Just like my Father

Yes, I know, tomorrow is Mother's Day. So why am I writing about my father? Because I like to be non-conformist sometimes. I'm a closet revolutionary. I don't like doing stuff just becuase everyone else does. But that's not why I'm posting.

I'm sitting here in my office burning CD's I promised some kids. As I was writing the title on each one with a Sharpie from my hidden stash, I stopped and thought to myself, "I recognize that handwriting." Before you begin wondering about my mental soundness let me get to the point. It's my dad's handwriting. Frequently when I jot something down, I realize that our handwriting samples would almost be indistinguishable. Especially when I sign my name. What I find so hilarious is that growing up he used to give me so much grief about the neatness (or lack thereof) of my penmanship. Then one day I made him compare the two. He stopped.

How did this happen? To my recollection, there was never a time in my life when my father sat down with me and said, "Here's how you should write . . ." Yet our handwriting is almost the same. It must be some weird genetic thing. I wonder if some biotech company out there could isolate which gene caused this.

There's a bunch of other things in me that I hope are like my father. And I hope I pass them to my boys. I hope that one day there are sitting somewhere and say, "OMIGOSH! I'm just like Dad" and without them realizing they are really like their Poppy. One of them already is in some ways. I'm hoping to break him of that ;-)

In my faith journey, there are people who have influenced me and I hope some of their traits show up in my life. I pray that I can in turn pass those along to others as well. That's why it is so important to never journey alone.

Sorry Mom, but these are my thoughts for tonight. I promise to give you top billing on Father's Day. Just a thought.

The Good Ol' Days

Things have been so hectic lately. I'm at one of those points again where I think the Unabomber might have been right. Forget technology. Forget the fast paced life. Remove yourself from society and live in the woods all alone. Live off the land as best you can and trade with other people only as needed. I'll even give up my iPod.

Of course that's a little extreme. But we have all had days where we wish the phone had never been invented. Nine months ago we decided to turn off our mobile phone. We really didn't need it. We've saved money each month and with the exception of those times when one of us is Wal-Mart and we can't find an item on our list or someone at home wants to add one more thing to the list, we have survived quite well without it.

If you talk to the "old timers", many of them will quickly tell you that the good ol' days weren't always so good. They like having a wash machine instead of a washboard and tub. They like indoor plumbing and electrical lighting. Almost any non-white older person will quickly tell you the good ol' days definitely were not good.

Sometimes I miss the good ol' days when my faith journey was just beginning. I remember the excitement of my new relationship with God. I remember the unexplainable hunger I suddenly developed to read the Bible. I remember the strong "feelings" orientation of my journey in its early days.

Some days I just miss being simple and green in my faith and my responsibility and accountability were relatively low. There are times when I don't want to live up to the expectations of a person in my position and at this point in the journey. Since I'm a guy, I'll use a sports analogy. Did you ever wonder if Michael Jordan ever came home wishing he could go 1 for 26 from the field without it making the headlines the next morning? Not that I consider myself the Michael Jordan of spiritual matters, but I think you get my point.

Despite wanting to go 0 for 12 from the line and not catch any flack, I don't really have a desire to go back to the good ol' days of my faith journey, just like I don't want to go back the first year of my marriage. I am very comfortable in my relationship with my wife. There is an understanding, trust level, and intimacy that only exists because we have been married twelve years. There are many experiences that I would miss on my spiritual journey if not for the intimacy, knowledge, and yes, even responsibility that I have developed over the last twenty years. I think the old timers are right. Just a thought.

Rainy days & Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays, etc. get me down

What a dreary day outside. It has been raining since some time last night. It was much needed as our year-to-date totals are way behind and we have been in an official drought since last summer. But isn't there some other way to relieve the drought without the gloomy sky and having to be shut in with 120+ screaming kids?

A woman was in my office today who just recently and unexpectedly lost her mother. The last couple of days have been hard for her. She had been doing fine until she turned the corner at the grocery store and came across a display for Mother's Day cards. I sat and listened so she could process. Just talking helped her bring about her own "relief".

As I drove through the rain a little while ago, my mind ran through its own set of overwhelming thoughts. I too have many things, TOO many things, happening in my life. The very thoughts I wanted to share with the woman above kept coming back to me. If I was not able to handle this time, I would not be going through it. I firmly believe that. I do not think that our circumstances are random nor beyond the governance of any outside force.

I know that three months from now when 95% of the issues and deadlines I know face have passed that I will be stronger and wiser. I know that during this "storm" of activity I will be okay and will get through it. However, just because I know the boat will get to the shore safely does not mean I have to necessarily enjoy the ride. Riding across stormy seas in a little boat is not fun. I've done it enough - both literally and figuratively. Do the journeys that always teach us the most always have to be so trying?

