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	<title>Renewed Culture &#187; Issues</title>
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		<title>I Saw a Sunset</title>
		<link>http://renewedculture.com/i-saw-a-sunset</link>
		<comments>http://renewedculture.com/i-saw-a-sunset#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sun, 18 Jul 2010 08:16:45 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Carl</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Creative]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[General]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Science]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://renewedculture.com/?p=1463</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[This is a photo that I took in Seattle, WA working on a research vessel in the Puget Sound lake.  Amazing, isn&#8217;t it?  Look at how many different colors stream across the sky.  Off to the left, you can see the silhouette of the mountains.  Gorgeous! Why do we admire scenes like this?  What is [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><a class="post_image_link" href="http://renewedculture.com/i-saw-a-sunset" title="Permanent link to I Saw a Sunset"><img class="post_image alignleft remove_bottom_margin frame" src="http://renewedculture.com/wp-content/uploads/IMG_0781.jpg" width="230" height="129" alt="Post image for I Saw a Sunset" /></a>
</p><p>This is a photo that I took in Seattle, WA working on a research vessel in the Puget Sound lake.  Amazing, isn&#8217;t it?  Look at how many different colors stream across the sky.  Off to the left, you can see the silhouette of the mountains.  Gorgeous!</p>
<p>Why do we admire scenes like this?  What is it about the beauty of nature that causes men, women, and even babies to stand in amazement?  Well, theologians call it &#8220;General Revelation.&#8221;  That is, God the Creator, has revealed aspects of His character and nature to <span style="text-decoration: underline;">all</span> of mankind through His creation.  When we look at this sunset, we realize that God is BEAUTIFUL and the source of all beauty!</p>
<p>Psalms 19:1-3 says:</p>
<blockquote><p><sup>1</sup> The heavens declare the glory of God;<br />
the skies proclaim the work of his hands.</p>
<p><sup>2</sup> Day after day they pour forth speech;<br />
night after night they display knowledge.</p>
<p><sup>3</sup> There is no speech or language<br />
where their voice is not heard.</p></blockquote>
<p>All the beauty of creation shows off the glory of God the Creator!  Creation proclaims His glory and power every day and every night.  And, according to verse 3, there is no language where creation&#8217;s speech about God is not heard.  Every race and ethnicity on the planet has seen an amazing sunset or a majestic waterfall.  Americans, Africans, Hispanics, Russians, Chinese, Koreans, Australians, and the like have gazed upward at the night sky and admired the countless stars the God created and knows by name (<a title="Isaiah 40:25-26 (New International Version)" href="http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Isaiah%2040:25-26&amp;version=NIV" target="_blank">Isaiah 40:25-26</a>)!!</p>
<p>And because of this general revelation, you and I have NO EXCUSE not to know and worship God!</p>
<p>Romans 1:19-20, 25 says:</p>
<blockquote><p><sup>19 </sup>since what may be known  about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them.</p>
<p><sup>20</sup> For since the creation of the  world God&#8217;s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine  nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made,  so that men are without excuse.</p>
<p><sup>25 </sup>They exchanged the truth  of God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than  the Creator—who is forever praised. Amen.</p></blockquote>
<p>We can clearly see God&#8217;s invisible qualities, His eternal power and divine nature, through what He has made so we have no excuse (Verse 20).  Unfortunately, many people suppress this truth and believe lies&#8230;worshiping the creation over the Creator.  Pantheism, Wicca, Astrology, Witchcraft, and the like praise created things (nature, animals, stars, etc.) but not the Creator whose beauty they proclaim.  It&#8217;s tragic really.</p>
<p>Yep, I saw a really beautiful sunset.  As I admire it&#8217;s vivid colors, I&#8217;m reminded of my Heavenly Father&#8230;and fall in love all over again.</p>
<p><a href="http://renewedculture.com/wp-content/uploads/IMG_07811.jpg"><img src="http://renewedculture.com/wp-content/uploads/IMG_07811.jpg" alt="" width="510" height="286" /></a></p>
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		<title>Obeying Christ in a disobedient world</title>
		<link>http://renewedculture.com/obeying-christ-in-a-disobedient-world</link>
		<comments>http://renewedculture.com/obeying-christ-in-a-disobedient-world#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 04 May 2010 13:24:01 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>SavedByGraceAlone</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Current Events]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[child]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[disobedience]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Family]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[forgiveness]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[God]]></category>
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		<category><![CDATA[Jesus]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[living]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[love]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[obedience]]></category>
