What if you spent an entire year living as Jesus did? Chances are you would like a lot like the person on your right. He is Dr. Ed Dobson, retired pastor of Calvary Church in Grand Rapids, Michigan, and author of the new book, The Year of Living like Jesus (Zondervan).

The self-confessed lover of bacon describes in vivid detail the agony of keeping kosher, a feat especially troublesome when eating out. Dobson encountered circumstances that were not only challenging but also surprising. A non-drinker, Dobson sometimes found himself in a bar consuming alcohol, discussing spiritual matters. “When you’re sipping a beer, it’s disarming,” he muses. After all, Jesus did consume alcohol. (read more)

What are they sorry for? Corporate fraud? The bad economy? Subway fare hikes? High tuition costs?

These placard-toting do-gooders in Washington Square Park are continually asked, “What are you sorry for?” In response, passers-by are quietly handed a card that reads, “Have you ever felt pushed away or like you didn’t fit in at church? As Christians, we are sorry. That was people, not Jesus.”

It’s an effective message that has touched many. About once a month, members of the The Awakening Church (www.theawakeningnyc.com) appear in the park to tell members of the community — atheists, agnostics, Jews, Muslims, Hindus, Christians, old, young, every race, every class, those with tattoos and those without, essentially EVERYONE — that they are sorry if anyone has ever felt pushed away from the church.

And the members of the church do not claim to be morally superior or have all of the answers. “The Awakening Church is in the heart of The Village brining spiritual Truth through cultural relevance,” the card reads. “Jesus never candy-coated life and neither do we. We are spiritually messy people following a perfect Savior.”

No hidden messages — just a simple “We are sorry.”

You’re God of this city,
You’re the King of these people,
You’re the Lord of this nation, You are.

(Download the mp3 for FREE at Bluetree’s official website)

A Story by YenYen Lintang
Peace washed over Taoyang as he sat in the school sanctuary. It was a small room–smaller than any of the classrooms–lined with rows of chairs meant to serve as pews. At the front of the room was a table with a wooden cross and a Bible. There were hardly any lines on the spine of the Bible, since few of the students actually ever came to the sanctuary. Like Taoyang, even though they attended a Christian high school, none of them really took to heart any …

By Daina Dixon
Inspired by a Sunday sermon
You can’t hide from your troubles
for they will find you.
You can’t run from your troubles
for they will run after you.
Trouble is not hard to find
for it’s always looking for you.
If you flew to another country
it would be there waiting for you.
Our troubles are like a huge bag we carry around
Although it’s too heavy we won’t put it down.
Cast your troubles upon the Lord
for He knows what to do,
He will remove all your troubles
if you allow him to.