saw this article today, and thought it has a bearing on the 2 blog recent posts re 'what is gospel'
http://www.redletterchristians.org/gathering-crowds-making-disciples/
Wednesday, April 30, 2014
more what is gospel ..
thing is
being a child of God is a ..
being a disciple is a ..
being ' in-Christ ' is a ..
it's not what i ' believe '
God isn't my God because i believe something(s) about God
that means nothing, really
so when we posit a list of propositions that say God is this or that
and then draw lines around that list, such that if a person can check-off the things on the list they're ' in ', if not they're not ' in ' ... that's so .. pedantic
actually, it reduces God to a theory
i know i went all the way east there
but i'm trying to get my lame brain to wrap around this, which flies in the face of my spiritual history ..
God is a person
we don't have relationships with propositions
we don't talk to lists
we don't listen to doctrine
propositions and checklists and doctrines are not alive
we relate to living persons
and God is just that ..
and the perfect presentation of God in person is God-in-person=Jesus
mine is to call on God
whoever he is
and ask him to speak
to me
i want to know him
i have Scripture, thankfully
and that allows me to know about God
but it's not God himself
Hebrews ( my favourite book ) points to knowable revealed God in Jesus as the definition of who God is
and Jesus is a human
Hebrews 1.1 ff
Long ago God spoke to the fathers by the prophets at different times and in different ways. In these last days, however, He has spoken to us by His Son. God has appointed Him heir of all things and made the universe through Him.
The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact expression of His nature, sustaining all things by His powerful word.
therefore, mine is to know this man, Son of Man, in order to fully appreciate who God is
while i can learn things about God from Scripture
i cannot know God there
knowing someone involves time spent with that person
asking
listening
talking
simply being with them
sharing presence
...
i'm struggling ( again ) to express my thinking that our historic propositional ' faith ' is, for the most part, not useful in making disciples
and what is termed ' the great commission ' is precisely that - make disciples
not make believers
a disciple is someone who sees and knows something of a person, and determines to be just like that person
whatever that person is, i want to be
just like that ..
it's almost, i want to be him/her
but you start with the person
i have to have a relationship with them to learn from them
i have to be with them to learn them, understand them, get to know their thinking, their motivations ..
why are we so afraid of ' knowing ' God ??
why does it have to be what we learned from a book ??
because we westerners are intellectually-oriented
we look for facts and data and base our thinking there
while God says ' anyone who comes to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who search diligently for him '
put in other words, ' without faith it is impossible to please God, for the one who draws near to Him must believe that He exists and rewards those who seek Him ' ( Hebrews 11.6 ) ..
2 things there ..
faith is necessary; it is indispensable
we must seek God diligently
it is the person of God i look to know
not facts about God ..
that then is the basis of these couple blog posts
presenting Got to people in gospel tract format or Bible format only provides them with information about God
it is not God
that person must have a desire to know God for themselves
be in relationship with God
i ' believe ' that we have walked a dread path of propositional belief
and left people thinking they know God because they know stuff about God ..
if i leave my relationship with God to the things i believe about God, i'm in deep doodoo
that would be similar to loving what i know about my wife
i don't love what i know
i love a person
go there
we've reduced relationship with God to knowing about God
and the twain shall never ever meet
.. still thinking on it
being a child of God is a ..
being a disciple is a ..
being ' in-Christ ' is a ..
it's not what i ' believe '
God isn't my God because i believe something(s) about God
that means nothing, really
so when we posit a list of propositions that say God is this or that
and then draw lines around that list, such that if a person can check-off the things on the list they're ' in ', if not they're not ' in ' ... that's so .. pedantic
actually, it reduces God to a theory
i know i went all the way east there
but i'm trying to get my lame brain to wrap around this, which flies in the face of my spiritual history ..
God is a person
we don't have relationships with propositions
we don't talk to lists
we don't listen to doctrine
propositions and checklists and doctrines are not alive
we relate to living persons
and God is just that ..
and the perfect presentation of God in person is God-in-person=Jesus
mine is to call on God
whoever he is
and ask him to speak
to me
i want to know him
i have Scripture, thankfully
and that allows me to know about God
but it's not God himself
Hebrews ( my favourite book ) points to knowable revealed God in Jesus as the definition of who God is
and Jesus is a human
Hebrews 1.1 ff
Long ago God spoke to the fathers by the prophets at different times and in different ways. In these last days, however, He has spoken to us by His Son. God has appointed Him heir of all things and made the universe through Him.
The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact expression of His nature, sustaining all things by His powerful word.
therefore, mine is to know this man, Son of Man, in order to fully appreciate who God is
while i can learn things about God from Scripture
i cannot know God there
knowing someone involves time spent with that person
asking
listening
talking
simply being with them
sharing presence
...
i'm struggling ( again ) to express my thinking that our historic propositional ' faith ' is, for the most part, not useful in making disciples
and what is termed ' the great commission ' is precisely that - make disciples
not make believers
a disciple is someone who sees and knows something of a person, and determines to be just like that person
whatever that person is, i want to be
just like that ..
it's almost, i want to be him/her
but you start with the person
i have to have a relationship with them to learn from them
i have to be with them to learn them, understand them, get to know their thinking, their motivations ..
why are we so afraid of ' knowing ' God ??
why does it have to be what we learned from a book ??
because we westerners are intellectually-oriented
we look for facts and data and base our thinking there
while God says ' anyone who comes to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who search diligently for him '
put in other words, ' without faith it is impossible to please God, for the one who draws near to Him must believe that He exists and rewards those who seek Him ' ( Hebrews 11.6 ) ..
2 things there ..
faith is necessary; it is indispensable
we must seek God diligently
it is the person of God i look to know
not facts about God ..
that then is the basis of these couple blog posts
presenting Got to people in gospel tract format or Bible format only provides them with information about God
it is not God
that person must have a desire to know God for themselves
be in relationship with God
i ' believe ' that we have walked a dread path of propositional belief
and left people thinking they know God because they know stuff about God ..
if i leave my relationship with God to the things i believe about God, i'm in deep doodoo
that would be similar to loving what i know about my wife
i don't love what i know
i love a person
go there
we've reduced relationship with God to knowing about God
and the twain shall never ever meet
.. still thinking on it
Tuesday, April 29, 2014
the gospel of messiah Jesus, part 3 ..
“ Do not judge, so that you won’t be judged, for with the judgment you use you will be judged, and with the measure you use it will be measured to you.
Why do you look at the speck in your brother’s eye but don’t notice the log in your own eye? Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ and look, there’s a log in your eye? Hypocrite! First take the log out of your eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother’s eye.
Don’t give what is holy to dogs or toss your pearls before pigs, or they will trample them with their feet, turn, and tear you to pieces.
Keep asking, and it will be given to you; keep searching, and you will find; keep knocking, and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and the one who searches finds, and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened. What man among you, if his son asks him for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good things to those who ask Him!
Therefore, whatever you want others to do for you, do also the same for them—this is the Law and the Prophets.
Enter through the narrow gate, for the gate is wide and the road is broad that leads to destruction, and there are many who go through it. How narrow is the gate and difficult the road that leads to life, and few find it.
Beware of false prophets who come to you in sheep’s clothing but inwardly are ravaging wolves. You’ll recognize them by their fruit. Are grapes gathered from thornbushes or figs from thistles? In the same way, every good tree produces good fruit, but a bad tree produces bad fruit. A good tree can’t produce bad fruit; neither can a bad tree produce good fruit. Every tree that doesn’t produce good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. So you’ll recognize them by their fruit.
Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord!’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of My Father in heaven. On that day many will say to Me, ‘Lord, Lord, didn’t we prophesy in Your name, drive out demons in Your name, and do many miracles in Your name?’ Then I will announce to them, ‘I never knew you! Depart from Me, you lawbreakers!’
Therefore, everyone who hears these words of Mine and acts on them will be like a sensible man who built his house on the rock. The rain fell, the rivers rose, and the winds blew and pounded that house, yet it didn’t collapse, because its foundation was on solid rock. But everyone who hears these words of Mine and doesn’t act on them will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. The rain fell, the rivers rose, the winds blew and pounded that house, and it collapsed, and its collapse was great! "
When Jesus had finished this sermon, the crowds were astonished at His teaching, because He was teaching them like one who had authority, and not like their scribes.
Why do you look at the speck in your brother’s eye but don’t notice the log in your own eye? Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ and look, there’s a log in your eye? Hypocrite! First take the log out of your eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother’s eye.
Don’t give what is holy to dogs or toss your pearls before pigs, or they will trample them with their feet, turn, and tear you to pieces.
Keep asking, and it will be given to you; keep searching, and you will find; keep knocking, and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and the one who searches finds, and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened. What man among you, if his son asks him for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good things to those who ask Him!
Therefore, whatever you want others to do for you, do also the same for them—this is the Law and the Prophets.
Enter through the narrow gate, for the gate is wide and the road is broad that leads to destruction, and there are many who go through it. How narrow is the gate and difficult the road that leads to life, and few find it.
Beware of false prophets who come to you in sheep’s clothing but inwardly are ravaging wolves. You’ll recognize them by their fruit. Are grapes gathered from thornbushes or figs from thistles? In the same way, every good tree produces good fruit, but a bad tree produces bad fruit. A good tree can’t produce bad fruit; neither can a bad tree produce good fruit. Every tree that doesn’t produce good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. So you’ll recognize them by their fruit.
Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord!’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of My Father in heaven. On that day many will say to Me, ‘Lord, Lord, didn’t we prophesy in Your name, drive out demons in Your name, and do many miracles in Your name?’ Then I will announce to them, ‘I never knew you! Depart from Me, you lawbreakers!’
Therefore, everyone who hears these words of Mine and acts on them will be like a sensible man who built his house on the rock. The rain fell, the rivers rose, and the winds blew and pounded that house, yet it didn’t collapse, because its foundation was on solid rock. But everyone who hears these words of Mine and doesn’t act on them will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. The rain fell, the rivers rose, the winds blew and pounded that house, and it collapsed, and its collapse was great! "
When Jesus had finished this sermon, the crowds were astonished at His teaching, because He was teaching them like one who had authority, and not like their scribes.
sharing .. being present 2 . .. .
