Post D v. G

The David versus Goliath analogy is used by millions nowadays, both in Western and Eastern civilization as well as in the North and South, too. Anytime one supposedly great force challenges a lesser force, the "David versus Goliath" phrase is invoked. Obviously, as a Christian, I understand that David won that mano-a-mano duel due to the power of the Lord God of Hosts, and really any of David victories both before and after he became "King David" were also due to his Lord's empowering him and his missions. All that is true and is well to be remembered.

From a more sociological point of view, I'm wondering just how much of a mismatch this confrontation really was. Goliath was the Philistine champion, and with that title, it must be assumed that he had won his share of clashes with other men, specifically, other warriors. On the other hand, the boy, David, had for his part taken out wolves, lions, and bears with his sling, and I'm not so sure how well Goliath would have done in a cage match with one of those beasts. When Vegas was figuring the odds of the David v. Goliath head-to-head grudge match, would the odds really have been as astronomically overwhelming in Goliath's favor as we tend to suggest? Certainly, the Hebrew warriors and David's own brothers didn't give him much of a shot, but I think we've got to give it up to Saul. He must have seen something in David. According to conventional knowledge, here was the King of Israel sending what was little more than "a mere child" out to apparent suicide, and not only that, he was staking the fate of his own army on the lad. If that was really the case, Saul was one of the worst leaders in the history of mankind. He had to have seen something in David, and if so, was the outcome as surprising as the legend has become?

We all know the story. David won.

To further my point, though, this most notable victory wasn't David's only victory. No. This victory was merely the beginning of a string of military victories and conquerings throughout his life. Many, many, many. Obviously, he had his troubles, too. Saul tried to kill him. His own son tried to kill him. But David is remembered far more for his victories, starting with Goliath and then going on from there, than he is for his troubles, militarily-speaking.

And in other news, the friendly, little Miami Dolphins play the big, bad, NFL monster that is the New Orleans Saints this coming weekend...

Here's a Gimme Question for You

In my Sunday School class, we're discussing the Trinity -- right, one God, three persons, three-in-one. Question:

What is the best explanation you've ever heard that describes the Trinity?

Fire away!

Messianic Christianity? I'm Clueless. Open Questions to The Realm.

Whenever I don't know something, I've been told the best thing to do is ask the Internet. Certainly, one can't go wrong doing that, can one? Better still, since I have a blog, I can put forth my inquiries to wiser people than me that come to The Realm of Possibility. Surely, I can arrive at some conclusions in here, my happy house. So here goes. I've got some questions about Messianic Christianity, if someone knows something about that. Hopefully, I've got that name correct as I'm really not even certain about that. This post could sound utterly and amazingly ignorant, but it wouldn't be my first one of those, nor my last.

Apparently, Messianic Christians are different in at least one respect, maybe a great many more, from Messianic Jews in that, well, they're not Jewish. Let me just get to my list of questions for those that might know:

1) Messianic Christians are non-Jewish persons that adhere to parts of Leviticus and the old Jewish Law? Why? I know some people that are involved in this denomination -- if that's what it is -- and they certainly aren't adhering to all of it. So... just select parts of the law. Is that correct? What is the reasoning behind this?

2) Also, is most of their "church" focused on trying to obey the Jewish laws and customs rather than on Christ? I know they celebrate the major Jewish festivals, feasts, and holidays, and they may or may not celebrate Christmas and/or Easter. Does anyone know about that?

3) They believe in Jesus... do they believe as orthodox Christianity does, that He is God, was resurrected, and through God's grace is the salvation given for all men and women? Do Messianic Christians believe following the law is part of salvation along with believing in Jesus?

4) At least the folks I know that are in Messianic Christian groups (and this is a small sample size, so I probably shouldn't generalize), they say they don't believe in preaching, as that's man telling the congregants how to live. They think God through the Holy Scriptures has given us what we need. Instead, they have instructors for their small group church. Is this how most Messianic Christians operate? And do I have right that they don't believe in the preached word? However, they're okay with teaching? Is that right? And most of the teaching is from the Old Testament, not the New?

I guess, just from what I've heard... well, I have a lot of problems with what I've heard, and it's a little concerning -- but, really, I am very ignorant on this practice and what Messianic Christianity is (who Messianic Christians are and what their intent is), and I'd like to learn a few things. If anyone knows something about it or if anyone is involved in it, please enlighten me. It would be much appreciated. Thanks.

Who's Behind Our Now?

Wanted to share a little write-up by my Sunday School teacher, Heinrich Dubose-Schmidt, after he listened to a forty-five minute R.C. Sproul commentary on the life of Joseph (Old Testament). I'll add just a few thoughts at the end. Here's what he wrote:

Remember when Joseph had suffered for 13 years but had later been made the Prime Minister of all Egypt? His brothers come to Egypt looking for food during the 7 year famine, but they don't recognize Joseph at all although he recognizes them. As part of a test to see if they've changed, Joseph accuses them of being spies and says they must prove themselves by leaving one of their own (Simeon) until they can bring back their youngest brother still at home (Benjamin).

They return home without their brother, and tell their father Jacob (also known as Israel) all that had transpired. The brothers also discover that all their silver to pay for the food is in their sacks, and they are all frightened. Remember -- Jacob thinks his youngest, most-favored son, Joseph, is dead, and now he's given news that one of his older sons is hostage in Egypt and the Prime Minister is demanding to see his youngest Benjamin. In Genesis 42:36, Jacob utters these words: "You have deprived me of my children. Joseph is no more and Simeon is no more, and now you want to take Benjamin. Everything is against me!" (NIV)

As you read those words, I hope Jacob's despair and anguish came through. From his perspective, the whole world is against him; even as a believer, he was filled with despair at the circumstances of life. But, think about the reality for a moment -- Simeon is probably safer now than he's ever been in his life under the care of the Prime Minister (Joseph his brother). Joseph is not "no more" but is alive! In fact, he is working to preserve Jacob's entire family. Benjamin will be safe in Egypt, and while things seem bleak, everything is working out for Jacob.

So what does this mean for us? It doesn't mean that all of our tough times will have a rosy ending. It does mean that we should trust in our God who sovereignly and purposefully works all things to His glory and works all things for our good. The path we're on right now may seem dark and bleak, but God is working in and through and around us. We must trust in His fatherly care.
-------

At least a few times in my life, I have railed to God about circumstances that have afflicted me -- situations that have come about by chance, personal decisions, personal wrong-doing, or others' wrong-doing. Certainly, I can identify with Jacob in this story when he cries, "Everything is against me!" While sometimes I realize that I only have myself to blame, at other times all I can see is a vast inequity of how random, or sometimes calculated, circumstances have stacked against me. As these life events unwind, I usually do find myself going to God, but do I really ever think, behind the scenes, the Lord is working life out for my benefit? For my good? Hardly ever. And it's hard. Very hard to think this way when life appears bleakest.

Nonetheless, a story like this one encourages me to rethink my own attitudes, and not only my attitude about life but my attitude toward God. Because I'm human, I see the surface but don't see in 3-D, figuratively speaking. God is sovereign, and He does. He Is. I can't figure out the Almighty, and really He's God, and it just is that way. However, I know Him enough through Jesus, my Good Shepherd, to know He loves me. At the same time, He loves me enough not to give me everything I want. Heinrich's last paragraph sums it up. Not all our endings will end up rosy. Our job, my job and my attitude, has to be to trust God anyway, through anything and everything.

No matter what's happening now, Someone's behind it.

The For Everyone Series - Tom Wright

Just a recommendation because I've gotten a lot out of this series. I'll try to keep it fairly brief.

