At least once a month... (I wish I could Blog like Jim)

So this is one of those update/random things I've been thinking/learning.

Baseball is rolling now, so i have way less time, but I don't mind. I love being out there with my players! It's a blast! I have a great team this year. We are a small team, but i think we're gonna be dangerous. Most of all I hope that God is honored with our effort this spring.

Speaking of baseball I have to make a comment about the latest admission of guilt to cheating/illegal activity in the MLB. I'm not gonna lie, i thought ol' A-Rod was the last clean superstar left to make a run on the HR record that has already been broken by a guy who cheated like a champ. At first i was really disappointed, but the more i think about it the more i realize it was bound to happen, and I can't blame them for doing it. They are HUMAN. That means they are fallen and will only make a mess of things. I can't point fingers. I've done really stupid things and made really bad mistakes. I am human too ya know. It has ruined MLB for me... don't know how much I'll continue to follow or watch it. This is that final nail in the coffin that was started with the strike.

I have been listening to a lot of the band Cake lately. They rock! I mean they are so random and good! It really does my post-modern side some good to kick it to their talent.

I have been reading in Judges the past few days. While there are some really deep lessons about what not to do and faithfulness to God and following His commands carefully, the one observation i want to make here is shockingly superficial... ha! Anyway I think that my standard response to people who talk about how terrible it is to watch any movie that has violence or worldly things like drinking or sex in it, will be "Read Judges lately?" NOW DON'T GET ME WRONG!! I am not saying to rent some nasty R rated movie that has naked ladies running around and all that. But I don't think the "stick our head in the sand" approach is gonna really work either. I mean what do you do with a book like Judges? It's pretty much all a bunch of stories about murder, killing, lying, sex, and intrigue. It puts every modern soap opera to shame! Just think about it people! Why are those stories in there? There is a reason! God has a purpose for every Word that He has revealed to us! Some of that stuff is R rated at best. Honestly I am still working thru the application of that. Any thoughts would be welcome on that...

My wife's belly is getting really big!! I have a son!!! HOLY CRAP!! Lord willing I will get to meet him in about 10 weeks. This is scary, exciting, happy, fun, weird, and other things like that.

I am a vile sinner... i realize this so often... guess thats because i sin so much... shocked? You need to read your Bible more if you are.

And finally... "When you sleep, where do your fingers go?"

Hail to the Chef

That was on purpose btw. I thought i would get on here and share some of my thoughts about the swearing in of the new messiah... err i mean president. Overall im not really that happy with it, but it's not because of who won (this election was a choice between who i disliked the least). But there are 2 big issues that i have with it that make me uneasy to the point of blogging and if im honest, being physically uncomfortable.

before i jump in here let me just say for the record that i hate politics, i generally lean toward small government with isolationistic ideals. partisanship is continuing to weaken a strong country that i love and would die for

with that said... the two issues are (anyone still reading?)

1) The amount of hope that has been put into this man by this country. You are hoping in a fallen human being! You are hoping for change from someone that has been produced by the system that you want changed. But most of all you are hoping in a man! He will let you down. He will fail you! He will make mistakes, and except for the GRACE OF GOD ALMIGHTY in heaven he will make things worse! And out of the two options of success or failure, i don't know which one scares me more. Imagine what happens to all the hope that has been placed in him if he fails? What does it turn into? How will people react? How far will the pendulum swing? OR What happens if things do get "better" (what a relative and nasty term that is... Jim, blog it out will ya?) More hope is poured into a man that is fallen, depraved, and evil. JUST LIKE YOU AND ME!!!!

2) I truly understand for the first time in my life that I am a minority in this country, and apart from God's gracious intervention in the affairs of men, my family would be the target of countless hate crimes. (And I have strong doubts things will remain as they are in the long term) Yeah I am a white male and so there are a lot of us... but race, sex, and class have nothing to do with the minority i am in. I don't really have a ton more to say about it other than I really understand that now... and I am about to have a son that is going to grow up in a culture that is going to be increasingly hostile toward his family. Scares the crap out of me!
Now i could have written this 8 years ago when Bush was elected too... the religious right thought we were gonna be a theocracy within 3 years and all evil would have been stamped out by now... but again, it was a fallen man that their hope was put in.

