thoughts on @barackobama at the 2012 national prayer breakfast
For the record, I hate talking about politics. Specifically, I hate how divided people become when talking about politicians and how they deal with the issues. I know that ‘hate’ is a pretty strong word, and I rarely use it around here. But I feel like it’s important for people to understand that by sharing [...]
now go sit with someone…
On Guilt: “It is about as hard to absolve yourself of your own guilt as it is to sit in your own lap. Wrongdoing sparks guilt sparks wrongdoing ad nauseam, and we all try to disguise the grim process from both ourselves and everybody else. In order to break the circuit we need friends before [...]
how we really know those who don’t really know
Just a thought. . . I’ve been thinking about what it means to know and if I’m not sure about a number of things, I’m sure of this: to know is to be able to help someone to know too. Now I’m not playing with words, but seriously, I have had my share of teachers who appear [...]
stand firm. be immovable.
How often do we juggle the world’s (or our culture’s) way and Christ’s way? How often do we juggle the notion, “Should I keep this money and spend it on myself or should I give it to those who happen to be less fortunate or to my church?” How often do we act without guidance [...]
complacency and counting your blessings [the heart of thanksliving]
![complacency and counting your blessings [the heart of thanksliving]](http://bibledude.net/wp-content/uploads/count-your-blessings-150x150.jpg)
OK, so yesterday I started off by saying that one of the keys to a heart of Thanksliving is learning the secret of contentment. Today for Thanksgiving, I want to share with you two other quick thoughts: First, it’s about Kicking Complacency. 1 Timothy 6:10 says, “For the love of money is a root of [...]
the heart of thanksliving
With Thanksgiving right around the corner, it got me wondering if I’m a pretty ungrateful person. The reason I need to pose that question is because when I reflect on my prayer life, am I the kind of person who spends a fair amount of time counting my blessings, or is it really a once [...]
[reasons they leave #4] the church is judgemental regarding sexuality
![[reasons they leave #4] the church is judgemental regarding sexuality](http://bibledude.net/wp-content/uploads/kiss-150x150.jpg)
Is leaving the church the same thing as leaving God? Just days ago, I received this text message from a teenager struggling with finding Christian community. God is important to her. She’s a young woman with faith much stronger than many adults. And yet she still wonders how the church and God connect. I probe [...]
[reasons they leave #3] church antagonism towards science
![[reasons they leave #3] church antagonism towards science](http://bibledude.net/wp-content/uploads/science-150x150.jpg)
“God, why is the sky blue?” I was eighteen when I finally asked Him; not relying on the answers that I was taught all my life in school. His reply ended up being more deeply touching and radical than anything I’d ever heard, and, from that moment on, I felt in my heart that He [...]
[reasons they leave #1] churches seem overprotective
![[reasons they leave #1] churches seem overprotective](http://bibledude.net/wp-content/uploads/fish-bowl-150x150.jpg)
the back story, my story, and his story (about why young Christians are leaving the church) In Barna’s research on why young Christians are leaving the church, they identify some numbers worth repeating here: 1) the project spanned five years; 2) the research included eight national studies; and 3) nearly three out of five young [...]
why young christians leave church
Three out of five. That’s what the research shows. According to Barna Group, 59% of young adults leave church permanently or for an extended period for one of the six reasons that we’ll be talking about here. Regardless of the reasons, that’s a number that disturbs me. I don’t like it when I think about [...]
when evil almost wins
One would assume the older one gets, the easier it is to be good. At least that’s what I used to think. But after the last month, I’m convinced it only gets more difficult and I’m embarrassed to sit here writing this to you because the words I write are suppose to encourage, to be [...]
i want to know what it means to believe
Somehow I came empty and broken. No, weary is the word. When all has been taken from me and some how I resist the cup in hand able to quench my thirst. ‘There’s healing in your hand’ they say as they watch me die ‘I know but I’m weary now’ I reply with some moist [...]
reason to believe [combat hospital]
![reason to believe [combat hospital]](http://bibledude.net/wp-content/uploads/combat-hospital-150x150.jpg)
Every once in a while I catch something on TV that just leaves me in awe. Recently, I’ve checked out a few episodes of ABC’s Combat Hospital, and had one of those moments. The show is set in a military hospital in wartime Afghanistan. Honestly, the jury is still out for me about the show [...]