Amazingly, I don't mind. If I could choose, I would turn the wave generator off in this great big pool. But because I know a shore awaits and that I will somehow be better, I'm okay with it. Perhaps it is in the listening to the Navigator that makes the journey bearable and enjoyable. Rainy days and Thursdays don't have to get me down.

Going home

Saturday was a weird day for me. That feeling that hits me every time I go home struck again. We took a few vacation days to spend at my mom's down on the coast. She sold the ol' homestead where we grew up last fall, so things are a lot different now when we visit. At least they were until Saturday.

We drove over to the beach. We didn't do the sand, sun, and surf thing like we usually do. We did the tourist thing and checked out a local historical site, Ft. Macon. The fort is located on the end of the beach and you can see, hear, and smell the surf as it breaks. To get there, I had to drive past all the familiar surf breaks. As we left the fort and drove over the bridge back to the mainland, I looked at my wife and said, "Coming home is always hard. I wish we could live here."

It's odd how that works. There is nothing particularly attractive about the area that draws my soul here. Except for family or access to the ocean and a slower pace of life for people looking to retire or vacation, the usual relocation factors just don't exist here. I was fine until I got a good whiff of that salt air and heard the surf crashing. Like my profile says, my soul yearns for the salt water. I was born and raised in it. It's a huge part of who I am.

My wife knows how big a deal this is for me. We're getting ready to move to a new town and a new church. She saw the struggle on my face as we left the beach Saturday and asked in a very serious tone, "Do you think you've settled for something less?" referring to the move. My reply was no. I know we are heading exactly where we are supposed to be. The physical aspects of my faith journey are leading me to this new town and there are no doubts about it. But I do wonder why my heart aches as it does. It's interesting how the soil (or surf) your roots were originally anchored in still affects you, even if you have planted them elsewhere.

I think our faith journeys operate that way. I am convinced that we embark on faith journeys because there is some sort of homesickness that draws us to our roots. Our faith journeys are really journeys back to our spiritual roots. Like the salmon who instinctively swims back upstream to spawn, we go looking for our spiritual origins. And that leads us to our Creator. I have said it here before and will continue to say that there is something in us that draws us to God.

Not everyone will agree with me. Some would say it is a search for meaning. An atheist would certainly describe his life that way since faith is not a concern for him. While visiting the fort on Saturday, I saw a guy wearing a shirt that said, "May the god of your choosing bless you". That's how some people look at it. Others will say that there is only one god and that any religion you choose will eventually lead you to him. I think we are all on a faith journey, even those who deny the existence of anything beyond this life. I think the search for meaning or even the emptiness that makes you search for something to fill it with is homesickness. It is a beacon calling you home.

Sometimes I dread going home because I know I will want to stay. I like my faith journey most of the time, but I'm looking forward to my end desitination. Just a thought.

Starting Points - The End?

The DaVinci Code (again), the Gospel of Judas, and a bunch of other things have been hitting the headlines lately. For many people, especially those who have grown up in the church, these things have made them a little uneasy. Others who are searching for everything they can learn about matters of faith are fascinated by them. Some of these same folks are resentful that the church has "tried to hide them" from the rest of world because they might cast doubt on the established system of beliefs. One of the blogs I regularly read addresses these issues far more eloquently and completely than I. You can find a link to that post at the end of this one.

I'm not going to try and regurgitate anything in the post mentioned above. I'd like to address what the whole issue has to do with starting points and reaching an end. For Christians, the Bible is supposed to be the starting point of all things faith related. At some point, interpretation is necessary. There are some issues that the Bible does not explicitly address. In order to reach an end, you have to bring in other resources to reach your decision. And voila, you naturally end up with 3,453,618,912 different interpretations, opinions, churches, and denominations.

As people begin to sort out their faith journeys and come across the noncanonical gospels (the ones not included in the Bible), how you interpret those other sources depends upon your starting point. If you are naturally skeptical, you may come to the conclusion that it is a conspiracy to protect a system of power already in place. Or you may see it as another point in the "this is all make-believe" column. Some react to this additional information in another way. They start out with confidence in the system. They believe that these books were excluded for a good reason. These folks may even read the writings themselves. They consult scholars and historians. In the end, they do not change their faith position.

There are a few important streams that should always feed into our faith journeys. You can call them all starting points if you like. Starting out in multiple places at once fits nicely into the way we view the world nowadays anyway. In matters of faith, I think you have to start with the Bible. Along the journey, tradition needs to have some influence. What has been the historical perspective? Not just anecdotal events or blips on the radar, but the general accepted perspective over the course of time. Your personal experience will certainly shape the course of your journey. Along the way, it's not a bad idea to get some help from others. Getting perspectives from the experiences of other people is a good thing. It's always good to walk with others. Tradition, personal experience, and community are the streams that I use to help my journey with the Bible being my starting point.

Regardless of how long you have been journeying, don't get sidetracked by the circus that often surrounds new or different info. Take a good thoughtful look at it. Honestly, the starting point is not as important as the ending point. That's where the prize is. Just a thought.

