Apprentice2Jesus

Ramblings of a Confessing Pentecostal

Archive for the category “Society”

08 Jan 2012
1 Comment

Immigrants and Strangers

As James K.A. Smith would say in his book, Desiring the Kingdom, everything calls for allegiance. All of life has liturgies all around. Which liturgy will call out for our allegiance and we will respond?

We are in the thick of political season in the U.S. Let’s face it, as long as there is a media and as long as there are lobbyists and politicians, we are always in the thick of political season. It’s the only way to fill up a 24 hour news cycle.

And in this season we are once again hearing the calls of allegiance to one party or the other. Certainly on the extremes are those who say voting for one party is actually voting against God. (This is on the right AND the left.)

Political parties call for allegiances. Every election cycle the fate our nation hangs precariously in the balance and if we don’t vote correctly (insert your party beliefs here), America will blow up. (And so it has gone for over 250 years.)

Christians in America play this game. We play and get played. For all the frothing about evangelicals being in the back pockets of Republicans, there is simply the same to be said in the other direction as well. On the extreme left or right we really act like the government is our own little theocracy. We want to the government (which is secular) to act like the Kingdom of God. On both extremes, if one is willing to admit it, that would equate the president as pope or bishop. Since neither extreme is willing to admit that, we cloak it in more “righteous” terms.

This is not some plea to NOT be involved in voting or your duty as a citizen. It IS a plea, as believers, for us to continually evaluate our allegiances. We need to be reminded more than ever that our citizenship is in a different place. As such, we need to pick up the signals from the Kingdom we should be serving.

11 Dear friends, since you are immigrants and strangers in the world, I urge that you avoid worldly desires that wage war against your lives. (1 Pet. 2:11, CEB)

The liturgy of political games is a strong liturgy. The liturgy of consumerism and materialism is a strong liturgy. We have strong liturgies all around us.

Which liturgy will win your allegiance?

Posted in Common English Bible, Culture, Politics, Society, Spiritual Formation and tagged , ,
18 Nov 2011

Not letting the song die in our hearts

The quote I reflected on yesterday from Thoreau was this:

Most men lead lives of quiet desperation and go to the grave with the song still in them.

Are we going to the grave with a song still in our hearts? Are we going to the grave with a work of art still waiting to be formed? Is there a symphony to be composed? A book to be written? A song to be sung? Music to be formed? A film to write?

What is the dream that is in you? What is that God-given gift that this world really needs to hear? Don’t let the song go to the grave with you.

Posted in Culture, People, Society and tagged | Leave a Comment
21 Sep 2011
4 Comments

The Attitude of a Servant and the Need for Justice

The challenge of the servanthood of Jesus is one I like to avoid, quite honestly. ;)

When I get into a text like Philippians 2:1-13 I dig into the meditation of serving. This time through I am tracking the thought of “servant” through the Bible (in a very quick manner). What I am finding is one can’t make this journey without running into the concept of “justice” as well. And then things go downhill from there.

Just what IS “justice?” Depending on where you land on the theological spectrum, the answers are wide. Even going through simple word searches in Bible dictionaries I could easily guess the theological bent of each dictionary’s definition.

The concept of justice is WIDE, which is probably why we’re all over the board on this. We get the conservative version of justice that ends up in the old-style Clint Eastwood stories of making sure the bad guys get what is theirs, even if it’s not what society would exactly approve of. Justice is seen in legal terms.

We get the liberal version of justice that focuses on making sure the poor are taken care of and the margins of society aren’t kicked to the curb completely.

And then the theological grenades start flying.

What I can’t get around at this point is the attitude of a servant and the need to see the ones society doesn’t normally see. It is moving away from the self-branding and self-marketing (including photo ops with the poor just so you can slap it on your website to show how compassionate you are) and it is moving into the action of seeing.

Several years ago I got into a confrontation with city leaders because they were blocking an organization moving into the city that took care of poor predominantly African American families. They had re-zoned a property that the organization was going to get so the “business” of that organization couldn’t take place in that location. It was “bad press” as they say in the political world. I ended up in confrontation with most of the city council members. One particular conversation I had was getting frustrating and I said to the council member, “I need to be the voice for those who can’t speak. They aren’t being heard and I need you to hear me on their behalf.”

The organization still didn’t get the building. They found another place in another part of the metro and moved on.

