moment by moment

2012-01-30T09:15:00.003-08:00

2012-01-30T09:15:00.001-08:00

I AM TIRED OF CHURCH by John Hawkins, Pastor of Center Pointe Church

2012-01-30T09:10:00.000-08:00

the JOURNAL of the JOURNEY

I am tired of church or I should say I am tired of churchianity. I am tired of the politics, the power struggles, the emotional immaturity (present company excepted), the expectations, the hypocrisy, the personality disorders, the inauthenticity, the hidden agendas, the selfishness, the apathy, the spiritual laziness. the lack of honesty, the defensiveness in people, the insensitivity to others, the pride, the made up lists of do’s and don’ts, the judgmental attitudes, the plastic smiles and fake love, the critical and negative attitudes, the stinginess, the unbelief, the rebellion to truth, and give me a minute and I’ll think of a few other things while I am on a role. I am tired of how we took something God made simple and for the purpose of building our relationship with him and others and institutionalized it. We have organized it, complicated it, hierarchied it, and paralyzed it so it no longer does what God intended it to do. We have split it into a thousand factions so it no longer functions in unity as one body and fulfills the mission Jesus gave to it.

Perhaps I am being too broad in my indictment. I can not speak for the church at large in the world, I am not an expert on the subject. My frame of reference and experience is the church in America where I have pastored for 38 years. Does this all sound too cynical or negative? I have had plenty of people as I would invite them to church use one or several of these reasons for not coming. Even as a pastor I have felt this way at times. I think most pastors have at one time or another if they were honest. At times we question our call and tell God we want to quit and go do something else. He is ok but we just can’t stand people. I think Jesus felt a little like this when he came into the world and started to work with the “church” (religious crowd of His day). He turned things upside down and was a real contrarian when it came to the whole religious thing. Read the sermon on the mount sometime – as the new Moses He gave us the new way.

Contrary to how this sounds I am not some cynical, bitter preacher ready to give up on the church and go sell cars (though I have told God several times I was done). Rather as someone with more years of ministry behind me than in front of me I want to make my final years count. I want to find the simplicity of what true ministry is about. I think it has something to do with building relationships not organizations, buildings, programs, empires, or being successful. I think it is about leaving a legacy of lives my life has touched for God. Maybe this is too idealistic or naive but I am going to try to find my way in this. I would rather do this than become the cynical preacher who gives up on the church. Maybe I just haven’t been doing it right. You are never too old to learn. recently a mentor I work with gave me some thoughts on focusing your life for the second half. They were pretty helpful to me, allow me to leave them with you they are from author Dave Legg:

Slow your pace.
Narrow your focus.
Focus on things that strike passion and desire in your heart.
Focus on people more than programs.
Measure life in terms of people.
Invest your life by investing in people.
Give the whole gospel and not just the salvation piece of the gospel.
Commit to community and its high importance at this time in your life.

An Anonymous Letter From a Homosexual To The Church

2012-01-18T05:43:00.000-08:00

Dear Church,

I’m in such pain; I just had to write something to someone, because there’s no one to call at this hour. Don’t think poorly of me because I am still learning to lean on God… and because sometimes I need arms to hold me; even God said it is not good that man be alone. I don’t want to disturb anyone at this hour. I’m afraid if I did, they would reject me… people seem to be eager to help when it’s convenient. For me to call someone now would be inconvenient, and I could not take the possible rejection on top of the pain I already feel in my heart. Sometimes the stuff I'm forbidden to have can look awfully good when I'm feeling empty on the inside, with no one to call.

I like what I’ve learned from the bible, even though it’s hard to accept some things. But I need more; I need to see Jesus modeled by the Church. I need to see you who believe actually BE the ears, arms, and eyes of God. I need friends. I need guys in my life I can get together with - pals, buddies… I need the stuff I didn't get growing up, and that most guys don't have time for in the Church - because they have families and fathers and careers already. But I don’t need a baby sitter or a teacher; I need a human being who cares and who is willing and able to be a friend. I need men in my life who will love me where I’m at, who are willing and able to spend time with me; I need men to show me examples of what a healthy relationship between men looks like, not just an hour a week at Sunday school… but in real life.

I think guys who have families forget what being single is like... some will argue the reverse, that I’m better off single… but they don’t know what they have – and they would rethink things if they found themselves alone, as I am. They want to fix me, and think that I should bury myself in work like they do; but maybe that burial is why their marriages are dying. Maybe I’m not the only sick one here – maybe most guys are just as scared as I am over sharing their hearts. I've had several suggest that the right job would fix my loneliness... but I know from personal experience that work doesn’t fill the need for human contact, and the secular workplace doesn’t fill the need for Godly relationships with other men.

Sometimes you, men of the Church, make comments that I’m too open, and sometimes I think to myself, “You should be a man, keep the feelings in and be strong.” But is this really what God wants – or is it male pride? I think those words “Be strong” are whispered directly from Satan’s mouth into my ear… and the ear of every man… because in my strength, I draw away from needing God and others, and I am really weak – even though my pride fools me into thinking I am powerfully “self-reliant”. And when I am weak, I am strong, because I am more connected with God and with other men… because I need them.

Heck, the people I can relate to most in any setting seem to be the older ones or the kids - because most of the guys my age have lost something that kids and older people have. I don't know what it is, maybe people my age are too arrogant, too set in our ways, too proud, or too busy to be bothered with such “trivial” things as friendship and love. I miss friends from my old life… because even though some of those interactions might have been sinful, at least I had friends who would spend time with me. The Church can seem pretty sterile when the only time I see you – you who call themselves “brothers and sisters” – is in a bible study or at church. I feel like I'm starving for human interaction, when all I get is two or three hours a week in groups. Is this what you would call “ministering”?

Do you, dear Church, want to know the real reason I stumble into pornography and gay sin? It is for one reason: I am starved for relationship, for friendship, for touch... but I am afraid to ask, and be told “no” yet again. The pornography might be sin, but at least the “high” took my mind off the pain of isolation for a little while, when you weren’t willing to; and pornography is always there; you, men of the Church, are not. It made me forget my loneliness. When life gets tough, you have wives and family to comfort you – or at the very least to keep you occupied. When my life gets tough, married men tell me to seek comfort in God – spoken from the comfort of their wives arms. This is convenient… for them. I have put work into relationships, and you didn’t have time, dear Church. It’s funny how you have time to condemn homosexuals, to rally to abolish gay marriage, or get on the band wagon over this cause or that, all in the name of God. But you don’t have time to be friends with a homosexual who wants to change. If I were to define hell, it would be "a void of relationship". If I were to point to a place on earth where I have found the most hell, it has been within the walls of the Church. I’m tired of all the verses and the theory. You want me to change; stop talking and SHOW me how to be a loving Christian in Godly relationships by LIVING that theory with me, by inviting me into these relationships… or I will stumble – and you, men of the Church, will not be guiltless.

I want to live life, to share life with people. There seems to be no outlet for me – the single male struggling with sexual brokenness – to do this, other than little bits here and there. I have much to offer, along with my peers, even though I am also needy. I want the touch of another human being. I want it to matter when I laugh and when I cry, and I want the tears and laughter of others to matter to me. I am frustrated by so many things in not only our society, but in the Church; men do not know how to love one another as God intended... if we all did, there wouldn't be so much homosexuality; it is a backlash, a result of men not loving as they should... including you, men of the Church.

I have one dream... I want Jesus to hold me, to let me cry, to sob, to let my body shake with the grief of the losses I have felt in my life. I want him to be there and hold me through it, whether I cry for a minute, a day, or a year... until finally there are no more tears left. And then I want to fall asleep in his arms, I want to be safe. I want to go back, to be a kid again, and to get what I didn't get back then, what I can't get now by myself, but which can only come through Jesus and through other men in a healthy way. I am frustrated and angry - and I feel cheated, that I have no attraction to women, that I have no family. I have worked so hard simply to overcome the trauma of the rejection I went through from my father... he didn't mean to do it, but I carry those deep scars, and they go right to the foundation of my heart.

Do you want to crucify the homosexual, or save him? If you want to save him, here I am, and I’m asking to be saved. I’m asking you to be Christ’s arms and ears, to hold me and let me cry, to let me know Jesus does care about me – that even though I feel rejected and broken and alone, at least someone does care. Or do you want to help in theory, so you can feel good about yourselves? Or maybe it’s just easier to throw the first stone. Some days, I would thank you for throwing that stone; the pain would end.

I know you can't fix me. You may not know what to say. Men of the Church, you think you have to say something profound to "fix" others. Wrong. You are here to teach me God’s ways by EXAMPLE, to be examples of love in a world of hatred. Ironically, I – the homosexual – am here to teach you, too, men of the Church. “To teach us?” you may ask in shock. Yes, to teach you something you’ve forgotten; we are here to teach you the strength of vulnerability, the power of facing the truth - we are powerless, that we are all broken and we can fix nothing... that Jesus died to fix us. When in my weakest moments I share with you, I am doing what God wants me to. I am an example of vulnerability, and my example gives you – men of the Church – permission to shed your masks of self-strength and self-righteousness. Listen and learn, men of the Church: we can’t put on God’s armor, until we first take off our own useless armor… and we can’t do that until we set our pride aside, and get honest with one another. I’m ready. Are you?

Aren't we God's hands extended?

I AM TIRED OF CHURCH

2012-01-18T05:38:00.000-08:00

CENTER POINTE CHURCH
PALM BEACH COUNTY, FLORIDA

By John Hawkins

I am tired of church or I should say I am tired of churchianity. I am tired of the politics, the power struggles, the emotional immaturity (present company excepted), the expectations, the hypocrisy, the personality disorders, the inauthenticity, the hidden agendas, the selfishness, the apathy, the spiritual laziness. the lack of honesty, the defensiveness in people, the insensitivity to others, the pride, the made up lists of do’s and don’ts, the judgmental attitudes, the plastic smiles and fake love, the critical and negative attitudes, the stinginess, the unbelief, the rebellion to truth, and give me a minute and I’ll think of a few other things while I am on a role. I am tired of how we took something God made simple and for the purpose of building our relationship with him and others and institutionalized it. We have organized it, complicated it, hierarchied it, and paralyzed it so it no longer does what God intended it to do. We have split it into a thousand factions so it no longer functions in unity as one body and fulfills the mission Jesus gave to it.

Perhaps I am being too broad in my indictment. I can not speak for the church at large in the world, I am not an expert on the subject. My frame of reference and experience is the church in America where I have pastored for 38 years. Does this all sound too cynical or negative? I have had plenty of people as I would invite them to church use one or several of these reasons for not coming. Even as a pastor I have felt this way at times. I think most pastors have at one time or another if they were honest. At times we question our call and tell God we want to quit and go do something else. He is ok but we just can’t stand people. I think Jesus felt a little like this when he came into the world and started to work with the “church” (religious crowd of His day). He turned things upside down and was a real contrarian when it came to the whole religious thing. Read the sermon on the mount sometime – as the new Moses He gave us the new way.

Contrary to how this sounds I am not some cynical, bitter preacher ready to give up on the church and go sell cars (though I have told God several times I was done). Rather as someone with more years of ministry behind me than in front of me I want to make my final years count. I want to find the simplicity of what true ministry is about. I think it has something to do with building relationships not organizations, buildings, programs, empires, or being successful. I think it is about leaving a legacy of lives my life has touched for God. Maybe this is too idealistic or naive but I am going to try to find my way in this. I would rather do this than become the cynical preacher who gives up on the church. Maybe I just haven’t been doing it right. You are never too old to learn. recently a mentor I work with gave me some thoughts on focusing your life for the second half. They were pretty helpful to me, allow me to leave them with you they are from author Dave Legg:

Slow your pace.
Narrow your focus.
Focus on things that strike passion and desire in your heart.
Focus on people more than programs.
Measure life in terms of people.
Invest your life by investing in people.
Give the whole gospel and not just the salvation piece of the gospel.
Commit to community and its high importance at this time in your life.

