So the other day I read Deuteronomy 3:23-26.
It occurred to me that Moses went from minding his own business tending sheep in the desert to be drafted by God (Moses really had no choice) to lead God's people out of slavery to Egypt. By all accounts Moses didn't ask for this... He didn't want it... tried to get out of it (begged actually) but in the end had to submit to the overwhelming pressure of God...
Then comes the payoff... the moment he has been suffering, waiting, longing for since the moment he said, "Yes Lord!" ...and God says, "No!"
Do think if Moses had known that after 40 years of obedience he would have been denied the thing for which he so desperately longed he still would have served so faithfully for so long?
What about you?
We have spent an awful lot of time in the North American context convincing ourselves and our youth that saying "yes" to God does not mean that you have to give up your dreams and passions. In fact, we say, God gave you those passions and desires and if you give yourself to Him He will use them in wonderful ways... you'll be happy and fulfilled and He... well, I guess He'd be happy too.
...but what if it's not true? What if saying yes to God means... well... means "Yes." no more and no less. What if saying, Yes." to God puts in jeopardy my ability to achieve my own dreams... and what if He doesn't change my heart so that I no longer want it? What if I end up like Moses after a lifetime of service begging God to give me the thing I thought He had promised me so long ago...
What if He says, "Enough! Speak to me no more of this thing!"
What if obedience does not produce health, wealth and prosperity?
I think I'm going to hang on to my 2c this time... just in case
Monday, March 5, 2012
Thursday, February 9, 2012
Bored Christian... the ultimate Oxymoron
Is that too harsh?
I see a lot of people who claim to be Christ followers who are also eager to let the world know how bored they are.
I'm sitting here wondering if it's even possible...
OK so you claim to have a personal relationship with a God who created everything we see and know. A God who flung stars into space and paints dots on ladybugs... He's right next to you (so you claim) inside you even... and you're bored?
You claim to follow a guy who demonstrated and calls you to love the unlovable, to serve generously and give without restraint to those in need. There you sit surrounded by the hurt, the broken, the needy and you are... bored?
I know people who claim to be both "bored" and "Christ followers", who get wildly excited about going overseas to serve the pagans (though few would call them that these days given that it's not politically correct). We raise tens of thousands of dollars to send these bored folk (who have never done a days work or an hours worth of service at home) overseas to do things like build houses for the needy. We want them to "get excited" about their faith and so we feel that this is a necessary expense... even though they live within driving distance of people who are equally homeless and needy...
I know people who claim to be both "bored" and "Christ followers" who get all pumped up about going to conferences, or camps, to programs and events... as if the God they say they serve is somehow more present in those places...
I know people who claim to be both "bored" and "Christ followers" who actually seem to consider the senseless pursuit of wealth and fame as something to be admired. They stare lustfully after those who spend their life trying to accumulate the biggest pile of ...loot... thinking, "Man, it would be so-o-o exciting to be Bob Rock-star!"
It seems to me that boredom defines your values... a person who values family and friends will hardly be bored when surrounded by them. Those who value wealth are unlikely to be bored when the money is rolling in. Those who value fame cannot be bored when the cameras are rolling and people are pushing for their autograph. Ask the athlete who has given herself to excellence in her sport if she feels bored in the middle of competition. Ask the artist if they are bored when they are creating great art.
Those who value Christ will not be bored by doing His bidding...
No... we're not bored... we just have messed up values.
Put another way, we're not bored... we're disobedient.
Please don't get me wrong... I'm not suggesting that boredom is a sin...
I'm suggesting that it cannot coexist with faithful obedience.
but what do I know...
My 2c.
I see a lot of people who claim to be Christ followers who are also eager to let the world know how bored they are.
I'm sitting here wondering if it's even possible...
OK so you claim to have a personal relationship with a God who created everything we see and know. A God who flung stars into space and paints dots on ladybugs... He's right next to you (so you claim) inside you even... and you're bored?
You claim to follow a guy who demonstrated and calls you to love the unlovable, to serve generously and give without restraint to those in need. There you sit surrounded by the hurt, the broken, the needy and you are... bored?
