Alrighty then. I have not written in quite a little while. That is okay because no one really noticed. That does not make me sad or anything, I am just reminded that the world will go on just fine without me. Certainly the Blogosphere will survive.
So here's what's happened in my world since my last blog. The last real entry of any merit was in July of 2010. Since then the following has happened.
Brent and Becca got married the wedding was cool.
I spent the summer writing, and looking for work and that was okay.
I finally got a job at Apple. Yay!
Apple did not pay so well. Boo!
I got a new job working for XBOX. Yay!
Working for XBOX sounds more fun than it actually was. Sigh.
I was invited to be a Youth Pastor again. Yay!
Its an interim role with a 6 month contract. Cool
In the beginning of May I finally finished my book and published in on Kindel. Super Cool!
I left XBOX and started working for the church in May. Yay
I spent May-August in a state of panic, confusion and joy.
Now it is September and I am settling into my new roll.
So far I have sold over 50 copies of my book. Cool (I won't quit my day job.)
So what have I learned over this time?
I have learned that God is faithful. He has been here with me all the way. It was really hard deciding to leave the position in Wasilla. It was really hared saying good bye. It was hard dealing with financial problems that followed my decision to leave Alaska. I often cried out to God in the wee hours of the night wondering if He he heard me.
He did. He always hears. He always loves me despite my feelings or circumstances. He never left me alone even though I could not see him.
Now today I am working in a church again with some really amazing students. From this side of my darker days I can see that God's hand was working at the time I felt like I was in a pit and could not see the light.
In Psalm 139, David reminds us that there is really no way to escape God's presence.
Psalm 139:7-12
From The Message (MSG)
Is there anyplace I can go to avoid your Spirit? to be out of your sight? If I climb to the sky, you're there! If I go underground, you're there! If I flew on morning's wings to the far western horizon, You'd find me in a minute— you're already there waiting! Then I said to myself, "Oh, he even sees me in the dark! At night I'm immersed in the light!" It's a fact: darkness isn't dark to you; night and day, darkness and light, they're all the same to you.
Now I can't wait to see where he is taking me with this new group. I just need to follow his lead.
OK so I found this video (my friend Brian Eberly had a link to it on his blog) and I agree with its description of what the church has been. I even agree with its basic definition of Missional. But I still kinda cringed when I watched it. I had to stop an contemplate what my problem was with the video. Here's the video by the way.
If you watch it you can see that they have done an excellent job. I really think it is a valuable video. So when I begin my rant please don't think I'm one of those old codgers that thinks that everything new is bad and why don't we just stick to the old ways because they are tried and true. That is not what I am all about. I love change. I embrace it. Some say I am addicted to it. Change is not the problem. My fear is that the Post-modern...er um ... Emergent... ah I mean Missional Church movement seeks to replace an incomplete somewhat anemic model with a new incomplete somewhat anemic model. And in order to sell their new model (although Doug Pagitt and others would probably blow a gasket if he heard me accuse the movement of having a model because they all want to be a non-linear no-model kind of movement)they feel compelled to deconstruct, ridicule and devalue everything the church has been in the last 100 years.
My view is simple. A) Missional is not a word in the dictionary. They made it up. B.) They made it up because they want to distance them self from what they call the consumer church, the fundamental church, the modern church and a dozen other terms they have used to describe the past. C.)In order to prove they are different they have disparaged everything the church has done in the past. D.)Therefore they promote a very good idea of training people to go out into the world (just like Jesus did) built on a synical holier than thou foundation of deconstruction.
Frankly it is the same thing that Evangelicals did in the early 20th century when they distanced themselves from mainline denominations. The accusation (among onthers) was that the mainline churches were steeped in an empty social gospel that promoted works over grace. OK so maybe the mainline church, because of its decaying values and straying from the foundational truths of the Bible had become a church that tried to prove thier value though feeding the poor, caring for the homeless and the like. Maybe they were doing the right thing for the wrong reasons. But Evangelicals could not allow themselves to be accused of being like minded with liberal mainliners so they stepped away from the poor. Some might say the did the wrong things for the right reason (though I am not sure that is entirely accurate). Either way they blew it. They made it wrong to serve the poor and focused entirely on reaching the poor through a propositional gospel that lacked the hands and feet that it had in earlier generations.
Now I sound like Pagitt attacking the evangelicals. My point is that we became too unidimensional because we did not want to appear like we were liberal. If this new Missional movement (or whatever we are calling ourselves today) continues on the path they are on they will become just as unidimensional as the Fundamentalist Evangelical church they have tried so hard to distance themselves from. This video is a prime example. It is an awesome depiction of where the church has been and where it needs to go, BUT it leads the viewer to believe that there is only one way to be right. Their way.
