This chapter carries on with the theme from yesterday, a consideration of the vessel or the treasure. The treasure is Christ, and the vessel is all the churchy stuff. The line from the chapter that sets up the problem well is “Christians are taught… that it is more important to be right than it isContinue reading “Renovation of the Heart in Daily Practice: Chapter 57”
Category Archives: Spiritual Devotions
Renovation of the Heart in Daily Practice: Chapter 56
In the grand scheme of things, good questions can alter our trajectory. The question for this chapter is, “Are we more concerned with the treasure or the vessel?” Church life can easily morph into be concerned with the vessel. We devote our thoughts to Sunday Mornings, Sunday School, age of music, camp, board meetings, roofContinue reading “Renovation of the Heart in Daily Practice: Chapter 56”
Renovation of the Heart in Daily Practice: Chapter 55
This chapter reminds us that the world is still in need of an ethical standard. The last 100 years have held to high ethical teaching and ironically some of the worst human behavior the world has ever seen. The terror of Idi Amin in Uganda, Hitlers’ fascist state (six million Jews, 7 million other ethnicContinue reading “Renovation of the Heart in Daily Practice: Chapter 55”
Renovation of the Heart in Daily Practice: Chapter 54
Again, another chapter in giving us some perspective on what growth looks like in our spiritual life. We spend a lot of time considering the physical development as new parents. What a baby looks like in the womb at each stage, norms of growth for the first few years etc… There is something familiar enoughContinue reading “Renovation of the Heart in Daily Practice: Chapter 54”
Renovation of the Heart in Daily Practice: Chapter 53
The title of the chapter gives us some direction…”What Children of Light are Like.” 1. No hesitation to do what’s right. It’s not a deliberation to possibly do what they know to be wrong. 2. Avoiding paths of temptation and poised to do right without thinking. Moral decisions have moved beyond knowing right/wrong and intoContinue reading “Renovation of the Heart in Daily Practice: Chapter 53”
Renovation of the Heart in Daily Practice: Chapter 52
I love big picture reminders. life can become a lot of myopic naval gazing. The chapter starts off with a great big picture moment… “According to the biblical picture, the function of human history is to bring forth an immense community of people from every nation, and tribe, and tongue, and people, who will beContinue reading “Renovation of the Heart in Daily Practice: Chapter 52”
Renovation of the Heart in Daily Practice: Chapter 51
Being a coach for many years you recognize the boundary lines that are drawn in the midst of rules. The field isn’t any size you want, the number of players on the field at any given point in time has a requirement. You can’t pick up the basketball and run with it, you have toContinue reading “Renovation of the Heart in Daily Practice: Chapter 51”
Renovation of the Heart in Daily Practice: Chapters 47-50
Happy Thanksgiving Week. I have accomplished a lot of work this week honestly, however, blogging here has not been one of those evidenced ways!! Chapter 47 points us to the text about the well-watered tree, producing its fruit in season. A well-attended heart lives in the same moment as this tree, able to withstand theContinue reading “Renovation of the Heart in Daily Practice: Chapters 47-50”
Renovation of the Heart in Daily Practice: Chapter 46
The title of today’s chapter is “Steps Toward Genuine Love” After all our consideration of what going on inside of us, what’s the result in terms of how we interact with others? The writer gives us several ideas… 1. See ourselves as being the whole people God is making us into. It’s easy to getContinue reading “Renovation of the Heart in Daily Practice: Chapter 46”
Renovation of the Heart in Daily Practice: Chapter 45
Today’s chapter is a continuation from yesterday concerning this passive/aggressive way of interaction that we tend to have with each other. I appreciate the way in which it is laid out as it mentions parents who live that way in front of their children, and the implications it has as outcomes for them. It startsContinue reading “Renovation of the Heart in Daily Practice: Chapter 45”
Truth, Grace, and Time 