Tyler Braun's Blog, page 32
July 16, 2013
The Whole World
From Tyler: There’s a whole slew of writers online who are far better than me, but haven’t gained the following they deserve. One of my goals for this space is to give new voices a chance to share. I choose these guest posts carefully because I want to repay my loyal readers with great writing. Enjoy this post from Dave Harrity.
—
Blessed are the pure in heart,
for they will see God.
Blessed are the peacemakers,
for they will be called children of God.
—The Sermon on the Mount
Every day since I st...
July 11, 2013
Are You Character-Driven or Career-Driven?
I entered college to a receive a degree. I wanted the degree so I could fast-track my way into a luxurious career, where I would find myself swimming in the money of my success (think Duck Tales). In my mind, college was nothing more than a needed stepping-stone for my long awaited dream of immense career success.
Within 2 months after getting my degree and making my way toward this career of overwhelming riches, I quit my job. I couldn’t handle it. The job wasn’t a good fit. All of my co-work...
July 9, 2013
Is My Question Better Than Yours?
Today’s post is inspired byMatthew Lee Anderson’s new book,The End of Our Exploring. I had the chance to read and endorse the book a few months back and highly recommend it to you as one of the best on where questions and doubts fit within a life of faith.
Special Offer: Anyone who buys a copy of the book this week will be able to give a free copy of the ebook to a friend. Learn more here.
—
I like asking questions. Or should I say, I like questioning. Or should I say, I like questioning the th...
July 2, 2013
Heroes Often Go a Lifetime with No Recognition
I’ve yet to meet anyone who answered my question of “what do you want to do with your life?” by saying “something no one will notice in my lifetime.” No, in fact, most people say they either want to change the world or they’d like to make a significant contribution within their community.
When I meet with someone for the first time over coffee one of my common questions is to ask what the person would like to accomplish in the next 5 years. I ask this question because I think I can get to know...
June 27, 2013
Who You Run With Changes Who You Become
In 1964 a group motivated by the civil rights movement formed and called themselves the Mississippi Summer Project, or what became known as Freedom Summer. After a large push in the previous summer to get out the black vote, a small group organized around the idea of registering new black voters in the state of Mississippi. To do this they recruited volunteers, mostly college students of affluent universities in the north.
The change inapproach happened for a simple reason: there weren’t enoug...
June 25, 2013
Connecting Churches with the People Who Need Them Most
From Tyler: Today’s post is from a great friend of mine, Ross Gale. Ross and I have been friends since we were teenagers. We used to play ping pong with our shirts off, because when you play like we do, you get sweaty. Surprising no one, we’re still just as immature today. Truth be told, no one was more influential in my book getting off the ground than Ross. He’s a much better writer than me. For that reason alone, you should check out his work.
—
I once saw the Facebook wall of a friend of a...
June 20, 2013
Take In the Long View
Today’s post is a continuation from earlier this week
Throughout the book of Genesis God makes his covenantal relationship known to several men. He has plans to bless and prosper the families of Abraham, and his son Isaac, and then Isaac’s son, Jacob. God doesn’t bring out this plan due to their immense godliness, instead God only seems to ask that they would follow His leading.
Abraham is promised descendants that would be as many as the stars in the sky. The ironic piece of course is that Abr...
June 18, 2013
He Knows the Plans, But They Aren’t Good
Ever heard someone quote Jeremiah 29:11 when trying to help a friend get a boost of confidence about the future? Me too.
On the surface this reads like a perfect Bible story. The people around Jeremiah are groaning—wanting something better from God than what they’ve gotten. And God says through Jeremiah, “I’ve got this taken care of. You’re going to be just fine. So chill out.”
But here’s the thing. Everything falls apart after this. Completely. Falls. Apart. Shortly after giving this word from...
June 13, 2013
A Guide to Changing How You Read Online
In case you didn’t know, people read differently online than they do offline, me included. And more than likely you as well. People have shorter attention spans reading online. Online readers scan, and a small percentage of them end up reading the entirety of any article they begin.
So you know the drill by now, “experts” in social media recommend adapting online articles so that they have shorter sentences, use bold and italic font type, never have paragraphs of more than two sentences, use b...
June 11, 2013
Tweet it and You’ve Got it
From Tyler: Today’s post is from a friend of mine, Chris Nye. I had the chance to interact with Chris a few months ago at a conference and can assure you he is the real deal. I’ve been trying to get a chance to feature Chris’ writing on here for a while, and I’m excited to share this post with you.
—
“What’s on your mind?”
Most of our time on Facebook is spent trying to understand what people are saying to us, but we forget how much Facebook is saying to us.
For as much as I try to ignor...
