How is Your Heart? February is Heart Health Awareness Month. Read “Secrets and Lies” by Rhonda McKnight

February is Heart Health Awareness Month

Participate in the Healthy Heart Blog Tour with Rhonda McKnight – February 1-5, 2010. 10% of the donation during this blog tour will go to the American Heart Association (AHA). The 3 ways you can win are stated below in detail.
“A Hungry Heart and Aching Spirit Make a Battered Body“…it is written, Be ye holy; for I am holy.” ~1 Peter 1:16

What does holy mean? I did some research and found that it is defined as having a moral standard of living, Christ-like in character, separate, pure, set apart. It was defined in spiritual terms, as a spiritual position or state of being. And while I agree with those definitions, I think too often we think that holiness is merely a spiritual thing. Meaning, if we attend church, read our bibles, serve in ministry, don’t cuss or drink, or commit other sins (that we’re aware of), we believe we have achieved holiness. Today I’d like to discuss another side to holy living; the reality that to be like Christ, we have to attend to not just the spiritual, but the physical.

The word says in 1 Corinthians 6:19 “Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own.” It goes on to tell us in the 20th verse of the same chapter that we were bought with a price; to honor God with our bodies. If we are going to be Christ-like we must honor him not just with our spirits, but with our physical temples as well.
Many of us, try as we like, are only half-holy. We know the word. We haven’t skipped over this scripture in the bible, so what keeps us from taking care of the Lord’s temple? What is really holding us back from the place of complete holiness to God? I think it’s our hungry hearts and our aching spirits.

Despite the billions spent on diet and health products, Americans are more overweight than ever. The problem of obesity is epidemic. The solutions of diet and exercise are not the singular remedy. The root cause has to be addressed to really get a handle on the problem. It’s not just a love of food, or a lack of discipline. We like to blame it on those things because we often don’t like to talk about the real reasons we overeat. Usually they’re intensely personal. Here are a few:
• We need comfort when we’re stressed, tired or overworked. We know this, because we call the foods we reach for comfort foods.
• We are depressed or anxious.
• We need to anesthetize pain from abuse: current or past. Self-medication.
• Boredom. Our lives are unfulfilled.

We have to break these cycles of destructive behavior or they will destroy us. Obesity, irregular insulin levels, fatty levels in the blood all beat the temple God has given us down to a battered pulp. Then what do we do with our battered bodies? The battered body is sluggish and tired. It doesn’t want to go to mid week services, or even interact with its children. The battered body doesn’t want to make love to its spouse. It’s too beat up to enjoy life fully. Additionally there are obesity related diseases like diabetes, heart diseases, certain cancers, joint deterioration and more aliments that tear at the temple and keep us from being whole in our physical person.

In my novel, Secrets and Lies, the character Jonah Morgan is not overeating, but he is using another unhealthy coping mechanism: alcohol, and lots of it. Jonah’s heart is hungry for a relationship with Christ; his spirit is aching from the burden of un-forgiveness. His childhood pain is tearing him apart, so much so that he has completely checked out emotionally and physically on his family. He can’t sleep at night. He’s tired. His hungry heart and aching spirit have created a battered body.
Jonah’s alcoholism is an unhealthy, addictive behavior. So is overeating. Anything we do in excess is gluttony. Gluttony is the sin that keeps us from achieving true holiness. If you’re overweight or you engage in some other activity that negatively affects you physically, get at the root cause of your problem. Find out what’s eating you before it literary gobbles you up.

Let’s discuss this. Have you ever compared substance abuse to overeating? Do you think this comparison is accurate? Can a person’s heart be completely surrendered to God if they have an eating problem? Share why you agree or disagree. Feel free to share your testimony in this area or a plan for change.

About the Author
Rhonda McKnight is the owner of Legacy Editing, a free-lance editing service for fiction writers and Urban Christian Fiction Today, a popular Internet site that highlights African-American Christian fiction. She’s the vice-president of Faith Based Fiction Writers of Atlanta. When she’s not editing projects, teaching workshops about writing or penning her next novel, she spends time with her family. Originally from a small, coastal town in New Jersey, she’s called Atlanta, Georgia home for twelve years. For more information, visit http://www.RhondaMcKnight.net.

