New Blog...

You can find my most recent blog posts here.

Although Blogger has been good to me, I have been persuaded to go in another direction and I will not be posting further comments on this blog.

In the unfortunate case that you don't know what a hyperlink is or how to use one, here is the web address of the new blog: http://madeinlouisville.wordpress.com/

So simple it is scary--like bears.

Many of my friends have an unbridled passion and zeal for world missions.

(Stop reading this post and go check out some amazing stories and fresh insights at Matt Snyder's blog. )

As far as I can tell, it doesn't get much better than seeing and hearing and touching and beholding and participating in what God is doing on a global scale. It's electric--to say the least. God is truly about the business of doing amazing things....

Bears do amazing things. They can run, climb, and shave a tree with their claws in a matter of seconds. They are also known for sleeping for months at a time, catching fish without the use of opposing thumbs, and swimming great distances in freezing cold water really fast! (That last sentence was amazing--but not as amazing as bears.)

The sad thing is, today the church is like a bear fed by tourists. It's lost its natural ability. We need to share Christ in meaningful ways without just inviting people to a congregational event. Let me just suggest one brief idea: let's get that back by starting where people are, listening to them, building a relationship, telling them about Jesus, sharing with them the story of redemption, and bringing them to a bloody cross and an empty tomb.

Why I Love Coldplay

Maybe I have a very strange sense of humor, but I thought this Coldplay video was hilarious. My favorite parts: the first time the pyrotechnics explode, Chris Martin stage-diving, the helicopter, smashing speakers, and those awesome motorcycle stunts!

What a pagan king can teach you about the Messiah.

WARNING: 

Reading this blog post without a Bible in hand may prove bad for your health. Don't do it.

Isaiah 45.1: "This is what the Lord says to his annointed [messiah], to Cyrus, whose right hand I take hold of..."

Anointing people for certain tasks was common to the Israelite of the Old Testament. To anoint someone with oil was symbolic of setting them apart for a special role with appropriate authorization. Priests were anointed with a very special sacred oil. Kings were anointed at their accession (or beforehand in some cases, like the wee lad David). Prophets were also regarded as anointed ones. The basic idea was that the anointed person was set aside and equipped by God and for God, so that what he did was in God's name, with the help of God's Spirit, under God's protection and with God's authority. 

Now reread Isaiah 41-45.

Are you surprised to see that God himself uses this term to describe the pagan king Cyrus, the newly rising hotshot of the Persian empire? 

Why does this matter? What's so sweet about this that it would require such a boring blog post? Let me break it down for you in a 5-finger discount.

1) It was God who chose Cyrus and raised him up for the appointed task (41.2ff, 25). Because of this,

2) Cyrus's accomplishments were really God's, for it was God who was acting through him as his agent (44.28; 45.1-5).

3) Cyrus's specific task was the redemption and restoration of Israel from the hands of their tormentors (44.28; 45.13) so that...

4) All Cyrus's worldwide victories and dominion actually were for the purpose of delivering and establishing the people of God (41.2-4; 45.1-4). 

5) Beyond his own context, this pagan king's work would ultimately be a step on the way to the extension of God's salvation to the ends of the earth (45.21-25).

Sound familiar?

God's Messiah, the Anointed One, would be God's agent to deliver and restore Israel, not a pagan king like Cyrus, but a true Israelite, the true son of David, Jesus Christ. 

Ode to Joy [Burritos]

Sunday is the perfect day to eat a burrito. Trust me, I've been doing it for years. Since the earliest days of my childhood can I remember venturing out after church--my entire family like zombies lurching toward la hacienda--to enjoy the spoils of Mexican deliciousness. I say all this to say, today I am going to enjoy a fatty-fat Q'doba burrito. Here is my ode.

You can't beat a good burrito.

You can include any type of meat, poultry or fish in a burrito–steak, pork, chicken, turkey, shrimp–and it always tastes delicious. If you’re a vegetarian, burritos are great meatless, too. Tofurritos!

