Worship danger risk Absolute Holy God Dillard Peterson Archives

With God as Our Father

The Bible repeatedly refers to God as father and his followers as his children. Dependent upon our relationships with our earthly parents, this can either be a calming thought or one that leads to tension. Some of us were taught that our heavenly father was mostly a judge who showed his disappointment and anger when…

Grace and Effort

As I prepare a sermon for this Sunday on New Wine, I know I need to meditate upon this quote by Dallas Willard. “Grace is not opposed to effort, it is opposed to earning. Earning is an attitude. Effort is an action. Grace, you know, does not just have to do with forgiveness of sins…

Show Your Glory

The band I am in, Key of Zed, just released a new song. Because we don’t write a lot of worship songs, we teamed up with Pete Justine from Hazel Grey. It is a call to worship and you can listen to it on ReverbNation here. Show Your Glory (Peter Justine, Mike Charko, and Keith…

In A Dangerous Time

How does one live when difficult and dangerous times arise? When our economy is in decline, when our politicians must act decisively, when a mother must look for work to support her family, when a man considers work in another part of the country, when fire threatens our home and livelihood, when the word “cancer”…

Stages of Life

“I know better by now than to try to predict what is to come. But of all of the stages of my life – Goforth, Squires Landing, The Good Shepherd; Pigeonville, Lexington, Port William – this one here on the riverbank bids fair to be the last. Unless of course I fall and break something…

Write As If You Were Dying

There are times when I struggle with what to write in my blog. Annie Dillard is often a source of inspiration. Write as if you were dying. At the same time, assume you write for an audience consisting solely of terminal patients. That is, after all, the case. What would you begin writing if you…

Follow-Up to Christians, Catacombs, and Chemistry Sets

Am I being real with God, or just “playing at church?” How many idols do I have in my hip pocket just in case this religion doesn’t work out? The Jews, during the time of Jeremiah the Prophet, were playing the odds. They had a number of idols and places of worship that supplemented…

Christians, Catacombs, and Chemistry Sets

Frequently, my attitude needs adjustment. The odd thing is that my own blog can be the catalyst for such “attitudinal correction.” Recently, looking for a quote by Annie Dillard, I came upon my thoughts as expressed on July 10 of 2011 (read them here). There, once again, Annie Dillard’s reflections about church caused me to…

Running With Horses

“If racing against mere men makes you tired, how will you race against horses? If you stumble and fall on open ground, what will you do in the thickets near the Jordan? – Jeremiah 12:5 (NLT) This quote from Jeremiah, an Old Testament prophet, is a challenge statement. He called out the people of Judah…

What is it made of?

As a curious person, I often ask the question, “What is that made of?” Today’s blog will take us on a journey as we ask this question about plastic. One of the simplest forms of plastic is polyethylene. The chemical formula for this molecule is (C2H4)nH2. The type of polyethylene varies with the value of…