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Encouraging Words

I had this pretty cool experience yesterday morning. We had this gentleman join us for our staff meeting, and before we began he went around the whole team and prayed a prayer of encouragement over every one of us. Now I don't know about you, but I have a hard time sitting and listening to somebody say nice things about me. I usually start feeling pretty awkward and keep my eye on the clock hoping they'll stop soon. Strange, isn't it? I can sit and listen to someone criticize me for a pretty long time before I really feel awkward or angry, but I've got a pretty short comfort period for encouragement. I don't think this is very good.

The writer of the book of Hebrews says in chapter 3, "But encourage one another day after day, as long as it is still called 'Today'." I like that – as long as it's not tomorrow yet, we should be encouraging one another. Imagine how sweet it would be if you knew your boss was always trying to catch you in the act … of doing some right! Imagine if your parents or your spouse was just hoping they could walk in on you doing something right just so they could offer you some praise or encouragement. Then imagine what it would be like if when we screwed up, we heard words encouragement instead of people pointing out the mistake we know we just made. I would like that – I make a lot of mistakes.

This morning while I was getting Keilan off to school, I had a moment. I told Keilan to get in the car, but being Keilan he kept finding a million things that distracted him along the way. We were late, so by the time he finally got in the car I was getting ticked, so I felt it necessary to explain to him the importance of getting in the car quickly. He was wowed by my intelligent, rational and logical thought progression and promised from now on to always enter the car with great speed and enthusiasm. After we dropped Caleb off at the sitters, and Carrie off at work, I took Keilan to school. Before we went into the school I noticed he was kind of quiet. I thought maybe my little chat was weighing heavy on his heart, so I got down to eye level with him and reminded him, that I love him, I like him and I'm very proud of him. His eyes brightened and I gave him a hug and sent him off to class. As I was walking back to the car I had a sense that maybe if we're more willing to let other people do that for us, we might be more willing to let God do that as well.

I get the feeling that God wants to get down to eye level with us and tell us that he loves us, he likes us and he's very proud to call us his children. I can't say why I think this, but God gave up his only son for you and I, and I don't think he ever feels like he got ripped off.

What's Your Best Moment

So this morning I’m watching this video blog by sxephil on YouTube.  He asks the question: What’s the single best moment of your life?  Wow!  That’s a massively hard question to answer, isn’t it?  I mean can you narrow down everything in your life to the single best moment?  I’m not sure I can do that.  Maybe when I only had one child I could’ve said when he was born, but now I’ve got two and I’m not sure I could decide between them.  On my wedding day when my wife-to-be came around the corner and I saw her in her wedding dress for the first time, that’s definitely up there in the top ten, but the single best moment?  I’m not sure.

What would you say, if I was asking you?  What moment would you say is the single best moment of your life?

I think one of the reasons questions like this are hard for us is because we spend a lot of time thinking about all the crappy things that happen to us, and not a ton of time thinking about all the awesome stuff that happens.  Like last night at supper I was giving thanks to God for our meal and suddenly it hits me that I should be grateful for having a place to live.  See in the big T-bay right now it’s about -40 degrees Celscius with the windchill factor.  I can’t tell you how sweet it is to have a warm place to sleep at night in that kind of weather, but I never think about that.  I think about how some guy cut me off on the way home from the gym, or how I don’t have any Nachos in the pantry so I’ll have to go out to the store to get some, or about how my son almost died last year on vacation. 

I’m not saying that life doesn’t have a lot of problems, but do we need to focus on them all the time?

In his letter to the church in Philipi, Paul writes, “And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing. Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise.”  (Philippians 4:8 NLT)  I think that’s pretty good advice, don’t you?  So today, maybe you can’t come up with the single best moment of your life, but you might at least think of a couple of pretty awesome ones.

Blessings,

Nathan

Abandoned Posts

I read Jordan Cooper's blog everyday, but I often find myself not really in complete agreement with him; to be honest, that's why I read his blog.  If I only ever read people I agree with how will I ever know when I'm totally out to lunch?

