Wrestling With Predestination Pt.3

When it comes to any Theology, there comes a time when human words must cease and the Bible must speak for itself.

We are all flawed beings attempting to understand a deeply unfathomable God. We have our boxes, we have our tight Theological ideals...but in the end issues like predestination are as deeply mysterious as our God is. I think [I'm pretty sure] God did this on purpose. He left Himself so mysterious so we, His creation would have to seek to know the answers. We would have to be on our faces, on our knees and in the Word to come to some type of understanding.

Imagine your on your first date with that cute girl. She ends up telling you everything about herself, flaws and all right there. She takes 4 hours to list out all the things she is good at and bad at. She tells you her quirks, what makes her tick and what ticks her off. You leave the date and all the mystery is gone...all the fun of seeking out who she is...gone.

God is relational so he did NOT reveal himself all in one shot. In fact, no matter how long we live and how deep we go...we will NEVER end up scratching the surface of our God! OK, sorry...Predestination, right.

What does the Bible say about this issue?

Well, it says A TON.

On the Arminian side, we have Scriptures that speak to God's desire for all to be saved. Mark argues that reading these simply at face value is why Arminians come to this view. Mark states that most Calvinists read these a bit deeper than do Arminians and see the words "all", "world" and "all people" as descriptive of "The Elect". I love reading Mark Driscolls books and I listen to every sermon of his...yet I wish he would've wrote more on dismissing these verses. I will list them.

1 Timothy 2:3-4 (English Standard Version)

This is good, and it is pleasing in the sight of God our Savior, 4who desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.


2 Peter 3:9 (English Standard Version)

9 The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance.


John 3:16-17 (English Standard Version)

16"For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. 17For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.


1 John 2:1-2 (English Standard Version)

1My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. 2 He is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world.


This last verse (1 John 2:1-2) Mark doesn't even mention. How could Christ be the Propitiation for the whole world? 1 John was a letter to believers, or if you will "The Elect". For John to say "...and not for ours only but also for the sins of the WHOLE world" seems pretty indicative of a gift that is for all, but not chosen by all.

Another widely debated Arminian vs. Calvanist passage is 1 Peter 3:17-19. When you read a passage from different translations, you can see the camp which the translators lean towards. For example, the ESV in 1 Peter 3:17-19 says: "17For it is better to suffer for doing good, if that should be God’s will, than for doing evil.

18For Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh but made alive in the spirit"


While the NIV says:

"It is better, if it is God's will, to suffer for doing good than for doing evil. 18For Christ died for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God. He was put to death in the body but made alive by the Spirit"


The ESV leads you to read that the death was One death for sins, while the NIV leads one to think it was once for all sins, for all people.


However, the 1 John 2:1-2 passage is the one that really has me perplexed.


I think Christ dying for the whole world, rather than for a select few makes more sense. The depth of heart-warming feelings I feel at being "a Chosen One" doesn't counter-react the depth of pain my heart feels at thinking "They didn't even have a chance".

Mark explains himself well as to why his passion for evangelsim is intact, whilst still being a strong believing Calvanist, yet I feel that the Church was meant to go out and call Disciples to their Husband Jesus. The people can choose or not.

I know that the majority of Calvanist would say its ludacrous for sinners to choose God, because we as sinners have nothing good within us, nothing good to reach out for good. Yet, I believe that God touches our hearts, warms our hearts and we can give into this or not. That warming of the heart I believe happens to all, yet most choose not to give into it.


Again, I am not ready to deny the idea of Predestination outright. These are my honest thoughts, my gut-feelings AFTER studying the Word and reading ideals on both sides. That's why I will now list out the Biblical stance of the Calvanist side. Here are the verses that go along with this Theological view:

Romans 8:29-30 (English Standard Version)

29For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. 30And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified.


Romans 8:33 (English Standard Version)

33Who shall bring any charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies.


1 Corinthians 1:27-28 (English Standard Version)

27But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong; 28God chose what is low and despised in the world, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things that are,


Acts 13:17 (English Standard Version)

17 The God of this people Israel chose our fathers and made the people great during their stay in the land of Egypt, and with uplifted arm he led them out of it.


