something beautiful » misc

Competition: Win Come Let Us Adore Him by the Lower Lights

headphonaught — Mon, 02 Jan 2012 21:08:01 +0000

Hey everyone… I hope you enjoyed our Christmas ‘nines’? It really came together and I am grateful to everyone who contributed to the episode. It would be wrong for me to single out any particular contribution… because there was a real synergy effect in action.

That said… I do want to pay tribute to music of The Lower Lights. I was bowled over when they allowed us to use their music on the show. I am a huge fan of their rootsy folk sound and it really was the icing on the cake when they said “yes”… via the wonder of Twitter.

I really love their latest album… Come let us adore Him… it combines their timeless sound with the joy and anticipation of Christmas. I do get annoyed when we only sing carols in Advent… consider the sheer power of the lyrics to “O holy night” for example:

Truly He taught us to love one another, His law is love and His gospel is peace.
Chains he shall break, for the slave is our brother. And in his name all oppression shall cease.

It really doesn’t get any better than that… in my opinion.

Anyway… due to an administrative error… I’ve ended up with two copies of Come let us adore Him and have been given permission by the band themselves to give one away… rather than return it to them… which is wonderfully generous of them.

So… it’s competition time!!!

To enter… please visit the Bandcamp page for Come let us adore Him and pick your favourite song from the thirteen songs on the album. Leave a comment on this page with the name of your fave Christmas song, as sung by the band, and give us a reason why. The person who leaves the best reason why… by midday (GMT) on Saturday (7th January 2012)… will win the CD.

I hope that makes sense? While you are there… please take the time to check out their other albums: A hymn revival is particularly strong… and please do what you can to support grassroots independent music in all its wonder flavours.

Thomas

Competition: Win Come Let Us Adore Him by the Lower Lights is a post from: something beautiful

something beautiful is powered by WordPress and HostGator.

What e-books would you buy?

jdblundell — Mon, 28 Nov 2011 17:48:50 +0000

With the holiday season upon us – many people are making their gift lists and checking it twice.

And with Amazon’s Kindle line getting an upgrade this year, many people will be joining the e-reader ranks this holiday season and looking for new books to read.

So we’re curious.

If you had $50 to spend on Kindle books – what would you buy?

What stories have captured your imagination?

What books have brought you to new understandings of faith, God and life?

What are those books you’ll never part with?

Take a look at the Kindle selections and let us know in the comments – what Kindle books would you’d buy with $50 to spend?

What e-books would you buy? is a post from: something beautiful

something beautiful is powered by WordPress and HostGator.

Exposure to the sun

headphonaught — Fri, 26 Aug 2011 20:59:01 +0000

One of the things I learned on holiday was how much I enjoyed sitting in the sun… reading on my Kindle or listening to music on my iPod.

Previously I always considered myself an on-the-go person on holiday. Last year, when we went to Paris as a family I walked the legs off Olly and the we’ans. We had an all-you-can-eat Metro ticket but I had more fun walking from site to site. Part of me is glad we did… and part of me regrets it.

So it came as a bit of a surprise to me to discover actually how much I loved being on the beach or sitting by the pool.

Part of this enjoyment was feeling the sun on my skin. Don’t worry… I was decent. I’m not the type of person to walk around wearing ’budgie smugglers’… that’s not my style… but I did get a tan.

I read later of the benefits of Vitamin D and how we’ve become so scared of skin cancer that we’ve become terribly deficient in this essential building block.

That’s for another debate… and please appreciate I’m not condoning long exposure to the sun. Albeit I thoroughly enjoyed it and have benefited from the Vit D stored in my fat and muscles (more fat than muscles).

I believe I have benefited from direct exposure to the sun. I don’t believe there are health benefits to be had in exposing ourselves to tanning beds or pretending to be sun-kissed with fake tans etc… the only benefit comes from one-to-one exposure to the sun.

What’s more… I can’t gain anything from someone who has been exposed to the sun. I can’t get a tan from them… I can only get it for myself.

I used this analogy when talking to my friends Paul and Ovi on Wednesday passed. We were discussing theology and some of the awesome work Ovi is doing in Glasgow.

I made mention of my desire to help people to learn how to think. I am no longer interested in telling people what to think. My focus has moved from ’what’ to ’how’. This is especially important when it comes to theology.

