I read a blog post yesterday from Pete Wilson. He writes the blog Without Wax is a pastor at Cross Point Church in the Nashville area and the author of the book Plan B. What he had posted the other day was something that really stood out to me. He quoted from a blog that Kevin DeYoung had written on Ligonier Ministries Blog about those people that "plod" along in the church. It really stuck with me too and I have been thinking about his words off and on for the last couple of days, processing them and mulling them over a bit.
Showing posts with label Faith. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Faith. Show all posts
Thursday, August 19, 2010
Thursday, August 12, 2010
5 Reasons Teens Are Avoiding Church
A pastor friend of mine shared this link this morning on Twitter. It's been posted by both Roni and myself. It's got some good stuff in it and I wanted to share it here as well.
5 Reasons Teens Are Avoiding Church
Here are a few of my thoughts on this:
1) The point that no one is ever too busy for church is right on. That is the classic excuse of people in my age group; those with young children. We hear about how they just don't have time with everything else they have going on, often placing the blame on the activities they have placed their children in. As the author says, time doesn't discriminate, we all get the same 24 hour span. It's about how we use and prioritize those hours.
2) It is easy to get caught up in trying to create the next "big event" or "draw". There have been times in my ministry where parents will look at what other churches are doing and then relay that to me with the "subtle" hint that maybe we should be doing that as well. I hope that I have tried more often to give substance over flash.
3) Teens don't make church a priority because their parents don't make it a priority is something that we have seen for years. I'm so glad it was addressed here. When the parents don't make it a habit or a lifestyle to be in worship and active in the church body, the kids aren't either. After all, there isn't going to be any kind of blow back from the parents. Too often parents don't want to offend their kids when it comes to "making them" go to church. The same can't be said for practices, school or even interaction with friends.
4) It's true that kids don't need the church to connect with their peers anymore really. They spend time in school and practices with them almost every day. They are connected to them through Facebook, myspace, Twitter and texting. But my issue with this one is that these methods still allow kids to maintain distance from each other and don't necessarily lead to that kind of deep social interaction that we need. As the church one of our goals should be in striving to create that kind of interaction within community.
5) Until we as leaders are able to really model that change the kids will rarely model true change. We need to give them that example of how following Jesus and living out his example is world changing.
6) Great point about being real as opposed to trying to be "cool". Cool comes and goes, and if we are chasing that then we will never find rest. When we know who we are and what we are called to and allow ourselves to be real around these kids, that is where the difference is made. This is something that can take years to learn. It is that realness that will speak to the youth today (and in the future) more than our attempts to be like them. To take from a friend of mine, if the kids want a cool youth minister, they are the ones that make them cool.
That's it. I thought it was a great article and had some good points in it.
Grace, Peace and Love y'all.
5 Reasons Teens Are Avoiding Church
Here are a few of my thoughts on this:
1) The point that no one is ever too busy for church is right on. That is the classic excuse of people in my age group; those with young children. We hear about how they just don't have time with everything else they have going on, often placing the blame on the activities they have placed their children in. As the author says, time doesn't discriminate, we all get the same 24 hour span. It's about how we use and prioritize those hours.
2) It is easy to get caught up in trying to create the next "big event" or "draw". There have been times in my ministry where parents will look at what other churches are doing and then relay that to me with the "subtle" hint that maybe we should be doing that as well. I hope that I have tried more often to give substance over flash.
3) Teens don't make church a priority because their parents don't make it a priority is something that we have seen for years. I'm so glad it was addressed here. When the parents don't make it a habit or a lifestyle to be in worship and active in the church body, the kids aren't either. After all, there isn't going to be any kind of blow back from the parents. Too often parents don't want to offend their kids when it comes to "making them" go to church. The same can't be said for practices, school or even interaction with friends.
4) It's true that kids don't need the church to connect with their peers anymore really. They spend time in school and practices with them almost every day. They are connected to them through Facebook, myspace, Twitter and texting. But my issue with this one is that these methods still allow kids to maintain distance from each other and don't necessarily lead to that kind of deep social interaction that we need. As the church one of our goals should be in striving to create that kind of interaction within community.
5) Until we as leaders are able to really model that change the kids will rarely model true change. We need to give them that example of how following Jesus and living out his example is world changing.
6) Great point about being real as opposed to trying to be "cool". Cool comes and goes, and if we are chasing that then we will never find rest. When we know who we are and what we are called to and allow ourselves to be real around these kids, that is where the difference is made. This is something that can take years to learn. It is that realness that will speak to the youth today (and in the future) more than our attempts to be like them. To take from a friend of mine, if the kids want a cool youth minister, they are the ones that make them cool.
That's it. I thought it was a great article and had some good points in it.
Grace, Peace and Love y'all.
Sleep Walking
The Boy is sleeping right now, which is good since it is after midnight and he is two. But that wasn't the case about 10 minutes ago. As I sat here looking at some things and texting a friend, I heard the sounds of The Boy starting to cry out. I knew that he was about to be awake and therefore hard to get back to sleep. So I started down the dark hallway that I could hear him coming down. Part way down I flipped on the light, picked him up and headed back to his bed to lay beside him as he went back to sleep. It is a feeling that I enjoy a great deal, having my children fall asleep pressed against me.
So that was the case, I heard a cry in the dark, I headed toward it, turned on the light and I took my son in my arms and them laid with him until he was out once again, And that is when I realized what I wanted to write about. Because the parallels seem lovely really.
The Boy woke up, found himself to be in the dark and it scared him a bit. So he did what he knows to do: He cried out and headed for Daddy. The girls were the same way (still are at times). Often times The Boy makes it into my bed, thus throwing a kink into my plans of sleeping for many hours at a time. However there are times when I am able to catch him first and go and lay with him and let him feel safe and secure.
I feel like the same is true with God. How many times do we find ourselves in a dark place that scares us (more than) just a little bit? And when we do, we tend to cry out and head toward Daddy for protection. And then we find ourselves being swept into His arms and hugged to His chest and protected and safe. Unlike myself, who tends to sleep through things like the crying out. God hears us every time. And when we cry out to Him and start toward Him, he is faithful to scoop us up into his arms and hold us close where we can be both warm and safe.
May you cry out to God in your times of trouble and may he be that protective Father for you when you do.
Grace, Peace, and Love y'all.
So that was the case, I heard a cry in the dark, I headed toward it, turned on the light and I took my son in my arms and them laid with him until he was out once again, And that is when I realized what I wanted to write about. Because the parallels seem lovely really.
The Boy woke up, found himself to be in the dark and it scared him a bit. So he did what he knows to do: He cried out and headed for Daddy. The girls were the same way (still are at times). Often times The Boy makes it into my bed, thus throwing a kink into my plans of sleeping for many hours at a time. However there are times when I am able to catch him first and go and lay with him and let him feel safe and secure.
I feel like the same is true with God. How many times do we find ourselves in a dark place that scares us (more than) just a little bit? And when we do, we tend to cry out and head toward Daddy for protection. And then we find ourselves being swept into His arms and hugged to His chest and protected and safe. Unlike myself, who tends to sleep through things like the crying out. God hears us every time. And when we cry out to Him and start toward Him, he is faithful to scoop us up into his arms and hold us close where we can be both warm and safe.
May you cry out to God in your times of trouble and may he be that protective Father for you when you do.
Grace, Peace, and Love y'all.
Wednesday, August 4, 2010
Used by God
So I was looking at Jesus Needs New PR today and this is what got my attention:
This is the kind of thing that drives me crazy. In this day and age, to have people who are still of this mindset like the guy in the video blows my mind. As far as I have ever been able to tell it all comes from the one bit of scripture where Paul tells Timothy that he doesn't allow women to speak and teach. The problem is that rather than looking at the cultural context of this we try and make this an overall decree for all women in all leadership positions. That is such a crock.
To claim that we serve this God who is bigger than anything we can even imagine, and then to try and limit who it is that He can call and use in ministry is ignorant. To claim that we believe that God can use anyone and anything, and then to say though that someone can't be used simply due to gender makes no sense. I go back to where Paul says that there is "no longer Jew or Gentile, slave or free, male or female; but Christ is all and in all; we are ONE in Christ" (Colossians 3:11 & Galatians 3:28 combined and paraphrased). When God calls someone to His service it no longer matters about gender or even orientation. All that matters is the call that God has placed on that person's life. It is not for the culture to determine what that call is, but rather it is between the Caller and the called.
God can use who he wants how he wants.
Grace, Peace and Love y'all.
This is the kind of thing that drives me crazy. In this day and age, to have people who are still of this mindset like the guy in the video blows my mind. As far as I have ever been able to tell it all comes from the one bit of scripture where Paul tells Timothy that he doesn't allow women to speak and teach. The problem is that rather than looking at the cultural context of this we try and make this an overall decree for all women in all leadership positions. That is such a crock.
