a tiger and his six-year-old - Part II

This series is inspired by a Calvin and Hobbes comic that touches on an important concept. If I remember correctly from my bathroom reading, the first picture is of Calvin having recently caught a butterfly in a glass jar. The second frame Hobbes somberly comments "If people could put rainbows in zoo's, they'd do it". The third frame is of Calvin looking contemplative, holding an empty glass jar high in the air and the butterfly fluttering away to freedom.

Last entry talked about the negative effects of replicating cheaper versions of beautiful creations such as art, food, and music.

This entry will deal with something far more serious.

orangutans

... not really. It will deal with faith and maybe love... and possibly we will touch into the primate realm, but don't get your hopes up.

I want to clarify something before I go any further in this post though. My argument is not that having wide spread access to beauty is a bad thing. It is an observation of the negative impact that this widespread availability can have when....

A: we lose our appreciation of the beauty because we have become numb to it.

B: we begin settling for cheap or false imitations of authentic beauty.

C: we can no longer differentiate between the authentic and the artificial.

If inspiration was found from somebody hearing Beethoven's 5th and it pushed them into a creative frenzy which led to yet another masterpiece being produced... that would not be a bad thing. It would be a bad thing if because you heard Beethoven's 5th your entire life, you never learned to appreciate what a beautiful piece of art it is. Make sense?

application:

So, most of you probably already see the connection to faith that exists with this concept.

Let's use the Gospel as an example.

Is it a bad thing that the Gospel is very widespread and available for many people to receive?

No, not a bad thing at all.

Is it a bad thing when a snot nosed kid goes through Sunday school, confirmation, all the bible camps, church retreats and mission trips, and eventually finds their way to a college campus and realizes that for the past eighteen years of their life they were simply being sent down a giant feel-good conveyor belt with a wwjd fish sticker slapped on it?

Yes, it is a bad thing.

and hey... guess what. this happens. a lot.

When I was in India last year one of the missionaries there made an interesting comment about the United States. He said something like "You are so clean you are making yourselves sick". This was referencing our lack of natural immunity because of our sterilized environments and how when we get out of those settings our bodies will often suffer more harm than they normally should because we never had an opportunity to allow our natural defenses to be built up.

Cleanliness is a good thing though? right?

I guess so, but when you realize that eventually you will find your way into a dirty environment you better be prepared to handle your surroundings appropriately.

Sometimes when we have exposure to something foreign or "bad" there is a change that takes place in us that allows us to survive. Physically you can see this happen when you get a flu shot... what makes the shot beneficial is that a small amount of the flu virus is placed in your body and it triggers your immune system and allows your body to become aware of a real potential threat and from this awakening of the flu as a threat, your body is now able to identify it and fight against it.

Another way to avoid getting the flu is to stay submerged in a bathtub filled with bleach and to use a filtered snorkel to help you maintain your breathing.

I think that many student ministries (parents included) use the bathtub of bleach approach to "discipleship" ( read-protecting) . They make sure their youth are constantly surrounded by the "right" friends, in the "right" school, listening to the "right" music... etc, and in most cases "right" can be roughly translated into "safe". Instead of holding hands with someone older and wiser and walking through a full spectrum of life, they only experience a very small and controlled glimpse of one specific picture of life. The result is that when they inevitably are forced to deal with opposition or danger, they are not prepared to stand on their own two legs and many times turn against the thing that has retarded their development... in this example, it is the church.

Jesus didn't do things like that. He made sure the disciples experienced the good, the bad, the rich, the poor, the joyful times, the times of mourning etc. As he walked his disciples through life, he was able to teach them and prepare them for a time when they would be on their own. Jesus did not use the bathtub of bleach technique... he gave his disciples a shot in the arm and said "this is real life, it doesn't feel good all the time and it is not going to. Remember that you are walking out my example, my love, my grace, and sharing my message to the lost and hurting with your words and actions. Now go out there and get your hands dirty because you know where to find me when you are bloodied and bruised and need to be bandaged up, and remember that through it all I will continue growing in my love for you" - (I think that is in "the message" version of Luke)

His life was set an example of true beauty, and demonstrated practically what the gospel looks like.

The majority of christians have settled for a cheaper more widespread version of the life we were called to live.

Bleach that.

translation:

A: we lose our appreciation of the beauty because we have become numb to it: The truth of salvation in Christ is absolutely beautiful. Our lives demonstrating freedom through Christ are just as beautiful and are a powerful testimony to who our God is. When we only see an environment that "celebrates" this or, at minimum claims it, we very quickly grow numb to the beautiful truth we are living in. This is even more the case if you have grown up within the system. This is an example of our faith changing from a belief to a sub-culture. We must be in "the world" in order to walk out our calling in obedience. It also reminds us of why the gospel really is good news.

B: we begin settling for cheap or false imitations of authentic beauty. When we simply begin protecting ourselves from the world instead of being a light in the midst of darkness, we are settling for a cheap imitation of our call. The Jesus of Suburbia talks about this concept. It argues that we have settled for a cheap and watered down imitation of Christ and in doing so we have settled for a cheap and watered down version of Christianity. I would agree.

C: we can no longer differentiate between the authentic and the artificial. The comfortably fear driven and gluttonous country club housewife who prays to Jabez for more Oil of Osteen and won't buy a cup of coffee from a "secular" store or give a dime toward a ministry that allows people with tattoos or minorities to do the work of the Lord, and is starting an anti-brothas to mothas team, can call herself a christian. The Apostle Paul is called a christian. Maybe that was a bad example? Basically, the cost of following Christ has lowered significantly since Jesus was walking the earth and demonstrating to us just what it meant to be his disciple, but we are still all put in the same category of "christian".

Ok... that is enough for now. we will approach "love" in part three perhaps?

Meanwhile, as usual, anyone who wants to give feedback is always invited...

... any bleach-babies out there?

a tiger and his six-year-old - Part I

There is a Calvin and Hobbes comic that touches on an important concept. If I remember correctly from my bathroom reading, the first picture is of Calvin having recently caught a butterfly in a glass jar. The second frame Hobbes somberly comments "If people could put rainbows in zoo's, they'd do it". The third frame is of Calvin with a delightful smile, holding an empty glass jar high in the air and the butterfly fluttering away to freedom.

I have learned a few things from my times with this unlikely pair, but this is one of the most profound illustrations that has left an impression on me.

I think it is true that when we find a good thing we are often times tempted to duplicate it or contain it in hopes of preserving the beauty we experience with it. We certainly do this with physical things... we recreate cheaper versions of beautiful art in hopes of spreading it to a wider audience, we record and distribute beautiful pieces of music at ease, we go to a restaurant chain that serves the same spectrum of food whether you are in Nairobi, Panama City, or Minneapolis.

We duplicate and distribute beauty freely...

...but...

...in doing so, have we lost our true appreciation of what is beautiful?

There was a time where you could not hang the Mona Lisa on your wall.

There was a time where Beethoven's 5th could only be experienced in a packed music hall.

There was a time when Curry could not be found in Minnesota.

