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- One more reason to love Ireland.
- Finally. Cyber treatment for "Bono Fatigue".
- Attention, all Radiohead fans...
- The music of Levi Ware. Levi is a good friend of my younger brother Jason and is planning on stopping by the Dublin area sometime in mid-September. From what I've heard so far, Levi is a talented musician and a gifted songwriter.
- Pictures from our hike to the top of Mt. Herman this last weekend.
31.7.06
Contextless Links
26.7.06
GEM Blogging
Recently, I found out about a blog started by GEM missionary Ruth Robinson. Ruth puts together the Ambassador's Briefings that I post links to once in a while here at Restless. She's a great writer and thinker and I've appreciated the research on current events that she puts into the Briefings. Click here to read some of the conversation that we've been having about social justice and the church.
Over the next few weeks, I'm guessing that the blogging is going to slow down considerably. (It's already been a week since my last post.) The packing and other preparations to leave for Ireland are going to be taking over more and more. Once we get settled into Dublin, there'll be plenty to write about. Expect to see lots of pictures going up at both the Flickr site and the main image gallery over the next several weeks.
Over the next few weeks, I'm guessing that the blogging is going to slow down considerably. (It's already been a week since my last post.) The packing and other preparations to leave for Ireland are going to be taking over more and more. Once we get settled into Dublin, there'll be plenty to write about. Expect to see lots of pictures going up at both the Flickr site and the main image gallery over the next several weeks.
21.7.06
GOD Under a Microscope
This last Wednesday, I had the chance to lead the community group that Kristy and I have been involved in through Pierced Chapel. Over the last several months, we’ve been going through an “attributes of God/knowing God” kind of a theme. So on Wednesday, I started out asking people to finish this sentence: “You would get to know me well if . . .” It always fascinates me how people finish that sentence and it’s usually quite revealing. One young woman said, “if you could listen in on a conversation with my best friend.” Other people talked about doing things together that also allow for conversation, like working on a car or going on a road trip.
Of course, I couldn’t help but notice immediately the spiritual parallels. Through the pages of scripture, we get to know God by listening in on conversations that he’s had with people throughout the ages. And as we live in community with others, in a sense we’re able to listen in on current conversations that God is having with them as he works in their lives. Also, as we do life with him and grow spiritually, learning to trust him, we know him better.
The sheet of paper that that I handed out to people had a list of “attributes of God” that I took from table of contents in a typical devotional/theological book on the subject. After looking over the list, we all concluded a rather obvious idea: we don’t know God by segmenting and labelling him into lists of characteristics. “Knowing God” is relational, not academic.
Words like “omnipotent” and “omniscient” in particular have never really seemed appropriate to me. The ideas behind them (omnipotent = all-powerful, omniscient = all-knowing) are true and actually quite mind-boggling, but where the heck did we get the terms themselves from? The answer is found in the very word “omniscience.”
That’s right. Thanks to the scientific method (a result of the Age of Reason, or The Enlightenment), we’ve effectively put God under a microscope, slapped some big Latin-based labels on him and dissected him out into manageable categories with every “-ology” you can think of. Okay, so we haven’t literally put him under a microscope, but sometimes it sure feels like we’ve tried or even that we’ve fooled ourselves into thinking we could.
This isn’t to say that our attempts at systematic theology and dogma have been completely worthless. In fact, I told the small group Wednesday night that the book from which I got that list of attributes (Knowledge of the Holy, by A.W. Tozer) had proven to be a huge blessing in my own spiritual life.
However, it is to say that the unspoken Enlightenment-style confidence (arrogance even?) behind human reason often causes us to abuse God’s revelation of himself. If you’ve ever heard or read a raging debate about whether or not Jesus was mutable or immutable (able to sin or unable to sin) or, better yet, whether Jesus’ death was for all people or “limited” to the elect, you’ve seen a great example of this abuse. I wasted an entire Bible college class hour listening to the issues in the “immutability” debate and just shook my head as I walked out of class, thinking to myself, “Why are we so afraid of mystery and paradox?” Answer: Because we’ve taken on the philosophy that science can solve every mystery and reconcile every paradox. So we force our theology to do just that.
So after we had a brief discussion about some of these things, we took a good chunk of time just cozying up to Psalm 33 and talking about what we could learn about who God is from that text. Rather than squeezing the “application” in for a few minutes at the end, I challenged the group to always include a “therefore” as they shared their observation. “God is just and He’s passionately committed to justice (v. 5). THEREFORE, I will commit myself to doing what I can to help the poor, the fatherless, and the oppressed.”
