On My Walk With A New Layout

Welcome to the new layout of On My Walk (OMW). I've been toying with the idea of changing the look for some time. Yesterday I had the opportunity to spend a few hours just walking around some trails on the outskirts of my little city.  At one point I was up on a fairly high hill looking out over a forest with the sun shinning in a beautifully clear sky. I knew this would make a nice header pic for the blog. So I shot a few variations and with in a couple of hours OMW had a new layout.

The blog may look very different than it did last week, but it is still the same old place. I do have a new sense of purpose with the Bad Kool-Aid series though. I hope through reading you will be edified and enjoy your stay enough to come back again tomorrow.

Writing

So I have been working on finishing up my book - title to be revealed shortly I hope - and this has kept me in front of the computer about 7 so hours a day. I've needed to keep up with my work with TCC. So.... unfortunately it's been quiet here. I've got a few short posts to make, when my brain will be able to handle it. And then I'll be posting Part 5 of "The Gospel Delusion."

Beyond moderation

How do you have a conversation, a real honest and open conversation with someone who disagrees with you at your blog? I have found that it can be a great challenge. The issue I see coming up at the blogs I frequent of brethren who I esteem highly and who I openly associate with is trying to find the line between conversational defense of a position and advertising promotion of that position.

I guess I'm evaluating this more and more. I want people who disagree with me to WANT to post here. But I also don't want this blog to be a place where error can freely be found. I doubt I will ever allow guests to link to content that could lead some astray. But, but, but.... I want people to be able to argue their point. Where is the line?

Thoughts on moderation here at OMW

Some recent incidents at mine and other blogs I frequent have caused me to consider the impression people might have when they see comments deleted and/or ignored. I try to moderate as little as possible. My primary concern will be protecting the weaker brethren from heresy or influential false teaching. If I delete something, it's probably because it's there is a high probability it would have harmed a weaker Brother or Sister.

If I ignore a comment... or an argument it may be for any of several reasons. Most often it is because "I've been down that trail before.." Not every argument needs to be answered every time. Not every complaint or topic is brought up to drive the conversation forward. With the very few people I have had any contention with I have found they often bait on side issues and cause conversations to drift in to long bouts of exposition instead of staying focused on the issue. In the future I hope to be more balanced in my response to this. It's important that real questions get real answers, but it's just as important that readers don't get lost in a swamp of smoke and fog.

So please participate, but remember most of the "hot topic" issues like Lordship Salvation and the Crossless Gospel and many others have been discussed here and elsewhere many times.

New layout with a new header pic

I've been wanting a "stretch" profile that will take advantage of larger display monitors. Blogger doesn't exactly have the widest selection of templates.. but this one will do. The picture above was taken by my wife in Drumheller Alberta (that map is centered on as close as I can tell that I was standing) just outside of the Royal Tyrrell Museum of Palaeontology.

The picture represents a lot of thinking, growth and failure to me. When I got back to where my wife was standing - a long way away - I was disappointed that she had had such a hard time taking photos. The results were not what I had hoped for and I didn't understand why they might have been hard to accomplish. There now that this is out of the way, I could not post this picture without the confession of the conversation that happened afterwards - it would not be honest and my meager conscience would not allow me to knowingly mislead here where I minister and live daily.

The picture is a representation of a lesson God has spent three years teaching me. I'm standing in a valley there. Around me all I can see is destruction. Literally actually as what I am standing in is a scar left over by the Flood. But more personally, to me I was standing on a mountain in the valley of the shadow of death.

It is in the deep dark scary valleys of life that we learn about, and to trust God Almighty. It is the proving of our faith. Not that we are faithful, or that we have faith. But that our faith is true. That God is exactly who He says He is. When our faith is proved to not be in vain, because the Object of our Faith is TRUE then that is more valuable than anything and everything else in the World.

So what you see the chubby little me doing in that picture is raising my hands to Heaven deep in a valley, yet high on a mountain! Because I have learned that in the depths of despair we rely the most on God and so we are the most secure. When we know this, then we can praise God in the valley! This is what the Lord has taught me so far on my walk toward Him.

Next Articles

We've had some really great conversation in the thread called The Power Of God To Salvation. Mark, Jazzy and Bridget each contributed their views in support of Lordship Salvation.

I, and other men, vehemently disagree with them. We have shown by Scripture why. I would like to thank both Lou and JP for their comments and for their participation in the Gospel of Christ. In that thread I tried to remain friendly and graceful but of course did not always succeed. These discussions can get very heated and it's easy to see people on either side wanting to "win" instead of wanting to offer up simple Truth.

The Gospel is precious and can not be allowed to be defiled. It is the message of God's Grace towards man. It speaks of things that are too Holy to be uttered by the dirty mouths of men. But for His Glory, the Lord God Almighty has chosen weak and small men like myself to carry that message of Salvation to the World. A message freedom without cost available to the slaves in bondage who will but receive the Gift of God.

I've turned comment moderation on. That means IF I manage to get some time in the next week to allow comments then I will. But I do not expect to. I made my closing statements and then left commenting on for several hours. The others have not chosen to offer any closing statements so the thread stands as it is for now. I will turn free commenting on again as soon as I will be able to moderate properly.

In the meant time, I'm preparing the next article in a series on Lordship Salvation Theology and it will be called "The Offense Of The Cross" Gal 5:11 comes to mind immediately of course, but so do sections like 1 Cor 1:17-24 and Col 2:11-23 if you think about it.

The Gospel is the message of The Christ Crucified on the Cross on our behalf for our sins, buried in the ground, and risen and seen again. Are you offended by the Cross because of any of these?

That the Cross shows you exactly what a sinner you are.

That the Cross shows you exactly what is required because of your sin.

That the Cross shows you exactly how Good God is.

That the Cross shows you exactly what the Innocent willingly paid.

That the Cross shows you exactly that the guilty and unworthy can justly, and freely, go free.

Does the Cross offend you, Sinner?

Does the Cross offend you, Saint?

Does the Cross offend you?

Back, and possibly even caught up!

OK so I've been crazy busy.. away from home... and there's been a healthy lump of laziness added to the mix over the last three weeks. Without checking my commitments TOO closely I think I'm caught up. So I should be back in the fray starting tonight. I understand there are some important conversations happening over the "crossless gospel" that I'll have to get caught up on, but that shouldn't take very long.

Why Me? Why Now? Why Here?

So the title is full of whys. Isn't that a lot like the world? We're always looking for why this or why that. Well the why of this blog is simply that I'm anxious to be closer to Him. I'm a Christian who's learning. I'm a Christian on my personal walk to be closer to Him. I figure if I'm learning, I should be sharing. So I'm going to be talking about what I'm learning and what's happening in my life as the days go by. The Holy Spirit is working in my life in a great way right now. I'm studying like I've never been able to before. I'm currently working through the Pauline Epistles. I'm taking notes and so I'm going to be sharing what I learn with who ever manages to find this blog. I'm a Gentile and Paul is the appostle who was sent to the Gentiles. I'm praying for and receiving understanding of God's Will and His Word through Paul's writings.

I'm a bassplayer as well. So I'm sure I'll be touching on music and how it affects my life.

May God's love be the light of your life, may you walk on His path and by His wisdom. May the Lord sustain you.

Kev