It is amazing how God can prepare a person for eventualities they don't even know are coming.
Recently, God has been using various people, circumstances, and scriptures in my life to remind me of his faithfulness, his providence, and his unimaginably great love and delight in me.
How did he know I was going to rely on these promises?
Tuesday, June 30, 2009
Thursday, June 25, 2009
On What I Saw with Scotty
So, the event I'm going to describe happened a few days ago, but I still want to share it, because it was too wonderful to keep to myself.
Fireflies
The sun set late
After a long summer day
Flecks of gold tint the vermilion skies
Twilight slowly spreads
Filling the sky
The way hot cocoa warms the body.
We sit in the grass
Cool beneath the darkening sky
Listening to the rippling water
And a light blinks beside me
The first firefly of summer
It hovers beside me
It rests in my hand
Blinks
And flies away beneath the trees
Where other little yellow lights
Flicker in the night
Rising like spark from a fire
Lighting
And extinguishing
Like the passing thoughts
That go forever unspoken
For all those of you who may have been seeing fireflies for weeks, please do not spoil my joy by posting on here and telling me all about it. I am living in the city this summer, so my nature quota is quite low right now.
Fireflies
The sun set late
After a long summer day
Flecks of gold tint the vermilion skies
Twilight slowly spreads
Filling the sky
The way hot cocoa warms the body.
We sit in the grass
Cool beneath the darkening sky
Listening to the rippling water
And a light blinks beside me
The first firefly of summer
It hovers beside me
It rests in my hand
Blinks
And flies away beneath the trees
Where other little yellow lights
Flicker in the night
Rising like spark from a fire
Lighting
And extinguishing
Like the passing thoughts
That go forever unspoken
For all those of you who may have been seeing fireflies for weeks, please do not spoil my joy by posting on here and telling me all about it. I am living in the city this summer, so my nature quota is quite low right now.
Monday, June 22, 2009
On Saying "Oops"
It seems to me that our culture refuses to accept that everyone fails at some point. It is as though we have a zero tolerance level for errors. Shortcomings serve as signs of incompetence and merit punishment. We expect perfection.
We're all still human, aren't we? Shouldn't we have figured out by now that we all make mitsakes?
We're all still human, aren't we? Shouldn't we have figured out by now that we all make mitsakes?
Wednesday, June 17, 2009
On Church
Last night I went with my girlfriend and another friend to a young adult service at Crossroads Community Church at their north campus. I really did not know what to expect, but it was one of the coolest things I have done in a long time. I had a really good feeling about it as soon as I walked in and saw that everyone was sitting around tables. There was a brief time of worship, then a sort of guided discussion. We ended up talking about problems with the church. And we were IN church. It was very cool. It's something that needs to happen more often. The church has problems, more than I can possibly know how to list or even begin to think about solving. However, if the church comes together and recognizes these, maybe they will begin to change. That was the most beautiful part of the night: just the dialogue. It felt like what church was supposed to be. People coming together and seeking the truth about God, and talking about it with one another. I am not saying that there isn't a place for traditional church services, and it is not a debate I would be excited about getting involved in, it was just nice to feel unity in Christ.
On top of all that, I got to see my former youth pastor and mentor, Karl. He is an awesome guy, and it is always wonderful when I get to talk with him and catch up. Only adding to the coolness was the fact that we sang the song, Fire, Fall Down, a song I have not sang since Timber Lakes Camp over a year ago. It was also special because of a poem I had written only days earlier. It was from the perspective of an Elijah-esque character, trying to call down fire from heaven, but failing because he sought it with impure motives (not a self-referential analogy, just for the record). Thus, I was able to seek the fire, the Spirit of God while re-examining my own motives. It was an incredibly fitting song, all the more so because it was already dear to my heart.
I guess my point is, it was a jolly good evening.
