tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-50020962011-12-12T03:08:08.923-08:00The other half of my brain resides here. The better half is <a href="http://www.livejournal.com/users/asqmh">elsewhere</a>.Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.comBlogger1041100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-72346016071016963172007-06-25T08:59:00.000-07:002007-06-25T09:01:20.817-07:00

I've largely disappeared over here. If anybody still checks here or stumbles over it, my more updated blog can be found here. It's not as "deep," I guess, but it's life. Less academic, more pedestrian. Anyhow, that's where I am.

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1126455595500952682005-09-11T09:11:00.000-07:002005-09-11T09:19:55.506-07:00

That's such a rhetorical question. God always knows where we are -- physically, mentally, spiritually, geographically. He knows the exact distance our hearts are from his. And he draws us continually nearer.He knows where I've been.Lately, I've been in a tiny not-town called Frog Jump (unincorporated). God has once again disrupted my daily norm, stripped away those things I'd come to think of

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1120226898365274622005-07-01T07:07:00.000-07:002005-07-01T07:08:18.370-07:00

Amen.

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1118603956793914802005-06-12T12:16:00.000-07:002005-06-17T07:46:32.800-07:00

I'm a liar listening to liars.I believe a number of things that honestly ought never to have entered my head.At any give time, I adhere wholeheartedly to the Liar's Creedo:At times, I believe:I'm no goodAnd neither are youThings will only get worseAnd they were never really betterBut I'm okayIn fact, I'm fineI know what's bestSometimes I'm the only one who doesAnd if I don't look out for me, no

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1118328115364083422005-06-09T07:08:00.000-07:002005-06-10T12:12:59.426-07:00

I have a very shiny, magnetic nametag. In about 22pt. type, someone has correctly spelled my name and stamped it deep in the metal faced, plastic backed thing that hovers just beneath my right shoulder, a weighted reminder of where I am.I'm at HopeWorks, a "small" ministry of the churches of Christ. I say "small," because we're headquartered in the basement of another church right now. I say "

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1118096187666765742005-06-06T15:15:00.000-07:002005-06-06T15:16:27.666-07:00

That photo should not be taken as any sort of proof that I actually exist. Ask Matt: I am bigfoot.

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1118095558446494442005-06-06T15:05:00.000-07:002005-06-06T15:05:58.450-07:00

By the way, this has a lot to do with where I've been...Ain't he cute?

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1118086686734060182005-06-06T12:35:00.000-07:002005-06-06T12:38:06.736-07:00

I kinda disappeared again. My bad.Honestly, I disappeared for a good reason this time: life changing stuff, just for kicks. This past weekend, though, I got to traipse off to the wide world of HotLanta to see ... pretty much everything. And also Matt. Matt is a darn good guy with a wonderful wife and a passle of (read: "three")adorable kids. Just all around good stuff there in Atlanta.Met

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1110569047797316002005-03-11T11:23:00.000-08:002005-03-11T11:24:07.796-08:00

So...What's great about Atlanta?

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1109563390393419602005-02-27T19:57:00.000-08:002005-02-27T20:03:10.396-08:00

Today has been a shade of incredible. Actually, "incredible" is a poor word when it's broken down to its literal bits, but that's far beside the point. Take the word at face value and it fits the situation nicely.Today has been good because God was most certainly present at our worship today. He is active in the hearts of so many and it's good to see it in ways I can't deny. I supposed today

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1109341127663654752005-02-25T06:09:00.000-08:002005-02-25T06:18:47.666-08:00

Wednesday night Bible study always gets me thinking.I'm in a group in which we are "studying" Hebrews. I say "studying" because we're really "progressing through blocks outlined by NIV Study Bible section headings" -- and we're expected to do so on a schedule, apparently.I don't object, actually, to keeping a particular pace in a study, but discouraging conversation and discussion on a topic of

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1106165056370999172005-01-19T11:58:00.000-08:002005-01-19T12:04:16.386-08:00

Better brace yourselves... Of course, you know, an article like that is such a nice, reliable way to pad the statistics for next year's analysis as well. Self-fulfilling prophecy and all that. "The 24th is the worst day of the year? And it's on a Monday this year? Dangit." We should all give up now before the day arrives. Or, you know, we could quit borrowing trouble and all that...

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1105852790240441442005-01-15T21:18:00.000-08:002005-01-15T21:19:50.240-08:00

Studying Psalm 22 always makes me think. Psalm 22 is the Psalm that Jesus quoted from the cross and in a class Curt was teaching a couple weeks ago, this thought struck me: whoever penned that psalm knew nothing about Jesus, didn't have a clue about the christology of the coming church and had no way of knowing what would be done with his words. But what hit me for the first time was this:

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1105852575008913432005-01-15T21:15:00.000-08:002005-01-15T21:16:15.006-08:00

The problem with Fred Phelps (as though there were only one) can be found in his own FAQ (not surprisingly). But most particularly, I find this to be telling (taken from his site): Have any homosexuals repented as a result of your picketing? Yes, but this doesn't matter. He's obviously never read Romans 13. The man is a freakin' gong. Or, "... sound and fury, signifying nothing."