Thank you, John Hawkins for writing your heart. I, myself is very tire of the institutional churchianity.

Charlie Brown Praise Break

2011-09-14T20:35:00.000-07:00

Ultimate Dog Tease

2011-05-25T09:06:00.000-07:00

Exodus International: Embracing the Call

2011-05-21T21:08:00.000-07:00

Jesus Culture - Rooftops

2011-05-16T10:16:00.000-07:00

A Man Fell in a Hole

2011-04-25T10:51:00.000-07:00

I Quit!

2011-04-02T18:49:00.000-07:00

“I quit!” I told my husband. “I’m leaving our church. This no longer brings me life. It brings me death.” And my husband was the pastor!
Those words launched me into a journey of profound spirituality that I refused to continue living, pretending everything was “fine.”

It happened on January 2nd on year, and was actually much more than a New Year’s resolution (e.g. “I will go to the gym three times a week” or “I will take a class at a community college”). Something broke inside me when I finally said, “No more.”
It was a determination to quit those things that were damaging to my soul, freeing me up to choose ways of being that were authentic and rooted in love. Not only would I be changed, but my marriage, family and community also transformed in unimaginable ways.
That one decision has evolved over the years into eight “I Quit” resolutions, which I’m urging others to consider as a far more expansive and life-changing resolution for the 2011 New Year:

1. I will quit being afraid of what others think.
I will not say “yes” when I really want to say “no” because I’m afraid someone will be angry, sad or disappointed. I will speak up when I disagree or prefer something different, no longer ignoring my own values. Who I am “on stage” before others will be the same person I am “off stage” when I am by myself.

2. I will quit lying.
I will become brutally honest with myself, especially with my own thoughts and feelings. I will declare my truth to others, not fearing what they think. That truth can be as simple as “I don’t want to eat at that restaurant,” or as difficult as, “I was hurt by your comment.” Speaking the truth respectfully and clearly is one of the most significant ways I can respect myself and others.

3. I will quit dying to the wrong things.
I will not put things most important, like self-care, at the mercy of things least important, like always putting others before myself. I will actively pursue a day of rest and I will no longer set aside activities or relationships that cause my soul to feel fully alive (e.g. music, dance, art, the outdoors, travel).

4. I will quit denying sadness, anger and fear.
Many of us live inhuman lives because we believe inhuman rules like “Don’t be sad”, “It’s bad to be angry”, or “You’re weak if you’re afraid.” I will allow myself to feel all these feelings, treating them as “guests” sent to teach me something. I will neither put them in the driver’s seat and let them control me, nor will I ignore them by stuffing them in the trunk.

5. I will quit blaming.
As a human being made in God’s image, I recognize that no one is responsible for my life and happiness but me. I will take responsibility to choose my own life and help others do the same. I can’t change others, but I can change myself.

6. I will quit overfunctioning.
I will quit doing for others what they can and should do for themselves. I will stop perpetuating their immaturity or my false sense of indispensability, seeking courage and wisdom in doing so.

7. I will quit faulty thinking.
I will not assume I know what others are thinking without checking it out with them. I won’t jump to negative interpretations without having all the data. And I will not believe the falsehood that things will never change.

8. I will quit living someone else’s life.
I will embrace the unique life God has given me, paying attention to my very personal rhythms for waking, sleeping, playing and working. I will set appropriate boundaries around everything that breathes, letting go of other people’s agenda for my life. And I will follow what is important to me.

May you be courageous this new year to live divided no more, discovering the Spirit’s power that yearns to break into your life and birth that which is good, true and beautiful. Remember, if you don’t embrace your one, unrepeatable life, it won’t get lived.

Geri Scazzero is the author of the recently released I Quit: Stop Pretending Everything is Fine and Change Your Life (Zondervan, 2010). She lives in Queens, New York City.

THE WOODCARVER

2011-04-02T18:40:00.000-07:00

Khing, the master carver, made a bell stand
Of precious wood. When it was finished,
All who saw it were astounded. They said it must be
The work of spirits.
The Prince of Lu said to the master carver:
"What is your secret?"

Khing replied: "I am only a workman:
I have no secret. There is only this:
When I began to think about the work you commanded
I guarded my spirit, did not expend it
On trifles, that were not to the point.
I fasted in order to set
My heart at rest.
After three days fasting,
I had forgotten gain and success.
After five days
I had forgotten praise or criticism.
After seven days
I had forgotten my body
With all its limbs.

"By this time all thought of your Highness
And of the court had faded away.
All that might distract me from the work
Had vanished.
I was collected in the single thought
Of the bell stand.

"Then I went to the forest
To see the trees in their own natural state.
When the right tree appeared before my eyes,
The bell stand also appeared in it, clearly, beyond doubt.
All I had to do was to put forth my hand
and begin.

"If I had not met this particular tree
There would have been
No bell stand at all.

"What happened?
My own collected thought
Encountered the hidden potential in the wood;
From this live encounter came the work
Which you ascribe to the spirits."

- Chuang Tzu
from The Way of Chuang Tzu by Thomas Merton

Emanual

2011-03-19T07:37:00.000-07:00

Reverse Thinking

2011-03-17T15:10:00.000-07:00

Modern Day Church Exposed!

2011-02-26T07:38:00.000-08:00

2011-02-23T12:01:00.001-08:00

The most effective way to keep information from
someone is to put it in a book. ~SR

Pooh and Piglet

2011-02-02T13:48:00.000-08:00

Piglet: "How do you spell love?"
Pooh: "You don't spell it, you feel it."

It's A Book - By Lane Smith

2011-02-02T13:42:00.000-08:00

Spiritual Teacher/Spiritual Seeker

2011-02-02T12:39:00.000-08:00

A man flying in a hot air balloon realizes that he is lost. He spots a person on the ground, reduces his altitude, and shouts, "Hey! Can you tell me where I am?"

The person below says, "Yes, you're in a hot air balloon hovering 30 feet above this field."

The balloonist says, "You must work as a spiritual teacher."

"I do," replies the person, "How did you know?"

"Well," says the balloonist, "what you told me is true enough, but it's of no use at all."

The person below said, "You must be a spiritual seeker."

"I am," replies the balloonist, "but how did you know?"

"Well," says the person, "you don't know where you are, or where you're going, but you expect me to be able to help you. You're in the same position you were in before we met, but now it's my fault!"

~source unknown

Walk Away!

2011-01-31T12:07:00.001-08:00

Don't look at it! Don't touch it! Don't taste it! Just Walk Away...

Longing!

2011-01-31T12:01:00.000-08:00

Longing to get away from it all! Anyone want to join me?

Waiting!

2011-01-31T11:58:00.000-08:00

Waiting on You Father! Waiting.

Autobiography in 5 Short Chapters

2011-01-31T11:48:00.000-08:00

Changing our behaviour is difficult. If it were simply a matter of deciding to change, and following through on that change, there would be no need for psychotherapists.

Money Makers Paradise Become a Pastor

2011-01-30T10:37:00.000-08:00

by Slashing Tongue's blog

Bishop Eddie Long, a pastor who is being accused of luring four young man into sexual relationships. Well he is still innocent till proven guilty which is very unlikely considering the support he has. This article isn’t about the allegations or this pastor but it is about the money made by such independent mega churches and its pastors. Over the years, there have been many independent pastors, internet pastors or street pastors arising. When video sites like youtube or dailymotion making it easy for people to upload almost any type of content it has also made it easy for people to make money the right or the wrong way. Depends on how an individual takes it though.

I am not saying that when one pastor does something wrong that he represents all pastors. It also does not mean that we should not doubt them and their actions. I have seen so many videos of pastors and evangelical preachers using various methods to scam and promote their products into getting people to buy them. What do the people do, they spend and donate. Where does the money go? To god? Does god need money? Maybe people might think the money goes to church for its maintenance and payouts. Every time you look at a pastor at an event, he wears expensive clothing,jewelries and has very nice vehicles. There were even documentaries where they showed pastors having personal chefs and having taking trip to places where the very people who donated the money can’t afford. Is this really what people want?

The country already has economical issues and many people are losing their jobs. Yet there are still people who choose to leech of others. At the same time, there are people who let themselves be leeched. Does religion make people blind? Is it so hard for people to do some research? What can we do teach people to be more aware of such pastors. Than comes the outstanding faith healers who claim they can cure you of any health problems. During the event they will walk up to anyone and start describing that person’s home and address. Then they start to heal them and their health problems are solved miraculously. These people literally conned the audience using creative methods such form filling before the event and using radio transmitters to lie to their victims. Of course with people like James Randi around such scam artists are bound to be exposed. What is surprising is that these scam artists are out of jail and are able to continue to do what they were doing before. Yes, they still make money.

Oh well living in the country of the free anything is possible….

Autobiography in Five Short Chapters

2011-01-28T11:59:00.001-08:00

by Portia Nelson

I

I walk down the street.
There is a deep hole in the sidewalk
I fall in.
I am lost … I am helpless.
It isn’t my fault.
It takes me forever to find a way out.

II

I walk down the same street.
There is a deep hole in the sidewalk.
I pretend I don’t see it.
I fall in again.
I can’t believe I am in the same place
but, it isn’t my fault.
It still takes a long time to get out.

III

I walk down the same street.
There is a deep hole in the sidewalk.
I see it is there.
I still fall in … it’s a habit.
my eyes are open
I know where I am.
It is my fault.
I get out immediately.

IV

I walk down the same street.
There is a deep hole in the sidewalk.
I walk around it.

V

I walk down another street.

Self Betrayal

2011-01-27T17:33:00.000-08:00

The betrayal

that hurts the most is

betrayal of self

times that i am not the person that God intends

when pressures of life

twist my identity into that which i do not recognize

my identity is in my creator

2011-01-21T18:10:00.000-08:00

The Searcher at the Stone Hut

A young man decided that he wanted to learn the ways of God. So he traveled to the edge of the great sea. With the help of local farmers and shepherds, he found his way to the simple stone hut of an ascetic monk, considered by the locals to be a holy man.

The old monk listened to his request and then told him, “First you must find God in the scriptures. Read through the Bible one hundred times. Then return and tell me what you have found.”

Three years passed, and the young man journeyed back to the stone hut. He and the old man walked along the shore.

“Tell me of your studies, young man.” said the monk.

“I found the story of a God who at times seemed harsh and even cruel, but I also found a God who loved with a generosity I can scarcely comprehend. The contrast confused me. And there were many verses which troubled me. I talked to various religious leaders and scholars in my town. But they had so many different interpretations of the scriptures, that they seemed to be talking about completely different deities. So I just continued my reading.”

“Yes, and in your reading, what did you find?”

“I found a holy God who created all that is because of Who He is, and Who loves that which He created because of Who He is.”

The old man smiled and nodded. He bent over and scooped up a handful of sand. Carefully emptying the sand into a leather pouch, he pulled the draw strings tight and tossed it to the young man. “Now, you must find God in His creation. Return when you find God between the grains of sand in your hand.”

Many years passed, and the man returned, no longer young. The old hermit of the stone hut had grown weak and seldom left his sleeping mat. But he smiled and gestured for his visitor to sit on the crude, wooden bench.

“I discovered that God holds together the invisible particles that make up each grain of sand, but He also fills the space between them. He forms all that is and fills all that is not. The air I breathe, the sunlight I see, God is in it all but contained by none of it. There is nowhere in the universe I can go that God did not create and does not sustain. Therefore I aware that God is ever present, that I am ever in Him. But I still feel that I do not truly know God yet.”

The aged monk motioned for him to kneel by his sleeping mat. The younger man leaned forward to hear.

