June 4, 2012 in
Uncategorized with
Can you believe that we are already six months into 2012? It’s hard to believe that the year is already half over. It has been an eventful year on the blog thus far. I am truly thankful for the readers who regularly read and contribute to the conversation through the posting of comments and insights. I am blessed by you more than I can express with words. Thank you also for regularly sharing these articles with your circles as well.
As of now, here are the six most read and shared articles for 2012. (I’m only including articles in this list that have been written in 2012) Continue Reading…
June 1, 2012 in
Church life and Christian living, God's Eternal Purpose, Organic Church with
I have discovered that true beauty is indeed rare, and is easily overlooked. I have also discovered that the bride of Jesus Christ is truly beautiful! Contrary to popular opinion, the beauty of the bride of Christ cannot be seen on each street corner littered throughout small towns in the bible belt, nor can this beauty be seen in the grand cathedrals of our famous cities. The beauty of this bride is much more hidden. Continue Reading…
May 30, 2012 in
Church life and Christian living, Institutional Religion with
How’s your prayer life? Few other questions cause more guilt among evangelical Christians. As an institutional Pastor, I used to routinely ask that question in an attempt to ‘convict’ and motivate others to pray more. Part of this ‘conviction’ and ‘motivation’ involved laying the responsibility of the salvation of individuals, churches, and countries on the backs of Christians. If we prayed more, good things would happen. If good things weren’t happening, we simply weren’t praying enough. Continue Reading…
May 22, 2012 in
Blog Interviews with
It is a great honor for me to welcome Jon Zens to the blog today to participate in our fourth interview. As a New Testament scholar, Jon is a tremendous resource to the body of Christ. His ministry and life example have also been a blessing to me personally. In America, Jon has literally been a voice crying out in the wilderness, so to speak. He has been a pioneer regarding calling & equipping the body of Christ to function outside the institutional religious system. Jon’s life work has truly paved the way for many today. Simply put, we stand on his shoulders. Before we jump into this interview with Jon, let me tell you a bit about him: Continue Reading…
May 18, 2012 in
Uncategorized with
I am excited to announce that we will be conducting an important blog interview this coming Tuesday, May 22nd. It’s my desire to conduct blog interviews that will be a helpful resourse for the body of Christ. So far, we’ve had the privilege of conducting three excellent interviews here on this blog. Tuesday’s interview will be the fourth. Like the others, I believe you will be enlightened and blessed by this interview as well. Continue Reading…
May 17, 2012 in
Church life and Christian living, Institutional Religion with
Last week on this blog, I posted an article titled ‘Jesus Christ…The Dividing Light of ‘Separation’. If you haven’t yet gotten the chance to read this post, let me strongly encourage you to click the link above and give it a read. I am convinced that the things discussed there are vitally important.
The dialogue that occurs from readers posting their comments and questions to the blog are as equally important as the articles themselves in my opinion. In today’s post, I’d like to highlight a specific comment from that post that is extremely insightful. Continue Reading…
May 15, 2012 in
Church leadership, Church life and Christian living, Institutional Religion with
When I was a child, I was deeply petrified of bees. To be honest, I still get a little uneasy whenever those flying monsters buzz around my head. In the last couple of years, however, I have come to appreciate bees more than ever before. As a matter of fact, I am convinced that many of the problems that occur among evangelical Christians today could be solved by bees. Let me explain…
Continue Reading…
May 8, 2012 in
Uncategorized with
Today’s special participatory blog post is going to be an expression of love for Jesus Christ. On today’s blog post, we simply get to be like teenagers in love:) I’d like to encourage everyone who reads this blog to participate. Continue Reading…
May 7, 2012 in
Church life and Christian living, God's Eternal Purpose, Institutional Religion, Organic Church with
These last few days, I have been re-reading the biblical account of creation from the book of Genesis due to a prompting from a friend of mine. I must say that re-reading this account of creation while actively looking for a revelation of Jesus Christ in the story has changed everything! (After all, it was really written about Him anyway.) What I am seeing of Christ is astounding. He is our dividing light of separation! Continue Reading…
May 3, 2012 in
Church leadership, Church life and Christian living, God's Eternal Purpose, Organic Church with
Burdens are something that most of us have either carried in the past, or something we are carrying in the present. We are all familiar with the concept of ‘carrying a burden’. While some burdens are legitimate, many are not. Illegitimate burdens stem from human attempts to manipulate or control people or situations. Illegitimate burdens are also rooted in our attempts to keep law based religious teachings, as well as our fleshly desire to strive and accomplish a great name for ourselves. Legitimate burdens, however, are quite different as they stem directly from the Lord sharing His heart with us about a specific person, cause, or situation. Continue Reading…
March 23, 2011 in
God's Eternal Purpose, Organic Church with
After dialoging with a good friend of mine on our blog site last week about the church, it became apparent that there was a misunderstanding about what I was advocating for. While he rightly assumed that I believe the institutional church system is a destructive system which causes many problems, he went on to assume that my solution to the problem would be for people to simply adopt the ‘organic church model.’ This is when it became clear that there was a big misunderstanding. Continue Reading…
April 20, 2011 in
Church leadership with
Next month my one and only child will turn 18! Yeah, that’s right, I said 18. Can you believe it?