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1105852487204945602005-01-15T21:14:00.000-08:002005-01-15T21:14:47.203-08:00

"When I see people being tainted by the actions of those who've committed abuse, it demoralizes the mission, it destroys the trust that the Congolese have in the U.N'.s peacekeeping mission in Congo and in the effort of the United Nations. It is a big stain on us," Guehenno said. It seems to me that if the UN peacekeepers wanted the trust of the Congolese, they should have been behaving in such

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1105852440433242052005-01-15T21:13:00.000-08:002005-01-15T21:14:00.433-08:00

Last Sunday at the home group Bible study, we studied 2 Corinthians 5. And it's a great passage on the new creation and longing for our eternal dwelling and living the life that the love of Christ compels us toward. It's a chapter on our transformation into the representatives, coworkers, and ambassadors of Christ to the world being fully aware that we're not "at home" here. This, of course,

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1105852341314860512005-01-15T21:10:00.000-08:002005-01-15T21:17:09.816-08:00

Now that I'm feeling a little more perky, I think I might try to keep both this and my livejournal updated a little more regularly. Insanity abounds on LJ -- as it will here, only (I hope) to a slightly less degree. I think I've decided that depression and that sort of thing (i.e. mental illness) is more like cancer than I'd noted before. In fact, if leukemia is a blood cancer, depression is (

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1101824007288598192004-11-30T05:48:00.000-08:002004-11-30T06:13:27.286-08:00

That's the question Blogger asks as I log in. Funny, I guess, in that it works on several levels. Yes, I want it to remember my password so that in the traditional lazy geekoid way I don't have to type it in each time (and no, you can't borrow my computer until I've logged out, thanks). But I've checked that box before, yet if I go too long without posting (which is apparently some arbitrarily

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1100582597570129432004-11-15T21:18:00.000-08:002004-11-15T21:23:17.570-08:00

There's been a lot of discussion about suffering and evil lately. I don't have anything like all the answers. But all I can think, at least as far as evil that can be linked to sin, is that if all sin is equal before God - sin is sin is sin - and man has free will, then for the sake of that choice God will allow the pedophile to commit his sin in the same way he will allow the liar, the thief

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1100278021413705662004-11-12T08:33:00.000-08:002004-11-12T08:47:01.413-08:00

I'm being pathetic this week, apparently. And not by choice. I don't like being sick. It bugs the snot out of me -- sometimes literally, but that's a mental image I could do without. I don't like when my body, apart from my brain, decides that it will spend the day in bed, thankyouverymuch and there's no changing its.... mind? It's weeks like this I'm reminded I have leukemia. For the

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1099715112574494532004-11-05T20:19:00.000-08:002004-11-05T20:25:12.573-08:00

I had a good conversation with Dr. Alan Black this afternoon re: this whole "women in the church" thing. No, we didn't come to any sort of conclusion. It was good if for no other reason (though there are plenty of other reasons) than that it forced me to better articulate my questions. I am indebted to Dr. Fortner for proposing and arranging the meeting. I've got a lot of reading to do and

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1099418156575302852004-11-02T09:54:00.000-08:002004-11-02T09:55:56.576-08:00

Bev Dowdy is brilliant.

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1099317387156600082004-11-01T05:56:00.000-08:002004-11-01T05:56:27.156-08:00

No one at church has said explicitly "real Christians will vote for Bush."  It's just been an atmospheric sense.  Not just at church, though:  everywhere.  Everywhere in this part of "the Bible Belt," at least.  Real Christians here vote for Bush -- because he's anti-gay marriage, pro-life and willing to continue bombing Iraq.  At least, those are the only reasons that come up when anyone asks

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1096983656954525672004-10-05T05:37:00.000-07:002004-10-08T06:07:40.893-07:00

Well, after class this [past] weekend, I've learned two things. The first is that Dr. Fortner objects to my changing career paths. He said, "This isn't because of what some idiot male said, is it? Because I'd like to apologize on behalf of my entire gender." I'm going to go ahead with the plans for a BA in psychology at least. I can't look that many years ahead right now, anyway. I'll just

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1096553531857053472004-09-30T06:23:00.000-07:002004-09-30T07:12:11.856-07:00

Whaddaya wanna bet that with this, I could knit a wookie?

