So as this year draws to a close, it is exciting to be in a different place than last year in many ways...as 2009 ended it was very much about seeing where we had come from and all the differences and changes that were now present in our lives...and now a year later I find myself not looking back so often but instead looking forward to new things that will happen in our lives and some goals and visions I am seeking to pursue and make reality in 2011...so here goes the target list for 2011 with 11 things I long for God to help me chase after in the coming 365 days of a new year:
1. Embrace a new level of simplicity...I want to take real steps in not buying, accumulating, and spending time with stuff that I don't need and ultimately adds very little real meaning and joy to my life...and I long to teach my kids how to spend less so we can give more in a better way...
2. Read more and watch video less...I need more time with written words rather than just pictures and voices on a screen...
3. Don't be controlled by fears...I find myself as I get older being more consumed by the uncertainties and challenges of life, and I need to embrace more fully the measure of contentment and confidence I have as one who has a God who is intimately concerned and involved in even my life...
4. Run almost every day for the sake of my physical, mental, and spiritual health...this time in the day is critical for me in each of these dimensions...
5. Allow the Scriptures to be present and central in my thoughts and mind...to read the Bible, to memorize its life-giving words, and to listen to others teach from it in a systematic and central way in my daily routines...
6. Write more notes to my colleagues, my friends, and my family...simply because I love to write and I believe deeply in the power of encouragement and belief in the lives of those God has put in my life...
7. Manage my sports obsession and love of all things athletic...I can so easily divert my attention from the people and things that matter most to the games that matter not as much...and I have a little guy who I am training in this regard every single day...
8. Be more honest with my feelings with others...at times my desire to create peace and to promote happy and healthy relationships causes me to hide my true emotions and thoughts for the sake of not rocking the boat...and I need to invite more feedback from those I lead and serve in various arenas in my life...
9. Be less accessible and available when I need to be fully present with key people in my life...I struggle to not fall prey to electronic demands when I should be focused on the situations and people right in front of me...
10. Discover the best places outside of the Cornerstone community where I can invest my time and gifts for the furthering of the Kingdom of God...and I can't be afraid to invite others to come together to help facilitate real change in this world...
11. Finish the writing, editing, and publishing of the book I have been writing about my life and student engagement in the Zambia Project and beyond...it is time to get it done and time to get it out...and will require that which I find often to be so hard to do...but by the end of 2011, I want to be holding this book in my hand...and let the story God has been writing be known...
With prayers for courage and discipline and focus to pursue these dreams and passions God's Spirit has been stirring in my heart...here's to a new year indeed!
Tuesday, December 28, 2010
Thursday, December 9, 2010
Be Rich This Christmas by Andy Stanley
I know some people who are great at getting rich. But when it comes to being rich, I'm less than impressed.
In their defense, they have many problems non-rich people don't have. For instance, they need to come up with a retirement plan to ensure their golden years really are golden. I know lots of people who are faced with decisions about trading in slightly used cars, remodeling a room of their house, or upgrading to the latest, largest LCD. And who doesn't have a hard time planning how or where to spend their two weeks of paid vacation?
These are rich people problems. I have them. And my guess is one of these sounds familiar to you too.
Don't think you're rich? If you earn more than $37,000 a year, you are in the top four percent of wage earners—in the world. Congratulations! You're rich.
The thing is, "rich" is a moving target. When you were 16, $37,000 would have made you feel rich. A mortgage, a few kids, and two cars later, the same can't be said.
Throughout our lives we aspire to earn more money and accumulate more stuff. But when we earn more and collect more, our desire for more just grows.
What if we spent less time worrying about getting rich and more time and energy being rich?
The average American spends 67 days every year watching TV, but only 48 hours serving others. This December, are you focused on getting rich or being rich?
Let me help you shift gears this Christmas. Support a cause. Be rich.
In their defense, they have many problems non-rich people don't have. For instance, they need to come up with a retirement plan to ensure their golden years really are golden. I know lots of people who are faced with decisions about trading in slightly used cars, remodeling a room of their house, or upgrading to the latest, largest LCD. And who doesn't have a hard time planning how or where to spend their two weeks of paid vacation?
These are rich people problems. I have them. And my guess is one of these sounds familiar to you too.
Don't think you're rich? If you earn more than $37,000 a year, you are in the top four percent of wage earners—in the world. Congratulations! You're rich.
The thing is, "rich" is a moving target. When you were 16, $37,000 would have made you feel rich. A mortgage, a few kids, and two cars later, the same can't be said.
Throughout our lives we aspire to earn more money and accumulate more stuff. But when we earn more and collect more, our desire for more just grows.
What if we spent less time worrying about getting rich and more time and energy being rich?
The average American spends 67 days every year watching TV, but only 48 hours serving others. This December, are you focused on getting rich or being rich?
Let me help you shift gears this Christmas. Support a cause. Be rich.
Monday, December 6, 2010
A Chapel Message on the Incarnation: GOD WANTS YOU ON THE FLOOR
Here's some notes from my latest chapel talk at CU...
Implications of the Incarnation:
A Journey from Spectator to Participant in God’s Kingdom Ventures
The Power of Jesus’ Engagement:
JOHN 1:14…
The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.
HEBREWS 2:14-18
Because God’s children are human beings—made of flesh and blood—the Son also became flesh and blood. For only as a human being could he die, and only by dying could he break the power of the devil, who had the power of death. Only in this way could he set free all who have lived their lives as slaves to the fear of dying. We also know that the Son did not come to help angels; he came to help the descendants of Abraham. Therefore, it was necessary for him to be made in every respect like us, his brothers and sisters, so that he could be our merciful and faithful High Priest before God. Then he could offer a sacrifice that would take away the sins of the people. Since he himself has gone through suffering and testing, he is able to help us when we are being tested.
Some of the differences between the bench and the field…
*Watching things happen vs. determining the outcome
*Making comments about what is wrong vs. being part of a solution
*Wishing you could be part of something cool vs. living out a Kingdom-sized dream
An Old Testament Model…
NEHEMIAH 4:13-23:
So I stationed armed guards at the most vulnerable places of the wall and assigned people by families with their swords, lances, and bows. After looking things over I stood up and spoke to the nobles, officials, and everyone else: "Don't be afraid of them. Put your minds on the Master, great and awesome, and then fight for your brothers, your sons, your daughters, your wives, and your homes." Our enemies learned that we knew all about their plan and that God had frustrated it. And we went back to the wall and went to work. From then on half of my young men worked while the other half stood guard with lances, shields, bows, and mail armor. Military officers served as backup for everyone in Judah who was at work rebuilding the wall. The common laborers held a tool in one hand and a spear in the other. Each of the builders had a sword strapped to his side as he worked. I kept the trumpeter at my side to sound the alert. Then I spoke to the nobles and officials and everyone else: "There's a lot of work going on and we are spread out all along the wall, separated from each other. When you hear the trumpet call, join us there; our God will fight for us.“ And so we kept working, from first light until the stars came out, half of us holding lances. I also instructed the people, "Each person and his helper is to stay inside Jerusalem—guards by night and workmen by day." We all slept in our clothes—I, my brothers, my workmen, and the guards backing me up. And each one kept his spear in his hand, even when getting water.
Three factors that keep us sitting getting spiritual splinters…
*DIFFERENT REPUTATION
*RELATIONSHIP RISKS
*FAILURE
ACTS 17:6
“Paul and Silas have turned the rest of the world upside down, and now they are here disturbing our city,” they shouted.
God wants you ON THE FLOOR
*Are you watching God’s work in the world or are you part of His Kingdom strategy being fleshed out among His people?
*Where do you currently need to get into the game and take advantage of a clear opportunity you have to use your gifts to change people’s lives and the world for Jesus’ sake?
Implications of the Incarnation:
A Journey from Spectator to Participant in God’s Kingdom Ventures
The Power of Jesus’ Engagement:
JOHN 1:14…
The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.
HEBREWS 2:14-18
Because God’s children are human beings—made of flesh and blood—the Son also became flesh and blood. For only as a human being could he die, and only by dying could he break the power of the devil, who had the power of death. Only in this way could he set free all who have lived their lives as slaves to the fear of dying. We also know that the Son did not come to help angels; he came to help the descendants of Abraham. Therefore, it was necessary for him to be made in every respect like us, his brothers and sisters, so that he could be our merciful and faithful High Priest before God. Then he could offer a sacrifice that would take away the sins of the people. Since he himself has gone through suffering and testing, he is able to help us when we are being tested.
Some of the differences between the bench and the field…
*Watching things happen vs. determining the outcome
*Making comments about what is wrong vs. being part of a solution
*Wishing you could be part of something cool vs. living out a Kingdom-sized dream
An Old Testament Model…
NEHEMIAH 4:13-23:
So I stationed armed guards at the most vulnerable places of the wall and assigned people by families with their swords, lances, and bows. After looking things over I stood up and spoke to the nobles, officials, and everyone else: "Don't be afraid of them. Put your minds on the Master, great and awesome, and then fight for your brothers, your sons, your daughters, your wives, and your homes." Our enemies learned that we knew all about their plan and that God had frustrated it. And we went back to the wall and went to work. From then on half of my young men worked while the other half stood guard with lances, shields, bows, and mail armor. Military officers served as backup for everyone in Judah who was at work rebuilding the wall. The common laborers held a tool in one hand and a spear in the other. Each of the builders had a sword strapped to his side as he worked. I kept the trumpeter at my side to sound the alert. Then I spoke to the nobles and officials and everyone else: "There's a lot of work going on and we are spread out all along the wall, separated from each other. When you hear the trumpet call, join us there; our God will fight for us.“ And so we kept working, from first light until the stars came out, half of us holding lances. I also instructed the people, "Each person and his helper is to stay inside Jerusalem—guards by night and workmen by day." We all slept in our clothes—I, my brothers, my workmen, and the guards backing me up. And each one kept his spear in his hand, even when getting water.
Three factors that keep us sitting getting spiritual splinters…
*DIFFERENT REPUTATION
*RELATIONSHIP RISKS
*FAILURE
ACTS 17:6
“Paul and Silas have turned the rest of the world upside down, and now they are here disturbing our city,” they shouted.
God wants you ON THE FLOOR
*Are you watching God’s work in the world or are you part of His Kingdom strategy being fleshed out among His people?
*Where do you currently need to get into the game and take advantage of a clear opportunity you have to use your gifts to change people’s lives and the world for Jesus’ sake?
Saturday, December 4, 2010
Some Thoughts on Being a Sports Fan Who Follows Jesus
Today's the first home game for the CU men's hoops team...we have a fabulous team this year and my family and I love being fans at their games in the long Midwest winters...here's my latest editorial writing for the CU school paper on what is means to be a fan at CU...off to cheer on the Golden Eagles...
If you were to ask me what some of my favorite memories of my first 16 months on the CU campus are, I’d be able to share all kinds of stories about Terra Firma events, global justice awareness activities, meals in the dining hall, meaningful classroom interactions, and hundreds of meetings and conversations with staff and students in the CU community.
However, I’d also have to tell you that my CU highlight moments include plenty of time spent in the bleachers or on the sidelines of our CU athletic fields. I am a sports junkie/nerd who is perfectly content attending and watching any kind of athletic contest, except for horse racing or NASCAR races; I think it has something to do with the lack of human movement and the lack of presence of a ball or other object being moved around! The sad truth is that I’m well on my way to raising another generation of this type of passionate sports fan, and one of my most distinct CU memories is my seven year old son waving his gold CU spirit towel right in Dr. Ostrander’s face at the WHAC Basketball Championship Game last March!
I love athletics, love hanging out with athletes, and love being a CU fan. But I also sometimes wonder how my faith and my being a fan are connected in my life. I’ve actually pondered questions like “Does God care about how we cheer at games? Can Christians really care passionately about the outcome of sporting events? How does the fact that I am part of the CU community influence what I choose to do at the athletic contests I attend?” I am fully aware that thinking about these questions may not be normal, but as I’ve reflected on them I think they really are worth consideration in an American culture that reveres and is in many ways fixated with its athletic events.
So here are a few thoughts in response to those questions as we consider what it means to be a CU fan…
1. It is a good thing to attend and be engaged at our sporting events! There is a powerful sense of community that is developed at these events and your presence and participation makes a huge impact on the lives of hundreds of students on our campus who are passionately pursuing the calling God has invited them to pursue with the gifts and passions He’s placed in their lives. It is so appropriate to be there in big numbers and to be there with loud voices!
2. I believe that the best kind of cheering focuses on celebrating what our teams and athletes do well. Your energy and feedback can and does stir them to continue to pursue excellence and often helps them sustain their effort when they are fatigued or struggling at a moment in the match or event. I know that there is an incredible temptation to focus our energy and words on the negative things that the other team’s players are doing. I’ve seen and laughed at the crazy ways crowds on TV and in other settings have tried to distract, intimidate and even humiliate athletes on opposing teams. But I’m always drawn to the fact that there is a person behind the player, and I’m convinced that the words of Scripture paint a picture where God loves when our words inspire and encourage rather than potentially harm or damage, even in the heat of competition.
I love the words of Solomon in Proverbs 16:24 (NIV): “Gracious words are a honeycomb, sweet to the soul and healing to the bones.”
3. There is a unique reality as a Christian community that how we compete and cheer and what we do as fans does represent who Jesus is to the folks from outside our community who are playing and watching along with us in athletic settings. I’ve received more than enough letters and emails from people after games as an administrator and coach that have made me quite certain that they definitely are watching us as Christians in that context. It might seem a bit unfair or judgmental to us, but it also is a reality that offers us an incredible opportunity to demonstrate what the character and nature of Christ looks like. We simply are different as a community of fans because we proclaim Jesus as Lord of our lives. Our culture and other spectators can form impressions of both Christ and His church from coming to a game against Cornerstone University. That is an incredible opportunity for us to bless people and honor Christ in this competitive cauldron. It’s one I am excited about and hope you will embrace as you live out your college life and your faith as a CU fan.
I resonate with the vision Paul offers for us in Philippians 2:13-14 (Message): “Do everything readily and cheerfully—no bickering, no second-guessing allowed! Go out into the world uncorrupted, a breath of fresh air in this squalid and polluted society. Provide people with a glimpse of good living and of the living God.”
I just finished watching a fall season of great crowds at soccer and volleyball and cross country events; and the winter months promise some incredible basketball action from some very good CU squads; and there’s new softball fan seating awaiting us in the spring…
I’ll look forward to seeing you cheering long and loud at these unique CU events, and I’m praying the world will see Jesus in us and through us as we live out the calling of being Christian fans…
GO CU!
If you were to ask me what some of my favorite memories of my first 16 months on the CU campus are, I’d be able to share all kinds of stories about Terra Firma events, global justice awareness activities, meals in the dining hall, meaningful classroom interactions, and hundreds of meetings and conversations with staff and students in the CU community.
However, I’d also have to tell you that my CU highlight moments include plenty of time spent in the bleachers or on the sidelines of our CU athletic fields. I am a sports junkie/nerd who is perfectly content attending and watching any kind of athletic contest, except for horse racing or NASCAR races; I think it has something to do with the lack of human movement and the lack of presence of a ball or other object being moved around! The sad truth is that I’m well on my way to raising another generation of this type of passionate sports fan, and one of my most distinct CU memories is my seven year old son waving his gold CU spirit towel right in Dr. Ostrander’s face at the WHAC Basketball Championship Game last March!
I love athletics, love hanging out with athletes, and love being a CU fan. But I also sometimes wonder how my faith and my being a fan are connected in my life. I’ve actually pondered questions like “Does God care about how we cheer at games? Can Christians really care passionately about the outcome of sporting events? How does the fact that I am part of the CU community influence what I choose to do at the athletic contests I attend?” I am fully aware that thinking about these questions may not be normal, but as I’ve reflected on them I think they really are worth consideration in an American culture that reveres and is in many ways fixated with its athletic events.
So here are a few thoughts in response to those questions as we consider what it means to be a CU fan…
1. It is a good thing to attend and be engaged at our sporting events! There is a powerful sense of community that is developed at these events and your presence and participation makes a huge impact on the lives of hundreds of students on our campus who are passionately pursuing the calling God has invited them to pursue with the gifts and passions He’s placed in their lives. It is so appropriate to be there in big numbers and to be there with loud voices!
2. I believe that the best kind of cheering focuses on celebrating what our teams and athletes do well. Your energy and feedback can and does stir them to continue to pursue excellence and often helps them sustain their effort when they are fatigued or struggling at a moment in the match or event. I know that there is an incredible temptation to focus our energy and words on the negative things that the other team’s players are doing. I’ve seen and laughed at the crazy ways crowds on TV and in other settings have tried to distract, intimidate and even humiliate athletes on opposing teams. But I’m always drawn to the fact that there is a person behind the player, and I’m convinced that the words of Scripture paint a picture where God loves when our words inspire and encourage rather than potentially harm or damage, even in the heat of competition.
I love the words of Solomon in Proverbs 16:24 (NIV): “Gracious words are a honeycomb, sweet to the soul and healing to the bones.”
3. There is a unique reality as a Christian community that how we compete and cheer and what we do as fans does represent who Jesus is to the folks from outside our community who are playing and watching along with us in athletic settings. I’ve received more than enough letters and emails from people after games as an administrator and coach that have made me quite certain that they definitely are watching us as Christians in that context. It might seem a bit unfair or judgmental to us, but it also is a reality that offers us an incredible opportunity to demonstrate what the character and nature of Christ looks like. We simply are different as a community of fans because we proclaim Jesus as Lord of our lives. Our culture and other spectators can form impressions of both Christ and His church from coming to a game against Cornerstone University. That is an incredible opportunity for us to bless people and honor Christ in this competitive cauldron. It’s one I am excited about and hope you will embrace as you live out your college life and your faith as a CU fan.