All that to say this... I still find hope, I still have joy, and I still live in peace because I know this to be true.

Oh and by the way for those of you who reside in the minority with me... don't forget to pray!

Live from Seattle!

Snow is the coolest, isn't it? I mean its one of those few things that makes all grown ups act and even feel like little kids again. Of course when it happens in the South or here in Seattle it also makes a mess of things since it is such a rare occurrence.

The view from the plane last night was pretty cool though. Snow covering everything here in Seattle, and it was at night so that made it look cool too. (Yeah, if you haven't figured it out yet, Shaw and I are in Seattle for Christmas with her family)

One thing that became very clear to me on the trip yesterday was just how sanctifying air travel is. I mean have any of us flown around Christmas time and not had some sort of delay or been overwhelmed by the 50 million other ppl that are traveling as well? Well while i was in Atlanta last night (with extra time on my hands because of a delay) I decided to walk around the terminal we were in for a while.

While walking i started thinking about what makes me different (as far as being a Christian goes) from the rest these people i am walking past. Then another question occurred to me that I have had a good time meditating on since then. What would Christ have looked like walking through the busy E Terminal of Atlanta's airport? Not the full blown ministry Christ, but the pre-baptism Christ. After the beginning of his public ministry he would have always had people following him and recognizing him no doubt. But what about before? What do you suppose Christ would have acted like? Clearly his character never changed, but what about the way he interacted with the world before that?

Just interesting to think about I guess...

Merry CHRISTmas from the frozen North West! Much love to all 3 of my readers!

I know...

So it has been a while... I have no excuse really, other than I was just to lazy or unmotivated. But since once again i was hounded by all 3 of you to add something I will indulge my fans!

Nothing really deep on the radar right now... I have been studying through Romans for the HS Sunday school class i teach. I think i am actually starting to understand what Paul was after in chapters 6 and 7. At least it seems like at certain points i have flashes of "oh! yeah!" I am also actually starting to revise my thesis! HAHA!! I am not lying either! I have a lot of work though, so its kinda hard to get super motivated to do it. I also have an opportunity to give my pastor a break from preaching Jan 11th, so that will be good. I think im gonna take his input at dig in to Luke 23 and work on something that has to deal with how to overcome evil with good.

Speaking of my pastor; i got to sit down and share lunch with him this week and as always left feeling encouraged and challenged. If you don't have a shepherd in your life that is challenging you and encouraging you, FIND ONE!! It is a shame for any believer to live their lives without close fellowship and shepherding in the local body! anyway... There were many things that he encouraged me with as we talked about the upcoming birth of my first man-child, but there were really two that stuck with me.

1st i expressed my concern over being a good father. it really freaks me out that i have to be one. and i want to be a good one. i want to have a relationship with my son like my pastor has with his and enjoy close fellowship and relationship with my kids. i want them to know that i love them deeply and i care for them no matter what. most of all i want them to come to know God. As usual the advice given to me from my pastor was simple and profound. It went something along the lines of "If you want to be a good father, be a good husband. If you want to be a good husband be a good Christian." Simply put, be a good Christian. Make mistakes, repent, learn from them, and love Christ. It's so simple that even i can understand it, but its so scary because i am aware of how lame i am as a Christian...

...that brings me to the 2nd thing he said that really encouraged me. He was talking about his own walk with God and how he is aware of his tendency to pull away and allow his relationship with God to become cold, and he shared with me how it vital it is that he begs God for the ability and the grace to not be like that and to overcome that coolness and apathy.

