Redemption of Identity

Jesus birth was the true beginning. At the cross triune did not hold back any of his judgment nor did he hold back any of who he is, which is love. All Gods judgement and all Gods love converged at the cross. The crucifixion is the full price paid for righteous judgement. The resurrection was the full result of perfect love's complete redemption from that judgement. There is one judgement for all humankind. The image bearers of Triune God live in true complete freedom because full judgement's price was paid fully by the life of the Christ. His death was the last installment in the payment plan of Triune God. The contract was completely fulfilled. Judgment's agreed on price had been met on every level, for all eternity. Did not the payment begin when Jesus was conceived? Triune God (whom we are fashioned after) by his own efforts, began to live in a degree of separation from himself at Christ's conception here on earth. Eternal, Triune God who lives in eternal relatio...

Desperate Faith I love a good story. Whether I’m reading or seeing a movie or watching TV or even listening to someone tell about an adventure they had.  A great story can be captivating. Funny. Motivating. Moving. Heart pounding. Challenging. Kids especially love stories. Their imaginations are still young and wild and they can be swept away by an adventure that is told to them. Over the past several years their have been TV programs that are made up of epic stories. With twists and turns and story arches. If you've watched any tv  you’ve experienced the twists and turns of stories.  They make use of these story arches.  Lost was good at this.  You’re on the island with a very intense sequence playing out before your eyes and just as the scene shifts towards what will explain everything that is happening they cut into a completely different scene.  A whole new story line that is being added in for no apparent reason at the time! Agghhhh...

Today's post-modern church has had an emasculating effect on men. It demands that we deny our spirituality, sexuality, our warrior spirit. Go forth and conquer has been replaced with a construct of donts. The real made -in -the image -of -PapaGod man finds himself smothered with layers of false sincerity.  The goodness of God is shoved aside by the "goodness " of Satan (Luke warm life) . The enemy's stronghold in my life is when I am living in my comfort zone. He's like a wolf in sheep's clothing. A life of leisure and pleasure replaces the the life of passion, purpose and authenticity I must live; A life where joy and pain co-exist in equal measure. Boldly surrendered to Christ means I can boldly and fearlessly live life.  A life where all the forces God gave me are engaged on all sides.

It has been one week since the middle of the night phone call; One of THOSE moments when I was wrestled away from sleep. My wife was already speaking to the person calling by the time my brain cells organized into a coherent mass. As I listened in I realized it was my son in law who called. Panic struck me. My daughter, his wife, was in her 16th week of pregnancy. She had had two miscarriages just last year. At sixteen weeks we hoped we were in the clear. But it was not so. We live a ten minute drive from their home. Blurred driving. Panicked thoughts. I was in the help mode quickly arranging all my thought and emotional life into neat little compartments so I could be available for our children and my wife in a time of crisis. Deep sorrow was staged in the wings waiting for it’s cue. We arrived. A minute or two passed before my son in law could get to us and unlock the door. Our six and four year old grandchildren were still sound asleep in their bunk beds unaware of the tragedy ...

I am, as a whole person, spirit, soul, and body. My spirit is forever young; it is eternal and therefore never grows old and weary. My soul as in my mind, will, and emotions, has one “foot” in the eternal as I interact with my spirit, and the other “foot”, in the natural, as I interact with my body and natural world around me. I do see the aging process in my body and soul and I do see the eternal never-grow-old life through my spirit. My body, he knows the passage of time. He lives it out from growth to maturity to the failing of physical abilities. No wonder my soul is “being saved”, a continuous process. He is caught between two worlds but lives one life. I have learned to nurture my wonderfully complex soul. My mind, will, and emotions are much more content when they are under the nurture of my spirit. To me Luke 9:23-24 is more about denying “self” as in soul and body by daily nurturing them in the outrageous and amazing love of God. Holy Spirit is my daily mentor in this....