Blog Archives
The End of the Beginning is Here
It has been a while since my last real post. Many of you have wondered out loud if I am A) dead, B) seriously ill, C) in exile or D) just not writing. The answer is … Read the rest of this entry
You Are What You……Believe?
“You are what you….eat!”
That would make me a giant cup of coffee and a bowl of cereal! Though I agree with the basic premise of that statement, I think it goes to far. I submit that we are NOT what we eat. Rather, we are what we believe.
Isn’t that obvious?
When you hold certain facts passionately close to your heart, it has the potential to shape you into something you are not. There is a transformative nature inherent in belief, much like an oak seed has the potential towering tree in it. It doesn’t seem to really matter what you believe. We Read the rest of this entry
Is the Current Church Model Doing More Harm than Good?
The Barna Group just came out with a new research report. In it, they describe six mega-themes relating to the state of the church in America. I want to discuss two of those themes here. I believe they have a cause and effect relationship. I also believe that the Seeker-Sensitive church model is directly responsible for the findings detailed in the Barna Report.
Barna says: “Change usually happens slowly in the Church. But a review of the past year’s research… provides a time-lapse portrayal of how the religious environment in the U.S. is morphing into something new.” Stop for a moment and think about what you just read: Christianity in America is morphing into something new.”
Is the American church morphing into something better and more God honoring? The findings in the Barna Report would argue in the negative. Here’s two of them: Read the rest of this entry
Are You Spending Your Life on Trivial Pursuits?
A third century Church Father once said that the devil majored in three things: noise, hurry, and crowds. The older I get, the more I think the Desert Father was right. The enemy seeks to fill our lives with meaningless things (noise) so we don’t hear the truth of the Gospel. He works to keep us busy and entertained (hurry) if we happen to embrace the truth of the Gospel so it makes little difference in our lives. He strives to surround us with others who are doing the same thing (our friends, families, co-workers and the like) so that we don’t consistently live out the truth of the Gospel, never seriously impacting our lives or the lives of those around us.
If ever there was a time in the history of the world where it’s easy to give oneself to meaningless things, it is now. There are so many options, aren’t there? Between Cityville, Castleville, Farmville, perusing Facebook, or tweeting about the mundane things of life, as if anyone cares (I still haven’t found anyone who actually cares that “I’m writing a new article for the blog!”), or spending endless hours on the internet and the like.
What about TV and movies? Do you know how much time we waste sitting in front of a TV? It is startling. Back in the pre-historic 1990’s a study came out which said that the average American, living a normal life span, would spend Read the rest of this entry
Life is a Journey, Are You Enjoying the Ride?
During the 1996 Superbowl, Nissan launched its now famous “Life is A Journey, Enjoy the Ride” advertising campaign. In the two-minute spot, a young boy finds himself in an underground garage, where a mysterious man shows him some old cars. As the boy begins to leave, the old man offers him a parting word of sage advice: (You have to say this with a thick Japanese accent for the full effect) “Remember….Life is a journey. Enjoy…..the ride.”
Of course the commercial was designed to sell Nissan’s, so people could “enjoy the ride” in a nice car! It had a different impact on one young pastor who was watching.
I paused to reflect on my life and the journey I was on Read the rest of this entry
Shouldn’t Christianity Make a Bigger Difference?
“There are two ways, one of life and one of death, and there is a great difference between these two ways.”
So begins my favorite non-canonical writing from the early church, The Didache, (pronounced Dee-Dah-Kay). If you have never read it, find some time to. It is well worth it. You can find The Didache here.
This opening phrase has been occupying my mind of late. Like an Ipod stuck on repeat, playing the same song over and over again. I wake up in the middle of the night to find it still echoing in my mind. The part that grabs me is the ending phrase, “…and there is a great difference between these two ways.”
Is there really?
One could argue that the entire history of God’s people in both the OT and the NT illustrate the truth that there are two basic categories of how to navigate life: a life with God and a life without Him. Jesus described this life in Read the rest of this entry
“Teach Us How to…Live”, An Early Church Fathers Take on “The Lord’s Prayer III
“Lord, teach us to pray…”
You would have reacted the same way, I suppose. The disciples had seen Jesus do incredible miracles. They also watched him pray a lot. They put two and two together and surmised that Jesus’ power was a result of his prayer. Now, every first century Jew knew how to pray. But nobody could do the miracles that Jesus was doing. The disciples wanted to know how to do that!
So they asked Jesus to teach them how to pray. That inquiry resulted in what we call “The Lord’s Prayer.” A short lesson on how to pray that the church has held dear ever since.
But is it a lesson on how one should pray?
“Yes, but”, is how I think I would answer that.