I know people who claim to be both "bored" and "Christ followers", who get wildly excited about going overseas to serve the pagans (though few would call them that these days given that it's not politically correct). We raise tens of thousands of dollars to send these bored folk (who have never done a days work or an hours worth of service at home) overseas to do things like build houses for the needy. We want them to "get excited" about their faith and so we feel that this is a necessary expense... even though they live within driving distance of people who are equally homeless and needy...
I know people who claim to be both "bored" and "Christ followers" who get all pumped up about going to conferences, or camps, to programs and events... as if the God they say they serve is somehow more present in those places...
I know people who claim to be both "bored" and "Christ followers" who actually seem to consider the senseless pursuit of wealth and fame as something to be admired. They stare lustfully after those who spend their life trying to accumulate the biggest pile of ...loot... thinking, "Man, it would be so-o-o exciting to be Bob Rock-star!"
It seems to me that boredom defines your values... a person who values family and friends will hardly be bored when surrounded by them. Those who value wealth are unlikely to be bored when the money is rolling in. Those who value fame cannot be bored when the cameras are rolling and people are pushing for their autograph. Ask the athlete who has given herself to excellence in her sport if she feels bored in the middle of competition. Ask the artist if they are bored when they are creating great art.
Those who value Christ will not be bored by doing His bidding...
No... we're not bored... we just have messed up values.
Put another way, we're not bored... we're disobedient.
Please don't get me wrong... I'm not suggesting that boredom is a sin...
I'm suggesting that it cannot coexist with faithful obedience.
but what do I know...
My 2c.
Monday, January 9, 2012
Growing old...
The one constant from the time we are born to the moment we start trying to stay young is that everything is always changing. Everything is "er" but it's all positive "er". You know what I mean - we grow bigger, stronger, smarter... Then we reach this stage of life in which the "er" starts to work against us - we're older and weaker. Our memory is shorter... we suddenly want our possessions to be cleaner and newer (some sort of compensation?)
I saw a documentary the other day on people trying to fight the process of aging. They talked about extending life 10 maybe even 20 years as if that were a good thing. Thing is... I don't think it is a good thing.
Do we really think living to 150 has any upside? Even if I could stay 30 years of age what's the upside. What makes life worth living is that it's bracketed by birth on the one side and death on the other.
Please don't get me wrong, I don't have some sort of death-wish - it just seems to me that everyone who spends their life trying to extend the end of their life ends up wasting the only life they have... the present.
"Bob" exercises 4 hours a day and takes enough vitamins to choke a horse... really? That's living?
"Julie" eats the nastiest looking food for breakfast and the skimpiest tasteless supper imaginable... How is that life?
I'm not suggesting we shouldn't take care of ourselves. I'm saying there is a line when focusing on the future erases any benefits in the present and so life ceases to be life. We have the moment! I don't have my 150th birthday... there is no guarantee. I have this split second... and this one... and this one... why should I kill the joy of this moment in the hope of securing even one more?
I gotta run... life is waiting on me.
Just my 2c..
I saw a documentary the other day on people trying to fight the process of aging. They talked about extending life 10 maybe even 20 years as if that were a good thing. Thing is... I don't think it is a good thing.
Do we really think living to 150 has any upside? Even if I could stay 30 years of age what's the upside. What makes life worth living is that it's bracketed by birth on the one side and death on the other.
Please don't get me wrong, I don't have some sort of death-wish - it just seems to me that everyone who spends their life trying to extend the end of their life ends up wasting the only life they have... the present.
"Bob" exercises 4 hours a day and takes enough vitamins to choke a horse... really? That's living?
"Julie" eats the nastiest looking food for breakfast and the skimpiest tasteless supper imaginable... How is that life?
I'm not suggesting we shouldn't take care of ourselves. I'm saying there is a line when focusing on the future erases any benefits in the present and so life ceases to be life. We have the moment! I don't have my 150th birthday... there is no guarantee. I have this split second... and this one... and this one... why should I kill the joy of this moment in the hope of securing even one more?
I gotta run... life is waiting on me.
Just my 2c..
Thursday, December 15, 2011
Season's Greetings
Greets all.
All the best of the season and a new year that sees a hundred-fold return on all that you did this year.
blessing for blessing...etc.
Friday, November 18, 2011
When God says, "No." Part 2
When God says, “No.” Part 2
So I never got around to dealing with the issue of God saying, “no” in my last entry.
