In our final session of the Lord's Prayer series we will be taking a look at the last piece of the Lord's Prayer that asks us to consider temptation. Temptation as it turns out is something uniquely human. Animals and the Angels might be able to pray but when they do deliverance from temptation is not what is on their minds. Humanity is where temptation resides and it is a purely human experience. Yet despite the location of temptation resting fully within humanity, we often struggle with an understanding of temptation and the role God plays in it. The Book of James tells us that God plays no role in producing temptation for humanity rather the genesis of temptation lies in our own desires. We, in a way, are tempting our own selves with the fruits of our own creation.
But before we go any further we should figure out what is it we are talking about here when we use words like Temptation and trials. The more familiar King James Version of the Bible has taught us to think of this prayer in terms of Temptation rather than the more modern translation of Trials. But what is a trial? Like the young Baseball prospect at tryouts who must field short-hop grounders and hit a 12-6 Curve ball we come into these trials with an opportunity to fail or to prevail but like a road that forks, each path is often likely. But the reality is that if we only think of these trials as big-ticket items like the one attempt our prospect has to make a big, first impression we do ourselves a disservice.
Trials are there everyday and the way in which we respond to them helps shape our character for better or worse. We may be prepared to resist the urges of the "headline" sins but it is the daily grind where we encounter opportunities to show humility over pride, contentment over envy, and whatever the opposite of greed is. The way in which we respond when the checkout clerk gives us change for a $20 rather than the $10 we actually gave her will present itself countless more times than the trial of whether or not to commit homicide yet we might say, "I haven't killed anyone so I must be doing something right." One of the ways that we see this played out is in the story of Jesus in the Wilderness. Facing temptation and trial unlike any of us have ever experienced Jesus doesn't just resist the urge to become ruler over all things but also resists the urge to give in to something that might seem trivial like eating. Jesus presents for us a model where we seek to recognize that trials and temptations come in all shapes and sizes and not just the "rule the world" variety.
Given the daily nature of trials it should be accepted that we will all at some point be walking down a road and come to a fork - an intersection of decision - and for whatever reason we take the more difficult path. Perhaps we had a good reason, or perhaps it was because we were forced but at some point we will put ourselves in a place where the temptations and the trials will be more aggressive and frequent. It is at this point that I think we can lean into the words of the prayer. Notice that this section has a second part: deliver us from evil.
If the 1st section of the prayer tells us that testing is a part of human life, the 2nd part tells us that during those times of testing and trial we can be helped and God can be counted on. The second section of our prayer gives us the sense that God is not "hands off" during these times and rather than seeing how all of this "turns out" God is present and able to effect change and be counted on yet because we so rarely do a good job of recognizing our tests we rarely come to God in the midst of them. I will sum this up with a story of Daniel Boone, the American frontiersmen.
The legend has it that at some point during Boone's wilderness adventures he came upon a hungry bear. Finding himself in a bad place, Boone begins to pray, saying to God, "if you cannot help me, please do not help that bear." I think that sums up the idea of the second section. God did not create the temptation but if we are able to see ourselves in the middle of it God is able to help us avoid the pitfalls.
See you tonight!
Peace, Brett
Tuesday, March 31, 2009
Enough is Enough...
Eggos, you have gone to far...I was shopping @ Giant Eagle the other day and look what I found...Hannah Montana Eggos. If you look closely the Eggos have been printed on with logos or slogans like "Part Time Pop Star" and the like.
I remember going to Grandma's house and making Eggos for my Grandpa as he came back from working 3rd shift. We would pop them in the toaster and then slather them with butter and syrup - making sure we filled every square. But look what happened...where are the squares? The good folks at Hannah Montana turned them into edible message disks ready to combine attempts at a healthy meal with a marketing campaign.
This has got me thinking...is everything potential advertising space? What does this mean for us the church? Are there places that are too meaningful to be associated with a well-crafted pitch or is our entire life a commercial for something? Take a look @ John 13:35 and let's explore this further.
Peace, BJS
Thursday, March 26, 2009
Won't you help poor little Anje?
I got the following email yesterday. It is obviously a scam and a straight rip-off of the Nigerian Prince email scam that has gained a comedic cult-like following.
"Dear Friend, How are you and your family? I hope you are all Fine. Firstly, let me introduce myself to you. My name is Anje Ferr a South African citizen; but I grew up in the Republic of Zimbabwe. My father Mr Smith Ferr is among the 2000 white farmers whom were forced out of their farms by the Zimbabwean government. My father lost many valuable properties to the government of Zimbabwe. My father later sold all his tractors and properties and travelled to Cote d'Ivoire, to see if he can invest it in agriculture there. He returned to Zimbabwe to complete arrangements for us to move to Cote d'Ivoire. Unfortunately, my father died of heart attack two days later. Before he died, he revealed to me that he had already deposited 9 Million Euro in a Security and Finance Company in Abidjan, the capital of Cote d'Ivoire. This was the fund he proposed to use in rebuying tractors and other mechanized equipments to start his farming work again. He told me about all the necessary documentations, and directed me to look for a reliable partner that will help me in investing the fund, wherever I will find one. I need someone like you to help me stand as the foreign partner to my late father. If you accept my offer, I will send to you further details, that will enable you to contact the Security and Finance Company in Abidjan, to negotiate the transfer of the fund to your country. Since I do not like to invest the money here. I sincerely promise to give to you 20% of the total funds for your support. This is my only hope for the future. I am patiently awaiting your affirmative. May the Almighty Lord be with you and your entire family. Yours sincerely, Anje Ferr."