To claim that we serve this God who is bigger than anything we can even imagine, and then to try and limit who it is that He can call and use in ministry is ignorant. To claim that we believe that God can use anyone and anything, and then to say though that someone can't be used simply due to gender makes no sense. I go back to where Paul says that there is "no longer Jew or Gentile, slave or free, male or female; but Christ is all and in all; we are ONE in Christ" (Colossians 3:11 & Galatians 3:28 combined and paraphrased). When God calls someone to His service it no longer matters about gender or even orientation. All that matters is the call that God has placed on that person's life. It is not for the culture to determine what that call is, but rather it is between the Caller and the called.
God can use who he wants how he wants.
Grace, Peace and Love y'all.
Wednesday, May 12, 2010
The Longest Journey
Living in Texas, and growing up in West Texas in particular, I'm no stranger to long trips. We routinely played football games in high school where we were driving 2+ hours to get there. On vacations with the family, we drove everywhere. It was too expensive to fly and Dad refused to do so anyway. So every time we went somewhere it was always by car: the Grand Canyon, Branson, Ohio. It didn't matter, we were driving there. And as you know in Texas it feels like at least half of the trip is actually spent in Texas. So long trips are nothing new for me.
There is a journey however that I have made or, more accurately, am making that has taken me pretty much all of my life, and to be honest there is no known end in sight. It is a journey that for so long I didn't even think about being on. It is that trip from Legalism, Literalism, Fundamentalism and Judgmentalism, to Grace and Love (Grace and Love sounds like it should be an actual town somewhere like Truth or Consequences, NM is). This is the longest, hardest journey that I have ever taken in my life, but I know that in the end it is well worth the time and expense of it all.
Each of the places along the road are difficult to be in, but oh they are so often even harder to leave. I get used to being in those places. It's as if I am a vagabond or nomad who needs to be on the move toward that final destination, but I have found work and stability in these other locales along the way.
I can look back now and see that I wasn't really meant to do more in each place other than set up camp for a bit and then move on, one step closer to my final destination. I am not meant to settle down in any of these places other than my final destination of Grace and Love. Yet sometimes I feel like I have been in some of the places long enough to have taken a census there and be counted as a part of the town's population. Part of the problem as well seems to be my willingness to do good enough in each place that I choose to build a nice summer home or perfect get-away. You know just in case I decide to move back to one of these places after I have retired.
Legalism is that place that tells me I have to be sure to keep all the rules that are ever put on me. It's really not enough though for me to try and do that alone. No, when it comes to legalism, I'm either the mayor, on his staff or at the least employed by the city. Therefore, it is my job to make sure that everyone else is following the rules as well. And when they aren't? Well I guess they are looking forward to getting that home with the really big fireplace (that's my hell reference by the way). When I've been here, it doesn't matter if I'm actually keeping the rules, but rather if everyone else is keeping them. It is such an easy place to get bogged down, because it sure seems to be in all black and white. And it doesn't take long for me to find my way back once I finally get a chance to leave...I don't even have to stop and ask for directions.
Literalism is the suburb where I live at times too. Of all of the four, this is the one that has actually been the easiest to get away from. I still like to go there, maybe to shoot a round of golf, maybe even more at times, but for the most part I understand that it is a place that is set up so people can understand better what God did, to help us wrap our minds around it. It's OK for me to keep this as more of a little bungalow than a full on home. I drop by at times but for the most part I am able to only go there when I need to.
Fundamentalism is that place that lures me in and that I at times have the hardest time shaking off. I guess I should think of it in this way: it's like your home town and how you just get so ready to get out of it, to get away from it because you've seen what it has to offer and you've done just about all of it. You want to get out, yet t here is something that seems to just keep you there. This is where I grew up-I was right and so many others were just wrong-but finally decided that it was time to move away and try something new.
Judgmentalism is the last place where I have spent time. Never am I able o be just passing through. I always have to stop and partake of the festivities in all these places. Judgmetalism is like the college town that lets me feel better about myself while also letting me look down on others for the things they have done that I consider to be really bad.
Finally there is Grace and Love. There are so many times that it still feels so very far away, like the road will never end. Thankfully there are always Grace and Love pit stops along the way where I can stop and be refreshed and reminded where I'm actually headed.With out those who knows how long it really take to get there. It's so far that at times it almost makes you want to stop and turn around and go back to where you came from, Legalism, Literalism,Fundamentalism and Judgmentalism. But there is hope, that just over the next hill you will catch a glimpse of Grace and Love and you will be able to get there and at that point end the journey, finally in that place that I want to be most of all. That place where I can relax and not worry about people doing "bad" things and people having to keep so many rules. In Grace and Love we are no longer tied to Literalism and we can do things in a way that works best for us, and not about what others are up to.
It is a long journey. In the end though, it will be well worth the time and effort and the uprooting and moving to be in that place that allows me to be who I am with out worrying. One of these days, I'm going to buy me a house there and retire. I can't wait for that day to get here.
Peace and Love y'all.
There is a journey however that I have made or, more accurately, am making that has taken me pretty much all of my life, and to be honest there is no known end in sight. It is a journey that for so long I didn't even think about being on. It is that trip from Legalism, Literalism, Fundamentalism and Judgmentalism, to Grace and Love (Grace and Love sounds like it should be an actual town somewhere like Truth or Consequences, NM is). This is the longest, hardest journey that I have ever taken in my life, but I know that in the end it is well worth the time and expense of it all.
Each of the places along the road are difficult to be in, but oh they are so often even harder to leave. I get used to being in those places. It's as if I am a vagabond or nomad who needs to be on the move toward that final destination, but I have found work and stability in these other locales along the way.
I can look back now and see that I wasn't really meant to do more in each place other than set up camp for a bit and then move on, one step closer to my final destination. I am not meant to settle down in any of these places other than my final destination of Grace and Love. Yet sometimes I feel like I have been in some of the places long enough to have taken a census there and be counted as a part of the town's population. Part of the problem as well seems to be my willingness to do good enough in each place that I choose to build a nice summer home or perfect get-away. You know just in case I decide to move back to one of these places after I have retired.
Legalism is that place that tells me I have to be sure to keep all the rules that are ever put on me. It's really not enough though for me to try and do that alone. No, when it comes to legalism, I'm either the mayor, on his staff or at the least employed by the city. Therefore, it is my job to make sure that everyone else is following the rules as well. And when they aren't? Well I guess they are looking forward to getting that home with the really big fireplace (that's my hell reference by the way). When I've been here, it doesn't matter if I'm actually keeping the rules, but rather if everyone else is keeping them. It is such an easy place to get bogged down, because it sure seems to be in all black and white. And it doesn't take long for me to find my way back once I finally get a chance to leave...I don't even have to stop and ask for directions.
Literalism is the suburb where I live at times too. Of all of the four, this is the one that has actually been the easiest to get away from. I still like to go there, maybe to shoot a round of golf, maybe even more at times, but for the most part I understand that it is a place that is set up so people can understand better what God did, to help us wrap our minds around it. It's OK for me to keep this as more of a little bungalow than a full on home. I drop by at times but for the most part I am able to only go there when I need to.
Fundamentalism is that place that lures me in and that I at times have the hardest time shaking off. I guess I should think of it in this way: it's like your home town and how you just get so ready to get out of it, to get away from it because you've seen what it has to offer and you've done just about all of it. You want to get out, yet t here is something that seems to just keep you there. This is where I grew up-I was right and so many others were just wrong-but finally decided that it was time to move away and try something new.
Judgmentalism is the last place where I have spent time. Never am I able o be just passing through. I always have to stop and partake of the festivities in all these places. Judgmetalism is like the college town that lets me feel better about myself while also letting me look down on others for the things they have done that I consider to be really bad.
Finally there is Grace and Love. There are so many times that it still feels so very far away, like the road will never end. Thankfully there are always Grace and Love pit stops along the way where I can stop and be refreshed and reminded where I'm actually headed.With out those who knows how long it really take to get there. It's so far that at times it almost makes you want to stop and turn around and go back to where you came from, Legalism, Literalism,Fundamentalism and Judgmentalism. But there is hope, that just over the next hill you will catch a glimpse of Grace and Love and you will be able to get there and at that point end the journey, finally in that place that I want to be most of all. That place where I can relax and not worry about people doing "bad" things and people having to keep so many rules. In Grace and Love we are no longer tied to Literalism and we can do things in a way that works best for us, and not about what others are up to.
It is a long journey. In the end though, it will be well worth the time and effort and the uprooting and moving to be in that place that allows me to be who I am with out worrying. One of these days, I'm going to buy me a house there and retire. I can't wait for that day to get here.
Peace and Love y'all.
Friday, May 7, 2010
Growtivation
Saw this today on Stuff Christians Like and thought it was fantastic. This is a video from North Point Media team. I hope you enjoy this:
"Sunday's Coming" Movie Trailer from North Point Media on Vimeo.
Man that is some funny stuff, and so very true too. I especially like the part about the offering and how we should "feel free to give if you feel led. That's between you and God...but we are tracking it." I also dig the whole making up new words and using them to catch on as the new Christian "buzz" words. I like the fact that this group is able to poke fun at the overall "megachurch" concept/model, especially since it looks like they are one. It's refreshing to see that happening. Peace and Love y'all.
"Sunday's Coming" Movie Trailer from North Point Media on Vimeo.