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		<category><![CDATA[sin]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://renewedculture.com/?p=1226</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Are  you living your life fully for Christ or are you living partially for this world? Do you do what you want to do or what Christ commands you to do? How each of us answers these questions sheds light on just how obedient to Christ we are. As with most other things in life we [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p></p><p>Are  you living your life fully for Christ or are you living partially for this world? Do you do what you want to do or what Christ commands you to do? How each of us answers these questions sheds light on just how obedient to Christ we are. As with most other things in life we will find ourselves having the intent to obey our Father but not the strength and courage to be obedient. We tend to replace obedience with sacrifice though we know 1 Samuel 15:22 says &#8221; But Samuel replied: &#8216;Does the Lord delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices as much as in obeying the voice of the Lord?  To obey is better than sacrifice, and to heed is better than the fat of the rams.&#8221;</p>
<p>When it is time to make sacrifices I know I have disobeyed the will of God. In the Old Testament we know Israel was required to perform sacrificial ceremonies yearly to cleanse the country and her people. These ceremonies were, in a sense, ways of asking for forgiveness after being disobedient to the God of Abraham. Our Heavenly Father gave us the means to be forgiven because He knew we would prefer to do things our way and live in continual disobedience to His will. What we tend to ignore is the fact that we pay a hefty price for our incessant refusal to do things His way in His timing. Examples include:  Adam and Eve being removed from the Garden of Eden, Lot&#8217;s wife being turned into a pillar of salt after looking back toward Sodom and Gomorrah in willful disobedience to the Lord, King Saul ultimately being overcome by his enemies, Jonah was swallowed by a big fish after an attempt to run away from Ninevah (where God told him to preach). This is just a small list of the many people who were disobedient and the consequences they paid. As a reminder, paying consequences does not indicate the Lord&#8217;s refusal to forgive you. As a parent you forgive your child for choosing to ignore your rules while at the same time imposing consequences on their behavior.</p>
<p>As children of God it is our responsibility to be obedient to His holy will. This is not always an easy thing to do but it is necessary. We live in a very disobedient world where we watch friends, family, and complete strangers blatantly live their lives any way they please. Governments are pushing for equal marriage rights for homosexuals, advocating abortion, and taking Jesus out of everyday life. God wants us to fight back by continuing to obey His commands. We can bring others to Him when living according to His holy will and acknowledging His everlasting presence. Be the obedient servant in this disobedient world and reap the rewards.</p>
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		<title>I&#8217;M new on here</title>
		<link>http://renewedculture.com/im-new-on-here</link>
		<comments>http://renewedculture.com/im-new-on-here#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 23 Apr 2010 06:39:22 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>JesusFreak12.13.94</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Community]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Education]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[General]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://renewedculture.com/?p=1144</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[All I can really say is that God has been using me in a great way that I can feel his power, love, and mercy around me. These past couple of weeks have been as much fun as they have been challenging. I will say I go to a Christian school where, you would expect [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p></p><p>All I can really say is that God has been using me in a great way that I can feel his power, love, and mercy around me. These past couple of weeks have been as much fun as they have been challenging. I will say I go to a Christian school where, you would expect the kids there to be Christian. That&#8217;s just it, now a day&#8217;s parents are putting their kids in a Private School just to keep them out of trouble. The worst part is, is that when you get kicked out of Private school. NO Private school after that will accept you. Now I haven&#8217;t even come close to being kicked out, but I know a few kids that were kicked out. I don&#8217;t really know what to do on here, but hopefully God will speak through me on here.</p>
<p>Thanks, In God&#8217;s Love</p>
<p>JesusFreak</p>
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		<title>Now I&#8217;m in College&#8230;</title>
		<link>http://renewedculture.com/now-im-in-college</link>
		<comments>http://renewedculture.com/now-im-in-college#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 22 Apr 2010 18:39:46 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>witacity11</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Community]]></category>
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		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://renewedculture.com/?p=1122</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[College life is&#8230; different. Now that I&#8217;ve stated the obvious, I&#8217;ll get into specifics. There is a sense of freedom here in this tiny college town that no lack of curfew in high school can match. I live in an apartment with a fantastic raised-Christian roommate who is now my best friend. We go through [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p></p><p>College life is&#8230; different.</p>
<p>Now that I&#8217;ve stated the obvious, I&#8217;ll get into specifics. There is a sense of freedom here in this tiny college town that no lack of curfew in high school can match. I live in an apartment with a fantastic raised-Christian roommate who is now my best friend. We go through everything together, which is comforting in an already-turbulent social scene. As the end of our second semester approaches, I find it hard to believe how much we&#8217;ve already been through and how much we&#8217;ve grown up over the last nine months.</p>
