[As experienced at the Wisdom Upgrade Workshop #2 with Father Andrew Miller, during the 100X Wisdom challenge]
I am in the woods at IVCF camp in Massachusetts
At the moonlit lake
I remember from my college days
Jesus is there
I am seven years old
It is daytime
When Jesus said we must deny ourselves, I think He meant the amygdala.
Continue readingI am on a people-mover
Like a train of roller-coaster cars
But we are stopped on level ground
At least for a moment
Each car represents a different level of leadership
I am in the third or fourth
Perhaps moving from third to fourth Continue reading
Continued from Part 11
All of us turn South, seeking the Voice which interrupted our tableau, here in the Box of Hades:
We gaze toward the far horizon, where Eve’s Multitude had wreaked their vengeance upon Adam.
I am sure it is not his Voice we just heard.
I cannot place it; though it did sound familiar.
Movement stirs at the very limits of our vision.
A pale blue light, in sharp contrast to the dim red glow of our surroundings.
I think I catch a glimpse of one like a Son of Man
Core Grace
is the ability
to hold the tension
between affirming
my own individuality
and acknowledging the legitimacy
of other’s needs
long enough
for Jesus to crucify
my self-centered false identity
and reveal
His greater redemption
for all of us.
In other words,
(by analogy with core strength training)
it is what enable us
to substitute Christ-like Responses
for selfish Reactions
Salome, the mother of James and John, and her complicated relationship to advancing the ministry of Jesus.
Continue readingA simplified version of DBJ-LOVE-5 we used with our parents and kids.
Continue readingContinued from Part 5
I stare at the desk.
As I have for days.
I know I must open it.
But I am terrified of what I might find.
Of what I could become.
I finally reach a trembling hand towards the first drawer.
Suddenly there is a knock on the door!
I nearly crap my pants.
I call out in a shaky voice.
More by reflex than curiosity.
I dare not even imagine who might be coming for me in this place.
The Office of Hades.
“Who is it?” I croak.
“It is I,” replies a voice.
Hauntingly familiar.
But, surely not here?
It must be a trap.
But I am already trapped.
And I never thought to lock the door.
What have I got to lose?
“Come… in?”
Inspired by Correcting Jesus
Dear Peter, Its okay.
I know you’re scared that
I’m going away.
This is quite likely the most foolish and arrogant story I have ever attempted: trying to improve upon how Jesus responded to Peter’s rebuke.
Nevertheless, if I am to take Him at His word that we will do greater things than He did, I have to start somewhere…
It is a very good thing to be a follower of Jesus. But like people in the gospels, we today can end up following Jesus for many reasons: salvation, miracles, curiosity, etc.
Those are all good things. But they are not the same as actually loving Jesus for Himself. It is good to thank Him for what He does; but it is better to worship Him for who He is.
Continue readingTickets now available for our inaugural season, starting February 25th/26th
Discipling by Jesus is a novel public co-devotional format, where we help each other learn and demonstrate how to keep growing closer to Jesus, via His Word & Spirit, Body & Blood. We come together online for seven weeks to read, meditate, journal, and respond to how Jesus discipled Peter in the gospels.
Continue reading[Shout out to blog reader Kate for pushing me to publish this early!]
The only real answer is Jesus.
The only real problem is sin.
The only real work is the cross.
In the end, we only have Him.
A story of Law and Grace
Two men.
Old.
Ghosts.
With a mule.
1897.
Treasure Hunters.
They capture me.
Take me into a dungeon.
Make me dig.
I break free.
Shove them into an abyss
Including their little black dog.
Ignoring their screams for help.
I open the steel door and lock it behind me.
Then turn a corner in the corridor.
There is another door up ahead.
Repeat.
I am always escaping, but never free.
I wake.
Then I meet Jesus.
He sends me back down.
I don’t want to go.
But I obey.
It seems to take forever.
I finally get to the last door.
I look inside.
I see the tormented soul in the ditch.
It is me.
Join us on The Great Reset (via Zoom or YouTube Live at Tue Dec 22 1PM PST) as David Johnson pitches us on the concepts he feels we need to Love More Like Jesus.
Question: What does this group need in order to function the way God intended for us?
Join us on The Great Reset (via Zoom or YouTube Live at Tue Dec 15 1PM PST) as we wrestle with Ted’s challenge about how to love the whole world More Like Jesus.
Question: Why did God place us in a world full of brokenness and pain?
Perspective: So we could share in the glory that only comes from becoming more like Jesus.
This week on The Great Reset the Biastes perform a retrospective on Season 4 by attempting to agree on a Purpose, and then evaluating their recent interactions in light of that Purpose.
Radically Happy 
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