They Gained "Wait" After Christmas Too!

Merry Christmas!
This is the day we celebrate that God came down to earth to become one of us in order to save us!  That's big news.
Who ever heard of the great God above becoming part of His own creation, in fact, coming to the very bottom, in order to raise us all up?  This is the day.  Let us rejoice and be glad in it.  Merry Christmas to you!

We normally think of Christmas as "it."  Christ was born, He came to die to save us from sin.  It's almost like it's all over and done in one day.  It didn't quite go like that.

Think about this:
There were only a few people that knew how important this baby was.  Even counting Simeon, Anna, and Elizabeth, the whole crowd is certainly less than 50.  Suppose you were Mary, or Joseph, one of the shepherds, or one of the wise men.  The anticipation was probably the biggest part of the whole ordeal.  Check this out -- there were a lot of super-natural events that accompanied the birth of Christ.  But He did not start His ministry for thirty years!  I tend to doubt pretty quickly.  I'm sure that in 10 years, I would be wondering if it was true. --  Did it really all happen back then (10 years ago), or was I just caught up in the emotion of the moment?  All those things were pretty random, and everything's been pretty normal since.  Maybe God has changed His mind.  Maybe I was hoping too much.  -- But to wait another 20 years after that?

Do you think the shepherds kept tabs on Jesus?  How often in the next 30 years do you think they thought about that one very strange night?  They went back to their routine lives, and not another thing happened for the next 30 years.  If one was 30 at the time of Jesus' birth, he would be 60 before Jesus started His ministry.  I wonder if any of them were around 30 years later to hear about this Rabbi named "Jesus."  Did they get to hear Him speak?  Were any there to see Him die?  How about the wise men?  They went back home.  How would they ever know when this new king took power?  Did they wonder what happened years later, when they never heard news?
We celebrate Christmas every year.  Did they forget Christmas?

Where will you be in 30 years?  How many "spectacular events" you have seen recently will still be on your mind then?  Will you still be in touch with the people you know and the friends you have now?  It's a long time - a very long time.

What if you knew this child was the Messiah, but then you watched Him grow up for 30 years?  That's what Mary did.  Joseph isn't mentioned much after Jesus started His ministry.  Did he even get to see His son's ministry?  What if you were Mary?  The anticipation of waiting for the Messiah - your Son - to be revealed.  Then, a short miraculous ministry, and an early death.  Bam, it's all over.  You've been waiting 30 years, and this is what you get.

You see, we shorten the story because we know too much of it.  This Christmas, let's go back to Bethlehem and wait -- WAIT -- just like everyone had to that first Christmas.  The Christmas story is so much fuller and richer than we realize.  Think of the anticipation.
We often want God to work fast.  What if we had to wait 30 years?

~700 Years before Christ
Isaiah 7:14, NKJV
"Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel."

Prophecies relating to Christmas:
http://www.jeffkouba.com/SundaySchool/ChristmasProphecies.htm

Chesterton on The Tree

"If a tree falls over in the forest, and no one is around to hear it, does it make any sound?"

This age old scientific/philosophical question has affronted minds for generations.  You see, before the invention of recording devices, there was no scientific way to answer this question.  It became a question of philosophy.

So I wondered how the literary philosopher G.K. Chesterton might answer.  In thinking forward, it might appear like this: (My apologies to this great man, as I am so far stuck in thinking backwards.)

One might think that this tree's fall would produce no sound, and one could be assured in thinking so, because he does not hear it.  But for one to think that all of nature performs its act for our benefit alone is quite presumptuous.  Nature was created before man, and does not need man to exist.  The fact is so well recognized, in fact, that Mr. Wells and many other novelists have all but said that nature is best without man.  No, this tree did not wait for human ears to confirm its glorious downfall.
It fell, with a crack more sharp and a crash more thunderous than any human has ever heard, precisely because it had no reason.

Google Launches Middle East Peace Initiative

The California-based information company known world-wide for innovation and working outside market standard has done it again. Yesterday, Google International announced the release of its global peace initiative -- just in time for Christmas. While the long term scope is to facilitate cooperation and understanding between all world groups, the planned first step will be no easy task. Google spokesperson announced, "We're taking the solution right to the heart of the struggle." First Step? -- The Middle East.
The hotbed of conflict for centuries, the Middle East will be the perfect proving grounds for this daring initiative. If it works here, Google will instantly have a lucrative contract with the United Nations. The world will be watching the Google World Peace Initiative.

Check it out:
http://mideastpeace.google.com

If the site doesn't come up, please be patient, and try back later.
Mideastpeace is still beta, and doesn't work all the time.



Links:
http://jesusislife.net/articles/ChristIsTheAnswer.html
http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=world+peace

Related blog:
http://dlorimer.livejournal.com/52509.html

Is The Fellowship Breaking?