Recently a ’prophetic christian’ (his definition not mine) told friends of mine not to invest in ’Harry Potter’ because it trivialised witchcraft. One friend in particular was upset by this and asked my advice. I went back to her and described the Deathly Hallows…

“for love to win, the hero must die for his friends. In doing so, he is resurrected and can defeat evil forever.”

I then said… did it sound familiar?

JK Rowling has gone on record and spoken about the Christian allegory within her series… what then is more important? The spurious claim that the books are trivialising witchcraft or the more substantial claim that her books point, in part, to the Yeshua story?

Please don’t take my word for it… but look it up for yourself. That’s my point… I desperately want people to think for themselves… to have the discernment that comes from engaging directly with Abba through prayer and study of the bible.

In short, I want to see followers of Yeshua who have tans through exposure to ’the sun’.

This exposure, as discussed above, only comes through direct exposure. Just as we can’t get a tan off of someone else… neither should we seek to gain our knowledge and experience of Abba through other people… we should seek it for ourselves.

We have the ability to have a one-to-one relationship with Abba… through Yeshua… and we would be foolish not to take it and instead ’outsource’ our thinking to ’trusted parties’… including me. Don’t take my word for it… do your own research… and think for yourself. Go with what Abba guides… not what the crowd demands.

What’s more… let’s stop pretending to have a tan and go out and get one. Fakes look awful anyway. It may be uncomfortable to start with and we may get burned but… the benefits of regular exposure are worth it in the long run.

Think about it.

Exposure to the sun is a post from: something beautiful

something beautiful is powered by WordPress and HostGator.

Sleeping through demonstrations of Abba’s power

headphonaught — Thu, 11 Aug 2011 18:38:33 +0000

I was recently in a beach resort just north of Venice in Northern Italy called Lido Di Jesolo. It’s a beautiful place and my family and I had a wonderful time there.

During the second week there was a massive thunder and lightning storm… which change the weather from comfortably late 20s / early 30s with low humidity to late 30s with higher humidity. The change was noticeable.

I knew there was a storm because the family were woken at 3am to the loudest crack of thunder imaginable. We then sat up and watched an amazing show consisting of both sheet and forked lightning along with some tremendous rumbles and cracks of thunder… underpinned by the sound of torrential rain. I tried to take a photo of the lightning but failed miserably… but Olly managed to get some of the ’show’ on her videocamera. It really was something special.

The thing is… the next day at breakfast we discovered fellow holidaymakers who had slept through the whole thing. Their only clue that something had occurred was the rain and the change in conditions the following morning.

This got me thinking of all the people who miss Abba working in and around them.

Abba is moving in your place… in your space… in your time… and there are people who are asleep to His working. They may see the signs but don’t get the wondrous vision of His power at work. I think this is a real pity.

Abba is moving and the vigilant have the opportunity to get behind what He is doing… to be part of His glorious mission.

We see so much that is detrimental… all the time. The English Riots in recent days have had me glued to the BBC News. Watching people demonstrate the very worst of human behaviour… looting… thoughtless destruction… reckless violence.

If this was all that I saw, I would be utterly depressed and angry too… but it wasn’t. I saw the beneficial too: people coming together to protect their communities… people coming together to clean up after the riots and to provide refreshments for the Police and Emergency Services.

It isn’t always obvious where Abba is working… but He is working… and we need to be vigilant.

I guess that’s why I love this podcast and why it has lasting so long… people showing where Abba has worked and is working in their lives and in their places/spaces.

In the days we live in… where the detrimental always seems to get more play than the beneficial… it is refreshing to hear uplifting stories that fully articulate Abba’s love and power in action.

So let us not sleep through His working… but remain vigilant and aware… so we see His power in action and can play our parts… being the men and women who Abba wants us to be.

My sincere thanks to JD, Travis, Johnny and Stewart for keeping the momentum going. We are always looking for stories that we can tell… and new voices willing to share. Get in touch if you have something to share or think of someone we could talk with.

Sleeping through demonstrations of Abba’s power is a post from: something beautiful

something beautiful is powered by WordPress and HostGator.

