Tag Archives: redemption

DRAFT: Fruit Of the Cross

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Practicing to Become More Like Jesus

[A 12-week class I might build. Feedback welcome!]

As Christians, we all want to live and love more like Jesus. But books, sermons, Bible study, quiet times, and even counseling only get us so far.

To fully address our strongholds, woundedness and blind spots requires encountering Jesus in a supportive community that models how to deny ourselves, take up our cross, and follow Him. In practice, not just in theory.

Fruit of the Cross (FOTC) is a 12-week online course, built around the Fruit of the Spirit, where we learn how to help each other identify and surrender those parts of our “flesh” that hinder us from growing closer to Jesus. By the end, you will be equipped and certified to host your own online or offline FOTC courses, using or adapting our free materials. You also gain membership in our missional social network, where you can continue to grow and plan with like-minded believers.

The course is built around active learning, inspired by Discovery Bible Study and the Minerva Project. Each week focuses on practicing a different Fruit-related learning objective, via:

  • a brief recording, which you listen to on your own time
  • a 2-hour live session where we encounter Jesus through His Word, Spirit, Body & Blood
  • an online chat community where we share questions, testimonies, and encouragement

The course is being developed via the Maven Accelerator Program in January 2022, and we hope to host our first cohort by Lent. Cost will be $14 per student, but scholarships and group discounts are available. For more information, please contact ernest.prabhakar@gmail.com.

Hale’s Accusation (Alternate Ending of The Crucible)

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1 Samuel 15 (KJV) – For bitterness is as the sin of witchcraft, And presumption is as iniquity and idolatry.

[Our Christian high school just put on a “fearless” production of Arthur Miller’s The Crucible, which continued to haunt me after leaving the theater. I identified deeply with many of the characters, whose seemingly minor flaws led to tragic results. I am writing this in hopes it will help me identify (and repent of) the deeper sin they shared — but could not name — which ultimately destroyed them all.]

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Redeeming Aphrodite: Freeing Minerva (Part 12 of 12)

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Continued from Part 11

Prologue

All of us turn South, seeking the Voice which interrupted our tableau, here in the Box of Hades:

  1. Eve, Queen of the Damned
  2. Minerva, her Champion
  3. Aphrodite and Artemis, my Advocates
  4. Myself, the Son of Adam

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

Sons of Man

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Dream: Construction Boundaries

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MIT is being renovated.

I am leading a tour group.
Like I used to do.
We come from the East.
The standalone buildings on that side
Are most functional.

But the large complex in the heart of campus
The Infinite Corridor
Is completely surrounded in yellow tape.

In fact
The large buildings in the center
Are partly demolished. Continue reading →

What if Christ was a Verb?

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I recently learned (probably from Seth Godin) that there are two types of roles: certified and performative. Roles defined by certification can be faked; for example, a man can sit in a medical office, examine patients, and give advice without really being a doctor. Conversely, the mere act of executing a performative role makes it authentic: if you get on a stage and sing to an audience, you are a singer, regardless of whether you are “qualified” to be there.

Today, as for much of its history, being a Christian is primarily defined by certifications: baptism, confirmation, membership, statements of faith, etc. As a result, there are endless arguments (and divisions) regarding about who is “really” a Christian.

What if it was other way around? What if there was something we could do, such that the very act of doing it was proof that we are being united with Christ, regardless of our beliefs or motives?

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TGR-S3E4: Systemic Redemption

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Continuing our discussion of the Biastes Co-Discipleship Network, our 1pm PST Tuesday, July 28, 2020 episode of The Great Reset introduces a revolutionary approach to redeeming our systems.

Where Ernie unintentionally sparks a revolution against “systems”

Question: What would it take to truly overcome systemic inequity and relational brokenness?

Perspective: Revolutionary systems effectively honoring Christlike humble service

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ShameBreaker Covenant

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  1. God loves me, and has a wonderful plan for my life. 
  2. As I humble myself and turn away from my wicked ways, I position myself to receive the fullness of God’s blessings and favor.
  3. I confess that I have sinned — against myself, others, and God — to the point where I deserve nothing but condemnation and death. 
  4. Through the cross, I have been born again as God’s child; He blesses me because He wants to, not because I deserve it. 
  5. In order to receive my inheritance, I must confront and overcome the part of myself that wants to remain a slave to the systems of this world. 
  6. In God’s timing, I will respectfully renegotiate my relationship to the people and institutions that were my Egypt, in order to redeem myself and them. 
  7. Going forward, I will boast of my weakness, so that God’s power gets all the credit for my achievements.  

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Monk’s Redemption: A Psychological Allegory

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Inspired by the USA Network TV show, Dick Schwartz’s Internal Family Systems model, and a Dream and Vision I had.

Cast of Characters

In order of appearance

  1. Natalie Teeger, the Integrated Self (Spirit)
  2. Adrian Monk, the Manager
  3. Leland Stottlemeyer, the Protector
  4. Hope, the Exile

Also featuring:

  • The Light, Truth
  • The Key, Forgiveness

The Vision

I see a locked door. In a dark and scary place, like a monster movie. Big, iron, with crisscrossed chains and padlocks.

Natalie walks up holding a flashlight. Monk trails behind nervously.

Suddenly Stottlemeyer steps in front of them. His eyes are bloodshot, as if he has been drinking, crying, or not sleeping. Perhaps all three. He is holding his gun in two shaky hands. Pointed at them.

“I warned you not to come here,” he rasps in a hoarse voice.

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