“You have learned well. Now you must go and find God within yourself. When you find God there, return to me.”

Years passed, and the man returned to the familiar hut. The old hermit was now blind, but he recognized his disciple at once. “Tell me,” the old man whispered.

Stroking the brow of his master, the disciple replied, “I sometimes find that I still do not know myself all that well, but I believe that it is in seeking God that I come to better know myself, and in seeking within that I come to better know God. I can grieve at my weakness and failures because they do not reflect my creator’s intent for me. But I can rejoice in those same imperfections because they drive me to Him in humble dependence. And I do go to Him, because of how His Spirit works in me—revealing, forgiving, transforming, redeeming, releasing. Mystery beyond mystery, He loves me precisely as I am.

He has changed how I see everything. Now I taste times of peace beyond my ability to describe, when I am most fully aware of being in the hand of the infinite God. It is then that I live the prayer, ‘I in Him and He in me.’”

The elderly ascetic smiled, sighed, and in a weak voice, said, “You have learned well. Now this hut is yours. Your final task: find God as you.”

The old hermit closed his eyes with a smile on his face and breathed his last breath.
Add a caption
The Searcher at the Stone Hut

A young man decided that he wanted to learn the ways of God. So he traveled to the edge of the great sea. With the help of local farmers and shepherds, he found his way to the simple stone hut of an ascetic monk, considered by the locals to be a holy man.

The old monk listened to his request and then told him, “First you must find God in the scriptures. Read through the Bible one hundred times. Then return and tell me what you have found.”

Three years passed, and the young man journeyed back to the stone hut. He and the old man walked along the shore.

“Tell me of your studies, young man.” said the monk.

“I found the story of a God who at times seemed harsh and even cruel, but I also found a God who loved with a generosity I can scarcely comprehend. The contrast confused me. And there were many verses which troubled me. I talked to various religious leaders and scholars in my town. But they had so many different interpretations of the scriptures, that they seemed to be talking about completely different deities. So I just continued my reading.”

“Yes, and in your reading, what did you find?”

“I found a holy God who created all that is because of Who He is, and Who loves that which He created because of Who He is.”

The old man smiled and nodded. He bent over and scooped up a handful of sand. Carefully emptying the sand into a leather pouch, he pulled the draw strings tight and tossed it to the young man. “Now, you must find God in His creation. Return when you find God between the grains of sand in your hand.”

Many years passed, and the man returned, no longer young. The old hermit of the stone hut had grown weak and seldom left his sleeping mat. But he smiled and gestured for his visitor to sit on the crude, wooden bench.

“I discovered that God holds together the invisible particles that make up each grain of sand, but He also fills the space between them. He forms all that is and fills all that is not. The air I breathe, the sunlight I see, God is in it all but contained by none of it. There is nowhere in the universe I can go that God did not create and does not sustain. Therefore I aware that God is ever present, that I am ever in Him. But I still feel that I do not truly know God yet.”

The aged monk motioned for him to kneel by his sleeping mat. The younger man leaned forward to hear.

“You have learned well. Now you must go and find God within yourself. When you find God there, return to me.”

Years passed, and the man returned to the familiar hut. The old hermit was now blind, but he recognized his disciple at once. “Tell me,” the old man whispered.

Stroking the brow of his master, the disciple replied, “I sometimes find that I still do not know myself all that well, but I believe that it is in seeking God that I come to better know myself, and in seeking within that I come to better know God. I can grieve at my weakness and failures because they do not reflect my creator’s intent for me. But I can rejoice in those same imperfections because they drive me to Him in humble dependence. And I do go to Him, because of how His Spirit works in me—revealing, forgiving, transforming, redeeming, releasing. Mystery beyond mystery, He loves me precisely as I am.

He has changed how I see everything. Now I taste times of peace beyond my ability to describe, when I am most fully aware of being in the hand of the infinite God. It is then that I live the prayer, ‘I in Him and He in me.’”

The elderly ascetic smiled, sighed, and in a weak voice, said, “You have learned well. Now this hut is yours. Your final task: find God as you.”

The old hermit closed his eyes with a smile on his face and breathed his last breath...

Art Azurdia God Saves Bad People

2010-12-17T19:21:00.000-08:00

RSA Animate - Changing Education Paradigms

2010-12-14T05:26:00.000-08:00

The Cost of Discipleship

2010-12-12T16:46:00.000-08:00

This morning I found a passage that sums up the whole book:

To be called to a life of extraordinary quality, to live up to it, and yet to be unconscious of it is indeed a narrow way. To confess and testify to the truth as it is in Jesus, and at the same time to love the enemies of that truth, His enemies and ours, and to love them with the infinite love of Jesus Christ, is indeed a narrow way. To believe the promise of Jesus that His followers shall possess the earth, and at the same time to face our enemies unarmed and defenseless, preferring to incur injustice rather than to do wrong ourselves, is indeed a narrow way. To see the weakness and wrong in others, and at the same time refrain from judging them; to deliver the gospel message without casting pearls before swine, is indeed a narrow way. The way is unutterably hard, and at every moment we are in danger of straying from it. If we regard this way as one we follow in obedience to an external command, if we are afraid of ourselves all the time, it is indeed an impossible way. But if we behold Jesus Christ going on before step by step, if we only look to Him and follow Him, step by step, we shall not go astray.

Dietrich Bonhoeffer, The Cost of Discipleship

Kiss the Rain

2010-12-07T18:58:00.000-08:00

Soul Searching: The Journey of Thomas Merton - CLIP 01

2010-12-07T12:45:00.000-08:00

Pino sings Silver & Gold

2010-11-06T22:20:00.000-07:00

True Love Wait

2010-11-04T15:44:00.000-07:00

"Someday someone will walk into your life and make you realize
why it never worked with anyone else."

Think

2010-10-27T16:48:00.000-07:00

T--Is it true?

H--Is it helpful?

I--Is it inspiring?
...
N--Is it necessary?

K--Is it kind?

Gentleness and Strength

2010-10-27T15:32:00.000-07:00

“Nothing is so strong as gentleness and nothing is so gentle as real strength.”

Ralph W. Sockman

Where Is God When It Hurts?

2010-10-24T15:04:00.000-07:00

I am a mystery, God confesses. I am strange, infinitely strange.

My script of history is quite unfathomable to the human mind and heart. Yet you ought to know one thing: I am not a detached God, residing in the heavens and objectively governing the destiny of each human being the way I see fit.

I am present with you in your anguish. I am in the groan of a beaten slave, the wail of a bereaved mother, the spilled blood of a murdered child.

You are crying? I am weeping with you. You feel crushed? I am crushed with you.

No matter how deep your darkness, I am deeper still. I do not orchestrate human suffering from some distant planet, removed from your existential distress.

I am there with you, suffering with you, sobbing with you, praying for redemption together with you.

Man may never comprehend God's "mind." But let him not think, God tells Moses, that God, who understands the purpose of the pain, gives Himself the luxury of not feeling the intensity of the darkness. Every tear we shed becomes His tear. He may not wipe them away, but He makes them His.

Burn

2010-10-22T07:11:00.001-07:00

By Chana Weisberg

I burned my finger this morning. It was nothing major really, just one of those irritating little burns that you get from trying to cram too much into a hurried and harried morning routine.

I was attempting to prepare my son's lunch, the carpool was honking… and the plate in the microwave was very hot. Carelessly, I pulled it out and only belatedly realized just how scorching it had become.

For the next several hours, the area around my finger was red and sensitive. For a while I soaked it in a tub of cold water and the pain was alleviated. But as soon as I removed my finger, the throbbing resumed. Touching anything hot, or even lightly immersing my finger in a lukewarm liquid, resulted in a searing pain. Returning to my normal daily tasks was out of the question. The area was still very tender. It needed special care.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I learned from my burned finger—something more than just to be more careful in the stressed morning rush hour.

Each of us has some part of us that has been "burned"—some point of tenderness, and some area of sensitivity in our lives. It is that wounded part of us that needs delicate care and soothing treatment.

When something or someone touches this raw area, we'll experience a burning sensation of hurt, anger or misery. It may be a mild, innocuous comment, but any contact with that bruised part of our ego causes an intense pain to shoot right through us. It might be a lukewarm action, one that certainly was not meant to cause us any suffering, but handling this sore area creates a stinging discomfort.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The lesson I discovered is that it's not the lukewarm action that is at fault, nor the heated comment that's to blame. It's only our own sensitivity to the issue at hand that has caused us our distress.

So, before retorting in resentment, grief, or rage at the audacity of the individual--before we even let him know exactly what we think of him and his comments--maybe we need to ask ourselves: is our anger justified? Was the comment or action really offensive, or is this just a sore, sensitive point in our life?

And, maybe before making a comment that might be misinterpreted, we should give it a second thought, and refrain. Just in case. Otherwise, we might inadvertently touch a tender "burn" in someone else's life, causing them to experience tremendous discomfort.

Because each and every one of us has some sore spots….

Dear Father

2010-10-21T12:56:00.000-07:00

A Letter from the Trenches

I am writing to you at a moment when I have some breathing room. A moment of calm. A moment where I feel like I can write, without the enemy coming down upon me.

I am sorry I haven't written to you in so long. Please understand. For months now, the enemy has attacked. He has been unrelenting. It has been one of the hardest battles of my life.

I miss you, Father. Every day, I pray to be close to you again. Close to comfort. All that I want is to come home and to be close again with you again.

But I know that this war is necessary. I know that this fight, these moments when I feel furthest from you, are really the moments when I am serving you most. I know that really, I am doing it all for you, Father.

I have to be honest, though. As this last battle raged, I began to forget what this was all for. I forgot why I was fighting, Father!

Instead, all I could see was the dirt in my eyes and the blood on my hands. All I could see was the enemy's guns pointed at me. There was no time for thinking, no time for caring about what side I was on. I just did what I was told.

I just aimed.

And shot.

And fought.

These are the moments I will never understand, Father. Why can't the world be simple? Why do we need to fight for our souls? Why can't the good side get along with the... other side?

Instead, we must fight like dogs. We must live in the darkness, we must allow our enemies to surround us while we fight them.

Sometimes the struggle is so overwhelming, I forget what side I am on. I begin flailing around, struggling through a darkness that is so truly enveloping that I feel as if I am doing more harm than good.

This was what the last battle felt like. This was why I didn't speak to you. I almost forgot you were there.

But then something miraculous happened, Father. As we fought, and as it seemed most desperate, the enemy suddenly began retreating. For seemingly no reason beside our stubborn determination to fight on, the armies decided to turn and run. It was a glorious moment.

As we chased them down the fields, as we danced in jubilation, the massive size of their forces no longer blocked out the sun. The rays of light came down and poured over the field.

And this was when it all started to make sense. This was when I suddenly remembered you. And I remembered that I was out here not for me, not just so that I could defeat my enemies, not just so that I could brag about my achievements.

I am here for you. I am here because of you. And I can't return to you without finishing what I came here for.

I've come to accept something. At first, I didn't want to. But since coming here, since hearing the footsteps of countless enemies surrounding me, I have no choice but to accept that there is nowhere to hide. That if I don't stand up to the darkness, it will continue to spread until it covers every part of the globe. Until it covers my very soul.

And this is why I am here, in another world, another dimension, unable to see you or touch you or hug you. I have work to do. I am here for a reason, and that reason is so that I can return to you. I am here so that I can return your world to you. I am here for you.

Still, the battle may be won, but the war is far from over. The enemy has simply retreated. It has not surrendered. It has not backed down. As I rest, they are regrouping. Staring down at the beautiful sunny field, I am aware that it will one day be dark yet again. The army will be back for me again, this time stronger and more powerful.

But as I sit here, Father, staring at the beautiful field, looking at the rainbow you created just for me, I can't help but bring up vague memories of when we were truly side by side. And I can't help but look forward to the moment when we will yet again be able to look each other in the face and hug each other out of pure love.

