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Inheritance In the Saints

Inheritance In the Saints by George MacDonald and Dale Howie

The Inheritance is the final sermon of the “Unspoken Sermons” series and a true reflection and summary of MacDonald’s thoughts. Abba, our Heavenly Father, is the beginning and end and everything in between.

If we have not found the first light of heaven in our relationship with our Father, Brother, and Teacher, heaven will be Hell for us! Because Heaven will be continuous fellowship with God! What we receive in the end is Them and what They always wanted from eternity past was Us!

“Giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified us to share in the inheritance of the saints in light.” Colossians 1:12 NASB

The Inheritance is God Himself

MacDonald did not care to persuade anyone that heaven was a place worth going, some mansion in the sky. However, he would convince us that no home in the Universe, no time in the future, is worth anything if we remain as we are! Whatever Heaven is, it is not filled with THINGS. It is filled with people! Heaven is eternal fellowship with God, and He is big enough to spend that eternity with you and me individually! The following is perhaps one of the most beautiful stories in all of his writings.

The Kite Story Alone

Alone…However, what boy, willing to be a disciple of Christ and a child of God, would prefer a sermon to his glorious kite.

Together…A kite is the most divine of toys, and with God, Himself as his playmate, watching it together in the blue wind, tossed hither and thither in the golden sky!

Others…He might be willing to part with his kite, the wind, and the golden sun and go down into the grave for his brothers, but surely not to be admitted to an eternal prayer meeting! For my part, I rejoice to think that there will be neither church nor chapel in the heavenlies. Yes, there will be nothing of religion but its Love and no law but the perfect Law of Liberty.

There is no need for law or religious practice where every heartbeat expresses the Divine, where selfishness is too revolting to be considered, and every voice is eager with thanksgiving! Where the rushing of these joyful waters is bursting from beneath the throne of God, they being the joyful tears of the Universe! Religion! Where will there be room for it, where the essence of every thought is the Divine?

What place for honesty, where love fulfills the law to overflowing! Here a person would rather dive into hell than wrong his neighbor in the smallest way! (paraphrase)

Much of our journey can be understood through this simple progression, Alone, Together, and Others!

Heaven as Sharing

What MacDonald is trying to say is that everything comes from God. Therefore, our inheritance, whatever form it will take, will be Him, for everything is His and comes from Him. Creation began with the Father, Son, and Spirit’s relationship, and everything will end inside that relationship. Theirs is a Life of giving, and this Life and is the only life worth having!

So, our share in the Kingdom of Heaven is not what we get but what we can give away. What is truly mine is only what I have received and have the power and desire to give away. What I cannot share with everyone is not Life!

Thoughts On:

INHERITANCE IN THE SAINTS / For MacDonald, our inheritance is relational, not material. And our share in it is expressed in giving. This thought reflects the nature of creation as the expression of the Trinity’s relationship, shared love, and subsequent giving of Life. This process is consistent with the continuation of our transformation from takers to givers!

GOD IS OUR INHERITANCE / How else could it be? How everything begins is how it ends. They wanted to share Themselves, Their Life, with us. So, when Life has gone full circle, what we will receive is Them!

THE MEANING OF SHARE / Again, what else would make any sense? The Father, Son, and Spirit sacrifice Themselves, withholding nothing of Their Life from us. They have given away all that They are and all that They have for Their creation! Would this giving not define everything for us as well?

HEAVEN IS GOD HIMSELF / This section is the theme of the sermon and reflects Abba, Father! and The Child in the Mist on relationship as the Divine’s Irreducible Truth! Heaven is not an escape from life, but the family, the Home, we were destined for from the beginning.

The Kite Story paints a beautiful image of our journey, one movement from Alone, Together, and to Others! This path is the journey of consciousness. Our ever-expanding Universe until all is One and all is Love! Therefore, this Life is simple goodness, as good as the very Life of God is good, filled with the joy of our very being!

THE HELL OF THINGS / If we do not care about relationships, then we are left with Things! If heaven for us is about Things, then God’s Heaven will be Hell! Without the fellowship and communion of the Father, Son, and Spirit, there could be no Heaven!

THE ONLY CONSTANT IS CHANGE / Relationships are dynamic, not static. They are ever-changing. Heaven is not instant attainment of perfect Love. If we have learned the joy of repentance in this life? We will continue to experience that ever-increasing joy in the next. Heaven is the joy of a true heart, of an heir of Light, of a child of God, who desires and loves an open soul!

HOME / It was Home that ended CHILD at the beginning and it is Home that ends the book here. For all of creation in all of its glory and beauty is but a taste of Heaven. For here is not our Home. Home is where the heart is, and that Heart resides within the One who is our Heavenly Father!

This article, Inheritance, is a paraphrasing of George MacDonald’s final sermon from the Unspoken Sermon series written by Dale Howie.

