In spite of how I might come across from this blog, I'm actually quite goofy. I recently started working with the 2 year olds at my church on Sundays...so, goofiness comes in quite handy. Yet, as I am being quickly reminded, 2-year old kids do exactly what you do. Goofy is not yet something on their radar. They are just parrots, little monkies who see and do. Goofy requires the ability to see an activity, register it, compare it against normal behavior and recognize a difference. 2-year olds don't have "norms" yet. I think the word here is impressionable.

While running this morning this idea struck me while reflecting on a recent incident. A fellow Christian made a comment in passing that some non-Christians took offense to and secretly criticized. It occurred to me that non-Christians are, spiritually speaking, in many ways, like 2-year olds...or perhaps even more like unborn children. They do not have the ability to hear a Christian's comments, filter them and put it into context. Rather, they take it for what it is and, more often than not, it negatively reflects upon the person making the comments.

Applying this notion to how I approach others in my walk, I have to keep in mind that those who are not already grounded in the same ideas, beliefs and hopes I am will not get my incomplete thoughts. By incomplete thoughts, I mean partial expressions of hope and faith. When I make an off-handed comment, it's usually around people I think I can trust who will not hold it against me if I don't perfectly package my inner dialog when it comes out in the form of words. But, since non-Christians won't necessarily have the same frame of reference for my thoughts, it's unfair to hold them to this standard, to the notion that they will pardon my small misdeeds. They do not know they are misdeeds or moments of weakness. Instead, they see it and think, "Oh, he really is just like everyone else even though he tries to be different." We are told to hold our tongues since we will be accountable for every word that crosses our lips. I may only teach 2-year olds on Sunday, but, I feel I am surrounded by them 24-7. Better remember, "Be careful little ears what you hear...". Non-Christians, who are much more impressionable, cannot separate who Christ is from who we portray him to be because they don't know Him. It is up to us to show the world who He is through who we are.

Bluebird

I remember watching K Pax, a movie from a few years back with Kevin Spacey, and enjoying the animated scene with the bluebird. It cracked me up because I know things like that happen, just not quite as often as they used to. Well, our church has a book club that is studying a book called the Blue Parakeet. I never heard of it and saw it in last week's bulletin. The name seemed to be one of those titles that is meant to grab your attention and make you want to look...akin to Who moved my cheese?, etc. Not having time, energy or money to devote I just dismissed it.

God apparently wanted me to pay a little more attention. I had gone for a workout yesterday morning running randomly up and down a few streets in north Plano. As I started into one of my faster sections I saw on the ground a weird looking bird. Sure enough, a blue parakeet. Now, if I were to go by statistics, I'd have to say that the chances of a blue bird native to Australia sitting on the same sidewalk of a north Texas town I happened to be running though...well, the numbers would be small. So, I immediately got the memo. Yes, Lord, I will read The Blue Parakeet. Sometimes he actually has to use signs, even small ones, to get the point across when I ignore the initial message. (Thanks for being persistent God.)

The fear of the Lord...

...is the beginning of wisdom. This is a widely used verse. I only began to see what it was pointing at when I reflected on it a little more. While the word commonly used as fear can loosely be translated as respect, it is frequently documented that the English translation does little justice to the original Hebrew word. That being said, I sensed that something basic underlies this verse. When Solomon asked for wisdom he feared God. He knew that the task set before him, to rule God's people well, would be difficult. Implied in that realization was the understanding that a good job would be rewarded by God and a poor job would not be rewarded and more likely lead to punishment. In other words, Solomon feared what God would do if he did not rule well. This fear, this motivation, was literally the starting place for wisdom. Solomon knew that only by respecting God first (not man or laws or anything else) would allow him to make wise decisions because: 1) he had a basis from which to gauge his decisions and 2) he was aware of how accountable he was for his actions. People who have not standards for judgment and who do not have a real, personal sense of responsibility are not meaningfully bound to the outcome of their decisions. So, people who make decisions based on intelligence alone can be wrong, but, if the consequences of their mistake impact them in no direct way, what harm or loss is done? Keeping in mind God and his ways, will and plans allows one to make wise decisions because it provides a sound frame of reference and prevents us from lying to ourselves and/or others. If we know there is no escape from our decisions, we take our choices much more seriously.