Burritos have more vegetables than I eat in a typical day–lettuce, onions, tomato, sometimes corn. Isn't cheese a veggie? I think so.

Not only do burritos come in a tasty tortilla pocket–the good ones also have rice and maybe even some taters for good measure. Carbotastic!

Then there is the cheese–who doesn’t like cheese? Oh my goodness, white queso. Not to mention the the sour cream. Dairy? Check.

Need more protein? Just pile on a handful or two of choice beanage. Black beans. Pinto beans. Refried beans. Do it up.

Then, to top it all off, there are the salsas. Hot salsas, mild salsas, green salsas, red salsas, corn salsas, guacs and pico. Mmm.

Burritos are clearly the champions of the food world. I defy anyone to make a case otherwise.

In the meantime, you know where to find me.

FOLLOW UP: Lunch was great. The sun was out. The burritos were huge. Thank you Tyler & Katherine, Jason, Clay & Christie, Armondo, Brooks & Allison, Jessica, and Q'doba.

The Collapsing Context of Community

Last November I had a conversation with a co-worker and what he had to say caused my mind to swell like a hot air balloon. He talked about cars (this was not something I would normally get excited about; however...). He wasn't so much concerned about the bells and whistles and pistons and gears and whatnot. He had bigger things in mind, and what he began to share made me realize just how quickly the context of our lives has collapsed into itself.

Think of our ancestors. They inhabited a world completely other than the world we know today. And don't think prehistoric ancestry. I'm not talking about the earliest ape-man on the evolutionary chart. Instead, think Great Grandpa (I apologize if Great Grandpa looked like the ape-man evolutionary chart guy). Think pre-scientific revolution, if you can. As science began to offer new explanations and technologies, we traded in the old contexts that informed us and bargained them away in turn for freedom, for liberation.

This is where cars come in.

Since the invention of the car human beings have not experienced such freedom of mobility. We can drive anywhere we can afford, whenever we want, and we can do this all by our lonesome. Eliminated the inconvenience of public transportation, cars drove families farther and farther and farther away. The car came at the cost of giving up the small, coherent physical communities they once depended upon.

It wasn't just the car.

The invention of radio and television allowed the unlimited choices of a national or a global culture, but undermined the local life that had long persisted. What ever happened to the "neighborhood"?What ever happened to "visiting" your neighbors, friends, and family on a [near] nightly basis? NBC happened. CBS happened. ABC and Fox happened. "Freedom" comes with a price.

Whether all this was "good" or "bad" is an impossible question, and pointless. These changes came upon us like losing seasons for the Kansas City Royals. They were upon us before we could do anything about them. You can smash your radio and put your TV in the closet, but you still live in a TV saturated society. We live in a world that has welcomed these changes with open arms, and in the process we've traded the context of community for individual "freedom."

Seeking individuality has reduced us to individuals--enabled, empowered, isolated, disconnected, individuals. In the search for freedom and liberation we wound up finding ourselves living lives without meaning, context, or community. Maybe that's why Seinfeld resonated with our culture in such a profound way. A sitcom about nothing will inevitably resonate with a world that leaves us vulnerable to meaninglessness.

Divorced from the context of community, consumption is all that happens because there is nothing left that means anything.

And that's pretty much all he had to say about cars.

Edifying Thoughts of a Tobacco Smoker

Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750) is far more well known as a composer than a poet. But in fact he wrote some poetry, including this little ditty about pipe smoking.

