SO, it’s the the season of the NFL Playoffs. I’ve noticed myself bending toward some folksy theology. Maybe you’ve noticed this for yourself. Or…just let me remind you. :)
Bring on the comments, friends! Can you think of any items I missed?
1. Caffeine is somehow linked to the Holy Spirit.
2. People who use the words “Demon Alcohol” don’t use the words “Demon Lactose”, but really, which one seems more demonic on a regular basis?
3. Gluttony of anything [but food] seems sinful, but eating until it almost hurts is a worthy epicurean goal, and probably some sort of “listening to God thing” or even a gifting of the Spirit.
4. Lack of a TV makes you more spiritual, but the possession of an iPhone helps you help God.
5. Twinkle lights in December and January help show the Light of God’s Love, but by March they are tacky, and used by Satan to distract people from the blessing of Spring and rebirth.
6. The ability to host a kickin’ NFL Playoff party with great food is called “the Gift of Hospitality” and it makes God proud when when use our gifts. [I’ll be over @ 4p.m.]
7. Routing for teams like the Cowboys, the Eagles, the Browns, the Lions, (and so on) develops the Fruit of the Spirit we call Patience. So, it’s a good thing, but like many spiritual lessons, it is learned through pain and struggle. Watching such teams fail each year helps those fans grow spiritually…more than Patriot or Steeler fans, let’s say.
So…That’s 7 nutty beliefs that can happen in January. Have you noticed anything weird lately? If so, please share.
It’s not so much a matter of who we are, but who we belong to.
This poem was written by a man who would soon die at the hands of his Nazi captors. At the end of his life, he could question who he was, and who he had been, but his resolution to all of that rests in Theological principle, in worldview.
Pastor Dave Alderson and I invite you to learn and experience 4 classes on Spiritual Formation topics, at the Bellegrove church a bit north of Anneville, PA.
Going southbound down Rte 943, this beautiful stone church building is located on the left, just north of the small village of Bellegrove. It is 5 miles from I-78 exit South from the Annville/Ft. Indiantown Gap exit for [South] Route 934 heading toward Lebanon Valley College, Anneville (Anneville @ Rtes 422 & 943).
(Get custom directions here.)
I will prepare 4 interactive sessions for the 10 a.m. time slot, for this January 16, 23, 30 and Feb 6, 2011. If you plan to come, please leave a comment below, or call the church (717) 867-7460, so I can prepare materials for your use.
Topics will include prayer, spiritual growth,devotional practices, fasting, and related subjects. Brief and engaging explanations will precede class discussion and involvement. This time is sure to bring added vitality to your prayer and worship experiences with God, and promote spiritual growth and intimacy with our Savior, both collectively and individually.
We really look forward to seeing you!
Please-DON’T Forget! Here is the book I’m giving away (to one “lucky” reader this January) to make Bible reading WAY more interesting and effective.
Can’t make it? Contact me and we’ll come up with something. :)
This is really beautiful because you can tell the dino feels God's love.CAUTION: Dinosaur related humor in this post is to be read as comedy.
(The Jesus picture isn’t perfectly related to this post. But sharing it seemed like the right thing to do–especially within the scope of the topic today. You see, if God gave me a baby T-Rex, I’d give him back; both out of fear, but as a offering of first fruits too. Mostly because Jesus would probably tame him into a “little lamb”. Sort of like he when he changed things up as he called out to Mary in the garden: “Mary”. He would say, “baby dino,” and that would be it. I guess that’s just the power of God.)Instead of the word “Rules” in the title, I was going to use the word “Laws”. But, I soon realized Laws aren’t what the used to be. Even what we’ve thought of as “Laws of Physics” have been bent or misshapen somehow, in recents times.
Here, I use the word “rule” to highlight what seems to be invariably consequential. Or , “It seems thus.” If you’d like to debate it, I welcome that.
The #1 Giving Rule: Hoarding causes spoilage. Not just the material variety of hoarding, but also as a spiritual reality. An inner decay.
A helpful (Biblical) case in point is the spiritual lesson gathered (ahem) from a physical instance with an ancient wandering people group. Here we see what happens with a “hoarding of mana” (or sustenance): Exodus 16:20. In a word: Maggots.
Yet, the story begs the question for us all: Do we think our daily provision (in every way) is really up to us?
