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Thursday, January 11, 2007
Saturday, January 06, 2007
Love or Death?
I was sitting in The Coffee Shop today working on the final details of my message for Sunday, and a song came on my iPod by Derek Webb called "My enemies are men like me". I had to listen to it a few times to catch the impact of it, but it totally derailed me, and got me to thinking about the Saddam Hussein hanging, which has been a bit of a buzz in the Christian blog circles, justly so. I think that it is good to talk about things like this, to work them out and to seek what Christ says.
The lyrics to the song that really hit me go like this:
"peace by way of war
is like purity by way of fornication
it’s like telling someone murder is wrong
and then showing them by way of execution"
Wow. Basically isn't that what we, the U.S., the world, the Iraqis, whoever you put the responsibility to, did when we hanged Saddam? Or when we put anyone to death? Murder is wrong, so we're gonna kill you. What was it that Jesus said in response to "an eye for an eye"? As followers of Christ shouldn't our response be made in love, not anger? Do we have the right to take a life, for taking a (life) or thousands?
Not the popular Christian answer, not the typical Christian response. So what do you think, what is your response to Saddam? To execution? Please leave a comment.
The lyrics to the song that really hit me go like this:
"peace by way of war
is like purity by way of fornication
it’s like telling someone murder is wrong
and then showing them by way of execution"
Wow. Basically isn't that what we, the U.S., the world, the Iraqis, whoever you put the responsibility to, did when we hanged Saddam? Or when we put anyone to death? Murder is wrong, so we're gonna kill you. What was it that Jesus said in response to "an eye for an eye"? As followers of Christ shouldn't our response be made in love, not anger? Do we have the right to take a life, for taking a (life) or thousands?
Not the popular Christian answer, not the typical Christian response. So what do you think, what is your response to Saddam? To execution? Please leave a comment.
Friday, December 22, 2006
Favorite Christmas Carol
Marko had a cool post about his favorite Christmas carol on his blog today. So I thought I'd do the same... What's Yours? Let me know and leave a comment!
O Holy Night...
"O holy night, the stars are brightly shining;
A few lines that really stand out and hit me are "Long lay the world in sin and error pining. Til He appeared and the soul felt it's worth. A thrill of hope, the weary world rejoices." - How true that we all lay in our own sin and error, and feel worthless, downcast, unloved...Yet Christ comes into the middle of our worthlessness and sick, and makes our soul feel it's worth. To spark hope and rejoicing within us!
"Truly He taught us to love one another. His law is love and His gospel is peace." - Love God love others. All the law and all the commandments hang on this.
"Chains shall He break for the slave is our brother, and in His name all opression shall cease." - I can't even begin to describe how deeply this hits me. The call of Christ to seek justice, to love mercy, to look after orphans, widows, the poor, the sick... Not only did Chist come to free us from those things, but to invite you and I into the work of that. When can we as Christians stop judging the sinner, and focus on showing them the one who can free them from the chains and opressions that hold them back from living the full, abundant life that Christ came to give us...
LET ALL WITHIN US PRAISE HIS HOLY NAME!
In the light of his love, mercy, grace, freedom, how could we do anything less....
O Holy Night...
"O holy night, the stars are brightly shining;
It is the night of the dear Savior’s birth!
Long lay the world in sin and error pining,
Till He appeared and the soul felt its worth.
A thrill of hope, the weary soul rejoices,
For yonder breaks a new and glorious morn."
"Fall on your knees, O hear the angel voices!
O night divine, O night when Christ was born!
O night, O holy night, O night divine!"
"Led by the light of faith serenely beaming,
With glowing hearts by His cradle we stand.
So led by light of a star sweetly gleaming,
Here came the wise men from Orient land.
The King of kings lay thus in lowly manger,
In all our trials born to be our friend!"
"Fall on your knees, O hear the angel voices!
O night divine, O night when Christ was born!
O night, O holy night, O night divine!"
"Truly He taught us to love one another;
His law is love and His Gospel is peace.