It was a great evening. The highlight was the prayer time where we adored him for the things that we had observed about him and asked for help, not just with “applying” those things to our own lives, but with actually embodying them so as to be an agent of change in the world.
Categories: God, devotional
Of course, I couldn’t help but notice immediately the spiritual parallels. Through the pages of scripture, we get to know God by listening in on conversations that he’s had with people throughout the ages. And as we live in community with others, in a sense we’re able to listen in on current conversations that God is having with them as he works in their lives. Also, as we do life with him and grow spiritually, learning to trust him, we know him better.
The sheet of paper that that I handed out to people had a list of “attributes of God” that I took from table of contents in a typical devotional/theological book on the subject. After looking over the list, we all concluded a rather obvious idea: we don’t know God by segmenting and labelling him into lists of characteristics. “Knowing God” is relational, not academic.
Words like “omnipotent” and “omniscient” in particular have never really seemed appropriate to me. The ideas behind them (omnipotent = all-powerful, omniscient = all-knowing) are true and actually quite mind-boggling, but where the heck did we get the terms themselves from? The answer is found in the very word “omniscience.”
That’s right. Thanks to the scientific method (a result of the Age of Reason, or The Enlightenment), we’ve effectively put God under a microscope, slapped some big Latin-based labels on him and dissected him out into manageable categories with every “-ology” you can think of. Okay, so we haven’t literally put him under a microscope, but sometimes it sure feels like we’ve tried or even that we’ve fooled ourselves into thinking we could.
This isn’t to say that our attempts at systematic theology and dogma have been completely worthless. In fact, I told the small group Wednesday night that the book from which I got that list of attributes (Knowledge of the Holy, by A.W. Tozer) had proven to be a huge blessing in my own spiritual life.
However, it is to say that the unspoken Enlightenment-style confidence (arrogance even?) behind human reason often causes us to abuse God’s revelation of himself. If you’ve ever heard or read a raging debate about whether or not Jesus was mutable or immutable (able to sin or unable to sin) or, better yet, whether Jesus’ death was for all people or “limited” to the elect, you’ve seen a great example of this abuse. I wasted an entire Bible college class hour listening to the issues in the “immutability” debate and just shook my head as I walked out of class, thinking to myself, “Why are we so afraid of mystery and paradox?” Answer: Because we’ve taken on the philosophy that science can solve every mystery and reconcile every paradox. So we force our theology to do just that.
So after we had a brief discussion about some of these things, we took a good chunk of time just cozying up to Psalm 33 and talking about what we could learn about who God is from that text. Rather than squeezing the “application” in for a few minutes at the end, I challenged the group to always include a “therefore” as they shared their observation. “God is just and He’s passionately committed to justice (v. 5). THEREFORE, I will commit myself to doing what I can to help the poor, the fatherless, and the oppressed.”
It was a great evening. The highlight was the prayer time where we adored him for the things that we had observed about him and asked for help, not just with “applying” those things to our own lives, but with actually embodying them so as to be an agent of change in the world.
Categories: God, devotional
20.7.06
The Latest on the Preparations to Leave (or, NO! ... Sleep! ... till DUBLIN!)
I posted a little update on our preparations to leave for Dublin over at BrandonAndKristy.net. The last couple of days have been encouraging as we've begun packing and throwing things out. I had a really encouraging Skype conversation with Phil the other day as well. He's excited for us to get over to Ireland and he shared several inside stories about what God has been up to in the Dublin area lately. (Click here for one example.)
We're looking forward to hanging out with Kristy' sister and brother-in-law this weekend. Aaron is on the road right now, en route to the Colorado Springs area with a truck load of their earthly posessions. On Saturday, we'll meet them at their new home in Monument and help them unload. While we're at it, there's a good chance that we'll be stealing a ton of boxes and packing material for our own move. Family's gotta stick together. =)
We're looking forward to hanging out with Kristy' sister and brother-in-law this weekend. Aaron is on the road right now, en route to the Colorado Springs area with a truck load of their earthly posessions. On Saturday, we'll meet them at their new home in Monument and help them unload. While we're at it, there's a good chance that we'll be stealing a ton of boxes and packing material for our own move. Family's gotta stick together. =)
18.7.06
Brandon in La-La Land
Over the weekend, Kristy invited some friends up to stay with us in the Springs. Kristy and Kayleith go way back and have known each other since middle school. These days, Kayleith and her husband, Tim, and their daughter, Ella, live about three hours south of Colorado Springs.
