Snow Days

I don't have anything new or insightful for this week's post. So I'll just tell a bit about what's going on where I live and mention the work of a few of my fellow bloggers.

First, it's snowy and cold here. It's been that way for a solid week, with temperatures usually below freezing. Last night, it got down to 15 degrees Fahrenheit. There's enough snow around right now to choke several Abominable Snowmen. This is posing quite a shock of adjustment for an ex-Californian like me. I find myself craving a sight of palm trees and sunlight. The National Weather Service is saying that later we could get freezing rain, ice and sleet on top of everything else. By the way, did I mention the fact that it is snowing?

As far as fellow bloggers, I'd like to thank Stormchild for her kind mention of me on her recent post, “The Wisdom of Mr. Singh,” from her blog, Gale Warnings. Her blog is an interesting and informative read, as it deals with the things individuals can do in individual daily interactions to protect themselves from being victimized by abusers.

I've been enjoying Borz Loma Nal's posts on Biblical exposition and study on The Blog of Lema Nal. Those posts contain valuable helps and suggestions for recovering the ability to properly study the Bible after escaping from an abusive church. This understanding is especially necessary because a key characteristic of abusive churches is the distortion of the Bible by the church leaders in order to serve their own purposes. One of the blog posts, “Hermeneutical Errors,” has some very funny examples of mistakes in Biblical interpretation.

I haven't heard from the DeTox Church Group authors in a while. How are things going? I hope you are doing well. Are you getting a lot of snow in Idaho?

I hope to begin tackling the subject of Christian community in more detail. The damage done by abusive churches is not only their distortion of Bible doctrine, but that they distort the experience of community and fellowship. Therefore I think that an important element in recovering from an abusive church consists of discovering what real Christian community is, and beginning on some level to experience it.

But that subject will have to wait. I'll be traveling to visit relatives this week, so I probably won't be posting anything this coming weekend. (I'm going to the Promised Land – the land of palm trees and sunshine!) Stay safe, everyone, and have a blessed Merry Christmas.