Seeking Shaloam
As you may be able to tell, the concept of healthy community and the kingdom of God have been on my mind recently. But now, after learning more and having wornderful things revealed to me, I almost feel my mind is going to explode with new ideas about the world that God has called us to change. While telling others about our faith and the kingdom is very necessary and important, it is merely a part of a bigger picture. God also gives us a desire to bring peace and his vision into the world, by not boycotting and abandoning the things that we dislike, but by entering in to those things and changing them from the inside out.
In Shane Claibourne's Book, The Irresistable Revolution, he retells the story of Jesus' parable of the mustard seed. In the time of Jesus, this was an extremely confusing image. Jesus talks about the kingdom of God being like a tiny mustard seed, sprouting into a plant that becomse huge. The problem is, the mustard plant is a dumpy shrub, usually growing no taller than a small bush. However, the plant is very similar to kudzu, a plant that is extremely resiliant, virtually impossible to kill, and takes over everything it touches, capable of even choking out entire forests. So rather than creating an image of the kingdom being like a mighty oak tree, Jesus talks about the kingdom being like a tiny idea that invades everything around it and changes everything for the better. Following this idea, when we seek the kingdom of God, it will invade everything that we do, even invading corrupt politics, social structures, and even warped worldviews.
When I went on an urban outreach project in St. Louis last spring, the leaders there spoke constantly about "seeking the shaloam (peace) of the city" and showed us all the ways that people were bringing the kingdom of God into everything that they did, whether it was sharing their faith, adopting inner-city orphans, or even just sharing groceries with a neighbor in need. This kind of thinking has led me to rethink where I am now, whether through my church or through my campus fellowship. How can I seek the shaloam of my community, my neighbors, my close community, even my place in student government? How will our fellowship and community bring the kingdom of God into ODU and change it closer to God's vision?
This by no means is a complete thought, but God is definately leading me somewhere, I know that it will be good and better for me.
Saturday, December 02, 2006
Tuesday, October 31, 2006
The Church's Desire for Community
In the past few days, in the meetings that I have had with fellow IV leaders and in my personal reflections, the idea of the gathering of believers the importance of having healthy community has really been an important topic of thought for me. Recently we have been struggling with identifying the importance of believers gathering together and studying and worshiping together. Seen from the surface, this can really be a tough argument, since many aspects of a Christian lifestyle can be very personal, but when I thought about it more, it becomes very clear that the idea of believers gathering together is an extremely important component of Christian life, mainly because of its emphasis on caring for and about each other, as well as putting us in a larger context.
From the beginning of Christianity, the idea of gathering together and being in healthy community has been a very important part of a believers walk. During Jesus' ministry, he was not only constantly teaching and stretching the minds of his followers, but he was also intentionally spending time with them, listening to them, and directing them in the direction of the Father and Himself. Also, He constantly emphasized the importance of loving and serving each other, showing how important it was to serve and respond to each other's needs. This is most easily seen in the gathering of both small groups of people, as well as in the gathering of larger groups. Some theologians, somewhat misinterpreting the idea that Jesus presented pertaining to the "Kingdom of Heaven," have argued that Jesus spoke strictly of a non-earthly community of believers and that He really did not intend for there to be a "Church" on earth as we see it now at all, but somehow there is a disconnect here. If that were true, the present day Church would not have survived as long as it has. Jesus specifically speaks of an earthly gathering of believers in order to teach, encourage, and care about one another and it is this fundamental idea that is still going strong 2,000 years after His death and resurrection.
Without a local and global community of believers, it would be possible to still lead a Christian lifestyle, but it probably would not be the same as the lifestyle that Jesus taught. Without the guidance and encouragement of other believers, the gospel of grace would probably be easily distorted and manipulated. However, thanks to the Scriptures, the divine guidance of God, and the belief of Christians through the centuries, the idea of believers gathering together has survived and people have fought desperately to preserve it. The early Christians would rather gather together in the Catacombs and risk persecution rather than believe secretly. The Puritans would rather sail thousands of miles away and risk death for the right to gather together than to be persecuted for it. Chinese Christians would rather meet together in secret and risk torture and death rather than to stifle their religious fire and obey an oppressive government. That desire for community is fundamental to a Christian lifestyle and the recognition of this important element of gathering together to worship and learn is basic to our understanding of grace, our developing sense of service and love for one another, as well as our encouragement to reach out to the rest of the world.