Ephesians 1:3-12 (English Standard Version)

3Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, 4even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him. In love 5 he predestined us for adoption as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will, 6 to the praise of his glorious grace, with which he has blessed us in the Beloved. 7 In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace, 8which he lavished upon us, in all wisdom and insight 9 making known to us the mystery of his will,according to his purpose, which he set forth in Christ 10as a plan forthe fullness of time, to unite all things in him, things in heaven and things on earth.

11In him we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to the purpose of him who works all things according to the counsel of his will, 12so that we who were the first to hope in Christ might be to the praise of his glory.


There are several others, including the Biggest string found in Romans 9:1-11:36. Others include: Phil. 1:29; 1 Thess.1:4-5; Col. 3:12; 2 Thess. 2:13; 2 Timothy 2:10; Titus 1:1; 1 Peter 1:1; 1 Peter 2:4; 1 Peter 2:9 and 2 Peter 1:10.


These verses are bold and they are many. I will go deeper into them next post. I've given a lot of food for thought and my brain is still thinking through these particular verses. The evidence for Predestination within the realm of how much Biblical content there is FOR it is hard to deny. I know I said this was going to be "more Pro Predestination" in nature...but my true colors I think have shone through :)

Wrestling With Predestination Pt.2

The impetus for this whole discussion was my reading of Mark Driscoll's new book Religion Saves and Nine other Misconceptions. He answers questions on predestination in Chapter 3 (Question 7) of his book.

His answers moved me to search deeply within to see where I stand on this issue. He had many other ideas in other chapters that struck me, but this one I wanted to "go public with" so to speak.

As you can tell from my other "Wrestling With Predestination" Blog I don't have this fully solidified within my own heart, brain of Theological thinking...but I'm working on it.

Mark gives strong Biblical references for his stance on predestination. The evidence is very heavy. Yet I am always stuck with a few lingering thoughts when it comes to this idea of predestination.

Lingering Thought #1: Why should we evangelize if people are predestined?
Mark gives a good answer to this, but I was still left wondering. He explained the "Calvinist" answer to this very briefly, but it was too short for my liking. My thought is in the end: we don't need to evangelize if we are all predestined.

If we are truly predestined, whether the person is evangelized to or not...in the end, they will be saved. I know there are tons of Calvinists who hold to this very thought...and I don't blame them. Mark would say that this brings about an ease when we would evangelize because ultimately we know we are not responsible for that person salvation, God is. He says this idea and thought makes it easier for us to partner with God by not having guilt if someone doesn't accept Christ. However, this same thought can be connected to the Armenian view as well. In the end, we live in a depraved world and we need not feel guilty when someone doesn't come to Christ, because some people will always ultimately CHOOSE evil over God. You see what I did there? I changed a few words in Mark's rebuttal and it made sense within the realm of both views.

I am excited that Mark sees evangelism as a HUGE piece of God's puzzle, but I still get stuck on why it's important if God has already chosen those who will be His in heaven.

There are several passages for predestination...I'm still not ready to throw the baby out with the bath water, but I am authentically sharing WHY the Doctrine of Predestination is hard for me to accept.

Ultimately, if Predestination were the true Doctrine, God would not be unjust for choosing some over others because we all (due to our utter depravity) deserve Hell. However, if we are all predestined and "chosen" why did he even create us? Which leads is my second "Lingering Thought"

Lingering Thought #2: Why would God create us if people are predestined?

The angels are compelled by their nature (which God designed within them) to worship God, and serve Him. They are wired to do so. We see that Lucifer wanted out of this predisposition, so he fought his way out. This then turned into an all out rebellion on the part of some other angels who chose one leader over another. God did not choose for them. Again, now these angels who are in heaven are wired to follow, worship and serve God. They are His. If God were to wire some humans as "Chosen" and others as "Not Chosen", why not make more Angels? I'm not attempting to be heretical, or "question God's motives" but I do wonder the answer to this question...because I've never heard a compelling answer to it.

Ultimately again, God is justified and right to choose some and not others, I'm not saying He is wrong for wanting to create us even if this Doctrine is true...I'm simply being curious.


Next post will be more "Pro Predestination" in nature, because I desire to explore both ideals...I just needed to share my struggles on this road to discovering the Truth God has.

