self-deprecating is my middle name...

Alright, I have to admit something totally embarrassing... it's embarrassing because I don't think most people would peg me for being this kind of a guy... but here goes... I really dig the show Project Runway... there I've said it... I should note that there is a pretty major writer's strike going on in Hollywood, so the stock pile of quality television is at a minimum right now, and since I don't like Donald Trump and American Gladiators sounds a bit too... well, dumb... Project Runway it is. I also want to make it clear that I'm not obsessed with the show nor do I dive into it the way I do, say Lost... but it is great fun to watch on a Wednesday night. I like the challenges, the design elements, and yes the eliminations... it's just fun to watch people being creative and enjoying that process. But the bottom line is I'm a red-blooded, American, heterosexual male and Project Runway is about fashion... it's almost a paradox that could disrupt the space/time continuum...

It's funny how much our actions are dictated by the "rules" of society. If a guy likes to shop or watch fashion programs he's considered effeminate. If a women likes to work on cars and drink beer she's considered hyper-masculine. (Note: I am intentionally using politically correct language, because much harsher things are said in these situations.) A person who likes computer technology is considered somewhat of a "nerd". Someone who spends much of their time reading is considered intellectual. Someone who wears oversized sweats in public is a "fashion victim" (that's the Project Runway talking). Someone is passionate about a cause is a radical. Someone who abstains from politics all together is apathetic... and we could go on and on and on... Ultimately, the vast majority of people are after one thing: normalcy. And normalcy equals right down the middle average. Or as Goldilocks puts it, "Not too hot, not too cold... but just right."

There are a growing number of people, however, to whom normal will not cut. Normal is death, to these people. They want to do what they want to do regardless of "social norms" and to an extent I applaud these people. To an extent. Different for the sake of different is of no use. But different with a purpose is powerful. Christ modeled that philosophy throughout His ministry. He railed against the "social norms" that had crippled the culture He was living in and called people to more radical devotion to the God they claimed to serve (Matthew 5-7). He never minced words with those that sought to keep the people in their place, but challenged the authorities of His day. People accused Him of being a drunk and a glutton (Matthew 11:19). He was highly misunderstood, and people were constantly abandoning Him because He was just too passionate and too out-there in His approach (John 6:60-70). But His difference was always with a purpose. He wanted people to not rely on their customs or traditions but to rely on God and to look to Him as their source of comfort. He saw the motivations of many of the leaders and challenged their selfishness. He was willing to be thought of as abnormal in order to demonstrate love to the drunks, and the prostitutes.

Too many people live their lives just trying to be normal. Too many people live their lives trying NOT to be normal. But both can be equally pointless. God calls us to live lives that are set a part... that are different, but with a purpose. Romans 12:1-2,

So here's what I want you to do, God helping you: Take your everyday, ordinary life—your sleeping, eating, going-to-work, and walking-around life—and place it before God as an offering. Embracing what God does for you is the best thing you can do for him. Don't become so well-adjusted to your culture that you fit into it without even thinking. Instead, fix your attention on God. You'll be changed from the inside out. Readily recognize what he wants from you, and quickly respond to it. Unlike the culture around you, always dragging you down to its level of immaturity, God brings the best out of you, develops well-formed maturity in you. The Message.

We should look around us. Have we so bought into being an American that we forget what it means to be called by God? Do we try to be so different that we'll try anything that we lose sight of the really differences we should try to make? Cultural influence can have both effects, but our goal should be to allow Christ's influence to rule our lives.

U-N-I-T-Y...