Tait "She"

2010-10-17T15:49:00.000-07:00

Only Sinners Get a Savior!

2010-10-13T14:46:00.000-07:00

Brooke Fraser 2010 - Something In The Water

2010-10-02T02:05:00.000-07:00

Leprosy

2010-09-29T08:41:00.000-07:00

By C.H.Spurgeon

Behold, if the leprosy have covered all his flesh, he shall pronounce him clean that hath the plague."—Leviticus 13:13.

STRANGE enough this regulation appears, yet there was wisdom in it, for the throwing out of the disease proved that the constitution was sound. This morning it may be well for us to see the typical teaching of so singular a rule.

We, too, are lepers, and may read the law of leper as applicable to ourselves. When a man sees himself to be altogether lost and ruined, covered all over with the defilement of sin, and no part free from pollution; when he disclaims all righteousness of his own, and pleads guilty before the Lord, then is he clean through the blood of Jesus, and the grace of God.

Hidden, unfelt, unconfessed iniquity is the true leprosy, but when sin is seen and felt it has received its death blow, and the Lord looks with eyes of mercy upon the soul afflicted with it. Nothing is more deadly than self-righteousness, or more hopeful than contrition.

We must confess that we are "nothing else but sin," for no confession short of this will be the whole truth, and if the Holy Spirit be at work with us, convincing us of sin, there will be no difficulty about making such an acknowledgment—it will spring spontaneously from our lips.

What comfort does the text afford to those under a deep sense of sin! Sin mourned and confessed, however black and foul, shall never shut a man out from the Lord Jesus. Whosoever cometh unto Him, He will in no wise cast out.

Though dishonest as the thief, though unchaste as the woman who was a sinner, though fierce as Saul of Tarsus, though cruel as Manasseh, though rebellious as the prodigal, the great heart of love will look upon the man who feels himself to have no soundness in him, and will pronounce him clean, when he trusts in Jesus crucified. Come to Him, then, poor heavy-laden sinner,

Come needy, come guilty, come loathsome and bare; You can't come too filthy—come just as you are.

Why I Love the Lord

2010-09-22T17:53:00.001-07:00

You ask me why I love the Lord,
well, friend, just let me say...
Life wasn't worth living,
'Till the Savior came my way.

You say I miss so much of life,
yes, friend, praise God, I do.
I miss the pain and sorrow,
that once was all I knew.

I miss the days spent seeking joy,
the long nights full of tears.
I miss the heavy burden,
that I carried through the years.

But, friend, I wouldn't have them back,
for all that life could pay.
Life wasn't worth living,
'Till the Savior came my way.

~Unknown

Pursuing Justice, not Judgment

2010-09-22T16:44:00.000-07:00

This is the attitude I find in myself and lurking very close to justice-minded people.

Judgment is the pronouncement of condemnation over another person. It is the process of damning someone in our hearts and minds. Jesus confronted the spirit of judgment in the Pharisees and teachers of the law when they wanted him to approve the stoning a woman caught in adultery. I believe Jesus would have reacted similarly if it were the man who was brought before him to be stoned.

Simply put, the Bible seems to distinguish between condemnation (something only God is capable of doing) and correction (something we as fellow law-breakers should do in love for one another). Jesus says in Matthew 7, in effect, “don’t judge, but once you’ve addressed the log of sin in your life and can see clearly, by all means help someone struggling with the speck of sin in their life.”

Condemnation is a spirit in league with pride – the mother of all sins; abhorrent to God and the original sin of humanity as depicted in Genesis 3. A true desire for justice looks first within at all that is broken, depraved and out of sorts with God, our community and the world.

Only then can we act with true compassion and real power in our quest for justice, coming to terms first with our own desperate need for forgiveness and correction.

Of course the discernment of evil and the quest for justice is critical for human flourishing.

We were meant to govern one another in ways that protect the weak and contribute to the good of all; it comes with being made in the likeness of a just God. But the ease with which we damn one another – whether people (like politicians or theologians with whom we disagree) or groups (ethnic, ideological, corporate or denominational) is frightening.

Here are a couple of questions that may help clarify justice from judgment, correction from condemnation:

1. In your offense over an injustice, ask God to show you if there are ways you are guilty of the same injustice. Are there derivative sins related to this injustice that you yourself struggle with?

2. In your anger over this injustice, are there particular people or a particular person that you find yourself hating? Ask God to help you grow in compassion and understanding.

3. Before pointing out wrongdoing or bringing a word of correction to a person or a group of people, ask yourself, “to what extent am I motivated out of a sincere burden for this person’s growth in godliness versus just plain anger and offense over their behavior or words?”

Perhaps Tolstoy put it best, “Everybody wants to change the world but nobody wants to change themselves.”

Let us hunger and thirst for kingdom justice and righteousness – first by examining ourselves and confessing the wickedness in our own hearts and behavior, then by working with compassion toward the healing of both the oppressor and the oppressed.

For more reading visit:

http://www.urbana.org/blogs/blog.main.leastofthese.cfm

Assigned Seating

2010-09-22T16:41:00.000-07:00

By Dr. Jeff Childers

The other day I was reading the Didascalia Apostolorum (DA), like people do on a bright May morning. Chapter 12.4 has an instruction for bishops in the worship service:

If, after you are seated, some other man or woman should arrive who is honored in the world, whether from the same region or another congregation, you should not leave off your ministry of the word—whether you are speaking it or hearing it or reading it—in order to show them to a place. Instead, remain as you are and do not interrupt the word.

For those who may not know, DA is an anonymous manual of church order, written largely in the 3rd century. Originally composed in Greek, it survives today mainly in Syriac. Though not especially well studied yet, DA gives us fascinating glimpses into early church life before Constantine’s time.

In this passage, DA counsels church leaders not to do what would come naturally. In the ancient world, when people of worldly dignity show up, it would be normal to drop what you are doing and receive them amidst the pomp and circumstance that fits their status. Not to do so would be rude and politically unwise, since surviving and thriving in that society depended so much on playing long-established games of patronage and preferment.

From a worldly perspective, one would expect that the ranking “dignitary” of the congregation, the bishop, would be quick to court the favor of local luminaries and visiting VIPs by privileging their position in the church assembly. In public gatherings, the seating chart was a primary way of making and reinforcing a person’s significance in society.

But here DA encourages the bishop to recognize that attending to the word is more important than attending to worldly status—and that in the eyes of God a minister of the Gospel outranks those whom society would privilege on account of wealth and power. Like it or not, any bigwig who walked in expecting special treatment would get hit squarely with a different set of values than he or she was accustomed to outside the church.

Later in the chapter (12.6), DA gives bishops further advice about seating arrangements:

But if a poor man or woman should arrive, whether from the same region or another congregation, especially if they are elderly, and if they have no place, then you, bishop, should act for them from your heart, even if it means sitting on the ground yourself. There should be no respect of persons with you, but you should please God through your ministry.

The arrangements are deliciously ironic: When big-shots show up, yanking the minister’s chain to receive attention and trying to impose their privileged status on the congregation, ignore them. But when someone arrives whom the world would naturally place last, someone poor or feeble and insignificant, quickly move to find them a place—even the place of highest honor, the bishop’s own seat! By subverting the toxic norms of a sick society, the minister’s seating chart becomes a pointer to the Kingdom.

Not everything in DA would naturally be to the liking of the contemporary minister, but here we have a worthy teacher. Following Jesus’ lead in Luke 14:7–11, DA instructs ministers to embody the gospel in ways that will foster the world of God’s new creation.

Is there a need to rearrange some of the seating charts in your context?

The Boy Who Couldn’t Cry Wolf

2010-07-22T17:55:00.000-07:00

IT WILL COST YOU EVERYTHING" ~BY STEVE LAWSON

2010-07-01T20:24:00.000-07:00

It Will Cost You Everything from I'll Be Honest on Vimeo.

A Kneeling Heart

2010-06-22T15:54:00.000-07:00

Some people pray just to pray and some people pray to know God. ~Andrew Murray

Purity is Important After All...

2010-06-20T10:31:00.000-07:00

Prayer

2010-06-20T10:07:00.001-07:00

Far, far from our prayers too often is any thought of prayer for a love which will lead us to give one whom we love to follow our Lord to Gethsemane, to Calvary – perhaps because we have never been there ourselves.”

- Amy Carmichael, Gold by Moonlight

The Battle of The Mind

2010-06-17T09:15:00.000-07:00

The Nehemiah Institute's worldview PEERS test shows that 83% of the children from committed Christian families in public schools adopt a secular humanist or Marxist socialist worldview by the time they graduate. In addition, the SBC's 2002 annual meeting, the Southern Baptist Council on Family Life reported that 88% of... the children raised in evangelical homes who attend public school,
leave church at age 18.

Adam And Eve's Unhappy Sex Life

2010-06-16T09:34:00.000-07:00

A post that caught my attention. Just ponder on this! Think of how Adam and Eve relationship would be like now being seperated from God. Isn't this what many men and women are experiencing apart from the Love of God. One relationship to another....feeling empty!

John Jansen posted this picture entitled Adam and Eve. It's a "painting that ... has [been] used in Theology of the Body presentations".

I don't know who painted it or where, but I feel compelled to re-post it. John says it speaks for itself, but I feel like it needs talking about.

It's just so potent, so visceral. I see boredom and pain. I see people trapped in a mechanical sexual relationship without pleasure. I see addiction. The half-nakedness suggests a hot summer night whose carnal activities has not brought relief from the heat outside or passion from within.

She looks old, worn out, tired; but she continues to apply make up to try to make herself alluring -- yet failing. She actually looks older than he does, suggesting some kind of cougar-love where the past-her-prime sexual aggressor actively seeks out the younger man to try to recapture her fading flower. Her vanity mirror is in front of her while she applies the makeup, but her eyes are sliding to the side, as if to see if Adam is still there, still caught in her wiles. Extending the metaphor, the classic pose of turning her head one way and her eyes another gives the viewers the impression that she is looking at us, to catch us too.

Adam looks spent, bored, and non-vital. He's either asleep, in pain, or both as his slack-jawed expression suggests. He looks post-coital, as if he's only just pulled on his pants. He grips the apple near his prominent crotch as he sits splay-legged. The apple here is a symbol of the forbidden fruit from the Garden of Eden, something that was taken in a way that was not supposed to be taken. It doesn't bring him pleasure, but he keeps hanging on to it, unable to let it go. In this picture the apple represents sex, but without love: a mechanical, even boring pursuit. He looks as if he meant to eat the apple, but fell asleep in situ before he could muster the energy.

The colors are flat: brownish and dull reds, symbolizing a lack of vitality. The browns also suggest earthiness, recalling the Garden of Eden by contrast -- in this case a barrenness, a lack of green growing things, of life. The lighting and shadows are harsh, non-flattering, as if the glare of reality is too much. The window shade is open and it's dark outside, giving the impression that it is a hot night. Since there is light on inside and darkness outside, the open window implies that anyone can see what the couple is doing from outside. The couple's half-nakedness shows a lack of modesty for their own bodies and for the sexual act. It is on display in a form of exhibitionism, but again without pleasure. In fact, Adam's base torso and passed-out pose implies they only just completed the act while the window was open the whole time.

These are just gut reactions I'm having. I'm sure others could explain it better. But I've never seen in one picture the damaging effects of sex without the proper understanding, context, and respect it demands that this picture affords.

Sex outside of marriage, contraceptive sex inside of marriage, self-gratification and selfishness: this is you -- and I've never seen you so unhappy.

Blogger: http://blynken.blogspot.com/search/label/Adam%20and%20Eve

Created for Him

2010-06-16T09:05:00.000-07:00

We were created to be a friend and companion of god!

