I'M NOT DEAD...despite rumors to the contrary!

My assumption would be that IF I had any regular readers of this blog they would have thought that I would have died and not left a forwarding address.  Well...if stress kills than I surely must be standing on the precipice...our lives continue to be a study in chaos, instability, and transition (even more than USUAL). All that being said, with part-time (actually full time but with part-time pay) ministry and teaching classes online I just don't have the energy any more nor do I feel like I have a lot left to share that matters.

Since the last post I have failed to find a suitable full-time ministry, sent one of my children off to college, grown a years older (at least as far as the calendar goes--seems like 10 to me), and I have continued to struggle with health issues that would have been taken care of had I either been on welfare or had insurance...but in our world today there is really no place for a person who is REALLY trying and simply failing---you either have to be "in the system" or succeeding enough to afford life (of which I am neither). If the price of food, gasoline, and the price of utilities continues to go up we will all soon be loosing weight, walking, and staying either a LOT cooler or a LOT warmer (depending on the present temps).

MANY friends who believe in my ministry are helping us take a mission trip to Haiti next month.  We could not afford to go without their support.  Unless we run into other health issues that prevent the trip we will leave the US for seven days in Haiti early next month.  It will be a welcome change from what has become our routine.  It is life-changing!  While it is easy to complain and feel sorry for oneself in light of their own situation and when measuring one against other's situations...it is quite impossible to be in someplace like Haiti and feel sorry for oneself.  Even the poorest among our social classes in the US would be considered wealthy among the Haitians...and they have no government support so there is no way that they can "work the system"--they just live to survive one more day eking out an existence all on their own.  I would say that it will be good for me to get a dose of reality.  

God has a way of doing that...just when we think we have reached the end of our rope, he sends us down a longer rope to have a look at someone else's despair...it has never been a comparison game...we must learn, as Paul did, to "be content in all situations" and to know that "HIS grace is sufficient for me."

The harder I kick...the more ground I lose...but apparently I am not learning many lessons.  It shouldn't be this hard, and the struggle shouldn't tax me like this after all these years.  Maybe I am just weary of the fight.  I just want to go home...wherever that is.

"I believe...help me in my unbelief"

The Jesus I Can Live Without: Pt 2

Here we are in the midst of another election year...all eyes are on the races...but frankly I don't feel like I have a "horse to back" in this race.  I typically choose to be "a-political" NOT because I don't have strong views about "hot button" issues that candidates are going to have to wrestle with, nor because I think that politics are an unimportant part of our everyday lives...they obviously are.

However, I remain "a-political" because I don't think that all problems can be solved with the "correct politics" (as if there were such a thing). The LARGEST problems that plague our postmodern world are not political but moral and spiritual problems that cannot be solved by ANY political approach. Whether they want it or not (or believe that it is objectively possible any more) what the world needs right now is a good dose of TRUTH. Not facts because facts do not equal truth...we have all seen how facts can be turned and twisted and heaven knows that there is enough lying going on in both politics (and I HATE to say it...) religion.

Therefore, the second Jesus that I can live without is the "Political Jesus."  You know that one that chooses sides because of platforms and  chooses"moral integrity" over those other sinners.  I believe that Habakkuk voiced it nicely, (and Paul reiterates), "there are none who are righteous...not even one!" I think that Jesus is concerned about our beliefs and that He needs to be Lord of our votes...but I don't think He represents a political party or a political agenda...after all Hitler thought that God was on the side of the Fatherland when the Nazi regime was taking over!!!

We have to stop forcing Jesus into our mold and asking Him to back our views without asking Him for direction.  Neither red or blue equal Jesus (or for that matter red, white, and blue!), and a "party" does not speak for Jesus.  The Psalmist clearly says that the beginning of wisdom is the fear of God...if you have stopped to look around lately you should see that there is neither fear nor wisdom in our nation any more...so stop acting like God is backing your candidate!!

Jesus is neither a "liberal" or a "conservative" these are but mere terms that humanity has invested with certain meanings to push certain political agendas...but Jesus didn't do this..he said give the government what belongs to the government and give to God what belongs to God, He was an advocate of supporting those in roles of authority (as long as they didn't clash with God...gee I guess that's why He doesn't support ANY of them today!) I think the bible shows that Jesus was concerned with a multitude of moral and social issues but only as they were filtered through His lens of the Kingdom of God and our place in it.

