, Berry Street, Berry Street Worship Center, Christianity, Christmas, Christmas carols, Christmas Eve, Christmas gifts, church, conversion, East Nashville, feelings, glory, God, guidance, Jesus, Jesus Christ, Jesus Movement, Jesus Take The Wheel, kingdom of God, lifestyles, meaning, miracles, movement, Music City, mystery, mysticism, non-material reality, organic church, proof of God, Reason For The Season, recovery, religion, repent, salvation, saved, Savior, simple church, spiritual, spiritual disciplines, spiritual formation, spiritual growth, spiritual skills, spiritual warfare, supernatural, support group, Tennessee, The Salvation Army, Uncategorized, values, What is church?, Why be a Christian?, worship | Tagged 225 Berry St., 37207, actual presence, amazing, and/or, Berry Street, birthday, bold moniker, burried, celebration, Christ in you, Christ's presence, Christmas, Christmas gifts, come, conscious awareness, discarded wrapping papper, doing, dubbed, easily misplaced, Every year, everyday people, experience, fades into memory, forgotten, God with us, God's gift, healing, holiday hustle, humans, ignored, Immanuel, ink pens, Jesus Christ one of His names, jewelery, keeps us alive, life-transforming, lost, mayhem, means, miss, misses, much hoopla, Nashville, need help, no matter how small, normal, one of the smaller, open, place, rubble, sessions, show and tell, so real, Sundays, survive the Christmas morning, the hope of glory, the invisible air, the most commonly unopened Christmas gift, The Salvation Army, TN, tossed with the trash, treasured, under tree, unopened, unwrapping, use, valuable, visit, what a shame, Worship Center, you can feel, you would think | 3 Comments

News Flash: Planet Earth invaded by its Creator, not with the force of justice and judgment; but with mercy, love, humility. The Creator comes in human flesh, not in a royal palace, but in an animal stable — not with a demonstration of His power and authority, but subject to the circumstances of a Babe born under questionable conditions to a poor mother. Yet 20 centuries later, the world slows down, work stops, families gather on the day set aside to remember that God invasion. One Babe began a movement that continues to our time — a movement that has made millions of men and women better than they would have been without beholding the Christ. Transformed by Jesus, by God in the flesh — made new, set free, personally invaded by the Spirit, now rejoicing, not in stuff, and tinsel, and traditions both religious and secular; but rejoicing in relationship with the Babe, now the Lord, Savior, Master!

Posted on December 25, 2011 by Steve Simms

Posted in awe, blessings, change, Christ, Christianity, Christmas, Christmas carols, Christmas Eve, church history, Creator, glory, God, gratitude, history, holiday, holidays, Holy Spirit, Jesus Christ, Jesus Movement, joy, lifestyles, Lord, meaning, miracles, movement, mystery, mysticism, non-material reality, Oh my God, organic church, praise and worship, proof of God, Reason For The Season, religion, revelation, salvation, saved, Savior, self-image, simple church, soul, spiritual, spiritual disciplines, spiritual formation, spiritual growth, spiritual skills, spiritual warfare, stuff, supernatural, thanksgiving, thinking, thoughts, tradition, Uncategorized, values, virgin birth, Why be a Christian?, words, worship | Tagged 20 centuries, animal shelter, authority, babe, beholding, better than, born, by Jesus, circumstances, comes in human flesh, continues, Creator, day set aside, demonstration, families gather, force, God in the flesh, God invasion, humility, invaded, invaded by the Spirit, judgment, justice, later, Lord, love, made new, master, men and women, mercy, millions of, movement, news flalsh, not in stuff, now rejoicing, our time, personally, planet Earth, poor mother, questionable conditions, relationship with, religious, rember, royal palace, Savior, secular, set free, subject to, the Christ, tinsel, traditions, transformed, work stops, world slows down | 1 Comment

William Wilberforce — The Power Of A Bold Believer

Posted on December 24, 2011 by Steve Simms

William Wilberforce (born in 1759) was a member of the British Parliament who stood up and spoke up courageously against the international slave trade and against slavery in the British Empire. His efforts and those of others ended slavery in … Continue reading →