You can learn more about Dale and his writings HERE
You can dive into many more articles at www.frontporchtheology.org

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Over the last twenty some years I’ve had some rather rude awakenings. Yeah, I’ve traveled to new places and I’ve confronted Bad Dudes. But that’s pretty much were the similarities to an episode of the A-Team end. You see, the bullets were real and they didn’t miss. I’ve been shot, many times – and it was no mere flesh wound either.

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Published on June 23, 2021 23:05

DALE HOWIE / UNSPOKEN SERMONS ON THE GOOD NEWS OF INCLUSION

Dale Howie Unspoken Sermons On The Good News Of Inclusion

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Paraphrasing the sermons of George MacDonald, Dale Howie shares his sometimes painful, often beautiful, journey of awakening to the irreducible truth of life discovered in relationship. He speaks to grace, our common Fatherhood, our inclusion in Christ’s life, death and resurrection, our union, and the wonder of our humanity. A humble storyteller and relational theologian, Dale speaks as a father on behalf of Our Father, who loves all His children with a reconciling love.

QUOTES

“The God that’s alone in heaven doesn’t love anybody. He creates out of need. The Trinity, they don’t need anything. They have life and fellowship in abundance…they wanted to share their relationship with us”

“MacDonald hammers home that the cause of all of our problems is the fact that we will not accept our common Fatherhood.”

“Love fulfills the law to overflowing…” George MacDonald

“One question is worth a thousand answers. Paul young

“The questions come out of brokenness, come out of failure, they come out of all the lies you’ve been told and all the things you’ve believed and all the things you have told.”

“I can’t sit across from somebody who isn’t His child.”

“Anointing is nothing but my spirit speaking directly to yours and it can only happen because I own it.”

“…This life is simply goodness, as good as the very life of God is good and filled with the very joy of our being.” George MacDonald

For more on Dale Howie
www.frontporchtheology.org

To learn more or to support this podcast go to www.afamilystory.org
Please rate, review, share, and subscribe!

Podcast intro and outro music by Wilde Assembly

Derek Turner Follower of Jesus, in love with @sarahjturner, father to @caro.turn & @kaaatters, owner of Milo, pastor @rivercharlotte. Amazed by Grace www.rivercharlotte.com

Follow Follow Follow Jason Clark is a writer, speaker, and lead communicator at A Family Story ministries. His mission is to encourage sons and daughters to grow sure in the love of an always-good heavenly Father. He and his wife, Karen, live in North Carolina with their three children.

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Published on June 23, 2021 08:43

Outwitted

He drew a circle that shut me out-

Heretic, rebel, a thing to flout.

But love and I had the wit to win:

We drew a circle and took him In!

— Edwin Markham

Seventeen years ago I found this poem written on a tiny scrap of paper tucked in my grandmother’s well-worn and highlighted bible just after she died at the age of 100. It was one of a few loose notes she had written and kept in the book where she sought to know and discover more of God.

It’s titled Outwitted. I don’t know what it meant to her, I plan to ask her someday, but every time I read it I am overwhelmed with the measureless all transforming nature of the love of God.

This world is full of devastating circles that shut out, the lies of ‘us’ and ‘them,’ separation, distance and delay, offense, retribution; but love doesn’t play by the rules of good and evil. Love outwits our finite death devotion, our laws of good, and evil and evil and evil and evil.

Love is a sacrificial circle that takes everyone in; He hung on a cross and gave forgiveness and belonging and union and reconciliation, not counting our circles against us. And we have been invited to become one with this love, so the whole world would know (see John 17:25).

But love and I had the wit to win: We drew a circle and took him In!

That is the gospel of Jesus on a cross; that no matter the circles drawn to shut people out, Love draws bigger circles, Love says, “We all belong, we become!”

Radical Compassion

I recently watched this powerful talk on compassion by Father Greg Boyle. I’d recommend watching it. We belong to each other is a powerful truth that changes how we interact with one another and ultimately the world. Radical compassion requires us to believe there is no “us and them.” There is only us. No one is outside the circle.

Jason Clark is a writer, producer, speaker, and lead communicator at A Family Story ministries. His mission is to encourage sons and daughters to grow sure in the love of an always-good heavenly Father. He and his wife, Karen, live in North Carolina with their three children, Madeleine, Ethan, and Eva. Follow Follow Follow Follow Follow Follow Follow Follow JOIN OUR MAILING LIST GIVE TO A FAMILY STORY YOU ALSO MIGHT LIKE… The Church, Politics, and Trust

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Published on June 17, 2021 00:04

SHEILA GREGOIRE / THE GREAT SEX RESCUE

Sheila Gregoire The Great Sex Rescue

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Intimacy within marriage, the connection between intimacy and mutuality, the nature of trust, the definition of sex, addressing transactional vs relational thinking, dismantling obligation, addressing objectification and broken ideologies developed from Eph 5:22, “Wives submit to your husbands…” Sheila Gregoire practically rethinks sex so husbands and wives can experience intimacy, joy, and deeper connection.