Splash

jdblundell — Tue, 19 Jul 2011 21:48:02 +0000

Tampa Bay Sunshine Skyway Bridge | Photo by John Picken

The Sunshine Skyway bridge spans the mouth of Tampa Bay on the west coast of Florida. It carries thousands of cars everyday. It’s also become one of the top ten places to end your life. This is the story of the many who jumped, one lucky guy who survived, and how broken bones and a collapsed lung made him a new man.

A story of death, rebirth and redemption.

Listen on PRX.com

If you’re hurting, or need someone to talk to – know that it gets better.

Take a moment and ask for help – 1-800-273-8255 (National Suicide Prevention Lifeline)

Splash is a post from: something beautiful

something beautiful is powered by WordPress and HostGator.

All is Grace – Brennan Manning

jdblundell — Mon, 20 Jun 2011 14:57:51 +0000

All is Grace - Brennan Manning | Image via David C Cook

A new trailer has been released for an upcoming memoir by Brennan Manning:

From the publisher:

It has been over twenty years since the publication of The Ragamuffin Gospel, a book many claim as the shattering of God’s grace into their lives. Since that time, Brennan Manning has been dazzingly faithful in preaching and writing variations on that singular theme – “Yes, Abba is very fond of you!”
But today the crowds are gone and the lights are dim, the patches on his knees have faded. If he ever was a ragamuffin, truly it is now. In this his final book, Brennan roves back his past, honoring the lives of the people closest to him, family and friends who’ve known the saint and the sinner, the boy and the man. Far from some chronological timeline, these memories are witness to the truth of life by one who has lived it – All Is Grace.

I’ve often been blown away by the words of Brennan Manning so I’m really looking forward to this look at his life — in his own words.

As mentioned above, Brennan wrote (several years before before Love Wins):

The love of God for man is, “A union that not only transcends every political, social, cultural and religious consideration and not only infuses them with ultimate meaning, but defines the very purpose of life itself.”
“For His love is never, never, never based on our performance, never conditioned by our moods — of elation or depression. The furious love of God knows no shadow of alteration or change. It is reliable. And always tender.”

It’s a message the world needs to hear.

It’s a message I need to hear.

And it’s a message we’ve been invited to share with the world.

But until we really grab hold of it ourselves, we’ll continually struggle in sharing it with anyone else.

The book is set to release in October 2011. But you can pre-order it today on Amazon.

Until then – how have you seen this deep, deep love of God in your own life?

All is Grace – Brennan Manning is a post from: something beautiful

something beautiful is powered by WordPress and HostGator.

Serving rather than being served

headphonaught — Tue, 31 May 2011 20:50:35 +0000

I went with my wife and two daughters to see “Thor” yesterday. It’s a great film… imho… with a strong story underpinning a visual treat.

To cut a long story short… for those of you that haven’t seen the film… Thor is banished to Earth for causing trouble and has to, in essence, get over himself… get rid of his arrogance and pride… before he can regain his position as the Son of Odin and Heir to the throne.

There are two scenes that signify this transformation:

In the first one (before he “gets it”) he is in a diner and demands to be served… by smashing, as was his custom, his cup on the floor.
In the second one (after he “gets it”) he is seen serving his companions breakfast… a breakfast he made himself.

The transformation is apparent… the served has become the server.

When we consider our spiritual expression… this is a prime example of someone “dying to self”. No longer are we concerned with what we can gain… we put our neighbour before ourselves and seek to serve them.

This isn’t some “pie in the sky” philosophy or political ideal… this is the life we are called to. This is the plan the God invites us to participate in.

I always remember a wee acronym I learned as a bairn in Sunday School. The secret of JOY is…

Jesus first… Yourself last… and Others in-between (and… noticeably… before you)

Ask yourself this… is serving others in the centre of all I seek to do? Or do I want my neighbours to serve me?

This is a vitally important question… it’s the difference between merely living and living a life in all it’s fulness.

So with this in mind… please share the more innovative things you are doing in your spaces and places to serve others.

Serving rather than being served is a post from: something beautiful

something beautiful is powered by WordPress and HostGator.

The Crucifixion According to Radiohead

headphonaught — Tue, 24 May 2011 19:54:57 +0000

I found this video from Scott Erikson very moving and wanted to share it with you. In it artist Scott Erickson combines video, the music of Radiohead and his engaging painting to create a multimedia meditative art performance focusing on the crucifixion of Christ.

