Posts Tagged ‘life’

Forgiveness

Forgiveness for me is not easy. Over the last 2 years I’ve really spent a lot of time trying to understand it better and reflect on what I could be doing better in my life as far as forgiveness goes. Yesterday a friend of mine, Charity, posted a story of forgiveness that I just can’t stop thinking about. I thought I would quickly pass along a link to her site for you to read it. Charity Rauls – Forgiveness Related Posts:Jesus Creedknow thyselfpossessed by truthour f wordgrowing up christian (part dos)

growing up christian (part dos)

as a preface to the second part of my ‘growing up christian’ post i’d like to make it clear that i am in no way attempting to be negative or overly critical. i am simply interested in digging up my past in a way that will move me forward to being more Christ-like. if it ever comes of like i’m preaching, it’s because i’m pleading with myself to keep going. i got way off track in my first post and didn’t bother to edit it, so i will try to be more focused in this one. preface done. so much of what we learn as evangelicals is that there are a specific set of core beliefs that one must affirm in order to be considered “in the fold,” so to speak. this list includes the following doctrinal affirmations: God created the world in six days (literal or figurative), we are… [Read More]

Love lacks a deadline

When I was a young teenager my uncle came out and told us he was gay. I remember some shock from family, but I don’t remember too much overall. There were no mass hysterics(at least not visibly amongst us kids) and he certainly wasn’t ostracized. In essence, nothing really changed inside the family dynamic. The foundation of love still existed. Years later at 19 years old I took a job as an intern at Bayer Diagnostics working with my dad. Not long before that my uncle had been diagnosed with lung cancer after smoking most of his life. He lived fairly close, and having worked there himself at one point, would come down often to visit former friends and co-workers. I spent quite a few lunch breaks walking to the local pizza shop with him and my dad, hanging out and just chatting. That summer means a lot to me. … [Read More]

What Jesus may have said

I am coming to you now, but I say these things while I am still in the world, so that they may have the full measure of my joy within them. – John 13:17 There are many things I will take away from my time at the Wild Goose Festival in North Carolina this past weekend of which I plan to write in depth on after a little(and much needed) digestion. One question raised in passing during one conversation was the wish that we had more, if not all, of what Jesus said. It is true that we have just a small portion of his 33 years of life wrapped up in the pages of our Bibles but I had never heard this sort of disappointment almost at the fact we did not have more. Mainly for my own benefit I wanted to hash that out in words. In order… [Read More]

Jubilee

Creation sees you and starts composing -Michael Gungor As I relaxed on the second floor porch letting the warm breeze rush across my face I watched dark thunderstorms roll over the rockies. Chris was out there with me casually smoking a cigarette, as we somehow began reminiscing about when we were younger. “Remember when we used to catch frogs?” he said after a few back and forth memories going through the years in chronological order. I hadn’t thought about it in so long as a rush of memories came flooding back into the plains of my mind. Bogs and woods, staying out past dark building forts in the most dangerous of trees. I’ll never figure out how one of us or our friends weren’t horribly hurt falling 30 feet out of some tree fort built with old scraps of wood we found behind houses. Not far from our childhood house… [Read More]

Through a Child’s eyes

Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. ~Matthew 18:3 I got a note from my sister several weeks ago, posted to facebook, that said my nephew had prayed and asked Jesus into his heart. He’s 3. My sister figured he wouldn’t remember but later that night while praying before bed he prayed “thank you Jesus for coming into my heart, I love you God”. Several weeks before, I was visiting my brother in law who is going through some deep struggles of his own. Old Dana would have written him off. Angry and bitter, determined to let someone else’s problems be their own, I would have pulled the knowledge card. I know better, I’d never let myself get there, you deal with it. But when it all happened, as each new detail was revealed, I tried to… [Read More]

Why you should buy a Qur’an

Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul – Matthew 10:28 When you read this word: Muslim, what comes to mind? Hate? 9/11? Terrorists? Does your spin tingle a little and do you feel a little uncomfortable? Do you feel like they need to be “eradicated”? If this is you, if this feels familiar, you aren’t alone. I’d argue most feel like this but it’s important to understand that us trying to kill them is no better than them trying to kill us. Killing “in the name of God” is still killing and is explicitly forbidden by Jesus in Matthew 26:52 and the 10 commandments. Adding God to it is just defaming His name. I sat in church several weeks ago listing to a missionary who has been in Africa for 15 years(and is still there) with his family. He has set up… [Read More]

Hey Rob, I gave Love Wins away

I gave your book away. With all the controversy surrounding Love Wins, rather than take someones word for it I wanted to read it for myself. So when it was finally released, I ordered myself a copy and had it shipped out. It arrived just in time for a plane ride to Boston and I read half of it on the way there Friday night. Early Tuesday morning I boarded my plane back to Denver. Exhausted from a whirlwind weekend of visiting friends, family, and a missions trip presentation, I plopped into my window seat ready for a 4hr nap. But sometimes that isn’t what the Lord has for us. About a half hour into the flight they moved a lady into the empty seat next to me because her tv didn’t work. With my eyes closed and head resting against the wall of the plane I ignored it and… [Read More]

Become a movement

If you’ve gotten anything at all out of following Christ, if his love has made any difference in your life, if being in a community of the Spirit means anything to you, if you have a heart, if you care— then do me a favor: Agree with each other, love each other, be deep-spirited friends. Don’t push your way to the front; don’t sweet-talk your way to the top. Put yourself aside, and help others get ahead. Don’t be obsessed with getting your own advantage. Forget yourselves long enough to lend a helping hand. ~Philippians 2:1-4(The Message) Imagine losing everything. Imagine uprooting your entire family. Your house is gone. Your clothes. Your children’s toy and books, your photographs and memories crushed. Imagine your job is gone and the only option you have left is to leave your country. Imagine. What kind of panic would settle in your mind? What kind… [Read More]

A friend in need in Japan – Help needed

This is from a friend of mines wife. Her best friends brother and family are currently stuck in Japan trying to get back to the US. Please read the below and if you can help in any way email Taryn at tarynjoy@gmail.com. There are many many stories like this and if you feel so led to directly help one family in need it would be a great blessing to them. -Dana ———————– As all of you know, Caroline’s brother Chris and his family live in Fukushima, Japan. Chris moved there a few years back to teach English. He fell in love with the Japanese culture and also a wonderful Japanese woman, Kanako. They now have 2 beautiful daughters, Penny (2 yrs old) and Rosalind (7 months). Kanako also has a son who is 11 and his name is Youta. Some of you have gotten the pleasure to meet them when… [Read More]