QUOTES

“The conversation around intimacy in marriage has largely ignored mutuality.”

“In order to have intimacy you have to have two people who both matter.”

“What, too often, the evangelical church has done is elevated one person’s needs, specifically the husbands over the wife, and that has really wrecked sex for everybody.”

“A lot of the reason that women have trouble reaching orgasm, that women have bad views of sex, that women just have trouble with sex in general, is not necessarily because of their husbands, but because of what they have been taught in church and in Christian circles and in Christian resources.”

“A lot of women feel very objectified, especially in the church….If you talk to evangelical women, almost all of them have stories of what they were told when they were hitting puberty about how they were now a stumbling block to men. Even elders and pastors…commenting on what they were wearing. And it’s really traumatizing.”

“We’re basically telling boys that sexual attraction and lust are the same thing…we’re raising a whole generation of boys to feel guilty for normal biological reactions…Jesus did not say, “whoever sees a beautiful woman has committed lust He said, ‘whoever looks with lust has committed adultery. So, it’s a deliberate action, it’s a deliberate mindset…”

“The church has made marriage into an idol, and our whole approach to marriage has been wrong because our approach is, ‘let’s keep marriages together.’ And, ‘it’s a success if people don’t get divorced.’ No, it’s a success when people look like Jesus. It’s a success when we walk in His steps…when we achieve healing and wholeness.”

“God loves you more than He loves the institution of marriage.”

For more on Sheila Gregoire
www.tolovehonorandvacuum.com
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To learn more or to support this podcast go to www.afamilystory.org
Please rate, review, share, and subscribe!

Podcast intro and outro music by Wilde Assembly

Derek Turner Follower of Jesus, in love with @sarahjturner, father to @caro.turn & @kaaatters, owner of Milo, pastor @rivercharlotte. Amazed by Grace www.rivercharlotte.com

Follow Follow Follow Jason Clark is a writer, speaker, and lead communicator at A Family Story ministries. His mission is to encourage sons and daughters to grow sure in the love of an always-good heavenly Father. He and his wife, Karen, live in North Carolina with their three children.

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Published on June 13, 2021 19:38

10 Rules Of Engagement For Social Media

I’m not a great list maker, that’s Karen’s gift, but over the last few years I’ve been asked on occasion about my “rules of engagement” on social media; particularly regarding how to navigate disagreement, or how to interact with those who are unkind, angry, afraid or accusatory.

Sacrificial love is my guide. I know this love to be like Jesus on a cross, unoffended, forgiving, and reconciling all to Love. There is no “us and them” in this good news, we all belong to each other. With that in mind, here are some thoughts I have had through the years.

1. If I am not willing to lay my life down for the person I am disagreeing with, I shouldn’t comment.

2. We are after understanding, not agreement. And honor is the road traveled to get there.

3. It’s not about being right, it’s about being love. I’m here to REVEAL love, not DEFEND my ideology.

4. Love keeps no record of wrong. I don’t have a right to hold onto offense.

5. Reaction creates an equal and opposite reaction. Love is responsive, fear is reactive and doesn’t lead to life. Don’t react, respond.

6. Empathy and compassion are expressions of kindness and it’s kindness that transforms the way one thinks. Be kind. Always.

7. Apologize when I’m wrong and especially if I am unkind; publicly and privately.

8. If I love exposing hypocrisy more than I love the hypocrite, then I have no part in what Jesus is doing and nothing of value to add to the conversation.

9. Everyone is doing the best they can.

10. We belong to each other.

“If love is the answer, community is the context, but tenderness is the methodology.” Father Greg Boyle

Jason Clark is a writer, producer, speaker, and lead communicator at A Family Story ministries. His mission is to encourage sons and daughters to grow sure in the love of an always-good heavenly Father. He and his wife, Karen, live in North Carolina with their three children, Madeleine, Ethan, and Eva. Follow Follow Follow Follow Follow Follow Follow Follow JOIN OUR MAILING LIST GIVE TO A FAMILY STORY

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Control, Trust, and Love

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Intimacy can’t be experienced in a relationship where one person is controlling the other. Intimacy is only experienced where there is trust. And trust isn’t possible if one of the people in a relationship is controlling.

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Published on June 09, 2021 22:32

A Family Story 2021 Newsletter

Dear Friends,

It’s been about a year and a half since I wrote A Family Story Newsletter.

So, you know, not much has happened…

About a year and a half ago the Clark family experienced some church trauma because the well-intentioned but clueless husband and dad of the Clark family (that’s me) wrote an article challenging a punitive perspective on hell. I didn’t realize how entrenched Eternal Conscious Torment was in the theological foundations of our community.

If you’re curious, you can read it and the following articles HERE.

