They Will Know We Are Christians By Our…..

It’s interesting for me to hear this line from the song and think of how true it is. And how I have tried so many things to finish the sentence with so many things that just haven’t worked. T-shirts, bumper stickers, piety, hypocrisy, and judgmental attitude. Surprisingly those things really don’t draw people in. Its hard for me to love someone I look down on, but an honest view of myself and where I stand with God helps me love people other then myself. Although I am still trying to get a grasp on what Godly love actually is.

Wisdom for Drawing Out Deep Waters

Some Thoughts on Prov. 20:5 “The purpose in a man’s heart is like deep water, but a man of understanding will draw it out.” Let’s see if we can draw out some of the meaning of this verse. Seems to me a couple of ideas are presented, or possible, here. The “purpose” may be obscure & thus requiring wisdom to be found out & expressed clearly or it may be profound & thus requiring wisdom to be understood & applied. Also, I’m not exactly sure who the author intends here regarding the man of understanding–is it the man himself or another man? Perhaps both are intended; regardless, both are true: We need wisdom to draw things out of ourselves as well as others. I think vs. 27 in this chapter  sheds further...

Dealing with the Religious

In Concert

“Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit; and there are varieties of service, but the same Lord; and there are varieties of activities, but it is the same God who empowers them all in everyone.” 1 Corinthians 12:5-6 This summer makes for my first break from seminary life since the fall of 2003. In these five-plus years of being a “professional Christian” I came to realize that seminary is a lot like high school. For every “focus of ministry” there is a clique with privileges for the in-group and a semi-respectful affection for those not so fortunate to be in the club. For some of these it has been a particular pleasure to witness the dance of a given calling as it works itself out in the life of a brother or sister. For others, it has...

“You suck.” “No you suck”

Do not rebuke a mocker or he will hate you; rebuke a wise man and he will love you. Proverbs 9:8 So parenting again has laid a golden egg. The most ironic thing that I have found in life is that while I am trying to teach my kids things, I am finding that I really need to learn them myself. There have been several really good personal things, but the biggest thing right now is getting him to listen to correction. The hilarious thing about teaching my son this is that I need to learn this FAR more than he does. The typical reaction that I have to a well placed rebuke or correction whether it comes from my wife, a friend or a direct stranger is to be defensive and often point out the flaws in their character. Conversations like this, especially among Christian men,...