It's "PRE" not "POST"!

Just reading an article explaining worldviews in some social-critical psuedo-hip terminology as "POST-modern"...it's the sense that the world is leaving the 'moorings' of modern thought, (as though 'modernity' was a splendid philosophy to build our lives on!) - the fragmentation of authority and so on...

WELL - here's the rub... it now creeps into the emerging church language as a worldview that we live in a "POST-Christian" culture... that our culture (viewed from my bias as a U.S. citizen) has lost the moorings of its God-based foundation - in a strange twist of reflection that pines the 'good old days' were really the "Godly days" - well sin has always been a corrupting agent, and ever deadly - whether it was the friend who drowned on a drug trip in '68, kids in a drunken wreck in '38 or a shooting in poly in '07...

So - let's agree that perhaps, it wasn't MORE Godly in '42 than it is now...just somewhat less uncovered...
NOW - stay with me... let's see if maybe, in the sovereignty of God - It's "PRE" not "POST"!

God always took His people 'out' in order to take them 'in' - out of Egypt to go in to the Promised Land...
He is always a God of the "future and a hope" - so he is forward thinking... it is not about your past, but about your future that He is busy about right now...it may be about healing of the past, but the healing is for your future...

Job is misquoted as saying "the Lord giveth and the Lord taketh away" - he didnt say that... read first chap. again - but that's another time - there is in context though, a concept that was understood by Job and the ancient philosophers...in fact in the NT Hebrews, the writer states that 'God took away the first, to establish the second" - OK, here's the BIG DEAL - It is a circle - (eccl. the way of the righteous winds ever upward) God takes so He can give...He is ever after EXPANDING YOUR CAPACITY! And, it is always about leading you toward your future! ...circular - He gives, takes away, expands, gives, takes away, expands, gives...

God changed Abram's name to Abraham not reflecting what had already happened (though it had in the spiritual realm) but so he would be focused on HIS FUTURE... everytime Abraham said his name, he was speaking faith into his future!

SO - in the redemption of the Cross...YOU ARE NOT DEFINED BY YOUR PAST, BUT YOUR FUTURE!
now, let's look at reality of our world...
are we really a 'Post-Christian' culture? Did we have so much in the past, that it could never be better, stronger, larger?
NO!! Listen... here it is...finally... just another second!! -

WE are living in a "Post-Religion" culture...a century full of traditions, myths and divisive doctrines... and we are headed FROM a religious/institutional era INTO the greatest days of the church... out of - into...

catch this...get the perspective...listen openly...

THIS is the "PRE-CHRISTIAN" ERA! Now, doesn't that get you pumped!? The greatest expansion of theKingdom is just ahead of us... not behind us... we are focusing on the future, defined by our dreams, fueled by hope and lifted by faith...it's just ahead of us... The Christian Revolution... and today is the "Pre-Christian" era, setting the foundations in order...

WE are on the cusp, looking forward, not back...moving forward, not static... cranking into a brilliant "PRE-CHRISTIAN" era of spectacular victories...C'mon brothers-let's do this thing!!


think.live.grow.

grace/peace-paul

OK... it's all good...

Hectic but totally wonderful Christmas season - Christmas productions, wonderful family times, special services at church, relational coffee times, and such like (KingJames) - but, OK, many of you have busted me on not blogging-keeping up with stuff...so, I started this blog to be a very ministerial sort of report on the men's movement as we travel around the world - no travel, no blog - but, perhaps as my son Brandon, nephew Seth and son-in-law Niles work on our new website, I'll make this decision -
we'll do reports on this blog and on the website, but I will also use this blog for updates on all things men's movement related - connecting to guys like team from Mozambique a few weeks ago, on phone today with leader in Grenada, NewMan magazine going all digital, working on details for the Feb trip to Peru and So. America..etc.
got it... it's all good - it's all God!
- talk soon...
grace/peace
paul