I decided to look up the verses of Auld Lang Syne and found its wikipedia entry to be quite helpful and it made me all reflective and sniffly and well, it wasnt pretty.
As i look back on this year and all the goods and bads done by/to me. I have realized that sometimes i'm the auld acquaintance that needed to be forgot and sometimes i have auld acquaintances that i need to forget. Either way both are painful.
But without pain, there is no growth, and sometimes there is no healing.
I was reading through Job and then switched to selected parts in Revelation. And i realized that there are some parts of the Bible that aren't meant to be read in winter...cuz they depress me. Well except for Revelation 21. The whole new earth, new life stuff....yeah i like that!
Getting back to pain...
Job was rewarded for his faithfulness, but he had to suffer. But some people suffer and aren't rewarded until they get to sit at the feet of Jesus. And some friendships are broken and never healed. There is all sorts of talk about being reconciled to one another, but if that's not possible, when do we pick up the pieces and move on? Especially when some people use silence as a form of punishment?
Ack, New Years always gets me moody and thoughtful. So anyways, this year sucked, lets hope the next year is better!
12/22/08
Here's to new life and new beginnings!
This past Sunday i taught 2nd and 3rd graders the Christmas story. Using Luke 2:1-20, I tried to get them to see how difficult life was. I tried to show them how far Mary and Joseph had to travel to get to Bethlehem, I tried to get them to see how hard it would've been for pregnant Mary to travel. But with the lure of a Veggie Tales video and coloring books, i lost the battle, and as one kid pointed out "we're not parents!".
And yet....
Afterwards, some kids shared with me their own anxieties about the times. Some have lost allowances. Some have noticed fewer presents. Some have heard their parents fight for the first time. I realized i'd missed my opportunity to make the Christmas story relevant to the kids. While they dont have to make long physical journeys they are making difficult emotional journeys this year. Some of my kids will have to grow up quickly, some have lost their comforts and privileges, and some will be happy with whatever gifts they get under the tree.
And so as we prepare to celebrate the coming of Jesus and the end of Advent. I hope that you have found comfort and friendship during your journeys especially on the difficult paths that some of you have traveled this year.I pray that you will be able to close some difficult chapters and find strength, energy and communities to help you with the new paths that await you in the coming year.
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year
And yet....
Afterwards, some kids shared with me their own anxieties about the times. Some have lost allowances. Some have noticed fewer presents. Some have heard their parents fight for the first time. I realized i'd missed my opportunity to make the Christmas story relevant to the kids. While they dont have to make long physical journeys they are making difficult emotional journeys this year. Some of my kids will have to grow up quickly, some have lost their comforts and privileges, and some will be happy with whatever gifts they get under the tree.
And so as we prepare to celebrate the coming of Jesus and the end of Advent. I hope that you have found comfort and friendship during your journeys especially on the difficult paths that some of you have traveled this year.I pray that you will be able to close some difficult chapters and find strength, energy and communities to help you with the new paths that await you in the coming year.
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year
12/11/08
Its always darkest before...
In reading through all the newspapers online today i found myself increasingly depressed. With obvious corruption and depression and bailouts... oh my!
And here in the middle of advent, when i'm forced to reflect on the Christmas story, i have found it to be more relevant than ever before. The Jews were living in tough times. They had been through several revolts. The Romans had invaded, desecrated the temple. Now they had a corrupt and possibly insane ruler over them. A ruler who was not chosen by the Jews, but by the Romans. So on a warm spring night, Joseph loaded up his very pregnant fiancee, onto a donkey and headed to Bethlehem. ( I always found it interesting that the literal translation of Bethlehem is house of bread, but i digress...) Worse, the child wasn't even his. Joseph was facing not only a disruption in his life, but a major life change. Yet still he honored his obligations and headed back to the city of his birth to take part in the census.
Many of us are facing a similar circumstances. Its hard to find hope in the night and in winter its dark around 5pm! Today's reading for my advent devotional is Isaiah 11:1-5 An apt reading for these difficult times. There is a part of me that wonders if what we're experiencing is the hangover after a long time of partying without restrictions. Like the ancient Jews who read this passage, we are looking for a "shoot will spring from the stem of Jesse" who will
" ... will not judge by what His eyes see,
Nor make a decision by what His ears hear;
But with righteousness He will judge the poor,
And decide with fairness for the afflicted of the earth;
And He will strike the earth with the rod of His mouth,
And with the breath of His lips He will slay the wicked."