' being present ' is a recent post on understanding the role of the helped in the life of the helper - there is get-back; the benefits run both ways
it strikes me over the last few days .. there is a primo example of that in my life
his name is Random, and i've posted about him before, on another blog
a few weeks ago Random was drunk onsite on a sunday morning right around time of service
apparently some ' good-intentioned ' folk tried to get him to leave - he was causing a bit of a disturbance in his inebriation while people gathered for service and sunday lunch
i hung out with him for a few hours
he was confrontational at times, although mildly so
some other homeless people wanted him gone - he had offended them
i tried to keep things reasonable while service and lunch went on
that was 3 weeks ago
Random has been in and out of drunkeness since i met him
i invited him in one sunday soon after i got here to this town
like every person, he has a story
he has issues
and a pile-up of issues had him on the backfoot looking for escape from reality and help in dealing with the crap
he liquored
i guess when you live on the street and sleep in the woods and panhandle and beg for your daily bread and whatever it is you need ... . . . . .
you realize how alone you are, and try to escape the aloneness however you can, a very reasonable response for the human condition in walking-alone life
... many of us are lonely, even when we're not alone
and many of us seek escape even when we don't have the burden of being unhoused
i've watched and talked-with and listened-to Random
i've heard his stories, in pieces
i've smelled him after long bouts of drought where he simply drank, ate nothing, slept, and stopped caring for or about himself; he wanted death ..
and i've seen him sober and cognizant too
the drunkenness has been on the decline since i met him, slow but steady decline
the last couple weeks in particular i've seen a marked change
there is a disciple community movement on the rise here
and Random came recently and participated, and came back next time ..
sober both times
i've seen more and more bright spots in him
and recently it has been one long bout of bright
a smiling, clean, happy Random is now the new norm ..
maybe
i hope it stays that way
..
God has been active
many many times
and Random repeatedly gives him the credit
always making references to God's action ( or inactivity ) in his life
the deer that stepped over his sleeping bag
the frogs he listens to at night
the stars God ' set in place '
the cell phone that was returned by the thief
the person(s) that bought him sandwiches randomly
and i've watched
listened
learned
.. at least some
i think
..
last night, after community meet, we walked out to the street - Random was heading out for his walk 2 or 3 miles to the woods where he sleeps
he spoke of a friend's struggle with alcoholism and their recommendation to join a recovery group
Random's comment to me was similar to this: " that never worked for me; i always knew i needed the help of a higher power. i wake in the morning and thank him, and tell him i love him. i go to bed at night and i look at the stars and think of him, and i tell him ' thanks ' and that i love him ..
and he loves me back ! "
he has, in the last 2-3 weeks, been able to get GA, and is now in-line for housing assistance, as of this morning
... ..
i didn't mean for this to be so long a post, but i am struck by the apparent change i've seen, and i'm excited
it brings me back to the ' being present ' thingy, and our need to be ' in ' the lives of the people we look to help and minister-to, not only for them, although mostly for them - they're the blatantly in-need - but also ' for ' me
i get unexpected benefits
if i'm open to that
if my heart is set in a receiving mode
if i see that person as someone i can learn from
if i look to be blessed in the blessing
i'm excited
i've heard Random speak to the goodness of God over and over, and seen his unrelenting acknowledgment of God even when he was in the dump, scraping the barrel's bottom
..
i have much to learn
more from him, i'm sure
and from that happy Indian
and the wandering hillbilly
and the Traveler
and the young 2 that're constantly high, looking for escape from that grave
and the tall one looking to head north out of here, that told me a week ago he's not at all religious, still looking, but is touched by the wisdom and coolness of the local Shepherd
and the quiet island guy that inspires me with his cool, nursing a swollen and infected hand
and the skinny lady that quietly appears and disappears, and amazes me she could handle street life
and the never-stop-talking chick that volunteers every saturday, who's not associated with the church here
and never-say-die bob, who travels with more stuff on his bicycle than anyone could imagine - dude deserves a circus act
and .. and . .. .
i'm learning
Lord, open my ears, close my mouth
and allow me to simply try to understand so's i can rejoice with those that rejoice and weep with those that weep and help while being helped myself
thank you for the privilege of being involved in the lives of these my fellowhumans
remind me regularly .. they too carry the imago dei
i follow you
it strikes me over the last few days .. there is a primo example of that in my life
his name is Random, and i've posted about him before, on another blog
a few weeks ago Random was drunk onsite on a sunday morning right around time of service
apparently some ' good-intentioned ' folk tried to get him to leave - he was causing a bit of a disturbance in his inebriation while people gathered for service and sunday lunch
i hung out with him for a few hours
he was confrontational at times, although mildly so
some other homeless people wanted him gone - he had offended them
i tried to keep things reasonable while service and lunch went on
that was 3 weeks ago
Random has been in and out of drunkeness since i met him
i invited him in one sunday soon after i got here to this town
like every person, he has a story
he has issues
and a pile-up of issues had him on the backfoot looking for escape from reality and help in dealing with the crap
he liquored
i guess when you live on the street and sleep in the woods and panhandle and beg for your daily bread and whatever it is you need ... . . . . .
you realize how alone you are, and try to escape the aloneness however you can, a very reasonable response for the human condition in walking-alone life
... many of us are lonely, even when we're not alone
and many of us seek escape even when we don't have the burden of being unhoused
i've watched and talked-with and listened-to Random
i've heard his stories, in pieces
i've smelled him after long bouts of drought where he simply drank, ate nothing, slept, and stopped caring for or about himself; he wanted death ..
and i've seen him sober and cognizant too
the drunkenness has been on the decline since i met him, slow but steady decline
the last couple weeks in particular i've seen a marked change
there is a disciple community movement on the rise here
and Random came recently and participated, and came back next time ..
sober both times
i've seen more and more bright spots in him
and recently it has been one long bout of bright
a smiling, clean, happy Random is now the new norm ..
maybe
i hope it stays that way
..
God has been active
many many times
and Random repeatedly gives him the credit
always making references to God's action ( or inactivity ) in his life
the deer that stepped over his sleeping bag
the frogs he listens to at night
the stars God ' set in place '
the cell phone that was returned by the thief
the person(s) that bought him sandwiches randomly
and i've watched
listened
learned
.. at least some
i think
..
last night, after community meet, we walked out to the street - Random was heading out for his walk 2 or 3 miles to the woods where he sleeps
he spoke of a friend's struggle with alcoholism and their recommendation to join a recovery group
Random's comment to me was similar to this: " that never worked for me; i always knew i needed the help of a higher power. i wake in the morning and thank him, and tell him i love him. i go to bed at night and i look at the stars and think of him, and i tell him ' thanks ' and that i love him ..
and he loves me back ! "
he has, in the last 2-3 weeks, been able to get GA, and is now in-line for housing assistance, as of this morning
... ..
i didn't mean for this to be so long a post, but i am struck by the apparent change i've seen, and i'm excited
it brings me back to the ' being present ' thingy, and our need to be ' in ' the lives of the people we look to help and minister-to, not only for them, although mostly for them - they're the blatantly in-need - but also ' for ' me
i get unexpected benefits
if i'm open to that
if my heart is set in a receiving mode
if i see that person as someone i can learn from
if i look to be blessed in the blessing
i'm excited
i've heard Random speak to the goodness of God over and over, and seen his unrelenting acknowledgment of God even when he was in the dump, scraping the barrel's bottom
..
i have much to learn
more from him, i'm sure
and from that happy Indian
and the wandering hillbilly
and the Traveler
and the young 2 that're constantly high, looking for escape from that grave
and the tall one looking to head north out of here, that told me a week ago he's not at all religious, still looking, but is touched by the wisdom and coolness of the local Shepherd
and the quiet island guy that inspires me with his cool, nursing a swollen and infected hand
and the skinny lady that quietly appears and disappears, and amazes me she could handle street life
and the never-stop-talking chick that volunteers every saturday, who's not associated with the church here
and never-say-die bob, who travels with more stuff on his bicycle than anyone could imagine - dude deserves a circus act
and .. and . .. .
i'm learning
Lord, open my ears, close my mouth
and allow me to simply try to understand so's i can rejoice with those that rejoice and weep with those that weep and help while being helped myself
thank you for the privilege of being involved in the lives of these my fellowhumans
remind me regularly .. they too carry the imago dei
i follow you
Saturday, April 26, 2014
the gospel of messiah Jesus, part 2 ..
Jesus speaking ..
Be careful not to practice your righteousness in front of people, to be seen by them, otherwise you will have no reward from your Father in heaven.
So whenever you give to the poor don’t sound a trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be applauded by people. I assure you, that's their reward! But when you give to the poor don’t let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving may be in secret, and your Father who sees in secret will reward you.
Whenever you pray you must not be like the hypocrites - they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by people. I assure you, that's their reward! But when you pray go into your private room, shut your door, and pray to your Father who is in secret, and your Father who sees the secret things will reward you.
When you pray don’t babble like the idolaters - they imagine they’ll be heard for their many words. Don’t be like them because your Father knows the things you need before you ask Him.
Therefore, pray like this:
Our Father in heaven may your name be revered.
May your kingdom come and your will be done on earth, even as it is done in heaven.
Give us today the bread we need for today.
Forgive us our debts as we ourselves also have forgiven our debtors.
And do not bring us into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one, for the kingdom is yours, and the power and the glory forever. Amen.
For if you forgive people their wrongdoing your heavenly Father will forgive you as well. But if you don’t forgive people your Father will not forgive your wrongdoing either.
Whenever you fast don’t be sad-faced like the hypocrites, for they make their faces unattractive so that their fasting is obvious to people. I assure you, that's their reward! But when you fast put oil on your head, and wash your face so that you don’t display your fasting to people but only to your Father who is in secret, and your Father who sees the secret things will reward you.
Don’t collect for yourselves treasures on earth where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal; but collect for yourselves treasures in heaven where neither moth nor rust destroys, and where thieves don’t break in and steal. For where your treasure is there your heart will be also.
The eye is the lamp of the body. If your eye is good your whole body will be full of light, but if your eye is bad your whole body will be full of darkness. So if the light within you is darkness—how deep is that darkness!
No one can be a slave of two masters since he will either hate one and love the other, or he will be devoted to one and despise the other. You can't be slaves of God and of wealth too.
This is why I tell you: don’t worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Isn’t life more than food and the body more than clothing?
Look at the birds of the sky: they don’t sow or reap or gather into barns, yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Aren’t you worth more than they?
Can any of you add a single cubit to his height by worrying?
And why do you worry about clothes? Learn how the wildflowers of the field grow: they don’t labor or spin thread, yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was adorned like one of these! If that’s how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and thrown into the furnace tomorrow, won’t He do much more for you, you of little faith?