Yes, Jesus taught the disciples how to pray here. But if you look closer at what Jesus taught, I think He was actually Read the rest of this entry
Teach Us How to…Live? The Early Churches Take on “The Lord’s Prayer” Part 2
“Lord, teach us to pray…”
You would have reacted the same way, I suppose. The disciples had seen Jesus do incredible miracles. They also watched him pray a lot. They put two and two together and surmised that Jesus’ power was a result of his prayer. Now, every first century Jew knew how to pray. But nobody could do the miracles that Jesus was doing. The disciples wanted to know how to do that!
So they asked Jesus to teach them how to pray. That inquiry resulted in what we call “The Lord’s Prayer.” A short lesson on how to pray that the church has held dear ever since.
But is it a lesson on how one should pray?
“Yes, but”, is how I think I would answer that.
Yes, Jesus taught the disciples how to pray here. But if you look closer at what Jesus taught, I think He was actually Read the rest of this entry
Teach Us How To…Live? an Early Church Fathers Take on The Lord’s Prayer
“Lord, teach us to pray…”
You would have reacted the same way, I suppose. The disciples had seen Jesus do incredible miracles. They also watched him pray a lot. They put two and two together and surmised that Jesus’ power was a result of his prayer. Now, every first century Jew knew how to pray. But nobody could do the miracles that Jesus was doing. The disciples wanted to know how to do that!
So they asked Jesus to teach them how to pray. That inquiry resulted in what we call “The Lord’s Prayer.” A short lesson on how to pray that the church has held dear ever since.
But is it a lesson on how one should pray?
“Yes, but”, is how I think I would answer that.
Yes, Jesus taught the disciples how to pray here. But if you look closer at what Jesus taught, I think He was actually Read the rest of this entry
An Open Letter to the Worship Leaders in the Evangelical Church
Dear Pastor,
It is obvious to most of us that you enjoy leading the congregational worship time. You put a lot of effort into learning new songs, and rehearsing with the band. The PA sounds really good with those new subwoofers, by the way. The light show is dazzling, and the fog machine was a real nice touch. Your guitar solo’s are really smoking too! I want you to know that we do appreciate you and all you do for us. Most of us pray for you on a regular basis.
On Sunday mornings, you are always excited to lead us. It must be a bit of a shock to you that most of us are not as excited about singing as you are. You probably can’t see us, because of the bright lights in your eyes, but I sit in the back row. I often look around to observe the congregation and usually most of us are not singing. But it isn’t because we don’t like you or God, or because you can’t sing very good. Far from it. We do love God and you are a fantastic musician! A couple of us were discussing this lack of singing yesterday, and we thought you might want to know why this happens. Just in case you do, I would like to share our thoughts Read the rest of this entry
What Do You Believe?
As I have grown in my relationship with Christ, I have had ample opportunity to define and re-define what it is I believe about Christianity. Over the years, my list has become shorter rather than longer. It is not because I don’t hold strong beliefs in other area’s, because I do. I simply hold these views to be non-essential to the Christian faith. For too long, we have allowed our in-house theological disagreements over these non-essential matters to divide Christ’s body and dishonor Christ’s name. Read the rest of this entry
A Bible Every Christian Should Own: The Orthodox Study Bible
The $5,000.00 worth of bible study and reference books on my library shelf gives my condition away to most people. But since you can’t see them, let me state the problem: I love Bible reference books! Recently, I added a not-so-well-known study bible to my collection that I think every follower of Christ would benefit from having: The Orthodox Study Bible.
Here’s Why I Like It:
The Study Notes are taken from the Church Fathers of the early church.
If your library is similar to mine, most of your books have The Reformation as a central reference point. Believe it or not, there is 1500 years of church history prior to this. Most of our study bibles and reference works do not take much of that history into account. I find it incredibly enriching to read a passage of scripture and see how the Fathers understood the passage. This book allows me to do that without going to another book. That is great! The Orthodox Study Bible accomplishes this by giving specific attention to the biblical interpretation of the fathers of the ancient and undivided Church, and to the consensus of the Seven ecumenical or Church-wide Councils of Christendom, held from the 4th to the 8th centuries. This alone makes the book well worth the $30-40 you will spend on it.
The Notes and Commentary Emphasise the Major Themes of the Faith.
The Trinity, The Incarnation, the Church, and God’s call to His people to live righteous and holy lives in Christ. It sticks to these key areas and what it does, it does well.
The Old Testament is based on the Septuagint.
This is the only Old Testament I own that is! I am a big advocate of reading the Bible in different translations because of the clarity it brings. I have been rewarded by the time I have spent reading out of this one. I think you will be too. It does have the books that the Protestant Church rejects. I am actually glad it does. The early church accepted them as scripture, The Catholic and Orthodox churches continue to accept them. We reject them, primarily because Martin Luther decided to eliminate them. I know the arguments for this, but I still think they are worth reading. This is the only Bible I own that also has the Apocrypha in it. The New Testament is the New King James.
It Includes Rich Devotional Material.