Here's that link I told you about. It also has a multitude of links that will give you the texts of many of the noncanonical gospels. There's a bunch of other stuff for people who have either already made their mind up or are on the pastoral end of things.

Starting Points - part 3 Miracles

Are miracles for real? It all depends on your starting point. Last week a study by a University of Florida professor states that Jesus walked on ice, not water. His research has not been favorably received by all. I read somewhere that he receives hate email on average every three minutes. Some people of faith applaud studies like this because they say it shows the realistic possibilities of the miracles in the Bible. Others say that such work takes faith out of the equation; you just need to believe. If you could prove it scientifically then it has no faith value.

A former professor of mine explained miracles in this manner one morning. He was referring to the Ten Plagues the Egyptians suffered when Pharaoh refused to let the Israelites go. There have been numerous natural explanations of how that whole sequence of events could have, and probably did, happen. He said there is a difference between a natural event and a miracle. If suddenly, the ground split open and lava and ashes spewed out, covering a set of administrative buildings for some organization, it would be called a natural disaster. However, if the week before, someone publicly stated that these buildings would be destroyed the following week if the administration of that organization did not change some aspect of their behavior, it would be a miracle. That may not be helpful in looking at events from 4000 years ago because we cannot say positively the order of those events. Which came first, the natural disaster or the public condemnation?

Advances in medical science make it hard to believe in miracles. I know of several incidents from Peru that I would constitute as miracles. These involve people with whom I have close personal connections. Some could argue misdiagnosis or equipment failure. The medical personnel involved argue otherwise. What about calling down judgement on some organization? With today's technology, we can come close to predicting such volcanic events like the one above. Remember the Mount St. Helens Watch last year?

I was asked one time to prove to someone that God existed. She said she really wanted to believe in God, but just couldn't. She was brought up in a home where God was vehemently denied. Her starting point of assumptions just would not let her believe, no matter how hard she said she wanted to. We could never get past the starting point. If you want proof of a supernatural being who can do unexplainable things (which she did), at some point you have to accept the inability to explain some of those things. Otherwise you set up a self-contradicting proposition that is impossible to resolve.

So, back to miracles. Are they real or aren't they? What are the starting points that allow us to believe they are? Are they miracles only if we believe them to be or does our belief even matter?

Starting Points - part 2 Matters of Faith

Where you end up many times depends on where you start. You can change directions, turn around, start over, etc., along the way, but that starting point always has an impact. Last week we looked at hot topics of debate and "proofs" that all depended on starting points. At some point in any debate, we are almost always forced to choose between what may be two diametrically opposed outcomes. Of course, whether the two options are really so opposite is another matter of debate for some.

For example, a two of the hot button issues in the world of faith are creationism vs. evolution and anti-abortion vs. pro abortion. I have close friends, distant acquaintances, and just people I know who fall on both sides of each debate. I'm not talking about people that are considered to be from very different theological camps either. I'm talking about people who are very much alike theologically. My wife and I sometimes end up on opposite sides of the table. Even though their theological perspectives may be the same, some folks are anti-abortion and some are pro-abortion. Some believe in a literal six days of creation and others in a billions of years scientific explanation.

How can this be? If all these people start out at the same place, at least theologically, how do they end up at different endpoionts? At some point along the debate, they had to make a decision. To which particular subset of beliefs that was pertinent to the debate would they give more weight? Even though all people involved may believe that the Bible is the inspired Word of God, when faced with conflicting arguments they had to choose which way to go. Is it or isn't it literal? Are the scientists mistaken or wrong? The Bible does not explicitly say, "Thou shall not perform abortions," so how do we decide and interpret what it does say that can be applied to this debate?

These are just two of many divisive issues. I'm not trying to argue one over the other. Something that might be worthy of thought is which ones of these are crucial to our faith journeys and which ones are fringe issues.

I'm just trying to state the process by which both sides come to their conclusions. Sometimes the stated starting point doesn't matter. It's the unstated starting point that does. We all have a set of subconscious assumptions about how the world works that gives meaning to how we interpret the events in our lives. Next week I'll introduce miracles into the melee. For now, what are your thoughts? What subconscious assumptions are you aware of? Have any of these ever changed? How important is it to know what they are?

Starting Points - part 1

There are a lot of interesting debates out there. The most interesting and volatile are the ones which involve politics and/or religion. You know the old saying - don't talk about either if you want to avoid an argument. My dear old dad, God rest his soul, had some very strong opinions and avoided debate about them. Equally explosive are the ones which involve religion and science. Hmmm . . . Maybe religion is the actual powder keg in this whole mess. Pick an issue and find a way to incorporate religion into it and one of two things will happen. It will either explode or the other person will totally dismiss you. Sometimes both things happen.

