Follow me and I will make you fish for people.
- From Mark 1
Glenn Beck said once, on his radio show, that he doesn't understand retirement. He mentioned figures in the Bible that never retired, (many of them died as martyrs). And then he mentioned Colonel Sanders, who at 65 was still an unknown . . . but built an empire that was way better than a retirement plan.
God has given us specific gifts. And I think it's clear that the purpose of the gifts is to build His Kingdom.
What does it mean, to be a fisherman, and to be made into a "Fisher of Men" by our Master? Does it mean that fishermen are never to fish again, for a livelihood? Probably not. Even Apostles have to eat and need shelter. They could still fish, for pay, or for food. But the unique skills it takes to fish would then be used specifically in building God's kingdom.
Does this mean that if you're a handyman, that you should spend your time replacing lightbulbs in the church, and repainting it every five years?
No, I doubt it. It means that as you are out and about, doing handy work, that you are to be purposefully adding people to the Kingdom. But the traits that good handymen have in common: spacial sense, problem solving, good with hands, a long, project-based view. Hopefully they take the long, effective path in working with others, helping solve their problems, fixing the little things, keeping their friends and family in great emotional and spiritual working order.
A church with a great handyman among it's membership shouldn't think in terms of having him replace a commode in the facility, when needed. Perhaps he should be supported as he goes out to neighborhoods in disrepair, lived in by people that cannot afford to maintain their homes . . . and help them.
Not during spring break. Not two weeks out of the summer.
But all the time. When needed.
The Apostles did not reach some old age and move to Florida.
Your skills, your talents, your passions. The things you do well. They must be utilized in building God's Kingdom. And unfortunately, you are most effective with people you know well. Your family. Your life friends. And yes, they are the most awkward ones to serve.
There was a very, very good teacher. The kids loved him. He was great at imparting math concepts. He got into teaching because he said that, as a kid, he struggled in school, and he wanted to take that attitude into his work with kids, because he understood them.
Partway into his teaching career, he became successful in an Amway-type business. He left teaching forever, but said to me: "I'm still teaching. Except, now I am teaching adults how to make money."
Right.
Or, I mean . . . not right.
His skill was teaching children. And we desperately need good teachers that kids love, in our schools. Not holed up in their $500K home waiting for opportunities to go speak at MLM rallies.
Your skills have been given to you to make the most good, where they can do the most good. And nothing is "more good" than ensuring that as many people as possible join the growing throng of citizens in God's eternal Kingdom.
Sunday, January 21, 2018
Friday, January 19, 2018
You're Crazy
For the present form of this world is passing away.
- From 1 Corinthians 7
The scriptural excerpt that I am using today, has the phrase "passing away." We talk about people "passing away," but what we actually mean is that they died. We think it sounds nicer, but we find it awkward to just say, straight up and biblically, that someone died.
In fact, when used in Scripture, "passing away" seems, almost always, to be referring to something bad that has gotten it's rightful due. He "passed away," meaning, his life was a whiff that came and went . . . and soon he will be forgotten, as well he should.
Pass away - - - drift back into nothingness and no one will miss you.
Or "fly away," which actually refers to the way a bird enters into our sight and field of attention, but then flits away beyond our view. In moments, we have forgotten there ever was a bird in our midst.
The present form of the world is passing away. Meaning, not that something nice and soft is going to happen to the earth. No . . . it's going to be gone and forgotten, and good riddance!
Paul states that, since this is the case . . . what are we so worried about so many pointless things for?
Probably because we don't want people to think we're crazy. Act as if I have no wife, or husband, when I do? What's that supposed to mean? Stop making deals and contracts in the world? What? Pretend like we have no possessions?
You must be crazy! Here, I'll just continue acting according to the world's present state.
Now . . . it's probably true that what is really meant here, is that our attitudes should be as Paul mentioned. Of course we still have homes to maintain and bills to pay.
But if we were convinced the world really was going to change into something more like the Garden of Eden . . . what changes would we make? Would we really retire early and take more vacations?