Today I read his blog about Clint Brown, and the quote from Eugene Peterson caught my eye:

"The biblical fact is that there are no successful churches. There are, instead, communities of sinners, gathered before God week after week in towns and villages all over the world. The Holy Spirit gathers them and does his work in them. In these communities of sinners, one of the sinners is called pastor and given a designated responsibility in the community. The pastor’s responsibility is to keep the community attentive to God. It is this responsibility that is being abandoned in spades."

I'm not sure I'm qualified to say whether or not this is true for all of Christendom, but I hope it's not.  I pray that my heart will never be so seduced as to chase after all the trappings of success and abandon my post in the meantime.

A Suffering Gospel

1 Timothy 1:8 “With the strength God gives you, be ready to suffer with me for the proclamation of the Good News.”

I’ve got an article on “moralistic therapeutic deism” sitting on my desk. It seems that in a recent study in the United States many students described their belief in God with these five tenets:

1. A god exists who created and ordered the world and watches over human life on earth.
2. God wants people to be good, nice and fair to each other as taught in the Bible and by most world religions.
3. The central goal of life is to be happy and to feel good about one’s self.
4. God does not need to be particularly involved in one’s life except when God is needed to resolve a problem.
5.  Good people go to heaven when they die.

Much has been written about this study and the new term that was coined to describe this new worldview/religion. What struck me this morning was the verse I read in 1 Timothy; with all the martyrdom that has taken place over the last 2000 years, how did we ever get to a place where following Jesus should be easy, safe, and always something to make me feel better? Don’t get me wrong, I think following Jesus is the best way to live. I agree with Rob Bell that if the gospel is really good news, then it is good news for everybody, but that doesn’t mean it’s always easy.

I think one of the issues is that our culture has begun to equate “good” with “safe and easy”. We want to be in shape, but we don’t want to work out. We want to lose weight, but we don’t want a diet that will take discipline, we’d rather chase the latest fad diets that promise instant results. We want to change the world, but we don’t want to actually pay what our products are worth. We want to end world hunger, but none of us are willing to invite homeless people home for supper and to give them a room to sleep in. We want peace in the world, but we’re not ready to get rid of our weapons; it always seems to be a “you first” mentality. 

Even the way we raise our children alludes to this. The other day my kids were playing on our picnic table in the backyard; my friend was watching and said “Don’t you think you should stop them they might get hurt?” I remember thinking, why would the fear of getting hurt automatically mean it’s something that shouldn’t be done? Sure they might hurt themselves, but they might not. They could get injured, but they could also realize they’re capable of more than they thought they were. It could be a harmful experience, but it may also be one of the more powerful learning experiences of their young lives. Pain isn’t always bad!

And in to all this steps Jesus, preaching a message of good news about this Kingdom way of living life that will subvert our way of life and bring it in line with the way God intended life to be lived. “It’s going to be hard” he says, “and you will lose your life in the process, but trust me it’ll be worth it.”

Evangelising Creation

“Sentences with verbs in them are the real stuff of theology, not mere childish expressions of a ‘purer’ abstract truth.” N.T. Wright in The New Testament and the People of God.

I was sitting in Starbucks yesterday chatting with Bert about faith, life, love and all of it wrapped in God. We were talking about how the church ended up in a place where being a Christian, a follower of Christ had got reduced to a set of propositions to be believed, ideals to ascribe to, and philosophies to claim mental ascent for. So much of what Jesus taught involved some form of action; there was always a “go”, or a “do”, or a “be” attached to what he was saying. There wasn’t room for simply agreeing with some good-thinking, but never living it out in some way.

Last week I talked about how all creation is waiting to be set free from the bondage of sin. This week a young couple in our church decided to organize a garbage clean up day out at one the local parks for this afternoon. If the gospel is a royal proclamation of the Kingdom of God breaking in to this world than does that make this afternoon’s activities evangelism?

