Land of my Sojourn

Been a while....

....so why don't y'all set a spell and I'll catch ya up.

Well, the whole vertigo thing (read all about it at Pops 'n' Buzzes) hasn't gotten any better. I had another attack on Wednesday, at least as severe as the one that put me in the ER a few weeks back. Only problem this time was Christine was at work, so I had to ride it out at home while the in-laws watched the boys (neither of whom would, you know, NAP or anything). So there I was, full barfed out laying on the bathroom floor waiting for Christine the Gravol Queen to save me. Which, of course, she did.

Why is this here instead of Pops? Well, in the course of this ongoing vertigo war, I have come to appreciate something about my walk with God. I need to stop talking about God, spend less time reading/listening to others tell me what God is doing in their lives and pay more attention to how God wants to use ME. I had an MRI on my head on Thursday night (moved up from January 2006 after one of Christine's co-workers marched her down to X-ray on Wednesday to change the date) and the one thought that keeps coming back to me is...what if there's a growth in the ear? There's a history of cancer in my family. It killed my Dad (at 58), my Nana and my Grandpa and may have had a hand in killing my Papa and Grandma. I've already lived longer than my Mom (I think she was 34 when she passed away. Leigh, if you read this, correct me if I'm wrong) and this series of episodes the past 3 weeks has brought mortality to mind more than once.

Welcome to my latest personal Spiritual revival.

The Ministry of Mercy book is really a gift from God, brought to me at the right time. I am really motivated to start doing things, in my church, my family, my community and anywhere else God calls me. I dusted off my Promise Keepers' New Testament, which I haven't cracked in 3 years, and am committed to reading it twice in the next 12 months. My brain is percolating with new ministry ideas and I am prayerfully seeking ways to "fight a few fights" at my church that may be unpopular with some folks. I am also excited, at the smae time, about deepening my, and my family's, involvement in serving God and our church family at the ol' Fortress.

So, what else led to my own personal revival?

I recently sent an invitation to Steve Calverley, Al Baker and Pernell Goodyear to have coffee and swap stories and ideas. I am more and more impressed with some of the thinking of these three guys and, while I don't agree with all things postmodern, I can, through some of their (and others') commentaries, see some of the concerns postmoderns have when it comes to the modern church. I also see their deep love of Jesus and their desire to live their lives like him. I am also looking forward to building stronger relationships with some of my Philpott brothers and sisters and having opportunity to talk about stuff that runs far below the surface.

My revival also stems from the devotionals I get from Rick Warren's Purpose Driven Life and some of the reading I have done on my own of late (for example, Bibby's Restless Churches and McLaren's Story We Find Ourselves In books. With McLaren, though, I caution that for every good point McLaren makes in these books, I think there are two or three that are absolute drivel). It also stems from a challenge from my stepmother, who told me that, instead of reading other's interpretations of the Bible, maybe I should go back and re-read it myself and let God open my heart to His teaching. Smart, Godly woman.

The next 12 months should be exciting.

posted by Brian @ 10:48 PM