Author Archives: Steve Simms

About Steve Simms

I like to look and think outside the box. In college I encountered Jesus Christ and I have been passionate about trying to get to know Him better ever since. My wife and I long to see the power and passion of the first Christ-followers come to life in our time. I have written a book about our experiences in non-traditional church, called, "Beyond Church: An Invitation To Experience The Lost Word Of The Bible--Ekklesia." If you need encouragement, search for: Elephants Encouraging The Room and/or check out my Amazon author page. Thank you!

Is Science Close To Discovering Spiritual Reality? Check Out “Spooky Action”

Posted on November 23, 2011 by Steve Simms

In the past few years scientists have conducted experiments that show that two “entangled,” subatomic particles can communicate almost instantaneously, even if they are separated by huge distances. They have called this phenomenon, “spooky action at a distance.” This communication … Continue reading →

Posted in Albert Einstein, awe, big bang, entangled particles, Goddard Institute for Space Studies, impossible odds, meaning, NASA, non-material reality, Oh my God, proof of God, Quotations, Quotes, religion, Robert Jastrow, science, soul, spiritual, spiritual skills, spooky action, supernatural, thinking, thoughts, Uncategorized, University of Geneva, values | Tagged a band of, a scientifically proven fact, adds, Albert Einstein, appropriate, asks, astronomers, at least, at work, believe, between, called, certain moment, communicate, communication, conducted experiments, conquer the highest peak, controlled by, conventional, cosmos, creation, discover, discovering, electrons, energy, entangled, entangled particles, even more, every living thing, exploded, faith in the power of reason, for centuries, forces, found, founding director of, from, Goddard Institute for Space Studies, greete4d, happened, has led, have prove, hope, huge distances, in an act, in other words, instantaneously, into being, matter, measured, methods, NASA's, no physical link, nonmaterial, now, now find, on the earth, over the final rick, painted themselves into a corner, particles, pass between, past few years, phenomenon, planet, produced this effect, product, proof, proved, pulls himself, questions, quotation, quote, reality, renounded, researchers, Robert Jastrow, said, scaled the mountain of ignorance, science cannot answer, scientific evidence for, scientists, seeds, seems, show, sitting there, something existing beyond, spacetime, spearated, spiritual reality, spooky, spooky action at a distance, star, story ends like a bad dream, subatomic particles, supernatural forces, surrounds us, Switzerland, the existence of, the physical workd, the speed of light, the world began abruptly, theologians, times, trace, universe, University of Geneva, waves, what, what cause, whatsoever, who | 8 Comments

Black Is Beautiful (Just Ask Retailers About Black Friday)

Posted on November 23, 2011 by Steve Simms

Black is beautiful! “It’s the most wonderful day of the year.” That’s a song retailers might sing about Black Friday, the day after Thanksgiving Day when their business begins to turn a profit for the year. It’s an honor to … Continue reading →

Posted in Black Friday, black history, black is beautiful, Black Like Me, black tea, Civil Rights, dishonesty, freedom, God, hate speech, history, lies, multi-racial, Quotations, Quotes, race, racism, repent, Thanksgiving Day, Uncategorized, values | Tagged a black belt, a black tie affair, a gift from God, abused, against God, all men are created equal, amazing treasure, American history, as long as it is black, asked, be in the black, begins to, believing the lie, black, black beauty, Black Friday, black is beautiful, black light, black opal, black people, black skin, black tea, blackboard, brilliant, brilliant colors, business, Can the Ethiopian change his skin, coffee, country, deeply, Ethiopian, financially, for the year, forguve us, free, Give me any color, God, God made it, gold, hearts, Henry Ford, his spots, I'll take mine black, inferior, It's an honor, jusdge, labeled, largely, live, Lord, might sing, misunderstood, most costly, national creed, of course not, oil, open, ordering, outrageous, overlook, person, popular, powers our economy, present day, proclaim, quotation, rejected, remained, repent, retailers, ruined the land, says, see, shines, shinning brightly vast accomplishments, sin, skin clor, song, taught, Texas Tea, Thanksgiving Day, the day after, the lepard, the prophet Jeremiah, the world's most popular tea, thousand of years, today, treated, turn a profit, type of opal, ugly, unappreciated, unnoticed, unvalued, worthless | 6 Comments