That Darn Eye-patch

Do you ever get tired? I mean the kind of tired that doesn’t go away when you wake up in the morning? You know that tired that seems to stick with you no matter what, even after a quadruple grande cappuccino from Starbucks? I’ve been feeling that a bit lately. It’s not that I haven’t been getting enough sleep, but I think it has more to do with the weight I’ve been feeling on my shoulders lately. I’ve been wrestling with these two teachings on the Empire and Colossians and it’s been hard to know what to try and fit in to two half-hour slots. After a couple of N.T. Wright books, Colossians Remixed by Brian Walsh and Sylvia Keesmat, and The Message and the Kingdom by Richard Horsley, my rather frail mind has been feeling a bit overwhelmed. So to take a break I opened up my Feed Reader and started perusing the blogosphere for a bit.

Robin Dugall

had reposted something from Ryan Bolger so since Robin endorsed it I thought why not take a cruise through it.

Do you ever get tired? I mean the kind of tired that makes you want to just walk away from it all and join a community group just because it would be easier?

When I was a kid my friend Andrew had to wear an eye patch over one eye to try to strengthen the other one – it didn’t work, but that’s beside the point. The problem with the patch wasn’t just that it wasn’t the most stylin’ thing every, but that he had no depth perception with his one eye covered. He was always bumping into stuff and struggling to pick things up. We weren’t made to see with just one eye. When I read things like Ryan’s post I can’t help but think that this discussion keeps being had by people who can only see out of one eye, myself included.

I share much of Ryan’s frustration with the way some churches seem to operate. Sometimes it feels like they’re just looking for the cool new thing that’s going to help them be “relevant”. Or worse yet, they try to package the same old irrelevant, out of touch philosophies (by these I am not referring to the gospel, but to all the other things we expect people to buy into within the evangelical world) into new “post-modern” packages that in reality are not post-modern at all. I am frustrated with the churches that actually have watered down the gospel in an attempt to attract more seekers. Again it is important to understand there are fewer churches watering down the gospel than there are churches accused of watering down the gospel. To be honest, this just seems like a new version “they say” – you know the “they” that people bring into an argument to help give it some clout even though “they” don’t actually exist.

I’m sad that Ryan’s experience hasn’t allowed him to actually see someone show up in church on Sunday simply because they’re a genuine seeker; someone looking for truth who has never walked through the doors of a church before. It happens around my church quite frequently, and that may be because I’m in Canada and contrary to what some experts believe, Canadians aren’t really that afraid of institutional church. It might also be because our time together on Sundays is both genuine heartfelt worship and, believe it or not, quite relevant – except of course, for where the Kingdom of God calls us to be decidedly counter-cultural. I do agree with Ryan, that sometimes those that find Christ head off to other churches, but it’s been our experience that many of them do so because they go to find churches that don’t ask so much of them. They wouldn’t be happy with Paul and all his talk of suffering for the Kingdom. They tend to baulk when he says, that he works very hard, empowered by the Spirit. (Colossians 1:29) They’re looking for community that’s a little more convenient and easy. They’re looking for a way of being the church that asks less of them. 
 

I guess the question I’m wrestling with, is that if the church is supposed to be missional – accomplishing a task or mission – and the gospel is a royal proclamation of the King and his Kingdom breaking into this world, and the call to be ministers of reconciliation for God, then aren’t some of the “emergent missional communities” actually watering down the gospel just as much as their despised enemy the megachurch?

The question Ryan needs to answer for me is why is it that when I’m closest to my Abba’s heart, listening most intently to the whisper of His Breath that he encourages me to press on? Why is it that God has placed the dream of an emergent, post-modern, missional mega-ecclesia in my heart, if it is not his will? And if it is his will, empowered and manifested by his Spirit, then when we speak against it, are we not blaspheming?

I get Ryan’s frustration, but by the end of his post, I wanted to cry and I’m glad I’m not a part of his community group. It hurt.

