Nathan R. Hale

Donald Miller’s Storyline Will Help You Find Meaning, Focus, and Clarity in Life

NRH — Fri, 24 May 2013 16:02:34 +0000

There’s a lot to be excited about regarding Donald Miller’s new project, Storyline. I just finished the process and I am filled with many emotions: relief, release, energy, gratefulness. Most importantly I have increased focus and clarity about the things I need to do going forward. For a guy like me with a million competing interests, passions, and responsibilities, this is a sort of Holy Grail.

In a nutshell, Storyline is a process by which you examine your own life as story…specifically, a subplot in God’s grand narrative. I love the God-centeredness of this.

One of the best things about the Storyline process is how it gives you useful constraints. For instance, during one module you will examine the different roles that you play in life. This might be husband, wife, leader, mentor, artist, etc. According the psychology behind Storyline, you can really only be concentrating on five roles at a time. This alone was incredibly freeing as I made hard choices about the roles I need to be playing and that I believe God wants me to be filling.

The most important aspect of the process for me was discerning (along with input from my wife and others) my “life theme” or the way God has been consistently working in my life to equip me to help others. This element serves as a help to make decisions (is this action consistent with my life theme?) and can serve as a filter to focus projects (how will my next musical endeavor help others in a way consistent with my life theme?)

My life theme was “To find my identity in Jesus and help others do the same.” If you’re interested, you can see my stories here. This marks the second time that Donald Miller has changed my life for the better.

Check out the promo video:

I am a Christian, husband, father, musician. I want to help you grow into your identity as someone loved by God. Comments or questions? Feel free to email. The views represented here are entirely my own and do not necessarily represent those of my church or employer. Find more articles, tools, and resources like this at nathanrhale.com.

The 12 Spiritual Disciplines: An Overview

NRH — Wed, 22 May 2013 16:04:49 +0000

The spiritual disciplines are means by which individuals and communities can very literally “practice” their faith. They are tools by which Christians seek to know God, yield to the Holy Spirit’s sanctifying power, and surrender to the Divine Will in their lives. The disciplines can be instrumental tools as we seek to “tune” ourselves to God’s desires and see his kingdom as he sees it. These holy actions have been practiced by believers since the earliest times, and are firmly rooted in Christ’s commands and examples in the Gospels.

Author and pastor Richard Foster identifies 12 crucial spiritual disciplines. These are further organized into sections: inward, outward, and corporate practices.

Disciplines of Personal Development (Inward)

Prayer – communicating with God (Matt. 6:9)

Meditation – focusing on God and his will (Phil. 4:8)

Fasting – a reminder of the source of all nourishment (Luke 5:35)

Study – careful attention the the reality that God reveals to us, especially through Holy Scripture (Luke 2:46)

Disciplines of Service to the Body of Christ (Outward)

Simplicity – seeking God’s Kingdom first (Matt. 6:33)

Submission – placing God’s will above one’s own (Luke 22:42)

Solitude – withdrawing from the world to spend time with God (Matt. 14:23)

Service – supportive action toward others (Mark 10:45)

Disciplines of Service with the Body of Christ (Corporate)

Confession – acknowledging one’s sin with and to others in the community of faith (James 5:16)

Guidance – giving and receiving direction from others along the journey with Jesus (Acts 15:8)

Celebration – taking joy is what God has done (1 Cor 5:8)

Worship – giving God glory through attitudes and actions (1 Cor. 14:26)

The disciplines can help move our perspective from a naturalistic point of view to one that is more holy.

The Natural Man

is ignorant of God’s ways

is arrogant concerning his place in the universe

is busy making his own plans

constantly invites noise into his life

denies his sin

is attracted to idols

All of this obstructs our view of Jesus, the one who is worthy of attention, honor, praise, and worship, because of who he is and what he has done.

The disciplines can help clear the path and bring us back into line-of-sight with the Savior.

Examples of How Real Change Happens

The Disciplined Christian can know God’s ways though study…

He or she spends time soaking in Scripture, becoming intimately familiar with its message, learning the history of God’s church, and gaining understanding of the practical implications of theology.

The Disciplined Christian is reminded of the source of all blessing and sustenance through fasting…

Abstaining from food, time commitments and distractions, from anything that takes focus from Jesus brings clarity, focus, and humility.

The Disciplined Christian can slow down through simplicity…

Seeking the kingdom of God first ultimately causes the believer to cast aside anything that is not holy. The pursuit of wealth and power are the antithesis of the kingdom that Jesus models.