So don’t worry saying, ‘What will we eat?’ or ‘What will we drink?’ or ‘What will we wear?’, for the idolaters eagerly seek all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek the kingdom of God and His righteousness first, and then all these things will be provided for you.
Therefore don’t worry about tomorrow, because tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.
Be careful not to practice your righteousness in front of people, to be seen by them, otherwise you will have no reward from your Father in heaven.
So whenever you give to the poor don’t sound a trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be applauded by people. I assure you, that's their reward! But when you give to the poor don’t let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving may be in secret, and your Father who sees in secret will reward you.
Whenever you pray you must not be like the hypocrites - they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by people. I assure you, that's their reward! But when you pray go into your private room, shut your door, and pray to your Father who is in secret, and your Father who sees the secret things will reward you.
When you pray don’t babble like the idolaters - they imagine they’ll be heard for their many words. Don’t be like them because your Father knows the things you need before you ask Him.
Therefore, pray like this:
Our Father in heaven may your name be revered.
May your kingdom come and your will be done on earth, even as it is done in heaven.
Give us today the bread we need for today.
Forgive us our debts as we ourselves also have forgiven our debtors.
And do not bring us into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one, for the kingdom is yours, and the power and the glory forever. Amen.
For if you forgive people their wrongdoing your heavenly Father will forgive you as well. But if you don’t forgive people your Father will not forgive your wrongdoing either.
Whenever you fast don’t be sad-faced like the hypocrites, for they make their faces unattractive so that their fasting is obvious to people. I assure you, that's their reward! But when you fast put oil on your head, and wash your face so that you don’t display your fasting to people but only to your Father who is in secret, and your Father who sees the secret things will reward you.
Don’t collect for yourselves treasures on earth where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal; but collect for yourselves treasures in heaven where neither moth nor rust destroys, and where thieves don’t break in and steal. For where your treasure is there your heart will be also.
The eye is the lamp of the body. If your eye is good your whole body will be full of light, but if your eye is bad your whole body will be full of darkness. So if the light within you is darkness—how deep is that darkness!
No one can be a slave of two masters since he will either hate one and love the other, or he will be devoted to one and despise the other. You can't be slaves of God and of wealth too.
This is why I tell you: don’t worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Isn’t life more than food and the body more than clothing?
Look at the birds of the sky: they don’t sow or reap or gather into barns, yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Aren’t you worth more than they?
Can any of you add a single cubit to his height by worrying?
And why do you worry about clothes? Learn how the wildflowers of the field grow: they don’t labor or spin thread, yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was adorned like one of these! If that’s how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and thrown into the furnace tomorrow, won’t He do much more for you, you of little faith?
So don’t worry saying, ‘What will we eat?’ or ‘What will we drink?’ or ‘What will we wear?’, for the idolaters eagerly seek all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek the kingdom of God and His righteousness first, and then all these things will be provided for you.
Therefore don’t worry about tomorrow, because tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.
Friday, April 25, 2014
the gospel of messiah Jesus, part 1
When He saw the crowds, He went up on the mountain, and after He sat down, His disciples came to Him.
Then He began to teach them, saying:
The poor in spirit are blessed for the kingdom of heaven is theirs.
Those who mourn are blessed for they will be comforted.
The gentle are blessed for they will inherit the earth.
Those who hunger and thirst for righteousness are blessed for they will be filled.
The merciful are blessed for they will be shown mercy.
The pure in heart are blessed for they will see God.
The peacemakers are blessed for they will be called sons of God.
Those who are persecuted for righteousness are blessed for the kingdom of heaven is theirs.
You are blessed when they insult and persecute you and falsely say every kind of evil against you because of Me. Be glad and rejoice, because your reward is great in heaven, for that is how they persecuted the prophets who were before you.
You are the salt of the earth, but if the salt should lose its taste, how can it be made salty? It is no longer good for anything but to be thrown out and trampled on by men.
You are the light of the world. A city situated on a hill cannot be hidden. No one lights a lamp and puts it under a basket, but rather on a lampstand, and it gives light for all who are in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before men, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven.
Don’t assume that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill. For I assure you, until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or one stroke of a letter will pass from the law until all things are accomplished. Therefore, whoever breaks one of the least of these commands and teaches people to do so will be called 'least' in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever practices and teaches these commands will be called 'great' in the kingdom of heaven. For I tell you, unless your righteousness surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.
You have heard that it was said to our ancestors 'Do not murder' and 'whoever murders will be subject to judgment', but I tell you, everyone who is angry with his brother will be subject to judgment, and whoever says to his brother ‘Fool!’ will be subject to the Sanhedrin. But whoever says ‘You moron!’ will be subject to hellfire. So if you are offering your gift on the altar, and there you remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there in front of the altar; first go and be reconciled with your brother, and then come and offer your gift. Reach a settlement quickly with your adversary while you’re on the way with him, or your adversary will hand you over to the judge, the judge to the officer, and you will be thrown into prison. I assure you, you will never get out of there until you have paid the last penny.
You have heard that it was said 'Do not commit adultery', but I tell you, everyone who looks at a woman to lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart.
If your right eye causes you to sin, gouge it out and throw it away, for it is better that you lose one of the parts of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell. And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away, for it is better that you lose one of the parts of your body than for your whole body to go into hell!
It was also said, 'Whoever divorces his wife must give her a written notice of divorce', but I tell you, everyone who divorces his wife, except in a case of sexual immorality, causes her to commit adultery, and whoever marries a divorced woman commits adultery.
Again, you have heard that it was said to our ancestors 'You must not break your oath, but you must keep your oaths to the Lord', but I tell you, don’t take an oath at all: either by heaven, because it is God’s throne; or by the earth, because it is His footstool; or by Jerusalem, because it is the city of the great King. Neither should you swear by your head, because you cannot make a single hair white or black. But let your word ‘yes’ be ‘yes,’ and your ‘no’ be ‘no.’ Anything more than this is from the evil one.
You have heard that it was said 'An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth', but I tell you, don’t resist an evildoer. On the contrary, if anyone slaps you on your right cheek, turn the other to him also. As for the one who wants to sue you and take away your shirt, let him have your coat as well. And if anyone forces you to go one mile, go with him two. Give to the one who asks you, and don’t turn away from the one who wants to borrow from you.
You have heard that it was said, 'Love your neighbor and hate your enemy', but I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be children of your Father in heaven; for He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. For if you love those who love you, what reward will you have? Don’t even the tax collectors do the same? And if you greet only your brothers, what are you doing out of the ordinary?Don’t even the pagans do the same?
Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.
Then He began to teach them, saying:
The poor in spirit are blessed for the kingdom of heaven is theirs.
Those who mourn are blessed for they will be comforted.
The gentle are blessed for they will inherit the earth.
Those who hunger and thirst for righteousness are blessed for they will be filled.
The merciful are blessed for they will be shown mercy.
The pure in heart are blessed for they will see God.
The peacemakers are blessed for they will be called sons of God.
Those who are persecuted for righteousness are blessed for the kingdom of heaven is theirs.
You are blessed when they insult and persecute you and falsely say every kind of evil against you because of Me. Be glad and rejoice, because your reward is great in heaven, for that is how they persecuted the prophets who were before you.
You are the salt of the earth, but if the salt should lose its taste, how can it be made salty? It is no longer good for anything but to be thrown out and trampled on by men.
You are the light of the world. A city situated on a hill cannot be hidden. No one lights a lamp and puts it under a basket, but rather on a lampstand, and it gives light for all who are in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before men, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven.
Don’t assume that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill. For I assure you, until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or one stroke of a letter will pass from the law until all things are accomplished. Therefore, whoever breaks one of the least of these commands and teaches people to do so will be called 'least' in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever practices and teaches these commands will be called 'great' in the kingdom of heaven. For I tell you, unless your righteousness surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.
You have heard that it was said to our ancestors 'Do not murder' and 'whoever murders will be subject to judgment', but I tell you, everyone who is angry with his brother will be subject to judgment, and whoever says to his brother ‘Fool!’ will be subject to the Sanhedrin. But whoever says ‘You moron!’ will be subject to hellfire. So if you are offering your gift on the altar, and there you remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there in front of the altar; first go and be reconciled with your brother, and then come and offer your gift. Reach a settlement quickly with your adversary while you’re on the way with him, or your adversary will hand you over to the judge, the judge to the officer, and you will be thrown into prison. I assure you, you will never get out of there until you have paid the last penny.
You have heard that it was said 'Do not commit adultery', but I tell you, everyone who looks at a woman to lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart.
If your right eye causes you to sin, gouge it out and throw it away, for it is better that you lose one of the parts of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell. And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away, for it is better that you lose one of the parts of your body than for your whole body to go into hell!
It was also said, 'Whoever divorces his wife must give her a written notice of divorce', but I tell you, everyone who divorces his wife, except in a case of sexual immorality, causes her to commit adultery, and whoever marries a divorced woman commits adultery.
Again, you have heard that it was said to our ancestors 'You must not break your oath, but you must keep your oaths to the Lord', but I tell you, don’t take an oath at all: either by heaven, because it is God’s throne; or by the earth, because it is His footstool; or by Jerusalem, because it is the city of the great King. Neither should you swear by your head, because you cannot make a single hair white or black. But let your word ‘yes’ be ‘yes,’ and your ‘no’ be ‘no.’ Anything more than this is from the evil one.
You have heard that it was said 'An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth', but I tell you, don’t resist an evildoer. On the contrary, if anyone slaps you on your right cheek, turn the other to him also. As for the one who wants to sue you and take away your shirt, let him have your coat as well. And if anyone forces you to go one mile, go with him two. Give to the one who asks you, and don’t turn away from the one who wants to borrow from you.
You have heard that it was said, 'Love your neighbor and hate your enemy', but I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be children of your Father in heaven; for He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. For if you love those who love you, what reward will you have? Don’t even the tax collectors do the same? And if you greet only your brothers, what are you doing out of the ordinary?Don’t even the pagans do the same?
Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.
being present . ..
sometimes
i ( we ) think we're helping people
and focus on that
and lose out
often i return to Hebrews
i see there a Man who learned
get that .. Jesus learned
and i ask me
how is it that the Word of old, himself Creator, could learn anything ..
and then i ask me
how is it that i, an avowed disciple of that Man, could think i have nothing to learn
or, to be more pointed, think i have nothing to learn from certain people
like the ones i ' serve '
a friend reminds me from time to time ..
go there with a sense of being blessed
blessed in their presence
blessed by their presence
blessed in the experience of their presence
learn
listen
allow them to speak into my life
pause the need to instruct correct counsel direct witness-to ..
pause that and allow for them to speak to me
for me to see Godness in them
for me to recognize the reality of the imago dei in their eyes
and be blessed
God is certainly not limited to my reality
to my religion
to my denomination
to my movement
to my country or culture or subculture
God is
God is present
in everyone
mine is to find his presence
in everyone
in each one
and be blessed in the blessing of his presence in their presence
be willing to be present
be
present ..
like my master
i ( we ) think we're helping people
and focus on that
and lose out
often i return to Hebrews
i see there a Man who learned
get that .. Jesus learned
and i ask me
how is it that the Word of old, himself Creator, could learn anything ..
and then i ask me
how is it that i, an avowed disciple of that Man, could think i have nothing to learn
or, to be more pointed, think i have nothing to learn from certain people
like the ones i ' serve '
a friend reminds me from time to time ..
go there with a sense of being blessed
blessed in their presence
blessed by their presence
blessed in the experience of their presence
learn
listen
allow them to speak into my life
pause the need to instruct correct counsel direct witness-to ..
pause that and allow for them to speak to me
for me to see Godness in them
for me to recognize the reality of the imago dei in their eyes
and be blessed
God is certainly not limited to my reality
to my religion
to my denomination
to my movement
to my country or culture or subculture
God isGod is present
in everyone
mine is to find his presence
in everyone
in each one
and be blessed in the blessing of his presence in their presence
be willing to be present
be
present ..
like my master
Monday, April 21, 2014
what is gospel ..
be careful how we define God
while we may mine truths about God
we may not assume presumptuously these truthful propositions to be definitive
God is above and beyond definition to our finitude
God himself has made himself known to us
he became a human
a living breathing touchable relational whipable crucifiable person
even in that
we dare not presume to follow definitions or truths or our understanding of him
we can only crawl somehow towards his space
and be there
in silence mostly
seeking to know him in that presence
for we worship a person
not the definitions of that person
not the dogma surrounding that person
nor the doctrine
selah that
.. . . . .
in like manner
perhaps we should take care as to how we present God and GodMan to others ..
we presume we have answers
like john 3.16, and ' believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved ' ..
we make that the key to open the gates of heaven
the gospel is first and foremost a person
a living person
some one that has the reconciliation of the cosmos at heart
and wants to see all come to repentance .. make that all
forgive my impudence
but the gospel is not a proposition that Jesus is the Christ, the son of the living God
i am not a jew
that was the approach God took because of his covenant with israel
and he would not relent on his covenant, even though israel repeatedly did
he came to the Jew first, out of respect for that
and then, also to the greek, the gentile
i am a gentile
and the issue of jesus being Messiah has no bearing on me, now, in this day
the gospel consists within the boundaries of a person
he defines 'gospel'
mine is to see him, know him, this man of God, from God,
this one who was in the beginning with God
and was, in fact, God
now Man
mine is to follow his heart
do his deeds
compassion his compassion
heart his heart
walk his walk
pour my life out in favour of his life
in pursuit of ... him
mine is to be him
such that he so overwhelms me, so pervades and saturates my being
that i exist only in him
in him ..
it is, in fact, possession
much like we use the term ' demon possession '
like that
but it is Jesus, incarnated God
original human refound
real humanity in living flesh
this person
who is gospel
the good news of God becoming man and living among humanity
teaching us by his life and words and deeds ...
following that is the gospel ..
and until people recognize Jesus in me
it's all simply so much refuse
spinning wheels, however powerful
like some hamster chasing the rounds on a neverending wheel of using-up-its-life ..
entertaining maybe
but quite inconsequential
gospel = disciple = follow that Man = do what he do + say what he say + think what he think + compassion + love
think on this
the greatest commandment is to love God with all my being
and the next greatest is to love my neighbour as my self
that is the gospel
do that
head there
do this, and then i might entertain some label like ' christian ' or ' disciple '
everything else is pissin' in the wind, my friend
and the only end of that is a face-full
follow that man
live the gospel
may shalom be yours
while we may mine truths about God
we may not assume presumptuously these truthful propositions to be definitive
God is above and beyond definition to our finitude
God himself has made himself known to us
he became a human
a living breathing touchable relational whipable crucifiable person
even in that
we dare not presume to follow definitions or truths or our understanding of him
we can only crawl somehow towards his space
and be there
in silence mostly
seeking to know him in that presence
for we worship a person
not the definitions of that person
not the dogma surrounding that person
nor the doctrine
selah that
.. . . . .
in like manner
perhaps we should take care as to how we present God and GodMan to others ..
we presume we have answers
like john 3.16, and ' believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved ' ..
we make that the key to open the gates of heaven
the gospel is first and foremost a person
a living person
some one that has the reconciliation of the cosmos at heart
and wants to see all come to repentance .. make that all
forgive my impudence
but the gospel is not a proposition that Jesus is the Christ, the son of the living God
i am not a jew
that was the approach God took because of his covenant with israel
and he would not relent on his covenant, even though israel repeatedly did
he came to the Jew first, out of respect for that
and then, also to the greek, the gentile
i am a gentile
and the issue of jesus being Messiah has no bearing on me, now, in this day
the gospel consists within the boundaries of a person
he defines 'gospel'
mine is to see him, know him, this man of God, from God,
this one who was in the beginning with God
and was, in fact, God
now Man
mine is to follow his heart
do his deeds
compassion his compassion
heart his heart
walk his walk
pour my life out in favour of his life
in pursuit of ... him
mine is to be him
such that he so overwhelms me, so pervades and saturates my being
that i exist only in him
in him ..
it is, in fact, possession
much like we use the term ' demon possession '
like that
but it is Jesus, incarnated God
original human refound
real humanity in living flesh
this person
who is gospel
the good news of God becoming man and living among humanity
teaching us by his life and words and deeds ...
following that is the gospel ..
and until people recognize Jesus in me
it's all simply so much refuse
spinning wheels, however powerful
like some hamster chasing the rounds on a neverending wheel of using-up-its-life ..
entertaining maybe
but quite inconsequential
gospel = disciple = follow that Man = do what he do + say what he say + think what he think + compassion + love
think on this
the greatest commandment is to love God with all my being
and the next greatest is to love my neighbour as my self
that is the gospel
do that
head there
do this, and then i might entertain some label like ' christian ' or ' disciple '
everything else is pissin' in the wind, my friend
and the only end of that is a face-full
follow that man
live the gospel
may shalom be yours
Sunday, April 20, 2014
'tis a good day ..
today is a good day in history
a mighty blow was struck this day for good over evil, for righteousness over wickedness in high places
.. for humanity
a man stood up out of death and Hell
and walked free
that blow resounded across the ages for all humans over all time as the Messiah of God broke the chains that kept humanity captive to the fear of death
the light of hope radiating throughout the universe
freeing hope
hope that brings life through him who is the Life, the Way, the Truth
i follow that man
he is my king, my master, my lord, my saviour, my redeemer, my rabbi, my friend
for him, and in his name, i forsake all (however late in the game it is)
i count everything to be refuse in the pursuit of his kingdom
everything ..
my aim is to deny me
pick up my cross daily ( whatever that may entail )
and follow his lead
my intention is to be swallowed-up in the hope of that Light
resurrection life my energy
Jesus my vision
i am nowhere near to being who i am
but i'm in process, that man my life
i die daily
that the death of Messiah Jesus may be lived out in me
that the life of Messiah Jesus may be free in and through me
for the glory of God
for the growth of the kingdom
for Jesus' sake
today is a good day
rejoice
be glad
celebrate the resurrected Man
then go
live in him
allelu-jah
praise the Lamb of God
the risen Christ
reconciliation is enjoined
God will soon enough be all in all
allelu-jah !
a mighty blow was struck this day for good over evil, for righteousness over wickedness in high places
.. for humanity
a man stood up out of death and Hell
and walked free
that blow resounded across the ages for all humans over all time as the Messiah of God broke the chains that kept humanity captive to the fear of death
the light of hope radiating throughout the universe
freeing hope
hope that brings life through him who is the Life, the Way, the Truth
i follow that man
he is my king, my master, my lord, my saviour, my redeemer, my rabbi, my friend
for him, and in his name, i forsake all (however late in the game it is)
i count everything to be refuse in the pursuit of his kingdom
everything ..
my aim is to deny me
pick up my cross daily ( whatever that may entail )
and follow his lead
my intention is to be swallowed-up in the hope of that Light
resurrection life my energy
Jesus my vision
i am nowhere near to being who i am
but i'm in process, that man my life
i die daily
that the death of Messiah Jesus may be lived out in me
that the life of Messiah Jesus may be free in and through me
for the glory of God
for the growth of the kingdom
for Jesus' sake
today is a good day
rejoice
be glad
celebrate the resurrected Man
then go
live in him
allelu-jah
praise the Lamb of God
the risen Christ
reconciliation is enjoined
God will soon enough be all in all
allelu-jah !
Friday, April 18, 2014
another excerpt ..