It is hard for me to believe that I have the same appreciation for these expressions of art and beauty that I would if they were not readily available to me. It is extremely easy for us to lose our respect and cheapen our experience because of our abundance.

It is not so much that we have put a rainbow in a zoo. Rather, we have decided to make artificial rainbows and have them available every minute of every day to whoever can afford them. We didn't put the butterfly in a jar... we just made a cheaper version of the butterfly and flooded our streets with an overabundance of them.

love.

If we did this with music, art, and food.. do you really think that we would limit ourselves to simply replicate and cheapen the physically beautiful pieces of life...

Have we decided not to do this with the heart of true beauty, but limited it only to the work of our hands?

I would argue that we have not limited it at all.

The physical manifestations of this idea are very apparent, but the emotional and spiritual impacts are just as real, and we will talk about those in my next blog.

bacon and karma

bacon:

noun

Etymology: Germanic origin

meaning: The smoked or cured side of a pig.

karma:

noun

Etymology: Sanskrit

meaning: The force generated by a person's actions held in Hinduism and Buddhism to perpetuate transmigration and in its ethical consequences to determine the nature of the person's next existence.


I feel like I understand bacon pretty well. It is not a very complicated concept to grasp... and it is delicious. Because I understand bacon, I have no problem talking about bacon with other people or explaining what it is like to someone who still needs to be enlightened. Even if I did not like bacon, I feel like I am familiar enough with it that if someone else were to bring it up in conversation and told me how much they liked bacon I would be able to relate to them and understand why they feel the way they do about bacon. I have a pretty healthy understanding of bacon.

I am not an expert in this area, but karma seems to be a little more complicated than bacon. Also I would argue that, on a whole, karma has a greater influence in peoples theology than bacon does. I also think that people with religious beliefs that do not subscribe to the idea of karma are very quick to dismiss it without taking the time to understand why it is that other people embrace the idea. Things like this often times produce barriers rather than bridges... and I like to think that as a follower of Christ, I should be in the business of bridge building.

A friend of mine, Mark Herringshaw, seems to also care about this.

He recently wrote a book entitled

The Karma of Jesus

In this book, Mark looks at two normally separated areas in life: karma and grace.

The book is based off of a chance conversation that he had with a young man with a lot of questions. Karma and Christ are the focus of this conversation and as Mark recalls this event he draws some interesting conclusions of how the concept of karma interacts with the concept of grace. I read through this book last month and was interested to hear how grace and karma would fit together.

I feel as though I am able to better understand different ways of thinking after reading through his book and learning more about the history and application of karma. It definitely feels more like bacon than it did before.

Now, I have never done this before... but I am going to try something new...

Mark has offered to donate 2 copies of his book to readers of momentum, and I am going to make you work for them. so this is the deal...

The Deal

In the comment section beneath this blog, leave your most interesting, amusing, outrageous story dealing with Karma.

In one week I will pick two winners to receive a free copy of Mark's book based on the comment/stories that are left.

So... get going! leave some feedback! Win a free book!


Building bridges, eating bacon, understanding karma.

just that simple, just that easy.

Peace.

community mold, bonfires, and pianos.

I haven't posted in a bit... Life just got busy and beautiful.

I have been thinking about many things, one of which is how individualistic our society is. I am currently living in a house with three other guys, it is a pretty great setup. We are all quite different, but we all get along well and have been living in this house for almost 2 years now... really?.... wow.

Living this way is a little more complicated, but it is also extremely valuable. I will happily have someone use my detergent if it means I can afford to live in a place that has a washer and dryer. I would much rather deal with doing other peoples dishes if it means that I get to enjoy bonfires in the backyard. I sometimes have to clear out mold specimens from the fridge, but I have a piano in my living room. Yes, there is compromise that goes into an arrangement like this, but it is also an awesome environment to be in.

We live this way for a few reasons... one is that we are all a bit short of cash... kind of poor (obviously not poor in a global perspective, but still). We are all educated and have jobs, but still we have found that it would be tough to get by on our own, and 4 "kind of poor people" can pool their resources together and live in a much nicer place than they could otherwise afford. We get to live in a house, we have a kitchen, a basement, an upstairs, our own rooms, a living room, dining room... and that is awesome.

Also, we have each other. Our "night out" is the current standard of life. whether we are enjoying a bonfire, having a pint at the blue door, watching a movie in the basement, playing music in the living room... we live with our friends in a community.

Also, we are 4 single guys, so this is just a "bachelor pad" and is seen as a socially acceptable living arrangement. People have done this before us and will continue to live this way.

I've been living this way to some extent for the past 6-7 years locally and internationally, and now the thought of being outside a community like this is rather unattractive and foreign.

Granted, 4 single guys living together is looked at differently than other gender and relational dynamics... but is it really all that different of a concept? To live in a community and share life with others in a better environment does not sound like a bad deal at all.. married, single, whatever. I understand that having our own space is important... but do you really need a three level house for just the two of you? Doesn't that feel empty? Wouldn't there be something special about having those empty rooms and quiet hallways filled with a bit more life, and to be able to share with one another and to learn how to live in harmony with each other?

When we learn the value of sharing resources and working through compromise, it has been my experience that we see something beautiful come as a result.

Well, those are just a few thoughts on the topic, this entry wasn't too in depth.. but as usual, I hope it has given you something to ponder. Peace.

parasitic water and toothless smiles

Last night I got back from Mexico.

I went with a bud of mine named Josh. Josh is on staff at the same church I work at and oversees the middle school ministry. Josh will be bringing a group of soon-to-be-ninth-graders there this summer. Yikes. Please pray for him.

We went there and scoped things out. Since I have spent some time in Latin America, I also went with to make sure Josh was not left to be feasted on by the Chupacabra. I also had the opportunity to visit some missionaries that our church supports and to see the ministry they are a part of. It is called Esperanza Viva, it is located in Puebla, Mexico and it is quite amazing.

Puebla is about a two hour bus ride away from Mexico City and is surrounded by mountains, there is even an active volcano right close by... the journey there is amazing as long as you can avoid whatever movie is contaminating the environment. We were treated to "peaceful warrior" ... Kind of like the karate kid meets gymnastics.. which starred Nick Nolte as Mr. Miagi.

While Puebla is very beautiful... there is one underlying piece of it that complicates things... nobody drinks the water in Puebla. Not even the Chupacabra. Seriously... nobody can drink the water in Puebla. It is far too contaminated. It is not a matter of adjusting to be able to drink the water... Nobody drinks the water in Puebla.

In Puebla, bottled water is more expensive than Coca cola. When this is the case you can start to see how people are changed because of their surroundings. Given enough Coke and enough time your teeth will rot out of your mouth.

Did you know that you can use a Coke soaked cloth in order to loosen a rusty bolt?

It's also good for cleaning toilets.

So.. we've got a bunch of people pouring a tasty and wretched concoction into their mouths instead of something pure, clean, and rejuvenating. This troubles me.