And then it all hit me later on in the week... God! I need you!! I am desperately lost and wretched without you!! I will surely be a lame and worthless father and husband if you do not change my heart and grant me grace upon grace! God change me please! Help this worthless man! God help me! Be with me...


... And if it be your will, Save my child!

Say what?!

Have you ever read one of those passages in the Gospels where Jesus is explaining something or interacting with someone and he makes some statement that seems to be completely out of no where, or completely unrelated to the topic at hand? Well I had a question posed to me at work this week and the passage in question had one of those lil statements, and after i worked through it and finally understood it; i came to the conclusion that in those situations it is that enigmatic statement that is probably the key to understanding, interpreting, and applying the passage.
So wanna know what i figured out? (don't hold your breath Jim, you already have this one sorted out) The passage in question can be found in Matt 19:16-30; Mark 10:17-22; or Luke 18:18-30. There is one phrase in these passages that seems completely out of place, or at least at the hight of randomness, and it comes right at the beginning of the conversation between Jesus and this really rich, important dude.
"Why do you call me good? No one is good except God alone" (Luke 18:19). Well lets see Jesus... umm you are God, and at the very least you seem to be doing some really good things like heal people and take care of people. So yeah, I would probably call you good too. What does that have to do with this whole conversation about entering the kingdom of God?
Come to find out; EVERYTHING! What is the purpose of this story? What is Jesus trying to teach and reveal to us in this interaction? Well how does it end? It ends with the important, wealthy guy walking away upset, Christ saddened, and everyone else confused. But why did the important dude leave upset? Well because he was apparently stinking rich and liked being that way.
Jesus tells our friend, that in order to inherent the kingdom, you need to keep the law. Our friend positively replys he has done this. We all smile sarcastically at the naeivity of our friend... DUDE! no one can pull that off... but Jesus doesn't argue this point with the fella like we all want too. He lets him have that point, and makes one more stipulation. Take everything you have, sell it off, give it all to other people in need, and the come follow me. Ahh yes, the deal breaker...
But why didn't Jesus argue the whole keeping the law point?
Well He was/is God, so he had a perfect understanding of the situation and our boy's heart. He knew just as well as we did that this really important dude didn't keep the law like he said, but what else he knew was that the issue with this guy wasn't keeping the law as much as it was a divided heart.
This guy was trying to do it on his own. Our important friend was setting up his own standard of good (which was no doubt way low) and nailing it every time. Jesus knows this and as soon as He hears the word "good" out of the rich guys mouth, he cuts to the chase. Our boy's standard of good was off. It was a man made standard. The rich guy was all about situations that he could benefit from with as little cost as possible. Jesus simply begins by stripping away this false standard and laying his royal flush of sorts right out on the table.
God demands perfection and radical commitment to His cause. No one can be a part of His kingdom and still run their own kingdom on the side. We all want it Good, but the standard that we have set up for good is soooo much lower than what it should be. This guy is no different. He wanted in, but he wanted in on his terms. God's terms didn't seem good to him. This isnt any different than what He asks of every other person when they are confronted with the exclusivity of Christ.

Whats the app here? Let's answer a few questions and see if that helps us understand.

First: What was our boy looking for? A way in on his terms. R U?

Second: Do you really believe that God is good? Then by definition God's way would always be the best.

Third: Where does all good come from? Well the theological answer is God. So when you begin to think about this whole interaction; if the rich, important dude would have stopped and paid attention to what Christ says at the beginning, (you know the part where no one is good but GOD) then the rest of the conversation would have never happened. The only reason he was rich was because God was so very good he blessed this guy. Our problem is that we as human beings get hung up on the good things we are blessed with and miss out on what is really good, or best!

If we enjoy stuff like this w/o submission to God's authority and rule, imagine what it might be like if we did submit to God's authority! There is a whole new (eternal) world of good that we haven't even touched.

So you gonna keep eating the knock off brand of chips, or are you gonna eat some Lays Wavy Potato chips? Both good, but one is better than the other and we all know it.

