Is the idea of the Trinity just some outmoded bunkum, an insistence that people believe "three impossible things before breakfast"? Wouldn't it make more sense to think about God as one thing, rather than with all this theological nonsense? These are all good questions - some of which I daresay I'll have a bash at answering, and some I will ignore, this coming Tuesday (2/6/20) at Cafechurch. Hit us up for a Zoom link - and there is some limited space available in housegroups for those who never want to Zoom ever again in their entire lives.
On Tuesday morning Australian Time
we woke up to shocking news. Notre Dame Cathedral was on fire. For a while it
looked as though the whole thing was about to collapse into complete ruins, or
that the amazing medieval rose windows and great organ would be destroyed.
Thousands watched, cried, and sang as the central spire came crashing down and
red fire bloomed into the night sky. Heroism, and great organisation prevented
the worst from happening, but the cold, blackened embers of the roof, and the
huge amount of damage, serve as a reminder of how fragile things are.
What does it mean to be called by God? What are you being called to? And how would you know it had happened? How come when Jesus calls people they leap so immediately to their feet? Is that what I'm supposed to do? All these questions and more will be explored, if not necessarily answered, this coming Tuesday 23/1/2018.
Now after John was arrested, Jesus came to Galilee, proclaiming the good news of God, and saying, ‘The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God has come near; repent, and believe in the good news.’
You used to be a real keeny. You prayed for, and attempted to convert, your non-Christian friends. You raised money for mission, perhaps made a short term mission trip. You might even have performed evangelical street theatre. You were clear what you believed, and you were on fire for God! But then… something happened. Something sudden and dramatic. Something slow and gradual and only visible by hindsight.
Take some time to read this through, quietly, meditatively, slowly - prayerfully on a quiet evening, or early in the morning. Light a candle if you like - that always make me feel spiritual - and hence helps me to concentrate, and to be present in the moment.
This exercise is also available as a pdf attached to this page. Print it out and read through it at leisure, away from your technology!
This slideshow is part of our journey of trying to understand what
it means to be a Christian in our culture. We start here with the Enlightenment,
and explore a little bit about its history and continuing significance. It also
looks a bit at some of the limitations of the ideas, and concludes with C.S. Lewis's
famous idea about Christianity as true myth.
Over the weekend I watched The Lone Ranger (yes, I know.) But it got me to thinking - do I want to be a boring, prudish,
ineffective religious person, notable mainly for my bad singing,
or do I want to be a cool, seeking, spiritual warrior like Johnny Depp? I mean, who wouldn't want to be Johnny Depp?
