Categotry Archives: food for thought

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Promised Land

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Categories: food for thought

There are a couple of verses in Joshua that have always intrigued me, because they really speak of transition. They describe the children of Israel just after they had crossed the Jordan:

“On the day after the Passover, on that very day, they ate some of the produce of the land, unleavened cakes and parched grain. The manna ceased on the day after they had eaten some of the produce of the land, so that the sons of Israel no longer had manna, but they ate some of the yield of the land of Canaan during that year.” (Joshua 5:11-12, NASB)

This is a preview of Promised Land. Read the full post (822 words, 2 images, estimated 3:17 mins reading time)

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Word of Warning

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Categories: changing mindsets, food for thought

Barb has strongly urged me, and a few other bloggers, to post the following disclaimer:

Beware all who land on this site. This site may enable you to see truth for the first time. Seeing truth may be just what you are looking for but you need to be careful. Once you have tasted truth you will never be able to stomach lies. You are on dangerous ground if you ever want to fit into the established system. You may [lose] all your friends. You may not have anyone left to worship with. Your children may be left only to you to raise. God will not be controlled any longer. He will be good but no longer safe in that you will not be able to predict his every move. And as for many of your friends. You will need to be willing to loose them. They may (probably will) shun you, dismiss you and turn away from you despite what you now may think. You need to think long and hard about this because it will [affect] your life. Please be careful with this site. Only enter at your own risk.

This is a preview of Word of Warning. Read the full post (365 words, 2 images, estimated 1:28 mins reading time)

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The Supernatural In Perspective

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Categories: food for thought, Meanderings (look it up)

Catching up on my blog reader…a couple of days ago Co-heir posted a very insightful piece on “Falsetto Spirituality”, in which he discusses the tendency of many Christians to chase after supernatural manifestations, and how he is seeking to find God in the everyday. Go read it…I’ll wait… (actually, I’m kind of pressed for time this morning, so if you could hurry it up…)

Anyhow…I grew up in the charismatic stream, and there were often healings and miracles. Not only that, but I’ve also experienced a “season” of supernatural manifestation, when the church I served in was touched by the what some called the “laughing revival” in the 1990s. Yes, I know there were some carnal manifestations there (when is there not?); but I also sensed God strongly in my life and in the life of my family, and it was refreshing and healing for us.

This is a preview of The Supernatural In Perspective. Read the full post (941 words, 2 images, estimated 3:46 mins reading time)

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More About Leaning

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Categories: faith, food for thought, Meanderings (look it up)

So I’ve continued to ponder the subject of faith being a matter of trust more than just a matter of belief, and about what it means to lean oneself on the Lord. (Read here to catch the last post to know what I’m talking about.)

There’s actually something about the idea of leaning on God that can be a bit troubling to some. I’m thinking specifically about those who say religion in general (and Christianity, in particular) is a crutch for the weak. It’s true enough that the idea of faith being “leaning” signifies dependence, even need. Certainly not a picture of strength that would be obvious to the world. And there’s also the modern thought pattern that says we should not trust in anything we cannot see or prove through natural means.

This is a preview of More About Leaning. Read the full post (765 words, 2 images, estimated 3:04 mins reading time)

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The Mentality of "Us Versus Them"

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Categories: food for thought

Tracy wrote a very thoughtful piece today called “Us Versus Them“, talking about the mentality so prevalent among us humans to differentiate ourselves from others, to see ourselves as superior to others over this or that belief, or color of skin, or what-have-you.

At the end of the post, she asked us, her readers, to consider whether we still struggle with the us-versus-them mentality. The thoughts came pouring through my mind, too much to put in a comment; so I thought I’d reflect on it here. (I think this problem is common to all mankind, but for our purposes I’ll put it in the context of belief and practice of faith.)

This is a preview of The Mentality of "Us Versus Them". Read the full post (677 words, 1 image, estimated 2:42 mins reading time)

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Outside the Box: Not Just About Being Weird

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Categories: changing mindsets, church, food for thought

Here’s a question for any gamers out there. Have you ever been playing some sort of puzzle game and found yourself apparently stuck? Like, you’re in a room with no apparent way out, or you have a door you must open but you cannot figure out how?

I have a sure-fire way of getting out of those predicaments: go to a hints website and find a cheat. 🙂 No, seriously. I have no patience with stuff like that. Actually, what intrigues me about finding a hint is how simple the solution usually is–if only you approach the problem from a slightly different angle. When I get the hint, I usually have a V-8 moment. (*Smack* “Why didn’t I see that before??”)

This is a preview of Outside the Box: Not Just About Being Weird. Read the full post (938 words, 2 images, estimated 3:45 mins reading time)

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The Elusive Search for Relevance

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Categories: food for thought, Meanderings (look it up)

Have you ever watched the movie Napoleon Dynamite? I haven’t–not all the way through, anyway. I like certain kinds of what I call “stupid humor”, but I lost interest really quick when I tried to watch this movie. Like maybe 10 minutes into it, I said, “That’s enough”, and changed the channel.

I understand, though, why Napoleon Dynamite was so popular. The one thing that it had going for it is that people really get a kick out of watching someone who thinks he is cool, but really isn’t.

This is a preview of The Elusive Search for Relevance. Read the full post (800 words, 2 images, estimated 3:12 mins reading time)

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The Subculture of Christianity

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Categories: church, food for thought, Meanderings (look it up)

So I’ve been pondering how my thinking has changed over the past few years, and how I can’t stomach so much of the Christian-ese lingo and churchy behavior anymore–which is funny because I used to be all about that stuff not too very long ago. I don’t go near Christian television anymore, I don’t listen to Christian radio hardly at all, and I usually can’t stand to listen to sermons anymore. And I feel very out of place in most church meetings.

And I know why I’m like this now. And it’s not that I’ve abandoned my faith.

This is a preview of The Subculture of Christianity. Read the full post (555 words, 1 image, estimated 2:13 mins reading time)

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Defending the Christian Label (or Traveling Light)

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Categories: church, food for thought, Rantings

Yesterday we went to a local retail hobby store, and there was a “now hiring” stand with lots of employment applications folded like brochures stuck in it. Out of curiosity, The Wild One picked one up.

The amount of red tape required just to get employed at this store was daunting. Drug/alcohol testing, background checks, aptitude tests (none of which I am opposed to, BTW)…but then there were literally two pages of fine print about an “arbitration agreement”, where anyone who wanted to be employed there must sign a binding agreement to resolves disputes through arbitration (read: you can’t sue us). NO ONE gets employed unless they sign the agreement. I know; it says so about four different times on the application.

This is a preview of Defending the Christian Label (or Traveling Light). Read the full post (1061 words, 2 images, estimated 4:15 mins reading time)
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