Categories: Spiritual Life

29 Jun 2010, Comments (2)

Washed and Waiting: Reflections on Christian Faithfulness and Homosexuality

Author: Elijah Layfield

Washed and WaitingIn September, I will be ordering this book, Washed and Waiting: Reflections on Christian Faithfulness and Homosexuality. Wesley is a man I greatly respect. He’s a graduate of The Bethlehem Institute.  He combines a passion for Christ and his Word, and heartbroken openness about his homosexual desires.  In our quickly changing world, I would recommend everyone to pay attention to his message.

From the back cover:

This is a book written primarily for gay Christians and those who love them. Part memoir, part pastoral-theological reflection, this book wrestles with three main areas of struggle that many gay Christians face: (1) What is God’s will for sexuality? (2) If the historic Christian tradition is right and same-sex behavior is ruled out, how should gay Christians deal with their resulting loneliness? (3) How can gay Christians come to an experience of grace that rescues them from crippling feelings of shame and guilt? Author Wesley Hill is not advocating that it is possible for every gay Christian to become straight, nor is he saying that God affirms homosexuality. Instead, Hill comes alongside gay Christians and says, ‘You are not alone. Here is my experience; it’s like yours. And God is with us. We can share in God’s grace.’ While some authors profess a deep faith in Christ and claim a powerful experience of the Holy Spirit precisely in and through their homosexual practice, Hill’s own story, by contrast, is a story of feeling spiritually hindered, rather than helped, by his homosexuality. His story testifies that homosexuality was not God’s original creative intention for humanity—that it is, on the contrary, a tragic sign of human nature and relationships being fractured by sin—and therefore that homosexual practice goes against God’s express will for all human beings, especially those who trust in Christ. This book is written mainly for those homosexual Christians who are trying to walk the narrow path of celibacy and are convinced that their discipleship to Jesus necessarily commits them to the demanding, costly obedience of choosing not to nurture their homosexual desires. With reflections from the lives of Henri Nouwen and Gerard Manley Hopkins, Wesley Hill encourages and challenges Christians with homosexual desires to live faithful to God’s plan for human sexuality. 

7 May 2010, Comments (2)

A Word About Reviews

Author: Elijah Layfield

Doing any type of review is generally a subjective thing anyway, but in this post I’m going to try to take the mystery out of the ratings of our 225 Book Reviews.  In essence, there are 5 questions that I’m asking as I reflect on the book that I’m reading.

Does the book accord with what I believe is absolutely true about reality, that Jesus Christ is the Son of God sent to redeem fallen man?

Is the book well-written from a grammatical and literary standpoint? Can’t get away from this one. I mean, it is a book. This should be a give-me for any book.

Is the book written at an engaging level, or is it written too high (academically) or is it written too low (popularly)? This is a subjective thing, I know. But, if I get the sense that the book could have went a bit deeper, or could have stated things a bit simpler, then it affects this rating.

Did the book accomplish the aim of its thesis? Whether or not I agree with what the author is stating, this question addresses whether he was able to do what he set out to do in the book.

Did I enjoy the book? Another subjective category, but a vastly important one in my opinion. No matter how good the writing is, or how important the material is, if the writer doesn’t actively seek to engage the reader, then the book will fall flat.

In summary,

  • A 5 Star book is one of the best books I’ve ever read.  It changed my life.
  • A 4 Star book is a very good book that is worth reading again.
  • A 3 Star book is a good book that may be worth reading, but not more than once.
  • A 2 Star book is an average book that would be a good choice when you can’t find anything else to read.
  • A 1 Star book is one that doesn’t advance anything in the field written. There are other books, and better written, that address the author’s topic in a more important way.
3 May 2010, Comments (1)

In the Stillness Before a Storm

Author: Brian

The whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until now. And not only the creation, but we ourselves… groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies. Romans 8:22-23

There is a quiet questioning in the still before a storm. An uncertainty of what is to come.

Storms are moving into our area today. A front is moving through bringing high possibility of thunderstorms, tornadoes, and hail; yet, for now, creation waits. The clouds, dark and heavy, begin to fill the East Texas sky. The air is still and cool, though there’s a heaviness about it: an unseen force just waiting for an appropriate time to strike.

The trees seem to be readying, preparing for the unknown. Yes, rain may come, but how much? How long will it fall? Winds may follow, but how strong will they blow? From what direction will they come?Will today be the day when lightning will strike? Will inner strength based on hope for redemption sustain through what is to come or will today be the day it breaks? Are the roots grounded well into good, rich, firm soil? Or will the soil quickly give way to its demise? What if it should fall? Birds, squirrels, and many other creatures will lose their homes and food.

Before the storm is the time of preparation, trust, and the seeking of wisdom.

Not all storms come with warning and it is the trees who are ever preparing, ever seeking, ever trusting, ever grounding, and ever ready that are able to survive the hard rains and strong winds.

Let me be a man such as that tree.

21 Apr 2010, Comments (2)

Rainer on Seven Characteristics of Highly Evangelistic People

Author: Elijah Layfield

Read the full article by Thom Rainer.