As we were chatting about stuff we could do together, we decided to head over to Cheyenne Mountain Zoo. After all, the zoo is much more fun when you have a two-year-old “ooo-ing and awe-ing” at all the cool animals. By the time we arrived at the zoo, it was getting pretty hot, maybe upwards to 95 degrees and as we wandered through, we all agreed that the heat was just sapping our energy and making us pretty lethargic. Of course, it’s the kind of “complaint” that everyone laughs off and thinks facetiously to themselves, “Oh, aren’t we suffering.”
And then there’s me. In my state of luxurious lethargy, I ended up in la-la land and thoroughly embarrassed myself.
After walking through one of the enclosed buildings with giant sized African bugs, brightly colored exotic birds, and a gracefully slow-moving sloth with massive claws, I wandered outside behind our little expeditionary group, my mind somewhere else completely. This is exceedingly important to note. My mind was somewhere else. I don’t remember completely, but it might’ve gone something like this: “Wow. Isn’t God creative to make all these bizarre looking bugs? Hmmm . . . Tim’s got the map. I wonder where he’s gonna take us next. Man, is it hot out here. . . . I wonder how that new “Pirates” movie is. . . . I wonder how much zoo keepers get paid. . . . My wife is awesome. I like to gently rub her back without even really thinking about it.”
And that’s when a familiar voice shook me from my state of half-conscious, sloth-inspired slumber. Only, it wasn’t the voice of my wife. It was Kayleith, attempting to communicate to me that whatever stunt I was trying to pull was more awkward than comedic, at which point, I jumped about three feet in the air and landed about five feet from my original position as I realized . . . I had been rubbing the wrong wife’s back.
My newly energized brain scrambled to think of a way to justify my actions or play along that I had just been pulling a little joke. But why? Why would I intentionally do such an awkward thing? It would never fly. So instead of saying anything, I just stood there stupefied, my aforementioned scrambled brain paralyzing my mouth.
Embarrassing? I’m not sure the word is strong enough. Fortunately, Kristy’s friends (whom I was hanging out with for the very first time!) are gracious, forgiving, and best of all, good-humored. After the dust settled and the laughter subsided (maybe 20 minutes later), Kayleith confirmed that after seeing how far I'd jumped and how beat red in the face I was, she knew that it had all just been a big mistake.
I guess it could’ve been worse. But I’ll leave it to your imagination as to how.
As we were chatting about stuff we could do together, we decided to head over to Cheyenne Mountain Zoo. After all, the zoo is much more fun when you have a two-year-old “ooo-ing and awe-ing” at all the cool animals. By the time we arrived at the zoo, it was getting pretty hot, maybe upwards to 95 degrees and as we wandered through, we all agreed that the heat was just sapping our energy and making us pretty lethargic. Of course, it’s the kind of “complaint” that everyone laughs off and thinks facetiously to themselves, “Oh, aren’t we suffering.”
And then there’s me. In my state of luxurious lethargy, I ended up in la-la land and thoroughly embarrassed myself.
After walking through one of the enclosed buildings with giant sized African bugs, brightly colored exotic birds, and a gracefully slow-moving sloth with massive claws, I wandered outside behind our little expeditionary group, my mind somewhere else completely. This is exceedingly important to note. My mind was somewhere else. I don’t remember completely, but it might’ve gone something like this: “Wow. Isn’t God creative to make all these bizarre looking bugs? Hmmm . . . Tim’s got the map. I wonder where he’s gonna take us next. Man, is it hot out here. . . . I wonder how that new “Pirates” movie is. . . . I wonder how much zoo keepers get paid. . . . My wife is awesome. I like to gently rub her back without even really thinking about it.”
And that’s when a familiar voice shook me from my state of half-conscious, sloth-inspired slumber. Only, it wasn’t the voice of my wife. It was Kayleith, attempting to communicate to me that whatever stunt I was trying to pull was more awkward than comedic, at which point, I jumped about three feet in the air and landed about five feet from my original position as I realized . . . I had been rubbing the wrong wife’s back.
My newly energized brain scrambled to think of a way to justify my actions or play along that I had just been pulling a little joke. But why? Why would I intentionally do such an awkward thing? It would never fly. So instead of saying anything, I just stood there stupefied, my aforementioned scrambled brain paralyzing my mouth.
Embarrassing? I’m not sure the word is strong enough. Fortunately, Kristy’s friends (whom I was hanging out with for the very first time!) are gracious, forgiving, and best of all, good-humored. After the dust settled and the laughter subsided (maybe 20 minutes later), Kayleith confirmed that after seeing how far I'd jumped and how beat red in the face I was, she knew that it had all just been a big mistake.
I guess it could’ve been worse. But I’ll leave it to your imagination as to how.