Or would we give more of our time and money, to people that really need it?
What would a crazy person do?
- From 1 Corinthians 7
The scriptural excerpt that I am using today, has the phrase "passing away." We talk about people "passing away," but what we actually mean is that they died. We think it sounds nicer, but we find it awkward to just say, straight up and biblically, that someone died.
In fact, when used in Scripture, "passing away" seems, almost always, to be referring to something bad that has gotten it's rightful due. He "passed away," meaning, his life was a whiff that came and went . . . and soon he will be forgotten, as well he should.
Pass away - - - drift back into nothingness and no one will miss you.
Or "fly away," which actually refers to the way a bird enters into our sight and field of attention, but then flits away beyond our view. In moments, we have forgotten there ever was a bird in our midst.
The present form of the world is passing away. Meaning, not that something nice and soft is going to happen to the earth. No . . . it's going to be gone and forgotten, and good riddance!
Paul states that, since this is the case . . . what are we so worried about so many pointless things for?
Probably because we don't want people to think we're crazy. Act as if I have no wife, or husband, when I do? What's that supposed to mean? Stop making deals and contracts in the world? What? Pretend like we have no possessions?
You must be crazy! Here, I'll just continue acting according to the world's present state.
Now . . . it's probably true that what is really meant here, is that our attitudes should be as Paul mentioned. Of course we still have homes to maintain and bills to pay.
But if we were convinced the world really was going to change into something more like the Garden of Eden . . . what changes would we make? Would we really retire early and take more vacations?
Or would we give more of our time and money, to people that really need it?
What would a crazy person do?
Tuesday, January 16, 2018
Table
You spread a table before me in the presence of those who trouble me . . .
- From the Twenty-Third Psalm
When I was a kid, and a member of and regular attendee at the Penfield Advent Christian Church in New York, I remember that the congregation recited the entire 23rd Psalm every week, as a part of the service. It had the same status as The Lord's Prayer; sort of an Old Testament version of a highly important and catch-all passage.
It's interesting that everyone talks about the violence and vice in the Old Testament. Humanity is not portrayed well. Even the heroes: Abraham, Moses, Joseph, David, had serious moral lapses.
But this most famous of all chapters in the Old Testament conveys the opposite of all the Old Testament's barrage of harsh language and characters. It is comforting and soothing. And while Christ had not been born yet . . . the picture running through my mind, is of a walk with Him, The Lord, the Son of God, the King of Kings, in a beautiful mountain meadow, or peaceful garden. Adam may have written it, as a reflection of a good day with God, in the Garden of Eden.
Consider the highlight words from the passage - - - action verbs that describe God's treatment of us:
- From the Twenty-Third Psalm
When I was a kid, and a member of and regular attendee at the Penfield Advent Christian Church in New York, I remember that the congregation recited the entire 23rd Psalm every week, as a part of the service. It had the same status as The Lord's Prayer; sort of an Old Testament version of a highly important and catch-all passage.
It's interesting that everyone talks about the violence and vice in the Old Testament. Humanity is not portrayed well. Even the heroes: Abraham, Moses, Joseph, David, had serious moral lapses.
But this most famous of all chapters in the Old Testament conveys the opposite of all the Old Testament's barrage of harsh language and characters. It is comforting and soothing. And while Christ had not been born yet . . . the picture running through my mind, is of a walk with Him, The Lord, the Son of God, the King of Kings, in a beautiful mountain meadow, or peaceful garden. Adam may have written it, as a reflection of a good day with God, in the Garden of Eden.
Consider the highlight words from the passage - - - action verbs that describe God's treatment of us:
- Shepherd
- Lie down
- Still waters
- Revives
- Guides
- Comfort
- Anointed
- Goodness
- Mercy
- Forever
Even when enemies are mentioned, it is in the context of the Lord setting a table for us. Our enemies are within view of it. It's not about the meal; and it's not about rubbing it in our enemies' faces. In ancient Middle Eastern times, a table represented dialogue, or people coming together. The table was inviting. Good people welcomed even strangers to their table. You relaxed, enjoyed great food and company. There are no enemies around the dinner table.
