Terry Pruitt's Blog

“All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness,” 2 Timothy 3:16 “that which we have seen and heard we proclaim also to you, so that you too may have fellowship with us; and indeed our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ. And we are writing these things so that our joy may be complete.” 1 John 1:3-4 Q. What rule hath god given to direct us how we may glorify and enjoy him? A. The Word of God, which is contained in the Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments, is the only rule to direct us how we may glorify and enjoy him. This is the second question of the Westminster Shorter Catechism. The concern here is amazingly not put in terms of merely right doctrine, but really in terms of our joy in the Christian life. Joy that comes from the teachings of Scripture and how we are to live a godly life. Joy in knowing God. Sometimes evangelicals will say that they are not really conc...

Just in time for those holiday parties, I have a poll on small talk. What do you find the most engaging topic of conversation at a party or other social function? The poll is off to the right on this page. If I did not put your favorite topic on there, add an entry to the comments section of the poll.

So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God. 1 Corinthians 10:31 (ESV) For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be glory forever. Amen. Romans 11:36 (ESV) Question 1 from the Westminster Shorter Catechism. Q: What is the chief end of man? A: Man's chief end is to glorify God and to enjoy him for ever. This beginning point focuses on man's purpose. Without some transcendent purpose, we get the sense that this earth is just mechanics. We are but a machine. When the machine wears out, we dispose of it. The clergy who wrote the Westminster Shorter Catechism understood that to begin our theological journey we need to understand that purpose and meaning are central to message of scripture and central to man's needs. While the question of what man's purpose is man central to the question, the proof text from Romans 11 is really much broader than the issue of man. Man is a part of all creation, and all creation is ...

If they can make this $100 laptop for those who are overseas, how about marketing it in the United States. Where is the website to put your advanced order? I think we could buy one for each child in our home, that would be five. Oh, wait, some are over 18, do they count? Anyway, I think this is a great idea and Christian releif agencies should get involved in making purchases where funds are not available otherwise. Wired News: Negroponte: Laptop for Every Kid : "WN: One could argue that it's better to give them something that has more mainstream commercial appeal. Negroponte: Now be careful there. Fifty percent of the servers on this planet are using either Linux or some kind of Unix derivative.... So 20 percent of the world's servers are already using what I would call perfectly mainstream software. And there are open-source approaches to it that are working just fine. It's not mainstream on the desktop, I'll admit, but we'll make it mainstream ...

I enjoy reading Barna and others who "do the numbers" on Christianity. But I have to say this is an excellent review of Barna's book. I have not read the book, but still I recommend reading the Jollyblogger's review. The discussion goes beyond the one book and interacts with a broader section of Christianity just the pollsters. JOLLYBLOGGER: Book Review - Revolution by George Barna : "Let me begin this review of George Barna's book Revolution with a few apologies. The first is that this post is so absurdly long that it hardly deserves to be called a blog post. If anyone makes it to the end of this post they deserve a medal. It is just that this book touched on a lot of issues for me, so this post is my personal way of working through a number of things. "

Controversies - A dispute, especially a public one, between sides holding opposing views. Using this definition, it is not a controversy if I am conflicted about a matter. But often I am not moved to investigate a matter or interprets a matter until I start to respond to some doctrine that is being spouted out there. So I am lazy until some Gadfly comes and knocks me out of my comfort zone. Perhaps others are more spiritual than I, but some of my seasons of doctrinal growth come from hearing a teaching that just does not seems right to me. Many years ago I was deployed in Saudi Arabia during the first Gulf War. One Sunday I went to a Sunday School class at the Chapel on Eskan Village. The Chaplin was a good guy. When we got to Romans 2:22 "You who say that one must not commit adultery, do you commit adultery? You who abhor idols, do you rob temples?" the Chaplin explained to the class that rob temples refers to Jewish people robbing pagan temples. I had memorized the passage ...

It is official, the community of blogdom thinks that the Jollyblogger's Pulpit Attire should be...drum roll... what ever is acceptable to his wife . Who knew?

Scott Aniol at Kara Ministries has put forth the idea that Pastors are responsible for maturing the flock both in theology and emotions. Could it be that the emphasis on counseling methods has led our shepherds away from some of the tools that could really help the flock “to lay down beside the cool waters”? Could it be that we need more poets and less couches to set our hearts to love the savior more and worry less? It must be said that only God can set our hearts aright. Regardless of technique, couch or choir, we must have the work of the Holy Spirit moving in our heart. But talking about the Holy Spirit's work, I have yet to hear someone say that they left a counseling session inspired and encouraged. Usually there is digging up of the past mistakes, past sufferings, and confrontation with present faults. But I have often heard people talk of being moved by a song. People sense the rightness of the words and tune that speaks of the greatness of God and/or his truth. Gi...

Kara Ministries Weblog : "“Neither should we ordain young men as preachers, unless they have been well exercised in music.” — Martin Luther" Scott is asking for your feedback as to how much training a pastor should have in music, who is responsible to see that he has it and whether it should be a part of ordination.