Man that is some funny stuff, and so very true too. I especially like the part about the offering and how we should "feel free to give if you feel led. That's between you and God...but we are tracking it." I also dig the whole making up new words and using them to catch on as the new Christian "buzz" words. I like the fact that this group is able to poke fun at the overall "megachurch" concept/model, especially since it looks like they are one. It's refreshing to see that happening. Peace and Love y'all.
Monday, April 19, 2010
Front, Back, Side-to-Side...Front Front Back Back Side-to-Side
I just today finished reading the book "Traveling Mercies" by Anne Lamott. It was an interesting book. I had known a little bit about her story and background and that was what had me interested in reading the book. Ms. Lamott was an atheist who eventually came to believe in God and then finally stepped into a relationship with Jesus. It is a story that Christians in particular love to hear, maybe (or most likely) as an "I told you so" type of thing. But that was what I knew of Anne Lamott before reading this book.
So it took me a bit by surprise when I started reading. It was an interesting book, but was not at all what I was expecting from a theological viewpoint of conservatism. In some ways that was very refreshing. I found grace in the pages of essays that she shared with her readers. I found that it didn't matter that she has a bit more liberal viewpoint of some things than I do...I can blame it on being raised in the San Francisco Bay area in the 1960s and 70s.
It did get me thinking though about a couple of things. In our current America, it seems that there are only two ways to go: liberal or conservative. Our politics are divided in this way, our thinking seems to be divided this way and even our churches tend to be split along these lines. Everything is either left or right, and whoever doesn't fall on your side of the line is wrong. Part of what gets me with this is how both sides have laid claim to God and where He stands (by the way, Lamott uses both pronouns when referring to God, as in He or She. This didn't bother me nearly as much as I thought it would). The problem is that both sides are trying to use him for their own gain and to justify their stances.
Here is what I know (or think I know): 1) I hate politics because the idea of doing things in a way that benefits yourself and select others rather than looking for the best solution for everyone is stupid (maybe that is just me), 2) God doesn't fall on either side of the party line. It sounds cliche I realize to say it, but God isn't Red or Blue, Republican or Democrat, Libertarian or Tea Party, Liberal or Conservative. God is simply God.
And here is the other thing: As followers of Christ, we are not called to be any of those things either. Jesus did not call us to follow a party or to pick a color, He called us to follow Him. In Matthew 4:19 Jesus says to Peter and Andrew "Come follow me, and I will make you fishers of men." Jesus calls us to follow him, and him alone. When we are seeking to do that, we will find that none of the rest matters. In both Galatians and Colossians 3 (28 in Galatians and 11 in Colossians) Paul writes that there is no longer a state of separation amongst those who claim Jesus as their Lord and Savior, but rather that we are all one in Christ. Our following Jesus should be bigger than any party affiliation or political ideals. That is what we are called to. In Acts 2 we learn that the early church was more concerned about trying to meet the needs of the people and they found favor by doing this. As the body of Christ it is time for us to eschew politics and simply do our best to follow Jesus. That is how we get on the road to restoring our nation. Peace and Love y'all.
So it took me a bit by surprise when I started reading. It was an interesting book, but was not at all what I was expecting from a theological viewpoint of conservatism. In some ways that was very refreshing. I found grace in the pages of essays that she shared with her readers. I found that it didn't matter that she has a bit more liberal viewpoint of some things than I do...I can blame it on being raised in the San Francisco Bay area in the 1960s and 70s.
It did get me thinking though about a couple of things. In our current America, it seems that there are only two ways to go: liberal or conservative. Our politics are divided in this way, our thinking seems to be divided this way and even our churches tend to be split along these lines. Everything is either left or right, and whoever doesn't fall on your side of the line is wrong. Part of what gets me with this is how both sides have laid claim to God and where He stands (by the way, Lamott uses both pronouns when referring to God, as in He or She. This didn't bother me nearly as much as I thought it would). The problem is that both sides are trying to use him for their own gain and to justify their stances.
Here is what I know (or think I know): 1) I hate politics because the idea of doing things in a way that benefits yourself and select others rather than looking for the best solution for everyone is stupid (maybe that is just me), 2) God doesn't fall on either side of the party line. It sounds cliche I realize to say it, but God isn't Red or Blue, Republican or Democrat, Libertarian or Tea Party, Liberal or Conservative. God is simply God.
And here is the other thing: As followers of Christ, we are not called to be any of those things either. Jesus did not call us to follow a party or to pick a color, He called us to follow Him. In Matthew 4:19 Jesus says to Peter and Andrew "Come follow me, and I will make you fishers of men." Jesus calls us to follow him, and him alone. When we are seeking to do that, we will find that none of the rest matters. In both Galatians and Colossians 3 (28 in Galatians and 11 in Colossians) Paul writes that there is no longer a state of separation amongst those who claim Jesus as their Lord and Savior, but rather that we are all one in Christ. Our following Jesus should be bigger than any party affiliation or political ideals. That is what we are called to. In Acts 2 we learn that the early church was more concerned about trying to meet the needs of the people and they found favor by doing this. As the body of Christ it is time for us to eschew politics and simply do our best to follow Jesus. That is how we get on the road to restoring our nation. Peace and Love y'all.
Monday, February 22, 2010
Love and Grace
There is peace of mind at last for congregations here in East Texas, at least that is what we have been told after the arrests of two men that are believed to have been responsible for 10 church burnings here in the Tyler area. Since January 1, 2010 these two individuals have been on an arson spree burning various churches in the area. Today, they were arrested and the East Texas "church" will now breathe a collective sigh of relief. I'm glad to hear that this seems to have finally come to an end as well. But here is my question and my real reason for writing about this. What should our response be to these two young men (they are 19 and 21 by the way)?
For starters, I know that there are going to be people who are angry about all of this. And that is a justifiable response I think. There seem to be certain things that you just don't mess with in a persons life, and their church is one of those things. So I think that one of the first responses will be anger, and wanting to know why?
We will call them "sick" or "deranged" of any other number of things to try and help us understand the why and to make it easier for us to "understand" why they would do what they did. I guess the question I have is are they? I do wonder what it is that would cause someone to be so frustrated with the church or with God that they would do this kind of thing, but I wonder about our label of "sick."
Here is what I think our response should be to all of this. I think that as the overall body of Christ, as the Church universal, it is up to us to show these two young men the Grace and Love that is in Christ. Should they have to pay for what they have done? Yes, there are still natural consequences for our sinful actions, even though Grace covers us. Yet, if we don't extend Grace and Love then we are adding fuel to the fire (no pun intended, I promise) of their already present frustrations concerning the Church. We will talk at length about how we will "pray" for them and that is good. But what we should really be doing is reaching out to them, showing them this Love and Grace that we have found.
I have no idea why they would do this kind of thing. From what I read, they attended a church in Ben Wheeler together. One of them was involved in a Bible club at some point. And yet somewhere along the way they became disenfranchised with the Church. I feel like there must have been some kind of frustration there to lead them on this path. Perhaps they encountered our humanity too often in the church rather than the Grace that we hope shines through us.
What they have done is awful, and I can find no justification for it regardless of what they may have felt about God or about church or organized religion. What I want to remember and what I want to express here is that now we have an opportunity to really be The Church. What they took were the buildings that housed a service. What they have given people is a chance to be the hands and feet of Christ outside of those walls. It is my prayer that we will take this opportunity and use it to expand the Kingdom of God rather than to shrink it down even further to the idea of us against the world. Peace and Love.
For starters, I know that there are going to be people who are angry about all of this. And that is a justifiable response I think. There seem to be certain things that you just don't mess with in a persons life, and their church is one of those things. So I think that one of the first responses will be anger, and wanting to know why?
We will call them "sick" or "deranged" of any other number of things to try and help us understand the why and to make it easier for us to "understand" why they would do what they did. I guess the question I have is are they? I do wonder what it is that would cause someone to be so frustrated with the church or with God that they would do this kind of thing, but I wonder about our label of "sick."
Here is what I think our response should be to all of this. I think that as the overall body of Christ, as the Church universal, it is up to us to show these two young men the Grace and Love that is in Christ. Should they have to pay for what they have done? Yes, there are still natural consequences for our sinful actions, even though Grace covers us. Yet, if we don't extend Grace and Love then we are adding fuel to the fire (no pun intended, I promise) of their already present frustrations concerning the Church. We will talk at length about how we will "pray" for them and that is good. But what we should really be doing is reaching out to them, showing them this Love and Grace that we have found.
I have no idea why they would do this kind of thing. From what I read, they attended a church in Ben Wheeler together. One of them was involved in a Bible club at some point. And yet somewhere along the way they became disenfranchised with the Church. I feel like there must have been some kind of frustration there to lead them on this path. Perhaps they encountered our humanity too often in the church rather than the Grace that we hope shines through us.
What they have done is awful, and I can find no justification for it regardless of what they may have felt about God or about church or organized religion. What I want to remember and what I want to express here is that now we have an opportunity to really be The Church. What they took were the buildings that housed a service. What they have given people is a chance to be the hands and feet of Christ outside of those walls. It is my prayer that we will take this opportunity and use it to expand the Kingdom of God rather than to shrink it down even further to the idea of us against the world. Peace and Love.
