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 Poor Jadon.
His life as a preacher’s kid has started early. Now, for the record, I did ask his permission before I used his story in my sermon Sunday. He grunted at me – which I took as a “yes” (two grunts are ‘no’). 
As some of you know, I am now preaching the fourth Sunday of every month – giving the church 12 weeks a year to bring ear plugs (at least they are not bring rotten veggies). 
No – in all seriousness, I am trilled to be able to share with the congregation and they are loving and kind. It is a blessing to be in a place where I can refine my public speaking abilities.
This past Sunday (four days ago) was a special day as it was the first time my Dad and Stepmom had the opportunity to hear me preach. They live down south and only get to visit every few years – this year, God worked things out nicely and they were able to be at church the day I was scheduled to share. Thank you Lord.  Continue reading Adopting Jadon’s Life Into a Sermon
“The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.” –John 3:8
I don’t know what is happening – but the Wind is blowing. It feels strange to day [...]
 18 days. That is how long it has been since God grew my leg out.
Yeah, I know – I’ll wait while you read that last line again.
Finished?
Great. So how is your modernity mind working? It is freaking out with all kinds of scientific data with words like “bone”, “blood veins”, “nerves”, “flesh” and “cells”?
If you can control your skepticism a bit, I will tell you my story.
I was born on May – oh, sorry, wrong year…let me reset my time clock……..ok. I think I’m ready.
Let me see – yes, now I know. It was May 2, 2010 in the evening at the Vineyard Boise. There was a guest speaker that night (who’s name does not matter) who gave a wonderful talk about how God is a God of generations. He is the God of Abraham, Issac and Jakob – not just one generation, but multiple generations. This gives me hope as I know He will work in my generation as he has in the past.
At the end of the service, the speaker asked everyone to wait on the Lord and see what He wanted to do. After some silence – the speaker begin to call out some words the Lord gave during the quiet time. One of the words was “snapped” – the speaker thought it had to do with a bone – yet, they also recognized that it could be a mental ‘snap.’ Yes – that was a joke….. sigh Continue reading Growing Legs – Bone, Blood and Flesh
I had the pleasure of talking to Tri Robinson (senior pastor of the Vineyard Boise) last week and he mentioned that he recently wrote a position paper about the future of the Vineyard Movement. Seeing that this paper is connected to the recent blogsphere conversation – and seeing that Tri has been in the [...]
A few days ago I posted a question asking “where were all the Pentecostal/Charismatic emerging church leaders.” Today, I want to propose a theory.
But before I do, I must set the culture stage:
- Modernism – this is the primary view of most people in the West today. It is a view that focuses on rationalism, logic and science. In a nutshell, modernism says that people can use logic and science to become neutral observers in the world, allows humanity to find the one “true” answer to each question asked. Modernism also disregards the supernatural as it can not be proven by science.
- Postmodernism is a reaction against modernism. This cultural worldview says that there are no neutral observers in the world. Everyone looks at everything through their own ‘glasses’ – meaning that everyone has a point of view through which they see the world. Logic and science are useful tools, but they are not the end all – nor do they create a neutral view point. Postmodernist also tend to be more open to the unexplained (i.e. they are not threaten by the unknown or by not having all the answers). On a spiritual plane, postmodernist are more likely to embrace holistic medicine, spiritual practices and new age interconnectness beliefs.
- Premodern (the worldview before modernism) held that natural and supernatural existed side-by-side. Or, in different words, premodern folks tend to think that natural events are caused by supernatural causes. God, angels, demons, and the like are a reality to these folks, were as a modernist would deny them because the could not be proven by science, logic and reason.
Ok. Now that the stage is set, here is my theory. Continue reading Premodern vs Modernism vs Postmodern: A Theory
 Doug Pagitt grew up in a non-Christian home in Minneapolis, Minnesota, where he has lived his entire life. When he was sixteen years old a friend invited him to see a Passion Play at a local church. At the end of the play, Doug gave his life to Jesus and started a journey which led him to Bethel Theological Seminary (21-22). Graduating in 1992 with a M.A. in Theology, Doug joined a local mega-church as a youth pastor before moving on a few years later to start a holistic missional Christian community called Solomon’s Porch (21). In addition, he is a business owner, author, professional speaker and a co-founder of the Emergent Village.
The thesis of the book is that the “dogmas and doctrines of God, of humanity, of Jesus, of sin, of salvation” being taught by the church at large is so “firmly embedded in the cultural context of another time [Greco-Roman] that they have become almost meaningless” to people today (35).
The first three chapters of the book are focused on establishing Doug’s credibility as a Christian leader and as someone who can speak on the topics at hand. In these chapters he describes his life before Christ, his conversion experience and his life after accepting Jesus. He also points toward the fact that he attended a Christian undergraduate college as well as seminary. In addition to establishing his credibility, Doug uses these chapters to describe the disconnect he felt between his relationship with Jesus and what the organized church was telling him. Continue reading A Christianity Worth Believing by Doug Pagitt
While the emerging church (EC) tends to focus on different areas, one of the main emphases is on the life and ministry of Jesus. This means that the EC crowd tends to place a high priority on the Gospels then on Paul’s letters. It also means that they try to model their lives after [...]
This week there is a great conversion on DeepChurch.co.uk about leaders who limp. Or, in different words, leaders who have been bruised by life and have struggle to follow the narrow path laid out by Jesus versus leaders of perfection that seem to have everything together.
Feel free to wonder over to DeepChurch and [...]
It is 10:38 PM on Saturday night…my wife and son are asleep (or soon will be).
Me? I am sitting in front of a computer listening to LiveIreland Radio and trying to write a paper.
As much as I love this class and as much as I am learning…I’m not sure if the timing [...]
There have been a ton of political noise about the new Arizona law; so much in fact, I that have been having a hard time telling truth from stretched-truth.
Today is different.
Today I would like to direct folks to a letter written by a pastor on the front-lines in Phoenix:
“A Pastor’s Report [...]
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Who Writes This Mess? My name is Joshua Hopping and I am a Son of the Most High journeying through a foreign land following the Wild Goose (i.e. the Holy Spirit) one step at a time.
As I journey along the Way, I have the privilege of serving as the bi-vocational pastor of the Payette River Vineyard Christian Fellowship. I am also a voracious reader who loves studying church history, theology, and world missions.
This blog, "Requisite Danger", is a record of what God is teaching and showing me as I try to follow Him wherever He leads as well as occasional random thoughts. I pray that you will join me in this journey through online/offline interaction as this life is lived in community.
May His grace and peace be upon you.
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