Outside the Pigeon Holes

A recent article on Greg Boyd's website , Reknew, inspired these thoughts and a confession: This is a difficult reality to internalize but helpful when one 'gets it'...I don't like to get too deep into trying to explain evil in the world or why there is suffering even among those who trust God deeply with their safety and well-being. But what I do believe to be true is that God is good. All the time. God does not promise that we will never face trials or have bad things come our way --The world is too complex with spiritual issues and the cacophony of human voices demanding their independence -- but He does promise that he will never leave us in the midst of trials. I also believe that we ARE protected from many things which we will never know about - or that God can and does greatly reduce the impact of something working against us (depicted in the cartoon - which I found here: https://godguysandgirls.files.wordpress.com/2012/11/291937_10150267924702537_592537536_...

I love the discussion and analysis here , in a brilliant post on Brian Mclaren's website , of the varying definitions of churchy words that get thrown around in inter-denominational discussions...I believe wholly that there is sin, that God has wrath and there is judgment, but what that loo ks like to me (through much of my own journey through the Spirit's teaching and God's 'refining fires') may differ greatly from that of my fellows. I believe that God's wrath is much more restorative than it is punitive and that sin has much more to do with 'love-breaking' than law-breaking....I believe Jesus teaches a way of living that is much more challenging to walk than the simplified 'black and white' thinking I was raised with. Yes, there is a time and a place for that, but I have come to understand that it isn't nearly as often as I once thought. #lethispeoplethink . 

Don't let the spirit of religion dictate your 'fear of God'...Let your fear - the awe, the reverence for God's hugeness as the Creator - come naturally through a growing understanding of Who He is and how much he loves you. This is in great contrast to the obl igatory fear that religion teaches about a God who throws people into the pit of hell with no mercy or grace.. Religion's goal is control and slavery to rules. God's goal is relationship, restoration and reconciliation.  At least that's what Jesus teaches... :)

  Photo art credit: Holli Lynn Stevenson I am convinced that the question that God will ask when I stand before him is 'Did you learn how to love?'.  If I am to follow Christ, I am to love. Period. Jesus says that people will know his followers by their love . Kudos if you get your theology right. But it is your love that will identify you. Jesus said that anyone who loves knows God. He didn't say 'anyone who prayed the sinner's prayer and reads their Bible with the right hermeneutics and proves that they are the holiest of all knows God.' He said anyone who loves knows God . A Muslim who loves, knows God. A Christian who loves, knows God. A homosexual who loves, knows God. An atheist who loves, knows God. In my old age, I have found that it is better to err on the side of love over judgement. And that is hard. Judgment is easy. Hatred flows naturally through human veins. Some think that loving others means being soft and gushy. But that...

My reply to a blog post discussion with an atheist...I was not attempting to convert him. Just sharing my story.  What a neat discussion...I love it when people can talk about these kinds of things respectfully. How much we can learn from each other when we know that the other person is not going to ridicule or go off or resort to insults. THANKS! For what it's worth, my two cents are below. :) I grew up in Evangelicalism, but my faith became the most alive when I ditched the rules and the play-book of 'making converts' through arguing the Bible and defending God (God doesn't really need me to do that anyway). I made it about 'me and God', not 'me, the rules and how I can convince everyone that my religion is right by explaining the Bible empirically'. You can't do that. The Bible isn't a science book. It is a book of experiences and intepretations of experiences by other people - humans as jacked up and confused by life as I am than I was ...

http://forum.xcitefun.net/beautiful-picture-of-space-earth-blue-moon-t13275.html I was meditating today on a reality, which is a mind-bender for me. God's identity and feelings are not dependent on my behavior. A reactive God whose emotions are tied to the behavior of man is a God of human construct. This idea led into some really deep thoughts...and some humbling things... God is not codependent. God is complete on his own and does not need my perfection to make him happy or fulfilled. Following the way that God leads is for my benefit and/or the benefit of others/the earth. God is completely secure no matter how badly I screw up. I don't need to worry that my mistakes disappoint Papa so much that he is driven to drink. He is not taken by surprise or shocked by what I do. Those feelings are my own - they are useful in helping me realize where I have gone wrong, but they are not a reflection of God's feelings. They come from the limited perspective I have as a human....

Not that I am surprised, but this excerpt from Kurt Willems http://www.redletterchristians.org/evangelical-reject/   confirms it...  "In so far that evangelical means the belief in repentance and conversion into a genuine relationship with Jesus Christ through the abiding presence of the Holy Spirit, the term  ('evangelical') describes me .  What I continue to find, is that such a central conviction is  NOT  enough to appease those who want the term to mean other things.  So, based on my experiences, I want to let you know that:  You Might Be an Evangelical Reject If… You’re uncomfortable calling  other branches of Christianity “apostate.” You worry that those who cling to terms like “ orthodox ” often do so because they believe it to be synonymous with “ Neo-Calvinism .” You have significant questions about controversial theological “hot button” issues of the day and are  some-what comfortable with the subsequent cognitive di...

I used to be blindly pro-Israel in my opinions of what was happening between Israel and Palestine. I was so because I largely took my faith cues from my Conservative Evangelical upbringing...I didn't understand what was really happening over there. I just knew that I had been told that God chose Israel and therefore, they were entitled to certain land, priveleges and blessings. I was also taught that as a Christian I should support all of their military efforts against their enemies. I was taught that in the book of Revelation, Israel is the winner and God was on their side all the way. I had questions in the back of my mind as I purchased Israel pins and 'liked' Israel on my Faecebook page; Like the fact that Jesus didn't seem to promote this way of thinking. That he says many times that loving enemies and seeking peace is the way of the Kingdom. But I am just a wee little Christian, I don't understand these big issues. So I defaulted to believing and behaving the...

Vineyard Westside has a monthly worship service called "Enter In" which is a simple format of music and prayer time around a particular theme such as healing or grace. The last one was "Rest". It opened with a prayer and then the band went into about an hour of music, familiar tunes as well as some extended free-flowing music interspersed with singing of spontaneous prayers. Being the geek that I am I brought my sketchbook, oil pastels and pencils for any arty inspirations I might have. At the beginning of the song "I love your presence" I had a picture form in my mind. So I drew it, not really knowing why it had come to me. It had sort of a sad feeling...Like looking out the window on a rainy day. When I finished drawing it I sat with it a few minutes more and then put it aside. Worship continued. The band moved into the song "Let it Rain" - one of my favorites. During the song I felt like Papa was asking me if I wanted him to break off some of...

Three things I was told this week: 1 - I am 'lost' because I don't believe non-Christian religions, homosexuality and adultery (among other things) should be banned in this country (no answer given on how this would be accomplished or what the consequences would be for violating these bans. I was simply told to read the Bible). 2 - All Christians should vote for God's laws only because man's laws are of Satan (never given clarity on what exactly that means). 3 - The reason God created people was to torment the devil (this from a teacher I greatly respect). Did I wake up on a weird planet last Monday or am I having an extended nightmare?

Random thought I had today... So, the Dems wanted to "take back America", now the Repubs want to "take back America", and the Tea Party and the Libertarians also want to 'take back America"...And people wonder why the country is being torn apart. I see this on the preschool playground daily "Mine! Mine! Mine! Gimme it!!" I'd love to see this be a country where people were humble enough to realize that there's value in different ideas, that there's beauty in learning to live together. Why is it so hard to see that my neighbor is as entitled to their convictions as I am? Freedom will never be as long as one group believes itself superior and seeks to destroy all others.