A Man's Prayer

O LORD,
I praise you that the issue of the battle between you and Satan has never been uncertain,
and will end in victory.
Calvary broke the dragon's head, and I contend with a vanquished foe,
who with all his subtlety and strength has already been overcome.
When I feel the serpent at my heel may I remember him whose heel was bruised,
but who, when bruised, broke the devil's head.
My soul with inward joy extols the mighty conqueror.

Heal me of any wounds received in the great conflict;
if I have gathered defilement,
if my faith has suffered damage,
if my hope is less than bright,
if my love is not fervent,
if some creature-comfort occupies my heart,
if my soul sinks under pressure of the fight.

O GOD,
whose every promise is healing,
every touch life,
draw near to thy weary warrior,
refresh me, that I may rise again to wage the strife,
and never tire until my enemy is trodden down.

Give me such fellowship with thee that I may defy Satan,
unbelief,
the flesh,
the world,
with delight that comes not from a creature,
and which a creature cannot mar.

Give me a draught of the eternal fountain
that lieth in your immutable, everlasting love and decree.

Then shall my hand never weaken,
my feel never stumble,
my sword never rest,
my shield never rust,
my helmet never shatter,
my breastplate never fall,
as my strength rests in the power of your might.

After a Long, Long Break

I know. It's been an incredibly long time. I think that my primary reason for writing is not laziness, not business. It's just pure flat out denial. Somehow, blogging to me has taken on a formidable tone -- I have avoided it purely because I have too many thoughts. Writing them down, sharing them with the world, would force the chaos of my mind into actual words...something that overwhelms me and thrills me. I guess I've fallen more into the overwhelmed category.

I take a deep sigh and realize that words are therapy. And I need some, that's for sure. I am making no promises, but I deeply desire to allow a sense of peace come into my mind-space, bringing cathartic words.

For now, just beginning again was a start.

Sacred is Secular OR Sacred vs. Secular?

I saw this picture and experienced both laughter and horror at the message that it holds. I thought I would share it with you. Does this reflect the glory of the gospel in the face of overwhelming darkness? Or does it represent a separation of the sacred from the secular by placing Jesus on Sunday and the pain of living during the week?

What are your thoughts?

Thanks to Gina for wealth of wonderfully provocative pictures.

Can't Focus

Over the last several weeks, Beth and I have been reading more and more about the tragedy of human trafficking. The more I read, the harder it is for me to focus on other things, and the more I wonder about the millions of people caught in modern day slavery. There are men, women AND children bought and sold every day. I can't stop thinking about it...I don't have much time now to write, but I anticipate mining books, the internet and local organizations for more information, links and ways to enter in to the darkness and bring Light.

Slavery Around the Corner

Over the past several weeks, a common theme has continued to surface in our thoughts and reading. It is something that has floored us, broken us, and made us weep -- honestly. The topic is slavery -- today, in the world NOW. Beth has done a tremendous job of writing up some of our initial thoughts on her blog, so I won't rewrite it all. Just click here to go there!

There is so much more to say, but we are still in process. I'm sure this will be a part of the world's darkness that we will be moving towards bringing Light. Pray with us.

I'm Gonna Check it out...anybody else wanna come?

I have been interested in attending one of these kinds of conference for quite some time. I oogle over the websites and topics, but have never had the opportunity to go. Well, this one is in Seattle. AND one of the presenters, Dwight Friesen, is one of my professors from Mars Hill -- a great guy with a passionate heart for Christ and the Scriptures. I could only gain from hearing from the likes of him. So I signed up and am going!


Anyone want to come too? There is a special discounted rate through today. Sorry for the late notice.

Now, I can't guarantee what it's going to be like. But it's worth checking out...

I Will Not Fight, I Will Not Run

This past week I came across this passage once again about Jesus that, to be honest, totally astounds me:

John 18...
²Now Judas, who betrayed him, knew the place, because Jesus had often met there with his disciples. ³So Judas came to the grove, guiding a detachment of soldiers and some officials from the chief priests and Pharisees. They were carrying torches, lanterns and weapons. ⁴Jesus, knowing all that was going to happen to him, went out and asked them, "Who is it you want?" ⁵"Jesus of Nazareth," they replied. "I am he," Jesus said. (And Judas the traitor was standing there with them.) ⁶When Jesus said, "I am he," they drew back and fell to the ground. ⁷Again he asked them, "Who is it you want?" And they said, "Jesus of Nazareth." ⁸"I told you that I am he," Jesus answered. "If you are looking for me, then let these men go."

This morning at church, Brent was speaking about the fierceness of Jesus and the apostles. There is no "Mr. Nice Guy" in Jesus. He is powerful, passionate and yet at the same time gentle. But He is not "nice." Often we assume that He is this meek and mild kinda guy, who just loves to cuddle and give butterfly kisses. Indeed, there is a tenderness in Jesus, but make no mistake, it is not weakness.

Click HERE for more on my Extended Blog

The Danger of Christian Drivenness

As I talk with more and more Christians, I am struck with how busy we are. We have our normal daily lives with work, family, home and friends. But then we add to that worship services, time with the Lord, prayer, Bible studies, kid's activities at church, hospitality, committees, music practice, etc...our calendar is quickly filled with "good" things to do.

If you know me at all, you know that I am an incredibly driven individual. I have a hard time sitting still, so much so that when a commercial comes during a TV show, I get antsy! But recently, I've been pondering drivenness, especially as I talk with other ministers and missionaries. What drives us to do so much? Does more=better in the eyes of God?

