HARRY POTTER SCARED ME TERRIBLY( SO I RAN INTO "THE SHACK")

Do you remember??? It was'nt too many years ago. Everyone was warning us about the EVIL Harry Potter.. Remember Harry Potter wanted to take over our minds and make us worship MAGIC and The Devil... Man, They( you know , "They" do'nt you?) said that NOONE should read it.. TOO DANGEROUS- all those witches, and warlocks, and magic talk. I remember being at a friends house one evening. We were all just hanging out with our kids, watching TV.. it was a great family night with friends. We watched " The Wizard of Oz" on TV.. some of the Little ones enjoyed listening to " Sleeping Beauty" before Bed.. and some of the older kids were telling us how far they had gotten in " The Chronicles Of Narnia".. it was a great night.. and then , some one mentioned the dreaded " P" word- POTTER... well, before you could say "ding dong the Witch is dead", one of the adults launched into a diatribe against HP.. Man, I was so scared , I did'nt even read it... I heard SO many scary theories about how my mind was going to be exposed to all sorts of terrible influences... I had no Idea that I would hear similar warnings about a book called "the Shack": " Heresy" is the word I heard most often! Now I am an ultra-conservative Presbyterian Elder- Jesus ONLY-Virgin Birth- ok... just think of ALL the "check List words " that scream EXCLUSIONARY to the liberal evangelicals and insert them next to Clay Callaway.. You get the idea??? So one evening , I was thinking about re-reading " The Lion , the Witch, and the Wardrobe" and FORGET about " The Shack".. but I could'nt.. I had to see what the Buzz was all about.SO I read it... I was afraid.. and my fears were confirmed... in a good way. NOW, I want YOU to read it.. so I am not going to go into great detail with this review- do'nt wanna spoil it... so here goes- " The Shack" is a NOVEL.. ok it's not a book of Systematic Theology.. The main character , Mack visits GOD in " The Shack" so that he can be reminded of something.. and that something is that no matter what you have gone through, GOD LOVES YOU and HAS NEVER FORSAKEN YOU! NOW I know you are saying.. " WOW , Clay.. sounds so deep.. well.. it IS and we all need to be reminded of this profound truth.. The Reformer Martin Luther said that "Christians should preach the Gospel to themselves every day" Simple and yet so profound.. we need to remind ourselves of the wonder of it all.. Thats the message of " The Shack". Now , the author uses some creative ways to help us to "get it" . lots of people were frightened by this "creativity"and starting throwing the "heresy" word around.. especially when the author was heard in an interview, supposedly denying the Penal Substitutionary Atonement( google it)..The author, William P. Young, had several tragedies in his life.. This book is a product of his "working Through" the "where was God?" question. Remember that as you read it. I enjoyed the story..My faith in the Sufficiency of Scripture has not wavered because I read " The Shack", If anything- it has been strengthened.I KNOW what the Bible teaches about God's omniscience, His Immutability, His Sovereignty, - I can read a novel that at times seems to question my views about these attributes- without apostasizing.. really I DID! If you decide to read this book, watch out. Lots of people are screaming.. telling us that we should'nt read this author because some of his views on God are suspect.. let me tell you something.. the APOSTLE PAUL read NON- CHRISTIAN authors.. and QUOTED them. Epimenides was a 6th century religious reformer( not a Christian) and Poet that Paul mentioned in Titus 1:12.- Man, I hope "Epi" did'nt have any witches in his poetry..Paul was'nt afraid of Epimenides.. Paul knew the truth... All of the C.S. Lewis fanatics who proudly recommend his works need to go back and read some of his musings that at times sounded like "open Theism"( google it")- He talked about Budhists who were "living so in harmony with the Spirit of Christ" that they might be in Paradise with us who are Christians."He would not pass your litmus tests".Many of the Early Church Fathers that we quote had some wacky( yep, I typed wacky) views.. but we appeal to them as an "apologia" for our doctrinal distinctives- Origen was certainly a neo-platonist. Tertullian believed that the 70 weeks of Daniel were fulfilled by the FIRST advent- sorry , Pre-trib rapture" friends.. Tertullian would not enjoy your church movie night screening of "left Behind" .. although , I am sure that he would have loved Kirk Cameron...Ya get my point? NOT EVERY WRITER is going to agree with our view of "orthodoxy".. but you know what?? we can still read them.. we can look for kernels of truth in their works.. God can use so many things to teach us... even stories written by authors who are "un-orthodox", neoorthodox, or just plain unbelieving!!! I can se that my "review" will require at least two more installments,so stay tuned to this channel- NEXT, I will address some of the inconsistencies of the story... but let me say this: DO'nt Be Afraid to go to the Shack.. Harry Potter's not there...There's no Lions, Witches, Wardrobes, Wizards, ( oh I forgot.. they're ok.."- sometimes) but I tell you what you will find there.. a good story that reminds you of some Good News; Your Heavenly Father Loves you ; No matter what is going on in your life- He has never and WILL never forsake you; He became a Man and kept the Law for His people and suffered the punishment due to your Sins... that's not a "scary" story.. that's the most calming, healing story that has ever been written, and it was written in RED