Wednesday, February 17, 2010
Lent
Well today is Ash Wednesday, so that means the beginning of Lent. Time to give up something for the next 40 days or so (until Easter at least I guess). I've done this in the past but to be honest not always very successfully. I will go for a little while and then end up breaking it for one lame reason or another. So this year I am going to really try to stick with my Lent. Here are 10 things that I considered for this year.
10) Hating on the Dallas Mavericks- This has got to be my least favorite team in pretty much any sport that I care about (and that is really saying something when you consider the Yankees, Patriots and Lakers are out there). I'm just not a fan of this team, and have even been known to use their name as a derogatory term. Alas, I'm afraid that this would be just too difficult for me to stick with for what is basically the remainder of the season.
9) Dating other girls- I suspect that this one doesn't actually count for two reasons: 1) I'm married and Roni would do me serious bodily harm, and 2) you should really give up something that you do anyway. To be honest, I wouldn't date anyone even if Roni was cool with it (which again she for sure is NOT).
8) Showering (or hygiene in general)- I do like to shower and bathe and brush my teeth and all those things, so to give it up would fit that requirement. However I don't think it would take long for people to beg me to break my Lent with this one, and I'm not sure that is a good thing.
7) Blogging- Really I'm not consistent enough right now for that to be a big deal. I don't think it would have the same effect to tell someone that I gave up blogging for Lent and them respond by asking something like "You blog? Who knew!"
6) Spending time with my kids- Again not a great idea. Roni would not go for it and I don't think that my kids would like the idea much either. But besides that, there are three of them, there's no escape anyway.
5) Going to bed late- I've tried this before when it wasn't Lent and I'm just not sure that I can do it. Come to think of it though, maybe that would be a good idea. Hmmm.
4) Talking- Just in general you know. I could do the whole monk thing and go for 40 days of silence. The main problems here are that I don't think people would leave me alone and would keep talking to me, speaking is part of my job, and I like to get to talk to my wife and kids too much.
3) Bathroom time- No way. Just not going to happen. First of all I don't think it would be looked at favorably for me to start using the trees behind the house as my spot. Secondly, well without this time, I don't know that I would ever be able to get away from the rest of the world. Third, I'm just not thinking that friends and family would be understanding of my suddenly deciding to wear Depends for 40 days.
2) Texting- Now were getting crazy. Without this, how in the world would I be able to communicate important messages to my youth and friends and family? Without this how would I get up to the minute reports about what's going on in the world of sports? And without this, how ever would I be able to get those great forwards about Jesus and how I'm ashamed of Him if I don't retext the message to at least 10 folks?
1) Giving stuff up- Let's be honest here. I'm not good at giving stuff up really, at least not like this. I once gave up the XBOX for Lent. I think that is the only time that I have stuck with it. I think the best thing I could give up is this idea that I have to give something up.
Well there it is. My list of possibilities for going without this Lenten season. Peace and Love y'all.
10) Hating on the Dallas Mavericks- This has got to be my least favorite team in pretty much any sport that I care about (and that is really saying something when you consider the Yankees, Patriots and Lakers are out there). I'm just not a fan of this team, and have even been known to use their name as a derogatory term. Alas, I'm afraid that this would be just too difficult for me to stick with for what is basically the remainder of the season.
9) Dating other girls- I suspect that this one doesn't actually count for two reasons: 1) I'm married and Roni would do me serious bodily harm, and 2) you should really give up something that you do anyway. To be honest, I wouldn't date anyone even if Roni was cool with it (which again she for sure is NOT).
8) Showering (or hygiene in general)- I do like to shower and bathe and brush my teeth and all those things, so to give it up would fit that requirement. However I don't think it would take long for people to beg me to break my Lent with this one, and I'm not sure that is a good thing.
7) Blogging- Really I'm not consistent enough right now for that to be a big deal. I don't think it would have the same effect to tell someone that I gave up blogging for Lent and them respond by asking something like "You blog? Who knew!"
6) Spending time with my kids- Again not a great idea. Roni would not go for it and I don't think that my kids would like the idea much either. But besides that, there are three of them, there's no escape anyway.
5) Going to bed late- I've tried this before when it wasn't Lent and I'm just not sure that I can do it. Come to think of it though, maybe that would be a good idea. Hmmm.
4) Talking- Just in general you know. I could do the whole monk thing and go for 40 days of silence. The main problems here are that I don't think people would leave me alone and would keep talking to me, speaking is part of my job, and I like to get to talk to my wife and kids too much.
3) Bathroom time- No way. Just not going to happen. First of all I don't think it would be looked at favorably for me to start using the trees behind the house as my spot. Secondly, well without this time, I don't know that I would ever be able to get away from the rest of the world. Third, I'm just not thinking that friends and family would be understanding of my suddenly deciding to wear Depends for 40 days.
2) Texting- Now were getting crazy. Without this, how in the world would I be able to communicate important messages to my youth and friends and family? Without this how would I get up to the minute reports about what's going on in the world of sports? And without this, how ever would I be able to get those great forwards about Jesus and how I'm ashamed of Him if I don't retext the message to at least 10 folks?
1) Giving stuff up- Let's be honest here. I'm not good at giving stuff up really, at least not like this. I once gave up the XBOX for Lent. I think that is the only time that I have stuck with it. I think the best thing I could give up is this idea that I have to give something up.
Well there it is. My list of possibilities for going without this Lenten season. Peace and Love y'all.
Tuesday, January 19, 2010
Proof of Life
Have you ever known that person that was all talk about stuff? You probably know the kind of person that I'm referring to here. It's the person that is more than happy to TELL you all about what great things they have done or can do, and yet you've never actually seen them DO these things that they are talking about being able to do. It can be pretty tiresome and annoying. After all, we want proof that they can do what they are saying they can do.
In Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (that's the 2nd book in case you didn't know that) there is a character by the name of Gilderoy Lockhart. Lockhart is a very famous, very good looking wizard. He has published numerous books about the things that he has done and on top of that he talks a big game ALL THE TIME. He is always telling various teachers what a great wizard he is and making wild claims about things. The only problem is that when push comes to shove, Lockhart is exposed for what he was: a fake. He has been able to talk big and fool many people, but when evidence was called for, when it was time to back up all the claims, Lockhart's facade crumbled.
The same holds true for us as Christ followers. It's one thing for us to talk a big game about following Jesus and being a Christian. But when it comes down to it, when it is time for us to go beyond the words, then what will people see? Will they see someone who actually lives out the faith that they claim to have? Or will they find a person that is a shell of what they have claimed to be? John the Baptist seems to have stated it best in Matthew 3:8. He said to PROVE by the way you LIVE that youthat you have this faith, not just by the words you say.
The Pharisees and the "religious" leaders that John was speakking to talked a big game when it came to faith in God. But what they said didn't match what they were doing. Is that what people will see in us? Or will they see an open, true, genuine faith that gives proof that we have turned from sin and are going hard after God? Peace and Love y'all.
In Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (that's the 2nd book in case you didn't know that) there is a character by the name of Gilderoy Lockhart. Lockhart is a very famous, very good looking wizard. He has published numerous books about the things that he has done and on top of that he talks a big game ALL THE TIME. He is always telling various teachers what a great wizard he is and making wild claims about things. The only problem is that when push comes to shove, Lockhart is exposed for what he was: a fake. He has been able to talk big and fool many people, but when evidence was called for, when it was time to back up all the claims, Lockhart's facade crumbled.
The same holds true for us as Christ followers. It's one thing for us to talk a big game about following Jesus and being a Christian. But when it comes down to it, when it is time for us to go beyond the words, then what will people see? Will they see someone who actually lives out the faith that they claim to have? Or will they find a person that is a shell of what they have claimed to be? John the Baptist seems to have stated it best in Matthew 3:8. He said to PROVE by the way you LIVE that youthat you have this faith, not just by the words you say.
The Pharisees and the "religious" leaders that John was speakking to talked a big game when it came to faith in God. But what they said didn't match what they were doing. Is that what people will see in us? Or will they see an open, true, genuine faith that gives proof that we have turned from sin and are going hard after God? Peace and Love y'all.
Wednesday, January 13, 2010
Too Light
Do you remember that old VBS song? You know the one:
So in Luke 11:33 Jesus talks about us having this light in our lives. He makes the point that no one lights a lamp and then goes and hides it, or puts it under a basket. That would be pointless really. Instead when you light a lamp like that you would make sure that it was in a place where the light could be seen and would be useful.
After I graduated from high school, my family moved from Midland to Snyder (that's all in West Texas in case you are wondering). One of the things that we did at our new house was to put up a basketball goal. The only real problem was that the only outside light we had didn't really shine bright enough and throw far enough for us to be able to play at night. Then one of my parents showed us something that we had. In the garage we had a much brighter work light that we could move out there. So we would plug in the work light, place it on the corner of the roof and be good go even though it was dark. I would have pointless for us to have this light and to take it out and plug it in and then stick it behind a wall on in the flower bed.
