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Think Christianly

Think Christianly

Monday, February 7, 2011

Resources for the Christian Life

"The Christian life was not designed to be one lived alone within our own limited human resources, but one lived in cooperation with God the Holy Spirit, in the larger context of the community of believers."--Klaus Issler

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posted by Jonathan Morrow at 10:49 AM 0 Comments

Monday, January 3, 2011

Faith, Heart, and the Holy Spirit

Christian faith involves the whole person. The biblical term that best captures this concept is heart. Proverbs 4:23 puts it this way, “Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life.” The term “heart” in the Bible includes the intellect, emotion, and will. Theologian Robert Saucy summarizes, “It is important to grasp the biblical truth that in the heart, the operating center from which all behavior flows, thought, feeling, and will all come together in a unified whole.” Taken in this holistic sense, a person trusts Christ with the heart. In this act, cognitive, volitional, and affective elements converge. Christian faith is neither irrational nor opposed to reason. However, it includes more than just rational content.

According to the New Testament, the Holy Spirit is intimately involved in any person’s coming to faith in Jesus Christ (cf. John 16:8–11). I can’t put it any better than David Clark does, “The Holy Spirit permeates this process. He works to overcome the blinding effects of sin and to lead a person toward openness to the Christian message. The role of the sensitive apologist [or evangelist] is to defend the truth that the Holy Spirit then drives home to a needy heart and mind. As minimal Christian truth initially sinks in and is intellectually acknowledged, the Holy Spirit persuades a person to respond to the Person the truth reveals. When response comes, understanding is deepened. Another step of deeper reliance is possible. And the process of growth continues.”

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posted by Jonathan Morrow at 3:50 PM 0 Comments

Wednesday, September 22, 2010

How one student left the gay lifestyle

posted by Jonathan Morrow at 3:30 PM 0 Comments

Tuesday, August 24, 2010

Latest think Christianly Podcast - Cultivating a Prayerful Life

Have you ever struggled with prayer? Me too! This is the first of a two part podcast where we are going to explore how to break the unhealthy prayer cycle that governs many of our lives so that we can experience God more deeply through prayer.

Click here to listen

In preparing for this, I read an excellent book that I would highly recommend:

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posted by Jonathan Morrow at 11:26 PM 0 Comments

Sunday, June 6, 2010

The Heart

Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life.--Proverbs 4:23



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posted by Jonathan Morrow at 11:10 PM

Tuesday, May 18, 2010

How Do I Grow in My Relationship With God? Is Holiness Really Possible?

Can we become more like Jesus? Really? Yes. There is a word for this that the Bible uses often--Holy. Here is a link to the sermon I preached at our church on sunday exploring the often confusing and (guilt producing) idea of becoming more holy--how does it work? what is my part? God's part?

click here to listen

I hope you find it helpful!

For more, see Revolution of Character by Dallas Willard

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posted by Jonathan Morrow at 5:01 PM

Friday, November 6, 2009

Why Bother With Discipleship?

I came across this challenging article and wanted to pass it along. Why spend time following Jesus if Christianity is all about someday and not today? Dallas Willard offers some helpful thoughts...

"If we are Christians simply by believing that Jesus died for our sins, then that is all it takes to have sins forgiven and go to heaven when we die. Why, then, do some people keep insisting that something more than this is desirable? Lordship, discipleship, spiritual formation, and the like?

What more could one want than to be sure of their eternal destiny and enjoy life among others who profess the same faith as they do. Of course everyone wants to be a good person. But that does not require that you actually do what Jesus himself said and did. Haven't you heard? "Christians aren't perfect. Just forgiven."

Now those who honestly find themselves concerned about such matters might..." (More)

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posted by Jonathan Morrow at 11:30 AM 0 Comments

Monday, September 14, 2009

How to Have Quiet Time and Prayer with God featuring John & Nancy Ortberg

What do you do with distractions that come to your mind during prayer? What does it mean to be fully present with God? John and Nancy Ortberg speak honestly about their own struggles and in this area of the spiritual life.



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posted by Jonathan Morrow at 7:45 AM 0 Comments