On top of all that, I got to see my former youth pastor and mentor, Karl. He is an awesome guy, and it is always wonderful when I get to talk with him and catch up. Only adding to the coolness was the fact that we sang the song, Fire, Fall Down, a song I have not sang since Timber Lakes Camp over a year ago. It was also special because of a poem I had written only days earlier. It was from the perspective of an Elijah-esque character, trying to call down fire from heaven, but failing because he sought it with impure motives (not a self-referential analogy, just for the record). Thus, I was able to seek the fire, the Spirit of God while re-examining my own motives. It was an incredibly fitting song, all the more so because it was already dear to my heart.
I guess my point is, it was a jolly good evening.
Sunday, June 14, 2009
On Thinking
So I've been thinking for a while that I want to write a post on free-will versus determinism, but after my lengthy, and I'm afraid, rather dry thoughts on justice, I'm going to hold off on more philosophy and just let my thoughts simmer for a while. That way they will be more tender and soak in the flavour. Don't think too hard about that analogy.
I blame my recent overload of deep thoughts on my May term class. Granted, that ended two weeks ago, but the experience of ingesting a semester's worth of philosophy in just three weeks is enough to leave a deep impression on anyone, let alone someone like me who actually enjoys thinking. Every time we alighted on an interesting subject during our three hour class sessions, I would find myself thinking, "Ooh! I should blog my thoughts on this topic." However, now that my philosophical intake has slowed down a bit, I am starting to realize that there are probably not many people who care to read my thoughts on the mind-body problem. I think that the real reason I blog about stuff like this is that it helps me to organize my own thought. Hmm...writing as a form of self-definition and a construction of identity...more things to ponder.
But I shall leave all that for another time. In other news, I am stoked to start working for Notre Dame's Summer Shakespeare Festival tomorrow. These two weeks off have been nice, but I am ready for some activity. A forty hour work week will probably more than suffice to provide all of the activity I could want, but that's what I signed up for, so bring it on. If nothing else, having two weeks off afforded me plenty of time to read some great novels. Speaking of which, I am also looking forward to reading my first whole novel by the James Joyce. I am not sure I am quite ready for Dubliners, but it is about time I set myself to the task. We'll see what comes of that.
Thoughts on free-will coming on a date to be determined later.
I blame my recent overload of deep thoughts on my May term class. Granted, that ended two weeks ago, but the experience of ingesting a semester's worth of philosophy in just three weeks is enough to leave a deep impression on anyone, let alone someone like me who actually enjoys thinking. Every time we alighted on an interesting subject during our three hour class sessions, I would find myself thinking, "Ooh! I should blog my thoughts on this topic." However, now that my philosophical intake has slowed down a bit, I am starting to realize that there are probably not many people who care to read my thoughts on the mind-body problem. I think that the real reason I blog about stuff like this is that it helps me to organize my own thought. Hmm...writing as a form of self-definition and a construction of identity...more things to ponder.
But I shall leave all that for another time. In other news, I am stoked to start working for Notre Dame's Summer Shakespeare Festival tomorrow. These two weeks off have been nice, but I am ready for some activity. A forty hour work week will probably more than suffice to provide all of the activity I could want, but that's what I signed up for, so bring it on. If nothing else, having two weeks off afforded me plenty of time to read some great novels. Speaking of which, I am also looking forward to reading my first whole novel by the James Joyce. I am not sure I am quite ready for Dubliners, but it is about time I set myself to the task. We'll see what comes of that.
Thoughts on free-will coming on a date to be determined later.
Sunday, June 7, 2009
On Justice
"God of justice, Saviour to all."
Has anyone ever thought about what a paradoxical statement that is? Christians everywhere praise God for being just and righteous, but they also thank him for his mercy and grace. If you think about it, these seem like things that definitely do not go together. Mercy and grace, by definition, both involve forgoing justice. Nevertheless, we lump them all into traits of the same being and are quite happy to do so. Don't get me wrong. I am not attacking this belief; it is one that I myself hold. I am simply addressing a contradiction that few Christians even seem to realize exists within their fundamental doctrines as well as many of their songs
Why do we want justice anyway? That of course prompts the question of what justice actually is. Considering the fact that philosophers have been asking that question almost as long as philosophy has existed, I will not be so presumptuous as to try to answer it here. Rather, I will just use the conventional definitions: a sort of fairness or equality, punishment for wrong-doing and reward for right-doing, or even a kind of retribution or restoration. The general idea centres around what is right and fair. Justice is generally thought of as a good thing...a desirable thing. If asked, most people say they want justice. I think those people are liars, or at least confused.
