Church Impossible: Pride-induced Blindness

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When Robert Irvine of Restaurant Impossible first shows up at a restaurant in trouble, he talks with the owners. After the introductions, he asks them how they came to own the restaurant, what business was like at the beginning, and what it’s like now. Obviously, the current state of business is dire, otherwise Robert wouldn’t be there. But, for the most part, the owners don’t know the cause, and any blame tends to be placed on external factors, such as increased competition, the economy, etc. Robert then observes a ‘service’. He sees the restaurant in action: how the waitresses serve the customers, how quickly the food arrives, and what the customers think of the food. He also samples from the … Continue reading →

Church Impossible

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I’m not big on reality TV, but I’ve been watching Restaurant Impossible lately on the Food Network (and occasionally Kitchen Nightmares on BCC and Fox). For those unfamiliar with these programs, here’s a short description. Each Restaurant Impossible episode features a failing restaurant on the verge of going out of business. Celebrity chef Robert Irvine comes to the restaurant, samples the food, observes how it operates, interviews the customers, inspects the kitchen, food storage, management, workers, etc. Then he gives his brutally honest assessment of the problems to the owners and workers. From there it’s a matter of quickly correcting the problems, with the owners and employee’s cooperation, so the restaurant has a new start. As I watch various episodes, … Continue reading →

Presumption or Knowledge?

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And Abraham said to his young men, Abide ye here with the ass; and I and the lad will go yonder and worship, and come again to you. -Genesis 22:5 (JND) God told Abraham to offer his son, Isaac, as a burnt offering. Obediently, Abraham took Isaac on a three day journey to Mount Moriah where he was to accomplish the unthinkable, horrific task. God did not tell Abraham He would provide a substitute offering for his son. And yet, Abraham confidently told the servants he would return to them with his son alive. He also reassured Isaac that God would provide a lamb for the sacrifice (Genesis 22:8). How did Abraham know God would do this when God had … Continue reading →

New Book: Seeing Jesus – A Disciple’s Perspective

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For the past 4 to 5 months I’ve been working on a book to help followers of Jesus get to know Him better. The content of the book is based on things I’ve written on this website and the Fadingman blog. The book is called Seeing Jesus – A Disciple’s Perspective. It’s available for Kindle, and within a week (hopefully) it should be available in paperback through Amazon.com, but you can get the Kindle version right now by clicking on the cover image to the left. I originally intended, back in August of last year, to put together a book based solely on the contents of the Fadingman blog. But I found I had some other writings that fit into … Continue reading →

Hoarders

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… But according to your hardness and unrepentant heart you are treasuring up for yourself wrath in the day of wrath, revelation, and of the righteous judgment of God… – Romans 2:5 This verse reminds me of the reality TV show Hoarders. The show is about people who have compulsions to collect so many things (boxes of stuff, animals, etc) that their houses become uninhabitable. At best they might have pathways through their homes a few inches wide to get around. The most shocking part of the series is seeing the blindness of these people to their problems. They are only slightly aware that their compulsion has made life unmanageable, not only for themselves but for their loved ones and … Continue reading →

What God Doesn’t Do

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We worship an all-powerful God. Nothing can stop or hinder Him from doing whatever He wants. Practically speaking (and as far as our situations and circumstances are concerned), nothing is impossible with God. It is our awareness of this fact, joined with our knowledge of His love for us, that allows us to go to Him with our worries and concerns for the ‘impossible’ situations in our lives, knowing that He can and does deliver us out of these situations. As we become more aware of how unlimited our God is, our faith increases. And yet, there are some things that God does not do… even that He cannot do. These are not limitations from outside of Himself; they all … Continue reading →

The Voice Of The Lord

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The voice of the LORD is over the waters;   the God of glory thunders,     the LORD, over many waters.   The voice of the LORD is powerful;     the voice of the LORD is full of majesty.   The voice of the LORD breaks the cedars;     the LORD breaks the cedars of Lebanon.   He makes Lebanon to skip like a calf,     and Sirion like a young wild ox.   The voice of the LORD flashes forth flames of fire.   The voice of the LORD shakes the wilderness;     the LORD shakes the wilderness of Kadesh.   The voice of the LORD makes the deer give birth     and strips the forests bare,     and in his temple all cry, “Glory!” – Psalm 29:3-9 The voice of the Lord … Continue reading →

Why are we called sheep?

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Know that Yahweh, he is God. It is he who has made us, and we are his. We are his people, and the sheep of his pasture. – Psalm 100:3 (WEB) Through out the Bible, God’s people are referred to as sheep. But why sheep? Why not some other animal like horses, oxen or donkeys? We think about the nature of sheep, how wayward they are. They tend to get into trouble and need the constant care of a shepherd to protect or rescue them. Of course, other animals can get into trouble, too. Personally, I think the stubborness of a donkey would make it a good human representative. But there is another trait that I think explains why we’re … Continue reading →

Sanctification: Which Chapter Are You?

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Lately I’ve thought about the first half of Paul’s epistle to the Romans, and how the development of Paul’s argument seems to parallel the progress of our walk with Jesus. Paul begins with describing the dire state of the unbeliever (chapters 1-3), then moves on to salvation (chapters 3-5), then to sanctification (chapters 6-8). Paul’s intention is that each one of us progress in life through to chapter 8; that we don’t get stuck in some earlier chapter (i.e. be satisfied with just being saved, or even be satisfied without salvation). If you’re like most Christians, you probably find living a righteous, God-honoring life to be a difficult, if not impossible, task. You may be in the habit of condemning … Continue reading →