Chains shall He break for the slave is our brother
And in His Name all oppression shall cease.
Sweet hymns of joy in grateful chorus raise we,
Let all within us praise His holy Name!"
"Fall on your knees, O hear the angel voices!
O night divine, O night when Christ was born!
O night, O holy night, O night divine!"
A few lines that really stand out and hit me are "Long lay the world in sin and error pining. Til He appeared and the soul felt it's worth. A thrill of hope, the weary world rejoices." - How true that we all lay in our own sin and error, and feel worthless, downcast, unloved...Yet Christ comes into the middle of our worthlessness and sick, and makes our soul feel it's worth. To spark hope and rejoicing within us! "Truly He taught us to love one another. His law is love and His gospel is peace." - Love God love others. All the law and all the commandments hang on this.
"Chains shall He break for the slave is our brother, and in His name all opression shall cease." - I can't even begin to describe how deeply this hits me. The call of Christ to seek justice, to love mercy, to look after orphans, widows, the poor, the sick... Not only did Chist come to free us from those things, but to invite you and I into the work of that. When can we as Christians stop judging the sinner, and focus on showing them the one who can free them from the chains and opressions that hold them back from living the full, abundant life that Christ came to give us...
LET ALL WITHIN US PRAISE HIS HOLY NAME!
In the light of his love, mercy, grace, freedom, how could we do anything less....
Monday, December 18, 2006
Politics of Joy. . .
Sorry about the little lay-off. Either nothing exciting has been happening, or there has been some really private stuff, that has stayed in my physical journal. Probably both.
Anyway, here's a thought that impacted me today. Brian McLaren (a guy that I may not always agree with) has an excellent post on the impact some words from popular christmas carols have had on him.
"...when I sang "let every heart prepare him room." If the carol is right, the way earth receives God's "prince of peace" is through individual hearts like ours. By making space, by opening our hearts to Christ, by letting our lives be the stable and manger into which good news quietly comes, by rendering the vacuum and vacancy within us vulnerable to the incoming of the Spirit ... we become, like Mary, "theotokos" - God-bearers."
"The way "earth receives her king" (and the blessings he brings) is not by bombs and guns and wiretaps and coups; not by aggressive blog postings or passionate media pronouncements by pundits. Rather, the king (and the kingdom) come first to the quiet hearts of humble people who "prepare him room," and the joy flows to the world through them."
Here's a link to the entire post - God's Politics: Brian McLaren
Great thoughts, that hit me, I hope you will carry them with you as well.
Anyway, here's a thought that impacted me today. Brian McLaren (a guy that I may not always agree with) has an excellent post on the impact some words from popular christmas carols have had on him.
"...when I sang "let every heart prepare him room." If the carol is right, the way earth receives God's "prince of peace" is through individual hearts like ours. By making space, by opening our hearts to Christ, by letting our lives be the stable and manger into which good news quietly comes, by rendering the vacuum and vacancy within us vulnerable to the incoming of the Spirit ... we become, like Mary, "theotokos" - God-bearers."
"The way "earth receives her king" (and the blessings he brings) is not by bombs and guns and wiretaps and coups; not by aggressive blog postings or passionate media pronouncements by pundits. Rather, the king (and the kingdom) come first to the quiet hearts of humble people who "prepare him room," and the joy flows to the world through them."
Here's a link to the entire post - God's Politics: Brian McLaren
Great thoughts, that hit me, I hope you will carry them with you as well.
Tuesday, November 21, 2006
Sunday, November 19, 2006
Ahhhh Ice...
So I discovered that there is a small Ice Rink located just off the freeway, conveniently, on my way home from speaking at Flood The Desert on Sunday nights. And it so happens on said Sunday nights at 10pm they have pick up hockey...nice. So I unpacked my gear, loaded it up in my car, and stopped.
Yup, I laced them up for the first time in 3 years. I had a great time, it's great to get on the ice agian, but...
I learned a few things.