For a person on a faith journey, this sometimes explosive nature of religion causes a problem. You don't know how to handle it. You don't even know if you SHOULD handle. Depending on where you are in your journey, you might find yourself debating abandoning the journey instead of the issue itself. All because you find yourself trying to reconcile two or more different starting points. Sometimes you have to choose one and accept the end result.

I'll never forget being in a college math class and the professor "proved" some things that were totally contrary to all my assumptions about how the world worked geometrically. But the proofs were completely valid. Despite their apparent illogical nature, their validity was an outcome of their starting points. In our "normal" flat world, we accept without question that you can draw one and only one straight line through any two points. However, pull a globe out and take a look at what our world really looks like. If you put one finger on the North Pole and one finger on the South Pole (two points), you can trace an infinite number of straight lines of longitude that connect these two. Suddenly, everything has changed!

So, back to the real purpose of this blog. Everybody's faith journey has a starting point. In fact it has multiple types of starting points. It has a starting point in time. You might not be able to identify that point, but at some point in your life, you began a conscious journey to explore matters of faith. Your journey has a philosophical starting point. That's the fun one because it can change. As you journey, you find yourself changing routes because your current road leads you to a dead end. Or you take a fork in the road somewhere that connects you to a set of ideas that are totally brand new and you realize that they are part of some other system and you are not even sure how you got there. You might even find yourself in one of those hot topic debates with seemingly irreconcilable positions and you have to choose a starting point so you can decide on one or the other positions.

There's a lot more to be said about starting points that I'll say later. I'd love to hear about the starting points of others - whether they be starting points in time or ideas. What are the starting points of your faith journey?

Revisiting the lawn

Well, it has begun. I put it off as long as I could. I mowed for the first time this year. For the next 5-6 months, this ritual will be conducted once a week. The only bright spot is that in July I will get to switch lawns and begin caring for a different one.

If you've been here before, you know how I feel about yardwork. This past weekend wasn't so bad. After a wonderful warm spell, the weather turned cold, so I didn't even break a sweat. The only bad part was that the entire yard did not really need to be mowed. Yet I still had to "mow" the whole thing in order to get all the patches that did. Within a month, however, I won't have that option. The whole thing will need to be mowed. Then I'll start doing the countdown thing to the last time I have to mow it. Hopefully I won't grow tired of my new lawn before the mowing season ends.

Some things just have to be done - like flossing, showering, mowing, and your various "holy habits". Some are more enjoyable than others. Most of the time, mowing falls at the bottom of the list for me. There are some things that just have to be done when you are on a faith journey. What those things are will differ depending on who you ask. I'm curious what other people think are the things that "have to be done" when you are on a faith journey. Which of those things have you really enjoyed and which ones are a drudgery?

Hidden Charges

I was just looking at a bill for our trash pickup. We've contracted for a once a month dumpster pickup. The invoice shows the fee for the monthly pickup. Then it shows something they call "Fuel/Environmental Recovery Fee". It's always been there and I've always known it. Today however it irks me. When they set up their business, did they not realize that the trucks would need fuel? Were they unaware that garbage disposal impacted the environment? Isn't that the cost of doing business? Shouldn't it just be part of the fee?

I know why they do it - so they can say they haven't raised the prices. Same reason why muncipalities begin charging more for whatever service they can so they can say they haven't raised taxes. In one city where we lived, yard waste pickup went from free pickup and free can to free pickup but $20 can to free pickup, $20 can, $50 year sticker on the can. But taxes never went up.

Growing up, I heard from folks in the church that salvation and forgiveness of sins were free. All we had to do was accept it. I watched others take advantage of this free offer. Then I watched the folks in the church start to apply "other fees" in the forms of do's and don'ts. And I watched people eventually leave their free gift behind because they got tired of the fees.

On my own faith journey, I've experienced the other fees and rebelled against it. I refused to pay them. But I somehow stayed on my journey. As a faith journey guide, I try to watch myself to not impose hidden, unnecessary fees on others. I may pay the dumpster company every month, but there are restrictions on what I can put in it. No couches, hazardous chemicals, nuclear waste. . . you know, the basic restrictions. My faith journey may be free, but it is not without cost or restrictions.

The problem is that we live in the age of bundle packages and multiple calling plans. Sometimes the church establishes hidden fees and charges in a good willed effort to help people. So, people react by wanting to know the minimum required to keep on the faith journey. We should be focusing on the abundance we could get out of it if we fully exercised every option available to us. People on a faith journey need to know where to find those options.

What options have you discovered? Once discovered, how did they affect your journey? Or, what hidden fees have you experienced so we can help one another avoid the same trap?

Just a thought.

Flossing and other Habits

Gasp! Sorry, I just had to start that way. Apparently it's my new buzzword. I noticed it in 2 of my last 3 posts. Amazing how things become habit, even speech. I had to assure a guy he was not offending me every time he slipped with a four letter word, especially since it was of relatively benign nature. I knew it was a result of 40+ years of using it regularly. He had only recently begun his faith journey and this is one of those things that would take care of itself.

