“The Lord will fight for you, and you have only to keep still” (Exodus 14:13f).
“One of the most important lessons I have learned over the past few years is how important it is to have time and space for being with what’s real in my life — to celebrate the joys, grieve the losses, shed my tears, sit with the questions, feel my anger, attend to my loneliness.” - Ruth Haley Barton, Sacred Rhythms: Arranging Our Lives for Spiritual Transformation
- - - -
I’d like to invite you to look at the “Touch-a-Life” blog. Just click on the link above and navigate to the blog.
If only we would learn to be still more often.
…to celebrate the joys, grieve the losses, shed my tears, sit with the questions, feel my anger, attend to my loneliness. ”
We are far more likely to address the first of these occurrences in our lives, but are less apt to talk and share about our anger and sense of loneliness that accompany a grievous loss. It was 10 years after my husband’s death that someone had the sense to mention to me that I had a right to be angry with him, after all, how DARE he leave me? So at my next visit to his grave, I stomped on it and shouted out to him; “How DARE you leave me!?!? You’re supposed to be here with me, not hidden away in the dirt, how DARE you!!???” Since that visit, the pain of grief began to heal. Anger and loneliness were twin monsters during my grieving process. I’m so thankful they have been banished, so thankful!
Just what we need…another mystic, new age, spiritual, how to book.
Dan, you might enjoy Pat Conroy’s “My Losing Season” instead. I recommended it the other day.
a storm must be brewing because the gnats of hell are coming out
Hey, Dan, what’s eating you?
Curiously,
qb
Mike
Just to share how God works 20,000 miles away in Africa. I have been sharing my thoughts with women at what is called a family shelter at the local hospital in Kalomo. It is cement building, bereft of anything except walls windows and a door. There families who are caring for a patient can stay. No one is able here to go back and forth each day to see and care for family in the hospital. So they are given space and they provide their own food. We go on Thursdays and share time in the word and prayer. Let me say that I feel very inadequate to say anything to these women. But they seem to like us to come and share time with them. Yesterday I spoke on prayer. I used some thoughts from a class I had at Highland. I suggested praying could be the step to practicing a daily reliance on God. I taught them about centering ourselves on his presence.About desiring God to be the primary reality in my life, asking God to search me inside and surrendering my total day and self to God. Then most of all, being silent with God. Your words from Ruth Barton really speak to my heart right now. Thanks for sharing and for your willingness to accept the darts of unkindness and misunderstanding. You and Diane and Chris are always in our prayers.
On silence. As Tony Campolo says, “Shut up before the Lord thy God!”
I believe that Rubel Shelley is attributed with the saying, “If God is your Father, then you are my brother”…
I personally agree with this statement. I feel that the Muslims and Jews are my true brothers, as were Isaac and Ishmael…
Jeff,
Somehow I doubt Rubel would consider those who deny that Jesus is the Son of God as brothers. He may be open minded but I would not assume he believes that.
What scripture do you reference to back up your claim that those who deny Christ’s deity are your brothers? They can’t be brothers in Christ because they reject Him. Please enlighten me.
Who said that I was a Christian ???
What evidence do you give that your unproveable stories about Jesus are any better than the Muslim’s unproveable stories about Mohammed, or the Jews’ unproveable stories about Moses ??? Please enlighten me…
Mike, I’m so glad you were able to experience the Walk. It was in 1988 - and my understanding of Grace was forever enlightened. I loved Sacred Rhythms - too bad some are so afraid.
Bob H
Random question for Jeff. Since you claim Isaac and Ishmael as brothers, how would you prove their existence and experiences?
Jeff, Welcome to this blog! A good first step. May the Holy Spirit soften your heart to be able to turn on that light switch which will open you to the majesty of God, the promises he gives you, and the family which he provides to all who find their faith.
To eddy: Ultimately, you as a Christian believe that God is going to judge the world and the men in it by things that no one living today has ever seen and which can’t be reproduced. I have more faith in God than to believe that…
To eileen: Interesting… A Muslim would only have to substitute the phrase “Spirit of God” for your phrase “Holy Spirit”, and then the Muslim could go pray your prayer in the mosque this coming Friday !!!
God is great.
eileen, I wish this was a “good first step” for “Jeff” however he has come only to sow discord as have others.
I believe Clint is right. Just someone looking for a fight. Not interested.
To clint: Rather than calling me names, you should try to answer my questions.
God is great.
But avoid foolish controversies and genealogies and arguments and quarrels about the law, because these are unprofitable and useless. Warn a divisive person once, and then warn him a second time. After that, have nothing to do with him. You may be sure that such a man is warped and sinful; he is self-condemned. Titus 3:9-11
To clint: So, rather than attempt to answer my questions, you call me names, then you excommunicate me. You’re judge, jury, and executioner, Clint… and all based on your unproven (and unproveable) religion.
You have done exactly the same thing that a Muslim does when someone challenges the Koran. No proof; just condemnation.
God is great.
To gt: I’m not really looking for a fight, though it may appear that way.
Instead, I’m actually looking to see if anyone here is ready for “the third wave” (to use a phrase from ‘the day’): Has anyone here realized that there is no difference at all between the Christian who makes a blind leap to his faith, the Muslim who makes a blind leap to his faith, and the Jew who makes a blind leap to his faith ???