If you are a regular reader of this blog you know that I am a runner, and I have been a runner for quite some time. One of the things people outside the running community don't know is the importance of teams to the success of individual runners. It seems very odd that a sport that is built on the achievements of individuals has much use for the concept of a team, but in reality the team mentality is extremely important to runners. When I was in high school I ran on a highly state ranked cross country team in Citrus County, FL. We were good and consistently ranked number one in Florida. If you don't know how it works, cross country scoring is pretty simple: you have seven varsity runners, the top five that cross the finish line are added together for a team score, the lowest score wins. For example the best possible score in cross country is 15...1+2+3+4+5... that's if all five runners on a team crossing the line in succession. I've been on teams that have hit that mark. My senior year of high school, our team really was a team. We built each other up, we encouraged each other, we kept each other in line so we'd be eligible to run, we were a team. When the first runner finished a race he would come back and encourage the guys behind. Even though we each had to perform individually we were all there for the others. When one runner wasn't doing well, a slower runner would run harder to make up for it. In a lot of ways that team transcended what high school boys are really capable of. So contrary to popular belief running is a team sport.

The same is true of our Christianity. It is a team activity. It cannot be done in isolation, and the faith and actions of one can affect the mentality of the whole. The Bible consistently tells people to preserve the unity of the church (Romans 12:5, 1 Corinthians 1:10ff, 2 Corinthians 13:11, Ephesians 4:3, Philippians 1:27, 1 Peter 3:8, etc.), and Jesus even prays that all Christians be one as He and the Father are one (John 10:16). The question is: how? I mean we are all so different, and let's face it most of us are pretty much just looking out for ourselves. How do we work towards unity when we are all living individually? Well, I don't have a magic position or perfect solution, but I think it comes down to a couple of things.

Philippians 2:3-4 gives a pretty good way to conduct ourselves,

"3 Don’t be selfish; don’t try to impress others. Be humble, thinking of others as better than yourselves. 4 Don’t look out only for your own interests, but take an interest in others, too."

If we have any hope of being unified, whether in our small groups, our local churches, or as Christians universally, we have to put this into practice. I'm not saying we accept sin or "lifestyles" or anything like this, but we have to remember that God is calling us to love our neighbors as ourselves and in so doing we exhibit our love for Him. In a similar vein, Paul in Romans 15:1-2 gives those of us who are more experienced Christians some pretty good advice as it relates to unity.

"Those of us who are strong and able in the faith need to step in and lend a hand to those who falter, and not just do what is most convenient for us. Strength is for service, not status. Each one of us needs to look after the good of the people around us, asking ourselves, 'How can I help?'" (The Message)

. People who are new to the faith still have a great deal to learn, they are still dealing with understanding the Bible, being faithfully committed to worship and prayer. Why to people that have been Christians for 10, 15, or 50 years expect people who have just converted to act or even understand the faith in the same way as they do? Unity starts with the maturity of those that have been around the Christian block a few times to help encourage and guide those that are new to this whole thing.

Most of all it is important to remember that Christianity is not an individual sport. It can't be done in isolation from the church, and so there will inevitably be disagreements, misunderstandings, and the effects of sin, because we are all human. No one has it all together, no one has all the answers, and so we must be extremely humble when dealing with other believers. They have faults but so do you... and so do I. But if we all do the best we can to seek God's glory first and look at each other with humility and pray for the Holy Spirit to teach us to care for one another then the impossible can be accomplished.

Unity.

previously on LOST...

Alright, I have to say it... I love this show, I do, and for some you just tooned out or are about to surf on to another website, but hold on... this is not a post about Lost per se. I mean the reason I love the show is the very reason some people don't like it. It's too mysterious, too symbolic, just too much. That's the very thing that is most brilliant about the show. Everything has meaning... the numbers (4, 8, 15, 16, 23, 42... you have to watch the show to undestand), the references to literature (Carrie, Alice in Wonderland, and many many others), colors (black, white, red), character's names that reference philosophers (John Locke, Desmond "David Hume", hello?), and about a thousand other things that would take pages to mention... they even have an entire wikipedia site called lostpedia to catalogue all the stuff... and no I am not joking check the link to the right. If you can't tell I am getting pretty pumped about the new season. I have even been watching the entire series on DVD just to get ready. But why am I so fascinated by things like this? I don't really like mystery... The story's good... the characters are believable... but so are a lot of shows. I think it is that everything ties together, everything coincides, everything points to something. And while I believe that anyone, can get into the show and enjoy it without getting into all the mystery and symbolism, there is another level to it.

