Bonus

I heard at great quote today at the coffee shop:

I wake up each morning breathing...

everything else is a bonus.

I would like to have this mindset everyday.

Cherokee Proverb

A Cherokee grandfather sitting with his grandchildren told them,
"In life there is a terrible fight- a fight between two wolves.
One is evil:
he is fear, anger, envy, greed, arrogance, self-pity
resentment, and deceit.
The other is good:
he is joy, serenity, humility, confidence, generosity, truth,
gentleness, and compassion." A child asked,
"Grandfather, which wolf will win?"
The elder looked him in the eye.
"The one you feed"

This proverb reminds me of Matthew 15 where Jesus reminds us that out of our hearts flow both the good and bad wolf.

My Favorite Prayers #1

Most powerful Holy Spirit

rain down upon us

and subdue us.

From Heaven,

where the ordinary

is made glorious

and glory seems

but ordinary.

Bathe us

with the brilliance of Your light

like the morning dew

on the flower.

Luczi and Chloe

Luczi and Chole have grown quite close recently. They like to slide down the slides together and do piggy back rides. While Lilly and Luczi are like oil and water, fighting over just about anything and everything, these two have found joy in each other and that of course makes thing just a bit more fun around here.

Observation

I was driving to work today and as I passed through my neighborhood and surrounding communities I noticed noticed the number of homes in foreclosure and businesses that "used to be". Now Michigan lags behind the rest of the nation in the economic recrovery since 911 and the war, so there certainly are some realistic factors involved in homes and businesses being vacant, but I did notice one other thing driving to work that day... Not 1 gas station was closed down. Isn't that interesting? Do you suppose that the homes of gas station owners are in foreclosure? Wanna bet on it? Agopolies are the way to thrive in new America. I guess I'm just greatful I don't own a Hummer lest my house go into foreclosure.

Luczi's Dedication

Sunday we dedicated Luczi at our church. For us this is a time of celebration as we draw from our community a unified commitment that all of will do our best to raise Luczi in the WAY of Jesus. It is a commitment that far exceeds religiousity. And while I've been a part of many "dedications" and "baptisms" in my years of following the WAY, never have I felt that a church has meant their vows as much as our family at Pathway Church. And just as I have vowed to help others raise their kids in the WAY, I know that I have their help and support. And that is truely something to be celebrated in our day and age.

For More Pictures of the Dedication, click "My Pictures" to the right.

Sex God

Pushing the envelope once again, Rob Bell is back with his new book Sex God. The title is certainly eye catching, but what I love about the book is the heart of it's content. Bell does a great job of communicating how our sexuality, our personal relationships, and our spirituality are intertwined and intermixed. In a style similar to his preaching he gives nuggets of information for us to process, ruminate on, and test in the scriptures.
Overall I like the book, but it is not without it's flaws. As to being being biblical I will let the reader decide. Sadly there are sections of the book that are under-developed. Many key ideas are thrown out like beach toys waiting for someone to play with them. While I understand that at times this is intentional by Bell, it seems less appropriate with the subject matter in this book than say Velvet Elvis (Bell's first book). And speaking Velvet Elvis, there are whole sections of Sex God that seem to have been copied and pasted right right of Velvet Elvis. This, in the writing world, is like wearing white before Easter.
Flaws aside, I still would recommend picking this one up. I highly encourage engaged couples, newly weds, and people struggling with sexual addictions to read Sex God. There is much that Bell has to offer in this book that would have been helpful to me early on in my own marriage.

A Safer World

"Daddy, would you feel safer in the world if there were no guns or swords?"

This was the question posed to me by my eldest daughter. She had apparently picked this question up at school somehow.

No, I said. I wouldn't feel safer. Unfortunately people have been finding ways to kill each other since the very beginning. And they didn't need guns or swords to do so. The problem is not with guns and swords, it's with our hearts. When we choose to hate instead love or to be angry instead of forgiving, we start to walk down that way that leads toward death.