For the leadership of our church, that article “bordered” heresy which led to them stepping away from connection with me and A Family Story. Within weeks it became clear I was no longer a trusted or valued member of our community, which led to my family feeling they had no other option but to leave. It was painful. We were deeply involved relationally in almost every aspect of church life with my wife, Karen, and daughter, Madeleine, on staff.

I wrote an article shortly after we left that touches on what happened from our perspective. If you’re curious, you can read it HERE.

That said, suddenly the Clark family was headlong on a new journey. And while we felt lost and adrift, we were surrounded by family, friends and are eternally grateful.

After a few months Karen and began to feel new freedom regarding ways in which to express the uncontrolling love of God; ways we realize now we couldn’t have done in our church community.

For twenty-five years Karen and I have taken a pioneering missional long game approach to life and ministry. But in this last year, we have experienced wildly beautiful new ways to learn trust and thankfulness for the whole family. Even as COVID shut down the world we began to discover new ways to connect with, and love people. Karen and my girls connected deeply with The Charlotte Dreamcenter, a ministry to the homeless, hopeless, and forgotten communities of Charlotte. You can read more about it below.

For me, because of COVID, the itinerant speaking aspect of our ministry shut down. So, we launched a podcast; Rethinking God with Tacos. This podcast has been a powerfully good way to dive headlong into grace while continuing with the mandate for A Family Story; to create content catalytic for a transformational encounter with the love of God. Here is a recent review on iTunes “

This podcast has changed my life and heart in so many ways. It has healed the places that trauma, tragedy, and religion had broken, and it has…placed hope back in my hands. It has connected me to Father, Son, and Holy Spirit in a more intimate way and brought me to a great awakening…” — Free1021

Along the way, I reconnected with my friend Derek Turner, who co-hosts. Derek pastor’s River Church in the greater Charlotte area and we have had an incredible time diving into the reconciling nature of God’s love with brilliant guests like, François du Toit, Baxter Kruger, Danny Silk, Dr. Caroline Leaf, Wm Paul Young, Brian Simmons and more.

Like so many, COVID impacted our income. But God is faithful and provided for us through folks giving to A Family Story and also through a ghost-witting project. So, last year I wrote. First a book for someone else, and then I pressed on and hope to finish my next book by the end of this year; a book on our union and our oneness with God.

For A Family Story and the Clarks, 2020 through today has been transformational in hard and beautiful ways. And as the world slowly opens back up we are excited about what God has for the future!

Give To A Family Story Book Jason To Speak The Charlotte Dreamcenter by Karen Clark

Since I was 12 years old, I’ve been involved in children’s ministry in one form or another. I’ve worked mostly in churches and homeschool groups loving on the kids in front of me. Working with children is a huge part of who I am.

In March, after ending my tenure as a Children’s Pastor, I checked out a Saturday morning inner-city kids ministry in Charlotte run by the Charlotte Mecklenburg Dreamcenter. The volunteers met around 10:45 am to set up and connect. Then we walked down the streets of JT Williams, a struggling community, to pick up twenty or so sweet kids. We took them to their local school parking lot, gave them a snack, told a Bible story, played games, and worked on a craft together.

I loved it.

The next week COVID lockdown hit NC and the program came to a halt. Everything came to a halt. I was frustrated at first as I had really connected with the ministry. Then the Dreamcenter started passing out nightly meals. So my girls, Madi, Eva, and I joined the team. Every other night, beginning in April and running thru July, we delivered takeout-style boxed meals to 175 people in the neighborhood. It turns out when you deliver meals on a regular basis to the same families, you get to build trust and friendships. We got to know the neighbors, the parents, and the kids.

When the Saturday program started back up in June, Madi, Eva, and I became core members of the JT team, committing to be there every week. Our family picked up one Saturday each month providing a lunch, usually hotdogs, fruit, a sweet treat and juice box, the Bible lesson, and a craft or activity. This is a wonderful time to love on the kids, encourage them, and tell them about the loving God of the universe who lives inside them.

That same month, we began helping with the Thursday afternoon free food market, picking up produce boxes at a local church, setting up the market, and delivering bags of groceries to the most vulnerable.

When NC went virtual for their public schools, it was a large challenge for a lot of families including the JT families. So, the Dreamcenter started an after-school tutoring program. Education is my wheelhouse so this was the perfect opportunity for me to give. So, every Monday and Thursday, at three o’clock, I pick up 4 children from the JT neighborhood and bring them to the Dreamcenter HQ. There they spend three hours receiving private tutoring and playing games aimed to move them forward academically. This is key to their future success. I bring them home with a boxed dinner around 6 pm. They love it and I love it. The car ride is my favorite time where we get to laugh and chill in my van.

This is what I was born to do. These families are so precious to me. They have welcomed me into their homes and let me be a part of their children’s lives. I am so grateful that I have been able to serve in all of these ministries inside the Dreamcenter.

