“Some people think that a spiritual quest of any kind is a colossal waste of time. For them, the only things that are real are those that can be proven or measured. They might think, Life boils down to earning and buying and selling… eating and drinking and having fun… respiration, digestion, elimination, ovulation, ejaculation, gestation, reproduction, antiquation, expiration. Why search for something that we can’t prove? Why don’t we just get real and get over it? Why waste energy on a spiritual quest? There’s nothing more than psychology and biology, which is nothing more than chemistry and electricity, which is nothing but physics, which boils down to mathematics. That’s all there is.” (Brian McLaren, The Secret Message of Jesus)

As one who believes that this is NOT all there is, I can’t help but feeling sorry for those for whom that’s all there is! Its no wonder so many people feel empty, pointless, worthless, purposeless. I know, they probably do not want my pity, but I feel it anyway. For me, I cannot ignore the spiritual whisper that is echoing within me. I do not understand it, and I don’t always hear it. But I cannot escape it. It gently beckons me, pulls me from the inside to something beyond the material to the immaterial, beyond the temporal to the eternal. I am on this spiritual quest, and I believe that the voice I hear is the voice of God, otherwise known as Jesus Christ.

God has made everything beautiful for its own time. He has planted eternity in the human heart, but even so, people cannot see the whole scope of God’s work from beginning to end. [Ecclesiastes 3:11]

What do you think?

Yesterday I wrote about being a practical atheist, and then discovered there is a whole book about the subject – The Christian Atheist by Craig Groeschel.
A look at the index shows what this involves:

1. When You Believe in God but Don’t Really Know Him
2. When You Believe in God but Are Ashamed of Your Past
3. When You Believe in God but Aren’t Sure He Loves You
4. When You Believe in God but Not in Prayer
5. When You Believe in God but Don’t Think He’s Fair
6. When You Believe in God but Won’t Forgive
7. When You Believe in God but Don’t Think You Can Change
8. When You Believe in God but Still Worry All the Time
9. When You Believe in God but Pursue Happiness at Any Cost
10. When You Believe in God but Trust More in Money
11. When You Believe in God but Don’t Share Your Faith
12. When You Believe in God but Not in His Church

So if the subject interests you, why not make this a part of your summer reading plan.
I’m sure its not a light and easy read – and it may make you uncomfortable.
I think I will.

It is not what we say, but what we do, that reveals what we really believe!
I say that I love Jesus, but do my actions bear that out?
I say that I follow Jesus, but do my actions reveal this?
I say that Jesus is my Lord, but do I strive to do what He says?
I say that Jesus is my Saviour, but do I look to Him and rely on Him for help?
I say that God is real to me, but do I live and act without much thought to God’s presence or power in my life?
I say that the bible is important to me, but do I take time to read it, and apply it to my life?
I say that prayer is important to me, but do it actually prioritize time for praying?

I heard someone talk about “practical atheists”, those who claim to believe in God, and maybe believe in God in their brains, but in reality deny His existence by each one of their deeds!

What do you think?

I found these stones piled up along the shore of Victoria Park, PEI.
Did this happen naturally, or is there some intelligent designer behind it?
To me, these stones testify – or point to – the hand that shaped and positioned them.
They are a silent message, reminding me that they did not just ‘happen’, but that someone put them there for a reason.
The heavens proclaim the glory of God. The skies display his craftsmanship. Day after day they continue to speak; night after night they make him known. They speak without a sound or word; their voice is never heard. Yet their message has gone throughout the earth, and their words to all the world. [Psalms 19:1-4]
Can you hear what the stones are saying?

That’s me going for a walk… in the ocean.
Experiencing God is like experiencing the ocean.
You can only touch a small part of it, and you could never grasp the whole of it.
It’s expanse, it’s depth, and the wonder that it contains, is all beyond my reach.
But that doesn’t stop me from stepping in and enjoying what I can.
So it is with God!