So Ryan, I’m sorry for the way I responded to your post in my heart; I did not think things that were holy, and I hope that maybe you and I will be able to eventually see this issue with both eyes open, because I’m getting sick of bumping into the wall all the time.

Tenuous Shalom

So yesterday I was struck with how tenuous shalom is. I mean life can be motoring along just peachy and then without warning things just seem to get out of kilter a little bit. Right now Carrie and I are in the middle of renovating our kitchen thanks to a generous gift from a very special woman, but things are not going according to plan. Well, if I’m to be honest, it’s probably the lack of a plan that’s causing this rift in the shalom of our home.

It seems that we’re a little behind schedule in getting some of the major work done before we paint on Saturday and with a door still to install, cabinets to put together, and some drywalling work to finish I had a little melt down last night. (Although on the upside, I did rent a very nice pick-up truck to go and get our door with and now I’m feeling very discontent with my car, but that’s another post entirely).

Here’s the frustrating part: life in the Kingdom of God is life lived without worry. In his Kingdom Manifesto (Matthew 5-7) Jesus says, “So I tell you, don’t worry about everyday life.” (6:25) “Don’t worry about whether or not your kitchen gets done on time, or whether it looks great or not. These things don’t really matter, Nathan. In the grander scheme of things, it’s just a kitchen and it will get done and it will be a great place to invite others into table fellowship with you, but it might take a few days more than you planned. Nathan, you know I love you, but you really need to get over yourself!”

Okay, so maybe I added a little to the passage, but you get the idea I think.

Meeting With God

I was reading the story of Jacob in Genesis 28 to prepare for my teaching tonight on boredom and I was reading the passage where Jacob has a vision of Christ (scholars believe) and the stairway to heaven.  I noticed that Jacob begins and ends his time with his uncle Laban with a meeting with God.  I found myself thinking how nice it would be if I could meet with God as often as the characters in the hebrew scriptures seem to.  Now I know I can meet with God whenever I want to, but I mean the vision from heaven, God sitting under a tree, kind of theophany that seems so prevelant. 

As I was thinking this, I noticed 31:38: Jacob had worked for Laban for 20 years.  The time between his meetings with God was 20 years.  Just go to show you how often we don't slow enogh to really put ourselves in the story.  We miss so much because we just gloss over some of the most important details.

Would I be willing to wait 20 years if I knew God was going to meet with me?
Jacob begins and ends his time with Laban with a meeting with God; what does that mean?
So many questions!

Right-Minded????

I'm reading Stan Grenz's Millennial Maze right now for a little fun reading, and I came across a quote from Justin Martyr (a second-century church father) who when discussing his view on the millennium said, "I and others who are right-minded Christians at all points, are assured that there will be a rsurrection of the dead, and a thousand years in Jerusalem, which will then be built, adorned and enlarged as the prophtes and ezekiel and isaiah and others declare."

I was just thinking to myself that it's good to see that arrogance, pride and a lack of gentleness have been a part of the church right from the beginning.  I'd hate to think that it's only something we've really developed in the last century or so.

"Dad, even when I'm certain about something, help me speak with the gentleness of your son.  Help me hold my certainty loosely, understanding that I've been wrong so many times before.  Help me speak with humility understanding there are so many other men and women in the this body of Yours who posses a much greater intellect.  Dad, help me see when I am not one of the "right-minded Christians."  Help me hear you speak even when you're whispering words of correction and discipline.  Amen."

From Walter Brueggemann's "Spirituality of the Psalms"

"The gain in this for the study of the Psalms is that it shows how the psalms of negativity, the complaints of various kinds, the cries for vengeance and profound penitence are foundational to a life of faith in this particular God.  Much Christian piety and spirituality is romantic and unreal in its positiveness."

"The Psalms are a canonical book is finally an act of hope.  But the hope is rooted precisely in the midst of loss and darkness, where God is suprisingly present.  The Jewish reality of exile, the Christian confession of crucifixion and cross, the honest recognition that there is an untamed darkness in our life that must be embraced -- all of that is fundamental to the gift of new life." (p.xii)