Click here to view the embedded video.

For more detail, please head over to create visual culture.

The Crucifixion According to Radiohead is a post from: something beautiful

something beautiful is powered by WordPress and HostGator.

Rowan Williams and the stories of CS Lewis

jdblundell — Mon, 02 May 2011 15:52:42 +0000

Rowan Williams | Via WikiCommons

Rowan Williams, Archbishop of Canterbury, gave three lectures this year as part of his annual Holy Week series — each dedicated on the work of CS Lewis and his Chronicles of Narnia.

This year, Dr Williams, a Narnia fan, has turned his attention to the Christian themes found in the Narnia novels. Dr Williams explained: “The Narnia books of C.S. Lewis continue to intrigue and inspire many, and the recent very successful films have shown that they still have wide appeal. Lewis certainly intended them to be vehicles of Christian teaching. But in an age less familiar with Christian images and ideas than his, how can we best draw out these themes?”

These are a great listen and give a great insight into Lewis’ work and ideas.

Lecture 1: ‘Not a tame lion‘
Lecture 2: ‘I only tell you your own story‘
Lecture 3: ‘Bigger inside than outside‘

(HT Faith and Theology)

Rowan Williams and the stories of CS Lewis is a post from: something beautiful

something beautiful is powered by WordPress and HostGator.

Christmas Greetings

jdblundell — Sat, 25 Dec 2010 07:36:27 +0000

Christmas decorations | Photo by Headphonaught

Click here to view the embedded video.

Christmas greetings to each and everyone of our listeners. We wish all our listeners a wonderful and merry Christmas. We hope that 2011 is an amazing year for each of you — and we’re looking forward to sharing more stories worth talking about in the year to come.

Christmas Greetings is a post from: something beautiful

something beautiful is powered by WordPress and HostGator.

Share your photos – What do YOU look like right now?

jdblundell — Tue, 14 Dec 2010 16:02:28 +0000

At roughly 09:00 CST (15:00 DST) I sent out a request to our sbpodcast co-hosts asking them to “take a picture of yourself – exactly how you are RIGHT NOW and send it to me (for @sbpodcast blog post).”

I’m still waiting for the whole team to send in their pictures but here they are in order I receive them (I’ll update the post as they come in) — and yes, I had a slight advantage…

To be fair, Travis was the first to respond, but he said he didn’t have a camera readily available with him at work — so he’ll send his photo later in the day.

Jonathan Blundell

Johnny Laird

'I'm in Edinburgh walking back to the station through the Christmas Market. The building in the background is the Scott Monument which commemorates Sir Walter Scott.' - Stewart Cutler

'The other direction... Edinburgh castle' - Stewart Cutler

Thomas Mathie

Travis Mamone

Now it’s your turn!

Take a photo of yourself – exactly how you are RIGHT NOW and send it to us at somethingbeautifulpodcast@gmail.com or leave a link to your photo in the comments below.

Members of the something beautiful tribe…

Dave McHam

Share your photos – What do YOU look like right now? is a post from: something beautiful

something beautiful is powered by WordPress and HostGator.

Share your holiday memories

jdblundell — Mon, 29 Nov 2010 15:19:21 +0000

Christmas kids

Want to be a part of our annual Advent Christmas Spectacular?

We’re looking for your Christmas wishes, thoughts, memories, reflections and more. Share them with us and we’ll include them in our upcoming Advent Christmas Spectacular.

To share your thoughts, you can:

call our listener line (972-535-8980)
leave us a voice message on skype (jdblundell)
or simple record an audio message (preferably in Mp3 or wav format) and email it to us (somethingbeautifulpodcast@gmail.com)

And just for fun, what’s your must listen to Christmas song/album? Share it in the comments below.

Thanks for listening and sharing your stories with us!

Share your holiday memories is a post from: something beautiful

something beautiful is powered by WordPress and HostGator.

Ask the listener…

jdblundell — Wed, 10 Nov 2010 12:00:31 +0000

My coffee has a leak! | Photo by Jonathan Blundell

What’s your favorite blend of coffee? Where do you buy it?