"I know that." she says.

It's good to know that at seven she already knows as much as me. There is hope for the future.

You know this analogy breaks down, but I wonder sometimes what would have happened with this "war on terror" if we'd had sought out more creative ways than just "shoot 'em up" to deal with the problem. Sometimes war is inevitable, I know that. And what happened on September 11, 2001 was more than "unjust". I'm not advocating pacifism, but sometimes (and as Christ taught) there are more creative ways to make statements about injustice; ways that dignify the human spirit and restore humanity to both the both our enemies and the innocents. As a student of History I am well aware of the "myth of redemptive violence" that says it is only force which can restore peace. Cain was was sure that killing Able was one way to get justice from his favored brother. And there has been very little progress since. Creative non-violent approaches to injustice is certainly a "Christ(ian) value".

As a people, we in America are of the most resourceful, creative, inventive, and giving people on the face of the planet. I wonder what good America could have done for the entire world with 4 trillion dollars spent differently. Perhaps it will have to be the future generation that will move us out of this myth of redemptive violence and into the age of "redemption" that Christ inaugurated.

Quoting Moby

I was reading HM Magazine today and found an interview with Moby (www.moby.com). Granted many evangelicals don't like Moby because he tends to lean a little left of (far right), but I have found that he knows more about the central message of Jesus than most evangelicals (and he doesn't go to church).

When asked whether or not he agree's with Jesus' claim (which is really a fancy way of asking if he believes like most evangelical chrisitian's views of that claim) that He is THE way THE truth and THE life, and that no one gets to the father except through him... Moby answers:

You know what? I don’t even know where my fingernails come from, so it’s very hard for me to speak knowledgeably of the grand objective truths about the universe.

Way to go Moby! Apparently you learned much about Jesus when you read the New Testament.

Praise God, NO TEMPLES

A friend of mine shared this passage at church Sunday and it has stuck with me all week. From Revelations 21 and it speaks of a day I can't wait for.

...No temple could be seen in the city, for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are its temple. And the city has no need of the sun or moon, for the glory of God illuminates the city, and the Lamb is it's light. The nations of the earth will walk in [his] light, and the rulers of the world will come and bring their glory it.

NO TEMPLE COULD BE SEEN IN THE CITY...

I've lived in Grand Rapids for more than 9 years now and no matter where I travel there is always more churches than McDonalds resturants. There's first and second and third and fourth reformed churches, and Bible churches (whatever those are) and Baptist, and evangelical, and evangelical free, and protestant reformed, and community churches (because all the others are not of the community) and we have Lutheran and Catholic churches... We have people from this church who don't like those from that because [insert stupid reason here]. And those people let women teach. That one is a cult. They don't believe the the elements are the actual body and blood... Those people don't even have classes before baptism.

Come Jesus, that your light might guide us back to truth, back to you, and back to unity.

No Kataluma in the Insula

(for better understanding please read previous post)

We are pretty much all aware that prearranged marriages were a custom in Jewish culture when Jesus walked the earth. What's interesting is the engagement period. After arrangements were made between fathers, both families got together where the groom would present his bride to be a cup of wine. She could then accept the cup (and the young man's offer) or refuse it. If she were to accept it the young man would then go back to his fathers house and begin building a room for he and his bride. Obviously if a man had many son's and this was done with each marriage a home (called an Insula*) could get quite large.

What's interesting is that the young man would not know when the room was finished. Only his father could tell him when the room (pronounced kataluma) was ready. When the father gave his approval, the groom would go and retrieve his bride and the party (reception) would begin directly after the bride and groom consummated the marriage. People would literally wait outside the "room" until the couple surfaced. Then they would party for days.

Why do I bring this up? Because it adds to the plausibility of my last post. Jewish homes could be quite large with many many (kataluma's) available. And so again Joseph and Mary show up in Bethlehem and are told that there is not (kataluma) available to them. I'm not really trying to prove my point from the previous post, so much as show that it is feasible.