Here is what cracks me up about these emails. Our dearly stuck friend, Anje has been given this incredible news that she is going to be crazy rich if only she can liquidate her father's 9 million Euro that, by the way, was a secret apparently until minutes before his death. But it gets better...Anje is looking for a "reliable" partner to give 20% of 9 million Euro to by sending out blanket emails across the globe. Looking for the reliable indiscriminately seems like a great way to work for what she calls "my only hope for the future."
Friends, this is TOTALLY A SCAM! But it also illustrates well what we were talking about yesterday about Sin. Is the root cause behind this attempt to bilk hundreds if not thousands of people out of their money immaturity? Are these people doing this because in 2009 they honestly just don't know better? If you believe that immaturity is to blame...then I have a bridge in Brooklyn that I am looking to sell.
-BJS
"Dear Friend, How are you and your family? I hope you are all Fine. Firstly, let me introduce myself to you. My name is Anje Ferr a South African citizen; but I grew up in the Republic of Zimbabwe. My father Mr Smith Ferr is among the 2000 white farmers whom were forced out of their farms by the Zimbabwean government. My father lost many valuable properties to the government of Zimbabwe. My father later sold all his tractors and properties and travelled to Cote d'Ivoire, to see if he can invest it in agriculture there. He returned to Zimbabwe to complete arrangements for us to move to Cote d'Ivoire. Unfortunately, my father died of heart attack two days later. Before he died, he revealed to me that he had already deposited 9 Million Euro in a Security and Finance Company in Abidjan, the capital of Cote d'Ivoire. This was the fund he proposed to use in rebuying tractors and other mechanized equipments to start his farming work again. He told me about all the necessary documentations, and directed me to look for a reliable partner that will help me in investing the fund, wherever I will find one. I need someone like you to help me stand as the foreign partner to my late father. If you accept my offer, I will send to you further details, that will enable you to contact the Security and Finance Company in Abidjan, to negotiate the transfer of the fund to your country. Since I do not like to invest the money here. I sincerely promise to give to you 20% of the total funds for your support. This is my only hope for the future. I am patiently awaiting your affirmative. May the Almighty Lord be with you and your entire family. Yours sincerely, Anje Ferr."
Here is what cracks me up about these emails. Our dearly stuck friend, Anje has been given this incredible news that she is going to be crazy rich if only she can liquidate her father's 9 million Euro that, by the way, was a secret apparently until minutes before his death. But it gets better...Anje is looking for a "reliable" partner to give 20% of 9 million Euro to by sending out blanket emails across the globe. Looking for the reliable indiscriminately seems like a great way to work for what she calls "my only hope for the future."
Friends, this is TOTALLY A SCAM! But it also illustrates well what we were talking about yesterday about Sin. Is the root cause behind this attempt to bilk hundreds if not thousands of people out of their money immaturity? Are these people doing this because in 2009 they honestly just don't know better? If you believe that immaturity is to blame...then I have a bridge in Brooklyn that I am looking to sell.
-BJS
Wednesday, March 25, 2009
Trying to Figure out Twitter
I working to figure out Twitter...getting it hooked up on the Blackberry and finding friends. If you are on Twitter please find me.
-BJS
-BJS
Tuesday, March 24, 2009
Tomorrow's Class: "Forgive us our debts as we have forgiven our debtors...
Yikes! Did I really just pray that? Yes, yes you did.
Each and every Sunday we pray all together that God would forgive our sins in proportion to the forgiveness we extend others. It is right there in black and white - "forgive us our debts" = asking God to forgive us "as we have forgiven our debtors" = connecting what God does to the forgiveness we have shown others. Are we comfortable with that?
Perhaps the finest illustration of this comes from a story that Jesus told that is often entitled "The Wicked Slave." You can read the story in Matthew 18.
Jesus is asked how many times someone should be forgiven by one of his disciples. Seven times? That sounds reasonable - right? Nope, Jesus completely destroys any sense that there might be a "last call" for forgiveness saying rather than someone should be forgiven seventy times seven times (aka. forever) for it is the case that the day that we stop forgiving others is the day that we stop being forgiven ourselves. What Jesus illustrates here is the the true nature of seeking forgiveness from God - it all comes with a price. Forgiveness and Grace, the two cornerstones of our life in Christ, do not come cheap and they are not just handed out like beads at Mardi Gras. The cost of forgiveness for God was Jesus Christ and the cost of forgiveness for us is living out a Christ-like life. In other words, in order to be forgiven we also must die and experience a rebirth in the new life we have in living according to Christ's example. Forgiveness is costly because sin is so expensive.
But what is sin? I mean, honestly I am not a bad person...maybe a little immature at times but I don't think of myself as a sinner. That is so extreme. What I do isn't that bad...is it?
This is a common response to the conversation of sin. Sin is immaturity. Sin is a sickness. The reality is that when we look at Sin as immaturity or a sickness we totally eliminate our own responsibility from the conversation and thus it is understandable while the idea of being forgiven is such a downer. Many churches, in a move to appeal to a larger audience, have done away with the Prayer of Confession and the Assurance of Pardon, saying that it is depressing. But the reality is as Daily Bread is nourishment for the physical, confession and forgiveness is nourishment for the soul. To do without forgiveness is to neglect our created selves.
In closing, let me say something about wisdom and experience. The interconnection between forgiving and being forgiven is something that we talk about each and every Sunday during the Passing of the Peace but the fact is the concept is something that takes a lifetime to live out. This is a prime example of how head-knowledge does not always translate to real living. We must come at this relationship between how much we forgive and how much God forgives us not as a sprinter trying to get to the finish line as quick as humanly possible but rather as a runner who runs until she gets tired. There is no final chapter in understanding the love of God as we experience it in forgiveness. We are on this journey of understanding and wisdom and there is never a finish line. The longer we run the further we get.