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1096336874479387622004-09-27T19:00:00.000-07:002004-09-27T19:01:14.480-07:00

Saturday, I taught myself to knit. I now have about a fifth of a scarf. ^_^

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1096336667419623712004-09-27T18:21:00.000-07:002004-09-27T18:57:47.420-07:00

This whole question of whether to pursue theology (academically and full-time, anyway) or whether to take this other trek - it's been a struggle. It's a struggle between what I want personally (either to sit in an ivory tower dissecting Hebrew words or teaching others to do the same, an academic 'ministry' since it's highly unlikely I'll be asked to preach) or this: counseling. I can either

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1095957545541886892004-09-23T09:28:00.000-07:002004-09-23T09:39:05.540-07:00

Lord willing, in January or possibly summer of 2005, I will be starting a BS in Psychology program -- at a local Catholic university, of all places. Should take me about 3 regular semesters and a summer term. After that, I'll officially enter the masters program in counseling therapy at HUGSR with the additional intent to obtain licensure as an LPC. Beyond that, who knows? But this looks

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1095817242169220432004-09-21T18:34:00.000-07:002004-09-21T18:43:33.726-07:00

I haven't entirely disappeared. Only in bits and pieces, one of which is the bit (or piece) that blogs, I guess. Actually, it's still here -- it's just been kind of quiet lately. I've been thinking. Sometimes thinking needs a sounding board, and sometimes thinking just requires a quiet corner. This has been mostly quiet corner thinking. Old testament is still my passion, still what I love

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1095219235051611792004-09-14T20:24:00.000-07:002004-09-14T20:33:55.050-07:00

I've been thinking a lot about the parable of the talents lately. We just had a ministry fair at SVCC and it's stirred up some interesting thoughts about the nature of the body of Christ and the individual responsibility of every believer toward ministry. And i've thought that "talent" might not be limited really to what I've traditionally understood: something a person is good at that's to

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1094736542779528722004-09-09T06:00:00.000-07:002004-09-09T06:29:02.780-07:00

I've been re-reading The DaVinci Code by Dan Brown. Well, okay, I re-read it Sunday night; now I'm re-reading the prequel, Angels and Demons. The criticism I've heard most often is that "it's a fun book for the most part, an interesting mystery novel with a lot of factual errors." And that's true in part. But I've harped on elsewhere about his absolute lack of fact checking before (i.e.

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1094445762005340172004-09-05T21:33:00.000-07:002004-09-05T21:42:42.006-07:00

At 6:00 this morning, my phone rang. My brain, though benedryl-hazed and coherence-impaired due to the ungodly hour somehow managed to recognize the voice of my mother. You know, the woman who gave birth to me and the one who realizes that one of the larger blockaids to my converting was that the local c's of C all met hours earlier than did the Baptist church of my youth. In short, she knows I

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1094353216385504182004-09-04T19:54:00.000-07:002004-09-04T20:00:16.386-07:00

Fortner's class this semester is Major Prophets. It meets 2 days/month, 6ish hours/day, for 3 months. It's a baptism in the prophetic books - and I can't think of a better way to spend a Saturday. Well, I also cleaned house. But mostly I thought about the prophets, their function, and the manifestations of the presence of God among his people throughout the ages. Classes like this are air

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1093986167955726452004-08-31T13:59:00.000-07:002004-08-31T14:02:47.956-07:00

That would actually be a better title for another post I want to write, but not right now. Right now, what I need (I think) are two people, one who believes particularly strongly in the complementarian/patriarchal mode of women in the church and one who believes in the egalitarian model because I have questions for each of them that, to my mind, each "side" has entirely failed to address. But I

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1093790086908282162004-08-29T07:30:00.000-07:002004-08-31T14:03:43.026-07:00

Well, we're back. The retreat was great. There wasn't a lot of "formal" devotional time, but there was definitely Godstuff happening all over the place. We also recorded 24 songs in less than 24 hours -- about 5 of which (the hours) we slept and about 3 hours were devoted to eating. All in all, not a bad ratio. There was only one song we didn't get to and it's one that we hadn't even got the

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1093474977411190682004-08-25T15:53:00.000-07:002004-08-25T16:06:20.343-07:00

I wonder about the strangest stuff sometimes. But today, I was listening to my iPod at work while doing some routine file stuff. And for me, it's an effort NOT to sing when I'm listening to music. But I didn't sing. I focused on the words -- I even mouthed along with them, "singing" without any air. And while it's good to just listen every once in a while (I love the words -- and I noticed a

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1093389246406600722004-08-24T16:05:00.000-07:002004-08-24T16:14:06.406-07:00

I'm looking forward to this weekend, even if it will be spent in Mississippi. SVCC is having a "worship retreat," which amounts to "Kip and some singers go hide out for 2 days and record a CD. And also have a devo." I think it's going to be a lot of fun. I'm singing alto this go-round, and it's fun to get back to it again. I sang alto all through college, but tried to increase my range by

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1093374354770559122004-08-24T11:54:00.000-07:002004-08-24T12:05:54.770-07:00

Too often, where I work is silent. I work in a clean lab and my computer has no sound. (I'd send it down to IT, but I'm afraid it'd come back with sound but no operating system or something worse.) I hadn't realized how much music impacts me, how much it shapes my moods and the way I encounter things. Silly as it may sound: I need music. I need to play music, sing, or even just listen, but

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1093108592975161012004-08-21T09:56:00.000-07:002004-08-21T10:16:32.976-07:00