I resonate with the vision Paul offers for us in Philippians 2:13-14 (Message): “Do everything readily and cheerfully—no bickering, no second-guessing allowed! Go out into the world uncorrupted, a breath of fresh air in this squalid and polluted society. Provide people with a glimpse of good living and of the living God.”
I just finished watching a fall season of great crowds at soccer and volleyball and cross country events; and the winter months promise some incredible basketball action from some very good CU squads; and there’s new softball fan seating awaiting us in the spring…
I’ll look forward to seeing you cheering long and loud at these unique CU events, and I’m praying the world will see Jesus in us and through us as we live out the calling of being Christian fans…
GO CU!
Wednesday, December 1, 2010
Remembering Getting Tested for HIV on World AIDS Day
It is World AIDS Day again...a day that has become a key one on my calendar over the last several years...I find myself wearing orange orphan shirts and almost always am involved with some meaningful awareness and response events on campuses with my students...and today is no exception at Cornerstone...and as I was thinking about the impact of this pandemic on so many people near and far I call friends in our world, I remembered one of my most poignant encounters with HIV...and one of the most meaningful and motivating...so below is a post from a couple years ago I wrote after getting tested for HIV a few years ago at a local clinic...may we see what I posted as my facebook picture become reality as we promote testing and prevention and treatment even still today so that no children will be born in 2015 with a positive HIV status...I'm off to get ready for a good day here thinking of God's invitation to love and care and support those impact now and in the future...
This morning I drove over to Wheaton College and picked up a good friend, one of my former students, and we headed over on a very cold Chicago morning to the DuPage County Health Department offices. We had both been there before to get shots before heading to Africa, but this visit was a little different. We were there to take an HIV test so we would know our status in relationship to having the presence of HIV antibodies on our body. Now to be honest, both of us admittedly felt a bit strange doing this at first. And even for many who might regularly read this blog you may very well think that it was an even stranger thing for us to do.
It was something that both of us wanted to do and felt like we needed to do as people who have been and continue to be deeply concerned about the issue of HIV/AIDS both in Africa and here in America. And yet to be honest, as an evangelical Christian it might seem to many of my friends like something unnecessary or perhaps even unthinkable due to the nature of the HIV virus being most often transmitted here in America through sexual contact or intravenous drug use involving needles due to most of the cases of mother to child transmission through birth or breast milk being prevented through medical care. (although not always the case) We both essentially had zero risk factors for testing positive because of our lack of drug use and choosing to abstain from sex till marriage and only having sex with a spouse for a lifetime up till this point. These decisions have come from our own decisions to seek to with the help of God's grace to pursue this lifestyle out of what we believe our faith as a Christ follower calls us to do. And yet these lifestyle choices are obviously not shared or embraced or acted out by many of our friends and fellow human beings who we love, care about, and want to be healthy...
We have both seen and heard about the incredible fear and stigma and even discrimination that takes place with those who are HIV positive, along with the very real physical impact and suffering that many living with HIV or AIDS are experiencing worldwide...more than anything else related to this disease, I long for the prevention of contracting AIDS and to stop its spread for people both in Africa and here in the USA and Chicago...and for those who are HIV positive but do not know it yet I want them to immediately get the medicines needed to help them stay healthy and be able to feel good about themselves and their role in society...and these critical things cannot happen if people do not feel free or comfortable to get tested and know their own status...and if people like me and you are willing to get tested, we can make it more normal, more accepted, and less scary for anyone who wants to know if they are HIV positive, and even more acceptable to talk about this disease so we can help reduce the infection rate of this life-changing disease...
Here is my experience this morning...even as we walked into the health department building, I found myself three times in a row having to tell different folks that I wanted to get an HIV test, and wondering just a bit what they were thinking about me...but to be honest, I didn't feel hesitant or ashamed because I knew it was a good thing for me to do...I was brought into a private room and was asked a series of questions concerning my risk factors and given basic information about HIV and what would happen if the result was positive...they even took down my address because sometimes people don't stay around to hear the results in the 20 minute period while you wait for your results...my counselor was a very nice young lady who seemed both surprised and pleased at how I answered the questions about my sexual experiences and needle use...I know she was actually quite overwhelmed when my 21 year old friend told her he was a virgin...after a finger poke I walked out to the waiting area where she would come find me with the results after the 20 minutes needed to do the analysis of my blood in a quick rapid test...(by the way, the test was free, I was treated very well, and I just walked in and was out in under an hour)
As I sat in the waiting room chair I thought and chatted with my friend about what these moments must feel like for those who were unsure or fearful about what the results might show...results that have life long implications...we thought about our Zambian friends who don't want to get tested if there are not medications available or the hidden lifestyle choices that might be revealed and disapproved of in DuPage County by people they are close to in their lives...it served as an experience producing empathy and understanding for those who may be dealing with the impact of this virus...and hopefully produces an opportunity to speak into the lives of those who may need to be tested and helps encourage all types of folks to get tested and know their status and reduce the stigma that still unfortunately is part of cultures all across the world...
My counselor motioned for me to go back into the room with her and she asked me to sit down and looked at my results one more time...there was a split second where I found myself wondering "WHAT IF" even on a personal level before she told me my result was that I was negative in terms of my HIV status...and despite the fact that I knew logically that would be the case, it again allowed me to experience a taste of what it feels like to be that person wondering in that moment...as I walked out of the office after thanking her for the service she had provided me there were a few things that stuck with me after getting tested:
1. It is powerful and meaningful to enter into positive shared experiences so we can build rapport and get on the same ground when we have opportunity to not stay at a distance from those who we care about but may have different life experiences...
2. Getting tested and discovering your status in terms of HIV is easy to do and is something everyone should consider doing, especially if you have any doubt about what your status might be, regardless of what you think others might think of your behavioral choices
3. Choosing to live by the vision God has set out in Scripture for relationships is an aid in maintaining health and peace in our own personal lives
4. AIDS is an issue that we must not ignore in Africa, in Washington DC, in our own neighborhood...it deserves our attention, education, compassion, and action...
5. You cannot live life based on the fears of what others might think about you when you know you should do the right thing regardless of their possible reaction and response...living in the light rather than the dark is always the best choice...
It was a morning I won't soon forget...and one I hope many others will soon count as a shared experience with me in the days to come...
This morning I drove over to Wheaton College and picked up a good friend, one of my former students, and we headed over on a very cold Chicago morning to the DuPage County Health Department offices. We had both been there before to get shots before heading to Africa, but this visit was a little different. We were there to take an HIV test so we would know our status in relationship to having the presence of HIV antibodies on our body. Now to be honest, both of us admittedly felt a bit strange doing this at first. And even for many who might regularly read this blog you may very well think that it was an even stranger thing for us to do.
It was something that both of us wanted to do and felt like we needed to do as people who have been and continue to be deeply concerned about the issue of HIV/AIDS both in Africa and here in America. And yet to be honest, as an evangelical Christian it might seem to many of my friends like something unnecessary or perhaps even unthinkable due to the nature of the HIV virus being most often transmitted here in America through sexual contact or intravenous drug use involving needles due to most of the cases of mother to child transmission through birth or breast milk being prevented through medical care. (although not always the case) We both essentially had zero risk factors for testing positive because of our lack of drug use and choosing to abstain from sex till marriage and only having sex with a spouse for a lifetime up till this point. These decisions have come from our own decisions to seek to with the help of God's grace to pursue this lifestyle out of what we believe our faith as a Christ follower calls us to do. And yet these lifestyle choices are obviously not shared or embraced or acted out by many of our friends and fellow human beings who we love, care about, and want to be healthy...
We have both seen and heard about the incredible fear and stigma and even discrimination that takes place with those who are HIV positive, along with the very real physical impact and suffering that many living with HIV or AIDS are experiencing worldwide...more than anything else related to this disease, I long for the prevention of contracting AIDS and to stop its spread for people both in Africa and here in the USA and Chicago...and for those who are HIV positive but do not know it yet I want them to immediately get the medicines needed to help them stay healthy and be able to feel good about themselves and their role in society...and these critical things cannot happen if people do not feel free or comfortable to get tested and know their own status...and if people like me and you are willing to get tested, we can make it more normal, more accepted, and less scary for anyone who wants to know if they are HIV positive, and even more acceptable to talk about this disease so we can help reduce the infection rate of this life-changing disease...
Here is my experience this morning...even as we walked into the health department building, I found myself three times in a row having to tell different folks that I wanted to get an HIV test, and wondering just a bit what they were thinking about me...but to be honest, I didn't feel hesitant or ashamed because I knew it was a good thing for me to do...I was brought into a private room and was asked a series of questions concerning my risk factors and given basic information about HIV and what would happen if the result was positive...they even took down my address because sometimes people don't stay around to hear the results in the 20 minute period while you wait for your results...my counselor was a very nice young lady who seemed both surprised and pleased at how I answered the questions about my sexual experiences and needle use...I know she was actually quite overwhelmed when my 21 year old friend told her he was a virgin...after a finger poke I walked out to the waiting area where she would come find me with the results after the 20 minutes needed to do the analysis of my blood in a quick rapid test...(by the way, the test was free, I was treated very well, and I just walked in and was out in under an hour)
As I sat in the waiting room chair I thought and chatted with my friend about what these moments must feel like for those who were unsure or fearful about what the results might show...results that have life long implications...we thought about our Zambian friends who don't want to get tested if there are not medications available or the hidden lifestyle choices that might be revealed and disapproved of in DuPage County by people they are close to in their lives...it served as an experience producing empathy and understanding for those who may be dealing with the impact of this virus...and hopefully produces an opportunity to speak into the lives of those who may need to be tested and helps encourage all types of folks to get tested and know their status and reduce the stigma that still unfortunately is part of cultures all across the world...
My counselor motioned for me to go back into the room with her and she asked me to sit down and looked at my results one more time...there was a split second where I found myself wondering "WHAT IF" even on a personal level before she told me my result was that I was negative in terms of my HIV status...and despite the fact that I knew logically that would be the case, it again allowed me to experience a taste of what it feels like to be that person wondering in that moment...as I walked out of the office after thanking her for the service she had provided me there were a few things that stuck with me after getting tested:
1. It is powerful and meaningful to enter into positive shared experiences so we can build rapport and get on the same ground when we have opportunity to not stay at a distance from those who we care about but may have different life experiences...
2. Getting tested and discovering your status in terms of HIV is easy to do and is something everyone should consider doing, especially if you have any doubt about what your status might be, regardless of what you think others might think of your behavioral choices
3. Choosing to live by the vision God has set out in Scripture for relationships is an aid in maintaining health and peace in our own personal lives
4. AIDS is an issue that we must not ignore in Africa, in Washington DC, in our own neighborhood...it deserves our attention, education, compassion, and action...
5. You cannot live life based on the fears of what others might think about you when you know you should do the right thing regardless of their possible reaction and response...living in the light rather than the dark is always the best choice...
It was a morning I won't soon forget...and one I hope many others will soon count as a shared experience with me in the days to come...
Wednesday, November 24, 2010
The Thanksgiving List for 2010
I am enjoying the first days away from work at CU in several months this week up in the great white north of MN...it's a week filled with meals and coffee with long-time friends, time with family, a few sporting events, lots of WII, and some time to read and reflect...so here's a smattering of things that I'm most thankful for as I look back at 2010 and start peering toward 2011...
*Family...near AND far...including parents whose concern for my life never stopped when I left the house and the state...
*Ingrid...turned 40 this year...she's my rock and my greatest source of love and wisdom for all life brings...
*Olivia...so bright and a heart for her friends that's growing...love talking about faith and justice issues with here already...
*Trey...my sports buddy who always is ready for a game of catch or passing the soccer ball around...and who wants to be part of every piece of my life...
*CU in so many ways...a job I get excited about and that is growing...students who love God and are desperate to grow in knowledge and action...the soccer program--players, coaches, trips overseas, and doing something I love...leadership I trust and believe in and who I learn from...and a community to be part of--something so few have in their workplaces...
*Dental care for me when it's not even on the radar of the people I've met in all parts of the world...despite the pain and cost!
*The ability to change thousands of lives thru a soccer match and a basketball game...because we get to share God's blessings to meet the prayers of others...
*The joy of reading and writing and creating...and being allowed to do so almost every single day of my life...
*Friends in places like Charlotte and Chicago and LA and Minneapolis and Atlanta and Houghton and Detroit and Annapolis who I feel safe telling the whole story to about my life, and who sharpen me in ways I can't do on my own...
*The World Cup in Africa this summer...pure fun and joy and bliss...feeling so much a part of something thousands and thousands of miles away...
*ESPN...so shallow, but so true for a sports junkie like me...
*The church...both where I go weekly and so many places across the world...where God's people are at work doing Kingdom stuff in remarkable ways...
*And the blessing of following Jesus for another year...and believing that God's whisper, His voice is indeed worth hearing and obeying in my life...and living and experiencing His presence and power and care in the midst of the struggle and fears and dreams and questions this side of eternity...
The joy of the Lord is indeed my strength...and I am most grateful on a cold early winter night for that joy and peace that trumps all else as I look back at 2010...
*Family...near AND far...including parents whose concern for my life never stopped when I left the house and the state...
*Ingrid...turned 40 this year...she's my rock and my greatest source of love and wisdom for all life brings...
*Olivia...so bright and a heart for her friends that's growing...love talking about faith and justice issues with here already...
*Trey...my sports buddy who always is ready for a game of catch or passing the soccer ball around...and who wants to be part of every piece of my life...
*CU in so many ways...a job I get excited about and that is growing...students who love God and are desperate to grow in knowledge and action...the soccer program--players, coaches, trips overseas, and doing something I love...leadership I trust and believe in and who I learn from...and a community to be part of--something so few have in their workplaces...
*Dental care for me when it's not even on the radar of the people I've met in all parts of the world...despite the pain and cost!
*The ability to change thousands of lives thru a soccer match and a basketball game...because we get to share God's blessings to meet the prayers of others...
*The joy of reading and writing and creating...and being allowed to do so almost every single day of my life...
*Friends in places like Charlotte and Chicago and LA and Minneapolis and Atlanta and Houghton and Detroit and Annapolis who I feel safe telling the whole story to about my life, and who sharpen me in ways I can't do on my own...
*The World Cup in Africa this summer...pure fun and joy and bliss...feeling so much a part of something thousands and thousands of miles away...
*ESPN...so shallow, but so true for a sports junkie like me...
*The church...both where I go weekly and so many places across the world...where God's people are at work doing Kingdom stuff in remarkable ways...
*And the blessing of following Jesus for another year...and believing that God's whisper, His voice is indeed worth hearing and obeying in my life...and living and experiencing His presence and power and care in the midst of the struggle and fears and dreams and questions this side of eternity...
The joy of the Lord is indeed my strength...and I am most grateful on a cold early winter night for that joy and peace that trumps all else as I look back at 2010...
Wednesday, November 17, 2010
HOOPS for H2O: A CU Men's Basketball Event for Clean Water in Kenya
Here's the latest collaborative event between and athletes and our ACTS social justice group on the CU campus:
The Cornerstone University men's basketball program and ACT:S student organization is hosting a unique global fundraising event at CU seeking to raise awareness and resources in the basketball and college campus communities to help provide clean water for a school community serving orphans in Kenya.
When: Wednesday, December 8, 2010 at 7:30 pm
Men's Basketball Game against Aquinas College
Where: The Hansen Center on the CU campus in Grand Rapids
Giving to the cause: All CU students will be invited to make a $5 donation to the project as the typical cost to attend a basketball game. (CU students do not pay to get into home games.) There will also be special water bottles on sale that night at the game, and anyone who attends the game will also be able to make a donation to the well project. All the proceeds from this event will go directly toward the building of a clean water well for a school in Kenya.
The goal: If we are able to raise $5,000 we would be able to fully fund the drilling, building, and community training for a well that will directly and immediately help save and improve the lives and futures of hundreds of school children and their families in Kenya!
Info about the Global Water Crisis: Over 1 billion of the world's most vulnerable people in our world lack daily access to safe and clean water, and water-related diseases cost 443 million school days a year. Clean water is the foundation for other forms of development. Without easy access to water that is safe, countless hours are spent in water collection and household income is spent to purchase water and medical treatment for water-related diseases. Safe, clean water removes the single heaviest burden from the lives of the poorest people in our world. Not having to deal with this daily crisis means time for school and work, life and health, and allows individuals and communities to plan for tomorrow.
Our Partner: Living Water International served over 2 million people in 25 countries in 2009. LWI built 639 new wells and rehabbed 1126 wells globally in the last calendar year. Living Water International exists to demonstrate the love of God by helping communities acquire desperately needed clean water, and to experience "living water"—the gospel of Jesus Christ—which alone satisfies the deepest thirst. To learn more check out: www.water.cc
WEBSITE LINKS:
Information Website: http://hoopsforh2o.com/
Online Donation Website: http://www.firstgiving.com/hoopsforh2o
A Special Christmas Invitation: Advent Conspiracy
All CU students are also invited to consider doing something different for the Christmas season this year. Students are invited to ask their family or friends to choose to make a donation to the CU HOOPS for H2O Project in lieu of receiving a Christmas gift this year. You can invite people to help give the life-changing gift of clean water instead of giving you a present.
