all is grace

When a hero dies

Last night, my hero passed away. Brennan Manning has had the strongest impact on my bedraggled heart. Sitting with him twice over hot dogs will be moments my heart will not easily forget. But far more important than hot dogs and baseball are his reflections on the outrageous love of God in all His grace and mercy that have wrecked my heart for good since 1999. My hero finally rests in Abba's embrace for his Father was very fond of him.

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0dMwu1rhTCQ&w=560&h=315]

Published in the UK

A few months ago, someone had discovered my review of All is Grace, a memoir from one of my heros, Brennan Manning. Upon discovering it, a publishing partner from the UK wanted to post my review as part of their print magazine sent to all of their stores. They shared the PDF with me, and I wanted to share it with you all as well. Click below to get the PDF.

DPS - Brennan Manning Editorial

Why: @ragamuffinpc: what is a ragamuffin

Perhaps you wonder why the address for this site is ragamuffinpc. Perhaps your RSS Reader still calls this site "Ragamuffin Ramblings". Perhaps you wonder what ragamuffin actually is or means. Perhaps you have images of a classic doll with red yarn hair. Perhaps you are thinking of a strange pastry. You have come to the right place today. I will explain, today, the meaning behind my site's title.

I first heard the word used and defined by my hero Brennan Manning in his book The Ragamuffin Gospel. God used Brennan and this book to ravish my aching heart with his outrageous love. I came to understand God's grace and furious love in a way I had never taken hold of in my life.

The ragamuffin is one with a singular prayer: "God, be merciful to me, a sinner." Brennan explains further in his new book All is Grace: "any additional flourishes to make that cry more palatable are pharisaical leaven."

The ragamuffin is one who understand that he, along with every other person, is a beggar at the door of God's mercy. She is the one who is bedraggled and beat up in life and faith, but have learned to take the hand out of grace without holding back or allowing the shame to hold them back.

This is why you will find ragamuffinpc to be more than an URL for my website, but it is an identity of which I am learning daily to take hold.

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How would you explain the name of your blog?