There were several things I had to repeat to myself over and over while reading Women and Men in Ministry by Saucy and TenElshof -- and they worked for a while (a statement I'll explain more fully toward the end of this post). I had to remember that This book was written by God-fearing people who've studied, fought, struggled and prayed about this as much as have I. These people are only

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1092942050329727292004-08-19T11:50:00.000-07:002004-08-19T12:00:50.330-07:00

I don't deny that there are differences -- psychological, emotional, physical -- between the sexes. It'd be hard to contest that and of little value to do so. However, one thing that bothers me, particularly in the reading of this book (Women and Men in Ministry) and which I hope to address more fully later is this: Why is it so inconceivable, particularly in today's world in which men and

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1092858023167674982004-08-18T12:35:00.000-07:002004-08-18T12:40:23.166-07:00

I'm reading Women and Men in Ministry by Robert Saucy and Judith TenElshof. This book is driving me batty. Ultimately, on some things, I kind of agree. But the way in which they reach these conclusions is infuriating. In one paragraph they will say "egalitarians [blanket statement] assume that this text implies this. It is not necessary to infer that." And in the next, they'll infer their

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1092848112709541662004-08-18T09:53:00.000-07:002004-08-18T09:56:04.076-07:00

As reported by the AP to KTVU.com here, 8/13/04 BRIELLE, N.J. -- An 8-year-old girl who has a rare digestive disorder and cannot consume wheat has had her first Communion declared invalid because the wafer contained none. Now, Haley Waldman's mother is pushing the Diocese of Trenton and the Vatican to make an exception, saying the sacrament should be changed to accommodate the girl's condition.

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1092706543415258052004-08-16T18:30:00.000-07:002004-08-16T18:35:43.420-07:00

When thou wert in the world, Lord, Thou didst not despise women, but didst always help them and show them great compassion. Thou didst find more faith and no less love in them than in men.... We can do nothing in public that is of any use to thee, nor dare we speak of some of the truths over which we weep in secret, lest thou shouldst not hear this, our just petition. Yet, Lord, I cannot

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1092681244112970152004-08-16T11:27:00.000-07:002004-08-16T11:34:04.113-07:00

I acquired the nickname "Q" my freshman year of college from Hillary, my then roommate and still best friend. It caught on quickly and soon all of our friends called me that -- and introduced me to others by the same. It didn't stop there, though. Soon, my brothers picked it up, and even a few of my aunts. Professors and librarians were calling me Q. And it was spiffy. Then my mama called

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1092628421777839512004-08-15T20:47:00.000-07:002004-08-15T20:55:06.980-07:00

I finally updated my "current reading" list, but I only updated it with the ones I could remember off the top of my head, so maybe I'll remember to stick a few more in there at some point. I'm also in the middle of doing paperwork toward buying a car. Since I don't think I've said this here, I'll say it now: I hate teh car-buying thing. Hate it. Really. A lot. Ideally, I want to find a

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1092402661283888272004-08-13T05:31:00.000-07:002004-08-13T06:11:01.283-07:00

I read my hometown newspaper online. It's a pretty good way to keep up with at least highlights of what's happening where most of my family is, things they wouldn't necessarily think to tell me like which schools hired which new teachers for the fall, what upgrades are being done to city hall -- basically local news not directly related to my family. I generally read 4 sections: the obituaries

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1092280589688604042004-08-11T19:46:00.000-07:002004-08-11T20:16:52.123-07:00

Tonight one of my elders spoke to me about my letter. He apologized firs and foremost for its having taken 2 months to get back to me. His explanation didn't actually solve anything. It was just "another way to think of it." But his primary concern in our conversation was in making sure that I a) understood and b) was okay with their decision. I appreciated the heart of the man who

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1092157506441965152004-08-10T09:50:00.000-07:002004-08-10T10:25:45.416-07:00

I posted parts of this somewhere else first, but I kind of wanted to put it here, too. It's always interesting to me when things just make sense. Sunday morning, Curt's sermon was on John 1:1-2, the Word became flesh. That night, it was on invisible people and Matthew 25:31-46. Somewhere between the two, the message became alive. That morning, I met Kevin. My guess is that Kevin is in his

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1091712766621947002004-08-05T06:30:00.000-07:002004-08-05T06:32:46.620-07:00

But God will redeem my life from the grave; he will surely take me to himself. (Ps. 49:15)

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1091635893466882722004-08-04T07:16:00.000-07:002004-08-04T09:11:33.466-07:00

I grew up (for the most part) as one of three children, I and two brothers. In any band of three, it's not uncommon for alliances to form, 2-to-1. We were no different. Often I as the oldest was the divisive one, as much as I hate to admit it. I and one brother would ally against the other and talk about "secret stuff you can't know about." The secret was normally that there was no secret.