The longer I live and the more I learn I am continually impressed by Jesus' concern for things that we have left behind as unimportant...things like, justice, truth, freedom, mercy, and forgiveness...yeah I know that they are all antiquated terms that have fallen in disrepair...but I think Jesus felt strongly about these things because they were the core of the people's lives that Jesus was touching...when an immoral woman was flung to the ground in front of Jesus the crowd expected condemnation (or at least they were attempting to trick Jesus into a trap) but moved by the person, not the agenda, Jesus gave mercy...but not without a single thread attached..."woman...where are your accusers?...then neither do I accuse you, go and SIN NO MORE."

We are quick to throw the "sin no more" up to folks who disagree with us..."Jesus didn't let her off the hook...he told her to stop"--I guess that is true...it is right there in print...but my assumption about that text is that Jesus encouraged her to stop, knowing full well that she had received grace but would continue to struggle with sin...so why should our political views do more or less for those we both agree and disagree with?

Some political decisions that people make infuriate me..."hot button" moral issues don't always go the way that I would like them to...so I voice my opinion at the poles, knowing full well that nothing that happens in Washington, or the world is going to catch God off guard.  So stop trying to get me to vote for your Jesus, and stop trying to convince me that Jesus is either red or blue (and backs an agenda)...because I can certainly live without a "political Jesus"...I have enough trouble with the One that roams around in my head,  heart, and life!! I believe, help me with my unbelief.

"Offering Sacrifices in the Shade?"

I have recently been studying through the book of Hosea.  It is a STARK contrast to my usual studies but I am gleaning MUCH from this 7th century prophet who the Lord sent to the Northern Kingdom of Israel during a time of great prosperity but spiritual poverty.

Stuart thinks that the entirety of chapter four can be seen as a "courtroom drama" where YHWH acts as prosecutor, jury, and judge.  In particular verses 11-14 are accusations against Israel for their false cultic worship and "prostituting" themselves with the gods of the Canaanites (Baal and Asteroth).

While studying verse thirteen something struck me...I had to read it over and over again:

"They sacrifice on the mountaintops and burn offerings on the hills, under oak, poplar and terebinth, where the shade is pleasant."

Okay...maybe I'm just dumb...but did you get it?  They sacrificed on mountaintops and offered burnt offerings on the hills...which is where the shrines and altars of both YHWH and Baal would have been (so their worship was syncretistic at BEST) BUT here is what struck me...they sat under the trees in the shade while the sacrifices were made and then enjoyed a picnic with what they were allowed to partake of...in other words...they made themselves as COMFORTABLE as possible while they "worshipped." It seems to me that God is condemning those worshippers who not only worship false gods but also who seek their own comfort while doing so!!


This REALLY hit home (theologically) with me...please don't misunderstand I LIKE to be in a warm place in the winter and a cool place in the summer when I worship...but I think that there is a spiritual precedent here that has NOTHING to do with temperature!!


When we come to worship, Paul says in Romans 12, we should "offer (present) ourselves as living sacrifices"  which I always believed meant that we should offer something costly to God...ourselves.  Offerings and sacrifices have caused more trouble in Scripture...they were the issue with Cain and Abel; Abraham was asked to sacrifice his son Isaac, they were at the core if Israel's issue with the golden calf, and Jesus had more than a few words with the Pharisees and Saducees about such practices.  


The original ideal in the sacrificial system was to bring the best that you could afford (that is why God sent Jesus...he was the BEST!). We are asked to do this as a reminder that God is our provider and as such we need to make him first in our lives...therefore our sacrifice should be costly...we might even say that it should cost us our lives (to give it to God)...but I am afraid that we, the Church of 2012, have fallen into the same trap as Israel...God has blessed us so we have become "comfortable" (to use Hosea's words) while making our sacrifices in the shade...HEAVEN forbid that we would be uncomfortable while doing our spiritual thing!


It is a vivid picture...can't you imagine them in their finest frockery, constantly moving their lawn chairs around to avoid the sun, fanning themselves, sitting in the shade with a tall glass of whatever they drank that was cool, discussing everything they could imagine...never once stopping to consider what was going on around them or what they were REALLY there for...atonement (the forgiveness of sin).


Too often I am afraid that this is what God sees when He looks at His Church today..."fiddling while Rome burns"...paying attention to everything except what they should be, and offering worship that only costs us an hour a week. God help me NEVER to be comfortable while people are lost and dying.


I believe...help my unbelief.

