Mad about Gospel Booklets

You know something's gone wrong with the way people think when things like this happen...

Those Loathsome Christian Gift Boxes
by David Noebel

What could be worse than including a Gospel booklet in gift packages for needy children? Nothing--at least to some parents of Stratton Elementary School children in Colorado Springs.

The fourth graders at Stratton Elementary wanted to participate in a holiday class project that would help children less fortunate than themselves. They joined in a project that does just that--filling shoeboxes with personal items, toys, school supplies, etc., and then shipping them all over the world to needy children in time for Christmas. The project was suddenly canceled, however, when a parent discovered that it was part of Samaritan's Purse Operation Christmas Child. The outrage stemmed from the fact that Samaritan's Purse is an evangelical Christian organization, and each gift box would include a Gospel booklet translated into the language of the child recipient....

To read the rest of this article from one of the Summit Ministries blogs, click HERE.

Speaking of blending things...

In regards to yesterday's post on the Sacred Space book and the blending of Catholicism and Buddhism, how about these religion frappes:

Bishop Nominee in Episcopal Church Holds Buddhist Ordination
www.christiannewswire.com

Chrislam
www.alittleleaven.com

Muslims, Catholics Join To Promote Peace
www.understandthetimes.org

Tell Catholics the Truth

I'm watching Mike Gendron and his gentle message of truth...

Tell Catholics the Truth by Mike Gendron
video.google.com

So many are following the wide ecumenical pathway today...their favorite words are tolerance and common ground. We can learn from eachother, take the good from every religion, they say. But is that the truth? Can truth be compromised?

If you love someone, you will tell them the truth.

And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free. John 8:32

Note: This message is about 50 minutes long, but so good. My advice...unless you are good at multi-tasking, make a cup of tea first and get yourself comfy..and oh yes, you might need a box of Kleenex at the very end. :)

Sacred Space Book

I don’t know if anyone has heard about a book called Sacred Space - A Hands-On Guide to Creating Multisensensory Worship Experiences for Youth Ministry by Dan Kimball & Lilly Lewin. It's pretty new (Nov. 2008) but is already being widely promoted for youth ministry - from some big denominations to Youth Specialties (here). Even the Mennonites are promoting this book (here). Not surprisingly, it's also available at our local Christian book store. I'm sure that when those who are already wary (and weary) of emerging church teachings see a book like this, they might immediately say, oh ya, that's just another book by Dan Kimball, the emerging church guy. He’s into Lectio Divina and labyrinths and contemplative spirituality and all that. We’re tired of hearing about it. Yawn.

Okay fine. But did you notice that Sacred Space is co-authored by someone named Lilly Lewin? Who’s that, you say. I asked the same thing, so I did some searching.

On Zondervan’s website, not only can you take a look at this book but you can also read about co-author Lilly Lewin:

Lilly Lewin is the curator of Thin Place (1): a creative resource for folks who want to move their worship beyond preaching and singing and encounter God in fresh ways. She loves bringing liturgy new life, creating worship experiences, and pushing the envelope of youth ministry. Lilly has helped to design and execute many of the sacred spaces at the National Youth Worker Conventions and Emergent Village Gatherings. She’s married to Rob and has two sons, Mac and Hudson, and Fred the Wonder Spaniel.
-www.zondervan.com

I’m sure the family and the dog are very nice, and I don’t mean to target anyone personally, but we are instructed in the Bible to be discerning. I’m sure she’s a very nice person, but on Lilly Lewin’s blog (aidanslegacy.typepad.com/lillylewin) we learn that she honors the anniversary of Thomas Merton’s death, participates in contemplative practices such as Lectio Divina, and makes annual pilgrimages to the Abbey of Gethsemane, to name just a few things.

Now this might not ring a huge Buddhist bell for many of you, but this abbey she promotes isn’t just any old abbey, this is Thomas Merton’s abbey, which is well known for its numerous interfaith "dialogues" between Catholics and Buddhists. In fact, one of the talks at a meeting there last year was called: MONASTICISM FOR THE GOOD OF THE EARTH: BUDDHISTS AND CATHOLICS SPEAKING WITH ONE VOICE. This whole thing all started back in the 70’s when three monks (inspired by Thomas Merton) were part of an interspiritualist meeting at this very same abbey. Their names were Thomas Keating, William Meninger and Basil Pennington. (Source: HERE)

The whole point here is that there is always more to these books and things than meets the eye. Most Christian parents are not even aware of what is being promoted to soup up their youth group’s basement/worship space. But just take some time to check it out and see if these things they recommend are biblical. They say it is, but really now…Thomas Merton said he was deeply impregnated with Sufism (that's the mystical tradition of Islam). Hullo.