Christianity is the exact same way. Sure there are some real mysteries to it. I mean it will explode your brain to try and wrap your head around the Trinity, how Christ is 100% God and 100% human, the coorespondence between God's power and sovereignty and our human responsiblity, predestination and free will, and tons of other stuff. For a lot of people these mysteries are just too much. They can't come up with answers and so they jump ship. But think about this: if it were easy to understand or even possible to understand every mystery that God has given us in the Bible what kind of God would He be? The very nature of God implies that He is beyond our total and complete understanding. But He has given us levels where we can all understand. The Westminster Confession of Faith says it pretty well when it says, "All things in Scripture are not alike plain in themselves, nor alike clear unto all: yet those things which are necessary to be known, believed, and observed for salvation are so clearly propounded, and opened in some place of Scripture or other, that not only the learned, but the unlearned, in a due use of the ordinary means, may attain unto a sufficient understanding of them." I know it's in kind of old English, but go with me here. Basically, it says, "Yeah there are some pretty difficult things to understand in Scripture, but the things that are necessary for faith in Christ are right there, plain as day, easy to understand."

So what are we saying? Mysteries are okay for my entertainment, but not for really important, eternal-type things? God has given us the basics, but He does want us to fill our lives learning and asking the tough questions, and living in the tension between mystery and faith. That faith transforms lives. That faith goes beyond human logic and reason, and lives in ways that might seem strange and mysterious. I mean Jesus said to love our enemies and to pray for those that hate you. Jesus said those that wish to be first must first be last. The greatest in the kingdom of heaven is the least here on earth. I don't know about you but that kind of living sounds more exciting, more fulfilling than the mundane and predictable existance that only calls us to live as we are expected to and is totally void of mystery.

if I had to guess...

I think sometimes people like being victims...no-not like in a real, I want to get shot or mugged or something truly heinous sort of way...but in that people just do not want to take responsibility for certain things in their lives. They want to blame other things, people, circumstances for just about everything. For instance, I have had a series of car troubles recently...not really a series but a couple of things...and one of them cost a bit of money. The thing is if I am being honest it would not have cost so much if I had gotten it taken care of sooner. But what do I do? I try to blame something else.

A lot of people blame luck, like, "I'm unlucky in love" or "I have terrible luck driving." Maybe those people should drive better and take a long look in the mirror and not a crystal ball as to why their relationships fail. Christians on the other hand...well we attribute every bad thing that happens to the devil. We say things like, "Satan is attacking me with my car" or "The devil is really hammering me with household repairs" or "Satan is really getting to me at (and you fill in the blank)." Now, don't get me wrong...Satan is very much at work in the world, and he is for sure trying to bring people down, but the way that happens is that sometimes he just lets us trip ourselves up. Maybe Satan was attacking me with car problems, maybe he was the one that kept me from getting that noise checked out for more than a year...maybe he was using my own tendency to procrastinate against me. That is a real possiblity but don't I bare the responsiblity for the procrastination.

What I am saying is that, while there are definitely demonic forces in the world trying to undermine faith and hope, we shouldn't look to blame them in the hope of letting ourselves off the hook. 1 John 4:4 says it pretty plainly, "You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them, because the one who is in you [Christ] is greater than the one [Satan, demonic forces] who is in the world." We don't have an excuse. We have to turn every situation over to God, and if we have a responsibility in the problems of our lives we should own up to them.

Playing the victim is so cliche, but taking responsiblity for our lives and asking God to actually transform us that takes discipline and work...two things that most of would rather do without.

sweet simplicity...

Some of the things I absolutely love in life are the simple things...I love hanging out and watching television, listening to music, playing with my cats...you know raindrops on roses and warm winter mittens...The best thing about my life is the fact that I am married to someone who also loves very simple things. Julie and I just celebrated our five year anniversary! That's a big one, and what is so amazing is we just did simple things to celebrate...went out to dinner, had sparking grape juice (Jules doesn't do the whole wine/champagne thing), and went to our favorite theme park Cypress Gardens...right in our own backyard. Simple things.