The Jesus I Could Do Without Pt. 1

The "Friendship" Jesus

This stereotypical Jesus has appeared in modern and postmodern literature and music within the Church since the "Jesus Movement" of the late 60's and early 70's (though there are earlier references to be sure...such as the hymn "Jesus is All the World to Me...He's my friend.").  In the movie Dogma this Jesus is referred to as the "Buddy Jesus" (see picture below). This Jesus is a TRUE friend who will never let you down and is always there when you have some narcissistic felt need that must be met.  He is completely compassionate and understands like no other will, in fact He will tell you EXACTLY what you want to hear to make you feel better.  He is AWESOME to "hang with" and is just fine being your "bro!"   And last but not least...He makes life "happy"...and who doesn't want that?

To be sure the bible does speak about friendship, Jesus will NEVER leave us orphaned or abandoned, He is compassion incarnate, and He IS the giver of peace...BUT...

K.H. Rengstorf in an article in Kittle's theological dictionary on the Greek term for "friend" (hetairos) states it like this:

The term is used for--companion, fellow soldier, member of the same party or religious society, a pupil, a friend or a colleague...the ONLY NT use is in Matthew (20:3; 22:12; 26:50)...the meaning is "friend" but in each case with the implication of a distinct relationship in which there is generosity on the one part and abuse of it on the other...

THE ABSENCE OF THE WORD ELSEWHERE IN THE NT SHOWS THAT IT IS NOT THOUGHT TO BE APPROPRIATE TO CHRISTIANS, FOR IN RELATION TO CHRIST "DOULOS" (SLAVE) IS THE PROPER TERM FOR BELIEVERS, AND IN RELATION TO ONE ANOTHER "ADELPHOI" (BROTHER). (p. 265)

In other words, Jesus has no interest in being our "bud!" Jesus' primary interest in us is theological (soteriological) and pedagogical...in our earthly lives friendship is not usually costly (though it probably should be, in reality it is not)...DO NOT MISUNDERSTAND...relationship with Christ IS THE KEY...but our relationship to Christ is bilaterally costly...it cost God His Son, Jesus his life, and they demand our life in return. I HATE taking up my cross daily...having Jesus be my best friend is easier and therapeutic...but to borrow a term from Bonhoeffer "cheap grace" is no grace at all. I think I can live without Jesus being my friend...but I cannot live without Him being my Savior.  I believe...help me in my unbelief.

Nature Abhors a Vacuum?

“Nature abhors a vacuum” is an ancient proverb (quoted as early as 1532) but often attributed to Aristotle and directly linked to philosopher Baruch Spinoza in his work Ethics (1677). Though it may be a proverb of sorts it is actually an idiom used to express the idea that empty or unfilled spaces are unnatural as they go against the laws of nature and physics. Actually…they don’t…they can’t... I have SO many questions about this…if only I were smart enough to be a physicist!

I have heard this idiom applied to nearly every possible human condition…from using it as an excuse to not perform the task of vacuuming rugs or carpets, to rationalizing a minimalist lifestyle because humanity inherently “never has enough”—hence we continue to fill the vacuum!! I was actually hoping to make a spiritual application but I am uncertain as to whether it might have any application that doesn’t seem completely nonsensical.

Today I posted a recent quote from Ed Stetzer on Facebook: “a church not using social media today is like a preacher in the pulpit without a microphone and without an audience” (the quote is telling in itself because MANY of the older generations would have grown up in churches where preachers would not have used microphones…clearly it is an analogy intended for younger audiences).  I questioned after the quote whether the Church might be moving from a Gutenberg type paradigm towards a Google paradigm…has the Church finally embraced a new paradigm? My post elicited quite a few responses about paradigm shifting and the inherent difference between “high tech” and “high touch” outreach and discipleship (which was not my intent in the original post).

I was hoping to probe a little deeper.  If the idiom “nature abhors a vacuum” is even partially true why is the paradigm that is emerging after postmodernism taking SO long to actualize?  I have studied with great interest the shift between the Modern and the Postmodern where philosophical ideas eroded away the bedrock of modernity until it actually gave way to Postmodernity.  This move, in itself, caused a firestorm of controversy and was seen as a mistrusted step for the moderns who are quite at home in the Gutenberg world, but it seemed to actualize MUCH quicker.  Once, as Easum puts it, we discovered we were in the “wormhole” the process materialized fairly quickly (perhaps a mere 50 years?)