Loving and helpful confession and accountability are founded on a spirit created in trust that grows out of life shared together. It cannot be demanded on the basis of a program or a rule. In intimate contexts, people are free to be open about their struggles and to ask for help, for they fear no judgment. Nothing is forced; nothing is done with a motive to judge or shame. Each person grows in his or her walk with God with the loving assistance of the other members of the group. This is how the life of a disciple was meant to be lived.
another excerpt from one of the most influential books in my life
http://reknew.org/2014/04/counter-cultural-community/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=counter-cultural-community
another excerpt from one of the most influential books in my life
http://reknew.org/2014/04/counter-cultural-community/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=counter-cultural-community
hear ye ! hear ye !
i'm doing my usual detox thingy this morning ..
there's been less of it recently, and that's not good - i need it
introversion is what it is, and calls for careful management - mostly the determination to carve-out spaces where i'm anonymous, even though i be in a crowded room, a busy coffeeshop, a frontstreet ..
translation .. alone-time
fail that and all is at risk
it's a challenge at times
some folk translate it into meekness and reticence - weakness, basically
some see it as fear
some merely don't consider it, just use it
for their own means
.. . .
it's not tough to step on me
i'm there
and in the open, much more so than i like
. . . . ...
my intention is to coopt Matthew 5-8
and to live out the great commission:
to love my God with all i am
and to love my neighbour as much as i am
in the doing of that there is much that would distract and deflect
that aims to sideline, to render ineffective
both the powers that be in this world, and in the world of the spiritual
the issue then is to find the means to ducky-it
duckying-it is a state of mind that says ' i am a duck; it will roll off ', taught me a few years ago by a good friend ( i still have that yellow ducky hanging from my backpack; a click and it sings 'quack-quack' )
i suppose there are different ways to do that, depending on who you are
mine is to distract my self by interneting and by reading and by photography and by hangin' with my pard, the dude, Master Kruz
there is a positive ( as opposed to distractory ) side to that too: immersing my self more and more in scripture, and in reading potentially insightful thoughts on Godness and the Man Jesus Messiah and being a follower ..
my think is, the more i head towards originality in Jesus ( perfected human ), the more i head towards perfected human, and there is at least one writer who believes the intention of justification is precisely that: humanity made right
i suppose the older i become, the more plain-sighted and simplistic my thinking
and, too, i'm in a position where i have only my self and my dog to care for, so that leaves much room for more dedicated involvement in the lives of hurting people, on the ground, here, now
i'm not into empires, even the religious sort
or agendas, even the spiritual sort
or politicing, even the christianity sort
i am strictly into follow-the-leader
and there is but one in my life
and i aim, with every ounce of strength, determination, soul, and heart, to follow him
master, lord, rabbi, friend
my pledge to him is to allow noone, of whatever stripe or colour, to distract me from that
it bears noting too that some people will not understand that in some of the ways it plays out
they are confused
or they suspect this or that in your motivations
or they think you're trying to one-up
..
it's a damned sad day when trying to be real to your humanity in Jesus becomes a playing field for slung accusations, and misunderstanding tossed into the fray like some molotov cocktail
let not the explosion and the raging fire dissuade
cling fast to the reality of life in the Man
follow him through it, and, like daniel amidst lions, he will shut the mouth, clench the teeth
you will walk out
walk on
where the Man leads
.. . . . .
i must, i must remind my self regularly of these things
or i take on the risky potential of being made ineffective in that Man's agenda
and his is the only agenda that matters
my welfare matters little
my success matters not
my friendships and familial relationships pale when portrayed in the light of Jesus' mission ..
as he himself said in the very context of denying self and daily taking my cross, ' if any one loves father or mother or family more than me ( does not 'hate' his family ) he is not worthy of me ' ..
you can mix that up how you will; basically translate into Jesus takes all ..
out of that you will find the passion and energy and motivation for family and friends and such
but dare not lose the priority: for all will suffer then
Jesus is the priority
repeat several times
mantra it
force it into your psyche
make it stick
etched on the walls of your mind, and then on the walls of your heart
in this life i follow a man
the Man, Jesus
i owe allegiance to no other, be it man, religion, denomination, movement - period
Jesus rabbis me
he directs my path
leads me here or there
that may be construed by some as arrogance
perish the thought
my only concern at this stage of my life here on planet earth is to fulfill the calling my Rabbi has on me
to be in constant hearing
constant heeding
bytheminute submission, and that willingly and joyfully
even in the midst of the madness and drama and hype
that serve to distract
distort
disengage
mine is to be so intensely preoccupied with the move of Jesus in my life
that the rest of it is garbage
so much refuse
" may the peace of the Lord Jesus go with you wherever he may lead you
may he guide you through the wilderness
protect you through the storm
and may he bring you home rejoicing at the wonders he has shown you "
may he
may i
shalom
there's been less of it recently, and that's not good - i need it
introversion is what it is, and calls for careful management - mostly the determination to carve-out spaces where i'm anonymous, even though i be in a crowded room, a busy coffeeshop, a frontstreet ..
translation .. alone-time
fail that and all is at risk
it's a challenge at times
some folk translate it into meekness and reticence - weakness, basically
some see it as fear
some merely don't consider it, just use it
for their own means
.. . .
it's not tough to step on me
i'm there
and in the open, much more so than i like
. . . . ...
my intention is to coopt Matthew 5-8
and to live out the great commission:
to love my God with all i am
and to love my neighbour as much as i am
in the doing of that there is much that would distract and deflect
that aims to sideline, to render ineffective
both the powers that be in this world, and in the world of the spiritual
the issue then is to find the means to ducky-it
duckying-it is a state of mind that says ' i am a duck; it will roll off ', taught me a few years ago by a good friend ( i still have that yellow ducky hanging from my backpack; a click and it sings 'quack-quack' )
i suppose there are different ways to do that, depending on who you are
mine is to distract my self by interneting and by reading and by photography and by hangin' with my pard, the dude, Master Kruz
there is a positive ( as opposed to distractory ) side to that too: immersing my self more and more in scripture, and in reading potentially insightful thoughts on Godness and the Man Jesus Messiah and being a follower ..
my think is, the more i head towards originality in Jesus ( perfected human ), the more i head towards perfected human, and there is at least one writer who believes the intention of justification is precisely that: humanity made right
i suppose the older i become, the more plain-sighted and simplistic my thinking
and, too, i'm in a position where i have only my self and my dog to care for, so that leaves much room for more dedicated involvement in the lives of hurting people, on the ground, here, now
i'm not into empires, even the religious sort
or agendas, even the spiritual sort
or politicing, even the christianity sort
i am strictly into follow-the-leader
and there is but one in my life
and i aim, with every ounce of strength, determination, soul, and heart, to follow him
master, lord, rabbi, friend
my pledge to him is to allow noone, of whatever stripe or colour, to distract me from that
it bears noting too that some people will not understand that in some of the ways it plays out
they are confused
or they suspect this or that in your motivations
or they think you're trying to one-up
..
it's a damned sad day when trying to be real to your humanity in Jesus becomes a playing field for slung accusations, and misunderstanding tossed into the fray like some molotov cocktail
let not the explosion and the raging fire dissuade
cling fast to the reality of life in the Man
follow him through it, and, like daniel amidst lions, he will shut the mouth, clench the teeth
you will walk out
walk on
where the Man leads
.. . . . .
i must, i must remind my self regularly of these things
or i take on the risky potential of being made ineffective in that Man's agenda
and his is the only agenda that matters
my welfare matters little
my success matters not
my friendships and familial relationships pale when portrayed in the light of Jesus' mission ..
as he himself said in the very context of denying self and daily taking my cross, ' if any one loves father or mother or family more than me ( does not 'hate' his family ) he is not worthy of me ' ..
you can mix that up how you will; basically translate into Jesus takes all ..
out of that you will find the passion and energy and motivation for family and friends and such
but dare not lose the priority: for all will suffer then
Jesus is the priority
repeat several times
mantra it
force it into your psyche
make it stick
etched on the walls of your mind, and then on the walls of your heart
in this life i follow a man
the Man, Jesus
i owe allegiance to no other, be it man, religion, denomination, movement - period
Jesus rabbis me
he directs my path
leads me here or there
that may be construed by some as arrogance
perish the thought
my only concern at this stage of my life here on planet earth is to fulfill the calling my Rabbi has on me
to be in constant hearing
constant heeding
bytheminute submission, and that willingly and joyfully
even in the midst of the madness and drama and hype
that serve to distract
distort
disengage
mine is to be so intensely preoccupied with the move of Jesus in my life
that the rest of it is garbage
so much refuse
" may the peace of the Lord Jesus go with you wherever he may lead you
may he guide you through the wilderness
protect you through the storm
and may he bring you home rejoicing at the wonders he has shown you "
may he
may i
shalom
Sunday, April 13, 2014
good palm sunday piece by dbb ..
Palm Sunday: Ordinary Time
By © Diana Butler Bass
The phone rang. I was sitting at the desk in the back bedroom of a cheap graduate school apartment off of the Duke University campus.
Have you ever gotten a call that changed everything?
Mine came in 1989; I was just two years in my doctoral work. On the other end, was the chairman of the religious studies department of the college where I had been an undergraduate student a few years earlier. “We have an opening for an assistant professor in church history. We would like to hire you.”
“But I still have two years to go,” I replied.
“We are eager to hire a well-qualified woman,” he explained. “We will hold the position. And we’ll pay for your final two years of grad school.”
He shared with me how much they loved my work, what good reviews they had heard, that he thought I was perfect for the job.
I felt like I won the lottery. I worked very hard to finish on time. I did not want to disappoint. I passed with highest honors. Oxford University Press published my dissertation.
When I arrived at the college in 1991, the school was buzzing with news of the first female professor in religious studies; the local town paper interviewed me; students filled my classes; long waiting lists ensued. I was asked to serve on every committee, as a mentor for women who wanted to be pastors, was featured in a “town and gown” lecture series at City Hall and at the University Club.
And then came my first tenure review. My faculty peer reviewer took me out to lunch. “You have a stellar record. You are a great teacher. You have done everything expected and beyond.”
I smiled. What relief! It had been an exhausting decade. Tenure would cap all this bruising business with a sense of achievement. Accepted by my peers. Recognized and rewarded.
“And,” he looked into my eyes from across the table, “they plan to fire you.”
* * * * *
Today is Palm Sunday, the day we celebrate Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem. “Daughters of Zion! Look, your king is coming to you!”
And Jesus rode into the city. Crowds spread their cloaks, they waved palm branches, they formed a parade: Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is the one who comes in God’s name! Hosanna!
And the whole city was in turmoil! He has arrived. The long-awaited one. Jesus, the prophet, the King, has arrived!
* * * * *
Thus begins Holy Week – the last week of Jesus’ life. For many centuries, Christians have reenacted these days, following from Jesus’ triumphant entry into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday, through his final teachings to the Passover meal that becomes his Last Supper, to the prayer in the garden, betrayal, arrest, mock trial, way of the Cross, and execution.
The emphasis is rightly on Jesus. Tradition invites his followers to observe, with spiritual depth and intensity, these events. To place ourselves in the story. Where are we? In the crowd waving palms? Acting the part of disciples bringing a donkey or sitting at the table of that last meal? Yelling for Pilate to free the criminal Barrabas instead of innocent Jesus? Fleeing from our friend in his moment of need? Standing with his mother at the base of the Cross, watching the beloved child die?