Now, don't judge us...we are not boring...the fact is that life in general is so terribly complicated...so complicated that it is sometimes impossible to understand the true essence of the life we are trying to lead. What do we run around for? Why do we put ourselves through jobs, school, paying bills, keeping house, and the cycle of entertainment at the expense of missing the point? I do understand that it is the American way to do all those things, and I am not saying those things are bad or stupid, but is it worth it when we forget the beauty of the simple things? That's what Jules and I are celebrating with our life together...the sweetness of putting on pajamas and snuggling up together...the wonder of a good pizza and movie...the craziness of being a team that knows each other...the simple things. I think that we sometimes lose our way in our relationships when we forget the simplicity of true fellowship and how truly satisfying it is to just be.

We get the same way when trying to develop spiritually. Spiritual development is the development with that divine relationship, which is the most basic relationship we have. It is the relationship between the Creator and the creation, and sometimes the creation (us) tries to add too much to the relationship with the Creator. We think we have to put on a certain sort of righteousness, have to add some sort of holiness, have to say the right words, and on and on and on. We feel guilty about not being perfect and so we cut off that relationship. We fight the fights of life, flailing around, feeling empty, and useless, and deep down...whether you claim to be a Christian or not...we know there is something more basic. We know life is not supposed to be as difficult as it has become. We know that it is supposed to be more simple.

As the Israelites were running from the Egyptians in the book of Exodus the reached a dead end...the Red Sea. They had been slaves and were kind of a weak and complaining people, and when they saw the obstacle in front of them they were sure it was all over. But then Moses says something interesting. "Moses answered the people, 'Do not be afraid. Stand firm and you will see the deliverance the LORD will bring you today. The Egyptians you see today you will never see again. The LORD will fight for you; you need only to be still.'" God is longing for us to be still. Be simple. The fights we fight, the daily battles mean very little if we forget the most basic things in life.

If we forget the beauty of love for each other, the beauty of love for our God, the beauty of just living...then our lives will be little more than a series of repetitive acts that end in the grave.

what would you do...

Several years ago...and I know that is relative...but several years ago there were commercials for a delicious chocolate-covered vanilla ice cream treat called Klondike Bars. Apparently, there are new versions of these commercials, but unfortunately the one here is the only one I have seen. Now, this is in no way an endorsement of that product or its affiliates, but... man are those things good! Anyway, the commercials went something like this: the narrator would find someone "on the street" and ask the question, "What would you do for a Klondike Bar?" And then put some sort of crazy challenge in front of them and they would inevitably do whatever was asked. Now, of course everyone accepted the challenges because they were actors, but the commercials were especially catchy because of the song, and they were effective. I love those little ice cream treats. But the point of the commercial came down to passion for something. The underlying question was always, "What would you NOT do?"

These days passion for anything is in short supply. When we want something, we don't usually have to work terribly hard for it. I mean, yes, we work, and yes we work hard, but not by comparison to what some throughout history have had to endure. In other ages before the 20th century the primary goal in life...for most people...was not to thrive or accrue things, it was to survive. To merely survive was a feat. The infant death toll was high, life expectancy was short, and even finding ways to eat were a challenge. Of course there have always been rich and prosperous people, but that number was not always as large as it is today. Today...at least in the US... survival is easy. The poorest of poor can survive, and the fact is the vast majority of people are not among the poorest of poor. Our goals are higher, loftier...they are to not only survive but to thrive. To live in relative comfort and ease. Now, before I come across as some sort of martyr, I should point out that I am writing this on a Apple laptop computer in an air conditioned room with a wifi connection having just enjoyed a somewhat overpriced beverage from my favorite little coffee mega company (I have a gift card). It's not somehow wrong to work in order to thrive, but the fact is what we work for is not as necessary for survival.

