I think this question on Facebook is a huge improvement over the "Select Your Religion" option on Myspace. I also think that it is a more liberating and honest question.

It actually encourages people to actually think about what their religious views actually are.

As such, you could find five people who checked the same religious option on Myspace. Those same five people express themselves completely differently on Facebook; explaining themselves in greater depth and with greater eloquence.

This is an improvement. However, it's still primitive.

Religious classification is a false paradigm.


View A: "There are many religions"

The prevailing wisdom is that there are approximately 7 major religions of the world. We're all familiar with this concept. We're all familiar with the demographic surveys and the constantly changing numbers. "Wow, 14% of the people in New York are Christian and 6% are Atheist!"

What if I were to say that this is a load of crap? What if there aren't many religions? Can your imagination even get around such an idea?

"But of course there are many religions. There's Islam and Buddhism and Christianity..."

Well, I'm sorry to cut you off, but I protest.

Let me propose a different idea...


View B: Spiritual Reality

I would suggest that we're all in three various conditions (and various combos of all three):

1. Spiritual Deception
This is where we find ourselves far too often. This accounts for every single "religion". Yes, that includes Christianity.

2. Revelation
This is the spiritual "Aha!" Those experiences by which one's spiritual eyes are opened and the truth suddenly starts to make sense.

3. Spiritual Reality
There is a spiritual reality. It is so precious and so highly-unattained that even mentioning its existence is offensive.

Somebody who finds him or herself entering into this realm actually sees what is really going on. The only way to get here is by passing through revelation. One cannot exist in a reality without it being revealed to them.

I spent Saturday afternoon catching up with Jessica in Hanover. She's a true spiritual peer. This endeavor worked out well because I could spend time with a friend and do my laundry at the same time.

From about 5 to 6 pm, I was randomly driving around the western end of York county, taking in the splendor of God's creation while listening to Bruce Cockburn and the New Testament on mp3.


Meeting my Grandfather

Suddenly, I had realized that I was close to where my online search told me that my mom's birth-father lived. I tried the listed number the day before, but found out that it was disconnected. I popped the address into my GPS and followed the purple line. I didn't let that lingering fear assuage me otherwise.

When I saw the house and pulled into the driveway, I could definitely tell that somebody lived there. I thought to myself, "This property is far too well-kept for them to be my relatives." The fear thickened as I went up to the door.

I rang the doorbell. An older woman answered apprehensively, opening the door only ten inches or so (this was partially to keep the cats inside). I asked if it was the home of Bob Conway. I explained who I was. It took a little bit as the last time they had seen me, I was a baby. As Joyce's memory was jogged and she figured out who I was, she invited me in.

Bob was in the dining-room and could hear me. He slowly came over to see me as I came in. I immediately found out about his back surgery a month earlier and his damaged knee he was exhausted from doing lawn work earlier in the day despite his doctor's advice to refrain from such things for about six months. I learned quickly where my mom and I got our stubbornness from.


Catching/Starting up

We sat down in the dining room and began a talk that would take us close to eleven pm.

First, he showed me his tray of pills that he had to take and he told me how much he hated taking them. For a guy with so much medication, I was amazed at how sharp and engaged he was. His memory was sharper than I could have imagined. Much of our time together was him telling stories of his past.

He had worked at Harley Davidson for thirty-four years.

I quickly learned that this was not some grueling long-haul on the production line. He held a large variety of specialized positions within the company.

For a long time, he was doing racing. His job was to engineer, tweak and prepare (and sometimes ride) bikes for racing. He told me the details of how you can get a part for a bike in three weeks when it would normally take sixteen weeks and how the higher-ups didn't always approve of his "shrewdness" (schmoozing with the parts shops and making sure they got racing jackets and such).

Much of our time was spent with him telling me about his world travels, where he would fly an average of a hundred and fifty thousand miles a year. He gave me great details about the Marco Polo five-star hotel in Singapore, where they serve the world's best Irish coffee (he said that he's been to a place in Italy that came close, but was sure that this place was the best).

He told me many other stories that, if told, would make this post far too long.


Then I met my uncle and one of my cousins.