Edifying Thoughts of a Tobacco Smoker

Whene’re I take my pipe and stuff it
And smoke to pass the time away,
My thoughts as I sit there and puff it,
Dwell on a picture sad and grey:
It teaches me that very like
Am I myself unto my pipe.
Like me, this pipe so fragrant burning
Is made of naught but earth and clay;
To earth I too shall be returning.
It falls and, ere I’d think to say,
It breaks in two before my eyes;
In store for me a like fate lies.
No stain the pipe’s hue yet doth darken;
It remains white. Thus do I know
That when to death’s call I must harken
My body too, all pale will grow
To black beneath the sod ’twill turn.
Or when the pipe is fairly glowing,
Behold then, instantaniously,
The smoke off into thin air going,
Till naught but ash is left to see.
Man’s frame likewise away will burn
And unto dust his body turn.
How oft it happens when one’s smoking:
The stopper’s missing from the shelf,
And one goes with one’s finger poking
Into the bowl and burns oneself.
If in the pipe such pain doth dwell,
How hot must be the pains of Hell.
Thus o’er my pipe, in contemplation
Of such things, I can constantly
Indulge in fruitful meditation
And so, puffing contentedly,
On land, on sea, at home, abroad,
I smoke my pipe and worship God.

--Johann Sebastian Bach

Take and Read

Hands down, these are some of the greatest short-stories ever written:
A Scrap of Time and Other Stories by Ida Fink

You'll never have to forgive me for recommending this read:
The Sunflower: On the Possibilities and Limits of Forgiveness by Simon Wiesenthal

For a deep and practical understanding of how the Gospel changes everything read:
Total Church: A Radical Reshaping Around Gospel and Community by Tim Chester and Steve Timmis

For a classic read on questions of epistemology, Schaeffer rocks an infinite, personal God whom we can come to know intimately in:
He Is There and He Is Not Silent by Francis Schaeffer

A page-turner about the ethics of biotechnology. Sounds incredibly boring, I know. It's not. Trust me and read:
Enough: Staying Human in an Engineered Age by Bill McKibben

As a companion to the previous book, you should read (or re-read) the great science-fiction piece:
A Brave New World by Aldous Huxley

Why not read something amazing and worth your time? You would be a fool not to read:
The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien

For a very fascinating mixture of sociology, history, theology, and modern/postmodern culture, read:
Above All Earthly Pow'rs: Christ in a Postmodern World by David F. Wells

If you think you understand the doctrine of God, read:
The Doctrine of God by John Frame

Addicted to something? Know someone who is? Then you'd better get to reading:
Addictions: A Banquet in the Grave by Ed Welch

If you've ever doubted the importance of the Atonement, you've got to read:
Death by Love by Mark Driscoll

That should be enough to keep you going for a few weeks.

WWYDWYOWWJDB?

Dilemma: What will you do with your old WWJD bracelet[s]?

Possible Solution[s]:

• They make wonderful collars for small dogs and cats--even your ferret can get a lil' Jesus love on.
• Turn your lust-a-lot Barbie into a bona fide believer with a WWJD "bracelet" headband or belt.
• At the next wedding you attend, forget about throwing rice and birdseed or blowing bubbles--toss your WWJD bracelet at the newly christened husband and wife.
• Hang your old bracelets on any doorknob. It's a great conversation piece.
• If you have more than six bracelets, put them all on your next bottle of Dr. Pepper--they'll keep your hand from getting wet! WWJD bracelets make the coolest coozies.
  
• Cut them up and use them as bookmarks. This way you are guaranteed to finish all your assigned reading--c'mon, Jesus wouldn't sluff off on his studies would he?

There is a reason why postmodern heretics, from feminist theologians to ecumenical pluralists, would rather talk about “God” than Jesus. And there is a reason why so many of the most heated controversies in church history have been Christological. “God” is an abstract enough concept that it can be defined impersonally, as “the divine” or the “Ground of Being.” So the liberal divinity school theologian can speak in terms of “God covenanting with Godself to redeem God's people and to bring them into God's land.” The pluralist dialogue partner can speak of “God” at work as Allah, Vishnu, and whatever Marianne Williamson is calling divine these days.