As we look a little deeper at ourselves, can the same thing be said for our spiritual lives? I mean are we working to survive, working to thrive, or are we working at all? Do we live with a passion for the Lord? Jesus said something kind of disturbing for our eyes to read in the book of Mark. "Looking at his disciples, Jesus said, 'Do you have any idea how difficult it is for people who 'have it all' to enter God's kingdom?' The disciples couldn't believe what they were hearing, but Jesus kept on: 'You can't imagine how difficult. I'd say it's easier for a camel to go through a needle's eye than for the rich to get into God's kingdom.'" I always wondered why. Then I looked at my own life. It is so easy for me to get stuff that I forget that the one thing I can't get without work is developed spiritual life. I know that my salvation has nothing to do with my work, but if I want to enjoy a full life in Christ, I have to work at it. This goes beyond going to church, reading my Bible, spending time in prayer, tithing, personal worship, and so on and so on...these are important things for sure, but these things can become just a check list of dos and don'ts. So where does the real work come in? What would you do for your spiritual health? I think the real work comes in the daily and weekly and monthly difficulties of life. Right now, I am going through a period of two or three really difficult days. I've been sick, had a series of car troubles that have left me stranded once, had to attend 6-hour lectures on church government, and have just not been feeling up to par. So what do I do? My gut is to curse, throw things, give up, lash out at people, and even blame God. But discipline requires prayer and faith. This is not necessarily calm and emotionless, but to see each and every day as an opportunity to rely on God to supply what He knows I need. The Lord knows I am not perfect at this, but in these moments I have to ask myself, "What would you do for your spiritual health?" Is it worth fighting against my instinct to give up, or lash out? Is it worth putting my church involvment up as a major priority in my life? Is it worth me spending time with my Lord who promises to supply my needs and to give me rest?

It is certainly a process, and not an easy one, but it is worth it.

here's to the new year...

I can't get too far along in the new year without commenting at least a bit on it... For those that have taken the poll about resolutions you might guess that I have a slight affinity for the things. Last year I made one of the few new year's resolutions that I can remember, and I actually kept it. I made a resolution to start running again after a 6 year lay-off and to run a race. Both of which I did. I was pretty amazed with myself... not to be too cocky or anything, I mean resolutions are made to be broken right? Or maybe it's rules... Anyway, I did and now I have decided to make one or two for 2008.

But the question is, what is it that makes some resolutions attainable and others seemingly out of reach? What is it that causes one person to lose the weight or quit smoking or take up exercising and another person to fail? I don't think it's rocket science, but it is not as easy as tapping into sheer willpower or employing a zen-like outlook on the problem.

I think one of the best things to do is to set a goal that has an end point that isn't too far off. This might seem like cheating but who cares, I mean it's your resolution. When I set out to start running again I had a race in mind that I wanted to run in March, not the end of the year... that way I had a sense of accomplishing a goal before I had fulfilled my resolution. Once I did that I knew I could keep running the rest of the year. Another thing I did was I told people what I planned on doing... I mean a lot of people... Last year I did a sermon on New Year's Eve and revealed to the whole audience my resolution to start running again. There were probably 500 people. As soon as it was over I knew I had to accomplish it.

Look, I don't mean to come across as a pompous, holier-than-thou, look-at-me-and-what-I-did type of person, but I know that everyone has something they want to improve, and that's a good thing. Jesus said, "In a word, what I'm saying is, Grow up. You're kingdom subjects. Now live like it. Live out your God-created identity. Live generously and graciously toward others, the way God lives toward you." Matthew 5:48-The Message. The only difference between 2007 and 2008 is the number you write unless you decide to grow. For me 2007 is the year I started to run again. What will 2008 be for you?

So, in the spirit of what I wrote... what is my resolution for this year? Well... gulp... I want to run a marathon this year, and second, I want to blog at least twice a week... So now you know and and can keep me to it.

Resolution to Eternity