A lot of you may know that N.T. (Tom) Wright, Bishop of Durham, noted New Testament scholar, theologian, and historian, has written over thirty books, both for academic and for popular readership, focusing on different aspects of Christianity. The Challenge of Jesus: Rediscovering Who Jesus Was and Is ranks as one of my top non-fiction reads and illuminates Jesus in ways I seldom, if ever, thought. I also started wading into his Christian Origins series, but to be bluntly honest, I think those volumes may be a little too much for me.

Here, though, I want to plug Tom Wright's For Everyone series, and especially the Gospel editions. If you're interested in who Jesus was from a historical standpoint combined with a discussion of what scripture is saying in that context, because really, they go hand-in-hand, then I can't recommend a series of Biblical commentaries more than this one.

I'll just give a couple of instances from Mark for Everyone, snippets that show scripture in a new light for me, to illustrate why I enjoy these books so much. The first one comes from the Mark 2:1-12 passage. Here's verses 1-5:

1A few days later, when Jesus again entered Capernaum, the people heard that he had come home. 2So many gathered that there was no room left, not even outside the door, and he preached the word to them. 3Some men came, bringing to him a paralytic, carried by four of them. 4Since they could not get him to Jesus because of the crowd, they made an opening in the roof above Jesus and, after digging through it, lowered the mat the paralyzed man was lying on. 5When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, "Son, your sins are forgiven."

Wright actually quotes all twelve verses, but I'm just listing these five because of what Wright then states regarding just these. Perhaps I've been dense all these years, but I never thought this:

Most people don't realize that this was probably Jesus' own house. He had moved to Capernaum from Nazareth; the point of the first two verses is that when Jesus returned from his short preaching trip around the neighbouring villages, he found crowds pressing around the door as though he were a movie star or
well-known footballer. Jesus himself was the unlucky householder who had his roof ruined that day.

This opens up quite a new possibility for understanding what Jesus said to the paralyzed man. How would you feel if someone made a big hole in your roof? But Jesus looks down and says with a rueful smile: "All right - I forgive you!" Something in his voice, though, made them all realize this was different. This forgiveness went deeper than domestic disputes. Jesus was speaking with a quiet authority which went down into the paralyzed man's innermost being. Not surprisingly, those around him felt uneasy. Only the priests could declare forgiveness, speaking in the name of God. If that's what the man needed, his friends should take him to the Temple in Jerusalem, not to a wandering preacher.

I think I had heard, maybe some time ago when I was a kid, that perhaps it was Peter's mother-in-law's house, but even that had passed mostly out of my mind. It just never occurred to me that this was Jesus' own house. So, yeah, when Jesus tells the man his sins are forgiven, the man probably understands he has sins, but then he's also just had his friends cut a hole in This Guy's roof so he could be healed. Also, I knew that crowds followed Him when he preached, and I suppose I'm dense, but I never figured they were like the paparazzi there at his doorstep. Really, I think a lot of times, I've failed to see in Jesus' humanity, some of the day-to-day stuff that I take for granted, i.e. coming home to my house and relaxing for one.

With nearly every passage of scripture, Wright has dozens of similar nuggets that just make the mind reel. The one other scripture passage -- I won't quote this one -- is Mark 14:12-25 and concerns the Last Supper. I will, however, quote a bit from the commentary:

It's a deep human instinct -- I believe a God-given one -- that we mark significant moments with significant meals. Sharing a meal, especially a festive one, binds together a family, a group of friends, a collection of colleagues. Such meals say more than we could ever put into words about who we are, how we feel about one another, and the hopes and joys that we share together. The meal not only feeds our bodies; that seems in some ways the least signficant part of it. It says something; and it does something, actually changing us so that, after it, part of who we are is 'the people who shared that meal together, with all that it meant.'

How true is this?! He goes on to speak about the Jewish festivals and what they celebrated with these meals and, of course, leads into the Last Supper, Jesus sharing with His disciples. Going back to the eating meals together, I think of my family's special dinners at holidays - Christmas, Thanksgiving, New Years, Easter - celebrating annual events in our lives. The fact that we're full at the end and that the food was good, well, that is nice. However, the special part is the togetherness, the sharing of our lives, and the binding of our spirits during these times. Wright puts these thoughts together and crystalizes them in a way, over and over, I think, "Yeah!"

I know Tom Wright has his critics with hard-lined reformed Christians, and I know I don't agree with him even on some of the things he writes in the For Everyone books. However, all that stuff really goes out the window for me when I just get down to reading the Bible verses and then hearing what Wright has to say in the For Everyone books. It expands everything for me. To me, it doesn't matter what denomination you may be, and really, I don't think it matters whether you're a Christian or not a Christian, if you're looking to find out about who Jesus was/is. I think everyone can learn a lot about who Jesus was as a man in his particular era, and then learn what orthodox Christianity says about Him as God the Son.

If you ever read one, let me know what you think.

Seek Ye First the Kingdom of God

For Christians that read this blog, I want to ask what may sound like a basic question, but I think it goes deeper than that. More than that, I wanted to ask -- if you're willing to share -- how you specifically go about it in your life.

In Matthew 6 (sermon on the mount), Jesus is talking about worry, more precisely, not worrying about your life, what you're going to eat, drink, or wear. He ends this part of the discussion by telling his audience not to worry about tomorrow; live this day. In the middle of all that, Jesus drops this famous bomb in verse 33:

But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you. (KJV)

The question is: what does it mean to you to seek God (or the Kingdom of God) first, and how do you practically go about that in your personal life?

Here's a thing. I'd like, if we can, for our answers to be understandable to anyone reading. So let's say one hypothetical answer a person might give for seeking God first is: dependence on Him in everything (or total surrender to God's Will). That's what it says in my NIV Study Bible . Well, even as a Christian, I sometimes don't understand that terminology or how one might go about that. For example, do I depend on God in finding a job? I'm enough of a nay-sayer, I suppose, to ask, if one claims he/she is totally dependent on God, why go to an interview? Just talk to God, believe in Him, and wait for the company's phone call because He'll let that job drop in your lap. But, of course, that's not the way God or the world works. So, again, let's discuss the question in practical terms as much as we care to knock it around. I do think it's an important question, and it's likely more confusing than a Christian might think from the outside looking in.

Hope that makes sense, because I don't want to scare folks off from answering the question. Thanks, guys!

The Curious Case of Josh Hamilton (…not to mention: Straw)

We’ve seen this story before, haven’t we? An athlete with ten tons of historical baggage -- drugs, boozing, women, etc. -- sobers up, “finds Christ”, toes the line for a season, and then falls off the wagon. And society looks on and says… well, people say a lot of things, but one of the bottom lines they come to… “Another phony.”

