On my mind

Learning to Love

2012-01-19T15:54:00.000-08:00

Well, it's official- a few "tough" situations in my life have confirmed exactly what the Lord is doing in my life. I am learning a skill that is foreign to me: love. For the first time in a long time, I feel like I am able to really empathize with people. Not just fake empathy, but actually feel with them.

When I'm honest, I guess I don't know what to think about this. The plus? Well, it's certainly what we're called to (or did you think that "weeping with those who are weeping" were throwaway words). Paul is all over the place emotionally- his heart out in the sea, vulnerable to all the changing currents of the people he loved. Whether making the Corinthians' joy his own (2 Cor. 1:24) or experiencing the unceasing anguish that goes along with loving the Jews (Rom. 9), his heart is "wide open" (2 Cor. 6:11)

You know what, though? This way of life- of tying your joys and sorrows to others around you- it sucks. I'm not kidding. Love, relationships where you tie yourself to someone else? Let me tell you, it costs something. It really does. It distracts at work- it can make you less "efficient". It can take huge amounts of energy. I mean, think about it: you will actually have bad moods that you would not have had without hitching your heart and entering in to that person in your life. The easy way is to detach. To fake empathy, to just stick to what you're going through.

God, it's just so much easier to intellectually understand where people are at and throw some advice at them! It just is! But that only kicks a hurting soul when it's down. What hurting people need is someone who's in it with them. Speaking truth in love (Eph. 4:15).

I've always had friends like this, but I guess I just don't think I ever understood what it costs to love like this. On the other hand, I don't think I really understood the joy that went along with real love either.

I think- through Scripture, and increasingly through experience... that this is the better way. I think all of us at all involved in conservative Christianity would do very well to let these verses hang over everything they think of as progress in the faith.

But now I want to lay out a far better way for you.

1 If I speak with human eloquence and angelic ecstasy but don't love, I'm nothing but the creaking of a rusty gate. 2If I speak God's Word with power, revealing all his mysteries and making everything plain as day, and if I have faith that says to a mountain, "Jump," and it jumps, but I don't love, I'm nothing. 3-7If I give everything I own to the poor and even go to the stake to be burned as a martyr, but I don't love, I've gotten nowhere. So, no matter what I say, what I believe, and what I do, I'm bankrupt without love.

Love never gives up.
Love cares more for others than for self.
Love doesn't want what it doesn't have.
Love doesn't strut,
Doesn't have a swelled head,
Doesn't force itself on others,
Isn't always "me first,"
Doesn't fly off the handle,
Doesn't keep score of the sins of others,
Doesn't revel when others grovel,
Takes pleasure in the flowering of truth,
Puts up with anything,
Trusts God always,
Always looks for the best,
Never looks back,
But keeps going to the end.

8-10Love never dies. Inspired speech will be over some day; praying in tongues will end; understanding will reach its limit. We know only a portion of the truth, and what we say about God is always incomplete. But when the Complete arrives, our incompletes will be canceled.

11When I was an infant at my mother's breast, I gurgled and cooed like any infant. When I grew up, I left those infant ways for good.

12We don't yet see things clearly. We're squinting in a fog, peering through a mist. But it won't be long before the weather clears and the sun shines bright! We'll see it all then, see it all as clearly as God sees us, knowing him directly just as he knows us!

13But for right now, until that completeness, we have three things to do to lead us toward that consummation: So now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; but the greatest of these is love.
1 Cor 13
Please don't gloss over the last verse without thinking about what it means.

Today, a memory

2011-12-19T21:06:00.000-08:00

Today our life is normal. There is a day for many of us, God-willing, when we will look back on days like today as a unique, but passing moment in time.

In my life, will I will look back on being a 24-year-old single guy as a time of joy and freedom? A time when things were good- or easy? A time when I was young and naive?

The truth is that I can't know. What I do know that there was a time when playing Saturday morning basketball tournaments and trading sports cards were normal. What I do know is that I look back on this little guy as a different person living in a small world.

Where does that leave me? I think more than anything it leaves me not wanting to miss this- the 24th year of life. The end of the year called 2011. It's staggering to think that both will come just once in this great spectrum we call time.

Whether your concern is making it count or just making sure it doesn't pass you by like the 3-hour Minneapolis to Pelican, it seems that the answer is the same.

The only moment we have is this one- it is here. Don't miss it.

Intentional Jars

2011-11-26T21:01:00.001-08:00

"So we have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us". (2 Cor. 4:7)

Here's the homework:
"this treasure": "the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ" (from the verse before). I'd sum it up as "faith in the gospel".

"jars of clay": A common metaphor in the ancient world for human weakness

The word that makes all the difference
The first connecting word, "to", makes all the difference in the world. It's not just that we, unfortunately, are weak, and God still manages to do something with us. The verse makes it clear that our frailty is no accident. This is God's means to showing that the power belongs to him.

So, our failing bodies, our roller-coaster emotions, and even our unstable will are NOT merely a side effect that God is willing to work around. Rather, it is the precondition that he does anything at all! Your weakness is the ordained way that God has chosen to get things done.

Why? Because while there may be an infinite number of ways to "get God's stuff done" he is concerned with doing it in a way that makes people say, "What a God" and not "what a guy"...

Brett want to write good

2011-11-26T11:40:00.001-08:00

Ok, so I'm trying to write a book. I'm finding that it's a bit like pulling teeth right now. Why is this? While I think that perhaps some of it could be that it's not a subject I'm super-jazzed about, another some of it is simply because I haven't been writing.

So, in an effort to reclaim my "voice" I am picking up both journal and blog after a long dry spell. I want to write again, if only to have an outlet to express some of my thoughts. So, mysterious (non-existent?) reader, buckle up- it's going to be a bumpy ride.

Father, Savior, Friend

2011-11-07T20:04:00.000-08:00

While God remains immutable in the heavens, it seems our understanding is quite mutable.

It is when we have no other friends that the friendship of Jesus appears, sweet and as real as the air we breathe.

It is when our own father fails us that we, feel the embrace and approval of our true Father.

It is when we feel the reality and weight of our own sin that we are embraced and overjoyed- by a Savior.

While we lack nothing materially and relationally, we miss out on the sweetness of, as Tullian Tchvidjian would put it "Jesus + Nothing = Everything".

Check your pulse

2011-10-28T21:16:00.000-07:00

Try to read it like it's true.

Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world—the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride of life—is not from the Father but is from the world. And the world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides forever.(1 John 2:15-17 ESV)

For the love of Christ controls us, because we have concluded this: that one has died for all, therefore all have died; and he died for all, that those who live might no longer live for themselves but for him who for their sake died and was raised.(2 Corinthians 5:14-15 ESV)

How are you? How is your soul? Who are you living for?Where do your thoughts go?
What are your big concerns? Where is your heart?Really.

Take a second and think about it.

Would you give it all up for Jesus? Not in some spiritual sense. Would you give up those plans? That success? That 401k? That stuff?

Today, there is a fork in the road- to lay it all down- the opinions of other people, the money, the car, the house, the dreams. To lay down before the cross- your heart with all of it's sin and dreams and loves and idols. The alternative?

Just keep doing religion- go to church give your 10% and let your soul shrivel. I pray that the Spirit would call you back like He does me.

It seems repentance and faith are never my idea first.

Love is not a victory march

2011-10-14T11:02:00.001-07:00

"Love is not a victory march, it's a cold and its a broken 'Hallelujah'"-Leonard Cohen (Hallelujah)

Where does the time go?

2011-09-19T07:15:00.000-07:00

Let me ask a question: would you rather live in a crappy, sub-par house but have life-giving, deep, meaningful relationships with those around you? Or would you rather live in a large, beautiful house, but have broken, draining relationships with those around you, leaving you feel unloved?If you're like me, you'd opt for #1. Now here is a question to think about: does your expenditure of time, energy, and thought reflect those priorities? Or does it reflect something else?

Prerequisites

2011-09-01T20:47:00.000-07:00

A prerequisite for loving your neighbor as yourself... is loving yourself.
You shall love your neighbor as yourself. (Mark 12:31)

A prerequisite for denying yourself... is having a self to deny.
“If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. (Mark 8:34)

Invitations to the Invisible World

2011-09-01T20:40:00.000-07:00

It seems like Christ in the gospels is constantly calling us to value, to pursue, and to delight in the world of the invisible. It's not that the visible, touchable, smellable, tasteable, and audible are unimportant. It's very clear that Jesus cares a great deal about the physical needs of men and women.

Even with that tangible care, though, Christ continually calls us to life that values invisible realities more than material circumstances.

Highlighting the Difficulty of the Evolutionary Process

2011-08-11T08:20:00.000-07:00

Martin Luther King Jr. and the choice

2011-08-09T14:20:00.000-07:00

I wonder if I'm at a point like this in my life (whether I realize it or not).

“I say to you, this morning, that if you have never found something so dear and precious to you that you will die for it, then you aren’t fit to live.
You may be 38 years old, as I happen to be, and one day, some great opportunity stands before you and calls upon you to stand for some great principle, some great issue, some great cause. And you refuse to do it because you are afraid.
You refuse to do it because you want to live longer. You’re afraid that you will lose your job, or you are afraid that you will be criticized or that you will lose your popularity, or you’re afraid that somebody will stab or shoot or bomb your house. So you refuse to take a stand.
Well, you may go on and live until you are ninety, but you are just as dead at 38 as you would be at ninety.
And the cessation of breathing in your life is but the belated announcement of an earlier death of the spirit.
You died when you refused to stand up for right.
You died when you refused to stand up for truth.
You died when you refused to stand up for justice.”
-Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Francis Schaeffer's Journey

2011-07-29T23:13:00.000-07:00

The way to read my books, then, is to realize that I came through a real struggle in those early days, and I’ve tried to be honest in my study ever since. I try to approach every problem as though I were not a Christian and see what the answer would be.

Later on in my ministry I faced another crisis that equally influenced the writing of my books. It came after I had already been a pastor for ten years in the U.S. and a missionary to Europe for five years. Throughout this period one thing was dinned into my thinking: “Why,” I asked, “is there so little reality among orthodox evangelical Christians? Why is there so little beauty in the way Christians deal with one another?”

This led to doubts about the reality of spiritual things in my own life. I realized that although I had been studying for years and although I had been active in Christian ministry and although I was becoming more and more known in certain Christian circles, the reality of my own spiritual life was diminished. Somehow I had lost what I had when I first became a Christian.

For about two months I walked out in the Swiss mountains. When it rained, I walked in the old hayloft above our chalet. And as I prayed, I went all the way back to my agnosticism. With as much honesty as I could, I asked myself, “Was I right in becoming a Christian as a young man?” The unreality I had found in the Christian world, the ugliness I saw in Christian relationships, the fact that Christians were not able to talk to twentieth-century people—all these things made me ask, “Was I right?”