The Disciplined Christian can hear God’s voice more clearly through solitude…

Alone time with God helps provide room for silence, waiting on God, and hearing the sometimes still, small voice of his Spirit.

The Disciplined Christian is grieved by sin through confession…

Personal and corporate confession provide a way to confront, admit, be convicted of, and deal with sin in the context of a supportive community and ministers of grace.

The Disciplined Christian puts God in the highest place through worship…

The believer joins with others in praise and thanksgiving, placing Jesus in the supreme place of honor in his or her life.

Conclusion

These 12 spiritual disciplines help to combat the sinful nature and our naturalistic world view. They can bring the believer into a mental, emotional, and spiritual state of higher awareness of God, his nature, and his kingdom. These tools are one way for individuals and communities to begin to bring their focus back to the Holy One and seek his will.

This content is also available as a presentation

I am a Christian, husband, father, musician. I want to help you grow into your identity as someone loved by God. Comments or questions? Feel free to email. The views represented here are entirely my own and do not necessarily represent those of my church or employer. Find more articles, tools, and resources like this at nathanrhale.com.

Peace is Always Possible

NRH — Mon, 20 May 2013 17:00:09 +0000

An acquaintance recently linked to article about recent Muslim attacks on Christians in Pakistan. They understandably asked, “In light of events like these, is dialog even possible?” (paraphrase).

* * *

Dialog is always possible, because all things are possible with God.

As we live into our Christ-identity as peacemakers, we must have faith. The Holy Spirit will do his work.

We may indeed die in the process, but we have the hope of resurrection.

Isn’t that the example of the cross, and aren’t we called to follow Jesus there?

* * *

Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.

I am a Christian, husband, father, musician. I want to help you grow into your identity as someone loved by God. Comments or questions? Feel free to email. The views represented here are entirely my own and do not necessarily represent those of my church or employer. Find more articles, tools, and resources like this at nathanrhale.com.

Traditions of God and Men

NRH — Fri, 17 May 2013 15:45:08 +0000

God does use tradition to communicate his will and make his voice known. Tradition is any teaching, thought, or practice that is handed down or passed on. It could be a ritual, interpretive framework or a specific view on what a passage of Scripture means. The Bible itself is an example of God working through tradition (cf. 2 Thes 2:15), along with the development of doctrines derived from the Bible like the Trinity.

Christians evaluate all traditions (Col 2:8; 1 Thes 5:21) and it is the Holy Spirit that reveals to the community of faith whether or not a tradition is from God. Historically we see the church working in a communal and conciliar way to hear from the Holy Spirit on controversies of faith, from the Jerusalem Council (Acts 15:1-21) onward.

The first serious breach of this approach resulted in the Great Schism of 1054 between the Eastern and Western churches, and the decay of unity–along with the proliferation of many innovative and competing traditions–has continued ever since¹.

This is why I continually return to the catholic², conciliar faith and practice of early Christianity as my baseline for evaluating any later decrees or doctrinal developments.

See also: Why An Anglican Christian?

For historical timeline that visualizes the main splits within Christianity, see this graphic. There are now hundreds, if not thousands, of groups that adhere to basic Christian orthodoxy but separate from one another due to other doctrinal differences. ↩

“Catholic” means “universal.” The doctrinal decrees of the Undivided Church represented the consensus of leaders in the Church, the “catholic tradition.” These decisions carry serious and binding authority as long as they do not directly contradict the teachings of the Apostles in the New Testament (cf. Hebrews 13:17). ↩

I am a Christian, husband, father, musician. I want to help you grow into your identity as someone loved by God. Comments or questions? Feel free to email. The views represented here are entirely my own and do not necessarily represent those of my church or employer. Find more articles, tools, and resources like this at nathanrhale.com.

Teach Your Children Who They Are

NRH — Wed, 15 May 2013 16:02:01 +0000

Christian parenting isn’t easy. Several books I’ve read or skimmed recently speak of reminding our children of who they are in Christ…something I’ve not put a lot of thought into until recently. Once I did actually think about it for a bit, it made sense that this is an essential part of discipling our children, just as it’s an essential part of training all who are seeking to grow in their Christian faith.

Core to Christian discipleship is living into one’s new identity as a new creation (2 Cor. 5:17). It’s something we need to be reminded of often, and I think we forget that our children need these reminders as much as we do.

This is something I’ve been trying to implement with our (rather strong willed) three-year-old son, Jensen. He has a habit of disobeying us and coming out of his room at bedtime, sometimes talking back to his mom in the process. A few times before bed I’ve taken him aside and said

Son, I you know you can make good choices or bad choices tonight. I know that you are the kind of boy that wants to make good choices, and I believe you can make good choices.

