For Christ's Glory, I Dream Devotions, advice, and book reviews from science fiction and fantasy author Andrea Graham

Welcome to the March edition of carnival of christian advice. Submissions for April are due on the Friday closest to the last day of the month and the next carnival comes out the first Tuesday in April.

questions

Charles H. Green presents Trust, Freedom and Resentment posted at Trust Matters
Excerpt: Trust requires the ability to get outside oneself. Why do I find that so hard to do?

Paul presents What is your greatest love? posted at ExtremePerspective
Excerpt: Our countries wealth has made it easy for us to be distracted by millions of things we “must have” . . . . But at the end of the day do any of these pursuits make us fulfilled, happier or assured of what comes after death?”

Paul Ferree presents Lessons From The Street – Why? posted at How To Become A Missionary
Andrea’s Comments: This piece makes the assumption that the body of Christ is made up of a bunch of parts all with the same fundamental function rather than many kinds with different functions. It’s a common mistake we make when we’re in the first flush of discovering our own function. If God has called you to street preaching, this is excellent advice on how to overcome your hesitations.

answers

Tyson Joseph presents The superhero guide to forgiveness? posted at Tyson Joseph
Summary: a boy asks god for advice on how to overcome his abusive father.

Madcap presents GNOSTICISM: UNDERSTANDING THE LIBERAL MIND posted at The Global Conservative
Excerpt: Gnosticism is not a term we usually hear today, and yet we live in the age of the Gnostic. Gnosticism permeates every aspect of modern life. I tell my kids that it’s even in our ice cream.

Walt presents Pain is a Highly Concentrated Thought posted at Walt Nation!
Excerpt: Think about the last time someone seriously mistreated you unfairly. After they did what they did, what did you do? Then after that? Then after that? I’m pretty sure you consistently thought about what that person did to you.
Andrea’s Comments: This explains quite well one secret to the effectiveness of the Christian teaching to take our eyes off our selves and look to the Cross. At the same time, the advice given only goes so far, as some kinds of hurts grow best in dark, hidden places. The only application that is effective in the long run is the maxim I just stated, to stop focusing on *me* and instead focus on *Him*.

Lyn Perry presents a book review of Wild at Heart, Discovering the Secret of a Man’s Soul posted at Thought Renewal
Summary: The purpose of Thought Renewal is to interact with and glean truths from the genre of self-help. By posting various book reviews I want to help readers “help themselves” to the truth that God makes available through such resources. SDG”

Janet Evans presents What does it mean to be married? posted at Married & Catholic
Excerpt: My husband and I recently attended a marriage renewal event at our church, and the speaker was talking about the idea of commitment in marriage – he showed a film clip from “A Beautiful Mind” to illustrate the idea of being committed to a marriage “no matter what.”

OurBlogs presents The In-Laws posted at A Guide to Raising Great Kids
Andrea’s Comments: Good advice on in-laws, questionable assumptions about birth families.

Hopeful Spirit presents Thursday Thirteen #1: Thirteen Mistakes Often Made by Well-Meaning Christians (Including Me) posted at On the Horizon
Comments: This piece offers Spirit’s take on common behaviors in the Church. Some of it I agree with, some I question. I’ll leave you to discern for yourself, but one caveat I can’t resist on #3, the reality is, Christianity does have a lock on the truth, and no man-made religion can even come close to competing. Now, here’s where she’s right. All have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God, and having the spirit of the living God dwelling in us does not give us the right to disrespect others and treat them as inferior. Remember your chains and from whence you have come. Humility wins souls, prideful attitudes drive them away. And judging? I think I know what she’s getting at; there are two equal and opposite errors on this issue, both painful and potentially lethal spiritually, but this word is thrown about too much by those who worship the Namby Pamby god to be helpful. It carries too many different meanings for people.

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That concludes this edition.

Note we had some confusion on what constitutes a question post, and what constitutes an answer. An answering post offers advice on any of the categories I cover here at Ask Andrea or similar topics, such as those dealing with cultural/world view issues my readers might be facing, or otherwise offers something on-topic of interest to our readers, such as a book review from the self-help genre. In a questioning post, the author grapples with an issue or situation without ever reaching a defintive answer, leaving it open to the readers to decide for themselves, or outright seeking their advice. My Space type personal journal blogs are welcome in this category as well as the more proffesional variety.

Submit your blog article to the next edition of carnival of christian advice using our carnival submission form.
Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page.

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