Posted in abolitionists, alternative lifestyle, Amazing Grace, black history, British Empire, British Parliament, champions, Christ, Christian history, Christianity, church history, conscience, courage, evangelicals, grace, guidance, history, Jesus, Jesus Christ, kingdom of God, lifestyles, morality, nonviolence, Quotations, Quotes, race, reading, religion, repent, slavery, social justice, spiritual, spiritual disciplines, spiritual warfare, Uncategorized, values, Why be a Christian?, William Wilberforce, words | Tagged 1859, against slavery, against the international slave trade, always, Amazing Grace, believed, bold, book, born, bring forth the, British Empire, British Parliment, called, check out, Christian, cold copies, confirms, conveying nothing, courageously, dangerous, dull pencil, during, effforts, ended slavery, evil, fail, faint lines traced, faith, faith's force, false wisdom, feel, few, flourish, fruits of the Spirit, God's, good move, good will come, grace, greatest Americans, grows, hide, humility, Jesus Christ, lifetime, lives, living, member, more influenced by, no reason, nominal Christians, nothing like, others, quotes, read about, Real Christianity, reality, received, released, social justice, Spirit of Chirst, spoke up, stood up, the real things, the reality, the world's opinion, Top 10, truly great men and women, trun away from, unless, very tendency, we are not His, William Wilberforce, without it, wonderful book, world's view, wrote | 2 Comments

The Joy Of Christ*mas Stopping

Posted on December 15, 2011 by Steve Simms

Does Christmas shopping ever leave you empty? Do you ever feel like Christmas shopping is not enough? That there must be more to the Christmas season than just buying lots of stuff to give away on Christmas Day? Well, there … Continue reading →

Posted in ancient history, boundaries, casual sex, Christ, Christian history, Christianity, Christmas, Christmas carols, Christmas Eve, conscience, conversion, evangelicals, forgiveness, freedom, grace, guilt, history, holiday, holidays, Jesus, Jesus Christ, joy, lies, lifestyles, meaning, miracles, morality, morals, mysticism, new birth, non-material reality, peace, prayer, proof of God, Reason For The Season, recovery, religion, repent, revelation, salvation, saved, Savior, self-esteem, self-help, self-image, sex, sin, sobriety, soul, spiritual, spiritual disciplines, spiritual formation, spiritual growth, spiritual skills, spiritual warfare, stuff, supernatural, support group, Uncategorized, values, Why be a Christian?, words, worship | Tagged a very important aspect, adultery, an angel, attitudes and actions, behaviors, brought to Christ, buying, celebrations, cheating on, Christmas, Christmas Day, Christmas shopping, Christmas stopping, Do you ever feel like, experiencing, fabulous freedom, for He shall save His people, from, from their sins, give away, Go and sin no more, God's great gift, great joy, Have you done your Christmas, It's not too late, Jesus, Jesus gave, Joseph, leave you empty, lots of stuff, met Christ, most ignored, not enough, nowadays, often left out, people's taxes, perhaps it is time, put it to, repent, self-destructive, sleeping around, stopped, stopping, take, teaching, than just, the Christmas season, The Cross, the first, the real Christmas tree, the tax collector, There must be more to, this way, thoughts, to do, well, woman caught in the act, words, wrongful, You shall call his name Jesus, Zacchaeus | 2 Comments

Are Sermons Effective?

Posted on December 9, 2011 by Steve Simms

Have you ever tested the effectiveness of sermons? I did. I was a brand new pastor in my first church — Mayfield Cumberland Presbyterian Church in Mayfield, Kentucky. After finishing three years of seminary, I had been preaching for about … Continue reading →

Posted in Berry Street, Berry Street Worship Center, Christ, Christianity, church, Cumberland Presybterian Church, East Nashville, house church, I Corinthians 14:26, kingdom of God, lifestyles, movement, mystery, mysticism, Nashville, organic church, praise and worship, religion, sermons, simple church, spiritual formation, spiritual growth, spiritual skills, supernatural, The Salvation Army, Uncategorized, values, What is church?, worship | Tagged 225 Berry St., 37207, AA, afternoon, alcoholics, Alcoholics Anonymous, American, American Christianity, an oral test, Berry Street Worship Center, better caught than taught, brand new, called, captured by, Christianity, church meeting, church setting, congregation, considered, continued, creating, culture, Cumberland Presbyterian, decided, doctrines, effectiveness of sermons, evening, everyone has a, experience, exploded, facts, fads, first church, following, follows trends, functions, grow, help people change, hot to hold, house church, however, hymn, ineffective, influencing, interpretation, job description, Kentucky, lecture, less than, lifestyles, like, little happens, little power, Mayfield, meetings, membership, message, mind, much more, Nashville, noble, nobody, none, one simple and easy question, open participation, openly, organic church, overwhelming, passively, pastor, Paul of Tarsus, Paul's instructions, poems, preach, preaching, prepared in a, professional, questions, requires more than, response, revelation, right, shocked, simple church, simple questions, sit and listen, society, society's, something more than, sometimes, started, Sunday morning, test, the basic point, the main topic, The Salvation Army, three years of seminary, TN, to build, to reach people, tongue, treating, try, type, virtuous, visit, weekly, When you come together, word of instruction | 26 Comments

