The Writer's March

This month, I began to host a writer's challenge, called "The Writer's March".  This challenge was meant to get writers to write more consistently about the things that they are actually thinking and want to write about.

From the very first time I put out the challenge, there has been a buzz of excitement in the air.  People genuinely want any excuse to write more.  It is currently five days in and there have been nine posts by five people.

Although the group is small, I think the people who are participating will see it though to the end.  31 days of some kind of consistent writing is not an easy task, but there is the feel of commitment that makes me believe it will be a success.

In the time we live in, where social media can connect you to virtually everyone on the planet through series of relationships, why not take advantage of that medium to do some kind of good?  There is always the danger that great ideas, when made widely accessible, will become trite and meaningless next to everything else that is floating around in the world.  But I would rather risk failure of something great than never attempt anything of substance at all.

You touch more people than you know.  Do not let that knowledge or ability go to waste because you were afraid of failure.

On Faces

I find it interesting, and a little hilarious, that I cannot see my own face without outside help.  

I remember the first time I really realized the significance of not being able to see my own face. I was at Summit Ministries in Dayton, Tennessee, the summer of 2007. The topic my small group was discussing somehow went way off track, and we ended up talking about bathrooms for some reason. My small group leader mentioned that he might go in the bathroom, simply to see if he had any foreign objects on his face. As the discussion went on, my mind stayed with that off-handed comment. 

Bare with this little tangent for a moment.  My small group leader needed to use an outside source (the mirror) to see if there was anything that didn't belong on one of the most distinct things about him (his face). Surely, if there was one part of our bodies that it would make sense for us to be able to see, it would be our face. 

But here we are, our over-developed acne, the bit of mayonnaise and the running mascara, all out of our view. Surely we are unaware of these hideous blemishes which shout their presence to all who have eyes. Because we are unaware, we do nothing about them. They stay there, for all the world to see; as we continue on in our self-confidence, unaware that anything is wrong. 

The reason that I found this off-handed comment so interesting is what it might reflect about our human nature. Is it possible that the most distinct features and the characteristics by which others know us are hidden from our view without the help of an outside source to see them?  If the most obvious thing about us also happens to be our biggest blind spot, then we most certainly need to be in community with other people.   

There is no doubt in my mind that we were created to be in community - to need other people to function as a whole person.  

In the first chapter of James, the author uses this example when talking about being a doer of the word, and not just a hearer. It says: 
“…he is like a man who looks at his natural face in a mirror; for once he has looked at himself and gone away, he has immediately forgotten what kind of person he was.” 

Guest Post - Kirsten Richardson

When Stephen first approached me, asking if I was interested in guest posting for him (and vice versa…stay tuned for his guest appearance on my blog), I was excited at the opportunity.  Then he sent me a prompt: “Knowing and seeking Christ in the quiet.” I deflated slightly, as the enormity of the subject sank in. Nevertheless, I've accepted the challenge and will share a few thoughts with you.

The past two years influenced me more spiritually than any other time in my life. I experienced times of busyness, and my spiritual escape was secluding myself with my journal, bible, and Pandora or Vimeo. My soul received rejuvenation while thinking, praying, and processing to God without a time constraint.

Personality is irrelevant when spending time with Christ. Yes, our individual characteristics will influence the ways we connect spiritually, worship publicly and privately, and relate to God. But, sitting with God, being still and connecting with Him, is a Biblical instruction.

Psalm 46:10 is the cliché “be still” verse. Jesus tells Martha to relax and points out that sitting at his feet is more important that having the perfect meal (ouch…as a natural planner, I just felt that one as I wrote it). We have the examples of Jesus spending time with the Father in quiet, away from the noise of life and the distraction of His disciples.

I experience more growth while talking with one friend than when I spend time with five. 

The same happens with Jesus. When I spend quiet time with Him, whether in the early morning hours, late at night, in the car, or some other place, I grow more than when I am in a noisy environment, catered to a large group.

The quiet is when I cry out, scribble pages, and wrestle. Sometimes it is peaceful, other times it is exhausting. Regardless, when I resume my tasks, I feel a peace and restoration.

Disagreements Interest Me

Disagreements interest me.

This post is similar to a previous post of mine - which you should refer to for more depth if you are concerned with my logic.

I think disagreements tell me what you hold to be valuable.  Though – the person who refuses to disagree with anyone and the person who insists on disagreeing with everyone both believe nothing of interest to me.  I do not say that they believe nothing – but that whatever it is that they believe, simply disinterests me. 

So, ignoring what disinterests me, let us turn our attention to those who choose their disagreements – whether consciously or instinctually.

It seems that any argument can be made to have high stakes, whether or not it actually does.  Forgive me if this is your particular pet debate, but I’m going to use it as an example. 

• It can be said that if free will were the way that Christian salvation occurs, this negates God’s divine plan, and leaves him waiting in heaven, wringing His hands (metaphorically) hoping that mankind accepts the gift He has offered.

• The other side says that if predestination were the way that Christian salvation occurs, this leaves mankind as robots, controlled by the impersonal marionette strings of a deity unconcerned with our choices. 

What I think is that both sides have charged up the high stakes of their argument so that if you disagree with their side, the consequences are astronomical.  This can be done with virtually anything.  Unless you believe this one particular way, it means (x) which means (x) which means the nature of God has changed. 

All of these assume that unless these questions are answered sufficiently, the world has fallen apart.  Let me assure you – the world rests on Christ, and on nothing else.  As believers, we firmly stand united that salvation is provided by Christ.  Rather than argue about the mysterious method by which Christ has come to save us, let each of us apply ourselves to loving each other and obeying God. 

