Sunday, November 28, 2004
When faith is no longer theory.
It is easy to speak in generalities about spirituality and faith when things are going along as they should. But when you encounter a big bump in the road of have a carwreck, then spirituality is tested. If its good, then it will be a help in that time. One of the things that I grew up with and gave...
Sign in to see full entry.
God's Presence
Our pastor said that we should not pray for the Lord to be with us, he already is with us. So now I pray that his presence would be visible to us. Tonight my daughter Kelly walked out of church during the middle of church and my husband couldn't find her. (I stayed home because I am sick.) My...
Sign in to see full entry.
Friday, November 26, 2004
Wrestling with my Faith
There are two different distinctive crisisies of faith for the mature Christian. By mature I mean a Christian who is beyond falling away because of temptation, weak faith or disappointment. During these two crisies, the Christian doesn't fall away, but can lose ground in their ministry or their...
Sign in to see full entry.
Wednesday, November 24, 2004
Being carried in the palm of his hand.
Yesterday I felt like getting a divorce, committing murder and walking out of the house with nothing. Our home is not a refuge but a battleground. The battle is within Kelly's mind. She would destroy everything we have. Her mania almost seems demonic. I know that when she has moments of clarity that...
Sign in to see full entry.
Tuesday, November 23, 2004
Listening to the Holy Spirit
is one of the trickiest part of being a Christian. When do we know that it is God speaking to us and not imagination or the voices in our head. This weekend was one of those times for me. I wanted to take my friend Jan to visit Salem. This weekend my brother is packing and didn't want to have...
Sign in to see full entry.
Monday, November 22, 2004
Genuine Evil
All of us are sinners. But genuine evil is more than sin. Genuine evil is a combination of power, respectability and ruthless disregard for those who are powerless. The mafia and other organized crime may only have a veneer of respectability, but that veneer protects them from the prosecution of the...
Sign in to see full entry.
Simple Faith
Genuine faith is simple. Rather than trying to follow complicated rules, we listen to what the Holy Spirit is saying to us. With rules we have to figure out every possible exception and make sure we cover every detail. With the Holy Spirit, we only have to listen and respond. The motive of faith is...
Sign in to see full entry.
Monday, November 8, 2004
Consequences
We do reap the consequences for our past actions. We also receive mercy from Jesus Christ. Our pastor used drugs when he was young. He got hepatitis 3 but became a Christian in his early twenties and never went to a doctor until he was required to get a mortgage insurance exam for the new church...
Sign in to see full entry.
Sunday, November 7, 2004
Freedom in the Church
The purpose of a burearchacy is to slow down process. In a dictatorship, decisions can be made quickly, because only one person can make them. in a democracy, decisions can be make quickly if there is a clean majority. But in both democracies and dictatorships the implementation of a decision can...
Sign in to see full entry.
Friday, November 5, 2004
John Wesley
Methodism was a fearsome thing at one time. Since Wesley spoke a lot about perfection, Methodists became very legalistic. It was very hard to be honest about your temptations, since you were not supposed to have them anymore. Many of the Free Methodists that I know look back at the holiness message...
Sign in to see full entry.