End
No one wants justice
Not really
Justice kills us all
And justice is the end
But we all just want to go on
To continue
We're selfish
In the end
And justice is only a means
Only a means
For someone else to end
We all end
An that's why nobody wants it
No one wants justice
Not really
This is a very cynical poem, one of my most cynical in fact. However, I am a human being, and I know what human nature is like. We're selfish. We all suffer from some twisted sense of pride or over-developed self-focus. It is the way of all people. That's why it seems to me that most people who seek justice are seeking a very narrow conception or focus of justice. Usually (and I do emphasize usually), people either want justice for themselves as retribution for wrong done against them, or they even want justice for another person or group of people who have been treated unfairly. However, in either case, these people generally want themselves unaffected by the enactment of this justice, unless it involves some endorphins. From my experience, most Western Christians fall into the second category.
I fully acknowledge that this is not true of everyone who desires justice. Still, it is a definite minority that is actually willing to suffer for the sake of fairness. Nevertheless, I don't know of anyone who has ever sought true justice. As the old saying goes, "An eye for an eye makes everyone blind." We live in an unfair world, and to make it fair means a lot of people, especially in the West, would have to lose a lot (a sudden influx of wealth to the impoverished of the world which raises them to the level of the West seems unlikely, and it also does not seem like this would account for the long apathy of the wealthy). I think perhaps the toughest loss for most in Western culture be their sense of superiority. I don't know if even Christians truly want justice. True justice means we're all damned. "For all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God." When Christians ask for justice, I think they often forget this particular fact. In the words of Sweeney Todd, "We all deserve to die."
In the big picture, what I think everyone truly wants is grace and mercy. We may occasionally want justice done upon certain people, but for ourselves, we would undoubtedly desire mercy. In the case of the impoverished, people are most likely to desire grace. Deep down, we are all aware of what we deserve, even the most conceited of us. I do not think this is a bad thing. After all, our Creator has proved himself full of mercy and grace, and he undoubtedly instilled within us desires for these two as well as for justice. However, the modern church likes to focus on the mercy and grace. Perhaps this is why we have a narrow or underdeveloped sense of what real justice is and how it applies to religion.
The fact that is God is a God of justice is what makes his mercy and grace so remarkable. The Old Testament shows a clear example of this. Attacks against Christianity have said for years that there are inconsistencies between the two testaments, but I would disagree, they are simply on a macro and a micro level. In the Old Testament, God's justice is clearly enacted against the nations around Israel, and it is horrible, but it makes his mercy and grace toward Israel when they turn to him that much more astounding. This is the same God we see in the New Testament offering his grace and mercy to anyone willing to turn to him. "Anyone who trusts in Him will never be put to shame."
As Christians, it is essential that we acknowledge the reality of our iniquity and the punishment we deserve as well as God's merciful forgiveness of sin and graceful gift of salvation. "This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus." Any step without the other leaves a person with an incomplete and therefore dangerous view of God.
Has anyone ever thought about what a paradoxical statement that is? Christians everywhere praise God for being just and righteous, but they also thank him for his mercy and grace. If you think about it, these seem like things that definitely do not go together. Mercy and grace, by definition, both involve forgoing justice. Nevertheless, we lump them all into traits of the same being and are quite happy to do so. Don't get me wrong. I am not attacking this belief; it is one that I myself hold. I am simply addressing a contradiction that few Christians even seem to realize exists within their fundamental doctrines as well as many of their songs
Why do we want justice anyway? That of course prompts the question of what justice actually is. Considering the fact that philosophers have been asking that question almost as long as philosophy has existed, I will not be so presumptuous as to try to answer it here. Rather, I will just use the conventional definitions: a sort of fairness or equality, punishment for wrong-doing and reward for right-doing, or even a kind of retribution or restoration. The general idea centres around what is right and fair. Justice is generally thought of as a good thing...a desirable thing. If asked, most people say they want justice. I think those people are liars, or at least confused.