I have known of very few people who have ever been argued or debated into the kingdom of God.  But I have known many, countless masses, which have been loved into the kingdom of God – myself included.  If you are faced with the choice to either argue with someone over the minutia of the way by which God has come to save us or to love that person and meet them where they are – I urge you to choose the latter.    

Rest: Our Response to The Beautiful

If insomnia were a character quality, I would be venerated on the spot. 

I do feel fortunate, though, that my particular flavor of insomnia only strikes when I have some kind of idea which I am excited to flesh out.  This means that as far as long, lonely nights go, mine are fairly productive.  Insomnia is my response to the curious.

Sleep is an interesting idea, spiritually speaking.  We are no doubt familiar with the concept of rest and how that is something God wants us to do – no doubt, for our own good.  Those two must not be exclusively the same since one can have a restless sleep and a restful experience while fully awake.

This reminds me of an experience Caroline and I had in a museum in St Augustine.  We were wandering around the city, with nothing in particular to do, and we poked our heads into a small art museum.  I cannot tell you why, because art has so rarely affected me in any significant way, but Caroline and I were moved to silence by this art.  We stayed in this small shop for close to two hours, looking at each piece by an artist I cannot now recall.  Two hours we marveled in the face of the beautiful.  When we walked out of that small shop, and were reborn into the street of St. Augustine, I took a deep breath of the hot afternoon air, and felt like I had just woken up from a long and restful sleep. 

One of my favorite words is “insatiable,” because it has a driving sense of internal thirst for something.  I often feel this driving thirst, and I think it is this thirst that keeps me awake at nights.  It is my curiosity monkey that will not leave me alone.  But when we walked out of that museum, we were satiated – full and content.

To rest is to relax every muscle in your mind and come to rest in the eye of a storm, momentarily knowing that it is okay. 

I think rest is our response to the beautiful.  This may be why God gave us beautiful Sunday afternoons to take a picnic somewhere, or sit at the beach, or walk in the woods.  I think He likes it when we experience rest as a response to His beauty.  Our greatest rest, of course, comes gradually, as we see more and more of Him.   

Resolved

These are some resolutions I wrote in 2009 during a class that lasted longer than my attention span.  I find them useful to reread.

Resolved: To never err on the side of caution where God has called me to take a risk

Resolved: to not speak poorly of others behind their back, and to only do so to their face when I believe will bring some good to them.

Resolved: to not let the personality or appearance of someone cause me hesitation in sharing the gospel with them.

Resolved: to try, as best as I can, to love all people.

Resolved: to weigh the profit of any task against its importance in eternity.

Resolved: to live, as well as I can, with my own mortality in mind.

Resolved: to never open my mouth in prayer if my motive is a selfish one.

Resolved: if (or rather, when) I fail any one of these resolutions, I will not doubt the great forgiveness found in the grace of God.

Resolved: to never treat the greatness of God as common place.

Resolved: to never waste emotions on inanimate objects or unchangeable
circumstances.

Resolved: to go through my possessions often and see if there is anything which I would be ashamed to hold before the eyes of God.

Resolved: to pair actions with my beliefs.

Resolved: to consider I may be wrong before any disagreement damages a relationship.

Resolved: when I am confronted with my own error, I will not value my pride over the recognition of truth.

Resolved: to never, as well as I can, trade something which is best for something which is merely good. 

Resolved: to read this list often, act on what I've written, and add to it when I can.

Resolved: To not let nameless, vague, irrational fears cause me hesitation in following through in God's will.

To love everyone. Regardless:

of their response
of their personality
of their race
of their usefulness to me
of their offences against me or anyone else
of their possibility of change
of the possibility of repayment 
of their character
of how annoying they are
of how incompatible we are
of whether or not they ever know how much I've done for them
of how I feel
of who else loves them
of how long it takes
of how capable of love I feel
of how many times they've failed 
of who knows

Thoughts on Morality

It seems to me that Christians ought to be the ones on the front lines of many more causes than we currently are, and perhaps less vocal about some of the issues that we are most marked for.  This seems to not only be true in our current culture, but it seems to be historically true. 

I know it is very easy to judge those who came before us for their moral inadequacies, but morality does not exist in retrospect.  Morality does not exist in future intentions either.  Morality exists in that liminal space between our minds and our hands – what we know and what we do about it.  It may be that the concept of stewardship that is so prevalent in the New Testament also applies to the knowledge we receive.  If we have been given much, we are expected to allocate that knowledge in a way that “turns a profit,” so to speak.  So rather than saying of previous generations that they were the height of hypocrisy for not seeing what we so clearly see, we ought to wonder why we do not see what we ought to see.  Certainly, we would not want our future generations to call us hypocrites for the multitude of paradoxes we are guilty of.  What if in thirty years, the inhumane practice of factory farming animals and the inhumane treatment of animals in testing cosmetics were so looked down upon that our entire generation despised us for not doing more to stop it?  What if our future generations judged us for doing this to the ocean? 

Or that there are approximately 27 million people in slavery in the world, and that every year there are 1 million children exploited for the commercial sex trade.  And even with all this, the people who claim to be not only made in the image of God, but are meant to be ambassadors of Jesus are more known for intolerance and judgment than championing the causes of the oppressed. 

I promise you, if the world saw a culture that fought harder for the poor than our government does, and fought more for justice than our courts do, and fought harder for freedom than our constitution does, the world would fall in love with the same Jesus we did.  Medicare, the broken foster care system, failed governmental run ecological systems – all of these things exist to the shame of the Christian church.  Why is the world fighting harder to take care of the poor than we are?  If true morality exists between what you know and what you do about it, then I challenge you – what are you going to do about it?