You can see more about this idea at the website: www.adventconspiracy.org/water
The Cornerstone University men's basketball program and ACT:S student organization is hosting a unique global fundraising event at CU seeking to raise awareness and resources in the basketball and college campus communities to help provide clean water for a school community serving orphans in Kenya.
When: Wednesday, December 8, 2010 at 7:30 pm
Men's Basketball Game against Aquinas College
Where: The Hansen Center on the CU campus in Grand Rapids
Giving to the cause: All CU students will be invited to make a $5 donation to the project as the typical cost to attend a basketball game. (CU students do not pay to get into home games.) There will also be special water bottles on sale that night at the game, and anyone who attends the game will also be able to make a donation to the well project. All the proceeds from this event will go directly toward the building of a clean water well for a school in Kenya.
The goal: If we are able to raise $5,000 we would be able to fully fund the drilling, building, and community training for a well that will directly and immediately help save and improve the lives and futures of hundreds of school children and their families in Kenya!
Info about the Global Water Crisis: Over 1 billion of the world's most vulnerable people in our world lack daily access to safe and clean water, and water-related diseases cost 443 million school days a year. Clean water is the foundation for other forms of development. Without easy access to water that is safe, countless hours are spent in water collection and household income is spent to purchase water and medical treatment for water-related diseases. Safe, clean water removes the single heaviest burden from the lives of the poorest people in our world. Not having to deal with this daily crisis means time for school and work, life and health, and allows individuals and communities to plan for tomorrow.
Our Partner: Living Water International served over 2 million people in 25 countries in 2009. LWI built 639 new wells and rehabbed 1126 wells globally in the last calendar year. Living Water International exists to demonstrate the love of God by helping communities acquire desperately needed clean water, and to experience "living water"—the gospel of Jesus Christ—which alone satisfies the deepest thirst. To learn more check out: www.water.cc
WEBSITE LINKS:
Information Website: http://hoopsforh2o.com/
Online Donation Website: http://www.firstgiving.com/hoopsforh2o
A Special Christmas Invitation: Advent Conspiracy
All CU students are also invited to consider doing something different for the Christmas season this year. Students are invited to ask their family or friends to choose to make a donation to the CU HOOPS for H2O Project in lieu of receiving a Christmas gift this year. You can invite people to help give the life-changing gift of clean water instead of giving you a present.
You can see more about this idea at the website: www.adventconspiracy.org/water
Tuesday, November 9, 2010
The End Comes So Quickly
So tonight a final whistle from the center referee blows, and at the end the shrill noise, the soccer season of 2010 for a group of young men at CU and their coaches is done...it still feels unexpected and sudden although you know that only one team in the country will end their season with a win and you've come to the point in the schedule where you won't be favored to win in any game you play from now on...and even though I've had many, many years of this particular moment, it still affected me tonight as I stood on the sidelines after our match against Davenport...
And here are some pictures of the feelings and emotions and experiences of a group of guys that have spent almost every single day together for the last three months...
*You see a senior guy with tears streaming down his face proudly telling the rest of the guys that he loves them and loves being part of this CU team...and that love is returned back to him...
*A freshman sits on the bench quietly amazed that his first semester of college is moving so quickly...and wondering how the next three years of soccer will be different than this year a of huge transitions and adjustments...
*A few players refuse to talk to anyone because they really thought they were primed to win and are left wondering if they could have done more…
*A sophomore guy wipes away tears because he just isn't ready for this season to end...and for the unique experiences the soccer season offers for his life and make it the best time of the year...
*A captain who tore his ACL weeks before the season was to begin embraces his brother with frustration over what he imagines he could have done to help the season go longer and looks forward to next August more than anyone can imagine..
*Several guys slowly unwrap tape from their legs with their bodies bumped and bruised and beat up from 3 months of intense physical work and contact...
*Players who have played few if any minutes on the field this year still mourn the end of this season where they have practiced and competed and made memories and friendships even if they haven't scored any goals or made spectacular saves...
*The coaching staff picks up litter and packs up the ball bag one last time feeling unfulfilled and yet incredibly proud of the growth of the players and men they've invested their lives deeply into at the expense of family time, other career opportunities, and daily contentment...
*A group of fans mourns the loss of one of their centerpiece social activities...including the girlfriends and roommates and family members who cried and cheered with all the good and the bad moments...
*And I walked away with one of our senior captains and leading scorer this year talking about what in the world you do when soccer stops after more than a decade of being focused on it as your job, your passion, your calling...
The end comes so very quickly...and with the ending comes a bit of sadness, shock, and strangely a bit of relief from the stress of games and performance expectations...but in the midst of the end comes a new season of life and soccer we now look ahead to...and that forward glance is filled with optimism at all the players returning, the gratefulness for having people to live all of life with from the this community, and the challenge of making oneself more equipped as a person and player to excel in the next season to come...
It is now past midnight and I know my son Trey went to bed sad tonight that he and I won't be standing on the sidelines of the WHAC Championship Game Saturday afternoon...and I'll feel a little lost tomorrow as I drive on to campus not being able to look forward to games on the weekends and being able to swing by practice and share my heart with these guys on my way home...but more than anything, I am filled and blessed to be part of a group and season that gives life to me and all who are part of the soccer program at CU...and I'll smile thinking how in 2 months many of us will be playing soccer with kids and teams in the Dominican Republic doing something we love in order to serve the poor in our world and experience Jesus and His love in a fresh way as a team...the end has come far too quickly...but for this team of followers of Jesus who come together to try and play the beautiful game in a most beautiful way the best seasons are still to come...morning will come after this night where the season ended...and the God who invited us and brought us together to play on His behalf has even more to come in the future than we can ask or imagine because His power and love resides in us...
With Thanks for this Season and Hope for the Seasons to Come...
And here are some pictures of the feelings and emotions and experiences of a group of guys that have spent almost every single day together for the last three months...
*You see a senior guy with tears streaming down his face proudly telling the rest of the guys that he loves them and loves being part of this CU team...and that love is returned back to him...
*A freshman sits on the bench quietly amazed that his first semester of college is moving so quickly...and wondering how the next three years of soccer will be different than this year a of huge transitions and adjustments...
*A few players refuse to talk to anyone because they really thought they were primed to win and are left wondering if they could have done more…
*A sophomore guy wipes away tears because he just isn't ready for this season to end...and for the unique experiences the soccer season offers for his life and make it the best time of the year...
*A captain who tore his ACL weeks before the season was to begin embraces his brother with frustration over what he imagines he could have done to help the season go longer and looks forward to next August more than anyone can imagine..
*Several guys slowly unwrap tape from their legs with their bodies bumped and bruised and beat up from 3 months of intense physical work and contact...
*Players who have played few if any minutes on the field this year still mourn the end of this season where they have practiced and competed and made memories and friendships even if they haven't scored any goals or made spectacular saves...
*The coaching staff picks up litter and packs up the ball bag one last time feeling unfulfilled and yet incredibly proud of the growth of the players and men they've invested their lives deeply into at the expense of family time, other career opportunities, and daily contentment...
*A group of fans mourns the loss of one of their centerpiece social activities...including the girlfriends and roommates and family members who cried and cheered with all the good and the bad moments...
*And I walked away with one of our senior captains and leading scorer this year talking about what in the world you do when soccer stops after more than a decade of being focused on it as your job, your passion, your calling...
The end comes so very quickly...and with the ending comes a bit of sadness, shock, and strangely a bit of relief from the stress of games and performance expectations...but in the midst of the end comes a new season of life and soccer we now look ahead to...and that forward glance is filled with optimism at all the players returning, the gratefulness for having people to live all of life with from the this community, and the challenge of making oneself more equipped as a person and player to excel in the next season to come...
It is now past midnight and I know my son Trey went to bed sad tonight that he and I won't be standing on the sidelines of the WHAC Championship Game Saturday afternoon...and I'll feel a little lost tomorrow as I drive on to campus not being able to look forward to games on the weekends and being able to swing by practice and share my heart with these guys on my way home...but more than anything, I am filled and blessed to be part of a group and season that gives life to me and all who are part of the soccer program at CU...and I'll smile thinking how in 2 months many of us will be playing soccer with kids and teams in the Dominican Republic doing something we love in order to serve the poor in our world and experience Jesus and His love in a fresh way as a team...the end has come far too quickly...but for this team of followers of Jesus who come together to try and play the beautiful game in a most beautiful way the best seasons are still to come...morning will come after this night where the season ended...and the God who invited us and brought us together to play on His behalf has even more to come in the future than we can ask or imagine because His power and love resides in us...
With Thanks for this Season and Hope for the Seasons to Come...
Tuesday, October 26, 2010
A Love That Runs Deep
I admit it...I love the fall...in many ways for the last 15 or so years of my life it has been the busiest time of my year...and I guess to be honest, I'm pretty much a guy who thrives on activity and being engaged in the high school and college communities I've been part of...but it's also more than that...I love the often perfect weather that seems to show up in the MIDWEST in the months of September and October...I love more mundane things like college football Saturdays...and I love all the new things that fill our family life as we re-enter the school year season and get connected to new friends and new experiences...
And I love one other thing that I've even reconnected with again this fall...the beautiful game we call soccer in the USA and the joy of being part of a team that plays a season...these two months are forever etched in my own yearly calendar as the times when I'm supposed to be on a sideline watching diagonal through balls get played, head balls won, and half-volleys cracked into the corner of goals...and it's something I've fallen in love with beyond my expectations...
This fall of 2010 has been one of the busiest in recent memory in terms of activities, new programs, lots of relationships, management responsibilities, and time required at our various CU campus initiatives...often times, the schedule threatened to exhaust me and leave me worn out to the point where I've found myself losing a bit of the fire and passion for what God has called me to do...
And in the midst of those moments and seasons of life, I've discovered that the antidote I need to inject into my life is to spend time with something I truly love...something that strangely restores my energy and enthusiasm instead of wiping me out...these moments are often to be with the people that I love the most...long time friends and Ingrid, Olivia, and Trey...creating memories with them makes my heart full and fills back up those wells of passion and joy...
And then perhaps most strangely for so many of my peers and even my fellow Americans, I find that my heart needs for me to walk out to the soccer pitch...a few years ago, I ended up having to walk away from the fields where a major chunk of my heart was poured out and built strong for many, many falls in a row...I missed coaching and its emotional roller coaster ride for sure...but more than that I missed being part of the sport...being part of the game the world loves in a hands-on way...being part of a bunch of guys that care so deeply that they commit almost silly amounts of time and emotion to its pursuit...
The soccer coach here at CU has become one of my best friends quickly on the campus and graciously has invited me to step back inside the soccer world in a small but significant way for me...the days when I walk from my office to the practice field are ones that cause me to walk with a smile on my face...and I still even find myself going back to old habits as I'll wear some CU soccer gear to the office on game days...
And when I stand on the sidelines during our matches, I am reminded of how good it is that God created these things in our world that give us great joy, great pleasure, great heartbreak...things that we do very much love...and I often offer these strange prayers of thanks for this game that I've fallen in love with...a game that has brought into my life many of the people whom I love most deeply...a game that has enabled me to fall in love with the cultures and peoples all over the world...a game that I love coaching my son in as he cracks a left footed volley to my great surprise...a game that has helped allow me to connect in new places every time I've made a major transition in my life to a new place...a game that I grew up playing but is something that I seemingly enjoy and treasure even more as I age...
The soccer schedule is winding down for Trey and the CU guys this very week...and I'm already feeling that tinge of sadness as winter will soon be here and soccer on grass will disappear around here...but in my heart, a love will still burn and flicker...and I reflect on the truth of Proverbs 4 where Solomon writes about how our heart is indeed the very "wellspring of life" for us...and I am reminded that I Corinthians 5 rings true as the love Christ pours out upon us does in fact compel us to pursue with passion that which God invites us to be part of in His world...
The other day I went out to practice on a gorgeous October afternoon and offered a quick reading of I Corinthians 13 and reminded myself and a bunch of college soccer players how blessed we are all to love what God has gifted us to do...how beautiful the love is that teammates have for one another as they share these truly unique corporate experiences...and how remarkable it is for us to be able to create memories and moments that will forever shape and stay with us as a Christian soccer community built upon a love for a beautiful game, for each other, for the Kingdom work it allows us to do as we live and bask in a love that runs so deep...
Three things will last forever...faith, hope, and love--and the greatest of these is love...I CORINTHIANS 13:13
And I love one other thing that I've even reconnected with again this fall...the beautiful game we call soccer in the USA and the joy of being part of a team that plays a season...these two months are forever etched in my own yearly calendar as the times when I'm supposed to be on a sideline watching diagonal through balls get played, head balls won, and half-volleys cracked into the corner of goals...and it's something I've fallen in love with beyond my expectations...
This fall of 2010 has been one of the busiest in recent memory in terms of activities, new programs, lots of relationships, management responsibilities, and time required at our various CU campus initiatives...often times, the schedule threatened to exhaust me and leave me worn out to the point where I've found myself losing a bit of the fire and passion for what God has called me to do...
And in the midst of those moments and seasons of life, I've discovered that the antidote I need to inject into my life is to spend time with something I truly love...something that strangely restores my energy and enthusiasm instead of wiping me out...these moments are often to be with the people that I love the most...long time friends and Ingrid, Olivia, and Trey...creating memories with them makes my heart full and fills back up those wells of passion and joy...
And then perhaps most strangely for so many of my peers and even my fellow Americans, I find that my heart needs for me to walk out to the soccer pitch...a few years ago, I ended up having to walk away from the fields where a major chunk of my heart was poured out and built strong for many, many falls in a row...I missed coaching and its emotional roller coaster ride for sure...but more than that I missed being part of the sport...being part of the game the world loves in a hands-on way...being part of a bunch of guys that care so deeply that they commit almost silly amounts of time and emotion to its pursuit...
The soccer coach here at CU has become one of my best friends quickly on the campus and graciously has invited me to step back inside the soccer world in a small but significant way for me...the days when I walk from my office to the practice field are ones that cause me to walk with a smile on my face...and I still even find myself going back to old habits as I'll wear some CU soccer gear to the office on game days...
And when I stand on the sidelines during our matches, I am reminded of how good it is that God created these things in our world that give us great joy, great pleasure, great heartbreak...things that we do very much love...and I often offer these strange prayers of thanks for this game that I've fallen in love with...a game that has brought into my life many of the people whom I love most deeply...a game that has enabled me to fall in love with the cultures and peoples all over the world...a game that I love coaching my son in as he cracks a left footed volley to my great surprise...a game that has helped allow me to connect in new places every time I've made a major transition in my life to a new place...a game that I grew up playing but is something that I seemingly enjoy and treasure even more as I age...
The soccer schedule is winding down for Trey and the CU guys this very week...and I'm already feeling that tinge of sadness as winter will soon be here and soccer on grass will disappear around here...but in my heart, a love will still burn and flicker...and I reflect on the truth of Proverbs 4 where Solomon writes about how our heart is indeed the very "wellspring of life" for us...and I am reminded that I Corinthians 5 rings true as the love Christ pours out upon us does in fact compel us to pursue with passion that which God invites us to be part of in His world...
The other day I went out to practice on a gorgeous October afternoon and offered a quick reading of I Corinthians 13 and reminded myself and a bunch of college soccer players how blessed we are all to love what God has gifted us to do...how beautiful the love is that teammates have for one another as they share these truly unique corporate experiences...and how remarkable it is for us to be able to create memories and moments that will forever shape and stay with us as a Christian soccer community built upon a love for a beautiful game, for each other, for the Kingdom work it allows us to do as we live and bask in a love that runs so deep...
Three things will last forever...faith, hope, and love--and the greatest of these is love...I CORINTHIANS 13:13
Wednesday, October 20, 2010
Weeping Because of Malaria...
I did something tonight that I've done several times before, but hadn't done in quite a while...I wept for the children and families in sub-Saharan Africa...I wept not out of pity or guilt, but because of the personal stories I encountered in watching a documentary filmed to raise awareness and response to the global health pandemic of malaria...
I screened a documentary for a bunch of students here at CU concerned about global poverty and justice issues called WHEN THE NIGHT COMES...it's a piece done by some of the folks who did the Invisible Children documentary and was sponsored by the UN and ONE CAMPAIGN groups...we just completed hosting a major malaria event called Night of Nets where we raised several thousand dollars at a CU soccer match and will be able to distribute over 1000 insecticide treated malaria bed nets when he head to Zambia in May for families at great risk of being affected by this awful disease...
I've probably shown over 100 documentary style pieces done concerning issues in Africa, and I like to think I'm fairly aware of some of the impact lack of resources and as Bill Gates calls it "the accident of geography" has upon many people's global situations and life challenges...
But this particular film was exceptionally well done and the filmmakers had access and demonstrated great sensitivity in telling and showing life stories in northern Ugandan communities...and my heart was once again broken and I was educated in a meaningful way about what life does and can look like for a people that have the deepest faith in a God who will see them thru very challenging things and who has remarkable plans for their futures...
And as I sat in a classroom just outside my office covered with African paintings and photos and treasures, the tears came once again, despite my want to stop them and my head's ideas that I couldn't possibly still be crying about things on the other side of the world...
