Head-dibs

It can happen very quickly, the swing from “what’s on your mind?” to “are you out of your mind?”. The look on one’s face is easy to read: the contemplation is deep, but the expression of the thought--often-times, our thoughts are received in unexpected ways. The apostle Paul reminded the Corinthian believers that, “ we have the mind of Christ ” (1 Cor. 2:16). The Philippian Christians were encouraged to demonstrate Christ-mindedness toward one another (Phil. 2:1-2, 5). When one who is hard after God shifts from living “ under the sun ” to learning “ under heaven ” and applying heavenly wisdom, the world does not know how to receive the lessons. Like Festus to Paul’s ears, “ you are out of your mind; your great learning is driving you out of your mind !” (Acts 26:24) The mind of Christ is not the mind of the world. Learning the mind of Christ is to gain the viewpoint, understanding, wisdom, thoughts, feelings, purposes, the desires of God’s anointed Messiah. Paul had the mind...

“ And I set my heart to seek and search out by wisdom concerning all that is done under heaven; this burdensome task God has given to the sons of man, by which they may be exercised. I have seen all the works that are done under the sun; and indeed, all [is] vanity and grasping for the wind .” (Ecclesiastes 1:13-14, NKJV) There, you see! Don’t waste your time reading and pursuing knowledge! King Solomon himself said that seeking wisdom is burdensome (“evil business”) and vanity! Actually, Solomon said everything under the sun is vanity, striving after wind so if we follow the logic, we should stand perfectly still with our hands by our sides, eyes closed and holding our breath. Solomon states a conclusion from a lesson learned: wisdom pursued apart from God is vanity. Learning is hard work and has a reward in the end--but learning must be done correctly. Solomon only increased in wisdom by learning in context, by learning “under heaven.” Look again at those who followed Jesus--...

“ Therefore, since we have so great a cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us also lay aside every encumbrance, and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance the race that has been set before us .” (Hebrew 12:1) After a heavy workout, I feel like collapsing. Though the ground feels nice as I gush sweat like a lawn sprinkler, that pile is really not the best position in which to be. One needs be upright. So I walk around with my hands on my head, filling my lungs with air. I’m running much faster now that some of this weight is coming off. I started at 252 by walking for 15 minutes. Then 15 minutes became 20 minutes, then 30 minutes, then 45 minutes. Then my body whispered “faster.” So I went faster. And the weight is coming off. With faster comes stronger and the end of the workout is full of accomplishment. The encumbrance, the weight must come off in order to run with endurance. Jesus said the thorns that choke are world-worries, things that ...

“Intrigue, innuendo, intimidation, insinuation, those constitute the discipline of danger. Our temptation is to turn from our task to untangle the intrigue, to take time to undo the innuendo, to flee from intimidation and to fight hidden insinuation. Our safety is in doing our duty (Nehemiah 2:3), in putting our trust in God (Neh. 6:9), in standing stedfast and immovable (Neh. 6:11) and in serving in silence. The result for us will be as it was with Nehemiah, ‘the wall was finished . . . our enemies . . . were much cast down in their own eyes; for the perceived that this work was wrought of our God.’ (Neh. 6:15-16). Danger feared is folly, danger faced is freedom.” (Edman, V. Raymond. The Disciplines of Life. Scripture Press Foundation, 1948)

“ The disciple is that one who has been taught or trained by the Master, who has come with his ignorance, superstition, and sin, to find learning, truth, and forgiveness from the Saviour. Without disciplines we are not disciples, even though we profess His name and pass for a follower of the lowly Nazarene .” (Edman, V. Raymond. “The Disciplines of Life.” Scripture Press Foundation, 1948) Edman gives us much to contemplate in this simple definition of discipleship. He suggests that the disciple “has been taught.” The disciple has learned truth and found forgiveness from the Savior. There is no good intention to follow, to pass off as a follower. The disciple came with ignorance and has learned. The disciple came with unjustified beliefs and presuppositions and has not only been corrected but trained to live in truth. The disciple came with sin and has been cleansed not by his own doing or merit but by his Master, the Saviour. The disciple correctly represents His Master to the wo...