Wrestling With Predestination

For the longest time, I've always been an Armenian at heart when it came to the discussion of predestination or not.

I always said my answer to the "predestination question" was this: "God knows everything, so of course he KNOWS who will CHOOSE Him in the end. We still have that choice, but all in all God already knows who will ultimately choose Him or not"

That sounds like an amazing rebuttal, right? I thought so too. Yet, there is a HUGE hole.

How can we choose God if God hasn't yet called us? Romans 3:23 says: "for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God..." We've all sinned. Yet it continues in Romans 3:24-25: "and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith. This was to show God’s righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins." All have sinned, and all have received this justification?

It seems that the hole has been blown open. If we are all depraved, all lost...how could we possibly choose God over sin? It would stand to reason, that there must be an initiation from God in order to us to respond.

Some would say (as I do/did) that the initiation was the cross of Christ, inviting all who hear/experience the reality of what God did for them to embrace the Gift of God. I use this analogy with my teens:

Christs death on the cross is once for all (depending on the Bible translation this could sound like once for all people, or once for all sins). It's like Him giving a gift. It's there, ready for you to open up. He has done all the work of getting the gift and wrapping it for you. However, you must open the gift and receive it. Then I say that a gift doesn't belong to you until you open it and use it, just like Christ's death on the cross won't mean anything to you unless you receive it and believe it...then use that in your life.

I still hold to this, but due to much reading and studying, I am now currently wrestling with my position on predestination. I am convinced that Salvation is only through Christ's cross, by grace alone and by faith alone. His blood on the cross what my atonement, he justified me and imputed His righteousness to me. However, did he also choose me before time began to be His child...while NOT choosing someone else?

When deeply thought out, the idea of Predestination brings an excitement and sadness. Let me explain.

If God chose me [ before the foundations of the earth were put into place] this brings me excitement. God, the great Creator chose me to be His child, a Son hand picked by the Father to live a life transformed on the earth, to be regenerated, justified, made righteous and ultimately chosen to live forever with Him! I was chosen over someone else, I am special, I am predestined. This is more touching than if someone where to say He [God] handpicked everyone in the whole world and some people embraced it and others didn't. It gives excitement because it makes me feel more special, more loved and more embraced than the Armenian way of thinking.

However, I come to what Paul came to with this when he says: "For I could wish that I myself were cursed and cut off from Christ for the sake of my brothers, those of my own race..." (Romans 9:3). He wants them to embrace Christ, and for Christ to choose them. I would be in utter anguish as Paul was if I were chosen while others were not. I can live with them denying Christ, for the price of their death is on their own heads...but to place that on God? This is not double handed Predestination, but simply if God chooses NOT to save one, that person is damned and doomed to live eternally in Hell.

That is a HARD pill. I would truly sadden me. This is why I am wrestling with this, because their are pros and cons to both views.

Let me say that this issue is an open handed issue generally speaking. By that I mean it will not take away from your Salvation if you believe either in Predestination or Armenianism. It is not a Doctrine [that of Predestination] that must be held to in order to be saved. Many people hold to tightly to their view on this issue and ostracize those of the other camp and cause division within the body, where division was not needed. I mean to share how I am grappling with this Doctrine...as gently and kindly as I can.

I will go deeper as we go on, I think I need to continue to wrestle with what I desire to say and how I desire to understand this Doctrine.

Vintage Church By Mark Driscoll

I know I've been plugging a ton of books recently, but I had to write a blog on this book. I couldn't help myself.

I've been following Mark Driscoll now for about a year. I've been reading his books, listening to his sermons and have enjoyed all of it. He can be crass, but his brain is deeply theological as well as practical. He delves into ideas and scriptures and comes out with some great stuff. This book Vintage Church is part of that great stuff.

There are so many things I could write about, but I will do my best to be brief.

One of my favorite chapters is Chapter 4, where he asks the question: "Why is Preaching Important?" This chapter really made me delve into scriptures and ideologies of preaching I never tapped or questioned before. It also helped me see why Preaching truly is important and helped me with my talk on Prophesy last Sunday. It made me think deeper about why preaching is important, how it originated and why we continue to do so today. I was reading this chapter whilst writing some of my ordination papers and it sparked a writing blitz inside of me that caused my Ordination papers to be that much better. God used this chapter to again confirm what I'm gifted in. At one point in the chapter Mark says something to the effect of: "I know that only the preachers are reading from this point on, because all the other people have moved on". I was like...yeah, I am a preacher and yea, this stuff is cool!

