What's your theological worldview?

No surprises here... Taken from my brother's community site... A bit of fun, but I don't need a quiz to tell me what I believe!

You scored as Evangelical Holiness/Wesleyan, You are an evangelical in the Wesleyan tradition. You believe that God's grace enables you to choose to believe in him, even though you yourself are totally depraved. The gift of the Holy Spirit gives you assurance of your salvation, and he also enables you to live the life of obedience to which God has called us. You are influenced heavly by John Wesley and the Methodists. Evangelical Holiness/Wesleyan 79% Neo orthodox 64% Emergent/Postmodern 64% Reformed Evangelical 50% Roman Catholic 43% Charismatic/Pentecostal 43% Fundamentalist 39% Modern Liberal 32% Classical Liberal 29% What's your theological worldview? created with QuizFarm.com

Who am I?

Thinking back on the last few posts, has made me reflect on the many faces I wear. These aren't so much facades, as they are the different components that make up who I am.
We are all lots of different people, in lots of different situations and places. I believe that whilst they can all be different, there can still be a growing integrity to the whole. Sometimes there are competing or conflicting interests or values, and difficult choices need to be made. Consistently making choices in the same direction leads to a less conflicting life, one of increased integrity.

But that is not to say that integrity alone is worthwhile. We're seeing more and more people with mental disorders, particularly with terrifingly violent results. What I find interesting is that their world is integral. It is not right, and certianly not "normal" (that is, similar to the world in most people's heads), but it is consistent. The depressive sees everything consistently black. The paniced, oppresed world of the terrorist is consistent in its outrage against the dominator.

Our Men's ministry at church is called Integrity. Part of its charter is to "seek to identify what it means to be called men of God through teaching, relationship, and fellowship." We're trying to encourage not just integrity within men's lives, but a Godly integrity; one that reflects the wholeness of God. In a world that seems to rely a personally generated integrity rather than one of values and truth, this is increasingly difficult to do. Men in particular, it seems, are put on by society. They are too brutish, too violent, and yet not manly enough. (Personally, I think that the liberation of women has gone so far as to expect those attributes of men as well, and that is ureasonable. We are not women, and what we bring to the world is equally valuable and important. Its just different.)

So, who am I?

Click the post title to find out who I am..

I am...

• a rogue, impatient, impetues child of God
• a musician
• a writer
• a husband
• a father
• a software engineer
• a dreamer
• a fatalist
• lazy
• sometimes depressed
• a friend
• tired
• a home group leader and member
• an enourager
• excitable
• forthright
• scared
• sometimes brave
• sometimes innocent

... and many more things that God challanges me to integrate.

The Leaving of a Worship Pastor

Worship is a large part of my life, and my meaning. However, as you may have discerened, I'm concerned not only about the "quality" of worship, but about how worship teams function. this was originally written in March, 2006.

After a wonderful year, the Worship Pastor at our church decided it was time to leave. Her decision was a difficult one to be sure: the team has been spriritually challanged and deepened; worship has been permeating our services like I've not seen before. Who would not want to stay and see this continue?

Click the post title to continue reading...But, the personal cost was too great. As far as I understand, she needed to take time to reconnect with her family. She and her husband worked different scheudules, and as I know from personal experience, trying to maintain a relationship in that environment is more hard work than it really needs to be.

When she came, I was cautious - sceptical might be too harsh a word, but not far from it. What she was proposing, pushing, us into was far from my concept of worship, or, at least, ordered worship. She was all for emotional outpouring, fully throwing yourself into worship of God with every fibre of your being, simply to be with Him, and experience Him again and again like you never have before.

My worship background has always been in mainstream churches, mostly of the Anglican variety, but also more recently in a contempory style. The change in me has become evident I think in how I've approached it. Worship becomes more involved, more approachable to a contemporary congregation in a contempory setting. Being not so much my old myself, there's no doubt I've become freer in worship, and to worship in ways that express my heart for God.

Obviously we clashed on a number of things - it always going to happen when people have a different view than your own. But, in the wisdom of hindsight, I think that her perspective enhanced my own a little. And for that I thank her.