Inspired thoughts

Praying in the Episcopal Church

2008-11-23T16:35:00.000-05:00

I think my eyes have really been opened to new ideas since I have been attending a local community worship service at an Episcopal Church. One thing Episcopalians do well is prayer. As Baptists, we like to make and write our own prayers. The only prayer we probably know by memory is the Lord’s Prayer. However, in the Baptist church we usually pray together, but in a passive way. In my church, we usually say the Lord’s Prayer together after the minister prays the invocation. The pastoral prayer is led by either me, or the youth pastor. The congregation listens and is supposed to pray with me, but it is a seemingly passive way of praying.

However, in the Episcopal Church, we’ve been praying in an active way. Different people help lead the prayer and the congregation has to respond. The congregation is required to take a more active role, whether or not they are paying attention to what is being said. I like this method because many different people are helping lead the prayer and that makes it seem more inclusive. I also like the idea of having prayers already written, especially because I worry that I pray the same thing over and over again. I try to keep my own personal agenda out of it and that is hard to do. If it were up to me I would pray for those who feel broken every week. That is just something that is always on my mind, but I also need to keep everything in balance. I sometimes think it would be nice if I didn’t have to write a prayer.

I really think the Episcopalians do prayer well, but I don’t want to say that Baptists should be just like them. I just think that Baptists ought to be more creative about how they pray. It would be cool to see my Baptist church pray a prayer that required them to respond. At least I would know that the congregation was awake. It would also be nice to say some prayers that were already written, to provide some variety from what I would pray. Writing a prayer is sometimes a needed thing, because there is something that the Spirit lays on me. However, it is also a struggle that I have to deal with. The beauty of being a moderate Baptist is the fact that we get to experiment with different things. Our church has been experimenting with doing communion by way of intinction and it has been a great thing. Letting the church try new things and decide what it likes to do is so healthy. That’s what the church is about; letting the Holy Spirit move.

Vacationing in the Episcopal Church

2008-11-22T14:02:00.000-05:00

For the past few months I have been attending a community worship service at a local Episcopal Church. I had been sensing the need to have a place to worship where I am not responsible for anything. As a minister it is difficult to worship in a worship service where I am praying, reading scripture, teaching the children’s moment, or doing the announcements. To sit in a pew is a privilege and one that I take advantage of on Sunday nights.

My first visit at this service was an eye opening experience. I don’t mind getting out of my comfort zone and I knew that this service would be totally different than what I grew up with. I am Baptist through and through and I felt like a foreigner on the first visit. A good friend of mine wisely said that one should visit a church twice, just to be sure. On the second visit, I felt like I could take more of it in because I knew what to expect. The newness of it all had worn off somewhat and I could really immerse myself in the whole experience. Soon I found myself in a Baptist worship service on Sunday mornings and vacationing in an Episcopal Church on Sunday nights. Sometimes I would even attend this community worship service on Sunday nights and then race off to my Baptist church for a meeting. It has become that important to me.

I have really enjoyed this little worship service for many reasons. It is considered to be a community worship service and lots of different people attend it. Folks from many different denominations attend it and it is a beautiful thing to see everyone praying together, taking communion together, and singing together. The worship style is very Celtic and there are lots of moments for reflection. They purposely leave space in the worship service so we can reflect on the scripture and pray.

I love this little worship service for many reasons, but I think the biggest reason I love it is the fact that this hour on Sunday night is for me. It is my little way of breaking out of the little Baptist world that I have found here in Richmond and engaging another part of the community. In my world full of papers, tests, missions and church work it is nice to be able to worship with these folks. They have truly made me, a Baptist, feel at home in their sanctuary and I am truly grateful. It is so wonderful to see a church like this purposely opening their doors to everyone, even if the priest was floored to find out that they have a young, Baptist, minister/seminarian in their midst every Sunday night.

Holy Cow

2008-11-21T23:09:00.003-05:00

It's been a long time since I've updated this thing. Part of it is because I'm not so sure what to do with this site. When I was in my undergrad I needed someplace to grind my theological ax. Now that is not so much the case.

If anything, my head is bloated with ideas and I don't feel brave enough to post anything. I've got a few things whirling around in my head, and I'll post them soon.

Life is good and I'll take it. My life hasn't been this good in a long while. Just trying not to blink and let this moment pass me by.

I'll post something thoughtful soon. Pinky swear.

To quote myself

2007-12-07T16:41:00.000-05:00

I'm in the final week or so of my first semester of seminary. I am currently writing my final paper for my Christian Ethics class and I'm enjoying the topic. We have been asked to evaluate the implications of having an American flag in a church sanctuary. Here's the introduction. I don't know if I will keep it or not, but it's worth posting.

The American flag is the symbol of the United States and its presence in a church sanctuary becomes troublesome. It is the symbol of American freedom. It has been carried into battle, laid over coffins, flown in front of buildings, and entire books have been written about flag etiquette. As citizens we are not allowed to burn the flag or fly it at night without a light shining on it. It is something so valued and cherished, one would think that the American flag was an actual person. We treat the flag as if it has feelings and that it should sit down and have a conversation with us.

This has been an easy paper to write so far, but that's because it's one topic that has been brewing in my brain for a few years. It's nice to get it all on paper. We'll see how it goes.

Preaching in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria and to the Ends of the Earth

2007-06-14T13:19:00.000-04:00

Lately I’ve been reading through Acts. I have just started my first ministry job in Richmond and I decided to get back to the roots of the church and read Acts. It’s been worth another read. It’s amazing to see the effect that the resurrection and Pentecost had on these early believers. At the end of some of the passages I would scratch my head and wonder, who are these people? What were they thinking?
The first verse that hit me in the first chapter of Acts was this one:

“But when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, you will receive power and will tell people about me everywhere-in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” Acts 1:8

I know that I’ve skimmed over this verse and didn’t make much of it. It’s easy to pinpoint the geographic interpretation of this command from Jesus. Jerusalem is their home town, Judea is their homeland, Samaria is their neighbor, and the ends of the earth is the Roman Empire. Rome was the only known world at the time. Usually I’ve interpreted this geographically and just went to the next verse. But not this time.

This time I began to see the real implications and difficulty that this verse presents to these early believers. Where were the believers preaching in Jerusalem? The temple, of course. The same temple that ordered Jesus crucifixion. I can’t imagine trying to preach in such a hostile environment. The Jewish leaders thought they got rid of Jesus and his following, but now the followers are preaching in their temples. That takes some guts.
Judea is also not easy to preach in either, because of the Judaism. Many Jews were wrapped up in the laws of the Judaism and to hear a message of grace and forgiveness is totally foreign to them. The new believers and the young church had a lot of undoing to do. To tell the Jewish people that the Law of Moses really doesn’t mean a hill of beans in comparison to God’s grace is no easy task. But they did it.

Samaria is Judea’s neighbor. The Jews hated these people because essentially Samaritans took a little bit of Judaism, but not all of it. Jesus even used the illustration of the good Samaritan to drive home a point about prejudice and hatred. I can’t imagine that the Samaritans liked the Jews either. The Jews and Samaritans probably hated each other. And now Jesus tells these new believers to go preach to the people they hate. And to the people who hate them. Not an easy task either. But they did it.

That leaves the last part of the verse which refers to the ends of the earth. To these early Christians the end of the earth was the Roman Empire and the rest of the unknown. The Roman Empire was the known world to them and Rome looked down upon the Jewish people because they were usually troublesome to deal with. The Jewish people hated the Romans too and were even expecting Jesus to deliver them from Roman control. Jesus has now asked the believers to preach to people that oppress them. Go tell someone who despises you about God’s grace. And they do it. They actually do it.

Who are these people? They’re preaching to the very people who crucified Jesus, to the people they hate and hate them, and to the people who oppress them. There’s nothing simple or romantic about this. These people seem to be downright crazy. All of this just shows how much of a hold the Holy Spirit has on these people. Pentecost is the key ingredient here. Without the help of the Holy Spirit, the church would not have made it. All of this just blew my mind when I realized the implications of this command to preach in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and to the ends of the earth. It’s inspiring and mind blowing all at the same time.

Jesus' Mother and the Impact of her Pregnancy

2007-05-18T20:23:00.000-04:00

One of the things that really stands out to me about Jesus is how he treats women. After reevaluating the story of the woman caught in adultery, I’ve recently had another conclusion about it all. Look at his mother. Mary was pregnant before marriage and was most likely ridiculed and even hated. She probably faced harsh criticism and public scorn. Her calling to bear the Christ child was very difficult. She was probably isolated from some of her friends and stared down when she was in public. His father Joseph, didn’t reject Mary, instead he made her his wife. He obeyed God’s command and went against public opinion.

Don’t you think that Jesus saw a glimpse of his mother when he saw this woman caught in adultery? All the public scorn and rejection of her probably seemed very similar to some of the stories Jesus grew up with. I really think he had a soft spot for her because of his parents. Jesus probably faced some rejection himself just because Mary was unmarried when she was pregnant with him. After all, not all Jews believed he was the Christ child. Some may have thought he was just a polite, illegitimate child. Jesus grew up in a household in which his mother was probably rejected by society and he may have faced it too. No wonder He continually has a soft spot for women all throughout his ministry.

