how are we supposed to live as a community of disciples when most of the people in the community only seem to be feigning disicpleship?
what pain are they hiding (or hiding from) that they won't give all of who they are?
how can we move forward together, to be the Church that Jesus talks about in John's upper room discourse?
how can we speak into each other's lives prophetically and not be judgmental?
how do we recover discipleship in our day and age?
Wednesday, January 04, 2006
Friday, December 16, 2005
Greek to me
I find it hard to believe that just three plus months ago, I couldn't have told you the difference between a greek verb and a greek noun, let alone declension, case, gender, or number. But as of last night, I made it through my NT Greek final exam. And it wasn't nearly as bad as I thought.
It turned out to be shorter than I thought it would be (no complaints there). Just a pericope out of John 15, verses 8 through 15. If this blog allowed for the font, I'd reprint the passage in greek, but alas, it doesn't. Needless to say, it was a good challenge. And it reminded me how good God is. I'm looking forward to using what I know, and learning more, as eventually take Greek Exegesis at some point. One thing I will say is that studying the New Testament in its original language has reminded me of the power of the words that I experienced the first time I opened a Bible to read for myself. Wow, is all I can say.
But I also want to share some thanks. First, thanks to my wife and kids for being so understanding when I had to study. I also want to thank my instructor, Lois Wilson, whose gentle spirit made learning Greek almost easy. Then I have to thank Debbie Watson, whom I was desperately hoping I would be studying Greek under, but alas and alack, didn't - Debbie was still incredibly encouraging for me. And I want to thank my students for putting up with me bringing in little nuggets of Greek into our weekly bible studies here and there.
Now I can honestly say, "it's Greek to me" and mean it.
It turned out to be shorter than I thought it would be (no complaints there). Just a pericope out of John 15, verses 8 through 15. If this blog allowed for the font, I'd reprint the passage in greek, but alas, it doesn't. Needless to say, it was a good challenge. And it reminded me how good God is. I'm looking forward to using what I know, and learning more, as eventually take Greek Exegesis at some point. One thing I will say is that studying the New Testament in its original language has reminded me of the power of the words that I experienced the first time I opened a Bible to read for myself. Wow, is all I can say.
But I also want to share some thanks. First, thanks to my wife and kids for being so understanding when I had to study. I also want to thank my instructor, Lois Wilson, whose gentle spirit made learning Greek almost easy. Then I have to thank Debbie Watson, whom I was desperately hoping I would be studying Greek under, but alas and alack, didn't - Debbie was still incredibly encouraging for me. And I want to thank my students for putting up with me bringing in little nuggets of Greek into our weekly bible studies here and there.
Now I can honestly say, "it's Greek to me" and mean it.
Friday, November 11, 2005
understanding ourselves - understanding myself
Life is full of ups and downs. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to be able to observe that reality. I think when you work in the church that truth becomes a weekly if not daily occurance. Just over a week ago (from this entry), I was given a heads up that apparently two or more people had gone to my pastor to complain about me in some way, shape, or form. While none of those people has come to me directly to talk or confront me about how I've "sinned" against them (see Matthew 18), it was decided that there would be meetings with these people and others about perceptions of my performance, my attitude, my style of ministry.
I have to say, my gut reaction was not good. It's been a real sad experience, as I feel hurt, betrayed, and deeply saddened that anyone (someone from within the church) who had something against me would rather go and rip against me behind my back rather than come to me. The long and short of it is it's left me feeling really defensive, and even persecuted.
Yet, at the same time, I've also felt like my inner emotions have been way out of whack, too. While I'm obviously not happy about all of this, I was also feeling that the deeper, inner feelings were too strong. Why was this so? Yesterday, during my day off, in between translating greek sentences and making up study notes for new greek verb tenses, I made a simple and short prayer: "Lord, show me my heart, that I may understand myself."
If you know me, or you pray with any regularity, you know that prayers uttered are not always, and honestly from my experience, rarely answered within a few moments of praying. Yet, that is what happened. Within a few minutes of praying this, while it was still fresh in my mind, I felt the Lord had given me the answer.
