Advent Reflections

So this Advent season was the best yet for our family. We were in our home state of Oregon and so did not have to travel for Christmas. And there were no emergencies like totaling a car during Thanksgiving and having to buy a new one right away. No that was last year's adventure. This year, we actually got to enjoy Christmas. And so I thought I would share a few of the highlights from the season:

 Logan’s Christmas Program – So this year was our first opportunity to be a proud parent in the crowd as we watched our son and his class put on a short Christmas program. It was so cute and we were so proud. Granted he didn’t sing or do any of the motions, but he sure looked cute up there with his classmates. 
 Zoo Lights – Every year the local Zoo puts on a light display. Our life group decided to get together and walk the Zoo together. That was awesome. It was such a blessing to share the evening with good friends.
 Advent Wreath – Shelley and I have always wanted to do an advent wreath, and this year we finally did it. What a great way to celebrate the season. The kids loved doing the Bible readings and of course the lighting of the candle. They couldn’t wait for Sunday to come so we could light them again.
 Nightly Advent readings with the kids – Every night before bed, we would read a few more verses of the Christmas story – and of course review what we had read up to that point. By the end of it, we were blessed to hear Logan tell us the entire Christmas story in his own words. Very cute. I’m sure Matea could have recited it too, but there is the issue of vocabulary…
 Giving gifts to our neighbors – Shelley really wanted to give gifts to the 5 other apartments in our section of the complex. This was a great success. The neighbors were pleasantly surprised by the gifts and were very glad to receive them. Logan and Matea did a great job helping us hand them out. We’re hoping this sparks conversation since we all tend to nod and walk past.
 Christmas Eve Service – As always, we were very blessed to be a part of Village Baptist Church. They put on an amazing Christmas Eve service which included among other things a traditional Korean Fan Dance that is used to celebrate the coming of a king. Very cool.
 Christmas Morning – 2 kids, 1 camera, 1 camcorder, and LOTS of presents. Need I say more?
 Christ Candle/Family Devotion – The SINGLE BEST THING we have done all year. At the end of a very exhausting Christmas Day, we sat down as a family next to the Christmas tree and had a little devotional. We lit all 4 candles of the advent wreath and also lit a special Christ Candle. We bought a large white column candle that we can reuse year after year and set it on a special stand. We sang hymns, read the Christmas story from a kids book, read a Bible verse, and talked about our favorite parts of the Christmas season. It was wonderful. I can’t wait to do it again next year. That is going to quickly become my favorite family tradition.

And now to turn our attention to the New Year when, as a coworker of mine always says, everything is possible again. Happy New Year everyone!

Stumped

So the question went like this…

3 yr. old son: “Dada, is today tomorrow?”

How in the world are you supposed to answer that?!?

Attempt #1: Well tomorrow is the word that we use to describe the day after today. So that means that today is always today and tomorrow is always tomorrow.

Attempt #2: Yesterday we said that today is tomorrow. Today we say that tomorrow is tomorrow, but when you wake up in the morning tomorrow will be today and today will be yesterday.

Attempt #3: Today is the word for the day that we are on right now. Tomorrow is the word we use for the day after today and yesterday is the word we use for the day before today. So no matter what day it is you always have a yesterday a today and a tomorrow, but the day you’re on is always today.

Attempt #4: I know we told you that you had school tomorrow, but that was yesterday. Now you have school today and tomorrow you will do something else. Yesterday’s tomorrow turned into today so now you have school today.

Attempt #5: Tomorrow never comes.

I defy you to come up with a more difficult question to answer intelligently to a 3-yr old.

Season's Greetings

Upon returning home from a quick trip to the grocery store, I noticed the paper bag I was carrying said Season’s Greetings. That got me thinking: What exactly are Season’s Greetings?

There is no question that our culture has adopted phrases such as Season’s Greetings or Happy Holidays as a way to sidestep the term Christmas. But what if we were to take these phrases at face value? If I as a Christian were to offer someone “Season’s Greetings” or wish them a happy holiday, what would I in fact be saying?

Well at the risk of oversimplifying – a holiday is literally a Holy Day. A fitting term for Advent. After all this is the celebration of the birth of our Savior. A Holy Day indeed. So what would Jesus say is the true greeting for the season?