THE "SHARPENING" of HISTORY???

" If you dip into any college, or school, or parish, or family-anything you like-at a given point in it's history, you will always find that there was a time before thatpoint when there was more elbow room and contrasts were'nt quite so sharp; and that there is going to be a time after that point when there is even less room for indecision and choices are even more momentous. Good is always getting better and bad is always getting worse: the possibilities of even apparent neutrality are always diminishing. The whole thing is sorting itself out all the time,coming to a point,getting sharper and harder" C.S. Lewis- "That Hideous Strength"

Do you agree with this??? I would like your thoughts!!! Discuss this amongst yourselves... I have given you a great topic!!!

Adult Subject Matter- THE DEATH OF MARILYN CHAMBERS

A few days ago the "adult"film actress Marilyn Chambers died. She was 56. Her body was discovered by her daughter.Like MOST of the individuals in her industry, she battled drug and alchohol addiction. At this writing , the cause of Death is unknown- WHAT A SAD STORY! Most men in their 40s and 50s know who she was and what made her famous.. and thats another Sad Story.. that so MANY knew SO MUCH about her- Now this is a "family Friendly", reformed Christian blog.. so I will spare you the details of her career.. google the name and you will be shocked.. or maybe you wo'nt be shocked( The possiblity that you wo'nt be shocked is ANOTHER SAD STORY)! Marilyn Chambers became famous for her involvement in the "world" of Pornography- an industry that treats Women as objects !IT glorifies some of the most degrading and horrific acts known to Mankind- and yet ... we heard about Marilyn when we were growing up.. She was on TV shows, talking to Tom Snyder on the Nightly colorcast,being interviewed by "mainstream" journalists"! There she was.. smiling.. talking about how "liberated" she felt doing what she did on film. Everyone was laughing( was'nt that HILARIOUS that she was the girl on the Ivory snow Box.. and then she became an x-rated star!!)it was the nervous laughter that sends a message. Here's the message:," Well, we KNOW WE really should'nt be talking about this kind of thing.. it's REALLY not a healthy view of sexuality... but hey.. we have got to get this ALL out in the open.. it helps us as a society to freely and comfortably talk about these things.. if only we talk about it a little more.. we are sure we will get COMFORTABLE!" WELL, we talked about it- we were exposed to images on Television that helped us to "lighten up"! We became so sophisticated... the Porn industry became a multi-billion dollar industry. Millions of women have been subjected to abuse and humiliation.. and millions of men( and women) have struggled with an addiction that tears apart the very soul. Marriages destroyed, Careers ruined , lives lost.. ALL of this because we became DE-SENSITIZED.Thats the REAL SAD STORY!. the "things" that used to make "us" cringe , have now become so "matter of fact" , SO MUCH a part of OUR LIVES! One if the most popular shows for TEENAGE girls a couple of years ago was the program, " the Girls Next Door", which chronicled the life of Playboy Founder , Hugh Hefner and his THREE live-in girlfriends( who were all about 60 YEARS YOUNGER than Hugh-baby).....there we were again.. watching, laughing,( that nervous laughter?? nope.. not anymore) We have become so NUMB.. we drown out any remnant of a conscience with our noise... and our toys.. we do'nt want to think about the way that WE have compromised. we do'nt want to think about what is right or wrong. Just have Fun, Life's too short, Eat Drink and be merry... Be merry,... that's what Marilyn Chambers and all the other porn actresses tried to do.. but it did'nt work! I remember Tom Snyder asking Marilyn about her belief about GOD and if she believed- or thought about the afterlife- She replied that She just did'nt think about that"kind of thing". I think that her reply was a lie.. just like all the lies she told about the joy and liberation she felt doing pornographic films. She tried to numb the pain with drugs and alchohol.. deep inside, She KNEW that what she did was wrong- it was not a healthy way to live- and WE KNOW that our compromising is wrong.. this "mainstreaming" of unhealthy sexual imagery has left us enslaved, empty, and broken. Behind many Doors in America, families are suffering because we have "lightened up". Children are being neglected and abused because we became "sophisticated" about Sexuality! The SAD STORY is that WE did this to ourselves.. we turn away from our Creator who wants to give us a healthy view of sexuality- that it is a beautiful gift from God to be shared between One man and one woman.we do'nt want HIS guidance.. we are so sophistcated.. we have "lightened up"... thats the REAL Sad story...Marilyn Chambers left a daughter, I pray that SOMEONE who knows the Savior will come into her life... and show her what real love is.. and what it TRULY means to Live a Life of Liberation.. ONE SAD STORY jus might have a happy ending.. or a happy beginning