At first, it was thought that Bob Jr. was my cousin. Then we realized that it wasn't right and that he was actually my uncle. He had been out back helping with the yard and his girlfriend was with him. I believe her name is Stacy. Bob Jr. is a big guy with a bold personality. I was quite amazed to find out that he had lived very close to me, in Windsor (a mile south of me).

Then I met my cousin, Shane. He noted that I looked familiar and asked if he might of seen me walking in the Red Lion square. I assured him that he was correct. That was definitely me.

He's fifteen and reminds me of a bigger version of myself when I was his age. He wants to either be a multimedia designer, a cook, or a videogame designer and his hair is exactly as mine was at fifteen: straight, brown, parted in the middle and a few inches below the shoulders. I'm looking forward to getting to know him. Fortunately, he plans on coming to our rec center on Thursday.

I plan on finding out whose better at Halo 3.

For some reason, I'm reminded of the last time I saw my grandfather:

I finally acted with great resolve. I had seen him only a few brief times since he had his stroke when I was a young teenager.

Uninvited and unexpected, I pulled up to his trailer. I made my way to
the door. Fear came and filled my heart. I knocked on the door.

My mind flashed back to a few days earlier when my dad told me that my
grandfather was on his last legs. "It was only a matter of time" he
said.

Rose, my grandfather's wife answered the door. She invited me in with a
smile on her face. I wasn't sure if she was honestly happy to see me.

I saw my grandfather. He was the skinniest I'd ever seen him. I
wouldn't have recognized him if I didn't know for sure it was him. He
couldn't have weighed more than a hundred and forty pounds - an odd
thing for a man that I had only ever seen overweight.

I was estranged from my grandfather. I didn't really know him. I didn't
see him often. I remembered what it was like to be in his trailer. But
I didn't know what it would actually be like to be with my grandfather.

I may not have recognized him at first. But he most certainly
recognized me. He looked up at me with the biggest smile that I had
ever seen on his face.

"He's mostly nonverbal," Rose explained. "A direct result of both the
stroke and the cancer." It became obvious that Rose was now my
grandfather's mouthpiece. His eyes would frequently validate whatever
she was telling me about him.

I told him what I had been doing with my life: I told him how I had
surrendered to the Holy Spirit and saw the world anew and had found in
Him the essence of life. I shared with my grandfather how my career was
taking off wonderfully. I even showed him some of my video work. And
though I can't remember exactly what I showed him, he was proud of me.

This seemed to be a good time to bring up my dad. My dad and my grandfather had not talked in a long time.

I pleaded with my grandfather to forgive my dad and be reconciled to
him before he died. He played the Christian card, saying "we're
Christians" and said that he had already forgiven my dad. I wonder how
obvious it was that I cringed. I wish I was bolder and more confident
in Biblical truth back then to have told him that what he was saying
was a complete cop-out and that it was obvious bullshit. The fact that
my dad was asked not to show up at the funeral a short while later
would tell how sincere this "forgiveness" was. This saddened me greatly.

Nevertheless, we talked a little bit longer. I can't remember what
about. But I do remember the last thing he said before I left:

He took me and said with his own mouth, "I love you." These are the
only words that he personally spoke to me the whole time I was there.
Everything else was dictated through Rose. He obviously struggled to
get it out, but not for a lack of sincerity, but because he obviously
had such an enormous difficulty actually speaking.

That's the last memory I have of my grandfather, Robert Cauller.

My buddy Jake (not his real name), just recently became an empty-nester.
His marriage almost crumbled.

With the kids out of the house, Jake and his wife no longer had a mutual objective and mission to work on together. Every deficiency in their relationship was exposed. They weren't loving one another and they didn't even know it...

Sometimes, our mutual missions hide our lack of sheer desire for those we're partnered with.

How often do we find ourselves in that situation?

Are we in our relationships because of love or simply because of common goals?
I'm glad to report that Jake and his wife are currently in a romantic
renaissance. They had gotten the help they needed. They mutually
repented and forgave one another. And now, they're simply loving and
serving one another and are presently experiencing the best days of
their marriage.

Where are you at in this process?

http://motionographer.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/03/hi_def.mov

Comcast, the eight-hundred-pound gorilla of media, launched a new ad campaign "Sing-a-Long" obviously aimed at young adults. Please click the link to see one of the spots.