Hope to see you there tomorrow!
Peace, Brett
Each and every Sunday we pray all together that God would forgive our sins in proportion to the forgiveness we extend others. It is right there in black and white - "forgive us our debts" = asking God to forgive us "as we have forgiven our debtors" = connecting what God does to the forgiveness we have shown others. Are we comfortable with that?
Perhaps the finest illustration of this comes from a story that Jesus told that is often entitled "The Wicked Slave." You can read the story in Matthew 18.
Jesus is asked how many times someone should be forgiven by one of his disciples. Seven times? That sounds reasonable - right? Nope, Jesus completely destroys any sense that there might be a "last call" for forgiveness saying rather than someone should be forgiven seventy times seven times (aka. forever) for it is the case that the day that we stop forgiving others is the day that we stop being forgiven ourselves. What Jesus illustrates here is the the true nature of seeking forgiveness from God - it all comes with a price. Forgiveness and Grace, the two cornerstones of our life in Christ, do not come cheap and they are not just handed out like beads at Mardi Gras. The cost of forgiveness for God was Jesus Christ and the cost of forgiveness for us is living out a Christ-like life. In other words, in order to be forgiven we also must die and experience a rebirth in the new life we have in living according to Christ's example. Forgiveness is costly because sin is so expensive.
But what is sin? I mean, honestly I am not a bad person...maybe a little immature at times but I don't think of myself as a sinner. That is so extreme. What I do isn't that bad...is it?
This is a common response to the conversation of sin. Sin is immaturity. Sin is a sickness. The reality is that when we look at Sin as immaturity or a sickness we totally eliminate our own responsibility from the conversation and thus it is understandable while the idea of being forgiven is such a downer. Many churches, in a move to appeal to a larger audience, have done away with the Prayer of Confession and the Assurance of Pardon, saying that it is depressing. But the reality is as Daily Bread is nourishment for the physical, confession and forgiveness is nourishment for the soul. To do without forgiveness is to neglect our created selves.
In closing, let me say something about wisdom and experience. The interconnection between forgiving and being forgiven is something that we talk about each and every Sunday during the Passing of the Peace but the fact is the concept is something that takes a lifetime to live out. This is a prime example of how head-knowledge does not always translate to real living. We must come at this relationship between how much we forgive and how much God forgives us not as a sprinter trying to get to the finish line as quick as humanly possible but rather as a runner who runs until she gets tired. There is no final chapter in understanding the love of God as we experience it in forgiveness. We are on this journey of understanding and wisdom and there is never a finish line. The longer we run the further we get.
Hope to see you there tomorrow!
Peace, Brett
Monday, March 23, 2009
Bravery vs. Courage - What is the difference?
Yesterday I preached a sermon that highlighted bravery in the Christian faith as the key to living in the knowledge that God loves everyone. As I was preparing the sermon Kate and I discussed the difference between Bravery and Courage. As a way to enter into this discussion I wanted to offer up this article from the Washington Post.
What is the Difference between Bravery and Courage? - a guest blog post by Ronit Avni
I would like to explore this further so please comment if you have something to add.
What is the Difference between Bravery and Courage? - a guest blog post by Ronit Avni
I would like to explore this further so please comment if you have something to add.
Saturday, March 21, 2009
Sermon for March 22nd - Under the Big Top
The following sermon is a reflection on John 3:14-20 entitled Under the Big Top
One day while I was in Kenya I came face to face with a Cobra – or at least that is what the locals said it was. I was working in a wood shop cleaning up after a day of building pews and as I gathered the discarded wood a thin black something shot further into the wood scraps left over from a day of making pews. With caution I began to gather the wood slowly until I uncovered a young but still very intimidating three foot black Cobra. The second I saw it I couldn’t keep my eyes off of it. It curled up and propped itself up like in those nature shows. I knew this was going to end poorly for that snake but I kept my eyes locked on its smooth, long body and watched every move it made until it was dead/fell asleep with an intensity that I can only imagine that is reserved for moments of terror. In the moments before it was dispatched, I watched for any sign it might be moving, or striking, constantly making sure that I was far enough away from its advances, securing my position, and if I am truthful not really too concerned with my fellow Cobra combatants.
It is because of this experience that I come up with only one word when I think about our Old Testament reading for today – bravery. Despite the fact that the word bravery does not appear at all in the Bible, I think that there are many cases of the people of God stepping out in courage and showing bravery. In my opinion, the story from Numbers is one of those times. Surrounded by poisonous snakes and the bitten piling up fast, I would imagine that their instincts were a lot like mine. Secure the perimeter, find a safe space where there were no snakes, keep you eyes fixed on the snakes that you can see and never move your gaze higher than your ankles. But what does God ask the Israelite people to do? God commands Moses to place the bronze snake on a stick and raises it high above the ground – far higher than your knees let alone your ankles – and commands the bitten to look upon it and they will live. I guarantee you that at first there were a lot of quick glances and then back to scanning the ground. I think of the first person to actually raise his or her eyes to the snake on a stick and the only thing that comes to mind is bravery.
It takes guts to look up. It takes rejecting the tried and true formula to step out into a space that hasn’t been proven snake free and begin living…living knowing that God is asking that we lift our eyes when we so very desperately want to stare at our feet.