BTW – you can buy some great Fair Trade coffee and help support our friends raising money to adopt a child from Ethiopia by shopping at JustLove.

Ask the listener… is a post from: something beautiful

something beautiful is powered by WordPress and HostGator.

WIN: Charlie Hall CD Collection

jdblundell — Wed, 06 Oct 2010 19:00:25 +0000

The Charlie Hall Band

In celebration of Charlie Hall’s latest album release — The Rising — Jonathan and Sparrow Records are giving away a collection of Charlie Hall CDs over on his blog.

The Grand Prize Winner will receive CD copies of Charlie Hall‘s CDs:

The Rising
The Bright Sadness
Flying Into Daybreak
On The Road To Beautiful

They’ll also be awarding four 2nd place prizes – a copy of Charlie Hall’s latest CD – The Rising.

To enter, simply leave a comment on the original blog post at Stranger in a Strange Land and/or Tweet the following:

“Win a collection of Charlie Hall’s albums http://ow.ly/2PuRF (via @jdblundell). Please RT.”

He’s accepting entries from now through 10 p.m. CST on Sunday night (10-10-10). So drop in, leave a comment and good luck!

WIN: Charlie Hall CD Collection is a post from: something beautiful

something beautiful is powered by WordPress and HostGator.

7 podcasts you may have missed

jdblundell — Tue, 27 Jul 2010 17:15:51 +0000

If you’re new to the podcast, or even if you’ve been a long-time listener, there may be some podcasts out there that you’ve missed.

I thought I’d put together a list of some of them, inspired by Darren Rowse’s 7 Links challenge (with a few adaptations for our site).

Perhaps I can get Thomas and Stewart (and maybe even Travis) to follow suite.

1. My First Podcast

My first podcast was the “premiere” episode of the something beautiful podcast, in which Thomas and I chat about our vision and dream for the podcast: 052208 (beta). However my first official interview for the podcast was a couple weeks later with Chad Crawford (episode 1.2).

2. The podcast I enjoyed doing most

There are countless interviews I’ve loved doing over the past 2+ years. Lindsay Cofield, Andrew Jones, Phil Shepherd, Paula Spurr, Brandt Russo and many, many others. But probably my all time favorite still has to be my interview with Trucker Frank (Frank Schutzwohl) we had such a great time that like several others, we had to split it into two episodes.

3. A podcast that has had a great discussion

Perhaps unfortunately, many of the comments I hear about our podcasts don’t take place here on our website. They may be via Twitter, Facebook messages, email or face-to-face. I think of the two podcasts that have led to the most discussions I’ve been involved in, have been Thomas’ inteview with Adele Sakler (part 1 and part 2) and then Adele’s interview with Peter Rollins. Of my own interviews, I’ve probably had more more discussions about my interview with Andrew Jones and my first chat with Greg Garrett (part 1, part 2) more than any others.

4. A podcast episode on someone else’s podcast I wish I had done

Chad and Tripp get the winner on this one. And it’s a such a close race it’s hard to pick a true winner – so I give you my top 4 (two of them with Craig Atwood)!

NT Wright
Suffering and Meaning with Prof. Bob Mesle (part 1, part 2)
The Luther Story on The Reformation Day Podcast with Prof. Craig Atwood – this one even got a nod in my novel
A Faithful Flaming Heretic and Divinely Sanctioned Violence with Dr. Craig Atwood

5. A podcast you’re most proud of

Another tough one to narrow down… but I’m going to go with two very personal podcasts – My Dad and My Grandma.

6. A podcast I wish more people had listened to

I think by far, I wish more people had listened to the interview with Lindsay Cofield. It was early on in our podcast and it’s one that I gained a lot of inspiration from.

7. Our most listened to podcast

Podcasts are somewhat hard to track (Google Analytics doesn’t play as well with mp3 downloads as with page visits) and quite honestly, I’ve been slack in tracking our downloads this year after moving web hosts twice. But… according to Google Analytics, our top visited podcast has been our interview with Greg Holder. However, according to statician, Margino Verror, our current holder for the most downloaded/listened to podcast goes to Mark Horvath (part 1, part 2).

7 podcasts you may have missed is a post from: something beautiful

something beautiful is powered by WordPress and HostGator.