My tee-shirt says, "I'm Training To Be A Cage Fighter", pictured with Napoleon Dynamite's brother. My favorite workout shirt. My Workout of the Day (WOD) was a 4 mile walk carrying 45 lbs (any object). I put a 40 pound dumb-bell into a heavy-duty backpack and set to walking. One feature of walks like this is when the brain kicks in and you really start to think. My blood gets flowing as I get on the road, climb the gentle incline, round the curves then start up the hill. I realized that at a total weight of 260 lbs, I am carrying 7 pounds more than when I started Spark People in 2011 [note: down to 219 at the time of this writing]. The happy thought came about half-way through the walk (Dream Theater pounding in my earphones) that when I get home, I am going to remove the backpack and drop 40 pounds in an instant. I imagined myself lighter already, picking up speed--and sure enough--the moment I came around to the backdoor, I removed the pack and felt my body n...

Ingram, Chip. “ Living On The Edge: Dare To Experience True Spirituality .” New York: Howard Books, 2009. Spirituality is not as open-ended as many imagine and the reason is found around the one around whom spirituality is centered. Spirituality and discipleship are inseparable, flowing out of a relationship with the living truth. Relationship leaves no room for religion and true spirituality is the practice of those who follow with transformed minds. Ingram’s 268 page book is divided into five “How To” sections with five accompanying chapters, by topic and subtopic, taking the reader by the hand through ground-level explanation of the Christian life through Romans 12. The sections follow through the teaching of Romans, verse by verse though unlike a commentary, the teaching is simple: “How to Give God What He Wants the Most (Romans 12:1)”: Surrendering to God “How to Get God’s Best For Your Life (Romans 12:2)”: Separate from the world “How To Come to Grips wit...

I don't know what book or books you are reading right now and at this point, I really don't care.  Put it down.  Put them all down and pick this one up , open it, read it.  I triple-dog-dare you (that's right, I'm skipping the "triple dare," and am going straight for the throat)! Buy it. Borrow it. Don't steal it (stealing is sin).  Check it out from the library (and if they don't have it, get it by Inter-library loan).  Buy a case, give them away.  Wish-list it.  Trade for it.  Have someone read it to you.  Read it over someone's shoulder (ask, first.  Have some couth). Read it out loud in Sunday School. Get it in large print. Get it in Braille. Get someone to translate it for you. It will wreck your life.

The word “abide” is a term that occurs often in the New Testament. As a verb, we understand that abiding does not always depend on an object; that is, in its range of meaning, to “remain, stay, dwell, lodge, remain, last, persist, continue to live, wait,” can be literal or figurative. This becomes clear as we appreciate the depth of meaning by examining in John’s Gospel the one doing the action as well by investigating where the action is performed. Categorically speaking, the action of abiding is accomplished by God the Father (14:10), God the Son, Jesus (1:38-39; 4:40; 6:56; 7:9; 10:40; 11:6, 54; 12:24, 34; 14:25; 15:4-5; 19:31), and the Holy Spirit (1:32, 33; 14:17). God’s Word is described as abiding (5:38; 15:7). The disciples, Jesus’ mother and his brothers, even John (the disciple whom Jesus loved), are observed to “abide” (in some form of the word) where Jesus was (1:39; 2:12; 21:22). Considering eternal matters, we find positive and negative aspects of abiding. Positively, ete...

This is a great response to the charge of close-minded thinking . Quasimodo discovered ! "Evidence that a real hunchback might have worked at the Parisian cathedral around the time Hugo wrote his breakthrough novel (1828-1831) has been uncovered by Adrian Glew, head of archives at London's Tate Collection." "Dealing with Doubt" by Gary Habermas is available without cost here . Here are five of the most ridiculous patents from the past 20 years .

I lifted this quote from an interview published in Robert Raines’ book, “Creative Brooding,” and am interested in how you would respond to this man if he were sitting across the table from you: “I’m not a real Catholic, anyway—even though I am religious. Jesus Christ is an admirable example, but he’s too remote from men of today to be a model. Or he’s too much of one to be understood and followed. A man who dies for others is moving and admirable, but how many followers can he have in a world filled with people who will hardly help you across the street, let alone die for you?” Please post your response below.

