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Showing posts from December, 2012

The Younger Evangelicals

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This is a book about an emerging generation of Christian leaders, called “The Younger Evangelicals,” who are ministering to the “New World” of post-modernity with great success, by reverting back to the practices of Christian community and service from the past (e.g. Wesleyan movement, 16 th century Reformers, and the ancient past of the first three centuries of the church). Webber implies that the “modern-church” of the 20 th Century has become irrelevant to the culture it now finds itself in, and more focused on gaining, “control, power, and certainty,” with how it has always done things, believed things, and taught things. Webber believes that rather than attempting to reach the culture they now find themselves in, by focusing on “love, stewardship, and faith” that glorifies God in this world, they have pulled the drawbridge up, and have refused to dialogue, unless the culture they are dialoguing with is in agreement with their particular dogmas.   Webber state...

Overcoming the Dark Side

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The theme of this book is the “Dark Side” of leadership. It looks at the paradox between the traits we all have that drive us to succeed as leaders, and how these same traits that help us succeed, are also the traits that can potentially bring out the dark side of us, causing our downfall and possible ruin.  The issue is that every leader has a dark side within them that can ultimately destroy their life if they do not learn to recognize it and control it. This book will help its reader accomplish three things. First, it will help the reader gain an understanding of what the dark side is. Second, it will assist the reader on how to discern where the dark side is hidden within them. And third, it will give the reader some specific steps for overcoming the dark side that is lurking in their life before it blindsides them. The authors of this book present their ideas in an easy to follow format that make for an easy read. They do a superb job in reemphasizing their ma...

The Making of a Leader

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The book is designed to help identify the patterns, processes, and principles of a person’s life that God uses to develop a leader. The author does this by dividing the life of the leader up into six stages of leadership development. These six stages are surrounded by certain checks and balances to be used as markers for each leader’s life to help clarify where they are within the process. Many people do not understand how to decipher God’s purpose for their life, nor the means by which God has brought them to where they are currently at, or where He is preparing to take them. This book teaches the reader how to recognize the lessons of their lives, and the leadership stage that they are currently at in their lives. The author states, “God develops a leader over a lifetime” and that “All leaders can point to critical incidents in their lives where God taught them something very important” (p.25). By developing awareness of the six stages of leadership growth, the check...

one thing remains

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I have been meditating upon and singing the song One Thing Remains quite a bit lately. As you probably know, the chorus to this song goes like this,  "Your love never fails, it never gives up, it never runs out on me.  Your love never fails, it never gives up, it never runs out on me.  Your love never fails, it never gives up, it never runs out on me. On and on and on and on it goes, it overwhelms and satisfies my  soul, and I never, ever, have to be afraid, one thing remains..."  What a powerful and unchanging truth these lyrics reveal about our God! His love NEVER fails, and it NEVER gives up, and it NEVER runs out on anyone who places their faith in Jesus.  In fact, this is exactly what Paul was trying to get across in the book of Romans chapter eight. In Romans 8:38-39 Pauls affirms, "I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God's love. Neither death, nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries abo...

Exposing Pre-Existence

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  One of the doctrines that Mormonism teaches is known as pre-existence. Pre-existence is the belief that humanity started out in heaven as spirit-beings prior to being born in the flesh, chose God’s plan of salvation, which according to their doctrine, meant taking the opportunity to live righteously on earth, in order to “become like” God the Father. In LDS’ Journal of Discourse, founder Joseph Smith claims, “We were first begotten as spirit babies in heaven and then born naturally on earth” (Journal of Discourse, Vol. 4, p. 218). In a pamphlet handed out at the temple on BYU Campus, this belief is further defined by saying, “ Life for you did not begin here on earth. You lived before you were born (how does one live before they are born?), you will live on in the spirit world after your mortal life is ended... We all once lived in the presence of God the eternal father... With this divine parentage, your destiny, through righteous living, is to become like your Fath...