During a particularly dark time in my life I picked up a CD by some guy I had never heard of before, his name was Steve Camp. It was God's providence that I picked up this CD. Several of the songs pierced my heart. I remember pulling out the jacket of the CD to read the lyrics. Do you do that? Do you get so moved hearing a song that you want to know more about it right away? I do. This song, The Great American Novel, had me transfixed. When I saw that Larry Norman had written it, it was especially touching for me. I grew up in the San Francisco Bay Area, a child of the 60's and I remembered him from my "Jesus Freak" days. I understand that Larry went to be with Jesus yesterday. His best work has just begun.
I have been thinking about my last post in which I offered to talk about how having a job has shown or magnified my character flaws. Before I do though, I want to distinguish between character flaws and sin. My character flaws predispose me to sin in certain areas more readily than in others. Indulging in my character flaws is sinful. Entertaining the idea of indulging my character flaws is sinful. They are the weaknesses in me where my flesh makes itself known by screaming, "You know you want to!!" Too often I hear Christians lamenting that they "make mistakes" or are victims of their genetic make-up and intimate that they should, therefore, be excused from culpability for being prone to certain activities. Our cultural dependence on a medical model to define our behavior has given many what they see as a plausible excuse for sin. I don't see that caveat in the Word. For Christians, the Word is always our standard. It is the standard by which all will be j
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