1. They are people of prayer.

2. They have a theology that compels them to evangelize.

3. They are people who spend time in the Word.

4. They are compassionate people.

5. They love the communities where God has placed them.

6. They are intentional about evangelism.

7. They are accountable to someone for their evangelistic activities. 

20 Apr 2010, Comments (2)

A 4-Step Plan to Critical Thinking

Author: Elijah Layfield

In a document “Answering New Atheists,” Greg Koukl gives a four-step plan “of critical thinking… to weed out distracting or irrelevant details so you have an unobstructed view of the structure of the core argument and can assess its strength. “

  • First ask, “What is the claim?”
  • Second ask, “What are the reasons given to support the claim?”
  • Third ask, “Which appeals are irrelevant?”
  • Finally ask, “Does the conclusion follow from the evidence?”
9 Apr 2010, Comments (1)

Ironside by the Fireside

Author: Elijah Layfield

“Harry Ironside was pastor of Moody Church in Chicago. He became one of the great expositors of the Word of God in the twentieth century. He tells of taking the train from Chicago to see his widowed mother in California. When he got to his mother’s house overlooking the Pacific Ocean, he saw a tent on the back of her property. She had permitted an old Welsh preacher, who was dying of what people called ‘consumption’ in those days, to put up his tent by the sea. The climate helped his consumption. Wanting to meet the old preacher and to make sure he was harmless, Ironside went out to the old man’s tent.

The old preacher was sitting on a log by a campfire. He said to Ironside, ‘I understand you are going to make a preacher.’ Ironside laughed. After all, he was pastor of one of the elite pulpits in the world. ‘Sit down beside me, and let me share with you some of the things God has taught me,’ the old man told Ironside. He took his Bible and for over an hour shared some of the most beautiful and powerful truths from the Scripture Ironside had ever heard.

When the old man ran out of breath and stopped, Ironside asked him where he got those wonderful truths. Where did he go to school? What books did he read? The old man replied, ‘Nay, but on a sod floor in Wales, kneeling before an open Bible God taught me these things. Pastor, never lose your passion for God’s Word” (from Ironside’s Commentary on Ephesians, qtd in The New Guidebook for Pastors, by James Bryant and Mac Brunson, 238).

3 Apr 2010, Comments (3)

The Hush that Is Longed for

Author: Elijah Layfield

“The most privileged and moving experience a preacher can ever have is when, in the middle of the sermon, a strange hush descends upon the congregation. The sleepers have woken up, the coughers have stopped coughing, and the fidgeters are sitting still. No eyes or minds are wandering. Everybody is attending, though not to the preacher. For the preacher is forgotten, and the people are face to face with the living God, listening to his still, small voice” (John Stott, Between Two Worlds, 326).

25 Mar 2010, Comments (4)

On What Are You Setting Your Hope?

Author: Brian

1 Peter 1:13 reads:

“Set your hope fully on the grace that will be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ”

NOT on food or my physical health.
NOT on the economy or my job security.
NOT on my bank account or on the next pay day.
NOT on my accomplishments, professional training or on the strength or ability of my hands.
NOT my children, or their performance in competitive sports, academic achievement or artistic ability.
NOT on my ability to communicate.
NOT on my wife.
NOT on entertainment or my next hiking trip.
NOT on the day when I can play the guitar like Phil Keaggy or the hammered dulcimer like Rich Mullins.

No, I am to set my hope fully – not in part – on the grace brought to me at the revelation of Jesus Christ. Not just on today’s grace, though Paul was told that His grace was sufficient in Paul’s weakness (2 Corinthians 12:9) and it is sufficient for me for today. No, I am to set my hope fully on the grace to be brought at the revelation of Jesus Christ.

That’s a long way ahead (perhaps). This means the life of a Christian is akin to running a long-distance race. There’s a lot at stake, but endurance is key. We must set our hope fully at the end. I am to keep my eyes heavenward (Philippians 3:12-14)when I shall be forever freed from the mess that sin has wrought around and within me. Thankfully, we are also reminded that “hope does not disappoint because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit” Romans 5:5.

Brothers, it’s a long race. Keep your eyes on the prize and I will see you at the end.

24 Mar 2010, Comments Off

The Perils of the Pulpit

Author: Elijah Layfield

“Truth to tell, the pulpit is a perilous place for any child of Adam to occupy. It is ‘high and lifted up’, and thus enjoys a prominence which should be restricted to Yahweh’s throne. (Isa. 6.1) We stand there in solitude, while the eyes of all are upon us. We hold forth in monologue, while all sit still, silent and subdued. Who can endure such public exposure and remain unscathed by vanity? Pride is without doubt the chief occupational hazard of the preacher. It has ruined many, and deprived their ministry of power” (John Stott, Between Two Worlds, 320).

15 Mar 2010, Comments Off

The Dangerous Duty of Delight, John Piper

Author: Elijah Layfield

225 Book Reviews

Book Reviews in 225 Words

Just the naked and unashamed truth (Genesis 2.25).

The Dangerous Duty of Delight.

John Piper.

Multnomah Publishers.

91 pages.

Somewhere, I heard John Piper say, “You want to buy a Piper book? Only buy one. I say the same thing in every book.” At the core of that quote and at the core of every book that Piper has written over the past 20+ years is the simple fact that he has been gripped by a theology of finding all of his satisfaction in God through Jesus Christ. “God is most glorified in us, when we are most satisfied in him.” His writings have become, to me, like dining at my favorite restaurant. He, a master chef, may use the same ingredients in every entree, yet I never tire of dining on what he has prepared.

This book is, in essence, an abbreviated version of his magnus opus, Desiring God. After laying the foundation in the first five chapters that the chief end of man is glorify God forever by enjoying him forever, he focuses the last four on how this theology relates to worship, marriage, money, and missions. It’s a great introduction, into an even greater introduction (Desiring God), into one of the greatest truths that I have ever encountered. Read it and enjoy!

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