Sara Miles – The Work of Ordinary Saints

jdblundell — Mon, 26 Jul 2010 13:00:28 +0000

Another beautiful story from Spencer Burke and TheOozeTv:

The ability to act as Jesus acts is not something that belongs exclusively to ordained clergy or ‘holy” people, but is something we all have by the simple virtue of being human and having God’s life breathed into us. These are the hopeful words of author Sara Miles in her ThinkFWD interview with Spencer Burke.
Sara’s recent book, Jesus Freak, is based on her belief that ordinary people are “authorized and empowered to do Jesus’ work of feeding, healing and raising the dead.” The Spirit moves through all people in every time and place, says Sarah, and the term “saints” refers to all of God’s holy people. Whether working in a food pantry, at the office, or conversing with friends—we are about God’s work.
Sara is the director of the Food Pantry at St. Gregory’s Episcopal Church in San Francisco. Each week the food pantry is set up in the center of the church and over 600 families in need gather to receive food. “It’s like a farmer’s market in heaven,” laughs Sara. “We are gathered around an altar and surrounded by saints. Everything is free and everyone is welcome.” In keeping with the “we’re all saints doing God’s work” philosophy, the Food Pantry is run by volunteers, many of whom came to get food, and stayed to help out.

Sara Miles – The Work of Ordinary Saints is a post from: something beautiful

something beautiful is powered by WordPress and HostGator.

Addition by Adoption: Kids, Causes & 140 Characters

stewartcutler — Tue, 13 Apr 2010 14:00:10 +0000

Love, laughter and lunacy in 140 characters.

by Kevin D Hendricks

A work-at-home dad turns to Twitter to share updates about kids, causes and life.

It’s a curated selection of bizarre quotes, funny stories and temper tantrums. Woven between potty-training woes and breakfast time songs is a family growing through adoption and learning how to change the world, one status update at a time.

You’ll find humor, parental commiseration and life-changing wonder mixed into a quick and compelling read.

Available from Amazon.com on May 11 for $9.99.

Pre-Order April 13-20:

Addition by Adoption will be available for pre-order from April 13-20 only. Why pre-order? Glad you asked:

It’s cheaper. The pre-order price is $12.99 and shipping is included. Because the shipping is included it’s ultimately cheaper than the official version will be (the book will cost $13.98 with basic shipping from Amazon).
More money to charity. Twice as much money will go to charity: water. Score.
It’s autographed. Each pre-order copy will be signed by Lexi, my 4-year-old daughter and star of much of the book. Bonus.
Get it early. You’ll receive pre-order copies 2-3 weeks after ordering (depending on shipping and printing times), but likely before the official launch.

Pre-order now!

Mandatory FCC disclaimer: each of the sbpodcast hosts were given a digital pre-release copy of this book for review and the advertising of the book on this site has been donated.

Addition by Adoption: Kids, Causes & 140 Characters is a post from: something beautiful

something beautiful is powered by WordPress and HostGator.

A New Kind of Christianity with Brian McLaren

jdblundell — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 14:00:38 +0000

Posted originally on Jonathan’s blog…

Brian McLaren’s new book, A New Kind of Christianity: Ten Questions That Are Transforming the Faith, drops tomorrow (Tuesday, Feb. 9).

I received a free advance copy from the publisher late last week and have been devouring it every chance I get (which with two toddlers at home hasn’t been that often).

In it, McLaren offers the top 10 questions he’s been hearing from people about the Christian faith as well as 10 responses to those questions (as opposed to answers — which are simply statements — which lead to hate and debate… he expounds much more on this in the first couple chapters).

So far I’m loving everything I’ve read. I won’t say I agree with everything yet (especially since I haven’t the full book yet) but what I’ve read is definitely in line with a lot of other things I’m reading and thinking as of late.

