David Rupert - Page 105 of 107 -

Group Hug

May 13, 2007 By David Rupert

On Friday night, ABC’s 20/20 aired an episode called “Seeing and Believing: The Power of Faith.”It seems the media has a fleeting fascination with people who are motivated with things beyond money or possessions or pleasure. We are freaks in their estimation and they often go out of their way to demonstrate the ‘freakiest’ among us.Ater a long week of traveling the West, I was out of gas but decided to give the program a few minutes of my attention… Read more

Freedom and forgiveness

May 13, 2007 By David Rupert

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Jesus tells a story in Matthew 18 about the “unforgiving servant.” A man approached the King, having owed him the modern equivalent of 12 million dollars. There was no way to pay the money back and the only payment option left at this point was to sell the man and his family into slavery and all of his possessions would be seized. The man begged for mercy and the king forgave his debt in its entirety. Then, out of the… Read more

Christian party poopers

May 7, 2007 By David Rupert

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“Therefore you now have sorrow; but I will see you again and your heart will rejoice, and your joy no one will take from you.”– Jesus Christ, John 16.22″One man’s theology is another man’s belly laugh.”-Robert A. HeinleinRed Letter Believers are people who know how to celebrate. There far too many dour – yet sincere – Christians, who only know the life of sorrow and penitence. They are permanently prostate –– repenting of unknown sins, confessing long-forgiven attitudes and humbled… Read more

Dog the Bounty Hunter – God’s Bloodhound

April 26, 2007 By David Rupert

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Fake man or man of faith Duane Chapman, who goes by the name “Dog the Bounty Hunter” is a head busting, TV star who chases criminals on the lam. He also claims to be a born-again Christian whose show on A&E is filled with biblical references and expressions of faith.Before he goes to hunt a bounty, he gathers the family and they bow their heads and pray for safety and for the capture “in Jesus name.”Right now, Chapman, his son… Read more

Discovery Channel’s Planet Earth

April 8, 2007 By David Rupert

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It’s not often that television programming gives us the opportunity to broach the subject of God with our co-workers, but for the next few weeks, this chance is available to us.Currently playing on the Discovery Channel is the 11 part mini-series, Planet Earth. Painstakingly shot over 5 years, this expansive, brilliantly photographed series depicts our planet in ways most of us will never see in our lifetimes except for on film.The grandeur of our planet is laid out in such… Read more

Good Tree, Good Fruit

March 22, 2007 By David Rupert

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Jesus said that a good tree can’t produce bad fruit and, conversely, a bad tree can’t produce good fruit.What happens when we feel like bursting with a harvest of red ripe Fuji’s but we are still firmly rooted in a nasty patch of thistles just waiting to draw the blood of our neighbors?At work I find that this duplicity haunts me almost daily. One moment I feel filled with the Holy Spirit as I stand ready to love and support… Read more

Format C: IT technician makes $38 billion mistake.

March 21, 2007 By David Rupert

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An IT technician is Alaska made a big mistake.While doing some computer maintenance on the Alaska State computer that maintains the permanent royalty fund, he formatted the disk drive during a route maintenance check.He then inadvertently formatted the backup drive.”No worries, we have tape backup, right?”Much to his horror, the backup tapes were unreadable.The fund, which pays about 1,100 yearly to each Alaska citizen, is synonymous with the states biggest perk. It has a worth of $38 billion, so it… Read more

Amazing Grace – the sweetest sound

February 22, 2007 By David Rupert

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Tomorrow marks the 200th anniversary of William Wilberforce’s triumphant crusade to abolish slavery. Wilberforce was relentless. Each year he argued for truth and righteousness. Each year he was voted down.On Feb. 23, 1807, after two decades of determination by Member of Parliament Wilberforce, the House of Commons voted to abolish the British slave trade,changing the course of history.He could have backed down. He could have quit. 23 years of failure. 23 years of mockery by the elite. But he stood… Read more

The “Secret” is Out!

February 12, 2007 By David Rupert

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Today, I am the bearer of sad news. The Secret of the universe has been discovered and apparently we Christians are not privy to it!Over the past few weeks, the news media has been giving extensive air time to a new phenomenon. “The Secret” is a multimedia sensation – a book, movie and DVD (maybe cartoons, too, but I’m not positive) – created by Rhonda Byrne, a bleached blond, diamond bindi wearing Australian woman. In her seminal work, she appears… Read more

Impacting Lives at Work

February 10, 2007 By David Rupert

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Some people are pack rats; they keep everything. As for me, I keep virtually nothing – I obsessively purge almost everything that I consider to be clutter. So I was surprised when I found a 5 year old letter in my nearly empty file cabinet.The letter was from the husband of one of my team members. Here’s a portion of the note:“To all of Kathy’s friends and co-workers,I can’t help but tell you when I received your cards, I broke… Read more