So here are some questions that people should be looking into. Who is teaching the youth? What are they learning at youth retreats? What are they doing at youth? And what about those youth conferences? Are they learning the Bible? Or are they being turned into the new kind of Christian - the interfaith, interspiritual, contemplative, new monastic kind of Christian?

Wake up church. So what if the authors have cool blogs and their books look attractive? So what if they like prayer stations and water stations and experiental worship things (browse Sacred Space Table of Contents)? Who is teaching these things? What are they into? Interspirituality? Is this what God honors? Come on! Get those popular books out of your youth leaders’ offices, your church libraries, your Christian book stores, and out of your homes. Talk about sacred space...how about putting the Bible back in the place where it belongs (first) and teaching the youth to love God’s Word!

In this case, 2 Kings 22 and 23 might be a really great place to start, to see what good King Josiah did about the interspiritual sacred spaces of his time.

~ ~ ~

Endnotes:

(1) What is a thin place?

What is a thin place? To discern the difference between an ordinary place and a thin place, one must use a spiritual perspective. In simple terms a ‘thin place’ is a place where the veil between this world and the Other world is thin, the Other world is more near. This meaning assumes the perceiver senses the existence of a world beyond what we know through our five senses. Since the times of ancient civilization the fascination with the "Other world" has occupied human minds. To some it is heaven, the kingdom, paradise. To others it may be hell, an abyss, the unknown. Whatever you perceive the Other world to be, a thin place is a place where connection to that world seems effortless, and ephemeral signs of its existence are almost palpable.

Mahatma Ghandi in his Spiritual Message to the World in 1931, speaks of this.

“There is an indefinable, mysterious power that pervades everything. I feel it, though I do not see it. It is this unseen power that makes itself felt and yet defies all proof, because it is so unlike all that I perceive through my senses. It transcends the senses”

-http://www.thinplaces.net/openingarticle.htm

Dunce or Demoniac?

As I watched the following video clip that someone sent me, I truly wondered if those were dummies or mannequins in the audience, as real people couldn’t possibly be actually listening to these things and taking this guy seriously. Could they? Then one of the heads in the audience moved…a mechanical dummy perhaps? Then another moved. No, these are real people. How can they take this garbage in?

John Crowder Jesus on the main line?
www.youtube.com

Yes, it’s another clip of Mr. Crowder the Holy Ghost toker, only this time he compares Jesus to heroine. But wait, it doesn’t get any better. If you can't bring yourself to watch it (and I don't blame you), he then goes on to talk about letting Jesus out, like "The Gaper," good old Joseph of Cupertino, the patron saint of those traveling by air and astronauts. His nickname was the flying saint, and this was because he was one of the oh so many Roman Catholic mystics who often levitated. Crowder says St. Joseph had 'third heaven encounters' and ecstasies, about which you can read in more detail here:

ST. JOSEPH OF CUPERTINO: THE DUNCE—1603-1663
www.ewtn.com/library

Joseph of Cupertino
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joseph_of_Cupertino

This begs the question, was Joseph a dunce or a demoniac?

By the way, the Crowders will be at The New Ecstatics festival this April. This kind of thing is so, so very sick. Know anyone who is a Crowder fan? Please pray for them.

Note: Others who have claimed to experience things like third heaven encounters and ecstasies are false prophets Bob Jones, Todd Bentley, and Patricia King, to name a few. Watch HERE (google video).

Related:

Patricia King promotes John Crowder (New Mystics)
www.youtube.com

It's Getting Crowdered Around Here
morebooksandthings.blogspot.com

Crowder Chowder
morebooksandthings.blogspot.com

*Update:

Not as blatant as the Crowder's charismatic spirituality is the similar but more subtle ancient/future spirituality of the emerging church. The new emerging kind of Christians may not walk around manifesting strange 'tokin' the ghost' spiritual drunkeness as Crowder and the New Mystics, but are following the teachings of the same Catholic mystics (take the new monastic movement, for example). See here:

Ancient-Future Spirituality
by Roger Oakland
www.lighthousetrailsresearch.com

Looking Back at that Florida Thing

Here's a pretty good summary of the false Florida revival of last summer. Know anyone out there who is still defending it? I get wind of it now and then, which is the only reason why I'm posting this. This was it in a nutshell...

