Everything That's On My Mind

Given the fact that we're in the midst of studying Ephesians in our Wednesday night bible study, it's quite timely that Mark Roberts has begun blogging an address he gave to the PCUSA General Council. The focus of his address is a study of Ephesians 4. Part 3, which was posted today, is a home run. I cannot say "amen" loudly enough.

In reaction to the perceived excesses of the church growth movement some have retreated into a mindset that says numerical growth doesn't matter, only spiritual growth matters. This is a false dichotomy. In fact, spiritual growth and vitality leads to numerical growth. If it doesn't, then it is not true spiritual growth. True spiritual growth is not just about learning doctrine, but about taking on the mission of God. Doctrinal purity without a missional focus is a recipe for pharisitical self-righteousness. True spiritual growth leads to numerical growth not through the latest techniques or ministry fads, but through the body of Christ living out its faith with Christ-like compassion and Holy Spirit-empowered boldness.

Granted, numerical growth without spiritual growth is equally dangerous, but that topic has been done to death by many others. My concern is that the church does not overreact and become insular. As I commented during our previous Wednesday study on church history, the church is a pendulum constantly swinging between extremes never reaching equilibrium. As flawed human beings, that's a good thing. We need to keep moving while hopefully minimizing the apex of our swings.

In our Wednesday night services for the past few months, we've been doing what I call a cooperative bible study. That is, I try to act more as a facilitator than a teacher. I really enjoy being a moderator for this kind of study, even though it is difficult for me to keep my mouth shut sometimes. For the last couple weeks we've been studying the "five-fold" (or four-fold) gifts in Ephesians 4. We encountered a situation where one bible dictionary gave a definition of evangelist as "one who evangelizes"...not very helpful. My comment at the time was "time to get a new bible dictionary". So I thought I would post some bible dictionary recommendations.

On a budget (free online):

The International Standard bible Encyclopedia - This work has been revised and expanded (the current edition is nearly 5,000 pages) but the first edition is still useful and it's available free online.

Fausset's Bible Dictionary - Another good free online tool.

The basics:

The New Unger's Bible Dictionary - This is a good tool to have. I reference it often.

Vine's Expository Dictionary - Older and not as detailed as Unger's, but still quite useful.

Mounce's Complete Expository Dictionary - I don't personally have a copy of this work yet, but it's been recommended by a number of people as "Vine's for the 21st century".

If I've missed a bible dictionary that you've found particularly helpful, leave a comment.

...or question in the form of an answer.

HT: Douglas Adams

Though I haven't yet seen Prince Caspian myself I highly recommend Jeffery Overstreet's review of the movie, not only because I respect his opinion on movies but also because it's one of the more cleverly written movie reviews I've read in a long time.

Most children will miss the quieter, subtler fire, running instead to the bright and roaring fires of a lesser tale with the same title. There, Aslan may show up and inspire them in spite of everything. But some, we can hope, fill find their way to Professor Lewis out there in the woods, find Aslan in all of his glory, and bask in a light more penetrating and beautiful.

Amen.

I find a certain sense of irony in the new ballpark rankings released by SI.com, since the long-anticipated demolition of Tiger Stadium will begin shortly. Its replacement, Comerica Park, is ranked the 4th best place to see a ballgame in Major League Baseball. Like anyone who grew up in Detroit I have very fond memories of the old bandbox, but I've grown to appreciate Comerica Park. I've sat all over the park and there really isn't a bad seat in the house. And of course, since they've been one of the best teams in baseball the last few years the atmosphere has been electric.

Congratulations to the Tigers organization. Go Tigers!

(The picture above is taken from my friend Bob's seats. I am grateful for his generosity in sharing them with me.)

As you can see (unless you're using an RSS reader), I've finally gotten around to redesigning the site. I consider this a live beta at this point and I'm certainly open to comments and suggestions. I envisioned a more interesting background for the masthead, but while I'm handy with computer graphics software I'm not an artist. I'd be happy to take suggestions/submissions from artsy types.

Please let me know if you have any problems viewing the new design. I've tested it in IE7, Firefox2, and Safari, but I may have missed something along the way.

P.S. If you are using an RSS reader and the upgrade caused a deluge of posts on the feed, I apologize.

I would like to buy $3 worth of God, please - not enough to explode my soul or disturb my sleep, but just enough to equal a cup of warm milk or a snooze in the sunshine. I don't want enough of him to make me love a foreigner or pick beets with a migrant worker. I want ecstasy, not transformation; I want the warmth of a womb, not a new birth. I want a pound of the Eternal in a paper sack. I'd like to buy $3 worth of God, please.

~Wilbur Rees

HT: Ben Witherington

How would you react if a freak accident took your entire family from you in an instant? If you're anything like me, your honest answer would be...not very well. Especially if that accident is what some people call an "act of God". That's exactly what happened to my friend Robert Rogers almost five years ago. His story is summarized in an article in the current issue of Charisma Magazine. Robert and I were good friends in college at Anderson University. He was kind enough to come all the way up from Cincinnati when I married Lori and I was honored to be in attendance when he married Melissa. I haven't stayed in close touch with him over the years, just Christmas cards and such, but he remains an inspiration to me. Whenever circumstances begin to weigh me down, I try to remember the faith Robert has exhibited despite this tragedy and my troubles seem insignificant.

Robert now devotes himself full-time to ministry and to his Mighty in the Land Foundation. The foundation's goal is to sponsor orphanages around the world. You can support this foundation through donations or by buying Robert's CDs. (He's the most talented pianist I've ever known, and I've known quite a few talented pianists.) He's also recently published a book, Into the Deep, that tells his story. It's a great reminder that no matter what happens to us, God's grace is sufficient.