I wanna love You better whatever it takes . . . » apostasy

blasphemous, indeed . . .

laterain — Tue, 16 Oct 2007 01:44:03 +0000

I am a child of the eighties, and as such, was exposed to a fair amount of Depeche Mode. This song had particular significance to me (or at any rate, my friends enjoyed pointing out the parallels between the song and my own life), and to be honest, there have been more than a few times in my life where I have wondered if God really didn’t have ”a sick sense of humor” after all . . .

But today, I know the truth. I know that the God I serve is sovereign, loving, and good, and that no matter what happens, I am going to stand until the end of my days with Job and others like him who have chosen to call His name blessed when He gives AND when He takes away.

wise words re: discerning between truth and lies

laterain — Fri, 12 Oct 2007 15:16:08 +0000

amen!

Grand Rapids as Laodicea: reflections on “meatless” sermons.

laterain — Tue, 25 Sep 2007 04:25:05 +0000

If someone can find me a Mars Hill sermon that sounds even remotely like this one, I will not only take back every unkind thing I ever said about the place, but I will also get an “I ♥ Rob Bell” tattoo on my ass.

Okay, I probably won’t really do that, because I really don’t think tattoos are biblical, but seriously . . . THIS is the kind of preaching that we need to hear. As I left the service yesterday morning, it struck me that what I had just heard and what I have been feeding on as of late are as different as prime rib is from a veggie burger with those fake painted-on charcoal marks. The one is enjoyable to eat, gives you something to chew on, and leaves you feeling like you’ve actually had a MEAL, whereas the other leaves you feeling vaguely cheated and scavenging for something else to fill you.

The church I belong to has in the past proven itself capable of prime rib, but it seems like more and more it’s been cranking out the veggie burgers en masse, and I just don’t know what to do about it. Do I eat what’s put in front of me, and enjoy the rare gourmet meal when it appears? Do I send back my soggy veggie burger and refuse to budge until something more than merely edible comes my way? Or do I change my dining habits and find a restaurant that will serve me what I need and not merely what is easy to prepare and works well enough for those who have forgotten how good a real meal can be?

I am not sure what the answer is . . . I only know that I am still hungry.

Rob Bell’s gospel of works

laterain — Sat, 22 Sep 2007 12:28:20 +0000

yay . . . I found another blogger who expresses my concerns far better than I can . . .

love does NOT win (not without a fight, anyway)

laterain — Sat, 15 Sep 2007 12:44:12 +0000

People ask me why I get so pissed off about Rob Bell. I’m not sure I have a good answer to that question . . .but I really like this particular post. Especially the guy he quotes towards the bottom (here’s the whole article if you’re feeling ambitious)

Seriously, the more people try to convince me that I ought to go with the crowd and embrace the Gospel according to Rob, the harder it is for me to accept it. I’ve been asked, “how can you hate a brother in Christ?” to which I struggle to respond . . . but I truly don’t hate the man himself. How can I? I don’t even know him. But, as my always-l0ok-on-the-bright-side friend Kim pointed out, it’s not so much that I hate Rob Bell, but that I love truth, and this causes me to hate anything that sets itself up against the knowledge of God (2 Corinthians 10:5, TNIV).

And because I’m so frustrated by the whole Stepford-esque nature of the “love wins” thing, here’s the bumper sticker i came up with. I’m still trying to figure out a better counter-slogan, but for now, this is all I have:

oh, that we would “employ no other weapon” . . .

laterain — Sat, 11 Aug 2007 04:15:46 +0000

Tired of hearing me rant and rave about everything that’s wrong with Willow Creek, etc? Well, then this is worth reading.