15.7.06
Next in the Reading Queue & Thoughts on Cultural Engagement
After reading Rhett's post on one of his contemporary theological heroes, I've decided that this is the next book I'll try to read in the "ecclesiology" category. Really good stuff. In my estimation, these are the kinds of things in the emerging church dialogue that are most helpful and substantial.
At the moment, I'm wading through a book that I picked up in England before I left called The Middle Mind: Why Consumer Culture is Turning us into the Living Dead. (You'll notice on the Amazon site that the American version of the book has a different subtitle: Why Americans Don't Think for Themselves. Not sure it would've grabbed my attention as easily as the British title.) The premise of the book is fascinating and the kind of thinking that I find myself wrestling with, but never able to clearly articulate well. There are a few problems with the book however.
First of all, the author, an academic from Illinois State University, seems to assume that the reader is as brilliantly well-informed and intellectually robust as he is. If you struggle at all with any sort of inferiority complex on any level, this book is not for you. You will feel quite patronized, as I have. The name dropping and side comments about the way literary and philosophical movements have changed in academic circles over the last hundred years or so leave the reader thinking, "Okay, if I had any idea of who these people are or what the 'social criticism of Cultural Studies' consists of, I may have some inkling as to what this guy is talking about.” It’s reminiscent of trying to follow the humor of Dennis Miller. (Of course, if you don’t know what I’m talking about with this allusion to Dennis Miller, you’re experiencing firsthand what you might encounter in this book. Check out the “comedic style” section of this Wikipedia entry to see what I’m referring to. That’s it! This book needs hyperlinks!)
Secondly (and maybe a result of my first critique), it’s difficult to know exactly what foundational presuppositions the author is coming from. He criticizes a lot of things about American culture, but rarely offers a glimpse as to why. To my knowledge, White is not a Christ-follower, so he doesn’t come from a perspective of having divine revelation as his starting point, but it’s difficult to know what his standard is, other than his passionately felt opinion.
Having said that, there are a few jewels in the book that have kept me reading on. In the introduction, White reveals his thesis, if only in part. “I am interested in the imagination as a social force that allows for both critique and reinvention. This is something that happens not only in art (although it happens most powerfully in art), but in every area of the culture – even in technology and science.” As the book progresses, White makes his opinion clear that people in Western society have lost the ability to “read,” not as in words, but as in cultural elements all around us and what they are communicating. To demonstrate, he completely disassembles the film “Saving Private Ryan,” commenting brilliantly on the subtle messages given by Spieldberg, whom (you might have guessed) he really doesn’t like.
I really believe that this is a powerful challenge to our culture and especially to those who refer to themselves as Christ-followers. All too often, the message that we get from Evangelical Christian leaders is that film, music, television, etc. is really nothing more than a matter of entertainment and that we really need to fear the power and suggestion of the “pagan worldview” that constantly assaults us as believers through the medium of entertainment.
However, I think there is an alternative to this perspective. Film, music and other contemporary media are forms of artistic expression. Granted, the films and music that get the most prime time attention are usually the most shallow and hedonistic and lacking artistic integrity. And it seems rare that film makers and song writers see their trade as anything more than an opportunity to make a quick fortune on the shallow tastes and preferences of the American masses.
But get beyond these examples of contemporary culture that are driven by consumer capitalism, and you’ll see that there are many brilliant artists who see these mediums as opportunity to create, communicate, and experience life with authenticity and integrity, completely aside from revenue or box office numbers.
Bands like Radiohead, Wilco, Over the Rhine, and Built to Spill are much more concerned with making good art than they are with fame and fortune. Film makers like Wes Anderson, Terry Gilliam, Spike Jonze, and Charlie Kaufman are (usually) not so interested in making the latest box office hit as they are in making good art that challenges the mind or tells a good story.
Rather than see these mediums as merely entertainment to be avoided and to protect our children from, we as believers need to see these mediums as artistic expressions to be read and evaluated – sometimes even to be blessed by when there are elements of truth and beauty in them. Having this perspective can help us escape the entrapment of “entertainment choices” (no, that's not the only way to think of film and music) and open up a whole new world of intelligent engagement with the world around us. We can then help our children make choices in film and music based not on whether there was a Bible lesson explicitly given or even based on how good or amused it makes them feel, but on the truth and virtue of the message (even in uncomfortable films such as Magnolia or 21 Grams, admittedly not for children) or the challenge to the intellect and imagination.
Much more to be said, and I don’t even believe I’ve said what I’ve said clearly, but life outside the blogosphere calls.
