Author Archives: Chaplainmike

Wretched Urgency II: My Not-So-Guilty Pleasures In which I disagree with John Piper and defend goofing off. by Michael Spencer Note: The original “Wretched Urgency” was an essay dealing with how a fundamentalistic concern for evangelism created a spirituality of misery. This essay looks at the inability of some Christians to enjoy life’s ordinary giftsContinue reading “Wretched Urgency II: My not-so-guilty pleasures”

Our Problem With Grace Sweat. Hand-wringing. “Yes, but…” by Michael Spencer Q. 1. What is your only comfort, in life and in death? A. That I belong–body and soul, in life and in death–not to myself but to my faithful Savior, Jesus Christ, who at the cost of his own blood has fully paid forContinue reading “Our problem with grace”

The Glory of the Nations How Common Grace Redeems Nationalism by Michael Spencer My friend Mark is a soldier. A Sergeant in the United States Marine Corps. He just returned from a tour of duty in Afghanistan, where he, in his own words, was “proud to be a Marine at a time my country neededContinue reading “The glory of the nations”

Girls Tradin’ Up Femininity goes out with the trash by Michael Spencer It must have been three years ago that I noticed most of the girls in my classes were anti-feminine. They didn’t just act like boys at their worst; they actually seemed to have contempt for what I associated with being feminine. So IContinue reading “Girls tradin’ up”

In The Gay Ol’ Summertime Gay America has left the closet, and they won’t be going back. by Michael Spencer It’s the summer of “Queer Eye For the Straight Guy” and “Boy Meets Boy.” It’s the summer of debating gay marriage in the media and opinionating about newly elected gay Bishop V. Gene Robinson ofContinue reading “In the gay ol’ summertime”

Gas Prices: A Winning Issue for Republicans by Michael Spencer You can hear Republicans trembling in their cars, scared to death that gas prices are about to sink the Republican congress and the Bush Presidency. With prices reaching a new high this week, and undoubtedly headed for higher prices this summer, Republicans are terrified ofContinue reading “Gas prices: a winning issue for Republicans”

Gagging on Free Speech by Michael Spencer One of the premises of the Internet Monk Web page concerns the relationship of liberalism and tyranny. From time to time, I suffer certain anxieties that the assertion of this relationship- namely that the Democratic party and its partners in crime are the instruments of tyranny- will offendContinue reading “Gagging on free speech”

Dancing at the Fundamentalist Ball A Special Essay by Michael Spencer I am almost through with fundamentalism. Almost. There are still some places where I want to hang on to my fundamentalism, but not many. After spending most of my life listening to my fundamentalist relation sing their song in the current cultural climate, IContinue reading “Dancing at the fundamentalist ball”

To Fly Alone, Or Not At All by Michael Spencer Note: The following article is based purely on my own experiences with young people, and is in no way a claim to know anything about the motives or personal experience of Charles Bishop. I grieve with his family in the loss of a beloved youngContinue reading “To fly alone, or not at all”

Uncomfortable in Madison by Michael Spencer I am not a conspicuous flag waver. I do not have a flag on my car. My wife finally put a tiny flag on the front porch, but I would probably have waited till July to put a flag up on my own. I don’t dress in red, whiteContinue reading “Uncomfortable in Madison”