I suppose that I’ve overlooked this reality because I am only just beginning to see the human aspects of Christ. He really suffered emotionally. He didn’t spend his ministry gliding along from crisis to crisis without any of it bothering him. Sometimes I want to paint this eternal smile on his face and pretend that his life was easy. It certainly was not.

Lastly, I think it’s incredible that even while in the womb, Jesus was turning the world upside down. The way in which his mother conceived him through the Holy Spirit and how that was perceived in the community, was a huge event full of impact. It impacted his community and his earthly ministry.

Head scratching stuff

2007-03-17T15:54:00.000-04:00

One of the biggest issues that has come up in my theology is that of Biblical inerrancy. What does it mean? Who says what? and How to come to a laymen's term answer are all questions that instantly pop into my mind. One of the most obvious things that I have noticed is that the arguments folks use to prove that the Bible is inerrant are very difficult to get my head around. I do know that there are key pieces of scripture that are used to prove the Bible's inerrancy.

One of the key passages in the Bible inerrancy question is this one:

For truly I tell you, until heaven and earth pass away, not one letter, not one stroke of a letter, will pass from the law until all is accomplished. Matthew 5:18

First of all, what is the law? That's a very basic question isn't it? Could it be the law of Moses? The entire Bible itself? Maybe?

I do believe that Jesus gave a purpose to the law of Moses and that purpose is such: That it showed humanity's weakness and inabililty to follow God on their own. We're completely incapable of being everything that he wants us to be without Christ. Since this is the purpose of the law of Moses, then I do not think that's the law that Jesus is referring to here. It's purpose has been accomplished. It was accomplished then and it is accomplished now. It told the Hebrews back then how incapable they were and it still shows us today how incapable we are. There's got to be a bigger picture here.

I don't think that Jesus is referring to the entire Bible in this passage because that doesn't fit the context. The entire Bible has not been canonized by this point in history. Obviously he can't be talking about the entire Bible here. (And this is something that others would argue against, I know)

However it is important to look at the context of this passage. Jesus is getting ready to reinterpret the Hebrew scriptures. The verses that follow contain the words, 'You have heard..., but I tell you....'. Jesus provides his interpretation of the law. I believe that this is the law he's referring to here. Not Mosaic law, not the entire Bible, but the law that he gives us as he reinterprets scripture.

Okay, so now what. All of Jesus' law has to be accomplished. Everything He gives us to do is impossible to accomplish. He takes the Mosaic law and makes it even harder to follow.

Exactly.

I think His law is accomplished when I am in a relationship with him. Grace is the new factor that wasn't present here. When all of humanity realizes how much we are in desperate need of grace, then the law will be accomplished. I think that this will happen at the final end, when God reveals Himself.

I just think this passage has more to it that just face value interpretation. I don't think it proves that the Bible is inerrant, I think it proves God's grace. Isn't that the purpose of scripture? To see God and his judgement and mercy? Isn't it?

Feel free to comment. Even if you think I'm a heretic. I'm interested to see what people think.

Paul's frustrations

2007-03-12T21:57:00.000-04:00

I know that I have been ignoring this blog for the past few months and there are good reasons for it. First of all I didn’t know what to write anymore, because I was so emotionally, mentally, and spiritually drained. I needed to hide out for a little while to have some time for myself and God. I needed and still need a break from ministry, because I was on the verge of a huge burnout. I am moving in a good direction at this point, and I’m excited to see what is in store for me. Another big reason was that I didn’t just want to put political opinions or denominational rants on here. There may be some, but I don’t want to get too involved with that. Some of the denominational rants hit a little too close to home for me and I am deliberately trying to be careful here. I’m trying. They will probably come out of me sometimes, but I really just want to put ideas about scripture on here. Mostly what I want to write about is what hits my brain when I open the Bible in the morning. Besides, that’s the stuff I get excited about.

All that being stated, one of the topics that I kept coming across after I graduated is the topic of the Universal Church and the Body of Christ. I decided to read Philippians a few months ago and I noticed that it’s full of Paul’s frustrations. This letter is all about working together as a Body of Christ. At the beginning of the letter it is evident that he’s shaking his head and trying bravely to be positive,

What does it matter? Just this, that Christ is proclaimed in every way, whether out of false motives or true, and in that I rejoice. Philippians 1:18

Sometimes I think we fantasize that Paul lives in a Disney movie and that he’s just a great guy and nothing ever bothers him. He lives in chains, converts Roman guards, and does it all while all the birds are singing and skipping through the ancient world. But that is not the case at all. This verse in particular contains a tone of resignation in my opinion. It’s as if he’s throwing his hands in the air and desperately trying to be positive. After all, in the previous verse he informs the reader that some proclaim Christ, ‘out of selfish ambition, not sincerely but intending to increase my suffering in my imprisonment’. Now this is not to say that Christians try to make other Christians’ lives miserable, because that is another argument on another blog. However, it is to say that Paul is really suffering at the hands of his fellow ‘family’ members and he’s trying to be the bigger person.

I know firsthand how complicated the Christian Church is today. I am a Baptist after all, and we definitely know how to complicate things. I think that this verse and the context of it just makes Paul more real to me and it gives me hope. Because if Paul could find comfort, then maybe I can too.

Jesus Christ? A Cause?

2007-03-11T22:29:00.000-04:00

Why is Christianity a cause? Why is it considered to be something to fight for? Is Jesus Christ my savior or my cause? I think that’s the fundamental question here. Did Jesus Christ die a horrible painful death for one such as I so he can be my cause? I think not. That idea simply does not settle with me, because that is not who Jesus is to me.

The one fact that I would like to point out here is that Jesus has already overcome the world. He did that on the cross. There is nothing that us Christians need to worry about because Jesus has already overcome the world. No fear needed. No battling needed. There is no reason to live our lives like our religion is better than all the others, and that our denomination is better than others, and that we have all the answers. Because these are all lies. I may think that my religion is better than all the others, and that’s simply because I haven’t found anything better. There’s no room for arrogance. As far as denominations go, there are good reasons for having them, but there is no room for arrogance in the church. We all need each other whether we like it or not. I know for a fact that not all Christians have their lives together. There’s no pretending or hiding from this fact.

Maybe I am just a party pooper, but I am tired of trying to be sympathetic to this type of warrior Christianity simply because of the implications of it. It means that as Christians we are warriors and that we have to fight for Jesus. However, that war has been overcome and done. So what is there left to prove? Jesus proved himself didn’t he? Another implication of this is that warrior theology implies that what I do for Christ is really important. He may have died on the Christ and rose again, but I am going to stand up and convert all my friends. I am just that important and significant.

Maybe not.

I think that the real truth that is missing from this warrior theology is that Jesus did not ask us to fight for him. He asked us to let him in and to let Him transform us into something more like Him. In the process of this transformation, we are to realize how unwarrior-like we are and to see how weak and small we truly are.

We need to simply be and not worry so much about how much we do. I can do all the good things in the world in His name, and its not going to matter if Jesus is not everything to me. Jesus needs to be my being and to be inside of me. That’s all that matters.

Why are there so many swords? Why do we really think that we can make a difference? There’s a whole evil world out there and we weren’t asked to take it by storm. We were asked to serve others, love others, and to follow our Christ wherever he takes us. To me this is a more daunting prospect than fighting for conversions.

The real Jesus

2007-01-12T22:37:00.000-05:00

I’ve been doing a lot of reading lately and I came across something in one of Phillip Yancey’s book, The Jesus I Never Knew. One minor side note that he includes is about what he thought Jesus looked like when Yancey was a child. He remembers Jesus portrayed as a friendly guy, with nice eyes, and generally attractive features. He always saw the peaceful Jesus talking to the children and feeding the five thousand. Yancey later discovers the other non peaceful side of Jesus when he gets angry with the money changers in the temple.
Another discovery that Yancey writes about is the physical appearance of Jesus himself. In the pictures we have of him it is apparent that we tend to like our Jesus tall, charming, endearing eyes, definitely not overweight, and generally attractive. God forbid that our savior of the world look fat, chubby, and with a stubby beard. Oh no, that simply would not do. We like Jesus to have all the features that we value and are important to us. The truth of the matter is that Jesus had no home other than his mother’s home; he was dirt poor, and hung out with all the ‘wrong’ people. He was not what we would think of as successful in today’s world. Jesus was not a part of the status rat race that pervades our very materialistic society. He had bigger problems, like the furtherance of his Father’s kingdom.
Just something for everyone to chew on. I really thought it was worth a posting.

Patch Adams

2006-12-05T21:37:00.000-05:00

I think everything that a minister needs to know is in the movie Patch Adams. It was recently on television and I had not seen it in a while. My favorite scene in the movie is when he is still
in the psychiatric ward and he saves his roomate from the imaginary squirrels. He acts like an idiot, holding imaginary guns, basookas and all sorts of weapons in order to help his roomate conquer his fear. Because of what Patch does, his roomate is able to go the bathroom. He wasn't too proud, too frustrated, or too good to help this guy. He just sees the need and does what he can to help his roomate.

I wish I could say the same about my life. I do try to look beyond myself, but sometimes it is hard because all I can see is the great mound of schoolwork sitting in front of me. It is such a discipline to look beyond your own life to help someone else. Especially in undergrad. Soon that will change, but I think you can catch my meaning.