About the Book
Faith Morgan is struggling with her faith. Years of neglect leave her doubting that God will ever fix her marriage. When a coworker accuses her husband, Jonah, of the unthinkable, Faith begins to wonder if she really knows him at all, and if it’s truly in God’s will for them to stay married.
Pediatric cardiologist Jonah Morgan is obsessed with one thing: his work. A childhood incident cemented his desire to heal children at any cost, even his family, but now he finds himself at a crossroads in his life. Will he continue to allow the past to haunt him, or find healing and peace in a God he shut out long ago?

Read an excerpt and check the tour schedule at http://bit.ly/HealthyHeartBlogTour

Enter to Win 3 Great Giveaways!
GRAND PRIZE (one winner possible)
A “Start” Fitness Pack she purchased from the American Heart Association’s Online store. The online store helps in the fight against heart disease by promoting heart-healthy lifestyles that include physical activities like walking. Net proceeds from the sale of these items support the Start! movement.
The Fitness Kit includes: Start BackPack, Start Water Bottle, Start Shoe Wallet, and the Power to End Stroke 46 Recipe Healthy Soul Food Cook Book.

SECOND PLACE PRIZE (one winner possible)
Autographed hardcover copy of Secrets and Lies will be given away to the 2nd person whose name is pulled in the drawing.
THIRD PLACE PRIZE (one winner possible)
In honor of Rhonda’s birthday on Feb. 6th – a $10 Barnes and Nobles, Borders or Starbucks Gift Card will be given to the 3rd person whose name is pulled in the drawing. (winner chooses).
HOW TO ENTER THE DRAWING:
All entrants with 10 POINTS AND UP will be entered in a drawing to win the GRAND PRIZE – FITNESS PACK.
All entrants with 5 POINTS AND UP will be entered in a drawing to win PRIZES TWO AND THREE.
HOW TO EARN POINTS:
+15 Point ENTRIES: Purchase a copy of Secrets and Lies from the online store during the tour.
+1 point ENTRY: join the discussion by commenting on one of the blog tour sites each day (must comment on the day of the toursite by 9 pm). Comment must include your thoughts on the subject. (can not just say – great point or I agree).
+1 point ENTRY: COMMENT ON SOMETHING INTERESTING YOU FIND WHEN YOU GO TO Rhonda’s WEBSITE or blog. LOOK AROUND AS THERE IS LOTS TO SEE. HERE are THE LINKs www.rhondamcknight.net and www.urbanchristianfictiontoday.com
+1 point ENTRY: BLOG OR TWEET ABOUT THIS GIVEAWAY. On Twitter Retweet @rhondamcknight or use the hashtagS #Health or #hearthealth
+2 point ENTRIES: Join RHONDA’S FACEBOOK READER Page or SIGN UP FOR HER NEWSLETTER on her webpage.
THE RULES:
• U.S. RESIDENTS ONLY
• EMAIL ADDRESS MUST BE INCLUDED IN COMMENT
• ALL ENTRIES/COMMENTS MUST BE SEPARATE IN ORDER TO COUNT AS MORE THAN ONE ENTRY.
• MAXIMUM OF 3 POINTS CAN BE EARNED ON ANY ONE TOUR DAY.
• TOUR HOST BLOGGERS CAN NOT ENTER TO WIN.
DRAWING WILL BE HELD AT 9 PM EST on FEBRUARY 7th
GOOD LUCK!

“Beautiful Ugly” by Shelia Lispey

Win an autographed copy of Beautiful Ugly by Shelia Lipsey
See contest details below.

About Beautiful Ugly
Three friends with different struggles rely on God and each other to get by. Layla Hobbs has so much to offer, including a beautiful singing voice, but obesity and low self-esteem hold her back from life and finding true love. Envy Wilson has always been Layla’s backbone. But what about her own dark secrets? She won’t share them with anyone, and it’s starting to eat away at her from the inside. And then there’s Kacie Mayweather. Stricken with cerebral palsy, she’s had her share of men—five baby daddies for six children, in fact. But she’s never had one man to call her own. They’ll need plenty of faith and support from each other to see the real beauty that lies within each one of them and fulfill their deepest desires at last.

