This morning, as I sit nibbling on my granola before heading out to work, I’m overwhelmed by the sight of the sun glistening off the frost outside. More and more it appears as if summer is fighting its way back to the North. Its exciting to see the seasons change and observe the beauty in each.
It is amazing how God knows exactly when we need a fresh touch from him. A friend and I began talking last night about our lives and hunger to be in the exact place that we were designed to me. As we began to pray with each other, God swept in the room in a powerful and beautiful way; like only he can. Soon, the myriad of overwhelming situations melted away and was replaced by the peace that I’ve become so dependent upon.
There is nothing quite like spending time with God.
Tuesday, April 17, 2007
Monday, April 16, 2007
Church, Naked pictures and Poor Planning
There are times when our best attempts to present a polished look at God fail in tremendous and hilarious ways. Yesterday was one of those times.
Our church is beginning a series called, DNA of Grace: uncovering the genealogy of Jesus. To kick off the series, we decided to present the first lesson with a drama based loosely on Mark Twain’s, Diary of Adam and Eve.
Up on the stage, Toby, Nate Nicholls, and I sat on black stools facing the church, ready to begin this depiction of the interactions between God, Adam, and Eve. We began the piece with hilarious moments when Adam and Eve discover each other and try to determine each other’s animal type, moving toward their exploration of the garden and creation. As we were speaking, I began to notice that people weren’t necessarily watching us, but were keeping an eye on the projector screen behind us at the back of the stage. Quickly glancing back, I noticed a picture of a beautiful green landscape and gave a quick thought of appreciation to my friend, Margie, for creating an Eden-esque backdrop for our drama.
As we progressed through the skit, I began to get concerned when people seemed to giggle when God was reprimanding Adam, or look embarrassed at the ground when Eve was cracking a joke; I wondered if the piece wasn’t as well written as we thought.
Finally, the sketch ended and Toby gave his conclusion, trying to salvage what remained from an obviously confused and amused audience. It wasn’t until afterward, that we learned the cause of the congregation’s diverted attention.
Soon into the start of the sketch, the laptop that had been used earlier to display songs and announcements, fell into the screen saver mode and began to share pictures from Margie’s personal photo album. Because the show began with a few pictures of landscape, people assumed this was part of the presentation. Quickly, however, the images shifted to a series of Adam and Eve portraits that had been turned down because of their semi-nude depictions. From there, the computer pulled up a folder of her “rejected family photos”, and began sharing them with the world. There were photos of her mimicking a Buddha in Hong Kong, playing with her family, making faces in a foreign graveyard, swimming in the Mediterranean Sea, and other decidedly embarrassing, captured moments. To make matters worse, random pictures were thrown in, including cartoons, a portrait of MC Hammer, and a woman in purple spandex that people mistakenly thought was me! Apparently, the montage continued for quite some time before ending when the computer went into sleep mode and relieved the audience with a blank screen.
Hysterically laughing at the thought of seriously sharing a Bible Story with a spontaneous slide show in the background, Toby and I debriefed some friends at church. Katie said, “I just assumed that it was supposed to be a part of the skit. I keep thinking, ‘Okay… this picture of Margie’s dad represents the many people who have come from Adam and Eve… and this picture of a bikini-clad, praying African woman are the various cultures that have emerged.’ But, I was confused when the picture of someone’s laundry hanging out to dry came up.”
Her husband responded, “I agree. I was following along until the shot of the four grandmas in their bathing suits. As the camera panned down their wrinkled legs, I couldn’t find the connection. Then, when the show ended I thought, ‘Wow, they ran out of pictures before the skit finished. Now, that’s poor planning.’”
Our church is beginning a series called, DNA of Grace: uncovering the genealogy of Jesus. To kick off the series, we decided to present the first lesson with a drama based loosely on Mark Twain’s, Diary of Adam and Eve.
Up on the stage, Toby, Nate Nicholls, and I sat on black stools facing the church, ready to begin this depiction of the interactions between God, Adam, and Eve. We began the piece with hilarious moments when Adam and Eve discover each other and try to determine each other’s animal type, moving toward their exploration of the garden and creation. As we were speaking, I began to notice that people weren’t necessarily watching us, but were keeping an eye on the projector screen behind us at the back of the stage. Quickly glancing back, I noticed a picture of a beautiful green landscape and gave a quick thought of appreciation to my friend, Margie, for creating an Eden-esque backdrop for our drama.
As we progressed through the skit, I began to get concerned when people seemed to giggle when God was reprimanding Adam, or look embarrassed at the ground when Eve was cracking a joke; I wondered if the piece wasn’t as well written as we thought.