My hope and prayer for my ministry that I will be able to see the needs of others and be able to help them. It requires good listening skills and recognition of what people need. That can be hard in and of itself. But it is worth learning, because sometimes all people want is someone to care. Or someone to think that they're worth listening to.

I also like Patch Adams because it emphasizes the need to see the value in people. Patch sees the value in helping his roomate in the psychiatric ward. Throughout the moving, Patch sees his patients as people.

I think as Christians that's what we need to do. See the value of a person. No matter who they are and what they've done. Especially the people we aren't comfortable around and the people we as society tend to write off and shut away. All people need to be seen as just that, people. We're all the same and we all hurt the same. Sometimes I think we are just too arrogant and proud to see it.

Knowing that I am loved

2006-11-30T22:14:00.000-05:00

Life comes at you so fast. I can hardly believe I'm graduating. I'm thankful for all three and a half years of school here at Virginia Tech, but I'm also ready to move on. I will say that it has been hard to be in a major that I'm not sure that I'm going to use. I know that I am called to preach and that I will be heading to seminary in the next few months. My degree in Spanish
and my other degree in International Studies only mean something to me because I finished. I have finished these degrees and I'm on to greener pastures. Praise Jesus. I'm looking forward to study a subject that not only am I really interested in, but extremely passionate about. Seminary will be good for me.

It does look like I will be staying in state. Richmond will be a better place for me than Texas at this time and I think this is a wise decision. I am planning to take this next semester off and not be a student for a while. I'm planning to substitute teach and work at the YMCA. Fun times. I just need some time away from school and leadership in ministry. I'm looking forward to becoming a regular pew sitter for a little while. This semester has been an emotional whirlwind and I need to rest and recharge before I head off to seminary. Whichever seminary that is. That decision won't be made until I get settled into my new life and away from the stress of school. Right now I don't feel ready to choose a seminary. Too much change has happened.

I feel like life is one big stress management exercise. I feel like everyday is enough and stressful in and of itself. I just know that I can only handle each day as it comes. And as the old saying goes, this too shall pass. This time in my life is the inevitable glare into the real world, and I need to embrace it.

I will say that I have a heavy heart and something lingering in my thoughts. I've been wrestling with God and its been a wild ride. Right now I'm in a situation where I need to be able to understand that its ok for God, my emotions, my reasoning ability to all collide. I've never been this broken and bewildered before. But I'm also really close with God because I just need to hang on to him. I'm learning to trust him even more, and that its ok to ask for what I want. Sometimes it is the desires of my heart that do matter. I believe that God wired me a certain way for his purposes, and that includes the desires of my heart.

Time seems to be the best thing for me because it will show whether I have peace or not. I am looking forward to life slowing down and entering the real world. Sometimes it seems to be a scary prospect but I think this college journey has prepared me for it. I just need the strength to face everyday as it comes. And sometimes that is hard in and of itself.

The one thing I keep telling myself is this: that God still loves me. He hasn't abandoned me, left me, or thinks that I'm not worth listening to. My goal throughout all of this is to see what my faith is made of. I don't want to hide from God. I want to look him in the face and reach out and touch it. I am loved very much and I have to keep telling myself this.

Sermon on Joshua 2

2006-11-26T15:04:00.000-05:00

Graduation is coming. Whether I like it or not. This is my sermon that I preached at Blacksburg Baptist on November 26th. It's pretty long for a blog posting, but its all here. Enjoy!

Who are they afraid of?

Read Joshua 2:1-14

To get a better idea of the Baptist Collegiate Ministry identity we as Virginia Tech students decided to create the profile of a typical student at the BCM. We decided that the typical BCM student was Caucasian, upper middle class, had a Baptist background, and was usually from the state of Virginia. We also figured that because Virginia Tech is a science oriented university; most students that walked through our doors were going to be in a science related field. We sat down and discussed this in order to gain a perspective of the group as a whole, and also to make ourselves aware of the students that we were not connecting with.

The story of Rahab in the book of Joshua is a story about connecting with people that are outside the church. Rahab herself lived in the city of Jericho and she was a prostitute. Prostitution for her was a necessity because most likely her family was poor. Since poverty was prevalent in these areas, prostitution was the alternative to starvation. We do know that her house was adjacent to the city wall and that her family lived in the city. Rahab had knowledge of who the Israelites were and had heard all the rumors milling around town about the incredible events that occurred. Little did Rahab know that a few Israelite spies would be knocking on her door. By the end of this story, Rahab protects the very lives of these Israelite spies.

One important aspect of this story is the knowledge Rahab has of the Israelite people. In verses 8-14 she explains to the spies why she is protecting them from the king of Jericho. She knows that the Lord is with these people and has heard all the rumors about the Red Sea and the Jordan River. She has also heard about the defeat of the two kings of the Amorites. She has every right to fear these people because she knows full well the power of their God that leads them. Rahab also sees the inevitable doom of the city she lives in and she sees her opportunity. She wants to save herself and her family from death by pleading with these spies in verse 14. She also sees the opportunity to leave the broken poor life of prostitution by trying to help the Israelites. In other words, she’s poor, desperate, and wants out of the life she’s living. She doesn’t know the God of the Israelites fully, but she knows that there is hope among the Israelites.

The truth of the matter is that most people outside the church are just as fearful of us just like Rahab and the people of Jericho were fearful of the Israelites. One of the reasons why this occurs is that they see us Christians and they assume that we have it all figured out. They see us with our smiles, our Christian T-Shirts, and our perfect family life and they become frightened. Sometimes we let people believe that our lives are going perfectly, when we all know full well that they are not. We see the problems in our lives, the pain, the frustration and all the pressure we face, but to them we could seem like everything is so much better and so unattainable.
Another reason why outsiders of the church could be fearful of us is that we seem to have all the answers. We have our Bibles ready and sometimes non Christians feel like we have all the nice little neat Sunday school answers for all life’s complicated problems. The truth is that life is too complicated for all the neat little Sunday school answers. We all know this full well, but to them we may make it seem like Christianity has neat little answers for everything. Sometimes we don’t allow them to see our struggles with who God is and why he is doing what he is doing. We may have a tendency to hide our vulnerability.

Non Christians may have another fear and that is the fear that Rahab had: the fear of God himself. They may have been told that God himself is so sovereign and so much bigger than we are, that it seems either impossible for them or too good to be true. In our culture today there is an emphasis on the individual and what I can do and who I can be. The idea that we as Christians are supposed to deny ourselves and take up our cross daily is a completely foreign concept to them. To surrender their hopes and dreams to this sovereign God sounds impossible and possibly terrifying.

The last reason I think non Christians are scared of us and the church is that we’ve created an us versus them mentality. We’ve even created special words for this: secular, Christian, and Non Christian. In the US today, Christians have their own subculture: Christian music, Christian books, and Christian conferences. The divide between the church and people outside the church has become ever greater. Because we as Christians have created our own subculture and our own identity apart from the world, we’ve also created a Christian mold. Every church has its own mold, because every church has its own demographic. Certain churches reach out to different communities, whether it is the latino community in Blacksburg or the Causcasian upper middle class of Blacksburg. I believe that there is a mold here in this church, just as there is a mold in the BCM at Virginia Tech. We’re prone to this problem. When it comes down to it, there are some people who are afraid of the church because they don’t feel like they fit the mold of that church.

Going back to the passage from Joshua, we see that Rahab did not fit the mold of the Israelite community. She was not an Israelite, so she did not come from the same religious background. She was also a prostitute, which was an important separating factor in her situation. However, the important message of the story was the fact that the spies and Rahab had something in common. They were both desperate for God. The spies were dependent on God for their safety and their victories in battle. Without God the Israelites were completely powerless. Rahab was desperate for some hope of a better life outside of her poverty. We as Christians and outsiders of the church both have that in common, we are all desperate for God.

So do we how close the gap between Christians and non Christians? I think the first practical way is to get to know people on a personal level. Non Christians need to see us completely with strengths and weaknesses included. They need to know that we do have bad days and that we don’t always have an eternal smile on our face. They also need to know that there aren’t always easy answers to tough questions. We need to be honest with them about the hard questions of our faith. We need to show them that there are sometimes grey areas that are hard to figure out. Besides breaking down the façade of Christianity, we need to represent Christ well. We show non Christians who Christ is whether we realize it or not, and it is important that they know that there is joy in submitting to the will of the most high God. We also need to show them that God is a sovereign God, but is also a God of mercy. I believe that in our honesty and our humility we can help bridge the gap between the church and non Christians.

The apostle Paul addresses this topic in his first letter to the Corinthians. He emphasizes the need for Christians to not be afraid to show their humility and weakness. In 1 Corinthians 2:1-5 it says […]. Verse four of this passage is important because it emphasizes the role of the Holy Spirit in his witness to these people. Paul allowed the Corinthians to see his weaknesses, so that the non believers could see God. In conclusion, we as the church should humble ourselves before non believers so that they can see God. In our weakness they will see God and what our faith is really about.

Some Thoughts From Isaiah

2006-10-14T20:40:00.000-04:00

I’ve been reading in Isaiah lately because it’s one of the books of the Bible that I have not read all the way through. The rest of the Bible I’ve read through, I was just missing Isaiah. Anyway, I came across this verse the other day and it fascinates me.

Isaiah 11:6-The wolf shall live with the lamb, the leopard shall lie down with the kid, the calf and the lion and the fatling together, and a little child shall lead them.