For some that shoot is named "Barack". For those who dare call themselves Christians, we believe the shoot was named Jesus. (Christ is a title, not a name)
So where am i going with this... Well i do have hope that the new administration can change things around. But I also know that Barack is human and suffers from all too human limitations. He's just a hell of a lot smarter than me! But I also can settle into my long held belief and hope that God will interact with current events and show us not only the error of our ways, but his love and joy in his creation and moves us all safely into the house of bread.
In the meantime, i'll continue to pray for the idiots that got us here and hopefully the idiots who'll get us out!
And here in the middle of advent, when i'm forced to reflect on the Christmas story, i have found it to be more relevant than ever before. The Jews were living in tough times. They had been through several revolts. The Romans had invaded, desecrated the temple. Now they had a corrupt and possibly insane ruler over them. A ruler who was not chosen by the Jews, but by the Romans. So on a warm spring night, Joseph loaded up his very pregnant fiancee, onto a donkey and headed to Bethlehem. ( I always found it interesting that the literal translation of Bethlehem is house of bread, but i digress...) Worse, the child wasn't even his. Joseph was facing not only a disruption in his life, but a major life change. Yet still he honored his obligations and headed back to the city of his birth to take part in the census.
Many of us are facing a similar circumstances. Its hard to find hope in the night and in winter its dark around 5pm! Today's reading for my advent devotional is Isaiah 11:1-5 An apt reading for these difficult times. There is a part of me that wonders if what we're experiencing is the hangover after a long time of partying without restrictions. Like the ancient Jews who read this passage, we are looking for a "shoot will spring from the stem of Jesse" who will
" ... will not judge by what His eyes see,
Nor make a decision by what His ears hear;
But with righteousness He will judge the poor,
And decide with fairness for the afflicted of the earth;
And He will strike the earth with the rod of His mouth,
And with the breath of His lips He will slay the wicked."
For some that shoot is named "Barack". For those who dare call themselves Christians, we believe the shoot was named Jesus. (Christ is a title, not a name)
So where am i going with this... Well i do have hope that the new administration can change things around. But I also know that Barack is human and suffers from all too human limitations. He's just a hell of a lot smarter than me! But I also can settle into my long held belief and hope that God will interact with current events and show us not only the error of our ways, but his love and joy in his creation and moves us all safely into the house of bread.
In the meantime, i'll continue to pray for the idiots that got us here and hopefully the idiots who'll get us out!
11/27/08
Thanks in the darkness....
As someone whose wandered through the bible a few times, mainly to write exegetical papers and impress professors. I originally wanted to do a post about praising in prison, connect the dots to the horrible situation in India, quote a few scriptures and leave you, the reader, encouraged.
Alas, that blog has been written to death, by many much more eloquent writers than I.
Instead i found myself meditating on my journey, through this life and my faith and realized that when times are dark, I'm not Paul, singing in the darkness with chains around my limbs. Nope i'm more like the desperate woman that's seeking Jesus to be healed of her bleeding. I then realized that as americans we are terrible at grieving. We eschew public displays of grief, we want people to get over it. We dont give them time to heal. This is reflected in the way we treat the Passion narratives. We get to Gethsemane and we skip over Jesus' crying, sweating blood in agony, praying with intensity and being frustrated with his disciples. We gloss over all that until he says "not my will, but thine" or head over to John, where there is no Gethsemane.
Americans are "Hope" addicts. We want the sweet, the reassurance that all will be alright, if we just keep living.
A cranky, but wise, old man told me he believed that hope was a substitute for action. As long as we have hope we dont have to do anything. When i read the prison epistles with this bit of wisdom in mind, i realized that Paul and his companions didn't have hope. They fully expected to die. But instead of sitting there, hoping for a change in their circumstances, they sang, they praised, they prayed, they wrote letters home. They acted.
So in these dark times, lets take action by first giving thanks for what the Lord has done, what the Lord will do and what the Lord calls us to do. Then lets get on with the business of doing it, even if the only thing we can do, is give thanks, pray, praise and sing in our prisons.
Alas, that blog has been written to death, by many much more eloquent writers than I.