<p>Last summer, I thought I was going to transition into Super Christian mode. I had a big stack of tracts ready to go, my roommate and I were getting to know each other and making plans to find a new church and join the BSM, and I was gearing up for a spotless lifestyle. But all of that never happened&#8230; I think God had other plans for me and my roommate.</p>
<p>We are in an Honors College, a sect of a university that lives together and shares the burden of a heavier work load and high ambitions. We&#8217;re like a big family. The group of friends we immediately settled into were all sophomores, already well into the swing of college life and eager to take us under their wings above all the other freshmen. Several are Christian, but none are exactly the church-going, praise-song-singing kinds of people I imagined I&#8217;d like to be. But these were an awesome group of people! They were (mostly) responsible and knew how to have fun without being too stupid about it. As my roommate and I built friendships, school involvement also heightened. I joined the school&#8217;s Ipmrov Troupe, excited for the opportunity to be quick-witted on stage. Rehearsals just so happen to be at the same time as the BSM meetings. I wasn&#8217;t as involved in the purely Christian scene as I had hoped I&#8217;d be, but I was making connections.</p>
<p>The downer was that, a few months earlier, several of our close friends had been REALL stupid and committed a pretty big theft. Two of our closest friends were arrested just a month into the first semester, and several others were punished in other ways&#8230; The social utopia began to crumble. We had associated ourselves with thieves unknowingly, and were then caught in the middle of a huge storm.</p>
<p>But we didn&#8217;t abandon our friends. When explaining my situation to my parents, who understandably thought I was in the wrong crowd, I reminded them that Jesus hung out with prostitutes and tax collectors. My apartment became a sort of sanctuary where our struggling friends could come to feel safe. My roommate and I brewed countless pots of coffee. We prayed with them and talked with them, and our friends confided in us and developed a huge amount of respect for us. To this day, all of the sophomores we connected with still consider us the glue that kept the group from crumbling away completely. Seeing our loving example has even strengthened some of their faiths.</p>
<p>Even though our first semesters in college have been less than ideal and I&#8217;m not living the life I imagined I would, I really feel that I&#8217;m in the right place with the right people. God has purposes for all of us, and my roommate and I feel that we didn&#8217;t make a mistake by getting in on a social circle that wasn&#8217;t necessarily pure and Godly in every way. I doubt such a group even really exists in college&#8230; We just have to make the best of what we&#8217;re given, live lovingly with our neighbors, try not to judge others for their faults, and lead by good Christlike example every day. I couldn&#8217;t have learned that lesson if I had sheltered myself from the reality of college life.</p>
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		<title>Richard B. Hays and &#8220;Homosexuality&#8221;</title>
		<link>http://renewedculture.com/richard-b-hays-and-homosexuality</link>
		<comments>http://renewedculture.com/richard-b-hays-and-homosexuality#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 23 Mar 2010 17:56:34 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>ecarver1989</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Books]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Current Events]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Issues]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Social]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://renewedculture.com/?p=1006</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Hays’ “Homosexuality” (To be accompanied with Richard B. Hays’ “The Moral Vision of the New Testament”)                 The word homosexuality holds much prevalence in today’s news, societal issues, including homosexual marriages and civil rights for gays and lesbians, and even more importantly, within the church. Right off the bat, I want to bluntly answer some [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p></p><p style="text-align: center">Hays’ “Homosexuality”</p>
<p style="text-align: center">(To be accompanied with Richard B. Hays’ “The Moral Vision of the New Testament”)</p>

<a href='http://renewedculture.com/richard-b-hays-and-homosexuality/hays' title='hays'><img width="186" height="200" src="http://renewedculture.com/wp-content/uploads/hays-186x200.jpg" class="attachment-thumbnail" alt="hays" title="hays" /></a>
<a href='http://renewedculture.com/richard-b-hays-and-homosexuality/hays-2' title='hays'><img width="186" height="200" src="http://renewedculture.com/wp-content/uploads/hays1-186x200.jpg" class="attachment-thumbnail" alt="hays" title="hays" /></a>

