Barnabas Powell's Blog, page 178
June 28, 2017
Many Blessings Equal Great Responsibility!
“Count your blessings, name them one by one. Count your many blessings, see what God has done.” All through my life I’ve heard that we should “count” our blessings. If we would do this, we would be protected against falling into the “pit of despair” and we would be encouraged at how much we have in our lives. I guess that’s why I love the Orthodox wisdom of “nepsis” (wakefulness). This encouraging…
The post Many Blessings Equal Great Responsibility! appeared first on Faith Encouraged.
June 27, 2017
Time to Grow Up!
“Petulant child!” That’s what I thought as an obviously frantic mother was trying to placate a toddler throwing a fit. Nothing seemed to work. He didn’t want the toy, then he did want the toy. The treat mom tried to give the boy was accepted then thrown down and the screaming commenced again. She tried holding him. That didn’t work. She tried letting him down. That didn’t work. The look in her…
The post Time to Grow Up! appeared first on Faith Encouraged.
June 26, 2017
Is Doubt Wrong?
Paul Tillich once said “Doubt is not the opposite of faith; it is one element of faith.” Interesting! As a priest, I have folks regularly come to me struggling with doubt. Some are in great distress, thinking their momentary doubt has “offended” God, or undone all their spiritual efforts. Everyone of them are a bit shocked when I confront them with their prideful notion that they have the power to disturb God…
The post Is Doubt Wrong? appeared first on Faith Encouraged.
June 23, 2017
Is There Injustice in God?
If you could know the future, would you want to? I mean, really; if you could know the exact moment of your death, would you want that information? Knowing the future has been a preoccupation for we humans forever! I remember riding in the backseat of a car with a friend and passing one of those little houses on the side of the road with the big sign out front: “Madam So…
The post Is There Injustice in God? appeared first on Faith Encouraged.
June 22, 2017
All Creation Groans
Being in the room when my daughters were born was an unforgettable experience. Of course, I was a spectator. It was my wife that was doing all the work! And it wasn’t always a “fun” experience. In fact, I was “invited” to experience some of that pain while holding the hand of my bride during labor. The woman has a very strong grip! The event of childbirth is such a powerful icon…
The post All Creation Groans appeared first on Faith Encouraged.
June 21, 2017
You Are In The Spirit
Debt is a prison. Just ask anyone still paying Federal School Loans. The truth is the modern phenomenon of Student Loans is a ticking time bomb in our economy as more and more people find a sense of hopelessness in ever escaping the burden of paying for higher education. But a sense of indebtedness isn’t always negative. In fact, one can make the argument that a sense of indebtedness towards other to…
The post You Are In The Spirit appeared first on Faith Encouraged.
June 20, 2017
Thank God Almighty I’m Free At last!
On August 28, 1963, Baptist minister and civil rights leader Dr. Martin Luther King gave his famous “I Have a Dream” speech on the mall in Washington, D.C. In it he uttered the equally famous line “Free at last, free at last. Thank God Almighty, we’re free at last.” These words still stir my heart today. Some try to reduce freedom to mere temporal political “rights.” Others seem to suggest that freedom…
The post Thank God Almighty I’m Free At last! appeared first on Faith Encouraged.
June 19, 2017
A Reviling Judgement
One of the questions I get often from parents trying to raise children in a society and culture that seems to have been reduced to sand. This reduction has occurred as we moderns have allowed the deconstruction of timeless wisdom preserved for centuries, all in the name of being relevant or even “compassionate.” My answer has changed over the years. Earlier, my answers use to revolve around battle and “apologetics” as if…
The post A Reviling Judgement appeared first on Faith Encouraged.
June 16, 2017
Why Are You Orthodox?
I was talking to someone the other day and we were discussing a fairly important subject when it dawned on me “We are not really speaking the same language.” It frustrated me and, I confess, I was at a loss as to how to bridge this gap in our understanding each other. You see, this person came from a vastly different place that I had. Our experiences were different. Our relationships were…
The post Why Are You Orthodox? appeared first on Faith Encouraged.
June 15, 2017
Storm Outside; Asleep Inside
What struck me was his strong, silent presence even in the face of chaos and tragedy. Here we were, dealing with the human tragedy and destruction of the aftermath of a hurricane. We were there as clergy to help people. We were moving through the American Red Cross “tent city” and it was set up to hold hundreds of displaced people and we were there as IOCC Frontliners, the First Responders ministry…
The post Storm Outside; Asleep Inside appeared first on Faith Encouraged.
