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 Yesterday I was enjoying a cup of tea at my favorite coffee shop when the owner introduced me to an elderly couple she’s known for many, many years. We chatted a while and discovered that we had some mutual friends – then we parted ways as I wanted to do some writing that afternoon.
A little bit later they walked past my seat on their way out the door. Seeing my Bible open to Genesis, the husband remarked:
“You’re in the wrong book of the Bible.”
What?!!
In the “wrong book”? Since when is there a “wrong book” in the Bible? Continue reading You’re in the wrong book!
 So the note says it was for Jadon...I figure he could enjoy via osmosis!! The one thing that I have missed the most since moving to Idaho is the barbecue. Growing up in East Texas we had barbecue joints on every street corner selling juicy, fall of the bone, smoothed in sauce pork and beef. It was heaven on the taste buds!
Sadly enough God moved me to a location that thinks “barbecue” is a piece of meat on a propane grill in the backyard….
Granted there are a few ‘barbecue’ joints in the region, but they are all Kansas City style, which, while ok, isn’t really BBQ. At least, not TRUE BBQ!
Luckily, I have a sister-in-law and brother that loves me to no end. At great risk to their personal safety, they sacrificially hand delivered a gallon jug of the tastiest, most mouth watering, jaw dropping, taste bud tingling B-B-Q sauce on the planet to a mutual friend who transported said liquid gold from East Texas the high deserts of Idaho.
Man o’ man, o’ man o’ man have I’ve been in heaven. Continue reading Texas BBQ!
A few months ago I walked out my back door to go to work when I noticed a beautiful hawk on sitting on the fence post. Grabbing my camera I managed to snap a few shots before it flew off.
Wow. God makes some pretty cool animals.
Much [...]
 I preached my best sermon today yesterday.
I have discovered a method of preparing that helps me stay on track and finish each thought or point. Namely, I have figured out that by writing down my sermon as a blog post and then creating a detailed outline off of the post helps me think through each items without stumbling.
In the past, I have simply studied the material and then created a simple outline – which allowed for too much freedom on Sunday morning. Instead of flowing, the sermons would be a tad broken as my mind would jump two or three steps ahead of my mouth – leaving everyone else wondering what was happening.
This ‘new’ way helps keep my brain and mouth on the same page.  And it worked. Emily and I listened to the recording yesterday evening and it was sweet (BTW – does anyone know how to compress an audio file? I would love to post my sermons online but the files are way, way too big!).
The added bonus to writing everything out first is that I can simply copy and paste my notes into a blog post and upload it. Simple. Easy. And a huge success.
God is good.
Living In Expectation
Setting the Scene
Today we have the pleasure of looking at Peter’s sermon at Pentecost. It is 53 days after Jesus’ crucifixion; 50 days since He rose from the dead; and ten days since Jesus’ Ascension. During those ten days, the eleven disciples gathered together with 109 other believers in Jerusalem to await the outpouring of the Holy Spirit. Continue reading Living In Expectation: My Best Sermon Yet!
 I have been thinking a lot lately about why I read the books I do and why I working on an International Studies masters degree at Fuller. In a lot of ways, the things I do don’t make sense; shoot, some of you reading this blog have even expressed confusion as to why I read the book that I do and why I pour myself out studying theology, missions and history.
Well, I guess it all goes back to the summer 2001.
I spend that summer with my new bride volunteering with Latin America Missions in Tegucigalpa, Honduras. We lived with a local family for two and a half months while helping a local Christian organization love on their neighbors through microfinance loans, computer training and youth Bible studies. It was a fantastic summer that fueled my love for international missions.
One day that summer I remember sitting in our bedroom at our host home talking to the Lord when He told me something close to the following (I don’t recall the exact words):
You can’t give what you don’t have.
At that moment it hit me – if I wanted to change the world for God; if I wanted to help people – I would have to have some kind of skills, training or knowledge to give away. While I was going to college for a business degree, there was something about that day that sparked an interest in studying theology. I don’t really know why that thought came across my mind that evening as “theology” was a cuss word to me at that time. Shoot, growing up we always joked that seminaries where cemeteries! Continue reading Why I Study…
This past Sunday the Payette River Vineyard decided to forgo our regular meeting location and take the entire church into the mountains for a family picnic and worship service. It was an amazing time hanging out and enjoying God’s wonderful creation.
We held the picnic at an old church that was established in 1934. It is no longer in service as a church building as most of the folks in the area have left due to economic reasons. Now it is used for weddings or the occasional gather place for folks like us. Continue reading PRV: Sunday In The Mountains
 This was an interesting book to read right after John Bright’s “The Kingdom of God“ and while listening to an audio version of World Visions USA president Richard Stearns‘ book “The Hole in Our Gospel.”
But before I get too far ahead of myself, let me summary the book real quick. Rome Sweet Home is the story of Scott and Kimberly Hahn‘s journey to Catholicism from their Presbyterian roots. The odd thing about their journey was that they were hard-core Protestant theologians schooled at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary (Scott – M.Div.; Kimberly – MA in Theology).
Their journey towards Catholicism started when they came to the realization that the Catholic Church had some good teachings on the issue of contraception. This knowledge shook up Scott as he had assumed that everything the Catholic Church taught was false. Being a scholar, he then spend several years researching and reading Catholic theology books before joining the church in 1986 (four years after the was ordained into the Presbyterian Church).
At first, Kimberly refused to follow him as she did not agree with a lot of the Catholic teachers. However in 1990, she officially joined the Catholic Church after a lot of prayer and studying.
All in all, Rome Sweet Home is a good book…yet there were a few things that…um….didn’t seem to fit right…or at least sit well with me. Continue reading Rome Sweet Home by Scott and Kimberly Hahn
 Its dull broken binding stood out among the shinny full-color books that covered the table. Leaning over the top of a plethora of self-help books, I pulled John Bright’s book “The Kingdom of God” out of the ink canyon.
A dusty order drifted up to my nose as I gently cracked its pages. Scanning the table of content, my mind wondered how this jewel found its way to the library used-book sale. Tearing my eyes away, I quickly scanned the table searching for a mate… sadly; the mountain of ink only relinquished one jewel that morning.
Yet, what a jewel.
Published in 1953, “The Kingdom of God” was written during that grand period in scholarship when everything was being unturned. The first bundle of the Dead Seas Scrolls had just been discovered, casting new light on last Second Temple Judaism. The time was dawning when the theologians would begin to recognize the cultural understanding of Jesus’ words in Mark 1:15, “The time has come; the kingdom of God is near. Repent and believe the good news!” Continue reading Mining the Ink Mountains
 I recently decided to forgo the typical aerosol can shaving cream and return to the old school method of lathering soap with a brush.
It is kinda strange I know to go ‘backwards’ in technology…but there were just a few items I could not get around:
- Packaging waste – I dislike waste and it seemed that each aerosol can contained more packaging waste then a small bar of saving soap. Or, to use different words, an aerosol can is made with metal of which there is a limited supply in the earth. Saving soap is wrapped in a thin cardboard box made of wood which is a renewable crop. Continue reading Shaving: Old School
It was a multicolored package holding an excellent sophomore album by Midtown Dickens’.
In fact, it held the album “Lanterns” in four different formats: vinyl, CD, digital download and printed words. (this way you can enjoy the songs anyway you want!)
Much happiness!
For those who don’t know, Midtown Dickens is a great [...]
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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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