Early on, Jason and I felt we wanted to partner as both a family and through our ministry, A Family Story, to support the Dreamcenter and these families. Jason asked me to write what I am doing so he could invite those who are a part of A Family Story to partner with us.

A Family Story 2020 to the PresentLaunched a podcast, Rethinking God with Tacos – we have nearly hit 75,000 downloads.Karen is a core volunteer with The Dreamcenter’s Saturday children’s program and also their after-school tutoring program.I continue to write on John 17:21, “I pray that they will be one…” I am hoping to release it late this year.A Family Story continues to release weekly articles, we had nearly 40,000 visitors in 2020 and are n pace to double that this year.We released a Sovereign Love Teaching Series and made it available for free – check it out.I have begun to schedule speaking engagements for 2021Our Most-Read Articles For 2020 Thru Today

Leaving Jesus

The Most Accepted Heresy On The Planet

What’s He Like?

Donal Trump, Politics And The Church

When Does The Bible Become An Idol?

We’re Giving Stuff Away

Join A Family Story’s mailing list and receive weekly articles, Rethinking God with Tacos Podcasts, monthly messages, news updates, and early access to new content.

Also, receive a FREE download of the first chapter of God Is Not In Control in PDF and Audio (mp3) formats. Also included is a six-part audio teaching series on Sovereign Love that correlates with the book.

JOIN OUR MAILING LIST GIVE TO A FAMILY STORY How Can You Partner with A Family Story?

If you have been impacted through the ministry of A FAMILY STORY, I ask you to consider partnering with us prayerfully AND financially. We are so thankful for those who pray for us daily and those who have given and who give monthly. We love you!

PRAY

For Karen and The Dreamcenter ministries, we greatly value your prayers. God has always been faithful in protecting us and guiding us when we’ve encountered dangerous situations. Please pray for peace in the JT neighborhood. Please pray that the love of God is revealed to every heart we encounter: the children, the elderly, the disabled, the drug addicts, and the homeless we serve. If you’re in the Charlotte area and want to learn more about any of the ministries within JT Williams you can reach out to me HERE Pray for favor and breakthrough in the area of film and writing opportunities, we are still pushing into this area of influence.

A thanksgiving – several months ago we asked for prayer for a new minivan and through incredible generosity, we were able to purchase a beautiful trustworthy minivan for Karen and the kids she ministers to!

GIVE

Your giving helps enable Karen and our family to continue working as a volunteer with the Dreamcenter. If you would like to partner specifically to support Karen, you can do so through A Family StoryWebsite and Magazine Expenses.Podcast Gear (we are planning on purchasing video gear for season three)Writing and Editing.

Thank you so much for supporting us over the years. It means a great deal to our family. We love you all.

Jason and Karen Clark

A Family Story is a 501c3
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Jason & Karen Clark lead A Family Story ministries. Their mission is to encourage sons and daughters to grow sure in the love of an always-good heavenly Father. They live in North Carolina with their three children.

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Published on June 09, 2021 21:35

BRIAN MCLAREN / FAITH AFTER DOUBT

Brian McLaren Faith After Doubt

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“Christian faith, for me, is no longer a static location but a great spiritual journey…what matters most…is not where we are but where we’re going.” This podcast is a gentle invitation to discover a way of faith defined by love. Brian and Jason discuss navigating rejection, stepping away from literalism, and inerrancy in our approach to scripture and faith, and their personal journey of trusting that God is better than our best thoughts about Him.

QUOTES

“My theology was in turmoil…it’s falling apart and I can’t save it.”

“You have never had a thought of me (God) that is too good, that is better than I really am.”

“All certainty is relative, in fact, there is no correlation between certainty and truth.”

“Playfulness is really important in our spiritual life.”

“It’s better to be rejected for who you actually are than accepted for a false image of yourself.”

For more on Brian McLaren
www.brianmclaren.net
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To learn more or to support this podcast go to www.afamilystory.org
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Podcast intro and outro music by Wilde Assembly

Derek Turner Follower of Jesus, in love with @sarahjturner, father to @caro.turn & @kaaatters, owner of Milo, pastor @rivercharlotte. Amazed by Grace www.rivercharlotte.com

Follow Follow Follow Jason Clark is a writer, speaker, and lead communicator at A Family Story ministries. His mission is to encourage sons and daughters to grow sure in the love of an always-good heavenly Father. He and his wife, Karen, live in North Carolina with their three children.

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YOU ALSO MIGHT LIKE… KATHRYN LYNN CIENIEWICZ / LOVE IS THE LONG GAME

by A Family Story | February 24, 2021 | Crisis of Identity, Interview, Intimacy, Leadership, Rethinking God Podcast, Rethinking God with Tacos / Season Two, The Fathers Love | 2 Comments

Salvation, hell, justice, equality, the bible, and the unconditional transformative always good Love of God; in this insightful interview, Kathryn talks about her spiritual deconstruction and the journey of rethinking God. She brilliantly addresses the sin of certainty, newfound feminism, and a Love that casts out all fear.

