A Reasonable Faith

Recently, I have been facilitating a crash course on Apologetics. In this age, I am convinced that is no longer enough for Christians to know that they believe, but to know why they believe. The two common errors Christians can make in this arena are really two extremes. the first, is the non, or anti intellectual approach. This means that our faith is something spiritual, invisible, and cannot, and should not have to be explained, or examined in a reasonable, or rational way. The second error, is at the other end of the spectrum. These people will generally make the mistake of ruling out the “mysterious” elements of our faith, and rely completely on reason, hard science, doctrinal logic and even the senses, thus leaving no room for the trancsendancy of the Holy Spirit. My attempt, in bringing this course, is to give these new believers some real, tangible, and exciting facts, that can bolster their faith, and equip them to share the gospel in such a way as to entice people to not just make and emotional decision for Christ, but also an informed one.

In the course, I walk the students through a series of lectures and we cover many topics in our Q and A such as:

How can I know that jesus actually lived in History?

Is there evidence for the resurrection?

What about evolution?

What about all the other religions in the world?

How can I know the Bible is trustworthy?

etc. etc. etc.

If you are interested in hosting a seminar at your church please contact me: darrelllahay@gmail.com

I am available to conduct seminars ranging in length from 3 hours to two days. new beleivers, youth, seniors and students would all benefit from this fast paced and exciting course!

about pain..

“Pain won’t kill you. It will only put lines on your face.”  

                                                 D.D. Lahay

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

2 much|tv

At Teen Challenge, when we take on a student for our “Leader In Training Program” we give them a manual that spells out and explains guidelines for the program. One of the admonitions is: “Beware of satan’s trap to get you to waste your time.”

The intention of this post is not to highlight all the evils of media, or technology proper. I simply want to remind you to not waste your time watching TV. I grew up in a generation that has been drowned with entertainment. Although mediums such as TV, music, and internet have been beneficial in some ways, I think its safe to say that the majority of what is being produced is useless fodder designed to plant distorted worldview, and reinforce ego-centricity in its viewers. As Malcolm Muggeridge put it: “We have entertained ourselves into de-sensitivity.”

Fourtuneatly, I don’t have cable TV in my home. We do watch movies from time to time from the library. We seldom rent. The way I see it, is that a movie-especially a two-hour movie- is an emotional and intellectual investment into my life. I do not want to waste my time.

It is a fact that, that when watching tv, a person’s metabolism and heart rate slow down to a rate lower than if the person was actually sleeping. Some may think I’m a little extreme, or religious because we have chosen to not have a tv, but I’m okay with that. I’m also okay with the fact that my sons are to learning to love reading, and are becoming voraciously creative. I’m also fine with the fact that my seven-year old doesn’t know what a xBox is, what Angelina and Brad are up to, or who the runners-up for American Idol are.

So, if you are a minister of the Gospel, I humbly submit to you this exhortation: Please don’t waste your life on tv.

shalom|pastor darrell

Intellectual

I recently read one authors definition of an intellectual. He defined one as ‘a person who cares more about ideas than people’. This really struck me, and caused me to really examine myself. I constantly can find myself so busy with reading, researching, and personal study. My ministry job also affords me to be in many meetings , and it is tempting to be constantly scheming, strategizing, and even praying about kingdom work. New initiatives, improvements of ministry quality of care, improvement of style and relevance, perfecting doctrine and vision casting, etc.

As I read this very short definition, I asked myself the question, and I ask you: “Do you find yourself, investing more time and energy into ideas, rather than people?”

Shalom |pastor darrell

The Great Tradition

What do I think the church is doing right in 2010?

 

This is a question that a WordPress pal of mine asked at the end of one of his posts: http://www.seansabourin.com/?p=871   This is a good question indeed, especially since most take a critical aim at the ‘blushing bride’ of Christ more often than commend it for anything!

At great risk of appearing controversal, I submit that ‘one’ of the good things happening within the Body of Christ is running in the same vein as what has come to be called the: ‘Ecumenical Movement’. This movement brings mixed reviews. Some hailing it as a great pilgrimage of repentance, and others (mostly fundamentalists) accusing it of being a sort of ‘unitarian apostacy’. In terms of the official movement itself, I subscribe to neither review whole heartedly, but i want to highlight some of the characteristics therein that i feel are of great benefit to the Church.

Latley we are seeing a return to liturgy. Christians everywhere are showing signs of a yearning that the post-modern church, or emerging church, can’t quite seem to satisfy. We are seeing a growing interest in The Great Tradition. I see it in the new books being written. I see it in the blogosphere. I hear it in the music and liturgy Sunday mornings…What is this Great tradition of which i speak? Lets back up a bit…

The church that was birthed in the New Testament account of Pentecost enjoyed a relatively schizm-free existence from its inception. this continued right through the Roman persecution (and after the Roman legalization in 313 AD under Constantine),  right up till about 1054 AD. Besides the outbreak of two or three notable splinterings (Nestorians, Mar Tomas) the church remained in relative unity. After nearly half a century, three major fragmentations began to happen. The three major branches are: Roman Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, and Reformed Protestantism.

Western Protestantism (Lutheran, Baptist, Anabaptist, Pentecostal, Methodist, Reformed, etc, etc) is what dominates the religious population in North America today. There are well over two thousand denominations within Protestantism alone. And these denominations include sub groups such as fundamentalism, liberalism, post-modernism, liturgical, etc, bla bla bla.