At the moment, I'm wading through a book that I picked up in England before I left called The Middle Mind: Why Consumer Culture is Turning us into the Living Dead. (You'll notice on the Amazon site that the American version of the book has a different subtitle: Why Americans Don't Think for Themselves. Not sure it would've grabbed my attention as easily as the British title.) The premise of the book is fascinating and the kind of thinking that I find myself wrestling with, but never able to clearly articulate well. There are a few problems with the book however.
First of all, the author, an academic from Illinois State University, seems to assume that the reader is as brilliantly well-informed and intellectually robust as he is. If you struggle at all with any sort of inferiority complex on any level, this book is not for you. You will feel quite patronized, as I have. The name dropping and side comments about the way literary and philosophical movements have changed in academic circles over the last hundred years or so leave the reader thinking, "Okay, if I had any idea of who these people are or what the 'social criticism of Cultural Studies' consists of, I may have some inkling as to what this guy is talking about.” It’s reminiscent of trying to follow the humor of Dennis Miller. (Of course, if you don’t know what I’m talking about with this allusion to Dennis Miller, you’re experiencing firsthand what you might encounter in this book. Check out the “comedic style” section of this Wikipedia entry to see what I’m referring to. That’s it! This book needs hyperlinks!)
Secondly (and maybe a result of my first critique), it’s difficult to know exactly what foundational presuppositions the author is coming from. He criticizes a lot of things about American culture, but rarely offers a glimpse as to why. To my knowledge, White is not a Christ-follower, so he doesn’t come from a perspective of having divine revelation as his starting point, but it’s difficult to know what his standard is, other than his passionately felt opinion.
Having said that, there are a few jewels in the book that have kept me reading on. In the introduction, White reveals his thesis, if only in part. “I am interested in the imagination as a social force that allows for both critique and reinvention. This is something that happens not only in art (although it happens most powerfully in art), but in every area of the culture – even in technology and science.” As the book progresses, White makes his opinion clear that people in Western society have lost the ability to “read,” not as in words, but as in cultural elements all around us and what they are communicating. To demonstrate, he completely disassembles the film “Saving Private Ryan,” commenting brilliantly on the subtle messages given by Spieldberg, whom (you might have guessed) he really doesn’t like.
I really believe that this is a powerful challenge to our culture and especially to those who refer to themselves as Christ-followers. All too often, the message that we get from Evangelical Christian leaders is that film, music, television, etc. is really nothing more than a matter of entertainment and that we really need to fear the power and suggestion of the “pagan worldview” that constantly assaults us as believers through the medium of entertainment.
However, I think there is an alternative to this perspective. Film, music and other contemporary media are forms of artistic expression. Granted, the films and music that get the most prime time attention are usually the most shallow and hedonistic and lacking artistic integrity. And it seems rare that film makers and song writers see their trade as anything more than an opportunity to make a quick fortune on the shallow tastes and preferences of the American masses.
But get beyond these examples of contemporary culture that are driven by consumer capitalism, and you’ll see that there are many brilliant artists who see these mediums as opportunity to create, communicate, and experience life with authenticity and integrity, completely aside from revenue or box office numbers.
Bands like Radiohead, Wilco, Over the Rhine, and Built to Spill are much more concerned with making good art than they are with fame and fortune. Film makers like Wes Anderson, Terry Gilliam, Spike Jonze, and Charlie Kaufman are (usually) not so interested in making the latest box office hit as they are in making good art that challenges the mind or tells a good story.
Rather than see these mediums as merely entertainment to be avoided and to protect our children from, we as believers need to see these mediums as artistic expressions to be read and evaluated – sometimes even to be blessed by when there are elements of truth and beauty in them. Having this perspective can help us escape the entrapment of “entertainment choices” (no, that's not the only way to think of film and music) and open up a whole new world of intelligent engagement with the world around us. We can then help our children make choices in film and music based not on whether there was a Bible lesson explicitly given or even based on how good or amused it makes them feel, but on the truth and virtue of the message (even in uncomfortable films such as Magnolia or 21 Grams, admittedly not for children) or the challenge to the intellect and imagination.
Much more to be said, and I don’t even believe I’ve said what I’ve said clearly, but life outside the blogosphere calls.
A Great Example of Cultural Re-Entry
One of our good friends and colleagues has a great blog entry regarding her re-entry into American life. I felt much the same way when I arrived in Colorado back in October, but Dawn puts it so much more eloquently.
