Mountains or Molehills?

Tim Riter May 12, 2014

While my wife celebrated a few days away with a girlfriend, I figured to pop a surprise on her Mother’s Day return with the installation of a new faucet for the master bathroom. Several complications soon arose. The old house had some funky modifications over the years, and one was the drain trap, a strange conglomeration of plastic and brass and mismatched parts. The threads got stripped, and it took four trips to Home Depot to finally get the correct set up. Eventually I had to replace the entire trap: cutting the outlet pipe, putting in an extension, gluing it into place. That two hour project took nearly an entire day. But the faucet does look nice.

The second complication also came from age. My own.

Looking to Heaven?

Tim Riter May 5, 2014

Heaven’s a hot topic of late, with the movie Heaven is for Real and the still bestselling book 90 Minutes in Heaven. I like that. I believe in heaven, and want to spend more than 90 minutes there! But I sometimes suspect that focusing too much on eternal life in heaven can distract us from the eternal life of knowing Jesus now, and better later.

Here’s the back story.

Fresh Cliches

Tim Riter April 28, 2014

Today in worship I wondered about some clichés that need to be fresh. Sunday: the first day of the week. A chance to get lost in worship, to acknowledge our shortcomings, to gain forgiveness. To get a fresh start. So true it’s become a cliché. But Sunday’s not enough.

Decaying Past and Present Life

Tim Riter March 17, 2014

I like old stuff. Always have. Dad’s aunt and uncle would escape the Utah winter and snow to stay in Santa Monica for several months each year, and I’d quietly listen to tales of much earlier frontier days. On the bike trips, old farms, barns, and houses entrance me. Two years ago we spent a few days in Deadwood, SD, where Wild Bill Hickok was killed, where Calamity Jane capered, and I was nearly in heaven. Last spring Sheila and I visited an old central California town. She headed for an antique store; I crossed the street to a hotel/bar about 120 years old.

So, when Roland Peachie, a friend from high school days, posted the pic above, the decaying barn first drew my attention.

Complexity's Paradox

Tim Riter February 10, 2014

43 years ago this month, I was a grad assistant at Pepperdine, living off campus with a rarely present friend, riding a motorcycle and a cool car, with three girl friends (none of whom knew about the others, fortunately). On the outside, life appeared perfect. But internally, I was a mess. After four years of spiritual searching, I surrendered control of my life to the only being worthy of it. I certainly didn’t meet that standard.

The ride since has been wild. I’ve pastored churches and sinned and grown, written books and sinned and grown, taught at Christian universities and high schools and sinned and grown.

And the further I travel through life, the more the complexity of life amazes me.

What Does Your God Look Like?

Tim Riter January 20, 2014

In the interests of integrity and full disclosure, I stole this post. The pastor of a church in Post Falls, ID, Aaron Couch, spoke at our church yesterday. Simple. Convicting. A hard message that prompted much meditation. Let’s focus on one.

Why do we “keep the rules” of Christianity? An earlier post explored how God’s rules benefit us—he best knows how we optimally function. Aaron hitchhiked on that—our behavior puts God on display. We “all reflect the Lord’s glory” (2 Corinthians 3:18).

So, what God do we reflect? As people look at how we reflect the one we claim to serve, what God do they see?

Structure? Who, Me?

Tim Riter January 13, 2014

I’m embarrassed. Deeply. Soon, you’ll see why. A few months ago I posted how I got stuck spiritually, couldn’t figure out the cause, then God intervened in a very good Good Friday service. In the last week or so, I have some glimmers of the source.

But know that I tend to hang loose. Too much regimentation and structure bring tension. Working hard is good, IF it varies. Now, here comes the embarrassment.

For about 30 years, I was a “professional” Christian—a pastor, author of Christian books, a teacher...

Cursed by Quality

Tim Riter December 9, 2013

The Sunday before Thanksgiving, and our pastor made it a long week off. Most of the praise team grabbed the same opportunity. Totally deserved, by all of them. After decades as a pastor (not once leading music, praise God!), I know that spiritual leaders need recharging. Jesus patterned that for us, by the way. I think he knew some pastors would slide into workaholism!

But their absence impacted the overall worship service.

Unconventional

Old Faith, New Following