Tag Archives: churches

Passion For The Christ — Spiritual Fire & Desire

Posted on November 8, 2011 by Steve Simms

Human history is sprinkled with lights — men, women, and children whose hearts were ablaze with passion for the Christ. Many are called “saints” and are remembered in our day. Untold millions of others, however, were unheralded in their day … Continue reading →

Posted in alternative lifestyle, books, Christianity, church, church history, East Nashville, house church, Jesus, Jesus Christ, Jesus freaks, Nashville, National Football League, NFL, organic church, pentecostals, popular culture, Quakers, Quotations, Quotes, religion, saints, simple church, sports, Super Bowl, support group, The Salvation Army, TV ministers | Tagged 100, 10:45, 225 Berry St., 37207, ablaze, all over the world, Anabaptists, as fast as they can, banging their chest together, Baptist, based, being done, Berry Street Worship Center, best friends, best selling books, books, burning desire, Catholic, challenge, children, Christ, Christians, church, churches, come, concerts, conference, conferences, consistent, contain, dance, dart out of the door, determined not to show, doctrines, East Nashville, emotionless people, event, every Sunday morning, excitable churches, excitable. dutifully attend, excitedly, experience, expression, extremely bored, faces, filled, flaming, follow, forgotten by history, freaks, freeflowing, frozen in church, good ole American, grown men, had in common, heart-felt, hearts, heretics, high-fives, history, human, I Corinthians 14:26, in our day, in our heart, inspire, interest, Jesus, Jesus Christ, know, leave, lecture about God, light shines brightly, lights, line, listen to, living rooms, meeting, men, Methodist, millions, move, names, Nashville, nod off, obey, on and on, one thing, one way, Orthodox, our day, passion, passionate, passionless, passively, pastors, Pentecostal, people, playing a boys' game, prosperity, pumps them up, Quaker, quench the Spirit, quotation, quotations, regularly, religious fads, religious trinkets, remembered, right-wing politics, rush away, saints, see, seek out, shelves, singers, sitting like a statue, soulds like, spiritual, sprinkled, stadium, stir up the gift, stoic, Sunday morning, Super Bowl.every year, support group, T-shirts, talk to me, Tennessee, the Christ, The Quotable Saints, The Salvation Army, the thing, The Voice of the Saints, through, TN, TV ministers, type, unheralded, very hard to find, watch a ball game, watching, were, what about, when it comes to, women, words, writings, written word, yawn | 7 Comments

A Forgotten American Folk Song’s Powerful Message

Posted on September 26, 2011 by Steve Simms

I live in Nashville, Music City; however, we don’t hear songs like this old American folk song in Nashville or on MTV: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NtlxoRAAHVU Our culture has changed and the message of this song is no longer heard (or even tolerated). … Continue reading →

Posted in addiction, boundaries, change, Christianity, criticism, discipling, drugs, education, forgiveness, freedom, God, Jesus, Jesus Christ, kingdom of God, life, lifestyles, meaning, mind, morality, morals, MTV, music, Music City, mysticism, Nashville, negro spirituals, Oh Sinner Man, popular culture, Quotations, Quotes, recovery, self-image, sin, soul, spiritual, thinking, thoughts, Uncategorized | Tagged 90%, a wretch like me, alcohol, America, American folk song, ancient, answer, aware, awareness, begins to see, believes, bit, brightness, C.S. Lewis, center, changed, chaplain, Christian, churches, clean, clotes, counselor, create, crime, culture, darkest night of the year, depravity, dirt, dirty, don't hear, drug, early days, fact, falsely, filthy, finally, first rays of light, God, God's glory, God's light, good people, good person, grow, hands, have mercy on me, hearts, hint, holier, holy, hymn, I am, I am a sinner, I'm a, increasing, interview, interviewed, Jesus Christ, Jesus prayer, John Newton, know, life, link, listening, live, living, looks, Lord, lost, managed, men, Michael McKinley, misery, monkx, more, more sensitive, nearer, new, noonday sun, notices, O, of the, Oh Sinner Man, old, Orthodox, over the horizon, perhaps, person, Peter K. Nelson, practice, presence, program, quite, rehab, rright, see ourselves, sees, self-destruction, self-judgment, simple question, sinfulness, sinner, son, spiritual darkness, story, sun comes up, surprises, tale, tell, think, Tim Chester, told, toward, ultra-conservative, used by, very far from God, watch, wee bit, what kind, Why, women, woods, word, work, wretched, writer, you, Youtube | 5 Comments

What The Church Can Learn From The NFL

Posted on September 7, 2011 by Steve Simms

The NFL generates tremendous excitement and enthusiasm in America, while the church is mostly ignored. The NFL fills stadiums, while a great many churches have almost empty buildings. The NFL even gets people excited about their draft when they pick … Continue reading →

