Laura's Writings

Remember that you were...

2009-07-13T10:01:00.000-07:00

it's not for the contrast,
as if remembering darkness
made present brighter.

it's for the grace,
God's grace given
in fulfilled requirements
and crucified hostilities.

===
Resources
Ephesians 2:11-22
Imagine...Living Life in Peace

---
Twitter - Facebook

Not Mere Angst or Excess Caffeine, but Consternation

2009-07-11T22:28:00.000-07:00

Walking to breakfast this morning, I finally realized where I've been:

Consternation: amazement or dismay that hinders or throws into confusion; confused and distressed excitement.

---
Twitter - Facebook

Virtual Connectedness?

2009-07-10T21:55:00.000-07:00

a week without dsl.
funny how, what was
an entire lifetime,
becomes a nearly
unbearable
seven days.

how can personal
usefulness
be so technologically
trapped.

---
Twitter - Facebook

Definition--congregation

2009-07-09T17:07:00.001-07:00

a Body of Christians from a certain geographic location, gathering for worship, training, and exhortation; some prioritize stability or innovation to the detriment of mission.

---
Twitter - Facebook

Blogs Discussing Ecclesiology of Late

2009-07-08T12:29:00.000-07:00

===
I'm talking ecclesiology at Who in the World Are We?

---
Twitter - Facebook

This Stumbling Trust

2009-07-07T13:00:00.000-07:00

so feeble,
stumbling by accident
or by will,
yet Yahweh's steadfast love
pursues
this stumbling trust,
correcting,
lifting,
training,
comforting,

all the while, speaking hope.

===
Resources
Isaiah 24-39
Isaiah tag

---
Twitter - Facebook

Trying to Unpack Kenosis

2009-07-06T08:00:00.000-07:00

Through incarnation, the Logos voluntarily chose to live without the effects of his own divinity by becoming a servant (/sovereignty) and a human (/non-communicable).

===
Resources
Rom 4:14; 1 Cor 1:17; 9:15; 2 Cor 9:3; Phil 2:7
"Kenosis" in wikipedia

---
Twitter - Facebook

Soul Crud

2009-07-03T13:26:00.000-07:00

how often is holiness
mere outerwear,
worn to protect from the elements,
worn to hide the leaking soul crud?

since he is safe, why hide?

===
Resource
Spiritual Formation, with Dr. John Coe

---
Twitter - Facebook

Definition--polity

2009-07-02T12:46:00.000-07:00

an ordered human structure, often developed by necessity and then maintained by tradition, that enables community activity; churches often place polity issues above essential ecclesiology

---
Twitter - Facebook

TV Shows that Taught and Teach Me to Cook

2009-07-01T08:00:00.000-07:00

---
Twitter - Facebook

For the Love of God and his Creation

2009-06-30T13:00:00.000-07:00

delve deeply,
pondering beneath the surfaces
to smaller and more profound bits.

think widely,
dancing with the systems
functioning beyond our control.

seek God's face

===
Resources
Thinking in Systems
The Glory of Jesus Christ: The Way Forward in the Dialogue Between Religion and Science

---
Twitter - Facebook

“But God…Rescues and Transforms”

2009-06-29T08:00:00.000-07:00

we so focus on "by grace through faith"
that we miss Paul's focus:

made alive
with him,
raised up
with him,
seated
with him.

Christ.

===
Resources
"in Christ"
"in him"
"in whom"
Sermon: “But God…Rescues and Transforms”

---
Twitter - Facebook

Truth in the hands of Twelve Strangers

2009-06-26T08:00:00.000-07:00

lives in shambles,
self-inflicted
and circumstantial;

soiled laundry aired before strangers,
deciding the fate of one
and of the other.

arguments made.
stories examined.

verdict.

---
Twitter - Facebook

Definition--Liturgy

2009-06-25T08:00:00.000-07:00

a set and sequence of procedures prescribed for public worship; practiced overtly by so-called liturgical churches and covertly by so-called non-liturgical churches; often considered unchangeable

===
For Further Reading
"Christian Liturgy" on Wikipedia
"Liturgy" on Wikipedia
"Liturgy" on New Advent
Liturgy: worship that works - spirituality that connects
Presbyterian Directory for the Public Worship of God
"The Work of the People: Liturgy for Non-Liturgical Churches" on The Worship Community

---
Twitter - Facebook

Favorite Spices and Herbs

2009-06-24T08:00:00.000-07:00

---
Twitter - Facebook

RE: An Epistemology of Belief in a Skeptical Age

2009-06-23T15:58:00.000-07:00

how is it that culture has become so dour,
yearning for the negative?

skepticism runs rampant,
dressing in wisdom's clothes
and many
toddle mindlessly after.

===
Resource:
Full of Grace and Truth: An Epistemology of Belief in a Skeptical Age

---
Twitter - Facebook

How committed am I willing to be?

2009-06-22T08:11:00.001-07:00

passing truth to those who come after,
a life of just, merciful, God-loving evidence,
doing God's will,
guarding God's will,
step-by-step,
day-by-day,
walking and pointing.

===
Resource
A Legacy Continued

---
Twitter - Facebook

There's a bit of a lull in the blogging...

2009-06-17T07:21:00.000-07:00

...due to the fact that I'm participating in the duty and privilege of the US jury process.

I'll be back later.

update 6/22: still on jury duty, but I'm back to blogging
update 6/23: jury duty completed yesterday after a very quick deliberation.

---
Twitter - Facebook

"And you were...but God..."

2009-06-15T08:00:00.000-07:00

dead no longer
deceived no longer
doomed no longer

all from that wondrous, "But God..."

and yet,
how the living soul
stumbles
on death's echoes.

===
Resources
Ephesians 2:1-3
Sermon Notes: Your Condition: Dead, Deceived, Doomed

---
Twitter - Facebook

My Utmost for His Highest--day one

2009-06-12T07:48:00.000-07:00

my best,
always partial,
sometimes broken,
given freely,

ordered under him,
shaped to his standard,
bounded by his character,

stumbling often,
i am lifted,
held.

===
Resources
My Utmost for His Highest

---
Twitter - Facebook

Definition--Urg!

2009-06-11T13:42:00.000-07:00

a unit of work accompanied by an often verbalized, affective expression, communicating discomfort, dislike, irritation, or plain ol' poor attitude; occurrence often increases with fatigue.

---
Twitter - Facebook

Women in Higher Education: Informing Scriptures

2009-06-10T08:00:00.000-07:00

The Women of "Women in Higher Education Summer 2009"

===
NOTE: The above passages were brought forth through personal and communal reflection, as we worked through some difficult issues, finally arriving at the determination for hopeful, persistent obedience to Christ in the places where we are. As a personal note, might I add that this was a fabulous way to begin the Ph.D. program!

---
Twitter - Facebook

Thought Questions for Lectures

2009-06-09T08:00:00.000-07:00

What are the speaker's main points?
How are they supported?
What are your questions?
How does this lecture relate to other things you are studying?

---
Twitter - Facebook

Properly responding to the obvious

2009-06-08T09:12:00.000-07:00

surrounded by wordless proclamation
shouting God's power,
God's divinity,
still so many stop their ears
and hum an obscuring tune.

so see,
wonder, and
worship.

===
Resources
Psalm 19
Romans 1:18-20

---
Twitter - Facebook

Silence

2009-06-03T07:50:00.001-07:00

...happens to a blog when the blogger takes a Ph.D. summer intensive course.

Regular blogging should return next week.

For those who need a fix :-) here are the two top posts via post rank (see the sidebar)

---
Twitter - Facebook