Great Post on Singleness at Dan's Blog

Dan at Cerulean Sanctum has a great post on singles and singleness. You can read his post and my comment (I thought it was one of my better ones) at the link below. I think my comment is about the 12th down.

The Christian Singles Mess

Christian Carnival CCCXVI

Welcome to this week's Christian Carnival.

NOTE: For some strange reason, I received scads of emails in my AOL spam folder way after I put the Carnival up on Wednesday morning. I had checked it before I posted the carnival and it was empty. So sorry about this.

So, the first eleven(11) posts above the starred line are the newer ones that were added this morning (Friday).



*Rey of the Bible Archive blog wonders what type of lies are grievous ones, and are there times when a lie is OK in God's eyes? Read his analysis in this post entitled, What’s The Deal With Lying?.

*God won't Let Go, according to a song by Matt Redmond. Jody of Jody's Devotionals writes her post about how the song helped her to remember You Never Let Go!.

*Danny of the Boston Bible Geeks blog asks a very appropriate question about Solomon's wisdom in Solomon's Sinful Splendor.

*Andrea of the Unfailingly Loved blog looks at her plants in winter and sees the analogy to the winter seasons in our life in her post, Winter Waiting.

*God frequently gives me Phil. 4:8 to chew on. That's the one where we're supposed to think on things praiseworthy, good and so forth. Violet of the Other Food: daily devo's blog really gives a good word study of this verse in her post, Mind fitness as she lists each of the key words in that verse, giving the Greek and explaining the word meaning.

*Everybody likes Jesus today because He's such a good guy. But Rodney of the RodneyOlsen.Net blog says in his post,
Ever since God made man in his image, man has been trying to create a god that conforms to his own image.
Read Rodney's post about who Jesus really is, in, Elton says Jesus was gay

*James of Overnight Sensation offers three things to successful prayer in his post entitled, Can Prayer Make You More Successful?

*This is the neatest study of I Cor, 13 I think I've seen. Neil of the Christian Lenses presents a very practical way of doing this passage in his post, Valentines Day, 1 Corinthians 13 Style

*Slavery, including child slavery, is still flourishing today. Chris of the Homeward Bound blog reviews a book which talks about this issue in his post, Review: Not For Sale.

*Carole of Carole Gold likes Glenn Beck's message and feels it's very prophetic. She tells us why in her post entitled, Glenn Beck's Bigger Message.

* I liked this post from Steven of the You Can't Mean That! blog because I've felt for some time that our seminaries need to be consistent in their teaching. This is exactly what Steven brings forth in his post, Theological Openness where he compares two imaginary seminaries and how they proscribe their curriculum.
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*This has to be one of the most unusual posts I've seen in a while. The blogger, Kathryn at The Peculiar Life, spends much of the first part telling us that people consider her a little bit different, at times weird and a "little off." But then, as she continues, shouldn't we all be "peculiar" in following God's walk for us individually? Her post is entitled, Beyond Normal.

*Perhaps we need to make it more difficult for people to become Christians? I've felt t for a long time that the church today seems to have made it just too, too easy. Barry at the who am i? blog is saying much of the same thing in his post entitled, The Dissuasiveness of Jesus (Discipleship, Part 2) .

*Wow! Wait until you see all the Apps (I think that means Applications for all of us over 60) you can get for your cell phone (if you have a phone that can take them, that is). You will find all of these Apps in Jasmine's post, 25 Essential Android Apps for Bible Study at her blog, Accredited Online Bible Colleges.

*Darcy at the The Taste Of My Childhood blog guides us through influences from the past and present upon our lives. She continually is asking the question: Are these the influences you wish in your life? I especially like the last two sentences, Make sure that our influences are in line with where we need to go. And remember, this is an adjustment that we must make continually, not just once. The name of this fascinating post is, HE said what?.

*At the Free Money Finance blog, you'll find 5 very good principles to keep us grounded when dealing with money, in the post, Principles of Biblical Finance.

*A reader of Sue's blog, IN HIM WE LIVE AND MOVE AND HAVE OUR BEING made an interesting comment about the nonexistence of hell. Sadly, this is a very popular concept today, especially with young evangelicals. NCSue of the In Him We Live And Move and Have Our Being blog presents the reader's comment and then gives her's in the post entitled, No hell?.