I have a couple problems with the Missional model. First the model assumes people going out but never talks about or deals with the fact that eventually people need to be brought to church. I believe they need to be brought into a church where they can belong before they believe. Second the are real big on the "earn the right to share your faith" idea. That means that they are good at washing feet, feeding the poor and even talking about spiritual things like beauty and art an stuff. I know one Missional guy who had a great exposure in the community with non believers and in 4 years never told any of them how to become a Christian. Consequently none of them did. So the video touts the ideals of sending people out into the community to be the church but never deals with who to actually do the work the church is called to do - make disciples.
So what would I have done different? Simple, make the arrows two way.
The modern church has focused on Come and See ministries (Just like Jesus did) and Missionals want to focus on Go and Tell ministries (Just like Jesus did) Both are right. Both are excellent ideas. I contend that both are dependent on each other. A healthy church is multidimensional in their approach to ministry. Frankly churches like this have been around for a long time. I have personally been a part of churches that have continually trained members to Go and Tell and at the same time have an excellent Come and See ministry.
My own model (the inclusive model) is all about training students to Go and Tell while having a place that students can invite their friends to Come and See. In student ministry it is very important to have both functioning together. Some students will eventually get to the point where the are good at Go and Tell. In the mean time they can invite friends to come and see. If I just sent students out into the world to be the church in the neighborhoods or on their campus then I begin to worry. I worry thinking about me being the church in my neighborhood. What if I am the only church they ever know. I cringe at the thought. But If I go and tell my friends and they listen and want to hear or see more then I can bring them to a come and see ministry.
That is the balance I want to see. A video that, I think better shows what I am trying to say is this one:
But even in this video I find it lacks a clear Come and See element
OK so I admit that I have been in a rut lately. I can't tell you when the last time was that I looked at the future and felt positive. Probably when I was moving to Alaska.
But for the last several months I look ahead and sigh heavily. It drives Cathy crazy. I found this cool article on Crosswalk.com (Did I Make the Right Decision?, Christian Careers, Jobs, Employment) today and it really helped. In a way it just says "STOP WHINING" (which is always useful to hear) so maybe I should listen. I need to stop acting like God is going to give me a road map with my path marked in red for me. It just doesn't work that way.
To me the most important part of the article said:
Life is short for all of us, and if any of us had a chance to do it over again, we would probably make some decisions differently. I know I would. But that choice is not given to us. Too much introspection about the past makes us tentative about the future.
I like that. "Too much introspection about the past makes us tentative about the future."
Seems kind of odd doesn't it? It feels like only yesterday that he was the star of Different Strokes. His death makes me feel old.
In fact every time someone famous dies I feel just a little older. Not to mention every time I see an actor get older I feel sad. I saw Joe Pesci in a movie the other day. The movie was made a couple years ago and Joe looked really old (balding, gray, wrinkled - the whole nine yards). That made me feel old. Seeing Harrison Ford as the old Indiana Jones or Sylvester Stalone as the ancient Rocky and ancient Rambo was really sad.
The truth is it makes me sad because it reminds me that I am not getting any younger myself. I want very much to live forever. My preference would be to be forever young. I know that it ain't going to happen. One day I will be old and decrepit like Sly then I will be dead like Coleman. The important thing is to acknowledge these as natural feelings but to remember that my life does not end when I die. I know that death is the threshold into eternity. We will all one day be raised from death. For those who know and love Jesus and have accepted Him as their lord and savior we will arise to a life of joy in the presence of God. For the rest a life of sorrow and separation from God. So when I see someone like Gary Coleman die my concern should not be for myself but for them. My heart breaks to think that anyone would die apart from Christ.
I do not know if Gary knew Jesus. I know he had a hard life - we all do. I know he must have had opportunities to receive Gods gift through Jesus - we all do. I just don't know if he ever accepted the gift. So now I reflect on my own life and say I want to continue to offer this gift to everyone I know so that when they die I will not have to wonder where they will end up.
Who knows maybe one day I will have the privilege of leading Sly or Harrison into God's kingdom. Some one needs to why not me.
Life is short so I shouldn't let it go to my head. I should let it go to my heart and be vigilant about why I am here.
Isn’t the universe cool. Well in this case … hot. But, these images or our sun just remind me how impossible it is that we all exist. When forces like this exist in the universe the fact that we have not all been destroyed proves that God exists. What could frail humanity ever do against such forces? Nothing! But, with God, the maker and creator of all things, on our side we exist and are safe.
8So do not be ashamed to testify about our Lord, or ashamed of me his prisoner. But join with me in suffering for the gospel, by the power of God, 9who has saved us and called us to a holy life—not because of anything we have done but because of his own purpose and grace. This grace was given us in Christ Jesus before the beginning of time, 10but it has now been revealed through the appearing of our Savior, Christ Jesus, who has destroyed death and has brought life and immortality to light through the gospel.