But now we are caught in the wormhole of what is coming next and the entropy that has ensued.  It appears nature doesn’t abhor a vacuum or things would be changing much more rapidly than they are!! I understand, in part, that for the first time since Gutenberg our world is in a state of information overload… "Googlemania” (contra Neil Postman’s 1992 work, Technopoly, where he argues that technical calculation is a higher function, and therefore superior to, human judgment.  Because of this thesis Postman argues that the affairs of citizens are best guided, and conducted by, experts.  Clearly, his thesis has been proven wrong by the plethora of information we now have from those who are not experts at all…need proof…I direct you to ANY community college student’s research papers…how many bibliographic entries are from Wikipedia? [What? It’s on the internet…it must be true and trustworthy!]) However, there must be ways to manage what we have become in the Google world (actually I would be hard pressed to accomplish anything these days without the "luxury" that technology affords me...from dropbox on my home, office, and missionary friend in Haiti's computers, to Skype, not to mention cell phones, etc...and I have barely embraced technology when compared to some).

So what has all this to do with Church or spirituality? The Church has been historically slow (a HUGE understatement) to accept paradigm shifts.  The Church actually just caught up to Modernism in the 1970’s and 80’s while the rest of the world was already shifting to Postmodernism (in ideas if not in actuality). So, true to form, the Church is once again behind the culture (just once it would be refreshing if the Church were proactive instead of reactive…but I don’t think that has happened since Acts chapter 2), and is showing a stubborn refusal to accept (though many claim they have in the name of being “relevant” to the culture…a term they apparently cannot define…one does not make the Holy Spirit “relevant”…by nature of Its’ ontological presence it is “relevant”—ALWAYS) the huge shift that the world is undergoing.

 

I have spent my entire career (if that is even an appropriate term as I hardly see it as a career as much as it has been a continuous and ongoing struggle…like Jacob wrestling with God on Bill Murray’s version of Groundhog Day!!) trying to understand how this has occurred, is occurring, and will, eventually complete the process. I, unfortunately, am a part of the “bridge” (some prefer “gap”) generation who were actually born into Modernity but was educated and lived in a postmodern world.  This means that I sociologically have a split personality!  I am the proverbial Colossus of Rhodes with one foot in the future and one foot in the past (or in his case straddling the harbor!). When I first came to understand this I thought it would serve me well in the Church...but it has not. I am too old for the "new" and to "new" for the old.

I guess what I am trying to say is that I am tired of being “the bridge” (at this point I think I’d rather be the troll that lives under the bridge!!) I am tired of constantly having to reinvent the wheel every week. I once complained to a mentor that the location of my ministry didn’t seem to fit with my experience and education and he quipped, “perhaps you were sent there to bring them into the 21^st century”…well here we are, firmly established in the 21^st century and I haven’t accomplished anything but obesity, high blood pressure, and enough stress to kill a “small” (read normal sized) person!!  Is that the sucking sounds of a vacuum I hear in the distance…surely it cannot be since “nature abhors a vacuum”…or not. I believe, help me in my unbelief.

A Google World?

It is obvious that I have neglected being a "blogger" for other responsibilities...but to be honest I have FAR less time on my hands now than I did when I began this avenue for exploring how I was feeling about having that much time on my hands!!

Not much has changed really. I am continuing as the "interim" minister at Southern Heights C.C. (which is going well...but obviously NOT like a full-time located ministry)...not to mention that they cannot afford to pay me or give me benefits life a full-time staff person.  Be that as it may, God continues to care for my family's needs and I hope that I am being faithful and obedient to His calling.

When I am not working on one of the four teaching opportunities at Somerset, or thinking about worship for Sunday morning, I am teaching an online Introduction to the Bible class in Tabarre, Haiti via Skype technology.  Whatever time is not consumed by the interim ministry is taken up by preparing for class time (5 hours per week of teaching). This is not a paid position but it is time consuming and my prayer is that we are creating the beginning of something that will reach FAR beyond whatever influence I am having on these five students. The idea is that eventually there will be a physical building with full-time professors, students, and administration in place to train indigenous peoples for ministry in the country of Haiti (which is no easy task because of the cultural unrest and the syncretist forms of spirituality that exist there)...but for now we are doing the best we can with what God has entrusted us with.

I have to confess that I am a little uneasy with the way things are in my life right now.  It seems as if I am working twice as hard for half the material benefit (but again, God has been SO gracious to meet my family's needs in a variety of ways). I have read recently that a shift is coming in the way that churches and church people view things like Bible College, Seminary, staff, and missions, so perhaps I am also a part of this shift and I am struggling to adapt to what many are calling the "Google World" (especially since I am by both biology and nature a Gutenberg person...to date I have refused to adopt any of "the cloud" technology for a variety of reasons).

