what kind of christianity?

“Growing up, I was told that good people go to church.  And then I looked around and watched the news and found a church full of sick people and a world that had some decent pagans.  And I studied sociology.  My studies taught me that the higher a person’s frequency of church attendance, the more likely they are to be sexist, racist, anti-gay, promilitary, and committed to their local church.  And I figured if that’s what it meant to be a Christian, I wan’t sure I wanted to be one, or whether even Jesus would want to be one, for that matter.  I wondered why Jesus didn’t take back his religion.  As I’ve heard by old mentor Tony Campolo say, ‘If we were to set out to establish a religion in polar opposition to the Beatitudes Jesus taught, it would look strikingly similar to the pop Christianity that has take over the airwaves of North America.’”


- Shane Claiborne, The Irresistable Revolution

the transformation cycle, part 7

The Journey of a Lifetime
Confucius said, “A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.”  The same is true of the transformation journey.  This lifelong pursuit will consist of many, many steps along the way.  At times it will seem as though you are taking one step forward and two steps back. Other times you will appear to be at a standstill. On occasion you might even wonder if you will ever move forward again.

I offer to you the same advice I offer to my congregation: the most important step in your spiritual journey is the NEXT ONE.  

Your attention needs to be on discovering and taking that next step.  Perhaps you need to consecrate yourself in a fresh way to God as a way of re-engaging transformation.  Maybe the answer is to start training again or find ways to train differently.  Or it could be that you just need to bolster your trust that the Holy Spirit is and will work in your life to help you grow.  For some, living it out is what needs your attention.  The journey of transformation begins with a single step.  Take that step.  Enter the transformation cycle.  Your life will never be the same!