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1091590558678829072004-08-03T20:32:00.000-07:002004-08-03T20:35:58.676-07:00

I am re-connected. At least sort of. My iBook is happily zooming along on the wireless network, but my iMac isn't seen by the network. I highly suspect the ethernet port got smacked with the same lightning that killed the router in the first place. Anyway, it's far past my bedtime and if I keep writing I'll just rant about tech guys who don't actually know what they're doing and I don't want

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1091206543083203662004-07-30T09:27:00.000-07:002004-07-30T09:55:43.083-07:00

This is from one of my favorite exchanges in StarTrek:TNG, a series I used to watch constantly. It's among my favorite dialogue snippets because it expresses something I've tried hard to convey for years. A quick google tells me this is from an episode called "the Child." PULASKI Data, (she says "Data" with a short A) look at this. DATA (he corrects her) Data.

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com16tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1091125609714350592004-07-29T11:05:00.000-07:002004-07-29T11:26:49.716-07:00

John Fortner once said, "The danger of worship is that you become like that which you worship." I think of this sometimes when confronted with the idea of people like Fred Phelps. Reverend Phelps claims to be a Christian, a follower of Christ but most people see him instead as a minister of hate. This man claims to be a follower of Christ, but his life evidences harsh judgement and hate to the

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1091037227200287722004-07-28T10:28:00.000-07:002004-07-28T10:53:47.200-07:00

I appreciate all the prayers on my father's and my family's behalf. And I believe God hears them. What God has in mind is still somewhat grey. The tumor was malignant and they've found cancer cells active in his lymph nodes. He'll be starting chemotherapy soon -- as soon as he heals from the last surgery. But he has opted to take the treatment. That in itself is a prayer answered and in the

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1090939561007653912004-07-27T07:01:00.000-07:002004-07-27T10:26:41.516-07:00

Our cable modem/router had an unfortunate encounter with lightning on Friday (must be all the heresy I've been sending through it...). On the upside, though, it's given me time to unpack. Apparently God wanted to choose our new apartment for us, so he made last week as complicated and complex as possible so we wouldn't end up where we thought we would. Last Monday, my roommate and I were

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1090605945373497672004-07-23T10:17:00.000-07:002004-08-03T08:53:47.550-07:00

So many things in the world today are invisible. Invisible toxins can kill us. Invisible illnesses strike without warning. I pass invisible people every day -- the ones who are hard to look in the eye, because looking means realizing a mother of three can be homeless and hungry and realizing brings responsibility to do something about it, something beyond saying, "Be warm and filled." And by

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1090452491983980832004-07-21T16:27:00.000-07:002004-07-21T16:28:11.983-07:00

Dad seems to have come through his surgery fine and the doctors think they got all of the mass. I appreciate the prayers and kind thoughts as, I'm sure, does he. He's a stubborn old goat, but I love him. ^_~

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1090354783404489612004-07-20T13:18:00.000-07:002004-07-20T13:19:43.403-07:00

He's only now waking up and is scheduled for another surgery in the morning to remove as much of the mass as is possible. They suspect cancer, but won't know for certain until after the surgery.

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1090346570123144232004-07-20T10:48:00.000-07:002004-07-20T11:02:50.123-07:00

My dad is currently in surgery. Sunday, they found a mass in his right side and they're doing a biopsy and colonoscopy today. In addition to his other problems and the fact that he had a bad reaction to the medication last night, I'm worried. I and my family would definitely appreciate prayers.

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1090330452177064082004-07-20T06:33:00.000-07:002004-07-20T06:34:46.036-07:00

Did I mention that my girls won Bible bowl again this year? I've worked this week for three years now and they're undefeated for the third year in a row. ^_~

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1090205097661574522004-07-18T18:34:00.000-07:002004-07-19T18:54:48.276-07:00

I've just returned from a week in which worship means dirt, sweat and bug spray. It means crickets and mosquitoes, sunsets and flashlights. It means wooden bleachers caked with questionable substances, shorts and t-shirts to combat the heat and the word of God read under skies threatening rain. I've just returned from this to my home church where tonight, in an air conditioned building

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1090171265720754372004-07-18T10:07:00.000-07:002004-07-18T10:21:05.720-07:00

Is it really Saturday? Already? Well, it was when I started this post. It's Sunday now. It seems like just yesterday I made my brother haul my camp stuff into girls' cabin 2. But it was Friday that I hauled it out and yesterday that I returned to Memphis. It was a good week, but over so quickly. Monday was long -- it always is. Sunday night is spent re-igniting friendships, alliances and

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1090009080945554692004-07-16T13:07:00.000-07:002004-07-16T13:18:00.946-07:00

I've been back from camp for 20 minutes.  Before I pass out, I want to record a few thoughts on the week.   It was a good week.    There's only one reason I do camp:  the kids.  God is gracious to bring me through it every summer and to let me be a part of the shaping of the souls of these kids.  My last post sounded naive; this post will only reinforce that.  We were blessed to have an

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1089491888820522572004-07-10T12:24:00.000-07:002004-07-10T13:38:08.820-07:00

For some,the years turn around January -- the first signifying the "new" year. For most of academia, a new year begins in August or September, when school takes up again. While I don't really consider it my "new year marker," camp for me is the highlight of my year. People who know me casually might find that funny. People who know me well are no longer surprised. People who know me only