I have come to the conclusion that DRIVENNESS is wrong. Let me explain. I have come to understand a stark difference between DRIVENNESS and INTENSITY.

Click HERE to see keep reading!

Post-Evangelical

So you've probably heard the term "post-modernism." And if you have, I'm sure readers of this blog have had a variety of reactions to it, ranging from identifying with it saying 'that's me!' to distrusting and doubting it saying 'those heretics!' Whatever your personal reactions to it are, there is another not-so-known term that I'd like to throw out there -- POST-EVANGELICALISM. Now, before you pre-judge what that may be, let me explain a couple of things.

First of all, one of the many reasons I'm attending Mars Hill Graduate School is to pursue the current and future generations for Christ. In our desire to see people know and love Him, we believe we need to be smart, prepared, and exposed to the current thought patterns of the world. We also need to understand where WE fit into those patterns. Jesus never changes. What changes is how the world and the people in it come to know and love Him. This includes understanding modernism and post-modernism, as well as how the church interacts with the culture in each paradigm. If we are not willing to sit with the hard questions, then the world will move on, and we'll be left in the dust.


I've mentioned before that I'm currently reading a book entitled "The Post Evangelical" by Dave Tomlinson. I'm not nearly finished with it, but I have thoroughly enjoyed what I have read so far. I want to quote a couple of things from it, just to give you a taste. I'd love to hear back from you about any thoughts, concerns, agreements, whatever you may have on this!!!

First, what is "post-evangelical." Tomlinson states that this is in no way a "movement." Most people have never heard of this term, and if they have, there is a great possibility that they don't know what it means. However, once described, many people today say, 'well, yeah, that describes me!'

At the start, it does NOT mean ex-evangelical. The following is a quotation from the book, page 28:

"Several people have suggested to me that the term post-evangelical is really just a fashionable way of saying ex-evangelical. However, properly used, post means something quite different from ex. Post, which means after, has connotations of following from, whereas ex implies ceasing to be. Taking this intro into account, to be post-evangelical is to take as given many of the assumptions of evangelical faith, while at the same time moving beyond its perceived limitations." [italics original]

As Tomlinson goes on to describe some of what post-evangelicals may think, he provides this list of bullet points, obviously not meant to be exhaustive (p. 42-43):

"As a result, as evangelicals adapt to the new postmodern culture they find themselves in, they are beginning to shift on some of their traditional stances....At this point, however, it would be helpful to highlight some of the shifts;

• from propositional expressions of faith to relational stories about faith journeys.
• from the authority of Scripture alone to a harmony between the authority of Scripture and other personal ways God mysteriously and graciously speaks to Christians.
• from a theology that prepares people for death and the afterlife to a theology for life.
• from a personal, individualistic, private faith to harmony between personal and community faith.
• from anti-Catholic and anti-nonprotestant perspectives to greater acceptance and curiosity about other approaches to knowing God.
• from the church being a place where people take up space to the church as a mission outpost that sends people out.
• from an approach to missions that emphasizes mass conversions by individuals to "share the good news with the whole world" approach.
• from arguing faith to the "dance of faith."
• from salvation by event to a journey of salvation.
• from a salvation of humanity to a salvation of all creation.
• from a Western, American understanding of the gospel to a worldwide view.
• from motivating through fear to motivating through compassion, community and hope
• from a search for dogmatic truth to a search for spiritual experience."

So, as I'm reading through this book, and I read lists like the one I've quoted above, I am shocked and amazed to read words that I myself have spoken, and directions I myself have lead our team. So much of what has filled my heart and mind these past few years, as I have interacted with young people from around the world in my role as National Campus Director in the Near East, and even now as I re-engage the church in America here in Seattle, I am honestly befuddled to find a book IN PRINT that summarizes much of our own journey of faith and perspective. I would say that I am post-evangelical.

What do you say?

The Innocent Man

I'm taking full advantage of the Christmas holidays and the break from studies to read, read, read. Although I haven't made it through as many books as I'd like, one caught me off guard. As part of our family's Secret Santa this year, Aidan gave me John Grisham's book titled The Innocent Man. This is Grisham's first non-fiction work, and a striking one at that!

In a small town in Oklahoma, an innocent man is convicted of murder. This in itself is an absolute atrocity, and yet the story that unravels was beyond appalling. The entire judicial system worked against this poor man. The prosecution denied him rights, framed him and trumped up charges and false witnesses. The judges involved overlooked these violations, assuming that he was guilty, and denied him even the right to an appeal. It wasn't until outside human rights organizations got involved that his innocence was first considered. As a result, he spent 12 years in prison, and at one time came within 5 days of his execution.

My father is an attorney, and I have grown up believing in "the system." Innocent men do not get convicted, let alone executed. However, through Grisham's expose of this case, I have begun to wonder just how many others there might be -- both convicted of a crime they did not commit, and even more so, executed for it. For more information about the exoneration of innocent men and women (usually based on DNA testing), go to The Innocence Project. I have not fully researched the credibility of this organization, nor of its practices, but I am fascinated by their work and the way our "system" that is designed to protect the innocent can be used to convict them of crimes they didn't commit.

I have also begun to consider capital punishment...thoughts that I have yet to formulate, but want to evaluate in light of both my theological convictions as well as the potential ramifications of a non-perfect judicial system.

Just makes me not want to be in the wrong place at the wrong time!