God, What on Earth are You Doing?

Stuck in the Present

Pooping Elephants

The Battle for Hell

Ecclesiastes, Songs of Songs (Holman Old Testament Commentary, Vol. 14)

The Last Men's Book You'll Ever Need

Good Christians, Good Husbands?

FASHIONABLE IS FLEETING

2 Replies

I am regularly asked what I think about some new approach or insight to living the Christian life.  Trendy stuff catches the imaginations of many Christians.  I could give many examples.  They come and go, but sadly many Christians continue to hold out hope that there will be some new breakthrough for their lackluster, spiritual life.

Whenever I am asked about one of these new, sexy approaches to walking with Jesus, I am saddened and sometimes a bit outraged.  There are so many better (and many times accessible) riches available.  For example, the Puritans had much to say about discouragement, temptations of all sorts, even what to do with recurring dreams where one is enticed sexually.

I am constantly asked what I thought about books like the best-selling, The Prayer of Jabez.  No one asks me about that book anymore.   Fashionable is fleeting!

 

NO CHEST BEATING!

Leave a reply

Our dear friends, Allison and Darin Maurer, served on Cru staff with us at Stanford University.  Allison recently reminded me of a visit they paid to us when we were living in the “Chicagoland” area.

We went to Willow Creek and they were having a celebration for their church.  They had a nifty brochure for the event, but it was the information inside which shocked and thrilled me.  Along with the wonderful things which happened over the years, they candidly described some of their failures, including mention (not by name) of former pastors infidelity.  

I was edified by Willow Creek’s humility, and their saying no to the temptation of beating their collective chest.

BE READY!

2 Replies
There are events in everyone’s life which make a deep impact.  One for me occurred while sitting in a Sunday School class.  I was a young Christian at the time just beginning my seminary studies.
The class was being taught by a likeable Dallas seminary graduate.  He had been a pastor for many years.  There were about seventy of us in the class.  Yes, I do recall well many of these details and you will soon know why!
Our teacher was speaking on that controversial issue of whether the full humanity of Jesus demands that He could have sinned.  Jesus obviously did not sin, but does real temptation carry with it the possibility to sin?
Our teacher asked if there were any questions and here is where I learned a big lesson.  A Cal Tech graduate who is a diligent student of Scripture (reminds me of my dear friend, Dr. David McCoy) raised his hand.  The Cal Tech scientist graciously, but meticulously started to show the flaws in the Dallas Seminary grad’s teaching.  It became painfully clear that the pastor had not prepared, not just for that particular lesson, but more broadly had not put preparation as a high goal upon leaving seminary. 
The atmosphere in the room was tense, even awkward.  The winsomeness of both teacher and inquisitor quelled the tension a bit, but only a bit! 
So if you are called to teach don’t become so enamored with the platform of influencing people that you fail to prepare!

CONFESSIONS OF AN EX-EVANGELICAL

Leave a reply
“…I went to Evangelical churches fifty-two Sundays a year for the better part of 19 years, and I cannot for the life of me remember once when the name of a theologian was mentioned…
Instead of an intellectual tradition, it is a church built on emotion.  Every sermon is a revival stump speech about the evils of the world and the need for salvation.”
The rest of this short, but extremely important piece is here: http://www.theamericanconservative.com/dreher/ex-evangelical-pro-gay-millennial/

TRINITARIAN OR UNITARIAN?

Leave a reply
The picture above is of Trinitarian Congregational Church in Concord, Massachusetts. 
Last year, I was in the Boston area on two different occasions.  I spent some time in Concord with our youngest son, Chris.  These visits got me thinking about the whole split of the Unitarians from the Congregationalists.  There are many Unitarian and Congregational churches in Massachusetts, and several look similar from the outside. 
One Congregational church in Concord makes their theological allegiance clear by calling themselves Trinitarian Congregational Church.
Update: I looked at Trinitarian’s doctrinal statement and it is not so clear what they actually believe about the trinity!

HOW TO BE DEEP

Leave a reply

“We’re not only obsessed with happiness. The New York Times columnist argues that we focus on accumulating power, material wealth, and professional achievements instead of cultivating the kinds of qualities that will be discussed at our funerals. As Brooks phrases it, we emphasize ‘resume virtues’ over ‘eulogy virtues.'”

Wise reflections:

http://www.theatlantic.com/national/archive/2014/07/david-brooks-5-step-guide-to-being-deep/373699/