Friends, the story of God’s people is a story of bravery. It is a story of people who have taken their eyes off the safe, the familiar, the comfortable, people who forgot the story of how the generations and generations have carved out an existence, and embraced the story of a people with brave eyes lifted up. It took guts for Abraham to follow a God who had been altogether silent up across a desert. It took guts for Esther to defy her husband and king and save a people. It took guts for Ruth, a stranger in a strange land, to say “I will go where you will go.” The life of faith is one of eyes lifted, looking straight ahead, knowing, trusting, believing that the snakes that slither on the ground underneath are no longer your domain. It takes guts to believe in God. It takes guts to pray for God’s will. It takes guts to be a Pharisee like Nicodemus and journey in the night to Christ and declare that he is a teacher sent from God and on whom God’s presence dwells. But do you want to know what I believe takes the most bravery, the most guts, the most daring and resolve? To believe in this single, revolutionary fact means that we forever take our eyes off of the snakes of our own generation. To believe that God so loved the world that God sent his only begotten Son – to believe that God loved the world, the entire world is in this day and age an act of immense bravery. Bravery not because we are all so very different for that is what the politicians, the fear-mongers and the frighten tell us, but because we are all so very the same - for we are all loved by God.
John 3:16, perhaps our most famous verse, says in no uncertain language that God so loved the world. The claim is unmistakably universal. God loved the entire world and the love that God pours out on you and your family and friends, the love that the oppressed doubt, the love that suffers insult and injury time after time but was and is so strong that it gave us Christ is the same love that is experienced across every border, every ocean and throughout time. We are all fall under the love of God yet the universal love of God that unites us all is often just a novel concept, or an unwelcome challenge for those that cannot raise their eyes above the ankles. For when we stare at our own feet we only see ourselves, our own situation, and never the fact that there are others who have snakes all around them too, and never ever do we see people bravely looking up, and as often is the case we don’t ever realize that we are not alone in God’s love. Brothers and sisters, we must be brave enough to live knowing that God loves the entire world despite what we may think, or what governments tell us, or what we may read, or secretly maybe even hope for. For believing that God loves only us, or our nation, or our church and only our church is cowardice plain and simple – for it is never brave enough to take its eyes off the their own lives and despite their fears have a look around.
Allow me to try to wrap all this up. I got an email from my Dad a number of months ago telling me that he had joined the Circus – literally. The Kelly Miller Circus travels around the nation and my Dad had been hired to serve as the something akin to the business manager. My father has always loved the circus and any job that involved Elephants was too hard to resist. During one of our phone calls he mentioned off hand that the crew was raising the tent for the day’s shows. Dad told me that despite seeing this take place day after day he never really stopped being amazed at it and always found himself with eyes turned up each and every time we walked into that tent. Under that tent, every act performed no matter how different it was to the one that came before it. I like to think of the love of God like that big tent. Under the big top we are all gathered no matter how different we may think we are. But for some the size of the tent is daunting – Dad tells me that some people are afraid of its enormity, believing that anything this expansive cannot be solid, safe, and hold up against what lies outside. For some, the canopy of God’s love is more than they can muster, and yet it is true. The overarching, universal love of God can be scary yet we must be brave because in the end hope lies in bravery, and we are in need of hope. We must be brave enough to live knowing that God loves the world and that God’s love is the single most significant force for change and transformation that the world has ever known. In the end it takes guts to be loved.
One day while I was in Kenya I came face to face with a Cobra – or at least that is what the locals said it was. I was working in a wood shop cleaning up after a day of building pews and as I gathered the discarded wood a thin black something shot further into the wood scraps left over from a day of making pews. With caution I began to gather the wood slowly until I uncovered a young but still very intimidating three foot black Cobra. The second I saw it I couldn’t keep my eyes off of it. It curled up and propped itself up like in those nature shows. I knew this was going to end poorly for that snake but I kept my eyes locked on its smooth, long body and watched every move it made until it was dead/fell asleep with an intensity that I can only imagine that is reserved for moments of terror. In the moments before it was dispatched, I watched for any sign it might be moving, or striking, constantly making sure that I was far enough away from its advances, securing my position, and if I am truthful not really too concerned with my fellow Cobra combatants.
It is because of this experience that I come up with only one word when I think about our Old Testament reading for today – bravery. Despite the fact that the word bravery does not appear at all in the Bible, I think that there are many cases of the people of God stepping out in courage and showing bravery. In my opinion, the story from Numbers is one of those times. Surrounded by poisonous snakes and the bitten piling up fast, I would imagine that their instincts were a lot like mine. Secure the perimeter, find a safe space where there were no snakes, keep you eyes fixed on the snakes that you can see and never move your gaze higher than your ankles. But what does God ask the Israelite people to do? God commands Moses to place the bronze snake on a stick and raises it high above the ground – far higher than your knees let alone your ankles – and commands the bitten to look upon it and they will live. I guarantee you that at first there were a lot of quick glances and then back to scanning the ground. I think of the first person to actually raise his or her eyes to the snake on a stick and the only thing that comes to mind is bravery.
It takes guts to look up. It takes rejecting the tried and true formula to step out into a space that hasn’t been proven snake free and begin living…living knowing that God is asking that we lift our eyes when we so very desperately want to stare at our feet.
Friends, the story of God’s people is a story of bravery. It is a story of people who have taken their eyes off the safe, the familiar, the comfortable, people who forgot the story of how the generations and generations have carved out an existence, and embraced the story of a people with brave eyes lifted up. It took guts for Abraham to follow a God who had been altogether silent up across a desert. It took guts for Esther to defy her husband and king and save a people. It took guts for Ruth, a stranger in a strange land, to say “I will go where you will go.” The life of faith is one of eyes lifted, looking straight ahead, knowing, trusting, believing that the snakes that slither on the ground underneath are no longer your domain. It takes guts to believe in God. It takes guts to pray for God’s will. It takes guts to be a Pharisee like Nicodemus and journey in the night to Christ and declare that he is a teacher sent from God and on whom God’s presence dwells. But do you want to know what I believe takes the most bravery, the most guts, the most daring and resolve? To believe in this single, revolutionary fact means that we forever take our eyes off of the snakes of our own generation. To believe that God so loved the world that God sent his only begotten Son – to believe that God loved the world, the entire world is in this day and age an act of immense bravery. Bravery not because we are all so very different for that is what the politicians, the fear-mongers and the frighten tell us, but because we are all so very the same - for we are all loved by God.