Todd Bentley and his False Jesus
www.youtube.com

Sadly (for all his followers), Mr. Bentley didn't score so good on this check list...

How To Recognize A False Prophet
bible-prophecy-today.blogspot.com

Also see:

Todd Bentley undergoing restoration, say supporters
endtimespropheticwords.wordpress.com

New Book - Jesus's Missing Years?

Have you heard about this new book?

A new book compares the Dead Sea Scrolls with the teachings of Jesus and the beliefs and practices of early Christians to allow readers to answer questions about where Jesus spent his missing years. The author, an attorney, marshals the pattern evidence in this comparative study to show the uniquely similar teachings of Jesus and the Dead Sea Sect. This illuminates the mystery of the whereabouts of Jesus during his hidden years as well as what shaped his life and ministry.

Read the rest here:

New Book Shows Where Jesus was During Missing Years
www.christiannewswire.com

*Related commentary from a new site I just found and have added to my sidebar (Christian News Anaysis):

What Missing Years?
www.christiannewsanalysis.com

Something's wrong here - can you spot it?

Something's wrong with this picture...

Each night, I still make my requests "known to God," just as the Bible tells us to do (Phil. 4:6), but in the morning I don't ask God for anything. Instead, I center down on Jesus.

To do so, I have to drive back the animals--the "animals" being the hundred and one things that trouble me from the day before and the many things that are waiting to be done in the new day. I've got to push everything out of mind save the name of Jesus. I say His name over and over again, for as long as fifteen minutes, until I find my soul suspended in what the ancient Celtic Christians called a "thin place"--a state where the boundary between heaven and earth, divine and human, dissolves. You could say that I use the name of Jesus as my koan. Perhaps that's because, as my friends and the country gospel musicians the Gaithers, sing, "There's just something about that name."

- Tony Campolo, Mystical Encounters for Christians (www.beliefnet.com)

Note: If you don't know what's wrong with this picture, click on the links within the quote. If you can spot what's wrong without clicking on the links, you get a ***gold star!

The Red Letter Gospel

They are solid Christians from a generation before us. They have weathered storms. They are grounded in the Word. They've been in the ministry. They are discerning. But wait. They went to Missions Fest in Vancouver a few weeks ago and heard an 'amazing' gospel presentation by a well known speaker who has said some very peculiar things recently, and now, in spite of those things he has said, they think he is...well...amazing. So they are recommending him to everyone.

Sound familiar?

Okay, so what exactly was it at Missions Fest in Vancouver that this year's speaker, Tony Campolo, talked about? Uhhh...some things called the Red Letter Christians (see here) and Red Letter Prayers (see here).

Hmmm...he's referring to the red letters in the Bible, you know, the words that Jesus said. So what about that? Isn't that a good thing? Well...check these out...

Todd Friel on the Gospel According To Tony Campolo
www.youtube.com

And how's this for the truth about the red letter thing...this is very good:

Red Letter Christians
www.youtube.com

Found this to be a good analysis as well:

Red Letter Christians? Give Me A break
Christian New Analysis

And then there's that thing Tony Campolo said On Being “Born Again” by Centering Prayer
(understandthetimes.org).

So...here comes the teacher of these things to Mission's Fest, and he preaches a great message, according to some, and so now what? Does that nullify everything else that he has taught? Does that mean he should be recommended to others now? He may have said some good things at Mission's Fest, but what about the things he didn't say? What has happened to discernment? I tremble to think of a coming delusion so strong that the Lord would have to shorten the days. (Matthew 24:22-25)

Related:

Tony Campolo is Speaking His Mind
About Mysticism, Interspirituality and More
www.lighthousetrailsresearch.com

Tony Campolo: A Dangerous - and False - Teacher
watchmansbagpipes.blogspot.com

Tony Campolo
www.letusreason.org

Read some other things that Tony Campolo has said:
HERE @ battle4truth.wordpress.com

~ ~ ~

***Definitely on the lighter side...

IMAGINE... no emergent church
www.youtube.com

Visualizing Jesus

"For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds; Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ..." 2 Cor. 10:4-6

Many sincere Christians are being taught by some popular books that through visualization techniques they can imagine they are having a nice conversation with Jesus. For example, here's what Richard Foster teaches...