Read More HAROLD & LINDA EBERLE / THE NEW APOSTOLIC REFORMATION

by A Family Story | March 10, 2021 | Faith, Interview, Intimacy, Leadership, Rethinking God Podcast, Rethinking God with Tacos / Season Two, Sin, The Fathers Love | 2 Comments

Harold and Linda Eberle share about the catalytic love of God that is transforming our western understanding of the church. They speak on victorious mindsets, kingdom thinking, the myth of separation, reconciliation through the death of Jesus, and salvation through his life; plus old elephants! This is a power packed interview full of profound insight.

Read More BRIAN SIMMONS / THE PASSION TRANSLATION

by A Family Story | May 19, 2021 | Faith, Interview, Intimacy, Leadership, Life, Popular, Rethinking God Podcast, Rethinking God with Tacos / Season Two | 0 Comments

“The bible, minus love, equals false teaching, false living, and fosters an anger in the soul of man.” Brian Simmons, author of The Passion Translation, talks about approaching scripture with a love theology, the oppressive impact of hyper literalism, women in ministry, equality, union, Jesus’ humanity inside the Trinity, the finished work of the cross, and the passionate, powerful, transforming love of God.

Read More MATTHEW HESTER / GOD WAS PLEASED TO REVEAL HIS SON IN ME

by A Family Story | March 17, 2021 | Faith, Interview, Intimacy, Leadership, Rethinking God Podcast, Rethinking God with Tacos / Season Two, The Fathers Love | 0 Comments

Mystery, faith, salvation and awaking to Christ’s likeness within us, adoption and sonship, being in the family, discovering the Word in scripture, and living from union, we discuss this and more with Matthew Hester in a passionate conversation around the love of God. Matthew is an author, pastor of Dominion Church (Greer SC), and founder of Hester Ministries and Present Truth Academy.

Read More CHRIST IN YOU with DEREK TURNER & JASON CLARK

by A Family Story | February 17, 2021 | Crisis of Identity, Faith, Intimacy, Leadership, Relationship, Rethinking God Podcast, Rethinking God with Tacos / Season Two, The Fathers Love | 1 Comment

Derek and Jason dive into our union in Christ and how that impacts everything from knowing our identity to loving our “enemies,” to evangelism, to navigating cross moments in our lives.

Read More BRIAN MCLAREN / FAITH AFTER DOUBT

by A Family Story | June 9, 2021 | Faith, Interview, Leadership, Life, Popular, Rethinking God Podcast, Rethinking God with Tacos / Season Two | 0 Comments

“Christian faith, for me, is no longer a static location but a great spiritual journey…what matters most…is not where we are but where we’re going.” This podcast is a gentle invitation to discover a way of faith defined by love. Brian and Jason discuss navigating rejection, stepping away from literalism, and inerrancy in our approach to scripture and faith, and their personal journey of trusting that God is better than our best thoughts about Him.

The post 10 Rules Of Engagement For Social Media appeared first on A Family Story.

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Published on June 09, 2021 07:57

Ten Rules Of Engagement For Social Media

Ten Rules Of Engagement for Social Media

I’m not a great list maker, that’s Karen’s gift, but over the last few years I’ve been asked on occasion about my “rules of engagement” on social media; particularly regarding how to navigate disagreement, or how to interact with those who are unkind, angry, afraid or accusatory.

Sacrificial love is my guide. I know this love to be like Jesus on a cross, unoffended, forgiving, and reconciling all to Love. There is no “us and them” in this good news, we all belong to each other. With that in mind, here are some thoughts I have had through the years.

1. If I am not willing to lay my life down for the person I am disagreeing with, I shouldn’t comment.

2. We are after understanding, not agreement. And honor is the road traveled to get there.

3. It’s not about being right, it’s about being love. I’m here to REVEAL love, not DEFEND my ideology.

4. Love keeps no record of wrong. I don’t have a right to hold onto offense.

5. Reaction creates an equal and opposite reaction. Love is responsive, fear is reactive and doesn’t lead to life. Don’t react, respond.

6. It’s kindness that transforms the way one thinks. Be kind.

7. If I love exposing hypocrisy more than I love the hypocrite, then I have no part in what Jesus is doing and nothing of value to add to the conversation.