Now reread this verse:

"My fathers house has plenty of room; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you? And i f I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back to take you to be with me that you may also be where I am. You know the way to the place where I am going."

You gotta love how much meaning is added to the text when we understand the language. This is wedding language all over the place.

*The Insula pictured is a bit more "Romanesque" than that of traditional Jewish homes for sure, but it's what I had to work with.

No room in the Inn?

It's advent season, so naturally I've been focusing some energy into entering into the birth story of Jesus. I've always been troubled by one element of the birth story. Perhaps what troubles me most is what is not told in these stories. For one instance, the arrival of Joseph and Mary to Bethlehem. Luke's story has Mary and Joseph arriving in the waining hours of the day unable to find room in the "inn".

Our modern experiences remind of times driving from location to location looking for a hotel that doesn't have a NO VACANCY sign lit. Hoping that should there be room big enough for all us. With this in mind we are happy that Mary and Joseph find a cave and give birth in shelter. There's a sense of relief and while the Son of God didn't get into the Marriot perhaps we can romanticize the idea of God being born in humility with animals at his feet.

But what if there was something more sinister afoot in those waining hours that day in Bethlehem? What drove Mary and Joseph to look for a "hotel" in Joseph's home town anyway? After all wasn't he a decendant of King David? And if there was something more sinister, what would it mean for us?

It is very likely that Joseph and Mary never looked for anything like a hotel. In Luke's text the word "Inn" in greek is the word (pronounced kataluma) which means "room" or living quarters. Plus at the time Bethlehem was a small, relatively poor town. It is very unlikely to have even had an "inn" anyways. Travelers would have pushed on to Jerusalem which was much larger and had facilities for them. No, I think what we actually have here is Joseph showing up to a relatives house. Which gets me asking why they are told there there is no "room"?

How is it that amoung a people know for their hospitality is a man (of royal linage) and his wife (who's about to give birth) show up at a family members house and they're told "there's no room". The Jew's at this time were a people known to give room and board to strangers and travelers. They are commanded by their God to care for the orphan, widow, and the foreigner. Plus that ancient near east has never had the ideals of autonomy that the West does. Plus the residents of Bethlehem would have known that their relatives were coming back to register. This would have been a time of celebration and reunion. So again, how is it that Joseph and his wife are told "there is no room".

Could it be that Joseph's family was so cold to them because there was a rejection of the child Mary carried? Was it the questionable conception that warrented such treatment? Maybe for Joseph's family they just couldn't accept that God had done something wonderful in Mary.

We see later in the life of Jesus that those who knew Jesus certainly questioned his legitamacy as Joseph's son. Look at this exchange in Mark chapter six. Jesus has just finished preaching in the temple and the people have been amazed at his teaching. Here's what they say:

Isn't this the carpenter? Isn't this Mary's son and the brother of James, Joseph, Judas and Simon? Aren't his sisters here with us?" And they took offense at him.

In a paternalistic society like the Jews of this time, a son would not be refered to as his mother's child even if (as in this case) the father was dead. Why did they take offense at him. They thought his teaching was wonderful... oh wait, could it have been that whole illegitamate child thing again? And why, if they were in awe of his teaching just moments before, would they have taken such offense at him?

No, I think in Luke 2 we have something other than NO VACANCY signs. I think that Jesus may have entered this world much like he lived in it and died for it... REJECTED. Sure, perhaps I can romanticize God being humble and allowing himself born in stable with donkeys, chickens and sheep. But I can't associate with that. That God would come at all would be a radical act of humility. But I can identify with rejection. It has happened to me more than once. And Jesus understands. He's been there. He was "born under" this sign. He lived with rejection and died in the face of it. This to me is the miracle of Christmas.