Matthew 4:8-10 (New International Version)
"Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor. "All this I will give you," he said, "if you will bow down and worship me.""

I think Satan still tempts along this same line.  Oh, he's no longer tempting Christ, of course.  Now he is tempting the "little Christs," the Christians.  He still tempts those in leadership; those who are about to face a difficult test.  The words have changed a bit too.  Today, I think he presents this temptation like this:
"Again, the devil took him to a very high position and showed him all the people of the world.  "Your church is small," he said.  "All these people I will give you, if you will bow down and worship me.""

The temptation to big-churchism.  Have we glorified the large church as the image of success?  How many times do we see that disapproving frown when a "big-churcher" finds out we attend a "little church."  Is a big church really successful?  Is a small one quite unsuccessful?  Could it be that the frown we see and the taunts we hear are reflections and echos of the tempter himself?

Where in the Bible are large churches glorified?  Where are they shown as the image of success?  Where are they even recommended?  Ahh, -- "and that day about three thousand souls were added to them." (Acts 2:41)  That's a pretty big church!  But it continues -- "So continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they ate their food with gladness and simplicity of heart, praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily those who were being saved.  (Acts 2:46-47)   Hmm, pretty big houses to hold 3000+ people.  It seems the model here is smaller fellowships, as would be consistent with Hebrews 10:24-25: 

"And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works, not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some, but exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see the Day approaching."

This appears to place Christianity in a social construct that requires interaction.  But this isn't just a social event.  These people are at the level of challenging and encouraging one another.  This is, by nature of men, a relatively small group.

We don't know the sizes of the churches Paul fathered, visited and wrote to.  Sure, some were quite large.  They were also listed by city.  The actual groups appear to have met in much smaller gatherings.  To write a letter to the church of Lexington would be to address a very large congregation indeed!

Are large churches inherently wrong?  No, I don't think so.  Many large churches have understood and applied the teaching of the Scriptures, working in smaller units that make up the larger church.

Are small churches inherently good?  By no means.  Many have lost their message, their passion, or their Savior, and have dwindled and died.

So what's the problem?  To focus on numbers is to lose focus on God.  I know of many "small" churches that are perfectly Biblical.  They remain small because they are senders!  I know of large churches that are perfectly Biblical.  They are large by remaining a conglomerate group, as well as smaller units.  I have seen all sizes that are not living up to the Good News they have been given.  The issue is not size; the standard is the Savior.

There is a temptation for those of a large church to look down on those of a small church, and say they must not be doing something right, or they would be big.  There is a temptation to make the goal "church growth," because size is the test of the church. 
There is a temptation to accept the offer of the devil, "All these people I will give you, if you will bow down and worship me."

The War of the Worlds

What do The War of the Worlds and W.A.L.-E have in common?
Plenty.

I just finished The War of the Worlds by H.G. Wells tonight.  (If you have not read the book, this won't make much sense, and it also contains spoilers)
You may read it here:
http://books.google.com/books?id=-9QfOx1BrBgC&dq=%22war+of+the+worlds%22&pg=PP1&ots=5VA0uMAU78&source=bn&sig=7T-AufxaGzBv1sokzuGg8NvFBms&hl=en&sa=X&oi=book_result&resnum=4&ct=result


I can certainly see why his contemporary, GK Chesterton, took him to task.
(http://www.pagebypagebooks.com/Gilbert_K_Chesterton/Heretics/Mr_H_G_Wells_and_the_Giants_p1.html) 
He has infused the book with philosophy -- nay, the book is moreso born of philosophy.  He finds space to ridicule Christianity and religion in general, with the depiction of the curate, the ravings of the artilleryman, and the comments of the narrator.  I did find it interesting that he seems to turn religion back into a positive light at the end, though I hardly think it undoes much damage already caused.

More strange to me was his assault on humanism.  What?  Yes, it was shocking to me, living in a secular humanistic society, to hear such blatant denial of the human species.  Wells is certainly not a humanist.
I give him a lot of credit though, for a pure presentation of evolution.  My secular humanistic society has progressed to the place where they really don't believe evolution anymore.  Wells presents it pure and rational.  If it happened, it could happen anywhere, probably did, they could be more intelligent than us, they could attack us, and we could be like ants to them.  Humans are not the highest lifeform, we just happen to be right now.  Please notice that Natural Selection was the key component in the War of the Worlds.