This is written in the future tense and it refers to the time of the ideal king. We as Christians refer to the ideal king as Christ himself. So according to this verse when Christ is in charge peace will prevail. Enemies will no longer exist, because there is only one purpose. Sworn enemies such as the wolf and the lamb will no longer be enemies. They will live together in peace.

The last part of the verse also struck me because of the image of the little child. When I think of a little child I remember the story of Jesus telling his disciples that in order to enter the kingdom of God, they must become like a child. Little children are supposed to lead this unlikely bunch of participants. This shows me that leaders in the church are supposed to be as humble, gentle, listening child that they are called to be.

The hard part of this verse is in the implications it presents. If we as ministers are supposed to portray Christ and become like the little child, are we going to endure all the battling that occurs in Churches and between denominations? This verse is an ideal situation, but it is in no way a reality. The wolf is eating the lambs; not praising God with the lambs. Just read different Baptist blogs. We like to wolf eat just like the rest of them.

I think the point is this: ministers are supposed to be looking beyond the politics and just be the humble servants that they’re supposed to be. There’s no room for pride or arrogance in the ministry. There’s no time or place for it. Our perception needs to look beyond ourselves. We need to be bigger than the ugly politics and fighting, and just be the gentle children like this verse. We need to somehow get the sworn enemies to look beyond the problems and differences and just be one family.

VT-One

2006-09-27T16:56:00.000-04:00

This weekend I had the opportunity to attend a university wide gathering that welcomed all Christians to come out and worship together. There is a team of people from the different campus ministries that put their heads together to organize and advertise these events. These events have been going on every semester since the fall of my freshman year. They’ve been well attended and well done. There are a lot of people behind the scenes putting this together and it is easy to see how hard they work. I think the unique aspect of VT-One is that the idea to get all the campus ministries together to worship came from a student. God gave a student the idea to gather all the campus ministries to worship God together and repent of our sins.

What an idea.

I think that VT-One will make a direct impact on the campus of Virginia Tech because all the campus ministries are willing to put aside their differences. This is huge. Just like churches in the local community, there are similar differences and prejudices in the campus ministry community. We as campus ministries are just as competitive. I also think that the campus of Virginia Tech will also reap the harvest of Saturday night because the Christians humbled themselves and got ourselves together spiritually. VT-One is an attempt to refocus our efforts and open our eyes to the non Christian students around us.

My hope and prayer is that events like VT-One will show the greater church community that it is possible to work together. We’re all on the same team and we need to realize it. It would be neat to see that if the Christians of Virginia Tech will take the spirit of VT-One with them when they become full time members of their local churches. What a spirit to take. What a potential impact.

http://www.vt-one.org.vt.edu/?page_id=38

My first real preaching gig

2006-09-21T13:57:00.000-04:00

I guess that this is my first official preaching gig. Last night I was given the opportunity to speak at the local church I attend here in Blacksburg. The pastor is a fun guy and also a brave guy for letting me do this. I think I will get a few more opportunities in the future to speak before I graduate and head out west. Apparently I was received well and I took a different view on the feeding of the four thousand. I'm posting my notes here for your reading pleasure. I will say that it was nice to see a piece of what my future looks like. I'm completely stoked because last night was awesome. Even though I know that I have a long way to go, I'm so excited for all the new experiences that lay ahead.

With that said, here are my notes:

Mark 8:1-10 (New Living Translation)

Focus on verse 7: A few small fish were found, too, so Jesus also blessed these and told the disciples to pass them out.

Here Jesus is telling the disciples to pass out what little food they had. I can just imagine the thoughts running through their heads. It didn’t add up. A few fish were not going to feed four thousand people. It seemed impossible and crazy. But Jesus told them to give out what little food they had and the disciples obeyed.

Simple obedience is what Jesus was asking the disciples in this story. He asked a very small task of them, just to pass out the food. They weren’t required to do anything dangerous or complicated, just a simple task. Sometimes it is the simple tasks that are the hardest for us, because they don’t always make sense. Passing out the food for four thousand people with just a few fish seemed like such a big task because it didn’t make sense. I think the reason why we as Christians have a hard time obeying God in the little tasks in our lives is because we see God as a big God, a God of big events and of more ‘important’ tasks. Surely God wouldn’t see the little things in life as something important enough to pay attention to.

Another reason why we have a hard time doing small menial tasks for Christ is that there is no recognition for it. When no other Christians see what we are doing then it takes out the personal pride and personal glory that we can receive from doing it. We like to feel important, relevant, and of vital importance to the church. Doing small tasks for God doesn’t make us feel important at all.

1 Timothy 5:25 says this:
In the same way, everyone knows how much good some people do, but there are others whose good deeds won’t be known until later.

This means that some good deeds are not to be seen by others and not recognized by others. This can make simple tasks even harder to fulfill because our pride can get in the way.

What we don’t realize is that little tasks that Jesus calls us to do can make all the difference in the world. He can use our simple obedience in the small things in life as a training ground for bigger problems and decisions. If we are not obedient in the smaller issues in life, then how are we going to respond to something bigger and more complex? He is also able to use our simple obedience in small tasks to affect others around us. People watch us more that we will ever know. He can use our simple obedience in bigger ways that we could ever imagine. That’s exactly what happened to Jesus’ disciples.

The result of their simple obedience is revealed in verse 8:

They ate until they were full, and when the scraps were picked up, there were seven large baskets of food left over.

Every person was fed and their hunger satisfied. The disciples and the other people were amazed. This story is not just about how four thousand were fed in the desert just from a few fish, it’s also about how the disciples obeyed Jesus even when it didn’t make any sense to them. The disciples were also training for other bigger things in life, when obedience could mean death. There are big implications in how we respond to the details of our lives. My prayer is that we will see God in the small things in our lives and recognize that God is still the God of small things. Even when we don’t realize all the implications of our actions.

Why people with Bible flailing antics hurt the church

2006-09-13T22:48:00.000-04:00

I read the Collegiate Times (The student-run Virginia Tech newspaper) today and saw an article on the opinion page titled, Looking at God in the Age of Terrorism, and was immediately intrigued. The main focus of the article was how the events of September affected how religion is perceived in this country. Many Americans turned to God post 9/11 because they were looking for answers and a hope they couldn’t find anywhere else. What bothered me about this article is how the author perceived Christianity. This particular author proclaimed themselves to be atheist and by the way they described Christianity I wouldn’t blame them:

“Ask any Christian or Muslim for the ultimate truth and they’ll tell you it is in the Bible or the Quran. Many use these texts as a source of morals and a model for how society should be run.” (Caporaletti)

There are two things in my mind that are wrong with this perception: the source of ultimate truth is a loving, amazing God that would sacrifice Himself for a lowly person such as I, and that the Bible is not a blueprint about how to run a society. I’m afraid that this particular person was wrongly informed about Christianity, but I don’t think that there was just one person involved. Unfortunately, the Bible has been elevated to a god-like status which is not something it deserves. The Bible cannot take the place of God Himself, and Jesus Christ is the Word of God. Period. The Bible also cannot become a blueprint for our society, because that is not its purpose. It seems that the author of this article was wrongly informed about the function of the Bible in the religion of Christianity and I’m afraid that there are many Christians at fault.

So what is the Bible then? It is an agent that God uses to reveal Himself to us. The books in the Bible were picked out very specifically because each book speaks to generations past the time they were actually written. There is a message in each book that can be seen and revealed by the Holy Spirit. The Bible’s purpose is to point to Christ and Him crucified:

“You search the Scriptures because you believe they give you eternal life. But the Scriptures point to me!” –Jesus (John 5:39)

These words on the page cannot save us folks, only Jesus Christ can. The purpose of the Bible is clear in this passage: to point to Christ. Even though the Scriptures he’s referring to are the Old Testament, it still holds true throughout the New Testament. The Pharisees tried to live their religion with the use of a check list and rule book. It didn’t work for them and it won’t work now. So all you Christians waving your Bibles around, beware of what you are doing. You are hurting the cause of Christ, because Bible waving is pretty pointless. Jesus was not here to take over the government and society and make it his own. He was here to redeem us into His kingdom and bring us back to Him. That’s what Christianity is about: bringing broken people hope and grace. The Bible can’t do that, only Christ can.

Put the Bibles down. Please.

The Necessity of Preaching Christ and Him Crucified

2006-09-05T21:39:00.000-04:00

This particular topic has been laid heavily on my heart by God in the last few weeks. Every couple of days I open my Bible and see yet another passage about this particular subject. I believe that it is time for the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship and the Southern Baptist Convention to end the war. I was born in 1984 when the heat of the fight began and I only know about it because of the books written. I have no first hand experience with the events that led to the breakup of the convention. For those of you college students of my age who have no idea what I’m talking about you need to read some books. They are out there. Most Baptist pastors and campus ministers avoid the subject of the breakup of the Southern Baptist Convention because it is a painful subject to discuss.

From reading other Baptist blogs, CBF and SBC alike, there seems to be an ongoing criticism between the two. Don’t we have other subjects and topics that are more pressing? Didn’t the CBF leave the SBC in 1989? That’s over ten years ago. Drop it people. I know that I am very guilty of criticizing the Southern Baptist Convention on this blog, because of some of my adventures and encounters. My goal with this blog is to express some opinions, but I need to keep them in perspective. This particular verse struck me when I was reading:

Mark 3:2-They watched him to see whether he would cure him on the Sabbath, so that they might accuse him.