One of my favorite things to do is get reactions from people when I tell them this. When I take my daughter out for coffee or out to a restaurant, I have to prepare myself for the dirty looks that people usually throw my way. A guy I know, who recently saw me at a coffee shop having coffee & emphatic conversation with my daughter, later told me that he was concerned about me counseling young girls by myself. You should have seen the look on his face when I told him that the young girl was my daughter. He was stunned! When we’re out, most people guess that we’re a couple, that we’re cousins, that we’re brother & sister, but not one time has anyone ever guessed that we’re father and daughter!
I have to admit that makes me feel pretty good. No one likes to look old, and I am certainly no exception. As my daughter’s 18′th birthday fast approaches, I have been doing a lot of thinking and reminiscing about her life and our parenting of her over the years. As young parents, there were certainly plenty of challenges. I have also been thinking about leadership under the law, leadership in the church, and how parenting will lead to a picture of both. In light of these thoughts, I would like to share with you what I believe are three monumental truths that I think you might find offensive and yet liberating at the same time. Continue Reading…
May 12, 2011 in
Church life and Christian living with
It has been said that the most bloody & defining conflict that America has ever faced was the U.S. Civil War fought from 1861-1865. I had no idea how true that was until recently. I have just finished watching a powerful nine part documentary put together by Ken burns about the American Civil War that has changed my life and understanding of the United States. Even if you are not a fan of history, I recommend this powerful work by Ken Burns.
Why should you care about history? Because history repeats itself. Since there is nothing new under the sun, I am convinced that history is God’s gift to us because it can shed light on conflicts that we are currently or will eventually face. Watching this documentary by Ken Burns has shown me 3 major points about the Civil War that I believe have direct correlation to the conflict that Jesus Christ may be bringing to your marriage, your family, and your church community. Continue Reading…
May 20, 2011 in
Radical by David Platt with
A couple of months ago, I wrote a book review of a very popular book called ‘Radical’ by David Platt. This book has been causing quite a stir in some circles of the evangelical world. Out of all the articles that I have written, this book review has been the most widely read article by far. There was a lengthy dialogue that ensued in the comment section as a result of what I shared.
I wanted to draw your attention to a specific comment that came in because they were made by a couple that was actually mentioned in Platt’s book ‘Radical’. Continue Reading…
May 27, 2011 in
Church life and Christian living with
Let me start this post off by saying that I am not a heroin addict. Actually, I have no experience with this drug. I can relate to heroin addicts however. As a matter of fact, I can relate with addicts of all kinds because I am a recovering addict myself. I am going to go out on a limb and say that you probably are as well. Especially if you are reading this blog (grin).
There is a common struggle that all addicts go through who are being broken of their addiction…
Detox
Continue Reading…
June 17, 2011 in
Church life and Christian living, Institutional Religion with
For most of my life as a believer in Jesus Christ, I have lacked a stunning vision and understanding of who He is. As a result, I routinely missed seeing the person of Christ. This has especially been true for me while reading scripture. Unfortunately, Christless scripture reading is actually quite normal for most people. Studying the Bible and seeing a revelation of Jesus Christ in the scriptures are often very different things.
In the past, I may have read scripture and gotten a lot of good principles out of it, but I regularly missed seeing the point of each word and letter of scripture. The person of Jesus Christ is the point of all scripture!
