Many of us don't care how articulate someone is if they don't incarnate the message they preach, if we can't hear their words past the noise of their lives. __Shane Claiborne, The Irresistible Revolution__
The Word become flesh and dwelt among us. __St. John the Apostle, The Gospel According to John__
Ever wonder why people don't want much to do with the church? We tend to write them off as just not wanting anything to do with Jesus: they're too materialistic, self-involved, success-driven, etc. (funny, that sounds like some Christians I know). However, I'm not sure people have such a problem with Jesus. Many people if you ask them about Jesus will tell you something about how great he was, how they admire his teachings, etc. They have a lot of respect for Jesus, and given an understanding of what he desires to give us and receive from us, they might even be willing to follow the Way. Jesus isn't the problem.
People have a problem with the Church. Now, this isn't any specific church, but the church as in the people that call themselves Christians. People don't see much difference in the lives of so-called Christians and their own life. There isn't much difference to write home about, so to speak. The early church was characterized by the fact that people knew there was a difference in the lives of Jesus' early followers. The difference being seen in what they valued, what they did with their possessions and wealth, how they treated the poor and oppressed, how they loved their neighbor and each other and how there were no needy among them. Outward action was the proof of the inward change that they were claiming Christ can and does make in people's lives. There is such a massive disconnect in what we claim and how we live out that claim. We don't, to quote from above, "incarnate the message" that we preach. This is not just an outward morality. This is a definitive change in motivations, value systems, thoughts, words and deeds.
Jesus came as the incarnation, the in-fleshment, of God's message, His Way of living life in harmony with Himself and each other and with all creation. He perfectly incarnated God's Word, God's message, God's Way of living, God's Truth, God's Life, everything about God that He desires us to be. I don't believe John 1:14 was just intended to talk about Jesus. I believe that on a deeper level it is saying that WE are to in-flesh, incarnate, the Word of God, the message of how to live in harmony with God and with all that is.
It matters how we spend our money, how we talk about our neighbors, how we love God and each other. It matters what we place value in, what we give our time and energies to, how we treat the Taco Bell employees, how we act in class, in the hallways, and in our homes. It matters because you and I are trying our dangdest to incarnate the Word of God.
May you and I put on the Word of God as our flesh.
shalom, matt
Incarnation Anyone?
A Further Thought...
I was reading As a Driven Leaf and came across a line that made me stop and consider things, especially as it pertains to our last post. I won't bore you with the quote itself, or the setup thereof.
From a distance, Jesus' Way looks very attractive, very do-able, very worthwhile. It is safe and easy, just by going to church, reading your Bible, praying and the like, you can achieve some level of holiness and perhaps a certain level of Jesus-ness. Religion achieves this nicely by boxing God into doctrine, systematic theologies, and bulletted, Power Point presentations. It is a safe Jesus, one who's claws have been removed. He is the Lamb. He is our buddy, our pal, our amigo. We like this Jesus because he doesn't make any demands on our life other than attending some random spiritual activities and classes. We go home satisfied that we have done our duty for Jesus.
However, the closer we get to the picture painted for us in Scripture, the closer we get to understanding how involved this life really is, and the louder the Voice becomes in our hearts--telling us that something is not right with the world that we see, that there is another world that is possible and that we have some part to play--the less attractive, less glamorous, more difficult to live out His Way becomes. Reading our Bibles, prayer, etc. are not the end-all of our spirituality. The intent was for every action, every thought and word, to be in line with the Way. The wild, untamable Jesus of the Gospels is not our buddy. He is nothing less than God with flesh and bone, Creator and Sustainer, Alpha and Omega. He is the Lion that tears our old selves off of us, gently, yet not without pain and loss. This Jesus says outrageous things like, "Die to live," and "If you want to be first in the kingdom become a slave to everyone," and "Love your enemies and pray for those who hate and persecute you." This Jesus is dangerous to our way of life, to our family vacations, sports and band commitments, pursuit of wealth and success, and what mom and dad want us to be when we grow up. This is the Jesus that took death by the throat and kicked it into nothingness by rising from the grave.
This Jesus terrifies me. But he is the only Jesus that has been or ever will be. May we stop keeping Jesus at a distance and simply admiring him. May we follow and be covered in the dust of our Rabbi.
shalom, matt
And Furthermore... (Other Thoughts on Lesson 1)
I mentioned during our lesson Wednesday night how the Body of Christ is made up of a lot of people who admire Jesus, but fewer and fewer people who are interested in being followers of Jesus. I'd like to chase down that thought for just a minute.