My Book Review
This heartfelt story chronicled in “Beautiful Ugly” reminded me of a song by one of my favorite male groups, the Temptations. “Beauty is only skin deep. Beauty is only skin deep. But ugly is to the bone. So if you looking for a lover, don’t judge her by her cover. She may be fine on the outside but….” I really paraphrased the words or may have misstated them. The essence of the song reminds me that we must be so careful not to allow the physical trappings of a person to determine or define the quality and content of their character and heart. Furthermore, one cannot hide behind one’s outward appearance and neglect addressing the inner woman or man when one’s actions and conduct result in negative and painful consequences that reveal that on the inside he or she is in a poor or “ugly” condition. Many times society places emphasis on the outer appearance while we dress up or neglect the development of our spiritual character. “Beautiful Ugly” by Shelia E. Lipsey is a unique name for a book that follows the lives and friendships of three women, each facing low self esteem, insecurities, and hurt from the past. Through these believable church going women characters, we see that it is possible to believe there is a God, yet fail to trust God and to truly believe His Word that He loves us and will forgive our sins and that through Him, not food , sex or a man ,we can be made whole.

Layla Hobbs use her angelic voice to sing praises to God at church ,but who due to her obesity she settles for less in a man and does not have the faith to do something about her weight.

Kacie Mayweather was born with cerebral palsy. She wants to believe that she can have a man to love her despite her disability, just like any woman without such a disability. She has six children and five babby daddies in her attempt to find love and a husband.

Envy Wilson is considered pretty and has a successful career. She may be pretty on the outside, but she felt ugly on the inside and suffered from guilt and rejection as result of a secret sin of the past. While she looks like an angel, she cannot cover up her past and she acts out by engaging in a secret life of sexual promiscuity.

Through their experiences each one of them comes to realize that they must confess their sin, cling to God and come to understand that each of them needed to be made whole and to have a spiritual beauty makeover to be delivered from the shackles of sin , shame and low self-esteem. This thought provoking book will serve as a good teaching tool to discuss issues of self –esteem and relationships for those who are battling these issues. The characters were believable and it will make an interesting read for those who would like to see how low esteem issues affect how respond to the every day life experiences.

Win an autographed copy of
Beautiful Ugly by Shelia Lipsey
Shelia Lipsey is the author of three other Christian Fiction novels. The trivia question below is from one of those novels. Leave your response to the trivia question below in the comment section.
Name Aisha Carlisle’s best friend in Sinsatiable.

About the Author
Author Shelia E. Lipsey is a multi-award winning author. Her novels are available at most bookstores nationwide as well as online. Lipsey’s books have been called gripping, life-altering, memorable and realistic. Lipsey was recently awarded the 2009 Top Shelf Award for Beautiful Ugly by Black Pearls Magazine. She also won 2009 Shades of Romance Readers’ Choice Awards for My Son’s Wife in the following categories: Author of the Year, Christian fiction Book of the Year, Christian Romance of the Year, Best Book Cover of the Year, Best Fiction Book of the Year, among several other awards for her novels, Into Each Life and Sinsatiable.
Lipsey is the proud mother of two sons and the grandmother of three blessed young men. She is president of UCHisGloryBookClub.net, founder of Living Your Dreams Now a non-profit organization and MAAW (Memphis African American Writers).

Read an excerpt and check the tour schedule at http://bit.ly/BeautifulUgly

For more information, visit www.shelialipsey.com.

“Beautiful Ugly ” by Shelia Lipsey

“Do You WannaTo Be Made Whole ?” by Bernard Bolton

About the Book
Many people are battling various spiritual struggles such as grief and depression, betrayal by those they love, and others are bound by the addictions of sin. “Do You Wanna be Made Whole?”, by Bernard Boulton, is an enticing and encouraging work , as it is not often we have the opportunity to read a good story about the physical, spiritual and emotional struggles of the lives of black men, and to observe them overcome their past failures and hurt to walk in wholeness. The story is dealing with three men who with the help of Pastor Maxwell journey through the challenging and painful process of being made whole. Throughout the story Pastor Maxwell serves as a spiritual father to others and to three spiritual sons; Theo Dexter, the unforgiving businessman; Michael Cain, the depressed evangelist; and Adam Jones, an educated and talented brother bound by self-centeredness and sin. Pastor Maxwell has made mistakes in his past and is now using the wisdom from those failures to teach men that they can overcome their brokenness.
The inspiration for the story is taken from the Bible in St John Chapter 5 where Jesus comes to a man and asked him did he want to be made whole. This book is highly recommended to men who are struggling and need to be encouraged and to seasoned or new believers, who sincerely “wanna” walk in wholeness. Furthermore, the women characters in the book, which interact with these men, provide examples of overcoming obtacles from their past. This book’s storyline will make for great discussion in women book clubs.
Book review by Linda Fegins