We all jump to God from ignorance and lack of proof, yet we persist in thinking that, somehow, our blind leap is better than the Muslims’ blind leap, and that our blind leap will therefore save us, while the Muslims’ blind leap will not save him. Interesting, he thinks his blind leap will save him while ours will not save us !!!
It’s time to admit that we’re all (Christian, Muslim, Jew) in the same boat, and that we are brothers. It’s time because the airplanes that are being used as weapons of blindness as we speak will soon turn into atomic weapons. It’s time to admit our lack of proof before we blindly destroy all of God’s creation.
God is great.
To Jeff: I appreciate your honesty. It’s refreshing to read a comment that is not composed of new age platitudes and nonsense.
As far as taking a blind leap of faith is concerned, I suppose there is very little difference between the Christian, Muslim, and Jew. As a Christian, I can only speak for my experience. My faith has helped me everyday in ways that are both seen and unseen. I suppose that Muslims and Jews may be able to say the same thing. My faith also tells me that there is a life after this earthly one. Jews and Muslims believe the same. My faith also tells me that we cannot “detroy all of God’s creation.” That task is reserved for God alone. I have no way of proving that without a shadow of a doubt. I can, however, prove that you and me and everyone else will die. Excluding the possibility that the Lord returns before that happens. The difference in what we believe boils down to the fact that Jews hang their hopes on a law and works, Muslims hang their hopes on a prophet and works, and Christians hang their hopes on a Savior and grace. The truth is that we are in three very different boats. Pardon me, my Savior is walking to my boat now.
God Bless.
Jeff are you a Baha’i? I just mentioned this the other day in some comments about drawing lines. Just wondering how you found this place.
To Kyle: No, I am not a Bahai, though I admire its inclusivity… I have found after many years that I am simply a theist, a person who believes in a personal God.
Perhaps I have been a bit harsh in my comments, as I find much about ‘revealed religions’ (religions that depend on a ‘revelation’, such as Christianity, Judaism, Islam, Mormonism)to be very comforting and helpful. However, somewhere along the way these same people have lost the natural humility which should come from believing in something ultimately unproveable…
I wish you well.
I found this place by using GOOGLE…
“somewhere along the way these same people have lost the natural humility which should come from believing in something ultimately unproveable…”
I agree and in light of your statements above you would have to say you are just like us.
Whoever said that being a Christian was taking a blind leap of faith? I believe there is a credible and coherent case for gospel of Jesus Christ being true and therefore the truth. That case begins not simply by asking people to ‘blindly’ believe that Jesus died and rose again. It asks people to believe the testimony of those who saw him die on the cross, buried in the tomb, and raised from the dead bearing the wounds from his crucifixion. Those who witnessed this began proclaiming about this ‘good news,’ some of whom even died for what they witnessed. Their testimony became known as the tradition and it was passed on to others so that other might believe. That tradition also included the teachings about why Jesus died and rose again and how believers should live in response to that good news event. Eventually, the body of believers collected the writtings of that tradition that could be verified as being true and collected them into a closed canon of writting that we call the New Testament. And now for 2 millenia, that tradition has continued to be passed along.
In no way does that prove the Christian faith in the contemporary scientific sense of the word ‘prove’ is ued. Therefore, for those who believe the gospel of Jesus, they must still make a descision of faith. But that decision of faith does not need to be a blind decision nor does it need to be subjectively grounded soley in our personal experiences (and this is not to say that there is not a place for our personal religious experiences).
Grace and peace,
Rex
To Rex: My point is that your argument for Christianity from experience and tradition is exactly the same argument that Muslims use to ‘prove’ Mohammed and the Koran, and is exactly the same argument that Mormons use to ‘prove’ Mormonism and the Book of Mormon.
We are all ‘blind leapers’ who use experience and tradition to try to prove our unproveable faiths to one another.
Jeff,
This is not the place to lay out the truth claims (and reasons for those claims) of Christianity, Mormonism, and Islamic belief in any detail. However, when compared in detail, I find the Christian faith to have much more credibility. That is not a blind leap of faith — believing without any credible reason to do so — nor it is a claim to have proven Christianity as true to the point that faith is no longer necessary.
The bottom line, Christianity is a religion of faith but one in which I believe there is credible reasons for believing such claims. Other religions hold reasons for believing the claims of their faith. Since I am not a relativist (2 or more truth claims can coexist and both be true), I must make a choice as to which thruth claim I believe has the most credibility. My choice is Jesus Christ.
Thanks for the conversation!
Peace,
Rex
Here is an article on FoxNews about the homeless living in foreclosed homes. The article interviews Larry James for part of the response.
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,330984,00.html
Matt Stead
We as Christians should be glad that God is fighting our battles for us. He is with us. God is our rock. Our stonghold. Praise God for his Salvation that we can depend on and have confidence. I am glad that God is my source of hope during times of loneliness, suffering, pain, and various trials. I am glad that he is a God who joins us on the ash heap.
Thank you Mike for this scripture and post.
Wow Talk about the comments having NOTHING to do witht he post! Did you guys read something I did not?