#ebenezers

I have been interviewing thirty persons, mostly forcibly-terminated professors from Protestant and Catholic institutions, and several professionals who work with them.[i] Their stories demonstrate a stunning depth of disillusionment. The majority of these often-ordained religionists feel so betrayed by the church that they – and often their families – refuse to be part of it anymore. Tanner finds the trauma pushes these professionals as well as their formerly devout spouses and children to leave, avoid or, at best, simply distrust the church (Personal phone conversation 8/1/21). Many now claim to be spiritual but not religious.

Tomorrow’s blog: “Multiple callings in this world”

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PS that beer has chamomile, coriander, ginger, and green pepper. It was straight up amazing/from this place called Ebenezers Pub, one of the world's greatest pubs.

It was not my first time at Ebenezer's Brew pub (formerly Lions Pride) but I had to give it another try..for the sake of the beer. When I posted up at the bar Jonathan greeted me with a warm smile and a "good to see you!" even though we've only interacted a couple times before and even though it was so freakin dark in there... im surprised he recognized me. You can always tell when "management" is up in Lovell since the crooning of Muddy Waters isn't mandatorily playing, today it was more upbeat; perhaps Black Keys or Portugal the Man radio. I ordered the flight of 7 so here it is. #1 Buddha's Hand-4% not quite a session but decently crushable golden pale ale and the gold hue seemed to glitter. I think I enjoyed looking at this one more than drinking it but it did have a clean balanced hoppiness. #2 Saison LaCharite-6% This was my favorite! Super peachy, mellow, effervescent and a dry finish. Its been a while since I enjoyed a Saison, there have been alot of IPA's in my life recently and I appreciated the natural light fruitiness. #3 St. Sixanahalve-6.5% a nod to the Trappist abbey in Westvletern known for their brewery, I dig it. Spicy, bitter, and hints of late summer/fall fruits. #4 Love Triangle-6.6% a Belgian pale that uses Mosiac hops. It was smooth and malty and reminded me of changing leaves but its more of a third wheel to me. #5 Mary Jane-7% a local favorite from what I hear and by the name I was expecting a very hoppy experience and it did deliver, I guess. Moving on to #6 Holy Candy which was deceiving by the light golden color but I like being deceived now and again..by beer...it keeps it interesting. I can really dig "candy" beers, I like a good triple and raisiny quads. I wrote down that it smells like what the Frizzy Lifting Drink room would smell like in Mr. Wonka's factory and just as dangerous with a 10% abv. What can I say, I have a sweet tooth;) Finally closing in a #7 is the Beaut, the Lively's Dubbel. With an abv of 8.4% this was the first beer in the flight where I could taste the booze but left my palette flat. Beaut did live up to her name in her color, a pretty ruby/tiger eye/ amber hue. I want to be dripping in jewels of Beaut color.

