Saul and Politics

I was a little surprised to see the similarities

1 Samuel 8-11 tells the story of Saul becoming the first king of Israel.  In these passages, you see several things occur.

• The people asking for a king because of protection
• God allowing a king to be chosen
• Samuel warning the people but anointing Saul king

Because of the book I have been reading, I am more sensitive to the issues of tying following God with political agendas.

Then I saw the start of chapter 11... Within a month of Saul becoming king, Israel was embroiled in war.  Now this seems to be a common occurrence with Israel but here is the "God-chosen" leader being sent into war right after he was made leader.

What similarities you ask?  8 years ago, a movement lead by political conservatives, including many Christians elected George W. Bush president. Within a year of him taking power, we were embroiled in a war against terror which lead to a war against Iraq. I am not going to make any judgments other than this....

Many Christians were putting their political hope for peace and righteousness in their choice then.  The Bible, however, shows us that God does not want followers of him (then or now) to put their faith in anyone or anything but God.

Grace, Forgiveness -- What about 9/11

It has been a while since I have posted.  Over the last couple of weeks, however, I have been bombarded with information about God's grace and forgiveness.

It started a couple of months ago as I started to read Shane Claibourne's book "Jesus for President".  This book is wide ranging in subject matter from how radical Christ's words were (much more than we typically think) to how to live a life of forgiveness and grace.

Then, last week, I listened to the messages on "Grace - What's so amazing about Christianity?" and "Forgiveness - Why did Jesus have to die?" from here.  As I was listening to the last message I thought of someone I need to forgive.  Then my mind wandered to questions brought up in a conversation this morning.   What if, rather than reacting with vengeance for the events of 9/11, we would have reacted with forgiveness like the Amish did when their school children were murdered 2 years ago?

One other thought though...  Forgiveness does not eliminate justice  

Kyle's Rough Weekend

It was time for another Black Belt University at Origin Martial Arts where Kyle has been studying Karate (Tae Kwan Do).

This one, however, was significant.  Kyle was up for his provisional black belt.  This involved 4 hours on Friday, 7 on Saturday and Sunday.

Today, Kyle and the other candidate were proving themselves by running the "Black Belt Mile", exhibiting their skills in their katas, sparring and board breaking.

Kyle made Marj and I proud parents.  His teacher told us that going into this weekend, there was some concern about the time he was able to spend being mentored by Nicki (she and the other provisional black belt were testing for their actual black belt).  Because I played this weekend, I was unable to attend most of the day.  I got to see some of the test they put him through in spite of that.   He spend 10 to 15 minutes sparring with various students one after another, each one fresh and Kyle getting more and more tired.  He had already run 1/2 mile, done the various warm-ups that were done, spent Saturday learning to knife fight as well as street fight for self defense.

Talking to his teacher later, I found out that the purpose of this was to prove Kyle's character. Kyle did well.  He didn't give up even though he was being hit more and more as well as being fatigued and having a headache from the blows (he was wearing protective head gear, hand padding, etc, but unlike many others, no protective chest pad).

It was a side of Kyle I don't often.  We won't know for a couple of weeks if Kyle earned the provisional black belt.  Keep posted!

What Christians Like

I started reading (yet) another blog.

"What Chrstians Like" is a tongue-in-cheek look at the Christian culture in America. Sometimes it hits a little close to home... My home that is.

'Ditch the Diaper'

Today, at Northern Hills, we are in the second week of "Ditch the Diaper", a series on James. Through this, we are being encouraged to "Grow up -- Put
your faith into action". The first week was really good and the discussion in our "Life Group" (or small group) was really active.

As we approach our second week, I was reminded of the parody or follow-on to the poem and song "Foot prints in the sand". This is called "Butt Prints in the Sand".

One night I had a wondrous dream,
One set of footprints there was seen,
The footprints of my precious Lord,
But mine were not along the shore.

But then some stranger prints appeared,
And I asked the Lord, "What have we here?"
Those prints are large and round and neat,
"But Lord they are too big for feet."

"My child," He said in somber tones,
"For miles I carried you alone.
I challenged you to walk in faith,
But you refused and made me wait."

"You disobeyed, you would not grow,
The walk of faith, you would not know.
So I got tired, I got fed up,
and there I dropped you on your butt."

"Because in life, there comes a time,
when one must fight, and one must climb.
When one must rise and take a stand,
or leave their butt prints in the sand."

Expelled

Marj saw the site and trailers for the movie Expelled staring Ben Stein.

It looks interesting!