John 3:16, perhaps our most famous verse, says in no uncertain language that God so loved the world. The claim is unmistakably universal. God loved the entire world and the love that God pours out on you and your family and friends, the love that the oppressed doubt, the love that suffers insult and injury time after time but was and is so strong that it gave us Christ is the same love that is experienced across every border, every ocean and throughout time. We are all fall under the love of God yet the universal love of God that unites us all is often just a novel concept, or an unwelcome challenge for those that cannot raise their eyes above the ankles. For when we stare at our own feet we only see ourselves, our own situation, and never the fact that there are others who have snakes all around them too, and never ever do we see people bravely looking up, and as often is the case we don’t ever realize that we are not alone in God’s love. Brothers and sisters, we must be brave enough to live knowing that God loves the entire world despite what we may think, or what governments tell us, or what we may read, or secretly maybe even hope for. For believing that God loves only us, or our nation, or our church and only our church is cowardice plain and simple – for it is never brave enough to take its eyes off the their own lives and despite their fears have a look around.
Allow me to try to wrap all this up. I got an email from my Dad a number of months ago telling me that he had joined the Circus – literally. The Kelly Miller Circus travels around the nation and my Dad had been hired to serve as the something akin to the business manager. My father has always loved the circus and any job that involved Elephants was too hard to resist. During one of our phone calls he mentioned off hand that the crew was raising the tent for the day’s shows. Dad told me that despite seeing this take place day after day he never really stopped being amazed at it and always found himself with eyes turned up each and every time we walked into that tent. Under that tent, every act performed no matter how different it was to the one that came before it. I like to think of the love of God like that big tent. Under the big top we are all gathered no matter how different we may think we are. But for some the size of the tent is daunting – Dad tells me that some people are afraid of its enormity, believing that anything this expansive cannot be solid, safe, and hold up against what lies outside. For some, the canopy of God’s love is more than they can muster, and yet it is true. The overarching, universal love of God can be scary yet we must be brave because in the end hope lies in bravery, and we are in need of hope. We must be brave enough to live knowing that God loves the world and that God’s love is the single most significant force for change and transformation that the world has ever known. In the end it takes guts to be loved.
Tuesday, March 17, 2009
The Lecture Day @ FOTAR
Yesterday was the lecture day here at FOTAR and by in large it was good. Diana Butler Bass began the day with a lecture speaking of a post-partisan faith that moved from labels and division into something larger. Marcus Borg, perhaps the most "controversial" of the 3 speakers was sadly the most mundane of the group. His lecture was a little confusing. Here is a New Testament Scholar of such regard, one of the select few, and he said hardly a thing about the role of biblical interpretation in the "new church" that we had been talking about all morning. But the real gem of the night was Brian McLaren, an author and editor, and as it turns out a wonderful speaker. One of the major takeaways from the lecture was a piece he lifted up about the new idea makers of the emerging generations. John Calvin, our founding theologian, began thinking the thoughts that eventually formed the Institutes of the Christian Religion, a foundational reformed document, at 19 finishing the massive work at 26. The 19-26 year olds in our congregation are the ones who will be breaking the new ground and yet it is this same very generation that is often told to be quiet and submissive to "wisdom and experience."
Peace,
Brett
Peace,
Brett
Monday, March 16, 2009
In Louisville...
I got into Louisville yesterday around 4:15 and checked into the hotel - which is VERY nice. Great thing I have discovered about being an adult is getting to decide what kind of hotel you stay in. Sorry Great 8 or Super 6...
Perhaps the thing that I look forward to the most about the FOTAR is the R - Reunion. As I type this I am in the suite that a couple of classmates and I have reserved talking "shop." We have solo pastors of small churches, college chaplains, a pastor of the 3rd biggest church in his presbytery and then me the only Associate Pastor in the mix. Couple that with my friend who is working on his Ph.d and the conversations are awesome.
Today we hear from all 3 of our main presenters: Diana Butler Bass, who was just @ Springfest; Marcus Borg, a scholar who is well known for his work on the Jesus Seminar and his book The Heart of Christianity, and Brian McLaren, an author and editor of the magazine Sojourners. All the lectures have been sold out and they are expecting record crowds. All and all very exciting!
Updates to follow...
Brett
Perhaps the thing that I look forward to the most about the FOTAR is the R - Reunion. As I type this I am in the suite that a couple of classmates and I have reserved talking "shop." We have solo pastors of small churches, college chaplains, a pastor of the 3rd biggest church in his presbytery and then me the only Associate Pastor in the mix. Couple that with my friend who is working on his Ph.d and the conversations are awesome.
Today we hear from all 3 of our main presenters: Diana Butler Bass, who was just @ Springfest; Marcus Borg, a scholar who is well known for his work on the Jesus Seminar and his book The Heart of Christianity, and Brian McLaren, an author and editor of the magazine Sojourners. All the lectures have been sold out and they are expecting record crowds. All and all very exciting!
Updates to follow...