Control

Looking into the nature of control has been an interest of late. There are a few reasons it jumps out at me. One article I stumbled on that has a ton of intriguing notes (mainly about human nature) is: RECOGNIZING MANIPULATION AND INTIMIDATION FOR THE PURPOSE OF DOMINATION (CONTROL) - Control by false authority, manipulation, intimidation. Just reading through it are a ton of ways to recognize and deal with manipulation and intimidation. As I studied the article I realized how widespread these tactics are. People, as folks like to call it at work, are always trying to build their little empires. Part of the reason politics draws people is because it allows them to wield authority and with it experience power. I have nothing against power as it is necessary and good when used correctly. However, many people, due to poor character, are unable to handle it well and, from this all-too-common case, abuse things which have been entrusted to them.

What does all this have to do with control? Control is, in its purist form, boils down to, using Webster, "to exercise restraining or directing influence over". It is the possession of power. To me, this is not a natural thing, rather, it is a spiritual thing. People want to have power. I believe this stems from the original sin, pride, but, only as a side effect. Yet, I sense they are very, very closely related. Nonetheless, when people are obsessed with control (and power) just for the sake of being in control meekness cannot possibly follow. Power for the sake of possessing power is about the person, not the responsibility which entitled them to have the power. Being able to restrain and/or influence others is a great responsibility and something not to be used lightly. To me, it ranks with the kind of responsibility mentioned of teachers in Scripture. To be able to form souls, to cause them to make certain decisions (or not)...these are serious things.

An earlier usage of the word - "exert authority," from M.L. contrarotulus - touches a little more closely than that of the 15th century Old English. It is the experience of exerting authority, of using power, when what God-given (or God-permitted) authority is allowed to flow that people get a larger-than-life sense. It is, in reality, the force of God released through an individual to grant them power over another (or a thing) in order to change its natural course of action. Yielding the power of God temporarily takes one out of the natural and aligns them with the spiritual, for better or worse, and gives people a taste of God's might. Now, I am not saying being in control makes one God. I am saying that control can bring with it a supernatural experience that allows us to more deeply understand who God is and His nature. I think all too often people get lost in the experience and forget to be humbled by their being used as an instrument of God, and, see, rather, this event as making them somehow special. From this sense of uniqueness, I think people draw the beginning steps of incorrectly desiring validation (and the high) from the experience of control rather than the understanding that they are merely an object of the Lord.

After reflecting on the dualistic nature of life verses I had another notion come to mind: character flaws might be (or stem from) spiritual gifts used in the flesh. Some of the practical examples that came to mind were these:

Gift Character flaw
Mercy/Compassionate Permissive, pushover
Prophetic Verbally oppressive
Apostolic Overbearing
Charismatic Charming
Evangelistic Smooth-talking

I have not dwelt on this at length, but, I really sense there is something to this. How it might help is, when I see someone clearly walking in the flesh, identify what character flaw is being displayed and track back to the spiritual gift they have. Then, once the gift is identified, pray and speak to the gift (in the spiritual) and not the flaw (in the natural). Many times when you focus on the natural, you will get drawn into the natural and respond soulishly as well. Instead, remember to draw to the spiritual level and lift the person with you instead of being pulled (or letting yourself be drawn) down to the level of the flesh and fall to them.

Exactly when and where I heard this escapes me at the moment, but, I have it stuck in my head that Dr. Pepper is so acidic that a person has to drink approximately 48 ounces of water to restore proper Ph levels for every 1 ounce of Dr. Pepper ingested. I've never actually investigated the numbers because I am not familiar with the chemistry behind Ph levels, but, if I recall correctly, it has to do with powers of 10 for each point below 7. In other words, if my Ph level is at 6, I have to drink 1 ounce of water to get it back to 7. If it's at 5, I have to drink 10 ounces. I could be totally wrong, but, I never claimed to be a chemistry buff.

I searched around and found this link:

http://www.dentalgentlecare.com/diet_soda.htm

In it I found some disturbing facts. Based on the list below (from the link) Dr. Pepper is not far above battery acid.

Substance Ph Sugar (grams)
Dr. Pepper 2.92 9.5
BATTERY ACID 1.00 0.0

In essence, Dr. Pepper, though not the worst of the bunch, is more like drinking battery acid than water. Scary indeed. Now, if only I can convince myself that this is serious enough to put off the caffeine to fight off the mid-afternoon energy slump.

Rights and morality

As I continue to reflect on the notion of rights, I considered the danger of using law alone as the standard for determining rights. In a legal system based solely on law, that is to say, not based on morality or spirituality, rights are the product of the most powerful and/or skillful lawyers. As is evidenced by our own age, removing the consideration of what is good from the legal equation simply creates a power struggle. In that scenario, people will not stop at the boundaries of what is good. Rather, they will only stop when they win, regardless of how good (or evil) their victory is. By ignoring the moral and/or spiritual boundaries necessary for a just legal system cultures will have rights determined by the strongest, not the best, people. And, as is well known, power alone does not typically breed justice, but, rather, tyrannical societies. I see this implying that a legal system without morality at the center creates a flawed scope of rights dependent on the interests of those waging legal wars.

