Author: Allen Bingham

I am a follower of Jesus, husband, father, and pastor of Haymount United Methodist Church in Fayetteville, North Carolina, USA.

Krista Tippett reflects with Sharon Brous about the Days of Awe. A passionate look at the Jewish High Holy Days. (via Speaking of Faith)

We delve into the world and meaning of the Jewish High Holy Days — ten days that span the new year of Rosh Hashanah through Yom Kippur’s rituals of atonement. A young rabbi in L.A. is one voice in a Jewish spiritual renaissance that is taking many forms across the U.S. The vast majority of her congregation are people in their 20s and 30s, who, she says, are making life-giving connections between ritual, personal transformation, and relevance in the world.

via speakingoffaith.publicradio.org

Chargrill did not make the list, so you know its wrong! Consumer Reports weighs in with its Fast Food Burger Rankings (Really!) via HuffPost

Consumer Reports’ October issue runs the results of their fast food burger survey, taken by 28,000 of their online subscribers. The respondents ranked 18 fast food burgers on a scale of 1 to 10, and the final results of the survey, along with a photo of each candidate, is below.

In-N-Out Burger and Five Guys shared the top honors, each earning an average score of 7.9. You may remember this same burger duo from last month’s Zagat fast food survey, where Five Guys edged out In-N-Out for their best fast food burger crown.

The mega-chain trio of McDonald’s, Jack in the Box, and Burger King rounded out the very bottom of Consumer Report’s list, lending some credibility to this set of burger rankings (though we can’t speak for some of the smaller chains in the middle — Back Yard Burgers, Checkers, Krystal anyone?).

via huffingtonpost.com

Dr. Tom Morris at powerful and entertaining talk on the 7 Cs of Success at the NC Annual Conference (2010, via Vimeo)

via vimeo.com

Tom Morris’ summary of his 7 Cs of Success.

From Plato and Aristotle to the present day, the wisest people who have ever thought about success and excellence have left us bits and pieces of powerful advice for attaining true success in our lives. I have put them all together as a framework of seven universal conditions which I call “The 7 Cs of Success.” For the most satisfying and sustainable form of success in our lives, we need:

(1) A clear CONCEPTION of what we want, a vivid vision, a goal clearly imagined.

(2) A strong CONFIDENCE that we can attain that goal.

(3) A focused CONCENTRATION on what it takes to reach the goal.

(4) A stubborn CONSISTENCY in pursuing our vision.

(5) An emotional COMMITMENT to the importance of what we’re doing.

(6) A good CHARACTER to guide us and keep us on a proper course.

(7) A CAPACITY TO ENJOY the process along the way.

These seven conditions provide the most universal framework for making things happen in a positive way, for putting our talents to work in the world, and for creating a better future for others as well as ourselves. They give us the most general strategic principles for success.

Some days it really is a good walk spoiled. A golfer starts 12 acre blaze as swing snags a rock.

IRVINE, Calif. — Forget “Fore!” “Fire!” was the cry of the day for a golfer whose off-target swing sparked a 12-acre blaze in Southern California. The golfer at the Shady Canyon Golf Course in Irvine landed a shot in the rough Saturday.

On his next swing, his club snagged a rock, causing a spark that lit the rough ablaze and eventually attracted 150 firefighters to the scene.

via huffingtonpost.com

Don Miller challenges us to ask the Bible the right questions. Ask “why” not “how” questions. (via Don Miller)

The problem Christians face is the Bible is not attempting to answer how questions. And if it is, it’s a terribly written book and not practical in any way in terms of addressing how to succeed, how to get married, how to be more sexy, how to lose weight, how to organize your finances or how to build a business. Instead, the Bible is a why book. The Bible is answering much larger questions: Why do we exist, why do we not feel loved, why is there pain in the world, why has God left us and so forth. Are there exceptions? Sure. The Proverbs has some wisdom on how to live, and there are other examples, but they are few.

So the question is, are you trying to answer small questions with your life or big questions? If you are trying to answer small questions (how do I turn earth into heaven because there is no greater epic for me) then the Bible fails. But if you are trying to answer larger questions (all of this will someday go away, and life is short, so what is really important in light of this) then the Bible is a book for you.

American culture is a how culture. We ask almost exclusively how questions, because our commercialized culture is not interested in why. If we really started asking why questions, our entire economy would collapse, and honestly, we wouldn’t care because once we answered the why questions, we wouldn’t want all that stuff in the first place.

So what does the Bible say to the Average American? Among other things, it says this: You are asking the wrong questions.

via donmilleris.com

As We Forgive :: view the trailer from this powerful film about reconciliation in Rwanda. There is hope in the midst of despair.

via asweforgivemovie.com

Laura Waters Hinson offers AS WE FORGIVE as a testimony of forgiveness among the Rwandan people as victims and murderers find ways to live next door to each other. Where are you finding it hard to forgive? Watch this message of hope. THANKS to Gabe Lyons at Q Ideas for bringing this work to our attention.