God doesn't just take care of our enemies for us. He invites them to the dinner He has provided for us. He smiles and asks us all to sit down, talk, relax, and enjoy peace and safety.
Maybe this is what should be on our mind, when we bow our heads before eating.
Monday, January 15, 2018
Uneducated
Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John and realized that they were uneducated and ordinary men . . .
- From Acts 4
The first shall be last.
The weak will be made strong.
The mountains and valleys will be made plains.
The oppressed will find justice.
Yes the four preceding sentences are paraphrases. But you get the point.
Sometimes I want to go completely militant over this. God doesn't work through the wealthy, the educated, the sophisticated. Got it?
The world looks for the trappings of "success." It wants to see your new car, your house, your expensive things.
The world does not value scribes, teachers, ministers, servants, artists. If it did, we probably would solve some of the most pressing problems like injustice, war, crime.
A pastor once said these words to me . . . and I am quoting directly:
"Gordon, people don't take you seriously because you don't appear to be successful."
A school superintendent once told somebody that the reason I had not been hired as a teacher, was that "Gordon's always trying to change the world."
A leader in my church, a "scientist" with a PhD was asking me about my work in the arts, and with kids. He started to say "Where do you get the time to . . . ?" and then stopped himself.
The world does not value the highest things, and that type of superficial thinking has infected the Church, and Academia (ostensibly dominated by "liberals").
I share all of this, not to garner sympathy or draw attention to myself. I do it because I know my own experience better than anybody else's . . . and I understand.
I've always preferred "uneducated" people to the "educated." I would casually observe, four decades ago, that I'd rather hear an enlisted military man give a sermon, than a guy with a Dallas Theological doctorate. The best preacher I ever heard was a career worker in a print shop. His hands and nails were stained and creased from years working in ink and heavy machinery. He did not have a college degree. But he could quote the Bible better than anybody . . . and harmonize it.
Our politics today are drawing a line between "educated" and "uneducated." I'm taking the side of the "uneducated."
And I've got two Master's Degrees.
- From Acts 4
The first shall be last.
The weak will be made strong.
The mountains and valleys will be made plains.
The oppressed will find justice.
Yes the four preceding sentences are paraphrases. But you get the point.
Sometimes I want to go completely militant over this. God doesn't work through the wealthy, the educated, the sophisticated. Got it?
The world looks for the trappings of "success." It wants to see your new car, your house, your expensive things.
The world does not value scribes, teachers, ministers, servants, artists. If it did, we probably would solve some of the most pressing problems like injustice, war, crime.
A pastor once said these words to me . . . and I am quoting directly:
"Gordon, people don't take you seriously because you don't appear to be successful."
A school superintendent once told somebody that the reason I had not been hired as a teacher, was that "Gordon's always trying to change the world."
A leader in my church, a "scientist" with a PhD was asking me about my work in the arts, and with kids. He started to say "Where do you get the time to . . . ?" and then stopped himself.
The world does not value the highest things, and that type of superficial thinking has infected the Church, and Academia (ostensibly dominated by "liberals").
I share all of this, not to garner sympathy or draw attention to myself. I do it because I know my own experience better than anybody else's . . . and I understand.
I've always preferred "uneducated" people to the "educated." I would casually observe, four decades ago, that I'd rather hear an enlisted military man give a sermon, than a guy with a Dallas Theological doctorate. The best preacher I ever heard was a career worker in a print shop. His hands and nails were stained and creased from years working in ink and heavy machinery. He did not have a college degree. But he could quote the Bible better than anybody . . . and harmonize it.
Our politics today are drawing a line between "educated" and "uneducated." I'm taking the side of the "uneducated."
And I've got two Master's Degrees.
Saturday, January 13, 2018
Antisocial Media
Do not believe every spirit . . .