I heard one time a teacher put it this way: “Can you imagine what the Church could do if Christians started acting like disciples?” You see the thing is this: we like Jesus’ teachings. We think they are swell ideas for everyone to follow. We particularly like the ones that don’t require much sacrifice on our part. Jesus says, “Don’t murder” and we respond, “Yes, Lord, I can do that.” Jesus says, “But you shouldn’t hate either or you’re guilty of murder” and we respond, “Well, you see, the thing is this: there is this one guy…” When Jesus starts making demands on our lives we quickly find out those who admire Jesus and those who follow Jesus. There has to be a better way. Nothing short of outright all-ness will do--the willingness to give up anything, turn over any attitude, dismantle any part of our lives that doesn't fit the Way. This is not to be mistaken for some idyllic moral perfectionism or utopia. I’m not naïve. I understand that it is hard. I don’t always get it right. Too often I am simply an admirer of Jesus and his Way. But we far too often ignore or interpret aside some of Jesus’ more difficult teachings. If we are to get serious about following Him, we must be willing to sacrifice, to go, to follow wherever he may lead us into whatever place he may want us. Will we follow or will we admire?
Lesson 1 Posted on eSnips
It took me longer to post it than I would have liked, but our Internet was down at work, so, you know...
You can find my notes from lesson one here.
I was going to post the audio from the lesson as well, but someone shut the microphone off after I tested it so I recorded 50 minutes of dead air. Sorry. Next time around I'll have audio to post somewhere on the internet. I'll let you know where when the time comes.
shalom, matt
Kingdom Series
I'm going to be making attempts at posting stuff that is Kingdom related on this blog more than I do, given that title of the blog and its subsequent web address. In an effort to do that I'm going to post to my eSnips site my lesson outlines from each Wednesday. You can look for them on Thursday mornings. I'll post them as quickly as possible. The reasons for this are two fold: 1) For those who don't go to my church but read this blog, it'll give you an idea of what we're talking about and where some of the blog subject matter comes from, hopefully putting you on more of an even footing, get us speaking the same language; 2) For those who have to endure my teaching, it'll be a chance to sit down with what I speak to you and actually think through it more deeply. It's hard to listen to someone speak and take it all in. Hopefully this will allow you the chance to catch some things that you wouldn't normally catch. Anyway, the link to the eSnips sight is in the links section (go figure, eh?).
shalom, matt
On Weakness
Some good thoughts on weakness over at Kethuvim, my brother's blog. You can find the article here. Well worth the read. I'm interested to hear thoughts on it because it is a very crucial topic.
shalom, matt
New Picture Site
The one downside of getting rid of my older blog and switching to a free one was my inability to post pictures here with any great regularity or ease. I have found a solution. Check out the link titled "Matt's Picture Site". I posted pictures from CIY this past July if you want to check them out. Whenever we have an event I'll be posting the pictures from that event on my esnips picture site. You shouldn't have to sign up to view the pics, just click the link and find the folder you want to look at. That is all.
shalom, matt
Everyone is Kung-Fu Fighting
Is it just me or does the entire world seem to be on a downward spiral of increasing anger. It's something I've noticed recently.
A couple weeks ago I was at Target in Greenwood and I noticed in the check-out lane next to us a woman was irate because, from what I could gather, her check had either been rejected or it required an I.D. check or something. She threatened and fumed to the clerk working the register that she would never come back to Target again. I was thinking to myself, "Do you really think it's this poor girls fault that the machine rejected your check? Do you think threatening her will accomplish anything, as if she has some direct link to the CEO of Target, or the bank that rejected the check?"
I've noticed an inordinate number of people at Walmart recently just talking hatefully to their kids. Parents are name-calling, and spitting venomous words at 2 year olds who won't stop crying. Now, being the parent of such a child I understand the frustration level, and I am guilty more than I care to think about of the same type of parenting (or lack of), but there seems to be no more happy people anymore. Everyone seems to be out to fight someone else, verbally or physically.