I know I don't drink enough water. I have access to it, and maybe after writing this, I'll start drinking it more often.. but I am free to partake in something that is a basic human need, and although I have access to it, I don't really care about it, or think about it often, or drink it with the thanks that I should. I can get it for free and it is all around me, so why should I care?

When we remember what it is like to be without water... we begin to appreciate it.

After we have been out in the sun and our mouths are dried out... we care.

When we visit a mission and are allotted our 5 gallons to bathe with for the day... we care

when we are dehydrated from vomiting all day and slowly going insane in our concrete prison of a hostel, as we desperately search for just one little drop of water from the bone dry bottles on the floor... we care.. and we are willing to do nearly anything to get the water we need. We flip into survival mode... and we run out into the night looking for water. (some of you know it as the "both ends" story)

Most people reading this are in the same situation that I am right now. We have water and we often take it for granted. I am actually getting thirsty as I write this, so i am going to get some water right now.

refreshing.

I see some serious crossover with this concept though. I think we can take many things fro granted if we forget what it is like to be without them. This has spiritual implications as well. Maybe this is part of why it is so important for us to share our faith with others and invite them into the salvation that Christ offers. Not only is that something that is life giving for others, but it can remind us of what it is like to be "thirsty".

Now, I am not talking about "making christians" I am talking about living out what we believe. When we operate in the identity of Sons and Daughters of God we drink deep from the salvation that has been given to us. Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self control... these things are life giving and when we live these out we are sharing our faith.

We are given a choice in all of this. We can drink deep from the life giving water and share this with others.. or we can allow the acidic sweetness to stain our teeth and destroy our bodies.

We need to be intentional.

We need to remember what it means to be "thirsty", to be separated from God... and we need to live out our salvation by bringing water to those who thirst. In doing this we are reminded of what it means to thirst and we will desire to drink deep.

Mr. Reuss talks to children...

In two and a half hours a co-worker and I will be talking to a group of 1st graders about what we do for work and how it helps the community. This has forced me to ask myself a good question.

How does my job help the community?

I feel like I could have easily answered that question in the last season of life I was in. When I was traveling around, getting my hands dirty for Jesus, building relationships with the marginalized and lost, spreading the hope and love of Jesus in very real ways. I now am part of a large church as the Outreach Ministry Coordinator for the Emerging Generation. I work with staff and volunteers in the Emerging Generation and encourage an outreach focus within the different specific areas of ministry: Children, Students, Young Adults. My job is to empower the staff and volunteers into having a healthy balance of loving God and loving others in their ministry. If I do my job well, I no longer have a job.

So, I guess you could say that my job is to help people help people?

later that same day

They called me Mr. Reuss (pronounced "royce" - it's German), that was kinda cute, but made me feel old.

we help people help people

In about twenty minutes... that's what we ended up explaining to them, although the topic of conversation also deviated to snowpants, siblings, and airplane-dogs in short but very necessary little outbursts. 1st graders crack me up. They are passionate. They also ask some amazing questions and have absolutely adorable comments that even my abstract mind stretched to connect to what had just been said.

We have a trip to India scheduled at the end of this year, so i showed the kids on a globe how far away India is from the United States. The amazement that audibly filled the colorful walls of their classroom was contagious. Even more precious was the chorus of bright eyed "ooohs" and "aaahs" that came after I said that someday they might even be able to go there and share about how much Jesus loves them. It was as though I just pulled a cuddly rabbit out of a top hat, and could honestly promise them one of their very own someday. Their own rabbit... not their own top hat.

As I am writing this I am starting to realize how important that experience was for me today. Twenty minutes with a 1st grade classroom of little ones who love Jesus. They see things the way I should. When I asked them for ways they can help others out, all their hands pointed up to the sky without hesitation.

without hesitation.

They didn't even consider whether they knew what to say or not... they cared even more than that. They just knew they wanted to help and figured they'd come up with something to say.

Their willingness to act went beyond their ability to articulate the appropriate response.

This is the opposite of what I am used to dealing with.

When it comes to outreach, I can hear the "appropriate response" from people but there is, more often than not, a lack of "willingness to act".

When did we learn to switch that around? Apparently sometime after 1st grade.

"I can share my toys with someone who doesn't have any"

"you can tell a joke to cheer someone up"

"I can bring a friend to church"

"I can walk over to my neighbors house and tell them Jesus loves them"

These were among the many answers represented by those enthusiastic hands in the air. The kids were squirming, just trying to be patient before we allowed them to share an answer. You know that If I would have given the kid an opportunity to actually do what they said, they would have done it in a heartbeat, without a question.

Toys would be shared.

Laughter would begin destroying the grumpies.

A little kid would go to church with his friend for the very first time.

A neighbor would have their heart completely melted away as a little girl in a pink dress and a bright smile said "Jesus loves you" .

I feel like I should make some valiant attempt at encouraging us to all act more like children in our approach to loving others. Honestly, I am not sure what good that would do. I have heard it said and urged hundreds of times before, by dozens of people. I don't think it is about convincing. The children seem to get it, and sadly enough.. the children will probably eventually join the ranks of their complacent role models in the mosaic generation. Maybe in 18 years they will be reminded of how loving and faithful young children are, and how it is a shame that they are not like that.

or...

We might be inspired by the raw and sincere hearts that these children display so freely. Their desire to share kindness and possessions in the name of Christ might actually spark something deep inside of us that resonates.. because it is right. Maybe their reminder to us will be a call to action that paves the way for their future and ours. The way we live our lives now is an example for those little children, and....

Our toys are bigger and we have more of them.

The "grumpies" we can destroy with our love are much more severe and widespread.

We have way more friends, and opportunities to bring them into healthy communities.

We aren't limited to just our next door neighbors, and it might take more than a pink dress and a smile to get the point across.

... but if we approach these things in faith and love and with the willingness of a child, I can't even begin to imagine the impact it could have and what a strong testimony of God's love that would be. God blessed me with that 20 minute glimpse into His kingdom and I am left thirsting for more. So, let's break these cycles and get our hands dirty for the sake of Christ.... if your still not convinced, go talk to a 1st grader and they'll put you in your place.

pain and a rainbow

There it was...

I must have been in the perfect place at the perfect time... or maybe it was just a typical place at a regular time, with little perfection to be claimed... either way I saw one of the most beautiful acts of nature I have ever seen.

Have you ever had an experience you wished you could bottle up and carry with you... something so beautifully impacting that you wanted to remain in the midst of it... this was one of them for me.

...and, if you could remain in it, do you think it would retain it's beauty? Or is its rarity a critical part of what makes it so beautiful? Is the uniqueness of it what makes it stand out? Without the backdrop of familiarity would we really be able to appreciate these beautiful moments? Without some contrast we could not fully appreciate these experiences.

a rainbow.

The thing was so close that I felt like I could throw a stone and knock out the ornery gold hoarding leprechaun at the end of it. Vibrant colors filled the otherwise dim and unimpressive sky. I went to my car, preparing to grab my camera and take a picture of it... and then I made a wonderful decision.

The picture I intended on taking was never taken.