In the past few days, in the meetings that I have had with fellow IV leaders and in my personal reflections, the idea of the gathering of believers the importance of having healthy community has really been an important topic of thought for me. Recently we have been struggling with identifying the importance of believers gathering together and studying and worshiping together. Seen from the surface, this can really be a tough argument, since many aspects of a Christian lifestyle can be very personal, but when I thought about it more, it becomes very clear that the idea of believers gathering together is an extremely important component of Christian life, mainly because of its emphasis on caring for and about each other, as well as putting us in a larger context.
From the beginning of Christianity, the idea of gathering together and being in healthy community has been a very important part of a believers walk. During Jesus' ministry, he was not only constantly teaching and stretching the minds of his followers, but he was also intentionally spending time with them, listening to them, and directing them in the direction of the Father and Himself. Also, He constantly emphasized the importance of loving and serving each other, showing how important it was to serve and respond to each other's needs. This is most easily seen in the gathering of both small groups of people, as well as in the gathering of larger groups. Some theologians, somewhat misinterpreting the idea that Jesus presented pertaining to the "Kingdom of Heaven," have argued that Jesus spoke strictly of a non-earthly community of believers and that He really did not intend for there to be a "Church" on earth as we see it now at all, but somehow there is a disconnect here. If that were true, the present day Church would not have survived as long as it has. Jesus specifically speaks of an earthly gathering of believers in order to teach, encourage, and care about one another and it is this fundamental idea that is still going strong 2,000 years after His death and resurrection.
Without a local and global community of believers, it would be possible to still lead a Christian lifestyle, but it probably would not be the same as the lifestyle that Jesus taught. Without the guidance and encouragement of other believers, the gospel of grace would probably be easily distorted and manipulated. However, thanks to the Scriptures, the divine guidance of God, and the belief of Christians through the centuries, the idea of believers gathering together has survived and people have fought desperately to preserve it. The early Christians would rather gather together in the Catacombs and risk persecution rather than believe secretly. The Puritans would rather sail thousands of miles away and risk death for the right to gather together than to be persecuted for it. Chinese Christians would rather meet together in secret and risk torture and death rather than to stifle their religious fire and obey an oppressive government. That desire for community is fundamental to a Christian lifestyle and the recognition of this important element of gathering together to worship and learn is basic to our understanding of grace, our developing sense of service and love for one another, as well as our encouragement to reach out to the rest of the world.
Wednesday, October 25, 2006
Joan of Arc
In my last History of Medieval England class this morning we spent a good portion of time discussing Joan of Arc, her role in the Hundred Years War, as well as the impact that she made on the Catholic Church. I thought the discussion was very interesting, especially since it dealt with many of the ideas that I have been thinking about and what I have been talking about in my last post.
Joan came from very humble beginnings and was the daughter of a peasant family in France born in 1412. Her life drastically changed when she began hearing voices, voices that she stated were those of the saints directing her to do things. At first the voices directed her to do everything that a good Catholic would do, such as praying regularly and obeying her parents, but later the instructions became much more political and drastic, such as directing the French heir to the throne to take over the country and to expel the English invaders that had captured a good portion of France. Joan acted promptly, helping the the Dauphine (French heir to the throne) to raise an army and, unheard of during that time, leading the French army into a series of victories and eventually expelling the English from France.
However, in 1421 Joan was captured by Burgundian troops and sent to England. There she was put on trial in England, not for leading troops or helping the French, but for claiming that the voices she heard were truly divinely revealed. These charges were so serious that when Joan was convicted she was labeled a heretic and burned at the stake, even though she never directly questioned or challenged the authority of the Church.
What interested me the most about the story of Joan of Arc is the response to her revelations throughout time. Interpreted back then, Joan's revelations were seen as a direct attack on the sovereignty of the clergy, them being the only ones capable of interpreting and distributing biblical truth. This seems odd today, mainly because of our protestant background as well as the fact that none of Joan's revelations appeared to be counter-scriptural. But perhaps the most interesting interpretation is that of the modern day. In most contemporary circles, Joan is labeled as a schizophrenic, an individual haunted by strange voices in her mind which ultimately gave her a distorted sense of reality. But this view also seems out of balance, considering the fact that Joan was not unstable, most of her revelations were true, and she had remarkable leadership skills, skills that normally would almost certainly not be present in an 18 year old girl. Once again, we also need to weight the fact that none of Joan's revelations were counter to scripture and did have truth to them from a more balanced point of view.
Whether or not the revelations of Joan of Arc were truly divinely revealed or not is still unclear and is still being debated, but it does bring up an interesting point regarding how cultures respond to direct revelation. When I heard that story, I suppose I just wondered how we would respond to a Joan of Arc in our time and place and, if her revelations were indeed supported by scripture and biblical truth, if we respond to it in the same way that others have in the past.