I read an article today on CNN.com that sparked this article. Read the article here and take note of the final lines spoken by the director of the hospital.Panayotis Spatharakis, director of the Heraklion Hospital, told the Daily Mirror: "We asked him why he did it and he told us he was very drunk and could not exactly remember what happened.
"I feel that once he recovers and understands what he has done he should commit suicide."
The Daily Mirror reported that Hogan's plight after the plunge brought little sympathy from angry locals who surrounded his stretcher to scream abuse.
Someone explain to me what good it's going to do for him to kill himself. So we would rather put the family through more grief just so we can feel vindicated by the injustice done to these children and their mother. Is this really the best way to live? Is this all there is on earth anymore? Are we destined to live lives of anger and frustration and vindictiveness?
I believe in a better way.
It isn't an easy way. It takes effort. I struggle to make it a reality in my life. I get angry to often. I live in a sometimes constant state of anger and bitterness. I don't like it. I'm tired of it. May we live a life of love, where hurts are healed; a life of grace, where the best in humanity is sought out; a life of hope, that somewhere buried underneath our flesh is a soul aching to awaken from slumber and step into the light of the Kingdom.
shalom, matt
Tiny Babies and Why Life Stops
I was at the hospital today for a delivery, an occasion that is normally ripe with joy and celebration, elation and triumph, where heaven meets earth in a collision of beauty and life. I have witnessed the birth of my own child, celebrated with friends and family at the birth of their children.
This delivery was different.
I was sitting at church watching one of the NOOMA dvd's, featuring the teachings of Rob Bell. This particular NOOMA was called Matthew, and it deals with the issue of suffering through loss and the grief and other heart-rending feelings that come with a tragic loss of some kind. I got about 2 minutes into it when I was asked to make a hospital run to Indy. The info I received did not bode well. I was told that the pregnancy had been troubled from the beginning and that the baby wasn't expected to live through the delivery. It dawned on me as I was leaving the parking lot that the issues raised in the NOOMA I had been watching may come to pass in less than an hour.
I arrived at the hospital. I didn't even know the family. One of the cousins of the couple delivering is part of our church. I waited alone for several minutes before I recognized someone. I was very unsure of everything. What do you say to a couple who has just lost a baby, to a family suffering a tragic loss? How do you recover a day of intended joy and all-too-powerfully realized agony? How do you bring light into the dark void of pain? As I sat and contemplated the worst I realized something about how deep the fall of man goes: not even infants-in-womb are exempt from the agony caused by a world full of beloved people who have an insatiable desire for fruit. The fall is deep; the wounds of earth many and increasing. The fracturing of Life has reached into the most innocent and beautiful of creations, stealing the breath of life, the steady beating of a heart, disfiguring faces of cherubs in flesh, and hanging Death on the doorknobs of nurseries that may never be occupied. Grief is an all-too-familiar companion.
"Behold, I am making all things new..."
shalom, matt
Final note: Chloe was born and has too my knowledge continued a fight for life. She has a heart murmer, undeveloped lungs, kidney problems, and a cleft pallet. Please pray for her and her parents, Matt and Krista.
Post Script (8/17/06): I just found out that the baby did not make it. My day is officially ruined.
The Aspirations of a 3 Year Old
My son and I were at Steak-n-Shake tonight, pounding back a couple shakes (choco for me and strawberry for him, which he promptly spilled on our carpet later in the evening). My son looked at the burger making guy at the grill and exclaimed loud and proud, "Daddy, when I get older I can work back there."
Aim high, son, aim high.
shalom, matt
Vito's Ordination Song
More from Sufjan Stevens. This is from Michigan.
I always knew you.
In your mother's arms,
I have called your name.
I've an idea placed in your mind
To be a better man.
I've made a crown for you,
Put it in your room.
When the bridegroom comes,
There will be noise, there will be glad,
And a perfect bed.
And when you write a poem,
I know the words, I know the sounds
Before you write it down.
When you wear your clothes,
I wear them too, I wear your shoes,
And the jacket too.
I always knew you.
In your mother's arms,
I have called you son.
I've made amends between father and son.
Or if you haven't one:
Rest in my arms. Sleep in my bed.
There's a design to what I did and said.
Does this sound suspiciously like Jeremiah 29:11? "I know the plans I have for you..." This song comforts me. And I love the idea that when we put on clothes God is putting them on too (you know, because he lives in us). Beautiful song with beautiful images.
