Author Archives: Speakfaithfully
Why this use of the Bible is problematic due to the Bible we have…
[In my previous post I have described how I have seen the Bible essentially treated as a “Truth mine.” The Bible is “mined” for eternal truths from God. These truths are often then used to guide and govern Christian behavior … Continue reading
Posted in Class or Paper Take Away, Faith, Personal Commentary, Why do we believe...
Tagged Bible, Biblical authority, biblical inconsistencies, canon, canon formation, Christianity, different Bibles, exegesis, genres in the Bible, inconsistencies in the Bible, Jesus, scriptural interpretation, the authority of the Bible, the Bible, truth, Truth mine
1 Comment
How I have seen the Bible used…
When it comes to answering the question, “How should Christians understand and use the Bible?” thousands of answers, traditions and streams of thought exist. Many books have been written on this subject. It would be presumptuous to suggest that I could … Continue reading
Why I left Christianity.
Recently I left Christianity. While I have had some amazingly positive experiences in my twenty some years in Christianity, including moments where I truly experienced the love of God, shared true heart-warming fellowship with other Christians, and even times where … Continue reading
How do you understand the Bible?
As mentioned, I want to discuss how Christians have misused and abused scripture, why this is wrong, and why we have done so in my next several posts. Usually I write what I have to say and then ask my … Continue reading
Posted in Faith, Personal Commentary
Tagged Bible, Christianity, Jesus, the Bible, the word of God, Word of God
2 Comments
Jesus, please do not let go of the wheel: How I explain what happened in my life last year to non-Christians…
I realize that I use a lot of religious language in my writing and it really only makes sense to Christians. However, many of my friends do not come from any organized spiritual or religious tradition to speak of and … Continue reading
Life in marvelous times…
I think most of my life I have been waiting for an invitation to come and join a party I was already at. My own self-hatred kept me from acknowledging that God and others wanted me even though they did and … Continue reading
Posted in Faith
Tagged Christianity, Jesus, Jesus Christ, joy, older brother, prodigal son, prodigal sons, young brother
1 Comment
What it’s like to pray for healing for juvenile arthritis…
Due to the miraculous healing I have received in inner healing prayer I began to pray for physical healing for arthritis for the first time in many years. During this time my pain decreased to the point where I forgot … Continue reading
Posted in Faith
Tagged arthritis, Christ, Christianity, faith, healing, Jesus, Jesus Christ, juvenile arthritis, prayer, prayers for healing
2 Comments
A farewell present for Andrea Bressler
Sadly one of my friends at Fuller, Andrea Bressler, shall be moving on from seminary for bigger and better things. Recently we took a communication class together and after my “Biblical Message” speech she sent me an email in which … Continue reading
Posted in Faith
Tagged 1 John, 1 John 4, 1 John 4:19, Christian love, Christian ministry, Christianity, faith, God's love for us, Jesus, love, ministry, preaching, we love because he first loved us
2 Comments
Letters Between Friends: David P. and hearing from God.
[This post is a response to David P’s comment on my previous post. You can read it here.] Dear David, Thanks again for taking the time to listen and respond to both of my questions. I trust that you are … Continue reading
Speakfaithfully 
Why this use of the Bible is problematic in practice…
[In my previous post I described how the dominant approach to the Bible I have seen in Christianity is problematic, if not outright impossible, to use given the development and the nature of the Bible. In this post I want … Continue reading →