Brett
Sunday, March 15, 2009
ConEd @ LPTS's FOTAR
I am leaving town today to head on out to my Alma Mater Louisville Presbyterian Theological Seminary for the unfortunately titled "Festival of Theology and Reunion." This is a great time of the year for LPTS alums as we get to hear nationally renown speakers and reconnect with classmates. I am VERY excited for this year's slate of speakers. If you would like to learn more please click here.
While I am gone I will be working on a project with a friend and fellow alum, Jaime, who as I have told many of you will be flying in from the Cayman Islands (where he lives with his wife and son).
My hope is that these 3 days will be a wonderful learning experience and a great time of fellowship. I will see y'all on Wednesday for the 3rd installment of the Lenten Dinners.
See you soon!
Peace, BJS
While I am gone I will be working on a project with a friend and fellow alum, Jaime, who as I have told many of you will be flying in from the Cayman Islands (where he lives with his wife and son).
My hope is that these 3 days will be a wonderful learning experience and a great time of fellowship. I will see y'all on Wednesday for the 3rd installment of the Lenten Dinners.
See you soon!
Peace, BJS
Wednesday, March 11, 2009
Today's Class: "Your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven"
Today is the 2nd of 5 Lenten Dinners and Classes that will be taking a look at the Lord's Prayer. I want to thank all of you who came out for the first one and enjoyed the fantastic Mexican feast. Today our menu is a Baked Potato Bar & Chili + Pie. As for the class we will be taking a look at what has often been called the Disciple's Prayer: "your Kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven."
But first a short REVIEW...
Last week we began our discussion with the nature of our use of the prayer. The Lord's Prayer is the most translated piece of "Christianity" in the world but it is also one of the most abused. Why? It is because we memorize it and then recall it when necessary and rarely do we ever pray it with the same intentionality as we do other non-memorized prayers. While memorization is a fantastic tool for learning scripture it is a poor substitute for a prayer life. Our hope is that we might begin the process of moving the prayer from the head to the heart by taking a look into what it is that we are praying for and the richness of this prayer. To begin this process we started by looking at the "Our Father who art in heaven" section of the prayer which gives us a strong indication that our connection to God should be like the relationship between a child and their parent. God is our Father and Jesus is God's son which makes Jesus and all those who pray to God our brothers and sisters. We are people of faith in a great family which God as our loving parent and the world around us as our siblings. Pretty amazing stuff!
As we jump into our section for today let's start with HEAVEN...
The "second" section of the Lord's Prayer begins with "your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven" but to really get at what we are praying for here I believe that it is best we start at heaven.
What happens in heaven? Pearly gates, streets of Gold, around the clock Mexican buffet and baseball season last all year long? Maybe but I doubt it. There have been many attempts to describe heaven or figure out what it will be like (click here for a great moment from the Simpsons about heaven) but as far as I am concerned the one thing that we can say with certainty is that in heaven God's will reigns. Nothing happens in heaven that is counter to the will of God and so there will be no oppression, no injustice, nothing that God does not desire. This is the wonderful news and as the faithful Body of Christ we can await communion with God the day we are all called home.
Given the state of heaven and the state of earth it doesn't take too long to realize that God's will is not on earth as it is in heaven. If heaven is where in fact there is no difference between what happens and God's will then we can be confident that God's will is not going unabated here on terra firma. There is oppression, there is injustice, there is hunger and violence, and suffering of all kinds and all these things appear to be contrary to the will of God as we know in through our Scriptures and therefore these things ought to be changed! It is this stark reality that I think it is healthy to understand this aspect of our prayer as one of complaint.
Praying for God's will to reign on earth as it is in heaven is a complaint about the state of the world. We pray to God saying there is so much evil in this world and we are powerless to transcend any system that feeds off of coruption and sin becasue we ourselves are sinful people so we come to you O Holy God to make things right. Even as I right this sentance I am kind of yelling in my mind. I want God to end injustice, I want God to make sure all people are fed, and know the love that grows out of peace but even in the zeal of my complaint I have to be cautious...how much really do I want God's will to reign here as I know it does in heaven?
I know heaven will be awesome. To be in constant community with God is what we were all created for but I am not sure anyone is ready for that lived out just yet. When I was in Africa I saw first hand what true poverty and opression looked like. I prayed everyday I woke up in that little town in Kenya for God to act mightly in these peoples lives bringing justice but I never took into account what God's justice would look like for my own life. What sacrifices would I have to make? What would I have to do, or say, or where would I have to go if God would indeed bring justice to Africa? My life, your life, the whole world would change and for the better to be sure but WOW it would be a major life change. It is for this reason that I think of God's will with two words: Wonderful, Scary.
Wonderful ___ Scary
God's will on Earth like it is in heaven would be wonderful.
God's will on Earth like it is in heaven would be scary.
It seems to me that what you but in that blank space between Wonderful and Scary can say alot when we talk about God's will. Is it Wonderful and Scary, Wonderful not Scary, Wonderful vs. Scary, Wonderful > Scary...the truth is that for us it is going to be all of the above.
The manifestation of God's will is scary for it will bring changes beyond anything we could ever imagine but at the same time it is something the entire church has made a cornerstone of our prayer life since inception. God's will is wonderful and we desire it but if we could ever get to a place to accept it and welcome it we need to begin that process with prayer.
Hope to see you tonight!
Peace,
Brett
But first a short REVIEW...
