03/29/2005
Making Sense of Church by Spencer Burke :: A Starting Point :: jordoncooper.com: “Somehow, over the centuries, knowledge has become king. We’ve effectively said that knowing about God will ultimately help us know God. As a result, we often focused more on the Word, then on the Word become flesh. And yet as A.W. Tozer pointed out, God cannot be contained in any object or that object will become out god. Cold it be that we’ve created an idol and have actually begun to worship Christian education or the Bible?”
What another great nugget of thought!
I too believe that we somehow have overemphasized the brain and neglected the whole person. I know that I personally am the kind of guy that doesn’t like to get caught up in emotional things . . . and have emphasized facts over faith many times. But how do you find the balance of studying His Word to determine who Jesus is over having no factual base of our understanding of Jesus without going to something concrete? There ‘has’ to be a balance somewhere . . but I am not confident in myself to make that decision of where the center should be . . obviously it must be focused on Jesus Christ! But if I take someones personal interaction with Jesus . . . it quite possibly could be different than mine (gasp!) . . .but more important, different than the Bible. For example . . . the Jesus of acadamea is different than the Jesus of the mormon church and the Jesus of the new age movement (is it really new anymore?).
I refuse to divorce myself from an emphasis on the firm truth of Scripture, but I do hope to better not study the mechanics of scripture over the finding and discovering of Jesus the Christ.
So help me God.
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03/23/2005
Still
Words and Music by Reuben Morgan
Hide me now
Under your wings
Cover me
within your mighty hand
When the oceans rise and thunders roar
I will soar with you above the storm
Father you are king over the flood
I will be still and know you are God
Find rest my soul
In Christ alone
Know his power
In quietness and trust
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This was quite a powerful song that God had moved me. It has been a couple of years since I have felt so deeply moved, I couldn’t quite figure it out at first . . I mean both eyes were crying (not tearing up . . .actual drops running down my face!) I couldn’t even finish singing the song . . . and this was the first time I ever sang this song.
After looking at the words . . . I can recognize that I do tend to push ahead of God . . . i get restless because I want to hurry up and do something. Rarely do I just simply STOP and WAIT. I need to stop being so busy and trying things in my own power . . . I need to wait . . . wait . . .wait.
Lord,
Cover me with your mighty hand and may I truly find rest within you.
Amen!
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03/14/2005
‘Creatures are not born with desires unless satisfaction for those desires exist. A baby feels hunger; well, there is such a thing as food. Men feel sexual desire; well, there is such a thing as sex. If I find in myself a desire, which no experience in this world can satisfy, the most probably explanation is that I was meant for another world. If none of my earthly pleasures satisfy it, that does not mean that the universe is a fraud. Probably earthly pleasures were never meant to satisfy it, but only to arouse it, to suggest the real thing.’
–C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity
What an incredible thought!
To think that all of the things that we have within our grasp here on earth, will not satisfy is intense. If you think about, does anything really satisfy? Don’t we still have this desire for more.
Even as a follower of Christ, I have recognized that at times, I yearn . . I want. Truly, it is when I turn my directions/face/life/world back towards Jesus to rearrange, THAT is when I find peace and satisfaction.
In a previous life (a mere two+ years ago) there were times when I would spend days contemplating a passage of scripture. Wrestling with God on what to say about the passage before others. I loved it! I loved seeking out wisdom and the struggle of forcing my mind to understand it (rather than trying to fit IT into my mind).
I so long again for those days when my mind will not be so filled with clutter and busy-ness. When I could spend time lingering with Jesus.
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03/09/2005
Mount St. Helens Releases Large Ash Plume
how could I possibly forget to narrate on this cool event. I remember I was living in a podunk town when it blew the original time and received ash there . . . we all wonder what will happen with this one.