Now that my eyes have been opened to a greater revelation of the person of Christ (not that I have arrived), everything I read in the scriptures looks different. This is especially true in the Old Testament scriptures. A great example of this can be seen in the story of the two women in Abraham’s life, Sarah & Hagar. Continue Reading…
July 29, 2011 in
Church life and Christian living with
I think congratulations are in order. You’re pregnant! Yes, it’s true. The fact that you’re pregnant is life changing news indeed, but there is much more to it than you may think. Understanding what I am about to share with you here will absolutely change the course of your life. There will be some practical application to what I am going to share with you as well. What am I talking about? That’s a great question. Let me explain… Continue Reading…
August 23, 2011 in
Book Reviews, Church leadership, Church life and Christian living, God's Eternal Purpose, Institutional Religion, Radical Together by David Platt with
Make no mistake about it, the church in America is at a crossroads. In the lives of many unsuspecting well intentioned believers and church communities, there is wide gaping foundational hole. Deep down, most know there has been something foundational missing. As a result, many have been working hard to identify what that may be and are presenting ‘filler’ to fill up our deep foundational hole, so to speak.
(Radical Together by David Platt & The Amway Gospel)
In a large section of the evangelical system, the message of ‘Radical’ and ‘Radical Together’ by David Platt has grown to a fever pitch. Continue Reading…
September 6, 2011 in
Church life and Christian living, Current Events with
To My American Friends,
I wanted to take a few minutes to let you know that I have decided to move to a new nation. I know that this is shocking news, but I had good reason to make the move. Actually, I am writing this in order to persuade you to make the move as well. Let me explain…
Like many of you, I have always considered myself to be pretty patriotic. I have liked the United States, and I have enjoyed the benefits of living in the land of the free. I once assumed that the American nation was the closest thing to a ‘holy nation’ that this modern world had seen in the last couple of hundred years. I was told that this nation was founded by principled, spiritual men and women who intended this nation to be a ‘holy nation’. I was also told that, in recent times, the American nation had forgot our spiritual heritage and this is why America is ‘going to hell in a hand basket’, so to speak.
Like many of you, this greatly troubled me. What should the remedy be? Continue Reading…
September 30, 2011 in
Book Reviews, Church life and Christian living, Current Events, What's With Paul & Women by Jon Zens with
Unfortunately almost every woman I have ever known either has been, or is currently, a slave.
I know that might be shocking or offensive to you, but please bear with me. No, I’m not talking about slavery to sin in the more general sense; I am talking about something much more specific. Continue Reading…
October 25, 2011 in
Book Reviews, Church life and Christian living, The Community Life Of God by Milt Rodriguez with
I have some world shattering and identity shaping news for you…You are NOT the ‘image’ of God, but you are most certainly made in God’s image. Let me explain…
This is a completely unexpected blog post. I have been reading through a book that I have intended to finish and write a complete review for, but I have not yet been able to finish the book. Actually, I am still in the beginning part of the book because I stumbled upon something quite profound that has stopped me dead in my tracks! Instead of waiting until the end of this book to write an exhaustive review, I have decided to write multiple reviews for this book that focuses on some of the main points that need to be expressed. In this article, however, I will only focus on one incredible truth that simply cannot wait to be expressed! Continue Reading…
November 14, 2011 in
Blog Interviews, Church leadership, Church life and Christian living with
Being ‘gospel centered’, ‘gospel focused’ and ‘gospel driven’ are buzz words today in large segments of the evangelical world. I have found that most of what is considered ‘gospel’, however, is not the gospel at all. Most of what is labeled ‘gospel’ is simply a message about the gospel. Make no mistake about it, presenting a message about the gospel is not the same as presenting the gospel. Continue Reading…
November 23, 2011 in
Organic Church with
I love to travel, and I have certainly been on a long journey. After years of traveling, however, I have some good news to report. I’m home! After a long journey, I wish I could describe to you just how amazing it is to be home. Let me explain: Continue Reading…
December 9, 2011 in
Church life and Christian living, God's Eternal Purpose with
Several years ago, I read a book that introduced me to two terms that had a profound impact on my life. This impact was both positive and negative. Although the terms were good and my attention needed to be redirected toward the claims these terms were making, they were presented in such a way that gutted them of their life giving reality.
Chances are, if you have been around the evangelical world for a length of time, you are no stranger to these terms. Seeing those two terms in that book several years ago initiated a journey that did not lead to a destination for me until recently. Upon realizing the true meanings of these terms, I discovered that I really had no idea of what those terms actually meant even though I spoke of them often. In fact, I had the wrong definition of one term, and no definition of the other! Continue Reading…
December 16, 2011 in
Movie Reviews with
Many films are entertaining, some are memorable, but only a few are truly life impacting. In this article, I would like to direct your attention to a film that is truly life impacting. I would also like to pose a challenge to you as well. Before I get into the challenge, however, let me tell you about the film. Continue Reading…
December 23, 2011 in
Church life and Christian living, God's Eternal Purpose with
Over the last few years, as I have journeyed out of the religious ‘system’, I have observed something profound that has naturally happened within me along the way. I did not fully realize this was happening until just recently. Here is the startling realization that I have discovered about myself:
My view of Christmas has greatly diminished! Continue Reading…
January 3, 2012 in
Church life and Christian living, Institutional Religion with
As we begin the New Year of 2012, I would like to keep this year’s resolution in the same line of thought as last year’s resolution. Continue Reading…
January 12, 2012 in
Uncategorized with
2011 marks my first full year of blogging and the experience has been extremely rewarding, to say the least. It has been a pleasure interacting with you throughout the year as we have dialogued about issues of great importance. Seeing the heart the Lord has given many of you for Christ and His bride has strengthened and encouraged me more than I can express with words. I am looking forward to continuing this blogging journey with you in 2012 as well.
