Blog - Page 193 of 318 - John H Armstrong

A Wonderful Day at New Hope

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:20:21-05:00May 12th, 2009|Categories: Personal|

Some of you know that my son Matthew is a church planter in Streamwood, Illinois. This past Lord's Day I had my first opportunity to preach for Matt, who is away on vacation with his family. I will preach for him again next Sunday, May 17, the day after he returns. This means that we will share ministry together in this public way for the first time ever. I can't begin to describe what a joy and honor this will be for me as his father.

I was introduced last Sunday (May 10) by Matt's father-in-law, Ed Vega. Ed shared how he knew me and then when and how he met Matt for the first time. He said, after first meeting Matt, "I would love to see my daughter marry a young man like Matt." When I first heard about Adriana Vega I called her pastor and said, "Tell me about this young woman." My friend said, "John, she is as […]

Star Trek: A Popular Movie That Actually Lives Up to the Reviews

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:20:22-05:00May 11th, 2009|Categories: Film|

I saw Star Trek last evening. It was pure fun. I would not call it a "great" movie but I did enjoy it. I am not a "Trekkie" and yet I had some sense of the old series and the basic characters and story line. Who can ever forget the pop cultural line: "Beam me up Scottie." And the Starship Enterprise is truly cool. I love the battles, action and "future oriented" stuff.

Rotten Tomatoes almost never gives a film a plus-90% rating that gets a hundred-plus reviews or more on opening weekend. Well, Star Trek had 96% when I last checked it last night. It doesn't have a great storyline, or even great acting for that matter, but it was well worth the time to relax and see a very good science fiction film. The language is a bit offensive but by today's cultural standards quite tame. I would not take small children (I saw a few and […]

An Update on My Friend David Stopke

By John Armstrong|2009-05-10T21:30:56-05:00May 10th, 2009|Categories: Personal|

For those who have prayed the news about David Stopke is getting better every day. He is likely to go to Denver this week for more medical treatment. He has recovered from his neck surgery and has even sat up. The breathing tube is still in place so he cannot talk yet. But his spirit is good and it seems quite clear that he will survive this terrible shooting. Will he regain any movement below his neck? We are hopeful but time will tell. Thanks for praying for this precious family and my friend Dave. Please do not stop now.

A Day for Worship

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:20:22-05:00May 10th, 2009|Categories: The Church|

Worship is almost taken for granted on this day, at least in most Christian traditions. The early church seems to have originally gathered on Saturday in the synagogue as well as the first day, Sunday, in homes. In time the church separated from the synagogue and for the most part we have met on the first day, the day of resurrection, ever since. There is a lot of debate about everything I have just stated but it is generally followed by most historians and theologians, excepting those committed to the Sabbath, or seventh day (Saturday). Mainstream churches in the East and West follow the Sunday celebration, with some churches now providing a Saturday evening service time. (According to Jewish time Saturday evening is the beginning of the first day!)

The ancient church had a marvelous term to describe the new day, calling it the "eighth day of the new creation." That sums up a lot of the theology behind the change from […]

Is the Number of Protestants Converting to Roman Catholicism Growing?

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:20:22-05:00May 9th, 2009|Categories: Roman Catholicism|

If you read the conservative Catholic magazines and Web sites as much as I do you get the impression that the number of Protestant converts to Catholicism is growing rapidly these days. One such publication listed the short story of four recent "political" converts. The first, Newt Gingrich, I commented about on this site just a few weeks ago. Another I have also mentioned before, Tony Blair. Blair was received into the Catholic Church in a private ceremony in December 2007. Then there is Kansas Senator (R.) Sam Brownback, who was raised a Methodist. Brownback later joined a non-denominational church. In a 2006 interview in The […]

The Beeson Pastors School: A Summer Treat for Ministers

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:20:22-05:00May 8th, 2009|Categories: The Christian Minister/Ministry|

Conferences and seminars for pastors abound, especially during the summer months. These kinds of events spring up like clockwork, much like the welcomed daffodils and tulips I see growing in the Midwest right now. In the various magazines, and on numerous online sites, ministers are encouraged to attend such gatherings. Each one appeals to the minister to consider their event as unique time for teaching and refreshment. I have spoken at a number of these kinds of events over the years. And prior to speaking widely myself, since around 1990, I enjoyed attending one or two pastors events like these each year.

I have not become a cynic about such events but I now see that most of these seminars and conferences are “personality driven” events. If you loved the "big person" (always a male in the circles I traveled in) then you just had to attend or you might miss out on something very important. I found that if you get the biggest names to speak, create an intensely loyal following for a high profile successful pastor/author, slay […]

The Mission of Oprah

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:20:22-05:00May 7th, 2009|Categories: Television|

The gospel of health and happiness is widely preached in America, especially on television. Indeed, it often appears to be the central message of some of the best known evangelical ministers in the land. But no one comes remotely close to perfecting the power of this message quite like television and media star Oprah Winfrey. She has made this message into a type of "salvific talk" that is widely popular in mainstream culture, especially among women. O, the magazine that Oprah publishes, even refers to her work as her “mission.” The magazine often features themes such as fun, couples, freedom, strength, forgiveness, life redemption, etc. She even talks a lot about god in her columns and programs. In an April 2002 issue of O she wrote: “I used to ask God to help me master a new virtue every year.” Her brand of self-help religion is quintessentially American and fits well with the kind of Christian-lite moralism of our recent past.

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President Obama's Controversial Degree from Notre Dame University and a Profile in Courage

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:20:22-05:00May 6th, 2009|Categories: Abortion|

Principled people in public leadership are too rare these days. This is what made former Vatican Ambassador Mary Ann Glendon’s (photo at left) simple, and rather non-dramatic, refusal to accept Notre Dame’s Laetare Medal at this year’s commencement a profile in courage. Glendon rejected the honor primarily because the university is also awarding an honorary doctoral degree to their commencement speaker, President Barack Obama.

The Notre Dame/Obama controversy has been discussed and analyzed, right and left and at all points in between, for the past six weeks. Patrick Buchanan asked, in a March 31 article in the very conservative paper Human Events: “Is Notre Dame Still Catholic?” I’ll give you one guess what he concluded.

At the center of this storm is Notre Dame’s president, Father John Jenkins. Why has he chosen to openly celebrate the contributions of the most pro-choice president in history? (I will not endeavor to prove this point about President Obama since it is […]

The Annual ACT 3 Board Meeting

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:20:22-05:00May 5th, 2009|Categories: ACT 3|

Each year, in early May, the entire board of ACT 3 meets for two days. We begin on a Monday evening with dinner and prayer. We get better acquainted, hear the stories of new board members and then pray. This year we have asked Rev. Phil Miglioratti, featured on this blog a few weeks ago, to lead our prayer time. Then on the Tuesday, which happens to be today, May 5, we do our primary business. We approve a budget, go over our financial statements, receive a report from the president (me) and envision the future of this mission. This day starts with what may seem like mundane reports and decisions but it ends with dreaming and thinking outside the box. Today will be no different, except that we are taking a sober look at our financial needs and the funds that we have to meet those needs. (We have less than in the past.) We will also take a good look at the future. I am sixty years old and this means we need to ask: "What specifically should we be […]

ACT 3 Luncheon Forums : Uncompromised Faith: Overcoming Our Culturalized Christianity with S. Michael Craven

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:20:23-05:00May 4th, 2009|Categories: ACT 3|