I dropped in on the local Calvary Chapel yesterday and they were going through Jeremiah 29-30. Chapter 30 has a nice letter to the exiles in Babylon: http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Jeremiah%2030&version=NASB Zion was not lost!

Love is important, and so is biblical truth. I might read “Take This Bread” but I’m reminded of another letter to exiles in this world: Revelation 2:20-22.

I’m not so worried about losing Christian culture because God has a plan, but I do mourn for the how the future generations could suffer without it. Each of the churches in Revelation (except Smyrna?) lost their candle, and it has never been restored.

Regarding Christian subculture specifically, it seems that secular culture used to be derivative of Christian, and now that has reversed. One of my favorite blogs is remonstrans.net, where the main topic for years has been the loss of a Christian culture and what is needed to create a worthwhile culture. Here is a recent post on the topic that I thought was very good.

Personally, I am not doing much, if anything, to perpetuate a worthwhile culture. I feel that I am basically living in Babylon, so there is not much to do but weep for lost Zion. Probably a cop-out on my part.

Finally, I agree wholeheartedly with your comments about the “authentic Church” being seen through love and perseverance — especially for the last, the lost, and the least. It’s tricky, though, because organizations that are anti-Christian can seem to show the same values in action. And there are cases like Sara Miles (author of “Take This Bread”) where someone who is nominally Christian is doing amazing charity work through the Church, but also using it as a vehicle to publicly promote sexual values that most churches would consider to be sinful.

BTW, for some reason, the title of the post on this page says “Auto Draft”

http://www.popularhymns.com/when_i_survey_the_wondrous_cross.php

40 days would be just about perfect for a 5k. I took the first week of running less than a mile to get past the “going to puke” phase. Then I added about 1/2 mile every 3 days from there. After a while, your legs and lungs adapt so you can run long distances at a fairly leisurely pace. And then, adding more distance becomes easier.

I found it is best to run in the morning to (a) make sure I do it, and (b) avoid cramps. Drinking a glass a grape juice just before you run will give you energy but it won’t give you cramps. Don’t eat and then run, that is a recipe for cramps. But, it is starting to get cold here, and I don’t like going out in the frost in the morning. Time to get a treadmill. And I want to buy a pair of Vibram FiveFingers.

I started timing myself, because I want to run 2 miles in under 15 minutes. 14 minutes is my goal. Leisurely pace is good to build endurance, but then running fast is more challenging. I need to cut 2 minutes from my time. That is when the hills are nice for training effect.

The one problem I’ve found is this. I started eating more because I am running. I put on at least 5 lbs. I get hungry and start eating junk.

So, if I practice every day for 40 days, I should be able to run a full 5k?

And, funny you should ask. I just read Romans 2.

http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Romans%202:1-16&version=TNIV

This world has no shortage of accusers.