Big Is The New Small

I have always been amazed by the hatred that Tim Tebow has received over the life of his public athletic career.  When he was at the University of Florida many people couldn’t stand him and the fact that he proudly represented John 3:16 on his eye black, his famous speech “The Promise” the incident with blood running down his face and the list goes on and on.  I always liked Tebow in college, simply because of how he represented himself, although I didn’t particularly like his coach or the Florida Gators.

Now that Tim Tebow is in the NFL this Love/Hate condition is even larger and on a more national level.  In the City of Denver Tebow gets ripped by Anti-Christian groups on a regular basis.  Yet, he gets cheered on by thousands of fans that have made his Jersey one of the most purchased Jersey’s in the NFL.  Tim Tebow is more than a quarterback for the Denver Broncos, he’s an iconic figure that’s represents Christian, good and wholesome.

Tebow appears to have gotten used to the criticism and has never once backed down from outwardly sharing his faith, as matter of fact he boldly ends every interview with “God Bless!”  People in the media and NFL analysts are publicly concluding that the hatred of Tebow is primarily based upon his outward showing of his faith and religious beliefs.  Inside the NFL host “JB” James Brown asked his co-host Cris Collinsworth a question regarding how Time Tebow is treated and Collinsworth was straightforward about his thoughts.  Collinsworth said, “It’s unbelievable JB, that one of the best kids – pure kids that’s ever come into the NFL, is hated because of his faith, because of his mission work, because of the fact that he wears it on his sleeve…”

In Matthew 10 in the Bible, Jesus talks about people hating you because of Him.  I think Tebow not only understands that but lives with the understanding of Matthew 10:32-33 “Whoever acknowledges me before others, I will also acknowledge before my Father in heaven. But whoever disowns me before others, I will disown before my Father in heaven.”

I recently experienced a similar Love/Hate relationship in regards to Chick-fil-A.  I was doing some consulting with one of my clients and I was using an analogy of Chick-fil-a with this room full of department leaders.  We had even discussed having lunch at Chick-fil-A, in order to observe and learn.  One of the leaders in the room was adamant about the fact that he didn’t want to go to Chick-fil-A and that he didn’t like them, their leadership, their Christian views and what they stand for.  It’s one thing to disagree with someone because of their views, however this hatred and dislike that comes from the Anti-Christian is superfluous.

No matter how much people hate on Tebow or Chick-fil-A for that matter, the bottom line is they win. After weeks of “Tebow” chanting fans in Denver, the 3^rd string QB finally got his start yesterday against the Miami Dolphins.  He was back in Florida, somewhat of a homecoming and had both Miami and Denver fans cheering him on and his college coach Urban Meyer on the Miami sidelines.   Tebow started slow; however in the 4th quarter he led a very improbable comeback that only puts more fuel on the Love/Hate Tebow fire.  In his first start this year, Tebow rallied the Denver Broncos with two touchdown passes in the final 2:44 of the fourth quarter to force overtime, and Matt Prater ‘s 52-yard field goal gave them an 18-15 win Sunday over the stunned Miami Dolphins

For the Anti-Christian’s and those who hate Tebow exclusively because of his faith, I say get a grip.  Instead of always focusing on what you are against, take a play out of Tim Tebow’s playbook and focus on what you are for.  I’ll end this with a little wisdom and life perspective from a young NFL QB by the name of Tim Tebow who happens to be a man of faith,   “If someone asks, I’ll always be willing to share His will because I also know that there are a lot more important things than football and that is one of them. That ultimately overrides football any day of the week.”  

What do you think about the Love/Hate relationship with Tim Tebow and the Anti-Christian?  Why are so many people willing to loudly share what they are against and not so willing to do the same about what they are for?

Israel Houghton’s new CD & LP “Love God. Love People.“ released yesterday and it received a lot of buzz.  You may be asking, “What is an LP?” An LP is only 3 dollars more than the regular album and includes Chord Charts, A Huge Photo Gallery, Remix Room, Daily Encouragement Through The Word & more! This project is Kind Of A Big Deal.

As a matter of fact, Integrity Music and Israel Houghton make history as his new release Love God, Love People is the first Christian iTunes LP.  Houghton also becomes the first artist, mainstream or Christian, to have an LP release that includes interactive social network capabilities, a music mixer and Bible verses, as well as the ability to create your own album cover. Other artists who have popular LPs include John Mayer, Dave Mathews, Lifehouse, OneRepublic and Christina Aguilera.

You can listen to “Love God. Love People.” right over there —–>

The album released yesterday and you can win it today.

Winning is as easy as 1-2-3:

• 1. Leave  comment stating that you would like to win a copy, in your own words of course.
• 2. Re-Tweet my tweet about winning a copy, or simply copy and paste this tweet info. to your Facebook status if your aren’t on Twitter.  If you don’t have Twitter or Facebook, simply leave a comment an we will pray for you to move into the new media generation.  :-)  Seriously leave a comment and let me know that you don’t have either Facebook or Twitter.  Here is the tweet or you can simply find @scottwilliams on twitter and re-tweet it: Win a FREE copy of @israelhoughton’s new CD “Love God. Love People.” at BigIsTheNewSmall.com http://bit.ly/ihLGLP
• 3. Go browse around Israel Houghton’s Website and check out the cool stuff including some great videos.