Back to W.A.L.-E.  Why on earth do I say these two have something in common?  Ahh, precisely because of earth.  There has been an idea for years that humans will eventually wear the earth out.  We will need to progress in space, because we need to leave this planet.  After using up the earth, we will move to another planet, and begin to use it up too.   (see C.S. Lewis, The Space Trilogy for a strong reaction to these ideas.)  Now, this idea is very humanistic, for it assumes humans to be "it".  Both C.S. Lewis and H.G. Wells counter the idea, funny enough.  From War of the Worlds to W.A.L.-E so much later, this idea is seen.

Ok, enough philosophy --

--One literary comment: The cliched "happy ending" of this book is almost revolting.  Sure, victory is good, but then all of a sudden, his wife is there ...  What?  Did he run out of paper, or out of inspiration?  That was a little too easy in comparison with the rest of the book, lol.--

-- On to battle commentary.
A couple of problems here:

1.  The main character of the story demonstrates his weakness, as well as his selfishness by constantly working for self-preservation.  Once so near to the martians as he was when trapped in the house, and armed with a hatchet, he ought to have sprung upon the martians and killed as many as possible before losing his own life.  Fate placed him in an ideal situation, and he blew it.  It would have been for the good of humanity (one wonders if Wells believes in the good of humanity).  Without the fighting machines, the martians are relatively weak, and I believe he could have had much more success than anyone else yet in the story.  What about the heat ray, you ask?  Indeed, he was so close, he would have been inside the pit before it could have been fired (probably even before it could be set up.  If it was fired from the fighting machine, it would have also killed the martians around him.

2.  I have a battle plan which would have proved beneficial.  Though I would not normally recommend this plan, it would certainly work here.  Human volunteers loaded with explosives must allow themselves to be caught, and put in the compartments behind the hoods of the fighting machines.  Once there, they would blow themselves up, taking the fighing machines down with them.  A coordinated effort of this type could bring down 3-5 of the fighting machines, before the martians would learn the trick and find a way to counter it.

3.  On the biggest scale, though, I feel the War of the Worlds was initially lost because of a tactical error on the part of the humans.  After the chance shot that killed the first of the fighting machines, the martians retreated to the pit, vacated the tripods, and set upon repair work.  Any thinking human should know that if the martians can build one, they can repair one too.  But at this moment, the martians left themselves open to destruction.  If batteries were moved forward during this night, completely surrounding the pit, and opened fire simultaneously, they could have destroyed all the fighting machines, and all the martians at once!  Possible?  Yes.  The martians abandoned the machines.  The only weapon they had was the heat ray.  If stationed behind a hill or mound of earth, artillery would be impervious to this line of attack.  All the martian equipment was within a 1 mile radius (probably within a few hundred yards), and it would have been easy to take it out with a mass of shells.  The delay before they could re-man the machines would allow for at least 2 volleys.  The rest of the cylinders could have been blown up before they opened, or the martians could be shot before the exited.  But no, confident of their power, they set up and sat, waiting, all night.

I do commend the HMS Thunder Child for an attack perfectly executed.

I'm done. :)  If you have read the book, I would appreciate your thoughts on it as well. (especially if you have also read Chesterton's Heretics or C.S. Lewis' Space Trilogy).

Sunday, December 7

"Yesterday, December 7th, 1941—a date which will live in infamy—the United States of America was suddenly and deliberately attacked by naval and air forces of the Empire of Japan."
--President Franklin D. Roosevelt

Today is the day/date anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor.  It is again, on this 67th anniversary, Sunday, December 7th.

Today, we remember those who lost their lives in an conflict that was all at once a surprise, a military error, a double-cross, a lucky break, and a great tragedy.  The Japanese launched an air and sea raid on Pearl Harbor in Oahu, Hawaii.  It was a complete surprise, and they did much damage before we were able to muster a response.  It was the key that brought the United States into World War II.
The casualty reports are staggering, especially for a conflict that occurred on American soil, without much of a fair fight.

Our soldiers were relatively quiet and content on this Sunday, but were soon required to give their lives for their country.  This day, we remember our soldiers, we remember our values, we remember our country.
Pray for our soldiers.  Honor and respect them.  May God bless our troops.

The nation that brought us into WWII by one of the few attacks to our own soil, is now one of our closest allies.  God has granted a victory which could never be accomplished by all the wisdom of man.

Remember Pearl Harbor.

To the Girls

I read part of a girls' romance novel tonight.  Not much, for those of you who were wondering -- a couple of pages.  And just to make things clear, it was a Christian romance novel.

You must understand, for me to read such a book requires a very off-hand mood.  I didn't set out on this as a project or with a notion in my head.  I just picked up a random book, turned to a random page, and read ...

But there was something that disturbed me in my passing perusal of those pages.  I thought to myself, "people actually read this stuff?"  Here's the deal -- the guy in that book was an entirely fictional character!  It was obvious that the book was written by a woman, because it was an image of a perfect male, straight out of pure imagination.  Girls, the guy portrayed in that book does not exist!  I have never in my life met a man who was even close to what was presented in those couple of pages.