The gritty flesh and blood reality of Jesus of Nazareth, however, is much more particular and much more exclusive. I think the fatal flaw of contemporary Christianity, on both the right and the left, is what Adrio Koenig called "the eclipse of Christ." We speak of the glory of God, and we aim for “God-centered worship,” but we forget that God's glory is tied up in what Maximus the Confessor called “the Christic mystery,” namely that God's purpose is “to sum up all things in Christ” (Eph. 1:10). Contemporary Christians may have “WWJD” bracelets and other sorts of “Jesus junk” in our closets, but too rarely do we hear the big picture of how our God is no generic God, but the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jesus of Nazareth.

--Russell Moore

Soren: The [possible] Son of a Preacher Man

Soren Kierkegaard was a Christian, a philosopher, a mover and a shaker. If you want to read something sincere, read this guy. That's why I love him.

Writing in the 19th century, Kierkegaard saw the greatest enemy of Christianity as the cultured and respectable Christianity of his day. The tragedy of easy Christianity is that existence has ceased to be an adventure and a constant risk in the presence of God but has become a form of morality and facts to be believed. Its purpose is to simplify the matter of becoming a Christian. This is only paganism, "cheap" Christianity, with neither cost nor pain, Kierkegaard argued. It is like war games, in which armies move and there is a great deal of noise, but there is no real risk of pain--and no real victory. Kierkegaard believed the church of his day was merely "playing at Christianity."

Kierkegaard was convinced that his calling was in "making Christianity difficult." He reminded people of his day that to be truly Christian one must become aware of the cost of faith and pay the price. So he said things like this:

"We are what is called a 'Christian nation--but in such a sense that not a single one of us is in the character of the Christianity of the New Testament."

“The matter is quite simple. The Bible is very easy to understand. But we Christians are a bunch of scheming swindlers. We pretend to be unable to understand it because we know very well that the minute we understand, we are obligated to act accordingly.

“Take any words in the New Testament and forget everything except pledging yourself to act accordingly. My God, you will say, if I do that my whole life will be ruined. How would I ever get on in the world? Herein lies the real place of Christian scholarship.

“Christian scholarship is the Church’s prodigious invention to defend itself against the Bible, to ensure that we can continue to be good Christians without the Bible coming too close.

“Oh, priceless scholarship, what would we do without you? Dreadful it is to fall into the hands of the living God. Yes, it is even dreadful to be alone with the New Testament.”

He was a severe man. This is why I like Soren Kierkegaard.

If we have a son, Soren [middle name] Smith sounds good to me. It has a nice ring to it. And the legacy of a dead philosopher as well...

Dang. (Oh the Irony of Blogging...)

Car towed far away
How could this happen to me?
Oh yeah, I forgot...

The Tyranny of the Urgent

Ignore the urgent and focus on the important. Why? Because focusing on the urgent just causes more urgent things to come up. The only way to really minimize the appearance of the urgent is to focus on the important. Important issues are the ones to deal with. If you focus on the important stuff, the urgent will take care of itself. Ignore the urgent so that you can do the important things that are necessary to make the urgent fires stop happening in the first place.

With the being said, I would be really interested in knowing how many hours a day everyone out there spends doing facebook, twitter, blogs and email.

How much time do you spend on facebook or twitter each day?

How many blogs or emails do you read a day?

And, if desired: How do you feel about that?


Disclaimer: Sure, this post was a bit of an overstatement, but it’s actually a pretty good principle. Minus the fact that it is very, very convicting. :)

Begone Unbelief

In lieu of my recent posts, I was glad that the Sojourn decided to sing this hymn on Sunday. You can check out the entire Sojourn liturgy for this past Sunday here. If you have yet to hear this beautiful song, take a few minutes and click here for a beautiful sample.

Begone Unbelief

1. Begone unbelief, My Savior is near,
And for my relief Will surely appear:
By faith let me wrestle, with God in the storm
And help me my Savior, the faith to adorn
And help me my Savior, the faith to adorn

2. Though dark be my way, Since he is my guide,
'Tis mine to obey, and His to provide;
Though cisterns be broken, And creatures all fail,
The word he has spoken will surely prevail.
The word he has spoken will surely prevail.