And finally the sun came out. I saw that my earlier decisions to step from agnosticism to Bible-believing Christianity was right, and I also discovered that I had been missing something vital in my biblical understanding. It was this: that the finished work of Christ on the cross, back there in time and space, has a moment-by-moment meaning. Christ meant His promise to be taken literally when He said that He would bear His fruit through us if we allowed Him to do so, not only in our religious life but in all of our life. Christ meant to be Lord of my whole life. This brought my life to a great shattering moment. What began as struggle ended in a song. Without that crisis, I could never have written True Spirituality, for that book is the outcome of that personal struggle.

—Francis A. Schaeffer, “Why and How I Write My Books,” Eternity Magazine, vol. 24 (March 1973): 64f.

2011-06-11T21:21:00.000-07:00

I am drawn to friends for different reasons. With some I share common values and interests, but I also enjoy eccentric friends who encourage me to see things unconventionally. In either case I look for someone who will reward my honesty and not punish it; who will push my introverted self to a deeper level of intimacy. I look for companions along the journey ... I want someone I can count on.
-Phillip Yancey, Prayer

Don't tell me what to do!

2011-06-05T15:56:00.000-07:00

What I need first of all is not exhortation, but a gospel, not directions for saving myself but knowledge of how God has saved me. Have you any good news? That is the question that I ask of you. I know your exhortations will not help me. But if anything has been done to save me, will you not tell me the facts?"
-John Gresham Machen

My View on Creation

2011-05-20T14:10:00.000-07:00

Ok, so, I really like this page. This is a thoughtful summary of a creation account. I highlight it because it is basically where I stand right now as I read Scripture and learn about the science.

I realize that for some, it may be: "Duh- this is just the definition of Old-Earth Creationism", but for me, I've sort of arrived at alot of these conclusions doing some independent research and thinking, and I guess it was just cool to come across a quick synopsis that doesn't have its head in the sand on the science and also isn't chucking the bible. Also, that was a long sentence.

The article from "Reasons to Believe."

Luther's 1518 Disputation

2011-05-08T21:44:00.000-07:00

Warning: The following if applied to a heart, could yield dramatic freedom. I borrow from Mark Driscoll's blog.

Naked and filthy or clothed and righteous
People stand naked in sin or clothed in the identity of Christ. There's no middle ground in between. We can do good before God but only in a passive capacity. Consider this analogy:

“[As water] can be heated but cannot heat itself, the will is driven by Satan or by God, as it acts in the vertical sphere of life. Instead of trusting the Word of the Lord, we turn to the lie of the Deceptor, and doubt binds our wills as it deafens our ears. Freedom comes only through the new identity given through Christ’s death, that becomes our death to captivity and deception.” – Robert Kolb, Luther on the Theology of the Cross

Do your best and God does the rest?
Claiming we somehow add just a little bit of good to our standing with God through our efforts is what Gerhard Forde coined as human “affrontery.” As if we could simply do our best and have God do the rest.

“The person who believes that he can obtain grace by doing what is in him adds sin to sin so that he becomes doubly guilty.” –Thesis 16, Heidelberg Disputation

Still we strive for just a teeny-weenie bit of good deeds to gain God’s favor. This proclivity masks itself as piety, but it’s an affront to God’s perfect work of Christ, on the cross, for our sins. Christ’s death and resurrection is complete (it is finished), not a supplement to our shortcomings.

People have the capacity to do good, but only when God comes onto the scene and makes us alive again.

Death to valiant efforts
Humans are not autonomous beings. We are to image our creator and receive our identity in him. But still we twist this beautiful truth towards our means and make rules for ourselves—rules that highlight our valiant spiritual efforts—in spiritual disciplines, idol-hunting skill, or even belief in our own belief. None of this will do.

“Striving for the standards people set for themselves can convince them that they are not able to reach their goals, but apart from the perspective at the foot of the cross they will not understand that the solution lies not in trying harder but in dying to their sinful identity. At the foot of the cross sinners finally lose the presumption that they simply must stretch a bit higher. They fall to the earth to die to their sinful identity.” –Kolb

The beauty of all this is that we are born anew. Death always comes before a resurrection.

The one great lesson Al Mohler has learned

2011-04-28T20:41:00.000-07:00

Ok, so if you've heard me talk about this guy before, you know I'm not his biggest fan. However, what he says here speaks right into where I'm at right now trying to figure out what to do with my increasingly precious time.

Although there are many, is there one lesson the Lord has taught you that you would care to share with us?

I think the one great lesson the Lord has taught me over these years is that the importance of the family and the local congregation supersedes every other relationship to which the Christian is called. Christians demonstrate the glory of God and the power of the gospel by the way we marry and stay married, by the way we raise our children, by the way we love each other, and by the way we live faithfully in the congregation of believers. In the end, I fear that far too much energy is devoted to and far too many hopes are invested in institutions, programs, and projects that will not last. The centrality of Christ’s purpose to glorify himself in His church and the blessings of God that are directed to the precious gift of the family — these far exceed our other allegiances.
-Al Mohler, from an interview with Tabletalk

Video, Hope, and the Source of All Blessing

2011-04-27T10:35:00.001-07:00

3rd place... The peeps who made this video- on the fly! Incredible!
2nd place... Hope Community Church- I love all the personalities that make up this ragtag group we call a church.
1st place... Jesus Christ. He deserves all the glory and thanks and praise here. The minute we think that HopeCC is the magic and not the God who blesses it, we lose it.

Great news.

2011-04-21T08:31:00.000-07:00

The only response to Rob Bell worth noting

2011-03-29T18:27:00.000-07:00

This sums up my main thought on the Rob Bell hulaballoo. Yes, Rob Bell should listen... but so should all the solid Reformed dudes who have responded to him. And you. And me.

Do We Really Believe What We're Saying? from The Church at Brook Hills on Vimeo.

Readin' a book

2011-03-17T23:22:00.001-07:00

Young Brett... :)

A Very Old Story

2011-03-05T10:20:00.000-08:00

Sometimes in interacting with people or just thinking about the lives of people I know, I just start to feel like this is a world of hurt people hurting people. Whether it's in little teases or massive wars and genocide, I wonder if there isn't some truth in this living this side of Eden. I'll just leave you with a passage that's maybe worth thinking about.

It's an earthy story you've heard before but this time, think about innocence and frailty- about rejection, about hurt. And then think about the response to all of this and how Genesis is a book of, among other things, repeated mistakes.

These two were real men, with names, hair, clothes, homes, parents, dreams aspirations. When you read, try to give them that dignity- more than just words on a page.

Now Adam knew Eve his wife, and she conceived and bore Cain, saying, “I have gotten a man with the help of the LORD.” And again, she bore his brother Abel. Now Abel was a keeper of sheep, and Cain a worker of the ground. In the course of time Cain brought to the LORD an offering of the fruit of the ground, and Abel also brought of the firstborn of his flock and of their fat portions. And the LORD had regard for Abel and his offering, but for Cain and his offering he had no regard. So Cain was very angry, and his face fell. The LORD said to Cain, “Why are you angry, and why has your face fallen? If you do well, will you not be accepted? And if you do not do well, sin is crouching at the door. Its desire is for you, but you must rule over it.”
Cain spoke to Abel his brother. And when they were in the field, Cain rose up against his brother Abel and killed him. Then the LORD said to Cain, “Where is Abel your brother?” He said, “I do not know; am I my brother's keeper?” And the LORD said, “What have you done? The voice of your brother's blood is crying to me from the ground. And now you are cursed from the ground, which has opened its mouth to receive your brother's blood from your hand. When you work the ground, it shall no longer yield to you its strength. You shall be a fugitive and a wanderer on the earth.”
(Genesis 4:1-12 ESV)

My two favorite songs from today

2011-03-02T13:17:00.000-08:00

Ok, so they're set to lame video, so just ignore that :)

All the worship you can handle

2011-03-02T08:41:00.000-08:00

Awesome link: A Hillsong youtube playlist.

Brett Ripley in Test Result Format

2011-01-27T22:35:00.000-08:00

I. Meyers-Briggs:
-ENTP, "The Inventor"

II. Strengths Finder:

Input
Ideation
Strategic
Woo
Connectedness

III. Love Languages
-Quality Time
-Words of affirmation

IV. Spiritual Gifts (according to a "SHAPE" survey)
1. Prophet
2. Teacher
3. Wisdom

East of Eden, an impression

2011-01-14T13:29:00.000-08:00

"The Salinas Valley is in Northern Caliofornia. It is a long narrow swale between two ranges of mountains, and the Salinas River winds and twists up the center until it falls at last into Monterey Bay."

Thus begins Steinbeck's epic. When I read the first few pages I thought the writing was almost like that of a poem. Steinbeck's writing was brilliant and beautiful. I simply wondered where the poetic magic would end and where the real exposition would start. What still baffles me is that it never did. He writes dark, heavy, and beautiful- for 600 pages.

I'll just get straight to the punchline now and say that East of Eden is the best work of fiction that I have ever read. This book rocked my world- and I'm not really a fiction reader. In one of the deepest and most profound portions of the book, Lee (the Chinese philosopher-servant) makes a remark to Samuel Hamilton (my favorite fictional character- ever). They're talking about the story of Cain and Abel- what it is about the story that reaches down deep into humanity's past and into the condition of men who find themselves in the fallen world, "east of Eden".

"A great and lasting story is about everyone or it will not last. The strange and foreign is not interesting- only the deeply personal and familiar." He continues, "I think this is the best-known story in the world because it is everybody's story. I think it is the symbol story of the human soul" ... "The greatest terror a child can have is that he isn't loved, and rejection is the hell he fears. I think everyone in the world to a large or small extent has felt rejection. And with rejection comes anger, and with anger some kind of crime in revenge for the rejection, and with the crime guilt- and there is the story of mankind" ... "Therefore I think this old and terrible story is important because it is a chart of the soul- the secret, rejected, guilty soul."

Ironically, this is exactly what Steinbeck has created- a dark but powerful novel that reaches down deep, touching parts of my soul that I had all but forgotten. Still though, these parts make up most of who I am and largely dictate what I do.

While reading East, it quickly became clear that Steinbeck was a genius, with an eye for seeing into people that I doubt will ever be equaled. What makes him so phenomenal though is that along with the keen insight, he also possesses the ability to communicate it through, honestly, the best writing that I've ever seen.

In this book I found an author who saw things much like the way I see them, who even expresses himself the way I express myself. On both counts though, I was so humbled to find someone who did both the seeing and the saying far better than I could ever dream to. Steinbeck was a genius. A master of the human psyche. A man who saw things much like I do. Steinbeck though sees much more deeply and much more clearly than me.

And how could I write an impression without mentioning Samuel Hamilton. "Some men think big and some think little", Steinbeck writes. Samuel would be one of the former. I really don't want to try to describe him here, simply because I know I really won't do him the justice that he deserves. In Samuel, I found the mentor and kindred spirit that I've perhaps been searching for my whole life. He embodies warmth and deep understanding, while toeing the line between simple joy and a heavy soul. A man truly after my own heart.

This book has made me feel feelings that I haven't felt in a long time. Feelings that don't arise from the shallow trough of heartbreak or even the death of characters. They were feelings that arose out of long forgotten hurts and memories that I never dreamed could be part of the universal human experience.