About the Author
Bernard Boulton has written a story about three men who seek to be whole in God through the spiritual leadership of a pastor. This gripping story is titled DO YOU WANNA BE MADE WHOLE? Bernard is the pastor of New Mine Creek Church in southern Virginia. He is married to his wife of eighteen years, Vantoria and they are the parents of their son, Bernard Quincy. Bernard’s hobbies include reading, traveling and supporting his hometown team the Cleveland Cavaliers and Lebron James.
Read an excerpt and check the tour schedule at http://bit.ly/DoYouWannaBeMadeWhole

For more information, visit www.bernardboulton.com.

“Marriage 101″ by Jewell Powell

BLOG TOUR DRAWING. • If you desire to participate in the drawing you are required to please leave your name and email address and participate in the discussion question below at the end of the article. At the end of the week, One Winner (Randomly chosen from all blogs – see schedule at http://bit.ly/Marriage101) will receive a $30 DATE NIGHT certificate to the restaurant of their choice (Applebees, Chili’s, Ruby Tuesday or Red Lobster) and a gift pack of books (includes Marriage 101, I Don’t Want a Divorce, and Have a New Husband by Friday.)

Your marriage can be strong, healthy, happy, and blessed. Marriage coach Jewell Powell shows you how in this 8-week plan for marital success. She reveals how God’s truths can transform two individuals into the union he desires. Laying a spiritual foundation is crucial to your marriage. In Marriage 101: Building a Life Together by Faith, you will discover God’s purpose for marriage, how to develop godly character, how to communicate effectively, and much more. With biblical examples, study questions, and Scripture meditations perfect for individuals or couples, you will be challenged to examine areas in your life that may need change so that your marriage can thrive.

MEET THE AUTHOR- Jewell R. Powell, originally born in Atlantic City , NJ is now happily married to Lewis Powell and a mother to two beautiful daughters, Lauren (12) and Diamond (9). She is a graduate of VCMI Ministerial Training School, Florida Institute of Technology and the University of MD.
Her first book Marriage 101: Building a Life Together by Faith is published by Revell a subsidiary of Baker Publishing Group. She has recently released, under her own publishing company (Grace Publishing Inc), a four-part Marriage 101 Mini-Series: Sex & Intimacy, Communication, Parenting, and Finance. In addition, she released a Marriage 101 Journal to complement the Marriage 101 book. Grace Publishing will release in December 2009 the Marriage 101 Marriage Enrichment Curriculum and Pre-Marital Curriculum for marriage ministry leaders.
Jewell R. Powell, affectionately known as The Marriage Coach is an inspirational teacher/speaker and #1 bestselling author. Jewell has made it her mission to help married couples, especially those who are having trouble in their marriages. Jewell is currently working on her children’s series to debut 2010.
Visit Jewell R. Powell onlinehttp://www.asheagoldson.com.

AN INTERVIEW WITH JEWELL
• When did you begin to realize you liked to write?

I NEVER had a desire to write. However, on February 14, 2001, I was called to write. Since my passion is in helping people, I am driven to write.
• Tell us about your book, Marriage 101.

I share a story many know all too well. Whether in their own lives or in those of close family and friends. It’s a story about a marriage in trouble. I take you on my spiritual journey—of how my husband and I went from being engaged and enthusiastic to being frustrated and separated. I share the real issues that plague most marriages and the many challenges we faced. I share the disappointment I felt, looking at what was supposed to be “happily ever after.” But I also share how Lewis and I were able to rebuild our relationship and the lessons learned along the way as I implemented eight biblical truths from searching the Scriptures.