This passage refers to an instance where Jesus healed a man’s hand in the synagogue on the Sabbath. These particular people were waiting for Jesus to make a mistake or cause a controversy so they could jump up and criticize them. They weren’t there to hear his teaching, they just wanted to frame him so they could maintain their power. This makes me so sick and apparently Jesus felt the same way:

Mark 3:5-He looked around at them with anger; he was grieved at their hardness of heart…

This should make us all feel sick. If the majority of what we are writing about is the failings of other Baptists, then what purpose is this serving? Maybe it will make us feel better to get those feelings down on paper, but that is not what we should be all about. I completely understand being frustrated and hurt, because I have felt both. I just think we need to stop criticizing each other so much and just preach what we’re supposed to: Jesus Christ and him crucified. There are reasons for different denominations and breakups, but there is no need to dwell on them if we can prevent it. I just don’t want to be the one waiting around for the Southern Baptist Convention to say something bad about women in the pulpit so I have more fodder for my blog. This just bugs me. If Al Mohler wants to criticize women in the pulpit, then by all means let him. As far as I’m concerned I’ve heard it all and I’m not impressed. What would be really impressive is that moderates wouldn’t react to him and Al Mohler would go back to what he’s supposed to be doing. Let’s keep this in perspective. We need to preach Jesus, not the current hot issue going on. Bitterness isn’t healthy for anyone, and I’m tired of lugging that around in my heart. It can be so heavy.

What Paul and I have in Common

2006-09-01T14:37:00.000-04:00

One of the reasons I went home this summer was to rediscover who Paul is and to forgive him. I didn’t know this until after I started reading through the book of Acts and started to really see Paul for who he really was. Since I’ve heard my calling to ministry I’ve had some major problems with some of Paul’s letters. I think this resulted in the misinterpretation of his letters to the extreme. One example of this is 1 Timothy chapter 2. This particular passage has led to needless legalism and a lot of heartbreak. Many women have denied their calling to the pulpit in fear of this passage. Not reverence of the Bible, but because they were afraid. I was almost a victim to this kind of hurtful and wrongful theology.

However, no matter how controversial my comments may be in what I think about 1 Timothy 2, please read on. Paul and I have a lot more in common than I ever thought. For starters, Paul came from a very legalistic religion and was on the top. He was educated by the very best and he was one of the most Jewish of all the Jews. He fought to protect the legalistic, controlling Jewish religion of his time. Then Jesus came into his life and he suddenly had to abandon all of this. This probably did not happen overnight and was not an easy process. It isn’t written in the Bible, but I can only imagine what Paul had to go through when he turned his back on his religion that he had been a part of since childhood. He had to let go of all that he believed about God and rebuild his faith from the ground up. He had to say good bye to life long friends and probably some relatives. He was suddenly forced to give into Jesus’ teaching and take on a new approach of a more free thought and theology. No more legalism for Paul, he had found freedom in Christ. Only at a high price. Yes Paul sat in prison, was shipwrecked, and almost stoned to death, but I think the greatest moment in his life was when he abandoned all of his preconceived notions about God. It takes a lot of guts to let God completely redo a person’s faith. It is a long a painful process, and when I realized Paul had undergone this process I suddenly found a whole new respect for him. I could relate.

It’s not easy to give in and tell God to remake your faith. That’s what Paul and I both had to do. When I first admitted to myself that I was called to preach, my entire world was shaken and turned upside down. All the basics about my faith had to change: how I approach God, how I consider the purpose of the Bible in my life, to exercise the true freedom that Jesus gives, and even how to trust God more. Rebuilding your faith and even denying some elements of it that I had known since childhood is very hard and painful. I wouldn’t recommend it for the faint of heart. I do however, think that it was one of the greatest things that God has done in my life. Somehow Paul wasn’t the bad guy in my book anymore. After considering all of this, he seemed like an old friend.

Communication

2006-08-09T17:46:00.000-04:00

I was reading Acts 2 in church this past Sunday and my mind started to drift off during the sermon. I do tend to do this, especially when I see a particular passage and take it a different
way that the sermon does. I don't know where this comes from sometimes, but I know its not from me. It is moments like these that affirm what I am called to in ministry. Weird.

Anyway, I was reading the story about Pentecost and I started to see it in a different angle than before. Maybe what I write down here is something that has been said before, and I just saw it for myself. Who knows? I just thought it was interesting that God chose to use the miracle of allowing the believers to speak other languages. Maybe its because I'm a Spanish major and I just find this story fascinating.

I just pondered this idea for a while, because this particular miracle seemed out of the ordinary.
I think that we may put more emphasis on the flaming tongues part of the passage, but maybe that's because it seems more dramatic and interesting. But the conclusion I came to was this: that God allowed the believers to communicate with people that they couldn't have communicated before. The believers were able to finally connect with people that they otherwise would not have connected with. The cool thing about this is that they could only really reach people with the Holy Spirit.

These believers didn't need a big ministry gimic, or a nice building or good music to connect with people. These believers just needed God and God alone. He bridged the gap between believers and unbelievers, and no one else could take credit for it.

I just thought that this was a neat way to look at this passage and it struck me this past Sunday.
And I don't actually feel that guilty for letting my mind drift off during the sermon. Because God used it.

Same Sex Marriage

2006-07-24T13:36:00.000-04:00

With all the hub bub of same sex marriage rights I have decided to write down my two cents worth here on this website. Maybe this will make my opinions more concise and clear on the subject. Lately I've had so many opinions but I haven't been able to piece them together yet.

I think the main thing I struggle with is the fact that I strongly believe in the separation of church and state. I think that the church should be its own entity without any regulation from the state government. Likewise, I think the government should be representative of all its constituents, not just one religion. We as Baptists supposedly believe strongly in the separation of church and state as this is a very important component that started our denomination in the first place. I'm not sure all Baptists realize this certain fact, but it's true nonetheless.

With all that being said, homosexuals are pounding at the government's door for equal rights. And I don't blame them, because they haven't gotten stellar treatment over the years. The one thing they're looking for is the legal right to marry. And I don't understand why the church is so huffy about all of this.

The worst case scenario for the conservative right wing folks is that congress does pass a law that permits homosexuals to marry. This does not change the church. This simply means that two homosexuals can go to a courthouse and get married. So what. The church doesn't have to change, we don't have to marry them if we don't want to. That is how this country works. Sheesh people.

Do I support same sex marriage? Well let me say this. They deserve to live legally together and receive the tax benefits that we hetersexual folks have. They deserve to be treated as first class citizens and not second class citizens. I support them because they are people and I am no better than any one of them. But when I'm a minister some day, I don't think I would be able to marry them in the church. My theology doesn't run that far to the left.

I just think this whole issue has been blown way out of proportion and the conservative evangelical Christians need to go back to their day jobs and start preaching the gospel like they're supposed to. Let the government do their job, and let's be responsible citizens, but not an angry overwhelming mob.

Sometimes I think issues like these hurt the church more than help the church. When we get off the topic of preaching Christ and him crucified, then we've lost our purpose.

For Girls Only

2006-07-20T12:19:00.000-04:00

"I just want a guy to take care of me", or "I want to be taken care of and not have to worry".

These two phrases are very popular amongst the female population, at least the ones I know.
However, I cringe every time I hear a girl say that, especially when they claim to be Christians.
If God is the God that we say him to be, then why in the world are we wanting to be taken care of?

Aren't we already taken care of?

I know that I had to fight against this very issue, and become a more independent person. I've been single for my entire three years of college thus far and I had to learn to take care of myself. I have very good guy and girl friends that look out for me in case anything happens. I have no need for a boyfriend with bodyguard capabilities. Besides, that's not the function of a man in my life.

Why is it that women think they need a caretaker? Can't we use our own heads and hands and figure stuff out? And for the decision making options, isn't God the source of infinate wisdom?
I do understand that girls sometimes have to wrestle with becoming more independent, simply because I was one of them. However, let's not use a cop out and claim that we need to be taken care of.

We already are and we have no reason to doubt it.

Gender roles

2006-04-04T21:11:00.000-04:00

Yeah, I'm back. I haven't had the brain capacity to update this site, so my apologies.

But what I would like to write about is gender roles in general. I'm going to try desperately hard to stay objective here, but I can't make any guarantees.

The first idea that I want to argue is that as Christians we are all equal. We are the same no matter our culture, race, crazy families, race, pets, you name it. Men and women are equal too. And we are of equal value in the eyes of God. I don't think there are many people that would dispute this fact.

Paul says it best,

Galatians 3:28- There is no longer Jew or Gentile, slave or free, male or female. For you are all Christians-you are one in Christ Jesus.

So this means that we're all equal and nobody is better than anyone else. I also think that this verse shows a different idea, and in that God cares about the heart. Time and time again Jesus has pointed to the issues of the heart being of utmost importance. So if the heart is the most important aspect of our being, does God really care that I'm a woman?

I truly believe that every Christian has a common call to follow Christ without restraint and to the full. That is who we are. So what then, about gender roles? Is it really important for me to fullfil my duties as a woman as defined by church doctrine, or to follow Jesus? Do the two conflict? I think so. I think there is a tendency to put men in one part of life, and put women in the other, and they are supposed to say in their separate corners. But in the end, does it really matter?