A year gone by.... I found it

Last year, while listening to the Daily Audio Bible, I heard something in Deuteronomy that I had never seen or heard before. This was not something I was unaware of, just something that surprised me on how plainly it was stated. The problem was, when I heard it last year, I forgot to make a mental (or physical note) as to the chapter/verse and was at a loss to find it again.

Yesterday, I heard it again!

The context is Moses writing to Israel, telling them to obey God's laws. We tend to think of Israel as sort of a closed club but that was not the intention. In fact, in spite of the way events usually occured, they were to be evangelists to those around them... A city on the hill... A light to the nations.

Deut 4:5-8 reads:

You must obey these laws and regulations when you arrive in the land you are about to enter and occupy. The LORD my God gave them to me and commanded me to pass them on to you. If you obey them carefully, you will display your wisdom and intelligence to the surrounding nations. When they hear about these laws, they will exclaim, ‘What other nation is as wise and prudent as this!’ For what great nation has a god as near to them as the LORD our God is near to us whenever we call on him? And what great nation has laws and regulations as fair as this body of laws that I am giving you today?

Tony Campolo

I don't know what you think of him but I found this video interesting. In it, Tony criticizes American Christians for being seduced by Freud. Our reason for salvation should not be because it makes us happy but because Christ died on the Cross for our sins. You can watch below.

Dancing on Injustice

Today, in church, we sang a song by a band called Delirious? called "Did you feel the mountains tremble".

In the chorus of that song, there is a line that reads:

Open up the doors and let the music play
Let the streets resound with singing
Songs that bring your hope
Songs that bring your joy
Dancers who dance upon injustice.

This brought to mind a story told by Jim Wallis at a talk in June 2007 with Greg Boyd at Bethel University (you can listen here) about politics and faith. In the talk, Wallis relates a story about a discussion he was a part in at Notre Dame.

He relates:

I was at Notre Dame during the last election and had a room full Catholic students. They cared about the poor, they cared about Iraq and they cared about abortion. They didn't fit either party framework.

A young woman raised her hand and said, "4000 lives were lost today because of abortion. How can I vote on any other issue than that?"

I let the question hover just to see what might happen. Another student stood up and said, "Fair enough! 9000 people died today because of HIV/AIDS. What about them?"

A third student said "And 30,000 children died today because of needless hunger and poverty!".

And we decided after an hour and a half that there was no consistent ethic of life candidate running in the election. The right and the left have selective moralities.

We, as followers of Christ, are looking forward to a time where these injustices cease. On the other hand, we are commanded to do our best to make those injustices cease before then. Politics won't do it because it is too self serving. The Church has abdicated our responsibilities far too long.

Jesus Christ Superstar

We are quickly approaching Easter. One of the things I associate with Easter is the Broadway play "Jesus Christ Superstar". Why? Because it tells a more modern day story of the crucifiction of Christ from a viewpoint that is not Christian.

I have been thinking about this as I listen to the Gospels being read. As I listen, I hear the people around Christ treating him as a superstar.

Twice we hear about him feeding the crowds, once 5000 men (not counting women and children) and once 4000 men. You hear Christ retreating from the crowds several times. During his entry into Jerusalem, the whole city turned out to welcome him. That seems to fill the definition of superstar.

Why did the church object to to the play? Because it didn't finish the story. It stopped on what we call Good Friday, before Christ was pulled down from the cross. The best, however, was yet to come.

Dancing Music

I like songs about dancing, even though I am dancing challenged. Take, for instance, this old Celtic hymn it is typically sung to the tune of "Simple Gifts":

I danced in the morning when the world was begun
I danced in the Moon & the Stars & the Sun
I came down from Heaven & I danced on Earth
At Bethlehem I had my birth:

Dance then, wherever you may be
I am the Lord of the Dance, said He!
And I'll lead you all, wherever you may be
And I'll lead you all in the Dance, said He!
(...lead you all in the Dance, said He!)

I danced for the scribe & the pharisee
But they would not dance & they wouldn't follow me
I danced for fishermen, for James & John
They came with me & the Dance went on:

I danced on the Sabbath & I cured the lame
The holy people said it was a shame!
They whipped & they stripped & they hung me high
And they left me there on a cross to die!

I danced on a Friday when the sky turned black
It's hard to dance with the devil on your back
They buried my body & they thought I'd gone
But I am the Dance & I still go on!

They cut me down and I leapt up high
I am the Life that'll never, never die!
I'll live in you if you'll live in Me -
I am the Lord of the Dance, said He!

JackPot !!!

A little over a year ago, I remember writing this, dreaming about winning that elusive lottery jackpot and believing, at least in my own head, that I would give most away. I was also wondering if the reason that that doesn't happen is that God knows my heart.

I may have a different (and less condemning) reason. While I was listening to the Bible being read yesterday, I heard Leviticus 22-23 and heard this in 22:17-20...