My dentist got on me for not flossing. I knew he would. Every dentist I've ever had did the same. I just have not been able to form the habit. I will do really well for a couple of weeks but never make to the end of the proverbial 30 days that supposedly cements a habit. He told me to not try to form the habit. He said, "Just do it for 30 days. Once you've done it for a month, you won't stop. You'll notice such a difference when you don't that you won't be able to NOT floss. It will be like skipping a shower one day." We'll see. I haven't begun day 1 yet.

When people begin their faith journeys, we try really hard to help them develop what has been called "holy habits" and quit some of their other ones. We always say, "Just do it for 30 days. It will be a habit and then you won't be able to stop." I'm not sure that's necessarily true. For 9 months I followed a composite of all the good carb/bad carb/anti-carb eating plans. I actually lost almost 25 pounds. Things got a little stressful and I began to give in to the ice cream and candy bars again. Soon biscuits re-entered my diet. I've put about 7 pounds back on. The pants have tightened up again and I know what I need to do. I to return to the other way of eating because it's better for me. And I actually enjoyed everything I was eating on that plan, so it's not like I'm really depriving myself of pleasure.

So, it's not the amount of time that's important when you want to develop a habit or a routine. Perhaps it just how badly you want to do it. My "holy habits" are not ones I do because I have programmed my life that way. I just miss them when I skip them. I feel like I've not showered or flossed. I see how their presence or absence affects my faith journey.

Just a thought. What do you think?

As a side note, they say once you do crack you are hooked. That's a lot less than 30 days isn't it? Any chance there's a positive thing out there that will hook us first time?

doldrums

When I first set up this blog, it was my intention to post every week, hoping to encourage personal reflection in the readers. I set it up in Feb 2005 and finally, in Jan 2006, got around to posting! Of course, my original intentions may have been arrogant to start with. I assumed that I would have enough things to say to post every week AND that others would actually read. Luckily, I have three brothers and sisters and a handful of good friends. So, at least a handful people actually read it.

Anyway . . . last week I faced Monday morning with dread because, * Gasp * I didn't know what to write. Fortunately for me, an angel came along and brightened my weekend. As I pondered my doom of having to write something for someone to read, I realized how quickly the novelty wears off things. My children, because of the generation into which they have been born, suffer even more because the world has become 3 - 5 minute multimedia bites. Is it any wonder that so many kids are becoming ADD?

I don't know if we can call it fact or not, but things at least SEEM to be more fun when they are brand new. Our cars, our toys, our spouses, our blogs, . . . , even our faith journeys. When I decided that I was going to follow God as a high school senior, the joy from the novelty was tremondous. I read chapter after chapter in my Bible every night. It was even a King James translation and I did not always follow the sentence structure or vocab, but I loved reading it. A couple of months into it and the excitement began to wane. By the fall when I was college freshman, it became something I better do or I would lose my edge. It was just part of the routine.

My relationship with God lost some of its shiny newness and excitement. For the most part, I stayed on the journey heading towards him. There were periods of standing still over the years. One day, I decided to take off, make up for ground lost from those times of standing still, by going as fast as I could in God's direction. I can honestly say that todayI no longer suffer from boredom in my relationship with God. Each day brings a sense of novelty. It's exciting and new.

What about your journey? Is it one of last months toys, thrown into the corner? Have you experienced moments of novelty and wondered how to get them back? Is it ok to expect and want novelty?

What are your thoughts?

Touched by an Angel

I met an angel on Saturday. I was on my way to a speaking engagement and I stopped to pick up a biscuit at a fast food resturant. As I pulled up to the window to pay, I just stuck my hand out with my money in it, caught up in my own little world of very important things. Then something startling happened. The girl working the window just about climbed into my car, or at least it seemed. I was in my Corolla, so I was pretty low to the ground. She went out of her to lean out the window and stoop a little lower so she could make eye contact. As I relayed the story to my wife, she said the girl was flirting. Trust me, I'm at the age where that kind of ego boost doesn't happen anymore. This girl just knew the importance of eye contact and a pretty smile. Even if it was bit frightening!

She took my money and came back with my biscuit. She asked if I needed ketchup for my hash browns. When that transaction was finished, she gave another beautiful smile and wished me a great day.

Something interesting happened to me as I drove away from the window. I felt really good, really happy inside. It had not been a bad day by any means. My wife and I slept in. The kids were getting along well when I left. I was looking forward to my time with some children's ministry workers. But it was all suddenly better. And it all was the result of someone going out of her way to share a smile.