Does it really matter that a man stays home and keeps the kids while his wife works? Does it matter if a woman decides to stay home instead? Does it matter if woman becomes a manager over men? Does it matter if a woman preaches from the pulpit instead of a man?

If God has called us to follow him, then we are to do just that. God doesn't put us in corners and say women should do this, and men should do this. He told us to love him with everything we have, and that's the entire Bible in a nutshell. But in the end does gender really matter?

I guess what I'm trying to say here is that gender roles are man made inventions and we need to be careful not to put ourselves in a box and refuse to follow God on certain issues. Following God should be our number one priority, not following only one view of the Bible.

Christian Books vs. the Bible

2006-03-01T18:33:00.000-05:00

I'll be completely honest here, I'm not a big Christian book reader. I have read some of C.S. Lewis's stuff, some Henri Nouwen, Max Lucado, Rick Warren, Barbara Brown Taylor, but that's as far as it goes. A few dating books here and there, because that's important. But in some circles my list is pretty short when it comes to reading Christian Books.

One reason for this is plain stubborness. A few years back I bought a Bible that had no foot notes, no application stuff, just the text and cross-references. I refused to have some editor tell me what Jesus was saying, because the text is supposed to speak for itself. So I figured that's what I would do, let the text speak for itself. I began to go on a Bible reading rampage, because I wanted to know more about God and I wanted to hear it straight from him, not from Beth Moore, C.S. Lewis, not some Bible scholar, just the Holy Spirit. I wanted to form my own theology on the basis of what the Bible said, not take someone else's word for it.

And it was the greatest thing I ever did. Honestly. I found so much in the Old Testament that I thought I would never find. To this day the Bible never ceases to amaze me about how much it reveals about the character of God and his desire to know me inside and out. In my life the Bible has done what it has supposed to do: show me good theology and point me to the God of the universe. It has brought me into a deeper relationship with Christ that no Christian author could have done for me, because I was just too stubborn to take their word for it.

I am completely convinced that if a bomb hit every Lifeway, Cokesbury, and all the other Christian bookstores and destroyed all the Christian books we would pull through just fine. Maybe better off, because we would be forced to read the Bible for ourselves. We would be forced to seek God for ourselves and put all the pieces of the Bible together ourselves, which is exactly what the Max Lucados of the world do.

Now I'm not knocking Christian books, because they serve a great purpose. Their purpose is to point us to the Bible and help unlock some of the hardest to understand passages contained in it. But Christian books cannot replace the Bible or become like Bibles to us. I've heard time and time again, "every Christian should have this book on their shelf". Well I would like to counter that and say, "Every Christian should have a well thumbed Bible on their shelf that has been read and completely cherished".

I think another message I would like to send before I close this post is this: Every Christian book is full of opinions. The author has written the book as their take on the subject and what God has said to them about it. But God may have something different to say to you. Not completely different, but God may give you a different angle. The best way to form your own opinions and your own theology, is to sit down and discover God's word for yourself.

I definitely encourage everyone who happens to read this post to think for yourself. Discover the Bible and God for yourself, and be willing to critique other's opinions. The only thing that matters is what is going on between you and God. Nothing and no one else's opinions truly matter.

Hypocrisy

2006-02-22T22:15:00.000-05:00

One of the most famous statements made by ministers about hypocrites is that when someone complains about the church being full of them, the minister simply replies, "Come join us, because one more hypocrite isn't gonna hurt". I grew up with this saying, and I believed it. Now the more I think about it, I feel like its being used as a cop out.

The more I'm around non Christians and read non Christian articles about religion the more I realize that most people have no problem with Christ. Jesus Christ is pretty well accepted in the secular world, because of who he is. People usually don't complain about what Christ did for us, they usually complain about the Christian church and Christians.

Why is this? Because they have every reason to see us as misrepresenting Christ. Now I'm not saying that we're gonna get it right every time, but what I am saying is that I think we have been too passive. We need to strive to move forward and not be satisfied with where the church is and where our individual Christian lives are.

And yes ladies and gentlemen, the Church does get it right. Sometimes.

When I went on a mission trip to Slidell, LA, I felt like we represented God in the best way we knew how: grabbing hammers and nails and cleaning out houses. That's exactly what Jesus would have wanted us to do, there was no question about it. There were no politics involved, no deep theological arguments, no discussion, this is what Jesus wanted us to do. And we did it. People who lived in Slidell, LA finally got to see what the church is supposed to look like: a community of believers pitching in to represent their God in the best way they knew how.

Sometimes I feel like the church has lost the point and we get way too wrapped up in what the Bible says, who's wrong, who's right, and how 'busy' our lives are. But that's not what we are called to be, because we are called to represent Christ in all that we do. Non Christian people wouldn't call us hypocrites without reason.

The biggest danger of Christianity is the Church when we misrepresent Christ. I'm not saying that we're gonna get it right all the time, but that's something we need to seek and strive for. No more cop outs, let's take responsibility for this. Let's strive to do everything within our power to stop the hypocrite argument and not give them reasons to point fingers.

Can't we just represent Christ and forget the politics? Isn't that what we're supposed to do? Is it that impossible?

Creation Science/Intelligent Design-some thoughts

2006-01-28T13:24:00.000-05:00

I guess you could say that this is part two of my Religion vs. Science themed entries. This entry is one to bring up important questions and problems with creation science or intelligent design.

I think the one thing that needs to be pointed out is that not all Christians are all on the same page. They tend to fight with each other. The Institute for Creation Research takes a very strict view about creationism by rejecting any compromises to Genesis. The gap theory and the Day Age theory are seen to be compromises to Genesis and they are completely rejected. The gap theory recognizes that there are two accounts of creation and this allows for a long history of the earth and the process of evolution. The day age theory suggests that the 6 days of creation were not 6 twenty-four hour days, but six epochs of creation. Both of these were seen as compromises to what the Bible says according to the Institute of Creation Science. These fundamentalists think that religion has made too many accomodations to science and that religion needs to get back to its roots.

Back to its roots? Since when was science the enemy? Don't we have bigger problems, like the fact that many people in this country have no idea what it really means to have freedom in Christ? Since when is evolution and Darwin the equivalent of Satan? Shouldn't we focus on what Christianity is about, the resurrection of Jesus and emulating the example he set before us? Since when is making science the enemy getting back to the roots of Christianity? I personally think that God is so much bigger than science and science could never take that place that God has in my life. Let science take care of science, and let God take care of his people. That's his job anyway.

What makes me sick is that many Christians donate their money to causes like the Institute of Creation Science when their money can do so much in a local church. Let's help the needy, spread the message of freedom in Christ, and focus on that mission alone. That's what we are called to do as Christians. That's money well spent, not proving that the Bible is absolutely right. What does God have to prove anyway? So why try to prove that his Holy Bible is right? Sheesh people.

Why can't we act like Christians instead of proving that we are right?

Creation Science-Is it really science? Is it really Christian?

2006-01-24T22:02:00.000-05:00

So, I know this post is gonna ruffle some feathers and make people mad. I just want to pass some information about the subject along, and also make you think. There has been this whole debate about evolution and creationism and how God fits into all of it. I will say that I have some background knowledge about creation science because I just took a class called Religion and Science. I have some hard core facts about the Creationist movement. I think I need to shed some light on who the Institute for Creation Science is and what they stand for.

First of all, they were founded in 1972 in California by a guy named H.M. Morris. He was big into creationism back in the 1960s and wrote a book called the Genesis Flood. He was actually a professor of civil engineering and has a connection to Virginia Tech. He was also the author of a creationist textbook that completely rejected evolution.

The goal of this institute is posted on their website and it says:
The purpose of ICR is to serve as an education, research, and communications media institution specializing in the study and promotion of scientific creationism, Biblical creationism, and related fields.

But it goes on to say: As a research organization, ICR engages in laboratory, field, theoretical and library research on projects which emphasize creationism, but are not necessarily limited to it.

"Emphasize" Creationism-aka-If your research does not point to creationism, it's not right. No matter how many times you do your tests or double check it. The outcome must be creationism.
(I wonder if that last clause means that they have had some evolution proved and they won't admit it, sounds fishy)

What kind of science requires a certain outcome? Not any science that I know. If your science points to another theory other than a biblical one, then you're kicked out. That's that.

Another thing posted on their site is this:
The Bible consisting of the thirty-nine canonical books of the Old Testament and the twenty-seven canonical books of the New Testament, is the divinely inspired revelation of the Creator to man. Its unique, plenary, verbal inspiration guarantees that these writings as originally and miraculously given, are infallible and completely authoritative on all matters with which they deal, free from error of any sort, scientific and historical as well as moral and theological.

So now the Bible is not just a theology book, its a biology book and a history book without errors.
Uh huh, sure, that doesn't fly:

There are two creation stories-Genesis 1 and Genesis 2:4b-You've got your six days and a seventh day sabbath, and then the world gets created again right before Adam and Eve. This is because there are two authors of Genesis. (Go look it up in a commentary, I'm not dreaming this)

So if the Bible is infallible, then do we have two worlds? Do Adam and Eve live on Mars? I mean really people, the Bible has problems all in it. Who's to say how the world was created when there are actually two accounts of it?

