This post has been strongly affected by LifeChurch.tv’s 30 Days to Live series, which you can watch at this address: http://www.lifechurch.tv/Default.aspx/p/39? SermonID=115&CategoryID=8 I suggest that you take the time to watch those 4 sermons (~30min. each). The basic thought behind the whole series is something like this: Life on earth is just a brief moment. Live your life with God as if you had 30 more days to live. It’s quite an awakening thought as to what is actually important in life. Even more so are the interviews with several people for whom the doctors say have a very limited time with us, as well as some others who have barely made it alive through cancer and other life threatening diseases.
The thought of lost lives has been on my mind for quite some time, but these sermons helped it develop much deeper. Have you ever thought about the lives of people you read about in the news? Where will they end up? Take it a step further – as God’s sent one does it impact you at all? read more
It has been a while since my last article on the theme of true or vintage Christianity. This one will be a bit more different than the previous, yet the focus is the same.
What do I mean by double faced? In brief – the fact that among Christians I behave in one way and then among non-Christians in another. That was too simple… I don’t want to be misunderstood. I’m not talking about details, certain use of language, etc. I’m talking about a general attitude.
How do I behave among Christians… Well, I’ve noticed that I’m more critical, I expect more… often you would say I’m not as welcoming as I ought to be. I realize that often it’s also harder for me to truly love Christians (compared to non-Christians).
Then among non-Christians I catch myself to be much more lively, much more welcoming, certainly show more understanding… It’s just much much easier for me to express and show love for those people – whether they like me or not. read more
I’ve been thinking. What I’ve been thinking about is the problem of today’s church concerning transparency. Now, this is a fairly new term in the realm of human relationships, but I think it very well relates to the aspect of holiness and wholeness we so often hear about.
What is transparency?
“free from pretense or deceit : FRANK b : easily detected or seen through : OBVIOUS c : readily understood”
This is what Webster Dictionary says about the adjective form of our word. This is also the general understanding of the term with which I approach my problem with today’s church.
I somehow struggle to see a church which is transparent in its everyday ministry – in any direction. read more
What’s all this about now? Well, if this is what you’re hearing in your mind after reading the title – this is a little post about a discussion which has been going on in my mind for a very long time, just that it never got out. It’s about the fact that more often than not, certain people in the church are treated differently from the rest of God’s flock. These often happen to be the leaders… No, nothing against the leaders as such – being a leader is as biblical as it gets, and I also believe it’s a special gift from God. However, I don’t agree with the fact that these people tend to be treated differently. What I mean is to ask Why are leaders/other people “in charge” often treated in much better ways (eg. with more attention given to them, more benefits, as well as special dinners/lunches/etc., etc.) than the rest of God’s people? read more
It has been a while since I’ve talked about this topic in “public”. However, lately I’ve been feeling that I need to somehow address it… The initial idea of a title for that posting was “Tired of Christianity”, but then I decided not to shock you. How nice of me! :)
Unfortunately I’m not able to invest all the time I want in addressing the issue, but at least I’ll be able to lay out my worries.
1. One of my greatest struggles for the past three years has been in understanding the place of academics in Christian life. From one side I face the argument that education was necessary, it is still necessary, etc., etc. My concern, though, is not with the presence of education itself, but with the methods of education. And while in the Jewish world the connection between the Rabbi and the students was strongly personal and spiritual before knowledge-driven/oriented, today I notice that Christian education leans more towards the (I would dare to suggest) differing in this Greek Academy. read more