Castro = Willy Wonka

Jesus won't bring you candy if you pray for it, but, by George!, Castro will. Bow down to Mother Russia!



Two Videos

One that you've probably seen, but it's fun anyway...




One that rocks your face off with Jesus-ness...


What Happens if You Stand Up For Jesus


The lesson here: If you stand up for Jesus the Russians will cut off your head and throw it down a hill.

The 21st Century


So, here's my question: how do we minister in the 21st century given all this?

shalom, matt 

Dangerous Theologies: Theology of Masked Politics

Theology of Masked Politics

This “theology” has become more and more prevalent as politics increasingly polarizes not only America, but the church as well. Hot-button issues, mainly homosexuality/gay marriage and abortion, become topics in sermons and there is an unwritten, but nonetheless obvious expectation, that you will vote Republican because Republicans are against those two things. Because of the polarization and the desperate attempt by many churches to insure their agendas get elected into office, many churches theologies have unintentionally (intentionally?) swerved toward pushing conservative agendas instead of the Way of Christ. As part of our desire for control we tell people what to think, and by extension, vote for, never stopping to consider whether this conservative agenda has any basis in Christ’s teachings or at all mirrors the Way of Jesus. What unfortunately happens is that churches push the one or two hot-button issues and never mention the many other issues that actually have root in Scripture. Further, a number of positions that are held as “conservative” using Biblical grounds as a defense are immediately contradicted by the person’s view of another similar subject. Here are a few examples:


Abortion and the Death Penalty: one of the biggies. Ironically, it is never talked about in Scripture. Many people who claim “right to life” for unborn babies are more than prepared to fry/gas/inject other human beings, repaying evil for evil. You cannot on the one hand hold a position of the sanctity of human life and dignity and on the other hand deny that life and dignity to another human being (regardless of whatever crime they’ve committed). 


War: Few issues in recent years have polarized families and churches like this one. Without going into detail as to my own opinions on the subject I’ll refer you back to my above statements about the sanctity of human life. Human life is human life, regardless of where it lives or what ideologies it touts. 


Homosexuality/Gay Marriage: At the risk of opening up a can of worms here I’ll simply say this: For this being such a huge issue in the church, Jesus is surprisingly silent on the subject. Interesting, don’t you think? Maybe there are more important things to worry about. Jesus had much to say about gossip, unforgiveness, and neglect of the poor, yet most churches brush these far more damaging and dangerous sins under the rug, or, at best, verbally slap people on the wrist. But when it comes to gays they are adamant, vocal, and willing to declare war on homosexuality, never realizing that by declaring war on homosexuality they have, in the world’s eyes, declared war on homosexuals. 


Again, all of these political positions are subtly masked in sermons and lessons, comments and discussions. Rarely, though occasionally, these positions are “unmasked” and just outright said to the masses. Far more often they are hidden in the midst of authentic Biblical teaching, giving them viability and legitimacy through association with that teaching. “I know that A (authentic, true teaching) is true, therefore (masked political position) must also be true.” Don’t fall for it.


Don’t buy into any theology that is a cover for conservative or liberal political agendas. It is crucial that you study the scriptures yourself, and find a trusted brother or sister who can help guide you to a better understanding, and perhaps even a more pure understanding, of Jesus’ way of life.


shalom, matt

From the Brother...

My brother to be exact. You need to read this. He could probably use your prayers that he would speak prophetically to his leadership and that they would hear him.


shalom, matt

Dangerous Theologies: Theology of Moral Control

I’ve recently been reminded of how dangerous some theologies are to the lives of ordinary people. Theology is defined by my MacBook this way: 


theology |θēˈäləjē|

noun ( pl. -gies)

the study of the nature of God and religious belief.

religious beliefs and theory when systematically developed. 


Well, there you have it, a concise and 90% useless definition brought to you by the fine people of Apple. Theology, as the 10% useful section informs us, is the study of God. Theologies are a collection of religious beliefs, sometimes systematically written down into doctrinal statements and creeds, or, in the case of professors who have no lives, systematic theology textbooks, foisted upon unknowing Bible college students. Theologies, as a rule, aren’t necessarily detrimental; in fact, quite the opposite, really. They can be quite useful in communal settings to unite a believing community underneath a common system of belief. The Apostle’s Creed has for centuries served as a declaration of belief for the Body of Christ.


