"Liberty" and the American Church

"I wonder if the Americans do not understand us at all because they are people who left Europe so as to be able to live out their faith for themselves in freedom? ie. because they did not stand fast by the last decision in the question of belief? I fancy that they would understand the fugitive better that the one who stays. Hence the American tolerance, or rather indifference in dogmatic questions." --Bonhoeffer

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Today, many of us look at our contemporary church and we think the brokenness is a newerish development. We look to the conservative resurgence of the 1970's and 80's and say to ourselves that we have seen the star of truth rise once again from the ashes of modern liberalism. We think that the lack of fire and life that has eroded the effectiveness of our evangelical denoms is because of cultural irrelevancy. But I would submit to you (via some thoughts and conversations the hubs and I have engaged in) that the current state of gospel laxity is really traced back to our roots.

Mountain or Valley

I have really been thinking about what many believers call mountain top moments and valley times. I have always heard in spiritual circles that mountain top moments were moments when God's voice was super clear, you felt close to Him, you had a high sense of the nearness of the truth. And conversely a valley was when those things weren't as prevalent; His voice less clear, His leading not as apparent. Somehow I think this is probably a wrong assumption.