Man was decieved and chose to live life independently of God.
God created man and woman and placed them in a garden paradise to live and enjoy His presence. Every day God would fellowship with Adam and Eve in the Garden, and He provided for their every need. Adam and Eve were free to live and enjoy God's presence. Their only restriction was eating fro the Tree of Knowledge, which would bring death to their relationship with Him.
Satan deceived Eve by questioning God's character, word, and motives. Adam and Eve believed the lie that they could be like God. This sin affected every aspect of their lives and caused a tragic seperation in their relationship with God.

Believing THE LIE caused a tragic seperation in man's relationship with God...but this didn't stop God from loving us.

The good news provides the solution to the problem of our seperation.

God sent Jesus Christ to earth to reveal God's lve to us, and to give His life a payment for the sins of the whole world. Jesus christ experienced physical death and spiritual seperation fro His Father while paying the penalty for all our sins on the Cross. Jesus experience death for us, so we could be forgiven and receive eternal life. His perfect sacrifice satified the just and righteous demands of a holy God, so that we could enjoy an intimate love relationship with Him. This is good news!
What an Amazing selfless love!

How God Sees Us

2010-06-15T11:33:00.000-07:00

The truth about me is always what God says! Not what I think or feel;
think or do.
The truest thing about me is what God says!

Dug Down Deep

2010-06-14T15:22:00.001-07:00

Dug Down Deep from Sulva Productions on Vimeo.

He Loves You

2010-06-14T06:38:00.000-07:00

You have a Father who loves you more than any other human being on this planet ever has or ever will.
Nothing you can do today will make God love you any more, and nothing you can do today will make God love you any less.
God is not disillusioned with you because he had no illusions about you to begin with.
Because shame, guilt and condemnation have no role in helping you live in God’s life, he has removed them in Christ and does not manage them for your growth.
He wants to make himself known to you daily and teach you how to recognize and follow his voice.

He Loves You!

Embracing Freedom

2010-06-14T05:44:00.000-07:00

The greatest freedom in this kingdom is from the tyranny of your own desires, agendas and plans.

The second greatest freedom is from the tyranny of other people's opinions about you.

John Piper - What is Humility?

2010-06-13T16:18:00.000-07:00

State of the Pulpit - The Pursuit of Humility

2010-06-13T16:07:00.000-07:00

Our Belief System

2010-06-13T13:44:00.000-07:00

Most of our beliefs were formed before we had any "spiritual" awareness of God.

Because we had no conscious understanding of God or "truth" as He defines it, we formed our own belief system apart from His truth. We have grown up living independently of god and relying on our own understanding-which has courrupted our belief system. Our corrupted beliefs seems more true than God's Word. They may even seem more rational.

There is a way which seems right to man, but its end is the way of death.
Proverbs 14:12 NAS

A "belief" is an assumption we hold to be true: a presupposition or conviction. We do not usually question it and are often not even consciously aware of it. We have belief about everything. We do not live by animal instincts, but by beliefs that have been developed and reinforced throughout our lives. Just as our eyes recognize color but fail to percieve x-rays or radio waves, so our beliefs cause us to process certain information and block other information.

Like a filter, our beliefs cause us to accept or reject new data.

God's Word Reveals the Root of Our Problems

2010-06-13T11:52:00.000-07:00

We face problems every day, and we struggle from time to time in our Christian lives. Jesus assured us that we would have trouble in this world, but He also promised that He would be with us and would make us a overcomer. Only Jesus has the power and authority to overcome the problems of this world, and only Jesus can overcome the personal, internal problems we struggle with each day. Our Creator understands us better than we understand ourselves. He came that we might have and enjoy life.

I came that they might have and enjoy life, and have it in abundance 9to the full, till it overflows). John 10:10 Amplified

Why then, do I experience so little victory and joy in my life? Why are so many Christians plaqued with personal problemss? Why are we not experiencing the abundant life that Jesus promised? Whether we are struggling with emotional, relational, behavioral, or spiritual problems, Jesus is the answer and has revealed the solution in His Word. The Bible contains everything we need to know to live a successful and abundant life.
Where do you turn for help in the midst of life's problems? Where do you look for solutions? to whom do you turn for wisdom? Do you try to resolve your problems in your own strenght ans with man wisdome? Do you become so focused on the problems that fail to apply the supernatural resources available to you in Christ. Are you forcused on the symptoms instead of the solution? Do you turn to God as a last resort? In the midst the of your confusion, do you find it difficult to know where to turn in His Word for answers?

Regardless of our problems or confusion, God's Word is Truth, and Jesus is the Answer.

God's Word Reveals the Root of Our Problems

2010-06-08T13:39:00.000-07:00

"Do not be mislead. Bad company corrupts good character. Come back to your senses as you ought, and stop sinning; for there are some who are ignorant of God--I say this to your shame." 1 Corinthians 15:33-34

He who walks with the wise become wise, but a companion of fools suffer harm. -Proverbs 13:20

Folly is bound up in the heart of a child. Proverbs 22:15

The prudent see danger and take refuge, but the simple keep going and suffer for it. Proverbs 27:12

Follow your instincts and say no! Have courage and be bold--these are our children that are at stake. God put you in charge. No one will love and protect them the way you do. The people who will want to influence your children and lure them away will not be around for them when they fall.

Stand your ground, parents!

Protect your children

Sloth

2010-06-08T13:30:00.000-07:00

Slothfulness casts into a deep sleep, and an idle person will suffer hunger. Proverbs 19:15

How can we use this time to advance God's kingdom on earth and bring glory to Him while we are here?

The Sola Panel | Job and prayer

2010-06-04T11:34:00.000-07:00

Job and prayer Andrew Barry

The Sola Panel | Job and prayer

The Fruit Of The Spirit Is.....

2010-05-28T06:09:00.001-07:00

Galatians 5:22,23

Prodigal: An Animation

2010-05-27T19:18:00.000-07:00

The Prodigal Daughter

Stay in His presence!

2010-05-27T06:32:00.000-07:00

God’s preeminent calling on our lives has to do with our relationship with Him, not our service for Him. From Genesis to Revelation we find that God’s relentless pursuit of man has far more to do with taking hold of his heart than enlisting his hand. What delights Him far more than a morally upright life or one spent in service to others is a life caught up in passionate pursuit of knowing Him and enjoying Him”

By Dwight Edwards

Seeking the Spirit's help as we study his words

2010-05-20T09:47:00.000-07:00

The opening paragraphs of Dale Ralph Davis' The Word Became Fresh: How to preach from Old Testament narrative texts are enough to stop every preacher dead in his tracks.

Ralph Davis mentions that as he was reading Richard Pratt's He Gave Us Stories, Pratt cited these words from John Owen:

For a man solemnly to undertake the interpretation of any portion of Scripture without invocation of God, to be taught and instructed by his Spirit, is a high provocation of him; nor shall I expect the discovery of truth from any one who thus proudly engages in a work so much above his ability.
And if that were not enough to send you to your work with your complacency shaken, Ralph Davis adds:

We are guilty of arrogance, not merely neglect, when we fail to beg for the Spirit's help in the study of Scripture. We may even have such arrogance even when we seem to be seeking the Spirit's aid--I think of those times when in a light-headed tokenism we utter our slap-happy prayer that the Lord would 'guide and direct us as we study this passage.'

One shudders to think how flippant we are. But how many more times we neglect any overt seeking of the Spirit's help! The pressure is on. The passage must be studied for the sermon or lesson. We pull out our exegetical notes; we grab several of the better commentaries off the shelf; make sure that one Bible dictionary of choice is close at hand.

Deep into our study time the thought occurs to us that we have not looked--nor did we think of looking--to the God who breathed out this Scripture to give us an understanding of the Scripture.

He will likely give that understanding through the tools we use, but when we use tools while neglecting him the tools have become idols.

We may have a high view of the Bible; we may be distraught because large sectors of the church seem to ignore its authority. Yet in our own Scripture work we easily ignore its chief Interpreter.

Professionalism rather than piety drives us. We needn't be surprised at our sterility and poverty if we refuse to be beggars for the Spirit's help.
These words are well worth reading again, and reflecting upon at length, and acting on daily. Who knows, this may be the most important thing that you read today.

Article by Against Heresies

The Dancer

2010-05-17T12:27:00.000-07:00

The Dancer

Contortion

2010-04-09T10:50:00.000-07:00

The Performance Treadmill

2010-03-08T06:59:00.000-08:00

I came across this article and it is good to know that someone also feel like I do..

by Jeff McQuilkin

I think the thing I miss the least about church-as-usual–especially as a staff member–is the pressure to perform, especially during service times. I learned–and I taught–that when it was time for our gathering, all our problems were tabled, all our personal issues were put to the side for the purpose of focusing on God. If we were having a hard time, or a bad day, all that had to go away for however long we were in the service. It was a sincere effort, really, not an attempt to be heartless. I really believed that it honored God to serve Him and the people no matter how I felt at the moment. And there is truth to that, I think, because whenever we can get our minds off ourselves to help others, it’s a healthy thing.

What hurt about it was not the willful turning of my attention to God, nor did I believe He didn’t care about my problems. What hurt was that because I always seemed to be playing a pivotal, seemingly irreplaceable role in the service, when I was in crisis, the leaders seemed to care more about whether I could “pull off” my role in the service than how I was doing personally.

Nobody would have admitted it, no one would have wanted to put it this way. But the attitude was, The Show Must Go On.

As believers, it is definitely important that we gather together, although I really have a broader understanding of what that can look like. But when the church service is the centerpiece of church, the meeting itself becomes more important than the people who are gathering at the meeting. And that, I think, is where setting our issues aside becomes unhealthy. We really weren’t doing it for God. We were doing it for appearances. The Show Must Go On.

I can still see this on the faces of pastors, people I know and care about, people whom I know to be genuinely sincere. They don’t even realize when they are doing it, but there is a fear on Sunday mornings of anything that could disrupt the order of service. Everything must go off without a hitch, everything must be run smoothly. No matter how many times it is protested that church is not a show…it is still run like one. And It Must Go On. No Matter What. It is one of the major reasons why people simply cannot see the Church as people anymore. Church is a building, a program, a gathering.

A show.

The think I like best about not doing that anymore is that I no longer feel enslaved by a mandate to make the Show Go On every week. Toward the end of our 10-year stint leading a house church, I think we finally started to get this. It stopped mattering so much what we did when we gathered; it became more about who we were with, and what we shared together. It wasn’t a community coming together each week to do their duty. It was just a community. And because of that, the things we did and said and talked about–the worshiping together, the focusing on Jesus–became that much more meaningful.

As so many of us look for and discover new ways to be the church, I think part of that process really needs to be putting the gathering of believers into a healthier perspective. It seems to me that in finding a better way, a major priority we as believers should have should be to make our gatherings about God and each other, not about…um…the gathering. Just saying.

Thank you, Jeff.

Building Bridges with the Gay Community

2010-03-03T11:49:00.000-08:00

We often find ourselves in awkward situations in which holding to a biblical view of homosexuality will be controversial. In the office, at school, at a party, at church, in conversations with family, friends or neighbors -- talking about what you believe concerning homosexuality can be very difficult. When talking with people who believe homosexuality is an acceptable lifestyle option, suggesting that homosexuality is sinful can appear stupid and rude - if not homophobic, unloving and abusive. When dealing with people who think homosexuals are simply sick perverts, it can appear wishy-washy, compromising, liberal and unbiblical to suggest that God loves and forgives sinners who struggle with homosexuality, and that we should do the same.