Christmas Chatter

Posted on December 7, 2011 by Steve Simms

Christmas chatter: ‘Tis the season to celebrate Jesus. Happy Christ Day! Merry Jesusmas! “When Christ entered our world, He didn’t come to brighten our Decembers, but to transform our lives.” –Rich Miller Have yourself a Holy Spirit Christmas. What we … Continue reading →

Posted in Berry Street, Berry Street Worship Center, Bible, Christ, Christianity, Christmas, Christmas carols, Christmas Eve, East Nashville, feelings, God, holidays, Holy Spirit, Jesus, Jesus Christ, joy, lifestyles, Lord, meaning, miracles, Music City, mystery, mysticism, Nashville, popular culture, praise and worship, prayer, Quotations, Quotes, Reason For The Season, self-esteem, shopping, spiritual, spiritual disciplines, spiritual formation, spiritual growth, spiritual skills, spiritual warfare, The Salvation Army, Uncategorized, values, worship | Tagged 'Tis the season, a great time, All hail the power of Jesus' name, Alpha, amazing, awesome, becomes more real, begins, Berry Street, Bible, birthday, brighten, celebrate Jesus, chatter, Christ Day, Christ entered our world, Christ will fill, Christmas, Dan Schaeffer, Decembers, diminish, enthusiastically, everlasting Father, every Sunday morning, fact, God's love, Grander, happy, Have yourself a, heard, His presence, holidays, Holy Spirit, imagined, is His, Jesusmas, keep silent, King of Kings, let angels prostrate fall, lives, Lord of Lords, love, love for God, Merry, mighty God, more important, mysterious, Nashville, of the season, old song, Omega, openly, pages of the, part of everyday life, people, power, powerful, Prince of Peace, real, reality, Rich Miller, says, surrender, talk about Jesus, testify, testimonies, the best deal, the best shopping deal, The Salvation Army, transform, turn away, What a friend we have in Jesus, What God is doing, what we talk about, when was the last time, will, wiser, Wonderful Counselor, worked up, Worship Center | 1 Comment

Creatively Changing Christmas Songs To Celebrate Christ More

Posted on December 3, 2011 by Steve Simms

Have you ever noticed that a great many Christmas songs have little or nothing to do with Jesus Christ. Since Christmas is when we celebrate His birthday, I thought it might be good to tweak some Christmas songs and Christmas … Continue reading →

Posted in alternative lifestyle, awe, challenges, Christ, Christianity, Christmas, Christmas carols, church, country music, feelings, freedom, glory, God, gratitude, holidays, humor, Jesus, Jesus Christ, joy, lifestyles, Lord, miracles, Music City, mysticism, Nashville, non-material reality, Oh my God, poem, popular culture, praise and worship, religion, revelation, salvation, saved, Savior, spiritual, spiritual disciplines, spiritual formation, spiritual growth, spiritual skills, spiritual warfare, thanksgiving, values, virgin birth, Why be a Christian?, words, worship | Tagged a great many, all the way, awesome, Bethelehem, carol, celebrate, celebrate His birthday, changing, Christ, Christmas carols, Christmas songs, Chrsitmas, creatively, cross of Christ, dear, everyday, everywhere I go, forgiving, grandma, Happy Birthday, have you ever noticed, Have yourself a, here are, holy, I saw Mommy, identify, in the rain, is coming to town, it might be good, Jesus Christ, joy, joy to the world, king, knees, last night, little or nothing, Lord, Lord at Your birth, love, love you more, loving Jesus, mercy, mighty one, more about, Music City, oh what fun it is to, receive, rock, some, straight from, tears, the original song, thought, tweak, worship | 3 Comments

7 Names For 7 Days Around Thanksgiving (& 2 Oxymorons)

Posted on November 29, 2011 by Steve Simms

I don’t know who started naming the days around Thanksgiving Day. However, this new tradition doesn’t seem complete. Friday, Saturday, and Monday have names, but Sunday has been left out. Also, it seems to me like a week’s worth of … Continue reading →

Posted in Black Friday, blog, challenges, change, Cyber Monday, holidays, humor, life, meaning, modern myths, oxymorons, possessions, Reason For The Season, Small Business Saturday, stuff, thanksgiving, Thanksgiving Day, Thanksgiving Eve, thinking, thoughts, tradition, Uncategorized, values, words | Tagged 7, a week's worth of, an even, around, Black Friday, blog post, but two, complete, contains, Cyber Monday, days, did you notice, Friday, Giving Tuesday, has been left ut, I don't know, it seems to me, Monday, names, naming the days, new tradition, not one, oxymorons, Reason-For-The-Season, Saturday, Small Business Saturday, Sunday, Thanksgiving Day, Thanksgiving Eve, Thanksgiving Thursday, the intorduction, Tired-And-Worn-Out, Tuesday, who started, yep | 3 Comments