Chorus
Begone unbelief, The Savior is here (3x)
Though cisterns be broken And creatures all fail
The word he has spoken will surely prevail
The word he has spoken will surely prevail

3. Why should I complain, Of want or distress
Temptation or pain? He told me no less
The heirs of salvation, I know from his word
Through much tribulation Must follow their Lord
Through much tribulation Must follow their Lord
Chorus

4. Since all that I meet will work for my good,
The bitter is sweet, The medicine food;
Though painful at present, will cease before long,
And then, O! how glorious, The conqueror's song!
And then, O! how glorious, The conqueror's song!
Chorus

©2005 Kevin Twit Music.

Open Your Mouth. Let Him fill it.

God provides for His people. Open your mouth, God says through the psalmist, and "I will fill it." I can't wait to see my child sit in the high chair and watch him squirm as the spoon full of food yummy makes its way into his face with his mouth open wide. I am smiling right now just thinking about it.

Reality check. God delights to feed us! He delights to provide for us. He is the one who sets abundance around us on every hand, and we are the ones who struggle far too much as we try to understand how intent He is on giving to us, and how how much more intent He is on teaching us how to receive what He gives in all gratitude.

Open your mouth. Let Him fill it.

Pray for me that my mouth would be opened. Pray that the Lord will fill it.

(To the friend whose words were spoken to me about unbelief and sin, thank you. They were especially timely. Thank you for your willingness to minister to me and be transparent in the midst of your own unbelief.)

Quotes from Dead Guys With Cool Names

The following quote is from the pen of Horatius Bonar (1808 - 1889), the great Scottish preacher, poet, author and hymn writer.

In all unbelief there are these two things—a good opinion of one’s self and a bad opinion of God. Man’s good opinion of himself makes him think it quite possible to win God’s favor by his own religious performances; and his bad opinion of God makes him unwilling and afraid to put his case wholly into His hands. The object of the Holy Spirit’s work (in convincing of sin) is to alter the sinner’s opinion of himself, and so to reduce his estimate of his own character that he shall think of himself as God does, and so cease to suppose it possible that he can be justified by an excellency of his own. The Spirit then alters his evil opinion of God, so as to make him see that the God with whom he has to do is really the God of all grace.

But the inquirer denies that he has a good opinion of himself and owns himself a sinner. Now a man may SAY this, but really to KNOW it is something more than SAYING. Besides, he may be willing to take the name of sinner to himself, in common with his fellow-men, and yet not at all own himself such a sinner as God says he is—such a sinner as needs the cross, and blood, and righteousness of the Son of God. It takes a great deal to destroy a man’s good opinion of himself; how difficult it is to make a man think of himself as God does! What but the almightiness of the Divine Spirit can accomplish this?

Unbelief, then, is the belief of a lie and the rejection of the truth. Accept, then, the character of God as given in the gospel; the Holy Spirit will not give you peace irrespective of your views of God’s character. It is in connection with THE TRUTH concerning the true God, “the God of all grace,” that the Spirit gives peace. That which He shows us of ourselves is only evil; that which He shows us of God is only good!

About as Subtle as a Punch In the Face

The gospel is about as subtle as a punch in the face. And in a culture where most young men spend their time playing video games, watching porn, drinking tons of cheap beer (or Dr. Pepper), talking about zombies, and eating pizza rolls smothered in Velveeta cheese after midnight, this is exactly what is needed.

Hook up. Shack up. Break up. Marry later and stay married shorter, but don’t feel obligated to stay at all. This is our culture. The average dude is no Dude; he’s just a boy who knows how to use a Norelco. Wake up Christian men! How many have to perish before we recognize our brothers who are enslaved to the service of lusts and pleasures (usually pornographic) are living in silent shame, which hinders their growth in Christ and service in ministry? We need men—pastors, fathers, brothers, bosses—who are willing to step up and throw the first punch.