Different people are tempted in different ways when placed in these situations. Many of us want to sidestep the issue and avoid an unpleasant incident, concerned that the gospel message will get lost or distorted in the conflict, or that people will get the wrong impression and no longer listen. Sometimes we just don't want to bother with the hassle. Others of us can get so frustrated with those who hold to and promote destructive falsehoods that we show little Christ-likeness as we set out to clearly indicate exactly how we think the persons with whom we are speaking are wrong.
The issue of homosexuality takes these rather common relational dynamics and amplifies them. Discussion of homosexuality evokes strong emotions and responses, especially when people disagree, and touches on fundamental convictions about right and wrong, love and justice, heaven and hell. The responsibility of Christians to be both prophets and peacemakers in the midst of heated debate requires us to turn again to the Scriptures for guidance as to how we should represent Christ in a fallen world.

Patiently Listen
My dear brothers, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, for man's anger does not bring about the righteous life that God desires. - James 1:19-20
Don't just listen for opportunities to find fault or critique. Listen to understand how others feel and think. Listen for what matters to the other people, what they value, what they fear. If you don't understand something, ask questions that encourage the person with whom you are speaking to explain better their position. When a factual claim is made, politely ask to have it substantiated with reference to a verifiable source. You can learn a lot, and demonstrate the kind of respectful hearing you would like to receive. The more you understand an opposing viewpoint, the more you can gain from it. More often than not, folks that are strongly mistaken in one respect are especially perceptive in another. The more you affirm what is true in someone's perspective, the more you can sensitively and credibly address what is errant.

Listening is difficult.
It takes discipline, humility and effort. In this era of sound bites and short attention spans, it can be hard to resist the temptation to speak out at the first opportunity. Listen first, and ask questions to make sure you understand what someone is saying. Let them know you are really listening to them, even though you may disagree. More often than not, the disagreements people have are more complicated than they could possibly work out in the normal course of polite conversation. Attentive listening can pave the way for more serious discussion at a later point. Better a patient man than a warrior, a man who controls his temper than one who takes a city (Proverbs 16:32).

Carefully Discern
Do not answer a fool according to his folly, or you will be like him yourself. Answer a fool according to his folly, or he will be wise in his own eyes. - Proverbs 26:4-5
Any deviation in thought, word or deed from God's revealed will in the Scriptures is what the Bible calls "foolishness." While we should be hesitant to label any person a fool, the Bible is not bashful about saying that some ideas and conduct are foolish and wrong. How we think and how we act matter. Foolishness is something to which we are all vulnerable. While someone may be foolishly espousing defiant falsehoods, it would be equally foolish to be provoked by them into carrying ourselves or thinking in an unwise fashion. Not every situation calls for the same response. It is possible to obey God by both speaking and refraining, depending on the circumstances. Making the right response requires discernment.

Sometimes we need to answer directly someone's foolishness. At other times it may be appropriate to, as it were, let their foolishness speak for itself. Sometimes people will want to oversimplify things into a "Have you stopped beating your wife?" kind of question -- no matter how you answer you will concede their point. Sometimes people will be talking about love or justice, when really they are just defending licentiousness or prejudice. Sometimes people just want to know if you care about what is happening with them or someone they are close to. By listening and discerning, it is possible to speak to the real issues underlying people's arguments, without being trapped by someone else's foolishness. "Brothers, if someone is caught in a sin, you who are spiritual should restore him gently. But watch yourself, or you also may be tempted (Galatians 6:1)."
Foolishness is delusional, making the foolish person wise in their own estimation. As hard as it can be to admit that someone else with whom we disagree is right about something, we are all familiar with how hard it can be to admit when we are wrong, especially if others are watching. Do not be surprised that people will hold foolish convictions with loud impatience. We cannot always, by the power of our persuasive skills, "bring someone around" to a more biblical point of view. When discussing something as complex and controversial as homosexuality, we may not always have "the" answer that will end all argument. We can always provide an example in thought, word and deed that commends itself without argument.

Personally Repent
Now there were some present at that time who told Jesus about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mixed with their sacrifices. Jesus answered, "Do you think that these Galileans were worse sinners than all the other Galileans because they suffered this way? I tell you, no! But unless you repent, you too will all perish. Or those eighteen who died when the tower in Siloam fell on them -- do you think they were more guilty than all the others living in Jerusalem? I tell you, no! But unless you repent, you too will all perish." - Luke 13:1-5

Before we can talk about someone else's sin (be it homosexuality, false teaching, or hatred towards people different from ourselves), Jesus calls us to come clean about our own sin. It is easy for us to think that, because we have a right point to make, our motives in making that point are also right. What are you wanting to achieve when you answer someone? Do you want to win an argument? Do you want to assure yourself that you are not a coward by standing up for the Lord? Do you want someone to approve of you? Do you want to care about this person, or do you just want them to shut up? Do you trust God to accomplish his purposes despite what this person is saying or doing, or do you think you have to make it happen yourself? Are you trying to make a wrong world right, a messy world neat, a complex world simple, or are you trying to love and help people made in God's image who live with you in a complicated and fallen world?

Especially in heated discussion or debate, there is usually ample opportunity for everyone on every side to examine their motives and actions and come up short. It is always easier to see someone else's faults than it is to see our own. Only when we have experienced God's forgiveness of our sin can we responsibly recommend that grace to others. We need the kind of maturity that desires, not so much for people to be shown wrong, but for them to be loved and forgiven in the same way we have been loved and forgiven in Christ. Then we can speak the truth of the gospel with the compassion with which God has spoken that same truth to us. "How can you say to your brother, `Let me take the speck out of your eye,' when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother's eye (Matthew 7:4-5)."

Gently Instruct
Don't have anything to do with foolish and stupid arguments, because you know they produce quarrels. And the Lord's servant must not quarrel; instead, he must be kind to everyone, able to teach, not resentful. Those who oppose him he must gently instruct, in the hope that God will grant them repentance leading them to a knowledge of the truth, and that they will come to their senses and escape from the trap of the devil, who has taken them captive to do his will. - 2 Timothy 2:23-26

There is a difference between obedient witness and stupid arguments, between quarreling and kindness, between gentle instruction and resentful pontificating. While we often equate boldness with sternness, or instruction with insistence, the Bible calls us to be both wise and gentle. This means preparing ourselves, both our minds and our hearts, in advance. We should not assume that our beliefs and attitudes are always correct, but instead we should look to be instructed from God's word ourselves before we presume to instruct others. We need to take time on a regular basis both to learn from God's word and to study the arguments made against it. We need to pray for God to conform us to the likeness of Christ whom we seek to serve, even as we talk with those who would deny him with their words or actions. Jesus said, "I am sending you out like sheep among wolves. Therefore be as shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves (Matthew 10:16)."

We are called to gracious disagreement, humble opposition, gentle instruction. Speaking God's truth will inevitably create conflict. We need to make every effort to have that truth - and not our sinful attitudes and actions - be the cause of such conflict. Many times people will object so vehemently to the truth of the gospel that your gentle manner will speak louder than any words. We are not required to argue someone into repentance, or to be completely perfect in our attitudes, in order for God to accomplish his purposes. It is God who leads people to repentance. Our responsibility is to be faithful to God and to his word, and to give him glory as he works out his will through us his earthen vessels. "The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ (2 Corinthians 10:4-5)."

Mercifully Pursue
Be merciful to those who doubt; snatch others from the fire and save them; to others show mercy, mixed with fear -- hating even the clothing stained by corrupted flesh. -Jude 22-23
God calls us to be neither reclusive nor rude, but instead to move boldly into confusing, high stakes situations with the gospel of God's mercy. We must bring the gospel of God's grace where it is most needed: to the vocally anti-Christian pro-gay activist, or to the mild-mannered clergy who says the love of Jesus means affirming homosexuality as God's gift; to the quietly confused and scared teenager, or to the frantic parent; to the silently shattered spouse, or to the respectable and bigoted conservative. All of these people need God's mercy in Christ. Mercy is more than giving people your opinion in a conversation -- it means practically caring for them as opportunity allows, with your time, attention, compassion and assistance.

Showing mercy does not mean turning a blind eye to sin. On the contrary, it means taking sin very seriously, and seeking to help people immersed in its consequences. This doesn't mean being pushy with your help when it is not welcome. It does mean being patiently and persistently available to help those who live in a fallen world. Sometimes just being willing to talk without arguing can be the most merciful thing you can do. Sometimes saying what you believe in a way that doesn't require a person to agree or disagree can create space in which they can think about what they believe without feeling under pressure to have an answer. Sometimes showing mercy means building relationships with people you might not want to be close to; sometimes it may mean setting or respecting boundaries in relationships despite what people think. Mercy may be the last thing you want to show someone that you see as perpetrating harmful sin against themselves or others. Yet this is how God has revealed his mercy to us, and this is how he has called us to represent him to others.

Some people don't want to hear about God's righteousness; others don't want to hear about his mercy. Others are caught in the middle, thinking they have to choose between Christ and compassion, truth and love. It takes courage and humility, patience and persistence to listen, discern, repent, instruct and pursue as we should. To be Christ-like requires us to be more than we are, to look to and depend upon him who can make us like himself. "With this in mind, we constantly pray for you, that our God may count you worthy of his calling, and that by his power he may fulfill every good purpose of yours and every act prompted by your faith. We pray this so that the name of our Lord Jesus may be glorified in you, and you in him, according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ (2 Thessalonians 1:11-12 )."

Harvest!

2010-02-26T07:29:00.001-08:00

What I liked the most in this story is the psychology of the old man. When he’s alone, he speaks to himself. Every now and then he says “I wish the boy (his apprentice) was here”. Also the way he talks to the birds, to the giant marlin(which is his target) treating it as his friend and he is playing a game with it, to those small fishes, the way he fights with those sharks. I liked his way of looking at things, his zeal for catching the biggest fish, the way he keeps himself alive and pushes his limits everyday, his sacrifices, his dreams, his thinking, his character as a whole. Beautiful. Simply beautiful.

Patience

2010-02-25T12:16:00.001-08:00

Henri Nouwen

Patience is not a waiting passivity until someone else does something. Patience asks us to live the moment to the fullest, to be completely present to the moment, to taste the here and now, to be where we are. When we are impatient we try to get away from where we are. We behave as if the real thing will happen tomorrow, later and somewhere else. Let's be patient and trust that the treasure we look for is hidden in the ground on which we stand."

Trusting God

2010-02-25T10:11:00.000-08:00

It is much easier to say, “Father, please forgive me for being crabby today” than it is to say, “Father, I have been putting so many things before You in my heart that I spend hours every week sinfully angry. I am unloving and selfish in my relationships and lazy in my service to You. Because Jesus died for sins such as these, please forgive me and help me change.” And He will.

C.S. Lewis compares the work of God when we confess sin to the work of dentists when we go to them with a toothache. He says in Mere Christianity (Book 4, Chapter 9: "Counting the Cost"), “I knew those dentists; I knew they started fiddling about with all sorts of other teeth which had not yet begun to ache.”

You should never question the love God has for you. He is even gracious to His enemies, never demanding rent when they walk His earth and breathe His air. So, if you are His purchased possession, do not hesitate to “dump the whole load” when you confess your sins. He already knows how bad it is anyway. The demolition work will only make you look more like His Son.
Can you trust Him?

True Intimacy-Henri Nouwen

2010-02-25T09:39:00.000-08:00

Human relationships easily become possessive. Our hearts so much desire to be loved that we are inclined to cling to the person who offers us love, affection, friendship, care, or support. Once we have seen or felt a hint of love, we want more of it. That explains why lovers so often bicker with each other. Lovers' quarrels are quarrels between people who want more of each other than they are able or willing to give.
It is very hard for love not to become possessive because our hearts look for perfect love and no human being is capable of that. Only God can offer perfect love. Therefore, the art of loving includes the art of giving one another space. When we invade one another's space and do not allow the other to be his or her own free person, we cause great suffering in our relationships. But when we give another space to move and share our gifts, true intimacy becomes possible.

2010-02-24T08:52:00.000-08:00

Here's looking at you, Kid!