Over the years, I have imagined myself as all of these actors – watching these holy events unfold – confused or sad or doubting or afraid or angry. But the Passion itself? These things happened to Jesus, the divine Son of God, handed over to be betrayed and killed. The Lamb of God to the slaughter. God betrayed; God hanging on a Cross; God dying for us. Terrifying and tragic – the divine One, the Beloved, executed by an imperial overlord. There is no worse story, no more horrifying tale.
Theologically, all these things are true. But this year, I have been reflecting on it all from a different perspective. Not as an observer watching a divine drama; not as a guilty bystander somehow complicit in this sacred crime; not as a learned theologian pondering the religious implications of this death; not even as one full of righteous indignation about the injustice of it all.
This year, I keep thinking of how human it all is.
How often have we come into a situation or relationship as a triumphal entry? A move, a job, a marriage, a political success, an art exhibit, a promotion, a project victory – with a parade of joy, of congratulations, of the feeling that we’ve achieved everything we ever dreamed – we are hailed by friends and colleagues and everyone around us is on our side, nothing could go wrong, that we are finally rewarded for our hard work, our character or wisdom or insight, our luck and persistence at finding the right partner or spouse. Hosanna! Shout our parents and friends! Blessed be! Life is full of such parades, from graduations to wedding marches, to climbing a career ladder or the ranks of the Globe and Mail bestseller list, right to the last, from retirement parties to the day when a procession takes us to our final resting place. Praise and parades mark our lives.
Until, of course, someone looks across the lunch table and says, “They plan to fire you.”
When we really understand the last week of Jesus’ life, something becomes quite obvious: Holy Week isn’t strange to us at all, it isn’t really all the special. It is pretty mundane, actually. Jesus’ story isn’t just his story. It is our story, too. We ride into town on our colts with flowers strewn along the way, only to discover that treachery waits. What appeared a victory is a prelude to misunderstanding, jealously, gossip, and betrayal. How many times in a life does it happen? When friends turn their backs; you are sold down a river by those who honestly think they are doing you a favor; or by a rival wishing the parade would be hers. Sometimes the betrayals are small, but others are great. Some hurt only a little, a few last many years.
But we all know this story, because we have all experienced this story. It is not only a story in the Bible, safely bound in the covers of an ancient book. We have all know the power of the waving palms, the sting of a crowd turned against us. We all have Last Suppers; we all know agonizing prayer in our private gardens; we all have felt the surprise when a kiss turns into a knife; we have all travelled pain-filled paths with our crosses; we have all hung in shame, naked and alone.
Holy Week isn’t just Jesus’ passion. It is a microcosm of humankind’s passion. It is our hearts ripped in two over the intensity of injustice; the sacred space where anger and ardor meet; where fury and fervor collide. Our passions are our humanity at their most tender and most explosive, where we are most valued and most vulnerable. Passion is our experience, part of being human. It is truly holy. It is in us. No one escapes. Not even Jesus.
Remembering our own passions, the story suddenly reverses: Not only do we travel the way of this sacred experience with Jesus; Jesus travels the holy week with us. There he is: Ecce Homo: Behold the Man. Walking the same humiliating and shame-filled road, enduring the brokenness of betrayal, abandoned by those he thought his friends. As a human being. Jesus’ Passion was not particularly sacred or divine or mystical or exceptional. No. It was very, very human. More violence that many of our passions; but throughout history certainly far too many human beings have suffered a passion at least as gruesome. Palm Sunday and its subsequent events are, tragically and horribly, all too common. Painfully, completely, universally human.
We might protest: But he was Jesus! He didn’t deserve it!
But do any of us? Do any of us deserve it?
It is not about deserving or not deserving. It is about living. About being fully human. We are all betrayed; and sometimes, we betray. And that of course, is a profound difference between Jesus and us. He did not betray anyone. But even when we act the part of a betrayer, it does not mean we deserve the same in return.
* * * * *
I fought the tenure review for two years. It was the most painful, publicly humiliating experience I have ever had. People lied about me and to me. I was the subject of scrutiny and ridicule, of communal-wide opinion and gossip. With so much pressure, I did things I wish I hadn’t done; reacted in ways not helpful. A big yellow “NT” (for No Tenure) hung on my chest would have been better. There were a handful of people determined to destroy my career – or even personally hurt me. There were long nights of tears; long bouts of yelling. There was a mock reconciliation process; a kangaroo court held by the college president. Lawyers got involved. It was reported in the local newspaper and in Christianity Today magazine. I never even knew what I did. Those who opposed me said that I “didn’t fit” in their department.
And so, they sent me packing. No tenure. Academic execution. All for the crime of not fitting.
Odd thing about betrayals – they often become the mealy seedbed of new life. People told me at the time that everything would be all right – indeed, they insisted that I would look back and say it was the best thing that ever happened to me. Twenty years ago, their actions were like that of Job’s tormenters – or like the people who mocked Jesus as he walked a way of sorrows. It didn’t help.
But, as the years unfolded, it became clear that leaving that college was the beginning of my life; that dark winter bloomed to the most beautiful spring; a spiritual and vocational death led to rebirth. It is NEVER right to betray someone, to make them walk the Way of Sorrows, all the while saying it is good for them. But unjust passions do, ultimately, condemn the guilty and justify the innocent. The ancient wisdom of the Christian story is that at the end of even the darkest of paths, new life waits. Yes, passions happen all the time. But so do resurrections.
Thus, the events of this week are not extraordinary; rather, Holy Week is a surprising Ordinary Time; a time to remember how Jesus our brother suffered as we do; how we are bound together with him in the most human of ways.
* * * * *
During this Holy Week, I invite you into a new question. Instead of thinking “Where am I in Jesus’ story?” ask yourself, “Where is Jesus in my story?” I don’t think you will discover that he is a friend who betrays, in the crowd who wants your hide, a corrupt judge wanting to wash his hands of your case, or those who barter for your robe as you shiver in fear. No. Jesus is with you. Walking right next to you. Tears in his eyes, remembering his own dark days, and entering into your Passion. And he will be the first to celebrate when you experience Resurrection. He's been there; done that. For him, it is just ordinary time.
By © Diana Butler Bass
The phone rang. I was sitting at the desk in the back bedroom of a cheap graduate school apartment off of the Duke University campus.
Have you ever gotten a call that changed everything?
Mine came in 1989; I was just two years in my doctoral work. On the other end, was the chairman of the religious studies department of the college where I had been an undergraduate student a few years earlier. “We have an opening for an assistant professor in church history. We would like to hire you.”
“But I still have two years to go,” I replied.
“We are eager to hire a well-qualified woman,” he explained. “We will hold the position. And we’ll pay for your final two years of grad school.”
He shared with me how much they loved my work, what good reviews they had heard, that he thought I was perfect for the job.
I felt like I won the lottery. I worked very hard to finish on time. I did not want to disappoint. I passed with highest honors. Oxford University Press published my dissertation.
When I arrived at the college in 1991, the school was buzzing with news of the first female professor in religious studies; the local town paper interviewed me; students filled my classes; long waiting lists ensued. I was asked to serve on every committee, as a mentor for women who wanted to be pastors, was featured in a “town and gown” lecture series at City Hall and at the University Club.
And then came my first tenure review. My faculty peer reviewer took me out to lunch. “You have a stellar record. You are a great teacher. You have done everything expected and beyond.”
I smiled. What relief! It had been an exhausting decade. Tenure would cap all this bruising business with a sense of achievement. Accepted by my peers. Recognized and rewarded.
“And,” he looked into my eyes from across the table, “they plan to fire you.”
* * * * *
Today is Palm Sunday, the day we celebrate Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem. “Daughters of Zion! Look, your king is coming to you!”
And Jesus rode into the city. Crowds spread their cloaks, they waved palm branches, they formed a parade: Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is the one who comes in God’s name! Hosanna!
And the whole city was in turmoil! He has arrived. The long-awaited one. Jesus, the prophet, the King, has arrived!
* * * * *
Thus begins Holy Week – the last week of Jesus’ life. For many centuries, Christians have reenacted these days, following from Jesus’ triumphant entry into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday, through his final teachings to the Passover meal that becomes his Last Supper, to the prayer in the garden, betrayal, arrest, mock trial, way of the Cross, and execution.
The emphasis is rightly on Jesus. Tradition invites his followers to observe, with spiritual depth and intensity, these events. To place ourselves in the story. Where are we? In the crowd waving palms? Acting the part of disciples bringing a donkey or sitting at the table of that last meal? Yelling for Pilate to free the criminal Barrabas instead of innocent Jesus? Fleeing from our friend in his moment of need? Standing with his mother at the base of the Cross, watching the beloved child die?
Over the years, I have imagined myself as all of these actors – watching these holy events unfold – confused or sad or doubting or afraid or angry. But the Passion itself? These things happened to Jesus, the divine Son of God, handed over to be betrayed and killed. The Lamb of God to the slaughter. God betrayed; God hanging on a Cross; God dying for us. Terrifying and tragic – the divine One, the Beloved, executed by an imperial overlord. There is no worse story, no more horrifying tale.
Theologically, all these things are true. But this year, I have been reflecting on it all from a different perspective. Not as an observer watching a divine drama; not as a guilty bystander somehow complicit in this sacred crime; not as a learned theologian pondering the religious implications of this death; not even as one full of righteous indignation about the injustice of it all.
This year, I keep thinking of how human it all is.
How often have we come into a situation or relationship as a triumphal entry? A move, a job, a marriage, a political success, an art exhibit, a promotion, a project victory – with a parade of joy, of congratulations, of the feeling that we’ve achieved everything we ever dreamed – we are hailed by friends and colleagues and everyone around us is on our side, nothing could go wrong, that we are finally rewarded for our hard work, our character or wisdom or insight, our luck and persistence at finding the right partner or spouse. Hosanna! Shout our parents and friends! Blessed be! Life is full of such parades, from graduations to wedding marches, to climbing a career ladder or the ranks of the Globe and Mail bestseller list, right to the last, from retirement parties to the day when a procession takes us to our final resting place. Praise and parades mark our lives.
Until, of course, someone looks across the lunch table and says, “They plan to fire you.”
When we really understand the last week of Jesus’ life, something becomes quite obvious: Holy Week isn’t strange to us at all, it isn’t really all the special. It is pretty mundane, actually. Jesus’ story isn’t just his story. It is our story, too. We ride into town on our colts with flowers strewn along the way, only to discover that treachery waits. What appeared a victory is a prelude to misunderstanding, jealously, gossip, and betrayal. How many times in a life does it happen? When friends turn their backs; you are sold down a river by those who honestly think they are doing you a favor; or by a rival wishing the parade would be hers. Sometimes the betrayals are small, but others are great. Some hurt only a little, a few last many years.