Unbecoming...

I have spent my whole life waiting for this thing that I feel, know, hope, sense, want to become...only to be disappointed at every turn when the greatness I long to experience never materializes. Now, I am a sinful, selfish, un-Christlike man almost all of the time. It makes sense that nothing (no-thing) will make me sense the power I truly long to possess: God's love. As I have watched time pass and my greatness fail to materialize, I continue to lose hope and become bitter and cynical myself. What was it I hoped in? That question alone has made a more pointed focus: I hoped in Christ, but, wanted his power. I spoke of God, but, wanted his glory. I thought of purpose, but, wanted my plans.

No more, God says. Be honest with yourself. You know every time you sin. You know every time you take a wrong step. You give up over and over and over and you don't even feel the pain. Stop waiting for pain to stop you. God doesn't want to speak to us in those terms. I believe that is a part of why the first steps of sin and disobedience are the hardest and the easiest. When we realize there are no chains holding us to God, we slip away easily. But, we feel his power slip off of us as well. It is that shuddering of his departure that feels so "good". Yet, it rips our spirits apart, tears us in half and wounds us deeply.

God doesn't ask us to do this. He asks us to honor, obey and love him. It is just difficult when we have alienated ourselves and forgotten how to hear, see and love him. I sense that we must learn to give up what we think, want and hear for what God says. My "greatness" has been my undoing. And, to return to God, I sense he wants me to become nothing. He has not set before me a road of high rewards and accolades, but, obscurity and suffering. I am beginning to realize that God placed in me a sense of greatness to know him so I may do difficult things the world can never recognize as being worthwhile, valuable and meaningful. God has asked me to give up my greatness for his. He has asked me to be nothing, so, he can be everything. I speak for myself, but, I envision myself asking you, if we ever talk, "Are you willing to give it all up? Are you willing to be nothing if God asked?" This means, no ministry, no fame, no recognition. Being no one so he doesn't have to compete with my personal kingship to share his royal love with those I meet. I want to believe I am strong enough to say, "Yes". I want to proclaim I am willing to truly lay down my life. I believe becoming "nothing" could have always been God's greatest call on my life. For, in my weakness, He is strong.

Christ - without the power

It occurred to me that most people today who do not believe in Christ fall into some pretty common categories. One of the more common groups puts forward this argument: Jesus was a great teacher, but, nothing more. While reflecting on what our church lacks today I constantly want to be able to just whip out a miracle, raise someone from the dead, just smack it to people spiritually speaking, to really get their attention. I read the prophets and I see people so much like today's world it's scary. Cynicism, doubt, anger, spite, condescension, pride, arrogance. Little has changed, except today, we use Christ's words but preach without his authority. That's what the difference was then.

Now, I am not saying it should be all power and woo-woo gifts. By all means no. What I am saying is that the church cannot impact the world the way Christ did because it's only got half the package. Without Christ's power, the power that raised him from the dead, all we have are teachings. Without the power of love to overcome hatred, violence and evil, all we have are words. Without the power of grace to be supernatural in the most natural of circumstances, we cannot be anything different from everyone else. We have to have Christ's power to be Christians, otherwise, the world is right, Christ was just a great teacher, his power has been lost in spite of how amazing his teachings are.

I pray that the church would stand up by bowing down. Become great by becoming the least. Forsake your sins, the smallest and the unseen. Turn away from the things you know God hates. Make your life truly sanctified and show the world love, not just in your words, but, in your actions. Purify your spirits and praise God with every breath, even the ones that you have to heave from your chest beneath a weight of shame, condemnation, persecution, anger and attack. Those are the moments when people do see the true difference.

Robbed - moment by moment

When Jesus talked about the strongman, I always envisioned someone breaking into my home in the middle of the night. A huge, frightening, overpowering figure whose presence would be nearly impossible to contend with. But, I sense another kind of strong man in my midst. I spend many of my days wrapped and bound by frustration, fatigue, anxiety, confusion and desperation. The attack is small, grinding, unending and subtle. It's not the kind of strongman who attacks once and leaves. No, it is the kind of attack that comes without ceasing. It wearies you, slowly, imperceptibly. First, a small compromise here. Then, a slight weakness and sin there. Minute by minute, choice by choice, this strongman robs us of our power, of our strength. It is a much more dangerous foe, for it is one we are so familiar with we rarely even think to notice it. This war is one that requires the utmost control and sacrifice. Remembering not to yell at my kids, remembering to rise above the situation and love my wife, even though I may not want to, to do the right thing at work instead of playing on the internet for a couple of minutes to "take a break", to be diligent and do what I know is right. I really like the definition of sin as "not doing what we know to be right". It is so convicting and real. It is so easy to let the right thing slip out of character flaw, weakness, sin, selfishness, indifference. The list is long, but, the end result is the same: every little mistake ties us down a little more.

