J. Sidlow Baxter
No man who is full of himself can ever truly preach the Christ who emptied himself.
Deepening Our Roots
Developing Passion In Our Spiritual Life
The more I read the New Testament, the more I find that passion is an essential element of discipleship. Without passion, our faith could be seriously questioned.
Psalm 1 gives us an excellent image of what it means to be deeply rooted, to be spiritually passionate. In verse 3, the psalmist says:
He will be like a tree firmly planted by streams of water,
Which yields its fruit in its season
And its leaf does not wither;
And in whatever he does, he prospers.
This image of a tree is a perfect illustration of what it means to develop passion in our lives. The roots have to go deep, or there can be no production of fruit. In this psalm, the tree is planted strategically next to a stream of water, and it is rooted deeply enough to receive the nourishment it needs, and to prevent it from being easily uprooted.
This is exactly what we need to do in our lives. Passion and discipleship require us to be both strategic and solid in where we plant ourselves.
Book Review – Supernatural by Michael S. Heiser
For the past few months, I have been hearing a lot of hype about a couple of new books by Michael S. Heiser, The Unseen Realm and Supernatural. Both of these books are an examination of the unseen realty of the spiritual realm that we cannot see, but which is very real. The Unseen Realm is the more scholarly of the two works, and my review of that volume will be forthcoming.
Supernatural is a secondary effort, taking the information presented in The Unseen Realm and making it much more readable and easier to understand for the common reader. This review, while it may touch on the material presented in both books, is primarily concerned with Supernatural.
I have been hearing a lot about these books for a while now, and part of me wanted to read them, while another part of me was afraid to. While I know the reality of spiritual warfare and the realm of the unseen, it has always been an uncomfortable topic amongst the Christian Churches/Churches of Christ. It’s too… pentecostal (?) for most of our churches.
And yet this is a very real topic presented in Scripture and there is much to be learned from the pages of the Bible about the forces of good and evil that surround us, which we cannot see. And so, I went into this book with a bit of fascination, and a bit of skepticism for what I might find.
And rightly so. I was faced with thoughts and ideas that I’ve never been faced with before. And, in reading this book, I was forced to examine some of these ideas and see what I believe about them.
Supernatural gave me some insights and ideas that I have been wrestling with since I read the book, and I’m not certain about the conclusions I may reach. This book has really caused me to think, more so than anything I have read in a long while.
First, I want to address the things I found that I didn’t agree with, and then I will share the other side. And finally, I will wrap this review up with something new I am facing and dealing with.
Coffee Break – 11.09.2015
Your Monday Dose Of Inspiration
On this day in history: In 1906, President Theodore Roosevelt left for Panama to see the progress on the new canal. It was the first foreign trip by a U.S. president. In 1961, Major Robert White flew an X-15 rocket plane at a world record speed of 4,093 mph. And in 1982, Sugar Ray Leonard retired from boxing. In 1984 Leonard came out of retirement to fight one more time before becoming a boxing commentator for NBC.
Hacking The Dark Roast – I love a good bold coffee. But sometimes, a dark roast can be tough to brew without losing the flavor completely. Here are some tips on how to accomplish that.
10 Sweet Facts About Mike and Ike – This is my favorite candy. Right now anyway. Here are some fun facts about this candy, and even a couple of videos to enjoy
Fabulous Fall Foliage – Feel free to find yourself floating through these fenomenal fall fotos.
How To Slice Your Steak – Everyone needs to know this. Cutting your steak right can make even the “toughest” parts of the steak tender and easy to enjoy.
Memorize Scripture: Philippians 3:7
Paul began the third chapter of Philippians by expressing how there is no use for confidence in the flesh. In the previous verses, he listed his own accomplishments, but here he makes it clear just how little it matters.
See it for yourself in Philippians 3:7:
Paul’s language in this passage borrows language from the financial world, and he expresses things in terms of “profit” and “loss.” He will continue using this terminology in verse 8 as well.
What he has accomplished in life, which he recounted in verses 4-6, he now puts in the clearest light possible. What the world sees as an exquisite list of achievements, Paul places in the “loss” column.
It is interesting to note that Paul uses the plural form for the word “profit.” It is as if he takes his list of accomplishments and reviews them one by one, just as a miser hoards his pennies. Then Paul uses the singular form of the word “loss.” All of those achievements, Paul lumps together into one pile and casts it aside.
And he does not merely set it aside and forget about it, he views it as a liability, and regards it with disgust!
There is no pride so dangerous, none so subtle and insidious, as the pride of holiness.
Andrew Murray
Book Review – The Entitlement Cure by Dr. John Townsend
“Today we live in a culture that says, ‘Life should be easy and work well.’ This attitude, called entitlement, influences our most important institutions: family, business, church, and government. It’s devastating effects contribute to relational problems, work ethic issues, and emotional struggles. It comes down to this: People are not getting to where they want to go, because they don’t know how to do life the hard way. Entitlement keeps them from tackling challenges and finding success. There is a better way.” – Dr. John Townsend, The Entitlement Cure
One of the greatest plagues on our society in modern times is the attitude of entitlement. My wife and I have long recognized this, and are striving to eliminate this attitude from our own lives, as well as the lives of our children. But it is difficult!
The attitude of entitlement believes that I deserve certain things in my life. I deserve to be treated a certain way. I deserve to have the best.
But that is simply not true. Not at all.
Dr. John Townsend has written a new book that examines this attitude, and seeks to find a way to cure it from our lives. The Entitlement Cure examines this dangerous attitude, and suggests that when we do hard things the right way, we find out that our lives have so much more meaning.