In short, this book has changed me, though I'm not quite sure how. It's a beautiful, though sometimes bleak, story of how life plays out for two families in California around the turn of the 20th century. But maybe it's more than that. Maybe it's a story about the human soul. Maybe it's less about Adam, Cathy, Sam, Cal, and Aron, and more a story about ourselves.

(I realize that what precedes isn't really a review and certainly doesn't contain a synopsis. It's simply an "impression" where I gush about my mancrush on Steinbeck.)

2011-01-13T22:09:00.000-08:00

Oh, Lord. It's too much for me! The deep desire to love me and be with me in spite of me and the length that you go to make it possible. Thank you, Jesus for teaching us how to pray, for teaching us forgiveness and then dying so that forgiveness can be ours and we can forgive others.

Thank you for a love that is conditional, but not on me. That nothing can for sin atone- nothing but the blood of Jesus.

God that you could love and forgive and bless sinful, weak men like Abraham because you were looking ahead to the blood that your son would shed on the cross for them- and in so doing your blessing that was conditioned on Jesus' blood paved the way for the Savior's own bloodline. My GOD! My GOD! Lord, it's almost too much to take in.

You have done it and you still do it and you will do it. Lord, as I read how you work, how you reveal yourself in the old old Scriptures and in the face of Christ, I can't help but think you are just crazy sometimes. Instead of going to the most religious, moral men you can find, you scrounge up guys like Levi- the Benedict Arnold outcast of society who sells out his people for a comfortable life and then cheats them. God! Why?! Why do you come to Levi- what have you come to show? I thank you that the book on you was not written by religious people but by you! Who would think of a God who does this?

You are so far above me that the only way I can be with me is if you just decide to look past my imperfection. And that's what you do and I LOVE YOU FOR IT!!!

The God of the Old Testament

2011-01-13T21:39:00.000-08:00

I want to breeze past the fact that I am reading through the bible chronologically this year and move forward to the what I've been getting out of it.

Honestly, it has been so good for my soul reading through Genesis so far. This time through the Bible, I'm trying to focus on God. I know that sounds silly, but I think with all the action, the constant character changes, and plotlines, it's easy to get wrapped up and focus on the details of the story and lose track of the most important thing in the bible- its Author.

I don't think I remember being this encouraged from the Word in a long time. Contrary to the moralistic versions of Old Testament stories that I grew up with (like be a good person and God will bless you- look at all these examples...) I've started to see the stories for what they are: God just choosing the sometimes seemingly arbitrary, sometimes morally repugnant people to bless.

Look at the stories. God chooses and then God blesses. That's it. Sure, there's decisions made and consequences for good and bad decisions, but the biggest thing that I've seen is that if you are chosen by God, you simply cannot escape his blessing. If he sets his sight on you to love, I'm sorry but there's no option but to be loved. If you are in a covenant with him, there is nothing that you can do to avoid love and blessing.

One example that was encouraging to me was that of Abraham. Check out what happens. God chooses. He tells Abe that he's going to bless him. He even makes a covenant with him, and in an old school/old testament way says, "If I should break this covenant, may I die."

RIGHT after that, we get a story about old Abe being not so honest. In an action that reeks of distrust in the Lord, he pretends that his wife is his sister. Right after God promised he'd go with him! Right after the covenant! And what does God do? Break the deal, looking for someone with just a little more faith and spiritual fidelity? No, God does just what he promises to do. He saves Abraham from his stupid decision and then he blesses him.

He does this throughout Abraham's life (see the second time he does this or the incident with Ishmael). Now, you might say, "Hey, but look at the great faith and trust of Abraham when asked to sacrifice his son. This is his great choice and is why he is commended." To which I would simply reply- yes!!! He is made great- because of God's choice to bless him and love him and save him from his own faults.

SO, for you new covenanters, heirs of an even richer promise than Abraham himself, what does this mean? What does it mean that God's love is inescapable? That he does not bless everyone, but for those he chooses, there is no other option than blessing? That his love is relentless? Furious? Not conditional on you at all? That he has chosen to bless you and there's nothing that you can do wiliingly or unwillingly, no stupid decision, no moment of weakness, no distrust, no lack of faith that you can exude to escape from it?

What joy for those whose hope is in the name of the Lord.

I LOVE this quote.

2010-12-30T09:31:00.001-08:00

I have taken my good deeds and bad deeds and thrown them together in a heap, and fled from them both to Christ, and in him I have peace."
David Dickson

Boredom

2010-12-23T09:37:00.000-08:00

Here's a thought. Is the word boredom going to even make sense in 20 years? Does it make sense now?

Life

2010-12-10T23:28:00.000-08:00

Life: what a crazy thing we do.

E-books

2010-12-07T11:35:00.001-08:00

I have many thoughts on e-books. Here's just a few:

It would be nice to be able to search through my books to find passages
I think the real book is one of the best technologies that we've come up with: Infinite battery life, super-durable, ergonomically comfortable, smells good, able to make comments in the margins freely and in the inside cover of the book.
Sometimes it just feels like with technology we pour tons of money and effort into creating something that's not as good as what we already have that requires no electricity. Is this the case?
Do we lose something with the e-book?
Would I destroy a kindle as I am generally tough on my books (and electronics)?
It would be sweet to have my library on me at all times.
It would be sweet to get a bunch of free e-books.

A link and a vid:
The differences between the book and the e-book.

Settlers

2010-12-07T11:15:00.001-08:00

If you haven't played Settlers, you haven't lived. I still remember the first time hearing about the Settlers of Catan freshman year at the U. As my freshman CA, Josh Mathews, gushed about it (along with the wider U of M Campus Crusade community), I was less than intrigued. I really don't generally get too into board games. Most just really don't engage me.

Then, I played it. And I played it again... ad nauseum. Then I got it for Christmas... and it swept the town of Pelican Rapids for a summer. It really is that fun.

Here's an article from the Washington Post on how Catan is the game of our time.

Mindfulness

2010-12-02T00:30:00.000-08:00

Mindfulness. I've been thinking about it alot. I just finished Full Catastrophe Living by Jon Kabat-Zinn. I've thought about it much over the past few years and despite its loose association with Buddhism, I think it's a really good thing. It's all about being in the moment. This is good for me, a guy who is almost never mentally where he is physically.

I'm not (yet) going to make a case biblically or really discuss it much in this little post, I just wanted to fulfill my blog's title and keep up to date on "what's on my mind"!

If you're interested, here's a few articles. Now I know that there's the knee-jerk conservative reaction at the word 'zen', but here I think are a few more thoughtful ones:
Christian Psychologist's blog (1)
Christian Psychologist's blog (2)
Society for Christian Psychology

Deep acceptance

2010-11-30T17:23:00.001-08:00

“In the cross God demonstrates the deepest law of acceptance. For to be convinced that I have been accepted, I must be convinced that I have been accepted at my worst. This is the greatest gift an intimate relationship can offer — to know that we have been accepted and forgiven in the full knowledge of who we are, an even greater knowledge than we have about ourselves. This is what the cross offers.”
— Rebecca Pippert

A new look?

2010-11-29T21:40:00.000-08:00

Alright. I'm officially looking at updating the look of my blog. If you are one of those deranged souls that actually reads it... then heads up :)

On the Road, Sal and me

2010-11-19T08:40:00.000-08:00

"I shambled after as usual as I've been doing all my life after people who interest me, because the only people that interest me are the mad ones, the ones who are mad to live, mad to talk, desirous of everything at the same time, the ones that never yawn or say a commonplace thing... but burn burn burn like roman candles across the night." - On the Road, Jack Kerouac

As the city sleeps

2010-11-18T23:28:00.000-08:00

I walk as the city drifts off to sleep.
As the smoke rises gently and quietly from her buildings,
as the cars past the river glide slowly at a distance past hearing,
and the city says that she is all mine,
and that her quiet view is just for me.
And my mind doesn't always catch it,
but my soul does
and is grateful for the stillness she lends this noisy heart.

Relevant Self-Defense

2010-11-17T07:53:00.000-08:00

Antony Flew quote

2010-11-15T12:01:00.001-08:00

This quote is from a gentleman named Antony Flew. Flew, a philosopher, was the face of atheism for a majority of the 20th century. Of course, in the 2000's after much wrestling, he came out as a theist. He's got a book on it. I think my roommate has it.

"I now believe that the universe was brought into existence by an infinite Intelligence. I believe that this universe’s intricate laws manifest what scientists have called the Mind of God. I believe that life and reproduction originate in a divine Source. Why do I believe this, given that I expounded and defended atheism for more than a half century? The short answer is this: this is the world picture, as I see it, that has emerged from modern science."

Antony Flew

Amusing Ourselves to Death

2010-11-11T12:33:00.001-08:00

Well, if you've talked with me about books in the last few years, you've undoubtedly heard me refer to a book called Amusing Ourselves to Death by Neil Postman. It's one of my favorites and it opened my eyes to alot of things and really helped me view my world and times in a different light. In short, read this book. It will be a paradigm-shifter for you.

Much to my surprise and delight, I just found this link to some men I deeply respect sitting around and shooting the breeze about a book that deeply impacted me. What it is is Albert Mohler, Mark Coppenger, Timothy Paul Jones, Bruce Keisling, and Owen Strachan talking about the book 25 years later.

I'll leave you with a bit from the foreword of this devastatingly prophetic book. Here, Postman is looking at two different "prophecies" told through fiction: Aldous Huxley in Brave New World (1932) and George Orwell in Nineteen Eighty-Four (1949):

Contrary to common belief even among the educated, Huxley and Orwell did not prophesy the same thing.

Orwell warns that we will be overcome by an externally imposed oppression. But in Huxley’s vision, no Big Brother is required to deprive people of their autonomy, maturity and history. As he saw it, people will come to love their oppression, to adore the technologies that undo their capacities to think.

What Orwell feared were those who would ban books. What Huxley feared was that there would be no reason to ban a book, for there would be no one who wanted to read one.

Orwell feared those who would deprive us of information. Huxley feared those who would give us so much that we would be reduced to passivity and egoism.

Orwell feared that the truth would be concealed from us. Huxley feared the truth would be drowned in a sea of irrelevance.

Orwell feared we would become a captive culture. Huxley feared we would become a trivial culture, preoccupied with some equivalent of the feelies, the orgy porgy, and the centrifugal bumblepuppy. As Huxley remarked in Brave New World Revisited, the civil libertarians and rationalists who are ever on the alert to oppose tyranny “failed to take into account man’s almost infinite appetite for distractions.” In 1984, Huxley added, people are controlled by inflicting pain. In Brave New World, they are controlled by inflicting pleasure.

In short, Orwell feared that what we hate will ruin us. Huxley feared that what we love will ruin us.

This book is about the possibility that Huxley, not Orwell, was right.

J the B

2010-11-05T01:32:00.000-07:00

Who would you compare John the Baptist to?
I think he'd be a cross between Francis Chan and Billy Graham.

