Theology Quiz

Here's another fun quiz to determine your theological tradition. I was actually a little surprised how strongly mine turned out. It worked better than I expected:

You are an evangelical in the Wesleyan tradition. You believe that God's grace enables you to choose to believe in him, even though you yourself are totally depraved. The gift of the Holy Spirit gives you assurance of your salvation, and he also enables you to live the life of obedience to which God has called us. You are influenced heavly by John Wesley and the Methodists.

Evangelical Holiness/Wesleyan - 96%
Neo orthodox - 82%
Roman Catholic - 71%
Emergent/Postmodern - 54%
Reformed Evangelical - 46%
Charismatic/Pentecostal - 46%
Fundamentalist - 43%
Classical Liberal - 32%
Modern Liberal - 11%

A Prayer

I was reading and praying tonight and came across this prayer by Thomas Merton. I was moved by his words. I need to pray his prayer:

“My Lord God, I have no idea where I am going. I do not see the road ahead of me. I cannot know for certain where it will end. Nor do I really know myself, and the fact that I think I am following your will does not mean that I am actually doing so. But I believe that the desire to please you does in fact please you. And I hope I have that desire in all that I am doing. I hope that I will never do anything apart from that desire. And I know that if I do this you will lead me by the right road, though I may know nothing about it. Therefore I will trust you always though I may seem to be lost and in the shadow of death. I will not fear, for you are ever with me, and you will never leave me to face my perils alone.” (from “Thoughts in Solitude” p. 89).

Are You a Heretic?

Here's a test to determine if you're a heretic. I scored 100% as a Chalcedon compliant, so obviously this test failed to pick out my specific heresies. Oh well, no test is perfect.

Anyway, I got this from Sean Scribner's blog. It's pretty fun.

My Sweet Hair

Yeah, I haven't been blogging much lately. I hope to post more over the next couple of weeks, but one thing I have been doing is letting my hair grow. I figured you might enjoy this pic from a few weeks ago. Jill and I were bored on a Sunday afternoon, so I let her do my hair.

We're #2!

A few years ago, a friend of mine found some 30 year old paraphernalia from Circleville Bible College. One of the items he found was a sign with the college’s old sports slogan. The slogan read: “We’re #2!” The implication was that “We’re #2 because God is #1.” I think it was the cheesiest slogan I have ever heard….but now I’m not so sure.

Perhaps all Ohio sports teams should adopt “We’re #2” as their official motto, not because God’s #1 and Ohio is #2, but because Ohio teams are finishing second in everything in this year. We’re putting together the greatest string of silver metals in the history of sports. The Buckeye’s football team was shellacked by Florida in the National Championship game in January. A few months later their basketball team was beaten handily by Florida in the basketball National Championship. Then, just last week, the Cleveland Cavaliers were swept by the Spurs in the NBA finals. If the Cleveland Indians can somehow manage to lose the World Series this fall, 2007 should mark Ohio as the greatest runner-up in the history of sports, and I think that’s something to cheer about. So, here’s to you Ohio, you may not be the best, but your pretty darn close.

Spirit Filled Bob

I finally finished watching No Direction Home, Martin Scorsese’s Documentary on Bob Dylan. I had seen the first half of it on PBS last year in MN but didn’t see the second part until I borrowed it from my brother. I thought it was pretty good. I think it gave Jill a new appreciation for Dylan.

My favorite quote from the documentary came from some crazy looking hippie who worked with Dylan on one of his albums. When speaking of Dylan’s success, he said, “I believe giving credit where credit is due. I don’t think Dylan had a lot to do with it. I think God, instead of touching him on the shoulder; He kicked him in the (butt). Really, and that’s where all that came from. He can’t help what he’s doing. I mean, he’s got the Holy Spirit about him. You can look at him and tell that.”

What Lies Ahead, I Have No Way of Knowin'

I’m going to be out of town this next week, so if I don’t post any, that’s the reason.

Keep Jill and me in your prayers if you remember. We’re still seeking God’s direction for the next step in our lives.

I’ve always been a bit of a worrier. I tend to live in the future and plan everything out well in advanced, so not knowing where we’re going has been a little stressful for me. But, I’ve felt a lot better about not knowing these past few weeks. I’ve come to the conclusion that waiting for God’s leading is much better than rushing into some forced decision. Everything doesn’t have to happen according to my timetable. God certainly has the power to lead us where and when He desires. If He really wants us to be somewhere, I’m sure he can get us there. The most important thing I can do is simply be faithful today and let God worry about the future.

I came across these words of Henri Nouwen that encouraged my soul. “Be sure that you love the life you’re living now, your studies, your prayers, your friendships…Then you can trust that God will reveal to you the direction to go when the time comes. But don’t try to know now what you only have to know a few years from now.”

The Honeycomb Evangelization

The conquest of my holistic remedy indoctrination of the world has begun. Jill was getting groceries yesterday, and the cashier sneezed and said, “Oh, my allergies are killin’ me!” Jill responded, “You may want to try taking some honeycomb. I know it sounds weird, but my husband took it this spring and his allergies have been cured…”

A Long Lost Friend

Five or six years ago I read Henri Nouwen’s Sabbatical Journey. It is his personal diary from the last year of his life. I picked it up last night and read through some of the passages I had marked. It encouraged my soul. I felt as if I was reconnecting with a dearly loved friend who had moved far away and whom I had forgotten about. Nouwen’s unguarded and honest reflections have a way of reminding me that I am not alone in my journey. His words express what I know to be true but have not been able to articulate. Here are a few tidbits:

“Why should I ever think or say something that is not love? Why should I ever hold a grudge, feel hatred or jealously, act suspiciously? Why not always give and forgive, encourage and empower, give thanks and offer praise? Why not?”

“It’s time to make a radical choice for solitude, prayer, and quiet writing.”

“I pray that I can be focused on Jesus and not too concerned about what everyone thinks or says.”

“The more faithful I am to my solitude, the more fruitful it will be in my community.”