<p>                The word <em>homosexuality </em>holds much prevalence in today’s news, societal issues, including homosexual marriages and civil rights for gays and lesbians, and even more importantly, within the church. Right off the bat, I want to bluntly answer some major questions regarding the acceptance of homosexual behavior within and without the church. It has been a common practice for the church to administer the four parts of the Wesleyan Quadrilateral. Let us not neglect this practice, and be sure to sift the issue of the acceptance of homosexual behavior through scripture, tradition, reason and experience. Towards the end of his chapter on “Homosexuality”, Hays answers seven heavily debated questions in the fourth section, the section that tells us, matter of factly, how to live out the text of the New Testament in today’s church community. Hays’ list of questions and answers are as follows: “(a) <em>Should the church support civil rights for homosexuals? </em>Yes. (b) <em>Can homosexual persons be members of the Christian church?</em> Yes. (c) <em>Is it Christianly appropriate for Christians who experience themselves as having a homosexual orientation to continue to participate in same-sex erotic activity? </em>No. (d) <em>Should the church sanction and bless homosexual unions?</em> No. (e) <em>Does this mean that persons of homosexual orientation are subject to a blanket imposition of celibacy in a way qualitatively different from persons of heterosexual orientation? </em>(Nuanced answer, explanation required.) (f) <em>Should homosexual Christians expect to change their orientation?</em> Yes (nuanced answer, explanation required.) Lastly, (g) <em>Should persons of homosexual orientation be ordained?</em> Yes (also nuanced, explanation required.) These are the questions and answers that Hays eventually determines to be true and right. Beginning at the end of Hays’ chapter on “Homosexuality” is quite startling, is it not? I want you to see the importance of being able to back up the questions and answers that you, as an individual personally accountable to God, eventually decide to be most important and true. Let it stand that we, as Christians, would be causing a deficiency if we gave these matter-of-fact answers without explanations. Without scripture, tradition, reason and experience to back them up, Hays’ answers become senseless.</p>
<p>                Speaking for myself, and more importantly for the author of this text, I say that we, and the rest of the church, are called to be people of truth, rightly dividing the scripture. The Bible’s stance on the issue of homosexual behavior is “univocal.” With one voice, the entire canon speaks against its practice. The issue at hand is not, whether or not homosexual behavior is a sin. Scripture attests to this. The issue the modern church faces today is one of content and approach. What scriptures in the canon apply to its stance on the practice of homosexual behavior? Which scriptures do not apply? Exactly what do these scriptures say? How should the scriptures temper the approach that we use in everyday conversation with our fellow Christian, yet homosexual believers? How do these answers tie in with Hays’ hard, end-of-chapter questions I presented at the beginning of this discussion?</p>
<p>                First, let us approach the issue through scripture. How does the first portion of the Wesleyan Quadrilateral answer our questions? To demystify one common reading of Genesis 19: 1-29, Hays writes that it, “is actually irrelevant to the topic” of homosexuality. The book of Ezekiel states, “‘This was the guilt of your sister Sodom: she and her daughters had pride, excess of food, and prosperous ease, but did not aid the poor and needy’ (Ezekiel 16:49).” Now to address the more topic-relevant scriptures, Hays cites the Old Testament scripture of Leviticus 18:22, 20:13 and the New Testament scriptures of 1 Corinthians 6:9-11, 1 Timothy 1:10, Acts 15:28-29 and Romans 1:18-32. It seems as if Hays moved, in scripture from least topic-relevant to most topic-relevant, so let’s pass by the less topic-relevant scriptures for length’s sake and for time’s sake and move on to the scripture that Hays says is most relevant to the topic, Romans 1:18-32. The scripture reads, “<em>Therefore God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, to the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves, because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator&#8230;For this reason God gave them up to dishonorable passions. Their women exchanged natural intercourse for unnatural, and in the same way also the men, giving up natural intercourse with women, were consumed with passion for one another. Men committed shameless acts with men and received in their own persons the due penalty for their own error.</em>” Ok, it’s obvious that this text is “unambiguously and unremittingly negative in” its “judgment.” Though, as Hays states, “the genius of Paul’s analysis&#8230;lies in his refusal to posit a catalog of sins as the cause of human alienation from God. Instead, he delves to the root: all other depravities follow from the radical rebellion of the creature against the Creator (1:24-31).” The sin of both Jews and Gentiles alike (the sin of replacing Yahweh with other gods) invokes God’s wrath, which in turn causes this “catalog of sins,” in which Paul also, in other texts, places homosexuality. Hays even goes as far as to quote his homosexual theologian friend, Gary, who announced the uneasiness he experienced when faced with the contemporary homosexual community. His main concern was the common homosexual practice of flaunting one&#8217;s sexuality and allowing it to take a higher importance and prevalance than one&#8217;s relationship with the Father.</p>
<p>                Romans 1: 18-32, I believe, calls the church away from regarding men and women who practice the sin of homosexuality as blasphemers destined for hell. Homosexuality is a sin, and it is important for us to remember, that amongst the other sins talked about most in the New Testament, homosexuality is not mentioned very much. Sins of economy, sins of pride, and lust in general are mentioned and warned against much more frequently. I believe that, as Hays writes, “The “logic underlying Paul’s ‘sting’ expose of self-righteousness in Romans 2:1” says that “we should not leap to” the “condemnation of others, for we—no less than those who are engaged in ‘the dishonoring of their bodies’—are under God’s judgment, and they—no less than we—are the objects of God’s deeply sacrificial love.” “The <em>cross</em> models the way in which the community of faith ought to respond to them: not in condemnation, but in sacrificial service.” The cross also “marks the end of the old life under the power of sin. Romans 6:12-14 reads, “Therefore, do not let sin exercise dominion in your mortal bodies, to make you obey their passions. No longer present your members to sin as instruments of unrighteousness, but present yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life, and present your members to God as instruments of righteousness. For sin will have no dominion over you, since you are not under law but under grace.” Law and grace should never be separated from each other in the issues surrounding homosexual behavior.</p>
