the cost of conversion - thoughts from Rosaria Butterfield

Last year (2012), I read Rosaria Butterfield's amazing autobiography, The Secret Thoughts of An Unlikely Convert. I should note that I strongly disagree with some of her theological convictions (on baptism, corporate worship, etc.) and some of her personal opinions. But overall I think the book is profoundly insightful and challenging in ways that overshadow the things I disagree with.

Here are some of her reflections on the nature and experience of conversion:

"Conversion put me in a complicated and comprehensive chaos. I sometimes wonder, when I hear other Christians pray for the salvation of the 'lost,' if they realize that this comprehensive chaos is the desired end of such prayers."

"Making a life commitment to Christ was not merely a philosophical shift. It was not a one-step process. It did not involve rearranging the surface prejudices and fickle loyalties of my life. Conversion didn’t 'fit' my life. Conversion overhauled my soul and personality."

A church built on consumerism will inevitably focus more on meeting demand than making disciples.

the local church as an embassy from the future

"Think about the local church as an embassy from the future. It's a formally constituted gathering of Spirit-indwelt kingdom citizens who proclaim and display Christ's end-time rule...these eschatological embassies on earth, spread out like pins on a map, should be characterized by an unworldly culture. It's not defined by sushi, cricket, or burqas, but by the habits of holiness and love and the ambassadorial work of discipling, evangelism, hospitality, and caring for the needy." Jonathan Leeman

I think we desperately need to deepen and expand our understanding of what the local church really is. It's pretty amazing.

resolve to send the day into eternity - adoniram judson

“A life once spent is irrevocable. It will remain to be contemplated through eternity…The same may be said of each day. When it is once past, it is gone forever. All the marks which we put upon it, it will exhibit forever…Each day will not only be a witness of our conduct, but will affect our everlasting destiny…How shall we then wish to see each day marked with usefulness?! It is too late to mend the days that are past. The future is in our power. Let us, then, each morning, resolve to send the day into eternity in such a garb as we shall wish it to wear forever. And at night let us reflect that one more day is irrevocably gone, indelibly marked."  

Adoniram Judson, quoted in The Life of Adoniram Judson by Edward Judson, pp.14-15

"Are you building the church or building your career?" Mark Dever to pastors

From a message called "Centrality of the Church in Disciple-Making" given at the 2013 Desiring God Pastors Conference

Christians enjoy feeling convicted

“I see a trend in many churches where people are beginning to enjoy convicting sermons. They walk out feeling broken over their sin. The distorted part is that they can begin to feel victorious in their sadness. They boast, ‘I just heard the most convicting message, and it ruined me!’ The focus is on the conviction itself and not the change it is meant to produce—change that doesn’t necessarily follow when we stay focused on conviction. Guilt is not always a good thing. It is only good if it leads us past sorrow to the joy of repentance.” Francis Chan

"Technique is a terrible substitute for the presense of God." Darren Patrick

an honest preacher's prayer

"Lord, by your Spirit, may your people hear a better sermon than the one I am about to preach." (@RevKevDeYoung)

When Preachers Suffer From Pulpit Anxiety

Unbelievable how accurate this is lol: http://www.churchleaders.com/pastors/pastor-articles/164797-jeremy-linneman-preachers-suffer-pulpit-anxiety.html

takes work to be concise

“If you want me to speak for two minutes, it will take me three weeks of preparation. If you want me to speak for thirty minutes, it will take me a week to prepare. If you want me to speak for an hour, I am ready now.” 

Winston Churchill

pastors should always be writing

Pastor Peter Schemm published a recent article in the Themelios Journal that encourages pastors to practice writing as a private spiritual discipline. He lays out six benefits of consistent writing (specifically for pastors but they apply to Christians in general):

1. Writing helps to deepen the mind.
2. Writing helps to clarify and refine your thinking.
3. Writing helps us to find a suitable pace of life.
4. Writing well requires quiet and solitude, both necessary in developing a healthy soul.
5. Writing (i.e. copying) Scripture helps us to meditate on Scripture.
6. Writing our prayers helps to make our prayer lives more meaningful.

I love writing as a way of communing with God. Unfortunately, it requires a discipline and quietness that I struggle to maintain.

Your inadequacy is one of God's favorite tools in accomplishing His purposes (Exodus 3; Jeremiah 1; 2 Cor. 12).

the church and the reign of Jesus

“The Church is, quite simply, the community ahead of time, the community that acknowledges now what one day will be acknowledged by all.  As ambassadors of a disputed sovereignty, we propose a claim that awaits a future and cosmic vindication.  For those who accept that claim, it is already vindicated by faith.  For them, the future is now.”  

- Richard John Neuhaus, Death on a FridayAfternoon

humility and pride in preaching

I read a little parable about a young Scottish minister who walked proudly into the pulpit to preach his first sermon. Not sure where the story comes from but it's such a great reminder!

This young Scottish minister had a brilliant mind and a good education and was confident of himself as he faced his first congregation. But the longer he preached, the more conscious everyone was that “the Lord was not in the wind.” He finished his message quickly and came down from the pulpit with his head bowed, his pride now gone. Afterward, one of the members said to him, 

“If you had gone into the pulpit the way you came down, you might have come down from the pulpit the way you went up.”

On Pins & Needles: How Churched People Often Feel About Christianity [dope song]

Mute Math has quickly become one of my favorite bands. A great blend of seemingly boundless creativity,  outstanding musicianship, and penetrating lyrics. Not to mention a downright transcendent live show. In short, this band is SICK!

This particular song, I think, expresses how so many (especially young) people feel who grew up in church. The song is a mix of disillusionment, doubt, and a burgeoning realization that there's something better than burdensome religion.

My favorite line is "I'm growing fond of broken people as I see that I am one of them." I think the early Christian leader, the Apostle Paul, could probably have made this song the soundtrack of his life leading up to his conversion.

This song screams for the Gospel.

Would love your thoughts.

Paper-thin conviction

Turning another page

Plotting how to build myself to be

Everything that I am not at all

Sometimes I get tired of pins and needles

Facades are a fire on the skin

And I'm growing fond of broken people

As I see that I am one of them

Oh, why must I work so hard

Just so I can feel like the noble ones?

Obligations to my heart are gone

Superficial lines explain it all

Sometimes I get tired of pins and needles

Facades are a fire on the skin

Oh, I'm growing fond of broken people

As I see that I am one of them