I don’t come from a liturgical background and so I am unfamiliar with many of its aspects. Over the years, I have grown to appreciate it more. This book includes the Orthodox Lectionary, morning and evening prayers and a host of devotional material. Again, I have been enriched utilizing them
The Orthodox Study Bible is unique, there is no other Bible like this in existence. It is historical, helping modern followers of Christ connect with our brothers and sisters of the ancient past. On top of all this, the Bible is very, very well done. For these and other reasons, this is a great book to add to your library. It is well worth the money. If you are hesitant, do what I did: check it out from your local library for free. I was sold from the moment I held it in my hand!
Have You Read the Oldest Christian Sermon Outside of the New Testament? Part 2
I have listened to a lot of sermons in the past 25 years. I have also read many old sermons from the great preachers of the past. I have amassed a huge library of books from great authors, both past and present. Many of these works have impacted my life in big and small ways. But none more than the writings and messages of the early christian church leaders.
In my quest to figure this thing called Christianity out, I have found it helpful to go back and read how the earliest Christ followers understood Christianity. For some reason unknown to me, many of my contemporaries Read the rest of this entry
Have You Read the Oldest Christian Sermon Outside of the New Testament? Part 1
I have listened to a lot of sermons in the past 25 years. I have also read many old sermons from the great preachers of the past. I have amassed a huge library of books from great authors, both past and present. Many of these works have impacted my life in big and small ways. But none more than the writings and messages of the early christian church leaders.
In my quest to figure this thing called Christianity out, I have found it helpful to go back and read how the earliest Christ followers understood Christianity. For some reason unknown to me, many of my contemporaries Read the rest of this entry
What Did A Church Service Consist of in 150 AD? Take a Look…
In the movie “Back To The Future”, 17 year old, Marty Mcfly, lives a lousy life. His dad, George, a nerdy scaredy cat, and his mom, Larraine, is an alcoholic, who met George through pity, when her dad hit George with a car. All he has ever known is this reality. The only thing that he can do for fun, is hang out with the local scientist, Dr. Emmit Brown (Doc) who has created a time machine. You know the story. Marty goes back in time and changes how his parents meet. In the process everything that was wrong with his life and family is dramatically changed for the good.
When I contemplate the current state of the American Evangelical church, I wish we could get into that DeLorean and head back in time. If we could, perhaps we would be able to intervene at just the right moment so that today’s church reflected God’s design rather than our own. We can not time travel back to the first century, but we can read their documents to see how they understood “Church.” It is good to look at history to observe how things “were”. We often look at how things “are” and assume that’s this is the way things are supposed to “be”… Read the rest of this entry
“Guide Me, Lord” A Prayer for the New Year
Oh LORD,
A long life does not profit me except the days are spent
in Your presence,
In Your service,
for Your glory.
Give me a grace that precedes, follows, guides, sustains,
sanctifies, and aids every hour,
that I may not be one moment apart from You.
May I rely on Your Spirit to Read the rest of this entry
The Year That Changed My Life
Adjustment. Refinement. Correction. Modification. Reversal. Say it anyway you like and it means the same thing: Change. We’re told it is good for us. But few truly enjoy it. Most people are willing to change, not because they see the light, but because the feel the heat! I’m no different. This year, I’ve been going through a lot of adjustments and refinements. I quit my band, picked up my Colorado roots and moved the whole family to the retiree state. I closed a thriving business and started it up again in Florida. (Thriving is not the word I would use to describe the new business.) We also learned Read the rest of this entry
Our Top 11 Most Discussed Posts of 2011
We had a lot of interesting discussions over at Not For Itching Ears in 2011. We have listed our Top 11 most discussed posts below. They cover a wide range of topics from the Seeker-Sensitive Church movement, Calvinism, Solo-Scriptura, Worship, The Best Salsa Recipe in the Blogosphere, American Idolatry and more. It’s never too late to join the discussion. Jump into any you may have missed. Happy New Year Everyone. Thank you to all who follow us! Read the rest of this entry
The Top Ten Most Read Posts of 2011 from Not For Itching Ears
That’s right, my friends. The following post contains our own version of the Top 10 list: The most read posts from Not For Itching Ears this year. You may be very surprised at the#1 post. It is not only our number one post for the year, it is #1 of ALL TIME. Far surpassing anything else! It is clearly out of character with the rest of the blog and reveals a spicy secret about me… I dare you to try it out. You won’t be disappointed. Read the rest of this entry
Seeing Past the Glitter…Encountering Christ at Christmas
Merry Christmas everyone!
Not being catholic, I seldom read what the Pope has to say. But this year I actually read his Christmas eve sermon. I was touched by his story of the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem. I have posted it here. I hope my protestant friends can read it.
“Today, anyone wishing to enter the Church of Jesus’ Nativity in Bethlehem will find that the doorway five and a half meters high, through which emperors and caliphs used to enter the building, is now largely walled up. Only a low opening of one and a half meters has remained. The intention was probably to Read the rest of this entry
Not For Itching Ears 