But I find that when we are truly serving there are times we need to be that voice for the voiceless. We need to see what everyone else is ignoring. I don’t get this right all the time. I don’t think I get it right most of the time.

But, following Christ, I need to get this attitude in me.

Posted in Bible Study, Culture, Society, Spiritual Formation and tagged ,
06 Dec 2010
2 Comments

Finishing

I have the privilege of meeting with a mentor in ministry every few weeks. We meet because I want to download over 40 years of ministry from his life and learn. One of the things he has on his mind right now is finishing WELL. Not just finishing… but finishing WELL. He is fully aware his adult children are watching. He has transitioned in his life and the transition is important. He thinks about how he carries himself at this stage in his life.

His conversations are forefront in my mind as I teach in college… at the end of the semester… I watch students falter at the finish.

Faltering at the finish of a semester may be okay. It’s a good time to learn. But LEARN we must. Learn to live for the marathon, not the sprint. Learn to PACE.

Learn the deep YES of your life so you can have the guts to say NO to things when a NO is needed!

It’s not about how you start. It’s about how you finish.

Posted in Ministry, Society
21 Jul 2010
2 Comments

Civil Disobedience

Chuck Colson is raising the possibilities of civil disobedience. I understand that there could be some point in my lifetime where there MIGHT be some issues that would cause a separation so severe that civil disobedience would be a course of action.

What, in your opinion, would or would not constitute such a move?

Posted in Culture, Politics, Society and tagged ,
28 Feb 2010
3 Comments

Compassion and Conservative Christians

Who knew? Obviously, no one had any idea “conservative” Christians could be compassionate… that is until someone like the New York Time officially recognizes that, hey, conservative Christians actually do some good! Okay, NOW, conservative Christians can be considered as compassionate. (It was like the media “discovering” Pentecostals in 2006, the 100th Anniversary of Azusa Street.)

Nicholas Kristof gives a slight tip of the hat to the compassion of conservative Christians, and their amazing generosity. He still needs to take his digs at that crowd. (But, hey, I still need to take my digs at him as well.)

Kristof does make an excellent point that is overlooked so often by many people:

A root problem is a liberal snobbishness toward faith-based organizations. Those doing the sneering typically give away far less money than evangelicals. They’re also less likely to spend vacations volunteering at, say, a school or a clinic in Rwanda.

The media may be finally waking up to the hard work, the generosity, and YES, the compassion of conservative Christians. Of course, there is no way they will attribute that phrase to George W. Bush and his work. Why be overly generous?

Still, it’s nice to see some kudos for some very hard work going on in Haiti, Africa, and other parts of the world.

Posted in Culture, Missions, Society and tagged , , ,
14 Jan 2010

Bad Theology Aside

In spite of bad theology (see previous post), and the moral arguments we COULD have, what is obviously needed now is action. Please join me, if you have not already, in sending support to Haiti relief. If you are looking for reputable organizations, please try here or here. There are so many others, but if you want to donate right away and don’t have a favorite, these two are great resources.

Posted in Society, Spirituality and tagged , , , , | Leave a Comment
06 Dec 2009
2 Comments

Is Jesus THE Way?

A recent post over at ScriptureZealot stirred my thinking. Some of the more incendiary comments have since been edited out, but it stirs me nonetheless.

It raised the specter of hard-line Calvinism simply saying, “If you don’t believe in TULIP (and some very specific tenets of Calvinism) then you are preaching another gospel.” That’s the subtle undertone of the piece by Horton. I do not accuse Jeff on his blog of raising such a division!

But when I read of our postmodern “emergent” (or whatever they’re calling it these days) struggles with the uniqueness of Christ, I think, “Why do we have to split hairs between Calvinism and Arminianism? We have bigger problems!”

A recent posting on Christianity Today demonstrates this issue. This new working out of theology and evangelism is scary. When the author of the article tried to bring the leaders of the seminar to a point of demonstrating the uniqueness of Christ and the proposition of Christ, they just wouldn’t declare what Jesus himself declared: He IS the way, the truth and the life!

Consider this disturbing passage:

On the last day, the discussion focused on Christian engagement with other religions. I resonated with much of what was said: the need for respectful dialogue, the willingness to listen and learn, and the intent to promote peace and understanding. But I also experienced a growing sense of unease. As my concern crystallized, I asked our distinguished guests: As those who self-identified with the Christian tradition, how did they understand the uniqueness of Jesus Christ?