The commercials are brilliant in both composition, and song. Yet, one lyric near the end haunted me the moment I heard it:

Speeding forward, future-hopping,
Always dreaming, never stopping.

Future-hopping? Always dreaming? No time-out to act or meditate? Its almost as if Comcast found the kryptonite of the 20-something and then pressed it firmly against our chests, amplifying a toxic dependency.

Sound disconnected? Then, please consider this:
When we're known for being decentered multi-optioned non-committal culture-hoppers, this corporation wants us to become more so by giving us MORE TV channel options, faster internet (so we can have even more options), and telephone lines (wait a second, who uses those old things anymore?!?).

Anyway, I'm just really annoyed that Comcast is like a big cat waving cheese in front of all the mice.

Question:
What should our response be when major corporations subtly tempt our indulgence and amplify latent anti-Kingdom values?

This is a guide to help people see some differences between a Reformed (Calvinist) view of God and an Open View of God.


Overview

Reformed Theology has been the bedrock of American Christianity.

Its chief innovator was John Calvin, the innovator of Calvinism.
Calvinism is famous for its declarations of the character of God and
how God predestines history. Open Theism is an ancient Hebraic concept
that God is open for input, moving through time with us. These two
streams of thought don't get along very well.

Another way of summing up the subject might be "Hebraic thought vs Western thought".


Reformed

1. Asks God: "What do You want me to do?"
2. God predestines everything
3. God represses his emotions
4. Sovereign = God controls everything
5. We are slaves of God
6. Believes we can hasten the day Jesus returns


Open

1. Asks God: "What can I offer You?"
2. God changes his mind sometimes
3. God expresses his emotions (and they change!)
4. Sovereign = God can do whatever he wants
5. We are children of God
6. Believes we can hasten the day Jesus returns

I may be the smartest, handsomest and most talented man who ever lived. But I still have my days where I suck at life.

So, what do I do when I suck at life?

I dance like a retarded child as uncontrollably and passionately as possible.

This usually includes singing at full-volume in languages that I don't understand while praising and and adoring God. I prefer to do this when nobody is watching. But sometimes, this isn't an available privilege. Worse, I'm sometimes afraid of what people will think if they see or hear me. I think this is crap.

Yet, When I'm internally alone with God, the most powerful and restoring realities are exposed to my heart!

And if I'm truly in that place of wanting what He's got, everything else fades to black. I don't care that anybody that might see me.

I think everybody should do the Retarded-Child-Dance. It looks different from one person to the next, but it's probably the best thing ever. The more we're in abandon to the world-system, the more alive we are.

Do you suck at life?

Pop-in some weird music (like Danielson Famile) and dance your little heart out.

You might just find yourself the proud owner of a new heart.

My exploration on the mountain caused me to find myself at the lip of
the halfpipe with the gentleman across from me asking whether or not I
was going to go. With no time to think, I nodded in the affirmative and
dove in.

I had just learned how to ski properly (without crashing 2+ times every
run) and I didn't have enough time to think about how I would fare in
trick-territory. All I knew was that my adrenaline was pumping.

So, as I wiped out halfway down the halfpipe, I didn't notice that I
ripped my hand open on the icy incline. Though, as I rendezvoused with
Heather and Matt at the bottom, it became obvious that I was bleeding
kinda bad. So we went to the First-Aid lodge.

I thought the whole thing was both fun and funny. So, as the nurse was
finishing up other people before treating my hand, I sat there with my
feet kicking, all smiles.

Matt and Heather seemed to rather enjoy the circumstance as well.

But what really stuck out to me was the gentle touch of the nurse as
she put the Neosporin on my wounds. Immediately as this was happening,
a song by Wovenhand came to mind. The song, 'Truly Golden' has this
brilliant refrain: "He gives a woman's touch."

Now, I very rarely have physical interaction with women. So when I do, it's very loud to me.

This time, it really reminded me of how God's is so incredibly gentle
in discipline. The song is about how He chastises us, His loves, with a
woman's touch. There I was simply receiving medical attention, and this
God's feminine touch begins to take on a deeper sense of meaning to me.

I guess I just didn't realize how gentle a woman's touch can be.

The next day (on Sunday morning), Monte (my church leader), brought up
the subject of church bells and shofars. He asked, "What is the purpose
of a church bell?"