Instead i found myself meditating on my journey, through this life and my faith and realized that when times are dark, I'm not Paul, singing in the darkness with chains around my limbs. Nope i'm more like the desperate woman that's seeking Jesus to be healed of her bleeding. I then realized that as americans we are terrible at grieving. We eschew public displays of grief, we want people to get over it. We dont give them time to heal. This is reflected in the way we treat the Passion narratives. We get to Gethsemane and we skip over Jesus' crying, sweating blood in agony, praying with intensity and being frustrated with his disciples. We gloss over all that until he says "not my will, but thine" or head over to John, where there is no Gethsemane.
Americans are "Hope" addicts. We want the sweet, the reassurance that all will be alright, if we just keep living.
A cranky, but wise, old man told me he believed that hope was a substitute for action. As long as we have hope we dont have to do anything. When i read the prison epistles with this bit of wisdom in mind, i realized that Paul and his companions didn't have hope. They fully expected to die. But instead of sitting there, hoping for a change in their circumstances, they sang, they praised, they prayed, they wrote letters home. They acted.
So in these dark times, lets take action by first giving thanks for what the Lord has done, what the Lord will do and what the Lord calls us to do. Then lets get on with the business of doing it, even if the only thing we can do, is give thanks, pray, praise and sing in our prisons.
11/18/08
C hurch is for the pretty popular people
Lately i've been feeling kinda like the odd man out at church. I've bounced around a few churches in a few countries and have seen very few misfits sitting in the pews. When i hop on "evangelical" websites i see beautiful middle class white people. I am none of those adjectives.
I recently started reading a few other blogs and found out that i'm not the only one who's not fitting in! ( you can read the postings here: http://nakedpastor.com/archives/2420 and here: http://chickchaotic.wordpress.com/2008/11/17/futility-and-fugacity-or-future-hope/#more-218) I spent my younger years trying to fit into the box that i thought i should fit in. With age i gave up that futile struggle.
But...
In looking around i noticed that pastors tend to be popular people. They tend to be the locus that the church is wrapped around. While we would like to believe that we picked our pastors based upon their sound doctrine and theology, the reality is that the deciding factors is their likability and public speaking abilities.
So where does this leave the outsiders. The people who arent "pretty". The people who ask hard questions and leave them unanswered. Who dont wear the right clothes or makeup. The people who have addictions/struggles/lost the battle for purity. Where do they go?
Should we attempt to make those people whole and pretty?Or should we love them as they are and move them towards healing and peace? Who should we be choosing to lead us? Or should we be choosing who to lead?
And sometimes, in the middle of the night, i think that we've got it all wrong. That Jesus never intended for the church to be a building that is lead by someone who has the title "pastor"who conceives and implements programs.
That, thought, more than anything else keeps me awake at night...
I recently started reading a few other blogs and found out that i'm not the only one who's not fitting in! ( you can read the postings here: http://nakedpastor.com/archives/2420 and here: http://chickchaotic.wordpress.com/2008/11/17/futility-and-fugacity-or-future-hope/#more-218) I spent my younger years trying to fit into the box that i thought i should fit in. With age i gave up that futile struggle.
But...
In looking around i noticed that pastors tend to be popular people. They tend to be the locus that the church is wrapped around. While we would like to believe that we picked our pastors based upon their sound doctrine and theology, the reality is that the deciding factors is their likability and public speaking abilities.
So where does this leave the outsiders. The people who arent "pretty". The people who ask hard questions and leave them unanswered. Who dont wear the right clothes or makeup. The people who have addictions/struggles/lost the battle for purity. Where do they go?
Should we attempt to make those people whole and pretty?Or should we love them as they are and move them towards healing and peace? Who should we be choosing to lead us? Or should we be choosing who to lead?
And sometimes, in the middle of the night, i think that we've got it all wrong. That Jesus never intended for the church to be a building that is lead by someone who has the title "pastor"who conceives and implements programs.
That, thought, more than anything else keeps me awake at night...
11/14/08
A prayer...
In light of the recent fires in Santa Barbara and the loss experienced by Westmont College, its faculty and students. The Fogster would like to encourage everyone to take a moment and pray for the victims and for the firefighters...
Amen
Amen
11/12/08
On Prophets...
So a couple of months ago a "prophet" visited the church. This caused quite a stir. Before i get too far let me confess, that i am a "prophet agnostic". Im not quite sure that i believe in the people who call themselves prophets. But given that this was a church event, i dragged myself away from my computer and books and headed to church.