1.) I AM OUTTA SHAPE.
2.) I Need to start working out again.
3.) Your feet will hate you 20 minutes into the game after not being inside skates for 3 years.
4.) Did I mention that I am outta shape?
5.) I still got it.
GO LEAFS!
Now off to bed, and tomorrow, oh tomorrow, Ill be sore. G' Night.
Yup, I laced them up for the first time in 3 years. I had a great time, it's great to get on the ice agian, but...
I learned a few things.
1.) I AM OUTTA SHAPE.
2.) I Need to start working out again.
3.) Your feet will hate you 20 minutes into the game after not being inside skates for 3 years.
4.) Did I mention that I am outta shape?
5.) I still got it.
GO LEAFS!
Now off to bed, and tomorrow, oh tomorrow, Ill be sore. G' Night.
Friday, November 17, 2006
Take a day off...
Take a day off. That's what God did, and that's what He wants us to do.
The problem is, I never seem to honor this. I use the excuse of "Ministry" not really stopping.
Really? If I don't stop, then ministry will fall apart? Pretty egocentric. Not very honoring.
I've been reading alot about this lately, and God has been using some pretty incredible authors and speakers to work my heart over. Thought I'd share with you some of the stuff that has been challenging me.
"Sabbath is not dependent upon our readiness to stop. We do not stop [because] we are finished. We do not stop [because] we [have] complete[d] our phone calls, finish[ed] our project, [gotten] through this stack of messages, or [sent] out this report that is due tomorrow. We stop because it is time to stop.... Sabbath liberates us from the need to be finished. The old wise sabbath says: Stop now." - Wayne Muller
"Sabbath is a Gift of the restful God to His restless people. It is a statutory holiday, a King's birthday, bestowed on us weekly. That ever we should have come to resent it - to see it as a burden God laid on us rather than a way He eases our burden, to see it as a day He stole from us rather than one He lavishes on us - is bizarre beyond reckoning. 'Take a day off!' is the message of Sabbath. Relax. Sleep in. Take a midday nap. Play. Party. Eat. Dance. Be like children." ....
"Sabbath is God holding you long enough for you to remember who you are: not God, but one whose life is in His hands, the hands of the One who wants to give you good gifts." - Mark Buchanan from "The Holy Wild"
Im off to enjoy my Sabbath.
The problem is, I never seem to honor this. I use the excuse of "Ministry" not really stopping.
Really? If I don't stop, then ministry will fall apart? Pretty egocentric. Not very honoring.
I've been reading alot about this lately, and God has been using some pretty incredible authors and speakers to work my heart over. Thought I'd share with you some of the stuff that has been challenging me.
"Sabbath is not dependent upon our readiness to stop. We do not stop [because] we are finished. We do not stop [because] we [have] complete[d] our phone calls, finish[ed] our project, [gotten] through this stack of messages, or [sent] out this report that is due tomorrow. We stop because it is time to stop.... Sabbath liberates us from the need to be finished. The old wise sabbath says: Stop now." - Wayne Muller
"Sabbath is a Gift of the restful God to His restless people. It is a statutory holiday, a King's birthday, bestowed on us weekly. That ever we should have come to resent it - to see it as a burden God laid on us rather than a way He eases our burden, to see it as a day He stole from us rather than one He lavishes on us - is bizarre beyond reckoning. 'Take a day off!' is the message of Sabbath. Relax. Sleep in. Take a midday nap. Play. Party. Eat. Dance. Be like children." ....
"Sabbath is God holding you long enough for you to remember who you are: not God, but one whose life is in His hands, the hands of the One who wants to give you good gifts." - Mark Buchanan from "The Holy Wild"
Im off to enjoy my Sabbath.
Thursday, November 09, 2006
Uggghhh...
Had a great time in Anaheim at the Youth Specialties convention with, what I would consider, my core volunteer team members. It was really good to hang out with them, relax, have a great time, get challenged, encouraged, etc...