Posted in Berry Street Worship Center, Christianity, house church, kingdom of God, life, Nashville, National Football League, NFL, NFL Draft, Oh my God, organic church, popular culture, religion, simple church, sports, Super Bowl, The Salvation Army, Uncategorized, What is church? | Tagged a song, allow, America, Americans, apathetic, Are you read for some, asking, aspect, attend, attention, back, begin with, boldly, buildings, care, causes, center, centered, cheer, cheeseheads, church ignored, church services, churches, clam up, coaches, commitment, deeply, denying the power thereof, desperately, disrupt, emotional, empty, enthusiasm, essentially, excitement, express, expressed, expressive, fills, final, flameheads, from such turn away, fumble, games, generates, God, grown men, Hail Mary pass, having a form of godliness, inspire, kickoff, learn, life's, liked, loud, love, meaningful, meaningless, men, minister, most, National Football League, needs, NFL, NFL teams, no idea, of Tarsus, on the field, one another, outcome, passionately, passive, pastors, Paul, pews, physical competitions, players, predictable, presenting, program, protocol, quietly, recovery, relationship, repels, returned for a, safety, same, slouch, stadiums, Sundays, talk, terrible towel, touchdown, train, tremendous, unusual, wavers, week, what is going to happen, win games, worked up, yell | 18 Comments

The College That Changed My Life

Posted on August 22, 2011 by Steve Simms

There is a popular book called Colleges That Change Lives. Somehow the college that changed my life — The University of Tennessee Martin — is not in the book. UTM was 50 miles away from my home and the only … Continue reading →

Posted in Berry Street Worship Center, Bible, change, Christian history, Christianity, church history, college, God, house church, kingdom of God, life, meaning, mysticism, Nashville, new birth, Oh my God, organic church, peace, religion, self-image, simple church, spiritual, What is church? | Tagged 225, Alabama, altar, amazing, Arkansas, around, asking, Baptist, Berry Street, best, Bible, book, called, changed, Christ, Christian, Christianity, church, churches, college, Colleges That Change Lives, community, corny, country, cried, daily, debate, denomination, devotion, difficult, discover, doctrine, Dorm, dozens, Ellington, encouraged, enjoyed, enthusiastic, environment, experience, family, fellow, focused, forever, Friends, full, God, Gospel, graduated, hall, hang out, heart, hooked, human beings, Illinois, Indiana, Jesus, Jesus Freaks, Kentucky, laughed, Lay Witness, leader, leaving, less, level, life, life-long, listened, llking, lobby, longing, loving, manifesting, Martin, meetings, Methodist, Missions, Missiour, Mississippi, morning, most, moved, name, Nashville, Nashville's, normal, official, one another, passion, passionate, pastored, people, popular, power, powerful, praises, prayed, Presbyterian, presence, reading, recapture, reconnect, repenting, satisfied, seminary, shared, sharing, shocked, singing, somehow, spring, stopped, strange, Sunday, Sundays, supported, take turns, Tennessee, testimonies, the, The Salvation Army, things, together, transformed, type, Union City, unique, University of Tennessee, UTM, vibrant, weekend, working, Worship Center, year | 31 Comments

Is This Guy A Modern Day Prophet Or What?

Posted on August 4, 2011 by Steve Simms

Browsing through McKay Used Bookstore in Nashville recently, I found a book full of powerful prophetic statements by a present day United Methodist minister, Carlyle Fielding Stewart III. The book was published by Abingdon Press in 2001. It is called: … Continue reading →

Posted in Christian history, Christianity, church history, God, history, house church, organic church, popular culture, Quotations, Quotes, religion, revelation, salvation, simple church, spiritual, Uncategorized, What is church? | Tagged Abingdon, absent, accomodate, affairs, approach, back, basic, believe it or not, Biblical, Body of Christ, book, bring, browsing, business, business-as-usual, bwegin, called, Carlyle Fielding Stewart, case, change, Christ, Christianity, church, churches, claiming, climate, congregations, constitute, continue, converted, cult, cultivate, culture, daily, decline, denominations, die, diligent, discouraged, distinction, doing, ecclesiology, Empowerment Church, evangelical, exercise, failed, faith, favor, flexing, flourishes, forms, forsaken, found, foundation, frequently, from, full of, general, God, God's authority, Gospel, government, great, guy, heritage, ho-hum, holiness, Holy Ghost, Holy Spirit, humbly, impede, insecure, instances, institution, institutional, inviting, invoke, Jesus, lapsed, leaders, leading, lethargy, life, little, mainline, matter-of-fact, McKay, mind of Christ, minister, ministry, mission, modern, modern times, movement, much, muscles, name of, Nashville, needs, not, numperous, occur, Old Testament, open air, opinion, organized, ostensibly, outlook, participating, particular, pastors, people, perilous, potential, power politics, powerful, preacher, presence, present day, press, presuppose, principlles, progress, prophet, prophetic, prosper, Protestant, published, qualified, quotations, reality, reference, relationship, religion, result, retain, rot, run, saving, scandal, secular, selfish, serving, soulds, spirit, spirit-filled, spirituality, statements, steady, stifle, stopped, submi9tting, teach, teachings, think, today, tragedy, true, unafraid, unapologetically, underlying, United Methodism, United Methodist, used bookstore, vitality, way, will, win souls, witness | 11 Comments