I realized that I never really thought about it. "What are church bells for?" I asked myself.

Monte had his Yemenite shofar (ram's-horn trumpet) in his hand when he
asked this question, so I knew the answer. It was a call to worship. A
loud one. One that interrupts the normal flow of things. I realized
that this is an odd thing: God uses a gentle woman's touch for
correction and a loud interrupting trumpet blast for when its time for
us to celebrate.

On that note, I think I hear some shofars and church bells...

'Truly Golden' by Woven Hand:
http://www.last.fm/music/Woven+Hand/_/Truly+Golden

Yes, I know we're not supposed to change the Bible. I don't really think I am.

I have this habit of rewriting the Scriptures in a way that expresses
my comprehension of the text. It's completely un-authoritative and is a
cross between a targum and a paraphrase.

I told you guys that I wanted to share my journey through the Bible, so here you go:


My version of Psalm 2

Why is everybody freaking out and making plans that are doomed to fail?

Wicked influencers and governments are sowing discord among God's
people. They divide God's people and set them up as enemies of one
another. And they do it by feigned and deceptive "allegiance".

This makes God very angry. And isn't it unwise to get between a momma bear and her cub?

So, what is God's response? He laughs.

Then, he is consumed with the rage of a jealous lover.

He'll terrify the wicked influencers by setting His King up as the
authority over all. And if misbehaved children get spanked, what
happens to the children that try to destroy their parents?

Yet, even the godless have hope!

Just "kiss the son", placing yourself in a posture and position of
submission and reverence. Value and appreciate the one that you have
treated as your enemy and find yourself in a different position
entirely.

When you surrender yourself to Him and let him love you, His anger
subsides. Then you can take refuge in him. And it is there that you
will find yourself blessed beyond measure.


The original:

Psalm 2 (ESV)
(Feel free to compare and contrast)

I just picked up The ESV Study Bible.

It's thick.

It is also wonderfully literal. I'm typically a fan of paraphrase translations because you can really feel the text and immerse yourself into it. Literal translations are typically so choppy that its hard to put yourself into it. Fortunately, the ESV isn't too intense that way.

So far, I've only read the New Living Translation in its entirety and about 90-95% of The Message. While I've read tons and tons of other literal translations, I've never read any the whole way through (though I've tried with the NASB).

Anyway, I just wanted you guys to know that I plan to read the whole Bible by the end of the year (which amounts to about 4 chapters a day). This is a lot of reading.

I'm a slow reader, so this probably won't be very easy for me at all.

And, I'll be chronicling my journey through the Text. So expect me to share a lot more of the straight stuff that God speaks to me as I go through.

And of course, you'll be able to get plenty of my commentary (opinion) in there, too!

:)

I think the terminology is a bit of a misnomer as I've found that
"Christian Dating" is nothing like dating at all. Instead, it is
usually is embedded in elaborate complexities.

While certainly no master, I hope to share my findings and resolve:


1. Dating is Dead

My experience has led me to believe that dating as we know it is dead.
That doesn't mean that a couple, once established as a couple,
shouldn't find themselves going out on effectual "dates".

However, I do believe that those in love with Jesus are far more prone
to experience community first. This is to say, that "hanging out" is
actually where the relationship is formed.

So, "dating" is replaced by "hanging out". As I'm sure you can see,
that opens up a whole sea of questions such as "How does one make their
intentions of romantic pursuit clear in that context?" Good question.
But for now, we're gonna simply explore the benefits of hanging out.

Personally, I've found "hanging out" as the only the only way I feel
comfortable enough around a girl to actually get to know who she is.


2. Why is "Hanging Out" Better?

Obviously, the hangout is less volatile. Its safer. There's less of a
"make or break" kind of situation. You can walk away as friends even if
you don't like one another romantically.

More importantly, it is an optimum environment for community. Any kind of dating in isolation leads to a whole sea of trash.

Whenever I've dated a girl without being involved in a larger group, I've found my own sin and shortcomings go un-challenged and I'm of weaker character.


3. Hanging Out in Community?

Did you see the movie Hitch? Remember the part where Hitch teaches
Albert to treat his love interest's friends as more important than his
love interest? This is because you're never courting just one person.
You're courting everybody they're closest to.