I am NOT a country music fan but I do remember a few lyrics from an old country song that seem to sum up how I feel about this shift (which obviously shows that others have felt the same way about other cultural shifts that they were facing), I think that the name of the song is "Old Hippie" and about all I can remember is the line, "he's an old hippie and he don't know what to do; should he cling to the old or grab on to the new" except "the new", in this case, is a complete paradigm shift for the first time in the history of the US as to how we view everything from church, to politics, technology, etc...perhaps my current feelings are best summed up by Will Farrell in his role as Ricky Bobby when he was about to be in the middle a BIG NASCAR wreck... "hold on baby Jesus...this is gonna get bumpy!"

"I believe, help me in my unbelief."

"I Hope that Something Better Comes Along"

I always thought that biblical hope had its foundation in eschatology...and I believe that it STILL does but somewhere, somehow that eschatological hope must be "lived" for it to be of any real spiritual value to us as we sojourn in this world.

The concept of hope as found and presented in the bible is far deeper than the hope that the world has.  It is a belief based on the certitude of promise, or more poignantly, in the One who promised.  I have "hoped" for many things that never came to pass in my life.  Other times, the outcome far exceeded any expectation that I might have had...but the key was NOT in the hoping for myself (subjective desire) but in an objective promise of unconditional love and protection.

Here is the key...I NEVER said that objective hope means that all of my desires will be fulfilled, rather that objective hope means that I believe that the object of my faith (and hope), namely God the Father as revealed in His Son Jesus Christ, seeks only what is best for me at any given time...it doesn't have to be my desire or whatever is "fair" but WHAT I NEED (too often their is REAL confusion between want and need!!--the late great singer/songwriter Rich Mullins nailed it when he penned the lyric, "I'd rather fight You for something I don't really want, then to take what You give that I need" from the song "Hold Me Jesus"). Jesus entreats us to "seek first His Kingdom and His righteousness..." and that other things will be added to us as well (Matt 6:33).  Clearly, the emphasis is on the "seeking" and not the "adding"--and it is ONLY when we are seeking His Kingdom and righteousness that we will be able look past ourselves to see what God is doing (Paul employs the same emphasis in Romans 12:1-3 by suggesting that we will only be able to discern God's will for us when we are totally giving ourselves to ongoing transformation by making ourselves "living sacrifices" holy and pleasing to God).

All of that SOUNDS great...but what might it look like, well...LIVED OUT?  Ah Hah...the power of the picture!!  If you have seen the, now aging, Lord of the Rings movies you will be familiar with the character of Gollum who is a type of "anti-hero" before the series is over. Gollum begins life as "riverfolk" or a "halfling" who is quite a lot like the main characters who are "hobbits.,"  As a halfling he is called Smeogal, and the story of the transformation of Smeagol to Gollum is a fascinating study (it is seen primarily in the opening moments of the Return of the King movie). In a nutshell Smeagol is transformed into the creature Gollum because of the insidious effect of the ring of power which he obtains by killing a halfling friend.  His desire to possess the ring of power causes him to slowly forget who and what he was and he becomes the hideous creature Gollum who is completely absorbed by the power of the ring and the desire to possess it. Gollum, in an attempt to gain the ring back, offers to guide Frodo and Sam to Mordor so that the ring can be destroyed...in a poignant, and telling, moment in  The Two Towers movie, Sam berates Golum for his behavior, in turn Frodo belittle Sam for his ill treatment of Gollum...Sam retorts that there is "no good" left in the creature...that he has been so consumed by the ring that he is now only evil.  Frodo explains to Sam that he has to have "hope" for Gollum, no matter how bad the creature appears to be, when Sam asked why Frodo bluntly acknowledges, "I have to believe that he can come back." (an admission of the effect that the ring is taking on Frodo himself)...for Frodo to continue on in his quest he HAS to believe that no matter what else happens...the best is yet to come.


I believe, that this scene perfectly depicts biblical hope.  When it appears that all else has failed and when things just are not looking as if they are EVER going to turn out for the good...we must continue in our hope that, as Sam says, "there is some good left in this world, and it is worth fighting for."


As long as faith and love exist...hope will have a home, and will can know that regardless of our present circumstance...the best is yet to come.  I believe, help my unbelief!