Last week we began our discussion with the nature of our use of the prayer. The Lord's Prayer is the most translated piece of "Christianity" in the world but it is also one of the most abused. Why? It is because we memorize it and then recall it when necessary and rarely do we ever pray it with the same intentionality as we do other non-memorized prayers. While memorization is a fantastic tool for learning scripture it is a poor substitute for a prayer life. Our hope is that we might begin the process of moving the prayer from the head to the heart by taking a look into what it is that we are praying for and the richness of this prayer. To begin this process we started by looking at the "Our Father who art in heaven" section of the prayer which gives us a strong indication that our connection to God should be like the relationship between a child and their parent. God is our Father and Jesus is God's son which makes Jesus and all those who pray to God our brothers and sisters. We are people of faith in a great family which God as our loving parent and the world around us as our siblings. Pretty amazing stuff!
As we jump into our section for today let's start with HEAVEN...
The "second" section of the Lord's Prayer begins with "your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven" but to really get at what we are praying for here I believe that it is best we start at heaven.
What happens in heaven? Pearly gates, streets of Gold, around the clock Mexican buffet and baseball season last all year long? Maybe but I doubt it. There have been many attempts to describe heaven or figure out what it will be like (click here for a great moment from the Simpsons about heaven) but as far as I am concerned the one thing that we can say with certainty is that in heaven God's will reigns. Nothing happens in heaven that is counter to the will of God and so there will be no oppression, no injustice, nothing that God does not desire. This is the wonderful news and as the faithful Body of Christ we can await communion with God the day we are all called home.
Given the state of heaven and the state of earth it doesn't take too long to realize that God's will is not on earth as it is in heaven. If heaven is where in fact there is no difference between what happens and God's will then we can be confident that God's will is not going unabated here on terra firma. There is oppression, there is injustice, there is hunger and violence, and suffering of all kinds and all these things appear to be contrary to the will of God as we know in through our Scriptures and therefore these things ought to be changed! It is this stark reality that I think it is healthy to understand this aspect of our prayer as one of complaint.
Praying for God's will to reign on earth as it is in heaven is a complaint about the state of the world. We pray to God saying there is so much evil in this world and we are powerless to transcend any system that feeds off of coruption and sin becasue we ourselves are sinful people so we come to you O Holy God to make things right. Even as I right this sentance I am kind of yelling in my mind. I want God to end injustice, I want God to make sure all people are fed, and know the love that grows out of peace but even in the zeal of my complaint I have to be cautious...how much really do I want God's will to reign here as I know it does in heaven?
I know heaven will be awesome. To be in constant community with God is what we were all created for but I am not sure anyone is ready for that lived out just yet. When I was in Africa I saw first hand what true poverty and opression looked like. I prayed everyday I woke up in that little town in Kenya for God to act mightly in these peoples lives bringing justice but I never took into account what God's justice would look like for my own life. What sacrifices would I have to make? What would I have to do, or say, or where would I have to go if God would indeed bring justice to Africa? My life, your life, the whole world would change and for the better to be sure but WOW it would be a major life change. It is for this reason that I think of God's will with two words: Wonderful, Scary.
Wonderful ___ Scary
God's will on Earth like it is in heaven would be wonderful.
God's will on Earth like it is in heaven would be scary.
It seems to me that what you but in that blank space between Wonderful and Scary can say alot when we talk about God's will. Is it Wonderful and Scary, Wonderful not Scary, Wonderful vs. Scary, Wonderful > Scary...the truth is that for us it is going to be all of the above.
The manifestation of God's will is scary for it will bring changes beyond anything we could ever imagine but at the same time it is something the entire church has made a cornerstone of our prayer life since inception. God's will is wonderful and we desire it but if we could ever get to a place to accept it and welcome it we need to begin that process with prayer.
Hope to see you tonight!
Peace,
Brett
Playing around with the look
Something has changed here...is it the font?
Ok, so I found the customize functions on the software and I am messing around with the template.
I am digging the dots but I am not sure if they will last.
Thoughts?
-BJS
Ok, so I found the customize functions on the software and I am messing around with the template.
I am digging the dots but I am not sure if they will last.
Thoughts?
-BJS
Thursday, March 5, 2009
As far as I am concerned this is all you need to know about the human condition
Turn on the sound, click on the link below and watch this video...
The Human Condition
-Brett
PS: if you would rather cut and paste
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6gjXZdT0Qqw
The Human Condition
-Brett
PS: if you would rather cut and paste
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6gjXZdT0Qqw
Wednesday, March 4, 2009
Today's Class: "Our Father who art in heaven..."
Today marks the 1st of 5 classes that we are offering as our 2009 Lenten Series. Our class today will focus a little bit on the goals for the class as well as getting into the idea of relationship as we take a look at "Our Father who art in heaven..."
I love what Martin Luther, the great Reformer, said about the Lord's Prayer. He called it perhaps the church's greatest martyr because each and every Sunday morning (at the VERY least) "it is abused and tortured" all the world around. Now, why would Luther say that? For him there was a great danger and sadness with the Lord's Prayer becoming something too memorized to actually pray. Think about song lyrics...perhaps you know all the words to Boston's More than a Feeling backwards and forwards. As soon as you hear the 1st couple of notes you are already there and you don't even have to think before you say "I looked out this morning and the sun was gone." This was Luther's concern with the Lord's Prayer - that before too long the prayer would become just another selection of the iPod that is your brain. There is a real danger that because we know the words to the Lord's Prayer every-which-way that we never get to really pray, really contemplate what it is that we are bringing to the God that we are just about to call "Our Father."
To give you an example of what I am talking about check out this video for the Prayer Cross.