Thanksgiving Without Giving Thanks Is Just A Fine Time To Dine On Turkey

Posted on November 22, 2011 by Steve Simms

Thanksgiving Day is here. However, Thanksgiving Day without actually giving thanks is just a fine time to dine on turkey. So, how do you give thanks? What is necessary for thanksgiving? 3 things. 1) Something to give thanks for. … Continue reading →

Posted in Amazing Grace, blessings, blog, blog readers, feelings, God, gratitude, life, lifestyles, Oh my God, prayer, religion, thanksgiving, Thanksgiving Day, thinking, thoughts, Uncategorized, values, words, worship | Tagged 3 things, a fine time, a gift, act of giving thanks, actually, alive, blessing, blog, blog readers, by definition, can give thanks, celebrate, commented, dine on turkey, do you want to, everybody, fast approaching, Give, give thanks to God, giving thinks, God, good to me, Gratitude, helped, how do you give thanks, I choose, if nothing else, in the USA, it isn't earned, it would take, liked, lives are gifts, merely, months, most of all, next breath, originally, others, people, personally, posts, primarily, read, set aside, shared, something, subscribed, thank you, Thank you God, thankfulness, Thanksgiving Day, Thursday, turkey, turkey time, verbally, weeks, what about you, what is necessary, without | 3 Comments

Guts & Glory In Spiritual Growth — Path, Rocks, Thorns, Fertile Ground

Posted on November 21, 2011 by Steve Simms

Spiritual growth is not for sissies. It takes great guts to grow in God. Not everybody has the courage, strength, and endurance to do it. Jesus told a parable about a path, rocks, thorns, and fertile ground that illustrates the … Continue reading →

Posted in alternative lifestyle, Bible, criticism, glory, God, guts and glory, Holy Spirit, Jesus, Jesus Christ, lifestyles, materialism, meaning, New Testament, parable, spiritual, spiritual disciplines, spiritual growth, spiritual skills, thinking, thoughts, Uncategorized, voice activated, words | Tagged 4 ways, 4:1-20, a seed to be sown, a well-traveled path, about, accept, acquire, allow, alolow the Holy Spirit, alter our thinking, areas, as it is in heaven, begin to grow, behavior, Bible, cannot, changes us, comes, contrary to, courage, criticism, deep roots, desires, distract us from God, don't obey, endurance, enjoy, ever-increasing glory, everybody, fertile ground, fertile soul, get rid of, God speaks, God's glory, God's words, great difficulty, great guts, grow in God, hear, hear my voice, heart, heart's thorns, His kingdom comes, His will is done, hits us, illustrates, in our generation, in our heart, in us, into HIs image, it takes, Jesus, Jesus said, Jesus' own words, land, like, Matthew, modern faith preachers, move towards, much soil, My sheep, not be able to grow, not for sissies, of our daily lives, of our soul, our own desires, path, penetrate, permanently, produce, pull up, read, required to reach, requires, right out of, rips, rocks, seduction of money, skills, soul, speaking, spiritual disciplines, spiritual growth, squeezes it out, strength, take root, Tha'ts glory, the Bible, the courage, the hard ground, the hard places, the Living Word, the New Testament, the seed is money, the seed is the Word of God, the spiritual skills, the stoney areas, the things that capture our attention, the voice of God, the way of growth in God, the written word, thorns, to break up, to human hearts, told a parable, trouble, turn, we must have the guts, What God says, what He says, worries | 3 Comments

Dishonesty’s 10 Dirty Downers

Posted on November 18, 2011 by Steve Simms

1) Dishonesty does not change reality. What is, is. What isn’t, isn’t. Calling an elephant a “cow” does not make it one. 2) Dishonesty destroys your view of reality leading to frequent self-deception and denial. A dishonest person confuses his … Continue reading →

Posted in censorship, cesorship, conscience, courage, dishonesty, guilt, hate speech, lies, lifestyles, mature language, morals, prejudice, recovery, self-esteem, self-image, sin, thoughts, trust, values | Tagged a known liar, after another, anxiety, be true to yourself, believes, censors, change reality, confuses, conscience, courage, cover-up, cow, cowardice, cracks, deletes, demolishes relationships, denial, destroys view of reality, dishonest person, dishonesty, driven by, elephant, exposure to truth, facing consequences, falls apart, fear, feel the need, guilt, hate speech, honest, how can you, killing trust, lack of courage, Lance Armstorng, liar, lie, lies, lying is wrong, most people, natural results, never-ending, prejudice, remember the details, self-deception, self-esteem, self-respect, shore it up, spews out, treadmill, trust yourself, ultimate censorship, violate our conscience, What is is, what really happened, when you lie | 9 Comments

So What’s It Take To Be A Champion?