In Luke 2:14b the angels declare “…on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests.”

For those walking through life in fear that people may learn about their past – Peace the Savior is here. For those struggling with addiction to drugs/alcohol/pornography/etc. and can’t seem to break free – Peace the Savior is here. For those whose wounds are too deep to measure, whose families are broken, whose dreams have been lost – Peace the Savior is here. For those in search of love and belonging – Peace the Savior is here. Hope has come.

He came to the weak, the outcasts, the sinners, the sick, the dying, even the possessed. He brings peace large enough for any hurt. He brings hope great enough for any situation. He came to bring Salvation.

So from me to you, a very warm Seasons Greeting. May His peace and hope shine on you and through you in these Holy Days.

Advent

The season is nearly here and I'm more excited than I have ever been. It's not that Christmas is almost here - Advent is almost here. An entire season dedicated to an awareness of God's gift to His people. He came in the flesh and dwelt among us. The fullness of God was wrapped in the form of man and actually cared to spend time with us, teach us, heal us, forgive us, and reclaim us. I want to be amazed by that. I want my family to be amazed by that. And I want the entire season to be a celebration of that.

So how do we do it? That's where you come in. I want your input. I do talk to a relative few of the many people who read this blog, so I especially want to hear from you if we don't get a chance to connect by any other means. What ideas do you all have about making the entire season of Advent something real to me and my family? Have your families done anything espeically meaningful? Do you know of other families/church groups/care groups that have good ideas?

The following website is one of a few great resources that I've picked up so far (www.adventconspiracy.org) , but I want more. I espeically want activities/lessons/gift ideas that will help teach my kids about Advent.

So keep the cards and letters coming and help me and my family celebrate Advent for all it's worth.

Halloween Fun

So Logan asked to be a "Bubby Wabbit" for Halloween, and lo and behold Shelley's mom had a costume that she had made for Shelley over 25 years ago. So he got to wear that. Matea's costume was a $10 Party Depot special. But they are both quite cute. Enjoy!

The One-Eyed “God”

Have you heard about this? On Feb. 17, 2009 all TV broadcasts will switch from an analogue signal to a digital signal. No shocker there. After all, everything is moving toward a digital signal; it was only a matter of time before TV broadcasts made the complete switch. So what makes this worthy of a blog post? I’m glad you asked.

In yesterday’s Sunday Oregonian I read an article titled “Digital TV: Plot thickens Feb. 17, 2009” by Charles Pope. If you don’t have time to read the full article, allow me to summarize. The Feb 17 switchover is not a date set by the broadcast executives, but rather a date set by the government. Congress is now holding a series of meetings to ensure that the transition goes well, because if it doesn’t the American people will be pointing their fingers at the government and asking why all of their TVs have gone black. In addition the article states that “The federal government will spend $1.5 billion to provide $40 coupons to viewers who need to buy converters so their old analog TVs will work.” The remainder of the article goes on to describe the fact that despite efforts both in the private and public sectors, no comprehensive plan is yet in place.

Allow me to enumerate all of the things that anger me about this article.

1. The government should not be the one to dictate the transition to digital television. Is this what they’ve been paid to do? Is this the top priority of the US Government? Surely they can allow the private execs the latitude of making these decisions for themselves? I’m sure we did not need our government to intervene and set a mandatory switchover date.
   
2. Now that the government has overstepped their bounds, they have brought upon themselves a huge problem that they should never have had in the first place: What if it all goes wrong? Congress is actually holding a series of special meetings to discuss the “crisis” of 45 million people not being able to watch an episode of Jude Judy. If they’d have kept their nose out of it in the first place, they wouldn’t have to worry about a contingency plan. Allow the corporate execs to make those decisions and suffer the wrath of the public should it go wrong. Let’s not spend valuable Congressional time and money ensuring the general public has access to their daily soap operas.
   
3. $1.5 Billion to offer consumers coupons on digital converters. This is on top of all of the time and money already wasted on this fiasco. $1.5 Billion. We can’t guarantee the longevity of Social Security. We can’t provide healthcare to millions of children nationwide. Our elderly can’t afford prescriptions. And yet, we can spend $1.5 Billion to ensure Americans can rot their brains in front of the boob tube.