Life Rocks When Religion Becomes Real (Or, Night At The Theological Museum)

Posted on July 27, 2011 by Steve Simms

In the 2006 movie, Night at the Museum, a night watchman at New York City’s American Museum of Natural History is shocked when the exhibits in the museum come to life. His once boring job suddenly becomes exciting and challenging. It is amazing the … Continue reading →

Posted in Christian history, Christianity, church history, Holy Spirit, Jesus Christ, kingdom of God, life, lifestyles, meaning, mysticism, new birth, Night at the Museum, Oh my God, organic church, popular culture, prayer, Quotations, Quotes, religion, resurrection, revelation, simple church, The Salvation Army, What is church?, William Booth | Tagged 2006 movie, accepting, accumulation, addictions, adherents, alive, amazing, America's, American Museum of Natural History, announced, argued, arguments, as the waters cover the sea, authority, awe, believe, Bible, blandly, blind faith, boring job, bright and morning star, brothers, bursts forth, by droves, celebration, challenging, church, churches, cofounder of, come to life, connects, cravings, crazy, crucifixion, data, demonstrated, demonstrating, don't rock the boat, driven, exciting, exhibits, experience, feel, fill the earth, flamed, foundations, from God, glory of the LORD, God's, having strouble, head, His, Holy Spirit, hope, ignores the heart, in my seat, incarnation, information, Jesus Christ, joyous, jumped off the pages, know so, knowledge, Letters, life, lifeless formes, living, Lord, losing, love letters, majestic, makes, man, mastered, mind, miracles, most of all, museum, need no, New Testament, New York City's, night, Night at the Museum, night watchman, oh, passionately, people, persuade, physical healing, power, presence, proof, proven, pulsating, quotation, rational, rationalized, real, reassure, relationships, religion, resurrection, ritual, said, salvation, secular society, seduction, see, send, sensational, set free, sexy, shaking, shocked, spiritual, spontaneous, spplendor, staying awake, Sunday school, surging, taught, teeming, the Apostles, the difference, the Good News, The Salvation Army, theological, theology, tired, trembling, true, vividly, William Booth, with life, work, writers, written to, yawn | 3 Comments

Freedom Riders And Church Diversity

Posted on May 18, 2011 by Steve Simms

I watched a two-hour documentary on PBS about the Freedom Riders, a group of young people (mostly college students) both black and white (committed to non-violence), who rode public busses together into the Deep South (in 1961) to challenge state segregation laws that … Continue reading →

Posted in abolitionists, Bible, biography, black history, Civil Rights, Creator, freedom, God, history, house church, human rights, lifestyles, Nashville, organic church, prejudice, Quotations, Quotes, racism, religion, self-help, social justice, Supreme Court, Uncategorized, What is church? | Tagged 1961, Alabama, America, angry, Anniston, assistant, Attorne General, beat, Bible, Biblical, Birming jail, Birmingham, black and white, bus terminal, bus terminals, busses, challenge, choking, church, church diversity, churches, Civil Rights Movement, class, coach, college students, commitment, committed, country, courage, cross racial lines, cultural, DC, Deep South, Diane Nashv, diversity, documentary, end segregation, ethnicity, every kindred and every tribe, explode, federal government, fire bomb, Fisk University, freedom, freedom riders, God, group, hate-filled, heaven, heroism, idea, interstate commerce, into, Jackson, John Seigenthaler, kick, last will and testament, leadership, left, local police, Lord, Mississippi, mixed, movie, moving, multi-culturial, multi-racial, multiethnic, Nashville, New Orleans, non-violence, notorious, PBS, protect, public busses, race, racial reconciliation, required, Return of the Titans, Robert Kennedy, rode, ruled unconstitutional, school, segregation laws, state, states, Supreme Court, surrounded, team, tears, town, Trevecca Nazarene University, two-hour, US, victory, violence, Washington, white mob, worst prison | 1 Comment

Open, Participatory Church In The Early Days Of The Salvation Army

Posted on May 16, 2011 by Steve Simms

Here are some quotations from one of the most powerful and exciting books I have read in the past few years. The book, Come Join Our Army, by R.G. Moyles was published in 2007 by Crest books. “This book tries to re-create, with … Continue reading →