"As you enter the story, not as passive observer but as an active participant, remember that since Jesus lives in the Eternal Now and is not bound by time, this event in the past is a LIVING PRESENT-TENSE EXPERIENCE for Him. Hence, you can "ACTUALLY"* ENCOUNTER THE LIVING CHRIST in the event, be ADDRESSED BY HIS VOICE and BE TOUCHED BY HIS healing power. It can be MORE THAN AN EXERCISE OF THE IMAGINATION it can be a GENUINE CONFRONTATION, Jesus Christ will actually COME TO YOU."
-Richard Foster, p. 26, Celebration of Discipline (www.biblebb.com)

(See more quotes at A CRITIQUE ON THE MINISTRY OF RICHARD FOSTER.)

BUT...is this kind of visualization Bible based or occult based? Here are some other quotes and things:

"Occultism has always involved
three techniques for changing and creating reality:
thinking, speaking, and visualizing."
(Dave Hunt - Occult Invasion)

"...imaging and visualization are increasingly appearing as Christian meditation, "mind-stretchers," or a consciousness-awakening experience in Christian workshops, and you'd better believe that visualization as a cultivated exercise comes with all sorts of metaphysical and spiritual baggage in tow."
— Visualization and Imaging, Jon Trott

"It's not difficult to trace the practice of meditative imaging and visualization back to the mystics."— Visualization and Imaging, Jon Trott

SOURCE: Visualization, The New Age and Christianity @lighthousetrailsresearch.com

I know quite a few Christians who like to access Jesus in a nice place through their imaginations. He even tells them nice things that they write down in their journals, believing these to be the very words of God. But here's the thing... is this Jesus they are having a conversation with in their imaginations, or are they coming in contact with an impostor in the spiritual realm?

The following are examples of people who were seeking God but came in contact with spirit guides:

"The Great, Subtle Lie" of Contemplative Spirituality"
(An Open Letter - July 30, 2004)
The Testimony of Cassandrah Batya
www.christian-mommies.com

Imagination and Visualization
by Dave Hunt
www.ankerberg.com

The Beautiful Side of Evil-Johanna Michaelson
endtimesdeception.com

(Order The Beautiful Side of Evil @ www.lighthousetrails.com HERE.)

Kathryn Kuhlman and Her Spirit Guide
www.pawcreek.org

Now don't be freaked out about praying...but do be careful about visualization methods and relaxation exercises which are not techniques taught in the Bible. After all, what is the point of prayer? To have a nice experience? Or is prayer one of our weapons to use as the spiritual battle rages all around us? As we read in Ephesians 6, put on the whole armor of God, and pray at all times in the Spirit, in order to make known with boldness the mystery of the gospel.

~ ~ ~

Related:

REDEFINING JESUS CHRIST?
The Biblical Jesus Versus The Counterfeits
www.spiritual-research-network.com

Contemplative Prayer
Seducing Spirits and a Doctrine of Devils
By Christine A. Narloch
www.crossroad.to

Visualization
www.letusreason.org

Divination Finds Further Expression in the Evangelical Church
by Orrel Steinkamp
www.erwm.com

Latest Things on the Rebuilding of Babylon (UPDATED)

During the last seven days there have been about 30 people coming to this blog by googling 'the rebuilding of Babylon.' All that's on this blog is an older post with some interviews that don't even work anymore. So I thought I'd google it myself and see what I come up with, and it's very very interesting. There's a lot out there, much of it outdated, but here are the latest things from some of the better sources...

Rebuilding Babylon With The Help of U.S. Embassy
filesfromtoni.blogspot.com

The rebuilding of Babylon
by Don Koenig
www.thepropheticyears.com

U.S. TO HELP REBUILD CITY OF BABYLON IN IRAQ
flashtrafficblog.wordpress.com

Note: Any new updates on this topic will be added to this post.

*Related further Bible study:

"Egypt, Babylon, & the Palm of God"
by James Jacob Prasch
www.moriel.org

The Identity of End Time Babylon
Is modern day Babylon the Babylon of the end times?
by Dr. David R. Reagan
www.lamblion.com

Rebuilding Babylon
gracethrufaith.com

The Mystery Of Babylon: An Alternate View - listen here:
http://www.khouse.org/6640/BP108-1/

*UPDATES:

Also see:

Babylon to be Rebuilt! Are We Living in the End Times?
kimolsen.wordpress.com

Mystery Babylon: Anti-Israel at the Highest Level
by Joseph Chambers

BIBLE SKEPTICS TAKE NOTE: BABYLON IS BEING REBUILT, JUST AS PROPHESIED
Joel Rosenberg, June 28, 2009
flashtrafficblog.wordpress.com

The Future of Babylon Project
from the July 07, 2009 eNews issue
www.khouse.org

Is Canadian Christianity Promoting Buddhism?