God’s Mission, what on earth God is doing!
Do you think of God as on a mission?
Do you see God as active in the world, or passive?
And if God is active, what is it that God is doing?
I believe that God is on a mission; I believe that God is active in the world for a specific purpose.
I believe that the God that created this world is now at work restoring this world, remaking it into the paradise that it was first created to be!
The bible is not first of all a rule book, or an encyclopaedia of information; the bible is first and foremost the record or story of God’s plan of recreation, or rescuing this world from the mess that we made it.
The bible begins with a perfect creation; and it ends with a perfect (or new) creation.
But in-between it is a twisted story of good and evil intertwined, and ultimately a story of how God overcomes the evil with good.
This is what God is up to in the world; this is what God is doing everywhere, all the time.
And this is what God is doing in Falby Court!

He revealed his character to Moses and his deeds to the people of Israel.
The Lord is compassionate and merciful, slow to get angry and filled with unfailing love.
He will not constantly accuse us, nor remain angry forever.
He does not punish us for all our sins; he does not deal harshly with us, as we deserve.
For his unfailing love toward those who fear him is as great as the height of the heavens above the earth.
He has removed our sins as far from us as the east is from the west.
The Lord is like a father to his children, tender and compassionate to those who fear him.
For he knows how weak we are; he remembers we are only dust. [Psalm 103:7-14]
What is God like? What kind of character is God?
God is love.
God is not anger, God is not rage, God is not wrath; He demonstrates these qualities, but not because they are the root of His nature, but as expressions of wounded, violated love.
He does not treat us as our sins deserve… let that sink in!
If only we could believe this, instead of the lies that Satan misleads us into believing.
If only we would pay attention to the character of God, instead of the caricatures of God.
Yes, God is holy, God is just, God is mysterious and incomprehensible; but over all these qualities, He has revealed to us that He is first and foremost our loving, compassionate, forgiving Father.
Yes, He is in heaven, and His name is hallowed; Yes, His kingdom is coming and His will is to be done; but first and foremost, He is “Our Father”.

What is a community of grace?
A place where all people are welcomed and blessed, no matter who they are, what they are like, what they have done or not done, or how they stand in relationship to God.
Jesus models this with His disciples, a motley crew of followers from a variety of backgrounds – spiritual, social, moral, personality type.
To be part of a community of grace is wonderful, but to be a community of grace is difficult.
Grace is undeserved blessing, which sounds so nice when applied to us, but is so much harder when applied to people that annoy us, or offend us, or mistreat us, or take advantage of us.
Does being a community of grace mean that we are nice, respectful, patient with everyone?
What about speaking the truth in love, providing accountability, gentle rebuke?
When is it time to say something about someone’s unhealthy or harmful behaviours?
What does being a grace community look like in this specific instances:

• Someone who is loud, obnoxious, full of themselves, and talks your ear off?
• Someone who does not show up to fulfill a church role, without letting you know?
• Someone who makes foolish choices, and asks for help with the consequences?
• Someone who never helps with anything, but is always ready to complain when things go wrong?
• Someone who is always right, and very opinionated?
• Someone who always changes the conversation to be about themselves?
• Someone who lives a lifestyle that is morally disturbing to you?
• Someone who smells, has obvious personal hygiene issues?
• Someone who is always down, and brings you down when they talk to you?
• Can you think of other examples?

Have you experienced a community of grace?
How would your describe a community of grace?

Today I chatted with an atheist.
Sitting here at Starbucks, working on my blog devotionals, I noticed he was reading Karen Armstrong’s The Case For God.
I appreciated his honesty: He was an ardent atheist, but was concerned that he was becoming close-minded, so he was exploring perspectives on God’s existence.
Most of the books he read by Christians were shrill (his word) and negative, but this book was connecting for him, opening the possibility of God for him. Continue reading chatting with an atheist

Too often we think of church as a place where we go.
The connection between ‘church’ and a building is rooted in the very word itself, which comes from the Old English word “circe”, which is derived from the Greek word “kyriakon” meaning “the Lord’s (house)” from the Greek root word “kyrious” mean “Lord”.
Constrast that with the Greek word used in the bible: “ekklesia”. This word literally means “the called out ones”, referring to meeting or religious assembly.
In the “circe” sense, we do not have a “church”, i.e. a house for the Lord; but in the “ecclesia” sense we have many “churches”, i.e. religious gatherings. Continue reading churching where we are