“Have you ever had an experience with God that was so amazing it exceeded your wildest and most fulfilling sexual moment?” - Randy Elrod, “Sex, Lies & Religion”
This is the intriguing question that serves as a springboard for this book. And for many, it’s sure to be an uncomfortable one. It was for me. But why? Is it because the question is wrong, and shouldn’t be asked? Or is it because I’m viewing the question through a lens distorted by false teaching and my own history? I don’t completely have the answer. But I’m a lot closer to the answer after reading Randy’s book.
The book is divided into three clear sections, and I found myself on an eye-opening journey as I read through them.
Part 1 (religion) is a brief yet extremely well-written and instructive look at how religion has handled sexuality in the past. I enjoy history and theology, and Randy had me hooked by the time I finished it. I was ready to read on.
Part 2 (lies) looks at nudity, beauty, self-pleasure, sexual fantasy, and sexual equality. As I continued through this section, it became squirm-inducing at times. And I was compelled to ask why, and dig deeper.
Part 3 (truth) offers a theology of sexuality that is both fascinating and affirming. I especially appreciated Randy using the “fruit of the spirit” from Galatians 5 as the underlying framework for this sacred sexuality. There are also insightful chapters on the sacramental nature of sex, and the “immortal longings” that are deep inside each one of us. It was worth getting through the squirms of part 2 to get to the redemption of part 3.
I’m planning on re-reading this book a few more times, so I can continue to ask myself these important questions. Randy writes that he wanted this book to be a conversation starter, not a “how to” manual or theological treatise. It’s certainly started a good conversation in my own heart…one I plan to continue with my Creator, as well as those close to me.
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from cre:ate 2.0 Publishing to read and post a review on my site. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/waisidx_03/16cfr255_03.html “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”
Tags: Randy Elrod, sex lies & religion
It’s time for a ctrl-alt-delete of the blog.
I’ve been neglecting said blog for awhile. No good reason.
I like the discipline of writing, so I guess I’ve become undisciplined. As I often do in life.
So, I’ve nuked a lot of stuff off the sidebars, and I’m starting over. New year, new posts, new blogroll, etc.
I’ll try to post more regularly, and also post about things that matter from time to time.
Although…if the Muppets put out another awesome video, I WILL show you.
Do you have a blog that I should be reading? Let me know in the comments, and I’ll put you on the blogroll and add you to my RSS reader.
Coming on Monday: a pre-release review of “Sex, Lies & Religion“, a new book by Randy Elrod.
I’ll also be writing some posts next week from the re:create conference in Nashville. Should be a blast.
Let’s talk!
Tags: blog, Bloggage, Blogroll, Cries Of The Heart, Paul Joseph
(This post is part of the Sunday Setlist blog carnival)
Great service yesterday, and very unusual.
Unusual in that our pastor’s son, Josh, presented the entire book of Hebrews…
FROM MEMORY. Think about THAT.
We opened with a new song during our five-minute countdown, We Shine by Fee. It’s a lot of fun to play, and our new children’s Sunday school is using it for their worship…so we’re going to add it to our rotation.
Then we worshiped with:
Everything That Has Breath (Reuben Morgan)
Today Is The Day (Paul Baloche / Lincoln Brewster)
Great Is Your Glory (Vicky Beeching / Ed Cash)
Sing To The King (Billy Foote)
Then after the usual announcements and brouhaha, we turned it over to Josh.
There’s something about hearing Scripture live. There were parts of Hebrews that I’ve read over and over and yesterday they came to life for the first time.
This week, we’ll be doing our “Open Mic” Thanksgiving service.
How was your Sunday?
This post is part of the Sunday Setlist blog carnival…
A pretty short Sunday music-wise, because there was so much going on.
We started with a cool video called “We Promise” (here’s a link to the video on SermonSpice.com). Unfortunately, I neglected to get everyone’s attention…so about half the people were still talking and visiting, and the other half were trying to see the video without being distracted. My mistake.
Then we opened with “Come Thou Fount, Come Thou King” from the folks at Gateway Worship.
After a baby dedication, we finished our worship set with
“All Of My Days” (Mark Stevens / Hillsong)
“Fairest Lord Jesus / My Only Crown” (Paul Baloche)
“We Fall Down” (Chris Tomlin)
Like I said, short set. How was your Sunday?
I’ve been a pretty lousy blogger as of late.
I’m not sure anyone is even still reading this thing. I don’t have the courage to look at the stats. But there’s some good reasons I’ve been quiet. And I wanted to talk about them.
In a nutshell…we’ve been very, very busy.
(were you expecting something more dramatic?)
From the beginning of the year until the end of May, we were totally focused on Hannah’s wedding.
It was an amazing day, and well worth all the effort. It was an honor to officiate the wedding for such a beautiful young lady.