I was quite shocked to see that Canadian Christianity is promoting the ideas from a book by Daniel Goleman called Emotional Intelligence. What the nice man who wrote this article in Canadian Christianity does NOT say is that Daniel Goleman gathers his insights for his books from modern science and "the deep spiritual wisdom of Buddhism."

See the following:
How to Cure 'Destructive Emotions'
Best-selling author Daniel Goleman finds in Buddhism a possible cure-all for anger, depression, and more.
www.beliefnet.com

The Lighthouse Trails Research blog says...

"...Daniel Goleman (author of The Meditative Mind)...a staunch proponent of mantra meditation sees meditation as a common ground between all the world's religions, and his book is a type of manual on the basics of mysticism. For Goleman to be on a list of recommended books on a Christian ministry website is quite disturbing." (lighthousetrailsresearch.com)

This was in reference to another Christian organization that was promoting Goleman.

I found this to be very true when I first came across Daniel Goleman while doing a book review of Peter Scazzero's extremely contemplative book called Emotionally Healthy Spirituality. Some of my findings on these things can be read at my old blog here and here.

As you can see, this is why I was so surprised to see Daniel Goleman being promoted in the name of Christianity. Shouldn't a Christian organization look into the books and things they promote? Perhaps Canadian Christianity needs to change it's name. I have some ideas.

Canadian Christians being Silenced

Lest some of us Canadians think that Christians are being silenced only in the U.S., think again. Here's what happened last week in Calgary, Alberta...

Yesterday, members of the Street Church ministry were forcefully removed from their preaching platform by a mob of police officers. For years the City has been waging a battle against the ministry, getting more and more aggressive with members being manhandled, Christian materials confiscated, and volunteers wounded from rough treatment. Street Church ministries has made several attempts to have their Charter rights restored and have made several pleas for justice and mercy which have, to this date, fallen on deaf ears.

Read the rest here:

SEVERAL OFFICERS DRAG VOLUNTEERS FROM PREACHING PLATFORM
Saturday, February 07, 2009
concernedchristians.ca

Related:

The Word on the Street
concernedchristians.ca

Persecuted Christians in Canada
concernedchristians.ca

A Book About Heaven

Heaven by Randy Alcorn sounds like a book I wouldn't mind adding to my collection. I just did a quick check on it and it sounds pretty good. At least I'm sure it's a whole lot better than Heaven is so Real by Choo Thomas.

You can hear Randy Alcorn talk about Heaven on his blog here.

Has anyone out there read it?

Grieg's Global Prayer Plan (sounds like P-E-A-C-E Plan)

Listen to the twelve minute mark (12:12) on this nice 24/7 promotional video:

24/7 worldwide prayer movement
www.tangle.com

That's Pete Grieg of the 24/7 Prayer Movement (see previous post). Did you hear what the goal of his global movement is? Let me type it out for you...

"...the birthing of an evangelistic harvest that could tranform society, address the issue of AIDS, the unfair distribution of wealth around the world, and bring young people back into fresh expressions of the church."

Hmmm...

Transform society, address AIDS?

*Rick Warren's P.E.A.C.E. Plan & the UN Millennium Goals
www.crossroad.to

Redistribute wealth?

*Toward Global Socialism
www.crossroad.to

Fresh expressions of church?

*The Emerging (Global) Church
www.crossroad.to

~ ~ ~

No comment.

~ ~ ~

***VERY MUCH RELATED AND VERY IMPORTANT TO WATCH:
Roger Oakland on Man's Plans (VIDEO)
lighthousetrailsresearch.com

That Boiler Room Thing

A while back I came across that boiler room thing (www.boiler-rooms.com) that was catching on everywhere, made popular by Pete Grieg of 24/7 Prayer. If you watch him make this presentation on 24/7 prayer rooms across the nation (for 2009-2010) it sounds like a pretty nice thing, doesn't it...

