[photo by David Schrott]

Well, this week’s Patrol article was interesting for me to write.  This past week, Michael Spencer, also known as “The Internet Monk“, died from cancer.  I had no idea how much it would affect me.  Really, for the past few months, I hadn’t even been keeping up with his site.  In fact, a good friend was the one that told me Spencer had died — I didn’t even read it on the site.

But it really has messed with me.  When you read my article, know that just writing it and getting it out there was part of my healing process.  I really am okay, especially now that I’ve put my struggles and frustrations into words.  As Spencer says in the email exchange I wrote about:

Some people live the Christian life in the mode of happy clappy. Others live it in lamentation. Disturbance. Some of those write it out to process it. That’s me.

That’s me as well.  And this article was how I processed his death.  Here’s the link:

“Gone Too Soon: An Email Exchange with Michael Spencer” — Patrol Magazine

The Evangelical world was dealt a huge blow when Michael Spencer died this week.  It really is a reason to mourn.  He taught us much, and I hope to spend much of the years to come catching up on the past 10 years of his writing.  I wrote an article back in November about Spencer’s place in the Evangelical world.  For those that have never read him, let me suggest just a few articles:

• Our Problem with Grace (this article changed my life; I’m not exaggerating)
• Another One Gets Off the Evangelical Bus: Thoughts on a Deconversion
• On Faith’s Crumbling Edge: Restoring the Uprooted Assurance of the Ordinary Christian

Read these and be encouraged.  My hope is that Michael Spencer’s ministry has really only begun.

You can see all my article for Patrol Magazine here.