Instead of capturing an unsuitable glimpse of this experience, I decided to soak in the moment and remember it as it was... cherishing its beauty and creating a visual picture that would only improve with age, and knowing that part of what made it so special is it's uncontainable uniqueness. I realized that it was beautiful for a couple reasons... the bright spectrum of colors did stand out in the dim sky, which increased its beauty, and also I don't always have the opportunity to see a rainbow but when I do, it is special.

All this to say, beauty is emphasized and more deeply appreciated when there is contrast...

Rainbows stand out because the sky is normally void of them and we are aware of that.

Jumping into a pool of crisp refreshing water is amazing on a hot and humid Minnesota day because we have been sweating through our clothes and chewing on the thick air.

A little bit of salt makes sweet things taste even better because of the flavor contrast.

Fireworks suck in the daylight because there is no contrast.

Salvation is more beautiful if we understand there something to be saved from.

There it is.. you probably expected something like that to be said sooner than later.. we've got some spiritual implications with all this jazz. More on this later.

pain

Sunday was the close of the United Services at the church where I work. I don't want to comment on that overall experience in this entry, but I do want to point out something that took many of the young adults and I am sure several others in the congregation by surprise.

Jabez showed up.

The whole Jabez thing has been a running joke for at least a couple years in the young adult ministry at church. The word/name "Jabez" has become synonymous with "prosperity gospel" which many Christ followers, especially of the mosaic generation (those born between 1984 and 2002), are not very keen to.

This is the cheat sheet on what the "Prayer of Jabez" is...

It is used once in 1 Chronicles 4:10 and is a good example of an Old Testament blessing.

It is a prayer in four parts...

First, Jabez asks God to bless him.

Second, he asks God to enlarge his territory.

Third, he prays that God will be with him and stay close.

Fourth, he asks God to keep him from harm so he will be free from pain.


So... that is the "Prayer of Jabez" - If you hopped in a DeLorean, you could travel back to the distant year 2000 and find it at the local supermarket "impulse buy" section, near the register and next to the candy.

Great Scott!

So, this past Sunday... we had Jabez prayed over us to close the service and, in effect, our time of United Services. I know it was done out of good intentions, but there was one phrase I have heard brought up several times in conversation since then that has seemed to leave a sour residue behind.... the bit about pain.

While in the 1 Chronicles prayer there is a balance of cause and effect... being near to God and kept out of harm so that Jabez would not feel pain, the emphasis of the "blessing" on Sunday made it sound like the point was for God to give us grace so that we would not experience pain, almost for the sake of not experiencing pain.

The questions I have been hearing about this could be summarized with this...

Is feeling pain really a bad thing?

I once heard a story of a young girl with a medical condition that made her immune to pain.

Pain tells you that something is wrong. Pain is not in and of itself a bad thing... it is what notifies you that a bad thing is happening or just happened. Pain is a good thing.

Because this girl could not feel pain, there was nothing to stop her from allowing and in some cases causing her body to be destroyed. Her body would be damaged terribly, but was unable to tell her something was wrong or needed to stop. Apparently her baby teeth caused big issues... she would chew her lips bloody in her sleep, bite through her tongue while eating, and at one point put her finger in her mouth and stripped the tender flesh from it. It still damaged her, she was just unable to sense it. We should consider ourselves blessed that we do feel pain.. for feeling a little pain in order to prevent more serious injury is an example of grace.

So.. how is this stuff tied to salvation and rainbows?

One reason rainbows are so beautiful is because of their contrast with the rest of the sky... and pain is kind of like our annoying friend reminding us that there is something other than a rainbow up there.

In order for us to understand the significance of salvation it is important for us to recognize a need for it, but many times we rush our focus straight into the pretty colors of the christian rainbow without acknowledging the dark skies contrasting it.

When we experience the byproduct of sin in various forms... pain being one of them, we are exposed to these dark skies, and of our need for a Savior. Pain can be a reminder that something is wrong. Pain can be a warning that the decisions we are making are causing destruction. Pain is just one small reminder of our need for a Savior. When we look at the complete picture we are able to more fully appreciate the beauty in the midst of its surroundings.

rainbows and dim skies.... salvation and sin...

The bigger picture makes a lot more sense.

Let's take a good look at it.

German women, lost shepherds, and integrity.

Music is a mysterious thing.

I have heard it said that music is unique in that it has the ability to speak to a persons soul without their permission. What a weird thought. Something so beautiful can violate our beings.

I think that it is true. Music has the ability to trigger emotions in us. It can provoke us like nothing else, it can mesmerize us, and inspire us.

It can make things seem very sincere or passionate, like in church when someone is praying or nearing the end of a message and the guitar and keys fade in and gently manipulate peoples feelings. A pet peeve of mine... for the record.

It can even strike fear in us.

If you have ever seen a scary movie you know what I mean... the music used creates stress and tension in the viewer... the screeching strings irritate your mind and increase slightly in volume in order to prime you just as the psychotic masked killer jumps out. boom. scared.

or maybe, the killer doesn't jump out and it was just a cat.

instant relief from anxiety.

not nearly the same without the music.

major keys feel different than minor keys, and key changes are emotionally charged and epic.

My gramma used to sing songs to me when I was a little kid. She would sing hymns to me (rarely were the emotionally charged or epic - that would have been amazing though) they were, however, very soothing. They were old Lutheran hymns, so it is very likely they were at one point drinking songs. I would argue that there are few things more soothing than a sweet old German woman singing you modified drinking songs as you are falling asleep. Not always the case, but this particular combination was angelic.

Now, we can use music for better or for worse, and I am sure there are many opinions about what makes music good or bad. People feel very strongly about music, don't we?

Yes... yes we do.

Maybe it is because when there is music we identify with we have actually allowed the music to become a small part of our identity. therefore, to challenge my style of music is to challenge a part of who I am. Seems to make sense. Let's say that is in fact the case.

I am honored to live in a house filled with music. Most of the music you have likely never heard before because it is still in the process of being created. All of my roommates are very talented, and in a variety of ways. One is particularly gifted as a musician and songwriter.

seriously, it is like he was born to make music... and his music reflects this.

There is deep meaning in every one of his songs... the lyrics are saturated with deep thought and symbolism. It is poetic.

He pairs that with amazing melodies and harmonies, presented creatively with just the right sounds, rhythm, and tones in order to weave the lyrics into an ocean of beautifully produced sonic waves.

The music is a piece of him.

In case you were wondering, his name is Eben and his band is Lost Shepherds .

Music is a mysterious thing indeed. There was a musician who was very influential in enriching my faith and challenging my preconceived ideas. His name is Derek Webb, and he has continued writing and recently produced an album called Stockholm Syndrome. Good music, good message.

I was listening to some of his earlier albums from 2004 and 2005.

I See Things Upside Down
&
Mockingbird

... and in doing so was reflecting on how this music had presented deep truths and in doing so challenged me and as a result... I grew.

As I said earlier, there is good music and bad music.... we all have opinions on this, but maybe one way we can classify the music is not necessarily by how it sounds.. but on what it does to us... or in us.. or for us.