But we all know this story, because we have all experienced this story. It is not only a story in the Bible, safely bound in the covers of an ancient book. We have all know the power of the waving palms, the sting of a crowd turned against us. We all have Last Suppers; we all know agonizing prayer in our private gardens; we all have felt the surprise when a kiss turns into a knife; we have all travelled pain-filled paths with our crosses; we have all hung in shame, naked and alone.
Holy Week isn’t just Jesus’ passion. It is a microcosm of humankind’s passion. It is our hearts ripped in two over the intensity of injustice; the sacred space where anger and ardor meet; where fury and fervor collide. Our passions are our humanity at their most tender and most explosive, where we are most valued and most vulnerable. Passion is our experience, part of being human. It is truly holy. It is in us. No one escapes. Not even Jesus.
Remembering our own passions, the story suddenly reverses: Not only do we travel the way of this sacred experience with Jesus; Jesus travels the holy week with us. There he is: Ecce Homo: Behold the Man. Walking the same humiliating and shame-filled road, enduring the brokenness of betrayal, abandoned by those he thought his friends. As a human being. Jesus’ Passion was not particularly sacred or divine or mystical or exceptional. No. It was very, very human. More violence that many of our passions; but throughout history certainly far too many human beings have suffered a passion at least as gruesome. Palm Sunday and its subsequent events are, tragically and horribly, all too common. Painfully, completely, universally human.
We might protest: But he was Jesus! He didn’t deserve it!
But do any of us? Do any of us deserve it?
It is not about deserving or not deserving. It is about living. About being fully human. We are all betrayed; and sometimes, we betray. And that of course, is a profound difference between Jesus and us. He did not betray anyone. But even when we act the part of a betrayer, it does not mean we deserve the same in return.
* * * * *
I fought the tenure review for two years. It was the most painful, publicly humiliating experience I have ever had. People lied about me and to me. I was the subject of scrutiny and ridicule, of communal-wide opinion and gossip. With so much pressure, I did things I wish I hadn’t done; reacted in ways not helpful. A big yellow “NT” (for No Tenure) hung on my chest would have been better. There were a handful of people determined to destroy my career – or even personally hurt me. There were long nights of tears; long bouts of yelling. There was a mock reconciliation process; a kangaroo court held by the college president. Lawyers got involved. It was reported in the local newspaper and in Christianity Today magazine. I never even knew what I did. Those who opposed me said that I “didn’t fit” in their department.
And so, they sent me packing. No tenure. Academic execution. All for the crime of not fitting.
Odd thing about betrayals – they often become the mealy seedbed of new life. People told me at the time that everything would be all right – indeed, they insisted that I would look back and say it was the best thing that ever happened to me. Twenty years ago, their actions were like that of Job’s tormenters – or like the people who mocked Jesus as he walked a way of sorrows. It didn’t help.
But, as the years unfolded, it became clear that leaving that college was the beginning of my life; that dark winter bloomed to the most beautiful spring; a spiritual and vocational death led to rebirth. It is NEVER right to betray someone, to make them walk the Way of Sorrows, all the while saying it is good for them. But unjust passions do, ultimately, condemn the guilty and justify the innocent. The ancient wisdom of the Christian story is that at the end of even the darkest of paths, new life waits. Yes, passions happen all the time. But so do resurrections.
Thus, the events of this week are not extraordinary; rather, Holy Week is a surprising Ordinary Time; a time to remember how Jesus our brother suffered as we do; how we are bound together with him in the most human of ways.
* * * * *
During this Holy Week, I invite you into a new question. Instead of thinking “Where am I in Jesus’ story?” ask yourself, “Where is Jesus in my story?” I don’t think you will discover that he is a friend who betrays, in the crowd who wants your hide, a corrupt judge wanting to wash his hands of your case, or those who barter for your robe as you shiver in fear. No. Jesus is with you. Walking right next to you. Tears in his eyes, remembering his own dark days, and entering into your Passion. And he will be the first to celebrate when you experience Resurrection. He's been there; done that. For him, it is just ordinary time.
Saturday, April 12, 2014
excerpt ..
this book is one of the most influential in my life
i highly recommend it ..
here's a short piece on our intended intimate unity with the triune God ..
- See more at: http://reknew.org/2014/04/gods-goal-for-the-world/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=gods-goal-for-the-world#sthash.2l6DP1z3.dpuf
i highly recommend it ..
here's a short piece on our intended intimate unity with the triune God ..
Helga Weber via Compfight
In a world that is all about doom and gloom…
In a time when we never seem to have enough…
In the midst of messages that tell us that we don’t measure up…
In an age when we are more interested in whether or not we can own automatic weapons than we are in how we can serve the poor…
And even in a church that finds itself embattled, argumentative, and wounded by “friendly fire”…
In the midst of all this, God is moving. There is an underground stream of hope drawing all of creation toward redemption. In the midst of the sensationalist barbs, attacks, reports of war, a most life-filled truth flows in history, one that we must not ignore or our souls will suffer. Here is a brief excerpt from Greg’s Repenting of Religion which calls the church into this truth.
The goal of creation is succinctly summed up in a profound prayer Jesus said just prior to his crucifixion:For [the disciples’] sake I sanctify myself, so that they also may be sanctified in truth. I ask not only on behalf of these, but also on behalf of those who will believe in me through their word, that they may all be one. As you, Father, are in me and I am in you, may they also be in us, so that the world may believe that you sent me. —John 17:19-21, emphasis added.Let’s examine this carefully. Jesus prayed that his disciples would be one just as he and the Father are one. The loving oneness of the church is to reflect the loving oneness of the Trinity. Indeed, the loving oneness of the church is to participate in the loving oneness of the Trinity: “As you … are in me and I am in you, may they also be in us.” As we participate in God’s loving oneness, we replicate this loving oneness among ourselves. And as we replicate this loving oneness, the world sees and believes that Jesus Christ is sent from the Father. The world knows the reality of the triune God because they encounter the love of the triune God in us.This prayer expressed not only God’s goal for the church but the goal of all creation. Indeed, Jesus prayed that his church would be “sanctified in the truth” (John 17:19)—the truth that they are called to be one in the Father and Son—so that the world would believe in him and thus become part of the church. The church is to be set apart (sanctified) not by possessing a special religious piety but by participating in and manifesting the perfect eternal love of God. As Bonhoeffer said, “Jesus calls men, not to a new religion, but to life.” This participation in God’s life distinguishes disciples from others only so disciples can invite all others to share in it. …God’s goal is that humans, when filled with God’s unsurpassable love and eternal life, would replicate God on an individual level and overflow with love back to God, to themselves, and to their neighbors. As God gives his life to us, we manifest the fullness of his life in ascribing infinite worth to God as our source (worship); we affirm the infinite worth we ourselves have because of what God has done for us in Christ (self-love); and we affirm the infinite worth others have because of what Christ as done for them (neighbor-love). (Repenting of Religion, 28,30)
Friday, April 11, 2014
follow
i don't know the way
but there's someone that's gone before, creating the trail (read Hebrews)
he knows it well ..
like the palm of his hand
i figure i just need to follow him .. .
simple
? ???? ?
?
but there's someone that's gone before, creating the trail (read Hebrews)
he knows it well ..
like the palm of his hand
i figure i just need to follow him .. .
simple
? ???? ?
?
Wednesday, April 9, 2014
vision ..
when God moves you to action
maybe visions you
it is your vision, no one else's
that's a lonely thought
the only thing to do then is climb in, or back out
if you're in, it's you
and yours is the path he called you to walk
walk it
and walk it with no expectations from anyone
don't expect people to swallow your vision
to have your level of passion for it
to burden themselves with it re time and energy and money and sacrifice-of-whatever-sort
God called you to it
not them
he may call some others
and they may respond
or he may not
or they may not
it matters not
it's yours
your cross
and he graciously out of love offered it to you
not an easy thought
could be a lonely walk
'cept he's there, ya ?
walk it
expecting nothing
nothing
save his presence
what more need i
than to know Jesus walks with me ?
that must be the core of my living
peace to you
maybe visions you
it is your vision, no one else's
that's a lonely thought
the only thing to do then is climb in, or back out
if you're in, it's you
and yours is the path he called you to walk
walk it
and walk it with no expectations from anyone
don't expect people to swallow your vision
to have your level of passion for it
to burden themselves with it re time and energy and money and sacrifice-of-whatever-sort
God called you to it
not them
he may call some others
and they may respond
or he may not
or they may not
it matters not
it's yours
your cross
and he graciously out of love offered it to you
not an easy thought
could be a lonely walk
'cept he's there, ya ?
walk it
expecting nothing
nothing
save his presence
what more need i
than to know Jesus walks with me ?
that must be the core of my living
peace to you
Monday, April 7, 2014
the crux ..
maybe i should just take the time to type this out
but it'll read just as well the way it is presented here
this is the tail-end of a recent message i heard
it rocks
and it rocks massively
it's huge
the lead-in is significant, as it provides context, but this is the crux, the issue
be blessed
but it'll read just as well the way it is presented here
this is the tail-end of a recent message i heard
it rocks
and it rocks massively
it's huge
the lead-in is significant, as it provides context, but this is the crux, the issue
be blessed
Friday, April 4, 2014
it really is simple
i've said this before
who cares .. it needs saying nuff times
especially to my self
until we get to the point where we live matthew 5, 6 and 7, summarized succinctly in these verses
But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be provided for you. Therefore don’t worry about tomorrow, because tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.
until we do, we have no real basis for claiming to be disciples of Jesus
.. . . .
one person caught in his wisdom said once that we need to ' abandon ' our selves and our lives to God
dead on
perfect
what Jesus said in those verses is deceptively simple
it seems simple on the face of it, and yet it is bursting with implications for us as people living life
do
not
worry
about
it
it's a distraction from the life God has for us
simple
it has taken me 50-some years of hard-headedness and determination-to-make-things-happen to begin to fathom those waters
and there is much much depth yet to plumb ..
but i've begun, and i aim to keep beginning it
thing is
either the God who is my God does and will do what he says
or not
and if not
he's not God
simple
the only real and reasonable way to know that
is to walk that
live that
believe that
act on that word
anything else is pissin' in the wind
to me, if anything means anything, then i have to walk that
i have to
the upshot of that is i am not responsible for me ..