By the way, here’s me with ANOTHER beautiful young lady at the wedding…
Sarah was the maid of honor. She handled her duties with grace and style. And I was very proud of her. Especially given the emotional burden she was carrying.
You see, Sarah came to us in April and told us she was pregnant.
Sarah moved to Dalton from Macon, and she’s been living with us since May. And her baby is due the last week of November.
I could probably fill a few blog posts with the past seven months. Anger, disbelief, sadness, fear, worry…it’s been an emotional buffet. And God has been in the middle of all of it. Now, as we approach the end of this short journey, I find that mourning HAS turned to gladness…that sorrow HAS turned to joy. God is in the business of restoration. Sarah made some mistakes. But this child that is about to bless her life (all of our lives) is NO mistake. And I’m excited. I’m looking forward to meeting him, and being his grandfather. (Yep. He’s a he.)
Sarah has made me very proud over these months. Since she moved home, she has consistently done “the next right thing”. She went to the board of elders of our church and placed herself under their authority and counsel. She started weekly meetings with an older woman as a mentor. She has wrestled with her own emotions and her own relationship with God. She has worked hard at her job, and worked hard at taking care of herself.
After Ridge is born (yeah, Ridge. Short for Ridgeland. I like it.) the plan is for Sarah and Ridge to live with us for a year. Who knows what will actually happen…but that’s the plan.
Hannah’s room is now a nursery. THAT’S weird. But very cool.
So…there’s the past seven months in a nutshell. Now you know.
And now you know how to pray for me. For Anna. For Sarah. And for Ridge.
I’d also like you to pray for Mike too. He’s the baby’s father. Sarah knew that forcing a marriage would be another mistake that she didn’t want to make. We want to be as gracious and loving to Mike as we can. He IS the father, and he should be involved in Ridge’s life as much as he wants to be. Pray for us also as we figure that whole thing out.
Thanks for reading. And for praying.
(This post is part of the Sunday Setlist blog carnival…)
Dang. How long has it been since I’ve done one of these?
Well, for the five of you that are still reading my blog, here’s what we did this past Sunday.
For the first time in the seven years we’ve been here, we went WAY unplugged. Only grand piano, violin, and ONE vocalist (me). Anna is still recuperating from her surgery a few weeks ago, and doesn’t have the strength to sing yet. I would much rather lead worship with Anna than without her, but there wasn’t much choice.
Our worship set:
Rise Up And Praise Him (Paul Baloche / Gary Sadler)
Offering (Paul Baloche)
Enough (Louie Giglio / Chris Tomlin)
Be Unto Your Name (Lynn DeShazo / Gary Sadler) - We’re using this song for the “theme” of the current series we’re doing.
For communion:
I Surrender All (Public Domain)
I Cling To The Cross (Paul Baloche / Matt Redman) - First time we’ve done this beautiful song. I sang it during the taking of the bread. Then we brought it back at the end of the service for all to sing.
Surrender (Marc James)
One other cool thing we did this week - The children in our WAK program (Worship Arts for Kids) took some pictures a few weeks ago. I took each kid around the church and outside with a 35mm digital camera, and let them take a picture of whatever they wanted that reminded them of God. Then they took time to look up scriptures to go with their pictures. I used the pics and verses and threw them into iMovie for a quick call-to-worship video, with music by John Carrozza (click here to get his EP on iTunes). Here it is…not bad for a bunch of kids!
How was your Sunday?
Miraculously, the most amazing and beautiful woman I’ve ever seen met me at the end of an aisle and became my wife.
- September 4, 1982 - First Baptist Church, Macon, Georgia
Even more miraculously…she still IS my wife.
Thank you, Anna. I am blessed. And I love you.
It used to be that one would seek out culture…a night at the opera, a trip to the museum. Now, culture is forced down our throats. Netflix delivers our movies to our mailbox and our laptop. iTunes downloads the latest music in a flash. Hundreds of TV channels screaming their version of “reality”.
What is our response as Christians? Does it even matter anymore?
If you’re interested in discussing these questions in a small group or class setting, “Faith and Pop Culture” from Christianity Today is a good place to start.
The book is laid out in eight chapters. The first four cover movies, books, sports, and television. The second four move into larger discussions of violence, “family friendly” entertainment, and Christian influence in the entertainment industries.
The format of each study is familiar “small group” territory; icebreakers, study and discussion questions, and follow-up activities. What sets this study apart is Christianity Today’s access to a stellar lineup of screenwriters, authors, professors, and theologians - including the excellent Jeffrey Overstreet (the author of the must-read “Through A Screen Darkly”).
The discussions questions are well-written, and careful not to take a stand on one opinion or the other. Scripture references are plentiful and appropriately enlightening to the subject matter. The group participants are encouraged to think for themselves and reach their own conclusions.
In short, this study is an excellent place to begin this very important discussion. I’ll be suggesting it to my own small group.
Tags: Christianity Today, small group