This is completely ridiculous. If all of you could understand how hard my fingers are hitting the keyboard at this moment…

My kids do not have healthcare, but I’ll rest easy tonight knowing that nobody in America will miss the next episode of Survivor. What a load of crap.

Where is our hope?

Psalm 71: 3-5 (a misguided paraphrase) 3. Be my rock of refuge, to which I can always go; give the command to save me, for you are my rock and my fortress. 4 Deliver me, O my Country, from the hand of the wicked, from the grasp of evil and cruel men. 5 For you have been my hope, O Sovereign Land, my confidence since my youth.

Blasphemous? Yes. But do these horrendous edits to Scripture express an uncontested shift for many U.S. Christians? What really is our hope?

In most churches today gay marriage, abortion, posting of the 10 Commandments, and prayer in schools are all political hotspots. But I want to know if they ought to be. Is that the arena in which to address these issues? After all, what will it accomplish? What if we were successful in banning gay marriage and abortion? What if we reinstated corporate prayer in schools and posted the 10 commandments in every public building? What then?

Will banning gay marriage stop homosexuality? Will banning abortion completely stop infanticide? Will instituting prayer in schools make children into believers?

My church recently put on a production of You’re a Good Man Charlie Brown. They opened up auditions to the congregation and to the community. In the end, the role of Charlie Brown was played by a man from the community who happened to be gay. He and another non-Christian cast in the production were always invited to stay for prayer after rehearsal. They were also told that they may feel free to leave should they choose. They always stayed. When the production was finished the actor playing Charlie Brown remarked that he was surprised that he had been welcomed and treated like everyone else despite his lifestyle. He then added – “but then again you are theater people so that makes a difference.” The director was then able to share that it wasn’t because of being a part of “the theater crowd”; instead this is actually how our church is. To which the man responded, “Yeah, but you’ve never had anything that you felt you had to keep from the church.” She was then able to tell about her painful experience of confessing to the church pastors that she had proceeded with an abortion years before and that she did not feel that she could go on ministering in the church as a result. She then talked about the loving and accepting response she received from the pastoral staff and the resulting ministry she has been able to do in the church since.

That is the church doing what it was called to do and that is what is going to change lives. Let’s spend a bit more time being the church and a lot less time being political lobbyists. We might actually see some change in this country.

It's ALIVE!!! (almost)

So for those that don't know, I've been working on my mother-in-law's '72 Superbeetle. It is nearly running. All that is left is to adjust the idle speed and put on new tires. I have the tires; I just need to find the time to put them on. So in the mean time, feel free to enjoy the pics. For those of you in Oregon, you should be seeing my drive this baby soon!!!

Thinking Well

Agree or disagree? The following is an excerpt from Pascal’s Penses:

Man is only a reed, the weakest in nature, but he is a thinking reed. There is no need for the whole universe to take up arms to crush him: a vapor, a drop of water is enough to kill him. But even if the universe were to crush him, man would still be nobler than his slayer, because he knows that he is dying and the advantage the universe has over him. The universe knows none of this.
Thus all our dignity consists in thought. It is on thought that we must depend for our recovery, not on space and time, which we could never fill. Let us then strive to think well; that is the basic principle of morality.

I find myself only partially agreeing with this comment. My evangelical (even Baptist) upbringing screams for me to agree with this. Sola Scriptura. Get your Theology straight and everything will fall in line. These are perspectives to which I wholeheartedly subscribe. However, is “thinking well” really our main objective? For good or for ill it happens to be my objective, but what if Pascal and I are wrong? What if God intended far greater things than good Theology?

If Jesus were so convinced that proper Theology was the objective, then he would have had far more “Sermon on the Mounts.” Instead he spent his time healing people, loving the unlovable, eating with sinners, partying and praying. Except for the Sermon on the Mount, he very rarely taught in plain language – instead he taught in parables. (Mark 4:10-12) He didn’t seem too intent on making clear thinkers. Even his disciples were confused half the time.