If you haven't bought any of Sufjan's stuff yet, you are missing out.
shalom, matt
The Chronicles of Frog
I was pulling out of my neighborhood today, amidst the morning routine of taking my son to day-care, when I noticed on my windshield, just below the wiper blade in front of me, was a baby frog. I had already pulled out on the highway before I noticed this frog clinging for dear life to the air-intake (or whatever you call it) just below my windshield. I was curious about how long he would last as I hurtled down the highway at 65 miles an hour. I can imagine the wind was a little brutal on Mr. Frog (or Steve as I like to call him). I could see his head shaking from the buffeting of the breeze rocketing off my hood. His little air sack under his face was sucking in and out at a fairly rapid pace. I felt bad for him. But, lo and behold, Steve made it all the way to day care and then to church. I was impressed. At one point he was facing forward, like a miniature hood ornament.
I had this thought at some point on my/our journey: my life feels like that more than I would care to explain. Barely holding on sometimes, being buffeted by unseen forces that war over my soul and try to rip me from the grasp of God. I can only pray that God holds on and that I can hold on when I'm stuck on life's hood, like a Cadillac hood ornament...and the driver is going faster and faster.
shalom, matt
On Things That are BIG
I am fascinated by things that are big, things that are big with a bigness that confounds the ability of the eye to take it all in at once. There are some objects, man-made or natural, that simply leave me a gape at the immensity of it all. I love when something makes me feel very, very small and insignificant when I am up against it. My life's quest is to go to places that stagger me with their enormity.
Mountains do this. I use to live in Tennessee at the foot of the Smoky Mountains. While they are not big by mountain standards. They get made fun of by the bigger mountain ranges, probably picked on a lot, too. They are the four-eyed, 98 pound weakling of mountain ranges. Yet, somehow when I'm climbing a part of them or simply driving through them I am overwhelmed by them. The mountains in Arizona that I've driven through on my way to the Indian reservation--rugged, scrub-covered, dry, and unforgiving--bring me up short and cause me to stare dumbly out the window (not recommended if you are the one actually driving, though).
Canyons, powerful rivers, Lake Michigan, and wide-open spaces with skies that go on forever into oblivion, these, too, drive me to simply stand back in awe. They speak of Something infinite that has no beginning and no end, only a vast "middle" that never stops being the "middle."
Tall buildings--Sears Tower, the World Trade Centers, the Empire State Building--man-made marvels of engineering genius stagger me. All I can do is step back and stare up, up, up into a blue sky broken by steel and glass that reflects that hustle of life below.
I am terrified of snakes, but I am struck dumb and paralyzed by the site of an anaconda, the biggest of all snakes. It's mammoth size, stuff Hollywood movies are made of, is simply too much for my mind to take in. Snakes are supposed to be small; this one has simply been created differently, a king among the snakes.
This is all to say that I want to go to Montana. I want to go someplace that is so wide open that cameras are useless in their attempts to capture the scope of the bigness before me. I want to go to places that remind me of my place in the Story, that I am just here today and gone tomorrow; to remind me that I fit into a tiny blip on the time-radar; to remind me to make that blip count for something; and to remind me that there is Something that is bigger than all of it.
shalom, matt
8 Years
Today is my anniversary. 8 years ago today I married a beautiful woman, full of grace and charm and love and mercy and the heart of Christ. And she got...well...me. I'm not so full of those things, not all the time anyway. Anniversaries make you stop and consider the past ____ years of your relationship. I look back on mine and don't exactly like what I see on my end of things. I won't go into details, because, frankly, it's none of your business. Let's just say, I'm not proud of my husband-ness and, more recently, my father-ness. It seems like every time I try to make a great stride and do it better I slide backward further than where I just was. I don't know. Maybe I'm overreacting, beating myself up unnecessarily, but I know what I've been like over the last 3 years or so and I'm not proud. Okay, that's a really depressing post. Sorry. I'm having a bad day (not because it's my anniversary). I hope you all are well. At any rate, here's (lifts a tall glass of Gatorade) to my wife and the grace she has shown me by not shooting me.
shalom, matt
A Little Americana
There are times in every man's life where he has to stop and take inventory. What have I accomplished in my life? What goals have I reached? What competitors have I bested? What summits have I scaled? I, being a month shy of 30, have stopped to take stock. I am proud to announce that I can mark a major milestone off of my To-Do List--I have attended a demolition derby.