J the B and Brett's version of Mt 3:5-12

2010-11-05T01:10:00.000-07:00

Then Jerusalem and all Judea and all the region about the Jordan were going out to him, and they were baptized by him in the river Jordan, confessing their sins.

But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to his baptism, he said to them, “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Bear fruit in keeping with repentance. And do not presume to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father,’ for I tell you, God is able from these stones to raise up children for Abraham. Even now the axe is laid to the root of the trees. Every tree therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.

“I baptize you with water for repentance, but he who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. His winnowing fork is in his hand, and he will clear his threshing floor and gather his wheat into the barn, but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire.”
(Matthew 3:5-12 ESV)

I think Mat. 3:5-12 if written today would be something like this:

Some fire and brimstone preacher comes to Pelican Rapids and he gets to preach at a church in town, maybe E-Free. Now he's a famous guy- he's been on CNN a few times and so all sorts of people show up- from the town drunk to pastors from Fergus and Detroit Lakes. As they sit down, the pastors sit with the good congregants, there's Campus Crusade college students, the sweet old man who frequents the Dairy Queen, and all the upstanding moral people in the community. Heck, even the mayor's there.

On the other side of the aisle are the people who haven't been to church in years, decades for some. Many of them are alcoholics. There's the guy who cheated on his wife, the guy who was in jail for stealing a car, and the guy who embezzled money from the company, and the town drunk.

As the preacher gets going, it heats up quick as he starts talking about the wrath of God and the need to repent. As he tells story after passionate story, many of the 'good' people on the right start smirking, "maybe now old Jim the adulterer will finally become a Christian and get his life straightened out." Just as the good guys are feeling like the sermon for the others is coming to an end, he stops and turns.

Then, he looks at all the 'good', responsible family people: "You scumballs! You smirk inside because you think you're better. You think this sermon is for someone else. You are the worst people in this room. Hear it again, you. are. the. worst. You have offended a holy God and there is wrath coming. Repent- and turn to Jesus."

You see for the religious people who smirked, they were farthest from the kingdom of God. For the adulterer, it's no mystery that he is a great sinner, that who he is actually offends God. He can feel the weight of his guilt and if he is to have any chance of forgiveness it is all based on what Jesus has done for him. Jesus' death in his place makes his standing with God perfect, apart from anything good the man has done.

For the pastors, the family men and women, the sweet old men, the ones who've gone to church their whole lives, who followed the rules, who played it right: how hard is it to see that they are in the same position as the drunkard. How hard is it to see that by trying to follow the rules and do the right thing and be the best they could be they were trying to save themselves, thinking they could be good enough because of their moral uprightness or the fact that they read their bible or go to church. And thinking you can somehow attain to the standard of God apart from a pure, 100% undeserved gift is the worst stink to the God of the Bible.

So when the preacher tells these 'good' guys to repent he is actually telling them to repent of their religion- of thinking that they're good people and that they're fine saying that Christ is their Savior without actually trusting him to save them from their sin. The little smirk during the sermon, whether inward or outward, pointed without a doubt to the sad state of their souls.

So be careful when you read this parable. Once you start to say, "Oh those dumb Pharisees", you, my friend have become a Pharisee. Don't be one of those. Recognize where you are one, and trust Jesus instead.

Confronting the New Atheists

2010-11-03T23:32:00.000-07:00

A link to an interesting dialogue between PZ Meyers (atheist biologist) and Michael Egnor (writer for Discovery Institute). It starts with some questions to the New Atheists from Egnor. Then PZ responds with some snarky answers on his blog. After that, Michael looks at some of PZ's answers. I found the thing pretty cool.

Also, why the heck not: Did Physics Kill God?. This article looks at the relation between God and Physics, with a particular emphasis on Stephen Hawking's new claims.

You are Made in the Image of God

2010-11-02T20:56:00.000-07:00

“God’s children are pleasing and lovable to Him, since He sees in them the marks and features of His own countenance.”

- John Calvin, Institutes, 3.17.5

John Cleese on the genes that guide us :)

2010-11-01T18:23:00.001-07:00

Francis loves me

2010-10-28T22:50:00.000-07:00

Sometimes I think that Francis Chan loves me more than just about anyone I know. He loves me enough to wake me up to reality. (Reading "Forgotten God")

Big Government

2010-10-28T17:15:00.001-07:00

For the record, I think big government is really really stupid.

God's love, our suffering

2010-10-26T20:27:00.001-07:00

Saw this quote from an acquintance on facebook. I liked it alot.

"Perhaps we are the objects of suffering we do not understand because we are the objects of a love we do not understand."

God and Science (2)

2010-10-25T23:29:00.001-07:00

What lay ahead for Darwin's theory? While naturalists cheered on the Miller experiments of the 1952, another puzzle was being unearthed that would open questions far bigger than any that Miller's experiments could purport to solve. Scientists were just beginning to realize the significance of a nucleic acid they would coin "DNA".

DNA, we found, was the stuff of life. It contained genetic information, without which, reproduction, and life, could not be possible. "What's the big deal?" you ask. The problem lies in how information arrives in a strictly naturalistic paradigm. Without intelligence, we are relegated to chance and law. There's much to unpack here, but just think about the problem in principle. If merely chance is at work, we would expect the building blocks of DNA to be arranged randomly- no repetition, no rhyme or reason, simply randomness.

KHFALKSDHFKSDNFKJNSDFSDFASKDBA SJKDFHFSLKH D SDAFJH SDFH AH

Well, perhaps there are laws that helped align the information? Well, if there are laws at work what we would expect would be repeating segments of information. What the biological determinism would render would be simply repeated instances.

BBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBB

Or, coupled with chance:

AHBAHBAHBAHBAHBAHBAHBAHBAHB

However, information is of a different strain entirely. What we find in DNA is more like this:

HELLO, MY NAME IS FRED.

Actually, it's more like the Encyclopedia Brittanica. Think on this question- where else do we find information? What is required for information? When you see a note that says, "Hey, Honey. I'll be in late tonight", what comes to mind? How the wind might have blown the ink on to the paper? Not quite. We know that someone with intelligence has engineered our note. Without even digging into biology, we know that it's impossible even in principle for information to arise without intelligence.

Had we stopped in 1859, we'd still be entrenched with a clean and simple Darwinian gradualism. And yet this is where scientific progress has led us...

God and Science

2010-10-25T21:19:00.000-07:00

I don't believe in God, I believe in science.

Thus goes the worn line suggesting that somehow the study of the material world is negating the case for an immaterial being. Of course, the irony in the last statement is thick. I think, though, that the irony approaches absurdity as we look at just a brief overview of a few different branches.

-Biology: In 1859, a pinnacle was reached as the naturalistic worldview was completed. Naturalists now had a creation story that could rival any account from Genesis. In the words of Richard Dawkins, it was Darwin who "made it possible to be an intellectually fulfilled atheist."

However, since then, this creation story has taken some unexpected turns... leaving many to render it improbable, some, impossible.

Laments from an ENTP/INTP

2010-10-19T23:17:00.000-07:00

*Note: If you don't know anything about Myers-Briggs, this may be a tough post for you.

I'm frustrated with the fact that I'm a blend of ENTP and INTP. If you want to know more about me than most, read this summary of ENTPs or this summary of INTPs.

I just feel like follow-through is really hard. For every hundred ideas I have, I maybe follow-through on three. It just seems like the times I actually do decide to do something, I am fighting uphill while thinking and analyzing are downhill ventures that I will default to and gravitate towards if left unchecked.

I sometimes get locked up in my head, completely oblivious to the present moment and all that is actually going on around me. This is when I get into "I" mode. Honestly, how I am doing depends very little on what's going on in my world externally. It's very hard for me to get out of my head and just be where I'm at.

This is why some of my best, happiest moments are socially related or in a new or beautiful place. These situations jar me out of my head and into the moment.

This is why I'm so impressed by J's I think. I see their follow-through and I admire and want that ability to line things up and get stuff done!

I've heard people tell me that they wish they had the penetrating analytical mind or depth of thought that I have. They don't realize that they have blessings too- and I have my own curses...

Top Three from Desiring God

2010-10-19T22:11:00.000-07:00

Here are what I felt were the top three talks of the Desiring God Conference. The first was a "main speaker" from Saturday night. The last two were actually from the afternoon session on Friday. For everyone: I'd recommend the first two. For anyone interested in social justice issues of any sort, I'd strongly recommend the third.

Francis: A convicting, spirit-filled kick in the pants about loving others and the life of the mind. Why are you reading? Why are you learning? Is it for the love of God and others? Is it to puff yourself up? Is it to bludgeon those less learned than you? Like Francis seems to do so easily, in this talk he makes me reconsider some of the fundamental aspects of my life.

Tullian: This was an afternoon talk about the gospel. He addresses gospel-centeredness and then says we need to go further to see how the gospel addresses motivation, identity, and idolatry. Towards the beginning it's very pastoral and objective but by the end... he is preaching the gospel.

Kevin: This was an afternoon session that addressed something that I've been thinking about: namely, what is the mission of the church? He talks about the priority of the church especially with regards to social justice and other issues. If you're interested or involved in social justice issues, this is very pertinent. As I've been getting some "emergent" vibes from the program I'm involved with (Urban Homeworks), this caught me at just the right time.

God and Evolution... the book!

2010-10-14T20:05:00.000-07:00

Macarthur's got steelies

2010-10-09T02:18:00.000-07:00

I love hearing straight-up truth straight-up said. Skip to one minute in.

RTS on Itunes U

2010-10-09T01:55:00.000-07:00

This is officially off the chains... Reformed Theological Seminary classes that would cost thousands... free for download in one easy location.

Also helpful:
If you see a class you want to take, click "subscribe". Then in itunes, click on "Itunes U" on the left and double click the class. Notice a "Get all" button at the top. That's right- One click and you've got a class ready to throw on your ipod. Crazy.

Sick as a dog

2010-10-04T10:07:00.000-07:00

Man, my pride is a joy-stealing sickness that leads to a thousand other ailments.

Soon

2010-10-02T20:39:00.000-07:00

“Two little lines I heard one day,Traveling along life’s busy way;
Bringing conviction to my heart, And from my mind would not depart;
Only one life, ’twill soon be past, Only what’s done for Christ will last.

Only one life, yes only one, Soon will its fleeting hours be done;
Then, in ‘that day’ my Lord to meet, And stand before His Judgement seat;
Only one life,’twill soon be past, Only what’s done for Christ will last.

Only one life, the still small voice, Gently pleads for a better choice
Bidding me selfish aims to leave, And to God’s holy will to cleave;
Only one life, ’twill soon be past, Only what’s done for Christ will last.

Only one life, a few brief years, Each with its burdens, hopes, and fears;
Each with its clays I must fulfill, living for self or in His will;
Only one life, ’twill soon be past, Only what’s done for Christ will last.

When this bright world would tempt me sore, When Satan would a victory score;
When self would seek to have its way, Then help me Lord with joy to say;
Only one life, ’twill soon be past, Only what’s done for Christ will last.