Then James comes along and says: “Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.” – James 1:27 (NIV)

And perhaps the greatest of all arguments: Jesus, Himself, said that the greatest commandment is to “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.” Okay so maybe good Theology takes a close second? Nope. The second is to “Love your neighbor as yourself.”

So is thinking well the basic principle of morality? It wouldn’t seem so by Scripture. It seems as though caring for the marginalized and loving our God wholeheartedly is the basic principle of morality. BUT, you must have proper Theology in order to have these priorities. So maybe your Theology is the #1 priority and then proper Theology will tell you that Theology is not the #1 priority. ;)

So what’s the balance? Whatever it is I am quite sure I lean entirely too much toward the cerebral and much less toward impacting the world.

Vacation Pictures

So we just returned from a long and relaxing weekend at the beach. It was a packed house - 5 adults (Me and Shelley, My parents, my brother) , 5 kids (Our 2 Kids, My sister, My 2 cousins), 2 dogs and 1 bedroom. 4 kids slept in the loft. Shelley and I slept in the bedroom with Matea in a pack-n-play. My parents took the hide-a-bed and my brother slept on an air mattress in the living room. The dogs slept in their kennels in the living room. There wasn't an inch of space left. Here are a few of the great pictures from our trip.

Matea and Uncle Dustin

Daddy and Logan (with a glove close by)

Mommy and Matea

From Left to right:

Back Row: Ethan (Cousin), Dustin( Brother) , Rebecca (Cousin)

Front Row: Logan (Son), Johanna (Sister)

Touring the lighthouse at Cape Mears.

Perspective

As some of you may know, the company I am working for is going under. For many complex reasons, I will be effectively unemployed as of Oct. 15th. On the one hand, it’s nice to have so much notice. On the other hand, it’s bad news no matter how you slice it. On top of that our lease expires at the end of October. If we stay, our rent goes up. We’re already at the cap of what we’re willing to pay for a 2 bedroom so we’ve got to move. And finally our car is acting up and all indications are that the transmission is going out.

So what next? How does one wade through such waters? Of course there are the “Christian” answers “Everything works out for the best.” “Just trust God and you’ll be okay.” “Maybe this is God trying to tell you something.” Makes you want to scream.

But the reality is that perspective can be gained through such trying circumstances. The truth is that God is always teaching us something. And the fact is that following God means things will work out okay. So what have I learned so far?

First things first. My situation does not in any way diminish the glory of God. My purpose is still to worship and bring Him honor. My next responsibility is to the spiritual, emotional, and physical health of my family. Nearly all of which is accomplished without a job. Secondly this situation is nothing compared to the day-to-day struggles of so many others. No matter what happens, we will not go hungry, we will not go without a place to live, we will not go long without a job – if at all. We will somehow find transportation to and from work. Millions of others are not so fortunate. All the same I finally mean it when I thank God for my dinner.

God has been the one providing for us all this time. He has chosen to do so through this job and now He is choosing to do so through other means. Not much has changed really. I’m just worrying about it more.

Funny how that happens.

IRS vs MLB

I'm not much for complaining about the government. Too overdone/doesn't get results. But I have to say that this bit of lunacy deserves a blog post.

So have you heard about the guy who caught Barry Bonds' historic home run? Turns out he's a Mets fan and just happened to be in SF for the game. So anyway, this lucky baseball fan gets to take home a little piece of baseball history. Good for him. But now he's going to owe a ton of money in taxes and can't keep the ball. (See the Yahoo news story here)

My question is this: What claim does the IRS have to this ball? Why does the guy owe money for catching a fly ball? Let the guy alone. This must be one of the most ludicrous tax laws I've ever heard of. If he sells the ball for thousands of dollars, then I think he owes a portion of that as taxes; but just keeping the home run ball shouldn't cost him a dime. He didn't purchase the ball. He has no money invested in earning the ball. He didn't start up his own company in an effort to catch historic baseball memorabilia. He just caught it for crying out loud. It's his free and clear and nobody should charge him a single penny for it.

Now Presenting...

I am honored to have inspired a new member of the blogging community. My good friend Josh Kansiewicz (can-SEV-itch) has just published his first of many worthwhile posts. I encourage all bloggers at large to check out his new site at http://rambling.e4god.com/blogs/.