When i walked in i could definitely sense an energy in the room. It seemed that people were expecting something to happen. I came a bit late and arrived after the 'prophet' had already started speaking. It was something rambling about prophecy and speaking for God. Obviously not memorable, cuz i dont remember what he said. I do remember that he was funny and relaxed. Afterwards he offered to pray for people and had us line up as the Holy Spirit called us to receive our blessings.
This is where my skepticism comes in... I did line up but as i was walking in the long line i noticed a theme in his 'prophecies'. Many centered around concerns of career, home and money. In front of me i noticed two korean women, who kind of reminded me of groupies. They were definitely from a charismatic background and frankly they weirded me out. When i got to the front i noticed his manipulation of my body. He did talk about some things that i could interpret as having to do with my life and circumstances. But then my skepticism got the better of me.
Of course it doesn't help that i have korean friends and love to MST3K televangelists...
So i called a korean buddy up about his thoughts on prophets and prophecy. In korean christian culture there's a history of going to prophets, some think it may be a link with korean culture animist roots. (another blog post?) Its always nice to discuss things with a fellow cynic. One thing i pointed out is that he kinda reminded me of psychics and mentalists. Both of these groups are masters of what's called "cold reading" . I can do this to a degree myself. Anyways so i asked my buddy, what he thought about this prophet and prophecy in general. His answer confirmed my instincts. Be blessed but take it with a grain of salt.
When i was in seminary i remember studying the apocalyptic writings and prophecy. I remember coming to the conclusion that prophecy was not to predict the future or even JC's return, but was instead meant to either correct the church, send it in a new direction, or build the church up. I dont see how wandering prophets do either. Especially ones with vague prophecies on their websites about the downfall of the west. (This is one of the reasons i reject the doctrine of dispensationalism.) Further adding to my skepticism is that they seem to be able to control the Holy Spirit at will. My understanding of scripture is that the Holy Spirit is at the control of God, not man. (if was more caffeinated, i'd post the scriptures to support this contention)
So i guess the question is, "Are these wandering prophets real or just skilled manipulators?" The short answer is "I dont know". But if one these guys blows through town, sure go up for the blessing, but keep your money in your pocket.
When i walked in i could definitely sense an energy in the room. It seemed that people were expecting something to happen. I came a bit late and arrived after the 'prophet' had already started speaking. It was something rambling about prophecy and speaking for God. Obviously not memorable, cuz i dont remember what he said. I do remember that he was funny and relaxed. Afterwards he offered to pray for people and had us line up as the Holy Spirit called us to receive our blessings.
This is where my skepticism comes in... I did line up but as i was walking in the long line i noticed a theme in his 'prophecies'. Many centered around concerns of career, home and money. In front of me i noticed two korean women, who kind of reminded me of groupies. They were definitely from a charismatic background and frankly they weirded me out. When i got to the front i noticed his manipulation of my body. He did talk about some things that i could interpret as having to do with my life and circumstances. But then my skepticism got the better of me.
Of course it doesn't help that i have korean friends and love to MST3K televangelists...
So i called a korean buddy up about his thoughts on prophets and prophecy. In korean christian culture there's a history of going to prophets, some think it may be a link with korean culture animist roots. (another blog post?) Its always nice to discuss things with a fellow cynic. One thing i pointed out is that he kinda reminded me of psychics and mentalists. Both of these groups are masters of what's called "cold reading" . I can do this to a degree myself. Anyways so i asked my buddy, what he thought about this prophet and prophecy in general. His answer confirmed my instincts. Be blessed but take it with a grain of salt.
When i was in seminary i remember studying the apocalyptic writings and prophecy. I remember coming to the conclusion that prophecy was not to predict the future or even JC's return, but was instead meant to either correct the church, send it in a new direction, or build the church up. I dont see how wandering prophets do either. Especially ones with vague prophecies on their websites about the downfall of the west. (This is one of the reasons i reject the doctrine of dispensationalism.) Further adding to my skepticism is that they seem to be able to control the Holy Spirit at will. My understanding of scripture is that the Holy Spirit is at the control of God, not man. (if was more caffeinated, i'd post the scriptures to support this contention)
So i guess the question is, "Are these wandering prophets real or just skilled manipulators?" The short answer is "I dont know". But if one these guys blows through town, sure go up for the blessing, but keep your money in your pocket.
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