The body of Christ needs brothers willing to throw down like this:
“Why do you act as if sexual sins are ‘out there’ in the media, strip club, or gal with low-rise jeans and hi-rise thong? The problem is in you! It is from the sinfulness of your heart that lust and sin proceed like sewage from the drain. This is the painful, unvarnished truth. Don’t kid yourself. Sin is an onramp to death. If you get on it and don’t repent, turn around, and exit, you will find the landscape getting darker, grosser, filthier, and deadlier.

You are not an animal. You are the glory of God.
You are not a pervert. You are the glory of God.
You are not an addict. You are the glory of God.
You are not a victim. You are the glory of God.
You are not a fool. You are the glory of God.

Man up. Quit being a wuss. Quit living for yourself. Follow Christ. And let’s do this thing together. We need each other. We need Christ.”

Who's going to throw the first punch?
Who's ready to get in line and take one on the chin for the glory of God?
We need both kinds of men.
I am both kinds of men.

Do You See My Wife?

Profound and Beautiful

The Life of the Christian Man,

For it [being a Christian] is not a doctrine of the tongue but of life. It is not apprehended by the understanding and memory alone, as other disciplines are, but it is received only when it possesses the whole soul, and finds a seat and resting place in the inmost affection of the heart.

Sum of the Christian Life: Denial of Ourselves,

We are not our own: let not our reason nor our will, therefore, sway our plans and deeds. We are not our own: let us therefore not set it as our goal to seek what is expedient for us according to the flesh. We are not our own: in so far as we can, let us therefore forget ourselves and all that is ours. Conversely, we are God’s: let us therefore live for him and die for him. We are God’s: let his wisdom and will therefore rule all our actions. We are God’s: let all the parts of our life accordingly strive toward him as our only lawful goal.

Bearing the Cross,

This, therefore, we must try to do if we would be disciples of Christ, in order that our minds may be steeped in such reverence and obedience toward God as to be able to tame and subjugate to his command all contrary affections. Thus it will come to pass that, by whatever kind of cross we may be troubled, even in the greatest tribulations of mind, we shall firmly keep our patience. For the adversities themselves will have their own bitterness to gnaw at us; thus afflicted by disease, we shall both groan and be uneasy and pant after care and sorrow; thus we shall be smitten by the pain of disgrace, contempt, injustice; thus at the funerals of our dear ones we shall weep the tears that are owed to nature. But the conclusion will always be: the Lord willed, therefore let us follow his will...If it be clear that our afflictions are for our benefit, why should we not undergo them with a thankful and quiet mind? Therefore, in patiently suffering these tribulations, we do not yield to necessity but we consent for our own good.

Churchianity

You know you've survived Churchianity if...

• You've ever thrown out all your "secular" cds...only to replace them a year later.
• You've ever sung Amazing Grace to the tune of Gilligan's Island.
  
• Your vocabulary has ever been peppered with words like "burden" or "fellowship."
• For graduation, you were given a Thomas Kinkade painting, Max Lucado book, or a leather-bound copy of The Message.
• You've actually tried a pack of Testamints.
• You wash your car with a T-shirt that says "GAP--God Answers Prayer."
• Your ears perk up when you hear words like The Donut Man, McGee & Me, or Psalty the Singing Song-Book.
• You've ever taken communion with Doritos and Mountain Dew.
• You wore more than one WWJD bracelet at the same time...on the same wrist.

If You Love Me, You Will Love the Church

Love him or hate him, Derek Webb’s songs “The Church” and “Wedding Dress” are some of the finest songs I have heard this millenia. He does such great job of painting a biblical picture of the Chruch that reminds me time and time again what is truly important in this life.

When I am frustrated with the collection of sinful people that makes up the church, “The Church” reminds me that the Church is the bride of Christ:

And you cannot care for Me with no regard for her
If you love Me you will love the church

When I’m either self-righteous and need to be reminded that I’m a sinner or wallowing in my sinfulness and need to be reminded of Christ’s redemption, “Wedding Dress” helps out:

I am a whore I do confess
I put you on just like a wedding dress
and I run down the aisle