Some music is neutral, some is beneficial, some is detrimental.... but it all has the power to speak to our souls. Which is why we shouldn't just listen passively to what is being communicated and we should actually focus on the message.

Now... the focus of this is not on listening to "secular music" vs "christian music"... which I could see as an assumed next wave of thought, but something I care very little about.

I want to talk on "worship music" for a bit. If you are a Christ follower and have not recently taken time to examine the words you are singing during worship, I would strongly urge you to do so and to think through what is being declared.

Many times hidden behind a veil of melodic distractions are terribly self-centered or insincere cliches just waiting to echo through the church walls...inside which, they will remain. It is not the beauty of our voice or the passion in which we project our songs, but the sincerity of our hearts that will be pleasing to the Lord. If we don't deeply consider the words we are singing, how can we sincerely mean it?

Worshiping through music and song is an incredible form of praise and adoration, and because music by it's very nature is so powerful, we must approach this behavior with wisdom and maturity, especially as we become more accustomed to it. To sing with your heart is to know every word that flows from your mouth and to mean them. Just because something sounds extremely passionate, flowery, or spiritual doesn't mean it is true worship... true worship is a matter of offering praise and adoration to God in honesty, integrity, and sincerity.

Music is a gift we have been given.

Let us use it wisely.

lingerie and gasoline

In evangelical circles, there is something exciting and foreign about the Holy Spirit. There is a sense of adventure related to it, because we are somewhat unfamiliar with it, but we know that underneath that name there is a whole world of unexplored beauty and mystery waiting for us. It is intriguing and we are drawn towards it.

We know that beneath the title "Holy Spirit" there is something beautiful that we want to be made familiar with.

lingerie

Maybe not a perfect metaphor, but interesting to use in the title of this blog.

I have had conversations with others in the past where I have talked about how we have tried to make the church "sexy"

we use mood lighting, emotionally manipulating music and instruments, messages that are catered to congregational desires, cool graphics and videos, and attractive and well dressed people leading all of this in order to appeal to the culture.

Sexy.

I think we have done something similar with the Holy Spirit, but in doing so we have limited the Spirits ability to work in us and through us.

God is huge and unfathomable, and the way he works cannot be fully understood by man. By the power of His Spirit we receive gifts to use to his glory; prophecy, tongues, wisdom, words of knowledge, miraculous healing, signs and wonders. etc...

but...

We have romanticized this to the point it has become like a mystical fairytale, and in doing so we have limited the work of God in our lives and told ourselves that the Spirit only does these things for certain people. The "real spiritual" ones. This is a lie.

and...

in doing so we have forgotten what the significance of being a new creation in Christ and the implications and significance of this. We have forgotten our identity.

remember.. if you have accepted Christ as Savior, you have accepted everything that comes with that, including the Spirit He promised to you.

We have become enamored by the lingerie itself and it has become a barrier for us that we just cannot get past.

The lingerie is not as important as what's under it.

what is under it is for us.

man.. this is possibly the weirdest metaphor I have ever used... I'm going to keep writing though, I think it makes sense.

So... we should not hold at a distance the very Spirit that has been given to us. It is wonderful, it is beautiful, it is for all who accept Christ as Savior.

Get past the lingerie and accept what has been given to you.

gasoline

The other thing that I see happen with the Holy Spirit is that people will recognize it as important and ask for it without knowing why or what that means... which is ok

but

it is kind of like asking for gasoline because you know it is important and something to ask for. So you do.

Ok, you have gasoline... now what? It just sits in that nice red plastic waiting to be used.

What if I told you that you could put that gasoline into a car and it would allow the engine to run. Sweet!

but...

Simply knowing this information will not make the car run.. you must actually put the gasoline into the car, turn the key, and.. miracle of miracles.. it runs.

The Spirit of God being placed in us serves many purposes... but we must allow for those things to happen in our lives by taking steps of faith.

1 Corinthians 12 talks practically about a bunch of these things...

here is a summary...

The manifestations of the Spirit are all for the common good, but look different...

manifestations include

the message of wisdom, the message of knowledge, faith, gifts of healing, miraculous powers, prophecy, distinguishing spirits, speaking in different kinds of tongues, interpreting tongues.. and all these pieces work together for the sake of Christ.

we know what the spirit can do... and that we have been given that spirit, let us take steps of faith in allowing the spirit to do the work of Christ in us and through us.

so... what are our steps forward?

Let us look past the lingerie, accept what has been given to us, use the gasoline, and step out in faith in order to bring glory to God.

peace.

blood, sin, and short-shorts...

I think everyone could identify a piece of their past that they regret, if they search deep enough. There is probably a lil something that you'd not want to be connected to you. Something that you did, something that was done to you, a way you reacted, something you didn't say when you should have. There are normally things that haunt us and that we try to move on from and forget.

I think that is normally the case.

There is one piece of our past identity that we absolutely love to hold onto though. It is something that enables us and stops us from ever reach our full potential, but we embrace it... not in spite of it.. but because of it. It is the ultimate excuse and it makes us feel humble. It allows us to be part of the worlds largest self-help focused support group.

sinner

We love to be identified as this. It is our excuse.

This is a rather messed up concept.

I ran track in high school. I wasn't the best.. but thinking back, I was pretty good at what I did. Ok, I was one of the best.. at least in our conference. I ran hurdles in both the 110 high and 300 intermediate. I ended up going to state in the 300's. What was that noise you say? Oh, my horn just tooted a little, but there is a point to be found here.

Let me tell you about this event.

The 300 meter intermediate hurdles, which I would argue is the most difficult running event in track, is a dead sprint curving around 3/4 of the track with 8 obstacles reaching nearly three feet in height. You cannot just turn off your mind and run real fast. You need to run as fast as you possibly can while navigating turns, counting steps, and clearing obstacles... and you are surrounded and distracted by others doing the exact same thing with different timing. It is as mentally straining as it is physically challenging.

I still remember my first 300 race... it was brutal.

I was a freshman in high school and a pretty small guy. Not that I am a mammoth now, but freshman year of high school the high hurdle went up to my belly button, and if I remember correctly, the low hurdle was 3 inches shorter than that.

I had trained a little bit and the time had come for my first actual 300 intermediate race.

"On your marks"

So I go to the blocks and nervously take off my warmups. The track shorts were intimidating enough, now I had to run a race I had only trained for up to this point. I was on the blocks, waiting for an eternity to be released, so I could unleash my full athletic glory to the crowd of eager spectators. As soon as I thought the quietness would overtake me, I hear...

"Get set!"

I am set. I was born for this... right? With my butt up in the air, my heart beating like a timpani, and adrenaline saturating my veins.. I hear it.

!!BANG!!

I sprint like a madman. the first hurdle approaches, I calculate my steps... I clear it! Yes... continue sprinting.. I am a machine. I clear a few more hurdles and pay no attention to the other hurdlers.. I am in "the zone" There are just a a few more hurdles to go... but... wait... what there is something happening to my body. Did my alternator just putter out? All the energy in my 15 year old body vanished in seconds.. but somehow my legs kept moving. I managed to clear the next hurdle... my wobbly legs barely able to support my body, gasping for air as my heart tells my brain I am about to die, and my brain tells my legs that the race is not over. I keep running, if you could call it that.. at this point i was more like a toddler in a controlled fall. With all the energy I had left, I attempted to clear the next hurdle.

