In Perspective

you can't be complacent in relationships. A.W. Tozer talks about complacenc y and too much religiosity in Chapter 1 of The Pursuit of God. Here are my reading and reflection notes on the Chapter. Marked: How tragic that we in this dark day have had our seeking done for us by our teachers. Everything is made to center upon the initial act of “accepting” Christ (a term, incidentally, which is not found in the Bible)  The stiff and wooden quality about our religious lives is a result of our lack of holy desire. Complacency is a deadly foe of all spiritual growth. Thoughts: Complacency kills any relationship . When you are complacent, you are falsely satisfied. You become lazy with the situation. You don't put in the efforts to deepen the relationship. Important relationships need efforts. You need to put in the time for meaningful communication and togetherness . You can't be complacent if the relationship is to grow stronger. Instant prayer books, in...

So, the "Last Dance" finally dropped on Netflix this April 21 in Australia. It premiered on ESPN on April 20, 2020. For Michael Jordan fans (and Chicago Bulls fans), that was a long wait. The documentary received its green light from Michael Jordan and the others, way back 2016. Sitting through episodes 1 and 2, I have to agree that there could have been no better time to air "The Last Dance". I really missed seeing His Airness execute his majestic plays. I missed seeing that particular Chicago Bulls team playing games on screen. I had a trip back to memory lane. And it was a pleasant one. An inspiring one. There's no better distraction than to sit, listen, and stare through a motivating, confronting, and inspiring documentary. Michael Jordan was not the number 1 pick in the NBA draft. He was number 3. We see from the documentary that the Chicago Bulls higher ups were not that ecstatic about their choice. It's like they had no other choice and t...

The opinion between election and foreknowledge as well as between prevenient grace and irresistible grace have divided a lot of Christians. Did you choose God or did He choose you? What is God's role in the choosing and where does man's choosing start? A.W. Tozer discusses a bit of this in "Following Hard After God", which is chapter 1 of The Pursuit of God . Here are my reading and reflection notes on the section. Marked: a, Christian theology teaches the doctrine of prevenient grace , which means that before a man can seek God, God must first have sought the man. b. Before a sinful man can think a right thought of God, there must have been a work of enlightenment done within him. c. We pursue God, only because He has first put an urge within us that spurs us to the pursuit. “No man can come to me,” said our Lord, “ except the Father which hath sent me draw him.”  d.  The impulse to pursue God originate s with God,  but the outworking ...

A right opinion doesn't always lead to a right response. A.W. Tozer talks about this in his Preface to the Pursuit of God. Here's part 2 of my reading and reflection notes on the section. Marked: "Though right tempers cannot subsist without right opinions, yet r ight opinions may subsist without right tempers . There may be a right opinion of God without either love or one right temper toward Him. Satan is proof of this." Thoughts: a. To know who God is, most superior, most holy, most loving, most good, and yet not be moved to make the right response in spite of what you know, is very possible. b. This still happens today. You and I know God is all-wise and all-loving, yet we doubt Him at times. We refuse to yield to our powerful, trustworthy Father. Marked: a. "There are today many millions of people who hold “right opinions,” probably more than ever before in the history of the Church. Yet I wonder if there was ever a time when t...

In the Preface to The Pursuit of God , A.W. Tozer talks about head theology , heart theology, and ministers who teach yet leave the flock starving. Following are some highlighted portions along with a discussion on my thoughts regarding what's shared. Reading Notes on the Preface to The Pursuit of God A. "There are persons whose religious lives are marked by a growing hunger after God Himself. They are eager for spiritual realities and will not be put off with words, nor will they be content with correct “interpretations” of truth. They are athirst for God, and they will not be satisfied till they have drunk deep at the Fountain of Living Water." Church doors find different types of people coming in for different reasons. 1. Some crave to feed their minds . To know more. To increase learning. The highlight is the preaching of the word. Good preaching equals great worship. 2. Some crave to feed their hearts . To feel more. To connect on an emot...

Among his works, A.W. Tozer’s most notable piece is probably “ The Pursuit of God ”. It’s a book that’s on my list for rotational re-readings. It has now come up and I’m going through it again. AW Tozer changed my mind about a lot of things pertaining to the topic. I’ve grown in my understanding and discovery of God through that book. I highly recommend that you read it. I believe “The Pursuit of God” is in public domain. You can download a free PDF copy courtesy of The NTS Library. What is the pursuit of God? The pursuit of God is a chasing after. It’s tracing or tracking evidences of His presence. Finding out where He’s been, trailing to discover where He is or where He will be. It’s profiling and grasping His identity. Are you pursuing God? When you pursue God, the object of your pursuit is Him. Now, you may think that’s an easy and obvious given. But it’s not so simple. Christians can falsely believe that they are pursuing God when all they’re after is what...

Reading the Bible is not Enough Reading your Bible is not enough . Hearing God's message from preachers is never enough. 3 minutes or 5 minutes with God using Our Daily Bread or some devotional books is not enough. We Christians need to stop making excuses for our laziness. We need to deal with the fact that we're backslidden. We've grown cold. There's something terribly wrong when we're comfortable and satisfied with reading a few verses, and content to just sit back and listen to others talk about the Word of God. We need to be IN the Word. You and I need to be students of the Word. You need to hear from God and encounter Him yourself. Receiving encouragement and teaching from others are good but you need to discover and process God's very words yourself. Listening to other people's experiences, ideas, and understanding about God and His Truths can only carry you so far in your faith life or Christian walk. It's your personal time wit...