• Is this book for singles too?

Absolutely, this book is very personal. It allows the reader, whether married or single, to examine themselves so they can change and be all that God has called them to be.

• What do you hope readers will learn/discover from reading Marriage 101?

I hope they will learn God’s purpose for marriage and that they discover the hidden truth.
• Where can readers order your book online?

Amazon.com, mosaicbooks.com, or my website at www.marriage101.us

• Do you offer your services as a speaker for workshops, conferences, or retreats? If so, what are the titles of some of your popular topics?

Yes,
• Marriage 101 (teaching the eight biblical principles and discussing topics that plague most relationships: Finance, Communication, Parenting, Sex & Intimacy)
• The Extreme Makeover
• Doing the Right Thang

Tell us about some activities you enjoy doing during your free time.

Reading , shopping, and spending time with my family.

Do you like to cook? If so, what are your favorite dishes to cook (or eat)?

No, this was one of the biggest challenges we had to overcome in our marriage. However, I love Indian food.

Do you have a favorite bible verse and or quote you wish to share?

Isaiah 55:8-11 “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts…”

I have realized, as a Christian, that God expects me (us) to do things that really don’t make sense. I must say that it is not my favorite scripture but it helps me to stay focus – to do the right thing.

What one piece of advice did someone give that still sticks with you to this day?

Tyler Perry, “It doesn’t matter if a million people tell you what you can’t do, or if ten million tell you no. If you get one yes from God that’s all you need.” And he has stated numerous times to own, own, own.

What brings you the most joy? Spending time with Lewis and the girls

http://www.docstoc.com/docs/14516073/Marriage-101-by-Jewell-Powell

Follow the blog tour at http://bit.ly/Marriage101.
For more information about, visit Jewell at http://www.marriage101.us/.

QUESTION FOR COMMENTERS- PLEASE DISCUSS AND LEAVE YOUR EMAIL TO WIN THE PRIZES-
Jewell or commenters – Select one or all or Commenters discuss your concerns about marriage
What is one of the greatest errors couples can make when they get married?
How can singles start preparing for a healthy marriage now?
With the economy so rocky, how can couples guard against letting it affect their relationships?

http://www.amazon.com/Marriage-101-Building-Together-Faith/dp/0800733320/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1257900331&sr=8-1

“The Lovechild” by Ashea S. Goldson

What can separate us from the love of God? The Word of God tells us nothing. However, sometimes a person may have a hard time believing this and feel unlovable, unloved, rejected and bitter. It doesn’t matter that on the outside people see you as successful, physically beautiful and from a great family that seemed like a pillar of the community. Yet , it was a family with secrets.

In The Lovechild, Makaeli Hunt, a successful fashion designer, has been driven far away from home by her family’s dysfunction. While living in Italy, trying to heal the wounds of yesterday, ambition becomes her comforter. When a family emergency forces her to return to her home, in seven life altering days, amidst memories of a tumultuous past,will one revealed secret drive her away from her family and God forever? Or will she discover what it means to be God’s lovechild?

The Lovechild gracefully and beautifully shows us, without being preachy, how the love of God can work through and in our lives to overcome the pain and ugliness of the past. It reminds us that we must forgive or else unforgiveness can kill your soul. Nothing can separate us from the love of God if we seek Him. My favorite character was Mrs. Pearl – someone God sent into Makaeli’s life as a child to encourage, love and that told her about Jesus, even though she turned her back on Him for a long time. Mrs. Pearl indeed was a pearl full of wisdom and love. She’s was a source of escape for Makaeli as a youth, who loved her when she felt abandoned, and made God’s love and wisdom real.

Dealing with issues of racism, depression, self-esteem, drug addiction, mental illness, verbal and physical abuse,The Lovechild is a story of redemption and re-dedication, confirming our victory in Jesus Christ.