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1089384602933308952004-07-09T07:00:00.000-07:002004-07-09T07:50:02.933-07:00

I'm in charge of writing the Bible Bowl questions for Teen Week this year. Trey Reely (the director) wrote them last year and I gave him a hard time about them, so he kindly (?) passed the torch on to me. My instructions are to keep it under a thousand questions and require no more than an associate's degree in Bible to answer. It's fun putting this thing together. Some of them I came up with

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1089327636927138602004-07-08T15:56:00.000-07:002004-07-08T16:02:49.046-07:00

(This blog was supposed to be primarily for -- well, the sort of things it's been for. I write the other stuff elsewhere, normally. But I was bored, I had access to a computer, and the computer happened to be online. All of this could have lead to mayhem, death, destruction and mass chaos. Instead it led to rambling stupidity.) Just so you know, my birthstone is peridot. It should be a

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1089315757279950482004-07-08T11:40:00.000-07:002004-07-08T12:43:49.230-07:00

Earlier, talking about loss and the things God teaches us through it, I said sometimes I don't want to know what God is going to teach me. And it's true. Sometimes I don't want to know because sometimes I'm afraid it will hurt. I'm no stranger to pain -- in fact, I'm familiar enough to know that I don't like it. The losses hurt already, do I really want to surrender to the hands of a God who

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1089305455738818802004-07-08T09:25:00.000-07:002004-07-08T09:55:26.233-07:00

The discussion on Mike Cope's blog about women, men, church, worship, gender, roles, etc. has been fascinating. I've still got a lot to say about it, but I took up tons of space there already. So I'll blog it here. There was one comment in particular that I wanted to respond to, but didn't since a) it was anonymous and b) sounded like an ad for the Piper/Grudem book Biblical Manhood and

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1089217702825520082004-07-07T08:44:00.000-07:002004-07-07T09:32:13.800-07:00

Being a Christian today comes with a lot of baggage. The world has a pretty unflattering view of Christians and Christianity: judgmental, hypocritical, intolerant, hateful, exclusivistic, narrow-minded and ignorant, suspicious of science or reason come pretty quickly to mind. Why is that? Some say it's because they've had bad run-ins with the church before. They've met the intolerant,

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1088997584148355192004-07-04T19:26:00.000-07:002004-07-04T20:21:38.240-07:00

This is the first 4th I've celebrated as a part of the Sycamore View family. I was uncertain what to expect in view of the national holiday, but I was presently surprised. Yes, I'm glad to live in the US. I'm glad that I have the freedoms and rights that I do and I am grateful for the blessings I receive as a side-benefit of my being a citizen of this country -- and I'm grateful for the ones

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1088964501748740652004-07-04T11:02:00.000-07:002004-07-04T17:41:44.310-07:00

You know, I think if I still had residual Baptist in me, I'd be caught up in the miasma of rapture fever like the rest of them. I know "there will be wars and rumors of wars" for all time, and maybe I'm just more aware now than I've been in the past, but the world seems rocked to its core. In every way. Right now, there are a host geological, astronomical, economical, political, environmental,

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1088921775405494692004-07-03T23:15:00.000-07:002004-07-03T23:16:15.406-07:00

Too often I know the times I should have remained silent. There is nothing edifying in expressing my frustrations regarding this. I don't have any better handle on the "ideal" than does anyone else. There are things I can't explain satisfactorily and there are things the "traditional" stance can't explain. I'm normally a logical person, but I have to admit that in part, I have to rely on my

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-10886975181780952004-07-01T07:56:00.000-07:002004-07-01T09:37:42.266-07:00

"Jolie prays for you every night. She doesn't know who she's praying for, but she prays for you every night." These are the words of my friend Jim to me last night. Jolie is Jim's 4 year old daughter. Last summer, when Jim found out I had leukemia, he told me he'd be praying for me -- and I have no doubt that he has been, he and his entire family. These words stuck with me. The last time

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1088443202210112262004-06-28T10:18:00.000-07:002004-06-28T10:20:37.293-07:00

The other day, I e-mailed our church office manager (who is also the preacher's wife) and asked about the whole women's ministries thing. Today I got an e-mail from her saying that she and a group of women had been wondering some of the same things had decided to organize a women's ministry and would I like to help. God really does have a sense of humor.

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1088223860591255342004-06-25T20:50:00.000-07:002004-06-25T21:25:32.506-07:00

I'm doing what former English majors do best: research. There are a ton of pages online concerning women's ministries -- unfortunately, nearly all of them try to sell me on Beth Moore video classes. I admit it's a better fare than women's classes tend to get, but it's still not good. I think we can do better. Much better. There were some useful things out there, however. One church in

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1088181849066926812004-06-25T09:43:00.000-07:002004-06-25T10:09:20.640-07:00

... it's that if you have a question, ask it. I've e-mailed the one person at our church who knows everything: the office manager. Maybe something more "formal" will begin to take shape... Anyway, it can't hurt. Can it?