Theologies become dangerous when they serve purposes other than declaring a common faith. When they are used to ostracize and alienate and excommunicate those who see things differently; when they are used as weapons to destroy community and dismantle relationships and friendships; when they become a means of controlling (and thereby destroying) our freedom in Christ. 


So what I would like to do is take a couple weeks and unmask a few “theologies” that you would do well to avoid being around and buying into. 


Theology of Moral Control/Morality

This is perhaps the most prevalent and the most difficult theology to spot of them all, because it looks like real Christianity. Let’s consult the on-board dictionary again for a good definition of morality.


morality |məˈralətē; mô-|

noun ( pl. -ties)

principles concerning the distinction between right and wrong or good and bad behavior.

• behavior as it is affected by the observation of these principles 

• a particular system of values and principles of conduct, esp. one held by a specified person or society

• the extent to which an action is right or wrong; behavior or qualities judged to be good 


It is the last of the definitions that interests me the most here. Morality is about good vs. bad behavior. It is about determining what is right and what is wrong. Now, on the surface this is not a bad thing. It is generally a good idea to determine right actions and wrong actions. It is right for me to love my wife and treat her with respect. It is wrong for me to kill her. See: one action is right, and one is wrong. And, by the way, I’ve never killed my wife. I digress…


The danger in moral control theology is that many of the actions deemed “wrong” by a particular church body have little, if any, basis in Scripture. Many times they are defended with out-of-context Scripture quotations that ignore the intent of the author and the context of the passage. Or, worse, they are based on old, worn-out, prejudices and traditions that have long since died away, and were themselves outgrowths of shaky interpretations of Scripture. Basically, moral control theology is based on what people have decided is wrong, not necessarily what is actually right or wrong in Scripture. These traditional thought patterns, many times passed down from one generation to the next with no explanation for the reason, are used to control the behaviors of the individual church members, mainly by pouring on large dosages of guilt and fear: guilt because you broke the rule and fear over what God will do to you if you break it again. 


Some popular rules that get thrown around that have no basis in Scripture, but are regarded as wrong because of perceived social stigma, preconceived ideas, or denominational tradition include, but are not limited to: dancing, watching secular movies, listening to secular music, drinking alcohol, smoking, “cussing” (or using a wildly-varying list of “bad words”), you must attend church on Sundays, no instruments in church (a cappella churches only), you must read, listen to, watch, or wear Christian products only, you must dress up for church, no running in church, don’t wear your hat in the sanctuary, and don’t, under any circumstances, watch Scooby-Doo or read Harry Potter. I’ve heard of a church in the tri-county area that actually tells their constituency what movies they can and can’t watch, what they can and can’t wear to church and what music they can and can’t listen to. It’s a matter of membership for them, too. There are other rules I’m sure in different churches, but these cover the basics. 


I said earlier that moral control theology is hard to discern because it looks like real Christianity. Churches that foist this type of theology on their members judge the maturity of the Christian based on their compliance with these dogmas. There is a complete lack of awareness, or at best a vague congizance, of the signs of true Christian maturity and discipleship: a desire for the disciplines, a hunger and need for Christian community, a God-centered and others-centered life, an awareness of God in the present moment, a desire to live the Way of Christ, to live in Ultimate Reality, to “seek first the Kingdom.” Moral control theology reduces discipleship down to compliance with church rules, usually determined by the authority figures at the top of the church hierarchy. 


And let me say this: I’m not opposed to living a right life. But when all we seek to do is obey rules we miss out on the life of Christ, a life of freedom and love. We fall into the trap of the Pharisees.


"Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of your spices—mint, dill and cummin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law—justice, mercy and faithfulness. You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former. __Jesus in Matthew 23__

We focus on the wrong things, put emPHASIS on the wrong syllABLE (so to speak), obey “rules” and neglect life. Jesus said, in John 8, “If the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.” Why then would we return to bondage under man-made rules that have no bearing on our Christian discipleship? Why do we not trust the Spirit’s work in the lives of individual disciples? Why do we not allow God to work through the disciplines to move us to places of maturity in HIS time? Moral control theology betrays a distinct lack of trust in God to bring about maturity and growth, instead relying on man-made rules to bring about quasi-changes that rarely are permanent. At its worst, moral theology ignores grace, by not allowing for the freedom to make mistakes and the room for God to redeem and use those mistakes for our growth and maturity. 

