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image by media.photobucket.com

image by media.photobucket.com

When I Cause You Pain

Tim Riter March 14, 2016

A major step in my spiritual development came when I finally discarded a legalistic view of sin. Yes, sin violates God's laws. Yes, that violation has consequences in our lives. But I focused on the wrongness of sin. So, if I could rationalize that it wasn't that wrong, then it became easier to slip into it. Kind of like running a red light if no cars are in sight. Basically, viewing a wrong as less wrong made me more likely to do that wrong. Then I discovered another dimension of sin, one that changed not just how I view sin, but how I view ...

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Tags Temptation, Sin, Law, Legalism, Loving God, Spiritual Formation
image from youramazingplaces.com

image from youramazingplaces.com

Morning Devotions

Tim Riter March 7, 2016

On a late June morning we fired up the bikes and rode out of Kalispell, Montana, expecting great things at Glacier National Park. Early indications didn’t encourage us. The chill cut deep, even through our leathers and layers of clothing, and we had to endure 30 miles of mostly urban traffic before approaching the park. So far, the shivers from cold and the frustrations from traffic seemed like a typical day. Nothing awesome, just unpleasant conditions. Then we entered Glacier...

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In Happenings Tags Glacier National Park, Motorcycles, Fear God, Morning devotions, Majesty, Mountains

Perpetual Tinkering

Tim Riter February 29, 2016

Many have followed the Facebook progress of transforming our neglected, dead, and dated back yard into a relaxing retreat. OK, I'm retired, so I have less stress to retreat from, but I still need it. Building the waterfall provides a metaphor not just for the entire job, but more so for the spiritual life. We'd built one at our previous house and had an idea of what we wanted, then a friend ...

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In Happenings Tags Change, Test, Evaluate, Improve, spiritual formation
image from mmamania.com

image from mmamania.com

Defeats and Identity

Tim Riter February 22, 2016

Previously invulnerable in the fight ring. Undefeated in 18 bouts. Champion. Rhonda Rousey had it all, until Holly Holm knocked her out in late 2015, not only stealing her crown but her identity: "I was sitting in my corner and was like, 'What am I if I'm not this? I was literally thinking about killing myself...I'm nothing. What do I do anymore and no one gives a (rip) about me anymore without this.'" Rousey yields a great example of ...

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Tags Rhonda Rousey, MMA, UFC, Viktor Frankl, Logotherapy, Meaning, Value
image from gatewaypundit.com

image from gatewaypundit.com

Super Bowl 50

Tim Riter February 15, 2016

Superbowl 50: a marvelous defensive game, particularly by the Denver Broncos. Close fought, except for the final score. Two dueling quarterbacks with different styles, one a rising star who moves well, the other the veteran epitome of a pocket passer. Blend in a bit of controversy, with the losing quarterback giving a short, curt postgame interview, one that garnered a load of comments, mostly negative, prompting him to explain his conduct. But lost in the resulting discussion was ...

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In Happenings Tags Cam Newton, Super Bowl 50, Values, Epistemology, Culture, Religion
image from reelyredd.com

image from reelyredd.com

The Duel

Tim Riter February 8, 2016

The hopeful Republican and Democratic Presidential candidates have become quite testy with one another just before the New Hampshire primary, eagerly pointing out character flaws and ignorance and incompetence, which merely confirms the disgust many of us have toward the politicians in Washington. But the worst of this cannot match the first levels of political disagreement in our country.Aaron Burr served as Vice President ...

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In Reflection Tags Duels, Political Anger, spiritual formation, Absolute Truth, Love

Know the Times

Tim Riter February 1, 2016

John Thurston, whose house is above, raised his grandson, my father, when my granddad abandoned his new family. Thurston rassled a grizzly and won (otherwise I wouldn't be writing this). He knew the world he lived in, and navigated it well. How about us?

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In Poetry Tags Pioneers, Grizzlies, Culture, Worldview, spiritual formation
image from huffingtonpost.com

image from huffingtonpost.com

Be Nice to be Godly

Tim Riter January 25, 2016

Decades back, I first knew her when she was in the college group I led. We've stayed in touch over the years and I appreciate how she thinks. Her Facebook post this morning struck quite a chord with a number of readers.

 

” I am having breakfast at a cute place... A nice little family just came in. They have not ...

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Tags Mean, Nice, Kind, Restaurants, spiritual formation
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TimGlacierMcDonald.jpg

A bit of an unreconstructed Jesus freak. Almost old enough to have known him when he walked this world. About 27 on the inside. Investing his life in university and teen students. Inveterate cross country motorcycle rider. Nature lover. Entranced with the power of written and spoken words. Still learning.

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Unconventional

Old Faith, New Following