Undeserved Calling I have often thought about the fact that I have received "undeserved grace" when God saved me through the work of Christ. It is a major theme in scripture and a truth that I am greatful for. But just now I noticed the paring of call with salvation. "...has saved us and called us." Now I am handicapped by my lack of training in greek and I lack the greek tools I normally use but when I read it here I can't help but wonder if the saving and calling are both tied to "... a holy life." Did Christ die for us so that we would be saved only or did he die for us so that we would live holy lives.
I must admit that I am the first to stand up and say that sactification is something that should not be shackled to justification. That is that our salvation (justification) is not dependenta on the way that we live (sanctification). I believe that when a believer opens his heart to Christ salvation is complete - they are fully justified. Sanctification on the other hand is a little more complicated. On one hand a believer who opens his heart is also fully sanctified - but not yet. Sanctification is one of the hardest things for we mortals (who are stuck in time and space) to understand. From God's perspective I am sure that it is simple. We are fully sactified to God because He is outside of time and space and we are in his presence as a holy offering - part of the bride of Christ - now and always.
It is true that God knew us while we were still sinners. It is also true that God will know us when we are fully sanctified. But to God the past and future tense have no meaning. He is present in the past. He is present now. He is present in the future. This is mind blowing to me. I hope that one day I will fully comprehend it.
So the best way to describe it is that when a believer asked Christ into his heart. He both became holy in god's eyes (by barrowing or putting on Christ's holiness) and he began to become holy. The second example is often referred to as progressive sanctification. It means that in this life from the time that I ask Christ into my heart until the day I die I am moving toward holiness - my holiness. This is possible becasue once I accept Christ, for the first time in my life I am able not to sin. (Augustine showed that Adam was able to sin, fallen man is not able not to sin, Christians are able to not sin and one day we - as Christians - will not able to sin.)
So back to the verse today. God "has saved us and called us to a holy life." Often I have under emphasized the holy life part. My reason has been that one day I will be there. My holiness take will be totally full. It will not be in this life but in the life to come. No matter how empty my holiness tank is now, it will be filled up when I stand before Christ.
So why bother with holiness?
Because God calls us to a holy life. Not holiness. Not sactification. But a holy life. This life now. I am to live a life that is set apart for Him. A life that is honoring to him. A life that does not make people look at me and say "He's a Christian? Wow who knew."
This is my new motivation. And my prize when I live a holy life? I get to suffer for the Gospel.
That sounds OK to me.
Monday, March 08, 2010
Hello Monday. Why did you have to bring the extra gravity and throw water in my face to wake me?
All I need to do is write a little something each day. How hard is that?
I think I make hard because for some reason I think I need to have something important to say before I write. That would be really cool but the internet is full of blogs of people just writing about common everyday stuff. So here I am writing something not very important about nothing just so I have a blog entry.It could be worse. I could just write about the weather.
BTW its a beautiful day outside. Sunny, somewhat warm and... uhhh... yeah.
I know that I said the official story was that Cathy broke her ankle in a bar fight. The truth is she got tangled up in and tripped over a chair. I realize that sounds kind of boring. We got that bar fight cover story idea from the radiologist at the hospital. It sounds very exciting but I fear that it may have hurt Cathy's reputation. I mean what kind of a person gets in a bar fight?
I remember as a kid every good TV show and movie had a bar fight because fighting was in and bar fights were cool. If I had said that Cathy broke her ankle in a a bar fight and this was the 60's or 7o's then everyone would have said "Of course she did. How else would a person break her ankle?"
Now-a-days (I have always wanted to say that) bar fights just aren't that common so the automatic response is. "Ewww! What kind of person would start a bar fight?" So I think that people may have gotten the wrong picture of Cathy. Therefore, I must report that she is not the kind of person that would hang out in bars either waiting for or starting bar fights. Sad to say she is the type that would simply get tangled in a chair and break her ankle in three places.
If you want to read the full account then check out Cathy's story. She tells it way better and includes all the gory details in her blog at http://insidecat.blogspot.com/.
What a summer it has been. I know its not over yet but it is getting closer. For my friends in Alaska it is over actually. I think they started school this week.
Usually I try to blog about something introspective or deep (as deep as my shallow mind can go) and all summer long I just wasn't feeling it. So rather than forcing something deep or remaining silent I think I just want to write an update.