May you find freedom in Christ, freedom to live life, love more fully and revel in the grace of Almighty God. 

shalom, matt

Strange

Okay, for the strangest thing I've seen all year...


The girl has a beautiful face and is a darling, but I've never heard of anything like that happening before. 

shalom, matt

Five Lessons for Everyone (Part 2)

Your Life is Not About You

I know this sounds like something straight out of Dr. Phil’s mouth, but it’s not. It dovetails nicely off of the preceding idea that we aren’t that important. Our over-privileged society has ingrained in us and (unfortunately) our children (might be my fault, too) the idea that everything is centered on us. We are an ego-centric culture. We are crazy over ourselves, cuckoo for Cocoa Puffs (assuming that we are a chocolaty breakfast puff that turns milk brown and sludgy, of course). It is a nasty reality to face when a teenager, or maybe even worse, an adult, discovers that life is not about them and they have to come to grips with a new reality that doesn’t focus on them. It is a nasty reality, but on the other side of that awakening, that “death to the false self,” is a beautiful resurrection of Christ- and others-centeredness. How different would our world be if humanity understood this lesson, if we died to our own self and turned outward towards a much larger world than we first imagined it to be? 


You Are Not In Control

How much do you and I hate this one? Seriously, is there a more helpless feeling than to be out of control? Yes, there is. To realize you are out of control and there is nothing you can do about it. This is a terrifying prospect for us control freaks. Life is beyond anything we can get our arms around. Walk in a hospital’s cancer ward or a funeral home and ask the people there if life is in their control. Better yet, walk into an AA meeting and ask an alcoholic if they feel like life is in their control. You’re not in control. Learn this lesson with the reality that life is hard. The two go hand-in-hand. We need to be okay with this. Not happy about it necessarily, but okay with it. We have to be willing to learn from what life hands us. The message of the cross is that God, in his infinite love, is willing to give up control, “put himself out there,” to us. Jesus, according to Philippians 2, “became nothing,” that is, gave up control of his rights as God, humbling himself and dying. God: willing to be out of control. Can we be as willing to give up control as well? Dag Hammerskjold, former U.N. Secretary-General said, “At some moment I did answer Yes to Someone--or Something--and from that hour I was certain that existence is meaningful and that, therefore, my life in self-surrender had a goal.”


You Are Going to Die

It’s amazing how many people just can’t seem to accept this fact. Last time I checked the death rate was still 100% among every living thing on earth. An old Hindu saying says, “The surprise of surprises is that although everybody who has ever lived in this world has died, for some reason, we think we won’t.” Dr. Ira Byock writes, “Death is not primarily a medical event. Death is a personal and spiritual event, yet we are largely concerned about preparing for the medical.” There is an great line from Dr. Cox in an episode of Scrubs where he tells J.D. that everything that they do as doctors is, at best, a stall for the inevitable. You are going to die. If we cannot accept our own death then we cannot truly live, because we live in fear of the inevitable end that could come at any moment. Jesus said that not one of us can add a single minute to his or her life by worrying. I used to spend a lot of time worrying about my own death. I didn’t want to die. Who does? But worry and fear turn into anxiety, which can be debilitating and life-stealing. We have to come to terms with our own fear over the unknowable. No one knows what happens at death, which is partly why we fear it so much. No one likes the unknown. If we can live in the reality of the kingdom understanding of death, that it is not final, does not have the last word, that, as Paul writes, it has lost its sting, that on the other side is glorious resurrection and the continuance of an eternal life already begun in the present, then we might be able to acknowledge the reality that we are going to die. And then we might be able to truly live. 


shalom, matt

Prayers That Aren't Really Prayers

I found this on a blog called the overflow. So much truth to it. Time for me to think about my prayer life. I really like the idea of toasting Jesus at dinner instead of the perfunctory "bless this food" prayer. Anyway, read on. 

shalom, matt

Only once in my life has anyone ever confronted me on my prayer life.

