Today, a Lighthouse Trails caller asked if we could tell her what “breath prayers” are and wondered if we had any information on them because someone in her church is advising others to practice them. Thus, we are posting some information we have previously posted on breath prayers. Breath prayers, like lectio divina, are a … [Read more…]
LTRP Note: We are reposting this background article for those who have been asking how Lighthouse Trails got started. By Deborah Dombrowski Editor – Lighthouse Trails Part One: “It Was a Dark and Stormy Night.” Every good mystery starts off with “It was a dark and stormy night.” But this is a different kind of … [Read more…]
By Ray Yungen From a theological viewpoint, there now exist two branches (so to speak) of the Catholic Church—the traditional (as defended by someone like Karl Keating in his book Catholicism and Fundamentalism) and the progressive or contemplative* element (as exemplified by Thomas Merton and Henri Nouwen).1 And while these two branches (or movements) can … [Read more…]
By Lynn Lusby Pratt That title was a crack I made around 2006 when I became aware of the new wave of false teaching entering the church. One aspect of that teaching hinted that our experience with Jesus was (should be?) sexual. (Christians who use a mantra, as in contemplative prayer, and go into … [Read more…]
Dear Lighthouse Trails: I recently began reading A Time of Departing. A very well-documented book. I am blown away by the amount of research Ray Yungen put into that book! Thank you for publishing it. Thank you also for your posts dealing with the Spiritual Formation movement, contemplative prayer, etc. I do not know exactly … [Read more…]
LTRP Note: Eugene Peterson (d. 10/22/18) and Catholic priest Thomas Keating (d. 10/25/18) have died. The article below (which is promoting Peterson and Keating) is written by Carl McColman (author of The Big Book of Contemplative Mysticism) and is posted for informational and research purposes and not as an endorsement of the content. Both Peterson … [Read more…]
Dear Lighthouse Trails: Yesterday, I was reading 1 Corinthians 1 and 2, where Paul is writing about the wisdom of God versus the wisdom of the world. I was reminded of our former Baptist pastor in the early ’80s who was highly intellectual, which attracted a lot of people from academia in our college town. … [Read more…]
Nick Hall’s Together event is back again (October 20-21), this year as Together 2018 at the Texas Motor Speedway in Fort Worth, Texas (which can hold around 1/2 million people). On the event’s Facebook page, it reads: Love Matt Chandler? See him and many more for free on October 20-21 as we bring the nation … [Read more…]
Lighthouse Trails has known for several years that Calvin College is a contemplative-promoting institution, but it looks like that influence has seeped into a ministry of Calvin College, Hymnary.org, an online resource that provides the lyrics and information for thousands of hymns. A Lighthouse Trails reader brought to our attention this week that on the … [Read more…]
To Lighthouse Trails: I’m grateful to God for helping me come across your site tonight! I found out the Walk to Emmaus was demonic when I went on the walk this last weekend. It was the most horrible thing I’ve been through in my life. I believe God was protecting me while I was there. … [Read more…]
The acceptance of contemplative prayer has hit an all-time high in the church. And is it any wonder? Christian media, Christian publishers, pastors, mission societies, Bible societies, authors, radio hosts, youth leaders, women’s group leaders, and Christian ministry leaders are all promoting it more than ever. The video below that was posted on Charisma Magazine’s … [Read more…]
A summer 2018 Relevant Magazine article titled “Why Learning to Breathe May Be the Best Way to Pray,” tells readers that, Breath prayer [are] an ancient Christian prayer practice with origins in the lives of the Desert Fathers and Mothers, is a vehicle we can use to live out Scripture’s call to “pray without ceasing. (1 … [Read more…]
Mandala Color Books: Relaxing Fun or a Tool for New Age Meditation? By Lois Putnam Adult coloring has recently become a national passion. In fact, of the top twenty best-selling books on Amazon.com, ten of these were adult color books. Proof of this can be found in any bookstore where the first thing you’ll see … [Read more…]
In an August 13th Christian Post article titled “Serita Jakes’ Endorsement of Yoga at Potter’s House Sparks Debate,” popular pastor T.D. Jakes’ wife is reportedly promoting Yoga to congregants at Jake’s church. The CP article begins: Serita Jakes, wife of popular televangelist Bishop T.D. Jakes, has reignited debate over the practice of yoga among Christians … [Read more…]
An August 8, 2018 Christianity Today article titled Willow Creek Elders and Pastor Heather Larson Resign over Bill Hybels chronicles events that led to Willow Creek founder Bill Hybels’ resignation from the megachurch due to numerous women having come forth with accusations of years of sexual misconduct and abuse by Hybels. Because of the lackadaisical … [Read more…]