All that counts is that Jesus died on cross and rose from the dead. That's what we base our religion on, not what the Bible says.

(More posts to come...)

What the word of God, says about the word of God

2005-11-28T22:44:00.000-05:00

Whew, its been a while since I've posted anything. I'm in the final push of the semester and my time is limited. However, this is a topic that has been swimming around in my head for a while. I felt like I needed to get it posted. At least I feel like its post-worthy.

First of all, when you start reading the Bible in Genesis, the word of God is the actual words coming out of God's mouth, like when He's addressing Abraham or Moses.

Genesis 15:1- After these things the word of the Lord came to Abram in a vision, "Do not be afraid, Abram, I am your shield; your reward shall be very great."

So this raises the question, is the rest Bible, the word or words from God Himself? Or are there human fingerprints all over it? Now this is where the debate comes in, because there are definitely two sides to this issue. Some theologians say yes, that the Bible is the word of God and that it cannot be criticized or faulted. It is inerrant and infallible. However, I agree with the other side of the story and say that this book of ours is not the direct words of God and that there are mistakes in it. For example, in the book of Judges, Joshua dies twice, once in chapter one and then again in chapter two. And also, in the book of Genesis, there are actually two accounts of creation, one in chapter one and another in chapter two. If a book is so perfect, then why are there these problems? Is this book the complete perfect word of God. I think not. (If you're still not convinced, check our the numbers of David's men in some of those stories, there are two different accounts and the numbers do not match.)

Another thing I would like to kindly point out, is that there are three members of the trinity, not four. The Bible is not one of them. Arguing that the Bible isn't perfect and has mistakes in it does not change who God is. It makes God a bigger God.

The whole point of this book is Christ, without him these words are meaningless. This Bible that we have cannot stand on its own like God can. It cannot take the place of God in our lives. I worship the God of the universe, not this book of words that cannot begin to describe him.

Ephesians 6:17
Take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.

Without the Spirit, the Bible is powerless.

So what is the word of God? John 1:14 says it best:

And the Word became flesh and lived among us, and we have seen his glory, the glory as of a father's only son, full of grace and truth.

Without Jesus, Christianity wouldn't have come into existence. Without Jesus, we would not have a proper interpretation of the Bible. If you want a correct interpretation of the Bible, look to Jesus because he is the Word of God incarnate. He lived the interpretation of the Scriptures. Still not enough? Then look to the Spirit for help, because that's His job. He hears everything the Father says and tells us.

This is why we have to be so tight with God, because we can't understand this book without Him. We cannot be book worshippers, because books cannot save us. God wants our hearts first and foremost.

Liberal Christianity: What it is to me

2005-10-30T21:21:00.000-05:00

Lately I've been having conversations with other Christians about how I read the Bible and how I view Christianity as a whole. I've also been reading some blogs that have really opened my eyes to the fact that the whole Liberal Christianity issue needs to be clarified. Now I'm not saying that I've got this all figured out, I'm still growing and learning every day. I will say that I used to sit on the other side of the fence and I used to believe the Bible was completely perfect and inerrant. But these days, I've discovered that I believe otherwise.

To help define what I believe Liberal Christianity is, I went to Webster's to seek a good definition of Liberalism: "a movement in Protestantism advocating a broad interpretation of the Bible, freedom from rigid doctrine and authoritarianism."

Now I would like to sarcastically point out that this definition has no mention of devil worshippers, nose pickers, and downright stubborn people who refuse to obey the commands of Jesus Christ. But this definition does say that Liberal Christians seek freedom from rigid doctrine and authoritarianism, and this is the point I want to focus on. In light of this, I reserve the right to read the Bible for myself and decide for myself what the Holy Spirit is saying to me through the words on the page. I assume that I have the right to read the Bible critically and put it into historical context, translation context, and chronological context. I see nothing wrong with this, because there are only three members of the Trinity. And the Bible is not one of the three. The critical anaylsis of the Bible does not change who God is, it is who the Bible points to that is the thing of utmost importance. The Bible cannot save us, without God it is just a bunch of words on a page.

John 5:39
You diligently study the Scriptures because you think that by them you posess eternal life. These are the Scriptures that testify about me.

I will say, however, that I do not simply read the Bible and make the words it contains to fit my own agenda or motivation. In my eyes and according the verse above, all Scripture must point to Jesus. Because all Scripture must point to Jesus, my relationship with Christ must be so tight that I am able to understand the Bible and what it is saying. Through the voice of the Holy Spirit in prayer and reading the Bible, I am able to understand how each piece of Scripture points to God. This is how I can read the Bible freely without "rigid doctrine and authoritarianism". I have the right to read the Bible and figure it out for myself, without having a preacher tell me what I'm supposed to believe.

So where's the disobedience if I am seeking the Holy Spirit to interpret the Bible for me? Where's the blasphemy of criticizing the Bible if it is not a God? Where's the wrong in this?

There is no wrong in this, that's the only answer I have for you.

The heart of the issue

2005-10-14T21:30:00.000-04:00

Whew, what a busy week. School has been pretty crazy lately and I've been stuck in a whirlwind for a while. Hopefully things in my life will eventually slow down.

Anyhoo, God has been teaching me about what really matters. What really matters to him is the heart of his children. He doesn want my actions, he wants my heart. If my heart is with Jesus, then the rest will come out okay. I think sometimes that Christians can get so wrapped up in rules and regulations and debating over what the bible says, but its the heart that matters.

Isaiah 29:11
And so the Lord says, "These people say they are mine. They honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far away. And their worship of me of amounts to nothing more than human laws learned by rote."

Our worship of God is completely useless if our hearts are not filled with Christ.

It's not about the technicalities about what exactly what the bible says about controversial issues. It's also not about how much one knows about the Bible, its about what is in our hearts.

It's also about how big God is and how we view him. The biggest question of all is how big is my God? That all depends on the limits I put on Him. He can be as big or as small to me as I let him.

Now this is where I might offend people, because I view the bible differently than some people. The Bible is inspired by God and is a glimpse of who God is, but it is not perfect. There are many translation mistakes because Hebrew and Greek are not easily translated into English. There are many copying mistakes from the old days when they used to copy the Bible by hand. In Judges and other books, there are chronological mistakes. The Bible has human fingerprints all over it, but it still remains as a major glimpse of who God is. It is what we have and we have to use it as imperfect as it is.

I will also dare to say that the Bible does not contain God. This is because God cannot be contained. It is simply impossible. This also means that the Bible is not God. The Bible will not be and I refuse it to be the God of my life. It gives me direction, consolation, convictions and a peace that no other book can give me. But it cannot take the place of God himself. God is bigger than the Bible. I regret to say that I feel like there is a tendency to elevate the Bible to a level that it should not be elevated to, and by doing this we are putting God into a box.

Believe me, God doesn't like boxes.

Now I'm not saying that we need to add to scripture, that's not what I mean. I just think the Bible should not be the God of our lives, that is not its purpose.

Its not about how much scripture you know, its about where your heart is. Not that scripture is a bad thing to know, but its about your heart. God needs to be the God of your heart, not a book that is full of human finger prints and is not perfect. The Bible has awesome truths, and it can help focus your life, but ultimately it has to point to God. Some passages are full of human opinions and fingerprints its hard to know where God fits in. This is why God has to be God, not the Bible.

The Donkey vs. the Elephant

2005-09-26T22:15:00.000-04:00

I'm so sorry that I have not posted on this blog consistently. I'm not sure how many people come across it, until I see comments posted. Junior year in college is a very busy year, and I feel like I should just put a bed in the library on campus. It's practically a second home during the week.

Anyway, I've been riled up about politics lately and I would just like to share my thoughts on this whole two party system that we have. I will profess that many of my professors are usually liberals, and most of my friends here are conservatives. So I guess you could say that I hear both sides of the story.

Do Christians have to pick a party? I mean seriously people, I refuse to pick. I am of the school of thought that there aren't easy answers to every issue. Sometimes I think like a democrat, and then the next day I think like a republican. If I'm around my Christian conservative friends and I say that I agree with the liberal side they look at me like I have two heads. There are some Christians out there, and I have encountered some, that firmly believe that the Republican party is the party for Christians. There simply can't be Liberal Christian Democrats. Impossible.
Not so my friends, because sometimes I happen to be one. Shocking I know. But I think the thing that bothers me so is this: I sometimes get the I think you're a heretic and you need to know your bible more look. I hate that, because my party line shouldn't affect my witness, but it usually does. What results from it is that I have to explain myself to someone and I don't feel like I should have to.

On the other hand, if I take the more conservative side liberals look at me like I'm an uneducated bumbling idiot. Then I have to explain myself to these people too. They usually think that I'm just a narrow minded Christian who refuses to think outside the box. It really bothers me that Christians are thought of in this way, but I think we have television to thank for that. Not all Christians think the same way, and a preacher gets on TV and speaks for the Christian side, and not every Christian is represented by his thoughts. And its usually the way conservative Christian side that is broadcasted on Fox News and they are prime targets for liberals.

Needless to say, I don't claim a party. I absolutely refuse to, because I believe Christians answer to a higher authority and that is Christ Jesus. Following God does not require us to become a republican or a democrat. It requires an intimate relationship with him and a desire to follow him wherever he leads.