Meet Ashea Goldson, author of The Lovechild
Ashea Goldson, originally born in Brooklyn, NewYork is a wife of twenty three years, a mother of two daughters, a grandmother of one, a graduate of Fordham University, a writer, a poet, a publisher, a reviewer, an internet radio host, an educator, and a co-founder of a Christian preparatory school. Active in the ministry, she is a dedicated member of World Changers Church International for many years. She has a lifetime of experience with writing which ranges from being published in local newspapers, magazines, and online publications to full length books.
Her first Christian fiction novel is The Lovechild, published by Urban Christian Publishers in 2008. Ashea’s short story entitled “The Kit Cat Trial” will be released in an anthology named Pets Across America in September 2009. Her second Christian fiction novel, Joy Comes In The Morning, will be released in July 2010, also by Urban Christian Publishers. She has recently released a non-fiction title, Resurrecting Vision: 45 steps To Digging Up Your Destiny And Seeing It Through God’s Eyes through her own publishing company.
Calling herself a kingdom writer, and passionate about this calling, she is currently working on her third novel, random poems, several short stories, a children’s book, and is organizing a literacy group for youth in her community. During her relaxation time she can be found hanging out with her family, snuggled up to a good book, or listening to gospel music.

http://www.amazon.com/Lovechild-Urban-Christian-Ashea-Goldson/dp/1601629664/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1257386848&sr=8-2

Book Review by Linda Fegins

“Ingredients For Prayer” by Eric A. Lambert, Jr.- Book Review by L. Fegins

 ” The right way to pray , then is the way that allows us to communicate with God. For prayer is not ritual; it is the souls’ inherent response to a relationship with a loving Father.” -Collen Townsend Evans

     We have heard that the Lord is just a prayer away. “O what needless pain we bear, all because we do not carry everything to the Lord in prayer” the song goes.  Rev. Lambert points out in his book “Ingredients for Prayer: A Practical Approach to Maximizing Your Time With God”,  that “teach us how to pray is often the hearts cry of the believer in the world today”.  Prayer, simply put, is communication with God.  As a Prayer Coordinator for the Lydia Circle of  Christian Professional and  Business Women, I pray with and “teach” women how to pray. On the first day of the “prayer boot camp” I tell them that as “you begin your journey into prayer, one of the main reasons for prayer is to grow a relationship with God by spending time with Him”.

    Rev.  Lambert, using the Model Prayer, provides the reader with some simple, but profound principles about prayer’s purpose and results, couched in easy to understand language. He also enunciates practical and straightforward steps to praying effectively. He points out that contrary to our cultural influences to “use prayer to bully the Lord into doing what we want” and for material gain, the purpose of prayer is to build a personal relationship with the Father. “Prayer is going to God and asking for His will, not things”, he remarks.  Lambert uses Jesus as a model of how to pray effectively as Jesus both needed and desired time with God and gives us the ingredients for prayer. What Lambert makes clear is that “prayer must be about getting closer to the Father and knowing and receiving His will”.

     This wonderful little book shares many rich prayer nuggets about knowing what to pray for, “praying it through” ,  how “prayer is work” and praying for others. As a Prayer Coordinator, it affirmed my teaching on prayer, enhanced my insight, and inspired me to encourage the woman to grow to a higher prayer level.

   Rev. Eric A. Lambert Jr. responded to God’s call to Jesus Christ in 1971. From that time he was active in Christian ministry, serving in a variety of capacities at Deliverance Evangelistic Church, under the pastorate of the Rev. Dr. Bejamin Smith Sr. In 1987, after God’s leading, Rev. Lambert established Bethel Deliverance International Church in 1987 with seven committed believers, just north of his hometown of Philadelphia. In addition to pastoring, Rev. Lambert is fulfilling his apostolic calling, having planted a number of churches and developed pastoral relationships with both new and seasoned pastors. He remains committed to spreading the love of God to those who do not know Him while stabilizing and fortifying believers. This is evident not only in his church but in the messages of his books.  

http://betheldeliverance.org/pages/products.html

 LISTEN TO A SERMON ONLINE FROM PASTOR LAMBERT

• Renewing The Mind
• Getting Your Fire Back
• Walking In Your Season

 For more information about Ingredients for Prayer: Maximizing Your Time with God, visit http://ericlambertministries.com.

 Follow the Ingredients for Prayer blog tour at http://bitly.com/IngredientsforPrayer.