So what's the problem?  Expectations.  If you read/ have read books like the one I browsed, and remotely think of relationships in that framework, you are in for a disappointing set of relationships.  It's nice, it's wonderful, it's everything a girl ever wanted ... but it's not true.  Please, oh, please do not live in those books.  I'm not sure how to express the repugnance of what I read.  Please understand, the story was not bad, nothing wrong was happening, it was just a nice, sweet story of love.  But it was almost sickening to me.  It was almost like eating cayenne-flavored cotton candy -- a lot of fluff with a horrid aftertaste!  It wasn't true.  If anyone actually ever believed that book ...

I'm not necessarily saying to stop reading those books.  I wish for all my sisters to keep hope alive.  Much more devastating than believing one of these books is to give up hope.  A impossible ideal may set you up for disappointment and bad relationships (some "games guys play" are based in these false stories), but hopelessness will guarantee you bad relationships and perhaps a horrible life.  If books such as these allow you to dream and hope, then continue in them.  I believe in fairy tales, for they give us a way of looking at the world that is at once refreshing and real.  It is an ideal that creates.  "Where there is no vision, the people perish."  These type of books can serve a very beneficial purpose, or they can destroy your sanity.  Dream, but do not live there.  Hope, but do not float among the stars.  I would suggest that perhaps real life Christian love stories (like Elizabeth Elliot) would be effectual in keeping a balanced view of relationships.

With God, set your standards for what you are looking for in a guy.  Make them pure, true, and based in God.  Then settle for nothing less.  Focus on becoming the person God wants you to be.  As you become more like Christ, God will have freedom in your heart and affections.  Those guys who are seeking Christ themselves will notice.  And God will be allowed to write your love story.

But even Mr. Right will always and forever be ... a guy.

"Every woman has to find out that her husband is a selfish beast, because every man is a selfish beast by the standard of a woman. But let her find out the beast while they are both still in the story of 'Beauty and the Beast.' Every man has to find out that his wife is cross -- that is to say, sensitive to the point of madness: for every woman is mad by the masculine standard. But let him find out that she is mad while her madness is more worth considering than anyone else's sanity."
-- G.K. Chesterton, "Two Stubborn Pieces of Iron" in The Common Man

Can You Hear Me Now?

Do We Hear the Call?

Sometimes I wonder if we have not contributed to our own downfall.
    We have emphasized NOT to preach unless you are called.  I understand the reasons for this, both intellectual and experiential.  But where did this idea come from?  We have strong examples of the call to preach, expressed by Paul, "woe is me if I do not preach the  gospel!" (1 Corinthians 9:16, NKJV)  But where do we find this idea that if you are not called, you should not go into ministry?  On the contrary, the commission of Christ seems to  be the opposite! 

"And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to  observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen.  (Matthew 28:18-20, NKJV)

   Granted, we make a distinction between "the ministry" as a career and profession and witnessing in general, but perhaps we have dug this  gulf too large.

    It is true that there are some who are not a good fit for certain types of ministry.  Sometimes, this is a spiritual problem, and needs the work of God.  But other times, it is simply a personality element.  For these, that area of ministry won't work, but that doesn't mean ministry should be abandoned!  There are so many avenues to serve as a minister of God, that no personality or physique has a good excuse.

How has this idea worked out?
We have emphasized NOT to preach unless you are called.  But unfortunately ... We don't hear the call anymore. 

• We have surrounded ourselves with so much noise that we cannot hear his voice. -- We cannot hear the call.
• We have failed to pay our service charges of prayer and Scripture, and
  the line has been disconnected. -- We cannot hear the call.
• We are always roaming, and are often out of range.  We seem to have "no service." -- We cannot hear the call.
  

"Don't preach if you're not called."  But we do not hear the call.  And we continue to fill the ranks of that great army content to let others do the fighting.  We call ourselves "workers," but in fact, many of us are welfare Christians.

Where are the ministers!?  Where are those who will abandon all for the cause of Christ?

Listen --
I think ministry is one of the best things you can do.  We have been redeemed by the power of God.  We have been set free from our sins.  We have been delivered from the power of the kingdom of darkness.  We have been given the promise of eternal life.  We -- and only we -- have been given the task of letting others know.  How can we be so calloused as to be content to "be good Christians" and not share with others?  Have you been redeemed?  Have you received the Spirit of God and His goodness?  Why don't you tell someone?  Christ commissioned us --every one of us-- to carry the good news to all people.

How shall they hear without a preacher?!

We are commissioned to share.  We have a duty to tell others.  We have a calling to be Christ's ministers.
How can we who know the power of God do anything else?