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A Resource by Mark D. Roberts |
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Year in Review
January through April 2007
by Rev. Dr. Mark D. Roberts
Copyright © 2007 by Mark D. Roberts
Note: You may download this resource at no cost, for personal use or for use in a Christian ministry, as long as you are not publishing it for sale. All I ask is that you give credit where credit is due. For all other uses, please contact me at mark@markdroberts.com . Thank you.
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| Miscellany |
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| YOU are Time's Person of the Year?!?!?! |
Jan 5, 2007 |
| "Hope for Peace" in 2007 |
Jan 1, 2007 |
Christmas According to Dickens (2006)  |
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| What Transforms Us? The Example of Ebenezer Scrooge (Section B) |
Jan 4, 2007 |
| What Transforms Us? The Example of Ebenezer Scrooge |
Jan 3, 2007 |
| Evidence of a Transformed Life: Stave 5 |
Jan 2, 2007 |
| Christmas Inspiration |
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| Christmas inspiration from The Daily Psalm. |
Dec 31, 2006 |
| Posts by Other Bloggers, News Items, etc. |
On Faith with Newsweek and the Washington Post
Newsweek and the Washington Post have begun a fascinating new website called On Faith. Under the leadership of John Meacham and Sally Quinn, On Faith has gathered an impressive and diverse bunch of religious leaders and scholars from a wide range of faith perspectives (not just Christian, or even theistic). To these panelists Meacham and Quinn pose questions such as the current one: What was your own most formative religious experience, if you had one? The answers are well worth reading. Consider the diversity of these responses from: John Shelby Spong, Richard Land, Desmond Tutu, Miroslav Volf, John Dominic Crossan. It's also fascinating to read the comments. (HT: Hugh Hewitt) |
| Hilarious Jesus Videos |
In 2003, Vintage21, a church in Raleigh, North Carolina, produced four video clips on Jesus. The video is from what appears to be some old Sunday School film. The audio is obviously newly dubbed. The videos are clever, quite hilarious, really. They're a great spoof on ways many of us envision Jesus. Of the four videos, #3 is my favorite. You can see it by clicking on the picture to the right. For the others, click here:
Video #1
Video #2
Video #4 |
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| Start Here, Don Williams, and the Kingdom of God |
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| Some Excerpts from Start Here |
Jan 12, 2007 |
| Some Major Strengths of Start Here |
Jan 10, 2007 |
| The Kingdom of God Among Evangelical Christians |
Jan 9, 2007 |
| Start Here: Kingdom Essentials for Christians |
Jan 8, 2007 |
| Inspiration |
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| Thursday Inspiration from The Daily Psalm |
Jan 11, 2007 |
| Sunday Inspiration from Pray the Gospels |
Jan 7, 2007 |
| Posts by Other Bloggers, News Items, etc. |
On Faith with Newsweek and the Washington Post
I linked to this site last week. It continues to be a site not to be missed. |
Amazing Pictures from Mexico
Check out Tod Bolsinger's amazing pictures from his recent trip to Mexico. You then have my permission to drool with envy all over your keyboard. |
| My Second Shot at YouTube |
| Here's my second shot at a YouTube video. It's a short clip describing another great hike in Zion National Park. This time I'm going up Angels Landing. (My other video was about hiking up the Narrows of Zion.) |
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| How Does God Guide Us? |
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| Guidance Through Circumstances (Section A) |
Jan 19, 2007 |
| Guidance from the Holy Spirit |
Jan 18, 2007 |
| Spirit Guide Silliness |
Jan 17, 2007 |
| How Does God Guide Us? Introduction |
Jan 16, 2007 |
| Miscellany |
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| I Have a Dream |
Jan 15, 2007 |
| Inspiration |
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| Sunday Inspiration from Pray the Gospels. |
Jan 14, 2007 |
| Posts by Other Bloggers, News Items, etc. |
John Mark Reynolds Takes on Harvard
In a recent post, John Mark Reynolds, philosopher extraordinaire, takes on my alma mater for rejecting the educational relevance of religion. A fine post. |
House Churches are More Satisfying
A recent Barna Group survey finds that house churches are more satisfying than traditional churches. Check out the data and figure out what it means! |
| One More YouTube |
| Here's my third shot at putting up a YouTube video. In this 29 second clip called "Turning Washington DC Upside Down," my daughter and I offer up some political commentary . . . sort of. |
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| HowDoes God Guide Us? |
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| Guidance Through Community (Section A) |
Jan 26, 2007 |
| Guidance Through Scripture (Section C) |
Jan 25, 2007 |
| Guidance Through Scripture (Section B) |
Jan 24, 2007 |
| Guidance Through Scripture (Section A) |
Jan 23, 2007 |
| Guidance Through Circumstances (Section B) |
Jan 22, 2007 |
| Inspiration |
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| Sunday Inspiration from Pray the Gospels. |
Jan 21, 2007 |
| Posts by Other Bloggers, News Items, etc. |
On Faith Asks About Faith and Politics and Elections
On Faith, one of my favorite blogs, asks this key question: As the presidential campaign begins to take shape, do you think it is appropriate and or important for the candidates to express their personal religious views and to use religious rhetoric? Why? |
Are You an E-Word?