Finally, the sketch ended and Toby gave his conclusion, trying to salvage what remained from an obviously confused and amused audience. It wasn’t until afterward, that we learned the cause of the congregation’s diverted attention.
Soon into the start of the sketch, the laptop that had been used earlier to display songs and announcements, fell into the screen saver mode and began to share pictures from Margie’s personal photo album. Because the show began with a few pictures of landscape, people assumed this was part of the presentation. Quickly, however, the images shifted to a series of Adam and Eve portraits that had been turned down because of their semi-nude depictions. From there, the computer pulled up a folder of her “rejected family photos”, and began sharing them with the world. There were photos of her mimicking a Buddha in Hong Kong, playing with her family, making faces in a foreign graveyard, swimming in the Mediterranean Sea, and other decidedly embarrassing, captured moments. To make matters worse, random pictures were thrown in, including cartoons, a portrait of MC Hammer, and a woman in purple spandex that people mistakenly thought was me! Apparently, the montage continued for quite some time before ending when the computer went into sleep mode and relieved the audience with a blank screen.
Hysterically laughing at the thought of seriously sharing a Bible Story with a spontaneous slide show in the background, Toby and I debriefed some friends at church. Katie said, “I just assumed that it was supposed to be a part of the skit. I keep thinking, ‘Okay… this picture of Margie’s dad represents the many people who have come from Adam and Eve… and this picture of a bikini-clad, praying African woman are the various cultures that have emerged.’ But, I was confused when the picture of someone’s laundry hanging out to dry came up.”
Her husband responded, “I agree. I was following along until the shot of the four grandmas in their bathing suits. As the camera panned down their wrinkled legs, I couldn’t find the connection. Then, when the show ended I thought, ‘Wow, they ran out of pictures before the skit finished. Now, that’s poor planning.’”
Saturday, April 14, 2007
Faith and Science
I recently heard an interview with Sir John Houghton, one of the world’s preeminent climatologists, regarding his thoughts on the conflict between faith in God and scientific reason. As a highly distinguished scientist, and former professor of atmospheric physics at Oxford University, he has given most of his career to studying global warming and encouraging the international community to address its tremendous impact on the globe. An unapologetic Christian, Houghton has voiced the belief that science and religion complement one another; an idea that unnerves the conservative and fundamentalist religious community.
In this highly intriguing interview with PBS's Bill Moyer, Sir John Houghton shares his thoughts on creation, the Bible as a scientific book, and faith in God.
Well worth listening to.
Sir John Houghton Interview (26:13)
In this highly intriguing interview with PBS's Bill Moyer, Sir John Houghton shares his thoughts on creation, the Bible as a scientific book, and faith in God.
Well worth listening to.
Sir John Houghton Interview (26:13)
Thursday, April 12, 2007
The wisdom of Dwight
"Whenever I'm about to do something, I think, 'Would an idiot do that?'
And if they would, I do not do that thing."
Dwight from, The Office
Monday, April 09, 2007
A beautiful day
Yesterday was an amazing opportunity to experience the Easter story in a creative, personal way. Our church (http://www.thejourneyanchorage.org/) had an interactive service in which we participated in The Journey Passion. Following the story of Jesus’ last weeks on earth, we viewed artwork throughout the centuries, listened to a creative narrative on the scriptures, and sang traditional and new songs depicting the elements of the journey.
We viewed Hubert, Michelangelo, and Chagall. We listened to John, Luke, Peterson, and Toby. We sang to Delirious, PCD, Bennard and Caedmon’s Call. We closed with U2’s It’s a Beautiful Day.
And it was… a beautiful day.
We viewed Hubert, Michelangelo, and Chagall. We listened to John, Luke, Peterson, and Toby. We sang to Delirious, PCD, Bennard and Caedmon’s Call. We closed with U2’s It’s a Beautiful Day.
And it was… a beautiful day.
Saturday, April 07, 2007
Idolatry and Identity
Recently, I had an explosive moment of revelation burst through my mind (a somewhat startling event). All of my life, I’ve been taught that worship with idols was wrong, due to the admonitions against it in the Ten Commandments. The simplified explanation for this was that when we create and worship an image of God, we steal from him by substituting God for an object.
However, I believe there is much more to it than this. According to scripture, we humans were designed to represent God, to live and breathe created in his image. When we allow an idol to take the position of depicting God, we steal from our own calling and privilege to reflect Christ.