In my last History of Medieval England class this morning we spent a good portion of time discussing Joan of Arc, her role in the Hundred Years War, as well as the impact that she made on the Catholic Church. I thought the discussion was very interesting, especially since it dealt with many of the ideas that I have been thinking about and what I have been talking about in my last post.
Joan came from very humble beginnings and was the daughter of a peasant family in France born in 1412. Her life drastically changed when she began hearing voices, voices that she stated were those of the saints directing her to do things. At first the voices directed her to do everything that a good Catholic would do, such as praying regularly and obeying her parents, but later the instructions became much more political and drastic, such as directing the French heir to the throne to take over the country and to expel the English invaders that had captured a good portion of France. Joan acted promptly, helping the the Dauphine (French heir to the throne) to raise an army and, unheard of during that time, leading the French army into a series of victories and eventually expelling the English from France.
However, in 1421 Joan was captured by Burgundian troops and sent to England. There she was put on trial in England, not for leading troops or helping the French, but for claiming that the voices she heard were truly divinely revealed. These charges were so serious that when Joan was convicted she was labeled a heretic and burned at the stake, even though she never directly questioned or challenged the authority of the Church.
What interested me the most about the story of Joan of Arc is the response to her revelations throughout time. Interpreted back then, Joan's revelations were seen as a direct attack on the sovereignty of the clergy, them being the only ones capable of interpreting and distributing biblical truth. This seems odd today, mainly because of our protestant background as well as the fact that none of Joan's revelations appeared to be counter-scriptural. But perhaps the most interesting interpretation is that of the modern day. In most contemporary circles, Joan is labeled as a schizophrenic, an individual haunted by strange voices in her mind which ultimately gave her a distorted sense of reality. But this view also seems out of balance, considering the fact that Joan was not unstable, most of her revelations were true, and she had remarkable leadership skills, skills that normally would almost certainly not be present in an 18 year old girl. Once again, we also need to weight the fact that none of Joan's revelations were counter to scripture and did have truth to them from a more balanced point of view.
Whether or not the revelations of Joan of Arc were truly divinely revealed or not is still unclear and is still being debated, but it does bring up an interesting point regarding how cultures respond to direct revelation. When I heard that story, I suppose I just wondered how we would respond to a Joan of Arc in our time and place and, if her revelations were indeed supported by scripture and biblical truth, if we respond to it in the same way that others have in the past.
Tuesday, October 24, 2006
Truth Blended
Truth is quite possibly one of the easiest and one of the most difficult concepts to understand. In one respect, it can be very easy to pick out and to understand, and on the other hand, it can be very deep, even deeper than we can possibly imagine. One can say that truth is one of the biggest things that Christians seek: truth about God, the Universe, and even just their relationship with their creator. However, especially pertaining to the Christian's search for truth, it is very important to have a well rounded, or "blended" search and concept of truth.
One interesting and valuable concept that comes from Chinese philosophy is the idea of balance. The Chinese believe that the whole universe is built upon a balance of forces, harmonizing and balancing. Although some aspects of this concept can be dangerous for Christians, I really believe that there are some good aspects of it as a well and can be applied to our relentless search for truth. Truth can not just be about searching for facts or just "having a gut feeling," but should be a balance between the two, harmonizing to give us a well rounded, good scale in which to weight truth and falsehood.
One aspect of searching for truth has really been affecting me in the past few weeks as I look at scripture and how it applies to the beliefs that I hold as truth. Staying true to my postmodern worldview, I tend to have beliefs based on my feelings and on the personal emotions I have, with some small aspects of weighing them based on facts. However, I found my faith being strengthened immensely when I saw over and over again the things that I believed to be true to be written blatantly in scripture. The old philosophes of the 18th century did teach us some solid things, like basing truth on observation and logic and physical facts, and often times truth can be revealed in leaps and bounds based on the observations and interpretations that we can make on the concrete facts that we have around us.
However, the element of feeling and emotions can not be pushed out of the picture by observation of facts when seeking truth. The wind whispering through a cold forest, a refreshing drink in a mountain stream, or the feeling of a divine presence can not be derived into a mathematical equation or a scientific theorem. But they are also real and awesome, and must also be taken into account to weighing the truth. But, as always, these feelings also have to be weighed against revealed truth in scripture and other sources. It is this perfect blend of truth that I think really brings us to a deeper understanding of truth and a deeper relationship with God. In order to have a truly deep understanding of truth, a Christian must be a mathematician, a historian, a scientist, and a poet, four aspects that all strive for truth, but all see it from radically different perspectives. However, how does this perfect blend come from a flawed member of mankind.