- From 1 John 4
I can't believe the intensity of passionate disagreement in social media. It should be called "anti-Social" media (yeah, I'm sure no one's come up with that yet!).
When I was young, I dreamed about the world in my old age. I was immersed in the telecommunications field, using what later became called "email," when it was the bailiwick of only the most leading-edge scientists.
Futurists looked at what was happening in the labs, and predicted a wonderful world in the 21st Century. In the 1990s, experts like Stephen Covey, whose system involved treating others with respect; and the research of men like Noel Tichy, whose work proved that good teams out-perform bad teams, heralded an ethic that was good news for creative people, visionaries, scribes, team-builders, etc. I relaxed in my middle years, knowing that the best years of my career would be the final ones - - - where my passions, and skills as a networker and innovator would finally become highly valued. The Internet would lead the way - - - people would be exposed to lots of new ideas, and powerful synergies would be unleashed as people learned to collaborate across time zones.
Look at the Internet of 2018. What happened?
In many ways, it saddens me deeply. The hate that people feel for others that they have never met . . .
My vision and passions go further back than the 1990s and my background in technology. I was reared in an attitude from Scripture, that there was a lot of noise in the world, that obscured the simple message of Christ. The paradox is that . . . we actually should NOT trust anybody. Every viewpoint is suspect. We have to have that view, in order to get to the Truth of God. Think about it. It is something that anybody from any philosophy should agree to. We all want the truth. Therefore, we all have to hold in suspicion, anybody that tries to sell it to us.
We are very gullible. All of us. And I have learned that even the most educated among us, seem like the most gullible of all. They put too much trust in their diplomas. They deceive themselves by believing their minds are inquisitive. But how can one be a true seeker, while making a career of lecturing? I would rather hear the wisdom of a farmer, or blue collar worker, or police officer, or teacher, than that of an entire faculty of an Ivy League school.
The truth comes when we stop talking and start listening. We can't all be right, otherwise we'd all be in agreement. And "having your own truth" is a cop-out. A person that hangs on to such is a person that has given up. Yes it makes you uncomfortable. If it didn't, then there would be no disagreement at all.
My philosophy came from Scripture, and the diligence of people in my youth, to drill such verses into my thinking:
Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world. 1 John 4:1
There are some who are disturbing you, and want to distort the Gospel of Christ. - Galatians 1:7
But I am afraid, lest as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, your minds should be led astray from the simplicity and purity of devotion to Christ. - 2 Corinthians 11:4
Why would John, and Paul, be so concerned about error, unless they believed it was a real threat to us? We have to be careful. And the proof that we are not careful enough, is that everybody reading this has some point of major disagreement with somebody, about something.
The truth is in listening, and giving everybody a chance to express and ask. And to treat all with dignity and respect.
This is what will soften the edges of Social Media. It is what will destroy the divisions within Christianity.
And if we can be unified . . . imagine . . .
- From 1 John 4
I can't believe the intensity of passionate disagreement in social media. It should be called "anti-Social" media (yeah, I'm sure no one's come up with that yet!).
When I was young, I dreamed about the world in my old age. I was immersed in the telecommunications field, using what later became called "email," when it was the bailiwick of only the most leading-edge scientists.
Futurists looked at what was happening in the labs, and predicted a wonderful world in the 21st Century. In the 1990s, experts like Stephen Covey, whose system involved treating others with respect; and the research of men like Noel Tichy, whose work proved that good teams out-perform bad teams, heralded an ethic that was good news for creative people, visionaries, scribes, team-builders, etc. I relaxed in my middle years, knowing that the best years of my career would be the final ones - - - where my passions, and skills as a networker and innovator would finally become highly valued. The Internet would lead the way - - - people would be exposed to lots of new ideas, and powerful synergies would be unleashed as people learned to collaborate across time zones.
Look at the Internet of 2018. What happened?
In many ways, it saddens me deeply. The hate that people feel for others that they have never met . . .