Josh Hamilton starred as a young baseball player in North Carolina, and when I say “starred” that’s an understatement, meaning the bluest of blue chips. The Tampa Bay Devil Rays deemed him worthy of the first overall pick in the 1999 Major League Baseball Draft. First overall. He started very well in the Minors until 2001, when he was involved in a car accident prior to the season. Additionally, his partying escapades began to include drug use that year, and his career started to twist and turn. By 2003, after joining and leaving the team several times, he ended up taking most and the rest of the season off for “personal reasons”. His early rehabs for drugs and alcoholism failed, and Hamilton was suspended repeatedly, and though he tried, he didn’t play baseball in 2004 or 2005 and only played a handful of minor league games in 2006. During that time until the fall of 2005, Hamilton suffered through addiction and health problems, while taking multiple rehab stints. Also, Hamilton married Katie Chadwick in 2004, and although they went through an estrangement period during one of his relapses, they reunited in 2005 when he “got clean”. One other event happened in that period: Hamilton claimed Christ. Since then, he’s been very public about his faith. In June of 2006, the Chicago Cubs took Josh Hamilton in the Rule 5 Draft and immediately traded him to the Cincinnati Reds for $100,000.00. Despite some medical issues, some involved with his alcohol and drug abuse and some normal baseball injuries, Hamilton’s career turned around in Cincinnati, and he had a very good year. After a trade where he moved to the Texas Rangers, Josh Hamilton became an All-Star in 2008, and his fabulous year had his life appearing to be turned around for good. Unfortunately, Hamilton struggled starting his 2009 season, and to complicate matters more, a sports blog, Deadspin.com, posted photos of a carousing Hamilton shirtless in a bar, cavorting with women not his wife (not trying to glorify the Deadspin website here, but I think it's fair to show - choose with caution before going to the link). Witnesses claimed he had been drinking, asking for cocaine, and overheard him saying he would be going to a strip club later in the evening. All of which brings us fairly current.

What to make of this? I’ve been on Reds websites and other sports sites and seen what folks have and are saying about Josh Hamilton. Most people that aren’t Christians either see the “God-thing” as something that didn’t take or that the “faith-thing” was just the crutch he needed to get back into baseball and get his life on track.

Well, the first person the whole Josh Hamilton ordeal reminded me of was Darryl Strawberry (Straw). Straw had been a part of the ’86 Mets championship team, and he was considered one of the better players in baseball as his career progressed. Year after year, though, he gathered similar baggage to Hamilton. Drugs, arrests, women, etc. In 1991, he went to the Dodgers, and for a while, he fell under the wing of Brett Butler, a noted Christian player, and Darryl Strawberry that year said he believed on Christ that year and claimed to be a Christian. However, Straw fell off the wagon very shortly afterward, and his struggles with a lot of the same problems he experienced before claiming to be a Christian for the rest of his playing career and for a time after are pretty well chronicled. To most of the world, Christianity was a passing fancy with Darryl Strawberry.

While I can’t claim to know the hearts of either of these men, I’ll just say write what I believe. Along the way, God happened in the lives of both of these men. Christ happened. For whatever reason, the Father gave these men into the Hand of His Son.

Anyone seen what’s been happening in the life of Darryl Strawberry lately? He’s got a new book out, Straw. Over the past few years, Straw’s been in the community, reaching out to others, especially in the autism realm, and guess what… he’s continuing to talk about his faith in Christ and his spiritual journey. Not that there haven’t been a few past demons revisit along the way, and Straw's got a series of problems due to choices he's made in his life that will probably be with him until he dies. But you know what? I really think Jesus has a hold on his life, and that Darryl’s God is wild and scandalous enough to save a dirty, rotten sinner like Darryl Strawberry. Neither has Josh Hamilton recanted his faith. While some of his support group started out questioning the photos, Hamilton fessed up quickly about his relapse, and he said that his wife and members of his support group knew immediately after. You know what else? In my opinion, Jesus is right there with him. Josh’s God is busy saving a dirty, rotten sinner like Josh Hamilton.

What do I expect? Really, truthfully, and while I very much hope it doesn’t, I have a feeling that Josh is going to fall again. And again after that. Addiction is seldom an easy burden to unload. Added to addiction, and like anyone else, there is other Sin, and sins, in these guys’ lives with which they have to deal. Sin is serious. The Almighty, who knew no sin, made Himself a human being, became it, and died for it. And was Resurrected. If sin was little or of no consequence, why the one time, all-history changing event that is the Cross? No, sin is serious, deadly, and death-ly. God’s love and God’s grace, however, are more serious. By far. Or else a dirty, rotten sinner like me has no hope. None. Whatsoever.

I have my fingers crossed for the lives of Josh Hamilton and Darryl Strawberry because they’re in the public eye, and mistakes that they make are being sought by some for various reasons, become visible to all, and compound the public misconception of the Gospel of Christ. More than that, though, I have faith in a God that loves, with all his being, those two men and desires to save them. And me. And you.

Gospel in 10

Came across this post from the Mockingbird blog while I was perusing down at The Boars Head. It's an exercise in summarizing what you believe, if you believe on Christ:

Can you summarize the gospel in 10 words or less?

When Ken and I first started seriously writing together with one of our goals being publication, we learned pretty quickly that we'd need to be able to summarize our works -- whether an essay, a short story, or a novel -- in one sentence, for a variety of reasons (query letters, interested editors/agents thru correspondence or at conferences, description for prospective readers, etc.). Although I'd not thought about it in these terms, I should be able to utilize this practice with my faith in Christ as well. Here's my attempt:

God came, lived, was crucified and resurrected for sinners.

Obviously, as the author of the original post stated, any 10 words or less explanation would have to be more fully detailed to define (as best we can) the nature of Salvation and sin, the whys and hows of God's love, etc. Nonetheless, I think this is a fantastic exercise.

In the comments of a non-related post (Saturday is for Answering Questions) and site, Michael Spencer, the Internet Monk, answered a similar question. He was asked:

What is your understanding of the gospel? In five sentences…

His answer, which just so happened to be 10 words:

God created.
Man sins.
Jesus saves.
We believe.
God reigns.

Beautiful. I think I like his better than mine.

Anyone else want to give it a try?

Redemption in Elizabethtown

Most people, it seems, didn't like the movie Elizabethtown. Reviews were not good (27% fresh at Rotten Tomatoes), as I recall, and if you go through the blogsphere, you'll probably find more people that hated it than loved it. Bad-script, bad-diaglogue, and stale-performance glutton that I must be, I really enjoyed the movie, and more specifically, I loved the redemption aspect in the movie. For me, it brought to life a lot of the parallels of my own personal Christian journey, and I'd imagine it might resonate with some others (27% of our readership, maybe?) as well... if you can allow that Claire is the Christ-figure in the movie. Obviously, with a movie about a romance between a guy and a girl, this analogy won't be perfect, but it's works for me.


“Claire literally saves his life.” ~ Cameron Crowe, the movie's writer and director. "His life", here, refers to the life of the movie's protagonist, Drew Baylor, played by Orlando Bloom.


The beginning of the movie is where Baylor recognizes his sin. He states later that developing shoes is the only thing he knows how to do. Essentially, that's life for him. To wit, we receive this narrative epiphany by the lead character:



As somebody once said there's a difference between a failure and a fiasco. A failure is simply the non-presence of success. Any fool can accomplish failure. But a fiasco... a fiasco is a folktale told to others that makes other people feel more alive because it didn't happen to them.


A fiasco. In life, if I'm honest, that's what I am. A train wreck. We tell ourselves something else most of the time. Socially, who wants to show the truth? We walk around trying to act as if we have at least some of it together. If I grow up not messing up too many times, have a good career, a respected family, get my retirement in line, graduate my kids from college, go to church on Sundays, help out in the community when I have time, at the end of all this God's gonna invite me in, saying, "Welcome, My good and faithful servant." Another line in the movie, spoken by Claire, penetrates the real truth.


Do you ever just think 'I'm fooling everyone'? Drew Baylor's reply is honest. You have no idea.


The truth for many of us is so much different than the facade we put up. I verbally abuse my kids/my parents all.the.time. I spend every leisure minute playing video games or fishing or on the computer or watching TV, away from everyone else unless it's on my terms. I told one friend that my other friend was a loser, because I always want to make myself look and feel better. I cheated on my wife/husband/significant other. I want to skip church this Sunday... well, every Sunday. I hate my job. I don't have time or will to pray. I scammed the government on my taxes. I'm divorced. I'm a drunk. I physically abused my child. I read/looked at crap on the Internet. I stabbed my best friend in the back. I'm "living in sin." I hate my husband. I don't tithe or give to charity. I like taking drugs. I want a better everything. I want my neighbor's wife. I can't help lying. I can't help cussing. I want to be left alone. Or worse, I'm so much better than all the people who do any of the stuff on this list. We're a fiasco.