Knowing

To know much and to taste nothing - of what use is that?
- Bonaventure

I love this quote. In the modern world in which I live, I've noticed that many are very good at knowing a lot. It's easy, what with books, newspapers, email, and the internet it is really easy to know a lot about a lot. My family would tell you that when I was young I used to scarf my food. I would eat so fast often my Dad would offer me a shovel. I have since learned to savor my food; to taste it, to enjoy its flavor with a cup of wine. I heard a statistic on FOX news Friday that we spend 5 months a year just taking in information; reading, listening to music, watching television, etc. These days I'm wondering how to taste any of it.

Forgiving God

These days I'm learning how to forgive God. When I was younger I heard all these stories about how God loves me and how he forgives me for my "shortcomings". There's no doubt about it, I have shortcomings. And I'm very grateful for grace. But there comes a time in any relationship where one reflects on both parties in the relationship and looks for balance.

You see, what I'm trying to understand now is how the "God" of the Old Testament even remotely looks like the "Abba" Jesus talks about in the New. Lately I've been stuck in this story of Achan. You can read his story in Joshua. Joshua and the Israelites are just over the river Jordan. They've conqured Jericho and are now feeling out the rest of the local terrain. So Joshua sends spies to the city of Ai. The spies report back that Joshua need only send a couple thousand men as the city is not numerous in inhabitants. So Joshua sends in his men and the men get routed and slaughtered.

I have this robe in my bathroom. It's a classical father's robe. It's plaid and it's made of flannel. It has perfect pockets for important things like the remote control and tissue and that annoying toy I step on too many times in one morning. But my robe is a majical robe. My robe divides my days. If I'm wearing my robe in the morning that means I'm not working. It means I am home all morning; no adjenda, no open planner, no lists. As cliche as my robe is, when I wear it I am special. I am king of my home and slave to no one (except the queen). I like the days that I get to wear my robe.

When Joshua gets news of his army's annihilation he tears his robe and falls down before God. God tells him that someone has taken items consecrated to other gods in their plunder of Jericho and that this man all that belongs to him, must burn before God will allow victory over the city of Ai. Joshua finds this man and asks him what he took. His answer: Some gold and silver and a beautiul robe. Achan was thinking ahead. He knew that one day he would settle in this land. He knew that a beautiful robe would help divide his days too. He knew that sporting a beautiful robe would certainly make him feel special. In retribution they took the Achan, his wife, his children, all thier belongings and the sacred items and they stoned them. Then they burned them "as the lord instructed them."

In the New Testament there's this woman who's caught in the act of adultery. Jesus is hanging out with his chums and the religious leaders bring her before Jesus in an effort to him. They demand of Jesus to know what the jewish law says about such a woman. Jesus knew that the law required them to stone her immediately. Jesus is calm. He waits. Then in an act of beautiful grace he says that law requires her to be stoned, but those of you who are blameless may throw the first stone. Slowing they drop their rocks and walk away. Jesus then asks who is left to condemn you. She says "none". And Jesus says, THEN NEITHER DO I CONDEMN YOU. Go on with you life and stop sinning.

I'm forgiving God these days. I say this not because I believe I sit above God in some manner. Nothing could be further from the truth. I'm forgiving God in order to accept by faith whatever form balance is even remotely possible in these to portrayals of who God is. I'm letting go of the idea that God should make sense. I'm forgiving God for the difficulties that arise when these kinds of stories come up. These days, I'm forgiving God.

The Gap

Wow!!!

It's been a while since I've posted. I certainly didn't mean for such a gap in posts. I've been working on a number of number of books lately, including a monster by N.T. Wright entitled The Resurrection of the Son of God. It's a small book weighing in at 738 pages (of which I've read 71). I am enjoying it greatly, but it is by no means a quick read. This and an ongoing study in book of Joshua (the topic of my next few posts) have certainly kept me busy. My plug for N.T. Wright is this: Read Him!!! If you enjoy historical and cultural context where scripture is concerned, read every one of his books.

Holding my net

This was taken from the excellent book featured to the left: Heretic's Guide to Eternity.