My vision and passions go further back than the 1990s and my background in technology. I was reared in an attitude from Scripture, that there was a lot of noise in the world, that obscured the simple message of Christ. The paradox is that . . . we actually should NOT trust anybody. Every viewpoint is suspect. We have to have that view, in order to get to the Truth of God. Think about it. It is something that anybody from any philosophy should agree to. We all want the truth. Therefore, we all have to hold in suspicion, anybody that tries to sell it to us.
We are very gullible. All of us. And I have learned that even the most educated among us, seem like the most gullible of all. They put too much trust in their diplomas. They deceive themselves by believing their minds are inquisitive. But how can one be a true seeker, while making a career of lecturing? I would rather hear the wisdom of a farmer, or blue collar worker, or police officer, or teacher, than that of an entire faculty of an Ivy League school.
The truth comes when we stop talking and start listening. We can't all be right, otherwise we'd all be in agreement. And "having your own truth" is a cop-out. A person that hangs on to such is a person that has given up. Yes it makes you uncomfortable. If it didn't, then there would be no disagreement at all.
My philosophy came from Scripture, and the diligence of people in my youth, to drill such verses into my thinking:
Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world. 1 John 4:1
There are some who are disturbing you, and want to distort the Gospel of Christ. - Galatians 1:7
But I am afraid, lest as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, your minds should be led astray from the simplicity and purity of devotion to Christ. - 2 Corinthians 11:4
Why would John, and Paul, be so concerned about error, unless they believed it was a real threat to us? We have to be careful. And the proof that we are not careful enough, is that everybody reading this has some point of major disagreement with somebody, about something.
The truth is in listening, and giving everybody a chance to express and ask. And to treat all with dignity and respect.
This is what will soften the edges of Social Media. It is what will destroy the divisions within Christianity.
And if we can be unified . . . imagine . . .
Thursday, January 11, 2018
Earth's Depths
I was being made in secret and woven in the depths of the earth.
- From Psalm 139
The Psalmist is going way beyond any other effort, to describe the magic, the miracle, and the wonder of life. He leaves nothing to change. Every single life is precious, marvelous, and of great value.
It goes way back, way before conception, even. Our cellular structure originated in the earth itself. God knows what He's doing with each of us, ages ago, when the cells that became us, were still inert organic compounds deep in the ground.
It is so wonderful, that we can't even begin to understand it.
This idea of "life," is something to be treated with more awe than anything else. "In the beginning, God . . . "
It's all about life - about God starting it in Genesis, and then God making it last forever, in Revelation. Christ died so that we may live, forever. And He was born so that He could die.
If only our world-view, our philosophies, our politics, our values, our choices. . . were based on a total deference to the sacredness of life.
I have said before, that the most selfish act in life is the sex act. But the most unselfish act is to bring a baby into the world, that we have already committed to care for and love, for the entirety of his or her life. If unselfishness is the highest plane of human dignity, then the conception of a new human life is the finest expression of it.
Therefore, God immersed the idea of birth, into a set of trappings that divorced it from an act of sheer pleasure. We needed to frame childbirth into a practice of commitment and real love, otherwise the act of conception would diminish into a mere gratification of a momentary hunger.
Psalm 139 is a pro-life passage - - - but way beyond the intentions of the politically-motivated modern pro-life movement. Understood in its proper context, none of us come out looking particularly noble.
Behold God's first, eternal, and all-important act: creating you, and me, deep within the depths of the earth . . . long before any of us will ever know.
- From Psalm 139
The Psalmist is going way beyond any other effort, to describe the magic, the miracle, and the wonder of life. He leaves nothing to change. Every single life is precious, marvelous, and of great value.
It goes way back, way before conception, even. Our cellular structure originated in the earth itself. God knows what He's doing with each of us, ages ago, when the cells that became us, were still inert organic compounds deep in the ground.
It is so wonderful, that we can't even begin to understand it.