I didn't make it.

My body became entangled in the wood and metal structure, catching my legs and holding me awkwardly captive until my soft tissue grated against the ground staining the track with blood and pride.

I got up and somehow managed to pass over the final hurdle and finished the race dead last and disqualified, a little bit bloodied, a little more humble, and ready to train for the next race.


So... that happened to me, and I remember it very clearly. When I think back to my time as a hurdler, that painful event is not what I identify myself by. As my I matured as a hurdler my objective was never "not to fall". My objective was to clear the hurdles with grace and speed, and to do so faster than anyone else. I was a hurdler and I learned from the time I fell but did not base my identity on that time.

Is this making sense?


I had fallen - but my identity was not failure.

We have sinned - but our identity is not sinner.


As I mentioned.. we love this identity, and these are a few reasons why...

- False sense of humility
- Excuses our shortcomings
- Does not require effort or growth
- It is very comfortable
-
-
-

You can list others, I don't want to write any more of that.

This is the deal with being a sinner. If you have accepted the salvation offered by Christ, this title no longer applies to you, and for you to keep it cheapens the sacrifice he made and also implies that you're sins were not paid for.

Christ did not just die for our sins, He died AS our sins... trippy concept, huh?

That's right.

His blood paid the price of the new covenant God made with man it resembled the one God made with Abraham ... it was a blood covenant.

It was a bonding between God and Man where both sides of the pact share such a close relationship with each other that all they have or possess in this life is available to each upon demand. If this covenant was broken it it was at the cost of life. Can you guess which side didn't have what it took to carry this through? This is the reason man would sacrifice beasts to God and why Leviticus is filled with all the rules and regulations for how to do this. This was blood shed for our shortcomings of the blood covenant made between God and Man. It was the sin offering.

So, much failure and many years later, what happened?... a New Covenant.

with a very significant change.

This Covenant was between Jesus - Son of God and Son of Man.. and with God the Father.

Jesus represents Man in this new covenant...

Christs blood shed for us for the forgiveness of sins. Christ paid the price as our sins.

Bottom line.

Romans 6 talks all about this stuff. It says we are no longer slaves to sin...

So, let us stop acting as though we are still sinners if we have in fact been set free.

our identity is in Christ.

Blessed are the rich...

... for it is harder for them to enter heaven than for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle.

?

When did we begin reclaiming the concept of "blessing" with "getting more stuff"?


Job Promotion=Blessing

Big House=Blessing

Yacht=Blessing

Lots o Cash=Blessing

Now, I am not saying that those aren't nice things or that God is not a gracious provider... consider the lilies of the field...

but, this is a very interesting concept for me to wrap my head around. What do we call someone who has received a blessing... I think we say they are blessed.

Now, when we look in the old testament we hear a concept of blessing that much resembles our modern day concept. Let us take the story of Job... The story of a man who had seven sons, three daughters, seven thousand sheep, three thousand camels, five hundred yoke of oxen and five hundred donkeys, and had a large number of servants. He was the greatest man among all the people of the East. The man was considered blessed. Satan himself said to God that God had blessed the work of his hands, so that his flocks and herds were spread throughout the land.

blessed=increase of stuff

Jacob is another example of this concept of blessing. The whole flock increasing story is an example of this. Jacob points out to Laban that he caused Laban's livestock (possessions) to increase greatly because the Lord had blessed what Jacob had been overseeing.

blessed=increase of stuff

There is a pattern that emerges sooner or later, can you guess what it is?

blessed=increase of stuff

This sounds like a rather dandy deal.

Then Jesus arrived and stirred things up. A giant crowd from Galilee, the Decapolis (which made up ten cities), Jerusalem, Judea, and the region across the Jordan followed him. They would have been familiar with the old rule of blessing. When suddenly Jesus redefined what it meant to be blessed by saying...

Matthew 5

1 Seeing the crowds, he went up on the mountain, and when he sat down, his disciples came to him.

2
And he opened his mouth and taught them, saying:

3
Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

4
Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.

5
Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.

6
Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.

7
Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy.

8
Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.

9
Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.

10
Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness' sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

11
Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account.12 Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

He essentially said,
"what you thought about being blessed has changed, and this is what it has changed to... learn it, live it, and receive your heavenly reward... forget what you thought you knew about blessing"

This ushered in a new season...

So, what does this mean for us? Well, Jesus did lay it out clearly... we have the opportunity to be blessed by God. He tells us what to do and what the reward is.

We can continue asking God to bless us and hope that he might hear... but in essence when we pray to be blessed what we are really asking is to; be poor in spirit, to mourn, to be meek, to hunger and thirst for righteousness, to be merciful, to be pure in heart, to be a peacemaker, to be insulted and persecuted because of righteousness for the sake of Christ.

So, with this new season we look at some of those we would consider blessed after the changeover...

The Disciples -
insulted, persecuted, crucified upside down, beheaded, flayed alive, stabbed, stoned, beaten, burned, speared, and sawn in half... all for the sake of Christ.

Paul -
(his words from 2 Corinthians)

"I am talking like a madman--with far greater labors, far more imprisonments, with countless beatings, and often near death. Five times I received at the hands of the Jews the forty lashes less one. Three times I was beaten with rods. Once I was stoned. Three times I was shipwrecked; a night and a day I was adrift at sea; on frequent journeys, in danger from rivers, danger from robbers, danger from my own people, danger from Gentiles, danger in the city, danger in the wilderness, danger at sea, danger from false brothers; in toil and hardship, through many a sleepless night, in hunger and thirst, often without food, in cold and exposure. And, apart from other things, there is the daily pressure on me of my anxiety for all the churches."

Where does this leave us?

I suppose we fall into the same category as Paul and the Disciples, and I think we should strive to be blessed by God. Jesus told us what that means and what to focus on and showed us what it meant to live that out. His followers did the same. I think it is our turn now.

getting fired

I HAVE NOT BEEN FIRED...

....at least not at the time I sat down and wrote this entry.

I have talked a lot about different issues that I have with the church and the way christianity has been softened in the United States.

I have posted a number of entries that have presented some strong opinions and voiced concern particularly about the church I work at...

A few days ago I was faced with a decision.

It started like this... Last week my boss sent me an e-mail letting me know that my performance review was going to be conducted. At first I didn't really think anything of it. It is a fairly routine procedure.

The way our reviews work:

I am given a number of questions about my job and asked to answer them honestly.

My boss is given a number of categories describing my performance and asked to comment on them honestly.

I then send my answers to my boss and we sit together and discuss these things.

pretty easy, right?

Well... question "F" came up....

oh, question "F"... why did provoke me this way?

Question "F" was...

"Is there anything your supervisor or NHLC can do to enhance your job satisfaction, or help you do your job better?"

it was a moment of truth.