Since I don't claim a party, I guess that makes me and uneducated narrow minded Christian, and a flaming heretic all at the same time. Isn't that lovely? This is why I hate politics.

The ministry of the congregation

2005-08-28T20:40:00.000-04:00

Ok, I'm gonna be blatantly honest here, these are not my ideas or thoughts. I've been reading a lot of books lately and this has cropped up more than once. These thoughts came from Barbara Brown Taylor and a sermon from Stuart Carlton. It's the idea of the ministry of the congregation of the church and the potential impact.

The first point is this, ministers can only effect the community so much. They are limited to their sphere of influence within the walls of the church. The congregation on the other hand, are the hands and feet of the church. They are out in the community everyday, working side by side with non believers. They have a lot more contact with the world outside of the church than ministers do.

Secondly, it is the minister's obligation to provide the congregation the means of getting out into the community with God by their side. The way ministers do this is to teach, pray and disciple their congregations during worship, bible study and prayer times.

The greatest need for every church or ministry is for more prayer. There simply isn't enough of it, because we are called to pray without ceasing. It's the constant connection with God that gives us the strength and guidance that we need. The point was made in the sermon I mentioned is this: that a praying church is a growing church. If we are all truly seeking God's will and his face, then he will direct our steps and move in incredible ways.

I think my biggest point is this: We're all in this ministry together. Ministers are not just limited to seminary graduates, and we can all be full time ministers. In light of what has happened in Louisanna, Mississippi and parts of Alabama, its time to remember that we're all servants of God. We can all do a little something to help these people out.

Ministers vs. Professors

2005-08-20T12:01:00.000-04:00

Whew, its been a while since I've updated this site. Finally I have a reliable internet connection and more time to write on this.

For all the college students out there, I figured I would write about the difference between Ministers and Professors. First of all, both professions and ministers require a considerable amount of higher education beyond the undergraduate degree. Secondly, both are considered to be teachers and need to have a certain amount of public speaking skills. As far as I'm concerned that's where the similarities end.

Professors, especially ones that have earned the title Doctor, are considered to be experts in their fields. Whether its Biology, Spanish, Engineering, all professors are supposed to have a decent amount of expertise in their chosen field. Now I'm not gonna argue that all professors are experts, because I myself have had some loonies that should not be teaching a class at all. I think the biggest point that I'm getting to is this: that most professors should have the authority to be teaching a class because they know so much about the subject. They've done their research, put in their time, and now they are looked upon as the experts.

Ministers on the other hand are by no means experts in their field, because of one reason. That reason is wrapped in the issue of authority. Ministers receive their authority from God and God alone and God calls ministers into the ministry. Yes it is true that Ministers at least have a Masters of Divinity and some amount of experience, but this does not make them experts on God. The truth of the matter is this; there will be know expert on God except for God himself. For a minister to say that he is an expert on God is a very bold statement that I myself would not dare to make. God simply cannot be contained because it is impossible. God is just so much bigger than we are, and we as Christians discover more and more about him each day. He is constantly in motion and throwing curve balls our way; he's pretty unpredictable.

In conclusion, professors have the right to get behind a podium and tell us all about their subject because they are the experts. However, ministers don't have that right, they have a priviledge that God gives them. God gives them the gift of being his servants and help guide God's congregations in their walk. Ministers don't have the right to get in the pulpit and be the shepherd; they just have the joy of being a fellow sheep and are called to show other sheep how to find the shepherd.

Sermons: The good, the bad and the ugly

2005-07-26T19:29:00.000-04:00

I will readily admit that I'm not the most seasoned public speaker, but I do know what I like about sermons and what I don't like. First of all, I'm a stubborn person. This can be a good thing and a bad thing. Sometimes I simply don't want to listen to particular sermons because it may address a personal issue that I'm dealing with. And that is just painful. However, the following are some no no's that I look at. (Remember, I'm just a person with a strong opinion and a computer, not an expert)

1) Bigshots: These type of ministers really crack me up. Who do they think they are? Just because they have a Masters of Divinity doesn't make them holier than thou. They may know more than I do, but that doesn't mean that they have the right to talk down to their congregation just because they have a pulpit. Pulpits are just made of wood, that doesn't make them special. Remember,

For all have sinned; all fall short of God's glorious standard. Romans 3: 23

This means that we're all on the same level, ministers included.

2)The unprepared: This one is annoying. I hate it when someone gets up to speak and they aren't ready to do so. Isn't it their job to deliver the message? Isn't it what they get paid for? Doesn't God expect more? I always feel pretty cheated because the pastor is too otherwise occupied to put together a well done sermon. Apparently there is a website called Sermons.com.
I'm not kidding, it really exists.

3) The formula: I think the standard is like three points and two illustrations. Now I know that sometimes that is unavoidable, but recently in the church I've been attending, I've got the pastor pretty pegged. I can usually tell when the poem or story is gonna come. The sermon should not have to be in the same format every week. The Holy Spirit should do its work and make each sermon its own.

The speaking style shouldn't be the same either. There is no one way to deliver a message. There are some definate no no's, but every person is different and each sermon should somewhat reflect the person who is giving it. In other words, ministers shouldn't try to be like each other in the pulpit. There's only one Billy Graham, one Louie Giglio and one Rick Warren. Ministers should try to be themselves.

All in all, my conclusion is this: Ppride and greed are the death of all sermons. It's never about the one in the pulpit, its about the One who they are supposed to be representing. I truly believe that you can have the least amount of public speaking skills, and God can be glorified. It's all about who is glorified.

Church Business: Who's business is it?

2005-07-12T16:35:00.000-04:00

Church business meetings can be reality shows in the making. No matter how you slice it, every church has its politics. It's completely unavoidable; no church is without its own politics. It's how the politics of the church are handled that makes a church different from another.

Lately I've been going through Oswald Chambers' devotional book, My Utmost for His Highest, and I came across this quote:

The church ceases to be spiritual when it becomes self-seeking, only interested in the development of its own organization. (July 12 devotional)

The truth of the matter is this: the church belongs to God not us. When the church takes its vision away from God, then that's when things go wrong. At my local church here in Fredericksburg, our business meetings are famous for long winded discussions and a low productivity level. But one thing really bothered me in particular, the lack of prayer for the church. We have plenty of prayer time for the church's members, but not for the future of the church itself. After all, if it isn't our church, shouldn't we be seeking guidance from the One in charge? Paul says this,

Always keep yourselves united in the Holy Spirit, and bind yourselves together with peace.
Ephesians 4:3

If we as a church are truly united in the Holy Spirit, then why don't we seek Him in all of our meetings? Why treat a church like a business, if its not our business after all?

Big churches: why I'm not a fan

2005-07-05T21:50:00.000-04:00

So I've been reading this book by Henri J. M. Nouwen. It's really good stuff. It's called
In the Name of Jesus. I found this quote and I wanted to post it:

When the members of a community of faith cannot truly know and love their shepherd, shepherding quickly becomes a subtle way of excercising power over others and begins to show authoritarian and dictatorial traits. (Pg 62)

In this passage, he's basically discussing the issue of Christian ministers and how they are just as vulnerable as their own congregations. Just because a minister has a M Div, does not mean that they are completely invincible. They are just agents of God's plan and their job is this:

Their responsibility is to equip God's people to do his work and build up the church, the body of Christ.
Ephesians 4:12

They are to teach their congregations who God is, how to serve God, and to walk with them in that journey. I think the biggest word in this passage is God's, because its his church in the first place. He's the one in control.

What I'm getting to is this: There needs to be some accountability in the church. Ministers are just servants of Christ. They are not invincible people. Huge mega churches really bother me because of this. How are ministers suppposed to build up the church, and walk the journey with their flock if their church is so huge that they don't know everyone in it? If there are so many people in one area, why are they in one church? Why aren't they starting other churches in other areas of town to reach the people there? How is one minister serving an entire congregation that's in the thousands if they cannot reach them or get counseling with them? How is there accountability when the minister is too busy preparing for three services packed with thousands of people?

Why is success in the ministry measured by numbers? I don't think I'll ever understand this.

Resting in Jesus

2005-07-05T21:37:00.000-04:00

Wow. This whole summer has been completely different for me. It's been so awesome and I wouldn't trade it for anything. But the biggest lesson I've learned is resting.

Psalm 91:1 Those who live in the shelter of the Most High will find rest in the shadow of the Almighty.

It's so easy to get caught up with busy schedules and habits. The biggest danger of a Christians are themselves. I don't want to worship my religion, I want to worship my God. I got so caught up with living the right life and obeying all the rules and expectations of me. God is not a God of rules and constraints. He's a God of freedom. All he wants of me is the right to myself. I surrender the right to make my own decisions and I give my life completely over to him. That's how it works. In theory. It's a daily struggle.

But the big thing is this, God doesn't applaud us when we follow all the rules or how much ministry we do. He doesn't say, "Oh, look how busy they are! That's just what they need to do"
Sometimes we need to just be his, and that's all he wants. He doesn't need us to do anything for him, because God doesn't need anything. He is God after all. All we are able to give him is ourselves, because that's all we really have. He doesn't want our time or our stress. He just wants us.

God is so much bigger than our own religion. He doesn't want religion, he wants us.

So yeah, that's a snippet of all that I've been learning and discovering this summer. There's more to come.