Rod and Dawn and their two kids are back in the States for a few months to re-evaluate GEM Youth Ministries and have a mini-sabbatical away from the ministry, which is often a great way to hear God’s voice and envision the best way to move forward. We’re hoping to connect with them and catch up a bit while they’re here in The Springs. Rumor has it that we may be able to borrow their house in Dublin for a while when we first arrive in August.
Rod and Dawn and their two kids are back in the States for a few months to re-evaluate GEM Youth Ministries and have a mini-sabbatical away from the ministry, which is often a great way to hear God’s voice and envision the best way to move forward. We’re hoping to connect with them and catch up a bit while they’re here in The Springs. Rumor has it that we may be able to borrow their house in Dublin for a while when we first arrive in August.
12.7.06
Denver Road Trip Adventure
Had an interesting day. Drove up to Denver to pick up my computer from the shop. The last several days have been frustrating as I’ve used my wife’s computer to, among other things, do the e-mailing thing online, a process which is maddeningly slower than receiving them into my e-mail client on my computer. Along the way, there’ve been a number of other inconveniences that have given me cause to whine and complain. And it’s given Kristy plenty of reason to conclude that I’m a little technology-spoiled brat.
On the way home from Denver, just as we came over Monument Hill to head into The Springs, the Crown Vic (which my father-in-law has graciously lent to us all these months) suddenly decided to refuse acceleration and then, after coasting a mile, to quit altogether. After getting towed to a nearby garage, the mechanic informed us that the fuel pump would need to be replaced for a pretty little price.
Funny enough, Kristy called her dad to let her know what was going on with his car and when she mentioned the problem with the fuel pump, he said, “Oh sure. That thing’s been going bad for about four years now.” I suddenly didn’t feel so bad about breaking his car. (I’m mean c’mon, that fuel pump has probably just been hanging by a thread since we started using it last autumn, right?)
Our little adventure raised an interesting question: Are you required to have missing teeth to work with cars? It seemed uncanny how the tow truck driver and the mechanic seemed to fit the qualification.
Aside from the road trip mishaps, it’s nice to have my baby (read, “laptop”) back and running like new. Needless to say my wife is quite happy as well. Now if I can just get my MP3 player working again . . .
On the way home from Denver, just as we came over Monument Hill to head into The Springs, the Crown Vic (which my father-in-law has graciously lent to us all these months) suddenly decided to refuse acceleration and then, after coasting a mile, to quit altogether. After getting towed to a nearby garage, the mechanic informed us that the fuel pump would need to be replaced for a pretty little price.
Funny enough, Kristy called her dad to let her know what was going on with his car and when she mentioned the problem with the fuel pump, he said, “Oh sure. That thing’s been going bad for about four years now.” I suddenly didn’t feel so bad about breaking his car. (I’m mean c’mon, that fuel pump has probably just been hanging by a thread since we started using it last autumn, right?)
Our little adventure raised an interesting question: Are you required to have missing teeth to work with cars? It seemed uncanny how the tow truck driver and the mechanic seemed to fit the qualification.
Aside from the road trip mishaps, it’s nice to have my baby (read, “laptop”) back and running like new. Needless to say my wife is quite happy as well. Now if I can just get my MP3 player working again . . .
11.7.06
Ireland & the Faith Journey
Now that Kristy and I are finally headed for Ireland, we've been getting to work on airfare, hiring a moving/shipping company, consolidating bank accounts, renting out the townhome, etc. Before we leave, we also want to try and get in as many hiking trails as we can, just to take advantage of the beautiful Colorado outdoors as much as we can.
My heart is already anticipating the change of cultures and looking forward to seeing firsthand what God is up to in Ireland and how his Kingdom is breaking into the Irish world. Some newly appointed missionaries with GEM recently came across an article in the Chicago Tribune about the religious environment in Ireland. (Here’s the LINK.) I haven’t had a chance to read it completely through yet, but it looks to be quite revealing.
I was also sent a copy of a letter (by an Irish academic maybe? Anyone heard of Fergus Ryan?) that someone in Dublin sent to the author of the Chicago Tribune article. I have a feeling we can probably learn more from Irish reaction to an American perspective on Ireland than anything else. If you’re at all interested in that letter, let me know.
Recently I came across some quotes from a little booklet published by one of my old college professors. It’s entitled “Faith is . . .” and the pages of the booklet provide some rather profound ways of finishing the statement, oftentimes in a very no-holes-barred way. As I was looking through some of the quotes, a few of them really seemed to apply to our current circumstances.
Faith is:
. . . confidence in God’s faithfulness to me in an uncertain world, on an uncharted course, through an unknown future.
. . . realizing that what God is going to do through me will be on the basis of miracle, not man power, on His promise, not my goodness.