Give me Father, a purpose deep, In joy or sorrow Thy word to keep;
Faithful and true what e’er the strife, Pleasing Thee in my daily life;
Only one life, ’twill soon be past, Only what’s done for Christ will last.

Oh let my love with fervor burn, And from the world now let me turn;
Living for Thee, and Thee alone, Bringing Thee pleasure on Thy throne;
Only one life, “twill soon be past, Only what’s done for Christ will last.

Only one life, yes only one, Now let me say,”Thy will be done”;
And when at last I’ll hear the call, I know I’ll say “twas worth it all”;
Only one life,’twill soon be past, Only what’s done for Christ will last. ”

C.T Studd

The Blind man and me

2010-09-16T23:32:00.000-07:00

Not only was Christ our righteousness, but he had to earn it. The reason Jesus couldn't die as a baby for our sins was that while he hadn't sinned, he didn't yet have meritorious works- the kind of things that we are commanded to do. The reason we get righteousness credited to us is because he actually accumulated righteousness on the earth.

What does this mean but that as he withstands temptation (Mt 4), he withstands it for you and me. He does what Adam, you and I fail to do and he does it so that it will later be credited to us as righteousness.

As he loves and has compassion on the men and women around him, he does what we are commanded (not suggested) to do. He does it perfectly so that at the cross he can give his righteousness to us as a free gift.

You'd think that maybe Jesus' mind isn't just on the blind or lame person in front of him. I wonder if at some point his mind wanders to believers who would come after him, already longing for us to be in relationship with him, to be able to join him in heaven. At the same time, he considers that we're feeble sinners. So he needs to love, heal, and care for the men and women around him so that his love and good deeds can be credited to us. We can have peace with God without a righteousness of our own.

Hm. As he loves the blind man he is loving us. In his mind is not only the man in front of him but the sinner in Minnesota two thousand years later that he loves and wants to be in relationship with.

For God alone my soul waits in silence

2010-09-11T21:40:00.000-07:00

The last few weeks have been spiritually difficult and dry. In many ways, I've felt isolated. I've been working the weekend night shift which means that my sleep schedule is wacky. This throws my moods into a bit of a tumult as I do much better with a consistent sleep schedule. Also, I'm just not sure if I've felt really loved a ton. I mean, yeah there's been some people around me and maybe even people who have told me they loved me, but nothing that can match the longings of this heart and soul.

While I've had the chance to meet up with people, talk about life, love and the Lord, I just don't know if I've felt any consistent "We're-here-for-each-other-ness" with anyone. I feel like I have a wide span of isolated friendships and maybe not a solid support network.

I want to feel like I'm on mission with people, working for something bigger than and outside of ourselves. I want to feel like I'm loved for who I am and that I bring something of value.

Then, in my mood, in my loneliness, in my spiritual dryness, I take and read.

For God alone my soul waits in silence (Psalm 62:1)

God alone
It's really easy to look for external things to quench the thirst of my soul. Maybe if I keep busy, sleep more, hang out with friends, have more fun, read more bible, share my faith more, go out for some beers, entertain myself, get a great girlfriend
THEN things will be good.

The truth is that all these things are good and might even be the means by which God fills our souls, but at the bottom of everything, it is "only God" and not our actions or decisions that save our soul from shriveling. We are all humble beggars at the feet of the Lord. We have nothing to leverage and we cannot make God do a thing. This is no less than dependence and depending on how deeply we've swallowed the illusion of human autonomy, this can be a hard thing to take.

Sometimes it takes having good things and still feeling empty to come to the horrible fact that we cannot revive our own soul.

"There is an evil that I have seen under the sun, and it lies heavy on mankind: a man to whom God gives wealth, possessions, and honor, so that he lacks nothing of all that he desires, yet God does not give him power to enjoy them..."
(Ecclesiastes 6:1-3 ESV)

No friendship, girl, book, food, experience, words, bible verse, sermon, entertainment, conversation, financial situation, or job will make me feel whole. These can at most be means. At the bottom of everything, it truly is God alone and this is the thrust of the psalm.

my soul
As a proviso, some people don't feel spiritual hunger. In the physical world, there also people who don't need to be fed. Why? Because they're dead. Ephesians talks about men and women who haven't experienced God as being spiritually dead. Now I think the soul with a dead spirit has cries of its own, but for now we're dealing with someone who is spiritually alive.

The soul is the deepest part of who we are. If all outward appearances are good, yet the soul is starved, you're probably feeling like our man from Ecclesiastes. How do we forget this part of us? The remarkable reality is that the converse is also true. If all else is crashing around us, yet our soul is experiencing life, love, wonder, and all the other things that go along with God being near, we will be happy- happier than the man who has "it all" but who has lost track of his maker and purpose.

waits
What if I pray and I don't feel all better? What if I read my bible and nothing magic happens?

Wait.

It is not "He has not come", but "He has not come yet". Wait, my brothers and sisters- and if he does not come, keep waiting, keep listening.

in silence
So I'm a bit of a mystic maybe but here's what I like to do. I like to pour out my heart to God- in writing. Thinking is circular, speaking is a little better, but writing is linear and allows you to be clear in your thoughts, feelings and prayers before God. It helps you get it all out there. Write with your heart, not with your head. And then when every crevice of my heart has been poured out, every frustration voiced, every thought and counter thought explored... I listen.

I just sit there, let thoughts come in and go out and bring my focus back to listening to the Father. What is the Lord telling to my head? To my heart? This isn't a 4 minute exercise. Give yourself time- however long it takes to literally let "your soul wait for God in silence."

Man, I haven't done this in awhile.

Come, Lord. I need to know you- to experience you, to taste and see that you're good. My faith is faith- it's not a feeling, but that is why I wait. Let me drink deeply of your grace and love.

O God, you are my God; earnestly I seek you;
my soul thirsts for you;
my flesh faints for you,
as in a dry and weary land where there is no water.
So I have looked upon you in the sanctuary,
beholding your power and glory.
Because your steadfast love is better than life,
my lips will praise you.
So I will bless you as long as I live;
in your name I will lift up my hands.

My soul will be satisfied as with fat and rich food,
and my mouth will praise you with joyful lips,
when I remember you upon my bed,
and meditate on you in the watches of the night;
for you have been my help,
and in the shadow of your wings I will sing for joy.
My soul clings to you;
your right hand upholds me.
(Psalm 63:1-8 ESV)

AN Wilson - A life lived on both sides

2010-08-28T08:09:00.000-07:00

Just came across this guy's story. Pretty cool.
AN Wilson's Faith Journey

Angel from Montgomery

2010-08-28T01:38:00.000-07:00

This song seems to sink down to the bones It's like the song was always there- it just took a guy named John Prine to unearth it for the rest of us.

The thorniness of talking about creation

2010-08-28T00:45:00.000-07:00

Evolution.

With one word, you can inspire more feelings than nearly any word other than God. For some noteable atheist biologists it might inspire worship. For Christians, it may spawn feelings anywhere from anger, to passive indifference to fear.

For a beginner to the study of origins, it's felt a lot like walking into a bar in the middle of a massive fight. In some sense, there's two teams whacking each other over the heads with chairs, but as you look closer, there's some people whose team is indistinguishable. When you look even closer there's animosity within the teams themselves. It's clear that the issues run deep. Even this past week, two very influential Christian leaders got very heated about this. There are many personal and philosophical issues at stake.

There are SO many issues related with this topic. Here are a few that I've run into:

1. Faith and Reason
2. Materialism and Supernaturalism
3. Living with mystery - I've found this is really hard for me- it's SUPER SUPER hard for me to take things on faith. Prov. 3:5 does not come easy for Brett Ripley
3. Biblical interpretation - most notably, items specific to genre and Hebrew.
4. The nature of science - Is ID science?
5. The age of the earth - billions or thousands
6. The reality that informed Christians hold sometimes radically different views on nearly every issue involved.

It's enough to fill a mind and then some. I'm trying to process all the new info well and remain cool and level-headed. Blogging it all out helps :)

On Friends and Fellows

2010-08-27T23:19:00.000-07:00

Lately I've been discovering the difference between hanging out and fellowship... and what a difference it is. I just wonder how much time we Christians spend together just goofing off and talking about the same stuff everyone else is talking about.

Doesn't the Way, the path marked out for us, the Cultural Mandate, the Great commission, our sin, our Savior, our soul, our personal relationship with our father, our corporate relationship with him, our common brother/sisterhood in Christ garner enough to talk about?

Can't you just imagine where our souls would be if we were "fellowshiping" regularly? What if we were bringing the gospel, bringing Scripture to bear on our problems, on our jobs, on our families and relationships? Think of the healing, the deep fellowship with God, the deep understanding of his love, and the confidence of faith we would have. It would really make us new people.

I recognize that a small part of fellowship is just goofing off with one another, but it appears that we have taken that small chunk and let it become the whole. What percentage of my time with fellow Christians is in prayer, in studying the Word, in bringing the Christian worldview to bear on the issues of our day, in applying Scripture to our lives? It's gross!

In my life, it seems like I need to demarcate when is "Christian" time and when is "live lukewarm" time. Many are perfectly ok with this sacred/secular split in their lives. I can't do that.

God, would you set me free to be a whole person- a single personality? Help me to follow you in this area. The gospel gives me confidence in cutting against the grain- I'm already accepted in the eyes of you, my Father, so if people see me as strange so be it. Instead of my own feeble love, help me point people to Christ- to the cross. Instead of my own advice which seems so damn smart to me sometimes, help me point people to Scripture. Forgive me for my failing to obey in this way. Lord, help me to be receptive to your Spirit as I try to engage in real fellowship.

Nancy Pearcey is on fire

2010-08-24T23:41:00.000-07:00

"It is a common assumption that, in order to survive, churches must accommodate to the age. But in fact, the opposite is true: In every historical period, the religious groups that grow most rapidly are those that set believers at odds with the surrounding culture. As a general principle, the higher a group's tension with mainstream society, the higher its growth rate."
Nancey Pearcey, Total Truth, p. 261.

Nevertheless, I am continually with you

2010-08-20T22:30:00.000-07:00

Nevertheless, I am continually with you;
(from Psalm 73:23)

Nevertheless:
This verse begins where it should: with the gospel. Read what precedes verse 23. The writer was being terrible, a brute towards God. Ignorant and foolish. What would we expect on this man from a righteous and just God? God's wrath? At the very least, God just leaving him to your own devices? No. In spite of all that, (Nevertheless), God remains with him and 100% for him. Why? Because Christ absorbed God's wrath for us, we get God.