Pete Grieg: The Campus America Vision
youtube.com

As you might suspect, there's more to it than meets the eye. When I first heard about these boiler rooms a few years ago, something was just not right (see Boiler Rooms). Well here is some good up to date research on the topic. Check this out:

The Hidden Agenda of The Order of the Mustard Seed
THE ORDER OF THE MUSTARD SEED by Mishel
www.deceptionbytes.com

*If you want to research The Order of the Mustard Seed, this is the website:
http://www.mustardseedorder.com

There may be many sincere people involved in this movement, but if you go to the 24-7 Prayer website (www.24-7prayer.com) and check their prayer links you will find some contemplative links like Taize (ecumenical community in France), the UK Labyrinth site, Sacred Space (Jesuit prayer site), Intercessors of the Lamb (a Catholic contemplative site), and Prayer Foundation (monks promoting prayer), and IHOP (Mike Bickle's thing), to name a few. You will also notice the mention of the Desert Fathers and Mothers and repetitious prayers around 2 minutes into this 24-7 Prayer Movement video, as basis for their 24-7 prayer. See more about the contemplative side of 24/7 Prayer Rooms here:

ALERT: 24-7 Prayer Rooms Increasing in North America
lighthousetrailsresearch.com

Also see:
What's wrong with 24/7 Prayer? How could that be wrong?! - FOTM
youtube.com

~ ~ ~

*Thought of the day: If God is in these 24/7 prayer rooms, as they say, inspiring an explosion of creativity, artwork, and prophetic symbols, why would this thing happen...

" Occasionally inappropriate things may appear on the wall."
-Art and Soul (http://www.24-7prayer.com/resources/42)

No comment.

~ ~ ~

Related:

Monastic Evangelicals
The attraction of ancient spiritual disciplines.
www.christianitytoday.com

***VERY MUCH RELATED AND VERY IMPORTANT TO WATCH:
Roger Oakland on Man's Plans (VIDEO)
lighthousetrailsresearch.com

Response to Tony Jones

I recently noticed that there were several books by Tony Jones for sale in our local Christian book store...The Sacred Way, and An Emergent Manifesto of Hope. I'm not sure if they are top sellers or not, but if you ever see any Tony Jones books on the shelf in your church library, or most likely, on your youth pastor's book shelf, you might want to find out what they are about (see here for more info). You know, some new ideas and things that have entered the post-modern church are just plain fluff. Then there are those other things that are way past fluff and just downright heretical. Here's a response to the latest thing you may have heard said recently by emerging church leader/author Tony Jones:

Christian Research Service's Response To:
'Original Sin: A Depraved Idea' by Tony Jones
www.christianresearchservice.com

Missional is a Different Thing Than You May Think

Has anyone else noticed that a lot of churches have gone "missional"? Now, the church always has been missions minded, as the great commission is to preach the gospel to the ends of the earth and make disciples of all men. But apparently, that's NOT what "missional" means. Now, all of the sudden, churches (and these are established evangelical churches), are announcing that they are going "missional." So when you read of this term, you should know that this is a red flag. It doesn't mean that they have a heart to send missionaries out, or equip their members with the Word, to preach the gospel to the lost. No, the new "missional" means something entirely different than you might think, which you will see in a minute. But first, let's look at how the emergent authors and leaders are defining the word "missional"...

Scott McKnight, who likes this term, says it means this:

McKnight says, “It matters a lot less what we call what we are doing than doing what we are to do, and if we do that, it might not matter a whole lot what we call it.” (Emergent Village)

Wow, that's really as clear as mud now, isn't it? Okay, but what is it they are doing? What does it mean to be missional?

Alan Hirsch says it's this...

Missional church is a community of God’s people that defines itself, and organizes its life around, its real purpose of being an agent of God’s mission to the world. In other words, the church’s true and authentic organizing principle is mission. -Alan Hirsch, The Forgotten Ways: Reactivating the Missional Church, p. 82

Allen Roxburgh's Allelon says it's this...

Missional leadership is about cultivating a way of life among a people. It is not primarily about programs or tactics, but is about forming people rather than organizational or planning processes. (http://allelon.org/)

Brian McLaren has some really bizarre things to say about being missional here. Like, that Christians are lost too. Say what?

One could google and search all day and find some pretty interesting things being said by all the emergents, but what missional ACTUALLY means now, as it relates to the emergent church, is this:

Missional - 1. Working to make the world a better place instead of focusing on the Fundamentalist concepts of Heaven and Hell. 2. Being like the world to make friends with the world.

That's the opposite of what the Bible says. Of course, you have to read and listen to about 900 hours worth of emergent conversation to discover what they really mean with their slippery definitions, but for a quick short cut, you can find that one, and quite a few other emerging terms and what they actually mean, here:

Emerging Church - Glossary of Emergent Terms For Those New to the Conversation
www.apologeticsindex.org

Here's a chart that may be helpful as well...