I thought you might be interested in knowing what the most read blog posts for 2011 were. Here is a list of the top eleven blog posts for the past year. Thank you all again for your vital contributions to the blog, and for making this much needed conversation such a rewarding experience for many. Continue Reading…
January 19, 2012 in
Church life and Christian living, Organic Church with
A few weeks ago a friend of mine was maligned, misrepresented, and his ministry was brought into question. When I became aware of this attack on my friend, I was infuriated to say the least. In the past, the source of my anger usually emanated from an offense to my mind, will, or emotions (soul), but not this time. This was a different kind of anger coming from an entirely different source. This time, it was my spirit that was livid, and I saw the difference. Needless to say, I was compelled to open my mouth and come to his defense. Continue Reading…
January 26, 2012 in
Church life and Christian living, Institutional Religion with
What you are about to read could easily be misunderstood. If you are already feeling skeptical, or if you highly doubt that there will be anything of value for you in this article, you probably should stop reading now. If you believe there could be something of value in this article, however, then this article may be beneficial for you. I’d like to ask you to read this with an open mind. You may even want to pray and ask the Lord to show you a fresh vision of Jesus Christ through some of the things that I will share with you here. Continue Reading…
February 14, 2012 in
Church leadership, Church life and Christian living, Institutional Religion with
If you have ever socialized with a group of human beings before, you have probably come into contact with the phenomena of cliques / factions, and celebrity fascination. If you think back to your elementary school days, you will notice that kids seemed to exhibit this innate ability pretty early. It is not something that has to be taught. Continue Reading…
February 21, 2012 in
Blog Interviews, Institutional Religion with
Today is a historic day as I’ll be conducting my first guest blog post on the blog of Tim Baker. Who is Tim Baker? That’s a great question. Here is Tim’s bio: Continue Reading…
February 23, 2012 in
Church life and Christian living, Organic Church with
In the church community that I am a part of, we refer to one another as ‘sisters’ and ‘brothers’. You may think that sounds a bit odd, but actually it’s quite biblical and normal for family. The scriptures use the exact same kind of language to refer to those who are ‘in Christ’. In our natural fleshly families, we think of our siblings and refer to them as brothers and sisters, not simply ‘men’ & ‘women’, as that would actually be a bit weird. As you may know, Jesus spoke of human fleshly family as only being a shadow of the real family ‘in’ Him. Simply put, spirit is thicker than blood! Continue Reading…
February 24, 2012 in
Church life and Christian living, Institutional Religion with
Welcome to the first ‘Mystery Friday Post’. Each Friday, for the forseeable future, I will be sharing with you unique ways that the Lord has revealed something of Christ to me. I have learned the Lord loves to communicate to us in mysterious ways, and that is why I’m calling these posts ‘Mystery Friday Posts’. Continue Reading…
February 28, 2012 in
Current Events with
Since 9/11 2001, Islam and the nature of Islamic ideology have been a ‘hot-button’ issue here in the West. As a firm believer in the sovereignty of God, I am convinced that this is no accident. God has a ‘one track’ mind, so to speak, and this issue plays right into that. Continue Reading…
February 29, 2012 in
Current Events with
Are you aware of what is happening in the World these days? No, I don’t mean the fear inspiring events that we continually hear about in the media and the conservative Christian blogosphere, rather I’m referring to something entirely different and much better. I’m talking about the greatest foreign policy directive that has ever been conceived! Continue Reading…
March 1, 2012 in
Current Events with
I remember it well. Every three years, my curiosity would begin to peak regarding who could be running for President of the United States the following year. I scanned the horizon of possible candidates, listened to all the talking heads & prognosticators on twenty-four hour cable news channels, and examined the voting records of potential candidates. After all this work was done, I would make an educated endorsement for president. The process was quite entertaining, yet emotionally taxing at the same time. Continue Reading…
March 3, 2012 in
Church life and Christian living, Organic Church with
Some pictures are worth a lot. Personally, I would value this picture at aproximately $50,000.