So, how does this relate to the teachings that things other than statues can be idols in our lives? Perhaps when we allow our career, hobbies, people, or addictions to become more important than God, we allow them to signify our identity; when our identity should be found in Christ. In this reciprocal relationship with God, we have been chosen to reflect his image through our lives and in turn, we find our identity in him.
What an amazing gift and opportunity. Although I’ve always felt this was a non-issue for me, I’m purposed even more to live my life idol-free.
However, I believe there is much more to it than this. According to scripture, we humans were designed to represent God, to live and breathe created in his image. When we allow an idol to take the position of depicting God, we steal from our own calling and privilege to reflect Christ.
So, how does this relate to the teachings that things other than statues can be idols in our lives? Perhaps when we allow our career, hobbies, people, or addictions to become more important than God, we allow them to signify our identity; when our identity should be found in Christ. In this reciprocal relationship with God, we have been chosen to reflect his image through our lives and in turn, we find our identity in him.
What an amazing gift and opportunity. Although I’ve always felt this was a non-issue for me, I’m purposed even more to live my life idol-free.
Thursday, April 05, 2007
Exercising my brain
For the past several years, I’ve had this distinct fear that I’m losing my mind. Not that I’m going crazy, but that I’m losing my capacity for cognitive processing and memory retention. It is reasonable that changes in my mental performance could be due to age and stress, in addition to the several head injuries I’ve sustained over the years. However, I recently read a series of articles in Newsweek that really opened my eyes into a new possibility.
Researchers are discovering the unique, and highly linked, relationship between aerobic exercise and the brain. Discoveries have shown us that as little as 30 minutes of aerobic exercise, three times a week, helps the brain create new neurons and develop stronger neurotransmitters. In addition, exercise increases several key chemicals, including brain-derived neurotrophic factor or BDNF.
What does all this mean? In addition to helping us control our weight and reduce stress, aerobic exercise can actually increase memory capacity, speed of information processing, control ADHD, and stave off Alzheimers. Researchers are saying a person who begins exercising at any point in their life, will begin to see results in several weeks. The key is to maintain exercising, as these effects require consistent support.
The interesting element is evidence that indicates that children who are exposed to exercise develop long-term effects of brain power. As their minds are young and supple, the increased neurons and neurotransmitters have a lasting effect that will stay with them for years.
So, maybe I have lost brain power as compared to my brilliant youth. But there is something I can do about it.
For more info check out: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/17662246/site/newsweek/
Researchers are discovering the unique, and highly linked, relationship between aerobic exercise and the brain. Discoveries have shown us that as little as 30 minutes of aerobic exercise, three times a week, helps the brain create new neurons and develop stronger neurotransmitters. In addition, exercise increases several key chemicals, including brain-derived neurotrophic factor or BDNF.
What does all this mean? In addition to helping us control our weight and reduce stress, aerobic exercise can actually increase memory capacity, speed of information processing, control ADHD, and stave off Alzheimers. Researchers are saying a person who begins exercising at any point in their life, will begin to see results in several weeks. The key is to maintain exercising, as these effects require consistent support.
The interesting element is evidence that indicates that children who are exposed to exercise develop long-term effects of brain power. As their minds are young and supple, the increased neurons and neurotransmitters have a lasting effect that will stay with them for years.
So, maybe I have lost brain power as compared to my brilliant youth. But there is something I can do about it.
For more info check out: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/17662246/site/newsweek/
Tuesday, April 03, 2007
A call to return
This weekend, I spent some time in San Francisco with some amazing people; all uniquely gifted and minded, yet joined in their search for authentic relationships with Christ. It was thrilling and refreshing, to say the least, to be surrounded by people who seem to feel the same heartbeat as I: hungry for pure God, tired of religiosity, and desperate for an intimate touch from the Creator.
In the past year, I keep hearing the same words whispered in back corners of cafés, hashed over kitchen tables, and screaming through silent emails. People are frustrated with traditional, don’t ask questions, tow the party line, this is the way it has always been done, beliefs. There is a cry to live honest truth, to experience a 21st century gospel, through the bare naked scripture of Christ’s day.
It’s not quite a revolution. Somewhat a reformission. Certainly, a call to return.
In the past year, I keep hearing the same words whispered in back corners of cafés, hashed over kitchen tables, and screaming through silent emails. People are frustrated with traditional, don’t ask questions, tow the party line, this is the way it has always been done, beliefs. There is a cry to live honest truth, to experience a 21st century gospel, through the bare naked scripture of Christ’s day.
It’s not quite a revolution. Somewhat a reformission. Certainly, a call to return.
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