Relationships

Natural vs Supernatural Evolution

I know what I would think if I read this title, but then I would be wrong! I am not talking about the origins of our universe. The evolution I am referring to has nothing to do with God and science being reconciled, affirmed, found lacking or even false. While many argue over six-day creation, I simply ask myself: do I believe in a God that is powerful enough to achieve the literal understanding of the creation story in Genisis? If so, then that is all that matters! But I digress from the point of this blog which is to compare the natural and the supernatural evolution of…

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What is Church Really Supposed to Be?

There has been a remaking of church in my lifetime. While change is inevitable, all change is not necessary or good. I struggled with a concept that at one time I could have supported. I am unsure why I entertained this definition of the purpose of the church, but I am sure of one thing; the concept of what the church does, embraced by many Christians, is actually lazy Christianity.

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There is an Old Saying…

… there are a lot of old sayings. For some, old means outdated. For others old means tested and true. Some will scoff, others will listen and apply, still others will avoid anything remotely linked to the wisdom of the past or even present day. From Shakespeare to Plato, from Jung to Nietzsche, from Grandma and Grandpa to schoolteachers or preachers, there will always be old (maybe not very old) saying(s) that are adopted or rejected not because we have thought them through but because we have relegated them to live or die in our minds based on how comfortable or uncomfortable they make us feel. Maybe the graveyard in our brains is full of life cut short because I don’t like to feel uncomfortable.

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Does God Exist?

Is there proof of an intelligent force that is beyond humanity? Did the universe become what we see today by chance or was there a cause behind all that we see? Is that “cause” still active today and if so, what does “active “mean? If you have come to the conclusion that there is something/someone that exists in a capacity far beyond the limits of human existence, what now?

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I Did It My Way. 

My parents said, this concept was not a Christian way of living. It may be immortalized in a popular song, but it was fundamentally wrong. I didn’t place quotation marks around what they said for two reasons. First, I was too young to remember their exact words. Second, I am pretty sure my parents didn’t use words like fundamentally, immortalized or concept when explaining to a young boy why a song did not fit our belief system. 

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What Happens When We Don’t Understand?

Lots of things happen and we try to understand. Some situations are predictable and therefore easy to understand. Others we can make sense of even if it is not the outcome we would normally expect. Then there are the situations far beyond what we would expect. I can, with some degree of accuracy, predict that a child with an upbringing that encourages questioning for the purpose of understanding and involves laughing together but never laughing at the child when the answer is obvious, will do well. Power dynamics in which the person perceived to have the power explains what is not understood in terms suited to the other person’s intellectual limitations and mental capacity will lead to a well-developed adult. If this continues through the teenage years, there is a higher degree of success for the maturing individual and a stronger relationship with all who pour into their lives but…

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