I got home Monday night, and was right back into the swing of things on Tuesday. We had TNL, our High School group on Tuesday night. I got home, hung out with Robin some, and then 11pm rolled around. I started ejecting all manners of food, liquid, and waste, from what seemed every available opening on my body. I puked, among other things to vile to describe here, from 11pm till about 6am. Fun. I spent all day Wednesday in chills, wrapped up in blankets with a 102 temp. Needless to say, not fun.
Im feeling much better today and the Doc said it is just an intestinal virus, and I just have to let it work it's course. Im still slightly dizzy and light headed and I still have a 100 degree temp. I've had no solid foods since Tuesday evening, and I have to keep it simple for the next few days (BRAT - Bananas, Rice, Applesauce, Toast). Yeah.
Not a very exciting post, but I thought I'd share.
I got home Monday night, and was right back into the swing of things on Tuesday. We had TNL, our High School group on Tuesday night. I got home, hung out with Robin some, and then 11pm rolled around. I started ejecting all manners of food, liquid, and waste, from what seemed every available opening on my body. I puked, among other things to vile to describe here, from 11pm till about 6am. Fun. I spent all day Wednesday in chills, wrapped up in blankets with a 102 temp. Needless to say, not fun.
Im feeling much better today and the Doc said it is just an intestinal virus, and I just have to let it work it's course. Im still slightly dizzy and light headed and I still have a 100 degree temp. I've had no solid foods since Tuesday evening, and I have to keep it simple for the next few days (BRAT - Bananas, Rice, Applesauce, Toast). Yeah.
Not a very exciting post, but I thought I'd share.
Sunday, November 05, 2006
Y.S. Convention - Anaheim #2
In terms of humility, Shane Claiborne has been the epitome of it here at the conference. By far the most self-giving and challenging person that I have met in quite awhile. Not to brag on him or about him, but this is a man that so believes in giving away (not some but all) of what God has given him. He took the money paid by Y.S. to speak, prayed over it, and then just gave it away... He laid it all out in one dollar bills and gave it to everyone who would come take one, with just one stipulation... Use it to love someone. Sponsor a child, use it to buy a meal, whatever. I went up, just crushed in the way God used Shane, and his life, to break/mold/sculpt, my life to reflect more of Himself.
What am I doing with my dollar? Im keeping it... Yup it's all mine. I have it in the front window of my wallet, with the word Love in big black letters staring back at me. Challenging me, mocking my wasteful habits of spending on needless and worthless things. I pray that God uses that dollar, the sign of America's wealth and greed, to break my heart when I buy garbage. May that dollar be a constant burning reminder of Shane, his challenge, his life, but even more may it constantly drive me to give more and more of myself away in an effort to gain more and more of Christ.
So for those of you that are there, let's use this space as a place to share...
"What are you doing with your dollar?"
What am I doing with my dollar? Im keeping it... Yup it's all mine. I have it in the front window of my wallet, with the word Love in big black letters staring back at me. Challenging me, mocking my wasteful habits of spending on needless and worthless things. I pray that God uses that dollar, the sign of America's wealth and greed, to break my heart when I buy garbage. May that dollar be a constant burning reminder of Shane, his challenge, his life, but even more may it constantly drive me to give more and more of myself away in an effort to gain more and more of Christ.
So for those of you that are there, let's use this space as a place to share...
"What are you doing with your dollar?"
Saturday, November 04, 2006
Y.S. Convention - Anaheim #1
So much for being a frequent blogger at Y.S.
I decided to detach and leave my laptop at home and focus on relaxing, focusing, and growing. So if that makes me a slacker, so be it... So I am grabbing some time in the Digital Lounge, here for a moment. Doing a quick update.
Thoughts so far:
- God keeps hammering this idea of humility and grace into my thick skull. One of my favorite quotes from Matthew Barnett of The Dreamcenter in downtown L.A. "Seek the welfare of the people". In my case, the students.