No, not like if I pray or when do I pray, but actually on how I pray. It came from Ron Ritchie, a trusted 70 year old mentor. I was 32ish when he looked me in the eye over lunch and in a way only a man who looks like Moses/
Grizzly Adams could have said, "Brian, you use God's name like a comma when you pray. God I pray that (comma God) you would help me do blah blah blah (comma God).... " I think it was the first time in my life I'd actually truly thought about how I spoke to God and what words I chose.

He also introduced me for the first time to the 
PRAYER TOAST. We did it every night after bible study with Ron and our clan of disciples over dinner for a year of Tuesday's. I use it all the time in restaurants now. Rather than bowing your head and wondering if you're going to get the prayer done before the waiter returns to interrupt you awkwardly, you just ditch the head bowed deal, grab your beverage, raise it to the sky, and thank Jesus for the fellowship, the food you're about to eat, the amazing chance to enjoy breath in your lungs, and invite God's presence to be at the table with you. It's really refreshing. You should try it sometime. Inviting God to join your table and thanking him for the blessings of food and friends is always sincere and very rare today.

Well anyway, ever since that year of prayer challenges by Ron, I've been particularly sensitive to my own prayers and annoyed by some of the traditional habits of the church today in prayer. A couple of things that have happened this week made me think of it, so I decided to blog them. Here you go, here's my list:

  • THE ANNOUNCEMENT PRAYER: This is not really a prayer at all. It's not really talking to God, it's just talking to people while they are in the hypnotic state of eyes closed and heads bowed. It often involves transition hints like, "as the band comes up" or reminders like, "we know that this week is the big blah blah blah".
  • THE HOUDINI PRAYER: This may or may not be sincere prayer, but it is strategically placed so that we magically whip people on and off stage while your eyes are closed. While you're supposedly talking to God, the band can magically disappear and the speaker appear or visa versa- as if the angel of the Lord himself whisked them off the stage like Houdini.
  • THE NO ONE'S LOOKING PRAYER: This is the prayer where we begin by talking to God, then pause to talk to you, asking no one to look around, cuz evidently that screws up the sincerity of someone really talking to God. Now, while "no one's looking, please raise your hand or look at me or whatever..." cuz now we're pausing in prayer to talk to you all.
  • THE GOD IS A COMMA/MUST LOVE TO HEAR HIS OWN NAME PRAYER: This prayer is one I was very good at and have tried to ditch. It's the prayer that uses God more times in one sentence than is humanly possible. It is common, but evidently only something we do in prayer. Can you imagine saying to me at dinner, "Dear Brian, thanks so much Brian for having us over for dinner Brian. I just love you Brian. Brian you have blessed us so much Brian that we wanted to tell you Brian that we are here to serve you Brian with our whole lives Brian. Amen Brian. Amen." Yeah, it sounds stupid, but if you insert God in there for me, well, you have the classic comma/name prayer.
  • THE END THE MEETING PRAYER: This prayer is just a prayer we do cuz the meeting is over and evidently, no two Christians are allowed to talk and then leave without praying to sorta close the book on this deal. Most of the world just says, see you later. Christians feel the need to make sure God knows we're done talking now.
  • THE IN CASE GOD WASN'T LISTENING PRAYER: This is where we go around the room and have everyone share prayer requests. Then, after we have talked to one another for a while about them, we then repeat exactly what we've all been talking about but now, we do it with sentences that begin with "Dear God" and end with "Amen" since evidently when we were saying them before, we were talking to ourselves and God was busy somewhere else.
  • THE GOSSIP PRAYER: This is a classic one. This often never makes it to prayer. But under the umbrella of protection of a prayer request, we gossip about others so that the person who is receiving the juicy facts can take them back and pray about them.
  • THE SUPER SPIRITUAL PRAYER: This one is where the person praying uses words that only God can understand and that are only used when praying. It's often with hands held up, sounds really super theological, and usually gets them asked to pray a lot, cuz it sounds like something God himself might say in 1850.
  • THE IT'S TIME TO SHUT UP PRAYER: This prayer is not really prayer. It's just a reality that the one at the mic is being ignored, so instead of waiting for the crowd to get quiet, they just start praying and inevitably, a shhh and side slap hitting fest goes across the audience that tells people to shut up, somebody up front is pretending to pray so you all will stop talking.