. . . recognizing that God is the Lord of time when my idea of timing doesn’t agree with His.
. . . confidence in God’s faithfulness to me in an uncertain world, on an uncharted course, through an unknown future.
10.7.06
Built to Spill LIVE
Last night was the Built to Spill show here in The Springs. The venue was great. Small little club packed out with maybe 200 people. B2S music is brilliant live, but last night they seemed to be struggling in the energy department. Maybe my expectations were set to high after hearing friends rant and rave about their live shows in Seattle. Maybe they're just road weary and had an off night.
I had a chance to speak to Doug Martsch (frontman) during the opening act. He was just sitting next to the merchandise table making up the set list. I asked if they had any plans to come to Europe and he said they were planning on it next spring.
During the show, they had art flashing up on a small screen by the guy that did the cover art for the latest album. Really good stuff. Very creative.
One song during the show was a video commentary that coincided with the band doing an instrumental number. The guy on the video seemed to be rambling about some extreme environmentalism issues. I think. I didn't catch everything he was saying.
Technorati Tags: live music, Built to Spill8.7.06
Ireland Bound - Early August Departure
Have you ever felt the exhilaration of watching your team rise to victory in the final seconds of the game? (Italians can readily relate with this in light of their football heroes beating the German team last week.) Yesterday, this is how Kristy and I felt when God brought us some new financial partners who committed enough monthly support to bring us to 90% – the magic number required for us to prepare to move to Ireland! Shortly after getting the news of that new partnership, God brought us yet another unexpected source of financial support through an old friend from my former days in youth ministry who just happened to Google my name to find out what I was up to these days!
As the week was coming to a close, Kristy and I were graciously trying to accept the fact that we would probably not make it to Ireland in time to be with our friends and colleagues at the GEM Annual Conference in Hungary. Our hope was that we could kick off our new life and ministry in Ireland with those friends, many of whom were instrumental in introducing us to each other in the first place and had not yet seen us as “The Wellcomes.” In the back of my mind, I had decided that if we weren’t financially where we needed to be by this weekend, we would have to give up on the conference and hope for the end of August or early September. Our prayers together throughout the week reflected that delicate balance of, “Please Lord . . . but your will, not ours, be done.”
I know now that He was teaching us trust and patience. And due to the last second timing of it all, I think He wanted to dramatically remind us of His goodness. After all, being able to attend the conference is just a bonus and not necessarily essential to what He’s called us to in Ireland.
At the moment, we have a travel agent looking for airfare for the 8th or 9th of August. On Monday, we’ll give the moving company a ring and begin working out all of those details. And over the course of the next 4 weeks, we’ll be praying and seeking out the final $700/mo. that we’ll need to bring us to full financial support. Please join us in that intercession!
As the week was coming to a close, Kristy and I were graciously trying to accept the fact that we would probably not make it to Ireland in time to be with our friends and colleagues at the GEM Annual Conference in Hungary. Our hope was that we could kick off our new life and ministry in Ireland with those friends, many of whom were instrumental in introducing us to each other in the first place and had not yet seen us as “The Wellcomes.” In the back of my mind, I had decided that if we weren’t financially where we needed to be by this weekend, we would have to give up on the conference and hope for the end of August or early September. Our prayers together throughout the week reflected that delicate balance of, “Please Lord . . . but your will, not ours, be done.”
I know now that He was teaching us trust and patience. And due to the last second timing of it all, I think He wanted to dramatically remind us of His goodness. After all, being able to attend the conference is just a bonus and not necessarily essential to what He’s called us to in Ireland.
At the moment, we have a travel agent looking for airfare for the 8th or 9th of August. On Monday, we’ll give the moving company a ring and begin working out all of those details. And over the course of the next 4 weeks, we’ll be praying and seeking out the final $700/mo. that we’ll need to bring us to full financial support. Please join us in that intercession!
6.7.06
Jesus-Style Forgiveness
I’m really enjoying a book called The Jesus Creed, by Scot McKnight. The “Great Commandment” to love God and love others is what “the Jesus Creed” refers to. It’s Jesus’ most basic, fundamental summary of what life as a Christ-follower in the Kingdom of God is all about.
I’m hoping to blog a few things about some points that McKnight has made in the book, but for now I just want to mention something that came together for me between McKnight’s book and my study in The Book this morning.