That is what Jesus is talking about here. As Christ's followers we have his light burning inside of us. But if we hide it or try to cover it up, what good is that to us or anyone else? This world is a dark place desperately in need of the Light, and it is up to us to shine that light for others to see. Peace and Love y'all.
This little light of mine, I'm gonna let it shine. This little light of mine, I'm gonna let it shine, let it shine, let it shine, let it shine. Hide it under a bushel-NO! I'm gonna let it shine. Hide it under a bushel-NO! I'm gonna let it shine, let it shine, let it shine. Won't let satan whufff it out, I'm gonna let it shine. Won't let satan whufff it out, I'm gonna let it shine, let it shine, let it shine.Man that was a great song for vacation Bible school and children's Sunday school and stuff like that. It made a point and it was fun to sing. I remember doing all the hand motions and stuff like that and getting up in church to sing this song.
So in Luke 11:33 Jesus talks about us having this light in our lives. He makes the point that no one lights a lamp and then goes and hides it, or puts it under a basket. That would be pointless really. Instead when you light a lamp like that you would make sure that it was in a place where the light could be seen and would be useful.
After I graduated from high school, my family moved from Midland to Snyder (that's all in West Texas in case you are wondering). One of the things that we did at our new house was to put up a basketball goal. The only real problem was that the only outside light we had didn't really shine bright enough and throw far enough for us to be able to play at night. Then one of my parents showed us something that we had. In the garage we had a much brighter work light that we could move out there. So we would plug in the work light, place it on the corner of the roof and be good go even though it was dark. I would have pointless for us to have this light and to take it out and plug it in and then stick it behind a wall on in the flower bed.
That is what Jesus is talking about here. As Christ's followers we have his light burning inside of us. But if we hide it or try to cover it up, what good is that to us or anyone else? This world is a dark place desperately in need of the Light, and it is up to us to shine that light for others to see. Peace and Love y'all.
Tuesday, January 5, 2010
Star Gazing
Sunday morning we were sitting in church. A pretty typical thing for me on a Sunday morning really. In case you were wondering, Sunday was also the 9th day of Christmas. So I got up to read the scripture for the day which was Matthew 2:1-12. It is the part of the story of Jesus' birth that talks about the Magi coming to see him, about how they saw the star in the West and followed it, possibly for two years, in order to worship the King of the Jews that had been born. It is a great story and has a lot of great things in it that we can and should consider.
Yesterday however a thought occurred to me that I had never had before about the star. First of all let me say to you, think about everything you have have heard or seen when it comes to the Star of Bethlehem. What comes to mind? Is it some small pin prick of light that just happens to shine a bit brighter, perhaps like the North star? It seems that on most occasions when we think about this star, or we see a rendering of it it is pretty much a huge shining beacon in the night sky lighting the way not only for the Magi but for the shepherds and even some incoming air traffic. It seems that everyone believes that this star was like a spot light marking the location of where Jesus was for all to see.
And that's fine, and maybe it was that way. But if that were the case, why didn't (or couldn't) Herod and all his advisers see it outside of their city? Maybe it was because they lived in the city and the street lights and office lights were just too bright, I don't know. All I know is that if this star was as big and bright as what we tend to believe, it seems like it should have been hard to miss, and at the least someone should have noticed and maybe pointed it out to Herod so they could investigate. As I thought about this question in the last 36+ hours I have come up with a couple of reasons.
1) Herod and his "people" were blinded to the star. I can't help but wonder if it was a hard heartedness that kept them from seeing this sign from God that he was doing something in their very midst. In Habakkuk 1:5 God says that he is going to be doing a new thing. Herod was not the kind of king who was really hip to doing "new things". I think it is possible that they were blinded in some way to what was going on right there around them. It's the same way that people are today. God can be moving in the very midst of people, and yet some are so hard hearted, so determined not to see or acknowledge Him that they are basically blind to what is being done.
2) They weren't really looking something to happen. When the Magi come to Herod and tell him about the star and why they are there, the first thing Herod does is to call aside his priests and teachers and scribes and ask them about where the Messiah is supposed to be born. They all know the prophecy and tell him where Jesus has been born. Yet even knowing this information it seems that they weren't really looking for something to happen. Again we are this way at times. We have the information, we know what we need to know, and yet we are not really looking for anything to go down, therefore we miss what God is doing.
3) They didn't know what to look FOR. When the Magi arrived they talked about how they had been watching the sky and the stars and had seen this star as a sign that the King of the Jews had been born. These were not men who claimed to follow the One True God as the Jews did. These were people who followed the patterns in the stars and relied on that to navigate through life. Yet in the end, they knew what they were looking for when it came to the star that they saw. They recognized that there was something special going on and they wanted to be a part of it. Herod and the others didn't even seem to know where to start with all this.
So where do we fall in all of this? Are we like Herod who was hard hearted and didn't want to see what God was doing or are we more like the Magi who saw that God was doing something and knew that whatever it was they wanted/needed to be a part of it? That is something that we have to figure out and decide for ourselves. What choice will we make? Peace and Love y'all.
Yesterday however a thought occurred to me that I had never had before about the star. First of all let me say to you, think about everything you have have heard or seen when it comes to the Star of Bethlehem. What comes to mind? Is it some small pin prick of light that just happens to shine a bit brighter, perhaps like the North star? It seems that on most occasions when we think about this star, or we see a rendering of it it is pretty much a huge shining beacon in the night sky lighting the way not only for the Magi but for the shepherds and even some incoming air traffic. It seems that everyone believes that this star was like a spot light marking the location of where Jesus was for all to see.
And that's fine, and maybe it was that way. But if that were the case, why didn't (or couldn't) Herod and all his advisers see it outside of their city? Maybe it was because they lived in the city and the street lights and office lights were just too bright, I don't know. All I know is that if this star was as big and bright as what we tend to believe, it seems like it should have been hard to miss, and at the least someone should have noticed and maybe pointed it out to Herod so they could investigate. As I thought about this question in the last 36+ hours I have come up with a couple of reasons.
1) Herod and his "people" were blinded to the star. I can't help but wonder if it was a hard heartedness that kept them from seeing this sign from God that he was doing something in their very midst. In Habakkuk 1:5 God says that he is going to be doing a new thing. Herod was not the kind of king who was really hip to doing "new things". I think it is possible that they were blinded in some way to what was going on right there around them. It's the same way that people are today. God can be moving in the very midst of people, and yet some are so hard hearted, so determined not to see or acknowledge Him that they are basically blind to what is being done.
2) They weren't really looking something to happen. When the Magi come to Herod and tell him about the star and why they are there, the first thing Herod does is to call aside his priests and teachers and scribes and ask them about where the Messiah is supposed to be born. They all know the prophecy and tell him where Jesus has been born. Yet even knowing this information it seems that they weren't really looking for something to happen. Again we are this way at times. We have the information, we know what we need to know, and yet we are not really looking for anything to go down, therefore we miss what God is doing.
3) They didn't know what to look FOR. When the Magi arrived they talked about how they had been watching the sky and the stars and had seen this star as a sign that the King of the Jews had been born. These were not men who claimed to follow the One True God as the Jews did. These were people who followed the patterns in the stars and relied on that to navigate through life. Yet in the end, they knew what they were looking for when it came to the star that they saw. They recognized that there was something special going on and they wanted to be a part of it. Herod and the others didn't even seem to know where to start with all this.
So where do we fall in all of this? Are we like Herod who was hard hearted and didn't want to see what God was doing or are we more like the Magi who saw that God was doing something and knew that whatever it was they wanted/needed to be a part of it? That is something that we have to figure out and decide for ourselves. What choice will we make? Peace and Love y'all.
Monday, September 14, 2009
You Decide
I don't really know how I want to start this particular blog. In fact, I'm not even 100% sure that I know what this is really going to be about. I have a couple of thoughts floating around in my brain like drift wood in the gutter after a thunderstorm has swept through. I have been thinking though and that is where this has all started.
I've been thinking about the difference in some of my friends. I have a couple of friends that have made changes to their belief systems. Both were people that, when I was in more regular and constant contact with them, were deeply devoted to following and serving Jesus. Now, I can't say that really about either one. One is now an agnostic and the other is...well I'm not sure. Both however have turned their backs on what they once professed to believe. One is the child of a pastor and one was once a campus ministry intern, youth pastor and missionary.
I have questions for them, and yet at this point they remained unasked. I want to know what it was that brought about the changes in their lives, what made them turn their backs on that which they once professed to believe so strongly. What kind of experience did they have that led them to this place and point in their lives. These are the things that I would like to know, to help me understand.
I mention this because I was thinking about one of my cousins today. He and his wife were supposed to have their first baby this coming February, and yet have found out that there is something wrong, that the baby, a girl, has a rare disorder which will steal life from her and joy from her expectant parents.
I mention this because I have a friend who lost his baby boy only minutes after he was born. He held him in his arms for mere moments before he was gone, back to eternity, back to the arms of Jesus.
I mention this because I have other friends who have gone through multiple attempts to start a family and have just now in the last few months seen this hope of blessing come to pass.