In the body of Christ, that's their whole spiritual family (church).
These are the people who help your love interest make their decisions.
Their lives are interconnected. And you will be interconnected with
them, should the two of you get married.

You must participate with them, love them, and demonstrate your true character to them.

Personally, I've experienced that some of my most faithful friends have been the ones that started out on "her side".


4. Respect

While I wouldn't recommend learning everything you know from 19th
century English courting habits, I would absolutely recommend
gentlemanly and lady-like conduct.

Gentlemen, open doors, pay, prefer her decisions over your own, and
speak kindly (but honestly). Most importantly, respect her in every
way. Never treat her as an object.

Ladies, unlock his car door before he gets to it, don't exploit his
paying for you, prefer his decisions over your own, and speak kindly
and honestly. Most importantly, respect him. Men enjoy being respected.
I've experienced this kind of interaction and have found it to be
nothing short of beautiful.

And for the love of God, don't pursue somebody for pursuit's sake. Come with an agenda!


5. Come with an Agenda?

Nothing is more frustrating than when one person is in love and the
other has no intent to marry. My mom broke up with the guy she was
dating for six years because he showed no intent of marriage. A year or
so later, she married my dad.

Can you see yourself possibly spending the rest of your life with the
person you're interested in? No? Apologize for wasting their time and
politely bow out.

If you enter into a romantic relationship, the goal is to find out if
this is somebody you could spend the rest of your life with. So come
with that agenda (you really don't need any others).

I've been both the offender and the offendee in this category. Both suck.


6. What's Sexy?

I unashamedly want to pursue the sexiest mate that I can find. I
suggest you do the same. The person you marry is going to be the only
person you're with for the rest of your life.

However, you may need to redefine "sexy".

A person's body is the least important part about their sex-appeal. I
guarantee you that there is nothing sexier than a heart in love with
God.

I personally, don't find anything quite as sexy as a young woman who
loves God more than anything else. I know one young woman who told me
about how much she was attracted to a young man because of how he
worships God. I don't think this is an isolated case.

I'm convinced this is a universal rule: Unashamed whole-hearted God worshipers are sexy.

Additionally, nothing is more attractive than virtue and integrity.
Humility is paramount! People who follow through with their words are
priceless in a culture full of empty promises and broken covenants.
Those quick to repentance are hot!

If you want to be with sexy, become sexy. Pursue God with everything
you've got. Otherwise, you might compromise and settle for something
less than what God has for you.

Considering that, I think I've come to a point where I think it's
healthy to pursue only the sexiest person. Some do the whole "Is this
the one, God?" thing. That's certainly has it's place, but I kinda
prefer the "Hunt For Godliness" approach.


7. Healed Hearts

The most common mistake young adults make in the contexts of dating and
romantic relationships is diving-into relationships before making sure
their hearts are healed of past hurts.

If left unchecked, those hurts will get carried into any new relationships and will cause problems.

God wants us to have whole and healed hearts. And yes, that is a
possibility. Jesus is the King of Hearts. And he wants to heal you if
you let him.

If you want a healed heart, get naked before God. Surrender to Him.
Invite the Holy Spirit in. Ask him to reveal the hurt parts of your
heart. Wait and listen.

Pay close attention to what He shows you. If he shows you somebody who
hurt you, forgive them and ask Jesus to show you His take on the
situation. Continue as long as you need to.

I'm still in the process.

The following is a series of short videos with the Bish, N.T.Wright on the subject of Heaven and Hell and our Biblical understandings of these things:

The real Heaven?


What happens when you die?


What is Hell Like?


What does Heaven look like?


Resurrection of the body


What will we do in Heaven?


What "Paradise" was Jesus talking about on the Cross?


Heaven + Earth?


Are people shocked by your views on these things?

[This is a repost from last year]

I'm convinced that Martin Luther King Jr. was a pivotal character in the history of America. I believe he was a great prophet of God in America. I also believe that America has built monuments to MLK and neglected to hear the whole of his message.

The words of the prophet himself:



Jesus said in Luke 11:


2009 Reflection

Those of you who sided with me last year on this, do you feel the same or differently now that Obama is entering the presidency? Do you think that my criticism's validity is gone?