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That Church by the Vape Shop
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The Undead in Christ: A Spooky Season Meditation
Welcome to the Haunted House of Grace At That Church By the Vape Shop, we try to keep it real (even in the Southern Gothic magical realism fiction posts; you know what I mean). So, full disclosure: if you're looking for a nice, normal religion, Christianity isn't it. Ever notice how church people talk like extras in a horror movie? We're always dying, being buried, raised again, eating flesh, drinking blood (symbolically), and waiting for somebody with a sword in His mouth to
leafyseadragon248
Oct 135 min read


"Marthadists", Flannel Bishops, and Judgment Seat Jitters
How are y'all doing out there? Grace, peace, and all the best to you and yours. And now, here are some miscellaneous musings of a...
leafyseadragon248
Aug 294 min read


RIP, “Hulk” Hogan: A Word on Mourning, Mercy, and the High Road of Grace
The world recently lost a man who lived life in capital letters—“HULK” HOGAN—a name that, for many, defined childhood cheers and...
leafyseadragon248
Jul 275 min read


The Revival Tent That Wouldn’t Stay Put
Part One: In Which a Tent Appears, a Plan Forms, and God Rolls His Eyes Lovingly It began, as most minor theological earthquakes do, with...
leafyseadragon248
Jul 2529 min read


It Already Done Happened
Back by popular demand, here's Sister Velma’s Folding-Chair Prophecy Talk: “It Already Done Happened” Velma stood at the front of the...
leafyseadragon248
Jul 208 min read


Progressive Sanctification
The popular idea that Christians are gradually “getting cleaner” or inching their way toward holiness over time—often called progressive...
leafyseadragon248
Jul 51 min read


Blessed and Highly Favored!
When God Doesn’t Fix It (And That’s Still Grace) They say God works all things together for good, but sometimes, you stare at your life...
leafyseadragon248
Jul 57 min read


Till Death or Tractor Pull: A Wedding Story
In a possible future, a few counties over... They said it was going to be a simple country wedding. What they meant was that it was going...
leafyseadragon248
Jul 517 min read


Some of Y’all Already Know Sister Velma
In an alternate universe in which That Church By The Vape Shop became a network of physical locations instead of a blog, we had a very...
leafyseadragon248
Jun 277 min read


He is Able
Thank you for humoring me regarding the hypothetical VBS post. I felt like a palate cleanser was in order after a bit of dreariness that...
leafyseadragon248
Jun 92 min read


Vacation Bible School
In an alternate universe in which the physical locations plan for That Church By The Vape Shop panned out, we had a very successful...
leafyseadragon248
Jun 718 min read


Living With an “Impossible” Situation
The following post came about in response to a reader’s question. As a reminder, my wife has a neuromuscular condition that keeps her...
leafyseadragon248
Jun 617 min read


The Cross Worked.
After some introductory posts, I posted two of my older books in installments. As the posts are featured in reverse order on the main...
leafyseadragon248
May 152 min read


Another Bible Commentary: Revelation
This seems like another good spot to discuss some “end times”-related material before we get to the meat of Revelation. There’s another...
leafyseadragon248
Apr 1090 min read


Another Bible Commentary: Jude
This is a letter to Jewish Christians to warn them about the false teachers that Peter predicted in 2 Peter 2. The flavor of their heresy...
leafyseadragon248
Apr 106 min read


Another Bible Commentary: 3 John
1 Jesus is the Truth (John 14:6). 2 While health and wealth concerns seem to be excessively emphasized in certain flavors of...
leafyseadragon248
Apr 102 min read


Another Bible Commentary: 2 John
1 The Elect Lady seems to be the Bride of Christ aka the Church. Or, it could be a wealthy believer that hosted church services in her...
leafyseadragon248
Apr 102 min read


Another Bible Commentary: 1 John
I recommend reading 2 John and 3 John before reading 1 John; they’re brief and provide context. John had to deal with...
leafyseadragon248
Apr 1018 min read


Another Bible Commentary: 2 Peter
Again, Peter was predominantly an apostle to the Jews, but was also involved with some Gentile Christians (Galatians 2:8,9,12 plus the...
leafyseadragon248
Apr 1015 min read


Another Bible Commentary: 1 Peter
Pete the fisherman wrote this with the help of Paul’s frequent coworker Silas (1 Peter 5:12) in around 62 AD. This letter provides...
leafyseadragon248
Apr 1015 min read
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