Posted in American Literature, apologists, English literature, freedom, God, history, house church, Jesus Christ, lifestyles, music, organic church, popular culture, prayer, Quotations, Quotes, religion, The Salvation Army | Tagged accepted, accompanied, active, all, allelujahs, Amen, attendees, attention, attractiveness, awake, body, books, casual, central feature, certain, Christ, church, churches, clapped their hands, clapping, Come Join Our Army, comes, constantly, converts, Corps, crest, cries, daily, dancing in the aisles, deemed, directness, distinctive, early, evidently, exciting, exclamations, expected, experience, eyewitness accounts, feature, feelings, feet, felt, filled, flag waving, follow, force, free, frequent, freshness, from the heart, full, gesticulations, gladness, great, Hallelujah, hallmark, halls, handkerchiefs, help, highly, intensity, intention style, into, intrigued, involvement, joining in, joy, keeping the wheels rolling, life-giving, limits, meeting, meetings, men, monotony, most powerful, movement, night, no, no fear, occuring, officers, other, participation, participatory, participatory worship, partners, past few years, people, period, perpetual, persojnal, personal, power, Praise the Lord, prayer, prayers, privilege, proceedings, quotations, R.G. Moyles, rapidity, re-create, read, received, responsibility, reuqiring, routine, salvation, saved, shared, short, similarities, simplicity, singing, soldiers, sorts, soul, speak, spontaneity, spontaneous, stayed, strength-giving, taking part, testifies, testify, testimonies, testimony, the glory days, the public, tow or three, tries, turn, unabashedly, unavailable, variations, variety, vocalize, volleys, waiting, waved, witness, women, worship | 9 Comments

The Powerful, Lost Church-Format

Posted on April 29, 2011 by Steve Simms

Regardless of denomination, doctrine, or socio-economic group, church meetings follow pretty much the same format. This is true no matter where you go. You probably know the format. It begins with a Call To Worship and then includes some singing. … Continue reading →

Posted in God, house church, lifestyles, Nashville, organic church, popular culture, religion | Tagged 1600s early, AA, active, active participatent, Alcoholics Anonymous, amazing, announcements, another language, attending, audience, benediction, Berry Street, Bible, Bible-based, Biblical, building, Call to Worship, Christians, church meetings, churches, closing song, conducts church, confessing, controlled, daydream, denomination, different, direct the meeting, doctrine, drinking, each one has a, earliest, economic, embarrassment, encouraging, fidget, follow the same, foreign desperate for help, format, free, freedom from bondage, gather, God, God's Spirit, group, held, hidden, house church, international, interpretation, link, listen, liturgy, lost, may cause some discomfort, moved by, Nashville, New Testament, no pride, non-traditional, nothing to lose, offering, open, organic church, participation, passive listening, person up front, personal, psalm, Quakers, radically, rare, reading, Responsive Reading, revelation, sacraments, scoop, seeking, sermon, sharing, singing, snooze, socio, Spirit led, spiritual growth, support group, supporting, taken, talk, teaching, whenever you come together, willing to try, worship services | 40 Comments

Have A Jesus Demonstration Sunday

Posted on April 26, 2011 by Steve Simms

Churches like to have special Sundays. For example, many churches have an annual Youth Sunday when the church teenagers actually run the church service, from song leading, to announcements, to sermon, while the pastor sits and watches. So I was … Continue reading →

Posted in apologists, Creator, God, Jesus Christ, lifestyles, Nashville, organic church, popular culture, Quotations, Quotes, religion, Uncategorized | Tagged 2:4-5, alive and present, announcements, annual, awkward, beautiful, Biblical, churches, congegation, demonstration of the Spirit, enticing words of man's wisdom, facebook, faith, heart, I Corinthians, in the power of God, in the wisdom of man, Jesus Christ, Jesus demonstration, kids, lead, let Jesus, living, meeting, miss, morning, organic church, page, pastor, Paul, personally per year, power, preaching, really true, right things at the wrong time, sermon, sharing, simple church, sits and watches, smile, song leading, Special Sundays, Sunday, tapestry, teen leaders, to Jesus, unfold, voice, why not, Youth Sunday | 23 Comments

Tag Archives: churches

Passion For The Christ — Spiritual Fire & Desire

A Forgotten American Folk Song’s Powerful Message

What The Church Can Learn From The NFL

Is This Guy A Modern Day Prophet Or What?

Life Rocks When Religion Becomes Real (Or, Night At The Theological Museum)

Open, Participatory Church In The Early Days Of The Salvation Army

These elephants want to inspire you! Search Amazon for: Elephants INspiring The Room.

Email Subscription

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

Top Posts & Pages

Recent Posts

Archives