" LETS MAKE A DEAL( Carol Merril, Where are you? It's Easter)

Husain Ismael Jabar is an Israeli -Arab who lives in the village of Abu -Gosh near Jerusalem! Jabar is a businessman and every year at Passover he gets a GREAT DEAL on all the leavened products in Jerusalem. As everyone knows, only UNLEAVENED products can be kept in the house, business, store, etc. during Passover! Jabar helps out his Jewish neighbors!He purchases ALL LEAVENED PRODUCTS( any product derived from flour of the five species of Grain) for approximately $20,000! The amazing thing about this deal is : ALL these leavened products in all the stores,businesses, homes, restaurants, etc. are worth in excess of 150 million dollars! Better than E-bay, huh?? He does'nt even pay for shipping, well, actually he does'nt even have to go and move it to his warehouse.. he just hands over a check for 20 grand to a Rabbi ;they give him a paper saying that he is the owner of ALL that is Leavened- and he sells it all back to them at the end of passover- Let's make a Deal! ( hey Monty, I'll take what's behind door number 3- I hope it's a year 's supply of Bagels).. yep, it's a pretty good arrangement that they have going with Mr. Jabar- ALL THE leavened products are gotten rid of( well, in a way), just as the Jewish Law commands. This is called Mechirah and it's the way that the devout "dispose of" their leavened products without.. well... without having to lose anything- The families sign over their leavened products to the Rabbi's who in turn sign them over to Jabar- at the end of Passover, Jabar gives it all back, paperwork signed, checks swapped- everyone is Happy! The DEMANDS of the LAW are satisfied, Yahweh is pleased that they got rid of the unleavened bread( in a way,, they really did.. did'nt they??),Man, that was a great Passover- My conscience is clear- I bet Jehovah really ,really loves me a lot now! ...... You know when I first heard this reported on NPR, I laughed inside a little, "those Jewish families, playing their little game with God.. acting like they are GIVING UP something to show THEIR DEVOTION...it's like they are winking.at God. all the while saying.. Yep, we are doing what we are supposed to"!A little paper shuffling and all is right with the Kosher world" I started thinking though... I AM JUST LIKE THOSE PEOPLE... I play my little games with God-thinking that if i do SOMETHING- He will be pleased with me! He will love me more.. and not be angry with me.... a little paper shuffling, pretending that I am really doing good.. uh.. "what's that???, no these are not LEAVENED bread crumbs on the front of my shirt.. I do'nt know what you are talking about.. nope.. not me"... the PROBLEM is that ALL this thinking is about WHAT I DO!!! AND THATS THE PROBLEM! I can play my little games, I can go down the "checklist", I can strive to earn HIS FAVOR.. but the truth is.. He LOVES ME!!! Because of the CROSS, my SINS were paid for.. JESUS DIED FOR ME!! I ca'nt do anything to make him love me more or ..love me LESS, I already have ALL of HIS LOVE! He ROSE again to free me from Sin and death! I do'nt have to play any games, or try to earn His love... He is RISEN.. He is Risen Indeed!!!.... Allright Carol Merrill, show us whats behind Door # 3... could it be an empty tomb??