I mention this because through all of these experiences, the faith of these people has been shaken no doubt, but it has remained. They have chosen to lean further into the arms of Jesus for comfort and peace (even when it seemed that they would not find it, even there)...they have not turned away.
In this end I believe that it comes down to a choice that we make. This thing we call faith, it is a choice that we make. And the thing about it is, we must make this choice each and every day, to walk with Jesus, trusting in him and in God, believing that even when there seems to be no obvious evidence of his presence in our surroundings and situations, that he is there. We choose to believe, even when God is silent in our lives.
It is a daily choice that we make. It is a choice that we make not only in the times when things are good and easy. No, we must make the choice even on the days when it seems that all hope is lost, or was never there in the first place.
Joshua 24:15 says to "choose this day whom you will serve." As I have thought about that I see that everyday is "this day" and we must choose whom it is we will serve. There will always be times that are good and there will always be times that are hard or even seem impossible. We must choose each day whom we will serve. Will it be God, even in the times that he seems to be silent? Or will we choose to serve our circumstances and situations and bow before them and let them lead and guide us through the day?
Hebrews 11:1 says that "Faith is be sure of what we hope for, and certain of what we can not see." Will we choose each day that sureness and certainty, or will we choose to fall away into hopelessness and uncertainty? The choice is ours. Peace and Love y'all.
I've been thinking about the difference in some of my friends. I have a couple of friends that have made changes to their belief systems. Both were people that, when I was in more regular and constant contact with them, were deeply devoted to following and serving Jesus. Now, I can't say that really about either one. One is now an agnostic and the other is...well I'm not sure. Both however have turned their backs on what they once professed to believe. One is the child of a pastor and one was once a campus ministry intern, youth pastor and missionary.
I have questions for them, and yet at this point they remained unasked. I want to know what it was that brought about the changes in their lives, what made them turn their backs on that which they once professed to believe so strongly. What kind of experience did they have that led them to this place and point in their lives. These are the things that I would like to know, to help me understand.
I mention this because I was thinking about one of my cousins today. He and his wife were supposed to have their first baby this coming February, and yet have found out that there is something wrong, that the baby, a girl, has a rare disorder which will steal life from her and joy from her expectant parents.
I mention this because I have a friend who lost his baby boy only minutes after he was born. He held him in his arms for mere moments before he was gone, back to eternity, back to the arms of Jesus.
I mention this because I have other friends who have gone through multiple attempts to start a family and have just now in the last few months seen this hope of blessing come to pass.
I mention this because through all of these experiences, the faith of these people has been shaken no doubt, but it has remained. They have chosen to lean further into the arms of Jesus for comfort and peace (even when it seemed that they would not find it, even there)...they have not turned away.
In this end I believe that it comes down to a choice that we make. This thing we call faith, it is a choice that we make. And the thing about it is, we must make this choice each and every day, to walk with Jesus, trusting in him and in God, believing that even when there seems to be no obvious evidence of his presence in our surroundings and situations, that he is there. We choose to believe, even when God is silent in our lives.
It is a daily choice that we make. It is a choice that we make not only in the times when things are good and easy. No, we must make the choice even on the days when it seems that all hope is lost, or was never there in the first place.
Joshua 24:15 says to "choose this day whom you will serve." As I have thought about that I see that everyday is "this day" and we must choose whom it is we will serve. There will always be times that are good and there will always be times that are hard or even seem impossible. We must choose each day whom we will serve. Will it be God, even in the times that he seems to be silent? Or will we choose to serve our circumstances and situations and bow before them and let them lead and guide us through the day?
Hebrews 11:1 says that "Faith is be sure of what we hope for, and certain of what we can not see." Will we choose each day that sureness and certainty, or will we choose to fall away into hopelessness and uncertainty? The choice is ours. Peace and Love y'all.
Thursday, April 30, 2009
Shapeless
We have been going over Revelation during our Wednesday night youth time. Last Wednesday (April 22), we covered chapter 4. If you're not sure what is in that chapter, it is where John has a vision of the throne room of God in Heaven. He describes God in terms of color and sound rather than with shapes and forms. I had never thought about God like that before.
We seem to get caught up rather often on God being not just a man, but a white man, or an old man or a man in the clouds, or the man upstairs. Really when you think about some of those things they are kind of limiting. We tend to make God in our own image rather than realize that we are made in His image. When we start putting all these terms on God it can begin to put limits on what we allow Him to do in our lives.
(Now, don’t misunderstand me on this. For our minds to be able to understand and grasp God we have to use terms that we can understand in order to comprehend Him [by the way the male pronoun is really more generic than anything]. We refer to God in terms of gender I believe more from a relational aspect than from an actual gender designation. If we referred to God as It, that would take all the relationship out of things. Think about it, when we refer to our possessions, we call them “It”, when we refer to a person, we use a descriptive gender pronoun. That has as much to do with our relationship to that person as it does anything else. Granted we will call an unborn baby an it when we don’t know the sex, but that is due more to the fact that we don’t yet have a relationship with that baby. Once we know the sex, we refer to the baby as he or she him or her.)
Ok, I say all of that to say that in order for us to understand God, we first have to personify God in our minds. However God is not limited by the ways that we personify Him. It should be our goal to realize that even though we have a need to think of God in such ways, God is actually beyond those limits, and if we try to confine him to just those limits that is where we begin to have problems in our relationships with both God and others.
So here is my challenge to you: Begin to think of God, as John says in 1 John 4, as Love rather than as just a personification and remember that Love, as it is laid out in 1 Corinthians 13, is limitless and really has no set form or boundary or gender. When we can do this we will begin to see our relationships differently and we can change begin to change the world. Peace and Love y’all.
Not A Man
Here is a music video that I saw/heard today. I think that it is pretty great. Pretty straight forward it would seem. It is by The Michael Gungor Band. I hope you enjoy and that the words will speak some Truth to you as you listen and watch.
Peace and Love Y'all.
Peace and Love Y'all.
Friday, April 17, 2009
Just a smidgen
Do you ever feel small? I mean, have you ever really stopped to think about how small we really are in the over all scheme of things? When you think about it, it can be a little bit daunting really, especially if you consider how big so many other things are.
I got a tweet earlier from one of my favorite authors, Don Miller. Granted I am just one person who happens to be following him on Twitter, and I for sure don't know him (but I do think it would be dang cool if I did), but it still is cool to get updates from him. Anyway he posted something about the entire cosmos that made me start thinking tonight. Check it out, cause it's really pretty cool.
Anyway, he added this verse to it: "What is man that you are mindful of him; the son of man that you care about him?" (Psalm 8:4) That is a question that I first heard nearly 13 years ago. I was listening to the song "God" by Rebecca St. James and that was in the lyrics. It made me stop and really think about it. What are we that God is mindful of us? Then of course when you look at the picture from that link there, you start to really wonder about our place in the cosmos. We think that we are big, and yet the images clearly show us just how small we are as a planet, much less as inhabitants of that planet.
So what is all of this? I am just going on about how little we are? No. See all those years ago as I listened to that song in my car (in cassette form to be sure) I asked God that same question. "God what am I that you are mindful of me, that you care about me?" I was curious, especially when you consider the size of everything. And as I drove a little further, I reached a point that I had to pull over on Interstate 20 between Big Spring and Stanton in order to write down the answer that I heard that day.
I felt like God spoke to me telling me that what made Him mindful of me was the simple fact that I was his creation. He had created me, and in the same way that an artist does not create something and then just turn away from it, that is what it is like with Him. He has invested himself in me and because of that he cares for and is mindful of me. I admit I can understand that so much better now that I have children. I am invested in those children...I could never not care for and be mindful of them. God, the same one that I believe is responsible for all the things in that picture, CARES FOR ME. Wow. I mean really, wow. As I sit here and think about it, it blows my mind.
So even though we are really very small in the over all scheme of things when it comes to created things, we have tremendous value to the one who created us. God is God of the huge things of the (seemingly) eternal cosmos, and yet he is also the God of the small things, like me. Peace and Love y'all.
I got a tweet earlier from one of my favorite authors, Don Miller. Granted I am just one person who happens to be following him on Twitter, and I for sure don't know him (but I do think it would be dang cool if I did), but it still is cool to get updates from him. Anyway he posted something about the entire cosmos that made me start thinking tonight. Check it out, cause it's really pretty cool.
Anyway, he added this verse to it: "What is man that you are mindful of him; the son of man that you care about him?" (Psalm 8:4) That is a question that I first heard nearly 13 years ago. I was listening to the song "God" by Rebecca St. James and that was in the lyrics. It made me stop and really think about it. What are we that God is mindful of us? Then of course when you look at the picture from that link there, you start to really wonder about our place in the cosmos. We think that we are big, and yet the images clearly show us just how small we are as a planet, much less as inhabitants of that planet.
So what is all of this? I am just going on about how little we are? No. See all those years ago as I listened to that song in my car (in cassette form to be sure) I asked God that same question. "God what am I that you are mindful of me, that you care about me?" I was curious, especially when you consider the size of everything. And as I drove a little further, I reached a point that I had to pull over on Interstate 20 between Big Spring and Stanton in order to write down the answer that I heard that day.
