Friedman and Michael Mandelbaum analyze those challenges - globalization, the revolution in information technology, the nation's chronic deficits, and its pattern of energy consumption - and spell out what needs to be done now to rediscover America's power and prowess. They explain how the end of the cold war blinded the nation to the need to address these issues seriously.
They show how America's history, when properly understood, provides the key to coping successfully and explain how the paralysis of the US political system and the erosion of key American values have made it impossible to carry out the policies the country needs. What's Wrong with America? The must-read summary of Thomas L. This complete summary of "That Used to Be Us" by Friedman and Mandelbaum, both renowned writers and experts in different fields, outlines the authors' argument that after the Cold War four big challenges faced America and that how the nation responds to these challenges will define the country's future.
Authors Thomas Friedman and Michael Mandelbaum borrow the title from the American phrase used when confronted with the successes and progresses made by other countries.
The most obvious country that we compare ourselves to is China. In a few short years, China has transformed itself from a largely peasant agrarian society to a global economic powerhouse with enviable economic growth and a growing middle class.
America's leading observer of the international scene on the minute-by-minute events of September 11, before, during and after. Friedman is in a unique position to interpret the world for American readers. Twice a week, Friedman's celebrated commentary provides the most trenchant, pithy,and illuminating perspective in journalism.
John the Baptist was faithful, but he was beheaded. Millions of faithful people have been martyred, have lost everything, or have come to the end of life with nothing to show for it. But the end of life is not the end! In God's eyes, the greatest heroes of faith are not those who achieve prosperity, success, and power in this life, but those who treat this life as a temporary assignment and serve faithfully, expecting their promised reward in eternity.
They did not get the things that God promised his people, but they saw them coming far in the future and were glad. They said they were like visitors and strangers on earth So God is not ashamed to be called their God, because he has prepared a city for them. You must wait until heaven for the rest of the chapters. It takes faith to live on earth as a foreigner. An old story is often repeated of a retiring missionary coming home to America on the same boat as the president of the United States.
Cheering crowds, a military band, a red carpet, banners, and the media welcomed the president home, but the missionary slipped off the ship unnoticed. Feeling self-pity and resentment, he began complaining to God. Then God gently reminded him, "But my child, you're not home yet.
What was I thinking? Why did I waste so much time, energy, and concern on what wasn't going to last? At death you won't leave home- you'll go home. Earth is not our final home; we were created for something much better. Verse to Remember: "So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen.
Everything lives by his power, and everything is for his glory. Proverbs NLT It's all for him. The ultimate goal of the universe is to show the glory of God. It is the reason for everything that exists, including you. God made it all for his glory. Without God's glory, there would be nothing. What is the glory of God? It is who God is. It is the essence of his nature, the weight of his importance, the radiance of his splendor, the demonstration of his power, and the atmosphere of his presence.
God's glory is the expression of his goodness and all his other intrinsic, eternal qualities. Where is the glory of God? Just look around. Everything created by God reflects his glory in some way.
We see it everywhere, from the smallest microscopic form of life to the vast Milky Way, from sunsets and stars to storms and seasons. Living for God's glory is the greatest achievement we can accomplish with our lives.
Creation reveals our Creator's glory. In nature we learn that God is powerful, that he enjoys variety, loves beauty, is organized, and is wise and creative.
The Bible says, "The heavens declare the glory of God. He revealed it first in the Garden of Eden, then to Moses, then in the tabernacle and the temple, then through Jesus, and now through the church. The Bible says, "The city does not need the sun or the moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light. He, the Light of the world, illuminates God's nature. Because of Jesus, we are no longer in the dark about what God is really like.
The Bible says, "The Son is the radiance of God's glory. We saw his glory It is his nature. We cannot add anything to this glory, just as it would be impossible for us to make the sun shine brighter. But we are commanded to recognize his glory, honor his glory, declare his glory, praise his glory, reflect his glory, and live for his glory.
Because God deserves it! We owe him every honor we can possibly give. Since God made all things, he deserves all the glory. The Bible says, "You are worthy, 0 Lord our God, to receive glory and honor and power. For you created everything.
All sin, at its root, is failing to give God glory. It is loving anything else more than God. Refusing to bring glory to God is prideful rebellion, and it is the sin that caused Satan's fall-and ours, too. In different ways we have all lived for our own glory, not God's. The Bible says, "All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.
This is the worst sin and the biggest mistake we can make. On the other hand, living for God's glory is the greatest achievement we can accomplish with our lives. God says, "They are my own people, and I created them to bring me glory," so it ought to be the supreme goal of our lives.
Jesus told the Father, "I brought glory to you here on earth by doing everything you told me to do. We honor God the same way. When anything in creation fulfills its purpose, it brings glory to God.
Birds bring glory to God by flying, chirping, nesting, and doing other bird-like activities that God intended.
Even the lowly ant brings glory to God when it fulfills the purpose it was created for. God made ants to be ants, and he made you to be you.