book review: bittersweet [thoughts on change, grace, and learning the hard way]
![book review: bittersweet [thoughts on change, grace, and learning the hard way]](http://bibledude.net/wp-content/uploads/bittersweet_cover-150x150.jpg)
There’s a theme that’s been running through my life over the last seven months or so. Books I read, music I hear, conversations I have … they all keep coming back to one thing: storytelling. I was first introduced to this book sometime back in September by a friend of a friend. Like so many [...]
separation from God
This past Sunday I was starting my usual afternoon Pastoral nap when there was a knock at the door. I got up to answer the door and I find it was two of my neighbors. These neighbors happen to be Jehovah’s Witnesses. They’ve stopped by a number of times to introduce themselves and to talk [...]
philippians 3:1-11 [righteousness through faith in Christ]
![philippians 3:1-11 [righteousness through faith in Christ]](http://bibledude.net/wp-content/uploads/courtroom-150x150.jpg)
Read Philippians 3:1-11 (ESV, NIV, The Message) I stood alone on the cold floor with cold feet. Shivering and staggering at the weight of my guilt and shame. ‘I deserve it’ I muttered to myself. There was no saving from it this time. No escape from the consequences of works I had wrought with my hands. Hello [...]
book review: the God i don’t understand
We all ask these questions. It’s okay to admit it… there’s stuff you don’t understand when you read the Bible, right? Why did God order the killing of every living person… man, woman and child in Canaan? Why does a good God allow bad things to happen to good people? Why does He allow so [...]
i’ve got my eyes on something bigger
A local pastor was invited to a country club to play with a group of very wealthy business men. He was not invited because he was a pastor. In fact, the business men didn’t know he was a “man of the cloth”. He was invited to play simply because he was a good golfer. And [...]
god in the yard [group blogging project]
![god in the yard [group blogging project]](http://bibledude.net/wp-content/uploads/god-in-the-yard-100x100.jpg)
Some books are just done best in community. And I believe L.L. Barkat’s God in the Yard: Spiritual practice for the rest of us is one of those books. It’s practically a handbook for personal communion with God, and it calls for a response from the reader. That’s why we thought it would be a [...]
making the 5th quarter [an interview with rick bieber]
![making the 5th quarter [an interview with rick bieber]](http://bibledude.net/wp-content/uploads/rick-bieber-100x100.jpg)
There’s a new movie out called The 5th Quarter. If you enjoy movies about faith and football (like I do), then this in one that you’ll definitely want to check out. It’s a movie about the real-life story of the Abbate family and the tragic loss of their son/brother Luke Abbate. More importantly, it’s a [...]
my [activist faith]
![my [activist faith]](http://bibledude.net/wp-content/uploads/activist-faith-100x100.jpg)
I’ve been thinking a LOT lately about what it means to be a Christian. I remember a time when I worked in the youth group with a bunch of 8th-grade guys, and I asked them what it meant to be a Christian. I was pretty new to this whole church thing at the time, and I really [...]
book review: aftershock by @kentannan
I remember it like it was yesterday. I looked at the box in the pantry, and something inside me broke. Next thing I know, I’m on my knees crying harder than I ever remember crying in my life. My 17-month old son had been diagnosed just days prior with Juvenile Diabetes. My world was shattered and all [...]
[the story of God, the story of us] chapter 8: conceit
![[the story of God, the story of us] chapter 8: conceit](http://bibledude.net/wp-content/uploads/sunrise-over-galilee-100x100.jpg)
“God’s beautiful gift of rest and freedom from the slavery of activity to which people seem prone to give themselves.” Gladding’s description of the Sabbath shakes me—a not so gentle rousing from the daze of default living. This autopilot lifestyle is one set on a collision course with death waiting at the other end. There [...]
[management by God] overcoming the odds
![[management by God] overcoming the odds](http://bibledude.net/wp-content/uploads/gideon2-100x100.jpg)
Believe. If I could sum up what I am about to share with you in one word, that would be it. Believe. I had the pleasure of being the Teacher Coordinator with my church’s Vacation Bible School, a week-long program for kids aged 4-12. While I was in charge of teaching them some very valuable [...]