Posted on November 17, 2011 by Steve Simms

I wrote this poem several years ago to go along with my book: Your Sperm Won–Experiencing Your Value As A Championship Human Being. What Makes A Champion? What does it take to be a champion? A first place medal in … Continue reading →

Posted in champions, feelings, freedom, human conception, human rights, impossible odds, life, meaning, origin of life, poem, poetry, positive thinking, self-esteem, self-help, self-image, sperm, Uncategorized | Tagged a breath to breath, a heart to care, a mind to think, achieved, amazingly, book, championship, championship game, contract, experiencing, fame and fortune, first place medal, formula for you, human being, hundreds of generations, impossible, in your mother's womb, Olympics, one life to live, overcoming, overwhelming obstacles, poem, secret places, several million dollars, several years ago, the greatest prize, the moment, the privilege to be alive, to go along with, underrate, unrivaled, value, What makes a champion, winning score, won its way, wrote, you were formed, Your Sperm Won | 1 Comment

I Grew Up In Church Without God

Posted on November 16, 2011 by Steve Simms

My parents tell me that when I was a toddler, I used to talk to them about God. They didn’t go to church or have much interest in spiritual things, so they were quite surprised by my interest in God and … Continue reading →

Posted in Amazing Grace, awe, Berry Street, Berry Street Worship Center, Bible, Boy Scouts, change, Christianity, church, college, college students, East Nashville, feelings, fire, freedom, God, Hindu, Holy Holy Holy, I Corinthians 14:26, Jesus, Jesus freaks, Kumbaya, lifestyles, Nashville, non-material reality, organic church, Presbyterian, religion, revelation, self-image, simple church, spiritual, supernatural, The Salvation Army, Uncategorized, University of Tennessee Martin, What is church?, Why be a Christian?, worship | Tagged 10:45 am, 225 Berry St., 37207, 41 years ago, a Christian, a million miles away, a real believer in, about God, actual Presence of, agnostic, all-consuming, amazing, an official church member, another thought, Arkansas, attending church, Berry Street Worship Center, Boy Scout, burns in my heart, campfire, childhood years, Christ, Christianity, closer to God, come and see for yourself, Come by here, Communicant's Class, confusing doctrines, congregation, creatively. modeled, Cumberland Presbyterian Church, describes, do church, dynamic relationship, eerie, elementary school, entered, every few monts, experienced, experiencing God, faint sense, felt, focused on, freely, freshman, funny thing, given the freedom, go to church, God's absence, God's awesome presence, high schook, Hindu, Holy Holy Holy, how to connect, hymn, I Corinthians 14:26, If you were born, immeciately, interest in God, invited to start, Jackson, Jesus Freaks, Jonesboro, junior year, know God, knowing God, Kumbaya, listened, living, living God, make me happy, mind, modern, more present, more real, mother, my Lord, Nashville, non-traditional, odd thought, older, parents, participate, passively, people, physical surroundings, popped into my mind, preached, preacher, Presbyterian Church, realized, regularly attending, rejected, relating to God, remember, results, rituals, sensed, series of classes, shouldn't church, shows up, something stirring inside, spiritual condition, spiritual fire, spiritual things, spiritually empty, suddenly exposed, Sunday morning, Sunday sermon, Sundays, support group, surprised, sweet Presence, talk, Tennessee, the Bible, The Salvation Army, The University of Tennessee Martin, think back to, TN, toddler, usher in, verse, Why do you think you are, with Jesus, wonder, wondered, words, you will be blessed | 4 Comments

Thinking Through A Tutu Thought About Conscience

Posted on November 15, 2011 by Steve Simms

Here’s a quotation from Desmond Tutu: “For every act of evil there are a dozen acts of goodness in our world. It is only because we believe that people should be good that we despair when they are not.” Do … Continue reading →