Irenaeus said, "The glory of God is a human being fully alive! We will spend the rest of this book looking at them in detail, but here is an overview: We bring God glory by worshiping him. Worship is our first responsibility to God. We worship God by enjoying him. John Piper notes, "God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in him. Worship is a lifestyle of enjoying God, loving him, and giving ourselves to be used for his purposes.
When you use your life for God's glory, everything you do can become an act of worship. The Bible says, "Use your whole body as a tool to do what is right for the glory of God. When you were born again, you became a part of God's family. Following Christ is not just a matter of believing; it also includes belonging and learning to love the family of God.
John wrote, "Our love for each other proves that we have gone from death to life. Jesus said, "As I have loved you, so you must love one another: By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another. Once we are born into God's family, he wants us to grow to spiritual maturity. What does that look like? Spiritual maturity is becoming like Jesus in the way we think, feel, and act.
The more you develop Christlike character, the more you will bring glory to God. The Bible says, "As the Spirit of the Lord works within us, we become more and more like him and reflect his glory even more.
Now, for the rest of your life on earth, God wants to continue the process of changing your character. The Bible says, "May you always be filled with the fruit of your salvation-those good things that are produced in your life by Jesus Christ for this will bring much glory and praise to God.
Each of us was uniquely designed by God with talents, gifts, skills, and abilities. The way you're "wired" is not an accident. God didn't give you your abilities for selfish purposes. They were given to benefit others, just as others were given abilities for your benefit. The Bible says, "God has given gifts to each of you from his great variety of spiritual gifts.
Manage them well so that God's generosity can flow through you Are you called to help others? Do it with all the strength and energy that God supplies. Then God will be given glory. God doesn't want his love and purposes kept a secret. Once we know the truth, he expects us to share it with others. This is a great privilege-introducing others to Jesus, helping them discover their purpose, and preparing them for their eternal destiny.
God will receive more and more glory. Living the rest of your life for the glory of God will require a change in your priorities, your schedule, your relationships, and everything else. It will sometimes mean choosing a difficult path instead of an easy one. Even Jesus struggled with this. But for this purpose I came to this hour. Father, glorify Thy name. Would he fulfill his purpose and bring glory to God, or would he shrink back and live a comfortable, self-centered life?
You face the same choice. Will you live for your own goals, comfort, and pleasure, or will you live the rest of your life for God's glory, knowing that he has promised eternal rewards? The Bible says, "Anyone who holds on to life just as it is destroys that life. But if you let it go,. Who are you going to live for yourself or God?
You may hesitate, wondering whether you will have strength to live for God. Don't worry. God will give you what you need if you will just make the choice to live for him. The Bible says, "Everything that goes into a life of pleasing God has been miraculously given to us by getting to know, personally and intimately, the One who invited us to God. It's really the only way to live. Everything else is just existing. Real life begins by committing yourself completely to Jesus Christ.
If you are not sure you have done this, all you need to do is receive and believe. The Bible promises, "To all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God. First, believe. Believe God loves you and made you for his purposes.
Believe you're not an accident. Believe you were made to la: forever. Believe God has chosen you to have a relationship with Jesus, who died on the cross for you. Believe that no matter what you've done, God wants to forgive you.
Second, receive. Receive Jesus into your life as your Lord and Savior. Receive his forgiveness for your sins. Receive his Spirit, who will give you the power to fulfill your life purpose. The Bible says, "Whoever accepts and trusts the Son gets in on everything, life complete and forever!
If you sincerely meant that prayer, congratulations! Welcome to the family of God! You are now ready to discover and start living God's purpose for your life. I urge you to tell someone about it. You're going to need support. Verse to Remember: "For everything comes from God alone. Jesus will give you everything you need to live for him. The moment you were born into the world, God was there as an unseen witness, smiling at your birth.
He wanted you alive, and your arrival gave him great pleasure. God did not need to create you, but he chose to create you for his own enjoyment.
You exist for his benefit, his glory, his purpose, and his delight. Bringing enjoyment to God, living for his pleasure, is the first purpose of your life.
When you fully understand this truth, you will never again have a problem with feeling insignificant. It proves your worth. If you are that important to God, and he considers you valuable enough to keep with him for eternity, what greater significance could you have? You are a child of God, and you bring pleasure to God like nothing else he has ever created.
The Bible says, "Because of his love God had already decided that through Jesus Christ he would make us his children-this was his pleasure and purpose. He wired you with five senses and emotions so you can experience it. He wants you to enjoy life, not just endure it. The reason you are able to enjoy pleasure is that God made you in his image.
We often forget that God has emotions, too. He feels things very deeply. God loves, delights, gets pleasure, rejoices, enjoys, and even laughs! Bringing pleasure to God is called "worship. Like a diamond, worship is multifaceted. It would take volumes to cover all there is to understand about worship, but we will look at the primary aspects of worship in this section.
Anthropologists have noted that worship is a universal urge, hard-wired by God into the very fiber of our being-an inbuilt need to connect with God. Worship is as natural as eating or breathing. If we fail to worship God, we always find a substitute, even if it ends up being ourselves.
The reason God made us with this desire is that he desires worshipers! Jesus said, "The Father seeks worshipers. Or you may think of ceremonies, candles, and communion. Or you may think of healing, miracles, and ecstatic experiences. Worship can include these elements, but worship is far more than these expressions.