How To Shop For Christ*mas

Posted on November 25, 2011 by Steve Simms

From Black Friday through Christmas Eve, people will be shopping for material things to give to family, friends, and clients on Christmas Day. They will be searching and sorting through stuff, seeking to find just the right gifts. But perhaps … Continue reading →

Posted in alternative lifestyle, American, Americans, Black Friday, books, Christmas, Christmas Eve, church, guidance, Henry Poole Was Here, Jesus, Jesus Christ, life, lifestyles, materialism, organic church, Red Kettles, religion, self-help, shopping, simple church, spiritual, spiritual disciplines, spiritual formation, spiritual growth, spiritual skills, spiritual warfare, stuff, The Salvation Army, Uncategorized, values | Tagged age, available, be kind, become a super shopper, being transformed, Black Friday, car, carry someone's bags, Christ-filled Christmas, Christ-focused friends, Christmas, Christmas Day, Christmas Eve, clients, comformed to this, creating, crowds, detachment, devotional Bible reading, encouraging words, examples, extremely difficult, family, fasting, find and use, find firends, follow, followers of Christ, Friends, Give, give to, Google, hang out, help, help a neighbor, hold doors open, humility, hunt down, inspirational movie, it takes, Jesus, jewel, just the right gifts, let others through, like Jesus, live, living like Jesus, love, make friends, make your shopping, material things, meditation, more like Christ, most Americans, multitudes, obey, organic church, passionate, people, people we spend time with, people who live ajnd love, perhaps, politely move aside, provide transportation, REd Kettles, same effort, searching, seek, seeking, self-denial, serve others, shop, shop for Christmas, shop for ways, shopping, shopping season, shopping skills, sold on, solitude, some steps to shop, sort, sort through your friends, sorting through stuff, spiritual disciplines, spiritual formation, spiritual growth, spiritual listening, spiritual reading, spiritual shopping, spiritual warfare, still-born spiritually, superb, The Salvation Army, this year, tools for spiritual growth, various types of prayer, volunteer with a nonprofit, ways to grow spiritually, world, world's standards, you will be amazed, your life will be transformed | 6 Comments

Is Science Close To Discovering Spiritual Reality? Check Out “Spooky Action”

Posted on November 23, 2011 by Steve Simms

In the past few years scientists have conducted experiments that show that two “entangled,” subatomic particles can communicate almost instantaneously, even if they are separated by huge distances. They have called this phenomenon, “spooky action at a distance.” This communication … Continue reading →

Posted in Albert Einstein, awe, big bang, entangled particles, Goddard Institute for Space Studies, impossible odds, meaning, NASA, non-material reality, Oh my God, proof of God, Quotations, Quotes, religion, Robert Jastrow, science, soul, spiritual, spiritual skills, spooky action, supernatural, thinking, thoughts, Uncategorized, University of Geneva, values | Tagged a band of, a scientifically proven fact, adds, Albert Einstein, appropriate, asks, astronomers, at least, at work, believe, between, called, certain moment, communicate, communication, conducted experiments, conquer the highest peak, controlled by, conventional, cosmos, creation, discover, discovering, electrons, energy, entangled, entangled particles, even more, every living thing, exploded, faith in the power of reason, for centuries, forces, found, founding director of, from, Goddard Institute for Space Studies, greete4d, happened, has led, have prove, hope, huge distances, in an act, in other words, instantaneously, into being, matter, measured, methods, NASA's, no physical link, nonmaterial, now, now find, on the earth, over the final rick, painted themselves into a corner, particles, pass between, past few years, phenomenon, planet, produced this effect, product, proof, proved, pulls himself, questions, quotation, quote, reality, renounded, researchers, Robert Jastrow, said, scaled the mountain of ignorance, science cannot answer, scientific evidence for, scientists, seeds, seems, show, sitting there, something existing beyond, spacetime, spearated, spiritual reality, spooky, spooky action at a distance, star, story ends like a bad dream, subatomic particles, supernatural forces, surrounds us, Switzerland, the existence of, the physical workd, the speed of light, the world began abruptly, theologians, times, trace, universe, University of Geneva, waves, what, what cause, whatsoever, who | 8 Comments

Category Archives: values

The Christmas Gift Most Commonly Left Unopened

The Joy Of Christ*mas Stopping

Are Sermons Effective?

Christmas Chatter

Creatively Changing Christmas Songs To Celebrate Christ More

7 Names For 7 Days Around Thanksgiving (& 2 Oxymorons)

How To Shop For Christ*mas

Is Science Close To Discovering Spiritual Reality? Check Out “Spooky Action”

These elephants want to inspire you! Search Amazon for: Elephants INspiring The Room.

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Beyond Church: An Invitation To Experience The Lost Word Of The Bible

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