And if we can't come to the realization ourselves, at least we have helpful hands to lead us there. Family, friends, co-workers, church members, teammates, enemies, books, movies, the Bible... to get the Law portion of what we've done down. In Elizabethtown, Alec Baldwin, plays shoe guru and corporate exec Phil Devoss, who enlightens his protege on the realization that Drew's already come to:


How do I make the concept of $979 million dollars more real to you? It's the operating budget of a midsize country... a small civilization. It's big! It's so big you could round it off to a billion dollars.


The sin is a gap so big that it could never be made up, never be paid off. You're stuck with that legacy the rest of your life. And really, with a legacy like that, it's not only going to affect you, but it's going to affect your children and your children's children, down to the fourth generation, quite possibly.


The result of this horrifying realization is death, and that's just what Drew Baylor aims to do. Kill himself. However, just before he does exactly this, he's informed of another death, that of his father. When his sister calls him while he begins the act of suicide, Drew's informed, because his mom and sister are in such bad states, that he's the one who needs to carry out his father and family's wishes for cremation. So he avoids killing himself for the time being, but instead walks around like death warmed over.


However, on the way to Elizabethtown, his dad's hometown, he meets his redeemer, Claire Colburn, who happens to be an airline stewardess. At first, little does he know the effect she;ll have in his life, and really, he doesn't want anything to do with her. Nonetheless, she gives him some directions that he has a hard time following - and that seems true-to-life for me, at least for some, with our first encounters with Jesus.


Yet, through the movie, Claire and Drew get to know each other better. However, Drew can't tell her his deep, dark secret. Not until later in the movie after they've been intimate. The next morning, Claire's out the door after trying gently but unsuccessfully to rouse Drew, but he awakes soon afterward and realizes she's gone. He runs after her, and she turns to him with the open and welcoming smile of someone willing to save him, saying:


Just tell me you love me and get it over with.


Finally, though, he comes out with what he's been hiding:


Four days ago, I lost a major shoe company... frankly you could round it off to one billion dollars! And by tomorrow afternoon, everyone will know. Something's gonna be published that pinpoints me as the most spectacular failure in the history of my profession, which is all I know how to do. And I've been here this whole time trying to be responsible and charming and live up to this success that doesn't exist. I have a very dark appointment with destiny. That's my secret. That's who I am.


Drew states what I alluded to previously - we try to be responsible and charming, and we try to live up to a success that doesn't exist. Not to belittle sin, because Christ paid the ultimate price for it, but rather in the relational context, I think Claire's answer is perfect:


That's it?


The next exchange is funny, because here's it's where we think that God can't forgive us for this monumental sin or the monumental sinner we are, while He just wants us to love Him.


Drew: Yes, that's it.
Claire: I guess I just thought a small part of you might be a small bit sad to see me go. But I guess this is all mostly about a shoe.
Drew: Of course, I'm sad about you. But this is just a little bit bigger than you and me. And by the way, I didn't say million. I said billion. A billion dollars! That's a lot of million!
Claire: So you failed.
Drew: No, you don't get it.


It's like God's saying, "Love me, Rich." And I'm saying, "But God, I've done this. How could you ever love me. I did this. I'm a wreck." And God's replying, "Yep, you did that. You surely failed there, Rich. But I'll take your wreck, thank you. Love me anyway." "No God, wait!" I counter, "You still don't seem to get it." As laughable as I sound here, there's a lot of truth in this exchange - and I don't mean just once. This is recurring theater between God and me. So finally, as Claire says, God puts it in perspective:


So you failed. Alright you really failed. You failed. You failed. You failed. You failed. You failed. You failed. You failed. You failed. You failed. You failed. You failed. You failed. You think I care about that? I do understand.


You have the Creator of the Universe, your Creator, right here, Rich, right in front of you, loving you enough to have died for you, knowing every last foible and flaw and all the grandiose, colossal fiascos you've had, have, and will have in your life. I love you, and I'm not going anywhere. Just tell me you love me and get it over with. Ah, grace. That's really the whole story right there.


At the end of the movie, after Drew's dad's ceremony has completed, Claire gives Drew a road map, with cassettes of her voice to help lead him along this time of wilderness and introspection. I love this part of the movie as Drew goes from place to place, seeing it, somewhat, through the eyes of his redeemer, and spreading his father's ashes at special places along the way. And then he comes to a reckoning place:


Here you have reached a fork in the map. You can go to your car and the rest of the directions will take you home. Or... look for a girl in a red hat who's waiting for you with an alternate plan.


Drew decides then and there that he's not going to try it his own way anymore. He'll thankfully go with the one who loves him. Because we're human, we know, even that doesn't make things perfect. Additionally, we also know that even if Drew did go the other way, God would have sought him or waited on him - He's saved him.


What an awesome God we have that loves us despite the fiasco. Loved us enough that He sent Himself, His Son, to the Cross for us. Boyoboy, do I need to remind myself of that over and over. Everything that we couldn't do, can't do, and never could do, He's done. That's a great love story.

Roll Call in the Year of our Lord YYYY

"Paul, formerly Saul, of Tarsus."
"Dead."

"Apollos."
"Dead."

"Simon Peter."
"Dead."

"Augustine of Hippo."
"Dead."

"Quintus Tertullianus."
"Dead."

"Flavius Constantinus."
"Dead."

"Ignatius of Loyola."
"Dead."

"Franciscus Gomarus."
"Dead."

"Hugo Grotius."
"Dead."

"Simon Episcopius."
"Dead."

"Petr Chelcicky."
"Dead."

"Jacobus Arminius."
"Dead."

"Martin Luther."
"Dead."

"Howell Harris."
"Dead."

"Menno Simons."
"Dead."

"John Bunyan."
"Dead."

"Thomas Helwys."
"Dead."

"Philipp Spener."
"Dead."

"Huldrych Zwingli."
"Dead."

"John Calvin."
"Dead."

"Robert Browne."
"Dead."

"Michael Cerularius."
"Dead."

"John Wesley."
"Dead."

"Edward Pusey."
"Dead."

"Bruno von Egisheim-Dagsburg."
"Dead."

"George Whitefield."
"Dead."

"Charles Spurgeon."
"Dead."

"John Smyth."
"Dead."

"Phineas Bresee."
"Dead."

"William Miller."
"Dead."

"Jonathan Edwards."
"Dead."

"Charles Sheldon."
"Dead."

"Alexander Campbell."
"Dead."

"Charles Parham."
"Dead."

"Harold Ockenga."
"Dead."

"William Booth."
"Dead."

"Albert Simpson."
"Dead."

"Andrew Fuller."
"Dead."

"Carl Henry."
"Dead."

"Phoebe Palmer."
"Dead."

"William Seymour."
"Dead."

"Charles Finney."
"Dead."

"Daniel Sommer."
"Dead."

"Barton Stone."
"Dead."

"Charles Mason."
"Dead."

"Clive Lewis."
"Dead."

"David Lipscomb."
"Dead."

"Aimee McPherson."
"Dead."

"John McGee."
"Dead."

"Jean-Luc Marion."
"Dead."

"Charles Jones."
"Dead."

"Herbert Armstrong."
"Dead."

"Jack Hayford."
"Dead."

"Norman Peale."
"Dead."

"Dennis Bennett."
"Dead."

