to make it feel like i'm at least accomplishing something, since i can't really relax in the comfort of my own room/home, i've been watching videos from a q&a session on theological topics with greg boyd, mostly. a few of them, he was joined by paul eddy. anyhow, it's been interesting to see their take on some of the key theological questions that face us everyday, and have plagued our churches for centuries. many of the questions are easily answered when we stop taking the bible out of context and begin to read it as an entire work.. an entire work revealing the character of God. individual passages (mostly because they are stripped of context) do not offer us the entire picture.. they provide only a glimpse at who God truly is. imagine looking at God through as clear of a picture as we can possibly get, using all of Scripture, rather than through a magnifying glass, only using a single passage or small group of passages to overanalyze a point to death.. the entire time, not ever having an accurate understanding of the nature of God as a whole. how much more beneficial and worthwhile it would be to actually worship God based on how He has revealed Himself to us through creation and through Scripture!
btw.. i guess i should add, if anyone has any questions about specific issues or what i'm talking about, i'd love to dialogue with you and point you toward any and all resources i know on the issue. in fact, thats precisely what we as Christians are called to do.. share our faith, whether to believers or unbelievers. our faith and humility before God should always be on constant display.
the course i'm taking this week is "church evangelism" and tomorrow, we're going into the gentilly area (the neighborhood just around campus) and witness to people, using something as simple as a 9v battery for their smoke detectors as a starting point for much more meaningful dialogue about the salvation and grace found in Jesus Christ. it should be an interesting, but very rewarding and humbling experience. i pray that God will use our efforts not only as an educational tool, but also to make a difference in the lives of the people we will come into contact with, as well as making a difference in our own lives.. causing us to have a greater appreciation for God's people in order that we would share the incredible news of the Gospel much more often and much more passionately!
...so i never intended this blog to be a preaching tool or whatever, but thats where God wanted it to go tonight it seems. aside from all that i've just shared, life is going great. there are a lot of exciting trips and events coming up this summer that i'm really eager for. we've been working a lot on the vbs skit and i'm really excited about it. it came together very last minute, but i think its coming together extremely well! then theres the college trip to daytona, worship leader conference in kansas city, family vacation to boston, and a potential trip to lexington to visit a good friend. prior to the daytona trip, there may be the opportunity for a few of us college aged students to do a missions project for a week prior in florida. hopefully it will all come together, but more on that later.
farewell friends. much love.
-- trenticus
