Dear God,
You are Good. Really. I mean it.
I am not.
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Tag Archives: sin
Does Seminary Conquer Sin?
StandardA kind friend pointed out that the seminary focuses I dissed in my last post:
- Theological knowledge
- Pastoral skills
- Relational experiences
may not be sufficient for spiritual maturity, but are necessary.
In fact, what I should have said is that the latter require the former:
Curing The Seven Deadly Virtues of Leadership
StandardLeadership is a perilous venture, for the very attributes that make leaders great also carry the seeds of our downfall.
But surprisingly, there is a very simple cure — albeit a very unpleasant one…
Becoming a Whole Christian
StandardI want to be a Whole Christian.
I want to love the Lord my God with all my heart, all my soul, all my mind, and all my strength, and be part of a worshipping community with others who do.
I want to love my brothers and sisters the way Christ loves me,
my neighbor as myself,
and my enemies.
Especially my enemies. For I have discovered that I only see the log in my own eye after I find grace for the speck in someone else’s.
Song: That’s Grace
StandardPart 2 of the Guilt-Grace-Gratitude musical trilogy, from my 1996 meditations on The Grace Cycle.
LEAD! B.6 From Greed to Generosity
StandardIn Which We Gain Power Over Money By Giving It Away
“Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy.” — Matthew 5:7
Even if we escape the pride of trusting completely in our own “name”, we still must guard against trusting in things instead of God. The purest form of this is greed or avarice, which can be defined as treating money as an “end” — i.e., an extension of the self. This is in contrast to generosity, which considers money primarily a “means” of showing mercy to others.
Assigned Reading
-
Peter Kreeft: Back to Virtue
- 8. Giving Mercy vs. Getting Things (Avarice)
- Dick Hockett: Foundations of Wisdom
- 3.3 (Righteous) Example: Proverbs about the Tongue
LEAD! B.4 From Folly to Love
StandardIn Which We Are Rescued from Our Folly by God’s Love
Love is the primary virtue of the Heart. It is both a Decision that gives rise to Emotions, as well an Emotion that gives rise to Decisions — and it needs both to thrive. It can be defined as “the ability to pursue another’s glory — even at the cost of your own.”
Love is particularly needed by the Fool, whose emotional damage drives a cycle of self-punishment disguised as the pursuit of pleasure. The only way out is to purify our hearts by receiving God’s love and forgiveness, to the point where we love Him more than the false gods we’ve served — and discover what it means to genuinely love ourselves…
Assigned Reading
-
Peter Kreeft: Back to Virtue
- 5.C (Love) The Three Theological Virtues
-
Dick Hockett: Foundations of Wisdom
- 6. The Fool