as long as i'm walking the disciple road
following Jesus as best i can
moving in his direction amidst my stumbles and fumbles and doubts
then my wellbeing is God's business, not mine
read that ..
not
mine
if i can untangle my mind to see that
and bring my focus there
living life by faith in God
continually
= every moment
then i can trust that God for my ' daily bread '
period
if not
i am, of all people, most miserable
most frustrated
most delusional
most lost-in-space
but if i'm right
he got my back
simple
that translates into
i don't worry about
clothing
food
shelter
or my safety in any situation
check it: at whatever point(s) i don't trust God
it is precisely there that he is not God to me
mine is to follow Jesu and leave all of that to him
simple
my ' life verses '
trust in the Lord with all your heart and don't rely on your own understanding;
in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight ..
that's how Jesus did it
we like to say " of course ! he is God; he can do anything "
but the Son of Man did it by relying on the Father while he was here
for everything, all the time
he learned obedience ( Hebrews )
he is my rabbi
that's how i'm trying to do it
simple
shalom to you
who cares .. it needs saying nuff times
especially to my self
until we get to the point where we live matthew 5, 6 and 7, summarized succinctly in these verses
But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be provided for you. Therefore don’t worry about tomorrow, because tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.
until we do, we have no real basis for claiming to be disciples of Jesus
.. . . .
one person caught in his wisdom said once that we need to ' abandon ' our selves and our lives to God
dead on
perfect
what Jesus said in those verses is deceptively simple
it seems simple on the face of it, and yet it is bursting with implications for us as people living life
do
not
worry
about
it
it's a distraction from the life God has for us
simple
it has taken me 50-some years of hard-headedness and determination-to-make-things-happen to begin to fathom those waters
and there is much much depth yet to plumb ..
but i've begun, and i aim to keep beginning it
thing is
either the God who is my God does and will do what he says
or notand if not
he's not God
simple
the only real and reasonable way to know that
is to walk that
live that
believe that
act on that word
anything else is pissin' in the wind
to me, if anything means anything, then i have to walk that
i have to
the upshot of that is i am not responsible for me ..
as long as i'm walking the disciple road
following Jesus as best i can
moving in his direction amidst my stumbles and fumbles and doubts
then my wellbeing is God's business, not mine
read that ..
not
mine
if i can untangle my mind to see that
and bring my focus there
living life by faith in God
continually
= every moment
then i can trust that God for my ' daily bread '
period
if not
i am, of all people, most miserable
most frustrated
most delusional
most lost-in-space
but if i'm right
he got my back
simple
that translates into
i don't worry about
clothing
food
shelter
or my safety in any situation
check it: at whatever point(s) i don't trust God
it is precisely there that he is not God to me
mine is to follow Jesu and leave all of that to him
simple
my ' life verses '
trust in the Lord with all your heart and don't rely on your own understanding;
in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight ..
that's how Jesus did it
we like to say " of course ! he is God; he can do anything "
but the Son of Man did it by relying on the Father while he was here
for everything, all the time
he learned obedience ( Hebrews )
he is my rabbi
that's how i'm trying to do it
simple
shalom to you
shorts
i have no 'words of wisdom' today
no thoughts that might be of help to anyone
no bright sparks of firelight to brighten
naught even my own soul would benefit from ..
the soul is dark
a chilled dampness
as if i'm trying to sleep under the trees on a cold night
un-comfortable
putout
wandering in my darkened world
again
a-bloody-gain ..
there is much truth in the thought that bondage cannot quench the spirit of a person who is free indeed
true freedom lies beneath the surface and ultimately is funded by God and Godlikeness ..
but the philosophy of freedom is paradoxically often distilled in the workings of deprivation and agitation and offense and violence and hard times
all too often it's not until we are bound that we appreciate freedom
not till we're fettered to some ballandchain that we miss walking and jumping and running and ..
God doesn't order suffering, but he can use it
twist it and mash it and stretch it till it becomes a betterment, a spiritual growth hormone ..
let him
.. . . .. .
a friend walks strange places in their mind as life-threads pop and fray
and that long-in-the-making tapestry, once a beautiful lifestory, now looks to unwind into a million different coloured threads
leaving my friend unwound
wounded
wondering
. . . . .
a neigbourhood Nosy regularly traverses the church grounds
looking for whatever
reporting everything ..
people think she's out to get the church, particularly for it's ministry with homeless people ..
after service on sundays we join our homeless friends for lunch
good hot just-cooked food prepared for people that care about homeless people
sunday-gone was potluck sunday - 5 sundays a month are unusual and everyone just brings something
saturday night ' knock-knock '
someone delivered 7 or 8 large pans of still-hot food as a donation for sunday lunch
apparently it was unused food from a catering
it was a gift from Nosy ..
you think maybe somehow her heart is turning ?
i do, God
thanks
no thoughts that might be of help to anyone
no bright sparks of firelight to brighten
naught even my own soul would benefit from ..
the soul is dark
a chilled dampness
as if i'm trying to sleep under the trees on a cold night
un-comfortable
putout
wandering in my darkened world
again
a-bloody-gain ..
there is much truth in the thought that bondage cannot quench the spirit of a person who is free indeed
true freedom lies beneath the surface and ultimately is funded by God and Godlikeness ..
but the philosophy of freedom is paradoxically often distilled in the workings of deprivation and agitation and offense and violence and hard times
all too often it's not until we are bound that we appreciate freedom
not till we're fettered to some ballandchain that we miss walking and jumping and running and ..
God doesn't order suffering, but he can use it
twist it and mash it and stretch it till it becomes a betterment, a spiritual growth hormone ..
let him
.. . . .. .
a friend walks strange places in their mind as life-threads pop and fray
and that long-in-the-making tapestry, once a beautiful lifestory, now looks to unwind into a million different coloured threads
leaving my friend unwound
wounded
wondering
. . . . .
a neigbourhood Nosy regularly traverses the church grounds
looking for whatever
reporting everything ..
people think she's out to get the church, particularly for it's ministry with homeless people ..
after service on sundays we join our homeless friends for lunch
good hot just-cooked food prepared for people that care about homeless people
sunday-gone was potluck sunday - 5 sundays a month are unusual and everyone just brings something
saturday night ' knock-knock '
someone delivered 7 or 8 large pans of still-hot food as a donation for sunday lunch
apparently it was unused food from a catering
it was a gift from Nosy ..
you think maybe somehow her heart is turning ?
i do, God
thanks
Wednesday, April 2, 2014
run them off the road, dammit ! ..
i opened the Hangout at 4:00 this morning
it had been raining off and on, and got rough a couple hours prior
when i unlocked the door i heard a familiar voice
a voice i thought had moved on
a voice with a distinguished southern accent
a voice that had traveled 40,000 miles in the last 12 years
walking, thumbing, riding ..
with his dog
a voice that had been in Desert Storm
he was back here
thick and heavy beard
couple teeth missing
upbeat as ever
he'd been around and back
2 days ago he was riding his bike, pulling a trailer
some woman in the approaching lane pulled into his lane and ran him off the road, dog and trailer and all
.. . . . ..
process that ..
i found it difficult to believe it was on purpose and questioned him on it
he said it had happened several times in his travels
and other homeless travellers vouchsafed the very same thing
one of them fell over a 40' drop-off and suffered broken bones because of it
processing ?
be sure to process it
don't simply walk by ..
put yourself in that situation
imagine the inhumanity of the deed
purposefully running someone off the road because they're homeless ..
then he balanced it out with this
some days prior to that he was out of money
he told God he needed $20
some time later as he was walking the street there was the $20, in the gutter
some time prior to that, as he was riding someone approaching in the other lane blew their horn and waved and tossed something out the window, shooting the peace sign
it was 2 $50 bills wrapped around a dollar coin ..
pray for the homeless
help them when you can
they need it
by the way
he recently had his military benefits settled with the government, including backpay
he went home for christmas
and bought the best christmas gifts he could find for his grandchildren
2 of whose fathers, his sons, were killed overseas in the military
he had never enjoyed that, having been raised on a farm with little to go around
and wanted his grandchildren to experience it at least one time
in addition, although his own children apparently said some rather hurtful things to him while he was there,
he paid off the mortgage on the farm
so his children and grandchildren could have some form of security
he left 4 days before christmas because he couldn't take the lashes he was getting from them ..
that's his story, anyway
and i believe it
the man suffers from ptsd and has had 1/3 of his stomach removed from 2 bouts of stomach cancer ..
think on these things
God help us
peace
it had been raining off and on, and got rough a couple hours prior
when i unlocked the door i heard a familiar voice
a voice i thought had moved on
a voice with a distinguished southern accent
a voice that had traveled 40,000 miles in the last 12 years
walking, thumbing, riding ..
with his dog
a voice that had been in Desert Storm
he was back here
thick and heavy beard
couple teeth missing
upbeat as ever
he'd been around and back
2 days ago he was riding his bike, pulling a trailer
some woman in the approaching lane pulled into his lane and ran him off the road, dog and trailer and all
.. . . . ..
process that ..
i found it difficult to believe it was on purpose and questioned him on it
he said it had happened several times in his travels
and other homeless travellers vouchsafed the very same thing
one of them fell over a 40' drop-off and suffered broken bones because of it
processing ?
be sure to process it
don't simply walk by ..
put yourself in that situation
imagine the inhumanity of the deed
purposefully running someone off the road because they're homeless ..
then he balanced it out with this
some days prior to that he was out of money
he told God he needed $20
some time later as he was walking the street there was the $20, in the gutter
some time prior to that, as he was riding someone approaching in the other lane blew their horn and waved and tossed something out the window, shooting the peace sign
it was 2 $50 bills wrapped around a dollar coin ..
pray for the homeless
help them when you can
they need it
by the way
he recently had his military benefits settled with the government, including backpay
he went home for christmas
and bought the best christmas gifts he could find for his grandchildren
2 of whose fathers, his sons, were killed overseas in the military
he had never enjoyed that, having been raised on a farm with little to go around
and wanted his grandchildren to experience it at least one time
in addition, although his own children apparently said some rather hurtful things to him while he was there,
he paid off the mortgage on the farm
so his children and grandchildren could have some form of security
he left 4 days before christmas because he couldn't take the lashes he was getting from them ..
that's his story, anyway
and i believe it
the man suffers from ptsd and has had 1/3 of his stomach removed from 2 bouts of stomach cancer ..
think on these things
God help us
peace
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