I'm sorry, call me a geek, a Bible nerd, or what have you but this book was a PAGE turner for me. I was talking about it, teaching from it and going to the Word of God to confirm it. Mark helped bring some questions to light some Ecclesiastical thoughts that I would never have thought about. Questions like: How do we use technology in the Church? What is a multi-site Church and what is it's purpose? And a lot more that I won't mention for the sake of brevity.

I really enjoyed this book, just like enjoyed Vintage Jesus. I don't know what it is about Driscoll, but I really resonate and connect with him as a fellow pastor. I share his passion for the Church, Jesus, the Gospel and for the Mission of the Church.

If you want to go deep with why Church is what it is and what can we do today with the Church...this is a book to read for sure. If you don't want to know anything about the Church, don't waste your time.

I would encourage anyone who is a Pastor, will be a Pastor or was a Pastor to read this book...it truly is a good, deep and practical book.

GIVE AWAYS!!

Bible Study Magazine and Mars Hill are giving away 20 copies of Mark Driscoll’s new book, Vintage Church. Not only that, but they are also giving away five subscriptions to Bible Study Magazine and a copy of their Bible Study Library software! Enter to win on the Bible Study Magazine Mark Driscoll page, then take a look at all the cool tools they have to take your Bible study to the next level!

Youth Ministry-- What MUST Die (Cont.)

*If you haven't read "Youth Ministry-- What MUST Die" please do so before continuing*

I agree with Mark Oestreicher and Mark Driscoll when they talk about belonging. Mark O. wrote a quick article in Group Magazine recently about the new Youth Cultures needs and at the top of the list is belonging. Mark Driscoll in his book The Radical Reformission discusses how the old pattern of evangelism was: " Know Jesus, then belong" but today we need a new way or "Reformission" as Mark calls is that looks like this: "Belong, then know Jesus".

Killing the old way of evangelism and adopting what I am calling "pre-evangelism" does just that: allows the teen to BELONG first. This is what they need and this is how Jesus did ministry.

Take a look at the story of Zacheus for example. He belonged to no one. He was a Jew who stole from Jews by working for the Romans. He wasn't a Roman but a dirty Jew. He had no one to claim him. One day, as he's fighting to see Jesus, he climbs a tree. Jesus walks by and gives him immediate belonging. He invites himself over for lunch! While already belonging with Jesus, just being with him in relationship causes Zacheus to change. He (during the meal with Jesus) tells how he's going to give back all he's stolen.

Take another look at a different story. The woman caught in adultery. The men drag her out of the bedroom where she was committing adultery (why didn't they grab the man too??), throw her before Jesus and demand justice. This woman has no belonging. She is unloved and unwanted by everyone. She is just a whore to the world. Jesus protects, defends and loves her and in an instant gives her belonging. After all her "haters" walk away, then Jesus tells her to leave her life of sin.

The stories go on and on about how Jesus used this type of evangelism; the woman at the well received belonging just by Jesus breaking a couple "cultural barriers". The list is numerous all making the same point that Christ didn't always have a huge crowd to preach to, he simply brought Himself to people, went to parties and was present and that was enough.

This change in outreach is by no way easy. It wasn't for me. I constantly questioned is this the right way Lord? Am I blaspheming? I always struggled with giving a quick "Jesus talk" or not during an event. I also got blow back from the Church parents and rightfully so. It was then I deeply studied how Jesus did ministry and was confirmed within my spirit from His that this was the right course for this time. I shared this with the parents in my ministry and some of my biggest critics became my biggest cheerleaders. It took a year and a half to get my Church kids seeing the value in it and then owning it. It put a lot of pressure on the kids that knew Christ. They had to step up and decide to truly live Christ-centered lives...and they did! They stepped up and owned it, as did my leaders. So, don't hear me saying this is a cake walk...but it is needed.