"James Dunn."
"Dead."

"Richard Hays."
"Dead."

"Donald Carson."
"Dead."

"Richard Foster."
"Dead."

"William Graham."
"Dead."

"Michael Riddell."
"Dead."

"Rowan Williams."
"Dead."

"Robert Schuller."
"Dead."

"Charles Stanley."
"Dead."

"Robert Sproul."
"Dead."

"Nicholas Wright."
"Dead."

"John Spong."
"Dead."

"Jerry Falwell."
"Dead."

"Marcus Borg."
"Dead."

"James Dobson."
"Dead."

"Charles Vines."
"Dead."

"Henry Blackaby."
"Dead."

"Brian McLaren."
"Dead."

"John Wimber."
"Dead."

"John Piper."
"Dead."

"Richard Warren."
"Dead."

"Thomas Jakes."
"Dead."

"Joel Osteen."
"Dead."

"Mark Driscoll."
"Dead."

"William Hybels."
"Dead."

"John Eldredge."
"Dead."

"Kay Arthur."
"Dead."

"John MacArthur."
"Dead."

"Bruce Wilkinson."
"Dead."

"John Maxwell."
"Dead."

"Wayne Grudem."
"Dead."

"John Ortberg."
"Dead."

"Beth Moore."
"Dead."

"Andy Stanley."
"Dead."

"Jesus of Nazareth."
"Alive and well. Follow me."

1 Corinthians 3:4-15

The Wisdom of Ben Wade

Well, not really.

But the scripture-quoting, gang-leading thief and murderer in the Old West flick 3:10 to Yuma recited a dandy when he dropped Proverbs 21:2 out at the dinner table. Forgive me for being behind the times, but this little verse that basically summed up Wade's personal creed, and Byron McElroy's - the bounty hunter he aimed it at - for that matter, isn't one I should so easily dismiss.

Every way of a man is right in his own eyes, but the Lord weighs the heart. ~ Proverbs 21: 2

Boyoboy. I remember the first time I watched the movie a couple of years ago, and how that verse struck me in the theater.

It's certainly obvious to see how Wade wanted it to hit McElroy - and to put him into place in the context of their discussion and audience at the Evans' dinner table. Despite Wade's own use of the Bible as a weapon aimed at others -- a la Samuel L. Jackson as Jules Winnfield, in Pulp Fiction, and there are certainly other examples -- he no doubt meant this verse as a personal self-condemnation as well. As a Bible verse used in a movie for tens of thousands to see, Wade's words are a large mirror at which we all can gaze.

People, people like me, make all these choices, decisions, acts, sentences, writings, etc. in this life for whatever reason we rationalize at that moment. We choose to do whatever it is we do, and then we live with ourselves and love ourselves. We're all misers and philanthopists. Chiefs and indians. Givers and takers. Lovers and leavers. Good-hearted and mean-spirited. All at different times. Others applaud us, and we take a bow. They hug us, and we feel warm inside. They yell at us, we bite back. We hurt them, and sometimes we admit we're sorry, while other times, we dig trenches. We make wretched mistakes along the way and either believe we were right or forgive ourselves and rock along merrily because that's how we roll. We love ourselves with a grandiose self-love. At times, we find it in us to love others.

I like what C.S Lewis said in Mere Christianity. It's from Book III, Chapter 4, "Morality and Psychoanalysis." He writes:

I would much rather say that every time you make a choice you are turning the central part of you , the part of you that chooses, into something a little different from what it was before. And taking your life as a whole, with all your innumerable choices, all your life long you are slowly turning this central thing either into a heavenly creature or into a hellish creature...

For a guy who's made some decent choices and a boatload of bad ones, that's not a lot of comfort. It is, on the other hand, a pretty sobering message. Reminds me of the The Call's song, "I Don't Wanna", where Michael Been's lyrics almost shout - I can only hope that I can see, out beyond the skin that covers me... Too often (and here, the word "too" means: most, most, most of the time), I don't. Seems like it'd be easy if I really loved God and loved others... really, really loved Him and them. Somehow, that equation, m(G + O) = C [where m is me, G is Loving God, O = Loving Others, and C adds up to Good Choices], doesn't always come out right. There's a glitch in the m variable. Once I got to calculus, mathematics never did make that much sense. I was always better at English and Literature.

Which is why I'm on a blog quoting Ben Wade and not Blaise Pascal.

Eli Eli Lama Sabachthani

Was Jesus Forsaken by God?

Here's the Gospel of Matthew (ESV) on the context:

45 Now from the sixth hour there was darkness over all the land until the ninth hour. 46 And about the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, “Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?” that is, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” 47 And some of the bystanders, hearing it, said, “This man is calling Elijah.” 48 And one of them at once ran and took a sponge, filled it with sour wine, and put it on a reed and gave it to him to drink. 49 But the others said, “Wait, let us see whether Elijah will come to save him.” 50 And Jesus cried out again with a loud voice and yielded up his spirit.

Also, here's Mark (ESV):

33 And when the sixth hour had come, there was darkness over the whole land until the ninth hour. 34 And at the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, “Eloi, Eloi, lema sabachthani?” which means, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” 35 And some of the bystanders hearing it said, “Behold, he is calling Elijah.” 36 And someone ran and filled a sponge with sour wine, put it on a reed and gave it to him to drink, saying, “Wait, let us see whether Elijah will come to take him down.” 37 And Jesus uttered a loud cry and breathed his last. 38 And the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. 39 And when the centurion, who stood facing him, saw that in this way he breathed his last, he said, “Truly this man was the Son of God!”

As a Christian growing up, I was taught and believed (Answer # 1 in the link) that when Jesus cried out, "My God, My God, why have You forsaken me!" on the ninth hour on the cross, he did so because at that exact time, all the sin of the world was laid upon Him, and the Father -- who cannot look upon sin -- turned away in that moment. And, I believe, there are many Christian scholars, many renowned Christian scholars, who still hold to that view.

However, at this point, I think I'm going with Answer # 2, which is that Jesus was pointing His followers to Psalm 22 and everything that Scripture meant.

Here's Psalm 22 (ESV):

22:1 My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? Why are you so far from saving me, from the words of my groaning? 2 O my God, I cry by day, but you do not answer, and by night, but I find no rest. 3 Yet you are holy, enthroned on the praises of Israel. 4 In you our fathers trusted; they trusted, and you delivered them. 5 To you they cried and were rescued; in you they trusted and were not put to shame. 6 But I am a worm and not a man, scorned by mankind and despised by the people. 7 All who see me mock me;they make mouths at me; they wag their heads; 8 “He trusts in the Lord; let him deliver him;let him rescue him, for he delights in him!” 9 Yet you are he who took me from the womb;you made me trust you at my mother's breasts. 10 On you was I cast from my birth, and from my mother's womb you have been my God. 11 Be not far from me,for trouble is near, and there is none to help. 12 Many bulls encompass me; strong bulls of Bashan surround me; 13 they open wide their mouths at me, like a ravening and roaring lion. 14 I am poured out like water,and all my bones are out of joint; my heart is like wax; it is melted within my breast; 15 my strength is dried up like a potsherd, and my tongue sticks to my jaws; you lay me in the dust of death. 16 For dogs encompass me; a company of evildoers encircles me; they have pierced my hands and feet —17 I can count all my bones—they stare and gloat over me; 18 they divide my garments among them, and for my clothing they cast lots. 19 But you, O Lord, do not be far off! O you my help, come quickly to my aid! 20 Deliver my soul from the sword,my precious life from the power of the dog! 21 Save me from the mouth of the lion! You have rescued me from the horns of the wild oxen! 22 I will tell of your name to my brothers; in the midst of the congregation I will praise you: 23 You who fear the Lord, praise him! All you offspring of Jacob, glorify him, and stand in awe of him, all you offspring of Israel! 24 For he has not despised or abhorred the affliction of the afflicted, and he has not hidden his face from him, but has heard, when he cried to him. 25 From you comes my praise in the great congregation; my vows I will perform before those who fear him. 26 The afflicted shall eat and be satisfied;those who seek him shall praise the Lord! May your hearts live forever! 27 All the ends of the earth shall remember and turn to the Lord, and all the families of the nations shall worship before you. 28 For kingship belongs to the Lord, and he rules over the nations. 29 All the prosperous of the earth eat and worship; before him shall bow all who go down to the dust, even the one who could not keep himself alive. 30 Posterity shall serve him; it shall be told of the Lord to the coming generation; 31 they shall come and proclaim his righteousness to a people yet unborn, that he has done it.