Posted in alternative lifestyle, boundaries, conscience, Desmond Tutu, education, evil, evolution, feelings, guidance, life, lifestyles, materialism, mind, morality, morals, motivation, mysticism, non-material reality, Quotations, Quotes, recovery, self-esteem, self-help, self-image, soul, spiritual, supernatural, thinking, thoughts, Uncategorized, values | Tagged abnoral, acts of evil, acts of goodness, attitudes, back away, bad, behaviors, believe, beyond, character, choose, choosing, compass, conscience, conviction, day to day lives, Desmond Tutu, despair, device, die, direct, directing, do you ever, dozen, evil, evil choices, expect, fitted, For every act of evil, go against, goodness, guidance system, Here's, human beings, idealistic, ignore, influences, intangible, interior, materialistic, materialists, mere physical result, misery, moral principle, morally right, natural selection, non-material, non-material reality, norm, override, people shoud be good, place, points out, preservationist, preserve, principle, programming, prompting, quotation, report, right and wrong, sacrifice, seeks, self, self-destruction, selfish, sensationalize, sense, shocking, societal interests, society, species, suffer, surprised, survival, survivalistic, the media, the survival of the fittest, thoughts, usual, violence, warns, wonder, world | 1 Comment

Avoiding Hell And Making Heaven Have Never Much Motivated Me

Posted on November 13, 2011 by Steve Simms

Barbara Walters presented a two hour special on ABC called: Heaven — Where Is It? How Do We Get There. However for me, the issue of our response to God is much bigger than Heaven. I tend to be a … Continue reading →

Posted in alternative lifestyle, Barbara Walters, Buddhism, Dalai Lama, drugs, feelings, fire insurance, God, Heaven, Hell, Hindu, history, Jesus, Jesus Christ, joy, lifestyles, meaning, morals, motivation, salvation, TV, TV network, Uncategorized, Where is it? How do we get there?, Why be a Christian? | Tagged ABC, Barbara Walters, Christianity, heaven, hell, religion, special | 5 Comments

George Barna’s 9 Challenges For American Christians

Posted on November 11, 2011 by Steve Simms

George Barna, founder of the Barna Research Group, issued nine challenges for American Christianity in 2002. Here is a paraphrase of his nine challenges along with how a church in Nashville, Tennessee, The Salvation Army Berry Street Worship Center, is attempting … Continue reading →

Posted in Barna Research Group, Berry Street, Berry Street Worship Center, Bible, challenges, church, East Nashville, evangelicals, Gen Y, George Barna, Holy Spirit, house church, I Corinthians 14:26, Nashville, organic church, popular culture, race, racism, simple church, supernatural, The Salvation Army, Uncategorized, worship | Tagged 37207, 50-50, allow peop;le to participate, amazing things, American, as led by the Spirit, asking God, attempting, attributed to, Barna Research Group, beliefs, believe, Berry St., Berry Street, Bible, bit, black and white, built-in cost, causes, challenges, changes, Christianity, Christians, church, churches, come, compete, cooperate with, cost, criticize, daily lives, different, do church, each week, eager to learn, encourage, encouraged, ethnic groups, evangelicals, exciting, expression, flow in the Spirit, follow, founder, fresh, Gen Y, George Barna, go, goal, good leaders, Gospel, I Corinthians 14:26, imput, issued, lack of, leadership, multi-racial, musical styles, Nashville, never know, nine, no matter what, non-traditional, not allowed, obey, one person, open, other, outstanding, paraphrase, power, prepared, produces, qualities, race, right in front of our eyes, sale old same old, seek, segregated, seriously, sermons, study, Sunday, Sunday mornings, supernatural, Tennessee, The Salvation Army, theological, to be involved, to meet, to share, to stand on God's word, toning down, uncomfortable, usually, visit, working of God, worship, Worship Center, worship leader, worship meeting, young adults | 1 Comment

Author Archives: Steve Simms

About Steve Simms

Is Science Close To Discovering Spiritual Reality? Check Out “Spooky Action”

Black Is Beautiful (Just Ask Retailers About Black Friday)

Thanksgiving Without Giving Thanks Is Just A Fine Time To Dine On Turkey

Guts & Glory In Spiritual Growth — Path, Rocks, Thorns, Fertile Ground

Dishonesty’s 10 Dirty Downers

So What’s It Take To Be A Champion?

I Grew Up In Church Without God

Thinking Through A Tutu Thought About Conscience

Avoiding Hell And Making Heaven Have Never Much Motivated Me

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Beyond Church: An Invitation To Experience The Lost Word Of The Bible

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