I am thankful for Mark O. and Mark D. for hearing God's voice on these issues and then writing about them. I've been practicing these principles before I read their books, but God has confirmed again through them that this is a good, new, necessary path for Youth Ministry.

Thanks Guys!

Youth Ministry-- What MUST Die

I've been in Youth Ministry as a student, leader and now pastor for 13 years. I've experienced tons, both as a student and as a leader. I've seen things work and things fail. I've done some amazing things that students loved and I've done some stupid things that students hated. I've also noticed a shift in ministry. Many have talked about the depth of the change such as MarkOstreicher in his book: Youth Ministry 3.0, Andrew Root in his book: Revisiting Relational Youth Ministry and Mark DeVries in his book: Sustainable Youth Ministry. All of which give amazing insight on what we need to do as Youth Ministries to shift with this change.

Once such change we need to make is the way we approach Outreach. There's a new buzzword: "Pre-Evangelism" that I've been implementing into my Youth Ministry. It may not be a buzzword anywhere else, but here in NY it works. It has worked so well, that I've seen many students come to Christ through this effort. I will share one students story so you can see the effect I'm talking about. But before, I want to define it for you.

Most outreach events look like this: BIG event, where we encourage all of our teens to invite other non-church teens. Sometimes we trick them into bringing more non-churched friends by saying things like: if you bring 5 or more friends your name will be put into a raffle to win an iPod (not a good idea BTW, I'll discuss this later). So, we have all these new teens we try to impress by our BIG event. We have an over-abundance of food, prizes and fun activities. THEN, it happens. We have a worship time and a speaker (as big a speaker as our budget will allow) and he tells these heathen kids about Jesus and how they need to be saved.

This approach has worked in the past! I'm not saying it was never effective, but now it isn't. Many people asked me why I think this is ineffective. Here's why: it comes off as disingenuous, fake and scam-like. Teens were invited by their friends who didn't want to really bring them but wanted and iPod (that's why it's bad), some of these teens were extra "add-ons" by the people who invited them so they could meet the 5 person quota (another reason why the raffle thing is a bad idea). Then it was marketed to these "friends" as a BIG event with tons of fun. When they get to the event, they feel tricked, because no one mentioned a time of worship or a speaker. These teens are so put off by the trickery of it, they tune out the speaker and never want to come back to your group. Do kids come to know Christ this way? YES! Is there a better way to not only bring them into the Kingdom, but to get them closer to Jesus? YES!

The "Pre-Evangelism" approach would be a similar event (or a simple movie night, x-Box tourney or the like), without the 5 friend quota raffle and without the worship and speaker time. You are probably thinking: "take out Jesus? Take him out of the equation? Are you nuts? That's blasphemy!"

The thing is this: the friends that were invited are going to be closer friends to the teens doing the inviting. These teens then walk through the doors of a safe-God centered place and feel comfortable. They don't feel tricked. They then go away with a good time all the while hanging out with Christians. This type of event breaks the stigma that all Christians are boring freaks. And Jesus is NOT out of the equation, because the friends that brought them are Jesus-Followers who are now demonstrating how to have a good time, while being Jesus-Like.

This then gives this teen a RELATIONSHIP with You, the other Youth Group teens and the church itself. That teen now trusts you and WILL come back.

The student I mentioned earlier came to a movie night...where we JUST watched a movie. He realized that this place was safe, the students liked him, talked to him and encouraged him to come back to regular youth group where they told him about the talk time so he wouldn't be surprised (This is key! They need to know if they come back what they will experience). HE CAME BACK! He felt so loved and comfortable that he said he couldn't NOT come back. He began engaging with the talk time, asking questions about faith, love and Jesus. He began reading the Bible, doing devotions and seeking God on his own! His family didn't like him coming because they are strong Catholics and they were noticing a change in their boy. YET HE CAME BACK! He loved baseball and his parents gave him an choice: Youth Group or baseball. He CHOSE YOUTH GROUP! That one event changed this kids life and all we did was create a safe environment for him to come and be loved on. He has since given his life to Christ and felt a call to Ministry!