I’ve dog eared numerous pages already but I want to share a few thoughts from the first few chapters…

McLaren shares a prayer that Rev. John Robinson gave before the pilgrims set sell from Holland to the New World (America) on the Mayflower:

I charge you before God and his blessed angels that you follow me no further than you have seen me follow Christ. If God reveal anything to you by any other instrument of His, be as ready to receive it as you were to receive any truth from my ministry, for I am verily persuaded the Lord hath more truth and light yet to break forth from His holy word.
The Lutherans cannot be drawn to go beyond what Luther saw. Whatever part of His will our God has revealed to Calvin, they (Lutherans) will rather die than embrace it; and the Calvinists, you see, stick fast where they where left by that great man of God, who yet saw not all things. This is a misery much to be lamented. For though they were precious shining lights in their time, yet God has not revealed his whole will to them. And were they now living, they would be as ready and willing to embrace further light, as they had received.

(emphasis mine)

McLaren shares that this is an attitude of a man on a quest. He realizes that there is much to be learned about God and that there is a “futher light” to be embraced, where more and more of God is revealed.

I have to continue asking my question, “Can we really know and understand all there is about a God who is fully mysterious and ‘unknowable’?” (Job 38-41) Seems illogical to think we can.

I remember when Probe Ministries came and did several classes on apologetics at our church back in the day and they offered a simple illustration that’s stuck with me ever since.

Using a white board they explained that the white board represented ALL the knowledge in the entire universe, everything anyone could possibly know.

They then asked several people to come forward and to shade in, or make dots representing what they felt was their own knowledge and understanding in comparison.

Eventually the board would look something like this:

As you can see, some were a bit prouder about their knowledge, others stayed towards the humble side of things.

The Probe representative went on to say that no matter who you ask, no one will ever claim to know everything about everything.

And thus, those who deny the existence of God are jumping to the wrong conclusions because God may be waiting for them just outside their colored area (their understanding and knowledge) and in an area of knowledge they’ve yet come to understand. So essentially, until you know everything about everything you can’t logically deny the existence of God.

As I read McLaren’s book and refer back to my own questions, I have to wonder, what if we took that same white board and asked a slightly different question, “Color in everything you know and understand about God.”

How much would you color in? Would the board look any different?

Yet, in our faith we’ve often become so locked into our doctrines and dogmas that we’ve left no room for questions or differing views in our understanding of God (myself included).

I think that point goes right in line with what McLaren is hoping to address with his book.

One of the overarching questions he asks is, “What would Christianity look like if we weren’t afraid of questions?”

Rather than welcoming questions and doubt (see the story of Thomas after Jesus’ resurrection – John 20:24-30) we’ve come to understand and accept Christianity one way — our way.

We’ve come to see Jesus through the eyes of Paul; and then Augustine’s view of Paul’s view of Jesus; and then Aquinas’s view of Augustine’s view of Paul’s view of Jesus; and then Luther’s view of Aquinas’s view of Augustine’s view of Paul’s view of Jesus and so on and so on.

And ultimately, many of these views were shaped by Greco-Roman culture and philosophy, as opposed to the Jewish tradition and narrative that’s so vital to Scripture.

McLaren is hoping we’ll look at each of the 10 questions and responses he offers through a different lens, through the biblical line of Adam, Abraham, Moses, David, Isaiah and John the Baptist.

And in that mind, he suggests we pray with the spirit and attitude of John Robinson:

Lord, we acknowledge that we have made a mess of what Jesus started. We affirm that we are wrong and Jesus is right. We choose not to defend what we have done and what we have become. We understand that many good Christians will not want to participate in our quest, and we welcome their charitable critique. We acknowledge that we have created many Christianities up to this point and they all call for reassessment and in many cases, repentance. We choose to seek a better path into the future than the one we have been on. We desire to be born again as disciples of Jesus Christ. Now grant us wisdom and guide us in our quest and create something new and beautiful in and among us for the good of all creation and to your glory, Living God.

I agree. And look forward to continuing my quest not only with this book, but for many many years to come.

Find out more:

Brian’s website
Brian on Facebook
Brian on Twitter
Browse inside A New Kind of Christianity
Spencer Burke talks to Brian about the book

A New Kind of Christianity with Brian McLaren is a post from: something beautiful

something beautiful is powered by WordPress and HostGator.

A new kind of Christianity

jdblundell — Wed, 20 Jan 2010 13:00:15 +0000

Brian McLaren has a new book coming out shortly and Spencer Burke’s already talking to him about it…

In the book, A New Kind of Christianity, Brian lays out 10 questions people seem to be wrestling with universally.