What came to mind were images from my middle school and high school years. While I was in 6th grade, my mom remarried, to a fellow my friends came to "lovingly" refer to as Jabba the Hutt. Jabba was, as his "name" implies, an extremely obese fellow with a penchant for unlawful activities. The summer before my senior year in high school he was arrested for imbezelment, and then again arrested while I was in college. Again while I was in college he violated his parole, went "underground", and was later picked up on the other side of the country by the police after bouncing checks to a number of different people and places. You can imagine from all of this that he wasn't a kind person. He was not. And not a day went by that he and I didn't have some sort of clash, whereby he would find something about me, something I had done, or something he perceived I had done or should've done, and laid into me with a verbal assault to rival any drill sergeant's.
As I received the answer to my prayer, I realized that the root of my anxious and defensive feelings sank all the way to those memories, those moments of being blamed and accused of things that were of little importance or nonexistent. And I realized that my frustrations and resentment toward what's going on now is so strong because deep in my mind, I feel unjustly accused, and once more under assault from a critical spirit.
In coming to understand my self, I have come to a better place. I realize I don't have to listen to those old voices. I don't have to feel so vulnerable as I did when I was a young teenager. And I don't have to fear. People will say what they want about you, and they will believe what they want about you. I'm not going to fear because I know that God is in control, and that I have a clean conscience. There may be misunderstandings about something I've done or even said. Perhaps someone caught me on an off day and have been harboring ill feelings ever since. It's possible. At the same time, I don't have to buy into their perceptions of me.
I trust God. And I trust that the people who are listening to these accusations want the best for everyone, especially for God to be glorified. I pray that out of all of this, we all may be reconciled in Christ. That's something I feel good about. That's something I've come to understand about myself. Praise God!
I have to say, my gut reaction was not good. It's been a real sad experience, as I feel hurt, betrayed, and deeply saddened that anyone (someone from within the church) who had something against me would rather go and rip against me behind my back rather than come to me. The long and short of it is it's left me feeling really defensive, and even persecuted.
Yet, at the same time, I've also felt like my inner emotions have been way out of whack, too. While I'm obviously not happy about all of this, I was also feeling that the deeper, inner feelings were too strong. Why was this so? Yesterday, during my day off, in between translating greek sentences and making up study notes for new greek verb tenses, I made a simple and short prayer: "Lord, show me my heart, that I may understand myself."
If you know me, or you pray with any regularity, you know that prayers uttered are not always, and honestly from my experience, rarely answered within a few moments of praying. Yet, that is what happened. Within a few minutes of praying this, while it was still fresh in my mind, I felt the Lord had given me the answer.
What came to mind were images from my middle school and high school years. While I was in 6th grade, my mom remarried, to a fellow my friends came to "lovingly" refer to as Jabba the Hutt. Jabba was, as his "name" implies, an extremely obese fellow with a penchant for unlawful activities. The summer before my senior year in high school he was arrested for imbezelment, and then again arrested while I was in college. Again while I was in college he violated his parole, went "underground", and was later picked up on the other side of the country by the police after bouncing checks to a number of different people and places. You can imagine from all of this that he wasn't a kind person. He was not. And not a day went by that he and I didn't have some sort of clash, whereby he would find something about me, something I had done, or something he perceived I had done or should've done, and laid into me with a verbal assault to rival any drill sergeant's.
As I received the answer to my prayer, I realized that the root of my anxious and defensive feelings sank all the way to those memories, those moments of being blamed and accused of things that were of little importance or nonexistent. And I realized that my frustrations and resentment toward what's going on now is so strong because deep in my mind, I feel unjustly accused, and once more under assault from a critical spirit.
In coming to understand my self, I have come to a better place. I realize I don't have to listen to those old voices. I don't have to feel so vulnerable as I did when I was a young teenager. And I don't have to fear. People will say what they want about you, and they will believe what they want about you. I'm not going to fear because I know that God is in control, and that I have a clean conscience. There may be misunderstandings about something I've done or even said. Perhaps someone caught me on an off day and have been harboring ill feelings ever since. It's possible. At the same time, I don't have to buy into their perceptions of me.
I trust God. And I trust that the people who are listening to these accusations want the best for everyone, especially for God to be glorified. I pray that out of all of this, we all may be reconciled in Christ. That's something I feel good about. That's something I've come to understand about myself. Praise God!
Friday, October 28, 2005
what is a "disciple"?