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“Alone with a Jihadist” by Aaron Taylor-

On Behalf of My Fellow Christians, I Apologize. by Aaron D. Taylor 

In the Pentecostal Christian tradition, there’s a practice that has gained some ground over the past few years called identificational repentance.  Taken from the examples of men like Daniel and Nehemiah in the Hebrew Scriptures (also known as the Old Testament), identificational repentance is when a group apologizes for the sins of its ancestors or when an individual apologizes for the sins of his or her family, church, or nation.

The term is a bit controversial because the word “repent” literally means “to turn the other direction.”  Nobody can change his or her ways on behalf of another, so perhaps “confession” is a better word to use. Theology and semantics aside, the direction that Christianity has taken ever since the fourth century when the Church and State became one has produced an ugly monster that looks nothing like the movement that Jesus and the Apostles founded.  There are many people trying to bring world Christianity back to its non-violent roots, but before that happens I think an apology is in order.  So allow me.

I apologize for trampling on the teachings of Jesus and turning “love your enemies” into “kill your enemies.” I apologize for twisting Romans 13 to justify every single act of violence committed against my fellow man—as long as a “legitimate authority” perpetrates the violence.  I apologize for listening to Augustine, Luther, and Calvin instead of the Apostles Peter, Paul, and James.  I apologize for silly “arguments from silence” concocted by “just war theorists” to evade the clear-cut teachings of the Sermon on the Mount.

I apologize for the Crusades, the Inquisition, the Salem Witch trials, the religious wars of the 17^th century, the genocide of Native Americans in the Western Hemisphere, centuries of anti-Semitism culminating in the Holocaust, and all of the American wars that we rallied around with our crosses and our flags.  Speaking of the cross, words cannot express how sorry I am for turning what should be the supreme symbol for non-violent redemptive love into a banner for blind patriotism.  I apologize for confusing the Kingdom of God with the Kingdom of America. I apologize for wrapping Jesus in an American flag and turning Him into a tribal deity that we ask to bless our bombs. 

I apologize for the T.V. evangelists that fleece the poor and use the money to finance Jewish settlements in the West Bank.  I apologize for rallying around the Iraq war, calling for pre-emptive strikes against Iran in the name of God, failing to speak out against torture, and demonizing those that advocate for nuclear disarmament and an end to wasteful Pentagon spending.  Perhaps most importantly, I apologize for my complicity in expanding the culture of empire, an empire that looks a lot like Dick Cheney, Donald Rumsfeld, and Rush Limbaugh, very little like Jesus. 

I realize that some of the things that I have mentioned are stereotypes that not every evangelical, let alone Christian, falls under. Indeed, followers of Jesus have also done much good in the world. Even in the midst of all of the terrible things I just mentioned, there have always been Christians that have shown the world a different path. For every Oliver Cromwell there’s a Mother Theresa. What grieves me is that the clear-cut teachings of the New Testament have been so perverted by so called Christians throughout the centuries that many people might confuse the perversion with the real thing, and never give the faith that I love a second glance. 

My hope and prayer is that through this heart-felt apology, the harlot church might be exposed so that the church of the enemy-loving, foot-washing Jesus might shine brighter.  One of Christianity’s best-kept secrets is that the New Testament is in fact an anti-war, anti-nationalist document, and that Christians for the first three hundred years unanimously and categorically rejected violence and warfare in honor of their founder.  Rather than cursing the darkness, it’s time for a dedicated few to rise up and reclaim the faith.  It’s time for a Reformation!

 

ABOUT THE AUTHOR  

 

Aaron D. Taylor was raised in a Midwestern charismatic church with the belief that Christians had a duty to take up arms in defense of their government and the ideals of freedom. He supported our actions in Iraq and asserted that only one political party was the appropriate home for true believers of God. After a meeting in London with Khalid, a militant jihadist, Taylor came away with a deep questioning of the ideals that, up to that moment, formed a cornerstone for his theology.

 

 In Alone with a Jihadist, Aaron Taylor shares his personal revelation that Christians are not to be supporters of military or other violent solutions to the world’s problems. Readers can order Alone with a Jihadist book on Amazon, Barnes and Noble, or on http://www.aarondtaylor.com

http://www.amazon.com/Alone-Jihadist-Biblical-Response-Holy/dp/1934466123

Follow the Alone with a Jihadist blog tour at http://bit.ly/AloneWithAJihadist