Note: The second of three reblogs of old articles before I publish the concluding new articles in the near future.
A Tale of Two Conversions: Part One
I’m republishing an old series on my conversion to the Christian faith, which I have never finished. I’m currently working on the final few posts. If anyone out there is interested, I’ll post the three existing chapters one by one, then post the new chapters as they are finished. When the complete series is published, I plan to package it into a book, as I did with my series on converting to Calvinism.
Triple Bypass Reboot
My father’s side of the family has an inauspicious history of heart disease over the generations, and recently, my part in the story came due. Men in my family tend to die at or before the age of sixty-five from heart attacks or other heart-related issues. I’m only fifty-four, but the family history has long hung over my head like a sword of Damocles. My dad had a heart attack around his mid-fifties, so I felt the clock ticking. In my early forties, I consulted with a cardiologist over consistent heart palpitations (due in no small part to my affinity for energy drinks). I subjected myself to a rigorous stress test and emerged with a clean bill of health. I wiped the sweat off my brow and went my merry way. But the ghosts of family past continued to haunt me. My primary care physician retired last year, so I visited a new PCP in my community and quickly informed her of our family’s history of heart disease. She suggested I have a calcium scan done. I had never heard of this procedure, but decided it wouldn’t hurt. A calcium scan detects calcium deposits in or around the heart arteries, though it does not necessarily indicate blockages or their severity. The scale runs from 0 to 400, with risk severity divided into 100-point increments. I scored a 656! Off the charts! My brow furrowed with concern. My PCP recommended me to a cardiologist, and we had a consultation. He suggested calcium scores are not necessarily indicative of dangerous blockages. Calcium can build up outside the arteries without obstructing blood flow. He recommended an angiogram procedure whereby they insert a catheter through the vein in my wrist and navigate to my heart. They then inject a dye and, using X-rays, they see how well the blood flows through my major heart arteries. The cardiologist informed me that if blockages are detected, he would insert a stent to open the blood flow to my heart. One or more stents may be necessary. It sounded easy, fairly painless, with the end result being peace of mind about my overall heart health. Without hesitation, I signed on for the procedure. They scheduled it for a Monday morning.
Continue readingConverting To Calvinism: My Journey into the Heart of Reformed Theology
I self-published my second book on Amazon. I gathered together a series of articles from this blog concerning my sudden and dramatic conversion to a Reformed worldview and put them together in a short 40-pager:
The Kindle version is $.99 and the paperback is $4.95. If you’re interested, check it out HERE
The House That God Built
I published my first piece of fiction! Well, don’t get too excited. To celebrate the thirtieth anniversary of my salvation by God’s grace, I just self-published the first story I wrote as a true born-again Christian.
It’s a simple, brief allegory of the Christian life, based on the parable in Matthew 7, demonstrating the contrast between a house built on the rock of Christ and a house built on Satan’s sand. I used a painting made by my now-retired pastor for the cover illustration, and I’m quite happy with how it turned out.
The book is currently available only on Amazon. The Kindle version sells for $0.99. The paperback version is $4.99.
Click here if you’d like to check it out.
Must-Read Books for Easter
Defining the Connection Between Religion and Politics
In a previous post, I made observations about the connected nature of religion and politics. In this post, I want to elaborate on the distinction between the three terms I used to describe the Religious Nature of Politics.
Religion: All persons are inherently religious – even if they do not adhere to any particular religious system or dogma. Everyone has faith convictions. By this I mean every person holds to presuppositions about the world beyond the senses they believe to be true. We could not logically function in society without these assumptions. You may believe a divine creator made all things and all things hold together by His will and purpose. You may think the universe is governed by certain scientific principles that have coalesced over time into the world in which you live. Neither assertion can be proved or disproved with absolute certainty. They are faith convictions. Faith convictions are either theological (divinely transcendent) or Ideological (humanly immanent) in nature.
Continue readingUnderstanding Calvinism: Core Beliefs Explained
Sometimes I get asked what Calvinism is. Calvinism is the doctrine clearly stated in Scripture that Salvation is of the Lord. Every conceivable component and step along the way is ordered and orchestrated by the Lord in His divine providence.
Calvinism is the sure knowledge that our sin is insurmountable in our own strength.
Calvinism teaches we can’t wash away our misdeeds; We are unable to cleanse our own thoughts; We do not have the virtue to obey the simplest of the commandments; Our good deeds don’t have the power to outweigh our wicked ways.
Calvinism is the conviction that salvation is beyond the reach of our arms and we must rely on an alien righteousness to make us right before God.
The Religious Nature of Politics
Another election year is upon us, and campaign ads pervade the airwaves like toxic fumes. I dread the stage of the political cycle when propaganda reaches peak levels of slander. I can’t even enjoy a football game in peace without being inundated with ads. No one looks forward to post-election tranquility more than I do. I can only hope peace prevails when the dust settles.
I want to point out a significant truth that I have come to over the years as a once politically disengaged Christian. My disdain for politics is longstanding and fervent. It is ugly, riddled with lies, half-truths, deception, power, and pride. I find it overwhelming to sift through all the double talk. I refused to sully myself in its muck and mire. But that position has turned out to be wrongheaded and harmful. When Christians collectively abdicate their civil duty to help determine the direction of community, state, and national discourse they, by default, are allowing other parties, influenced by humanistic philosophies and ideologies, to choose the way forward.
To put things bluntly, a nation built on Christian foundations and populated mostly by professing Christians cannot allow a pagan worldview to dominate our politics. A Christian worldview should shape our ethics, laws, and all civil affairs.
Continue readingRequiem
Kamber Shenae Doback-Lucas
Job’s friends had the best of intentions when they sat down with him in the ash pile remains of the life he had built for himself. Job mourned the loss of his vast wealth and personal health, but most of all he mourned the loss of his seven sons and three daughters. See, God permitted Satan to afflict Job and take away all that he cared about. Satan sought to turn his soul away from the God he adored. In the end, Satan’s challenge ended in failure. Job’s heart remained steadfast. But this does not mean Job did not suffer greatly – he did: He endured doubts and anguish. He had many burning questions, but no answers. He questioned his own integrity. He lost the will to live. His friends were no help at all. In fact, they blamed Job for his miseries, claiming God blesses the righteous and curses the wicked. And since Job had experienced unprecedented disaster on every side, they could only conclude he had sinned greatly and should repent for his wicked heart. However, we are told in the opening verse of the book that Job was blameless and upright, one who feared God and turned away from evil. Later in the story, another friend, younger in years, but more accomplished in wisdom joined the conversation. He rebuked Job’s three friends and explained how God sometimes uses human suffering to purify and teach us things in a way that no other means will suffice. He counseled that it is our duty to humble ourselves under the mighty hand of God in those moments.
Continue reading
A Peculiar Pilgrim 