Joe McKeever

Ways You Suggested To Change Our World

Our Matter-of-Fax for December 30, 2003, was on 25 ways to change our world. At the end, we invited you to send your suggestions. Here they are.

1. Every Christian will tithe (10%) their gross income. We will then buy all the news outlets-television, newspapers, etc.-and turn them into mission voices. There would be no underfunded missionaries.

2. Reduce every TV network to a total of 30 minutes of news per day, which would cut out all opinion and glitter.

3. Write thank-you notes.

4. Don't have a hidden agenda.

5. Dress for success; sloppiness is unacceptable.

6. Praise in public; criticize in private.

7. Choose your battles carefully. A cat can whip a skunk, but it's not worth it.

8. Know when to press and when to back off.

9. Get your own coffee. Dial your own phone numbers.

10. In talking about your work, use "we" instead of "I."

11. Start and end meetings on time.

12. Occasionally, read something just for fun.

13. Answer questions. Question answers.

14. Always make Jesus the hero of your story.

15. Never say 'no' to a gift from a child.

16. Snow falls everywhere, even in deep southern Louisiana on Christmas Eve.

17. Cell phones shock their owners who enter worship services until turned off.

18. All preachers memorize and live by Isaiah 66:2, "But to this one will I look, to him who is humble, and contrite of Spirit, and who trembles at my word."

19. Saints to win one Super Bowl in my lifetime.

20. Whenever anyone wrongly begins a statement with "God told me…" the Lord to audibly say, "No, I didn't."

21. When someone applies for unemployment, they are automatically put on the list for jury duty. This way, working people don't have to miss work and the unemployed have something productive to do.

22. Scientists find the root cause of all cancers, and the cure works for everyone no matter how sick.

23. All out of work cancer doctors then become school teachers.

24. Catholic priests are allowed to marry.

25. Muslim fundamentalist terrorists recognized by mainstream Muslims as the agents of Satan they are, and are hunted down and dealt with by their own people.

26. A message arrives from outer space, "Hi, folks. We are watching you. When you learn to stop killing each other, we'll be down to visit and invite you to participate in our universe-touring-and-exchange-club."

27. Everyone start practicing the first of the Ten Commandments. The other nine would be a lot easier, thus improving the world immediately.

28. Relatives see each other more than just at biennial family reunions.

29. All believers wear large buttons that say, "I am a born-again Christian. Any questions? I love to talk."

30. Mandatory term limits on all politicians at every level.

31. God's people quit answering questions with "Sunday School answers" and start using their brains to come up with thoughtful responses.

32. Long-time members come to realize that God has a place reserved for them in Heaven, but He has not reserved that particular pew for them.

33. People start recognizing my favorite trait of God, one that is totally overlooked by so many people: His sense of humor.

34. Share more of our time with the loved ones we miss and less of our time with the ones we encounter on a daily basis.

35. Smiling into the eyes of every child you meet.

36. Telling your parents you love them at least once a week.

37. Remembering a person's life is lived only once and to make the best of it.

38. Everyone start paying attention to the grace that permeates the Scripture, bearing in mind that we are just as fickle as the stiff-necked Old Testament Israelites and that the God of the New Testament is the exact same God as the One found in the Old Testament. The One True God does not change.

39. No one hangs on the rim. Hanging on the rim by the player shooting negates any basket made and automatically turns the ball over.

40. Paris Hilton gets saved, then goes off-screen for a year during which time she becomes grounded in God's word before speaking out.

41. Change the opening of Psalm 23 from "The Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not want," to "The Lord is my Shepherd. He shall provide everything I really need." It sure would have clarified a few things for me when I memorized it as a kid.

42. Evangelicals to realize how unfair grace is, and how much of God's grace it took to change our own hearts. Imagine if we felt the full weight of the grace extended to us the next time the homeless and needy darken our church doors.

43. Everyone really, truly believes God owns it all and we are only stewards. The church would not need the large gifts of a Bill Gates or an Oprah.

44. All news to be reported in truth and not what the reporter or editor thinks.

45. Actors and musicians who thank God for their awards must show themselves to be approved by their walk and not just by their words.

46. Christians stop fighting among themselves and agree to disagree out of love.

47. Get Christ's words in our hearts and lives, not just our heads.

48. Thanks, everyone!