But I wept...I wept because 500 million people globally deal with a horrific health issue that was swept away from our American world over 50 years ago...I wept because I saw once again the utter despair and grief of parents who lost their one year old babies in clinics that would never pass health codes anywhere in the western world...I wept because Ugandan teenagers just assumed that millions of people in our country were dealing with malaria in our country because of our type of climate...I wept because girls who love to play soccer don't just worry about their homework at night after practice, but instead worry about falling asleep and exposing themselves to the bite of an insect that could end their life as it has others in their immediate families...I wept because the people interviewed just assumed we were going to help end malaria when asked about it...I wept because this disease that is completely preventable is keeping almost each of the millenium development goals from being achieved...I wept because we were able to raise enough resources to provide over 1000 desperately needed nets with just a bit of work and energy from some middle class college athletes and globally minded students on a Saturday in September when for millions of people a net would make the difference between life and death...I wept because only 20 students or so will come see this documentary about creating a future for people without one and over 200 will go watch a film made over 25 years ago about an actor's make believe past and future...I wept because I don't worry about even sleeping under a bed net in Africa when I go because of the preventative medicines I take while traveling...I wept seeing the privilege it will be to hand a net to a family that will sing and dance for joy in response this summer as I walk dusty roads in a nation I've grown to love...and I wept because of the fact that I honestly believe with all my heart that millions of my fellow Christ followers are missing out on great joy and meaning and intimacy in relationships with amazing cultures and peoples and Jesus Himself because their faith hasn't made room for the reality of a global God who has blessed some so they may bless others and bring life, truly abundant life to each and every person made in His image on this planet no matter what global crisis or issue they are facing...
And perhaps most of all, my tears fell because I know that God still longs for me to do more...He longs for me to invite more students in this generation to be the church that loves their neighbors near and far in our world...and He longs for me to use my gifts, my influence, my voice, my loves to help do things like end malaria by 2015...because that's His calling and His passion for me in this moment of my walk with Jesus...and so often I don't cry like I should and love like I should and live like I should in light of what I know to be true in Scripture and in our world...
So tonight as I finish writing and head to bed where a mosquito is the last thing on my mind as the night has come to Grand Rapids, I am glad for a film that makes me weep again...and am praying tonight with my CU student friends with such open and compassoniate hearts that our tears will lead us to repentance and acts of restoration as the church of Jesus Christ that will wipe away the tears and the fears of our African friends as malaria disappears in the villages and homes and lives of those in a place where God has not left and has so much more to do in the days to come...
Wiping Away the Tears in my Eyes Because of the One Who Brings Light and Life Even When the Night Comes to All of Our Lives...
I screened a documentary for a bunch of students here at CU concerned about global poverty and justice issues called WHEN THE NIGHT COMES...it's a piece done by some of the folks who did the Invisible Children documentary and was sponsored by the UN and ONE CAMPAIGN groups...we just completed hosting a major malaria event called Night of Nets where we raised several thousand dollars at a CU soccer match and will be able to distribute over 1000 insecticide treated malaria bed nets when he head to Zambia in May for families at great risk of being affected by this awful disease...
I've probably shown over 100 documentary style pieces done concerning issues in Africa, and I like to think I'm fairly aware of some of the impact lack of resources and as Bill Gates calls it "the accident of geography" has upon many people's global situations and life challenges...
But this particular film was exceptionally well done and the filmmakers had access and demonstrated great sensitivity in telling and showing life stories in northern Ugandan communities...and my heart was once again broken and I was educated in a meaningful way about what life does and can look like for a people that have the deepest faith in a God who will see them thru very challenging things and who has remarkable plans for their futures...
And as I sat in a classroom just outside my office covered with African paintings and photos and treasures, the tears came once again, despite my want to stop them and my head's ideas that I couldn't possibly still be crying about things on the other side of the world...
But I wept...I wept because 500 million people globally deal with a horrific health issue that was swept away from our American world over 50 years ago...I wept because I saw once again the utter despair and grief of parents who lost their one year old babies in clinics that would never pass health codes anywhere in the western world...I wept because Ugandan teenagers just assumed that millions of people in our country were dealing with malaria in our country because of our type of climate...I wept because girls who love to play soccer don't just worry about their homework at night after practice, but instead worry about falling asleep and exposing themselves to the bite of an insect that could end their life as it has others in their immediate families...I wept because the people interviewed just assumed we were going to help end malaria when asked about it...I wept because this disease that is completely preventable is keeping almost each of the millenium development goals from being achieved...I wept because we were able to raise enough resources to provide over 1000 desperately needed nets with just a bit of work and energy from some middle class college athletes and globally minded students on a Saturday in September when for millions of people a net would make the difference between life and death...I wept because only 20 students or so will come see this documentary about creating a future for people without one and over 200 will go watch a film made over 25 years ago about an actor's make believe past and future...I wept because I don't worry about even sleeping under a bed net in Africa when I go because of the preventative medicines I take while traveling...I wept seeing the privilege it will be to hand a net to a family that will sing and dance for joy in response this summer as I walk dusty roads in a nation I've grown to love...and I wept because of the fact that I honestly believe with all my heart that millions of my fellow Christ followers are missing out on great joy and meaning and intimacy in relationships with amazing cultures and peoples and Jesus Himself because their faith hasn't made room for the reality of a global God who has blessed some so they may bless others and bring life, truly abundant life to each and every person made in His image on this planet no matter what global crisis or issue they are facing...
And perhaps most of all, my tears fell because I know that God still longs for me to do more...He longs for me to invite more students in this generation to be the church that loves their neighbors near and far in our world...and He longs for me to use my gifts, my influence, my voice, my loves to help do things like end malaria by 2015...because that's His calling and His passion for me in this moment of my walk with Jesus...and so often I don't cry like I should and love like I should and live like I should in light of what I know to be true in Scripture and in our world...
So tonight as I finish writing and head to bed where a mosquito is the last thing on my mind as the night has come to Grand Rapids, I am glad for a film that makes me weep again...and am praying tonight with my CU student friends with such open and compassoniate hearts that our tears will lead us to repentance and acts of restoration as the church of Jesus Christ that will wipe away the tears and the fears of our African friends as malaria disappears in the villages and homes and lives of those in a place where God has not left and has so much more to do in the days to come...
Wiping Away the Tears in my Eyes Because of the One Who Brings Light and Life Even When the Night Comes to All of Our Lives...
Monday, October 18, 2010
4 Views of God
Here's a posting from Kara Powell at Fuller Seminary about some recent research on how people view God in our culture...some interesting stuff...
A friend forwarded me this “USA Today” summary [1] of some research on Americans’ views of God conducted by a few sociologists at Baylor University. I thought their 4 categories for views of God, while not necessarily never-before-thought-of, are nonetheless helpful. Here’s an excerpt from the article:
Froese and Bader’s research wound up defining four ways in which Americans see God:
•The Authoritative God. When conservatives Sarah Palin [2] or Glenn Beck [3] proclaim that America will lose God’s favor unless we get right with him, they’re rallying believers in what Froese and Bader call an Authoritative God, one engaged in history and meting out harsh punishment to those who do not follow him. About 28% of the nation shares this view, according to Baylor’s 2008 findings.
“They divide the world by good and evil and appeal to people who are worried, concerned and scared,” Froese says. “They respond to a powerful God guiding this country, and if we don’t explicitly talk about (that) God, then we have the wrong God or no God at all.”
•The Benevolent God. When President Obama says he is driven to live out his Christian faith in public service, or political satirist Stephen Colbert [4] mentions God while testifying to Congress in favor of changing immigration laws, they’re speaking of what the Baylor researchers call a Benevolent God. This God is engaged in our world and loves and supports us in caring for others, a vision shared by 22% of Americans, according to Baylor’s findings.
“Rhetoric that talks about the righteous vs. the heathen doesn’t appeal to them,” Froese says. “Their God is a force for good who cares for all people, weeps at all conflicts and will comfort all.”
•The Critical God. The poor, the suffering and the exploited in this world often believe in a Critical God who keeps an eye on this world but delivers justice in the next, Bader says.
Bader says this view of God — held by 21% of Americans — was reflected in a sermon at a working-class neighborhood church the researchers visited in Rifle, Colo., in 2008. Pastor Del Whittington’s theme at Open Door Church was ” ‘Wait until heaven, and accounts will be settled.’ “
•The Distant God. Though about 5% of Americans are atheists or agnostics, Baylor found that nearly one in four (24%) see a Distant God that booted up the universe, then left humanity alone.
This doesn’t mean that such people have no religion. It’s the dominant view of Jews and other followers of world religions and philosophies such as Buddhism or Hinduism, the Baylor research finds.
A friend forwarded me this “USA Today” summary [1] of some research on Americans’ views of God conducted by a few sociologists at Baylor University. I thought their 4 categories for views of God, while not necessarily never-before-thought-of, are nonetheless helpful. Here’s an excerpt from the article:
Froese and Bader’s research wound up defining four ways in which Americans see God:
•The Authoritative God. When conservatives Sarah Palin [2] or Glenn Beck [3] proclaim that America will lose God’s favor unless we get right with him, they’re rallying believers in what Froese and Bader call an Authoritative God, one engaged in history and meting out harsh punishment to those who do not follow him. About 28% of the nation shares this view, according to Baylor’s 2008 findings.
“They divide the world by good and evil and appeal to people who are worried, concerned and scared,” Froese says. “They respond to a powerful God guiding this country, and if we don’t explicitly talk about (that) God, then we have the wrong God or no God at all.”
•The Benevolent God. When President Obama says he is driven to live out his Christian faith in public service, or political satirist Stephen Colbert [4] mentions God while testifying to Congress in favor of changing immigration laws, they’re speaking of what the Baylor researchers call a Benevolent God. This God is engaged in our world and loves and supports us in caring for others, a vision shared by 22% of Americans, according to Baylor’s findings.
“Rhetoric that talks about the righteous vs. the heathen doesn’t appeal to them,” Froese says. “Their God is a force for good who cares for all people, weeps at all conflicts and will comfort all.”
•The Critical God. The poor, the suffering and the exploited in this world often believe in a Critical God who keeps an eye on this world but delivers justice in the next, Bader says.
Bader says this view of God — held by 21% of Americans — was reflected in a sermon at a working-class neighborhood church the researchers visited in Rifle, Colo., in 2008. Pastor Del Whittington’s theme at Open Door Church was ” ‘Wait until heaven, and accounts will be settled.’ “
•The Distant God. Though about 5% of Americans are atheists or agnostics, Baylor found that nearly one in four (24%) see a Distant God that booted up the universe, then left humanity alone.
This doesn’t mean that such people have no religion. It’s the dominant view of Jews and other followers of world religions and philosophies such as Buddhism or Hinduism, the Baylor research finds.
Monday, October 11, 2010
The Harvest is Past... and We Are Not Yet Saved
A great piece from a partner in Zambia with Jubilee Center about justice and courage in Zambia...hoping to visit their ministry with student this May back in the mother land!
We argued last week that Evangelical and Pentecostal leaders are a major force on the Zambian political scene. Our leaders receive invitations to the State House; and public media outlets: the ZNBC, the Times of Zambia, and the Daily Mail quote Pentecostal and Evangelical leaders more than any other religious constituency. We also noted that during the election candidates will be appealing for our votes and the votes of those we lead. How much difference do we make in how our members vote? Leaders do influence their people, but in the absence of quantifiable data we are not sure how many Evangelical or Pentecostals vote or what other issues we care about apart from the “Christian Nation” clause.
Evangelicals are rightly known for efforts to bring the good news of Jesus Christ to the lost. Pentecostals are known for proclaiming the message of generous giving as a way of coming out of poverty as well as for exploring new forms of worship and for building new church structures. Both groups however are still lacking when it comes to caring for the needy beyond their church community. As one who identifies with both groups I can say we also have a difficult time making disciples who practically understand what it means to be Christian citizens in Zambia and the world.
Consider the economy of England in the 18th century that was largely built on the abusing children from poor families who were made to work in coalmines and factories under terrible conditions, and on the slave trade that cruelly exploited Indians and Africans. A ruling class addicted to privilege, licentious living, and status dominated the English government. It was during this period that God raised up William Wilberforce out of a life of wealth and class, who in part was a disciple of John Newton a former slave trader turned pastor, to lead through his position as a Member of Parliament to influence his fellow lawmakers to abolish the slave trade in England.
Much of Zambia’s current leadership is no different than the 18th century ruling class that enslaved the poor and oppressed the weak for personal gain. Copper prices have soared to record highs and yet those living in poor communities are seeing little change. Our natural resources and economic future are being sold and yet the proceeds are benefitting only a small band of investors and the elite ruling class. The majority of the Zambians still lack access to safe drinking water and proper sanitation. As a result, women and children spend a disproportionate amount of time collecting water and then caring for those who have contracted water-borne sicknesses from that water. Jeremiah lamented in the scriptures, “Remember O Lord what happened to us; look and see our disgrace. Our inheritance has been turned over to aliens our homes to foreigners” (Lam.5: 1-2) He cried, “Harvest is past, summer is ended, and we are not saved. For the brokenness of the daughter of my people I am broken; I mourn, dismay has taken hold of me. Is there no balm in Gilead? Is there no physician there? Why then has not the health of the daughter of my people been restored?”(Jeremiah 8:20-22)
Zambia needs a John Newton who will tell our Wilberforce in Parliament that “God has raised you up for the good of the church and the good of the nation.” Do we have a Wilberforce in Parliament...someone who will forgo wealth and privilege for a higher cause? Do we have a John Newton in our pulpits...one who has the credibility and courage to speak boldly to the ruling class on behalf of the marginalized and disciple them to make a difference for good?
Lawrence Temfwe
We argued last week that Evangelical and Pentecostal leaders are a major force on the Zambian political scene. Our leaders receive invitations to the State House; and public media outlets: the ZNBC, the Times of Zambia, and the Daily Mail quote Pentecostal and Evangelical leaders more than any other religious constituency. We also noted that during the election candidates will be appealing for our votes and the votes of those we lead. How much difference do we make in how our members vote? Leaders do influence their people, but in the absence of quantifiable data we are not sure how many Evangelical or Pentecostals vote or what other issues we care about apart from the “Christian Nation” clause.
Evangelicals are rightly known for efforts to bring the good news of Jesus Christ to the lost. Pentecostals are known for proclaiming the message of generous giving as a way of coming out of poverty as well as for exploring new forms of worship and for building new church structures. Both groups however are still lacking when it comes to caring for the needy beyond their church community. As one who identifies with both groups I can say we also have a difficult time making disciples who practically understand what it means to be Christian citizens in Zambia and the world.
Consider the economy of England in the 18th century that was largely built on the abusing children from poor families who were made to work in coalmines and factories under terrible conditions, and on the slave trade that cruelly exploited Indians and Africans. A ruling class addicted to privilege, licentious living, and status dominated the English government. It was during this period that God raised up William Wilberforce out of a life of wealth and class, who in part was a disciple of John Newton a former slave trader turned pastor, to lead through his position as a Member of Parliament to influence his fellow lawmakers to abolish the slave trade in England.
Much of Zambia’s current leadership is no different than the 18th century ruling class that enslaved the poor and oppressed the weak for personal gain. Copper prices have soared to record highs and yet those living in poor communities are seeing little change. Our natural resources and economic future are being sold and yet the proceeds are benefitting only a small band of investors and the elite ruling class. The majority of the Zambians still lack access to safe drinking water and proper sanitation. As a result, women and children spend a disproportionate amount of time collecting water and then caring for those who have contracted water-borne sicknesses from that water. Jeremiah lamented in the scriptures, “Remember O Lord what happened to us; look and see our disgrace. Our inheritance has been turned over to aliens our homes to foreigners” (Lam.5: 1-2) He cried, “Harvest is past, summer is ended, and we are not saved. For the brokenness of the daughter of my people I am broken; I mourn, dismay has taken hold of me. Is there no balm in Gilead? Is there no physician there? Why then has not the health of the daughter of my people been restored?”(Jeremiah 8:20-22)
Zambia needs a John Newton who will tell our Wilberforce in Parliament that “God has raised you up for the good of the church and the good of the nation.” Do we have a Wilberforce in Parliament...someone who will forgo wealth and privilege for a higher cause? Do we have a John Newton in our pulpits...one who has the credibility and courage to speak boldly to the ruling class on behalf of the marginalized and disciple them to make a difference for good?
Lawrence Temfwe
Friday, October 8, 2010
HOLY DISCONTENT...A Key to Moving from the Head to the Heart to the Hand
Here's some of the thoughts I shared at our CU chapel closing Global Opportunities Week...they flow from my engagement with Bill Hybels' book by the same name that helped frame what God was at work doing in my own faith and life...
OPENING QUESTIONS: Why do certain people care about certain things? AND Why do people do what they do in their lives?
IDEA #1: The motivating reason why millions of people choose to do good in the world around them is because there is something wrong in the world that gains their attention.
IDEA #2: THE POPEYE MOMENT...It happens when we reach the point where we can’t “stands no more!”
IDEA #3: TWO THEOLOGICAL DRIVING FORCES: Restoration and Reconciliation
IDEA #4:Restoration…Romans 8:20-21
Against its will, all creation was subjected
to God’s curse. But with eager hope, the
creation looks forward to the day when it
will join God’s children in glorious freedom
from death and decay.
IDEA #5:Reconciliation: Colossians 1:15-20
He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all
creation. For by him all things were created: things in heaven
and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers
or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for
him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together.
And he is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning
and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he
might have the supremacy. For God was pleased to have all his
fullness dwell in him, and through him to reconcile to himself all
things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making
peace through his blood, shed on the cross.
IDEA #6: LUKE 4:18-22…Jesus’ Passion for Mission...He went to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, and on the Sabbath day he went into the synagogue, as was his custom. And he stood up to read. The scroll of the prophet Isaiah was handed to him.