I felt like God spoke to me telling me that what made Him mindful of me was the simple fact that I was his creation. He had created me, and in the same way that an artist does not create something and then just turn away from it, that is what it is like with Him. He has invested himself in me and because of that he cares for and is mindful of me. I admit I can understand that so much better now that I have children. I am invested in those children...I could never not care for and be mindful of them. God, the same one that I believe is responsible for all the things in that picture, CARES FOR ME. Wow. I mean really, wow. As I sit here and think about it, it blows my mind.
So even though we are really very small in the over all scheme of things when it comes to created things, we have tremendous value to the one who created us. God is God of the huge things of the (seemingly) eternal cosmos, and yet he is also the God of the small things, like me. Peace and Love y'all.
Sunday, April 12, 2009
Ask Not...
I have been reading a book lately that I really like. I should actually say that I am re-reading a book that I really like. The book is Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, and I think it is just about my favorite book of the entire seven book series. This is about the fifth time that I have read it. Roni has always wanted to know what it is about this book that I seem to like so much. To her it is one of her least favorites. It's the longest book of the series and to her it just takes a while to really get going.
For me it has the character that I despise more than any other in the entire series...even more than Voldemort and he is THE bad guy. The character is Delores Jane Umbridge. She is from the Ministry of Magic and comes to Hogwarts as the Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher. The thing is that she is horrible and not just as a teacher. Overall, she is just bad. On top of this, the Ministry is horrible in this book as well. They have decided that it is time for them to take a more "active" role in what goes on at Hogwarts in this book and do so by implementing policies that take away from the students and other teachers. At one point, in a DADA class, Umbridge tells one student to just do her work and don't ask questions. Much of this is based on the Ministry refusing to admit that Voldemort has returned at the end of book four. In the end, a group of students decide to form a "club" and learn defense on their own. It's a great book in my opinion.
The reason that I bring this all up is because it makes me think of the Church in some ways. Don't take this the wrong way, I don't mean all churches by an stretch of the imagination. But being from the Biblebelt and all, I have had some experience with the kind of churches that come to mind. It's the kind of place that doesn't like it when people as questions about faith. It is the kind of place where you are not encouraged to really figure things out for yourself. It is this way and that's it, just accept it and go on. As I read The Order of the Phoenix the other day, this is what came to mind.
First there is the Ministry of Magic. By all accounts it has lost it's focus. It is no longer doing what it was created to do, which is to help guide the magical world. They have lost their focus but they don't want to hear this. When they are confronted with the truth, they turn a blind eye and a deaf ear and do their best to make others the target. They have become power hungry. Those who have gold to give are able to receive a certain amount of influence. This reminds me of the stories that we hear in history of the Church. Priests reaching a point where they believe themselves to be a bigger deal than the Bride of Christ; rich people and nobles gaining special favor in the church because of who they are and what they are able to give in terms of money. This is the problem in the fifth book.
By the middle of the book, a group of students who believe the truth have decided to split off and form their own defense group. They are going against what the Ministry says that they can do, and yet they are doing and thinking for themselves. They will no longer just take what the Ministry says they have to do. It makes me think of when Martin Luther split from the church, when the Wesley brothers chose to do their own thing. Throughout history there are groups who break away from the company line and follow what they know to be the Truth. They realize that it is ok to ask questions and to think for themselves and to figure out this thing called faith. After all, faith is our first line of defense against the dark arts (sorry I knew that was dripping in cheese when I wrote, but I bowed to the temptation anyway).
Here is the comparison that I come up with for all of this. In this book, the Ministry is like the Church in Ephesus from Revelation chapter 2. The Risen Christ tells the church there that they are doing all the right work, but they have lost their focus, lost their forst love. This is how I would compare the Ministry. They are doing some things that they should be doing, but they have lost their focus which is to protect the people of the magical world. At times we as the Church are the same way. We lose our focus and forget the reason that we do the things we do. I pray that now, in this season where we celebrate the power, love grace, majesty and authority of the Risen Christ that we will remember why it is we do the things we do and for whom we do them. Peace and Love y'all.
For me it has the character that I despise more than any other in the entire series...even more than Voldemort and he is THE bad guy. The character is Delores Jane Umbridge. She is from the Ministry of Magic and comes to Hogwarts as the Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher. The thing is that she is horrible and not just as a teacher. Overall, she is just bad. On top of this, the Ministry is horrible in this book as well. They have decided that it is time for them to take a more "active" role in what goes on at Hogwarts in this book and do so by implementing policies that take away from the students and other teachers. At one point, in a DADA class, Umbridge tells one student to just do her work and don't ask questions. Much of this is based on the Ministry refusing to admit that Voldemort has returned at the end of book four. In the end, a group of students decide to form a "club" and learn defense on their own. It's a great book in my opinion.
The reason that I bring this all up is because it makes me think of the Church in some ways. Don't take this the wrong way, I don't mean all churches by an stretch of the imagination. But being from the Biblebelt and all, I have had some experience with the kind of churches that come to mind. It's the kind of place that doesn't like it when people as questions about faith. It is the kind of place where you are not encouraged to really figure things out for yourself. It is this way and that's it, just accept it and go on. As I read The Order of the Phoenix the other day, this is what came to mind.
First there is the Ministry of Magic. By all accounts it has lost it's focus. It is no longer doing what it was created to do, which is to help guide the magical world. They have lost their focus but they don't want to hear this. When they are confronted with the truth, they turn a blind eye and a deaf ear and do their best to make others the target. They have become power hungry. Those who have gold to give are able to receive a certain amount of influence. This reminds me of the stories that we hear in history of the Church. Priests reaching a point where they believe themselves to be a bigger deal than the Bride of Christ; rich people and nobles gaining special favor in the church because of who they are and what they are able to give in terms of money. This is the problem in the fifth book.
By the middle of the book, a group of students who believe the truth have decided to split off and form their own defense group. They are going against what the Ministry says that they can do, and yet they are doing and thinking for themselves. They will no longer just take what the Ministry says they have to do. It makes me think of when Martin Luther split from the church, when the Wesley brothers chose to do their own thing. Throughout history there are groups who break away from the company line and follow what they know to be the Truth. They realize that it is ok to ask questions and to think for themselves and to figure out this thing called faith. After all, faith is our first line of defense against the dark arts (sorry I knew that was dripping in cheese when I wrote, but I bowed to the temptation anyway).
Here is the comparison that I come up with for all of this. In this book, the Ministry is like the Church in Ephesus from Revelation chapter 2. The Risen Christ tells the church there that they are doing all the right work, but they have lost their focus, lost their forst love. This is how I would compare the Ministry. They are doing some things that they should be doing, but they have lost their focus which is to protect the people of the magical world. At times we as the Church are the same way. We lose our focus and forget the reason that we do the things we do. I pray that now, in this season where we celebrate the power, love grace, majesty and authority of the Risen Christ that we will remember why it is we do the things we do and for whom we do them. Peace and Love y'all.
Thursday, March 26, 2009
How He Loves
This past summer at church camp we did this song called How He Loves. It was an awesome song. You know how it is when you are in worship and there is one particular song that just really stirs you? That is what this song was like for me. Every time we would sing this song, there was something that would just resonate deep in my being.
I have looked for this song ever since then but I'd had no real luck in finding it. Until last week, a young lady that I know had a line of it as her status on Facebook so she was able to hook me up with the name of the artist as well as the name of the song and from there I was able to find it. Now I would like to share the words with you.
How He Loves
John Mark McMillan
He is jealous for me, Love's a hurricane, I am a tree,
Bending beneath the weight of His wind and Mercy.
When all of the sudden I'm unaware of these afflictions eclipsed by glory,
and I realize just how beautiful You are, and great Your affections are for me.
Oh how He loves us so,
Oh how He loves us,
How He loves us so.
Yea He loves us,
Oh how He loves us,
Oh how He loves us,
Oh how He loves.
So we are His portion and He is our prize,
Drawn to Redemption by the Grace in His eyes,
If Grace is an ocean we're all sinking.
So Heaven meets earth like a sloppy wet kiss,
And my heart turns violently inside of my chest.
I don't have time to maintain these regrets when I think about the way...
He Loves us,
Oh how He Loves us,
Oh how He Loves us,
Oh, how He Loves.
He Loves us,
Oh how He Loves us,
Oh how He Loves us,
He Loves us.
I also wanted to post the video of the song as well. I will admit that it is a little bit long, but the first part of it is John Mark McMillan explaining why he wrote the song and what it is all about for him. I hope that if you watch it and listen to the song that it will move you like it has moved so many others. Peace and Love y'all.
I have looked for this song ever since then but I'd had no real luck in finding it. Until last week, a young lady that I know had a line of it as her status on Facebook so she was able to hook me up with the name of the artist as well as the name of the song and from there I was able to find it. Now I would like to share the words with you.
How He Loves
John Mark McMillan
He is jealous for me, Love's a hurricane, I am a tree,
Bending beneath the weight of His wind and Mercy.