And the Lord said to Moses, “Give Aaron and his sons and all the Israelites these instructions, which apply both to native Israelites and to the foreigners living among you.

“If you present a gift as a burnt offering to the Lord, whether it is to fulfill a vow or is a voluntary offering, you will be accepted only if your offering is a male animal with no defects. It may be a bull, a ram, or a male goat. Do not present an animal with defects, because the Lord will not accept it on your behalf."

As much as some of us hate to admit it, lottery winnings are a "male animal with defects". It is money I would not have earned by working for it and, if it were considered a "gift", it was not worked for, it was gained under somewhat dubious pretenses. As of today, the Powerball jackpot is 153 million. That much money could do a lot of good but is, I believe, not a sacrifice that the Lord would want.

How he loves us

I love the lyrics to this song.



He is jealous for me
Loves like a hurricane
I am a tree
Bending beneath
The weight of his wind and mercy
When all of a sudden
I am unaware of these
Afflictions eclipsed by glory
And I realize how beautiful you are
And how great your afflictions for me

Oh how he loves us so
Oh how he loves us
How he loves us so

Yea He loves us
Oh how

We are his portion
And he is our prize
Drawn to redemption by the grace in his eyes
If grace is an ocean we're all sinking
So heaven meats earth like a sloppy wet kiss
And my heart burns violently inside of my chest
I don't have time to maintain these regrets
When I think about the way
He loves us

Oh how he loves us so
Oh how he loves us
How he loves us so

Yea He loves us
Oh how

Fallow Blog?

I am joking (but not far off) when I suggest I should rename this blog the "fallow blog". It has been sitting here waiting for me to put something in for almost a month while I, in turn, have done nothing about it.

So, for your viewing pleasure (and amazement). This video is of a 10 year old girl performing Kansas' "Carry On My Wayward Son" on keyboards. I sent this to my sister who plays keyboards and she was amazed!

I am a terrible blogger

Ok, I admit it.

I hate chain mail (and emails -- I don't do them).

I am a little more forgiving when it comes to being "Meme'd".

My friend Donna "Meme'd" me, similar to the chain emails... I just don't do it! Does that make me the Blog Scrooge?

Busy busy weekend

My load was lightened a bit as the other bass player and I swapped this and next weekend. This, however has already been quite busy.

Marj dropped Kyle off at a friends house on Friday (thanks Sharon and James), dropped Rocky off at a neighbor's (and friend -- thanks Neff and Jeanie) and headed to Longmont for 24 hours to a "Get the Word Out" intensive -- you do get sleep, it is not that intense. If you get a chance to go, I would highly recommend doing so.

Tonight we are going to the "Seek and Soak" at Northern Hills. I am looking forward to this in a big way.

We are also getting together with Jane and Mark for dinner at noon.

A busy weekend.

Top cover of the year

This year finished out Coverville's top cover of the year being Monte Montgomery's cover of Dire Straight's "Romeo and Juliette". I also found I liked Petra Haden's cover of Journey's "Don't Stop Believing" and William Shattner (yes, Kirk) doing Pulp's "Common People".

I find Israel Kamakawiwo'ole's cover of Judy Garlands "Somewhere over the Rainbow" one of the most haunting song I have ever heard.

iGod

I have finished listening to a series from LiquidChurch called iGod based on Romans 1-3. You can listen here, here and here. It is a great start at adjusting my view of God.

The first in the series dealt with putting God in a Box. My favorite quotes are...

"On the sixth day, God created man. On the seventh day, man returned the favor."
-- unknown (attributed to Pascal)

and

“You can safely assume that you've created God in your own image when it turns out that God hates all the same people you do.”
-- Anne Lamontt

Blog Psychology at it's best

It may be the blog version of Lucy (from Peanuts) Psychologist stand...

What Your Pizza Reveals

People may tell you that you have a small appetite... but you aren't under eating. You just aren't a pig. You aren't particularly picky about pizza. It's so good... how could you be? You fit in best in the Western part of the US. You like food that's traditional and well crafted. You aren't impressed with "gourmet" foods. You are dependable, loyal, and conservative with your choices. You are cultured and intellectual. You should consider traveling to Vienna. The stereotype that best fits you is guy or girl next door. Hey, there's nothing wrong with being average.

What Does Your Pizza Say About You?

More Coverville Countdown 2007

Coverville just released numbers 24-17 of their countdown of best covers....

I was excited to see the song I nominated as number 22 -- Blake Morgan's version of Paul McCartney's "Maybe I'm Amazed". I was also happy to see Copper Box's version of Pink Floyd's "Comfortably Numb".