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Archive for the 'Church' Category

• Read a Chapter Challenge

I challenge you to block out all of the distractions and read a whole chapter of the Bible… In a single sitting! It’s not as hard as it could be.

• Casting Crowns - October 17th

As you know, we are going to see Casting Crowns in Tallahassee on Friday, October 17th. Mark Hall, the lead singer of Casting Crowns, graduated from The Baptist College of Florida, the same little college in north Florida that Teresa and I graduated from. So I feel like I have a connection to Mark Hall. [...]

• Back Home

For many of you this may be the first post you read here at EngagingCulture.com. I have been very honored and privileged to be called to minister as the youth pastor here in the First Baptist Church of Williston Florida. This is my home. And I look forward to many years of fruitful ministry here. [...]

• Inspirational McCain

I try not to write about politics. I think the whole election process in this country is a farce. It’s an overblown popularity contest. Such a small percentage of the population really knows what their candidate believes. Most base their votes on purely aesthetic or stereotypical guidelines. They find someone that looks the most like [...]

• Two Week Recap: Four Mini-reviews

So I’m back, I had a nice time of relaxation and refocusing during my hiatus. If your box office news is dependent upon me (in which case you would be severely under/mis-informed) then you didn’t miss much. The past two weeks have given us two huge bombs and two lackluster “remakes.”
The Happening - a [...]

• Failing Seminary for the Glory of God

GoingtoSeminary.com has some good advice for those entrenched in Seminary or theological college. Seminary isn’t the most important thing! Some of their tips: Give the wrong answer, Ignore your GPA, Put your family first, and Love the Church. Here’s an excerpt.
The seminary has become a place of information and not transformation. The focus has been [...]

• Science Fiction and Faith

I’m in a really cool class at Southern right now on Christianity and Science Fiction. Yeah, I know, your Cooperative Program dollars hard at work. But it has actually been fabulous and very compelling. For our final project we have been charged with the task of answering two crucial questions.

What is a biblical and theological [...]

• UPS Philosophy: Test Drive

As most of you know, aside from blogging for a living (haha), I work at UPS here in Louisville. Well I am amazed at some of the discussions that we share while out on the ramp loading planes full of packages. Some of them are just crude and not fit to publish, however others are [...]

• Expelled: Overview

I was was very impressed with, Expelled, the new documentary by Ben Stein on the debate between Darwinian Evolution and Intelligent Design. The quality and humor of the film reminded me of a Michael Moore Documentary, except instead of only presenting one side of the argument, Stein gave equal time for the opposing group to [...]

• Abstract Art

I’m so excited about the growth of Imago Dei. We had nearly 50 people at our meeting on Friday to talk about the nature and value of abstract art. We all crammed into a room that was too small for us and too warm to be comfortable (we even had folks sitting on the floor) [...]

• Easter Should Disturb Us

Dr. Moore comments on the trend among some publisher of Sunday school curricula to water down the presentation of the death burial and resurrection of Jesus to preschoolers saying that it is too scary. He says:
This Easter, preach the Gospel… to the senior citizens, to the middle-aged, to the young adults, to the teenagers, to [...]

• 2008 Summer Movie Calendar

The summer films of 2008 are shaping up to be some of the most exciting in years. While a handful look like they will be fodder for good theological/cultural discussion, most will be visually electrifying escapist fare. While there aren’t as many sequels as 2007, there are quite a few movies that look absolutely incredible. [...]

• Settling In

Well, we’re mostly unpacked (I still have to find a place for all my books), and the kids are meeting all sorts of friends in the neighborhood. I go tomorrow for a tour of UPS and to have my fingerprints taken so they can find out if I’m really a terrorist or a Columbian drug [...]

• Ratatouille (2007)

Click on Reviews in the header menu for an overview of how I approach film reviews.
A rat named Remy (Patton Oswalt), living in Paris, longs for the food from the kitchens and tables instead of the garbage like the rest of his family, so he befriends a chef with little talent, Linguini (Lou Romano), and [...]

• Calvinist Infestation

Mark Dever ponders “Where did all these Calvinists come from” in a 10 post series.

• Essential Piper Library

My introduction to Dr. John Piper was in college, through a free cassette tape of one of his sermons which I picked up at a church in Dothan, Alabama while doing some drama for a JAM team there. My car at the time had no CD player and if you’ve ever tried to listen to [...]

• Conversations with God (2006)

Click on Reviews in the header menu for an overview of how I approach film reviews.
These “conversations” are based on the best-selling books by Neal Donald Walsch. Canadian actor Henry Czerny (”The Exorcism of Emily Rose”) plays author Walsch, who was at his lowest point when he found a new purpose for his life.
According to [...]

• I’m a Heretic

Jerry Falwell recently proclaimed from his self-appointed papal pulpit that limited atonement is heresy. Then I guess I’m a heretic. Sorry I let you down Dr. Falwell.
Of course if I believed everything else that Dr. Falwell believes I would be correct to say that limited atonement is incorrect. If I believed that Christ’s death [...]

• A Beautiful Analogy

I can only wish that I wrote this. I have in fact thought it before. However, I lacked the time, talent, and knowledge of beer to write it myself. With that being said, enjoy this great analogy between beers and theological persuasions by Erik Raymond (a.k.a. The Irish Calvinist)
People have described some of the contemporary [...]

• Sanctity of Human Life

Yesterday in my church we observed Sanctity of Life Sunday and while the large focus was upon the atrocity of abortion we also looked at embryonic stem cell research. But as I thought about it the sanctity of life covers so many issues. When we realize that every person is created in the image and [...]

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