<p>BE SURE TO READ THE NOTES BELOW:</p>
<p>&#8211;Homosexual practice considered to be a natural biological phenomenon&#8230;”no one in Christ is locked into the past or into a psychological or biological determinism.” (alcoholism—many are genetically inclined to become addicted to alcohol&#8230;are they allowed to make excuses?)</p>
<p>&#8211;letter c—Romans  6:1&#8230;</p>
<p>Living the homosexual life is living in sin, though, we are all sinners living in sin. Yes, homosexuals are expected to cease homosexual activity, but Homosexuals are called to “a life of disciplined abstinence, free from obsessive lust. (Exactly the same standard would apply for unmarried persons of heterosexual orientation.)”</p>
<p>&#8211;inspirational and flooring quote from Hays’ homosexual friend, Gary (who eventually died of AIDS) : “Since All Saints Day I have felt myself being transformed. I no longer consider myself homosexual. Many would say, big deal, you’re forty-two—and are dying of AIDS. Big sacrifice. No, I didn’t do this of my will, of an effort to improve myself, to make myself acceptable to God. No, he did this for me. I feel a great weight has been lifted off me. I have not turned ‘straight.’ I guess I’m like St. Paul’s phrase, a eunuch for Christ.”</p>
<p>&#8211;letter g: “Strictures against homosexuality belong in the church’s moral [standards], not in its ordination requirements.”</p>
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		<title>Understanding God</title>
		<link>http://renewedculture.com/understanding-god</link>
		<comments>http://renewedculture.com/understanding-god#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 02 Feb 2010 05:08:20 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Jodan</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[General]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Issues]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://renewedculture.com/?p=863</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[&#8220;In him was life, and that life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not understood it.&#8221; &#8211; John 1:4,5 As Christians, many times we fail to understand God. We learned the he is this all powerful and all knowing being, but we never truly grasp the fact that [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p></p><p>&#8220;In him was life, and that life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not understood it.&#8221; &#8211; John 1:4,5</p>
<p>As Christians, many times we fail to understand God. We learned the he is this all powerful and all knowing being, but we never truly grasp the fact that he is actually &#8220;all knowing and all powerful.&#8221; We don&#8217;t  see the true power in being a follower of Christ and the peace and tranquility he brings to those who follow him. Though I haven&#8217;t fully grasped God&#8217;s will and ability yet, I will try to shed some of my own knowledge of the Word and God to help you in your daily path.</p>
<p><strong>God is All Powerful</strong></p>
<p>As humans, we never seem to be able to understand the idea of an All-Powerful being that has complete control over every single thing in the entire universe. However the fact is, God is All-Powerful. God can do anything. Thus, knowing this fact, we should always go to God first. God will provide for you if it fits his ultimate plan. And now you ask how and why God knows the ultimate plan for our life. Well, my good sir (or madam), that brings me to my next point.</p>
<p><strong>God is All Knowing</strong></p>
<p>The fact that God knows everything that has happened, is happening and will happen is perhaps one of the hardest things for us as Christians to understand. We were always told that God has an ultimate plan that will always work out for the best. But a lot of times, we never see situations work out for the best. But if we just zoom the camera out on our life, we see that mistakes made often end up benefiting us in the long run. Mistakes grant us wisdom for the future and trails and troubles often bring us closer to God because when we solve this problems we find that we ourselves had not fought through the situation but that God had carried us and shielded us from further harm through the worst times. In the end, when we look through the entire pciture instead of a small portion we can understand how God forms his &#8220;ultimate plan&#8221;.</p>
<p><strong>But Here&#8217;s the Punchline</strong></p>
<p>However, as humans, I think we will never be able to fully understand the grace, mercy, and sacrifice given by God. We could never quantify the greatness of God because he is unmeasurable. He has no beginning and has no end. God is a constant in a chaotic universe. God, perhaps, is the only stable rock that we can rely on. God gave us the amazing gift of salvation through Christ, a priceless gift, though we as Christians, (and no offense to anyone) generally suck. But still, all we can do is constantly thank him for his innumerable sacrifices. I will never understand why this All-Mighty being would care so much for us meager and crummy human but I know that until I die, I will never give up on God because he never gave up on me.</p>
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		<title>Bible Science</title>
		<link>http://renewedculture.com/bible-science</link>