*If you want a first person look by a nurse at what happens in a medical tent in Haiti after the earthquake there, you've got to read this post from Micey of the And She Went Out... blog, entitled, Mission To Haiti/Disaster Relief/Day Three.

*The early church councils decided the Trinity was equal but different in essence. But, on while on earth, we are told that Jesus was submitted (subordinate?) to the Father. In his post, Ontological Equality and Functional Subordination, Jeremy of Parableman, discusses this equality and subordination of Jesus in reference to the ongoing complementarian-egalitarian debate as concerning the woman's role. I, for one, never have thought of those two subjects in relation to each other, so this blog was quite interesting to me, to say the least.

*My contribution this week is about bad doctrine flowing into today's evangelical churches based on people's hurts. I discuss this in my post, entitled, The "Hurting People" View Doesn't Always Lead to Good Doctrine .


This Week's Bible Study Posts
There were a lot of Bible study aids in the blogs this week, so I grouped them together below.

*Trisha of the A Multitude of Mercies blog gives us 11 helpful hints in tackling Bible reading in her post, Helpful Hints for Sticking to Your Bible Reading.

*Another encouragement to read your Bible comes from Trent at Christian Men-Christian Warriors as he looks at a part of the Roman sword and its meaning in his post entitled, The Christian Sword ? The Guard. And, this is only one part of the Roman sword he has covered recently. I had no idea there were so many parts with actual names.

*Michael of the Chasing the Wind blog gives an excellent, comprehensive Bible study on the theme of prayer in his post, Praying About Difficult Decisions

*Leviticus. The very name of this book puts people to sleep. So, it was helpful to read what Henry of the Participatory Bible Study Blog thought of various commentaries on Leviticus. His post is entitled, Notes on Leviticus Commentaries. I found this very helpful in finding which commentaries really open up this book of the Old Testament.

*When I read these words, We don’t have spots for people to fill; we have people who, through their giftedness, will be perfect matches for open spots, I practically jumped out of my chair rejoicing. This is something I've been saying (for years actually), because I get tired of the same old 5 or 6 slots in churches that people try to fill by jamming themselves into them. This post by Ridge of the American Missionary Fellowship tackles this important question of giftedness in his post of the same name, Giftedness.

A Change at Wheaton?

Here is some interesting news......Dr. Philip G. Ryken, senior minister at Tenth Presbyterian Church in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania is to become the President of Wheaton College. Now, the Tenth Presbyterian Church is a PCA church, meaning very, very Reformational which usually means quite Calvinist. I didn't think Wheaton was that Reformed, especially after hearing constant recent news of some of the teaching there which has appalled me. Well, I think this might be very good news indeed. If nothing else, it'll be fascinating to watch.

The "Hurting People" View Doesn't Always Lead to Good Doctrine

Interesting title isn't it? So, what does it mean? It seems like every Christian book I read by someone under 40 wants to change Biblical doctrine because they were hurt by a "institutional/fundamentalist/evangelical/legalistic (pick one--your choice) church. But sadly, these experiences seemed to have "warped" their doctrinal views. God does meet us when we are hurt, but He does not change His views to meet our hurts. From the books I've read, it doesn't seem to occur tothem that maybe their church didn't teach the doctrine correctly; or, that not every evangelical church has hurt people; or, not every one is legalistic; or, not every one is narrow-minded. It also doesn't seem to occur to these writers that today the evangelical church, for the most part, is very different from when they grew up.

The constant barrage of negativity toward the evangelical church from these people is unbelievable. Perhaps it's because I live in a blue state...I don't know....but out here churches are bending over backwards to please everyone and heal their wounds. Unfortunately, in this race to be the best church to heal hurts and to please, much good doctrine is getting shoved under the rug. Here is the real oxymoron. As classical Biblical doctrine has subsided, more Christians seem frustrated. Could theri be a relationship there? Could perhaps the very doctrine they are so bitter about be the solution to their dilemma? Interesting thought.

Some Good Tidbits from tje Jan. 2010 Issue of CT

Some interesting items from the January, 2010 issue of Christianity Today magazine:

On page 58

Comments form CT Online:

The reason we hear such nonsensical talk such as, "I don't worship the Bible, I worship Jesus," is because we have raised a generation of Christians who demand that church...function for the validation of themselves.

Wow! Amen to that analysis!


What ever happened to getting on your knees and asking the Lord what he wants His people to hear?
___a comment made on a recent emphasis on Christ-centered preaching, which some fear ignores the diversity of the Bible genres.


