Everything changes over time...

Blog Post found here.

In this post the author sites another blog's list of how things in the church have changed over time. Change is not always a bad thing, but it is not always a good thing either. Here is the list.

•  The Lord's Supper has changed from a celebration to a ceremony. 
• Worship has changed from participation to observation. 
• Witness has changed from relationship to salesmanship. 
•  Leadership has changed from servanthood to professionalism. 
•  Mission has changed from being missionaries to supporting missionaries. 
• Body life has changed from edification to entertainment. 
•  Buildings have changed from functional to sacred. 
• Child care has changed from the hands of parents to the hands of strangers

I find this an excellent source of fodder for conversation. And look forward to a some specific posting over some or maybe even all of these, sharing from my experiences over time. Could be interesting!

Of chickens and eggs...

You know the old question, "Which came first, the chicken or the egg?" Quite a conundrum. How can we have chickens without eggs? And how can we have eggs without chickens?

I think my mind goes here when I think about Calvinism and Arminianism. Then I ran across this idea by C. S. Lewis, "What difference does it make, if God stands outside of time." Yikes! I feel like my little stick-figure drawings, trying to imagine life in 3-D. How could there possibly be another dimension? How can God not be constrained by time? Yet, how can anything constrain God? Maybe that is why sometimes the Bible seems to say one thing, and sometimes another. Maybe it is because the reality is beyond our comprehension.

My God is so big, and I am so small.

Obedient Children

Article Found Here

I have posted this for me, so that I can go back and look at this article when I have more time.

One of the lines is this: Obedience looks like this: 1) act immediately, 2) without compliant, and 3) without back talk

So...Am I teaching my children what obedience looks like? But more importantly, do I know what obedience looks like? (I am a child too, a child of God.) Yeah, that one is a little tougher.

The Prodigal Son had to face death

In Sunday School last week, the story of the Prodigal Son was brought up. The leader mentioned how the people of the area would have viewed him. He insulted his father when he left, and went and lived among the gentiles, fed the pigs, etc. Upon returning to his father, he must have looked a mess. The people of his hometown surely would have rejected him, right?

I think it a little more intense than that. I think they would have wanted to stone him. He basically told his father he wished he were dead when he asked for his share of the inheritance before his father's death. Folks back then took a pretty harsh view of such actions. Not only that, but he made himself an outcast and unclean with the lifestyle he chose. So coming back was not an option, for those who welcomed him back would have made themselves unclean as well.

Just like God did when he bore our sins on Himself. So when Jesus tells us that we must die to ourselves and pick up our cross (daily), think of the prodigal. He came back to face death. He humbled himself, wishing only to be like a hired servant, knowing that he had no right of his own to be a member of the family again.

But the father took the shame on himself and welcomed him. He embraced him. Wow!

Which is it?

Our Sunday School leader made a curious statement the other day. He was teaching on the chapter of "God's Astounding Opinion of You" (by Ralph Harris) that deals with the issue of God being our friend. I believe it is chapter 10, if not, it is close. He stated that he did not feel that this chapter was very theological, but none-the-less, it was a good chapter.

To quote Inigo Montoya (of the Princess Bride), "You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means." The word "theology" can easily be broken into two parts, "theo" (God) and "ology" (the study of). And what topic could be more theological that God's character and what it is He thinks of us? This should shape the very depths of how we view Him!

So during this lesson, we spent some time in Matthew 15, verses 12-15. Some commented on verse 16, where it says "You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide."

So here is my theological question, one that has many implications and I believe must be wrestled with. What does it mean that God chooses (elects, determines, predestines, or whatever label you want to give it) and how does He choose?

Does He choose like the NFL draft, based on some attributes that we possess? Or is it more like sticking His hand into a bowl of M&M's and randomly getting a handful of different colors? I have my thoughts on this, which I hope to share, but for now it is off to work!

Go to bed!

Matthew 11:28

Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.

I remember when my children were younger. Bedtime was always a struggle. They did not want to go to bed, they wanted to stay up until ?? This was very humorous at times, as they begged and pleaded through their yawns to be able to stay up. They needed rest, their bodies knew it. But their minds fought the concept to the bitter end.

Are we much different?

We all struggle with the flesh. We struggle with what God wants of us and how to please him. We continually ask ourselves how can we do better? How can we please God more? Does this sound restful, or does it sound like a child saying, "I'm not tired yet!"

Burdened by the law, we carry a load heavier than we can bear. Yet we continue to struggle with the idea of doing better and pleasing God more. God says "Rest, go to bed, put down that load and take it easy."

How do we please God? By working harder? Absolutely not. We please God when we trust Him. When we rest in His promises. When our goal is not to please Him (which is a heavy burden), but to draw near to Him in faith. When we lay our burdens at His feet and respond to His great love rather than trying to earn it.

I Surrender!!

We were traveling at night on a highway in Missouri. I had just passed a state trooper who was going slower than the speed limit. As I pulled in front of him, on came his lights, so I pulled over. My 5 year old son was in the back seat, as was my 5 year old daughter. As the officer approached, I lowered my window. This was the moment my son decides to shout out, "I surrender!"

Turns out that the officer noticed my son moving around in the back seat, and wanted to make sure he was in a child seat and bucked in. He was, he just gets a little active at times. After explaining why we were pulled over and using his flashlight to check if everyone was buckled, he sent us on our way.

From Chapter 3 of God's Astounding Opinion of You (by Ralph Harris):

Unintentionally, we may send the false message that we haven't been included in Christ's death when we implore Christians to surrender.

I know some who might read this will struggle with this. How many times have we heard the hymn's words, "All to Jesus I surrender, all to Him I freely give..."

But consider what surrender means, especially to those unfamiliar with Christianity. Surrender means we have been defeated, when in fact we have been victorious. Surrender means we are at the mercy of our captor, when in fact we are under His grace. We surrender to enemies, God is not our enemy.

So while surrender to God's will might be a good idea for Christians to embrace, I can understand that for those not of the faith, the plea to surrender to God might not be the best choice of wording.

Or am I just being too picky?