I:
Me!. Not you, the world, my city, my church, my family, my friends, "Christians", or Billy Graham. God is here right now, 1am Saturday morning. What's more is that he was there this week as I struggled through a dark, difficult, lonely week. Check your calendar- whatever events have have happened or will happen, whether you like it or not, God exercises his omnipresence and is now with you. As you read this, he reads with you- and smiles.

am:
Isn't the crux of it? Is God really with me? Isn't he off doing more important things? But it doesn't feel like he's here. I can't see him. But things are going wrong. I keep sinning- he's probably left me by now. But my world is caving in... No matter what it looks like. The writer here affirms the truth that changes any situation: "I am with you, God."

continually:
What happens when something goes wrong between a husband and a wife? "I'm going to leave now"? "I'm going to go somewhere for a few weeks"? Is your relationship on the line if you screw up? No. How you'll work things out may be unclear, but the endpoint is crystal. If you're my wife this will be understood: "I'm not going anywhere. I will always be with you no matter what. We will figure this out." What a truth: that our maker has walked the aisle with you and me. I am his and he is mine. What? And get this, we are the ones who deserve to be left. Nevertheless, he says, "I am continually with you and I'll be with you until forever."

with:
What does it mean for God to be with us? Does it just mean relating in some sort of God-creature sense? Some sort of, "I'll be observing you from heaven?". When God says he is with us, he means something far deeper than just standing beside us. He is with us in a way that 2 grieving parents who have lost a child are with each other- with a tenderness that only comes through deep common understanding.

You're lonely? His whole life was spent with people who were nothing like him. He was betrayed by someone close to him. He knows in the depth of his soul the pang of loneliness. Maybe you're doing great- you've been hanging out with your friends. He did that too! He went on a 3-year roadtrip with a bunch of buddies, enjoying all the joy and laughter that human relationships afford. Wherever you are, he's been there himself. When the writer says he is with God, realize all that this means.

you:
The best part. It's not just that you're not alone- that you're with "someone". No one can say, "Oh, I know God's with me but...". You are forgetting who you are dealing with. How mind-bending to say "I am with God"? Who are we talking about? Turn to Isaiah 6 if you're not boggled by just the thought of God being with you. When Isaiah, the most righteous, upright man in Israel takes one peek at this God, he's done. "Woe is me! For I am lost; for I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts!” His robe fills the temple. This holy, awesome being that strikes fear into all who catch distant glimpse of him... is with you. Crazy.

The Brothers Karamazov

2010-07-17T20:11:00.000-07:00

How deeply resonating/convicting. I read this book last summer but it took a post by Justin Taylor to remind me of this passage.

“I love mankind,” he said, “but I am amazed at myself: the more I love mankind in general, the less I love people in particular, that is, individually, as separate persons. In my dreams,” he said, “I often went so far to think passionately of serving mankind, and, it may be, would really have gone to the cross for people if it were somehow suddenly necessary, and yet I am incapable of living in the same room with anyone even for two days, this I know from experience. As soon as someone is there, close to me, his personality oppresses my self-esteem and restricts my freedom. In twenty-four hours I can begin to hate even the best of men: one because he takes too long eating his dinner, another because he has a cold and keeps blowing his nose. I become the enemy of people the moment they touch me,” he said. “On the other hand, it has always happened that the more I hate people individually, the more ardent becomes my love for humanity as a whole.”

—Fyodor Dostoevsky, The Brothers Karamazov

Politics

2010-07-07T13:37:00.000-07:00

This sums up much of my thinking on politics.

Just for a moment

2010-06-15T20:11:00.000-07:00

The feelings, thoughts, and memories, that storm my mind tonight
All shrink into the pink and blue of fading, gentle light

Quick Question

2010-06-13T20:03:00.000-07:00

Ok, think about all the letters that Paul writes. Within all those letters, think about all the exhortations he gives- love one another, humble yourselves, give generously, etc. My question is this- and think right away, don't just answer.

Why does it seem relatively rare for Paul to exhort members of his churches to evangelize?

How long?

2010-06-03T21:52:00.000-07:00

How long can a country reap the fruit of generations gone before it?

As I see the "progressive" state of American politics, this is the question that I keep coming back to.

A lonely, Joyful song that speaks to my soul

2010-05-31T20:18:00.000-07:00

Herman Udix walks through America

2010-05-21T11:56:00.000-07:00

Here's an issue that I've only recently identified, but which I think many problems have stemmed from. This, I think, gets to the root of alot of it. The problem is the difficulty of hermeneutics in America.

Look at it this way: The New Testament is a series of inspired letters written by people who were basically mocked, oppressed, thrown in jail, and persecuted for their faith. Paul writes some of the best books from a prison cell! These letters are written to churches in which the members are ostracized from their community and life would generally be a great deal easier if they simply renounced their faith. The members of these churches are a minority group.

Exegesis, in the strict sense, asks, "What did the text mean for the original audience?" Hermeneutics, in the strict sense, asks, "What does it mean for us?" It's where lessons and principles are brought from the specific ancient situation to bear on our current situation. Do you see the difficulty?

The reality is that our situation is radically different, in some ways the opposite of the churches Paul wrote to. In many contexts in the US, people are ostracized if they are NOT a professing Christian. I'm not sure how much I've ever suffered for my faith outside of making myself look awkward or "sounding" close-minded. It's actually quite easy to, at the least, bear the name of Christ in America.

So, what do letters to poor, suffering, minority (in worldview) churches have to do with American Christendom? I think increasingly more and more, we will be able to identify with sex-crazed Corinth, the persecuted church that Peter wrote to, and the common theme that runs through many of them of holding fast to a faith that makes you a true minority. I really think that my generation is seeing a shift to a more secular, "spiritual" America. More and more the letters will ring true as a call to hold fast under persecution, stay pure as everyone around gives themselves away, and to remain in the faith when many others abandon it for idols of all kinds.

Speechwriters LLC - CHBB

2010-05-18T17:04:00.000-07:00

This song has been consuming my brain. It's crazy, crazy, good. Just hit play.

Rich Dad, Poor Dad

2010-05-15T08:52:00.000-07:00

It's been awhile, but reviews are back!

Rich Dad, Poor Dad, simply put is a book about how to get out of the rat race of working, scrimping, and saving by making money through assets instead of a 9-5 job.

The secret to why the book is so popular is that it is laid out in stories and lessons, not just simply rules or ideas. As the reader walks with Kiyosaki through the experiences and ideas that formed him, he is motivated just as much as he is educated. The title comes from the two dad's he had: one, a friend's dad- a high-school dropout turned millionaire. The other is his own father, well-educated, hard-working teacher. Throughout the book he uses this distinction.

He elaborates on what the rich do with their time and money and what the poor do with the same time and money. In short, the rich invest in assets. These turn into income, which they use to buy more assets, which turns into more income, and, well... the rich get richer.

He outlines the basic overarching plan for wealth and then elaborates in detail on how this is achieved. A large part of this is growing your financial IQ along with your management and specialized skills.

Financial IQ is comprised of four areas of knowledge:

Accounting - keeping the books straight becomes extremely valuable as you grow.
Investing - The strategies and formulas. The "science" of making money.
Understanding Markets - Both technical (emotional factor) and fundamental (value factor)
The Law - why corporations are phenomenal, basically there are tons of ways to get around forking half of every dollar you make over to the government

Beyond that the skills that pay off in the long run are:

Management
- Cash flow
- Systems
- People
Specialized Skills
- Sales
- Understanding Marketing

Grow yourself in these things says Kiyosaki, and you'll be well on your way. Much of what he says is very counter-intuitive: things like: don't specialize, a house is not an asset, and much more.

As a Christian I read this book carefully. I think it's good knowledge for anyone. I maybe would not have said this a few months ago, but I think you can make money to the glory of God. However, money is one of the most dangerous things I think we can handle. The New Testament is very clear about this. What will you do with that money? Who/what are you trusting in and living for? What are your motives for having money? These are valid questions to ask oneself while embarking down the road of investments. Rich Dad, Poor Dad might be a checkpoint on the road or maybe even a significant starting point.

How dare you?

2010-05-15T06:51:00.000-07:00

“How dare you approach the mercy-seat of God on the basis of what kind of day you had, as if that were the basis for our entrance into the presence of the sovereign and holy God? No wonder we cannot beat the Devil. This is works theology. It has nothing to do with grace and the exclusive sufficiency of Christ. Nothing.

Do you not understand that we overcome the accuser on the ground of the blood of Christ? Nothing more, nothing less. That is how we win. It is the only way we win. This is the only ground of our acceptance before God. If you drift far from the cross, you are done. You are defeated.

We overcome the accuser of our brothers and sisters, we overcome our consciences, we overcome our bad tempers, we overcome our defeats, we overcome our lusts, we overcome our fears, we overcome our pettiness on the basis of the blood of the Lamb.”

—D.A. Carson

Francis Chan is a beep

2010-05-01T07:53:00.000-07:00

Picture a Northwest Airlines flight flying above the clouds from New York to LA. You're the pilot.

Things are going well, the skies are clear, so you put it on autopilot. The rub comes when, after awhile, you start to get the sneaking suspicion that the plane is losing altitude. You're working on your dinner though, so you don't think much of it. When you look out the window, things look mostly good. But wait, are those clouds below you closer than they should be? Na, they couldn't be. All of a sudden, a loud alarm goes off. "BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP". As you look at the altimeter- the one that measures altitude- it tells you what, deep down, you knew all along but chose to forget. You're flying thousands of feet too low and you're in danger of hitting an ice storm.

I think this is the plight many Christians in America find themselves in. Your working life takes off and your job becomes your comfort, your friends and family are a source of happiness, our stuff becomes a source of fun, and (a big one for me) your books start to become your source of knowledge. Before you know it, your neglected spiritual life has taken a subtle but sure nosedive. God has become a concept and Christianity simply a language you speak when you're in a certain situation.

Then, this guy, Francis Chan, comes along and just spits out truths. The thing is it's not really him. He's just the messenger. He's talking about narrow paths and camels going through needles, about people being spit out. And that's when you see the low state of your spiritual condition. It hits you in the gut because it's true. Francis is simply the beep, saying, "Hey- LOOK AT YOUR LIFE!" As we glance at the "fruits/works" altimeter, we know something's not right- the plane is in a dangerous place.

You see, the plane is our heart- when it's working as it should be, works and fruit happen. The altimeter reads just fine. Notice that the altimeter, the fruits and works, though, are completely dependent on where the plane is at. When the plane starts to lose itself, the altimeter starts reading lower and lower- as our heart strays, the works and fruit dry up. If you're lucky, you've got the Chan alarm system there to let you know that the altimeter's reading low.

What happens next is the most interesting thing. This is just my experience, but I think any listeners of Francis can relate.

What would you think if, upon hearing the alarm, your copilot busts in the door and, rightly so, is very concerned. "We must take action!" he says and you agree. Then something curious happens. Instead of hopping in the seat to right the plane, he takes the cap off the altimeter and uses a screwdriver to turn the dial back to a "normal" setting. Though the plane heads ever lower into the storm, he sits back and breathes a sigh of relief.

This is what we do when we see that we aren't bearing fruit or doing good works and we respond by trying to bear fruit and do good works. Futile. The meter will probably keep going back to the real altitude anyways, and you'll get really tired of constantly monitoring and changing it.