- One thing I particularly like about Y.S. is their ability to encourage me to be who I am, find my uniqueness and operate from there, but at the same time, to challenge me to be more of the person that God created me to be.
- I also love that the leaders of Y.S. (Marko, Tic, etc...) lead by being real. They're trasparent to us...
Great things:
- Why does Crowder kill me with the worship sets? It seems that I've done more crying and heart searching when I should be shouting and singing. Could it be that this is the true purpose of worship?>
- I love my staff team. I enjoy being with them. They've let me be myself, they've let me relax and have fun. I truly enjoy them.
Well there's a line, and I want to be polite. More later...
I decided to detach and leave my laptop at home and focus on relaxing, focusing, and growing. So if that makes me a slacker, so be it... So I am grabbing some time in the Digital Lounge, here for a moment. Doing a quick update.
Thoughts so far:
- God keeps hammering this idea of humility and grace into my thick skull. One of my favorite quotes from Matthew Barnett of The Dreamcenter in downtown L.A. "Seek the welfare of the people". In my case, the students.
- One thing I particularly like about Y.S. is their ability to encourage me to be who I am, find my uniqueness and operate from there, but at the same time, to challenge me to be more of the person that God created me to be.
- I also love that the leaders of Y.S. (Marko, Tic, etc...) lead by being real. They're trasparent to us...
Great things:
- Why does Crowder kill me with the worship sets? It seems that I've done more crying and heart searching when I should be shouting and singing. Could it be that this is the true purpose of worship?>
- I love my staff team. I enjoy being with them. They've let me be myself, they've let me relax and have fun. I truly enjoy them.
Well there's a line, and I want to be polite. More later...
Saturday, October 28, 2006
World Champs...
Congrats to the 2006 World Champion St. Louis Cardinals.
But lets travel back 2 years, same city, same field, differet team.
Much happier times. Here's a quick recap of the 2004 Red Sox that someone put together.
I found it on a fellow Pastor/Sox Fan/Blogger's site.
Thanks go out to Bob Franquiz for bringing some joy to my day.
Posted By:Michael
Get this video and more at MySpace.com
But lets travel back 2 years, same city, same field, differet team.
Much happier times. Here's a quick recap of the 2004 Red Sox that someone put together.
I found it on a fellow Pastor/Sox Fan/Blogger's site.
Thanks go out to Bob Franquiz for bringing some joy to my day.
Posted By:Michael
Get this video and more at MySpace.com
Wednesday, October 25, 2006
In the time we have...
I have, for the better part of a week, had the lyrics to the song "On Your Wings" by Iron and Wine stuck inside of me. They make me think about the things that lead me farther from Him, away from his flame, away from the light that should guide my path. It also makes me think about the short time I have, and how I should spend it, and how I make the most of it...
"God, there is gold hidden deep in the ground
God, there's a hangman that wants to come around
How we rise when we're born
like the ravens in the corn
on their wings, on our knees
crawling careless from the sea
God, give us love in the time that we have
God, there are guns growing out of our bones
God, every road takes us farther from home
All these men that you made
how we wither in the shade
of your trees, on your wings
we are carried to the sea
God give us love in the time that we have"
"God, there is gold hidden deep in the ground
God, there's a hangman that wants to come around
How we rise when we're born
like the ravens in the corn
on their wings, on our knees
crawling careless from the sea
God, give us love in the time that we have
God, there are guns growing out of our bones
God, every road takes us farther from home
All these men that you made
how we wither in the shade
of your trees, on your wings
we are carried to the sea
God give us love in the time that we have"
Do you Google?
I read a quote today that hit me pretty hard. I forget where I saw it, I think it was on a blog, and I forget who said it, but it's been gnawing at me all day... "If people around you have to use Google to find out about God, what does this say about you?". Ouch. I wonder how many people I've sent to google because of my actions, attitude, words, fear, or lack of effort in sharing God's love for them. I don't know where I am being led with this, probably to a life more deliberately open to sharing the love of Christ, all I know is that I got my butt kicked today.
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