June 19, 2004 by iMonk
Time for a “Pit Stop” update. (We’ll just give that little title to posts referring back to the original post about my Summer ‘04 spiritual crisis. I’m not a NASCAR fan, btw, but in baseball we often talk about “fixing the flat,” so I can live with the title.)
I’ll start by saying a huge thanks to all the folks who sent along encouraging notes and comments. It’s great to not be alone in the journey. My mailbox is full of hundreds of notes from people who are dealing with similar emotions and experiences to my own in their churches and faith journeys. It’s probably a good thing we aren’t all in the same room. We’d cry a lot and break some furniture. Still, it feels good to know you people are out there. I won’t say something dumb, like “I’m there for ya, man,” but I will say you’ve encouraged me to persist and not give in to the all too attractive phoniness that plasters over so many of our struggles. Let’s keep it real, ok?
So, this “Update” is entitled “You don’t make me crazy.” Which means…..what?
It means that not all evangelicals drive me crazy. Most, but not all. In my journey to construct an approach to my tottering faith that works for me, I’ve had to consider the thousands of hours spent with preacherly voices that made me nuts. I’m not saying they were wrong or evil or bad, though some were. I’m saying that their effect on me was bad. So I have to be more selective. And fortunately, there are some voices out there that reach me, teach me and leave me better than they found me.
Let me share four of them with you. If things keep going the way they have the last month, these guys may become the only Christians I can listen to and/or read.
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June 16, 2004 by iMonk
Today I listened to the preacher in chapel. Really, really closely for a change.
It probably wasn’t a good idea. See, God is giving me a gift. I’m starting to hear sermons like non-Christians hear them. I’m starting to feel what they feel, and it’s disconcerting.
It’s scarey. Some of my Christian friends won’t like this, but that may be a good sign.
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June 8, 2004 by iMonk
Christianity Today has some wonderful articles on film these days. (Hats off to CT for the increased attention to what most of us were told would send us straight to hell.) This week they have the “Ten Greatest Baseball Movies of All Time.”
Since baseball is my therapy, and I want more of my peers to put down those darned books and go to the ball park, this list may help a good cause. Here’s some of my thoughts on the best baseball movies.
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June 3, 2004 by iMonk
Every time Baptist Press lights one up on the subject of Harry Potter, I want to hit the pause button and ask a few questions.
Assume that a child has no one to help him/her understand what they are reading. Should we be more afraid of him/her reading Harry Potter or the Bible?
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