Scot McKnight weighs in on the question of what is an "evangelical" and does this word still matter. |
BetterWebSearch
BetterWebSearch is a new Web search tool. It's especially useful for families, because it has some built in screening of images. Check out the Kid(Re)Search tool. |
| Segerstrom Hall |
| Check out this photo of Segerstrom Concert Hall, the newest addition to the Orange County arts scene. This is an amazing building, with an unusual acoustical flexibility. I attended a concert there in December, and the sound was fantastic. |
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| HowDoes God Guide Us? |
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| Guidance through Community (Section B) |
Jan 29, 2007 |
| Guidance through Reason |
Jan 30, 2007 |
| Guidance through Dreams and Visions |
Jan 31, 2007 |
| Guidance through Divine Whispering (Section A) |
Feb 1, 2007 |
| Guidance through Divine Whispering (Section B) |
Feb 2, 2007 |
| Inspiration |
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| Sunday Inspiration from Pray the Gospels. |
Jan 28, 2007 |
| Posts by Other Bloggers, News Items, etc. |
On Faith Asks About Prayer
On Faith, one of my favorite blogs, asks this key question: Against the backdrop of the annual National Prayer Breakfast being held this week, we consider: ‘What is prayer? Do you pray? If so to whom and for what?’ |
Hearing the Voice of God
Ben Witherington, a leading New Testament scholar and man of solid faith talks about his experience of hearing God's voice. This fits wonderfully with my current series on divine guidance. |
BetterWebSearch
BetterWebSearch is a new Web search tool. It's especially useful for families, because it has some built in screening of images. Check out the Kid(Re)Search tool. |
| Malibu Creek State Park |
| This past week I went on a hike through Malibu Creek State Park in Southern California. It was beautiful and secluded. You can see in the picture to the right what the foothill areas look like in the winter: plenty of evergreens on the mountains, but the grasses are dry and many trees drop their leaves, even in California. If you were to climb to the top of those hills in the background, you'd see the ocean nearby. |
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| How Does God Guide Us? |
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| Confirming the Spirit's Guidance (Section B) |
Feb 9, 2007 |
| Confirming the Spirit's Guidance (Section A) |
Feb 8, 2007 |
| Divine Guidance and Spiritual Direction |
Feb 7, 2007 |
| Developing an Ear to Hear the Holy Spirit (Section B) |
Feb 6, 2007 |
| Developing an Ear to Hear the Holy Spirit (Section A) |
Feb 5, 2007 |
| Inspiration |
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| Sunday Inspiration from Pray the Gospels. |
Feb 4, 2007 |
| Posts by Other Bloggers, News Items, etc. |
The Booze Didn't Make You Do It
Chuck Colson comments on the recent tendency to excuse immoral behavior by claiming to be a victim of alcoholism. |
Review of Philip Jenkins, The New Faces of Christianity: Believing the Bible in the Global South, by Douglas Groothuis
Here's a trenchant review of a crucial new book. About this book, Professor Doug Groothuis writes: "This important book deserves much more discussion, since Jenkins covers so much ground so provocatively." |
Episcopal Church's New Dawn???
USA Today's story on the new Episcopal Presiding Bishop, Katharine Jefferts Schori, includes some troubling quotes. I'm more worried about the future of the Episcopal Church today than I was yesterday, after having read this. And I say this as a member of a fairly dysfuncational denomination with plenty of its own problems. |
| Malibu Creek State Park: A Confusing Sign |
| Okay, so is the Visitor Center open, or closed, or . . . . As far as I know, it's impossible for something to be opened and closed at the same time. So . . . ? |
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| Miscellany |
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| The
Joys of Nature: Texas Style |
Feb 23, 2007 |
| How Lent
Can Make a Difference in Your Relationship with God |
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| How
Lent Can Make a Difference in Your Relationship with God |
Feb 22, 2007 |
| Ash
Wednesday: Practice and Meaning |
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| Staring
Death in the Face |
Feb 21, 2007 |
| Dust
in the Wind? |
Feb 20, 2007 |
| What
is Ash Wednesday? |
Feb 19, 2007 |
| Inspiration |
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| Sunday
Inspiration from Pray the Gospels. |
Feb 18, 2007 |
| Posts by Other Bloggers,
News Items, etc. |
Hasten
Slowly
Tod Bolsinger offers timely wisdom on Lent. Hurry up and read it. Or, well,
maybe not. |
| What a Sunset! |
| If you've been
visiting my website for a while, you know I love sunsets.
While in the Hill Country of Texas last week I saw one of
the most brilliant sunsets ever. The picture to the right
hardly does it justice, but it least it gives you the general
idea. |
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| Why Veritas? |
| Veritas is the "post-modern" worship
service at my church. If you want to know why folks go to
this service, check out the video to the right. |
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| Zion National
Park |
| I was recently
at a retreat near Zion National Park. This is one of the
most beautiful and awe-inspiring places in the country. The
picture to the right shows some of the contrasting colors
in the rock formations of Zion Canyon. In the background
is the Great White Throne. To the right is Angels Landing.
