You’d be hard-pressed to find a more concise, yet complete, definition of a Christian as this one from Eugene Peterson: “To follow Jesus implies that we enter into a way of life that is given character and shape and direction by the one who calls us.” Here’s the full context: “To follow Jesus implies that […]
Social Media Ethics: May the words of my internet comments and the meditation of my text messages be acceptable to You, Lord.
Jesus never wrote a blog post. He never posted his status on Facebook or Instagrammed the baskets of extra food at his latest miracle feast. (That would be cool, huh?) Jesus never got an angry email or got caught up in an emotional text argument. Our faith is rooted in a time long before this […]
Jesus Invitation? Not so hard as you thought.
Recently my 7-year old son took a “mental health day.” OK, maybe that’s not what it was. I don’t know. He woke up tired and snotty. He didn’t seem sick enough to deserve to skip school. (I come from a long line of parents who believed that only severed limbs and near-comatose illness got you […]
Is your day your property or someone else’s? (Why you need a FTF routine.)
Turns out my blog is probably not for people who have an idyllic, peaceful life. If you’re living in a cabin somewhere reading, hiking, and build relationships with woodland creatures all day, this may not be for you. At least if Google analytics is to be believed. It seems like you have found yourselves in […]
How do we learn from Jesus when Jesus isn’t around?
Be a follower of Jesus, we’re told. Learn from Jesus how to do life. Get to know Jesus. Sounds good right? But how do we do it? Think of the people you know best. How did you get to know them? You shared experiences with them. You talked with them. You got to know them […]
Hey follower of Jesus, do you really know who you’re following?
You know some things about Jesus. I mean, you have a picture in your mind. A visual image, perhaps. A sense of what Jesus was like. How he treated people. His tone of voice, maybe. Certainly, the issues that he cared about most. As a follower of Jesus that mental picture is vital to you. […]
Stop treating spiritual growth like a lottery!
Some treat spiritual growth like the lottery. They pay their ticket price in church attendance and tithing, and cross their fingers hoping that one of these days the Holy Spirit will draw their number. Life change will pour down on them, washing away their struggles and weakness. They’ll be left with a whole new life, […]
100 Reasons You Should Not Go to Church & One Reason You Should.
Would you take motorcycle classes and then never ride? Would you learn to play an instrument, but then never make music? Or learn to cook but never do it? It sounds absurd, yet this is exactly the situation in the lives of many Christians. This strange situation is actually built into the programs of many […]
Why wouldn’t you pray?
I recently took an online course. The teacher is someone I look up to and have learned a lot from. The lessons were a combination of reading, watching video, doing exercises at home and sharing with other students in a forum. This works well for me. I can structure my time, do the work at […]
The overlooked key to spiritual growth
Learning to ride a motorcycle taught me about the commonly overlooked key to spiritual growth. In Oregon now you can no longer just go to the DMV, take a test and be on your way. Now you have to take the Team Oregon Basic Rider Training course. (I learned a lot about myself in the […]
Learn from Jesus. Live in the Gospels.
A good ol’ boy and his 5-year old son were out fishing early one morning. As usual the boy couldn’t be quiet. He was full of questions. “Hey dad, how come the dragon flies hover like that?” To which dad replied, “Don’t rightly know, son.” A minute later, “Hey dad, how come the water’s blue […]
Have you decided to learn from Jesus?
I’ve been a guitar player for 21 years. In that time I’ve hung around more musicians than I can remember. One particular type of guitarist was surprisingly common. They had a guitar, maybe two. They noodled around from time to time. They knew a handful of chords. Every now and then they’d get a group […]
The 7 Commitments of an Apprentice of Jesus
Have you ever learned from a master? Maybe you took music lessons from a maestro or someone great in your field mentored you. When you learn from a real master, you learn information, but there’s more to it, isn’t there? You also learn a host of indefinable things – attitude, posture, vocabulary. You see who […]
Jesus calls us to be what?
God has a plan for your life, but it might not be what you think. God’s plan for you is not that you’d be real good. It’s not that you’d join a certain religious club. It’s not that you’d travel to Burundi to be a missionary, or go to a certain college, or marry that […]
I believe in Grace but is effort legalistic?
Am I sounding legalistic yet? If you grew up in the church, this post is probably important for you. If you didn’t, you might skip this one. In the past two posts I challenged a common perspective. Following Jesus is not just about believing. It’s actually something you do. Maybe following Jesus isn’t just about […]