The Thinking Christian Institute
Regardless of your religion or denomination...Let's Talk!
Hi, my name is Duke Clarke.
Welcome to The Thinking Christian Institute, a site about Finding God. Regardless if you are new to this or you have been at it a long time, there is always something new to discover about God.
For quite some time now I have wanted to set up a site where I could present information about God that would cause people to think about their beliefs and maybe see God in a new light.
I have been a minister all of my adult life. For the first 16 years I was inside a Christian Organization and now for the past 20+ years I have been outside of the organized church structure.
When I told my story to someone recently, he asked me if I was still a minister. I immediately replied, "Of course I am. But instead of only having a group in a building, now the world is my audience."
This site is not here for me to tell you what to believe--each person must decide that for themselves. I am here to assist you in "Finding God" in any way I can. Read the articles, look through the information and see what I have to say. You may agree, you may disagree, it really doesn't matter, just take a look.
I'm also here to listen, so if you have something to say, let me know--I'm always interested in learning.
Finding God
Before I got too old or too timid to make such a daring move, I packed them all up and we moved to Tucson, Arizona. Like Abraham
leaving all he had ever known, we made the move.
You see, I felt like I was getting to the place in my life where I had “Found God” and once you have that mindset, your journey is over, your done and that’s when decay begins.
What I mean by that is, those who have “Found God” have settled on all their answers, defined God on every angle and then taking a big sigh of relief. They sit around and talk about the things of God and the good old days when the Spirit of God was really moving.
It started to scare me. Did I know all there was to know about God? Have I seen my last adventure with God? Is the romance gone?
I started to ask questions which intrigued some and angered others. I just wanted to know what else there was to life.
Some told me to shut up and just stick to what I already knew. Others listened but had no real interest and some thankfully wanted to take the journey with me.
I really like the idea of finding God. Of course I know that HE is not lost, nor is HE hiding from me. It’s like a husband or wife taking the time to discover the heart of their spouse. The spouse is right there, but the real treasures of that person need to be searched out.
It chills me when I think back on the days when I thought I knew it all, had all the answers, but even worse, were the times when I was afraid to ask any new questions or question any old beliefs.
I read a quote recently that said, “I’d rather live with questions I can’t answer, than questions I can’t ask.” That makes sense to me. It’s not saying that God doesn’t have answers, it’s saying I’m not going to accept old pat answers that sound good but really don’t fit. I’m willing to say, “I still have some questions, so I’m going to keep looking”.
I love the thought that my relationship with God is still growing, that there is more to search out, that it was not frozen in the First Century Church and even though it is the same truth today as then, it can be a new adventure.
Some people are looking for God and don’t even know they are looking. They may not even call it God, they may call it wholeness or inner peace or freedom from fear or just to be able to have a full enjoyable life.
Now that may not sound like God to some, but in Exodus God says His name was “I AM THAT I AM” meaning “I will be whatever I need to be for my people”.
If people need wholeness, God can be wholeness. If someone needs peace or freedom from fear, God will be peace and freedom from fear.
So what is The Thinking Christian Institute?
The Thinking Christian
Institute is
a virtual gathering center designed to get you to think, ask questions
and decide for yourself. I will have articles, recordings and videos
available for
your viewing as well as products, programs and services for purchase to
help you in your spiritual growth.
I think it is important that we ask questions and examine our thinking
on a regular basis. This is what
brought about the Reformation and the Age of Enlightenment. People like
Martin Luther started to
question concepts or beliefs that for centuries had just been
accepted. He wanted
answers but much more than that, he wanted a relationship with God.
This site is not set up for me to be
a "Defender of the Faith" where it's my way or the highway. My desire
is to present information about the goodness of God
so perhaps
you can see Him in a new light. I want to provoke you to
think, to ask questions about
concepts that
maybe you have just accepted
without question until now.
Let me send you some thought provoking
and entertaining emails.
I will be adding new material regularly with MP3 files, videos
and
articles, so set up a time to come back and check it out.
If you would like to read about our Monthly Newsletter "Finding God" Click
Here
Change your thinking
and you will
change your life,
P.S.
- Be part of the Thinking Christian Institute and be willing
to ask questions, willing to take a new
look at the things of God and enjoy the life that He has given us.