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“You are going to feel like hell if you never write the stuff that is tugging on the sleeves of your heart — your stories, visions, memories, visions and songs. Your truth, your version of things, your own voice. That is really all you have to offer us. And that’s also why you were born.”
Anne Lamott

“You are going to feel like hell if you never write the stuff that is tugging on the sleeves of your heart — your stories, visions, memories, visions and songs. Your truth, your version of things, your own voice. That is really all you have to offer us. And that’s also why you were born.”
Anne Lamott

Spirituality of the River

George

Dr. Erland Waltner at age eighty quoted in Dissent Discipleship:

During the last decade of my life … I have sensed I am in transition on my experience of God …For many years my time with God was something like a quick stop while driving on a long and sometimes rough road … a pit stop in the Indianapolis 500 when drivers stop to refuel, to check tires, to watch for possible trouble ahead before hurrying back to fast lane as quickly as possible. I called mine a “spirituality of the road.”

Now I am beginning to see my relationship with God as being like a river which helps me get from here to there, to carry me along from day to day, from task to task, from one experience to the next. I am experiencing God as One who is not only daily present with me, but One who is in motion, bearing me up, sustaining, renewing, enabling me.

Spirituality of the river asks for a higher kind of trusting of in God, a deeper kind of love, a profound hope to be carried on by this river.

Surprised

George

There is ultimately no justification for a private piety that doesn’t work out in actual mission, just as there is no justification for people who use their activism in the social, cultural, or political sphere as a screen to prevent them from facing the challenges within their own lives – the challenge, that is of God’s kingdom, of Jesus’s lordship, and of the Spirit’s empowering. If the gospel is not transforming you, how do you know it will transform anything else?

N.T. Wright – Surprised by Hope

Back Home

George

We returned from our week at Spring Mill Bible Camp on Saturday. I have not posted for a while on this blog. There are a few things that I’ve been mulling and thought I would put together a post.

First, I’ve been reading N. T. Wright’s Surprised by Hope. He certainly challenges my thinking about Jesus’ resurrection, Easter, the Christian’s resurrection, heaven, salvation and numerous other related subjects. I really feel like I need to spend some quality time in study with other believer’s to sort through his arguments and conclusions. If you are looking for a challenging but encouraging and profitable read, Surprised by Hope is a good candidate.

Our time at SMBC was good. We worked hard at cooking and cleaning. It was good to be with old friends, and a some young friends. The kids were well-behaved as far as I could tell. One thing that I observed that I had not noticed before was the eating habits of the campers. Perhaps there was nothing unusual about that group and I’m just out of touch. Because we were preparing the meals and at serving time I was able to observe each camper as they filled their plates. Based on my completely un-scientific observations, I came to some conclusions. 1) A large percentage of the kids do not eat balanced meals and their bodies reflect their eating habits. 2) The were several girls (I did not observe any boys) that were not eating or eating so little that it wouldn’t matter. This was especially alarming.

I concluded that observing the eating habits of a youth group is a way their spiritual health can be evaluated. The core issue of dysfunctional eating is spiritual. Correspondingly the ultimate solution to the problem is spiritual. It will not suffice to threaten, plead, heap guilt, scare, reason with them. The problem for me is that I am mostly equipped to threaten, plead, heap guilt, scare, reason. As I thought about how I might help one particular girl should the opportunity arise, I was at a loss as to how to even start. As I have continued to think about the issue, I am more convinced than ever that spiritual health comes not through educating and moralizing, but through relationship with Jesus and sharing that relationship with others. I would not suggest that education and information are unimportant but they will only bear fruit in the context of Christ formed relationships.

MVP

 

Blake was selected as an 8 and under All Star for his league. They played their first tournament this weekend. Although they didn’t fair well in the tournament, Blake was awarded the Most Valuable Player award for his team. Congratulations.

We are leaving this morning to go to Spring Mill Bible Camp for the week. We will be cooking for the campers. We’ll pick up Ryan in Louisville on our way. I am thankful for the opportunity to be with the kids and good friends.