Hope you all can take time to read this article.If you're a lady, stick through the sports analogy, the article is worth reading!!!
ps - I had this picture as a poster in my bedroom when I was 14 or 15.
Saturday, November 25, 2006
The Bible Either Sounds Like A Tolkien Book or A Metallica Song To Someone Who Has Never Set Foot In A Church Before.
Hope you all can take time to read this article.If you're a lady, stick through the sports analogy, the article is worth reading!!!
ps - I had this picture as a poster in my bedroom when I was 14 or 15.
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7 comments:
An awesome article, and I actually got through the sports analogy. Thanks for sharing.
PS...you know my cousin lucas?
Great article. My favorite line is "It’s the journey that’s important and not the arrival. It’s working out your salvation." That has always been my philosphy. Thanks for sharing this.
Here in lies the challenge of contemporary spirituality. Perfection is determined by perception. That's the same type of idea that right and wrong are a matter of perception. "If it's wrong to you..." Is that really the case though? Is perfection a notion that you gather simply by observation? Or is the idea of perfection based in something more concrete? Something TRUE?
God is perfect not because we can prove it. But because it's TRUE. Faith is needed to believe that statement. My 'opinion' about God's perfection is inconsequential. Opinion is completely irrelevant. What matters is the truth.
Let's say I was born on the Space Station (it's not true, just a pretend thing... don't ask my wife though, she sometimes wonders). Okay, where was I? Right, I was born on the Space Station and was oblivious to the notion of gravity. My perception would tell me that everything floats. So I come to earth and I learn something immediately. Gravity is real and true, no matter what I have experienced to that point in life. Even on the Space Station, gravity exists, we are constantly held in the Sun's orbit and so on. My opinion on how much gravity matters little. It is truely an impacting force in nature. I just haven't experienced it a lot.
So we get to trying to explain God's perfection to people outside of a relationship with Jesus Christ and it's like speaking a different language. They won't get it. They may smile and nod (like my wife does when my grandmother speaks to her in German) but they don't understand. The language is true and important and real, but they don't understand.
Okay, I'm ranting and perhaps I should have my own blog to post my thoughts, but Paul asked for comments. All I mean is that perfection is not a matter of personal perception, but of ultimate truth. God is perfect, His decisions are always right, and I have no way of "explaining" that to people outside the church other than to say you've got to experience it to know it's real. Just like gravity.
Experience is everything in gravity. Saying you don't believe it and trying to defy it, may ultimately lead to a very painful experience. But you will experience gravity. And we can, and will, experience God's perfection. But it takes faith, trust, and time. I trust God regardless of my perception. He is true in my life. That gives me hope, strength, and peace. He is in control. He is perfect. And Michael may one day be surpassed by someone else. But God will always be The Man.
kenny toews
I know more men that don't understand basketball than women that don't understand basketball.
Samantha
I wonder by what standard do people judge God when they say he isn't perfect?
hi guys. this is not article-related but i need to leave a message...
we sent you something little with darcy and leanne but didn't include a note...the gift is meant to make you fall in love with slovakia so you come visit soon! a hint: it comes in small packages and smells and tastes just lovely! and it's NOT coffee!!
Pastor Nettleton has been one of the most amazing men I have ever met. He was the Sr.Pastor in Ladysmith for yrs and yrs (27 actually). After he "stepped" down he became the visitation pastor here on staff. I have never heard him complain or give a suggestion to leadership in my 8 yrs. Imagine how hard that would be! He was voted citizen of the yr in Ladysmith by the community. He's a great preacher and an amazing man of God.
One member in the community told me he thinks Pastor Nettleton is the greatest Canadian. When I asked him what he thinks about that he looked at me and said, "Obviously he hasn't talked to my wife."
My wife reminds me how imperfect I am. I think I need reminders or people can really puff you up. For example Ginny and I sang a special yrs ago at our church...after a lady in our congregation was complimenting me but she took it really far. She said, "You are great, you should seriously consider making a CD." We all know Ginny is the singer in my family and that I was riding off her coat tails. Now I got enough sense to realize she is out to lunch but to take the compliment.
Trevor
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