Justin Martyr (100 - 165 A.D.), an early apologist for the Christian faith, wrote in Discourse to the Greeks , "These have conquered me – the divinity of the instruction, and the power of the Word: for as a skilled serpent-charmer lures the terrible reptile from his den and causes it to flee, so the Word drives the fearful passions of our sensual nature from the very recesses of the soul; first driving forth lust, through which every ill is begotten – hatreds, strife, envy, emulations, anger, and such like. Lust being once banished, the soul becomes calm and serene. And being set free it returns to Him who made it. For it is fit that it be restored to that state whence it departed, whence every soul was or is." The theology of war (James 4:1-4) helps us understand that lust is the driving force behind the nations casting off the rule of God. This is not a lust limited to sexual immorality and can include lust for power, wealth, and kingdoms (to name a few). Lust is a complete...

I am mechanically declined, so I need a liscence to hold a screwdriver. At least I know how to drive nails: watch the nail, not the thumb. Why? Because you always hit what you watch, right? So if Christ is our spiritual nail, why keep going for the "thumbs?"

A common phenomenon in nature is “the path of least resistance.” Electricity moving through a circuit will always travel where it is easiest to go. Cars are developed aerodynamically so there will be a minimal wind resistance. Water always travels under a bridge because it is far easier to go under the bridge than over it. Frequently this is what people are like also. It is easier to sit in front of the TV rather than to care for our neighbor’s needs. It is easier to get angry at your mate and let that anger diminish over the course of time rather than sitting down and working the problem through. Thumbing through a Reader’s Digest is much easier than a time of personal Bible study. And so we find that we too, just like water under the bridge are prone to take the “path of least resistance.” But there is one difference between ourselves and water. Water will never have to give an account of what it has done. Ought not we examine ourselves and get on the “path of greatest persistance?’

"Almighty and merciful Father, I am now about to commemorate once more in Thy presence, the redemption of the world by our Lord and Savior Thy Son Jesus Christ. Grant, 0 most merciful God, that the benefit of His sufferings may be extended to me. Grant me faith, grant me repentance. Illuminate me with Thy Holy Spirit. Enable me to form good purposes, and to bring these purposes to good effect. Let me so dispose my time, that I may discharge the duties to which Thou shalt vouchsafe to call me, and let that degree of health, to which Thy mercy has restored me, be employed to Thy Glory. O God, invigorate my understanding, compose my perturbations, recall my wanderings, and calm my thoughts, that having lived while Thou shalt grant me life, to do good and to praise Thee, I may when Thy call shall summon me to another state, receive mercy from Thee, for Jesus Christs sake. Amen." Samuel Johnson (1709-1784).

"It is the pounding effect of the hammer of the Word of God that finally pulverizes the granite hardness of our rationalized hearts and breaks through to make us aware that God is trying to say something. It is the truth, driven home be a heart made earnest in prayer, that melts and softens and heals, and thus causes individuals to grow." (Ray Stedman)

Oil, gas, and diamonds are precious commodities today but without tremendous pressure of earth on organic matter and time to develop, there would be just organic matter. So it is with the man of God as he responds with trust in God; He uses the daily pressures of life to mold quality into the man of God.

"A depressed Christian is a contradiction in terms, and he is a very poor recommendation for the gospel . . . . Nothing is more important, therefore, than that we should be delivered froma condition which gives other people, looking at us, the impression that to be a Christian means to be unhappy, to be sad, to be morbid, and that the Christian is one who 'scorns delight and lives laborious days.'" (D. Martin Lloyd Jones) Click on cover for more details:

“We ought to be Christians in large type [font] so that it would not be necessary (for others) to be long in our society, or to regard us through spectacles, in order to detect our true discipleship. The message of our lives should resemble the big advertisements which can be read on the street-boardings by all who pass by.” (F.B. Meyer, 1847-1929)

1. Stubbornness The fool hates being told what to do: Proverbs 1:22 The fool is complacent: Proverbs 1:31 The fool rejectes wisdom: Proverbs 8:5 2. Arrogance The fool won't listen: Proverbs 12:15 The fool is right in his own eyes: Proverbs 12:15 The fool mocks at the consequences of his sin: Proverbs 14:9 3. Pride The fool talks for the sake of talking: Proverbs 17:7 The fool find sport in wickedness: Proverbs 10:23