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1088181075016105042004-06-25T08:54:00.000-07:002004-06-25T09:33:58.706-07:00

Laying aside the issues of women's "roles" in the church, the issue of women's ministries is still embarrassingly un- or under-addressed. Currently at my church, the closest thing to an active women's ministry is the Wednesday night Beth Moore class. I'll admit that the Beth Moore studies are perhaps a little more indepth than the normal Bible class fare -- but that doesn't make them good.

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1088086329763666322004-06-24T06:41:00.000-07:002004-06-24T10:00:53.300-07:00

Prayer fascinates me. For however long I'm willing to pray, I have the ear of the God of everything. For as long as I talk, he listens -- not tapping his foot and checking his watch, but listening intently. And when I learn to listen, he talks, too. I don't mean that I hear the audible voice of God. I mean that when I learn to be silent in prayer, to simply be instead of simply begging, I

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1088008426394075672004-06-23T09:32:00.000-07:002004-06-23T09:36:29.026-07:00

Consider the silence of a living tree; it neither speaks nor hears.Out of the uncounted aeons, inexorable, ever-changing forces have erected it, to a purpose beyond our understanding.It needs no words, yet its presence is no less actual than ours. Consider the value of silence in community.Our ability to listen should be our gift to those around us.Too much talk is a sign of self-centeredness

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1087944510391162212004-06-22T11:48:00.000-07:002004-06-22T15:48:30.393-07:00

Tuesday after father's day is a little late, I suppose, to write this. But now is certainly better than never. Sunday, the country observed a day honoring fathers. I've been blessed in my life not only to have a dad whom I love dearly, but also to have several surrogate "fathers" over the years. They've all be valuable to me and I'm better for the influences of all of them. When I was young,

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1087564829210783342004-06-18T06:20:00.000-07:002004-06-18T11:29:54.020-07:00

This morning, while driving to work, I was thinking about the Mississippi. I work just east of the river, at a hospital near Riverside. Driving to work, I catch a glimpse of the river to the west. The Mississippi River slices southward from Lake Superior down through the Delta and terminates into the Gulf. Today, I’m on the eastern edge of the river, making a home in Tennessee. Before, I

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1087488327587367892004-06-17T06:41:00.000-07:002004-06-18T11:31:01.146-07:00

Obviously the Bible is first on the list. Without it, the rest of these books would hardly have done any good. I tend to use several translations: the NIV Study Bible as my "comfort" or "devotional" Bible, the Oxford Annotated NRSV as my preferred translation, and the NASB -- mostly for double checking the NRSV. If it's serious study, I also use the Greek New Testament and the Biblia

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1087306546990856452004-06-15T06:15:00.000-07:002004-06-18T11:32:23.236-07:00

I realize that talking about The Prayer of Jabez is somewhat passe. I think that there is, though, a valuable lesson in it -- and it's not exactly what Bruce Wilkinson had in mind. Wilkinson derives his entire (though admittedly short) book from two verses in 1 Chronicles. Jabez was honored more than his brothers; and his mother named him Jabez, saying, "Because I bore him in pain." Jabez

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1086898261244217602004-06-10T12:54:00.000-07:002004-06-18T11:33:05.566-07:00

I am attempting to explain the history of, the core beliefs of and the diversity among the branches and even congregations affiliated with the restoration movement -- to people for whom the idea of protestantism is even alien. Add to that the fact that I am not exactly a text book c of C'er and this presents quite a challenge: to be clear without being dogmatic, to be concise without ellipsing

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1086812064831850842004-06-09T13:11:00.000-07:002004-06-18T11:33:59.526-07:00

My letter thus far: To the elders: My name is Quiara Hazlewood. I have been a member at Sycamore View for several months now and had been attending for several months prior to that. In that time, I’ve become very attached to this church, these people; it has truly become my home church. I respect the decisions of the eldership as the spiritual leaders of the congregation, however a recent

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1086802168252499212004-06-09T10:00:00.000-07:002004-06-18T11:34:42.366-07:00

I've been thinking lately about this post. It occurs to me that if my elders' actions honestly bother me, then I have a responsibility. So I find myself writing a letter today, respectfully challenging the decision they've made. I realize at this point, spinning the wheels backward probably won't happen. It's begun; likely it will continue onward, despite what I or anyone else says. But if

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1086355891308088732004-06-04T05:42:00.000-07:002004-06-18T11:35:17.686-07:00

I've been thinking a lot lately about forgiveness. I've come to believe that despite what I've been taught, orgiveness is not simply a choice; it's a lot bigger than that. Forgiveness is an act of redemption and redemption requires sacrifice. It will inevitably cost something -- and sometimes it will cost a lot. Jesus that those who are forgiven much love much, but those forgiven little love

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1086099669398821742004-06-01T07:03:00.000-07:002004-06-18T11:36:02.040-07:00

Our elders have decided to redefine the deaconate. In effect, deacons are now explicity, rather than the historically implicit declaration, junior elders. From the pool of the deaconate, the next elders will be drawn. My problem with this is manifold. There is no biblical evidence that the deaconate was a specific "office," though it could be argued to have become one at an early date. But