On May 19th I resigned as Youth Pastor of Wasilla Bible Church and within a month Cathy and I were on the road to Oregon. I am so thankful for all of our friends who helped us as we packed and loaded the truck and headed out. I will never forget the last hour in Wasilla. I had mentioned to Patsy Inks that we were going to get a Crazy Moose sandwich on the way out of town. When we got there all the Inks (except Paul) were there waiting for us to have lunch with us and say good bye one last time. I really appreciated that.
The trip from there was long. That night we camped in Fairbanks. The next morning we decided to see how far up the Dalton Highway we could get and made it all the way to our goal - The Arctic Circle. There were very few people around and I didn't have anything that would repel or kill a bear so we decided to sleep in our car. BIG Mistake. We should have put up the tent. The tent would have been far more effective at keeping out the mosquittos. The car was hot and stuffy (it was about 73 at the arctic circle that day) so we needed to crack the windows. That meant that a horde of mosquittos laid siege to our car. Many got in. It was a sleepless night and the sun barely went down (it was two nights before solstice). The next day we traveled to delta junction to begin our trip down the Al-can.
We actually spent 8 days on the Al-can. We took our time as saw some really amazing scenery. We say 13 black bear, 3 elk, 4 moose, 15 bunnies, 31 Bison, 5 bald eagles, 1 linx and 3 brown bears (aka grizzly to non-Alaskans). The brown bears were a small family out for a stroll along the highway. Just a mom and her two cubs. Probably the most dangerous situation a person can face in the wild. We stayed in the car. We didn't see what happened to the nice stupid lady who got out of her car to take pictures of them.
We ended our trip wit a day in Victoria BC. Then we dashed through Washington in a couple hours and made it home in the middle of the night where our son greeted us with bleary eyes. It was really strange being back in Oregon at first. This was the place I had left and did not expect to move back to any time soon. Yet here we are living in the same house we left a year ago. Things have changed. I have made a ton of friends in Alaska who I miss very much.
I have spent the summer working with (or for) Cathy getting the yard and house in shape. We have replaced the back door of the house, dug up a couple garden beds, hauled dirt, hauled wood chips and pulled up hundreds of nasty black berry bushes that were taking over the yard. I have spent several hundred hours looking for work with very little success.
I have managed to land a couple temporary jobs. I am doing some occasional contract work for a translation company. I'm not translating just doing the desk top publishing part of the process. I start Monday on a job that should take a couple weeks at the company where my son Chris works. I will be helping them with a huge inventory project.
Tomorrow we are throwing my son a HUGE birthday bash. He is turning 21 on Monday so we are inviting all of his friends over to hang out, play some games, drink lots of root beer, and celebrate his special day. I am excited.
God continues to meet all of our needs. I know that he is with us. I have been reminded that this life which I call mine isn't really. It isn't my life it belongs to Christ and therefore it is not really about me. I think I begin to turn toward depression and despair every time I stray into thinking that this is my life and its all about me. But if I simply relinquish ownership to Jesus and let him live through me every change is an opportunity, every trial is doable, every disappointment has some deeper meaning and every heartache is consoled by a savior who loves me. That is pretty cool. So these days I am trying to live by my life verse.
Galatians 2:20. -- “I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me. (New American Standard Bible : 1995 Update)
Thursday night: made it to the artic circle by 7:30. Spent the might with zombie mosquitos. Made it back to fairbanks on friday at 1:00.
Thursday morning: Slept in till 8:30. Left fairbanks at 11:30 headed for the artic circle. Stopped to eat at the hot spot. Good burgers. Sixty miles to go!
Thursday, June 18, 2009
Arrived at Fairbanks at 8:00. Dined on leftovers. Thinking about going to the artic circle in the morning since we are in the neighborhood.
I am all about helping High School and Middle School students explore their relationship with God. I want them to know who Jesus really is, own their faith, own a ministry and live a life of sacrifice. I believe a student who knows Jesus has the power Change the World.
"You cannot slander human nature; it is worse than words can paint it." -- Charles Haddon Spurgeon
"It is a mistake to think you can solve any major problems just with potatoes." -- Douglas Adams
"The one function TV news performs very well is that when there is no news we give it to you with the same emphasis as if there were." -- David Brinkley
![Reblog this post [with Zemanta]](http://img.zemanta.com/reblog_e.png?x-id=c5d0e4d8-80e2-498b-ac19-f2b0d95687b9)
![Reblog this post [with Zemanta]](http://img.zemanta.com/reblog_e.png?x-id=62f8b868-3726-44cd-935d-4b7c6f0e727a)
![Reblog this post [with Zemanta]](http://img.zemanta.com/reblog_e.png?x-id=8df34fb7-bb1c-8788-86eb-c363d45dd8cb)
![Reblog this post [with Zemanta]](http://img.zemanta.com/reblog_e.png?x-id=88545555-43a2-8481-80b9-e296b70aa88d)