I'm looking to write a message arc on the subject of 'what is a "disciple"?' for my high school youth group. I'm interested in anyone's take on the subject. What do you think?
Wednesday, October 19, 2005
One Second
The idea for this thought came from my friend David Bellamy...
Have you ever thought about that increment of time we refer to as one second? It might not mean much to you, but this past Saturday night, it meant Penn State's first loss of the season to a team they were supposed to have no problem beating. In a nutshell, in the last second of the game, with Penn State up 25 to 21, University of Michigan's quarterback was able to move the ball up and into the Penn State's red zone (the 20 yards closest to the end zone). Forget the terrible calls by the refs which allowed this to happen in the first place (and despite your thoughts, I'm not on sour grapes). Instead, focus on the fact that with one second left in the game, Michigan was able to rocket a pass to an open receiver in the Penn State end zone. Poof. End of game.
What does one second mean in your life? It may not seem like much. And let's face it, few reading this e-newsletter will probably ever be in such a situation like the Penn State-Michigan game. But one second can have a profound effect, even in the midst of some of the more mundane, regular moments of our lives. One second is about the time it takes for each of us to go from thought to action. That is, one second is the time it takes for you to convert your thinking about doing or saying something into your actually doing or saying something. One second can mean the difference between something getting done or not. It can be the difference between your sharing something profound, or sticking your foot in your mouth.
One second can also have profound eternal consequences. It can mean the difference between spending eternity in the joyful presence of God, or spending in eternal damnation, separated from God. One second. The bible tells us that death comes to all people, with no bias toward economic status, education, race, or even religion. And on top of that, the bible says that everyone who dies will face judgment by God. Death can come as quick as one second. I just heard about a high school class mate and friend of mine who was killed in a car accident last month. I don't know exactly how he died. And I don't really know how quickly he died. But I've found myself wondering about where he is right now. Not too long after school ended this past June, an LM student suddenly died from a tumor near her heart. Did she have a chance to cry out to God? This is not meant as either a judgment on either of these people. But it is one of those 'in-your-face' kinds of questions for you. Do you know where you're going to spend eternity? One second can make a difference. If you're reading this, and you want to make an eternal difference in your life, here and now, drop me a line, and we can talk. One second. It could be the difference between life and death.
Have you ever thought about that increment of time we refer to as one second? It might not mean much to you, but this past Saturday night, it meant Penn State's first loss of the season to a team they were supposed to have no problem beating. In a nutshell, in the last second of the game, with Penn State up 25 to 21, University of Michigan's quarterback was able to move the ball up and into the Penn State's red zone (the 20 yards closest to the end zone). Forget the terrible calls by the refs which allowed this to happen in the first place (and despite your thoughts, I'm not on sour grapes). Instead, focus on the fact that with one second left in the game, Michigan was able to rocket a pass to an open receiver in the Penn State end zone. Poof. End of game.
What does one second mean in your life? It may not seem like much. And let's face it, few reading this e-newsletter will probably ever be in such a situation like the Penn State-Michigan game. But one second can have a profound effect, even in the midst of some of the more mundane, regular moments of our lives. One second is about the time it takes for each of us to go from thought to action. That is, one second is the time it takes for you to convert your thinking about doing or saying something into your actually doing or saying something. One second can mean the difference between something getting done or not. It can be the difference between your sharing something profound, or sticking your foot in your mouth.
One second can also have profound eternal consequences. It can mean the difference between spending eternity in the joyful presence of God, or spending in eternal damnation, separated from God. One second. The bible tells us that death comes to all people, with no bias toward economic status, education, race, or even religion. And on top of that, the bible says that everyone who dies will face judgment by God. Death can come as quick as one second. I just heard about a high school class mate and friend of mine who was killed in a car accident last month. I don't know exactly how he died. And I don't really know how quickly he died. But I've found myself wondering about where he is right now. Not too long after school ended this past June, an LM student suddenly died from a tumor near her heart. Did she have a chance to cry out to God? This is not meant as either a judgment on either of these people. But it is one of those 'in-your-face' kinds of questions for you. Do you know where you're going to spend eternity? One second can make a difference. If you're reading this, and you want to make an eternal difference in your life, here and now, drop me a line, and we can talk. One second. It could be the difference between life and death.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
