Mullings and Musings

• "Into the Light" (Hard, but life changing truth here...)

"Grace and truth co-exist in the One who is the true light, who came into the world on a divine rescue mission to give those who receive Him the right to become children of God. This is jaw-dropping truth! We want to hide our ugliness, our brokenness, our darkness. But when we willingly expose it to the Light, we are healed and restored. 

This means confession and accountability are some of our primary weapons in the spiritual battles we face every day...."

• "...Functional Universalism, updated" (Reminds me of a sermon Tim used to preach on practical atheism... asking the question - does our daily practice line up with our doctrinal statements?)

"Many of us function like universalism is true.  Really.  Yes, there are many reasons why we can manage to live in a parallel universe to the lost all around us.  Selfishness, fear, a wrong understanding of holiness -- yes, all these play a part.  But when I get to the core of it, my friend's question was correct.I live as though there are no consequences -- I live as though we will all be happy in the end.

And Jesus did not."

• "Nancy sure didn't waste any time! (Nine Potential Pitfalls of Ministry)" (Thinking about where and how I tend to trip up and fall down... Which pitfall surprises you the most often...???)

" 'The longer I’m in ministry,' she began, 'the more I realize how vulnerable we are to falling. Only by the grace of a faithful God can we finish well.' Nancy shared nine autobiographical pitfalls she’s come perilously close to in the past thirty-five years of vocational ministry."

• "Debunking the Squeaky Clean Myth" (Excellent, challenging words)

"...And it taught me the lesson that I need to stop inviting people to my church because “there are a lot of great people there” (even though there are). Instead, I need to offer reasons to visit that have more to do with encountering the Living God.

I’m afraid we have led our neighbors astray by putting out an image of squeaky clean faith. Trying to convince others that we have picture-perfect lives because we are Christians doesn’t do anyone any favors. God hasn’t hired us to be his PR firm and even if He had, I’m fairly certain He would want us to be upfront about our brokenness so His image as the Healer could be put on display."

• "Mommy Sabbatical" (Have any of you ever tried this? How has it impacted you and your walk with the Lord?)

"No one to prepare meals for, clean up after; I eat when I'm hungry, and leisurely tidy up right away.  Decadent, organic, gluten-free, health&life-giving savory bites of greens, fish, tomatoes, sugar-snap peas, rice crackers, chocolate.  So much ice-water sipped in the sunshine; and the naughty indulgence of all the diet soda I want, right out of the bottle!

The only agenda is the call of the Holy Spirit.

Watch taken off; left on the bathroom counter.  Sleep when I'm tired; wake when I'm rested.  Sit on the deck and practice the words of James...or just watch the solitary cloud-puff meander by."

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Photo by AC.