Worship is a lifestyle. Worship is far more than music. For many people, worship is just a synonym for music. They say, "At our church we have the worship first, and then the teaching. Every part of a church service is an act of worship: praying, Scripture reading, singing, confession, silence, being still, listening to a sermon, taking notes, than music, giving an offering, baptism, communion, signing a commitment card, and even greeting other worshipers. Actually, worship predates music.
Adam worshiped in the Garden of Eden, but music isn't mentioned until Genesis with the birth of Jubal. If worship were just music, then all who are nonmusical could never worship. Even worse, "worship" is often misused to refer to a particular style of music: "First we sang a hymn, then a praise and worship song.
This is a common misuse of the term "worship. God loves all kinds of music because he invented it all-fast and slow, loud and soft, old and new. You probably don't like it all, but God does! If it is offered to God in spirit and truth, it is an act of worship. Christians often disagree over the style of music used in worship, passionately defending their preferred style as the most biblical or God-honoring.
But there is no biblical style! There are no musical notes in the Bible; we don't even have the instruments they used in Bible times. Anything you do that brings pleasure to God is an act of worship. Frankly, the music style you like best says more about you-your background and personality- than it does about God.
One ethnic group's music can sound like noise to another. But God likes variety and enjoys it all. There is no such thing as "Christian" music; there are only Christian lyrics. It is the words that make a song sacred, not the tune. There are no spiritual tunes. If I played a song for you without the words, you'd have no way of knowing if it were a "Christian" song. Worship is not for your benefit. As a pastor, I receive notes that say, "I loved the worship today.
I got a lot out of it. It isn't for our benefit! We worship for God's benefit. When we worship, our goal is to bring pleasure to God, not ourselves. If you have ever said, "I didn't get anything out of worship today," you worshiped for the wrong reason. Worship isn't for you. It's for God. Of course, most "worship" services also include elements of fellowship, edification, and evangelism, and there are benefits to worship, but we don't worship to please ourselves.
Our motive is to bring glory and pleasure to our Creator. In Isaiah 29 God complains about worship that is half-hearted and hypocritical. The people were offering God stale prayers, insincere praise, empty words, and man-made rituals without even thinking about the meaning.
God's heart is not touched by tradition in worship, but by passion and commitment. The Bible says, "These people come near to me with their mouth and honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me.
Their worship of me is made up only of rules taught by men. Worship is not just for church services. We are told to "worship him continually" and to "praise him from sunrise to sunset. Praise should be the first activity when you open your eyes in the morning and the last activity when you close them at night.
David said, "I will thank the Lord at all times. My mouth will always praise him. The Bible says, "So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God. By doing everything as if you were doing it for Jesus and by carrying on a continual conversation with him while you do it. The Bible says, "Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men.
The Message paraphrase says, "Take your everyday, ordinary life your sleeping, eating, going-to work, and walking-around life-and place it before God as an offering. When I first fell in love with my wife, I thought of her constantly: while eating breakfast, driving to school, attending class, waiting in line at the market, pumping gas-I could not stop thinking about this woman!
I often talked to myself about her and thought about all the things I loved about her. This helped me feel close to Kay even though we lived several hundred miles apart and attended different colleges. By constantly thinking of her, I was abiding in her love. This is what real worship is all about -falling in love with Jesus. May the LORD smile on you Numbers NLT Smile on me, your servant; teach me the right way to live.
Psalm Msg The smile of God is the goal of your life. Since pleasing God is the first purpose of your life, your most important task is to discover how to do that. The Bible says, "Figure out what will please Christ, and then do it. The man's name was Noah. In Noah's day, the entire world had become morally bankrupt. Everyone lived for their own pleasure, not God's.
God couldn't find anyone on earth interested in pleasing him, so he was grieved and regretted making man. God became so disgusted with the human race that he considered wiping it out. But there was one man who made God smile. The Bible says, "Noah was a pleasure to the Lord. He makes me smile. I'll start over with his family. From his life we learn the five acts of worship that make God smile. God smiles when we love him supremely. Noah loved God more than anything else in the world, even when no one else did!
The Bible tells us that for his entire life, "Noah consistently followed God's will and enjoyed a close relationship with Him. It's the most astounding truth in the universe-that our Creator wants to fellowship with us. God made you to love you, and he longs for you to love him back.
He says, "I don't want your sacrifices-I want your love; I don't want your offerings-I want you to know me. God deeply loves you and desires your love in return. He longs for you to know him and spend time with him. This is why learning to love God and be loved by him should be the greatest objective of your life.
Nothing else comes close in importance. Jesus called it the greatest commandment. This is the first and greatest commandment. The second reason Noah pleased God was that he trusted God, even when it didn't make sense. The Bible says, "By faith, Noah built a ship in the middle of dry land. He was warned about something he couldn't see, and acted on what he was told As a result, Noah became intimate with God. In the entire world, no one but you thinks about me.
But Noah, when I look at you, I start smiling. I'm pleased with your life, so I'm going to flood the world and start over with your family.
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