Naturally, it got me to thinking. Man, what a powerful experience! You might think I'm a little off kilter, but I was profoundly affected. I began to think about all the ways I could begin to practice such power. What if I just smiled more often, and even more importantly, went out of my way to share it with someone? All the ladies that work for me here at the day care know how task oriented I am. Any time I have the "man on a mission" look between tasks, some of them began to worry and ask "What's wrong?" They much rather see my happy joking face. This morning I was on the phone with a future employee and I was in the middle of a task, so I was quite focused. Very early in our conversation she asked if everything was ok because I did not seem my usual happy self. Which I found VERY interesting because you can count on one hand the number of times we have talked and all but one have been on the phone.

The power of a smile. The power of joy. Nothing profund to ponder here. I just wanted to share.

So, is it a sport?

Let the drama begin! The 20th Winter Olympics are about halfway over. I got lucky this weekend. We usually can't get the local NBC affiliate, but something magical happened to the rabbit ears. All weekend I enjoyed bobsledding, downhill skiing, snowboarding, and (gasp!) ice dancing. OK, maybe enjoyed is too strong a word when talking about ice dancing. The tv was on, providing background noise while the ice dancing athletes competed. While my wife and I sat there, I asked the question aloud, "Is ice dancing a sport?" Before you pass judgment on the "sport" or on me for what you assume may be my opinion, consider these thoughts.

First of all, I do not doubt the physical conditioning of the people involved. Like I told my wife, I'm sure that all the male ice dancers could kick my butt without any problem. They certainly show great coordination. I can barely do the dance steps in shoes, much less on a thin metal blades. But great physical condition and coordination do not a sport make, do they?

Maybe I shouldn't even be asking the question. Maybe my initial assumption is in error. I have always considered the Olympics a sporting event. When someone refers to the Olympics, they almost always say "Olympic competition". There are all kinds of competitions, including dancing. But the competitors are almost always referred to as "athletes" and to me that denotes a sport. I've never seen an ice dancer on a Gatorade or a beer commercial. If ice dancing is a sport, at what point did it become one?

Which leads me to an important question about people on a faith journey. At what point does a person on a faith journey become a Christian? There are lots of answers to that question. I think only one answer matters, that of the final judge - the person from whom the name "Christian" derives. I've got my thoughts and I'll admit that my interpretation of those thoughts is constantly evolving, though the center does not change. I'll be glad to post them later. But I'm really curious to hear from others on their own journeys. What do you think?

Tuesday 2/21/06 11:24 AM Afterthoughts
- Do ice dancers want to be considered athletes?
- When would someone on a faith journey call him or herself a "Christian"?
- Does everyone on a faith journey even want to be called a Christian?

Real Love

Valentine's Day is in two days. If you've not done so yet, make sure you go out and buy something special for the one you love. Two weeks from tomorrow, Feb 27, will the two year anniversary of my father's death. As we get ready to celebrate a day of love, here are some thoughts on my father's love.

I'll never forget the first time I realized how much my father loved me and how much he was willing to sacrifice for me. I was around eight years old. It didn't come in the form of a gift, a hug, or even in the words, "I love you." It didn't occur to me as some sweet "A-ha" when he came to my Little League baseball game. It happened across the street from our house, down at the shore. It was summer time. We walked down to the shore where our boat was moored. By the way, we call it "the landing" back home. We would always go down several times a week, just to check up on the boat - check the batteries, bail out any rain water, knock off some barnacles.

On this particular day, the tide was low. While my father worked on the boat and my little sister played on the shore, I walked around on the shoals that were exposed by the low tide. There was so much to do as I wandered along those microcosms of life. I'd find sand dollars and watch them bury themselves to get away from me. Sometimes a sea horse or even a baby sand shark would be stranded in a tidal pool. Most of the time I would dig up clams, look for conchs, or just sit around eating raw scallops.

On this day, I was playing around in one of those tidal pools when I raked my foot across a jackknife clam. It "slit my foot wide open", as we used to say. The water turned bright red in a hurry. I guess I gave one of those screams that every parent recognizes - the one that indicates REAL pain or trouble, not just frustration or anger. My dad jumped out of the boat and ran over to me.

To stop the bleeding, he pulled his shirt off and wrapped it around my foot. As he did so, I distinctly remember thinking, "Wow! He is using his shirt. He will never be able to wear this shirt again. He is willing to sacrifice this for me." That may not seem like a big deal, but to an eight year old kid, it was pretty big. Then, he threw me up on his shoulders and carried me home while my sister walked beside us.

I don't remember anything else that happened that day. I probably got rushed to the emergency room for my yearly tetanus shot. I got quite a few of those as a kid. But I'll never forget the feeling of my father's love, a shirt wrapped around my bleeding foot.

Interestingly, as I finished writing this story, I am reminded of another son who bled, but his father chose to watch because of the greater love he felt for us. Something to think about, isn't it.