New Age Terms in the Church
www.crossroad.to

Moral of the story? Keep your eyes and ears open. You never know what may be emerging in your church.

p.s. My spellcheck program is telling me that 'missional' is not a word. It wants me to change it to 'missions' or 'missionary.' Perhaps spellcheck is right.

~ ~ ~

MISSIONAL: ACCORDING TO JESUS
(Your mission, should you choose to accept it...)

15 And He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature. 16 He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned. 17 And these signs will follow those who believe: In My name they will cast out demons; they will speak with new tongues; 18 they will take up serpents; and if they drink anything deadly, it will by no means hurt them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover.”
Mark 16

~ ~ ~

*Also very much related regarding the emerging church:
Following Jesus Christ without the Bible
www.letusreason.org

Not that kind of prayer!

He lived on my street when I was a little girl. I think he's even in an old picture in our family photo album. A cute boy with soft brown eyes and dark hair, if I remember correctly. His parents were very nice. Christian family. I could picture him with grey hair and a few lines in his face now as I clicked my mouse and listened to him on the internet. Preaching. About prayer.

But what was this I heard him saying? Oh no...this is not the kind of prayer I know. It's that kind of prayer.

Now I'm picturing the faces of the people I know, sitting on those soft comfy pews I once sat in, being introduced to Lawrence and Frank. Mystics. One danced violently like a madman when "God" came upon him, the other said Mohammed was helping him. There was also a casual referral to James H. Ah yes, I've heard Mr. Houston speak too, such a pleasant man....I remember very well sitting there in amazement while Mr. H recommended Thomas Merton, and talked endlessly about meditating and chanting, early fathers, Fransiscan friars chanting the daily office, monks chanting Gregorian chants of psalms, meditations of early church fathers(Catholic mystics) who meditated on the Psalms, and how this meditation affected them, such as the, “fire of love, making them hot and burning within,” etc. Mysticism, Merton, mantras and monks...since when is this the kind of prayer God hears?

And so it bothered me greatly that now our old friends were most likely sitting and listening, and soaking this in. At least, as I listened on line, it didn't sound like anyone stood up and interrupted this talk and said, hey, wait a minute. Is this what the word of God says? No, they wouldn't, because it sounded so nice, so charming, so relaxing, so casual, so truthful. And it was being taught to them by an old friend that they too had perhaps known since childhood.

But I believe the boy from my old neighbourhood, as sincere as he may be today, has been deceived, like so many these days. The kind of prayer method he talks about is so well received by many who want to sit in comfy cozy sacred spaces and experience the divine presence God. Finding regular prayer boring, it naturally follows that once they've tried contemplative prayer and found the silence, they want to feel that comfy floaty euphoric God buzz through out the day. It's called practicing the presence. Buddhists do it all the time. They call it mindfulness. Google it and see for yourself. But then RW, America's most influential pastor, recommends these same prayer guys and their books and things (here), so it's really not surprising.

You see, it's these guys, the Lawrences and the Franks and their little books, the 'in between' prayer guys, that are slipping into churches everywhere in nice cozy sermons that sound more like conversations in a cafe over a Latte. Of course, not much is ever said about them, they're just mentioned while their methods are made to sound so nice and biblical and Christian. The things these guys wrote in their nice little books perhaps do not appear to be as blatantly over the edge as Merton or Keating (with their sufism and their New Agey associations) but the path they will lead you to is just as slippery, all the way to the contemplative cliff that so many sheep are sliding over these days.

Take Frank Laubach, who is listed by Richard Foster as one of his top fav mystics...

RICHARD FOSTER AND HIS 100 SPIRITUAL CLASSICS
www.lighthousetrailsresearch.com

Now, Frank, a 'modern mystic' and missionary who lived in the last century, wrote a book that's called Letters by a Modern Mystic, which, by the way, is endorsed very favorably by Dallas Willard.

Here's a quote:

"Living in the atmosphere of Islam is proving --thus far --a tremendous spiritual stimulus. Mohammed is helping me. I have no more intention of giving up Christianity and becoming a Muhammadan than I had twenty years ago, but I find myself richer for the Islamic experience of God. Islam stresses the will of God. It is supreme. We can not alter any of His mighty decrees. To try to do so means annihilation. Submission is the first and last duty of man.

"I must confront these Moros with a divine love which will speak Christ to them though I never use his name. They must see God in me, and I must see God in them. Not to change the name of their religion, but to take their hand and say, 'Come, let us look for God.'"