		<comments>http://renewedculture.com/bible-science#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 01 Feb 2010 19:52:17 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Carl</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Issues]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Science]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://renewedculture.com/?p=826</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[I love science&#8230;I have since I was a little kid.  It was always my best subject in school.  My parents were convinced that I would grow up to be a scientist.  I still remember when I got my first telescope for Christmas and how upset I was about the bad weather over the next few days that kept me from [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><a class="post_image_link" href="http://renewedculture.com/bible-science" title="Permanent link to Bible Science"><img class="post_image alignleft remove_bottom_margin frame" src="http://renewedculture.com/wp-content/uploads/hs-2007-11-e-web12.jpg" width="230" height="230" alt="Post image for Bible Science" /></a>
</p><p style="text-align: center;">
<p>I love science&#8230;I have since I was a little kid.  It was always my best subject in school.  My parents were convinced that I would grow up to be a scientist.  I still remember when I got my first telescope for Christmas and how upset I was about the bad weather over the next few days that kept me from using.</p>
<p>I installed the included telescope software on our home computer to study the star charts and constellation diagrams.  I read online about declination and right ascension so I could locate the planets, stars, and nebula&#8217;s that I wanted to see.  I still remember pointing my telescope at the moon and seeing all of it&#8217;s craters and mountains.  I can recall my first time seeing Jupiter.  I could just barely see it&#8217;s colorful stripes (My telescope was not very powerful).  On both sides of the planet were two little twinkles, which were four of Jupiter&#8217;s moons.</p>
<p>But as I grew in Christ, I felt compelled to reject/ignore science.  I thought that it was an enemy to my faith&#8230;out trying to disprove the Bible.  But is that really true?  Can a person be into science and still believe God&#8217;s Word?  Let&#8217;s explore a few points before you answer.</p>
<h3>The Earth is Round</h3>
<p><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/73645804@N00"><img title="Blue Marble (Planet Earth)" src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2084/2222523486_5e1894e314_m.jpg" alt="" width="168" height="168" /></a></p>
<p>A round Earth is common knowledge now, but that was not all was the case.  Many cultures throughout history thought that the world was flat.  This belief was around as late as the 1500&#8242;s AD.  Yet Isaiah writes:  <strong><em>&#8220;He sits enthroned above the <span style="text-decoration: underline;">circle</span></em><em> of the earth, and its people are like grasshoppers&#8230;</em></strong> (<a title="Isaiah 40:22  NIV" href="http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Isaiah%2040:22&amp;version=NIV" target="_blank">Isaiah 40:22</a>).&#8221;  Isaiah was not a scientist or philosopher, yet he writes about a round Earth in <strong>700 BC</strong>!  How is that possible?  Hold that thought&#8230;</p>
<h3>Blood = Life</h3>
<p><img class="size-medium wp-image-849 alignright" title="blood-cells" src="http://renewedculture.com/wp-content/uploads/blood-cells-300x225.jpg" alt="" width="180" height="135" /></p>
<p>Another common fact is how blood circulation is vital to life.  The blood contains the cells.   It carries oxygen and nutrients to all parts of the body.  Without blood, we die.  In the Bible, Moses writes: <strong><em>&#8220;For the </em></strong><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><strong><em>life</em></strong></span><strong><em> of the flesh is in the </em></strong><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><strong><em>blood</em></strong></span><strong><em>: and I have given it to you upon the altar to make an atonement for your souls&#8230;</em></strong>(<a title="Leviticus 17:11" href="http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Leviticus%2017:11&amp;version=KJV" target="_blank">Leviticus 17:11</a>).&#8221;</p>
<p>Ever heard of bloodletting?  It&#8217;s draining huge amounts of blood to cure diseases.  We know now that bloodletting is a terrible idea.  Just ask George Washington&#8230;that&#8217;s how he died&#8230;in 1799 AD!  Yep, doctors in the 18th Century still didn&#8217;t understand that life is in the blood.  They should have read Leviticus 17:11&#8230;which was written over <strong>3000 years</strong> prior!</p>
<h3>Number of Stars</h3>
<p><img class="alignleft" title="hs-2006-55-a-web" src="http://renewedculture.com/wp-content/uploads/hs-2006-55-a-web.jpg" alt="" width="179" height="192" /></p>
<p>How many stars are there?  Well, the answer that you get depends on who you ask.  Ask Hipparchus around 135 BC and you&#8217;ll get <strong>1035 stars</strong>.  Throughout history, many great astronomers attempted to count the stars.  But along came a man named Galileo with this new invention call a &#8220;telescope&#8221;.  He concluded that the stars were too numerous to count in the 1600&#8242;s AD.  Why is that so amazing??  The Bible says: <strong><em>&#8220;I will make the descendants of David my servant and the Levites who minister before me as </em></strong><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><strong><em>countless as the stars</em></strong></span><strong><em> of the sky and as measureless as the sand on the seashore.&#8217;</em></strong> (<a title="Jeremiah 33:22 NIV" href="http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Jeremiah%2033:22&amp;version=NIV" target="_blank">Jeremiah 33:22</a>)&#8221;</p>
<p>As of 2003, the estimated number of  stars visible with our modern equipment was about <strong>70 sextillion </strong>[<a href="http://www.cnn.com/2003/TECH/space/07/22/stars.survey/">1</a>]!  That&#8217;s <strong>Seventy thousand million million million</strong>&#8230;or 7 followed by 22 zeros!  And that&#8217;s with today&#8217;s best equipment.  When we manage to build a stronger telescope&#8230;we&#8217;ll find even more than that.  How did Jeremiah know that the stars were too many to number back in <strong>600 BC</strong>?</p>