Why $50,000? That’s a great question. Continue Reading…
March 5, 2012 in
Uncategorized with
If you are reading this blog post right now, I’d like to ask you to save a couple of dates during the month of March. Let me explain… Continue Reading…
March 13, 2012 in
Blog Interviews, Church leadership, Church life and Christian living, God's Eternal Purpose, Organic Church with
One of the privileges of blogging is the ability to introduce subjects and people of great significance to the body of Christ. I am excited to introduce a dear saint to you today that I wish everyone could come to know. Continue Reading…
March 16, 2012 in
Church life and Christian living with
I’d like to share a song with you today that encouraged my heart this week. Before I do that, however, let me give you a bit of background.
If you have been reading the blog for the last few weeks, you have probably noticed a theme. This theme has two parts; ‘exodus’ (leaving the land of slavery), and ‘entering’ (crossing the river into the land of Freedom which is Christ). Continue Reading…
March 21, 2012 in
Church life and Christian living, Organic Church with
About a week ago, a fellow brother in the church community that I am a part of was sharing with me how his day to day life has changed since he began this journey into organic New Testament church life. The religious activities that he was once heavily engaged in have been replaced by something else. Continue Reading…
March 23, 2012 in
Uncategorized with
Like last week’s ‘Mystery Friday Post’, I am excited to share a song with you again this week. Before I do that, however, let me explain a few things.
The article that I posted to the blog earlier this week has caused some to question my belief in the validity of evangelism, social justice, humanitarian projects, etc… Continue Reading…
March 28, 2012 in
Blog Interviews with
Pearls are formed when a small particle comes inside of a shelled mollusk like an oyster. The oyster then secretes a substance that completely covers the particle. This occurs in several ‘layers’ until a beautiful pearl is formed. This is a masterful picture of our life in Christ. As we are placed within Christ, He majestically covers us with layers upon layers of Himself until our life is hidden within the beauty of this new & valuable substance (Himself). With that said, I’d like to introduce someone who a true ‘pearl’ in the kingdom of God. Continue Reading…
March 31, 2012 in
Uncategorized with
This past week a song was lodged in my heart that seemed to be stuck on ‘repeat’, playing in the background of my mind. Whenever this happens, I have discovered that there is usually something in the song that the Lord wants me to hear. He is always communicating to us through His Son, and His means of communication are infinite. Continue Reading…
April 4, 2012 in
Church leadership, Institutional Religion with
Believe it or not, from time to time I receive invitations to speak in institutional settings or conferences. My most recent institutional speaking engagement was just last week. I always use these opportunities to share my heart about Christ’s desire to be manifested and expressed through His church (people in Christ who are living by His divine life together).
To be quite honest, I am not a fan of the element of ‘performance’ that goes into public speaking engagements. Continue Reading…
April 6, 2012 in
Church life and Christian living, Institutional Religion, Uncategorized with
This week, most of Christendom has been celebrating what is known as ‘holy week’. Holy week typically begins with Palm Sunday, and ends with Easter Sunday.
I have a confession to make to you…’holy week’ has lost its significance and importance in my life. Continue Reading…
April 10, 2012 in
Church life and Christian living, Organic Church with
This past weekend, the brothers in the church body that I am a part of spent the weekend together in a large cabin a couple of hours away from the city we live in. We engaged in rock climbing, repelling, and (in my opinion) a very challenging 6-8 mile hike deep into (and back out of) a lush green valley. Needless to say, I am very sore this morning as I type these words:) Continue Reading…
April 13, 2012 in
Uncategorized with
Earlier this week, someone sent me a video trailer promoting an upcoming documentary. What I watched stunned me to my core. I’d like to share this video with you here today because this video is a breathtaking picture of Jesus Christ. The implications of what you will see are quite profound. I will explain the video a bit further in a few minutes. Before I do that, however, I’d like to highlight a significant comment that came into this blog earlier this week. Continue Reading…
April 30, 2012 in
Church leadership, Church life and Christian living, Institutional Religion, Organic Church with
A friend of mine knows a physician that specializes in a natural approach to medicine to treat disease and illness. To emphasize his point, sitting on his desk is a powerful demonstration of his message. This physician has a digital clock displayed that is running and keeping time. What is special about this display is the fact that the clock has no battery, and is not plugged into the wall. Its only power source is fruit! Continue Reading…