8. Everyone is doing the best they can…

9. Apologize when I’m wrong and especially if I am unkind, publicly and privately.

10. We belong to each other, empathy and compassion are expressions of kindness and very much like Jesus.

“If love is the answer, community is the context, but tenderness is the methodology.” Father Greg Boyle

Jason Clark is a writer, producer, speaker, and lead communicator at A Family Story ministries. His mission is to encourage sons and daughters to grow sure in the love of an always-good heavenly Father. He and his wife, Karen, live in North Carolina with their three children, Madeleine, Ethan, and Eva. Follow Follow Follow Follow Follow Follow Follow Follow JOIN OUR MAILING LIST GIVE TO A FAMILY STORY

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The Presence: Title Sequence

by Jason Clark | June 8, 2015 | Art, Articles, Faith, Film, Interview, Leadership | 4 Comments

Episode one is finished! It features worship leaders, Jonathan & Melissa Helser, and Port Au Prince Haiti based doctor and priest Father Richard Frechette. It is slotted to release in late July on God TV, TBS, Daystar and several other faith networks. I will post dates as soon as we have them.

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Published on June 08, 2021 11:32

Interstellar Love

Interstellar

Imagine, three astronauts’ lightyears from their family and friends, depleted of resources, having already faced devastating loss, emotionally and physically exhausted, and now forced to make a life-or-death decision in which the fate of humanity hangs in the balance.

Now imagine Christopher Nolan is directing.

The film is Interstellar and it’s sci-fi at its very best; and this particular moment in the story is full of fear, sorrow and tension as two of the three remaining astronauts including Brand, a scientist played by Anne Hathaway, and Cooper, an astronaut pilot, played by Matthew McConaughey, argue over what to do next.

They only have the resources to investigate one of two viable planets that might sustain human life. That’s right, the earth is dying and all creation with it, and this mission is the last hope to save humanity.

Brand, Hathaway, the scientist, using all her measurable data and words like hydrocarbons, and mechanics, debates, and intensely so, on behalf of her planet. She is convinced it is the best option.

Cooper, McConaughey, the leader of this mission, based on the data reports of a well-respected scientist, is arguing for the other planet.

And it’s tense.

Now understand, these are scientists, engineers, pragmatists. And they have sacrificed everything for this mission. And they’re alone in space, and they are heart weary, they have already lost so much, and help isn’t coming and failure is not an option.

Can you feel it?

Cooper, says “…We no longer have the fuel to visit both prospects. So, we have to choose.”

Romilly, the third crew member, tiredly states, “We should vote.”

Then Cooper, conflicted, cuts to the heart of his disagreement concerning Brand’s planet choice. “Well, if we’re going to vote, there’s something you should know.” Cooper looks at Brand and with a resigned almost accusing tone, “Brand, he has a right to know.”

Brand glares at Cooper, she’s upset at what he is insinuating and responds defensively, “That has nothing to do with it!”

Romilly looks up curious, he thought he already had all the information, “What are you talking about?”

It’s quiet for a moment and when Brand doesn’t respond Cooper speaks for her, “She’s in love…”

In Love

Years before this pivotal moment, several scientist astronauts had already sacrificed their lives by taking one-way investigative trips to planets which they hoped could sustain human life. Those who landed on viable planets had sent back a positive beacon that included the most basic data.

And the planet Brand was arguing for, well, the scientist-astronaut who had traveled there years before, she loved him.

And now Cooper was suggesting that Brand wasn’t choosing the planet based solely on the data, he was insinuating her judgment was clouded by love.

Remember, these are pragmatic scientists. They look at facts and measurables to determine planet viability. Love never enters the equation.

“She’s in love,” echos like accusation.

The third astronaut, Romilly, looks at Brand with apprehension, “Is that true?”

Brand hesitates and then says something most unscientific, “Yes. And that makes me want to follow my heart. But maybe we’ve spent too long trying to figure all this out with theory-“

Cooper cuts her off, “You’re a scientist brand!”

And Brand responds with a deep conviction, some might even call it faith. And this is the moment where if you’re paying attention, you just might discover the meaning of life, the moment my eyes always seem to fill with tears.

“So, listen to me when I say that love isn’t something we invented; it’s observable, powerful. It has to mean something-“

Cooper cuts her off again, “-Love has meaning, yes; social utility, social bonding, child-rearing.”

Brand defiantly responds, “We love people who have died. Where is the social utility in that?”

Cooper shakes his head acknowledging her point, “None,” he admits.

Brand, quietly at first, but then with greater conviction says, “Maybe it means something more, something we can’t yet understand. Maybe it’s some evidence some artifact of a higher dimension that we can’t consciously perceive… Love is the one thing we’re capable of perceiving that transcends dimensions of time and space. Maybe we should trust that even if we can’t understand it yet…”

Love, An Infinite Origin

I love how at this moment in the film, when the fate of the world hangs in the balance, the conversation turns to the nature of God, recognizes our inability to understand it with the invitation to trust it anyway. Essentially this moment in the film was about faith, and where to place it; in love or in understanding.

Somehow, while watching this film, we know in our hearts, in our spirits, the solution to their problem, the happy ending to this story, is love.

Why?

I think it’s because we are timeless creations. Our beginning is in Love, and Love has no beginning and no end. Love is our infinite origin. And whether we understand it or not, we know love is our salvation.