I’ve noticed real improvement of behavior as result of voicing positive expectations.

We’re also working with him on saying nice things vs. mean things. Sometimes we’ve said, “Jensen, our family is nice to each other–that’s just how we do things.” I’m anxious to take it a step further as I have opportunity, maybe saying something like,

Son, we treat other nicely because that’s our family acts…do you know why our family treats each other this way?

Because we are in God’s family…and that’s who we are.”

I am a Christian, husband, father, musician. I want to help you grow into your identity as someone loved by God. Comments or questions? Feel free to email. The views represented here are entirely my own and do not necessarily represent those of my church or employer. Find more articles, tools, and resources like this at nathanrhale.com.

Be Fueled by Love

NRH — Mon, 13 May 2013 23:55:06 +0000

Today I was reminded of just how important it is to be motivated by overflowing love from God.

When you preach and teach and lead musical worship, are you loving your congregations and those you are communicating with?

When you engage in one-on-one discipleship, is love fueling your leadership?

Are your efforts to evangelize emerging from a profound love for those that haven’t yet heard the Good News about Jesus?

All effective ministry, and indeed all ministry that is pleasing to God springs from deep wells of love that can only come from him.

Why do anything, if not for love?

Whoever loves his brother abides in the light, and in him there is no cause for stumbling. (1 John 2:10, ESV)

I am a Christian, husband, father, musician. I want to help you grow into your identity as someone loved by God. Comments or questions? Feel free to email. The views represented here are entirely my own and do not necessarily represent those of my church or employer. Find more articles, tools, and resources like this at nathanrhale.com.

Can You Schedule Inspiration?

NRH — Fri, 10 May 2013 16:57:36 +0000

Other than this quick video, I haven’t been up to much musically creative stuff lately. Once again, it’s matter of time management and priorities.

Amber and I have been talking about arranging some hymns forever, and can never seem to find a good time. Come to think of it, it’s not only time, but energy! Most days after the kids go to bed it’s tough to summon even more emotional energy to be creative. For us, weekends are key to finding the time to do extra stuff like write and record music, but those get scheduled out pretty quickly…so I think scheduling creative time is becoming much more important for us.

Creatives balk at the idea of scheduling “inspiration,” but I think there’s something to practicing being good at your craft no matter what the time. Yeah, there will be sessions that have a bit more of that “magic” than others, but I’m thinking if we don’t schedule this stuff out it simply won’t happen.

I am a Christian, husband, father, musician. I want to help you grow into your identity as someone loved by God. Comments or questions? Feel free to email. The views represented here are entirely my own and do not necessarily represent those of my church or employer. Find more articles, tools, and resources like this at nathanrhale.com.

What is the Path to Spiritual Growth?

NRH — Wed, 08 May 2013 22:46:38 +0000

It’s hard for me to believe that it’s taken me this long to pick up and read Richard Foster’s classic on essential tools for spiritual growth, Celebration of Discipline. Although I’ve studied the disciplines for quite some time and have read other books on spiritual formation that took cues from Foster, I finally got around to diving into the original. It’s clear why this book has been such an influential work on so many.

Foster writes with eloquence and practicality, eager to challenge the reader but never pressing too hard. There’s a certain pastoral sensitivity in his prose that is a joy to read. Foster’s progression through the inward and outward disciplines is logical and thoughtful, thorough without becoming verbose.

I loved this book and plan on re-reading it with some frequency. Some of my favorite thoughts and quotes:

When we despair of gaining inner transformation through human powers of will and determination, we are open to a wonderful new realization: inner righteousness is a gift from God to be graciously received…the demand is for an inside job, and only God can work from the inside. (p. 6)

The Spiritual Disciplines are intended for our good. They are meant to bring the abundance of God into our lives. It is possible, however, to turn them into another set of soul-killing laws. Law-bound Disciplines breathe death. (p. 9)

Christian meditation, very simply, is the ability to hear God’s voice and obey his word. It is that simple…It involves no hidden mysteries, no secret mantras, no mental gymnastics, no esoteric flights into the cosmic consciousness. The truth of the matter is that the great God of universe, the Creator of all things desires our fellowship. (p. 17)

Service as a substitute for worship is idolatry. Activity is the enemy of adoration. (p. 161)

In the spiritual life only one thing will produce genuine joy, and that is obedience. (p. 192)

If you were to read only one book on growing in your faith as a disciple of Christ, this is the one.