(One more note while I am thinking about it. If you live in America, the EU, or any other 1st world nation you are so stinking rich its not even funny. I don't care if you only make 25k a year, compared to the rest of the world you live like a king!)

I dream of...

...Jeannie

...Falling

...being naked in public

...specific revelation?

I will admit to the top 3, but the 4th; not so much. So i had this conversation today... Actually i opened my big mouth when i knew better and got into a long, worthless, waste of oxygen debate on whether or not God still speaks to His children in dreams. I say "still", because the first obvious observation on the discussion is that the Old and New Testament are full of recorded dreams that God used to communicate any number of different things as general as the rise and fall of a nation to specific as "there will be a guy showing up to your house, he has killed Christians in the past, he will not be able to see, you will heal him, he will be a great man of God..." (obvious paraphrase)

So why not now? Why can't we expect God to reveal things to us in dreams now? Obviously the question is not about ability. The fact that He has, and that He is God makes it more than possible. Not that anything is hard for God, but if you had to rank dream weaving on a scale of difficulty for God, I doubt it makes the top 1 billion.

So the question becomes need and purpose, wouldn't you agree? God does nothing simply to do it, all things are in His sovereign control for the purpose of working out His perfect will. The answers to need and purpose will give us the best idea of whether or not it in fact happens.

Lets start with need first...

Does God need to reveal anything to human beings? YES! The biggest being that we are created, our original parents sinned, they represented every last one of us, we all die because of sin, we cannot have a relationship with God because of sin, God had to fix it, He did fix it, we have a way to fellowship with God, it is an exclusive way, and once we begin that path, it is narrow and there are expectations that God has for those He has redeemed, oh and finally in the end God turns out to be the winner and rules forever...
Cool thing is, He reveals all that too us and so much more than we can ever grasp or understand in that thing we call the B I B L E (yes thats the book for me...) The Bible is God's revelation of Himself to man. In that Bible God, through a human author (which is so amazing it makes my head hurt) said this; and i quote... " His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence, by which he has granted to us his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire. " And if you aren't sure what he is talking about finishing reading the rest of the chapter... He is talking about truth. Ahhh what is truth? The Bible tells us that too!

So in this revelation that God has so graciously (seriously, He didn't have to reveal a freaking thing to us!) reavealed to us, He makes it clear that what He has revealed should be enough for us lil ol human beings while we live our lives out here on earth. So He did need to reveal himself to us, YES! and HE DID!

Does He still need to? Well i guess that depends. Do you believe that what the Bible says is correct? Yes?

GOOD!

Well then if the Bible claims sufficiency, then its safe to say that's all we need. Here is my problem with saying that God still uses dreams to reveal specific revelation to human beings... That implies that this direct revelation given to you was so important that God had to give it to you and you alone, and that also implies that what He had given you before this (the Bible) wasn't enough by itself. Honestly there is no way to resolve it! Trust me i have thought it through and tried! You can't say that the Bible is completely sufficient and all you need and in that same breath claim that God is revealing things to you directly that are specific to you and your situation and not already revealed to you in the BIBLE! HE HAS NO NEED TO DO SO IF WHAT HE GAVE YOU IN THE FIRST PLACE WAS ALL YOU NEEDED! (sorry im still worked up)

Second issue: Purpose

What would be the purpose in direct revelation apart from scripture? If there is no need, then there is no purpose. I realize that is sort of a straw man argument, but if you really think about it, the only real issue is need. If there is no need, it undermines purpose. God does everything for a reason. If you want to argue that He doesn't; do me a favor and stop reading my blog, you're wasting what little time you have left before eternal judgment. God had a very specific purpose every time He revealed himself directly to a human being. If you go back and read those amazing OT stories of Joseph, Jacob, Abram, Moses, Joshua, Daniel, you can see the need and purpose for why God did what He did. If they had had the Bible in the form we have it today, they wouldn't have needed it, and most of them had a better understanding of what little they did have then we will ever have of the whole thing that we have.