I work in Outreach, and my supervisor is great... but as I have hinted before... NHLC could give me a hand...

I responded....

"Love God and love others. The more we teach on the importance of this combination and have leaders that show lives that demonstrate it, the closer we will get to having outreach change from an event to a lifestyle. It seems outreach has become an area where it is culturally acceptable (in the church) to be hypocritical. We can promote it and not live it, and it seems that we are generally ok with that pairing. It would be extremely helpful if the heart of outreach were to be revealed and explained, and for this to be taught from the pulpit. It is equipping the congregation to recognize the Gospel as good news and respond to their salvation in ways that demonstrate Gods love and mercy to those who are hurting and in need; physically, emotionally, and spiritually. It would be helpful if, as a community of believers and individuals, we recognize how the world has gotten darker, and we take responsibility and acknowledge that it is largely due to an absence of light. We have been called to be that light but have been hiding and protecting ourselves, and for outreach focused lifestyles to flourish, this must change. We have become the barns that we ourselves have built bigger, and the numbers of those being saved is not daily increasing, because we have not made that a priority, and when these things are addressed, my job will become much easier. Also, a pay-scale increase would be nice."

So... that is what I wrote.

My performance review was yesterday.

My boss thanked me for taking the opportunity and being open and honest, and I received much positive feedback from here (I have talked with her about these things before)

This review will now make it's way up the chains of command...

but... this is the difference.

I was given a choice. I could keep expressing my thoughts on this blog and hope that some people become challenged, encouraged, and motivated to ask questions or take action.. and that could be it.

But I had the opportunity to share my opinions with those who can make a change, and I did.

When I have brought this up to others, I am asked things like...

So, did you get fired yet?

When is your last day?

Do you think you'll be getting fired then?

As you might have noted, there is a common theme in the responses. And though they are said in slight jest, I think it is important that I wrote what I did in the manner I did.

I also think it is important that you know I wrote what I did to who I did, because if I am going to continue to post things here, I need to be willing to stand behind my opinions when it counts and be bold enough to put things on the line in hopes of transformation.

So... I thank you for taking time to read this, and look forward to sharing more with you in a few days. Peace.

-Jreux

three things

I recently heard about a church plant in Midway...

Midway is the area in Saint Paul that I live in... I remember my first impressions of this area from when I was younger. I grew up in Roseville, which is a city directly North of Saint Paul. There is a main street called Snelling that goes between the two cities, and it is a very interesting drive if you pay attention to the surroundings.

Anyhow..

When I was younger, one of my friends wanted to go to this neighborhood, I think it was to get a piercing. I was probably 15 years old at the time and he was a bit older than me. I remember the change in surroundings as we entered Midway. It was kind of intimidating. I didn't recognize any of the stores... which was unusual, since from a young age you are blasted with so much advertising that you can become more familiar with these corporations than you are with the majority of kids in your classroom. Everything was old and weathered... like they had payed their dues, even the people seemed to be cut form a different cloth. The cozy residential area morphed into a busy concrete jungle. and I kind of liked it.

Years later I found myself living in this area, very close to the tattoo parlor we visited years before. I lived in a slummy apartment behind Ax-man surplus and just a stones throw away from the Turf Club. Across the street from us was a JJ's Fish n Chicken. Our apartment was in the news the morning after a guy was shot in their parking lot.

I ended up moving to a house in the same area with a few of my friends and we have been in this place for a while now.

In all honesty though, this is a great place to live. It is a diverse and friendly area with fantastic people, food, drink, and music. It is On the Saint Paul side of the Twin City divide, 10 minutes away from anywhere you'd want to go, and 20 minutes away from anywhere you'd need to go. I live in a quiet neighborhood and have some amazing neighbors... one guy even asked if he could help us when we were moving a piano into our house. Midway is fantastic.

and a recent church plant thinks so too.

Bloom

That is the name of the church. Check them out.

They are only 4 weeks old and have intentionally planted in this area because there are not many churches doing what they are doing in this area.

They are trying to create a service that will explain the message of Christ to people who have not yet heard it.

Sounds simple, right?

Well, that is kind of the point. The pastors of this church have much experience with larger suburban churches and have been in staff and pastoral positions in the past.

They have "three things" - title that they are going to focus on.

1. Jesus - Understanding who Jesus is, what he did, what the gospel is, and what that means for people today.
2.People - Belong, believe, behave.... approaching people with an attitude of grace and love, regardless of there beliefs or background.
3.Community - Building friendships and networks of support inside the church and also having a positive impact on the community outside the church.

That's it.

But what about a really awesome choir? Or a a dramatized version of "the passion" complete with live camels, or a brothas to mothas ministry?

Well, I am sure that a focus on Jesus, People, and Community will begin manifesting itself in more specific ways.. but they have seen how complicated things can get and feel called to focus on these three things.

refreshing.

I will admit, I was kind of a skeptic the first time I went to the church, so the next Sunday I went back and listened and learned. They are presenting a series that is focusing on the Gospel.

It is called "The Gospel. Period."

You can listen to their podcast soon.

I also had a chance to hear from their pastors as they explained how Bloom started and what heir focus is. I am hopefully going to be able to sit down with them in a one-on-one setting to learn some more.

It has been encouraging.

Partly because it is such a young church and it is planted in my neighborhood and it starts making me dream a little bit, but also because it is so basic.

three things.

This seems like a more rational and sustainable concept than the one-stop super shop Saint Marks International Jesus House Community Church of Hope model...

It would make sense that different congregations would have different focuses that were more specific... It is probably tempting, however, to add things on over time.. even with good intentions. But when this happens, maybe it can end up distracting us from our initial calling or giftings...

While I am speaking about a church body, I think this is true for people as well.

It is very easy to add things on, especially in the United States, where we largely identify ourselves by our achievements or social status. When that is all stripped away though, their is something at our core. A doctor might be a dancer, a poet might be a mechanic, a Director of public relations might be a missionary to China.

Sometimes a musician is a musician though, and when that is the case.. beautiful music, that resonates from the soul, dances through the air to bless others.

What are you? When everything is stripped down and removed and you ask yourself that.. what do you find?

Big questions. It is a interesting society that makes simplifying life so amazingly complicated.

As long as we keep asking questions though, I think we are in a good place. Peace.

-Jreux

A Conversation with Shane Claiborne

I was on the road with a friend of mine. We were heading down to a small university for christians, outside of the Twin Cities. Conversation was going well and we were anticipating our arrival as we raced the daylight down the asphalt ribbons interrupting the green open pastures.

Upon arriving at the university, my friend and I wandered around looking for where his friend, Shane, was going to be sharing. He had connected with Shane several times in the past and they had built a friendship based off of those times together. I had read his book "Irresistible Revolution" and was encouraged and motivated by it, so I was looking forward to being introduced as well..

We deciphered the wallpaper of advertisement on the hallway wall, and followed some signs to the room he was sharing in.

We walked in, and i could not help but laugh...