Life verses

A couple of weeks ago the Wednesday morning Bible study I've been attending had a guest teacher because the main leader had to be out of town. As he began telling us about the topic he said, in the five years he had been teaching, he had never had what happened occur before. Normally, he had to shuffle through notes, find some topic to rehash and prep for it again. This time, he knew exactly what he was going to teach and really did very little prep. In the back of my mind, I was thinking, "Okay, that's cool", knowing this is not really that unusual, yet, glad he was able to experience a totally "God thing".

Just a few days earlier I had completed my Accelerating Life's Purpose class. The two naturally dove-tailed for me in the nature of their message to me personally. Nonetheless, when he began talking about life verses and their importance I was intrigued. One fellow next to me used the analogy of a light house and a sailor's home port. In a way, no other verse has the comforting appeal of any other than your life verse. I added that to me, it both comforts and challenges, trying to communicate that it has a double-nature. The man that had just spoken and the leader both noted that "challenged" was the word that jumped out at them. People recognized what I said, but, I didn't feel I got the point across. I let it lie nonetheless.

The leader then went into the lesson itself. For him, he relayed two verses of importance in his life: 1) a comforting verse and 2) a guidance verse. The comforting verse helps one with the 'Why' questions in life. When difficult circumstances arise, we are often naturally drawn to try and understand 'Why?'. Our comforting verse helps with that. The guidance verse points to a truth that God wants to use to help us make good decisions throughout our lives. I sensed that there was something I still had to say, but, wasn't sure what it was yet.

After he had made his point the teacher went through some verses he felt were his. In the process he talked about how, when walking in the spirit (being spiritual), his verses drew him to God, while, when in the flesh (being soulish), his verses angered him. I thought this to be an interesting idea, nothing I novel, but, interesting in the context. The first gentleman threw out the word "magnetic" and I had a little collection of words and ideas gel rather instantly.

I then pointed out that life verses seemed to be like magnets. When we are in a good place with God (in the spirit) the verses draw and attract us, while, when we are being sinful (in the flesh) they repel us. Likewise, one of the key physical properties of magnets is their ability to repel/attract other magnets. The first gentleman went on to add that similarly, two magnets, when placed in proper alignment can create greater magnetic force or repel each other when misaligned. Also, there is a flow to the magnetic field in this case, just like there is a flow to out lives when we are aligned with God's word rightly.

Another idea that came to mind was the notion that people have different life verses for a reason. At first, when one comes into contact with the idea of a life verse, it is easy to naturally assume that a "life verse" will last one's whole life. My neighbor, Matt, mentioned in passing that some people have several life verses. I said that that would make sense because people go through different seasons, and, if God speaks a word over them to comfort/guide them through that season, it will be different from period to period as each season's fundamental truth changes from season to season. In short, people who have many life verses have many insights into the Word to share with others, since, after all, we are given our experiences to help edify and strengthen the church.

It got me thinking about one of my personal verses. When Liam was being dedicated last year one of the pastors gave him this verse based on his name, "Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes." Ephesians 6:10-11 Since he and I have the same name, it kind of follows his verse is also my verse. In one book I was reading, The Name Book, they gave another verse I never really thought made much sense. This one, however, is a verse (a chapter really) I have come back to a thousand times. I guess this is much like my home port. At any rate, I now have to integrate what I saw (the magnet notion and how my spiritual condition is evidenced by my reaction to this verse) into my walk. God's encouraging me to be in His Strngth. In my weakness (sin) I will be one bound to weakness, fear and the inability to stand the enemy's schemes.

So, I guess seeing that a life verse is important, I should note how I stumbled onto mine. There are a few sections of scripture that I have returned to over and over and over again. I read lots of different parts, but, Ephesians 6 is one I am always drawn to. The fact that I constantly want to return to that one was a good indicator. It never lost its appeal. So, there was something I still have to draw from it, some life I have not gained from gazing and holding on those verse.