This is how we must understand Francis as well as the challenging words of Jesus. The challenge points to works and fruit in your life and it's convicting because we know it's true, BUT those works are only an indicator of the state of our soul. When we try to start "doing good things", we are the silly co-pilot who worries about gauges when the plane is what's in danger.

You and I must figure out some way to fly this plane that is our heart. It's not about the fruit and works; that would make it about us! It's about letting the pilot of our souls fly our plane to where he wants it. We've got to figure out this thing called the heart.

Candles, are there others?

2010-05-01T05:42:00.000-07:00

Sometimes I feel like I'm a candle, trying to stay lit.

Sometimes I just feel like myself and those around me are alright with "American Christianity." It feels like any passion and love I have for God could just go out and no one would bat an eye. I'm certain that I could speak the language and know the bible just right and fool everyone.

As I'd continue to go to church, lead a bible study, have a quiet time, etc. those around me would smile, tell me I'm great, maybe even point to me as an example. Meanwhile, God would have no place in my life. My heart would be absolutely dead to Jesus. The small group would be a fun time, the quiet time arbitrary, the church service a cool social gathering, and accountability would be more like therapy.

Friends, books, ideas, and fun would excite me and I would let these things take real possession of my heart- my time, money, and topic of conversation would probably reflect it.

It's so easy here. It's SO easy. It's easy to focus on my job- how well/not well it's going. It's easy to focus on who I am/am-not dating. It's easy for me to study how to follow Jesus. I mean really. How much time in the last year have you dedicated to studying what to do in response to Christ and how much time have you spent actually going and doing it? It's easy for me to turn a quiet time into a positive thought for the day. It's easy to talk about church and not God. It's easy to write a blog entry on "lukewarmness". without changing anything. Meanwhile our souls shrivel.

It feels like I just get moments of sight and then I'm back in the rut headed down the path of the lukewarm again. What is the solution? Can I handle making money while living in America and escape with my soul? I'm beginning to wonder if I can.

Brett and Jay

2010-04-27T20:45:00.000-07:00

Jay Ripley: ok fair enough, sick tight. i'm going to get back to support letter stuff though so i'll for sure talk to you by thurs

me: alright, chilidog

Jay Ripley: hmmmm

me: chilidog-tired
chili-dog-tiredoflifecereal

Jay Ripley: chili-dog-tiredoflifecerealnumberone

me: chili-dog-tiredoflifecerealnumberonesonggloryofitallstatechoir
haha
ha

Jay Ripley: haha
chili-dog-tiredoflifecerealnumberonesonggloryofitallstatechoirboysstatebirdfeeder
seeya

me: haaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa
hasta

me: chilidogtiredoflifecerealnumberonesonggloryofitallstatechoirboysstatebirdfeederofthebirdsbyhitchcockpresentsbudweiserkingofbeers

Impressed

2010-04-18T05:33:00.000-07:00

Last Monday I had an interesting meditation roll through my noggin. This came on the heels of starting to see a lot of sin and self-centeredness in my life. In a sort of attempt at repentance, I've tried to be more deliberate with my time, thought, money, and actions in hopes that my life might look a bit less... self-consumed. It's been a process- a difficult, but joyful one. More than anything, I've really resonated with C.S. Lewis when he writes, "No man knows how bad he is till he has tried very hard to be good"

As much as I'd love to write about the process, that's not the purpose of this post. When I look around me I see mostly two types of people- a few people striving very hard to be loving and those who aren't. Even if you've found someone who is decently thoughtful, odds are that they'll be the first to tell you about the selfishness that resides in them.

But then... as you take and read, you see someone and something wildly different. Something the world hadn't seen and hasn't seen since. You see a man walking through the streets- He's not like other men. As he sees the crowd his heart breaks. He's healing people who have been sick their whole life. He's teaching people a better way to do life. He doesn't give any heed to the establishment- he dialogues with lonely tax collecters and shunned adulteresses.

But he just keeps doing it, and he's making it look so easy. What a sharp contrast to my own feeble attempts. It's like I've been struggling to bench-press 100 lbs and all of a sudden, someone walks in the gym and lifts 1000 without breaking a sweat.

And then- wait, what? He's taking this too far. I see a man dying on a hill. That's when I know that this being, this love, is so far and foreign to me. There's just no category for this whole thing. I can't hardly share my sandwich with another person. What is this?

For me, this contrast, this world of difference, inspired worship. As a meditation, look good and hard at your own life. How are you really loving others? If you're like me, you're probably pretty selfish, and it's not much, if anything. But then... look at Jesus.

Honest Abe - 3 Links

2010-04-12T11:14:00.000-07:00

Abraham Piper on loving a wayward child... this is so good... and applicable to far more than a son or daughter.

Listen to this. it's a brief interview with Abraham Piper. Very honest guy. He's such an interesting dude. Not at all the man you'd expect to be John Piper's son. His story might surprise you. Man.

His South Minneapolis blog.

The Cloud of Unknowing

2010-04-12T07:22:00.000-07:00

"Lift up thine heart unto God with meek stirring of love, and mean Himself, and none of his Goods. And thereto, look the loath to think on aught but God himself. So that nought work in thy wit, or in thy will, but only God Himself. This is the work of the soul which most pleaseth God."
-Anonymous

My prayer - to see

2010-02-23T11:25:00.000-08:00

The more I see of how rough and difficult this world is for some, the more I realize that what I have experience and continue to experience day-to-day is, for lack of a better term, a dream world.

The prayer from the depth of my spirit is to simply understand this place we call Earth and the suffering that goes on. It's not that I want to suffer- I don't. But as uncomfortable and heart-breaking as it is, I want to see my place in the world. That I would see how unfathomably, ridiculously blessed my situation is as an American Christian with a family that loves me and food on my table and a warm house and that my persecution is people thinking I'm a little strange. Oh, that I would see the privilege and responsibility that goes along with all of this and that my time and money and affections would be so driven by reality, that maybe the people around me would think I had completely lost my mind when in fact I had simply begun to see the world through the eyes of Jesus...

Parents

2010-02-11T20:58:00.000-08:00

Let it be known: my parents are great. They love me like crazy. What a blessing! I'll elaborate in the future.

Darwin's Black Box

2010-02-04T22:22:00.000-08:00

This book was the book that started it all- that is, the Intelligent Design movement. For those of you who don't know, let me explain the premise of the book (and, really, the movement). Scientists post-Darwin thought that the cell would be extremely simple. Until the 1950's that was the assumption that fit nicely in the Darwinian explanation of life. However, once microscopes were powerful enough to see the cell, they quickly saw that they were dead wrong. They found a world of complexity, a world of machinery that perform the necessary procedures to keep us alive. The idea for Behe is that there are some organelles and processes in the cell that could not have evolved.

Think about it. In order for complexity to arise out of Darwinism, there needs to be one adaptive advantage added on to another added on to another one at a time. That means that each successive step on the road to what we have to day would have to be advantageous, otherwise there would have been no reason for nature to "select" that particular trait.

Now think about if you found a machine. Behe famously uses the example of a mousetrap. Could something like this have evolved- one piece at a time? If you think about it, the answer is no. The mousetrap's single parts offer no advantage unless they are all there at once and arranged in such a fashion that the machine will operate. If all the parts of the trap aren't present, there's no advantage- it will not get selected. The entire trap must be there at one time! When this describes something it is said by Behe to be "irreducibly complex".

When we look into the world of biochemistry we see that the machines that do the work of life are far more complicated and require far more precisely-tuned parts than a simple mousetrap. What's more is that there are processes, like blood-clotting, that are extremely complex. These are processes that would be of no use, in fact they would be often fatal, if just one part of its elaborate cascading sequence didn't work. A Darwinian explanation depends on slow, piece-by-piece explanation of origin, with each successive piece being selected on the basis that organisms who had this trait would be more likely to survive. Half of a blood-clotting system, however, is worse than no blood clotting system at all! (I must spare details)

The book is split into thirds. The first section details his basic idea and some general troubles with Darwinism. The second third explains in scientific, gory detail 4 examples of irreducibly complex systems- those machines or processes that, if you don't have the whole thing, you don't have anything (that is anything helpful for survival. The last third addresses where to go from here. This is the last stage of his argument.

What do scientists do if a Darwinian solution seems highly improbable or even impossible? (The examples he uses are currently complete roadblocks for evolutionary scientists). The only situation in our experience that we see systems with irreducible complexity... are when they are designed. Behe simply asks, "Why can't we say that these systems are no exception? Our best explanation is that these systems were designed by an intelligent agent. It appears that an intellect made some things with an end-product in mind. Behe insists that we can't know anything about the designer from this argument and he spends a great deal of time discussing the implications in science and philosophy that inevitably come up with an argument like this. He also notes the easy-to-see difference between this argument from science and any form of creationism or appeal to special revelation.

Though most in the media and internet world completely (and I mean completely) misconstrue his argument, it is a very good one that is based in the bare facts of biochemistry. The idea of intelligent design is important for theists and scientists alike and it constitutes a movement that will continue despite violent opposition from the both scientific and skeptical sources, as well as the media. Why is that? It's simply because men like Behe are looking at facts. It's hard to argue with that. Honestly, if someone could construct a plausible, Darwinian explanation for the 4 items mentioned in the book, this thing would be just as the majority says- a done deal- not worth mentioning. In the absence of such explanations, however, I am compelled to wonder about the future of Darwinism...

2 Quick Reviews!

2010-02-04T21:34:00.000-08:00

Pride and Prejudice

In the words of Donald Miller (it's actually his friend), "What is in this book is the heart of a woman." He's right. Some quick thoughts:

-I have learned much about girldom through reading this book.
-Jane Austen: super-intelligent and witty
-Penetrating analysis of the culture at the time she wrote. I'm baffled how well Austen saw her surroundings from enough of a bird's-eye/objective view to critique it and poke fun at it.
-The two main characters, Elizabeth and Darcy, are very likeable. It's a different sort of love story.

Bruchko

I basically read this in a day. IT'S GREAT. Man, was this a crazy book. Read it for suspense, adventure, drama, humor, conviction and inspiration. It's a book about Bruce Olson, a kid who grows up in a nominal Lutheran church in Minneapolis and upon becoming a Christian takes off for South America against the wishes of everyone (including the missions agency) to be a missionary. The Lord leads him to a tribe that kills outsiders on sight.

The story is nothing fancy- it simply documents the facts as they happened. There would be far too much to reflect on anything, really. It's up to the reader to read between the lines. To sum it up, God just shows up in wild, dramatic, obvious ways to help Bruce (who is called Bruchko by the Motilone Tribe). Really, the things that happen make the book feel like a fiction. It's wild. It's the story of how God changed an entire jungle in South America through a young man from Minnesota who simply obeyed. READ THIS BOOK.

Encouragement

2010-01-30T15:03:00.001-08:00

Sitting in Milwaukee. Had an interview yesterday that could have gone better. Feeling far from the Lord. A Psalm 42 kind of day. Half-hearted prayer that God would just show up. Want Him, want to hear from Him more than anything else in the world. Two guys, Scott and Cole, see me reading the Bible, walk up and start a conversation. They explain that they are seniors in a small Bible school north of Green Bay. They explain that they're thinking about missions after seminary. I tell them a bit about myself. I'm too 'in the moment'/proud to tell them I'm having a rough day. No matter. They say they just wanted to encourage me. "Stay the course," they say.