On page 62
I'm so glad to see a few other people including Mollie Ziegler Hemmingway (writing in a column in CT) are as concerned about the most segregated hour of the week. No, we don't mean racially--we mean singles vs. marrieds.

Why We Should REALLY Read the Bible

I sure have been waiting for someone to say this for a very long time. From Lee Grady, former editor of Charisma magazine.


What has carried me through this season of transition is the comfort I receive each day from reading my Bible. I don’t read it just because Christians are supposed to have a nice devotional life. I read it for survival.


Source:http://charismamag.com/index.php/fire-in-my-bones/26289-the-lord-will-make-a-rehoboth-for-you#readmore

I Have News for the Emergent Villagers

Why is it that so many emergents and their leaders hail out of very legalistic fundamentalist churches? And why are those who are more moderate often do NOT come out of these backgrounds? This obviously is the basis of their hackneyed doctrinal positions. I take so much exception to these leaders who constantly portray evangelicals as hell-preaching legalists who don't care a whit about anyone else. Perhaps this was the case in the 1950's, but these people need to come out of their time warp. They also need to stop encasing the entire American evangelical church as being rooted in Red Bible Belt states. I have big news for them---there are hundreds of thousands of us in Blue States (and beleive it or not--also in Red States too) who are not preaching about hell very Sunday; are not legalistic; and are concerned about the poor without making that the center of their theological doctrine. And, we are NOT Fundamentalists. But then, calling someone a Fundamentalist after 9/11/01 is quite effective, is it not? And, portraying the whole evangelical church today as selfish and obssessed with hell is great propganda, is it not?

Yes, it is.

An Excellent Description of the "New Kind of Faith Teacher"

I've written several times before about the need for good faith teaching from what I call a New Kind of Faith Teacher, as well as a New Kind of Faith Pastor. I've also written that I'm having a difficult time finding these people, but Peter Smythe seems to be one of them. Here is a quote from his blog today that certainly describes what a New Kind of Faith teacher actually teaches.

I’ve been involved in the “faith movement” for over twenty-five years. I remember the days when the faith preachers would set your hair on fire and the ultimatum was a new life in Christ, not a new BMW in the driveway. How did we get to the place where ministries seek out corporate sponsorships for their campmeetings and godly faith a means to a cushy, white-suburbanite lifestyle?


Source:http://holyghostchristianity.com/2010/02/tozers-preachers/

Quote of the Week

We used to identify people who had mystical experiences with “god” during a drug induced high (predominant in the 1960s) as burned out hippies. Now they sell books and their followers call them “Christian.”


Source: http://defendingcontending.com/2010/02/11/heres-a-shocker-the-false-gospel-of-john-crowder-benjamin-dunn-and-sloshfest-originated-from-an-lsd-drug-induced-experience/

The Willing Fools

I was listening to Brannon Howse yesterday and he played a recording of a conversation from 1970 with a former KGB agent who fled to the west. The agent outlined how the KGB operated. He said that only 15% of their activities were spying while the rest were to subvert western society, especially American society to a more socialist-friendly one. They used anyone who fell for their lure, especially liberal activists and radical university professors. Listen to what he said next! He called these people "willing fools." And then he said, when the leaders selected by the Soviet Union would take over the American people, these "willing fools" would begin to be controlled and of course they would object. To meet their objections, they would be taken out and shot. Because, remember, there would be no freedom of speech under such a system as these professors now enjoy. Also, their houses would be taken bercause now the state owns them. But, isnt this the very system they so passionately espouse? The KGB agent said that these people think they are going to be leaders in the new society but they are very wrong. And, that is why the KGB called them "willing fools."

This is such a great description of the radicals amongst us as well as the emergent movement that is openly espousing socialism. They are merely dupes, or "willing fools" for others with a spurious agenda. If and when the "others" get into power, so-plong to the emergents. While they might not be killed, they will certainly be marginalized, unless of course, useful. But then they will not be able to express themselves in any way but what the state wants. Oh, and their houses will also be taken away and given to the poor. But isnt this the ideology they espouse?

Blog of the Day

Consider this, from the Cerulean Sanctum blog,


When an economy operates locally, everyone in it enjoys some measure of power. But when an economy operates globally, only a select few ever rise to a level of power.

That seems backward, but when you look at the increasing disparity between the haves and have nots in America 2010, it makes perfect sense.