End
No one wants justice
Not really
Justice kills us all
And justice is the end
But we all just want to go on
To continue
We're selfish
In the end
And justice is only a means
Only a means
For someone else to end
We all end
An that's why nobody wants it
No one wants justice
Not really
This is a very cynical poem, one of my most cynical in fact. However, I am a human being, and I know what human nature is like. We're selfish. We all suffer from some twisted sense of pride or over-developed self-focus. It is the way of all people. That's why it seems to me that most people who seek justice are seeking a very narrow conception or focus of justice. Usually (and I do emphasize usually), people either want justice for themselves as retribution for wrong done against them, or they even want justice for another person or group of people who have been treated unfairly. However, in either case, these people generally want themselves unaffected by the enactment of this justice, unless it involves some endorphins. From my experience, most Western Christians fall into the second category.
I fully acknowledge that this is not true of everyone who desires justice. Still, it is a definite minority that is actually willing to suffer for the sake of fairness. Nevertheless, I don't know of anyone who has ever sought true justice. As the old saying goes, "An eye for an eye makes everyone blind." We live in an unfair world, and to make it fair means a lot of people, especially in the West, would have to lose a lot (a sudden influx of wealth to the impoverished of the world which raises them to the level of the West seems unlikely, and it also does not seem like this would account for the long apathy of the wealthy). I think perhaps the toughest loss for most in Western culture be their sense of superiority. I don't know if even Christians truly want justice. True justice means we're all damned. "For all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God." When Christians ask for justice, I think they often forget this particular fact. In the words of Sweeney Todd, "We all deserve to die."
In the big picture, what I think everyone truly wants is grace and mercy. We may occasionally want justice done upon certain people, but for ourselves, we would undoubtedly desire mercy. In the case of the impoverished, people are most likely to desire grace. Deep down, we are all aware of what we deserve, even the most conceited of us. I do not think this is a bad thing. After all, our Creator has proved himself full of mercy and grace, and he undoubtedly instilled within us desires for these two as well as for justice. However, the modern church likes to focus on the mercy and grace. Perhaps this is why we have a narrow or underdeveloped sense of what real justice is and how it applies to religion.
The fact that is God is a God of justice is what makes his mercy and grace so remarkable. The Old Testament shows a clear example of this. Attacks against Christianity have said for years that there are inconsistencies between the two testaments, but I would disagree, they are simply on a macro and a micro level. In the Old Testament, God's justice is clearly enacted against the nations around Israel, and it is horrible, but it makes his mercy and grace toward Israel when they turn to him that much more astounding. This is the same God we see in the New Testament offering his grace and mercy to anyone willing to turn to him. "Anyone who trusts in Him will never be put to shame."
As Christians, it is essential that we acknowledge the reality of our iniquity and the punishment we deserve as well as God's merciful forgiveness of sin and graceful gift of salvation. "This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus." Any step without the other leaves a person with an incomplete and therefore dangerous view of God.
Wednesday, June 3, 2009
On Travelling Companions
Once I shouted to God asking him to take me.
Take me.
I have had a good relationship with the Lord and have for a long time, but I have always felt a lack in the area of boldness. I am a quiet, laid-back kind of fellow. As such, the type of spiritual moxie and daring that evangelicals tend to praise has never come easy to me. I have sometimes wondered if it is just a lack of the Spirit's presence in my life or if I just needed God to take control of me and set me running on the right course, for him to take me over, to take me where he wanted me.
Once I shouted to God begging him to take me.
He asked me to take Him.
I comprehended it then. Now I'm starting to understand.
Take me.
I have had a good relationship with the Lord and have for a long time, but I have always felt a lack in the area of boldness. I am a quiet, laid-back kind of fellow. As such, the type of spiritual moxie and daring that evangelicals tend to praise has never come easy to me. I have sometimes wondered if it is just a lack of the Spirit's presence in my life or if I just needed God to take control of me and set me running on the right course, for him to take me over, to take me where he wanted me.
Once I shouted to God begging him to take me.
He asked me to take Him.
I comprehended it then. Now I'm starting to understand.
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