This idea of "life," is something to be treated with more awe than anything else. "In the beginning, God . . . "
It's all about life - about God starting it in Genesis, and then God making it last forever, in Revelation. Christ died so that we may live, forever. And He was born so that He could die.
If only our world-view, our philosophies, our politics, our values, our choices. . . were based on a total deference to the sacredness of life.
I have said before, that the most selfish act in life is the sex act. But the most unselfish act is to bring a baby into the world, that we have already committed to care for and love, for the entirety of his or her life. If unselfishness is the highest plane of human dignity, then the conception of a new human life is the finest expression of it.
Therefore, God immersed the idea of birth, into a set of trappings that divorced it from an act of sheer pleasure. We needed to frame childbirth into a practice of commitment and real love, otherwise the act of conception would diminish into a mere gratification of a momentary hunger.
Psalm 139 is a pro-life passage - - - but way beyond the intentions of the politically-motivated modern pro-life movement. Understood in its proper context, none of us come out looking particularly noble.
Behold God's first, eternal, and all-important act: creating you, and me, deep within the depths of the earth . . . long before any of us will ever know.
Wednesday, January 10, 2018
Eli
It is the Lord; let him do what seems good to him.
- From 1 Samuel 3
Eli was a pretty good man. He was a priest, and for his time, quite diligent. He lived in a time when God was not terribly active in the world, and in Israel. The Bible says that there was not much prophecy, and the Word of God was rare.
There are a lot of people today, that don't know a thing about Scripture. It's like today, where church membership is on the decline. And while people may watch evangelists on TV, and read best-selling books written by Christian authors, and participate in Bible study groups, Sunday Schools, and special ministries in their church . . . still a passion for God's word, where people dig deep and let it challenge and change them, seems lacking.
Eli had no control over his own family, and house. His sons were "blasphemers." They openly mocked the mission of their father, and got away with it. They spent their time in self-absorbed pursuits. They deserved to be happy.
There was a pastor in town, when I was a teenager. He was well-liked by his congregation, and was held in some high esteem in town. But his kids were among the wildest kids in the schools. Eli's era was something like this. Faith was very weak, and those that served in the ministry had to get along. They kept quiet, and stayed in their place.
But he had one powerful redeeming value. When God acted to straighten out Eli's lapses of leadership, Eli proclaimed: "It is the Lord. He can do whatever He wants."
This one little act of acceptance and trust, by one of the few spiritual leaders of the day, by recalling the attitudes of Abraham and Moses, may have been the turned corner that got Israel back on the right path. It had an impact on young Samuel . . . who would figure quite prominently in the next big phase of Israel's life.
- From 1 Samuel 3
Eli was a pretty good man. He was a priest, and for his time, quite diligent. He lived in a time when God was not terribly active in the world, and in Israel. The Bible says that there was not much prophecy, and the Word of God was rare.
There are a lot of people today, that don't know a thing about Scripture. It's like today, where church membership is on the decline. And while people may watch evangelists on TV, and read best-selling books written by Christian authors, and participate in Bible study groups, Sunday Schools, and special ministries in their church . . . still a passion for God's word, where people dig deep and let it challenge and change them, seems lacking.
Eli had no control over his own family, and house. His sons were "blasphemers." They openly mocked the mission of their father, and got away with it. They spent their time in self-absorbed pursuits. They deserved to be happy.
There was a pastor in town, when I was a teenager. He was well-liked by his congregation, and was held in some high esteem in town. But his kids were among the wildest kids in the schools. Eli's era was something like this. Faith was very weak, and those that served in the ministry had to get along. They kept quiet, and stayed in their place.
But he had one powerful redeeming value. When God acted to straighten out Eli's lapses of leadership, Eli proclaimed: "It is the Lord. He can do whatever He wants."
This one little act of acceptance and trust, by one of the few spiritual leaders of the day, by recalling the attitudes of Abraham and Moses, may have been the turned corner that got Israel back on the right path. It had an impact on young Samuel . . . who would figure quite prominently in the next big phase of Israel's life.
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