The Hen and Her Chicks

2010-02-20T16:11:00.000-08:00

By Wayne Jacobsen

The forest fire had been brought under control, and the group of firefighters were working back through the devastation making sure all the hot spots had been extinguished. As they marched across the blackened landscape between the wisps of smoke still rising from the smoldering remains, a large lump on the trail caught a firefighter's eye.As he got closer he noticed it was the charred remains of a large bird, that had burned nearly half way through. Since birds can so easily fly away from the approaching flames, the firefighter wondered what must have been wrong with this bird that it could not escape. Had it been sick or injured?Arriving at the carcass, he decided to kick it off the trail with his boot. As soon as he did, however, he was startled half to death by a flurry of activity around his feet. Four little birds flailed in the dust and ash then scurried away down the hillside.The bulk of the mother's body had covered them from the searing flames. Though the heat was enough to consume her, it allowed her babies to find safety underneath. In the face of the rising flames, she had stayed with her young. She was their only hope for safety, and willing to risk her own life she gathered them under her body and covered them with herself. Even when the pain reached its most unbearable moment, when she could easily have flown away to start another family on another day, she made herself stay through the raging flames.Her dead carcass and her fleeing chicks told the story well enough--she gave the ultimate sacrifice to save her young. It also illustrates an even greater story--this one almost incomprehensible. In this story it is the Creator of heaven and earth who does exactly the same thing to rescue his wayward children from their own destruction.

Love and Vulnerbility

2010-02-15T16:54:00.000-08:00

By Mary Selby

I happen to have a cocker spaniel by the name of Dusty as my companion. Anatole France couldn't have said it better...

"Until one has loved an animal, a part of one's soul remains unawakened."

“To love at all is to be vulnerable. Love anything, and your heart will certainly be wrung and possibly broken. If you want to make sure of keeping it intact, you must give your heart to no one, not even to an animal. Wrap it carefully round with hobbies and little luxuries; avoid all entanglements; lock it up safe in the casket or coffin of your selfishness. But in that casket- safe, dark, motionless, airless–it will change. It will not be broken; it will become unbreakable, impenetrable, irredeemable.” — C.S. Lewis (The Four Loves)

Tears have fallen today, though we knew this day would come. Our “Arnold Bean”, the once chubby beagle had to be put to sleep at the ripe old age of thirteen. The pain that loving brings is climaxed upon the death bed and perhaps purest in the tears of a child. Yet would we choose to not love, even an animal, in order to avoid such pending hurt, as death comes with life? Would we avoid affectionate attachment, so as to not feel inevitable anguish?
My daughter’s good bye offering to her beloved pet was a video montage which she made from the last pictures of today. Heart felt and tear invoking, her thirteen year old heart morned in an innocent and truthful way. My son, who chose to go with us to put the “old man” to sleep, made some deeply profound statements, as he rubbed his “best friend’s” head. Even in his eleven year old mind, he understood that both Lucifer’s fall and man’s fall were affecting his lovable beagle Arnold, and that because of sin, even the animals must pay the price and die. The sweet little boy that he is, said, “I am going to weep and weep for my best friend.”
Life means death and there is no escaping the pain that it brings. As C. S. Lewis stated, “Love anything, and your heart will certainly be wrung and possibly broken.” In order to live the highest joys, one must experience the lowest lows. Loving an animal, especially for a child, is the first steps of experiencing life and death, joy and pain. These may be the baby steps that help prepare for the loss of a grandparent or friend and should not be discounted and avoided, but embraced as part of growing pains that go along with life in a fallen world.

Relationship Not Religion!

2010-01-29T09:43:00.000-08:00

Relationship Not Religion!

We are passionately committed to help people discover the joy and freedom of relational Christianity. It is our firm conviction that Jesus' death on the cross was to prepare for each of us a dwelling place in the heart of a loving Father and to free us to the kinds of relationships that can share his life with other believers and with the world.
You'll understand our passion when you can figure out who in this cartoon needs the most help.

By relational Christianity we mean:
A personal friendship with Father, Son and Spirit. These are not just words to describe Christianity, but the very way he has called us to live. Healthy relationships with other believers. Many today think fellowship is nothing more than attending the same service together, when it is meant to be so much more. We help traditional churches, home groups and and house churches discover how to relate to one another in his love and allows the ministry of Jesus to flow between them. Friendships with people in the world, so that as God displays his character through us they might come to know the love of God for themselves.

For that to happen we spend a lot of time helping people understand the freedom that Father has given us through the work of his Son, Jesus. Only as we live in his love and freedom can we even begin to experience the power of life in Christ as he brought it to us. Specifically, we help people discover the freedom...

To live in the love of an awesome Father, free to respond to him as he leads you, even if that means you make mistakes now and then.
To walk without guilt or condemnation. Recognize that transformation is a life-long process that Jesus works in us by our security in his love, not something we do for him out of fear.
To be real. To feel what you feel; to ask what you need to ask, to be wrong where you are wrong, and to extend that same freedom to others.
To be liberated from accountability to human leaders who seek to take the place of Jesus in the church by telling others what they think he would have them do.
To love other brothers and sisters freely, serving them the way Jesus leads you and not trying to conform to their expectations of what a 'good Christian' should do for them.
To live free of bitterness and hurt, even where religious institutions (and those who run them) have failed you. We've all got plenty wrong with us, so there can be no end to the generosity we can extend others in their weakness.

With this passion in mind we look for any way Father asks us to...

Go wherever he sends us to encourage people in the life of Jesus, whether it is to hungry hearts in a traditional congregation, a house church, or an informal gathering of believers who want to escape the rigors of religion for the joy and passion of a friendship with the Living God.
Publish materials that will encouarge people to the journey of knowing God better and trusting him more.
Gather with those who are disillusioned with organized religion to help them heal from past abuse and to help them discover what life in Father's family can be.
Equip believers to let God transform them by his magnificent grace, so that they truly relflect his image to the world around them.
Help people who do not know him at all, to be captured by his love.

Article by Wayne Jacobsen

2010-01-28T10:44:00.000-08:00

After riding the tidal wave of the feminist movement of the early 70’s, I began to wonder what value does God really put on women. Regardless of the culture or time, men and women have always had different positions. Were the feminists right, that men and women should be the same? Was traditional America right in the 50’s, a woman’s place is in the home? Or were some of the Middle East cultures right, that women are property?
Even though men in a male-dominated culture wrote the Bible, I believe God’s inspiration reveals His heart for women in those pages.

Women were created second, not second-class. From the very beginning, God put His mark on us! He said that He made men and women to be like Him, not in the way we look, but in His character. He gave us the same moral attributes that He has. He put the same potential to express God’s character to women that He did to men. So God created man in his own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them…. Then the Lord God made a woman from the rib he had taken out of the man, and He brought her to the man. (Genesis 1:27, 2:22) Just as a father gives his precious daughter to her husband in a wedding ceremony, God gave the woman to the man as a special, precious gift.

Men need help! This is a well-known fact to all women but it can be proved Biblically. In Genesis 2:18, God says It is not good for man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him. This verse proves that men need help! It doesn’t say that women need help. God puts a high value on females as we help the male species to function in this world. As wives, we present a different view of life to our husbands. We give them a sense of relationship and community. We fill in their gaps!

The Future is in our hands! God created women to bear the children of the world and to have the primary role in nurturing them. As the famous line goes “The hand that rocks the cradle rules the world.” In our role as mothers of the next generation, we have an incredible opportunity to impact not only the direction of individual lives of our children but also of a whole culture. Even in the “least progressive” of all cultures, women have the role of influencing the next generation because of the amount of time they spend with their children. As a child growing up, my mother had such a positive impact in my life in many ways. One of her most significant dogmas was the prohibition of the phrase “I can’t.” We were not allowed to say those words together at all. Consequently, we were brought to believe we could do anything. Never underestimate the impact of a mother on the life of a child. Can there be any more important role in life?

Bottom line: Whom do you believe?We can believe those who say our worth comes from our position or how much money we make. We can believe those who say it comes from how our kids turn out. We can believe those who say that it comes from how we look or how people respond to us. Or we can believe God! We can believe that we are valuable because of who He made us to be!

Scope

EXPECTATIONS, ANGER AND BITTERNESS

2010-01-28T10:35:00.000-08:00

Throughout life, we all develop expectations. An expectation is something we look forward to happening. Expectations usually develop when we compare ourselves with others (“They get to so why can’t I”) or from promises people make or imply. Some expectations result from true needs in our lives, like being loved, accepted, and feeling safe. When those expectations are not met in the ways we want them to be met by others or God, the emotional reaction is often anger.
The Bible says to “be angry, and yet do not sin” (Ephesians 4:26). Anger becomes a problem when we deal with it in a wrong way. A way to guard against acting in anger is to surrender our expectations to God. In surrendering, I choose to let God meet my needs in the ways He sees best, not in the ways in which I want to see things done. I decide to trust Him and look to Him as the source of my peace, joy, provision and security, instead of looking to circumstances or to other people.

However, what if I don’t recognize an expectation I have and I get angry? What if the anger remains in my heart? When I do not deal with my anger it turns into bitterness. A bitter person is one who is unhappy, resentful, harsh, critical, and mad at the world. If I do not deal with my bitterness it will lead to a sense of hopelessness or despair. The roots of bitterness will go down deeper and deeper into resentment, revenge, not being grateful and having no hope

(Hebrews 12:15).

To deal with anger and bitterness, I can choose to forgive others for what has happened and release them from my expectations. God will deal with them, so I defer that right to Him. I become unable to be satisfied and focus totally on the unmet expectation, and, the one who failed to meet it. Also, I become unable to see how God is meeting my needs. What if the anger is at God? If so, I must make a choice to trust in the truth that God is loving and compassionate, that He is working all circumstances in my life for the good (Romans 8:28), and that He will provide my every need (Philippians 4:19) in His way and in His time.

Scope

Belief System

2010-01-28T10:32:00.000-08:00

Man creates a Belief System

1- Man is a believing being.

We have beliefs about God, ourselves, others, circumstances, events and the world. We operate on the basis of those beliefs. Our beliefs are shaped in various ways - our perception of our parents, our environment, family, school, peers, etc. When we put all our beliefs together, they form a belief system.
Our whole perception of reality is based on beliefs about everything around us. Our beliefs become the lens through which we see everything. Example: Small child is told he is clumsy by his parents when, in reality, he is just displaying normal three-year old motor skills. However, he forms the belief that he is clumsy. He goes through life perceiving his behavior as either an evidence of his clumsiness or an amazing departure from his norm of clumsiness.

2- Man is Controlled by His Belief System

We are controlled by our beliefs. For as he thinks within himself, so he is. Proverbs 23:7a. Remember Karen Carpenter. She got the idea that she was "chubby " so she spent what remained of her life compensating for that chubbiness with anorexia nervosa until she died.
Usually it is more subtle. We act out what we believe is true about ourselves. Even a compliment can be received as rejection based on what we believe about ourselves. Our beliefs are the "grid" or "lens" through which we see life.

3- Man’s Belief System is Corrupted

Our beliefs are corrupted because we were born in sin, live in a sinful world, and are under attack from Satan. Romans 1:21-22 says that our minds and hearts are darkened. For even though they knew God, they did not honor Him as God, or give thanks; but they became futile in their speculations, and their foolish heart was darkened. Professing to be wise, they became fools. Our beliefs are not necessarily logical or rational, but they are our beliefs and we act on them.
Satan attacks us through our belief system. If we believe our worth is tied to how much money we make, he will tempt us with greed and actions which follow that desire.
How do we change our beliefs which are corrupted and are controlling our lives?