Their response was that of course Jesus is unique. But, they continued, so are the leaders of the other world religions. While it was certainly true that Jesus is unique and different from other religious leaders, they said, it is also true that they are unique in relation to him. The uniqueness of Jesus was no different from that of any other important religious figure. Only in this way, they suggested, is equality among religions established as a basis for interreligious dialogue.

Those last two sentences should raise flags, set off alarms, and cause us to fall to our knees in repentance. To me, this isn’t laid at the feet of Calvin or Arminius. And it’s far beyond the problem of holding to some TULIP formula.

We have problems, friends. And it goes FAR beyond some debate between J.I. Packer and N.T. Wright. Neither of those men is preaching another gospel. (Horton, it seems, or maybe Packer, or both, seem to think Wright is proclaiming another gospel.) My contention is Wright is down-right ORTHODOX compared to the horrible theology presented in the last two lines of the quoted passage above.

Jesus is the Savior. Not just MY Savior. He is THE Savior. THE way. THE truth. THE life. No one… NO ONE… comes to the Father except by him.

Posted in Bible Study, Culture, Society, Theology and tagged , , , , ,
28 Sep 2009

Peace in the Middle East

I am a political person to the core. I can talk politics all day long. So… I avoid it. There are just too many other things going on, so I want to focus more on theology, spiritual formation, etc.

Theologically, the whole realm of “end times theology” is a massive heap of varied opinions. So, when I see statements issued like this one, I am curious as to reasons for particular people signing on. Take a look at the press release, then the signatories, and if you get a chance let me know what you think.

Posted in Culture, Society, Theology and tagged , | Leave a Comment
04 May 2009

Monday Thoughts

Some random thoughts from the weekend, last week, etc.

Obama and the Supremes

President Obama will get his first appointment to the Supreme Court. Souter is retiring and now the hand-wringing begins. Conservatives are worried he will find someone even more liberal than Souter. Liberals are worried Obama may not get someone liberal enough. When some media outlet speculates as to whether or not Obama will find someone “liberal”, I just want to go: “DUH!”

Twins, Royals, and Torn Loyalties

In the middle of last season I determined to swear off my boyhood team, the KC Royals. I am a HUGE baseball fan and grew up in the days of George Brett, Frank White, Willie Wilson, Amos Otis … (okay, I could name the entire team if I wanted).

From that glorious World Series in 1985 (Thank you, Don Dekinger!), the Royals have done ZIP. I mean NOTHING.

And I cheered them on. I witnessed a Brett Saberhagen no hitter (thanks to the hometown scorer that night and Kirk Gibson being in left field). And even though I’ve been in Minneapolis for 11 plus years, I kept hoping against all hope that franchise would finally wise up. After another horrible season last year, I threw in the towel. The Twins would be my team! GO TWINS!

Then… the Royals come to town and take two of three from the Twins. The Twins actually handed it over… twice. On Sunday, Baker had a no hitter against the them for six innings. (He did that a couple of years ago, too!) Then… it all collapsed. A four-run Twins lead vanished and the Royals won.

I honestly think teams need to start paying me NOT to cheer for them!

Genius at Work

I must be in a rambling mood. This post is too long.

David Brooks has a column on “Genius.” It’s not so much the divine spark or IQ.

“The latest research suggests a more prosaic, democratic, even puritanical view of the world. The key factor separating geniuses from the merely accomplished is not a divine spark. It’s not IQ. Instead, it’s deliberate practice. Top performers spend more hours (many more hours) practicing their craft.”

The simple fact of the matter may be that practice pays off. It’s not that practice makes perfect, but PERFECT practice makes perfect. You practice the practice.

Russian tennis schools will practice returning volleys without the ball. They concentrate on the technique.

The mind wants to turn deliberate. It wants to form habits, even bad ones. We allow ourselves to get sloppy. By practicing slowly, we force the brain to break down the skills. Examine the rules. Examine the tiny parts. The brain can then internalize a better pattern of performance.

It kind of takes the magic out of great achievement. We just want to think, “Well, I can’t play well because I’m not Tiger Woods.”

Well, it may be you just don’t work as hard as he does at his game. And the man works hard. He wins tournaments with one good leg! That’s not magic.

While it’s said we’re creatures of habit, we may need to learn we can become BETTER creatures of habit.

Posted in Baseball, Politics, Society | Leave a Comment

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