<h2>Conclusion</h2>
<p>Moses, Isaiah, and Jeremiah were not scientists.  Yet they described scientific facts centuries before modern science could prove them.  How??  Because the Bible is <strong>GOD&#8217;s WORD</strong>!  Science isn&#8217;t disproving the Bible&#8230;but confirming it!</p>
<p>Do scientific theories always support the Bible??  Absolutely not!  But imagine if you were to tell Hipparchus that there were more than 1035 stars and quote Jeremiah 33:22 to him.  He would probably have laughed in your face.  But fast forward to today and we are at 70 sextillion stars and counting!  Imagine going back and telling Washington&#8217;s doctors not to drain his blood, pointing to Leviticus 17:11.  You&#8217;d be mocked and ignored for not having a PH.D.  My point is that any &#8220;science&#8221; that conflicts with the Bible just hasn&#8217;t caught up to it yet!</p>
<p>The Bible is <span style="text-decoration: underline;">not</span> a science book&#8230;.but the science found in it&#8217;s pages is totally accurate!  And our faith in God&#8217;s Word should <span style="text-decoration: underline;">not</span> be based on what modern science says.  Why?  Well, science is fickle and always changing&#8230;it&#8217;s textbooks need to be revised every few years but God&#8217;s Word <span style="text-decoration: underline;">never</span> changes!  So faith in God&#8217;s Word is not based on scientific proof, but in the witness of the Spirit and the work of Christ.</p>
<p>Yes, I love science&#8230;I have since I was a little kid.  But now, my heart is no longer burdened by a feeling that I must choose between my telescope and my Bible.  There is no choice.  God is awesome and His Word is true!  The things that I observe through my telescope (the same one I got that Christmas) don&#8217;t challenge my faith!  Because now I understand that the heavens declare the glory of <span style="text-decoration: underline;">God</span> and the skies proclaim the work of <span style="text-decoration: underline;">his</span> hands (<a href="http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=ps%2019&amp;version=NIV" target="_blank">Ps 19:1</a>).  In my life, science has ONE purpose.  And that is to explore and expose all of the amazing wonders of God&#8217;s creation.</p>
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		<title>No More Silence</title>
		<link>http://renewedculture.com/no-more-silence</link>
		<comments>http://renewedculture.com/no-more-silence#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 30 Nov 2009 16:07:23 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Jim</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Bible Study]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Current Events]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[General]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://renewedculture.com/?p=644</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[I want to start out by sharing a story of some incredible young men, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah. They grew up in a country that knew war and before they were 20 saw their people&#8217;s resistances crushed and, they along with a multitude of others were taken prisoners of war. They were lead into their [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p></p><p>I want to start out by sharing a story of some incredible young men, <strong>Hananiah, Mishael</strong>, and <strong>Azariah</strong>. They grew up in a country that knew war and before they were 20 saw their people&#8217;s resistances crushed and, they along with a multitude of others were taken prisoners of war. They were lead into their enemies&#8217; capital where they were expected to assimulate with the ways, cultures and means of the citizens, and were given new names to allow for a greater lever of likeness with their captors. At the same time they refused to bend when it came to their cultures and after some testing were allowed to follow their beliefs when it came to food and drink.</p>
<p>Everything was well enough for these individuals until the king decided to have a statue of himself built and for all his people to bow before it. This of course proved problematic for the boys and they refused to bow, even with the threat of death looming over them they would not bow. This enraged the king and he sentenced them to be burnt alive, but for the furance that they were to be tossed to be heated to a level that was so hot any who went near it were killed from the heat. And yet the boys would not bend, it was what happened when they were thrown in, they didn&#8217;t die. Instead, to the astonishment of the king and the crowd they wondered among the fire, unhurt, and with them was a fourth who was unlike anyone they had seen before.</p>
<p>Many know these men by their names given to them by their captors, <strong>Shadrach</strong>, <strong>Meshach</strong>, and <strong>Abednego</strong>, and their story, recorded in the book of Daniel (Daniel, being of course, another Judean who was suffered for his faith, thrown in a den of lions and lived to tell about it) should remind us of two things, first, of what a mighty God we serve and second that we must not surrender our beliefs.</p>
<p>Think about the world around us, even though many countries claim a religion very few truly believe. American Christians, living in a country built upon religious freedom are being forced underground, and whats more surpirsing is that by and large, they&#8217;re going quietly. This I find truely surprising that in a country that claims a majority of Christians find it detestable to pratice our beliefs if it interfers with someone else&#8217;s beliefs or if it has a chance of being &#8216;offensive&#8217;. Prayers and &#8216;moments of silence&#8217; have been taken out of school, the 10 commandments have been taken out of court houses, and theres a huge debate about whether the phrase &#8220;in God we trust&#8221; or &#8220;one nation, under God&#8230;&#8221; are acceptable representations of us.</p>
