Viral Faith

Human cry provokes divine resolve      -Walter Brueggemann Remember, dear brothers and sisters, that few of you were wise in the world’s eyes or powerful or wealthy when God called you. 27  Instead, God chose things the world considers foolish in order to shame those who think they are wise. And he chose things that are powerless to shame those who are powerful (I Corinthians 1:26-27) Throughout the Biblical record, God reveals His Character, will, and His way to humanity and humanity seeks to respond to God's revelation.  This narrative covers the distant past to the conclusion of time in the future.  There are many themes that can be seen consistently through Scripture and amplified through the person of Jesus Christ.  Scripture tells us that God spoke to prophets, but ultimately spoke most clearly through Jesus Christ (Heb 1:1-2).  Jesus, is not a representative of God, but the "exact representation of His being".  The Apo...

"The Spirit who inhabits us is not mute, restricting himself to an occasional nudge, a hot flash, a brilliant image or a case of goose bumps."           -Dallas Willard in Hearing God I am the good shepherd; I know my own sheep, and they know me, just as my Father knows me and I know the Father. So I sacrifice my life for the sheep. I have other sheep, too, that are not in this sheepfold. I must bring them also. They will listen to my voice, and there will be one flock with one shepherd.   John 10:14-16 NLT One of the most misunderstood roles of pastoral ministry is that of leading congregational discernment.  This is Biblical practice of seeking direction and vision from God.  Even just reading this, causes some leaders discomfort because we have been taught that to seek this kind of direct communication from God is far too mystical for contemporary followers of Jesus.  It is best left to the "few" who we (the church) oft...