The questions include:

The Narrative Question: What Is the Overarching Storyline of the Bible?
The Authority Question: How Should the Bible Be Understood?
The God Question: Is God Violent?
The Jesus Question: Who is Jesus and Why is He Important?
The Gospel Question: What Is the Gospel?
The Church Question: What Do We Do About the Church?
The Sex Question: Can We Find a Way to Address Sexuality Without Fighting About It?
The Future Question: Can We Find a Better Way of View the Future?
The Pluralism Question: How Should Followers of Jesus Relate to People of Other Religions?
The What Do We Do Now Question: How Can We Translate Our Quest into Action?

Watch the interview:

Click here to view the embedded video.

I’ve always been impressed with McLaren’s generosity and graciousness — can’t wait to read his take on these questions — regardless of whether I agree with his answers or not.

And I love this:

“Questions can bring you on a new quest. Statements can bring you to a new state, and in the process they can create a lot of debate and sometimes that creates hate. We’ve got plenty of hate and debate. But questions can lead you on a new quest, which lead you into conversation, which can produce friendship.” – Brian McLaren

Browse the inside of the book.

The book drops Feb. 9 — and you can pre-order it now on Amazon: A New Kind of Christianity: Ten Questions That Are Transforming the Faith

What’s the biggest question you’re wrestling with — especially as it comes to your faith?

A new kind of Christianity is a post from: something beautiful

something beautiful is powered by WordPress and HostGator.

Your top podcasts of 2009 (and a contest too!)

jdblundell — Mon, 28 Dec 2009 12:00:24 +0000

the stats are in. they’ve been tallied and counted.

and as of dec. 2009 – we’ve now passed over 10,000 downloads for the something beautiful podcast! thanks to you our listeners!

so we thought we’d share your picks for the top 5 podcasts of 2009. these are the ones that you, the listener have chosen by way of downloads.

5. existential punk (aka adele sakler)
4. brandt russo
3. peter rollins
2. tall skinny kiwi (aka andrew jones)
1. Mark Horvath pt 1

but we realize that many of these podcasts have big names behind them. they’re are also being linked to by a number of other websites, or for some other reason your favorite podcast of 2009 didn’t make the list.

so we want to know, what was your favorite something beautiful podcast of 2009?

and as an added bonus, in celebration of our 10,000 downloads, we’re giving away 2 so elated prize packs.

TO ENTER:

just answer the following question in the comments section of this post:

what was your favorite episode/podcast from the something beautiful podcast in 2009?

RULES:

one entry per person, please.

please leave a valid email address in the entry; in the event you’re a winner, you’ll be contacted to redeem your prize.

winners will be chosen at random on Dec. 31 at 5 p.m. CST.

good luck and happy new year!

Your top podcasts of 2009 (and a contest too!) is a post from: something beautiful

something beautiful » misc

Competition: Win Come Let Us Adore Him by the Lower Lights

You may also enjoy ::

What e-books would you buy?

You may also enjoy ::

Exposure to the sun

You may also enjoy ::

Sleeping through demonstrations of Abba’s power

You may also enjoy ::

Splash

You may also enjoy ::

All is Grace – Brennan Manning

You may also enjoy ::

Serving rather than being served

You may also enjoy ::

The Crucifixion According to Radiohead

You may also enjoy ::

Rowan Williams and the stories of CS Lewis

You may also enjoy ::

Christmas Greetings

You may also enjoy ::

Share your photos – What do YOU look like right now?

Now it’s your turn!

Members of the something beautiful tribe…

You may also enjoy ::

Share your holiday memories

You may also enjoy ::

Ask the listener…

You may also enjoy ::

WIN: Charlie Hall CD Collection

You may also enjoy ::

7 podcasts you may have missed

You may also enjoy ::

Sara Miles – The Work of Ordinary Saints

You may also enjoy ::

Addition by Adoption: Kids, Causes & 140 Characters

You may also enjoy ::

A New Kind of Christianity with Brian McLaren

Find out more:

You may also enjoy ::

A new kind of Christianity

What’s the biggest question you’re wrestling with — especially as it comes to your faith?

You may also enjoy ::

Your top podcasts of 2009 (and a contest too!)

TO ENTER:

RULES:

You may also enjoy ::