There are few things more testosterone-filled as a demo derby. Roaring engines, mud, cars smashing the heck out of one another, this is the stuff that makes men manly. The smell of spilled fuel, leaking radiators, exhaust, cigarette smoke, and human body funk hung palpably in the air. It was beautiful. It almost brings a tear to my eye thinking about it. The mullets were out in full force. Suprisingly there were a number of small children there. And when I say small I mean "just-climbed-from-the-womb-two-months-ago" small. I thought it was a little ridiculous to cause permanent hearing loss in your 3 month old, but what do I know.
Welcome to small town Indiana.
shalom, matt
*Not actual photo from derby, but you get the idea, right?
Spiritual Gifts, or Why God is Better Than Santa
I'm teaching tomorrow at church on spiritual gifts, something we've talked a little about recently as we prepare a new phase in our ministry. I decided that it was time for the junior and senior high students to find out how they are gifted. I took a spiritual gift "test" several years ago and it came out pretty accurate as far as what I know about myself. It is interesting to find out that you seem to have a gift you were not even aware of at the time.
One thing that I realized during my lesson preparation was that the same Spirit, and consequently that same power, that raised Jesus from the dead are available to us. It is He that gifts us to do His work. No matter how many times I hear it or think about it I never cease to be amazed by this simple fact: we are given the same power that raised Jesus from the dead. Stop for a couple minutes and just contemplate that fact and its implications. Seriously, stop reading and just sit back and be amazed by it.
________________________________
Amazing, eh?
I just finished the Chronicles of Narnia this past week. One of the reoccurring themes in each of the stories is Aslan, the Christ-lion, breathing on various characters, particularly when they are lacking some aspect of character that is needed for the moment. Sometimes the characters lack courage, sometimes they need forgiveness. Regardless of what they need they receive it when Aslan breathes on them. In both Greek and Hebrew the word for "spirit"--ruach in Hebrew; pneuma in Greek--is the same word used for breath. In the gospel of John a post-resurrection Jesus breathes on his disciples and tells them, "Receive the Holy Spirit."
God knows how to give good gifts to his children. He gives what we need for the moment, but also for advancement of his kingdom come on earth, in the individual ministries and situations that he places us in.
shalom, matt
Final note: I am placing a link on the sidebar for an online spiritual gift inventory. I haven't done this particular one myself, but I've done a similar one. If you don't like this one you can Google”spiritual gift inventory" and find one.
Bathroom Etiquette
I had this thought at Starbucks whilst using the bathroom. To preface this I should let you know that I walked in on a guy who had just finished washing his hands (thank God), and who apparently doesn’t know how to lock a door. I mean, really, how hard is it to wait for the door to shut and push the little button in all the way? But I digress…
I Heart Domino Chains
This would be a tremendous waste of time, but you can't tell me that part of you doesn't want to try it at home.
shalom, matt
Further Up and Further In
If you have not as of yet read The Chronicles of Narnia you are a literary idiot and I feel sorry for you (okay, you aren't an idiot, but you are very silly). I just finished them tonight and feel...I don't know...triumphant is the first word that came to my mind. Yes, triumphant. I feel like I have won a great contest, however vicariously, through the characters in the story. I feel like I know Aslan (which I do, but in our world he is called by a different name). I wanted to share an excerpt from The Last Battle. But, before I do that, I want to preface it with a thought or two.
One day I'm going to die, and, for that matter, so are you. I don't really fear my death, though I certainly don't look forward to it either. Frankly, as long as I don't drown or burn to death I don't care how I go. Something not painful would be great if I can make my opinion known on the matter. I'm not sure if God reads blogs, but, in the off-chance that He does, I'm throwing my two cents in on the matter. This is all to say that I have realized tonight what the first words out of my mouth will be, moments, nanoseconds, after crossing over out of the "shadowlands" (to coin Lewis' phrase). Originally it comes from the mouth of Jewel the Unicorn (not the folk singer), but I have full intention upon stealing it at my death.
I have come home at last! This is my real country! I belong here. This is the land I have been looking for all my life, though I never knew it till now. The reason why we loved the old Narnia is that it sometimes looked a little like this. Come further up, come further in!
Anyone else echo those sentiments?
shalom, matt
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