-Frank Laubach, Letters By a Modern Mystic

This experience and the Islamic emphasis upon constant submission seems to have been one factor prompting Frank to practice the presence, just like Brother Lawrence. It was because of a dissatisfaction in his relationship with God that Mr. Laubach began practicing a spiritual experiment of keeping in touch with God. He tells in the book how he started trying to live all his waking moments in conscious listening to the inner voice. Like Brother Lawrence did 300 some years before him, and he learned it from some mystics that lived before him.

Brother Lawrence, who repeated his prayers often during the day to get into God's presence, said:

"I make it my priority to persevere in His holy presence, wherein I maintain a simple attention and a fond regard for God, which I may call an actual presence of God. Or, to put it another way, it is an habitual, silent, and private conversation of the soul with God."

Brother Lawrence, Practicing the Presence of God

By the way, this book is in every Christian book store, including the one in my town, and in every big box secular book store (in the Christianity section).

Unbeknownst to the sheep, who haven't been fed the right spiritual food and have malnourished minds, this lie is taking a hold on them. They are believing that there is something THEY can do to get themselves into the presence of God. When in fact, the Bible says that we only have access to God through what Jesus has done, not by any religious practice we can do, or attempt to do. Pagan religions all around the world have been trying to do this for centuries, to no avail.

What's the big deal, some say, we can learn from other religions, these are all different streams which we can draw from. They have all stolen from Christianity, they say. Catholic monks, mystics, they all knew God, didn't they? Well just do a little research for yourself and see if what they believed is something we can really draw from as true Christians. If it ain't in the Bible, it ain't living water, and if it ain't living water from the fountain of life, it's dredged up muck from the bottom of the different streams flowing from this world's religions. Which water would you rather drink?

For further reading:

Brother Lawrence - Contemplative Monk
www.lighthousetrailsresearch.com

2000 Years of Deception and Error: Carmelites: Brother Lawrence
justthebook.wordpress.com

NOTE: By the way, let me just add one more thing. I believe that another danger of this kind of prayer - the tune out and soak in God's presence kind of thing - is distracting many Christians from the urgency of the hour and the great commission.

~ ~ ~

Please pray for churches that are allowing contemplative spirituality to be taught from the pulpit. Pray that the Holy Spirit through the Word of God will convict their hearts, and that bold Christians will rise up and speak the truth.

Blaming the Book of Genesis for Environmental Mess

Here's a strange thing...

In promoting a new special that commemorates the 200th birthday of Charles Darwin, one of television's most popular and enduring naturalists has declared that the Bible is to blame for humanity's destruction of the environment.

Sir David Attenborough, who for 50 years has been the face and voice of the BBC's natural history programs popular in both the U.S. and U.K., says that the Book of Genesis has taught generations that people can "dominate" and "devastate" the environment under the excuse that God gave humanity dominion over the earth.

Read the rest here:

Is Bible's Genesis to blame for trashing Earth?
TV wildlife star says creationism leads to 'devastating' environment
by Drew Zahn
www.worldnetdaily.com

Elbow Prints on the Bed

I don't know who wrote this...

Elbow Prints on the Bed

I was but a youth and thoughtless,
As all youths are apt to be;
Though I had a Christian mother
Who had taught me carefully.

There came a time when pleasure
Of the world came to allure,
And I no more sought the guidance
Of her love so good and pure.

Her tender admonitions fell
But lightly on my ear,
And for the gentle warnings
I felt an inward sneer.

But Mother would not yield her boy
To Satan’s sinful sway,
And though I spurned her counsel
She knew a better way.

She made my room an altar,
A place of secret prayer,
And there she took her burden
And left it in His care.

And morning, noon and evening
By that humble bedside low,
She sought the aid of Him who
Understands a mother’s woe.

And I went my way unheeding,
Careless of the life I led,
Until one day I noticed
Prints of elbows on my bed.

Then I saw that she had been there
Praying for her wayward boy,
Who for love of worldly pleasure
Would her peace of mind destroy.

Long the conflict raged within me,
Sin against my Mother’s prayers,
Sin must yield - for Mother never
While she daily met Him there.

And her constant love and patience
Were like coals upon my head,
Together with the imprints
Of her elbows on my bed.

And so at last the fight was won,
And I to Christ was led,
And Mother’s prayers were answered
By her elbows on my bed.

~ ~ ~

Who wants to join me in praying for the prodigals in our families?