Burke quotes a web journalist Tim Boucher as saying:

Religions are our attempt to give form to the Divine because we suck at contemplating infinity.

Burke adds: Religions are the nets we cast in hopes of catching God. But it's like trying to catch the sea with a net. It's much more likely that we'll just get ourselves tangled up, and god will slip through. I think god wants us to follow and imitate him as he playfully slips our nets and challenges us to reach new levels and understanding of love.

What a great image of God slipping our nets. It's like as soon as we want to trap him into any form or make up some kind of law regarding his nature, or determine that god is like... God finds a way to slip of that confine and show us that he is still in fact God. I wonder today what confines I have that he has already slipped out of as I still hold my net?

Challenge of Jesus Part 2 His Message (Part 1)

There’s a story in Luke chapter seven that has captured my imagination for a number of weeks now. That’s the amazing thing about the stories of Jesus Christ, they tend to capture the imagination for long periods of time. At least they do for me. And this story encompasses a radical rabbi who bucks the authority of the religious people of his time, a woman of questionable character, and a religious zealot who takes issue with both. The story goes a bit like this…

One day, while Jesus was trying to interface with the religious people of his day, he made a small success and was invited to dinner by a religious leader named Simon. When Jesus arrived at Simon’s house Simon was inhospitable and rude as he provided no way for Jesus to wash his feet nor did he offer Jesus any oil to slick back his hair. Now these things were customary in those days as traveling on dirt roads had the unfortunate consequence of collecting dust in the hair and on the feet. As Jesus attempts to dust off his feet and pulls his hair back, he begins to question the motives of his host.

Now during the course of the evening a well known woman “a sinner” as she is called in the story (which probably meant that she was a prostitute) found out that Jesus was nearby at this dinner. So she invited herself to the event (many dinners were spectacles for entire towns to watch) in hopes of seeing this famous rabbi who bucks the authority of the religious people. What desire drove her to such boldness? Did she hear the stories of healing and forgiveness? Had she heard Jesus’ prediction of his death and was so determined to see him before that could possibly happen?...

She arrives at the dinner and notices that that Jesus has not been offered the courtesies accustom to an honored guest and wasn’t he a rabbi after all? She makes her way behind Jesus and is overwhelmed by him to tears. What brought about these tears? Certainly a lifestyle of selling her soul and body to feed herself and her children could well enough bring tears. But God knows too well the injustice dealt her by her husband. A divorced woman has little chance and little choice. She’s well aware of her shortcomings, but in this man she seeks a different kind of hope. She has always heard that the life she lives is punishment from God for her many sins and she wants desperately to believe otherwise. And so the tears flow and she falls at Jesus’ feet.

Not having a towel she allows her tears to bath Jesus’ feet and like so many times before, she lets her hair down for yet another man. Only this time she isn’t looking for payment for her next meal. She had heard that this rabbi cancels out sins and does so in a way that truly liberates people. Her hair is dirty. Now his feet are clean. And she had brought something very special around her neck. If her life could afford one thing it would be to anoint this one man with something so exotic and so elaborate… if the rumors she had heard were even half true then there was no one more worthy than he was. She pulls the bottle and begins to lavish very expensive oils on his feet.

As she does this, Simon thinks that Jesus must not be as great a prophet as he has heard or else he would not allow a whore to touch him this way. Jesus sensed his thoughts and saw the disgust on his face. Jesus rebukes this religious leader telling him that she bathes him in tears and oil because she feels she has lost much and has much to regain with her piety. Then he basically says to Simon, “You do not feel this way because you justify your sin and assume God is on your side. You think you have little to forgive so you kick the wounded while their down. And you believe you are better than most everyone.”