Unrolling it, he found the place where it is written: "The Spirit of the
Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to
the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and
recovery of sight for the blind, to release the oppressed, to proclaim
the year of the Lord's favor." Then he rolled up the scroll, gave it back
to the attendant and sat down. The eyes of everyone in the synagogue
were fastened on him, and he began by saying to them, "Today this
scripture is fulfilled in your hearing."
IDEA #7: The Kingdom Begins to Come.. Thoughts from Dave Livermore’s Cultural Intelligence...
*The “already/not yet” tension exists where the kingdom is already
present/embodied in Jesus’ life/ministry while not yet fully present…
*Jesus’ work is already present while also moving history forward to
the time when all will be made right…so we have to forever hold in
tension both the present and the future realities of the kingdom. One
without the other just isn’t possible. If the kingdom is fully future, the
church is without power. If the kingdom is fully present, the church is
without hope.
*We are a colony of the kingdom created to give people pictures of what
Jesus’ reign looks like and as a testimony of the kingdom that will one day
be fully realized. And a huge part of the contextualization process is
learning to put on kingdom sensors so we can spot where God’s reign has
sprung forth into our fallen world and where it has not yet come to bear.
IDEA #8: The Process…There develops an irresistible attraction to a specific cause that compels people to invest joyfully of their time, their money, and their energies…and it is almost always linked back to a single spark of frustration that fuels what is now a raging fire in their souls…and you become an unstoppable force for good
IDEA #9: The Outcome…You see, what wrecks the heart of someone who loves God is often the very thing God wants to use to fire them up to do something that, under normal circumstances, they would never attempt to do in their normal condition and lives.
IDEA #10: Scripture’s Push On Our Lives…And so we then refuse to stay just fed up…and we get fueled to action by this restless longing for the better day realities God says are coming soon. It is entirely possible to rest in God’s promise of a better day while we work our tails off to usher it in…
IDEA #11: Helpful Steps in Becoming More Discontent:
*Feed Your Frustration
*Take More Risk
*Fan the Flame
IDEA #12: APPLICATION QUESTIONS: Where Do You Go From Here?
1. What one thing can’t you stand in our present community/world?
2. What piece of God’s restoration work do you long to be part of in your life?
3. What is your next one specific step in acting on your own “holy discontent?”
IDEA #13: A FRANCISCAN BENEDICTION
May God bless you with discomfort
At easy answers, half-truths, and superficial relationships
So that you may live deep within your heart.
May God bless you with anger
At injustice, oppression, and exploitation of people,
So that you may work for justice, freedom, and peace.
May God bless you with tears
To shed for those who suffer pain, rejection, hunger and war,
So that you may reach out your hand to comfort them and
To turn their pain into joy.
And may God bless you with enough foolishness
To believe that you can make a difference in the world,
So that you can do what others claim cannot be done
To bring justice and kindness to all our children and the poor.
Amen
OPENING QUESTIONS: Why do certain people care about certain things? AND Why do people do what they do in their lives?
IDEA #1: The motivating reason why millions of people choose to do good in the world around them is because there is something wrong in the world that gains their attention.
IDEA #2: THE POPEYE MOMENT...It happens when we reach the point where we can’t “stands no more!”
IDEA #3: TWO THEOLOGICAL DRIVING FORCES: Restoration and Reconciliation
IDEA #4:Restoration…Romans 8:20-21
Against its will, all creation was subjected
to God’s curse. But with eager hope, the
creation looks forward to the day when it
will join God’s children in glorious freedom
from death and decay.
IDEA #5:Reconciliation: Colossians 1:15-20
He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all
creation. For by him all things were created: things in heaven
and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers
or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for
him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together.
And he is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning
and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he
might have the supremacy. For God was pleased to have all his
fullness dwell in him, and through him to reconcile to himself all
things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making
peace through his blood, shed on the cross.
IDEA #6: LUKE 4:18-22…Jesus’ Passion for Mission...He went to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, and on the Sabbath day he went into the synagogue, as was his custom. And he stood up to read. The scroll of the prophet Isaiah was handed to him.
Unrolling it, he found the place where it is written: "The Spirit of the
Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to
the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and
recovery of sight for the blind, to release the oppressed, to proclaim
the year of the Lord's favor." Then he rolled up the scroll, gave it back
to the attendant and sat down. The eyes of everyone in the synagogue
were fastened on him, and he began by saying to them, "Today this
scripture is fulfilled in your hearing."
IDEA #7: The Kingdom Begins to Come.. Thoughts from Dave Livermore’s Cultural Intelligence...
*The “already/not yet” tension exists where the kingdom is already
present/embodied in Jesus’ life/ministry while not yet fully present…
*Jesus’ work is already present while also moving history forward to
the time when all will be made right…so we have to forever hold in
tension both the present and the future realities of the kingdom. One
without the other just isn’t possible. If the kingdom is fully future, the
church is without power. If the kingdom is fully present, the church is
without hope.
*We are a colony of the kingdom created to give people pictures of what
Jesus’ reign looks like and as a testimony of the kingdom that will one day
be fully realized. And a huge part of the contextualization process is
learning to put on kingdom sensors so we can spot where God’s reign has
sprung forth into our fallen world and where it has not yet come to bear.
IDEA #8: The Process…There develops an irresistible attraction to a specific cause that compels people to invest joyfully of their time, their money, and their energies…and it is almost always linked back to a single spark of frustration that fuels what is now a raging fire in their souls…and you become an unstoppable force for good
IDEA #9: The Outcome…You see, what wrecks the heart of someone who loves God is often the very thing God wants to use to fire them up to do something that, under normal circumstances, they would never attempt to do in their normal condition and lives.
IDEA #10: Scripture’s Push On Our Lives…And so we then refuse to stay just fed up…and we get fueled to action by this restless longing for the better day realities God says are coming soon. It is entirely possible to rest in God’s promise of a better day while we work our tails off to usher it in…
IDEA #11: Helpful Steps in Becoming More Discontent:
*Feed Your Frustration
*Take More Risk
*Fan the Flame
IDEA #12: APPLICATION QUESTIONS: Where Do You Go From Here?
1. What one thing can’t you stand in our present community/world?
2. What piece of God’s restoration work do you long to be part of in your life?
3. What is your next one specific step in acting on your own “holy discontent?”
IDEA #13: A FRANCISCAN BENEDICTION
May God bless you with discomfort
At easy answers, half-truths, and superficial relationships
So that you may live deep within your heart.
May God bless you with anger
At injustice, oppression, and exploitation of people,
So that you may work for justice, freedom, and peace.
May God bless you with tears
To shed for those who suffer pain, rejection, hunger and war,
So that you may reach out your hand to comfort them and
To turn their pain into joy.
And may God bless you with enough foolishness
To believe that you can make a difference in the world,
So that you can do what others claim cannot be done
To bring justice and kindness to all our children and the poor.
Amen
Thursday, September 16, 2010
SOCCER and MALARIA BED NETS...A Perfect Combination
I still remember the first time I went to a village in Zambia...we had waited a long time to meet the people and to see the place where we had raised funds for in order for the people there to be able to build a first school building for their community...and yet to be honest, those first hours were really a bit overwhelming...it was unlike any place I'd been before and there were the usual struggles with language and culture differences that left me feeling a bit like an outsider despite the immense joy I felt and the Zambian people felt in celebrating how God had brought us together in a Kingdom way for Kingdom purposes...
But after some village tours, welcome speeches and dances, and exchanges of thank yous and gifts we walked down a dusty village trail to a 120 yard long by 75 yard wide piece of African dirt where for me everything suddenly became comfortable and usual...we put on soccer jerseys and played a full match against a local village team scoring goals on wood frame goalposts at the edge of a field where the grass grew instantly longer as you stepped off the soccer pitch...this game was something that was familiar and loved by both teams playing and I found myself playing without inhibition and talking to Zambian players without some of the same fears and questions I had been struggling with just minutes before...although I must confess I have never played a game since where someone with a megaphone on the sidelines was screaming out the play by play of the action on the field interspersed with comments like "We will defeat HIV!" and "AIDS has no chance of beating us now that we have education!" in between the announcements of who had scored the latest goal...
Soccer did then and has for several more years connected me in community with friends in Africa in a unique and surprisingly strong way...and I have watched soccer become a vehicle of community and service for people in obvious need and people with plenty of stuff all around them...soccer has allowed me and hundreds of students to help provide AIDS education programs, health care and food and clean water, new shoes and uniforms and equipment, and the chance to share the story of the Gospel in a long term ministry and community development partnership for close to a decade now...
So when some of the coaches and players in the Cornerstone University men's soccer program began to ask some questions about how they could as a program use their sport to help change the world as an outgrowth of what God was up to in their own lives, I immediately thought of an idea our ACTS poverty and justice group on campus had heard about called Night of Nets...the idea was to host an event that would highlight the devastating impact of malaria upon African kids and their families while seeking to raise resources for the purchase and distribution of life-saving and malaria-preventing bed nets to those at great risk of catching the disease from mosquito bites...
We came up with the Night of NETS event where we would invite people attending both the CU men's and women's games to pay a $6 admission charge that would purchase a bed net for a family on the other side of the world...and we ended up creating a website and other opportunities for people to get involved in the cause as we sought to change the lives of 1000 families in Zambia because of the playing of a game that is revered and treasured in the African culture...and as we host this event, we will strangely once again through the beautiful game called soccer experience community with people who we have very little in common with on many levels...and it gives us a wonderful opportunity to use athletics and serving the poor to create a truly community event for our own college community...we are expecting that we might see the largest crowd to ever watch a soccer match on our campus and we hope that students who have never really understood the beauty of soccer and the reality of the health crisis created by malaria can do both on a 120 by 75 yard piece of grass on our campus that day...
It is tough to try and draw people together physically, socially, and spiritually on a campus like ours where so many students are doing so many different things...many live off campus, many have extra jobs, and many come from different economic and denominational backgrounds...but we all desperately long to be part of something fun and significant together...and that's why I think athletics and service are so valuable in bringing us together to celebrate the gifts of those in our community and the power of coming together to share gifts with others outside our community...
And that's why I've had Saturday September 25 circled on my calendar for the past several months as a day I couldn't wait to experience...and to my joy and amazement, many other folks on our campus are feeling the same way...soccer players are inviting old teammates and family members to come see them play; students are planning to sleep under bed nets outside the night before the game to raise awareness; people from other parts of the country are supporting our project; and flyers about this day are literally plastered everywhere you look on our campus...
Only a God like ours could create a game to be a conduit to most perfectly connect people like me with people like my Zambian friend Fordson...and that's why for me Soccer and Bed Nets are a strangely perfect combination...and I can't wait to deliver these bed nets in Africa to villages in May with some of our CU soccer players before we play a match together in the African dirt...and we'll be thinking of the community we represent back at CU and in the body of Christ as a smile creeps over our faces and a tear rolls down our cheeks...and the Kingdom, the community of Jesus, made up of soccer players from both Grand Rapids and Zambia, will break forth in a most beautiful and blessed way...
For more information on the CU Night of Nets event that is part of World Vision's ACTS to End Malaria campaign you can check out their website for this special soccer fundraiser match at: www.cunightofnets.com
But after some village tours, welcome speeches and dances, and exchanges of thank yous and gifts we walked down a dusty village trail to a 120 yard long by 75 yard wide piece of African dirt where for me everything suddenly became comfortable and usual...we put on soccer jerseys and played a full match against a local village team scoring goals on wood frame goalposts at the edge of a field where the grass grew instantly longer as you stepped off the soccer pitch...this game was something that was familiar and loved by both teams playing and I found myself playing without inhibition and talking to Zambian players without some of the same fears and questions I had been struggling with just minutes before...although I must confess I have never played a game since where someone with a megaphone on the sidelines was screaming out the play by play of the action on the field interspersed with comments like "We will defeat HIV!" and "AIDS has no chance of beating us now that we have education!" in between the announcements of who had scored the latest goal...
Soccer did then and has for several more years connected me in community with friends in Africa in a unique and surprisingly strong way...and I have watched soccer become a vehicle of community and service for people in obvious need and people with plenty of stuff all around them...soccer has allowed me and hundreds of students to help provide AIDS education programs, health care and food and clean water, new shoes and uniforms and equipment, and the chance to share the story of the Gospel in a long term ministry and community development partnership for close to a decade now...
So when some of the coaches and players in the Cornerstone University men's soccer program began to ask some questions about how they could as a program use their sport to help change the world as an outgrowth of what God was up to in their own lives, I immediately thought of an idea our ACTS poverty and justice group on campus had heard about called Night of Nets...the idea was to host an event that would highlight the devastating impact of malaria upon African kids and their families while seeking to raise resources for the purchase and distribution of life-saving and malaria-preventing bed nets to those at great risk of catching the disease from mosquito bites...
We came up with the Night of NETS event where we would invite people attending both the CU men's and women's games to pay a $6 admission charge that would purchase a bed net for a family on the other side of the world...and we ended up creating a website and other opportunities for people to get involved in the cause as we sought to change the lives of 1000 families in Zambia because of the playing of a game that is revered and treasured in the African culture...and as we host this event, we will strangely once again through the beautiful game called soccer experience community with people who we have very little in common with on many levels...and it gives us a wonderful opportunity to use athletics and serving the poor to create a truly community event for our own college community...we are expecting that we might see the largest crowd to ever watch a soccer match on our campus and we hope that students who have never really understood the beauty of soccer and the reality of the health crisis created by malaria can do both on a 120 by 75 yard piece of grass on our campus that day...
It is tough to try and draw people together physically, socially, and spiritually on a campus like ours where so many students are doing so many different things...many live off campus, many have extra jobs, and many come from different economic and denominational backgrounds...but we all desperately long to be part of something fun and significant together...and that's why I think athletics and service are so valuable in bringing us together to celebrate the gifts of those in our community and the power of coming together to share gifts with others outside our community...
And that's why I've had Saturday September 25 circled on my calendar for the past several months as a day I couldn't wait to experience...and to my joy and amazement, many other folks on our campus are feeling the same way...soccer players are inviting old teammates and family members to come see them play; students are planning to sleep under bed nets outside the night before the game to raise awareness; people from other parts of the country are supporting our project; and flyers about this day are literally plastered everywhere you look on our campus...
Only a God like ours could create a game to be a conduit to most perfectly connect people like me with people like my Zambian friend Fordson...and that's why for me Soccer and Bed Nets are a strangely perfect combination...and I can't wait to deliver these bed nets in Africa to villages in May with some of our CU soccer players before we play a match together in the African dirt...and we'll be thinking of the community we represent back at CU and in the body of Christ as a smile creeps over our faces and a tear rolls down our cheeks...and the Kingdom, the community of Jesus, made up of soccer players from both Grand Rapids and Zambia, will break forth in a most beautiful and blessed way...
For more information on the CU Night of Nets event that is part of World Vision's ACTS to End Malaria campaign you can check out their website for this special soccer fundraiser match at: www.cunightofnets.com
Monday, September 13, 2010
NIGHT of NETS Event Info
A CU Special Event: NIGHT of NETS—Saturday September 25th
“The Beautiful Game Helps Make a More Beautiful Life for the Children of Africa”
Come see the CU men’s and women’s soccer teams play on the CU soccer field at 12 pm (MEN’S GAME) and 2:30 pm (WOMEN’S GAME)…
You are encouraged to pay a $6 admission fee that will change the lives of families in Africa forever…the $6 price of attending a soccer game will purchase a bed net that will help prevent the spread of malaria in sub-Saharan Africa where the disease is the leading killer of children in the region… and the nets will be distributed on a CU trip to Zambia this May…
You can check out more details at the Night of Nets event website: www.cunightofnets.com
You can donate even if you can’t come to the game…money can be brought to Chip Huber in Spiritual Formation or you can donate on-line (checks made out to World Vision)
We will see you at the soccer match and please invite your friends to this CU event where you can make a life-changing difference while supporting our athletes!
“The Beautiful Game Helps Make a More Beautiful Life for the Children of Africa”
Come see the CU men’s and women’s soccer teams play on the CU soccer field at 12 pm (MEN’S GAME) and 2:30 pm (WOMEN’S GAME)…
You are encouraged to pay a $6 admission fee that will change the lives of families in Africa forever…the $6 price of attending a soccer game will purchase a bed net that will help prevent the spread of malaria in sub-Saharan Africa where the disease is the leading killer of children in the region… and the nets will be distributed on a CU trip to Zambia this May…
You can check out more details at the Night of Nets event website: www.cunightofnets.com
You can donate even if you can’t come to the game…money can be brought to Chip Huber in Spiritual Formation or you can donate on-line (checks made out to World Vision)
We will see you at the soccer match and please invite your friends to this CU event where you can make a life-changing difference while supporting our athletes!
Sunday, August 22, 2010
Summer of 2010 Reading List
The whole crew of CU students will be on campus in just a few days...and the next few weeks of my life are ones with just about every minute filled with activity and conversation and people...and the moments to read beyond emails and ESPN scores are few and far between...but I did grab a few moments to read during the summer season...and here's some of what I read in a top 10 list of the books and articles and words...
Africa United: Soccer, Passion, Politics, and the First World Cup in Africa by Steve Bloomfield
The Slow Fade: Why You Matter in the Story of Twentysomethings by Reggie Joiner, Chuck Bomar, and Abbie Smith
Crazy Love: Overwhelmed by a Relentless God by Francis Chan
Mountains Beyond Mountains: The Quest of Dr. Paul Farmer, a Man Who Would Cure the World by Tracy Kidder
A Million Miles in a Thousand Years: What I Learned While Editing My Life by Donald Miller
Cultural Intelligence: Improving Your CQ to Engage Our Multicultural World by David Livermore
Playing the enemy : Nelson Mandela and the game that made a nation by John Carlin
Warrior Princess: Fighting for Life With Courage and Hope by Princess Kasune Zulu
Three Cups of Tea: One Man's Mission to Promote Peace . . . One School at a Time by Greg Mortenson
The New Shape of World Christianity: How American Experience Reflects Global Faith by Mark Noll
*And way, way too many online and magazine articles about every dimension of the 2010 World Cup Experience...although, I never tired of reading them all, to be honest...