I sure hope the devastation isn’t along with this one like the last BIG one back in the eighties. It is amazing to think that as much destruction from a build up of pressure will blow that much and affect so much as well. Has some good implications to our own lives . . .
for me I have to think of what needs to be done to relieve pressure in my life . . . Appropriately. Last week my pressure reliever was in the Bible . . Jesus said “Come to me all who are weary and burdened and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light” . . that was really good for me as last week was particularly stressfull.
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03/09/2005
Fire Bible
OK . . . I could imagine the class’s reaction if I did this. Somehow I don’t think it would have the same effect as they are alluding to in the add . . .
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03/09/2005
So I got a new guitar recently . . . rather nice looking except has a little buzz when played a little hard. I am told that if I can get new strings and mess with the neck a little, it should go away. We shall see.
I thought I was pretty much finished with music for a while because of certain things going on in my life . . . and wouldn’t you know it, right after I had sold my guitar . . I missed playing it so much I bought a new one. It is an Ibanez: exotic woods (ANT)
Tonight I found a lot of songs I would like to re-learn, and so I printed them out and will help my family to learn them. It should be fun.
Even at the music shop I went to tonight, I found out that one of the workers there was currently working with the Palau team and is scheduled to go to Europe this year. I hope to get to know him a little bit more . . . he seemed like a neat guy.
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03/01/2005
mtv.com – News – Brian ‘Head’ Welch Explains Why He Left Korn
I honestly can say this guy has chosen a new road that will be difficult. To make a stand on principles means that we are willing to go all the way to the matt for our belief in … whatever our belief is in.
In our society today, they tell us that we have to have no barriers at all, which loosely translates to a meaning of life without borders . . .everybody is right . . . do what you want, say what you want, believe what you want. The only problem is that life lived this way does not bring about long-lasting happiness, only temporary ones. Don’t get me wrong, a lot of things bring temporary happiness, but it gets you in the butt later on. My life has spoken to this.
Brian has made a hard decision and I pray that he sticks with it. To give up lots and lots of money for a conviction is incredible.
I have often said a lot of things that were convictions, but as an old friend once told me . . .”true convictions are the things that you live out in daily life” And if I can add on to it, what we live IS our convictions.
I have to keep asking myself, what exactly are my convictions . . and then ask, why did I just do this/that when I don’t believe it is the right thing to do.
Thanks to Jesus for allowing me a framework to live in . . .there is comfort in having right and wrong defined in my life.
culture
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02/28/2005
I have a hard time portraying to my wife my deep feelings. I recognize that I am a guy and this is par for the course, but as a follower of Christ I recognize I am to be different.
I had one of those epiphanies today on the way back from racquetball . . . a realization that I have a desire to be my wifes perfect warrior/ a knight in shining armor. But as I see who I really am, faults and all, I recognize that if I were to portray the things that are in my head to her . . . I will no longer be her shining knight, but a dull and dim one. I know she would take me as I am, but I want her to be proud of me.
This knight needs to learn to talk out loud more and be vulnerable. Take the armor off at home.
I will try
culture, sin
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02/23/2005
LINK –> Dr. Neau
This is one of the neatest programs that I have used for organizing the guys poker night at the house. Dr. Neau has used his “skee-ill” to put together a well thought out program. BTW . . in the league I play on I happen to be the top dog of the year . . . so far. I am bound to be bumped out soon!
culture
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02/23/2005
Alias is one of our favorite shows . . . we have watched it since the second season. We totally missed the first season! So this last summer, thanks to Netflix, we were able to rent the first season. Then the second, and just for fun we saw the third season to catch up again. Now we watch it pretty much every week on Wednesdays (ABC 9:00)
So last night I picked up the kids after our date night and they plugged in this remix by Eric Champion and it totally reminded me of an Alias episode. I turned on to that specific song ont he way to play racquetball this morning and it pumped me up. I had pictures of Sydney running down the hallway somewhere saving the world. . . and then it got me thinking about making a video of me whooping on some of my friends. I think I just might do that . . not now though, I have to go for a walk … so that means instead of upbeat music in the background and me running down some hallway, it is more mellow music in the background . .
culture
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