It seems that all gifts and blessing that are not shared with others and given back to God as a love offering, ferment and grow toxic.
This includes spiritual blessings, talents, and material blessings. There seems to be scads on this principle demonstrated in the Bible.
I came up with an equation a few years back, and I feel a burst mathematical jubilation to use it here.
Think about the equation below for about 15 full seconds, and please tell me what you think.
Gifts (from God) – Fruit (of the Spirit) = Corruption
Do you agree? How does this play out?
And-Please Help me with the reverse equation. (What formula does not cause corruption?)
So-What is the best “giving back” to God? Worship in Spirit and Truth. John 4: 22-23
Worship is giving: A gift of one’s first affections.
This has a board range starting with core loyalty, and moving into every other area or currency that involves us. (Yes. Including your time, talents, thoughts, technology, and legal tender. It’s all-encompassing.) And it is all thoroughly swaddled in gratitude.
I thank you to participate in thought and word today. :)
We’d like to think idol worship isn’t something we practice. We don’t bow down to manmade gods like the foolish people of old we read of in the Bible, right?
Not so fast. (I think we do)
Probably, if we can’t live without something invented in the last 150 years, it qualifies as an idol–Yes. A full-tilt false god.
If we have a trust and loyalty to something we assume is a necessity, I think we should challenge this devotion.
Here’s the ugly truth. You probably worship your computer, your Apple product, your GPS, your phone, or your car. (Our association with technology is the modern equivalent of Old Testament style idolatry.)
A “long ago” 2007 British study of 1,256 people showed that 1/3 of those asked would pass on $2 million to keep their cell phone. 85 percent of those studied said that having a mobile phone was “vital to maintaining their quality of life.” The statistics are likely far higher now, almost 4 years later.
So, it’s simple. Tech = Baal.
Now, will you give up your false god?
At first we rebuff this allegation of idol worship. We’ll think of ways that the things we adore are for safety, common sense practicality, or we’ll come up with a rationalization for why our devotion isn’t really so bad.
The prevailing idea is that if the technology is available, there’s a kind of moral imperative to utilize it. “If it’s possible–it should been done.” Hence, things like octoplets, an artist being fitted with digital camera skull implant, and decades-long life support situations happen. (Can you think of another gross abuse of technology?)
What of ourselves is lost because of these unnatural loyalties?
Probably, a basic part of our humanity.
Sound overblown?
Let’s be serious: We become what we serve. We are enslaved to what we worship. What are the repercussions for serving technology?
Here’s a case in point:
It seems no one (especially under a certain age[?]) can image going without a mobile phone, or internet capabilities for a few hours, let alone a few days. Could you give up technology that’s been created within the last fifty years for a full week? Would it cramp your style, and make you grouchy? (Signs say yes…that’s old school tech…the 8 Ball.)
281 million youth have cell phones. I admit I have withdrawal symptoms without access to the internet for more than a day. I get twitchy. It’s uncomfortable. And no, I don’t like it.
So, I think we have to be honest and address this. What do you think about it? When have you worshiped technology? What do you think you do about it?
Is there a Christian spiritual practice that can help us?
Absolutely. It’s called fasting. Prayer, fasting, and giving to the poor are the pinnacle of Kingdom of God living, according to Jesus in the Sermon on the Mount. Without these things, we are not living as a follower of Christ as he laid it out.
A Tech Fast should be part of your spiritual practice, because it will get your attention better than most things will. This will create growth and maturity.
Fasting challenges our loyalties.
(Read that again)
When we desire the thing we fast from, it creates a space to concentrate and reflect. It re-proritizes our habits, calls them into question, and helps us sift through the what we we should hold dear versus what should be leashed and subdued. When the pang to digitally connect, shout out our thoughts to the masses, or get instant information strikes, we can train our hearts as we place prayer and worship in that void that feels like need. The point isn’t to prove our righteousness by going without, but rather to create time and space for heightened refocus and Christian spiritual practice. God has us engage in fasting for our benefit, not his. It’s a training method…a.k.a. a discipline. It’s a command to fast. (Sorry to break this to you.)
BUT GOOD NEWS: The effect is refreshment, and quite likely a more informed outlook on our lives.
Will you take the TECH CHALLENGE? Is the next 2 weeks fast 3 times from technology. Start off with a few hours, or half of a day (if you’re ready for THAT-gulp), and try to build up to 2-3 days by the end.