LTRP Note: For several years now, Lighthouse Trails has received letters from many women who have been involved with BSF (Bible Study Fellowship). Each one expressed a concern that the organization once taught God’s Word but over the last decade especially began to drift. Lighthouse Trails noted in 2010 that BSF’s current executive director Susie … [Read more…]
LTRP Note: The following is a chapter from the Lighthouse Trails book Castles in the Sand, the only novel we know of that exposes the dangers of contemplative spirituality and spiritual formation. The story, based on true facts, is about a young Christian college girl who is introduced to mysticism through her spiritual formation professor. … [Read more…]
LTRP Note: From Beth Moore to Chuck Swindoll to Dallas Willard, Christian leaders are telling us we can’t really know God without the silence (stilling the mind). But is this really a biblical mandate? By Lynn Lusby Pratt Have you heard the rumor going around—that God can be found “only in the silence”? Don’t buy … [Read more…]
As many of you know, Lighthouse Trails has been mailing out booklets (1 or 2 at a time) since 2016 to a list of Christian leaders and pastors. We mail them out three times a year. This week, we are sending out our 8th mailing. Many of you have submitted the names of addresses of … [Read more…]
By Cedric Fisher Truth Keepers Ministries Not long ago, social media (e.g. Facebook, Google, etc.) presenting end-times information was bustling with activity. Eschatological and discernment posts were peppered with thousands of favorable commentaries. Now, most of the ones I’ve checked have incurred a significant drop-off in views, likes, comments, and shares. The most popular ones … [Read more…]
LTRP Note: For sixteen years, Lighthouse Trails has been warning about the contemplative prayer movement. In the following article, Ray Yungen has provided information that makes the contemplative argument (against it) irrefutable. We have sent a copy of this booklet to all of the major Christian leaders whom we have challenged including Beth Moore, Rick … [Read more…]
By Kevin Reeves and the Editors at Lighthouse Trails A number of years ago, a book written by emerging-church leaders Brian McLaren and Leonard Sweet was released. The book was called A is for Abductive: the language of the emerging church. Going through the alphabet, the authors identified many terms they hoped would be picked … [Read more…]
YWAM (Youth With a Mission), an evangelical missions organization (founded in 1960 by Loren Cunningham) that trains about 25,000 people every year for world-wide mission trips, has issued an announcement regarding its commitment to teaching contemplative prayer. On Saturday, a reader alerted Lighthouse Trails to a June 2018 YWAM promotional audio piece on the … [Read more…]
By Lighthouse Trails Editors Is your church involved in a Spiritual Formation program? If so, you might want to ask the question, what exactly is Spiritual Formation? It’s a fair question, and one that, if not asked, could end up surprising you when your church changes in ways you never imagined. A Christianity Today article … [Read more…]
As many readers may remember, in 2014 Word of Faith preacher Kenneth Copeland invited the Anglican priest Tony Palmer to speak to his congregation.* Palmer, who died in a motorcycle accident a few months later, was an “evangelist” for Pope Francis to convince leaders in the Protestant church that the reformation was over and … [Read more…]
In an article titled “How Evangelicals Became Over-Committed to the Bible and What Can Be Done About It,” Biola University professor J.P. Moreland says that evangelical Christians are too committed to the Bible. He states: “In the actual practices of the Evangelical community in North America, there is an over-commitment to Scripture in a way that is … [Read more…]
NEW BOOKLET: How to Find a Good Church (And What To Do if You Can’t) by the editors at Lighthouse Trails is our newest Lighthouse Trails Booklet. The Booklet is 18 pages long and sells for $1.95 for single copies. Quantity discounts are as much as 50% off retail. Our Booklets are designed to give … [Read more…]
By Warren B. Smith Countless references to meditating, being quiet, being still, relaxing, resting, letting go, and reciting Psalm 46:10 are found throughout God Calling and Jesus Calling. They are all suggested ways of entering into “the silence” to experience God’s presence. The New Age/New Spirituality likewise places great emphasis on these same ways of … [Read more…]
To Lighthouse Trails: After 1-2 years of practicing “chair yoga,” attempts at meditation (it didn’t work for me), and a Chinese practice called qi gong . . . I completely turned my back on ANY Christian ways I might have had! I quit Bible reading, study, most praying; my Christian life just disappeared. These two … [Read more…]
LTRP Note: With the majority of Christian colleges and seminaries now bringing in contemplative spirituality via Spiritual Formation programs, and with Christian leaders such as Rick Warren and Beth Moore endorsing the movement, and with countless pastors giving it a thumbs up to their congregations, isn’t it time professors, pastors, and leaders understand what the … [Read more…]