It was like being at a middle school dance. There were a bunch of starstruck, doe-eyed college students staring awkwardly in one direction and Shane Claiborne sitting by himself quietly on the other side of the room. It was amazing... as though he had just suffered defeat in a riveting game of red-rover. Apparently Shane was going to be speaking in a large chapel the next morning, and this was a smaller scale gathering of some university christian club... A setting like this is more intimate and allows for people to actually talk to the speaker... which added to the awkwardness of our middle school dance situation.

So, we enter... and I am captivated by this anomaly. I was probably looking at the students the same way the students were looking at Shane... just replace "starstruck" with "confused" and "doe-eyed" with handsome.

anyway... back to Shane.

My buddy immediately started talking with Shane and they were reconnecting and catching up... (I think this blew the minds of our spectators) and then I am introduced to him by my friend and the three of us talk briefly before Shane was called up to talk to this small gathering of anxious scholars.

So Shane talks, and it was good, and Shane sits back down next to me and we carry on a conversation.

I was in the middle of working with some other staff at my work turning a the idea of a community house into a reality (which it now is!)

So, I had some questions.. mainly about what the biggest challenges have been. I figure if you know how to come against the biggest challenges, you will experience firsthand the best results.

This is a summary of what he said...

paraphrased

" If at any time the community becomes exclusive or inward focused, it will die. The danger we see in community is just that. Our sights begin to focus on ourselves and how we can better who we are... and there is a certain amount of that which is needed, but if that is our only focus... the community dies. Also if at any point the community becomes exclusive, it will turn incestuous and slowly but surely rot away from the inside. A healthy community will be inclusive and outward focused"

Now... It has been a while since we talked.. and this is probably paired with my own thoughts.. but I think he offers some great insight, and not just for a community house.

The church is considered to be a community of believers. While Shane was talking specifically about his experience with community in Philly, I think there is some serious cross-over and insight about what has happened with the church at large.

That community seems to have erred on the side exclusivity and the focus also seems to be mainly directed inward. If this is the case, then the state of the church and it's health might be able to be better understood and hopefully counteracted.

Let me clarify... I am not trying to badmouth the church for the sake of complaining. That is pointless. I am willing to point out it's shortcomings in the hope that change occurs and awareness is raised. I know that many entries I have written have had a similar direction... I do not think that invalidates their relevance.

Increased knowledge equals increased responsibility, and while God requires obedience and not sacrifice, sometimes our obedience requires sacrifice. Peace.

-Jreux

Stuff Christians Like...

There is a blog that I follow that is titled....

"Stuff Christians Like"

It has some very humorous entries and every once in a while there will be one that begins to reveal some deeper insight... There have been many entertaining commentaries on the christian sub-culture...

Once, there was a quiz to see how metrosexual your worship leader is...

this sight amazes me.

It is normally well written and pretty clever, but it is not the quality of content that amazes me... it is the quantity of content. The latest entry was #629

six hundred and twenty nine entries about the christian sub-culture, and the weird, quirky, and often unfortunate things that christians have become known for.

I was reading through some of the entries out loud to a couple of the guys at my house and one of them pointed out that the majority of what is written in these entries are only amusing if you are a "christian"... it is basically a site dedicated to inside jokes for christians and poking some fun at itself.... so far around 629 "funs" have been poked at itself...

this seems a little odd to me, and it could be that I just wasn't sure what to write about and this was the fist thing that came to mind.. but still...

it seems a little odd to me.

this is why...

when we pair a christian perspective of christians with an unchristian perspective of christians... at large, two very different observations would be made.

read Unchristian for more on that...

and while this site is obviously made for entertainment... it follows pretty close to the idea that "it's funny because it's true" and there is a part of me that wonders when it won't be funny any longer for the exact same reason... because it is true... time will tell, i suppose. it is kind of a gossip after all...

Just a few thoughts to ponder...

peace.

beer, dancing, fireworks

Last year at some point I was talking with a friend of mine who works with college age students at a church. We actually work at the same church, but that isn't very important.

we began discussing what might make an interesting series to talk on.. and allo of a sudden a phrase shot out of my mouth.

"We like beer and dancing"

The whole concept was to talk about some different cultural traits and stereotypes that are often times embodied by the church.

the title has two components that symbolize larger components...

beer:

The topic of alcohol consumption can be a very touchy one inside a church. It is a crossing of faith with a dash of puritanical splendor, and culture. So this concept represents those topics that can cause extreme division... other such topics would be; tobacco use, politics, homosexuality, worship style,

... those things that cause division

dancing:

The topic of dancing can also be touchy, but is a less dividing area. Once again it crosses faith with culture, but it represents those topics that have been largely accepted by the church or that people choose not to be overly concerned with. Others would be; secular music, R rated movies, drinking wine, boys with long hair, girls wearing pants

... those things that cause division, but we can deal with

We have created two lists - those things we can deal with and those things that cause division

Here is the deal...

I don't really care about the specifics or behaviors and preferences that people have with these different topics. It is interesting to learn about what their preferences are, but if they cannot be discussed or if they become a higher priority than other more crucial aspects of faith... we gots us a problem.

When our primary focus in faith becomes behavior modification, we will find ourselves in a tough place. Our behaviors should be reactionary. This means they are to be caused by something. As christians, we tie our faith in God to His love and sacrifice for us. We make that claim all the time... but if that was true, I think things would look different...

about 3 and a half years ago I had an eye-opening realization.

I had been trying to follow Christ's teachings for several years, and had been raised up learning all the bible stories and listening to countless sermons.... I thought I knew a lot about Jesus and his teachings and life, and was rather comfortable with that... I had been working with youth at church, mentoring high school and college students in their faith, been doing intensive international mission work in Latin America, and was looking to work with a local ministry....

...and....

I realized I had no idea who Jesus was (this was very humbling)... and I began looking for answers...

my world was rocked... I started learning about who Jesus really was, the significance of his teachings in their proper context, the severity of dedication required to be his disciple, the lenths to which he was willing to go to bring people into new life in him. He was open and honest, loving, passionate... he would humiliate false religous leaders and directly oppose the corrupt religous orgnizations of the time.. turning tables, calling them sons of hell.... flannel graph that one.

(one book that helped a lot with this (both with questions and answers) was The Jesus of Suburbia by Mike Erre )

read it.

So.... how does all this tie together. I think that it does, so let me give it a shot...

If we are not reacting to a legitimate faith in Christ and desire to serve him, we will begin creating issues to be proactively interested in. This is legalism. We have done this. We have picked minor social issues and made it clear that if you follow Christ you will do this, this, and this... and you will not do that, that, or that.

The lines are made very clear and simple.

This is not the way of the cross.

When we are legitimately reacting to a faith in Christ (the real Christ) and we desire to serve him... these minor social issues are not the primary concern... issues of love, justice, mercy, and compassion become a primary focus. It is a reaction.

If you light off fireworks the flame will cause a reaction which will produce a brilliant response.

If there is no flame, there is no reaction.

the same is true for our faith... and we are farting around with sparklers while the big ooh ahh is jsut waiting to be set off.

if we aren't reacting to "the flame"... beer and dancing should be the least of our concerns.