December 2011
37 posts
4 tags
New Year
For all the people that keep talking about 2012, and the Mayan calendar, I’m just going to go out on a limb here, and say that they probably should have spent more time predicting the arrival of the Spanish, than predicting the end of the world. It would have been much more beneficial for them….
If they were so great, you’d think they would have figured it out. Stop stressing,...
Fruit
Perhaps the fruit we are to bear in Christ are the very things that will satiate the world’s cravings—pointing them back to the source, the living Water, the Bread of Life, the True Vine.
If you are not bearing fruit, you are not being an effective witness, no matter how much you preach the Gospel. It is the fruit that bring people to Christ, not your arguments.
Something to think...
Anonymous asked: Hey, just browsing through some of your posts and noticed you mentioned an ENTJ... what is that exactly? :)
Merry Christmas Eve, Everyone!
Let’s all remember the true Spirit of Christmas… The Holy Spirit!
Peace and love, folks.
Storms
John 6:18-20— “Then the sea arose because a great wind was blowing. So when they had rowed about three or four miles, they saw Jesus walking on the sea and drawing near the boat; and they were afraid. But He said to them, ‘It is I; do not be afraid.’”
We think it strange to be in the midst of storms. But how often does God use the storms in our life as a chance to...
Incarnation
The Christmas season is all about remembering when Jesus came down from heaven, to be a man—this is the incarnation: That God took on flesh and became a person.
But, at the heart of it is that God became LIKE US. This is huge—and another picture of this is in the book of John, when Jesus is talking to the Samaritan woman. She says to Him—“Why are you talking to me? You...
scarroll48 replied to your post: Honest Question
Yeah what is EnJT? But you’ve been preaching straight truth lately brother!
Hah. Thanks, man! I go into preaching mode from time to time. :P
And an ENTJ is a personality type. Here’s a link to a pretty good explanation. Basically describes me better than I could ever describe myself, in case you guys have ever wondered what kind of person I...
Honest Question
Am I the only ENTJ in all of Tumblr?
Everyone seems to be something else. I feel so alone. :P
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Theology
Theology shapes and dictates the way you live.
Adam and Eve decided that God was a God of hyperbole. When God said that disobedience to His laws would result in death, they decided He was exaggerating. They forever lost their true potential by allowing their theology to be shaped by something other than God Himself—much worse, they allowed it to be shaped by Satan himself. If there is one thing I...
I am not religious, but I love Jesus religiously.
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Prayer
In Jesus’ first miracle, mentioned in the Gospel of John, chapter 2, Mary, His mother comes to Jesus and announces that they are out of wine at the wedding.
This would have been a huge embarrassment for the bride’s family. Seeing that Mary is concerned (and orders the house servants around) probably means that she is a member of this particular family…. or at the least an...
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Part VIII-Becoming Human (Called to Change)
Being a part of the Kingdom of God means returning to your humanity—to what you were created for. We were created in the image of God, and then we fell. Sin has separated us from God, and from each other, and now we live in a world full of pain, disillusionment, and plenty of problems. So, then, the call to join the movement, is the call to come alive. Jesus said “I have come that you may have...
Part VII--Becoming Human (The Little Kingdom)
Earlier in the series, I wrote about how difficult it was for me to understand what Jesus was trying to say when He said “Repent, the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand.” I’m sure that I’m not alone in this. When I look around, all I see is pain, and hurt, and injustice, and things like that. It’s not that I’m saying Jesus lied, it’s just that I don’t see it—I can’t see it. But then, I began to...
Part VI--Becoming Human (Our Kingdoms)
Before going any more into what God’s Kingdom might look like, I think it is important first to decide what our kingdoms look like—and I’m not talking about physical governments and kingdoms (although a lot of times they can be the offspring of our own little kingdoms), but I’m talking about small personal, and community kingdoms that we set up—the ones that we allow to completely rule our way of...
Part V--Becoming Human (Change Your Mind)
I remember having a conversation with my roommate in college about the people that stand on street corners with the signs that say “Repent, For the Kingdom of God is at hand!” I told him that I couldn’t stand those people (I’m still not sure if I can… but by God’s grace, I’ll try to love them). And my reasoning was this: God’s kingdom can’t be at hand. We can’t possibly be staring into the...