Buy it on Amazon

I am a Christian, husband, father, musician. I want to help you grow into your identity as someone loved by God. Comments or questions? Feel free to email. The views represented here are entirely my own and do not necessarily represent those of my church or employer. Find more articles, tools, and resources like this at nathanrhale.com.

Is Radical Christianity A New Legalism?

NRH — Mon, 06 May 2013 21:41:14 +0000

Is the kind of “radical” Christianity advocated by the likes of Francis Chan and David Platt just another way for Christians to rely on and emphasize their own efforts over the grace of God? For Anthony Bradley at WORLD the answer may be yes. For those of you that are interested in the new wave of “taking Jesus seriously” I highly recommend reading the article.

Bradley offers two valid criticisms:

1) There’s a lot of “shaming” going on around “radical” living. Some of the popular books can come across as a guilt trip. While I think this critique holds weight, I’d hate to see the Christian culture throw out what is of value in writings of Platt and Chan. Although these books are pretty reactionary (as the author notes) they do address what I perceive to be an issue for many Christians: an unwillingness to follow Jesus even when it means being unsafe.

In my own life I’ve been challenged by this thinking. If living in a “safe” neighborhood is outside my means, should I live there? If it is within my means, but would prohibit me from being able give generously to those that hungry in my community, should I live there? These are not questions with black-and-white answers, of course, but they are questions that need to be asked, and I’m afraid many Christians never ask them, much less consider the risky answer as viable. Books like Crazy Love remind us that our faith is not that is adverse to danger and sacrifice.

2) The push to urban centers weakens the Church elsewhere. We need Christians in cities, no doubt, but I agree with the author that this shouldn’t mean we act as if this is a higher calling than rural or suburban Christian life.

The author talks about a possible solution to the pendulum swings between “comfy Christianity” and “radical Christianity” is a recovery of the doctrine of vocation. Learning about the Lutheran view of vocation was huge for me personally a few years ago, so I get where he’s coming from. I think it has to be part of a larger push toward renewed discipleship in the church at large, though. A doctrine of vocation won’t do it without understanding all of the teachings of Christ along with their implications for doctrine and community life.

I am a Christian, husband, father, musician. I want to help you grow into your identity as someone loved by God. Comments or questions? Feel free to email. The views represented here are entirely my own and do not necessarily represent those of my church or employer. Find more articles, tools, and resources like this at nathanrhale.com.

A Devotional to Help You Hide the Word of God in Your Heart

NRH — Thu, 02 May 2013 16:00:14 +0000

I’ve not made Scripture memorization the priority that I should have in the past. As part of my attempt to rectify this, I bought Scripture by Heart: Devotional Practices for Memorizing God’s Word by Joseph Choonmin Kang. He’s a new pastor/author to me, but I saw that he runs with the Dallas Williard/Richard Foster crowd. That and the positive reviews on Amazon convinced me to give this book a try, and I’m very glad I did.

It’s divided into 30 short sections that are easily readable in a single 15-20 minute session, and those are often further subdivided into a devotional thought followed by practical advice for memorization. So not only to do you get a great biblical foundation for the importance of committing scripture to memory, you learn how to memorize Bible verses as well.

Each reflection is based on a portion of Scripture itself. I read the whole book in a matter of hours, but it’s one I plan to return to as a regular for devotional use. It’s clearly meant to be read over the course of about a month, and I think it would be best experienced that way. The thoughts are simple, but deep, and demand time to them really sink in.

A few thoughts from the book that struck me with particular force:

“To memorize the Bible, we have to pray the Bible first” p. 11

“Learning Scripture by heart throws open the door to meditation.” p. 17

“Our goal isn’t memorizing as many Scripture verses as possible. It’s conforming to the image of Jesus Christ.” p. 106

“Nothing is more essential for the minister of the gospel than spiritual training. Nothing is more essential to spiritual training than memorizing Scripture.” p. 120

Biblical success is “accomplishing something God has entrusted to us.” p. 125

“Patience is always a prelude to perfection.” p. 139

This is a fantastic book of devotions and practical advice for any Christian seeking to grow deeper in the discipline of memorization.

Buy it on Amazon

I am a Christian, husband, father, musician. I want to help you grow into your identity as someone loved by God. Comments or questions? Feel free to email. The views represented here are entirely my own and do not necessarily represent those of my church or employer. Find more articles, tools, and resources like this at nathanrhale.com.

Evangelicals Most Christ-like, Study Says

NRH — Wed, 01 May 2013 17:57:51 +0000

A new study published by the Barna Group shows that among Christian groups, Evangelicals are the most Christ-like in their attitudes and actions. Don’t get too excited about this, though, because they only make up a small portion of just 14% of all Christians that exhibit Christ-like attitudes and actions. According to Barna, 51% of all Christians exhibit self-righteous behavior and mentality. This is the real headline and a sobering statistical analysis. Strong, biblical, discipleship is how we begin to fix this.