In chapter 23 of “The Jesus Creed,” McKnight points out something that I’d never even thought of before. In the Old Testament, you don’t find a lot about humans forgiving one another. Not in the Mosaic Law and it’s list of commandments. Not in the Psalms. Not in the Prophets. We get a hint of it in the closing chapters of Genesis when Joseph “reassured [his brothers] and spoke kindly to them” in an act of forgiveness. However, for the most part, the Jewish religion, as taught in the pages of the TaNaK (or, Old Testament) is concerned with justice. As McKnight puts it, in the OT,
The opening text of chapter two tells the story of the paralytic who was lowered down to Jesus through a newly refurbished sky light in the roof, custom-built especially by the paralytic’s four loyal friends. (Those are the kinds of friends I want.) In an ironic twist, Jesus responds to the faith that he observes in this mischievous group of friends and says to the paralytic, “Your sins are forgiven.”
Never mind the fact that the paralytic and his friends are probably thinking, “That’s not exactly what we had in mind.” The story aims the cameras at the teachers of the law who, in a state of heresy-induced shock are thinking to themselves, “Nobody forgives sins but YHWH alone!!”
McKnight’s explanation of the role of forgiveness in the OT shed new light on this passage for me. I tend to be pretty hard on the religious leaders of Jesus’ day when I read the Gospels. And I really believe that paying careful attention to how Jesus dealt with them can prove quite illuminating for the Body of Christ today.
However, when I read this story again this morning, I was a little easier on the teachers of the law. They were being true to their religious training and to the Law of Moses. Sin is not something to be forgiven or wiped clean by other human beings. But it is something that God alone forgives in response to repentance. Recognizing this OT background on the concept of forgiveness deepens our understanding of the audacity of Jesus’ claim in the eyes of the Pharisees. Only as the ministry of Jesus progresses and climaxes at the resurrection can the people around Jesus (crowds and Pharisees alike) begin to see that this man could indeed forgive sins because He is, in fact, God Himself.
The even more difficult part comes later in the New Testament when God asks us to forgive one another “just as in Christ God forgave you.”
Click here and here for more thoughts on lessons to be learned from Jesus’ dealings with the teachers of the law.
I’m hoping to blog a few things about some points that McKnight has made in the book, but for now I just want to mention something that came together for me between McKnight’s book and my study in The Book this morning.
In chapter 23 of “The Jesus Creed,” McKnight points out something that I’d never even thought of before. In the Old Testament, you don’t find a lot about humans forgiving one another. Not in the Mosaic Law and it’s list of commandments. Not in the Psalms. Not in the Prophets. We get a hint of it in the closing chapters of Genesis when Joseph “reassured [his brothers] and spoke kindly to them” in an act of forgiveness. However, for the most part, the Jewish religion, as taught in the pages of the TaNaK (or, Old Testament) is concerned with justice. As McKnight puts it, in the OT,
“forgiveness is something God does, not something humans do. If forgiveness is the objective reality of wiping the slate clean of one’s sinful behaviors and thoughts, then most of us would agree that only God can wipe the slate clan. This is why the vast majority of references to forgiveness in the Bible describe this process: Israel sins, YWHW forgives.”Fast forward to my time in the Gospel of Mark this morning.
The opening text of chapter two tells the story of the paralytic who was lowered down to Jesus through a newly refurbished sky light in the roof, custom-built especially by the paralytic’s four loyal friends. (Those are the kinds of friends I want.) In an ironic twist, Jesus responds to the faith that he observes in this mischievous group of friends and says to the paralytic, “Your sins are forgiven.”
Never mind the fact that the paralytic and his friends are probably thinking, “That’s not exactly what we had in mind.” The story aims the cameras at the teachers of the law who, in a state of heresy-induced shock are thinking to themselves, “Nobody forgives sins but YHWH alone!!”
McKnight’s explanation of the role of forgiveness in the OT shed new light on this passage for me. I tend to be pretty hard on the religious leaders of Jesus’ day when I read the Gospels. And I really believe that paying careful attention to how Jesus dealt with them can prove quite illuminating for the Body of Christ today.
However, when I read this story again this morning, I was a little easier on the teachers of the law. They were being true to their religious training and to the Law of Moses. Sin is not something to be forgiven or wiped clean by other human beings. But it is something that God alone forgives in response to repentance. Recognizing this OT background on the concept of forgiveness deepens our understanding of the audacity of Jesus’ claim in the eyes of the Pharisees. Only as the ministry of Jesus progresses and climaxes at the resurrection can the people around Jesus (crowds and Pharisees alike) begin to see that this man could indeed forgive sins because He is, in fact, God Himself.
The even more difficult part comes later in the New Testament when God asks us to forgive one another “just as in Christ God forgave you.”
Click here and here for more thoughts on lessons to be learned from Jesus’ dealings with the teachers of the law.
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