One can look at all of these fragments of the Body of Christ with scrutiny, and rightfully so. I have taught on the subject of denominationalism and I have expanded on its cons, and it’s pros, but, I have a hard time picturing Jesus being thrilled about division that happens every day. don’t get me wrong, i am not being a pluralist in saying that all “religions” should be unified. Not only would that be un-biblical, but a great philosophical impossibility. What i am trying to say can be best elaborated on by a quote from Walter R. Martin, author of the classic Kingdom Of The Cults. On matters of doctrine and practices withing the Church, he said:

“In the essentials; there ought to be unity.

In the non-essentials; liberty.

In all things; love.”

I believe it is time for the church to get back to its roots. There are so many gems found in studying the Great Tradition. But if we are careless, we may miss them. History holds a tutorship quality that will help us prepare for our future. In essence, we can learn about our future by looking to our past. Studying the great traditions of the early church, the lives of the martyrs, and the growth of the church has been a great source of interest to me ltely, as well as a well spring of wisdom. My admonition to the Church is to look to the past as well as the future. What were the early Christians like? what did they value? What did they believe and why? What action did their beliefs influence them to take? How did they live? What did “church’ look like to them?

Food for thought//pastor Darrell

The Holy Give and Take (part 2)

Check out this verse found in Daniel 3:67 . It’s the cry of the three youths in the fiery furnace. You think they’d be a little jaded, or at least a little disappointed that God would allow such a fate. here is what they said;

“Cold, heat, snow and ice; lightnings and clouds, winds and tempests; Bless the LORD, praise and exalt Him forever!”

Interesting response. Notice they didn’t bind satan, or rebuke their enemies. They didn’t try to conjure up more faith to pray for a miracle. they didn’t even pray for god to rescue them. it’s almost as if they just accepted what was happening with an enthusiastic attribution to God’s sovereignty. They did not desire that the circumstances would change, but only desired that God be exalted, and that they be submissive to what the terrible thing that was being exacted upon them by Nebuchadnezzar.

Below is a passage from some of the reading I’ve done. It’s some interesting food for thought;

The writer is describing God:

You are endowed with an infinite strength nothing can resist, but with us you do not use the absolute power of your sovereign authority. You treat us with extreme condescension and, adapting yourself to the weakness of nature, design to place each one of us in the best and most suitable situation for working out our salvation. You dispose of us with great favor as persons who are your living image and of noble origin and who, because of their condition, are not to be ordered in the voice of a master as if they were slaves, but with care and consideration as one who handles a vase of precious crystal or fragile pottery for fear of breaking it. When it is necessary for out good for you to afflict us or send us some illness or make us suffer some loss or pain, you always do so with a certain respect and a kind of deference. As a surgeon who has to operate on a person of importance takes extra care to cause him as little suffering as possible and only what is necessary for his recovery, or as a father unwillingly punishes a son he loves dearly only because he is obligated to do so for his son’s own good, so god treats us as noble beings for whom He has the highest regard, or as beloved children whom he chastises because he loves them.”

–TRUSTFUL SURRENDER TO DIVINE PROVIDENCE

Father Jean Baptiste Saint Jure- (1588-1657)

TAN publishers

I want to also leave you with the words of Job:

“The LORD has given and the LORD has taken away; as it has pleased the LORD so it is done. Blessed be the name of the LORD!”

 

The Encore Effect (A book review)

I love books about leadership. Bill Hybels, Andy Stanley, Rick Warren, and John Maxwell are some of my favorite authors in this area, especially with regards to leadership in ministry. Which is what I do, full time. Part of the curriculum I draw from at Teen Challenge includes a book by Mark Sanborn called “The Fred Factor”. Although it was a short read, I was challenged, and blessed by it. The crux of it’s message? In my opinion: Excellence in ministry. Time is short, so lets do the absolute best we can in work, family, relationships, evangelism and career. Mark’s book “The Encore Effect” follows the same point.

Let’s face it. We are all burned out on performance. especially as men. Especially as leaders. I agree wholeheartedly that the church, and leaders of all fields, have needed to take a well rounded look at how “performance” and being “driven” has left lots of pastors and leaders burned out, irritated and grossly religious. I also agree that a mind set of “work work work” has left a lot of us finding our identity in what we can do and not on who God says we are.

However! In our passion of dumping the payload of “works” and “performance” we unfortunately dumped off concepts of “excellence” and “diligence” and even “sacrifice.”

The point of this book is not to discuss performance verses excellence, but the importance of excellence itself. Romans 12:8 commands that those with the spiritual gift of leadership should lead with all diligence, and I couldn’t agree more.

The Encore Effect challenged me to “raise the bar” in the area’s where I am called to serve. The key word here is “serve”. Mark has a great way of combining inspirational stories, and his own thoughts on leadership to encourage the reader to “go the extra mile”.

I think we all know that our mandate is to please God and not men, but we must realize that excellence in service, in attitude, and yes, performance are important to God, and can profoundly effect those around us, whether in the marketplace, work or at home, it is clear that God would have us to possess, “a spirit of excellence” as Daniel did.

Anyway, I recommend this book to any leader looking to get into the the service of the Kingdom.

Pick it up today

http://www.marksanborn.com/store/The-Encore-Effect-p-1-c-254.html