"CLASSIC" WORSHIP?? I WAS LOOKING FOR WORSHIP-LITE

The other day I saw a banner at a local church that announced the following: " Classic Worship-11:A.M." Now I KNOW what these dear Brethren are trying to do... they are trying to reach out to the community - they want potential visitors to know that at 11:00, there's going to be Hymn singing, offering, preaching, closing hymn, prayer, etc...- in other words: If you are looking for the "old-fashioned" worship time- this is the place to be! I understand their motives.. these are good people.. they want people to feel comfortable coming to visit! They want to reach people with the Gospel. That's admirable!!...but this makes me wonder.. Has it REALLY come to this?? Do we look at Worship as something that we package and promote like a product??? You've seen the signs: "traditional worship, Contemporary Worship, Willow Creek style worship, Blended Worship".. it goes on and on... what ever happened to what we Presbyterians call," The Regulative Principle of Worship"? The BIBLE ALONE instructs us in the elements of Worship. Now, I realize that there are different ways to implement those Biblical Elements.. but what are we saying when we have different "style" services geared toward the various "tastes" of our potential visitors and current members.. Is this like the Buffet at the restaurant," Choose from Hundreds of items at our Mega -Bar"??? Dear Reader, the Elders of the local Church need to decide what they are going to do with the REGULATIVE PRINCIPLE... and YES that does EXCLUDE A FEW THINGS... One thing that it DEFINITELY EXCLUDES is DRAMA during the WORSHIP SERVICE... yep , I said it... ALL those little skits that you have seen during the service ... they should'nt be there! Am I saying that the Church should not be "capturing the ARTS " for Christ?? no way ... THE CHURCH NEEDS to INVADE EVERY AREA of CULTURE... but it is NOT to be done during Worship... do it at a SEPARATE Gathering... All this innovation; all these polished, practiced, focus group driven attempts at finding a "worship Style" that makes people feel "comfortable"... is nothing more than salesmanship AND showmanship. SO much of it depends upon the way it "looks", the "atmosphere" that is created, How "hip" and "cool" is the MUSIC???? Dear Reader.. do You ever think about what we have done to WORSHIP??? The Vision statements of our churches are crafted as if we are actually creating a "catch-phrase' for a product!.... Let's return to the VISION of the Apostles.... WORSHIP is to be done according to SCRIPTURAL PRECEDENT! NOT according to the marketing strategies of the World! well, excuse me , I'm getting a little Thirsty.. so I'm going to get a drink- I think I 'll have a Coca-cola Classic... I am glad they stopped making that NEW coke... but wait there's Caffeine free coke, diet coke, coke zero, cherry coke, ... wow SO MUCH TO CHOOSE FROM...

ANYBODY HERE SEEN MY OLD FRIEND ABRAHAM???

Many of us are familiar with the story of the patriarch Abraham! In Sunday School we learned about the way that The Lord called him unto Himself! We all have heard the story of the "confirmation of his faith",when God asked him to sacrifice his son, Isaac on the altar. We have seen the paintings of Abraham raising the knife in the air- only to be stopped by the Angel of The Lord, the Lord Himself provided a ram for the sacrifice- Abraham told Isaac that God would provide and HE DID!!The life of Abraham was filled with examples of God's provision in difficult situations! God told Abraham that HE would be the Father of many nations... but FIRST Abraham had to learn that he was first and foremost a Father to his children.. and that God had a very special job for him !

Speaking of Abraham, God said, " For I have KNOWN HIM in order that he may command his children and his household after him, that they keep the way of the Lord, to do righteousness and justice, that the Lord may bring to Abraham what he has promised."

Many read this verse and say," OK OK.. God is God and of course HE KNEW all about Abraham.. ok he KNEW HIM.. He was intimately acquainted with him,, and...etc.etc.".. Now ALL THAT is true.. but what we need to remember is that in the Hebrew,, this phrase" KNOWN HIM" means so much more that just "Befriending " someone.. or knowing everything about them.. It actually means " LOVED BEFORE-HAND" In other words... The Creator of the universe "set HIS LOVE" upon Abraham.before HE ever created him... but lets look at the REASON for this " LOVED BEFOREHAND" Blessing that Abraham's!! " It was " IN ORDER THAT he may command His children and His household after him, that they may keep the way of the Lord.." Here it is my friends, COVENANT THEOLOGY.. the special place of priviledge that the children of believers occupy! Dear Reader, God was telling Abraham, " YOU ARE MINE, YOUR CHILDREN ARE MINE, I am STARTING SOMETHING HERE... I LOVED YOU BEFOREHAND so that you can teach your children ALL ABOUT ME" All of us who are members of the Body of Christ need to learn from this revelation to Abraham- Christian Father , it is NOT THE RESPONSIBILITY of the youth pastor, the Sunday School teacher, or the Children's minister to "lead your child to Christ" it is your privilege to do this!!! YOU are the one who should teach them to pray, and to share the Word of God with them in family worship.... It is your calling to pray with and for them.. and to talk of The things of God "when you are sitting down, when you rise up, when you are walking on the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise up" God will use this to draw your child unto HIMSELF! Christian Father, do not miss this opportunity to teach your children the MOST IMPORTANT truth in ALL THE WORLD! You worry and you stress out over whether your child is doing good in school, or is going to get into a good college and get a good job... but have you made it clear to your child that THE MOST IMPORTANT thing is to KNOW THE SAVIOR and to know that He has paid for the Sins of ALL HIS PEOPLE ! He calls us His people and HIS FRIENDS... He LOVED US BEFORE- HAND!!!and THAT is Good news!!!