<p>I want to challenge you now, my brothers and sisters. Its time to remember who we are and who we serve. We need to be proud to be called &#8220;children of God&#8221;. Christian is not a dirty word. So I dare you to stand up for your faith and put the consquences to the Lord.</p>
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		<title>Advent Ideas&#8230;need some help</title>
		<link>http://renewedculture.com/advent-ideas-need-some-help</link>
		<comments>http://renewedculture.com/advent-ideas-need-some-help#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 30 Nov 2009 14:31:39 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Jim</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Education]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Open Discussions]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Social]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://renewedculture.com/?p=631</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Hey all. As I&#8217;ve previously mentioned I lead the young adult ministries (yes I know the acronym is yam, I try not to think about it) at my home church, this caters to those who&#8217;ve graduated high school and runs to mid 20s. With this age group I feel like alot of the magic, excitement and [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p></p><p>Hey all. As I&#8217;ve previously mentioned I lead the young adult ministries (yes I know the acronym is yam, I try not to think about it) at my home church, this caters to those who&#8217;ve graduated high school and runs to mid 20s.</p>
<p>With this age group I feel like alot of the magic, excitement and joy of the Christmas season is dwindling. I must admit that I&#8217;m feeling the same way (I lost my grandfather this year and its been tough going into the holiday season without him). That&#8217;s why I reach out to you all. I recognize that its my responsibility to make Advent something m0re than the time spent waiting for Christmas to come and pass.</p>
<p>At the same time I dont want our Wednesday nights to be so focused on the &#8220;warm and fuzzies&#8221; and the hecticness that this time of the year brings that we lose track of why we celebrate in the first place. Thats why I turn to you, currently I have planned a taize style worship time that I plan to do next week and the following going choraling. For those who dont know about taize its style of worship thats heavy on prayer and silent mediation, the music is quiet and repetitious, normally a chant sang in latin.</p>
<p>Im also debating discussing the Christmas story on Wednesday, December 23, but my concern is the amount of repetition that they&#8217;ll experience will devalue its importance (We&#8217;ve started Luke last Sunday, play Jeopardy on the first Sunday of the month so its likely that the last Sunday of Advent we&#8217;d being talking about Christ&#8217;s birth, then they&#8217;d hear it again on Wednesday, most are regulars to my church so they&#8217;ll attend the Christmas Eve service on Thursday, and a few will be there again on Christmas Day, hearing the story a 4th time in  week. So its a concern I admit, though I hate to think of it as something mundane regardless of how often its discussed).</p>
<p>Also we&#8217;ll be going with several other ministries to visit an amazingly well done live nativity in the area on Sunday the 13th.</p>
<p>So I turn to you my friends, in addition to the taize worship, and christmas choraling what should I consider doing with my young adults that will instill the magic and meaning of the holidays? Please post any ideas below. Thanks and Merry Christmas!</p>
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		<title>D.I.V.E. Project</title>
		<link>http://renewedculture.com/d-i-v-e-project</link>
		<comments>http://renewedculture.com/d-i-v-e-project#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sat, 28 Nov 2009 15:09:19 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>DIVEproject</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Education]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[dive]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[epilepsy]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://renewedculture.com/?p=610</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[The D.I.V.E. Project Is Coming Soon&#8230;..What Does D.I.V.E. Mean, It Stands For &#8220;Discovering IndiViduals with Epilepsy&#8221;. As someone that has suffered all my life with this, i believe it is time for us to truly be heard as a group. So here is the plan&#8230;..I&#8217;m going to talk to people in the Southern Maryland area [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p></p><p>The D.I.V.E. Project Is Coming Soon&#8230;..What Does D.I.V.E. Mean, It Stands For &#8220;<strong>D</strong>iscovering<strong> I</strong>ndi<strong>V</strong>iduals with <strong>E</strong>pilepsy&#8221;. As someone that has suffered all my life with this, i believe it is time for us to truly be heard as a group. So here is the plan&#8230;..I&#8217;m going to talk to people in the Southern Maryland area to start and when i participate in the Epilepsy Walk IN DC in March, I&#8217;m going to take a video camera with me and I will sit and talk to anyone willing to tell there story.</p>
<p>This project didn&#8217;t come to my mind until i really sat down and prayed about what i need to do as a new Christian that is lost and seems to have no where to look to, so my last resort was to ask god what to do. This thought that was was in my head for about a year previous i found wasn&#8217;t there for no reason&#8230;..it was there cause god knew i needed to do this. So this past week i have been plotting and planning on how to do this, everything&#8230;&#8230;and it&#8217;s slowly coming together in my mind. So as a new Christian i have found my calling now..it&#8217;s to allow the people with epilepsy to have a voice and finally be heard.</p>
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