When I think about Jesus, and when I think about His relationship to and with the Father and then also with His disciples, I have to think He was pointing to and showing them this Psalm - both for the prophecy (such as in verses 16 and 17) and then also for the glory that comes at the end of this Psalm. "All the ends of the earth shall remember and turn to the Lord, and all the families of the nations shall worship before you!" How great is that? Jesus, dying for humanity on a Cross, being scorned by those around Him, still showing us the way and telling us why He is doing what He is doing. Not only that but forgiving those killing Him and mocking Him at the same time. And I love the centurion's reaction in Mark 15:39 - "Truly, this man was the Son of God!" Yes!

What do you guys think?

Legitimate Non-Biblical Question # 2

What is the right thing (and I realize it's probably subjective to each person) to do when you see either Mormons or Jehovah's Witnesses coming down your street to witness to you?

Am I right to even be asking this question at all? As a Christian, I feel I really don't have much to worry about in talking to people whose flags are flying under a different God than mine. At the same time, since both groups claim the word Christian when describing themselves -- or at least I've heard "Christian" as a description even if the headquarters of either group do not make that claim (I"m not sure whether they do or don't) -- that makes it a different conversation than discussing Christ (who is a figure in both religions) with say, an agnostic, atheist, Muslim, Hindu, etc.

I'll be honest. I cringe when I see them coming - it seems I'm usually mowing the lawn or working outside when they come. With the Jehovah's Witnesses, it usually isn't that big a deal - you accept a track from them and they walk on. With the Mormons, and usually it's younger kids (about 18-22 years old), who come on fire wanting to witness to you about their church, the prophets here in the States, God, etc., those boys'll talk to you. I've still got a Book of Mormon that a pair of suit-cladden bikers gave me.

To make the situation stickier, a lot of times I'll have either worked with or for Mormons (as I do now), been friends with them in the past, or at least have acquaintances that I respect that are Mormon. It's hard for me to just want to send them on their way, but inside, that's probably what I want to do.

Different Christians I know have different responses:

1) Some avoid them like the plague, won't accept anything from them, and shut the door on them if they solicit. Not so ironically, those same tactics are used on Christians as well, sometimes (even more ironically) by other Christians.

2) Some jump right in to argue, counter-witness, prove where they're wrong, and call for the witnessing kids/adults to repent there on site.

3) Some take the subtle witnessing tact. They invite them in, invite their elders to their house, trade scriptures, offer Christ's hope, generally with little success.

4) I've been a member at a church that has invited Mormons to the church under the guise of genuine discussions, and then has basically shown a filmstrip on how Mormonism is a cult and then went to # 2 on the list in calling for them to repent and convert. It was pretty ruthless, and despite what I believe, if the roles were reversed, I'd have been pretty pissed (sorry if that's offensive).

5) The easy way: Just throw out the word "Trinity" and watch them run.

Of course, I'm not denying that we have to talk to people, witness to the Gospel, and show them God's love, but I'm not sure a ten minute conversation while they're trying to solicit you is the best time for that. It seems like that's a time, more than likely, where heated arguments are going to take place and people just get more entrenched in their own beliefs. Then again, you may never see these people again, and if they're willing to talk religion, then why not proclaim the Christ of the Bible and the Gospel that leads to Salvation?

What do you guys think?

Silence

One of the BHT patrons, Wyman Richardson, posted The Harrowing Silence: A Confession at his own blog, Communio Sanctorum.

It's a moving post, and it reminds me of how often I flee from silence. Seems like it's the way of the world to do so. Instead of silence and reflection, I'll crank the stereo, grab the TV remote, pop in an X-Box game, write on our novel, surf the Net, call someone just to talk, and the list goes on. Anything but the silence.

But Wyman's right. It is in silence when you meet God and see yourself for who you are. I write that last sentence, and then think to myself, well, yeah, no wonder I long for the clamor. Courage is needed to face the Almighty and my sin-blotched life in the same silent sitting. But it's in that same time I find out His true love for me as well. I think I've mentioned before that I'm not good at hearing from God. (I'm not good at the listening either.) But it is in the silence where reflection and oddball thoughts come to my mind. I loved how Wyman asked, "When was the last time I've thanked God for the birds?" That's sort of what I mean. It's only in silence that I'd open up my mind for trains of thought like that at all.

All of which means I need to slow down. No, even more, I need to stop. And listen.

Good Friday

Readings (ESV) for anyone interested:

Isaiah 52:13-53:12

John 19-1-28

1 Corinthians 15:1-3

Mark 15:16-39

Romans 5:6-10

Luke 23

1 Peter 2:24

Matthew 27:33-54

Colossians 1:19-23

And a hymn:

When I survey the wondrous cross
On which the Prince of glory died,
My richest gain I count but loss,
And pour contempt on all my pride.
Forbid it, Lord, that I should boast,
Save in the death of Christ my God:
All the vain things that charm me most,
I sacrifice them to His blood.
See from His head, His hands, His feet,
Sorrow and love flow mingled down:
Did e’er such love and sorrow meet,
Or thorns compose so rich a crown?
Were the whole realm of Nature mine,
That were an offering far too small;
Love so amazing, so divine,
Demands my soul, my life, my all!

-- Isaac Watts (1674-1748)

Coming Up Sevens, and Then Some

Quiz time. Below I've listed the Seven Deadly Sins in no particular order. In Dante's The Divine Comedy: Purgatorio (the second of the epic poems in his masterpiece), he places each of these sins on a different level, the worst closer to Hell and the least bad closer to Paradise. Your job is to, without Googling or looking it up in any other way, guess the order of the sins, 1 being the closest to Hell and 7 being the nearest to Paradise. Of course if you've read The Divine Comedy then you may well know the order, and that's okay. However, you may have forgotten. If it's too easy for you, then you're probably pretty well read. Along with the sins - for education if nothing else - I've listed the corresponding virtue that goes with it and then given a description of the pairing that I got from whitestonejournal.com.

A) Vice: Avarice/Greed Virtue: Generosity
This is about more than money. Generosity means letting others get the credit or praise. It is giving without having expectations of the other person. Greed wants to get its "fair share" or a bit more.

B) Vice: Envy Virtue: Love
"Love is patient, love is kind…" Love actively seeks the good of others for their sake. Envy resents the good others receive or even might receive. Envy is almost indistinguishable from pride at times.

C) Vice: Lust Virtue: Self-control
Self control and self mastery prevent pleasure from killing the soul by suffocation. Legitimate pleasures are controlled in the same way an athlete's muscles are: for maximum efficiency without damage. Lust is the self-destructive drive for pleasure out of proportion to its worth. Sex, power, or image can be used well, but they tend to go out of control.