I THINK YOU MISSED A SPOT!

The sun is shining, the trees are budding, and soon it will be time for that yearly ritual- SPRING CLEANING!! You know how it goes! ALL the nooks and crannies that you "let Slide" are calling for your attention!The closet where you have been " piling stuff up", the secret place under the bed where you have been sweeping dust, the way up high shelf where SOMETHING is GROWING ( not sure what it is,,, but it's probably UGLY)... all those places need to be taken care of! Cleaned up and cleaned out.. OH I KNOW.. you feel pretty good about yourself, do'nt ya.. Hey , you "managed the mess" for a LONG TIME! You knew how to handle it. You knew what to"let slide" and exactly how to do it!After all, you work hard, you have so many OTHER responsibilities that occupy your attention... but reality steps in when you try to start your cleaning...- that stuff that you piled on top of the other stuff, it is REALLY difficult to clean now.and .. that closet?? oh yeah, you stacked SO much stuff there.. that you can'nt even open the door with out causing an earthquake.. and that ugly stuff that is growing on that top shelf.. it's taken on a life of it's own.. it might be hard to "KILL"!!! Maybe you should have dealt with all of this before NOW!!! Dear Reader, many of us who are Christ followers are guilty of sweeping TOO MUCH stuff under the rug.. there are problems in our families that we have not dealt with! HUSBANDS, is there something in your life that is preventing you from loving your wife as Christ loved the Church?? Is your wife your BEST friend?? or do you look to your co-workers to fill that "role"???do you look to your "buddies" to fill some kind of "void" in your life?Do you and your wife just live in the same house.. and each of you "does your own thing"?? If that is the case, then something is lacking.. remember.. you are ONE FLESH.. God wants to heal your realtionship so that you can live a life of love and fullfillment!Maybe you noticed something .. but you swept it under the rug.. you stacked it in that closet.. You were working a lot .. and your wife got busy with HER friends and her activities..She spends more time with her "friends" than she does with you. and NOW... well. you just decided that things are the way they are.. and...there's other things that need your attention..Dear Reader, deal with it now.. do'nt put this off!

Maybe you are a leader in ministry and well... you know the old saying," you know where ALL the Bodies are buried".. and you let them lie there too! You know about relationships in your Church or ministry that are NOT HEALTHY and you let it go... you shove it under that rug... You better be careful, that thing on that top shelf is growing.. it's taking on a life of it's own..you know about those things that are being done out of a spirit of manipulation and self-interest.. the evidence is there.. but you look the other way.. and think," I HAVE TO let that go.. I ca'nt perform miracles".Maybe you are not a leader. but if you are a member of the Body of Christ, it is your responsibility to go to your brother or sister in a spirit of humility and admonish them privately.. always following the steps of Matthew 18.. But " I ca'nt do that. that will make things worse"" hey there's a little more room in that closet keep stacking..... Dear Reader, before you accuse me of being negative and "works" oriented.. let me encourage you.. our HEALING in ALL these areas is ALL about GRACE! Jesus wants to heal us.. he will ALWAYS LOVE US NO MATTER WHAT.. but think of the joy and freedom that will be ours if we let him clean out those closets, and sweep ALL the dirt from under that rug.. are'nt you tired of living with the KNOWLEDGE that ALL THAT stuff is there and it is unhealthy.. ??Run to Christ and he will give you Rest" Would'nt it be nice to just rest??Jesus will do the cleaning for you.. just ask HIM.. He's really good with the Closets, under the bed, and the corners.. he NEVER Misses a spot.....