Grace & Hollywood

I thought about writing about the Super Bowl and all the hoopla that comes with it, but quickly got bored with the idea. I instead wanted to comment one more time on End of the Spear. I came across a post on another blog via another blog I read regularly. He touches on an interesting subject which I myself wondered about, but in a slightly different vein. I'll post a link to his blog at the end.

As someone who is concerned about the faith journeys of other people, I wonder how a film like Spear affects the people involved with its production. This is a movie with an obvious Christian message. It is, afterall, about missionaries. I wondered the same thing when The Passion of the Christ came out two years ago and you don't have to be a rocket theologian to know what it's about. I have no reason to believe that everyone involved called themselves a "Christian" just like I have no reason to believe that everyone in my church on any given Sunday would call themselves one either.

I posted last month how overtly Christian themes pop up with regularity in movies all the time. Are the people in those films affected in any way by the presence of those themes and ideas? Do they see and recognize the hands of grace at work around them? For that matter, do we always see the hands of grace at work around us? Do we see the gazillion ways that God is talking to us through the everyday events of our lives? Judging from my own experience, I'd say no. Usually it happens after the fact with a big "a ha" moment. Whether we recognize grace or not, I think it it still working and I think it is steering us in the right directions for our faith journeys.

How have you seen grace working in your life? How has God been talking to you?

BTW, here's the other blog.

End of the Spear - the power of forgiveness

This weekend my wife and I saw what may be the best movie of the year because it is true and gives us a very powerful message. Of course, I'm a little biased because of the content of the message. If you plan on seeing End of the Spear and don't know the story and don't want it spoiled for you, then skip the next two paragraphs or STOP READING NOW ;-)



Man, what a powerful movie. I've known the story of Jim Elliot and the other four missionaries that were killed by the Waedonis (us white Americans called them Acusa's which meant "naked people"). And I knew the ending of how the wives of these men moved into the village ANYWAY because sharing the Gospel was too important. But this story focused very little on Elliot. It centered around Nate Saint, the pilot of the mission and his son Steve. Steve later came back as an adult to live with the Waedoni to help them cope with the change in their society as they tried to integrate into the modern era.

There were a couple of lines that were extremely powerful. Right before Nate Saint takes off in his plane with plans to make contact with the violent Waedoni, his six or seven year old son Steve asks, "Will you use your gun if they attack? Will you defend yourself?" Nate stops and looks at his son and says, "I can't. They aren't ready to go to heaven yet." Forty years after the event, one of the Waeadoni who was part of the attack that killed all five missionaries recounted the story to now adult Steve. He described seeing heaven open up to receive the souls of the men, very much like Stephen witnessesd in Acts chapters 6 & 7. The leader of the tribe who actually killed Nate finally admitted his act to Steve, opening himself up to be killed for his act. Nate's response to Mincayani was, "No one took my father's life. He gave it!"




Forgiveness was woven throughout this film in a powerful way. And what it made it so easy to do was because it was true. We're not talking forgiveness for stealing something from me or for lying to me. This was about forgiving you despite killing someone I loved. And of course the ultimate act of forgiveness was the fact that God allowed US to kill his son so we COULD be forgiven! Now that's a concept that can be hard to wrap your mind around.

I don't have any original earth shattering thoughts of my own. I do have some questions that continually run through my mind. I am curious about the role or frequency of forgiveness in our society. I wonder if I could ever be as forgiving as the families of these men. I wonder if anyone else wonders about forgiveness. I wonder how many people out there are crippled because they need forgiveness and can't find it or maybe they're crippled because they are withholding it. I know where the true power of forgiveness comes from. If you are looking for such a power yourself and don't know where to start, I'd suggest this movie. It will definitely help you on your faith journey.

Group Karaoke

First, I need to apologize. My response to dlucks earlier this week came off as harsh to some who read it. dlucks is a personal friend of mine and we've talked about it, but anybody else out there wondering what my problem is, I just wanted to let you know. I did not intend to say or imply that people should not follow their dreams. Nor was I trying to blame the victim. My real beef is with people who by their apathy or lack of response, although well meaning and in love, allow those they love to head in the wrong direction.

Which is why I have a proposal. American Idol - the Home Version. Every week you get together with your friends and sing away. You can even dress up and pretend to be one of the guys who is really just pulling a stunt so he can get on tv. Laugh it up and have some fun. Somebody can play Simon, Paula, and Randy, except without some of the more bitter comments. The "judges" can offer advice on how to improve your performance for next week.

What I think would be really cool is Faith Journey - The Home Version, also know as Faith Journey - the Multiplayer Version. Every week a group of folks would get together and talk about their journeys. They could talk about the really cool things that have happened. They could share about anything they are really struggling with. And because it's all done in (serious) fun and with a group of folks who really care about you, you can get some advice on how to make your journey better if you need it. You can even hear about some things that you need to change because they might jeopardize your journey.