If you're ever anywhere near southern Utah, be sure to visit
Zion. |
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| Miscellany |
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| A
Whale of a Sight |
Mar 16, 2007 |
| A
Sad Loss for Orange County |
Mar 15, 2007 |
| An
Even More Inconvenient Truth |
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| Love
Your Enemies: Political Implications (Section B) |
Mar 14, 2007 |
| Love
Your Enemies: Political Implications (Section A) |
Mar 13, 2007 |
| Words
to Weigh |
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| Rick
Warren on Preaching and on the Church's Choice |
Mar 12, 2007 |
| Inspiration |
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| Sunday
Inspiration from Pray the Gospels |
Mar 11, 2007 |
| Posts by Other Bloggers,
News Items, etc. |
Richard
Mouw on Theocracy
Dr. Richard Mouw, President of Fuller Theological Seminary, is one of my
favorite thinkers, writers, and speakers. In a recent blog post he weighs
in on theocracy with typically wise and unexpected insights. |
The
Dawkins Confusion
Philosopher Alvin Plantinga offers a critique of The God Delusion by
Richard Dawkins. |
The
Ten Commandments for Blog Commenting
Ben Witherington has put up a new set of ten commandments, these have to
do with how one comments on his site. I'd say "Amen" to these
commandments, except, as a Presbyterian, I don't say "Amen" except
at the end of a prayer. |
| A Surprising
Sign in Utah . . . |
| During a recent
trip to Utah, I noticed a sign that caught my eye. It was
for Polygamy Porter. Yes, indeed. The Wasatch
Brew Pub in Park City, Utah, brews and bottles Polygamy
Porter, with the catchy subtitle: Why Have Just One!
The folks at Wasatch Brewery have lots of other intriguing
beers, including "Evolution
Amber Ale." I didn't try the beer, but I liked the
titles. Of course Mormons aren't supposed to practice polygamy or drink
beer, so I'm not sure how well Polygamy Porter will do
in Utah. |
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| The
Stations of the Cross |
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| The
Third Station: Jesus is Condemned by the Sanhedrin |
Mar 23, 2007 |
| The
Second Station: Jesus, Betrayed by Judas, is Arrested |
Mar 22, 2007 |
| The
First Station: Jesus on the Mount of Olives |
Mar 21, 2007 |
| The
Stations of the Cross: Introduction |
Mar 20, 2007 |
| Lent
Makes a Difference |
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| Reflections
of Fasting in Lent |
Mar 19, 2007 |
| Inspiration |
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| Sunday
Inspiration from The Daily Psalm |
Mar 18, 2007 |
| Posts by Other Bloggers,
News Items, etc. |
Striking Developments in the PCUSA
If you're a regular visitor to my website, you know that I'm often putting
up bad news about my denomination, the Presbyterian Church USA. But recent
developments in key staffing areas have been startling . . . not as bad
news, but as good news.
First, the General Assembly Council (denominational big-wigs) selected
the Rev.
Tom Taylor for the crucial position of Deputy Executive Director
for Mission. Taylor is an outspoken through irenic evangelical Christian,
and a graduate of Yale Divinity School and Fuller Seminary.
Then, the GAC named the Rev.
Eric Hoey as the Director of the Evangelism and Church Growth program
area. Hoey, like Taylor, most recently served in Southern California,
and is a strong evangelical leader. In fact, he is a graduate of Talbot
Theological Seminary, a seminary considered to be even more conservative
than Fuller.
Then, the GAC voted to adopt "a new emphasis on traditional evangelism," according
to the Presbyterian News Service. What does this mean? It means that
we will seek to lead non-Christians to saving faith in Jesus Christ.
(Fancy that!)
I don't mean to suggest that everything in denomination is hunky-dory.
Far from it. But it's striking to see some positive signs in the PCUSA. |
John
Piper on Hearing God Through Scripture
Here is a moving and challenging piece on hearing the words of God through
Scripture. Though I am not quite so troubled as Piper is by the phenomenon
of "hearing" extra-biblical words of God, I profoundly resonate
with his call to hear the words of God in Scripture. This is the very thing
I'm seeking to encourage in my devotional websites: The
Daily Psalm and Pray
the Gospels. Like Piper, I can attest to the joy of hearing God speak
through His inspired Word. |
| An Amazing Hike |
| If you're ever
near southern Utah, I recommend a trip to Zion National Park.
And if you're even in Zion National Park, I recommend that
you take a fantastic hike up to the top of Angels Landing
(unless you're afraid of heights!). The hike starts at the
bottom of the canyon and ends up at the top of sheer Angels
Landing. There are chains for safety where the drop offs
are steep. For more info, check out my YouTube
video. |
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| Palm Sunday
as You've Never Seen It Before |
| This Sunday
is Palm Sunday, the day when Christians remember Jesus's
entry into Jerusalem. A few years ago my son and his friends
used their Legos to do an entire Holy Week display. Here's
the Palm Sunday scene. Jesus has a stylish hat, don't you
think. (If you haven't seen it before the Lego
Church is a wonder.) |
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