Let me begin by saying better minds than mine have wrestled with this for centuries and I’m not even sure there is a satisfactory response.
It’s an emotional question. We only ever ask it when we don’t get something we really want. Actually, it’s worse than that – usually it’s not just something we want, it’s something we desperately need (or think we need).
If it’s something fickle or foolish our heart tells us right away we shouldn’t be asking for it… it’s petty, selfish or worse, self-centred. When these requests go unanswered we sigh and say, “Well, it’s all for the best” But what about when we think what we are asking for IS the best…?
I don’t know if I can articulate this well or not, but I don’t think God is up there like some sort of cosmic judge who decides on the basis of our bargaining or arguments whether or not to grant our requests.
We love to depict God in the extremes. Either He’s a stern-faced bully daring us to ask for what we need or He’s depicted as grandpa who showers us with (mostly useless) gifts.
He’s blessing and blessing or He’s looking to slap us down when we ask for things.
But what if God is neither the Grinch nor Santa Claus? What if God knows something that we do not?
What if God knows that “stuff” is the most useless aspect of the creation? I didn’t say “bad”… or “evil” only that it’s useless… it’s temporary. Look around you – everything you see is in decay.
Even you! …at least the parts of you that you can see.
If that’s true you can understand why an eternal being would be so desperate to wean those He loves off of what cannot last, in order to feed them what cannot be destroyed.
What if God is not concerned with stuff… but with people? Not with what you possess but your personhood …what you are becoming… not trinkets but transformation.
When we frame our questions within these parameters it becomes easier to see why blaming God for “No” responses or even “Yes” responses makes no sense. We think of life as a series of demands which need to be satisfied (I want.. I need…) What if life is more about journey… or put another way, what if life is not about stuff we accumulate but about actually living.
Consider the example of someone asking God for money to pay their bills.
“God, I need $1000!”
The thing is money is not life… it’s stuff. Maybe what you actually need is patience… or trust… Maybe rather than saying “Yes” or “no” God says, “Can I walk with you? Let’s see how this situation is going to play out? Let’s see how this is going to shape you… grow you… develop you.”
In other words, what if there is something greater than, deeper than, more powerful than $1000 at stake here?
Now I know that for some people their situation seems like hell… “I don’t need a walk! If I don’t get this money I’m out on the street!” or “I don’t need a friend… I need a miracle!” I also know that two people can face identical circumstances and one will walk away bitter and angry will the other seems so joyful… peaceful… together… you wonder if it’s even possible.
What if the life-shaping … that is the shape of your life is determined not by your circumstances but your reaction to your circumstances. And what if all of God’s responses are requests to be there with you as you react to your circumstances?
AUAUAURGH I have failed yet again to coherently articulate my 2c…
What are your thoughts?
So I never got around to dealing with the issue of God saying, “no” in my last entry.
Let me begin by saying better minds than mine have wrestled with this for centuries and I’m not even sure there is a satisfactory response.
It’s an emotional question. We only ever ask it when we don’t get something we really want. Actually, it’s worse than that – usually it’s not just something we want, it’s something we desperately need (or think we need).
If it’s something fickle or foolish our heart tells us right away we shouldn’t be asking for it… it’s petty, selfish or worse, self-centred. When these requests go unanswered we sigh and say, “Well, it’s all for the best” But what about when we think what we are asking for IS the best…?
I don’t know if I can articulate this well or not, but I don’t think God is up there like some sort of cosmic judge who decides on the basis of our bargaining or arguments whether or not to grant our requests.
We love to depict God in the extremes. Either He’s a stern-faced bully daring us to ask for what we need or He’s depicted as grandpa who showers us with (mostly useless) gifts.
He’s blessing and blessing or He’s looking to slap us down when we ask for things.
But what if God is neither the Grinch nor Santa Claus? What if God knows something that we do not?
What if God knows that “stuff” is the most useless aspect of the creation? I didn’t say “bad”… or “evil” only that it’s useless… it’s temporary. Look around you – everything you see is in decay.
Even you! …at least the parts of you that you can see.
If that’s true you can understand why an eternal being would be so desperate to wean those He loves off of what cannot last, in order to feed them what cannot be destroyed.
What if God is not concerned with stuff… but with people? Not with what you possess but your personhood …what you are becoming… not trinkets but transformation.