Did you ever have a professor in College or perhaps someone in your life that was always Dr. Johnson or perhaps Mrs. Newburg? Someone who when asked what their first name was would always reply "Dr." or "Mrs."? That lack of familiarity would have been understood in the Ancient World. Nobody would think to call God "Daddy" for the shear sound of it would scream irreverence and a familiarity that would be personally boastful (like saying I get to call God Daddy because we are so tight). But Jesus does call God Daddy and says that his Daddy is our Daddy too. "Our Father" at its core is a double statement about relationship which makes a bold claim about the universal nature of the God of Jesus being the God of everyone and that as the God of the Universe this God is our Father.
The term "father" can carry with it a lot of baggage. For some the very word Father is a four-letter word. For some the man that was to be their father instead turned out to be anything but and the only life lesson he imparted was one of pain, distrust and struggle. For many the term "Father" is a limitation to knowing and trusting God more and no matter how much we speak of the love of the Eternal Father it is no match for the pain of an abusive Earthly Father. Given the reality of the world we live in, it stands that we might want to think of the Father that Jesus knew, the God that transcends every description and baggage we bring, as the transcendent God of Heaven.
The God that we have this intimate, familiar relationship with is the God whose ways are not our own. God and humanity do not fight for the same space. God is what we call in the church-speak world as "wholly other" meaning that God is not bound by the things that we cannot transcend. When we use the phrase "in heaven" we are lifting up God as being "other" as well as locating God in the midst of perfection. The God who in all things move, The God who is the author and giver of life, the God that is perfect in love, justice, and grace exists in the manifestation of perfection: Heaven. It is just another paradox of faith that the God that we are told to call Daddy is the God that creates perfection just by existing.
I hope that this might get the motor running. Look here next Wednesday for the 2nd session of the class where we will look into "your Kingdom come, your will be done on Earth as it is in heaven."
Hope to see you tonight!
Peace,
Brett
I love what Martin Luther, the great Reformer, said about the Lord's Prayer. He called it perhaps the church's greatest martyr because each and every Sunday morning (at the VERY least) "it is abused and tortured" all the world around. Now, why would Luther say that? For him there was a great danger and sadness with the Lord's Prayer becoming something too memorized to actually pray. Think about song lyrics...perhaps you know all the words to Boston's More than a Feeling backwards and forwards. As soon as you hear the 1st couple of notes you are already there and you don't even have to think before you say "I looked out this morning and the sun was gone." This was Luther's concern with the Lord's Prayer - that before too long the prayer would become just another selection of the iPod that is your brain. There is a real danger that because we know the words to the Lord's Prayer every-which-way that we never get to really pray, really contemplate what it is that we are bringing to the God that we are just about to call "Our Father."
To give you an example of what I am talking about check out this video for the Prayer Cross.
Did you ever have a professor in College or perhaps someone in your life that was always Dr. Johnson or perhaps Mrs. Newburg? Someone who when asked what their first name was would always reply "Dr." or "Mrs."? That lack of familiarity would have been understood in the Ancient World. Nobody would think to call God "Daddy" for the shear sound of it would scream irreverence and a familiarity that would be personally boastful (like saying I get to call God Daddy because we are so tight). But Jesus does call God Daddy and says that his Daddy is our Daddy too. "Our Father" at its core is a double statement about relationship which makes a bold claim about the universal nature of the God of Jesus being the God of everyone and that as the God of the Universe this God is our Father.
The term "father" can carry with it a lot of baggage. For some the very word Father is a four-letter word. For some the man that was to be their father instead turned out to be anything but and the only life lesson he imparted was one of pain, distrust and struggle. For many the term "Father" is a limitation to knowing and trusting God more and no matter how much we speak of the love of the Eternal Father it is no match for the pain of an abusive Earthly Father. Given the reality of the world we live in, it stands that we might want to think of the Father that Jesus knew, the God that transcends every description and baggage we bring, as the transcendent God of Heaven.
The God that we have this intimate, familiar relationship with is the God whose ways are not our own. God and humanity do not fight for the same space. God is what we call in the church-speak world as "wholly other" meaning that God is not bound by the things that we cannot transcend. When we use the phrase "in heaven" we are lifting up God as being "other" as well as locating God in the midst of perfection. The God who in all things move, The God who is the author and giver of life, the God that is perfect in love, justice, and grace exists in the manifestation of perfection: Heaven. It is just another paradox of faith that the God that we are told to call Daddy is the God that creates perfection just by existing.
I hope that this might get the motor running. Look here next Wednesday for the 2nd session of the class where we will look into "your Kingdom come, your will be done on Earth as it is in heaven."
Hope to see you tonight!
Peace,
Brett
Monday, March 2, 2009
Getting ready for the Lenten Series and Dinner
As many of you know the Lenten Series and Dinner begins this week. On Wednesday, March 4th and then for 5 Wednesdays after that we will be sharing in a meal and taking a deeper look into the Lord's Prayer. I am excited for the time that we will be spending together and for the discussion that will happen around our tables. For those of you who are wondering what the classes and the meals will be like let me give you this small taste...
Peace,
Brett
- Dinner begins @ 5:30 and the first of our 5 meals will be a Taco Bar. Bring the family and have some great food!
- The Class begins at 6:15 with the youngest amongst us heading out to Joyful Noise (our Children Choir) or hanging out in childcare. Each week we will be looking at a section of the Lord's Prayer and spending some time digging deeper into what we are saying and praying about. Week 1 will focus on the start of the prayer, "Our Father, who are in heaven..." and will feature about 15 minutes of presentation (by yours truly) and then 20-30 minutes of discussion around our tables. We have recruited some fantastic table leaders who know the materials inside and out and will be great at leading discussions.
- Finally the class will end at 7:00. Parents with children in Joyful Noise can pick up their children and head on home. We will be needing some help with clean-up and so anyone able to lend a hand is most appreciated
Peace,
Brett
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