Graphic from Barna Group

I am a Christian, husband, father, musician. I want to help you grow into your identity as someone loved by God. Comments or questions? Feel free to email. The views represented here are entirely my own and do not necessarily represent those of my church or employer. Find more articles, tools, and resources like this at nathanrhale.com.

How to Discuss Theology

NRH — Wed, 01 May 2013 15:40:03 +0000

Pray before, during, and after conversations

Listen

Be humble

Have an open mind

Don’t interrupt

Think before you speak

Squash your insecurities

Avoid defensiveness

Realize your need to be right is wrong

Know that you could be mistaken, misinformed, or simply ignorant on some topics

Seek to understand

Ask many questions

Become skilled at articulating your own convictions

Assume the best of conversation partners

Recognize when to stop

Have a Bible handy

Take care with your tone of voice (both in-person and especially in writing)

Remember that if we do not love each other, we do not love God (1 John 4:7-8).

I am a Christian, husband, father, musician. I want to help you grow into your identity as someone loved by God. Comments or questions? Feel free to email. The views represented here are entirely my own and do not necessarily represent those of my church or employer. Find more articles, tools, and resources like this at nathanrhale.com.

The Importance of Theological Conversation

NRH — Tue, 30 Apr 2013 23:20:19 +0000

I’ve had some fantastic discussions lately with friends and acquaintances around theology. Over the past few days I’ve been able to really dig into difficult topics like defining the Gospel, the doctrine of Justification by Faith, and the peace teachings of Jesus.

It’s become readily apparent that these conversations are incredibly important for everyone involved. Not only does speaking about the Bible and God ignite interest and promote learning of new things, it also helps to ensure that we are not reading the Scriptures in a “vacuum.” Getting input and thoughts from other faithful Christians is part of reading the Scriptures in community (as they are meant to be read) and can be one way to way make sure you’re not heading into error.

These discussions also provide opportunity for you see flaws or weaknesses in your own thought process. If you’re humble, this can help you to come to better conclusions about the passages you read. If your arguments are good then there is further opportunity to gain confidence that you are on the right track.

It’s not that every Christian has to be a theologian, but every Christian should think theologically. That is, they need to take the time to ponder God as he is revealed in the Scriptures, wrestling through their discoveries in the context of the Church, and applying them to all of life.

I am a Christian, husband, father, musician. I want to help you grow into your identity as someone loved by God. Comments or questions? Feel free to email. The views represented here are entirely my own and do not necessarily represent those of my church or employer. Find more articles, tools, and resources like this at nathanrhale.com.

Presentation: The 12 Spiritual Disciplines

NRH — Fri, 26 Apr 2013 16:05:06 +0000

Discovering the spiritual disciplines had a profound impact on how I practice Christianity and how I view spiritual growth. I often speak with students and others that have never been taught how important living a disciplined life is being to a disciple of Jesus. If you’re looking to better understand spiritual formation via the disciplines, this presentation is for you.

I am a Christian, husband, father, musician. I want to help you grow into your identity as someone loved by God. Comments or questions? Feel free to email. The views represented here are entirely my own and do not necessarily represent those of my church or employer. Find more articles, tools, and resources like this at nathanrhale.com.

I Want to Make Your Life Better

NRH — Thu, 25 Apr 2013 16:16:17 +0000

Part of my purpose for this site is to make the the Internet a better place, even if just a little bit. To that end I want to help you–my readers, listeners, and visitors–at least in some small way. This is why you’ll never find obtrusive advertising, sponsorships I don’t believe in, or affiliate links to products I don’t recommend here at nathanrhale.com. I think Leo from the blog mnmlist is right:

Companies build entire businesses around actively making our lives worse. And they do it because it works. Because we buy what they’re selling, so advertisers make more money through this model, and publishers also win.

But we lose.

I’m in your corner. Sure, I want to make a modest living from this site, but not by selling you out to those that peddle discontentment. I’d rather inform, educate, and entertain with content that has legitimate value to you.

If I’m not doing that, I’m not succeeding.

Please tell me how I can help make your life better.

I am a Christian, husband, father, musician. I want to help you grow into your identity as someone loved by God. Comments or questions? Feel free to email. The views represented here are entirely my own and do not necessarily represent those of my church or employer. Find more articles, tools, and resources like this at nathanrhale.com.