And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect. Romans 12:2
. . .that, in reference to your former manner of life, you lay aside the old self, which is being corrupted in accordance with the lusts of deceit, and that you be renewed in the spirit of your mind . . . Ephesians 4:22-23

Scope

Renewing the Mind

2009-10-19T12:51:00.000-07:00

What is to be renewed?
The thoughts and beliefs of our mind. We will make choices (our will) and respond emotionally based upon the thoughts and beliefs we hold.
Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is - His good, pleasing and perfect will. Romans 12:2
And we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ. 2 Corinthians 10:5b

Why does it need to be renewed?
First, because God commands (Romans 12:2). Also, because our minds are thinking in contradiction to our new nature (our new identity). Experiencing our new identity is found in the process of renewing our minds; change happens only through our active participation.
You were taught with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; to be made new in the attitude of your mind; and to put on your new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness. Ephesians 4:22-24

How is the mind renewed?
By choosing to respond in faith to God’s Word in the power of the Holy Spirit.
Holy Spirit + God’s Word + our will = Renewing Process
Some good Scriptures on this subject are the ones previously mentioned plus:
If then you have been raised up with Christ, keep seeking the things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your mind on things above, not on the things that are on earth. Colossians 3:1-2
Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, let your mind dwell on these things. Philippians 4:8
The Christian life is not just a group of principles but a relationship with God. We can get to know God as we devotionally study the Bible.
Some practical steps are to focus on God in your prayer life and to learn about Him and His promises and principles in His Word.
Remember to focus on thoughts and beliefs, not on your emotions as well as deal with one area of your life at a time as God leads you there.
But we have the mind of Christ. 1 Corinthians 2:16b

Renewing the Mind

2009-10-19T12:46:00.000-07:00

What is to be renewed?

The thoughts and beliefs of our mind. We will make choices (our will) and respond emotionally based upon the thoughts and beliefs we hold.
Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is - His good, pleasing and perfect will. Romans 12:2
And we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ. 2 Corinthians 10:5b

Why does it need to be renewed?
First, because God commands (Romans 12:2). Also, because our minds are thinking in contradiction to our new nature (our new identity). Experiencing our new identity is found in the process of renewing our minds; change happens only through our active participation.
You were taught with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; to be made new in the attitude of your mind; and to put on your new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness. Ephesians 4:22-24

How is the mind renewed?
By choosing to respond in faith to God’s Word in the power of the Holy Spirit.
Holy Spirit + God’s Word + our will = Renewing Process
Some good Scriptures on this subject are the ones previously mentioned plus:
If then you have been raised up with Christ, keep seeking the things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your mind on things above, not on the things that are on earth. Colossians 3:1-2
Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, let your mind dwell on these things. Philippians 4:8
The Christian life is not just a group of principles but a relationship with God. We can get to know God as we devotionally study the Bible.
Some practical steps are to focus on God in your prayer life and to learn about Him and His promises and principles in His Word.
Remember to focus on thoughts and beliefs, not on your emotions as well as deal with one area of your life at a time as God leads you there.
But we have the mind of Christ. 1 Corinthians 2:16b

The coming evangelical collapse | csmonitor.com

2009-07-02T06:21:00.001-07:00

The coming evangelical collapse csmonitor.com

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A Dwelling Place

2009-06-29T15:25:00.000-07:00

"being built together into a dwelling place for God by the Spirit." Ephesians 2:22

A Dwelling Place

2009-06-29T15:15:00.000-07:00

"being built together into a dwelling place for God by the Spirit." Ephesians 2:22

What does that mean, Lord?

FROM ATHEISM TO CHRISTIANITY by A.S.A. Jones

2009-06-16T14:47:00.000-07:00

An ex-atheist finds faith in God through Christianity after more than twenty years of atheism. Learn about the discoveries that led to Jesus Christ. I was a devout atheist for over twenty years. In July of 1998, I finally managed to see the biblical truths that had managed to elude me. The following is an account of how I went from hardcore skepticism to hardcore worship of the Savior, Jesus Christ. RATIONAL THOUGHT REPLACES THE GOD OF MY YOUTH I was raised a Roman Catholic in a home where the name of Jesus Christ and God was never mentioned. I was encouraged to attend catechism and church every weekend, but the concept of God was never made completely real to me. I entertained the notion as any child would, but I just wasn't into the imaginary friend scene and by the time I was thirteen, I had concluded that God was merely a vicious adult version of the Easter bunny. I abandoned the lie, informed my upset parents that I would no longer be attending church, and began seeking truth. In the absence of a religious belief to answer life's questions, I turned my mental energy to science. Science had an awesome track record of solving many problems and its resulting technology had provided tangible benefits to all of mankind. Science was the answer! I reasoned that if we could educate our populations and continue to make advances in medicine, agriculture and energy production, we would one day have the mythical Eden as our reality. I threw myself into my studies, determined to become a scientific messiah who would one day deliver people from the bondage of disease. At the age of sixteen, my IQ and my grades made me eligible for my high school's early release program and I began my studies in biology and chemistry at the University of Pittsburgh. Read more.....http://www.ex-atheist.com/6.html

2009-06-01T16:13:00.000-07:00

As I stayed home from work wanting some solitude. Away from people,

2009-06-01T13:16:00.001-07:00

Each of us will at some point in our lives look upon a loved one and ask the question:"We are willing, Lord, but what can we do?"For it is true that we can seldom help those closest to us. Either we don't know what part of ourselves to give, or, more often than not, the part we have to give is not wanted. And so it is those we live with, and should know, who elude us. But we can still love them. We can love completely, without complete understanding.

-A RIVER RUNS THROUGHT IT

2009-05-31T15:40:00.000-07:00

http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.persecution.net/catalog/images/foxesbookofmartyrs1.jpg&imgrefurl=http://persecutedchurch.blogspot.com/&usg=__MWi8cOmv5l7VkOkC15T-b8PL0LA=&h=240&w=300&sz=16&hl=en&start=51&um=1&tbnid=q9rzHP2Bo_0HuM:&tbnh=93&tbnw=116&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dchristians%2Bmartyrs%26ndsp%3D20%26hl%3Den%26sa%3DN%26start%3D40%26um%3D1

2009-05-28T18:18:00.000-07:00

God's Word Reveals the Root of Our Problems

The solution to the problems we struggle with can be discovered by addressing the root of our problems as revealed in God's Word.

Romans 1:25-identifies man's basic root problem.

For they exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshipped and served the creature rather than the Creator.

The root of problems began in the Garden,when Eve believed the serpent and being decieved, chose to disregard God's warning. Adam chose to join Eve rather than obey God. They both decided to determine for themselves what is true and what is good. They chose to live life independent of God and rely on their own reason rather than God's Word.

Genesis 3:1-7

A Key Principle

"A lie believed as truth will affect your life as if it were

true-even though it is a lie."

2009-05-28T16:44:00.000-07:00

Emotions can be messy when they seem more true than God's Word.

Our emotions are manageable.

Recognize: Your Emotions!

Ask God to show you what emotions you are feeling.

Express: Your Emotions To God!

a. He already knows them.

b. "I'm so mad I could........"

Evaluate: Emotions In Light Of God's Word!

a. Are my emotions in charge?

b. What are they reflecting about my beliefs?

Decide: To Replace Thinking And Behavior With God's Truth.

what is missing in our lives?

2009-05-28T12:50:00.000-07:00

Purpose, meaning, a reason for living, these are all things we desire and search for in life. Despite steps each one of us takes to find purpose and meaning in life, we still feel empty, unfulfilled. That is because there is a spiritual emptiness in each of our lives. We each have a hole in our heart, a spiritual vacuum deep within our soul-a "God-shape blank." Possessions wont' fill this hole, nor will success. Relationships alone cannot satisfy this emptiness, and morality, in and of itself, falls miserably short of occupying this space. In fact, even religion cannot fill the void in our heart.

There is only one way to effectively fill that void. This way will not only help us to have a life that is full and rich on this earth, but more important, will give us the absolute hope of spending eternity in the presence of God. Before we can truly appreciate this good news, though, we need to understand the bad news, which is a serious problem we all have.

The problem is: SIN

God so long to talk to you....through the Bible.

Inspire: Extreme

2009-05-28T11:49:00.000-07:00

Inspire: Extreme

I really enjoy your post. I liked the part that you shared about your Kindle 2. Why? I was thinking of purchasing one but was having second thoughts about it. But you have described how much you enjoyed it and so I am encouraged to invest in one of the Kindle new generation. Also, I like that you love the Lord and so your web. I will be praying for you that the Lord will continue to bless you and your family. Stand strong and embrace the Father
's Word and let it take roots in your heart.

In His Step,
Chris

"Do I Matter?"

2008-10-26T16:45:00.000-07:00

Living on purpose is the only way to really live. Everything else is just existing.
The three main questions most people have as they come to discover a purpose in their lives are: “Who am I?” which is about your identity” The second is “Do I matter?” which speaks to our need of feeling important. The last is “What is the place in my life?” This deals with our desire to make a difference or an impact with our lives.
Hopefully the light bulb has come on and you have had a few “ah-ha” moments on the journey. God is so willing to work with us and help us if we just cooperate. The fact is that it’s easy to get off course. This will take us doing our part to work at this, take action to develop some new habits and focus.
One of the ways we can better “internalize” our purpose is to develop a Life Purpose Statement. It’s a statement that summarizes God’s purpose for your life. It’s not a list of goals. It’s not a “to-do” list. As a matter of fact I have heard it said that sometimes it’s better to have a “not-to-do” list, but we’re not talking about that either.
Your Life Purpose Statement is a way, in your own words to write down and affirm a commitment to the five purposes in your life that you have been learning about over the last six weeks.
It’s a statement that points the direction of your life. It’s a statement that speaks to what you are going to do with your time, life and money, and it also addresses the areas of your life that you are not going to do certain things..where you may need to stop spending money, time, or resources.
It’s a statement that defines success for you. You write down what you believe is important, not what your friends, co-workers or the world thinks… it’s what you think. It clarifies your values. It clarifies your roles, and it is a statement that expresses your “shape.” It reflects the unique ways that God made you to serve him.
It’s easier to prepare a Life Purpose Statement if you answer the Five Greatest Questions:

What will be the center of my life?
What will be the character of my life?
What will be the contribution of my life?
What will be the communication of my life?
What will be the community of my life?

An example of a short life statement can be like this.
“My life purpose is to worship Christ with my heart, serve him with my shape, fellowship with his family, grow like him in character, and fulfill his mission in the world so he

receives glory."

Think on these things!

"Purpose Driven Life"

It All Starts with God

2008-10-26T15:41:00.000-07:00

IT'S NOT ABOUT YOU!

The purpose of your life is far greater than your own personal fulfillment, your peace of mind, or even your happiness. It’s far greater than your family, your career, or even yourwildest dreams and ambitions. If you want to know why you were placed on this planet, you must begin with God. You were born by his purpose and for his purpose.The search for the purpose of life has puzzled people for thousands of years.

Think on these things!

That’s because we typically begin at the wrong starting point—ourselves. We ask self-centered questions like,“What do I want to be? What should I do with my life? What are my goals, my ambitions, my dreams for my future?” But focusing on ourselves will never reveal our life’s purpose.

You must be "Purpose Driven"

Think on these things!

We Need a New Psychology

2008-10-24T18:12:00.000-07:00

Suppose You could ask all the people in the world who are not hungry, sick, or poor, people who seem to have a lot to live for, to give you an honest answer to the question, "How are you?" Millions would say, "I'm miserable." If asked why, almost all of them would blame someone else for their misery-lovers, wives, husbands, exes, children, parent, teachers, students, or people they work with. There is hardly a person alive who hasn't been heard saying, "You driving me crazy....That really upset me....
Don't you have any consideration for how I feel?....You make me so mad, I can't see straight." It never crosses their minds that they are choosing the misery they are complaining about.
Choice Theory

Think on these thing!