D) Vice: Pride Virtue: Humility
Seeing ourselves as we are and not comparing ourselves to others is humility. Pride and vanity are competitive. If someone else's pride really bothers you, you have a lot of pride.

E) Vice: Wrath/Anger Virtue: Kindness
Kindness means taking the tender approach, with patience and compassion. Anger is often our first reaction to the problems of others. Impatience with the faults of others is related to this.

F) Vice: Sloth Virtue: Zeal

Zeal is the energetic response of the heart to God's commands. The other sins work together to deaden the spiritual senses so we first become slow to respond to God and then drift completely into the sleep of complacency.

G) Vice: Gluttony Virtue: Faith and Temperance
Temperance accepts the natural limits of pleasures and preserves this natural balance. This does not pertain only to food, but to entertainment and other legitimate goods, and even the company of others.

Now, rank 'em like Dante did. I'll publish an update in a couple days with the correct answers.
------
Along with those seven, here's a longer list from VirtueScience.com. There's some overlap with a few, but I'm not convinced all these are truly virtues. Which of these would you categorize as true Virtues, and which of these would you say - "Definitely not"?

Acceptance: To consider circumstances, especially those that can not be changed, as satisfactory.
Bravery: A quality of spirit that enables you to face danger of pain without showing fear.
Caution: Avoidance of rashness, attention to safety.
Curiosity: A desire to find out and know things.
Defiance: Bold resistance.
Determination: Firmness of purpose.
Devotion: A great love or loyalty, enthusiastic zeal.
Discretion: Being discrete in ones speech, keeping secrets.
Flexibility: Adaptable, able to be changed to suit circumstances.
Focus: Concentrated awareness and effort.
Forgiveness: To cease to feel angry or bitter towards a person or about an offense.
Generosity: Giving or ready to give freely, free from meanness or prejudice.
Gentleness: Moderate; mild, quite; not rough or severe.
Gratitude: Being thankful.
Honesty: Truthful; sincere; not lieing or cheating.
Humbleness: Modest; not arrogant or boastful.
Humor: The ability to perceive, enjoy, or express what is amusing, comical, incongruous, or absurd.
Impartiality: Fair.
Industry: Diligent, hardworking.
Innocence: Guileless, not guilty.
Justice: Fair, impartial, giving a deserved response.
Kindness: Friendly, helpful, well meaning.
Love: A deep, tender, ineffable feeling of affection and solicitude toward a person, such as that arising from kinship, recognition of attractive qualities, or a sense of underlying oneness.
Loyalty: Steadfast in allegiance to one's homeland, government, or sovereign. Faithful to a person, ideal, custom, cause, or duty.
Majesty: Great and impressive dignity.
Moderation: The avoidance of extremes in one’s actions or opinions.
Obedience: Willingness to obey, to be controlled when necessary, to carry out orders.
Openness: Ready and willing to talk candidly.Unsecretive.
Patience: The ability to endure delay, trouble, pain or hardship.
Peace: Freedom from mental agitation; serenity.
Prudence: Wise or careful in conduct. Shrewd or thrifty in planning ahead.
Reliability: Can be trusted to do something.
Responsibility: Having control over and accountability for appropriate events.
Sensitivity: Heightened awareness of oneself and others within the context of social and personal relationships.
Simplicity: Straightforward; not complex or complicated. Unpretentious.
Sincerity: Free from pretense or deceit in manner or actions.
Sobriety: Serious, solemn and calm. Free from intoxication.
Spontaneity: Natural, not planned.
Steadfastness: Firm, resolute; determinedly unwavering.
Strength: Capable of exerting great force.
Toughness: Strong and durable; not easily damaged.
Tranquility: Serenely quite and peaceful; undisturbed.
Trust: Having confidence in others; lacking suspicion.
Trustworthiness: Able to be trusted or depended on; reliable.

Actually, I probably question a great many of these as true virtues - as opposed to nice or polite ideas - and some I seriously question are Strength and Toughness (as defined here), Majesty, Focus, Tranquility, Defiance, Spontaneity, and Curiosity. Not to say these aren't good qualities, but true Virtues? Not how I'd define them.

What do you think? [And don't forget your rankings of the sins!]

Loved This Quote... (And Then an Aside)

...from the imonk at the BHT today.

Let me be clear: As a Christian, I'm interested in moral values, but I am more interested in the Good News of Jesus for sinners. I want my children to be moral, but I want them to know they are sinners more. I want my children and my students to be good examples and good people. But without the Gospel of Jesus at the core of whatever they are, all the morality in the world is useless.

The context was in that he gave a sermon at the school where he works based on this imonk post, and one of the teachers made it clear that she was offended.
-------

I always enjoyed Sunday School as I grew up. The older I grew, the more we learned to say thank you, say nice things to one another, and the youth leaders clapped me on the back, because they were nice and awesome guys, and made me feel good about myself. We learned that it was wrong to drink and take drugs and smoke and watch dirty movies and have sex with the girls, all of which made me look with extreme skepticism on the people who did such things. Those were the freaks, sleaze-bags, and rockers, and they were all going to Hell. I stayed away from them and strangers just like I was supposed to. I was taught a few manners and etiquette, and the good people appreciated my usage of all things polite. And since I became a member of the church because I consented to be baptized, I had made it with the in-club. I was a good person, thank God, and I was going to Heaven. Since I loved to hear good things about myself, it made me feel good that people nodded in approval when I said or did all the nice things. Mostly, it was always nice that no one told me how much I sucked as a person when what I really needed to hear was how much I sucked as a person.

Oh, regretfully but needfully, I figured it out for myself along the way. Or, it might be better to say that God held out a mirror and what I saw...

I should add that The Church was a part of that, and Godly people helped me start and continue on a journey toward real life, a road that I'm still wandering on and most of the time hardly know where I'm going. I fall more than I walk, and I'm not sure at all how many people see me and think they might want to come along. It's probably more important, though, for me to see them and look for their needs, and then relate Christ to them by administering to those needs. But I'm awful at it, mainly because I'm still so self-involved. Not to mention all the times I'm climbing off the path and leaving bread crumbs in my wake to find my way back to it.

God, save me from myself.

Thank Him, He did. At the Cross. I've got a long way to go, but I'm pressing on until I get there.

Legitimate Biblical Question # 2

In my men's Bible study, we're reviewing the life of David (actually 1st and 2nd Samuel) in an attempt to better understand the character and nature of God. We got to 1st Samuel Chapter 28 last night, which is Saul's encounter with the witch, or medium, of Endor. Here's verses 3-19:

3 Now Samuel had died, and all Israel had mourned for him and buried him in Ramah, his own city. And Saul had put the mediums and the necromancers out of the land. 4 The Philistines assembled and came and encamped at Shunem. And Saul gathered all Israel, and they encamped at Gilboa. 5 When Saul saw the army of the Philistines, he was afraid, and his heart trembled greatly. 6 And when Saul inquired of the Lord, the Lord did not answer him, either by dreams, or by Urim, or by prophets. 7 Then Saul said to his servants, “Seek out for me a woman who is a medium, that I may go to her and inquire of her.” And his servants said to him, “Behold, there is a medium at En-dor.”
8 So Saul disguised himself and put on other garments and went, he and two men with him. And they came to the woman by night. And he said, “Divine for me by a spirit and bring up for me whomever I shall name to you.” 9 The woman said to him, “Surely you know what Saul has done, how he has cut off the mediums and the necromancers from the land. Why then are you laying a trap for my life to bring about my death?” 10 But Saul swore to her by the Lord, “As the Lord lives, no punishment shall come upon you for this thing.” 11 Then the woman said, “Whom shall I bring up for you?” He said, “Bring up Samuel for me.” 12 When the woman saw Samuel, she cried out with a loud voice. And the woman said to Saul, “Why have you deceived me? You are Saul.” 13 The king said to her, “Do not be afraid. What do you see?” And the woman said to Saul, “I see a god coming up out of the earth.” 14 He said to her, “What is his appearance?” And she said, “An old man is coming up, and he is wrapped in a robe.” And Saul knew that it was Samuel, and he bowed with his face to the ground and paid homage.
15 Then Samuel said to Saul, “Why have you disturbed me by bringing me up?” Saul answered, “I am in great distress, for the Philistines are warring against me, and God has turned away from me and answers me no more, either by prophets or by dreams. Therefore I have summoned you to tell me what I shall do.” 16 And Samuel said, “Why then do you ask me, since the Lord has turned from you and become your enemy? 17 The Lord has done to you as he spoke by me, for the Lord has torn the kingdom out of your hand and given it to your neighbor, David. 18 Because you did not obey the voice of the Lord and did not carry out his fierce wrath against Amalek, therefore the Lord has done this thing to you this day. 19 Moreover, the Lord will give Israel also with you into the hand of the Philistines, and tomorrow you and your sons shall be with me. The Lord will give the army of Israel also into the hand of the Philistines.”

The question herein is: Was the "apparition" that appeared to be Samuel actually Samuel or was it something else, namely demonic? Our study leader put out the question -- Would God himself do and/or use something that He despises and has told us as His followers to not associate themselves with (to keep themselves holy like He is holy). Leviticus 19:31 states:

31 “Do not turn to mediums or wizards; do not seek them out, and so make yourselves unclean by them: I am the Lord your God.

and Leviticus 20:6 states:

6 “If a person turns to mediums and wizards, whoring after them, I will set my face against that person and will cut him off from among his people.

There's more where that came from, btw. In the end, and I don't know why I always seem like the devil's advocate with these types of questions, but I was probably the only guy in our study who thought that the apparition was actually Samuel. Well, I'm not totally sure, but I didn't necessarily agree that the Lord God's holiness would be in question by involving himself in something he forbids. To me, the medium, herself, was in the wrong, and Saul was certainly in the wrong -- but I didn't think it affected God's holiness to let Samuel arise and prophesy against Saul. Everyone else thought God would have been endorsing a practice he had forbidden, and God's character won't go against His holy nature, which He has expressed in the Scriptures (and in this case against consorting with mediums). Ergo, they thought it must have been a fallen angel from the spiritual realm who had basically heard God's proclamation against Saul. Because just from the reading, whatever spirit arose did a pretty good job of representing God's point of view against Saul.

So, if you care, what think ye? And please show me the way. I promise I won't be near as stubborn or abrasive as I was in the last Legitimate Biblical Question I posed.

Legitimate Non-Biblical Question # 1

For those out there that pray, how do you deal with prayer requests?
Here's what I mean: I'm sure we all have requests of God regarding ourselves. We also pray for our immediate families (spouses, children, parents), and then, too, our extended families. Then, you have prayer requests from close friends and sometimes not-so-close friends that you pray for. Of course, we're to pray for our churches, our Sunday Schools, our missionaries, our country, our leaders, etc. And that's all before you go to church and your big group class has a dozen more requests, your small group has requests, your Sunday night Bible Study has requests, and if you go on Wednesdays or other days, you hear more requests there. Our church, which is relatively large, also has a Christian sympathy list so we can pray for people in our church whose loved ones die. Also, our Adult 1, 2, and 3 e-mails are all hooked so that we receive prayer requests during the week. Wheeeeeeeew.

I know I sound like an ingrate, but truly, just in my church and Sunday School class(es), there's more requests than for what I can consistently pray. Some of the answers to this that I've encountered --

1) Our Sunday School in Adult 1 had a prayer book, where our class would write down requests and add to them each week. Every Sunday, a couple would take home that book and pray over each request in it all seven days of the week (if they could but that was the responsibility for accepting it).

2) Shoot a mini-prayer up for every request you hear

3) According to John Ortberg in his book, The Life You've Always Wanted, he tended to advocate a prayer list that I thought was reasonable, which was, at least at first, pray only for those requests near to your heart. Basically, pray about the ones you really care about. I may be missing that a little as it's been a while since I've read it, but I think that's close.

4) Keep lists and supplicate by those lists

For me, and I know everyone is different, all of these are worthy and noble if you can manage, but I'll be honest. I have a hard time even managing any one of these. At our church, a lot of people throw around the term "prayer warriors" and probably justifiably so for a lot of people in our church. I'm not one. Most of the time, if somebody asks me directly to pray for someone else, I will. And most of the time, if I say I'll pray for someone I do. The rest of the time I'm a liar, which isn't a good thing but it's my thing. But I'll readily admit, prayer isn't the easiest thing for me to be disciplined about. I do have that somewhat constant walking and talking to the Lord as I'm going through the day, which doesn't really start or end, but what I'm really talking about here is prayer where you're sacrificing your time to pray for others about specific requests.

My question is pretty basic, and I asked it at the top. How do you handle all the prayer requests you hear? Do you try to pray for them all? The portion of them that really move you because of emotional attachments? It's always interesting and enlightening to discover how other people overcome the problems I have.

Prayer

Offer - SQOTW

If I had to list a Top Ten Favorites of Bill Mallonee, this song would be in it. No question, it's one of my favorite songs of all time by any artist. I just love the lyrics despite the cliches that abound within (which I know makes some people hate it, but not me), and the pop tempo and beat mixed with a little Americana rolls the tune right down my alley for a strike. The song's title is Offer, and it's from the Vigilantes of Love Blister Soul CD. It's also on the Live From the 40 Watt CD.

The first verse:
they were making available the dreams of the past
for a limited time while the supply lasts
i got in line and i gave the man my cash
yeah i was buying fake diamonds, buying fools gold
and i keep them in a sack shot full of holes
in this land of plenty with an empty soul

The buying fake diamonds and fools gold and keeping 'em in a sack shot full of holes... well, that just seems like what a lot of my life has been like. From childhood until the present, how many times over and over do I go through little fads of things I want that I think will make me happy? So, so many. Worse, I feel like I won't be satisfied without them. And I'm not just talking about materialistic trinkets, collectables, clothes, games, or whatnot, but I've gone through phases where politics, sports, music and good times have been my household idols as well. It's ridiculous, really, when I think about all the useless junk that I use to occupy so much of my time because I think that will make me happy or important or better or contented. The world wraps its little treasures in pretty bows and sell it to me on TV, on billboards, in movies, people talk about them at work, it's on the Net, it's everywhere, and I grab for it all and let it slip like sand through my fingers because it only lasts a short, short time. Woe to me until I can see what's real.

The next verse starts the turnaround:

from parting shots to parting the seas
from stabs in the back to turning the cheek
opening cells and throwing away the key

Here, we go from where I was to Biblical proclamations. Instead of returning evil for evil, there's a cheek to be turned. And the freedom found only in Christ. The chorus rings out with the grace of God and states that there is nothing that is too much for Him to overcome. Nothing He's made, and nothing inside you.

no mountain too high, there's no ocean too deep
no castle too strong, there's no lock that'll keep
no river too wide, there's no desert too broad
no stone you can't break, no heart that's too hard

The climax of the song is the beautiful last verse that expresses just who Jesus is so well and his "offer".

you're the judge and you're the law
the criminal in place of us all
father and mother sister and brother and friend
you say give me your sickness give me your pain
your empty cup and i'll fill it again
why on earth are you digging your own grave?

I think I'll take it.

Bill Mallonee