When we frame our questions within these parameters it becomes easier to see why blaming God for “No” responses or even “Yes” responses makes no sense. We think of life as a series of demands which need to be satisfied (I want.. I need…) What if life is more about journey… or put another way, what if life is not about stuff we accumulate but about actually living.
Consider the example of someone asking God for money to pay their bills.
“God, I need $1000!”
The thing is money is not life… it’s stuff. Maybe what you actually need is patience… or trust… Maybe rather than saying “Yes” or “no” God says, “Can I walk with you? Let’s see how this situation is going to play out? Let’s see how this is going to shape you… grow you… develop you.”
In other words, what if there is something greater than, deeper than, more powerful than $1000 at stake here?
Now I know that for some people their situation seems like hell… “I don’t need a walk! If I don’t get this money I’m out on the street!” or “I don’t need a friend… I need a miracle!” I also know that two people can face identical circumstances and one will walk away bitter and angry will the other seems so joyful… peaceful… together… you wonder if it’s even possible.
What if the life-shaping … that is the shape of your life is determined not by your circumstances but your reaction to your circumstances. And what if all of God’s responses are requests to be there with you as you react to your circumstances?
AUAUAURGH I have failed yet again to coherently articulate my 2c…
What are your thoughts?
Friday, November 4, 2011
When God says, "No."
When God says, “No.”
Consider the assumptions balled up in that statement:
First, it assumes there is a God.
Second, it assumes that He can be contacted with a request.
Third, it assumes that He cares to answer.
There are, no doubt, a boat-load of other assumptions as well but let’s start with these three…
The existence of God.
I have no desire to belittle or denigrate those who choose to not believe in a God. I find that often discussions like these end up being about personalities… and one side trying to bully or browbeat the other. Insults are flung back and forth and in the end the sides are just two kids sitting in the playground yelling, “Yeah? Well you’re just a poopy-head!” at each other.
I choose to believe in God because the alternative is irrational to me. I was the kid who always wanted to know, “Why?” and “How?” If you tell me that 2010 came before 2011, I’m going to ask what came before 2010? … what was before Baroque? What was before Medieval? What was before 1 A.D.? You can take me back to some cosmic big bang if you like, I’m going to ask you what was before that? Something has to press “play”. I choose to believe the “something” was a Someone… so sue me.
I believe it’s G.K. Chesterton who talks about the existence of good and evil as evidence that there must be something beyond our physical world. He goes on to talk about the miraculous – nobody denies that there are anomalies in the natural order. Sometimes cancer patients survive, blind eyes do open, deaf ears can hear… doctors and scientists shake their heads and say, “There is still so much we do not understand.”
At least the qualified and honest ones do.
Call me an ancient mystic if you wish but I choose to believe that there is a Someone behind those anomalies. I am not opposed to pursuing understanding in science and medicine. I am not opposed to developing techniques and using cutting edge technology to better understand the world around us – I just choose to believe that in all my studying, learning, grasping for knowledge there will always be more beyond.. another “How?” or “Why?” and the God I choose to believe in does not run from my probing, my questions, my feeble attempts to understand the natural order. No! He welcomes it… He dares me to push harder… to learn more… dig deeper…
He, it would seem, is a better, truer scientist than I…
That’s a ridiculous over-simplification but if you want to discuss it more…
God can be contacted
So, maybe it’s just me… but I thought. If there is a God out there… a Somebody who pressed the play button, wouldn’t it be cool to get in touch?
Does that sound freakish to you? Consider the billions of dollars NASA has spent and continues to spend trying to contact extra-terrestrial life.
Any ways, as a kid I decided to try and contact Him…
You know what?
He answered.
I can’t explain it any more than I can explain the moment I suddenly figured out how to balance on a bike without falling over. It just happened. One minute I was trying hard not to fall and the next minute the wind was whistling in my ears as I tried to remember how to work the brakes.
He cares to answer…
I know it blows my mind too…
My 2c
Consider the assumptions balled up in that statement:
First, it assumes there is a God.
Second, it assumes that He can be contacted with a request.
Third, it assumes that He cares to answer.
There are, no doubt, a boat-load of other assumptions as well but let’s start with these three…
The existence of God.