The reason this is such an issue for me is because I LOVE the Word of God!! And I HATE anything that would cast doubt or call into question the Word of the Almighty! It is the most precious possession we have, and as post New Testament believers we are blessed beyond measure with what we have. I can't imagine what Moses, Daniel, David, or Nehemiah would have done to have what we have!

The sad thing is... and we all know it... we waste it. We take it for granted. I am so spiritually rich and yet i act just like the Hilton sisters in all their glory. Spoiled as can be and dumb as a rock...

God forgive me...

Bull...

Did you ever play that card game... you know the one... you always called it "BS". The one where you lie about what cards and how many you are putting down... I always did love that game. And I honestly think, if my flawed memory serves me not so well, it was the thing that actually got me thinking about the topic I came across tonight in an email i got from a friend.

First thing I want you to do is check the video out. The man in the video is, in my humble opinion, a very godly, intelligent, and respectable person. I am also guessing that after you watch the video, you will read the article that comes along with it.

My question is this: Who do you agree with? Who's response do you think is out of line? Honestly I want to know.

And, just because I can, I'll add my 1.5 cents... (its my blog anyway)

Shockingly enough for those of you who know me, I agree with Dr. Tripp, and I am irritated by Steve Camp's response. What Dr. Tripp is doing is applying what the Bible teaches (theology) to life (practical theology). He is making a great point about what makes things sinful or wrong. He didn't refer to it in the video, but the first thing that comes to my mind is the Sermon on the Mount. This is what Christ was doing for His audience. He was explaining what is most important. THE HEART!! Words are meaningless by themselves! I can use the most PC, Vanilla, Unoffensive words in the world and express the most vile, foul, sinful things possible.

While I agree with Dr. Tripp, I guess the only thing I would do to maybe help our more easily agitated and irritable brothers and sisters to enter into the waters of practical theology with less reactionism would be to replace the use of the word he chose with the word ass.

Why ass? you ask. Well its even better for making the point, because even my KJV only friends have to admit that this word has changed in acceptability and usage as far as culture is concerned. Notice all the non-authorized versions have since left that term for a beast of burden out.

Alright, lets hop in our little time machine and head on back to 1611 shall we... If i was conversing with any of my good friends, born again or not, and i referred to my pack mule as my ass no one would have batted an eye at me. So far so good, eh? Ok well lets keep it going. Lets say that as my ass and I were trotting along with my friends, we have a run in with a rather unpleasant fellow who felt that my friends and i were taking up too much of the road on with our asses. As a way to express my displeasure and unloving feelings for this man's response I referred to him as an ass in conversations with my friends as we continue the journey.

What made one usage any different than the other. The word itself is culturely acceptable, right? Fast-forward 397 years... replace my friends and i riding donkeys with mountain bikes, and the word ass with donkey. Do you see the difference, or lack there of?

Lets be honest, in most circles i run in, if i were to refer to a donkey or mule as an ass it still wouldn't go over so well, now would it. And i don't! Not because the word has since become sinful and I shouldn't use it, but because the culture I live in dictates that it isn't appropriate for me to use that particular word in a public setting. (Now I may refer to my friend as an ass in jest, but it will only be because i am 100% sure that he and i are on the same page on what matters, and the situation and all that, which would be another whole post) The word isn't the issue. The word is a marker that helps me to understand and navigate the culture i live in, so that I can be as effective as possible in my proclamation of the Gospel, both in my speech and my life.

Why are we as Christians either so afraid of culture that we detach and lose influence (i.e. modern science/nameless and countless other bastions of faith that have disproportionately large populations compared to their impact on the local culture and community) or so enamored with it that we adopt it and begin to change our theology to fit in with it (i.e. the emgerant conversation/seeker-sensative movements).

Where's the freaking balance!?