I just finished my last intern class of the semester – I love hanging out with these young minds….so much potential!
I ended our class with a video clip that Jerry Batista shared with me – a spirited debate on the existence of Satan from Nightline. The fact that we covered Screwtape as one of our [...]
Archive for the ‘Theology’ Category
30 Mar
Classic Debate
13 Mar
Pre-Confessions of a Closet Calvinist
Confession: I have always been a closet Calvinist (a theological system and an approach to the Christian life that emphasizes the rule of God over all things….ALL things).
It’s been an inner struggle forever! My (perceived) free will versus the sovereignty of an All Mighty God.
The collective cultural theological pendulum seems to swing between the two.
Is [...]
6 Mar
Praying for “Our Daily Bread”
Over 2 toasted slices of whole wheat bread, a little peanut butter, and a little more honey…..
I’m thinking about “our daily bread”.
The Lord’s Prayer.
Seems I default to this when I don’t know what or how to pray.
I was reminded of this recently as I struggled through my love/hate relationship with fasting. Issue: when I don’t [...]
11 Feb
Daydreaming of One Day Becoming an Unwavering Man of God
Over a piping hot mug of Hazelnut coffee and two slices of whole wheat bread, toasted dark, a little non salmonella peanut butter, and a little more honey….
I’m wondering out loud:
If we truly desire to become that unwavering man or woman of God, what are we doing about it? What is our church doing to [...]
1 Feb
Are We Now Beginning to Reap What We Have Sown?
AW Tozer wrote:
A generation of Christians reared among push buttons and automatic machines is impatient of slower and less direct methods of reaching their goals. We have been trying to apply machine-age methods to our relations with God. We read our chapter, have our short devotions, and rush away, hoping to make up for our [...]
29 Dec
As the Pendulum Swings…
Sitting in the waiting room, awaiting my appointment to meet with the the leasing agent for my new office, I was memorized by the slow yet certain swing of the gold pendulum hanging below the time face of an old Grand Father clock.
The side to side motion was intriguing.
The pace of the swing a bit [...]
23 Dec
Does God Need You?
Why do you serve God?
No, really.
Let me ask this question in a more direct way – why do you serve God in and through your local church or local ministry?
I’ll tell you why I serve. It’s not the primary reason I serve – but it’s in my top 3. In fact, there are [...]
22 Dec
Knee Deep in the Hoopla
I think Jefferson Starship sang it best back in 1985 as “We Built This City” rocketed to Billboard #1 and then crashed back down to earth in 2004 when Blender magazine named it the #1 worst song of all time.
But there is something endearing and almost theological about this tune that some say single handedly [...]
5 Dec
…but MY Bible says:
Here is a portion of an email I received at 11 pm yesterday to my church email account:
After visiting your church, I had a couple of questions that were puzzling to me. I can’t remember her name, but there was a woman leading the Blend. I couldn’t tell if she was a teaching [...]
7 Nov
Losing Purpose
Last night, over beef, chips, cookies, and lots of testosterone….
Bunkered down in the “no girls allowed room” the guys did guys things – at least until it was time to watch the Knights Templar DVD and I had to ask for some technical assistance from my 14 year old daughter – embarrasing.
These warrior monks were [...]
24 Oct
“We’re All In This Together…”
In (tongue in cheek) honor of the release of the new High School Musical, maybe we all ARE really in this thing together.
Thank you Stephen:
In The Brothers Karamazov, Dostoevsky tells the story of the elder Zosima who says, “Truly each of us is guilty before everyone and for everyone, only people do not know it, [...]
17 Oct
Me Too…
If it’s true that others identify more with our failures than our successes, then consider the following:
How can death produce life?
Our church will serve communion (Lord’s Supper, the Eucharist) this weekend. Rob Bell has challenged me in ways I have never been challenged in his new book “Jesus Wants To Save Christians”.
“This is how the [...]
17 Oct
Me Too…
If it’s true that others identify more with our failures than our successes, then consider the following:
How can death produce life?
Our church will serve communion (Lord’s Supper, the Eucharist) this weekend. Rob Bell has challenged me in ways I have never been challenged in his new book “Jesus Wants To Save Christians”.
“This is how the [...]
16 Oct
Hooked…
Here’s a question I get from time to time: “What’s up with the name of your site – Hooked On Grace?”
It’s an intentional word play -
1. Hooked – play on my last name (Lord knows that’s easy to do)
2. Grace – because the more I fall in love with Jesus, the more I fall in [...]
8 Sep
Alpha
Began facilitating a new study at church this week called Alpha.
It’s designed for the seeker, atheisit, agnostic, and new believer.
Refreshing.
We should all go back to this point in our Faith Journey…asking “Who are you God?”
Raw, real, uncluttered with years of “Christiandom”.
….and challenging.
As I closed the class and was packing up, a young man approached me [...]
3 Sep
Too Slick?
Well marketed presentations by many of our churches are still the “in thing”.
But the times are changing…
Many of our gospel presentations are not the “…old old story” anymore. If we pressed many of our newest members, do not be surprised to hear a few of them say “I still don’t see why Jesus needs to [...]
22 Aug
Dare You To Pray This…
from my friend Jerry…thanks.
This is just one of the reasons why Francis Chan continues to maintain his #3 ranking on my favorite pastors list:
24 Jul
Hearing God – Element 3 – Open the Eyes of My Heart
The one thing…above everything else this morning Lord, will you help me to hear your voice today?
3rd Element – As I pray, I fix the eyes of my heart upon Jesus, seeing in the spirit the dreams and visions of Almighty God.
Habakkuk said, “I will keep watch to see,” and God said, “Record the vision” [...]
23 Jul
Hearing God’s Voice – Element 2 – Pure Flow
The absolute most difficult discipline for me. But it is here, in this very moment, that I sometimes experience a brief yet incredibly tender face time with my Creator.
2nd Element – We must learn to still my own thoughts and emotions, so that I can sense God’s flow of thoughts and emotions within me.
Habakkuk said, [...]
22 Jul
The 4 Major Elements to Hearing God’s Voice
The word of the day is = paga.
As I continue my real time quest of learning how to more effectively hear the voice of my Creator, I wanted to share with you some direct quotes from one of my mentors, Jose Barreda. He is teaching me about the 4 Elements to hearing the voice of [...]
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