Lots of thoughts...so little time

Moses and the Egyptians

Though I am not sure why this came to me it occurred to me that Moses probably knew Pharaoh. If he didn't know Pharaoh personally, he probably knew his parents. Moses was raised for 40 years in the palace of Pharaoh, as a son basically. We don't know how many daughters Pharaoh had, but, Moses certainly would have been privy to many things. Especially over a 40 year period, prior to his exile, Moses must have seen and gotten to know the entire royal family. So, presuming that royal lineage was passed down within the family, the person he confronted 40 years after his departure from Egypt probably had more than just a random face. It was probably a cousin, a relative, someone who recognized Moses and was enraged at his demands. Imagine an adopted relative living a life of luxury in the royal family. They kill a fellow countryman and disappear. Then, forty years later they reappear demanding that your entire slave population be released. This overtone to the Book of Exodus has never been pointed out to me and holds some interesting characteristics to consider next time I look at that book.

Rights - Godly or not?

You know, I frequently get into mental debates with people. I guess I am trying to prepare myself so, if I do ever get into an argument with this person, I will be prepared for the battle. Typically, when these imaginary conversations do take place, they never go as expected (or hoped). At any rate, one such thread of mental fights revolves around the notion of rights. "People deserve this right and that right..." Lots and lots of arguments about what people should be able to do and shouldn't be able to do. But, I have to stop and wonder, are rights even Biblical? When a person argues that they have a God-given right, is there any basis for this at all?

Underneath this set of questions lies the fundamental curiosity (and potentially new way of thinking): if rights are not something we are justified in proclaiming, declaring, defending, etc, then, every rights-based argument is just a lie regardless of how "self-evident" it might be. According to this site the NLV only mentions rights 18 times.

Exd 21:9
Exd 21:10
Deu 21:16
1Ch 5:1
1Ch 5:2
Job 36:6
Psa 82:3
Pro 31:5
Pro 31:8
Pro 31:9
Ecc 5:8
Isa 10:2
Jer 5:28
Lam 3:35
1Cr 9:15
1Cr 9:18
Gal 4:5
Hbr 12:16

Most of these are in the context of the Old Testament. Furthermore, most of these carry with them the implicit context of the law. In essence, rights are only mentioned when the law is being discussed.

To me, this is very interesting. If we, as Christians, are no longer subject to the law then, what does that mean for rights? Are we still capable of invoking our rights? Without getting too far off base, I like this as a starting point for reflecting on what rights are, at least from a worldly point of view.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rights

Then, in contrast, I throw out this idea: 1 Corinthians 9:18

What then is my reward? Just this: that in preaching the gospel I may offer it free of charge, and so not make use of my rights in preaching it.

In this context, rights is the Greek word, exousia. Power. This word has come up for me many times, but, in a different context, that of apostolic/prophetic ministry.

I am not trying to get off on another tangent, yet, I have begun to wonder, these arguments in our world today, are they about freedoms, or, are they disguised power plays? A wolf-in-sheep's-clothing, if you will, where people speak of fairness and liberty to dis-empower our God-stated call to "...tear down arguments." (2 Corinthians 10:1-4) Speech and rhetoric of rights has been abused and I don't see many (any really) logical, loving, Christian arguments against this attack. It has been going on for years now and we have not to show for it.

Lord, I ask that you would reveal the root of this deception. Make the rights-based arguments transparent. Unmask the spirit and tactics of this ruse and help your followers tear down this argument. Pour forth truth and logic rooted in You. May love flow from this discovery and may those who have perpetuated this deception be shown powerless and deceived by their own designs. May your Truth shine Lord and may Jesus' fulfillment overpower any such non-sense. Release this new wave of refutation.

I think a basic starting point is here: Rights have to do with "conforming with or conformable to justice, law, or morality". So, the question, if you are trying to define it, naturally rests on notions of justice, law and morality. Well, these are age old arguments and no universal answer has been accepted. Yet, as a Christian, I look and see, the Bible has clearly defined what is Just. The Law is a special issue, complex and deep beyond the scope of a single post, but, clearly within the context of this thought stream. And, morality, well, that is apparent and obvious in the context of Scripture. So, rights and Scripture have a lot to relate to each other and dig into.

The practical question for me, trying to not get intellectual, is how does a Biblical framework of Rights help me to "tear down arguments"? I don't want to beat people with better arguments. That's just a matter of the soul. I want to show people God's love and truth through the idea of true justice, the law as God sees it and morality through His eyes. Rights are things people are passionate about, but, how can that passion be used to draw people closer to God, into relationship with Christ and out of the mindset that rights, in and of themselves, are worth living and dying for?