He's only one story out of many in our ministry who has been effected by this "pre-evangelism" approach. It's intentional relationship building. It's authentic, upfront and meaningful. We need to kill the trickery that goes into evangelism...teens see through it and despise being tricked. They desire authentic people, not phonies and when we "trick them into Jesus" they feel lied to and it perpetuates the churches name of being "phony" even if we had the best intentions.

Remember, this "pre-evangelism" event can be a simple movie night, bowling night, or basketball night. It doesn't have to be big budget stuff. You could plan it for next week even. I truly believe that in order to see un-churched teens walking through our doors, we need to change the way we do things. This is just one simple change in outreach approach that I've seen go a long way for both our churched teens and un-churched teens!

Guard Against Lorena Bobbit Pt.3

Part 3 of the Lorena Bobbit series and the last segment. I've discussed how this series was spawned in my heart and mind by reading Wild at Heart by John Eldridge and how I was simply taking some ideas he brought up in the book ad interacting with them here. This is the same as all the other three entries. His third "man-need" was every man needs a Beauty to save. John talked about the innate desire we men have to rescue the damsel in distress, search out a worthy woman and rescue her. This is why he says that in most "man-films" not only is there brutal, bloody battles, there is a romantic twist where the hero must save the woman, or must love a woman...Somehow, somewhere in these "man-films" this is true. Take for example Troy, Helen of Troy is the catalyst for the fighting. Gladiator has two woman, one is the dead wife of Maximus that he is romantically avenging, and the other is the Princess of Rome who has an attraction to Maximus. The list goes on and on.

My point is this: I agree that this is an innate piece of manhood. However, it's hard for us to detect it and more often then not, it gets men in trouble. It gets men into trouble because when it comes to a Beauty to save, our brain overlooks all things but the beauty we wish to save. This s both highly romantic and highly stupid. For example, a young boy who loves a young girl. The young girl hates her house and wants to be rescued away. The young boy, seeing his opportunity to free the young girl, steals her away one night on a romantic whim, they move in together and...usually the story doesn't end with "and they lived happily ever after..."

You see, I got lucky! There was no real BIG issue of rescuing I did for my wife Hilary. we started dating when we were 16...I stupidly broke up with her TWICE during our relationship. She took me back both times and now we are happily married, with a son on the way! However, I learned early on that I could be her hero in serving her, loving her and treating her right. We men have an innate saving complex so much so that when our woman have troubles, we try to rush in and fix it. I'm slowly learning when this is OK, and when I need to simply listen...

What's my point? Where is Lorena Bobbit in here? Well, Lorena doesn't want to be rescued. She doesn't let the man be a man and save her. I said I got lucky, because my wife let's me save her, she allows me to be her hero and tells me I am such. But so many woman try to do it on there own all the time. Pushing away their husbands, not letting them be their hero.

This is not to say at all that woman are weak and can't help themselves...I'm simply saying that when the World of Woman tell the World of Men: "I don't need you...EVER!" it emasculates them. Feminism is good and feminism is bad. The past 25 years, woman have been standing up for themselves more and more...which is good and needed...but they've also been emasculating men more and more. In feminists attempt to have respect, they've slashed at the men who truly wanted to rescue them, love them and be there hero. Men need to hear the words: "You're my hero" and when they don't they shut down.

This world is full of emasculated men wandering around looking for the thing to make them men. They don't step up to rescue even their own children...it's sad.

I am thankful that my wife lets me save her. Has she ever told me she doesn't need me? Yea, but she lets me be her hero. I'm a lucky guy!

This is why fathers who have daughters love to be the hero to their daughters...they feel manly in the protecting role. This is why men call out their boys to protect their sisters. Men, it's OK to be men ad want to rescue your ladies. After all, the ultimate MAN, Jesus rescued us all, who are His Bride!




If you are interested in reading Wild at Heart whether you are a man or woman, I encourage you to do so. Trust me it will help you understand manhood and boyhood with a clearer picture than without reading it. Either go to the library and pick it up, or click on the picture below, it'll take you to a link where you can buy it.

Guard Against Lorena Bobbit Pt.2

If you haven't yet, read "The Emasculation of Men" and "Guard Against Lorena Bobbit Pt. 1" before proceeding.