What if God is love. And what if God created flesh and blood, placed us in the middle of time and space, and then breathed His pneuma, His eternal spirit, His nature, into us?

What if, even while we are acquainted with the limitations of time and space, we are invited to live from a limitless reality, a truer paradigm, love?

In the film, they chose the limitations of their understanding, and they chose wrong.

But of course, through a seemingly miraculous chain of events, humanity was still saved.

Why?

Because a good story is a love story, and every love story is ultimately about salvation, reconciliation, restoration, transformation, and resurrection life.

2000 years ago, but no less so this very moment, and also before the foundations of the earth, Jesus steps into our finite way of thinking with an infinite revelation, love. He expresses this revelation through union with Father and Holy Spirit, but also with you and me.

Because “Love is the one thing we’re capable of perceiving that transcends dimensions of time and space.”

And at this moment, Jesus invites us, by faith, to “trust (love) even if we can’t understand it yet.”

In Ephesians 3 Paul invited us to know a love beyond understanding. To be filled to the measure of a measureless revelation.

Today, you are one with a Love that restores all things.

Adapted from a chapter on the nature of measureless love.

Jason Clark is a writer, producer, speaker, and lead communicator at A Family Story ministries. His mission is to encourage sons and daughters to grow sure in the love of an always-good heavenly Father. He and his wife, Karen, live in North Carolina with their three children, Madeleine, Ethan, and Eva. Follow Follow Follow Follow Follow Follow Follow Follow JOIN OUR MAILING LIST GIVE TO A FAMILY STORY YOU ALSO MIGHT LIKE… The Presence: Episode One, Breakthrough

by Jason Clark | July 13, 2015 | Art, Articles, Faith, Film, Interview, Life, Reviews | 0 Comments

Can you imagine a life spent hosting the goodness of God? What would happen to our lives and the lives around us if we were more aware of His Presence?

Read More RANDALL WORLEY / Questioning My Answers

by A Family Story | September 9, 2020 | Crisis of Identity, Dreaming, Faith, Interview, Intimacy, Leadership, Relationship, Rethinking God with Tacos / Season One, Writing | 2 Comments

Randall Worley talks about having a “beginner’s mind,” faith while embracing mystery, pioneering and the nature of heresy, the limits of language, approaching scripture through love, and the importance of remaining curious while understanding that God is not insecure or defensive when we raise hard questions.

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by Jason Clark | October 17, 2012 | A Family Story, Dreaming, Faith, Leadership, Prone To Love | 2 Comments

And yet, the vision of the open road had somehow impregnated them… you know, these kind of visions, they don’t let go so easily…

Vision is powerfully dangerous, at least, the true ones. You know when they are true because they try to kill you. And yet I am learning that to fully posses them, you must first let them kill you…

AWAKENING! with DEREK TURNER & JASON CLARK

Awakening! with Derek Turner & Jason Clark

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An infinite love, the nature of revelation, a kindness that changes our minds, the joy of our salvation discovered as we awaken to the resurrection, the risen Christ within us, in this podcast Derek and Jason discuss how all creation is awakening to the transforming certainty of sacrificial love and resurrection life.

QUOTES

“Love is more engaged with connection than it is with correction.” Derek

“Awaken is to bring something to someone’s attention for the very first time.” Derek

“Joy is the serious business of heaven.” C.S. Lewis

“My mind is constrained to a timeline, but love is a measureless revelation.” Jason

“My certainty is not in ‘right or wrong’ my certainty is Love.” Jason

“Could it be that entombed in every heart is a reality that the heart hasn’t caught up to yet?” Derek

“The only thing that changes someone’s mind is kindness.” Jason

“Awakened hearts see Jesus everywhere.” Derek

“We’re un-tombing Jesus within people.” Derek

Podcast intro and outro music by Wilde Assembly

Derek Turner Follower of Jesus, in love with @sarahjturner, father to @caro.turn & @kaaatters, owner of Milo, pastor @rivercharlotte. Amazed by Grace
www.rivercharlotte.com

Follow Follow Follow Jason Clark is a writer, speaker, and lead communicator at A Family Story ministries. His mission is to encourage sons and daughters to grow sure in the love of an always-good heavenly Father. He and his wife, Karen, live in North Carolina with their three children.

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YOU ALSO MIGHT LIKE… RANDALL WORLEY / BRUSHSTROKES OF GRACE

by A Family Story | April 28, 2021 | Faith, Interview, Intimacy, Leadership, Popular, Relationship, Rethinking God Podcast, Rethinking God with Tacos / Season Two, Worship | 0 Comments

“The two greatest myths that we, as humans, believe, are the myth of separation and the myth of scarcity.”

Grace, empathy, spiritual maturity, identity, destiny, purpose, and a sense of our eternal significance and worth; in this podcast, Randall Worley dives headlong into the measureless transforming and reconciling mystery of the love of God.