You are sure to find relevant thoughts on church, spirituality, marriage, literature, and of course children. (His first is due in a matter of months).

And so without further ado, I present the man of the hour: Mr. Joshua Kansiewicz.

Caught in the Webb

Derek Webb may be one of the greatest Christian songwriters of our day. He is never afraid to say it like it is and let his lyrics hit home. Many of you know that he was once a member of the band Caedmon’s Call. Though he did cut a few solo albums, he has recently returned to the band for their new album/tour. The following is an excerpt from the song “A King A Kingdom” on his 2005 album Mockingbird:

There are two great lies that I’ve heard
The day you eat the fruit of that tree you will not surely die
And that Jesus Christ was a white, middle-class Republican
And if you want to be saved you have to learn to be like Him
So my first allegiance is not to a flag, a country, or a man
No my first allegiance is not to democracy or blood
It’s to a King and a Kingdom.

It’s the white, middle-class Republican part that rocks my world. For any of you who have ever lived in the Bible Belt, you know this mentality quite well. I once encountered this thinking in Missouri during the last Presidential election. A Pastor actually said to me with sadness in his voice, “You know some people in this church actually vote Democrat. Can you believe that?” The tone in his voice seemed to indicate that this was a declaration of the church’s spiritual collapse – that no God-fearing man could ever vote for the Democratic Party.

I am becoming more and more convinced that no God-fearing man can in good conscience support either party. As the bumper sticker says “God is not a Republican (or a Democrat)” AMEN. Despite all of this, I do believe we have a responsibility to exercise our vote and play a part in democracy. The key is that our civic duties should always be dictated by our faith. But by no means does this mean voting for one party or another. After all, the main question when standing at the pearly gates is not going to be “What was your stance on healthcare?” It’s going to be “What did you do with the gift of my Son?” Everything else is secondary.

King of the Jews

Warning: The following content can and will be misquoted should I ever run for public office. Reader discretion is advised.

Pascal’s Penses has been a very enjoyable read thus far . Some thoughts I agree with, others I do not, and still others are indiscernible without the proper context. However, the quote below is quite clear with or without context. Comment number 759 (102 in the Penguin Classic) reads, “Either Jews or Christians must be wicked.”

Wow. The statement hits you like a bucket of cold water. How could anyone be so misguided as to have made such a bold statement? Though I believe that most Christians this side of Mel Gibson would balk at such a statement, I do believe we still have some growing to do in this area.

Though the New Testament makes it abundantly clear that no one comes to the Father but through Christ (Jn 14:6); we must never forget that it is WE who are being grafted in to THEIR inheritance (Rom. 11:24) – not the other way around. God began his redemptive work through Abraham and his descendants and brought it to fulfillment in Christ. We are a part of THEIR story. They are God’s chosen people and through Christ (a Jew – even King of the Jews) we are adopted into that family.

Rather unfortunately, we as a church have largely forgotten our family of origin. And without these forefathers and cloud of witnesses (Heb. 12:1) to teach us, we have lost much of our understanding of our Heavenly Father. The respect and awe of an untamable God is nearly nonexistent today. The respect for the rhythms of life: the seasons, the festivals, and the times of remembrance are all but gone. Using symbolism, tradition, and holy days to intentionally train your child in the ways of the Lord has faded into the shadows.

What a high price we are paying in the name of being “Christian.” It seems to me that Pascal needs revision. BOTH Jews and Christians are wicked. We stand together in dire need of God’s grace.

The Inaugural Post

So for a number of reasons, I've been thinking about this Blogging thing for quite some time. My college roommate has used his blog as an opportunity to refine his philosophical and theological thoughts. A few members of my care group use their blogs as an opportunity to post pictures about family and share humorous stories from their lives. Others such as my pastor use it as a chance to communicate important key learnings. Since Ecclesiastes has convinced me that there is nothing new under the sun, I would like to borrow all of these elements for the creation of this blog. :) I've never been much for journaling, but yet again, an influential friend has convinced me of it's importance. So here goes. Hopefully this will help me stay in touch with many of you and share a bit more of my life than usual. I look forward to your replies, thoughts, and anecdotes in reply. Happy Blogging!