Creative Space for Wanderers
Time to Reflect In this chapter, Brennan Manning provides an opportunity for a guided retreat through 19 mercies, opportunities to hear from our loving Father. Perhaps this is a chance to slow down a moment, to pray, to ready, to listen. I’ll list them here. Perhaps we should all consider taking one a day for …
Continue reading “Ragamuffin Gospel: 19 Mercies: A Spiritual Retreat”
Call to Action Apparently, Brennan Manning was scolded harshly by some in the Christian community for this book. Perhaps he speaks as a prophet for our current Christian culture, calling out those who would reduce Christianity to a Sunday morning activity–which happens to include most of us. I suggest “us” in this sense because, like it or …
Continue reading “Ragamuffin Gospel: The Scandal of Grace: Fifteen Years Later”
Chapter 11 The Power of a Great Affection Manning relates a story from the archives in New Orleans: instead of being “born again,” those who came to know a personal relationship with Jesus Christ would say, “I was seized by the power of a great affection.” This is the phrase that describes an authentic and …
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Chapter 10 Keep Coming Back The mature Christians I have met along the way are those who have failed and have learned to live gracefully with their failure. One of my most consistent problems is taking on too much, too many things at once — overcommitment. Perhaps I lack the ability to set proper boundaries, …
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Chapter 9 Halftime This chapter reminds of Bob Buford’s book, Halftime: Moving from Success to Significance1. In October of 1995, I transitioned from the Air Force to civilian life–it was time to move into a new season in my life. The truth is, I’m still growing and trying to figure out what’s next, but this hasn’t prevented me …
Chapter 8 Freedom Awaits All This chapter starts with a summary of Dostoyevsky’s, The Brothers Karamazov. For the church, this is a rather fatalistic view of its organization and intention to control parishioners. Quite depressing. Following this brief discussion, Manning asserts, “Some Christians want to be slaves.” This is not the freedom taught by Jesus, “If …
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Chapter 7 Counterfeit Christians This chapter presents a poignant story from Manning’s visit to a rehabilitation center, one that left me speechless. The point of the story is to evoke an emotional response, but more than that, it’s to force us to evaluate our response. Imagine if this were a Candid Camera episode where a …
Continue reading “Ragamuffin Gospel: #7 – Paste Jewelry and Sawdust Hot Dogs”
Chapter 6 Decide, Trust and Show Heartfelt Gratitude Decide. Take Action. The gospel of grace calls us to action! This chapter calls us to arms, to action, to get out of the bleachers and onto the playing field. Manning we are indecisive, caught between a rock and a hard place because we cannot will ourselves …
Chapter 5 Awe and Wonder As Manning begins this chapter, he explains how science has squelched our awe and wonder of creation to the point that we have “become immune to the glory of creation.” So true for many, but I love it when we read about research scientists that dedicate their lives to their fields …
Continue reading “Ragamuffin Gospel: #5 – Cormorants and Kittiwakes”