Then Samuel took a stone and set it up between Mizpah and Shen, and called its name Ebenezer, saying, “Thus far the LORD has helped us." I had been thinking about that verse in Samuel and then, during a recent Sunday service, we sang Matt Redman's song, "10,000 Reasons", which includes the line, "10,000 reasons for my heart to find." In earlier posts on this blog (here, here, here and here) I've shared some of the things I've seen God do in my life that remind me that "thus far has the Lord helped me." Listening to the song I was struck with the wild idea: could I list 10,000 "Ebenezers" on this blog to encourage others?'' Perhaps I could by myself, but it would be all that I'd be doing and there are other things I want to feature here as time goes on. Besides, if I just listed the things God has done for me, folks might think it was just because God likes me best! No, what I want you all to understand is that God is constantly doing things to show Himself alive in our lives - sometimes even unasked. So I hit on the idea of challenging friends and contacts - and readers of this blog - to send me one-sentence descriptions of miraculous acts and/or revelations God has given them. The first batch that came in is featured below. In some cases these have been edited for brevity - but nothing has been added! I want to keep these short so they are easy to browse. I'm happy to read your story, but what I'm after is the headline. After all, ultimately I hope to collect 10,000 of these! One can argue theology and doctrine for one's education and enlightenment, but there is nothing more edifying and effective in my mind than personal testimony. Miracles are things that God does; doctrine is often our attempt to explain why He does what He does. Some of the statements that will be included here over time will challenge you. Some will inspire. Some may even seem bizarre - as bizarre, perhaps, as a blind man being healed by spit and mud, or a donkey talking to a prophet. Consider each as a witness, as something to stretch you, comfort you, confirm for you that Jesus is the same today, yesterday and forever and is still changing lives, often quietly despite all the loud proclamations of what is "impossible." If you'd like to add testimonies to this list (whether you're submitting for the first time or multiple times), you can leave a comment below and I will include it in a future "Ebenezer" post, or you can email me. My email address begins will three lower-case "L's" to mimic a Roman numeral 3, followed by my first name and the number "2". That is, llljohn2. To complete the address add @msn.com and that should do the trick. (I've had the email for ages and has special meaning for me. I'm the third John in our family, for one. In addition, the scripture 3 John 2 reads, "Beloved, my wish above all wishes is that you prosper and be in health, even as your soul prospers." I've always felt as if I was sending a blessing to someone when I sent them an email. Perhaps the whole reason I came up with that email address, however, is for just such a time as this! Ebenezers 1. My mom was healed of breast cancer. C.L.J., St. Louis, MO 2. I was able to walk away from a car accident without a scratch on me. C.L.J., St. Louis, MO 3. I received a Godwink one morning after the night before, thinking of my cat Lomi before going to sleep and I remember thinking "if only I knew she was ok"...that morning I found a book on my chair called "Cat Heaven". I was reminded of God's great love for us! C.L.J., St. Louis, MO 4. My mom and dad lost 5 babies by miscarriage and lost 1 adoption and were told by multiple physicians they never would have children, at a church service my mom was laid hands on and the preacher prayed for the gift of healing for my mom; immediately after this she had 4 children, the last of which was me—God is faithful! R.S., Lakeville, MN 5. My sister had a kitty that my brothers accidentally drowned, rigor mortis had already set in and my mom put the kitty in a box and my sister and brothers sat around as my mom pulled out a hairdryer and tried warming the kitty while praying for the kitty to come back to life—it wasn’t more than 10 minutes before kitty was alive—Praise God! R.S., Lakeville, MN 6. My friend’s uncle was dead for 7 minutes while a physician came to tell her that her uncle passed away, when he got a page to come back—God brought him back from the dead. R.S., Lakeville, MN 7. I had a dream to give this certain woman who was a visitor at our church the next morning a very specific amount of money, my husband and I wrote the check and when I saw her, it was the same girl in my dream. We gave her the check and she said that to the penny is what she owed to catch up on her mortgage, electricity, and heat! R.S., Lakeville, MN 8. We were quite poor and shouldn’t have been approved for a mortgage, but we have a beautiful home and never had a problem affording the mortgage! R.S., Lakeville, MN 9. I didn't have a boyfriend and one Dec. 1st my mom prayed for a husband for me for Christmas; I saw my husband with new eyes on Dec 23rd and we dated 6 weeks, got engaged, and were married 5 months later—and now we’ve been married for almost 11 years and are madly in love with God and each other! R.S., Lakeville, MN 10. My daughter was born dead — grey, limp as a noodle, no heartbeat, no breathing — as they put her on my tummy to cut the cord, I laid my hand on her in utter peace and said “Thank You JESUS for her LIFE” –in that very instant she sputtered and was whisked away for suctioning by the NICU team of doctors and nurses in the room. She was alive! R.S., Lakeville, MN 11. I was also told she would likely have severe brain damage and be mentally handicapped also having seizures by the time she was 3. Never one seizure and a very smart cookie she is! R.S., Lakeville, MN 12. I found out extremely early that I had an ectopic pregnancy—which often is life threatening—and because I found out so early I didn’t need surgery! R.S., Lakeville, MN 13. God has delivered me from PTSD. G.F., Mendota Heights, MN 14. God healed me from unforgiveness. G.F., Mendota Heights, MN 15. God intervened in my marriage, and we are getting closer everyday.G.F., Mendota Heights, MN 16.God is showing me why there is war (because everyone wants their own way). G.F., Mendota Heights, MN 17. God has delivered me from drunkenness and promiscuity. G.F., Mendota Heights, MN 18. God has shown me that my parents did their very best, and I understand them now. G.F., Mendota Heights, MN 19. God has delivered me from judging others. G.F., Mendota Heights, MN 20. God has healed me spirit, soul and body. I know I am healed. G.F., Mendota Heights, MN 21, Our identical twins - momos,too! - are nothing short of a miracle; never before and never since have we had a sniff of a pregnancy, for no logical or medical reason; yet, today we have two perfectly healthy boys roaming this earth. A.D., Sydney, Australia