I have no desire to belittle or denigrate those who choose to not believe in a God. I find that often discussions like these end up being about personalities… and one side trying to bully or browbeat the other. Insults are flung back and forth and in the end the sides are just two kids sitting in the playground yelling, “Yeah? Well you’re just a poopy-head!” at each other.
I choose to believe in God because the alternative is irrational to me. I was the kid who always wanted to know, “Why?” and “How?” If you tell me that 2010 came before 2011, I’m going to ask what came before 2010? … what was before Baroque? What was before Medieval? What was before 1 A.D.? You can take me back to some cosmic big bang if you like, I’m going to ask you what was before that? Something has to press “play”. I choose to believe the “something” was a Someone… so sue me.
I believe it’s G.K. Chesterton who talks about the existence of good and evil as evidence that there must be something beyond our physical world. He goes on to talk about the miraculous – nobody denies that there are anomalies in the natural order. Sometimes cancer patients survive, blind eyes do open, deaf ears can hear… doctors and scientists shake their heads and say, “There is still so much we do not understand.”
At least the qualified and honest ones do.
Call me an ancient mystic if you wish but I choose to believe that there is a Someone behind those anomalies. I am not opposed to pursuing understanding in science and medicine. I am not opposed to developing techniques and using cutting edge technology to better understand the world around us – I just choose to believe that in all my studying, learning, grasping for knowledge there will always be more beyond.. another “How?” or “Why?” and the God I choose to believe in does not run from my probing, my questions, my feeble attempts to understand the natural order. No! He welcomes it… He dares me to push harder… to learn more… dig deeper…
He, it would seem, is a better, truer scientist than I…
That’s a ridiculous over-simplification but if you want to discuss it more…
God can be contacted
So, maybe it’s just me… but I thought. If there is a God out there… a Somebody who pressed the play button, wouldn’t it be cool to get in touch?
Does that sound freakish to you? Consider the billions of dollars NASA has spent and continues to spend trying to contact extra-terrestrial life.
Any ways, as a kid I decided to try and contact Him…
You know what?
He answered.
I can’t explain it any more than I can explain the moment I suddenly figured out how to balance on a bike without falling over. It just happened. One minute I was trying hard not to fall and the next minute the wind was whistling in my ears as I tried to remember how to work the brakes.
He cares to answer…
I know it blows my mind too…
My 2c
Wednesday, September 14, 2011
God spoke to me...
So I'm reading this script...
In one section it talks about "hearing God speak"
Anyone out there ever "heard God speak"? How do you know it's God speaking?
Through His Word -
Really? You "hear God" in stories of ancient blood-soaked battle? What exactly do you hear Him say when you read about entire communities being annihilated?
Listen in your spirit
Of course, by this you mean... listen to the ideas that pop into your head. If it's a good idea it must be God and if it's a bad one it must be ...the other guy...
The reality is I'm not sure I've ever heard my "spirit" say anything...
Through others
Uhm... if I'm listening to others, am I not just... well... listening to others? What makes YOUR ideas the voice of God?
I've heard "others" say and suggest some pretty stupid things you know...
Do what you know is right
That's great if the choice is between shoplifting something and paying for it. What if the choice is between Job "A" and Job "B"? What if rather than a choice between good and evil I'm trying to decide between "good" and "good"?
I'm sure there are more options. What do you think? This is just my 2c
In one section it talks about "hearing God speak"
Anyone out there ever "heard God speak"? How do you know it's God speaking?
Through His Word -
Really? You "hear God" in stories of ancient blood-soaked battle? What exactly do you hear Him say when you read about entire communities being annihilated?
Listen in your spirit
Of course, by this you mean... listen to the ideas that pop into your head. If it's a good idea it must be God and if it's a bad one it must be ...the other guy...
The reality is I'm not sure I've ever heard my "spirit" say anything...
Through others
Uhm... if I'm listening to others, am I not just... well... listening to others? What makes YOUR ideas the voice of God?
I've heard "others" say and suggest some pretty stupid things you know...
Do what you know is right
That's great if the choice is between shoplifting something and paying for it. What if the choice is between Job "A" and Job "B"? What if rather than a choice between good and evil I'm trying to decide between "good" and "good"?
I'm sure there are more options. What do you think? This is just my 2c
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