When all of the sudden I'm unaware of these afflictions eclipsed by glory,
and I realize just how beautiful You are, and great Your affections are for me.
Oh how He loves us so,
Oh how He loves us,
How He loves us so.
Yea He loves us,
Oh how He loves us,
Oh how He loves us,
Oh how He loves.
So we are His portion and He is our prize,
Drawn to Redemption by the Grace in His eyes,
If Grace is an ocean we're all sinking.
So Heaven meets earth like a sloppy wet kiss,
And my heart turns violently inside of my chest.
I don't have time to maintain these regrets when I think about the way...
He Loves us,
Oh how He Loves us,
Oh how He Loves us,
Oh, how He Loves.
He Loves us,
Oh how He Loves us,
Oh how He Loves us,
He Loves us.
I also wanted to post the video of the song as well. I will admit that it is a little bit long, but the first part of it is John Mark McMillan explaining why he wrote the song and what it is all about for him. I hope that if you watch it and listen to the song that it will move you like it has moved so many others. Peace and Love y'all.
Wednesday, March 11, 2009
In or Out
So I was talking to a friend of mine today and we were discussing John 3. He will be preaching on this passage in a couple of weeks and we were talking about the direction that he might want to take with it. After bandying about the idea of using one of the more obscure verses as his sole point of reference, or listing one as the verse to have read and then going totally away from it, we talked about something with some meat.
The question that was posed was about Nicodemus. Nick came to Jesus and questioned him about who he was and what he was teaching. Not that big a deal really, seems that people wanted to know this about Jesus, which would help explain why there were always such large crowds around Jesus. But if you read the first half of the chapter with Nick's story you see will see what it was that had us talking.
Nicodemus was a pharisee you see. So pretty much by this time the pharisees weren't so sure that they liked what Jesus was doing. He was ruffling some feathers and going if directions that they didn't really like. The thing is, Nicodemus didn't seem to be completely convinced that what he was saying was bad. So he went to talk to him about it...at night...when no one would see him talking to Jesus. Seems kinda weird right?
So the question was "Why do you think Nicodemus went to Jesus at night?" The answer seems pretty obvious at first glance, right? He was a pharisee and was afraid of what the other pharisees would think if they knew he was consorting with the "enemy" as it were. I mean, if you don't want people to know what you are doing, you do it under the cover of darkness. So the first thought is that he was scared of what the others would think if they knew.
This is the answered that I posed to the stated question. It makes sense. Damon then posed a different answer to his question. He said "What if the reason that he went at night (other than fear) was to be able to avoid having to share Jesus with any of the crowds? Or some combination of the two."
Now this was an insight that I had never considered before. It was something that had not even crossed my mind as his reason. We always hear about how he didn't want to upset his standing with the pharisees or disturb the status quo. But what if there was another motive to why he went at night? What if it was because he didn't want to have to share his time with Jesus?
It would make sense really when you think about it. The crowds that followed Jesus were huge. Can you imagine what it would be like to try and be able to even get close to him? And as far as getting to ask him a question and get to have some discussion about it? Good luck with that. So going when the crowds are gone makes a great deal of sense.
Aren't we all just like Nicodemus though at times? We are selfish with Jesus. We don't want to share him with others. Or we want to "try out" Jesus but we don't really want anyone to know that we are. We are scared and we want to be hidden...just like Nick. Jesus talks about how things that are done in the dark will come to the light. To this particular situation it's like he is saying that it's fine to start off secretly, but at some point you have got to take a stand one way or another. You're either in or your not.
We have to make a choice at some point...will we continue to go about in the dark, hoping no one knows we are actually into Jesus, or will we step into the light and live our faith for others to see. Nicodemus' story ends (for us at least) with him being the lone voice to oppose the "trial" of Jesus (that we know of) and he is there to help take him from the cross and bury him. Nicodemus was willing to step out of the dark into the light, will we be willing to do the same? Peace and Love y'all.
The question that was posed was about Nicodemus. Nick came to Jesus and questioned him about who he was and what he was teaching. Not that big a deal really, seems that people wanted to know this about Jesus, which would help explain why there were always such large crowds around Jesus. But if you read the first half of the chapter with Nick's story you see will see what it was that had us talking.
Nicodemus was a pharisee you see. So pretty much by this time the pharisees weren't so sure that they liked what Jesus was doing. He was ruffling some feathers and going if directions that they didn't really like. The thing is, Nicodemus didn't seem to be completely convinced that what he was saying was bad. So he went to talk to him about it...at night...when no one would see him talking to Jesus. Seems kinda weird right?
So the question was "Why do you think Nicodemus went to Jesus at night?" The answer seems pretty obvious at first glance, right? He was a pharisee and was afraid of what the other pharisees would think if they knew he was consorting with the "enemy" as it were. I mean, if you don't want people to know what you are doing, you do it under the cover of darkness. So the first thought is that he was scared of what the others would think if they knew.
This is the answered that I posed to the stated question. It makes sense. Damon then posed a different answer to his question. He said "What if the reason that he went at night (other than fear) was to be able to avoid having to share Jesus with any of the crowds? Or some combination of the two."
Now this was an insight that I had never considered before. It was something that had not even crossed my mind as his reason. We always hear about how he didn't want to upset his standing with the pharisees or disturb the status quo. But what if there was another motive to why he went at night? What if it was because he didn't want to have to share his time with Jesus?
It would make sense really when you think about it. The crowds that followed Jesus were huge. Can you imagine what it would be like to try and be able to even get close to him? And as far as getting to ask him a question and get to have some discussion about it? Good luck with that. So going when the crowds are gone makes a great deal of sense.
Aren't we all just like Nicodemus though at times? We are selfish with Jesus. We don't want to share him with others. Or we want to "try out" Jesus but we don't really want anyone to know that we are. We are scared and we want to be hidden...just like Nick. Jesus talks about how things that are done in the dark will come to the light. To this particular situation it's like he is saying that it's fine to start off secretly, but at some point you have got to take a stand one way or another. You're either in or your not.
We have to make a choice at some point...will we continue to go about in the dark, hoping no one knows we are actually into Jesus, or will we step into the light and live our faith for others to see. Nicodemus' story ends (for us at least) with him being the lone voice to oppose the "trial" of Jesus (that we know of) and he is there to help take him from the cross and bury him. Nicodemus was willing to step out of the dark into the light, will we be willing to do the same? Peace and Love y'all.
Monday, March 9, 2009
Found
So I was in Ohio last week and I was listening to this new radio station (for me) and I heard this song on there on multiple occasions. I'm sure that you have probably heard this if you listen to the radio at all. The song is called You Found Me by The Fray and it is incredible. I just really dig what he is saying in his lyrics. If you haven't heard it yet click on the video below and give it a listen real quick.
The words of this song seem to express what we all feel when tragedy hits us. There is that sense of pain and doubt anger and we wonder where was God in all this crap that is happening. We want to have our moment to stand before God-with-skin-on and ask the question "Where were you when this happened in my life?"
The thing is, that's fine. God is able to take that from us. It will not alter our standing with Him if we have questions about where he is in the darkest of times in our lives. That is part of what it means to have faith though, to believe and understand that there will be times when it feels and seems that God is a long way off, yet we believe and trust anyway. It brings to mind the story in Genesis of Jacob wrestling with the angel.
Here is what Isaac Slade of The Fray had to say about his lyrics:
I think that is a place that most of us have been. Here is one more quote from Slade about the song:
For all of you out there that might be feeling like this right now, know that there is hope. Sometimes you just have to really look to find it. Peace and Love y'all.
The words of this song seem to express what we all feel when tragedy hits us. There is that sense of pain and doubt anger and we wonder where was God in all this crap that is happening. We want to have our moment to stand before God-with-skin-on and ask the question "Where were you when this happened in my life?"
The thing is, that's fine. God is able to take that from us. It will not alter our standing with Him if we have questions about where he is in the darkest of times in our lives. That is part of what it means to have faith though, to believe and understand that there will be times when it feels and seems that God is a long way off, yet we believe and trust anyway. It brings to mind the story in Genesis of Jacob wrestling with the angel.
Here is what Isaac Slade of The Fray had to say about his lyrics:
"I dreamt I ran into God on a street corner. He looked like Bruce Springsteen and he was smoking a cigarette. I had it out with him and asked 'Where were you when all this bad stuff was happening to those very undeserving, good people?'" Slade, who's Christian faith is very important to him added, "There were tough times. I was questioning my faith, angry at things that had happened in my life and in the lives of my friends. A friend had suffered a miscarriage, I had lost my grandfather. I was angry and the song felt angry and hopeless too. I imagined what I'd say to God, in the face of all the crap my friends have gone through in the last couple of years." (www.songfacts.com)
I think that is a place that most of us have been. Here is one more quote from Slade about the song:
"It demands so much of my faith to keep believing, keep hoping in the unseen. Sometimes the tunnel has a light at the end, but usually they just look black as night. This song is about that feeling and the hope I still have, buried deep in my chest."
For all of you out there that might be feeling like this right now, know that there is hope. Sometimes you just have to really look to find it. Peace and Love y'all.
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