Africa United: Soccer, Passion, Politics, and the First World Cup in Africa by Steve Bloomfield
The Slow Fade: Why You Matter in the Story of Twentysomethings by Reggie Joiner, Chuck Bomar, and Abbie Smith
Crazy Love: Overwhelmed by a Relentless God by Francis Chan
Mountains Beyond Mountains: The Quest of Dr. Paul Farmer, a Man Who Would Cure the World by Tracy Kidder
A Million Miles in a Thousand Years: What I Learned While Editing My Life by Donald Miller
Cultural Intelligence: Improving Your CQ to Engage Our Multicultural World by David Livermore
Playing the enemy : Nelson Mandela and the game that made a nation by John Carlin
Warrior Princess: Fighting for Life With Courage and Hope by Princess Kasune Zulu
Three Cups of Tea: One Man's Mission to Promote Peace . . . One School at a Time by Greg Mortenson
The New Shape of World Christianity: How American Experience Reflects Global Faith by Mark Noll
*And way, way too many online and magazine articles about every dimension of the 2010 World Cup Experience...although, I never tired of reading them all, to be honest...
Saturday, August 7, 2010
MONTANA TALK #3 Notes
Notes and Quotes below...
DON’T WASTE YOUR LIFE ON PURSUING ANYTHING BUT JESUS…
To Know One Thing:
“You don’t have to know a lot of things for your life to make a lasting difference in the world. But you do have to know the few great things that matter, perhaps just one, and then be willing to live for them and die for them. The people that make a durable difference in the world are not the people who have mastered many things, but who have been mastered by one great thing. If you want your life to count, if you want the ripple effect of the pebbles you drop to become waves that reach the ends of the earth and roll on into eternity, you don’t need to have a high IQ. You don’t have to have good looks or riches or come from a fine family or a fine school. Instead, you have to know a few great, majestic, unchanging, obvious, simple, glorious things—or one great all-embracing thing—and be set on fire by them.”
John Piper, Don’t Waste Your Life
Are you listening to the call of Christ on your life?
THE CALL OF THE SAVIOR: The voice of Jesus has become a sure beacon ahead of me and a blazing fir within me as I have tried to figure out my way and negotiate the challenges of the extraordinary times in which we live. It allows us to find and fulfill the central purpose of your life. OS GUINNESS
Jesus invites you to do these things and live this life:
*EMBRACE HIS CHARACTER
*SACRIFICE YOUR LIFE
*FOLLOW THE HOLY SPIRIT’S LEADINGS
*IMPACT THE WORLD
*SPREAD THE GOOD NEWS
I JOHN 5:4-5…Every God-begotten person conquers the world's ways. The conquering power that brings the world to its knees is our faith. The person who wins out over the world's ways is simply the one who believes Jesus is the Son of God.
There is nothing more compelling, more satisfying, more demanding, more overwhelming, more significant than a life lived following, loving, and serving the Lord Jesus. CHIP HUBER…after 4 decades of life
DON’T WASTE YOUR LIFE ON PURSUING ANYTHING BUT JESUS…
To Know One Thing:
“You don’t have to know a lot of things for your life to make a lasting difference in the world. But you do have to know the few great things that matter, perhaps just one, and then be willing to live for them and die for them. The people that make a durable difference in the world are not the people who have mastered many things, but who have been mastered by one great thing. If you want your life to count, if you want the ripple effect of the pebbles you drop to become waves that reach the ends of the earth and roll on into eternity, you don’t need to have a high IQ. You don’t have to have good looks or riches or come from a fine family or a fine school. Instead, you have to know a few great, majestic, unchanging, obvious, simple, glorious things—or one great all-embracing thing—and be set on fire by them.”
John Piper, Don’t Waste Your Life
Are you listening to the call of Christ on your life?
THE CALL OF THE SAVIOR: The voice of Jesus has become a sure beacon ahead of me and a blazing fir within me as I have tried to figure out my way and negotiate the challenges of the extraordinary times in which we live. It allows us to find and fulfill the central purpose of your life. OS GUINNESS
Jesus invites you to do these things and live this life:
*EMBRACE HIS CHARACTER
*SACRIFICE YOUR LIFE
*FOLLOW THE HOLY SPIRIT’S LEADINGS
*IMPACT THE WORLD
*SPREAD THE GOOD NEWS
I JOHN 5:4-5…Every God-begotten person conquers the world's ways. The conquering power that brings the world to its knees is our faith. The person who wins out over the world's ways is simply the one who believes Jesus is the Son of God.
There is nothing more compelling, more satisfying, more demanding, more overwhelming, more significant than a life lived following, loving, and serving the Lord Jesus. CHIP HUBER…after 4 decades of life
MONTANA TALK #2 Notes
Notes and Quotes Below...
Spend Your Life Chasing the Things That are Eternal
What do you think you will care about 50 years from now? What things in your life today will still be important to you?
4 Things That are the Stuff of Eternity…and of Ultimate Worth…
The Kingdom of God—A FUTURE EVENT AND PRESENT REALITY
Luke 17:21; Matthew 6:10; Hebrews 12:28
People—DO WE TRULY PUT OTHERS FIRST?
John 13:34-35
The Body of Christ—WE ARE LIFETIME MEMBERS…
Matthew 16:18
Our Souls—THE VERY HEART OF WHO YOU AND I ARE…
Matthew 16:26; I John 3:2
Most people are not satisfied with the permanent output of their lives. Nothing can wholly satisfy the life of Christ within His followers except the adoption of Christ’s purpose toward the world He came to redeem. Fame, pleasure, and riches are but husks and ashes in contrast with the boundless and abiding joy of working with God for the fulfillment of His eternal plans. The men and women who are putting everything into Christ’s undertaking are getting out of life its sweetest and most priceless rewards. J. CAMPBELL WHITE
Only one life, twill soon be past; Only what’s done for Christ will last…
A PRAYER FOR THE COOL GENERATION…from the book Don't Waste Your Life:
O God, who will get in their face and give them something to live for? They waste their days in a trance of insignificance, trying to look cool or talk cool or walk cool. They don’t have a clue what cool is. Of course we cannot use the word cool to describe true greatness. It is a small word. That’s the point. It’s cheap. And it’s what millions of young people live for. Who confronts them with urgency and tears? Who pleads with them not to waste their lives? Who takes them by the collar, so to speak, and loves them enough to show them a life radical and so real and so costly and Christ-saturated that they feel the emptiness and triviality of their CD collection and their pointless conversations about passing celebrities? Who will waken what lies latent in their souls, untapped—a longing not to waste their lives? O that young and old would turn off the television, take a long walk, and dream about feats of courage for a cause more precious than anything else in their world. If we would dream and if we would pray, would not God answer? Would He withhold from us a life of joyful love and mercy and sacrifice that magnifies God and makes people glad in God?
RESOLUTIONS OF JONATHAN EDAWRDS…
RESOLUTION #5: Resolved, never to lose one moment of time; but improve it the most profitable way I possibly can…
RESOLUTION #6: Resolved, to live with all my might, while I do live…
RESOLUTION #17: Resolved, that I will live so, as I shall wish I had done when I come to die…
RESOLUTION #22: Resolved, to endeavor for myself as much happiness, in the other world, as I possibly can, with all the power, might, vigor, and vehemence I am capable of, or can bring myself to exert, in any way that can be thought of…
Risk is right. And the reason is not because God promises success to all our ventures in His cause. There is no promise that every effort for the cause of Christ will succeed, at least not in the short run. John the Baptist risked calling King Herod an adulterer when he divorced his own wife in order to take his brother’s wife. For this John got his head chopped off. And he had done right to risk his life for the cause of God and truth. Jesus had no criticism for him, only the highest praise (Matthew 11:11). Paul risked going up to Jerusalem to complete his ministry to the poor. He was beaten and thrown in prison for two years and then shipped off to Rome and was executed there two years later. And he did right to risk his life for the cause of Christ. How many graves are there in Africa and Asia because thousands of young missionaries were freed by the power of the Holy Spirit from the enchantment of security and then risked their lives to make much of Christ among the unreached peoples of the world! And now what about you? Are you caught in the enchantment of security, paralyzed from taking any risks for the cause of God? Or have you been freed by the power of the Holy Spirit from the mirage of Egyptian safety and comfort? Do you men ever say with Joab, “For the sake of the name, I’ll try it! And may the Lord do what seems good to Him?” Do you women ever say with Esther, “For the sake of Christ I’ll try it! And if I perish, I perish”? JOHN PIPER
What will be the legacy left by you on our campus at the end of this school year? Your college career? Your days on this earth?
Spend Your Life Chasing the Things That are Eternal
What do you think you will care about 50 years from now? What things in your life today will still be important to you?
4 Things That are the Stuff of Eternity…and of Ultimate Worth…
The Kingdom of God—A FUTURE EVENT AND PRESENT REALITY
Luke 17:21; Matthew 6:10; Hebrews 12:28
People—DO WE TRULY PUT OTHERS FIRST?
John 13:34-35
The Body of Christ—WE ARE LIFETIME MEMBERS…
Matthew 16:18
Our Souls—THE VERY HEART OF WHO YOU AND I ARE…
Matthew 16:26; I John 3:2
Most people are not satisfied with the permanent output of their lives. Nothing can wholly satisfy the life of Christ within His followers except the adoption of Christ’s purpose toward the world He came to redeem. Fame, pleasure, and riches are but husks and ashes in contrast with the boundless and abiding joy of working with God for the fulfillment of His eternal plans. The men and women who are putting everything into Christ’s undertaking are getting out of life its sweetest and most priceless rewards. J. CAMPBELL WHITE
Only one life, twill soon be past; Only what’s done for Christ will last…
A PRAYER FOR THE COOL GENERATION…from the book Don't Waste Your Life:
O God, who will get in their face and give them something to live for? They waste their days in a trance of insignificance, trying to look cool or talk cool or walk cool. They don’t have a clue what cool is. Of course we cannot use the word cool to describe true greatness. It is a small word. That’s the point. It’s cheap. And it’s what millions of young people live for. Who confronts them with urgency and tears? Who pleads with them not to waste their lives? Who takes them by the collar, so to speak, and loves them enough to show them a life radical and so real and so costly and Christ-saturated that they feel the emptiness and triviality of their CD collection and their pointless conversations about passing celebrities? Who will waken what lies latent in their souls, untapped—a longing not to waste their lives? O that young and old would turn off the television, take a long walk, and dream about feats of courage for a cause more precious than anything else in their world. If we would dream and if we would pray, would not God answer? Would He withhold from us a life of joyful love and mercy and sacrifice that magnifies God and makes people glad in God?
RESOLUTIONS OF JONATHAN EDAWRDS…
RESOLUTION #5: Resolved, never to lose one moment of time; but improve it the most profitable way I possibly can…
RESOLUTION #6: Resolved, to live with all my might, while I do live…
RESOLUTION #17: Resolved, that I will live so, as I shall wish I had done when I come to die…
RESOLUTION #22: Resolved, to endeavor for myself as much happiness, in the other world, as I possibly can, with all the power, might, vigor, and vehemence I am capable of, or can bring myself to exert, in any way that can be thought of…
Risk is right. And the reason is not because God promises success to all our ventures in His cause. There is no promise that every effort for the cause of Christ will succeed, at least not in the short run. John the Baptist risked calling King Herod an adulterer when he divorced his own wife in order to take his brother’s wife. For this John got his head chopped off. And he had done right to risk his life for the cause of God and truth. Jesus had no criticism for him, only the highest praise (Matthew 11:11). Paul risked going up to Jerusalem to complete his ministry to the poor. He was beaten and thrown in prison for two years and then shipped off to Rome and was executed there two years later. And he did right to risk his life for the cause of Christ. How many graves are there in Africa and Asia because thousands of young missionaries were freed by the power of the Holy Spirit from the enchantment of security and then risked their lives to make much of Christ among the unreached peoples of the world! And now what about you? Are you caught in the enchantment of security, paralyzed from taking any risks for the cause of God? Or have you been freed by the power of the Holy Spirit from the mirage of Egyptian safety and comfort? Do you men ever say with Joab, “For the sake of the name, I’ll try it! And may the Lord do what seems good to Him?” Do you women ever say with Esther, “For the sake of Christ I’ll try it! And if I perish, I perish”? JOHN PIPER
What will be the legacy left by you on our campus at the end of this school year? Your college career? Your days on this earth?
MONTANA TALK #1 notes
SOME NOTES AND QUOTES BELOW...
Don’t Waste Your Life on the Things that Don’t Matter
A HUGE QUESTION FOR THE WEEK:
What does it mean to waste my life? That is a burning question. Or, more positively, what does it mean to live well—not to waste life, but to…? How to finish that sentence was the question. I was not even sure how to put the question into words, let alone what the answer might be. What is the opposite of not wasting my life? “To be successful in a career”? Or “to find the deepest meaning and significance”? Or “to help as many people as possible”? Or “to serve Christ to the full”? Or “to glorify God in all I do”? Or is there a point, a purpose, a focus, an essence to life that would fulfill every one of those dreams? JOHN PIPER
I JOHN 2:15-17…Do not love this world nor the things it offers you, for when you love the world, you do not have the love of the Father in you. For the world offers only a craving for physical pleasure, a craving for everything we see, and pride in our achievements and possessions. These are not from the Father, but are from this world. And this world is fading away, along with everything that people crave. But anyone who does what pleases God will live forever.
Popularity and Status—ISAIAH 40:6-8
We all know if we are in or out, don’t we?
Achievements for Reward’s Sake—LUKE 6:12-16; I COR 3:11-13
How much of your life is trying to prove yourself worthy?
Our Bodies and our Looks—I TIMOTHY 4:8
We all need an extreme makeover, don’t we?
Possessions and Money—MATTHEW 6:19-24; 25:14-30
“Every time we give we remind ourselves of several things: God is on the throne; All that I have is from Him; I do, in fact, trust God; I’ve been given an awful lot—JOHN ORTBERG
The overwhelming needs of our world issue a call to us for strategic living…we must realize that when we spend our resources on our own private wants and concerns, it leaves fewer resources for the Kingdom’s crucial and central concerns of great importance…and God has given each of us the chance of a lifetime in His appointment of us as His Kingdom resource managers…
“At these moments, when the trifling fog of life clears and I see what I am really on earth to do, I groan over the petty pursuits that waste so many lives—and so much of mine. Just think of the magnitude of sports—a whole section of the daily newspaper. But there is no section on God. Think of the endless resources for making your home and garden more comfortable and impressive. Think of how many tens of thousands of dollars you can spend to buy more car than you need. Think of the time and energy and conversation and leisure and what we call “fun stuff.” Or think about how we view our clothes. What a tragedy to see so many people obsessed with what they wear and how they look. And add to that now the computer that artificially recreates the very games that are already so distant from reality; it is like a multi-layered dream world of insignificance expanding into nothingness.” JOHN PIPER
Let us consider this final advice as a manager of God’s Trust He’s given in your one life: choose your investments carefully; compare their rates of interest; consider their ultimate trustworthiness; and especially compare how they will be working for you a few million years from now…RANDY ALCORN
Don’t Waste Your Life on the Things that Don’t Matter
A HUGE QUESTION FOR THE WEEK:
What does it mean to waste my life? That is a burning question. Or, more positively, what does it mean to live well—not to waste life, but to…? How to finish that sentence was the question. I was not even sure how to put the question into words, let alone what the answer might be. What is the opposite of not wasting my life? “To be successful in a career”? Or “to find the deepest meaning and significance”? Or “to help as many people as possible”? Or “to serve Christ to the full”? Or “to glorify God in all I do”? Or is there a point, a purpose, a focus, an essence to life that would fulfill every one of those dreams? JOHN PIPER
I JOHN 2:15-17…Do not love this world nor the things it offers you, for when you love the world, you do not have the love of the Father in you. For the world offers only a craving for physical pleasure, a craving for everything we see, and pride in our achievements and possessions. These are not from the Father, but are from this world. And this world is fading away, along with everything that people crave. But anyone who does what pleases God will live forever.
Popularity and Status—ISAIAH 40:6-8
We all know if we are in or out, don’t we?
Achievements for Reward’s Sake—LUKE 6:12-16; I COR 3:11-13
How much of your life is trying to prove yourself worthy?
Our Bodies and our Looks—I TIMOTHY 4:8
We all need an extreme makeover, don’t we?
