Postmodern Renaissance Culture Revolutionary

About every 4 or 5 years, I clean out my personal archive. That is a two-drawer filing cabinet that I have carted from appointment to appointment for years. In it are the collected thoughts and scraps of inspiration that have driven the back of my consciousness from seminary forward. There are old lecture notes. I have magazine clippings. Some of that stuff is ***dare I say it*** older than my firstborn child. Which is why some of it is leaving my possession. I remember collecting these tidbits of wisdom along my journey. I valued its insights or information for one reason or another along the way. But as I look at it now I am asking myself, "why hold on to this?" Much of the information I don't look at. Occasionally I will pull out a folder and rummaged for some morsel of information that I need. But most of the rest was gathered in a time for a purpose and I have moved passed both of those. But I found a scrap of writing (an assignment for a class in seminary) that ...

Now that the 2012 election is over and we are looking forward to 4 more years with President Obama, I feel the need to reflect and project. I believe that our nation is becoming more divided. At almost every level of our culture we experience divisions. The United Methodist Church is even so divided that we are divided on whether or not we are divided. We live in a nation where looking for common ground is replaced with strategic placement on our ideological battlegrounds. I believe that a revolution is brewing. What shape it will take, I don't know. But in a climate where the sides have no desire to reach out to one another there will only be a climactic conflict of some type. For those who read this that have an intense hatred for President Obama, I have to ask, "Why?" The President does not control the economy. The President is not responsible for jobs disappearing. If it is his stand on abortion or gay marriage, do you also hate that woman who makes that impossibl...

This is a review of Craig Groeschel's new work, Chazown. This book was provided to me at no cost by WaterBrook Multnomah in exchange for an honest review. Chazown is the Hebrew word that is translated often as "vision". As in, "without vision, the people perish (Proverbs 29:18)." It doesn't mean the physical ability to see, but the heart's or mind's ability to see. And churches need vision to accomplish mission. There are some basic prerequisites for this book. If you do not believe in God or the work of Jesus Christ as Traditional Christianity defines, then you don't need to read this. This book is not designed for pew-squatters who prefer to define church by which pew is theirs or if the preacher lets them out on time. It shouldn't be read by anyone who wants to just take the church for granted, believing that church exists for their benefit or what they can get out of it. This book is for believers who seriously feel called to do somethi...

I received an advance reading copy of Ron Carpenter, Jr.'s book, The Necessity of an Enemy, from WaterBrook Multnomah. I found this book through the regular mailings that pastors receive from Pastor Resources Magazine. What is an enemy and how do they apply in the Christian life? That is at the heart of this book. Enemies are not basic, minor annoyances of life. For Carpenter, enemies are the events/persons/choice we make that could potentially derail the journey of faith. Carpenter shares experiences from his own ministry of major events that could have ended his ministry, marriage, family unity, and even his life. The title implies that the true enemies that we encounter in life are part of the process of developing Godly, Christ-like lives. If there is an enemy present, there is potential to grow. But giving into an enemy is very easy. Therefore we need to protect ourselves. We definitely live in an age where dealing with "enemies" needs to be taught in the churc...

This ebook was provided by the WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group in exchange for an honest review. I have to say up front that this was a difficult book to read. Not because of content, but format. It did not work well on my Kindle. The content was easy to read and did press on some deep emotional stumbling block that do stand in the way of developing the Christ following so many desire. I believe that this book is helpful in identifying or defining each of the "enemies" in a more helpful way. And each response or counterpoint is something that the church needs to see more of today. I don't believe this will speak to non-churched individuals. It may speak to those marginally churched individuals who still have a spiritual hunger. It will also work with those in the church who are sincere in working toward true reconciliation. I believe it is a helpful and thought-provoking book for the church.