For me, some aspects of the faith journey are like going to the gym and working out. You get stronger because you struggle with the weights. The good thing about the gym is there are other people there to assist with the struggle so you don't get injured. There are even special machines to help you with the right motions to further prevent injury. It's a safe environment. A faith journey should never be taken alone. It should be done with others, in a safe environment where you can struggle and have the help of others to prevent injury. Of course, the people in your group must be willing to help and not just watch you get injured, just like you shouldn't just watch another yourself.

But you have to be willing to play Faith Journey - the Home Version instead of Faith Journey for 1 player. One of the reasons I can't bench press 250 pounds, besides not working out (smile), is I typically work out alone so I have to stop the struggle short of what it could potentially and beneficially be. I'm glad my faith journey has not been that way. My journey has always been a group activity and I am so much the better for it. Give it a try. Go get your own copy of Faith Journey - the Multiplayer Journey wherever Faith Journey products are sold.

You can be the Next American Idol - Yeah, right!

It’s back! American Idol returned last week. I admit it. I got hooked last year. I really wanted Bo to win. But I NEVER EVER voted. For the next few weeks, I will carve out a couple of hours a week to watch people with big dreams try to do something they should never attempt – sing in public. I’ve got friends and family who will stop watching as soon as the real contest begins and they no longer show the rejects from the tryouts. Admittedly, that’s what got me to watching. Seeing William Hung’s rendition of She Bangs convinced me I better not miss such “quality” entertainment.

Now, I don’t for a minute think that Simon, Paula, and Randy suffer in the slightest. But would you want to sit thru thousands of obviously untalented people who really thought they were the next American Idol? There are some who tryout and it’s clear by the stunts they pull that they are just trying to get on television. But I honestly think that most of the contestants believe they have a chance. Besides Simon acting like a jerk, why else would they come out so hurt emotionally?

I have never been accused of being an overly compassionate guy, but I also have to wonder why some of these people’s friends and family don’t stop them from making fools of themselves? It’s one thing to be supportive and I know that mothers never want to hurt their children. But come on! Don’t pump somebody up and encourage them to do something that they really can’t do.

I know it’s a hard row to hoe, but as a real friend or father I have to lovingly encourage people NOT to do certain things. It’s part of that tough love thing. There are times that I watch people on their faith journeys and I can see they are doing things they never should be doing. Or they are just heading in the wrong direction. It has to be done delicately in some cases, but it is far better to help someone make the corrections before they get too far. Maybe it’s the delicate part that steers most people away from helping their friends and families.

It REALLY bothers me in the church when a group of people on their faith journey together don’t step in to help a friend. If you see a friend heading in the wrong direction, shouldn’t you help turn them around? Why are we so afraid of being labeled judgmental? Is it better as a church family on a faith journey together to mourn with a person who is suffering the consequences of some bad choices because we didn’t step in? Or even worse, to mourn the absence of that friend from our family because they have abandoned the journey altogether? I don’t think either one is a viable option.

So what do we do about it? If you are on a faith journey, how and when do you want to be advised of how you are doing? I’d like to know your good AND bad experiences. What are your thoughts?

They're gonna put me in the movies . . .

I saw the teaser trailer for Superman Returns the other day. As you watch scenes from the movie, you hear the voice of Jor-El, played by Marlon Brando. This isn’t an exact quote, but he says, “They are not a bad people. They can be a great race. All they need is someone to guide them. That’s why I’m sending you, my only son, to be a shining light to guide the way.” I immediately recognized what I’m sure is an intentional comparison by the movie writers – Jesus. Jesus, God’s only son, called himself the “Light of the world”. He was sent to save us from the destruction caused by sin.

Watching that trailer made me think about all the other parallels to Jesus you find in the movies or even in literature. I could write for days and never exhaust the list. George Lucas borrowed many elements from Christianity in the theology of Star Wars. Phenomenon, starring John Travolta, gives us a Jesus-like character with suddenly miraculous powers, brought about by sudden flash of light one night ( a star of Bethlehem perhaps?). Eleven year old Trevor McKinney in Pay it Forward shows us how we ought to live and then gives his life for a friend. You certainly can’t leave out Neo from the Matrix Trilogy.

There are others that might not seem so obvious like John Conley from The Green Mile. He performs miracles and even has the same initials. Some movies never set up a perfect or even miraculous hero, but always end with a moment of self-sacrifice for the good of the world – Bruce Willis in Armageddon or Robert DeNiro in Sudden Impact. Mr. Spock even said the “good of the many outweigh the needs of the few” right before giving up his life in Star Trek 2: The Wrath of Khan, only to be resurrected in Star Trek 3:The Search for Spock.

Here’s my question. Why is this such a popular theme or motif? Is there something within us that is naturally searching for such a person? If so why is that need there? Why don’t we find obvious widespread use of Hindu themes and theology in film and literature or any other religion for that matter? Is it because down deep we somehow know there really is only one way and it is through Jesus Christ?

Just a thought. What are yours?