Satan loves the spirit of Lorena Bobbit. He enjoys watching men be stripped of manhood. If he could, he would emasculate all Christian men making them fearful beings who never put up a fight. What we all (woman included) forget is that every day, we are in a violent, bloody war against Satan. If he could make us calm, little puppies instead of fearsome lions, he could make a HUGE negative impact on our lives, our churches and our world.

In the movie Troy Brad Pitt plays an ego-centric, violent, angry, frustrated warrior named Achilles. He is an amazing warrior, who has a following of the Mermadins (the most feared warriors in all the known world at this time). On his way to wage war on the city of Troy, he gives his men a pep-talk. He reminds them how much the people fear them. He revels in their victories and he then says: "We are Lions". He says this with such passion and strength that after the men remember they are lions, they start shouting and getting violent.

In this Spiritual war, we men need to step up as the Lions we were always meant to be. Not neutered lions either! When a lion is neutered, he loses all passion, all desire and he's content to be tame, docile and lazy. Jesus is called the Lion of Judah and believe me...he's "No Tame Lion" (C.S. Lewis The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe). He's a Lion ready to pounce on the enemy, rip his guts out and spit them on the ground!

Men, we all have a battle to fight! A great pastor named Mark Driscoll reminds us men of this on his blog (http://theresurgence.com/). He has soldiers, boxers and other such men appear on his blog, talking about being violent men...for the Kingdom. Why have we lost our desire to go into battle and wage war on the enemy? Lorena has been in the Church too long.

Men! The Armor of God is ours to wear! Jesus is our commander, reminding us of how he has won battle after battle. We are Lions and we don't have to be "tame"! Let's meet Satan head on, let's be with people who need Jesus and fight for their souls as you would a dying comrade on the battle field. Why have we lost this vigor? We've been tame for far too long.

However, don't go into battle blindly! Read Ephesians 6:10-18. Keep Your Swords Sharp!

Guard Against Lorena Bobbit Pt.1

In my post "The Emasculation of Men" I discussed my recent reading of Wild at Heart by John Eldridge and how it positively effected me. I also stated that I would be writing a series of post on the topic, this is the first one in that series. Just for reference, Lorena Bobbit was the woman who angrily emasculated her husband back in the 90's. Guarding against her is guarding against anyone, or anything that would attempt to emasculate men today.

Men are adventurous, not saying woman aren't but we men have an innate desire to live an adventure. All of them look differently of course, but needless to say, we are adventurous. I'm, reminded at how ingrained this is into our manly core when I watch my nephew Evan. He loves adventure, discovering new things and exploring. One of his adventures I saw recently was the adventure of jumping from my coffee table onto the couch or into his dad's or my arms. He gets a thrill from jumping, which to him would probably seem like a near death thrill, since the coffee table is his height. Again, we men are adventurous, it's in our being, it's the way God designed each one of us. We desire the thrill of adventure, the joy of jumping off coffee tables, not really knowing what's going to happen but flinging our arms wide open embracing what may come.

Some of you men may be thinking that you aren't adventurous and you never have been. I would challenge that and say that at one point you were...something just changed your cerebral desire to do so. Most likely what happened is somewhere along the way and adventure went bad. You stepped out, you flung your arms wide and hit the ground...you completely missed the couch, or the person you trusted to catch you seemingly dropped you. What your brain did then was redirect your desires away from adventure because it's scary or it hurts too much. Let me challenge you to GET BACK UP! Allow God to banish fear, because deep inside you, deep inside me is an adventure that only we can live!

My friend "Greg" (not his real name) is getting ready to live his adventure. He loves graphic design, he's good at it and wants to make a career of it, yet he has a job that pays really well and can't afford to lose it. He is now married and wants to take care of his wife...yet he hates his job. He recently told me he's going to quit his job soon and begin the adventure of graphic design. He doesn't know when, or how or any of the details but he wants to live this adventure.

My other friend "Jordan" (not his real name either) wanted to live his adventure of being an officer in the United States Army...he is now in OCS (Officer Training School).

Both of these guys seem CRAZY to us, dropping their lively hood for a what? An adventure? That's just selfish we say, or that's silly "childish" thinking. YET, inside of us men, we're secretly thinking: Why can't I live that way? Why can't I live out my adventure? The answer is...we CAN!

