In between series, I thought I would post a sermon I gave last year. It is on Mark 4:35-41, an amazingly fearful event in the lives of the disciples.
I hope it encourages you in your own journey through amazingly fearful events.
Friday begins my 11 post theological assessment of Brian McLaren’s new book, A New Kind of Christianity.
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In re-launching novus•lumen 2.0 after giving it a hyperlocal G-Rap focus, I said I’d post something new every Monday and Thursday. Well it turns out I have a lot more to say than I thought! Now, I will post something every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, leaving the weekends to be with God and my wife 
These posts will be my hyperlocal thoughts on the tension of spirituality and theology, politics and culture, belief and practice, existing and emerging forms of Church, the Kingdom of God and America, modern and postmodern thought, and the gritty drama that is our collective Grand Rapidian pilgrim story.
Bookmark the homepage, grab the feed, or subscribe to receive emails of my nifty posts straight in your inbox (no spam…promise!) Hope you join our local conversation.
PS—Next week will be a BOMBSHELL post drop. I’m planning to launch a controversial series of posts, so check back Monday for the announcement.
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A few weeks ago I taught through Hebrews 12:1-3 to encourage the community in which I serve to run this years race with perseverance. I opened the message with these questions:
The year is 2020…you are 10 years older. WHERE DO YOU WANT TO BE?
A better question might be…WHO do you want to be?
Who do you want to be as a HUSBAND? A WIFE? Who do you want to be as a SON…or DAUGHTER? Who do you want to be as an EMPLOYEE? Who do you want to be as a FRIEND? Who do you want to be as GRANDPA or GRANDMA? How about as a CHRISTIAN, a follower of Christ?
May you run this years race with perseverance, throwing off your weights and entangling sins and fix your eyes on Jesus. May you also consider Jesus and what he endured for you, reminding yourself along the way that he is right there beside you so that you will not grow weary and loose heart.
PS—At the end I incorporated an Owl City song to end the message, so enjoy that, too
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A friend of mine wrote a guest editorial piece for the Grand Rapids Press entitled, “Discord need not divide believers.” It is a piece that reflects sentiments within the emerging church conversation to view belief in centered set vs. bounded set ways.
Here some of the text:
Right now, Christianity is seen as a set of beliefs. Believe the right stuff, and you are Christian. Step in this box with its bounded sides, and you are “in.” Step out of line, and you may be outside of the realm of what we consider “orthodox” or right belief. We live and work out of a bounded set constraint.
But there is another way.
A centered set paradigm places Jesus at the center and asks that we move toward him.
Your path may be different than my journey; your conclusions of what may be the best way to go may differ from mine, but that is really not a problem because I know you are headed toward God. I don’t assume you have to have the same set of beliefs as me to trust that you believe in Jesus.
In the case of the big three at Cornerstone, the truth is: All three are headed toward the Kingdom. I trust that. They need not be forced into making a stand or boxing one another in or out. In the centered set paradigm, a conciliatory mind-set replaces a dividing mind-set. As a Christian, I really don’t like seeing fights in the hall of my school. A new way of thinking can eliminate these troubling skirmishes.
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Just a quick note: our time in the Carpathians was wondergful! A real restful time and amazing time of fellowship with our Fimiam (Ukraine church) brother and sisters. It was great to hear about their vision for ministry in Lutsk and heart for reaching their people with the hope of Jesus Christ. They have such an up-hill battle because of the tight grip the Orthodox church has on the people of Ukraine. Anything outside the tight boundaries of the Orthodox church is viewed with suspect because of all the superstitions placed on their church. For instance, the people of Lutsk have been told that Fimiam engages in child sacrifice and they drink human blood! This is straight out of early church Christianity when the Romans thought THEY were doing the same thing! Crazy! Somehow in the midst of this God has cultivated a vibrant community and strong ministry. I am excited to track the progress of God’s advancing kingdom through this community.
The next few days is Christmas time for Ukraine, so John and I will be participating in their festivities. Friday I am meeting with a few young leaders to talk about ministry in Ukraine. Saturday I am preaching at the Fimiam youth service on Jesus the Prince of Peace, which will be fun! We are also visiting and teaching at a prision sometime in there and have some other meetings.
Our time here is quickly coming to an end. I am so greatful for this opportunity and have been greatly blessedd. My eyes have been open to some things regarding ministry in the US, too, which has been unexpected. Over all, this trip his been wildly ’successful’ and can’t wait to see how it ends!
-jeremy
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