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1086036629800173082004-05-31T13:41:00.000-07:002004-06-18T11:52:09.460-07:00

Finally, beloved, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is pleasing, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. There's just not a lot of that on TV. I'm thinking specifically of Law & Order: SVU, a show in which there are typically on about three plots, most of which

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1085810675918858182004-05-28T23:02:00.000-07:002004-06-18T11:53:50.856-07:00

Kathleen Norris' book Amazing Grace has been a favorite of mine since I was introduced to it 3 years or so ago by my friend Jenny. I'd read The Cloister Walk before and thought it was okay. I'd read both better and worse. The Cloister Walk had in no way prepared me for this book: I had no clue the effect it would have. I can't point to anything specific, and every time I read it, there's

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1085782006949277042004-05-28T15:05:00.000-07:002004-06-18T11:38:15.856-07:00

I work at a children's hospital that specializes in extremely rare diseases and cancers. On the floor where I work, the walls are decorated with hand prints. Every time a child is discharged after a transplant or major procedure-- bone marrow, stem cell, etc -- they get to play in the paint, basically, and stick up hand prints on the wall, along with their names, hometowns and whatever they want

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1085663059392513692004-05-27T05:55:00.000-07:002004-06-18T11:39:14.316-07:00

A friend and I have been talking about blessings, goals and miracles. God has worked in my life in ways I (and others) can't deny. Things that are not possible have become so. I have been brought to places I cannot be and given opportunities that are beyond my ability -- and given the ability to fulfill them. He doesn't see his life that way. And there don't seem to be as many "big events"

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1085575612109141922004-05-26T05:38:00.000-07:002004-06-18T11:39:56.906-07:00

It's dangerous when I do that, I know. I was rushing around to get to work this morning, rushing through the traffic and the maze of cars, irate at traffic lights and stop signs alike, as well as slow drivers. (In Memphis, a "slow driver" is anyone who actually goes less than 5 miles over the speed limit at any given time.) It's only now, at my desk, that I wonder what all that rushing really

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1085260079502389842004-05-22T14:04:00.000-07:002004-06-18T11:40:41.336-07:00

I love God -- but there are times I cannot stand his church. Reading a commentary on 1st Corinthians should not reduce me to tears. Trying to explain the frustration of being female in this movement should not be so incomprehensible to male members. One reason slavery is a damned institution is that the moment you subject another to yourself, you begin to see them as somehow less human, less

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1084993190836203042004-05-19T11:58:00.000-07:002004-06-18T11:42:15.226-07:00

My great grandfather ("Pa" or, as my nephew called him "little Pa") passed away in September of 2003. I won't let him go. Not in the forgetting sense; I don't ever want to forget. I won't let go of the memories. Everything is colored by my thoughts of him. I remember when my family moved to Arkansas. I was nine and hated it. My relatives sniffed at my brothers and at me like suspicious cats

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1084906406881425032004-05-18T11:52:00.000-07:002004-06-18T11:42:41.383-07:00

The words “women” and “ministry” are seldom together in church of Christ vernacular unless, of course, the heretical change agents are making a bid to take over and uproot all orthodoxy – or so it is often presented. And while the issue of women’s “roles” is an ongoing and important topic, I am concerned with a more immediate need not of women in pulpit ministries, but with women’s ministries in

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1084906076338608382004-05-18T11:31:00.000-07:002004-06-18T11:43:17.810-07:00

On Wednesday nights, I had attended a class at my church in which we studied missions, both domestic and foreign. I'm not going to get into whether the great commission &#185 was a specific command to the disciples present at the time or a command for all time. Specifically, whether those particular verses are eternal or temporal is irrelevant. It's clear from the rest of the new testament (

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1084904978958973502004-05-18T11:28:00.000-07:002004-06-18T11:44:20.533-07:00

Too often we - and here, I mean "I" - use the excuse of perspective to keep from taking a stand. No, not everything is simply black and white and people don't see all things in the same ways, but too often that caveat becomes an excuse and a cover for my cowardice or my resistance to stand behind what I profess to believe. Either the truth (the truth that saves, redeems and sets us free) is

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1084904390352420102004-05-18T11:13:00.000-07:002004-06-18T11:45:12.706-07:00

Tolerance is pretty much defined as "those who agree with the most popular stand on things." Sadly, this is true. If I state that I believe that there is a God, a heaven and a hell, and some moral absolutes and if I add to that a conviction that certain lifestyles are, in fact, wrong or sinful, I am going to be characterized as intolerant. Why? Because I've said something unpopular. See, what

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5002096.post-1084903994324105032004-05-18T11:10:00.000-07:002004-06-18T11:45:40.586-07:00

“And we all know that chapter and verse divisions were made by drunken monks writing with broken quills on horseback. In the dark.” --John Fortner, Ph.D.

Quiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07353663947782413428noreply@blogger.com0