Possessions and Money—MATTHEW 6:19-24; 25:14-30
“Every time we give we remind ourselves of several things: God is on the throne; All that I have is from Him; I do, in fact, trust God; I’ve been given an awful lot—JOHN ORTBERG
The overwhelming needs of our world issue a call to us for strategic living…we must realize that when we spend our resources on our own private wants and concerns, it leaves fewer resources for the Kingdom’s crucial and central concerns of great importance…and God has given each of us the chance of a lifetime in His appointment of us as His Kingdom resource managers…
“At these moments, when the trifling fog of life clears and I see what I am really on earth to do, I groan over the petty pursuits that waste so many lives—and so much of mine. Just think of the magnitude of sports—a whole section of the daily newspaper. But there is no section on God. Think of the endless resources for making your home and garden more comfortable and impressive. Think of how many tens of thousands of dollars you can spend to buy more car than you need. Think of the time and energy and conversation and leisure and what we call “fun stuff.” Or think about how we view our clothes. What a tragedy to see so many people obsessed with what they wear and how they look. And add to that now the computer that artificially recreates the very games that are already so distant from reality; it is like a multi-layered dream world of insignificance expanding into nothingness.” JOHN PIPER
Let us consider this final advice as a manager of God’s Trust He’s given in your one life: choose your investments carefully; compare their rates of interest; consider their ultimate trustworthiness; and especially compare how they will be working for you a few million years from now…RANDY ALCORN
Monday, July 12, 2010
HOW AFRICA WON THE WORLD CUP by Dayo Olopade, Washington Post
A great closing article as the world cup leaves South Africa, and a continent seeks to continue to grow and move forward in the days and years to come...
The first African World Cup didn't belong to Africa, at least not on the soccer field. Of the six African nations that made it to the quadrennial tournament, five fell early -- to indiscipline, tough competitors and heartbreaking missed opportunities. The plucky and focused Black Stars from Ghana were a bright spot for the continent, but when Sunday's final is over, the new FIFA champion will not be African.
Still, winning games isn't everything. For one month of one South African winter, the tournament brought an international celebration to a continent more widely known for malnourished bodies, grandstanding leaders and the ravages of AIDS. Rather than indigence, the world saw balls sailing into the net, crisp tackles, sweat. Ten gleaming stadiums and the collective warmth of 50 million South Africans offered thousands of football pilgrims the time of their lives.
In a year that marks five decades of independence for 17 African countries, from Somalia to the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the cup doubled as an anniversary party. "Just the fact that African teams can compete, defeat and be defeated on the world's stage is wonderful," Carmen Arendse, a South African psychologist, said while watching Ghana's quarterfinal match against Uruguay.
There's an earlier sentiment that still rings true, as well. In a 1960 speech, Patrice Lumumba, the first Congolese prime minister, made a remark that fits the occasion: "We are going to show the world what the black man can do when he works in freedom."
Even before I had my passport stamped in Lagos late last month, airport ads for telecommunications giant MTN reminded me what the cup means for the continent. With images of star footballers Michael Essien of Ghana, Samuel Eto'o of Cameroon and John Obi Mikel of Nigeria ran the tournament's slogans: "Let's go Africa." "United we score." "Today is a good day to be African."
And it was a good month. While the petty crime that is common in Johannesburg didn't disappear, there were no major incidents of violence at the fan parks or outdoor screening areas. Dignitaries such as former president Bill Clinton and German Chancellor Angela Merkel, not to mention Mick Jagger, came to see the beautiful game at the bottom of the world. In every African city I visited, a raucous, family atmosphere prevailed. At game time in Lagos, traffic cleared, strangers crowded around television sets indoors and out, and alongside the news of the world, chatty conversations on the state of play looped constantly on the radio.
In Johannesburg, the "Jabulani" ball, designed specially for the tournament, graced pickup games outside bars and on dirt patches by the highway. In the poor and sprawling township of Khayelitsha, black South Africans live far from the shadow of Cape Town's shiny new stadium -- but during Ghana's fatal match against Uruguay, several men and even a few women celebrated by sporting jerseys from Brazil, South Africa, Liverpool and beyond.
The World Cup didn't just feel universal -- it was. According to market research company InsideView, some 80 percent of the world's population has watched "at least some part" of the competition -- and 600 million are expected to tune in to Sunday's battle between Spain and the Netherlands.
The global spotlight also created some unexpected common ground. The Black Stars may have done more for continental solidarity than staunch pan-Africanists such as Kwame Nkrumah, the father of contemporary Ghana. The team was adopted wholesale by South Africans, whose squad had been eliminated, and by millions more Africans on the continent and in the diaspora who hoped for a showing to rival the great footballers of Europe and South America. In Observatory, a student neighborhood in Cape Town, fans like me who normally identify as Nigerian, Kenyan, Congolese or South African chanted, "Up Ghana!"
When the team's best chance at making history clanged off the crossbar in the closing seconds of its quarterfinal, the upbeat drone of vuvuzelas gave way to groans. "We had the chance," said one Zimbabwean observer who backed the Ghanaian squad. "We just didn't execute."
That is the simplest explanation for the disappointments among the African teams competing this year. And they perhaps mirror the disappointments that have stalled the continent's political and economic progress. Similar to the lack of strong primary and secondary education systems on the world's youngest continent, not enough attention has been paid to youth development in soccer. The sub-Saharan teams' reliance on foreign coaches with little skin in the game echoes the broad mistrust in local leadership and institutions. And the perennial "brain drain" among the smartest African graduates correlates with the flight of top talent to European soccer clubs.
Perhaps fittingly, Ghana's breakout performance came after its investment in a championship under-20 team and two years of training under its (foreign) coach -- and despite being without its star player, Michael Essien of British club Chelsea.
Though athletic victories have eluded African fans, progress has not. In South Africa, many of the 44,000 police officers deployed to watch over the throng of foreign visitors -- Argentine and German, British and Brazilian -- will stay in their positions, armed with better skills, equipment and federal coordination. The upgrades to the transit and telecommunications infrastructures will last as well. And though the "white elephant" stadiums in less-trafficked towns such as Nelspruitt and Polokwane will be a sorry reminder of FIFA's misplaced zeal, regional tourism is slated to rise -- and South African President Jacob Zuma has declared that "after this, employment will go up."
While it may be decades before less-wealthy African countries are prepared to host the tournament, the World Cup has been an essential engine for African self-confidence. This is particularly salient in South Africa, whose racial traumas still live in plain sight. As fellow competitors Ivory Coast, Nigeria and Cameroon celebrate their half-century of independence (Ghana broke with Britain in 1957, and Algeria with France in 1962), South Africa is catching up in terms of full freedoms. De facto segregation by race and income persists -- especially on the scrubbed beaches of Cape Town.
Of course, spending money on elaborate new stadiums doesn't address the economic disparities that can inflame tension, but the very sight of white Afrikaners rooting for black strikers is a salve of sorts. "Apartheid consciousness for white society is rugby or cricket," says Gareth Colenbrander, a Western Cape resident who supported the Ghanaian team. "2010 consciousness is football."
Before Ghana's Black Stars departed South Africa, they greeted thousands of fans in Soweto and had lunch with former president Nelson Mandela. Though they weren't leaving as champions, they were leaving as heroes.
For many others I encountered, the official outcome was beside the point. Africa wasn't just the world's poorest continent -- it could compete. Perhaps the best assessment came from a wistful Ghanaian fan, who passed on a Zulu phrase to carry home: Hamba phambili. Move forward.
The first African World Cup didn't belong to Africa, at least not on the soccer field. Of the six African nations that made it to the quadrennial tournament, five fell early -- to indiscipline, tough competitors and heartbreaking missed opportunities. The plucky and focused Black Stars from Ghana were a bright spot for the continent, but when Sunday's final is over, the new FIFA champion will not be African.
Still, winning games isn't everything. For one month of one South African winter, the tournament brought an international celebration to a continent more widely known for malnourished bodies, grandstanding leaders and the ravages of AIDS. Rather than indigence, the world saw balls sailing into the net, crisp tackles, sweat. Ten gleaming stadiums and the collective warmth of 50 million South Africans offered thousands of football pilgrims the time of their lives.
In a year that marks five decades of independence for 17 African countries, from Somalia to the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the cup doubled as an anniversary party. "Just the fact that African teams can compete, defeat and be defeated on the world's stage is wonderful," Carmen Arendse, a South African psychologist, said while watching Ghana's quarterfinal match against Uruguay.
There's an earlier sentiment that still rings true, as well. In a 1960 speech, Patrice Lumumba, the first Congolese prime minister, made a remark that fits the occasion: "We are going to show the world what the black man can do when he works in freedom."
Even before I had my passport stamped in Lagos late last month, airport ads for telecommunications giant MTN reminded me what the cup means for the continent. With images of star footballers Michael Essien of Ghana, Samuel Eto'o of Cameroon and John Obi Mikel of Nigeria ran the tournament's slogans: "Let's go Africa." "United we score." "Today is a good day to be African."
And it was a good month. While the petty crime that is common in Johannesburg didn't disappear, there were no major incidents of violence at the fan parks or outdoor screening areas. Dignitaries such as former president Bill Clinton and German Chancellor Angela Merkel, not to mention Mick Jagger, came to see the beautiful game at the bottom of the world. In every African city I visited, a raucous, family atmosphere prevailed. At game time in Lagos, traffic cleared, strangers crowded around television sets indoors and out, and alongside the news of the world, chatty conversations on the state of play looped constantly on the radio.
In Johannesburg, the "Jabulani" ball, designed specially for the tournament, graced pickup games outside bars and on dirt patches by the highway. In the poor and sprawling township of Khayelitsha, black South Africans live far from the shadow of Cape Town's shiny new stadium -- but during Ghana's fatal match against Uruguay, several men and even a few women celebrated by sporting jerseys from Brazil, South Africa, Liverpool and beyond.
The World Cup didn't just feel universal -- it was. According to market research company InsideView, some 80 percent of the world's population has watched "at least some part" of the competition -- and 600 million are expected to tune in to Sunday's battle between Spain and the Netherlands.
The global spotlight also created some unexpected common ground. The Black Stars may have done more for continental solidarity than staunch pan-Africanists such as Kwame Nkrumah, the father of contemporary Ghana. The team was adopted wholesale by South Africans, whose squad had been eliminated, and by millions more Africans on the continent and in the diaspora who hoped for a showing to rival the great footballers of Europe and South America. In Observatory, a student neighborhood in Cape Town, fans like me who normally identify as Nigerian, Kenyan, Congolese or South African chanted, "Up Ghana!"
When the team's best chance at making history clanged off the crossbar in the closing seconds of its quarterfinal, the upbeat drone of vuvuzelas gave way to groans. "We had the chance," said one Zimbabwean observer who backed the Ghanaian squad. "We just didn't execute."
That is the simplest explanation for the disappointments among the African teams competing this year. And they perhaps mirror the disappointments that have stalled the continent's political and economic progress. Similar to the lack of strong primary and secondary education systems on the world's youngest continent, not enough attention has been paid to youth development in soccer. The sub-Saharan teams' reliance on foreign coaches with little skin in the game echoes the broad mistrust in local leadership and institutions. And the perennial "brain drain" among the smartest African graduates correlates with the flight of top talent to European soccer clubs.
Perhaps fittingly, Ghana's breakout performance came after its investment in a championship under-20 team and two years of training under its (foreign) coach -- and despite being without its star player, Michael Essien of British club Chelsea.
Though athletic victories have eluded African fans, progress has not. In South Africa, many of the 44,000 police officers deployed to watch over the throng of foreign visitors -- Argentine and German, British and Brazilian -- will stay in their positions, armed with better skills, equipment and federal coordination. The upgrades to the transit and telecommunications infrastructures will last as well. And though the "white elephant" stadiums in less-trafficked towns such as Nelspruitt and Polokwane will be a sorry reminder of FIFA's misplaced zeal, regional tourism is slated to rise -- and South African President Jacob Zuma has declared that "after this, employment will go up."
While it may be decades before less-wealthy African countries are prepared to host the tournament, the World Cup has been an essential engine for African self-confidence. This is particularly salient in South Africa, whose racial traumas still live in plain sight. As fellow competitors Ivory Coast, Nigeria and Cameroon celebrate their half-century of independence (Ghana broke with Britain in 1957, and Algeria with France in 1962), South Africa is catching up in terms of full freedoms. De facto segregation by race and income persists -- especially on the scrubbed beaches of Cape Town.
Of course, spending money on elaborate new stadiums doesn't address the economic disparities that can inflame tension, but the very sight of white Afrikaners rooting for black strikers is a salve of sorts. "Apartheid consciousness for white society is rugby or cricket," says Gareth Colenbrander, a Western Cape resident who supported the Ghanaian team. "2010 consciousness is football."
Before Ghana's Black Stars departed South Africa, they greeted thousands of fans in Soweto and had lunch with former president Nelson Mandela. Though they weren't leaving as champions, they were leaving as heroes.
For many others I encountered, the official outcome was beside the point. Africa wasn't just the world's poorest continent -- it could compete. Perhaps the best assessment came from a wistful Ghanaian fan, who passed on a Zulu phrase to carry home: Hamba phambili. Move forward.
Thursday, June 17, 2010
Missing Zambia...and Why I Think Everyone Needs to GO...
Today is an interesting day for me...I woke up this morning thinking about a team of folks from my former school who were spending their first day in Zambia...this is the first trip that Wheaton Academy is taking where I'm not leading the trip, and it is the first year I won't be visiting sub-Saharan Africa since 2004...don't get me wrong, I am way, way thrilled that they are still going without me...in fact, that is the whole point, isn't it as a leader? But there is a real sadness that I'm not there with them, seeing old friends, playing soccer on dirt fields as the WORLD CUP goes on a couple countries below, and being moved again by the mixture of great need and great Kingdom work present in a nation and communities I've strangely fallen in love with...
A couple weeks ago I already started working on setting up dates to take students from my new campus environment back to Zambia and all that Africa has to offer...I can't imagine not going back, and I still deeply feel called to expose students and co-workers to life and the church and reality in this other part of the world...there are already plans in the works here at Cornerstone to host a big soccer event to help raise funds to purchase bednets that we can distribute next summer as we fight and help to prevent the deadly impact of malaria on families and children...and I've been left to wonder why I am still so consumed with taking people to meet others and see things that I know has great potential to make messy their lives that might be rather together and tidy in their current states...
Below is an excerpt from Palmer Chinchen's new book True Religion that speaks to the power of being deeply bothered when we experience things that produce real conflict in our lives are turned loose...it's a great summary piece of why I long to and will continue to take people to places different than their own worlds...to be disturbed and moved to response and in the process to become spiritually transformed...
"Welcome to hell," the European doctor greeted our medical team snidely at the entrance to the Lilongwe Hospital. Hell is what it was.
I had first visited hell a few years earlier when Boyd, a young man I knew in Lilongwe, was struck by a car while crossing the road at dusk.
Boyd's father showed up at my house in the dark and asked anxiously if! would drive him and his family to the hospital to find his son.
The stench was nauseating. Every part of the hospital was in some state of disrepair. Nothing appeared to have been painted in years. I watched the staff mop floors that remained curiously grimy.
We found Boyd on a dingy gurney in the hallway leading to the ER. He had a compound fracture; the bone protruded through the skin. His leg, his pants, and the gurney were all drenched in blood. He was still bleeding.
"Has he seen a doctor?" I asked.
An ER attendant spoke. "No, we are waiting for the doctor."
I walked into the ER to try to find help. There were no doctors, so I rounded up two interns and convinced them to bring Boyd into the ER to get the bleeding stopped and clean the puncture wound in his leg. They agreed, rolled him into the ER, and promised to look after him until the doctor arrived. I felt good about being helpful and headed home.
That was Friday night. Late Monday evening, Boyd's father was back at my door. "Boyd is in a lot of pain. Could you help me with some money for some pain medication?"
"Pain medication?" I was surprised. "Once a fracture is set, there should be no pain."
"The leg has not been set yet," his father replied.
What? Boyd lay there in the hospital for three days with a compound fracture, and no one had set it! I knew the orthopedic surgeon would not be in at night, so I waited until the morning and headed back to "hell" with several of my Malawian college students. We hunted the halls for an hour looking for the one orthopedic surgeon in the country and finally found him in an operating theater, teaching a class. He waved me in, and I told him about Boyd. He was unaware of the case and graciously told me to bring him.
We found Boyd, but none of the nurses could find a gurney to roll him to the operating room. So we picked up his bed, each taking a corner, and we carried him to the operating theater.
His leg had rotted. It took almost six months to heal. If there's a place in this world where people lie for days with gaping wounds—that's a place of hell on earth.
Bothered
I'll be honest. I write all of this with the intention of bothering you. I hope you will no longer be willing to ignore people who hurt.
Oppression, injustice, poverty, bigotry and abuse are real and present. But it doesn't have to be this way. God put you and me here to make this world a better place, a more beautiful place. When Jesus left, He asked that you and I continue to change and love the world. The mission and purpose of the local church was never intended to end at the edge of our community.
King Solomon writes about the heart of God: "Rescue the perishing; don't hesitate to step in and help. If you say, 'Hey, that's none of my business,' will that get you off the hook? Someone is watching you closely, you know–Someone not impressed with weak excuses."
So whatever the cost, go in the name of Jesus and love people who hurt. Tell them and show them that God has a better way, a more beautiful war, a life-giving way.
Conflict
Educators have discovered an interesting phenomenon: We learn best and comprehend more when our minds are disturbed. In other words, the more people are bothered by what they are being taught—because it is new or radically different and they disagree—then the more likely the information will change the way they think and live. The process of wrestling with difficult concepts makes them better thinkers and ultimately deeper people. The process even has a name—cognitive conflict (or disequilibration).
Jesus was brilliant at this. He masterfully used parables or illustrations to disturb those He taught.
Being disturbed is not just a good way to learn—it's necessary for transformation.
Jesus would always propose equilibration to people’s thinking by offering a better way to live, a more beautiful way to live, a more godly way to live. But He let them choose.
Diamonds
Spiritual transformation often happens in the moments of life that stun us. When we experience, watch or hear of something disturbing, it creates this cognitive conflict that can change the way we think and live.