Exhale.

Father, I can't believe how you love me like you do. Thank you for showing me.

Haiti

2010-01-22T13:30:00.000-08:00

This is from Mark Driscoll's trip down to Haiti in the wake of the earthquake. Makes me want to give. I just wish I wasn't so far in the red.

Horses, Judah, and my Job Search

2010-01-19T08:02:00.000-08:00

The context of this passage in Isaiah is, very quickly, that Judah is looking for strength and security from the Egyptian army rather than consulting God and ultimately looking to him to provide not only a plan but the only real security they can afford in this world. What follows is Isaiah trying to get them to see what they are doing.

Woe to those who go down to Egypt for help and rely on horses, who trust in chariots because they are many and in horsemen because they are very strong, but do not look to the Holy One of Israel or consult the Lord! And yet he is wise and brings disaster; he does not call back his words, but a will arise against the house of the evildoers and against the helpers of those who work iniquity. The Egyptians are man, and not God, and their horses are flesh, and not spirit. When the Lord stretches out his hand, the helper will stumble, and he who is helped will fall, and they will all perish together. (Is 31:1-3)

Listen to what the God of the universe thinks of this:
“Ah, stubborn children,” declares the Lord, “who carry out a plan, but not mine,
and who make an alliance, but not of my Spirit,that they may add sin to sin; who set out to go down to Egypt, without asking for my direction, to take refuge in the protection of Pharaoh and to seek shelter in the shadow of Egypt!(30:1-2)

Notice how trusting in man/flesh is looked on. God not only does not approve it, but it is sin- it is raw disobedience and rebellion (30:1). They are essentially living as though God doesn't exist, as though he didn't love them and long to provide for them. They operate as captains of their own ship, masters of their own fate.

Meanwhile, the Lord sees all and is sovereign (has control over) all. First of all what a slap in the face to God- to have all these promises and to say with your actions, "No, I don't believe it- I don't trust that at all". Second of all, how foolish is it to ignore the invisible but sure security and turn to fallible man.

I've been preaching this to myself while searching for a job. Here's my version of Is 31:
Woe to those who put their sole hope in a high-paying job and who rely on money, who trust in themselves because of their earning power and in their connections because they give them power, but do not look to the Holy One of Israel or consult the Lord! The man thinks he has it all figured out, but going his own way will end in disaster; The Lord does not call back his words, but will set himself against any job or way of making money that is sinful. Employers are man, and not God, and money is flesh, and not spirit. When the Lord stretches out his hand, the bad employer will stumble, and the employee will fall, and they will all perish together. (Altered version of Is 31:1-3)

A man of the night

2010-01-17T23:05:00.000-08:00

Late night books and midnight walks are all that are needed to keep this soul quiet and content.

National Debt

2010-01-12T10:08:00.000-08:00

National debt is something that's always confused me. This visual helped clear it up a bit by showing who we owe money to.

On Natural Selection

2009-12-04T12:54:00.000-08:00

Two helpful articles on Darwinism (first a short and then a long one)

From World Mag

From Big Al(vin Plantinga)

Evolution

2009-11-19T14:39:00.000-08:00

Well, I have just a quick post primarily because I've been thinking so hard on this the last few days and I feel I just need some sort of outlet. As Christians, what are we to think of the idea of evolution? I have generally in the past been agnostic about the whole thing as I know very little about the world of biology. I am very much regretting this as I feel as though getting into the topic has plunged me into a very heated world where many feelings are involved and in many cases, reason, truth, and any semblance of objectivity are hard to come by.

On the one hand are creationists using dubious arguments and faulty reason to cast down scientific findings- this is sort of the "evolution is the devil" stance. On the other hand we have biologists like Jay Gould or Richard Dawkins who declares that evolution is a certainty that you'd have to be a "ignorant, stupid or insane" to not believe it.

What is a philosophy/engineering student to do when evaluating a topic so far out of his specialization? Basically, I've decided to proceed carefully. Here's some observations from the beginning of the search.

1) The distinction between micro-evolution and macro-evolution is very much necessary. Species adapt, certainly. This has been shown in many ways. To deny this, it seems, is to deny reason and science. However, to enter the world of macro-evolution, that is, universal common ancestry and everything that goes along with it, is to enter into much murkier waters. This is inevitably where philosophy and speculation are brought to the fore (though scientists are very rarely explicit about when they enter into this kind of reasoning- a good philosopher of science is one who can point out when this shift has occurred.)

2.)We have, in the words of Kosso, gone past appearance- and into making claims about reality. Without time machines we can create possible theories and test their feasibility, but we have no way to look at how something actually happened. Whenever the word 'fact' comes out when referring to something that occurred millions of years ago, listeners should immediately be wary.

3.)While there are many dubious arguments against the theory of evolution, it seems that there are some very serious objections from brilliant scientists, philosophers, and philosopher-scientists. Some of the best come from Darwin himself.

4.) One thing my philosophy of science class has shown me is the subjectivity of science. As we've progressed through the history of science it is very clear that motivations of the heart of men, whether good or ill, very much inform the direction of science and how we think and feel about theories. The history of science shows its susceptibility to denial of plain truth and mob mentality. Science as cold, objective truth is a myth.

5.) The theory of evolution is essentially the only place for a naturalist (atheist) to set his flag on. Essentially, if this theory fails to account for the diversity of species, he is in an impossible position. This is huge. We get a picture here that this theory must be the fortress that the atheist must defend vehemently, the hill he must live or die on. This accounts for a variety of phenomena:

The exaggerations by men like Dawkins, Gould, Hitchens, etc. on the certainty of the theory. You see, their entire worldview hangs on the truth of this theory.
Silencing in the academic world of those who question Darwinism. This happens from internet forums to prestigious academic institutions. I've already noticed that the ad-hominem fallacy that has become a regular thing- think of the intended connotation that goes along with the word "creationist" coming from naturalists.
The evidence needed to throw this theory would be (impossibly?) huge because of the emotions tied into and need for evolutionary theory. Atheistic scientists are a position where they are virtually forced to reformulate their theory rather than begin seeking a new one.

6.)With certain elementary objections (like that of the eye, the serious lack of transitional forms in the fossil record, etc.) I think Plantinga puts it best (he is using the eye in this case):
"...We don't really know whether evolution is so much as biologically possible: maybe there is no path through that space. It is epistemically possible that evolution has occurred: that is, we don't know that it hasn't; for all we know, it has. But it doesn't follow that it is biologically possible... Assuming that it is biologically possible, furthermore, we don't know that it is not prohibitively improbable (in the statistical sense), given the time available. But then (given the Christian faith and leaving to one side our evaluation of the evidence from early Genesis) the right attitude towards the claim of universal common descent is, I think, one of a certain interested but wary skepticism. It is possible (epistemically possible) that this is how things happened; God could have done it that way; but the evidence is ambiguous. That it is possible is clear; that it happened is doubtful; that it is certain, however, is ridiculous.

7) Finally, it appears to me that there is a large amount of uncertainty right now (which explains why there is pushback- it is hard to imagine numerous volumes coming out from scientists and philosophers if there is simply nothing to question. In the words of Ben Franklin, "If everyone is thinking alike, then no one is thinking". It appears that for some time we will have to live with uncertainty. What happened all those years ago? Time, perhaps (and perhaps not) will show how the Lord has done it. I believe with either theory, Christians are alright (and therefore free to pursue truth in this matter in a way that naturalists cannot given the limiting nature of their presuppositions.)

Thirsty for Adventure

2009-11-09T14:58:00.000-08:00

Man, I really think I need an adventure... I wonder if unpleasant moods ("black" moods or anxiety) aren't confused with and/or caused by... boredom. Perhaps I need to either go on an adventure or start to view things that I'm currently doing as a part of the adventure... What a man couldn't do with a stronger imagination!

Let me quote a famous thinker.
"I once thought I had mono for an entire year. It turned out I was just really bored."
-Wayne, Wayne's World

Tozer's wisdom

2009-11-01T21:44:00.000-08:00

The whole outlook of mankind might be changed if we could all believe that we dwell under a friendly sky and that the God of heaven, though exalted in power and majesty is eager to be friends with us.

But sin has made us timid and self-conscious, as well it might. Years of rebellion against God have bred in us, a fear that cannot be overcome in a day. The captured rebel does not enter willingly the presence of the king he has so long fought unsuccessfully to overthrow. But if he is truly penitent he may come, trusting only in the loving-kindness of his Lord, and the past will not be held against him. Meister Eckhart encourages us to remember that, when we return to God, even if our sins were as great in number as all mankind’s put together, still God would not count them against us, but would have as much confidence in us as if we had never sinned...

...The greatness of God rouses fear within us, but His goodness encourages us not to be afraid of Him. To fear and not be afraid - that is the paradox of faith.

-A.W. Tozer from "The Goodness of God" in Knowledge of the Holy

Four things learned from a rough week

2009-10-27T21:53:00.000-07:00

1. My sin is much and runs deep. It's not just stuff I do, but it's my heart itself. To be blatantly honest, I often think I'm smarter than everyone else and that somehow makes me better. Yeah, it's ugly.

2. My heart often turns religious. I start well- actions inspired out of his love for me. However, when I lose sight of the love, the actions become "the motions" and I am religious.

3. Faith in the gospel is the way out of both of these situations.

The gospel shows me why I must be humble- the only reason I am alright is nothing short of the God-man come down to rescue me. How could I boast about anything when my sin required Jesus Christ to die for Brett Ripley?
Religion is empty action. It happens as I forget about the things I need: God's love, grace, and forgiveness. When I forget about these things, life is average at best, drudgery at worst. But when I believe that there's a God who is here and who loves me and doesn't have an ounce of wrath for me, I am warmed up inside to go face a cold world with love and action rather than religion.

4. I must get out of the city regularly. I think straight when I'm calmed by open spaces.

Faith Today

2009-10-19T07:35:00.000-07:00

What are you doing today that requires faith in God? Maybe you're listening to a sermon, reading your bible, going to church, or something along those lines. That's great. My question remains.

Christian, what are you doing today that requires faith?

America makes it so easy to be for me to be a professing Christian and functional atheist.

Praise the Lord / What the hell are we doing?

2009-10-11T10:04:00.000-07:00

David Platt: SBC Pastors Conference 2009 from Todd Thomas on Vimeo.

Huxley quote

2009-09-25T14:19:00.000-07:00

"For myself, as, no doubt, for most of my contemporaries, the philosophy of meaningless was essentially an instrument of liberation. The liberation we desired was simultaneously liberation from a certain political and economic system and liberation from a certain system of morality. We objected to the morality because it interfered with our sexual freedom."
-Aldous Huxley

Faith is a complex thing. It involves desire, intellectual knowledge, emotion, and most importantly, will- what you want to believe.