Lorena Bobbit wants to bring the knife and say: "That's not responsible"; "That's foolish"; "You're being such a kid"; "Wise up" or whatever the phrases may be.
Most of the time, the criticism comes from within the church. Lorena lurks in the halls of your Church. Thankfully in my friends "Greg" and "Jordan" lives, their pastors prayed with them and actually encouraged and are encouraging them down these adventures!

I'm no great adventurer, but recently I've taken the plunge of trying to get a book published. I've been trying for over a year now and have about 6 rejection letters so far. I feel like giving up most days. I feel like throwing in the towel on this adventure because it is so discouraging to have your hard work rejected...BUT it's an adventure I'm going to continue to take. There are others I shy away from that someday I will face, but Lorena can't touch me with this one!

What adventure is your heart screaming for men? Has Lorena been bringing her knife? If so, allow God to give you the strength to live the adventure he's given you. He's sparked your heart, now take the plunge!

Porn-Again Christian?

" Let's talk about Pornography and Masturbation"...not your great conversation starter, huh? All the sudden you get a lump in your throat. A hot, uncomfortable perspiration begins. A desperate attempt to become un-noticed comes over you, even if you are the life of the party.
It's not easy, it's not fun and it can be embarrassing...yet it is VITAL! Teens don't get enough healthy sex-education today. They either get the legalistic NO because I (or God) said so answer...or they get the "Yea, just use a condom" conversation followed up with a demonstration with a banana and a balloon. Sorry but these are NOT ways to encourage our teens to avoid sex. They need frank, in your face discussions, that show them the WHY in the NO and also the HOW when the YES comes! Young Men (boys) especially need to be given more than the pat answer. We as Youth Pastors/Leaders/Parents need to teach sex health rather than sex ed. Sex is good, sex is GREAT and sex is amazing. Yet, to receive the TRUE GIFT of it, there are boundaries, and contexts which can allow one to have the best sex ever.
As I was looking at all the "purity" events, books and discussion guides for young men, I ran into this one. A book by Mark Driscoll titled: "Porn-Again Christian". This is a RAW, FRANK look at male sexuality. It brings up porn, prostitution and masturbation. Topics generally that we shy away from. Mark is candid, funny and to the point about this junk and why it's trashy and harmful. He brings it to light in real, relevant ways for young men. I think you all should take a look at it. It may offend some because it is so RAW. However, our teens see, hear and say worse than this book could ever touch. Our young men are craving an encounter with a man who is unafraid of discussing about these topics. They are dying to know if what they're doing is good, wholesome or OK. Some what a rubber stamp that says: "you're not having sex, so you're OK". Yet, they need this type of in your face look at these topics.
The BEST part of this is...the book is FREE for download right now on the Resurgence website. To download and read, go here: http://relit.org/porn_again_christian/
Check it out, and give me a holla about your thoughts, reactions agreements or disagreements!

Cleaning Your Cups

Today, I was listening to a sermon by Mark Driscoll. In this sermon, he was dialoguing about Matthew 23. When he got to verse 25, I needed to soak this in. Here's what it says:

"Woe to you teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You clean the outside o the cup and dish, but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence. Blind Pharisee! First clean the inside of the cup and dish, and then the outside will also be clean" (Matthew 23:25-26)

When I first looked at this, I was like: "Yea Jesus, tell em'! This is a message the church as a whole needs to hear! Tell em'! Then I felt the Spirit of God ask me: "How often do YOU try to get away with cleaning the OUTSIDE of YOUR cup?" It was then I looked at this verse as a verse for me. How often do I pretend to have it all together, how often to I make my outside look nice, all the while my insides are screaming with pain, or sin. I talk a lot bout authenticity because it's important, but have I been listening to my own sermons, or simply "looking like it"?

This is a verse I think we each need to wrestle with, because let's face the reality...we all try to get away with washing the outside of our cup and sometimes we get so stuck on the cleaning the outside, that we completely forget the inside. We become so preoccupied with the outside, that the inside of our cups (being our hearts) get neglected for days, years and decades! I know the inside of my cup isn't pristine...in fact it's pretty dirty. I am encouraged that Christ was so bold about these issues. I challenge all of us to check our cups!


How's YOUR cup?