You may already know how diamonds are formed. Carbon, which is just black dirt, is compressed by millions of pounds of pressure by the earth's weight. This extreme pressure and heat from the earth's core transform the carbon into something pure and beautiful. The greater the heat and pressure, the more pure (or clear) the diamond forms.
In much the same way, I'm convinced we are transformed through moments of spiritual conflict. Under the pressure of going globally and giving our lives away, we open ourselves to the possibility of God crafting something beautiful in our souls. He uses the pressure of the experience and the heat of the moment—sometimes literally—to transform us spiritually and make our lives a bit more beautiful.
We have two options. We can choose to stay and ignore. Or we can choose to go and see and be disturbed. One choice leads to a kind of death; the other leads to life and change and hope.
A couple weeks ago I already started working on setting up dates to take students from my new campus environment back to Zambia and all that Africa has to offer...I can't imagine not going back, and I still deeply feel called to expose students and co-workers to life and the church and reality in this other part of the world...there are already plans in the works here at Cornerstone to host a big soccer event to help raise funds to purchase bednets that we can distribute next summer as we fight and help to prevent the deadly impact of malaria on families and children...and I've been left to wonder why I am still so consumed with taking people to meet others and see things that I know has great potential to make messy their lives that might be rather together and tidy in their current states...
Below is an excerpt from Palmer Chinchen's new book True Religion that speaks to the power of being deeply bothered when we experience things that produce real conflict in our lives are turned loose...it's a great summary piece of why I long to and will continue to take people to places different than their own worlds...to be disturbed and moved to response and in the process to become spiritually transformed...
"Welcome to hell," the European doctor greeted our medical team snidely at the entrance to the Lilongwe Hospital. Hell is what it was.
I had first visited hell a few years earlier when Boyd, a young man I knew in Lilongwe, was struck by a car while crossing the road at dusk.
Boyd's father showed up at my house in the dark and asked anxiously if! would drive him and his family to the hospital to find his son.
The stench was nauseating. Every part of the hospital was in some state of disrepair. Nothing appeared to have been painted in years. I watched the staff mop floors that remained curiously grimy.
We found Boyd on a dingy gurney in the hallway leading to the ER. He had a compound fracture; the bone protruded through the skin. His leg, his pants, and the gurney were all drenched in blood. He was still bleeding.
"Has he seen a doctor?" I asked.
An ER attendant spoke. "No, we are waiting for the doctor."
I walked into the ER to try to find help. There were no doctors, so I rounded up two interns and convinced them to bring Boyd into the ER to get the bleeding stopped and clean the puncture wound in his leg. They agreed, rolled him into the ER, and promised to look after him until the doctor arrived. I felt good about being helpful and headed home.
That was Friday night. Late Monday evening, Boyd's father was back at my door. "Boyd is in a lot of pain. Could you help me with some money for some pain medication?"
"Pain medication?" I was surprised. "Once a fracture is set, there should be no pain."
"The leg has not been set yet," his father replied.
What? Boyd lay there in the hospital for three days with a compound fracture, and no one had set it! I knew the orthopedic surgeon would not be in at night, so I waited until the morning and headed back to "hell" with several of my Malawian college students. We hunted the halls for an hour looking for the one orthopedic surgeon in the country and finally found him in an operating theater, teaching a class. He waved me in, and I told him about Boyd. He was unaware of the case and graciously told me to bring him.
We found Boyd, but none of the nurses could find a gurney to roll him to the operating room. So we picked up his bed, each taking a corner, and we carried him to the operating theater.
His leg had rotted. It took almost six months to heal. If there's a place in this world where people lie for days with gaping wounds—that's a place of hell on earth.
Bothered
I'll be honest. I write all of this with the intention of bothering you. I hope you will no longer be willing to ignore people who hurt.
Oppression, injustice, poverty, bigotry and abuse are real and present. But it doesn't have to be this way. God put you and me here to make this world a better place, a more beautiful place. When Jesus left, He asked that you and I continue to change and love the world. The mission and purpose of the local church was never intended to end at the edge of our community.
King Solomon writes about the heart of God: "Rescue the perishing; don't hesitate to step in and help. If you say, 'Hey, that's none of my business,' will that get you off the hook? Someone is watching you closely, you know–Someone not impressed with weak excuses."
So whatever the cost, go in the name of Jesus and love people who hurt. Tell them and show them that God has a better way, a more beautiful war, a life-giving way.
Conflict
Educators have discovered an interesting phenomenon: We learn best and comprehend more when our minds are disturbed. In other words, the more people are bothered by what they are being taught—because it is new or radically different and they disagree—then the more likely the information will change the way they think and live. The process of wrestling with difficult concepts makes them better thinkers and ultimately deeper people. The process even has a name—cognitive conflict (or disequilibration).
Jesus was brilliant at this. He masterfully used parables or illustrations to disturb those He taught.
Being disturbed is not just a good way to learn—it's necessary for transformation.
Jesus would always propose equilibration to people’s thinking by offering a better way to live, a more beautiful way to live, a more godly way to live. But He let them choose.
Diamonds
Spiritual transformation often happens in the moments of life that stun us. When we experience, watch or hear of something disturbing, it creates this cognitive conflict that can change the way we think and live.
You may already know how diamonds are formed. Carbon, which is just black dirt, is compressed by millions of pounds of pressure by the earth's weight. This extreme pressure and heat from the earth's core transform the carbon into something pure and beautiful. The greater the heat and pressure, the more pure (or clear) the diamond forms.
In much the same way, I'm convinced we are transformed through moments of spiritual conflict. Under the pressure of going globally and giving our lives away, we open ourselves to the possibility of God crafting something beautiful in our souls. He uses the pressure of the experience and the heat of the moment—sometimes literally—to transform us spiritually and make our lives a bit more beautiful.
We have two options. We can choose to stay and ignore. Or we can choose to go and see and be disturbed. One choice leads to a kind of death; the other leads to life and change and hope.
Wednesday, June 9, 2010
20 Years and Counting...
Tomorrow afternoon some of my best friends in the world make their first visit to Grand Rapids after traveling from all over the country and the world...there will be six of us spending a long weekend together catching up, listening to a lecture on faith and sports, watching NBA Finals and World Cup matches at the local Buffalo Wild Wings restaurant, cooking out on my deck, playing a round of golf, hitting the west MI beaches, and doing a lot of laughing, eating, playing, praying, and writing another chapter in a friendship story that began over 20 years ago as soccer teammates at Bethel College (MN) in the late 80's...
We've been looking forward to this reunion for several months and the emails we've shared have been filled with comments about each other's sports teams, questions about what we should do, memories from college road trips, and genuine enthusiasm to simply be together again...and the time will definitely go way too fast over the next three days before they all head back home...
As I've reflected on our history as friends in looking forward to seeing these guys again I am filled with gratitude, memories, and to be honest, a bit of a strange wonder...for the relationship we share together seems from my perspective to be rather unique...over the last 20 years of ministry since I graduated from college and physically left this crew of friends I've had easily hundreds of young guys express their frustration with their lack of true friends and inability to find guys who love Jesus and love the things they are interested in when it comes to life...many of these guys have been athletes that I've had the chance to coach and mentor over the last 2 decades...they've actually sometimes thought about quitting sports or giving up hope of finding the elusive relationships they long for and were created to enjoy...
I've had lots of people including family members comment about how lucky I am to have been blessed with a crew of friends that has had such impact and positive influence in my life...I do feel exceptionally blessed and know that we have a community that others would enjoy having in their lives...but I've also often felt the need to share our experience so that other guys can have hope and be encouraged to pursue similar types of relationships...
This group of soccer guys made me believe that following Christ was something you could do as a quality college athlete...it made me believe that young men can talk about their struggles, their questions, their loves in authentic and open ways because of a share trust and commitment to loving one another because He first loved us...it made me believe that there are guys out there who I can have a crazy and fun time without compromising any of my core convictions or hurting other people around us...and it made me beleive that in order to follow Christ well for a lifetime I desperately need the partnership of friends to walk the journey of faith alongside me...
As has been the case often in my life, the sport called the beautiful game by most of the world brought us randomly together...as we practiced and traveled and played together, we fell in love with the game and with each other...athletics was the conduit for bigger and better things beyond just a pretty goal or a last second win...I don't think it is coincidence that a highlight of our weekend will be watching what is perhaps the most anticipated soccer game in US soccer history against mighty England Saturday afternoon...
This weekend I'll show my college friends the university world I work in every day at Cornerstone...we'll kick the ball around on our soccer field and look at the pictures of college students hanging in my office...and as they enter the world God has called me in the past year to enter here in Grand Rapids they represent what I long for the students and athletes in my current sphere of influence to experience at CU...I get to share my story with them as I can tell them that there is a way to become friends as guys that will meet their desires and longings for love and fun and connection...that they can create lifetime memories without generating regrets...and that there is great joy in following Jesus together with brothers who love the games, the passions, AND the Savior in similar ways...
Gotta go get some sleep now...there won't be time for much sleep the next three nights in west MI for a group of former Bethel soccer players...
PROVERBS 18:24...There are “friends” who destroy each other, but a real friend sticks closer than a brother.
We've been looking forward to this reunion for several months and the emails we've shared have been filled with comments about each other's sports teams, questions about what we should do, memories from college road trips, and genuine enthusiasm to simply be together again...and the time will definitely go way too fast over the next three days before they all head back home...
As I've reflected on our history as friends in looking forward to seeing these guys again I am filled with gratitude, memories, and to be honest, a bit of a strange wonder...for the relationship we share together seems from my perspective to be rather unique...over the last 20 years of ministry since I graduated from college and physically left this crew of friends I've had easily hundreds of young guys express their frustration with their lack of true friends and inability to find guys who love Jesus and love the things they are interested in when it comes to life...many of these guys have been athletes that I've had the chance to coach and mentor over the last 2 decades...they've actually sometimes thought about quitting sports or giving up hope of finding the elusive relationships they long for and were created to enjoy...
I've had lots of people including family members comment about how lucky I am to have been blessed with a crew of friends that has had such impact and positive influence in my life...I do feel exceptionally blessed and know that we have a community that others would enjoy having in their lives...but I've also often felt the need to share our experience so that other guys can have hope and be encouraged to pursue similar types of relationships...
This group of soccer guys made me believe that following Christ was something you could do as a quality college athlete...it made me believe that young men can talk about their struggles, their questions, their loves in authentic and open ways because of a share trust and commitment to loving one another because He first loved us...it made me believe that there are guys out there who I can have a crazy and fun time without compromising any of my core convictions or hurting other people around us...and it made me beleive that in order to follow Christ well for a lifetime I desperately need the partnership of friends to walk the journey of faith alongside me...
As has been the case often in my life, the sport called the beautiful game by most of the world brought us randomly together...as we practiced and traveled and played together, we fell in love with the game and with each other...athletics was the conduit for bigger and better things beyond just a pretty goal or a last second win...I don't think it is coincidence that a highlight of our weekend will be watching what is perhaps the most anticipated soccer game in US soccer history against mighty England Saturday afternoon...
This weekend I'll show my college friends the university world I work in every day at Cornerstone...we'll kick the ball around on our soccer field and look at the pictures of college students hanging in my office...and as they enter the world God has called me in the past year to enter here in Grand Rapids they represent what I long for the students and athletes in my current sphere of influence to experience at CU...I get to share my story with them as I can tell them that there is a way to become friends as guys that will meet their desires and longings for love and fun and connection...that they can create lifetime memories without generating regrets...and that there is great joy in following Jesus together with brothers who love the games, the passions, AND the Savior in similar ways...
Gotta go get some sleep now...there won't be time for much sleep the next three nights in west MI for a group of former Bethel soccer players...
PROVERBS 18:24...There are “friends” who destroy each other, but a real friend sticks closer than a brother.
Monday, May 24, 2010
Summer Reading: Thoughts from Crazy Love by Francis Chan
This summer, a bunch of guys in the CU men's soccer program are reading the book Crazy Love by Francis Chan along with me...I had a chance to knock it out on the plane rides to and from my recent missions trip to the DR...and in particular his thoughts on actually being obsessed with Jesus stood out to me...and I jotted them down to serve as stakes in my picture of what following Jesus with abandonment in response to His indeed crazy love might look like...here's the notes I typed up in summary of his descriptors of people obsessed with our Savior:
CRAZY LOVE Chapter 8 Summary Thoughts: Profile of the Obsessed…
OBSESSED: To have the mind excessively preoccupied with a single emotion or topic…
*People who are obsessed with Jesus give freely and openly, without censure. Obsessed people love those who hate them and who can never love them back.
* People who are obsessed with Jesus aren’t consumed with their personal safety and comfort above all else. Obsessed people care more about God’s kingdom coming to this earth than their own lives being shielded from pain or distress.
* People who are obsessed with Jesus live lives that connect them with the poor in some way or another. Obsessed people believe that Jesus talked about money and the poor so often because it was really important to Him (I John 2:4-6; Matthew 16:24-26).
* Obsessed people are more concerned with obeying God than doing what is expected or fulfilling the status quo. A person who is obsessed with Jesus will do things that don’t always make sense in terms of success or wealth on this earth. As Martin Luther put it, “There are two days on my calendar: this day and that day” (Luke 14:25-35; Matthew 7:13-23, 8:18-22; Revelation 3:1-6)
*A person who is obsessed with Jesus knows that the sin of pride is always a battle. Obsessed people know that you can never be “humble enough,” and so they seek to make themselves less known and Christ more known (Matthew 5:16).
*People who are obsessed with Jesus do not consider service a burden. Obsessed people take joy in loving God by loving His people (Matthew 13:44; John 15:8)
* People who are obsessed with God are known as givers, not takers. Obsessed people genuinely think that others matter as much as they do, and they are particularly aware of those who are poor around the world (James 2:14-26)
*A person who is obsessed thinks about heaven frequently. Obsessed people orient their lives around eternity; they are not fixed only on what is here in front of them.
* A person who is obsessed is characterized by committed, settled, passionate love for God, above and before every other thing and every other being.
*People who are obsessed are raw with God; they do not attempt to mask the ugliness of their sins or their failures. Obsessed people don’t put it on for God; He is their safe place, where they can be at peace.
*People who are obsessed with God have an intimate relationship with Him. They are nourished by God’s Word throughout the day because they know that forty minutes on Sunday is not enough to sustain them for a whole week, especially when they will encounter so many distractions and alternative messages.
*A person who is obsessed with Jesus is more concerned with his or her character than comfort. Obsessed people know that true joy doesn’t depend on circumstances or environment; it is a gift that must be chosen and cultivated, a gift that ultimately comes from God (James 1:2-4).
*A person who is obsessed with Jesus knows that the best thing he or she can do is be faithful to their Savior in every aspect of their life, continually saying “Thank You!” to God. An obsessed person knows there can never be intimacy if he or she is always trying to pay God back or work hard enough to be worthy. He or she revels in their role as child and friend of God.
CRAZY LOVE Chapter 8 Summary Thoughts: Profile of the Obsessed…
OBSESSED: To have the mind excessively preoccupied with a single emotion or topic…
*People who are obsessed with Jesus give freely and openly, without censure. Obsessed people love those who hate them and who can never love them back.
* People who are obsessed with Jesus aren’t consumed with their personal safety and comfort above all else. Obsessed people care more about God’s kingdom coming to this earth than their own lives being shielded from pain or distress.
* People who are obsessed with Jesus live lives that connect them with the poor in some way or another. Obsessed people believe that Jesus talked about money and the poor so often because it was really important to Him (I John 2:4-6; Matthew 16:24-26).
* Obsessed people are more concerned with obeying God than doing what is expected or fulfilling the status quo. A person who is obsessed with Jesus will do things that don’t always make sense in terms of success or wealth on this earth. As Martin Luther put it, “There are two days on my calendar: this day and that day” (Luke 14:25-35; Matthew 7:13-23, 8:18-22; Revelation 3:1-6)
*A person who is obsessed with Jesus knows that the sin of pride is always a battle. Obsessed people know that you can never be “humble enough,” and so they seek to make themselves less known and Christ more known (Matthew 5:16).
*People who are obsessed with Jesus do not consider service a burden. Obsessed people take joy in loving God by loving His people (Matthew 13:44; John 15:8)
* People who are obsessed with God are known as givers, not takers. Obsessed people genuinely think that others matter as much as they do, and they are particularly aware of those who are poor around the world (James 2:14-26)
*A person who is obsessed thinks about heaven frequently. Obsessed people orient their lives around eternity; they are not fixed only on what is here in front of them.
* A person who is obsessed is characterized by committed, settled, passionate love for God, above and before every other thing and every other being.
*People who are obsessed are raw with God; they do not attempt to mask the ugliness of their sins or their failures. Obsessed people don’t put it on for God; He is their safe place, where they can be at peace.
*People who are obsessed with God have an intimate relationship with Him. They are nourished by God’s Word throughout the day because they know that forty minutes on Sunday is not enough to sustain them for a whole week, especially when they will encounter so many distractions and alternative messages.
*A person who is obsessed with Jesus is more concerned with his or her character than comfort. Obsessed people know that true joy doesn’t depend on circumstances or environment; it is a gift that must be chosen and cultivated, a gift that ultimately comes from God (James 1:2-4).
*A person who is obsessed with Jesus knows that the best thing he or she can do is be faithful to their Savior in every aspect of their life, continually saying “Thank You!” to God. An obsessed person knows there can never be intimacy if he or she is always trying to pay God back or work hard enough to be worthy. He or she revels in their role as child and friend of God.
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