Part IV--Becoming Human (Pain and Suffering)
This is one of the most complex, and difficult topics to write about. Obviously, there is no easy answer as to why God allows pain and suffering, but it is part of our condition, and so I think I should touch on it, at least for one chapter.
I’m not going to try to reason and explain it away, or try to excuse God. That would be foolish. Instead, I’m going to try to work through a...
Part III-Becoming Human (Sin)
What is sin? I am convinced that it is anything that separates you from God. What I mean is that really nothing is “sin” by itself…. Things aren’t evil in and of themselves, they are only evil when done outside of how God intended them, or done without God being a part.
When Adam and Eve ate the fruit, it wasn’t a sin because the fruit was “evil”. That would be absurd; it was evil...
Part II-Becoming Human (The Fall)
“Then the LORD God called to Adam and said to him, ‘Where are you?’”
We read in Genesis 3 that man went from being ideal, to something less. Eve was convinced by a snake to eat some fruit, and then she had Adam eat it…. And their eyes were opened, and they saw that they were naked.
I’m going to jump out on a limb on this one, and offer an explanation very different...
Part I--Becoming Human (Created in His Image)
Genesis 1:26-28 — “Then God said, ‘Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.’ So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them. Then God said, ‘Be fruitful and multiply; fill...
“Consumerism can also poison our relationship with Christ. Jesus becomes a...”
– The Advent Conspiracy
Journey
I’m embarking on letting everyone in on an epic explanation of what it means to be human. I think I’ll make it a significant 9-10 part explanation, which will unfold probably over the course of two to three days.
I’ve already got the queue loaded up. Should be fun.
Peace and love, friends.
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Santa
Once, someone told me that Santa wasn’t real. Of course, I didn’t believe him.
Me: ”So, if Santa’s not real, who puts all the presents under the tree?”
My friend: ”Your parents”
Me: ”That’s the dumbest thing I’ve ever heard! How would my parents travel all around the world in ONE NIGHT, putting presents under every kid’s...
Anonymous asked: What is your testimony? What has God delivered, healed, and saved you from? What is your experience with Him that makes you so sure that He is the true God?
Faith
I think the majority of the problems in the world come from our innate belief of being able to fix situations. What I mean is that we believe we can create a Utopia—we can make the world better.
We are convinced that with enough stuff, or enough education, or enough money, or enough technology, or enough friendships, etc. we will be able to solve ever ill, whatsoever.
That’s what...
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Fighting
I don’t know why it always becomes such a platform to scowl at people in stores when they say “Happy Holidays”…. I mean, they’re wishing you a happy time during the holidays. By the way, there are more holidays going on right now than simply Christmas….
Saying “MERRY CHRISTMAS” in a condescending tone is not evangelism… and it’s not an...
Salvation
Remember that God did not send His Son to save the fallen angels…. Be humbled, and infinitely thankful and grateful.
Peace and love!
People who are relatively happy with their lives,...
“The Christmas pageant was over, or so I thought. In the South Indian village...”
– Paul Hiebert, Transforming Worldviews
This is a very humorous story, but there’s a biting reality to it. It’s amazing that in our minds, we really do see two different Christmases… it makes sense to us—and yet to the rest of the world, you wonder what kind of message it...
Theology
It’s amazing… I’ve studied theology for years, taken Bible classes, Hermeneutics, homiletics, exegetical seminars, been in church for years….
But I don’t know if I’ve ever understood the true depth of the Gospel as much as I have studying societies, anthropology, and interpersonal relationships. I’m definitely falling in love with anthropology. And...
Problem
The problem is that people have put themselves at the center of the universe. Our biggest concern is what we think and believe about God, rather than what God thinks of us.
We start to believe that what we believe about God and the world is what really matters…. there’s something wrong with that.
Peace and love.
Afghan woman: "I'll marry rapist, even though I... →
This is a story of a woman who alerted police that she had been raped, only to be imprisoned for adultery. Her only way out is to marry the man who raped her.
“The eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, and His ears are open to their cry”—Psalm 34:15 This is why we have to be aware of the news, and pray about the things we learn.
Peace and love.
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Fascinating
Most cultures outside of western modernity think in totally different ways than we do, and its so fun to try understanding.
They tend to be more relational, with fuzzy sets of groupings—wheras we usually use intrinsic, digital categories based on abstract logic….
For example, given a picture of three adult figures and a child, and asked which one did not belong, the answers are so...