Then Jesus did something a rabbi didn’t have the authority to do. He says to her “you are forgiven”. Now at this point in Jewish history it was well understood that only God could forgive and for that only by sacrifice. Sin of this “magnitude” would have required much outward show of remorse. She would have had to have been purified at the temple and gone though other rites in order to be declared forgiven. The reality was, there was little institutional hope for her forgiveness. There was little hope the “God” would ever find favor in her again. Yet, a popular but radical rabbi says “You are forgiven.” And the hushed murmurs begin… who is this guy that he can do what can only be done by God. Is he greater than our God and His temple?

Hearing these murmurs, Jesus thinks, I’ll one up them here and he says to her: Go in (Peace) your faith has saved you.

This is such a radical story of Grace and it is my belief that this kind of Grace can only flow from God himself.

Jesus is radical about the grace he shows in this passage...

1. He allows this “sinner woman” to touch him. In a time and place where people believed that sin and its repercussions could be transmitted by physical contact, Jesus purposefully allows and encourages this woman’s affections.
2. Jesus lifts the piety of a woman (a prostitute at that) up and over that of the religious. In other words he dishonors his host and sides with woman. In this day a woman couldn’t even testify in court. Jesus holds her piety up as greater than that of the religious leader.
3. He steps well above his role as a rabbi and side steps “God” and the temple, by forgiving her of her sins. This is at great risk as he is claiming that the Temple is no longer necessary (as he does through most of the gospels).
4. Finally he restores for her the relationship between her and God. Now this short blog entry is too small to expound on this one, but I believe (as do others) that Jesus’ message may have been less about living in heaven or hell forever and more about restoring peoples faith in God and God’s disposition them. He offered Eternal life which he defined as intimacy with God and with Himself.

This is just the first of many stories of Jesus that blow my mind about who he was/is. The more that I get to know him, the more in love with him I find myself. I often overhear people talk about Christians and how judgmental or condescending they are. Truly I have had my own experiences with these “kind of Christians” as well. I wonder, do they even know Jesus? Do they really? But it’s easy to say these things. What about me. What about the kind of grace I show to others? Who in my day might be the woman needing this kind of radical grace. Will they find Jesus’ radical kind of grace in me?

What in Hell is going on?

Yesterday I got a call from a gentleman who had just recieved leave from Iraq. He asked about books for new believers who were in the military. He had "just recieved salvation" and was wanting to grow in his new faith. More importantly he was affraid that as a soldier he would have to return to Iraq and he was affraid that he would lose his "salvation" and go to hell if killed someone or "did something wrong". I really felt for this guy. One thing I picked up on during our conversation was that whomever he heard from about Jesus was heavy on the "saved" and "hell" language. It is bothersome to me that Christians are so heavy on the "hell' language. The Old Testament is silent about the "hell" issue (and KJV freaks should be careful of the world Sheol in the O.T. it isn't hell). In fact hell doesn't even enter the Jewish mindset until the influence of zorastrianism during the 400+ years between the O.T. and N.T. Furthermore, in the N.T. there seems to be an odd reversal on behalf of Jesus who takes hell language and turns it back on religious zealots who used hell as a way of controling the masses. All of that to say, why are we so freaking heavy on the hell language as Christians? Do we speak of Jesus as aversion to hell because we have nothing really positive to say about Jesus himself. As though his life, ministry, and teachings are void of anything beneficial. Why do we take the liberty of inflicting hell on others where Christ refused to. Oh wait, Jesus defined his way of eternal life as: "That you may not go to hell." I pray, my friend from Iraq, that you come to know the fullness of Jesus Christ. The Christ who promised RESURRECTION and THE ETERNAL KIND OF LIFE that wasn't about escaping hell or even living forever in heaven. But about knowing intemately our creator God and his son Jesus whom He sent. Let the religious zealots have their hell talk. Lord knows there are plenty of them out there all too ready to try and manipulate people into their form of religiousity. Sorry, on behalf of sane Christians everywhere, that you ran into one.

Beautiful Collision

"When our depravity meets His divinity it is a beautiful collision"......By David Crowder

Becoming...

We must become the change we want to see in the world'

Mahatma Gandhi