I will randomly choose 5 Names with the help of random.org, from those who complete steps   1-2-3 by 11:59 pm central time today 9/1/10.  Good luck and share this info. with your friends.

“Love God. Love People.” — Ready, Set, Go!

Winner Update: Random Integer Generator Winning Numbers-

14 - Willie Harris
29 - Buddy Boone
9 - Kyle Smith
35 - Dale Schmucker
27 - Cameron

Timestamp: 2010-09-02 23:31:48 UT

It truly breaks my heart every time that I hear about people having affairs; especially those who have been entrusted with a leadership role.  It doesn’t matter whether we are talking about the President, Politicians, Teachers, Pastors, Coaches, Worship Leaders, Sports Superstars…  These individuals who have been blessed and entrusted with the responsibility of leadership influence should hold that influence tightly, lightly and responsibly all at the same time.

Honestly, as a pastor this selfish cheating mess is probably one of the most frustrating/irritating areas to counsel people through; especially when the individuals don’t seem to understand the impact of their selfish actions.  Not only do they not realize the impact, but they would have probably continued if they hadn’t gotten caught.  This tragedy can also be one of the most rewarding areas to celebrate/praise on the other side, through total repentance and legitimate restoration.

I know people may say Scott you are naive and it can happen to anybody, but I say this with all the humility I can muster up “IT DOESN’T HAVE TO HAPPEN TO ANYBODY!”  I read through 1 Corinthians 6 again today and I don’t care what version I read, The Message, New Century or NIV, they all communicated the same thing.  Run, Flee, Your Body Is A Temple, You Were Bought By God For a Price.  As Christ Followers and especially as Christian Leaders; we don’t get to pick and choose how we act.  We are held to a higher standard and if we can really do all things through Christ who gives us strength; I have to believe that “all things” encompasses honoring our covenant vows before God and to our spouse.

None of us are perfect, we all sin, we all fall short, we all know right from wrong and I would argue that even a non-believer understands that they are not supposed to cheat on their spouse. Marriage is serious, Treat It As Such!

A word to Pastors, Leaders or anyone else who is cheating, flirting or going down that road: Stop, Flee, Run and Pray.  Proverbs 5:5 talks about the adulteress woman this way, She’s dancing down the primrose path to Death; she’s headed straight for Hell and taking you with her.

Satan doesn’t have any power over you, only the power to deceive.  If you’re choosing to go down this road of deception, ultimately Satan is Playing you like a drum and Pimpin’ you like a prostitute!

Pastors, Leaders, People…  Stop Having Affairs!  Thank You!

There is nothing better than a great worship tune, that comes from true worship leaders out of the local church.  The names that come to mind for me include: Kari Jobe, Israel Houghton & Hillsong United. For more than two decades, Integrity Music has introduced new worship songs emerging from churches around the world including Gateway, New Life and Lakewood in the U.S. and Hillsong in Australia.

Integrity’s latest discovery is Abundant Life Ministries a dynamic, multi-cultural church based in Bradford, England and led by pastor and renowned speaker/author Paul Scanlon.  One thing is for certain is that Integrity knows how to find some of the best talent in the world and shares their music with the world.  I got my copy of ALM UK’s new CD titled “Name Above All Names” a couple of weeks ago when it released.  It’s definitely a great CD with tracks that will grab you personally and will play well in a corporate worship setting.  Some of my personal favorite tunes on the CD are Be Glorified, Name Above All Names, My God Reigns and First Love.  You can grab your copy directly from Integrity here or on iTunes here.

If you would like to win a copy, Integrity has given my 10 copies of this CD to give away.  Winning is as easy as 1-2-3:

• Watch the video above.
• Leave a comment stating that you would like to win a copy of the CD.
• Re-Tweet my tweet about winning a copy, or simply copy and paste this tweet info. to your Facebook status if your aren’t on Twitter.  If you don’t have Twitter or Facebook, simply leave a comment letting us know, and we will pray for you to move into the new media generation.  :-)  Seriously leave a comment and let me know that you don’t have  either Facebook or Twitter.  Here is the tweet or you can simply find @scottwilliams on twitter and re-tweet it: Win A FREE Copy Of ALM UK’s CD — A Hot New Worship Band from @IntegrityMusic http://bit.ly/almuk1

I will randomly draw 10 Names from those who complete steps 1-2-3 by 11:59 pm central time tonight 7/2/10. Integrity Music will promptly send winners their FREE copy of ALM UK’s CD.  Good luck and share this info. with your friends.   Ready, Set, Go!

UPDATE WINNERS: Below are the 10 random # Winners.  I used the random # selector from random.org to select.  If your comment is one of the numbers below, you will receive an e-mail and a free copy of this amazing album.

Random Integer Generator

Here are your random numbers:

6
13
23
7
5
10
24
26
22
1