I’m a Dead Poet…okay, not really
You are Arthur Rimbaud – a vital, cannon-changing poet with a flare for tantrums. You tend to write in a fever, and have a liking for the disordered mind. Do’t expect people to understand you, for you are ahead of your time.
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Choices
Tall or grande? Non-fat or low fat? Quality or quantity? Chicken or fish? DSL or Wireless? Mac or PC? (don’t even think of saying PC) Digital cable or satellite? Destktop or laptop?
Having so many choice to make in our everyday lives can make us feel entitled to having just as many choices with the major decisions in our life. I guess there is nothing wrong with having so many choices in those major decisions, but for me it often serves nothing more as an excuse to put the decision off.
I am looking at five different schools right now. I’ll be visiting two next week – one in KC and the other in St. Louis. Neither I’m that excited about, because the other two have the better degrees I want. But they are far, far way from home. So I have a choice: What will make me happier? Being only four hours away from my friends and family while I go to seminary or move to Virginia to go to school that has a great degree and comes highly recommended by someone I admire the most in this world?
Overchoice. It’s not a bad thing. But is it really a good thing?
Ten years ago (almost to the day) I read this passage in 2 Peter:
For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness, love. For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. (v. 5-8)
From that point on, I knew that God’s will for my life wasn’t always going to be something specific and concrete. I understood that God’s will for my life was to add to my faith goodness, to goodness, knowledge, to knowledge self-control, to self-control godliness, to godliness brotherly kindness and to that kindness, love.
These attributes will help me make the big and small choices in my life, but more importantly, they will help me enjoy the journey that I’m on right now.
I am blessed to have these choices. Not many do. So why am I whining? Because I have the option to. Sad, really.
What I’m listening to: Snow Patrol’s Chasing Cars
Wish You Were Here
blue skies from pain.
Can you tell a green field from a cold steel rail? A smile from a veil?
Do you think you can tell?
And did they get you trade your heroes for ghosts?
Hot ashes for trees? Hot air for a cool breeze?
Cold comfort for change? And did you exchange
a walk on part in the war for a lead role in a cage?
How I wish, how I wish you were here.
We’re just two lost souls swimming in a fish bowl,
year after year,
running over the same old ground.
What have we found?
The same old fears,
wish you were here.
I’m sad.
EFCA Statement of Faith
My denomination is going through the process of revising the Statement of Faith. As with anything in the church, it’s been a long and complicated process, with everyone putting their two cents in about the first and second drafts changes they’ve made thus far. Click here if you’d like to see more of this discussion happening online.
#1 Statement in the current SOF:
We Believe:
The Scriptures, both Old and New Testaments, to be the inspired Word of God, without error in the original writings, the complete revelation of His will for the salvation of men and the Divine and final authority for Christian faith and life.
_______________________________________________
Here is the proposed revision:
We Believe:
1. God’s gospel originate in and demonstrates the holy love of the eternal, triune God –
We believe in one God, Creator of all things, holy, infinitely perfect, and eternally existing in a loving unity of three uqually divine Persons: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. This one God, all-knowing and all-powerful, has, in love and grace, purposed from eternity to redeem a people for Himself and to restore His fallen creation for His own glory.
_______________________________________________
Aside from the ridicules amount of appositives in that statement, I am very happy to see the first point of our SOF is now about God, not just the scriptures.
The term “Evangelical” means “based on the scriptures”. We are a denomination that belive the Bible is the perfect Word of God and we teach as such. Obviously it’s a very important part of who we are.
I attended a District meeting a while back after the second revision was released. It was a open forum for discussion for the changes… so I knew what I was potentially get myself into. It just so happens I sat next to a very angry, passionate and high-spirited pastor who had no problems communicating how much he hated the switch. “With God’s Word we are nothing.” to which I replied, “Without God, we are nothing.”
For me, placing our statement about the triune God first was a logical and smart move on behalf of the committee. But for some reason, there were men in the room who felt moving it made our belief in the Word less than should be. Huh? If we took it out, sure. If the wording was altered to mean as such, absolutely. But just changing it from #1 to #2? I don’t get this man’s arguement.
But this whole SOF discussion doesn’t even get really interesting until we discuss the changes to #11.
We believe – In the personal and premillennial and imminent coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and that this “Blessed Hope” has a vital bearing on the personal life and service of the believer. Yeah, I know.
But that’s a post for another time.
What I’m listening to: Jake Coco. Mmmm…
5 Things
The 5-things-in-various-places survey
5 Items in my Fridge:
1. Diet Dr. Pepper
2. Cream Cheese
4. Lettuce
5. 2 eye gel masks
5 Items in my Closet:
1. A dresser
2. My laundry basket
3. Empty shoe boxes
4. Shoes (duh)
5. Hangers (duh)
5 Items in my Car:
1. Cds, Cds, Cds
2. Lotion
3. A cute little red flashlight
4. Headset for my cell phone
5. Music books
5 Items in my Purse:
1. Wallet, checkbook combo
2. 2 Tubes of chapstick, 1 lipgloss and two tubes of lipstick. (I know…)
3. Cell phone
4. Pens
5. Keys
5 Items on my Desk:
1. Lamp
2. Pencil cup holder
3. Papers, bills, etc
4. Computer
5. Assorted Cds
5 Items in my Bathroom Vanity:
1. “Creative Genuis” hair gel
2. “Lucky” perfume
3. Lemon flavored toothpaste
4. Home-made soap my friend Dixie’s mother made
5. Nailpolish
Stephanie Nelson 