This is where I believe grace of God and gospel come crashing in to save the day. It is God's perfect power of revelation and Jesus' reunification with God and man that allows Him to penetrate the wall between the soul and the mind. Without this saving grace, not only would we be eternally separated from our loving Creator, but we would eternally flounder in our search for truth, hopelessly tipped from one side of the scale to the other, either being buried in a desperate search for arbitrary facts or floating in a dream world clouded with misguided feelings. This balance of truth, I believe, can only come from the only truly balanced being and without that, life would be hopeless and a pointless search for nothing.
However, one of the most profound things that brings me to worship about truth and God is that the search is never really over and there is always more to discover as I grow older and more and more is revealed to me. I believe that ultimate truth is much bigger than we can imagine and can only perfectly be understood if it is seen from the perspective of God. However, truth is not a hopeless search, and I also believe that God will give us just enough revelation in our studies, and our physical and emotional feelings in order to equip us for the world around us, as well as bringing us closer to a better relationship with Him. He is a God of truth, peace, revelation, joy, and authentic emotion, and every aspect of Him draws us closer and closer to Him.
Truth is quite possibly one of the easiest and one of the most difficult concepts to understand. In one respect, it can be very easy to pick out and to understand, and on the other hand, it can be very deep, even deeper than we can possibly imagine. One can say that truth is one of the biggest things that Christians seek: truth about God, the Universe, and even just their relationship with their creator. However, especially pertaining to the Christian's search for truth, it is very important to have a well rounded, or "blended" search and concept of truth.
One interesting and valuable concept that comes from Chinese philosophy is the idea of balance. The Chinese believe that the whole universe is built upon a balance of forces, harmonizing and balancing. Although some aspects of this concept can be dangerous for Christians, I really believe that there are some good aspects of it as a well and can be applied to our relentless search for truth. Truth can not just be about searching for facts or just "having a gut feeling," but should be a balance between the two, harmonizing to give us a well rounded, good scale in which to weight truth and falsehood.
One aspect of searching for truth has really been affecting me in the past few weeks as I look at scripture and how it applies to the beliefs that I hold as truth. Staying true to my postmodern worldview, I tend to have beliefs based on my feelings and on the personal emotions I have, with some small aspects of weighing them based on facts. However, I found my faith being strengthened immensely when I saw over and over again the things that I believed to be true to be written blatantly in scripture. The old philosophes of the 18th century did teach us some solid things, like basing truth on observation and logic and physical facts, and often times truth can be revealed in leaps and bounds based on the observations and interpretations that we can make on the concrete facts that we have around us.
However, the element of feeling and emotions can not be pushed out of the picture by observation of facts when seeking truth. The wind whispering through a cold forest, a refreshing drink in a mountain stream, or the feeling of a divine presence can not be derived into a mathematical equation or a scientific theorem. But they are also real and awesome, and must also be taken into account to weighing the truth. But, as always, these feelings also have to be weighed against revealed truth in scripture and other sources. It is this perfect blend of truth that I think really brings us to a deeper understanding of truth and a deeper relationship with God. In order to have a truly deep understanding of truth, a Christian must be a mathematician, a historian, a scientist, and a poet, four aspects that all strive for truth, but all see it from radically different perspectives. However, how does this perfect blend come from a flawed member of mankind.
This is where I believe grace of God and gospel come crashing in to save the day. It is God's perfect power of revelation and Jesus' reunification with God and man that allows Him to penetrate the wall between the soul and the mind. Without this saving grace, not only would we be eternally separated from our loving Creator, but we would eternally flounder in our search for truth, hopelessly tipped from one side of the scale to the other, either being buried in a desperate search for arbitrary facts or floating in a dream world clouded with misguided feelings. This balance of truth, I believe, can only come from the only truly balanced being and without that, life would be hopeless and a pointless search for nothing.
However, one of the most profound things that brings me to worship about truth and God is that the search is never really over and there is always more to discover as I grow older and more and more is revealed to me. I believe that ultimate truth is much bigger than we can imagine and can only perfectly be understood if it is seen from the perspective of God. However, truth is not a hopeless search, and I also believe that God will give us just enough revelation in our studies, and our physical and emotional feelings in order to equip us for the world around us, as well as bringing us closer to a better relationship with Him. He is a God of truth, peace, revelation, joy, and authentic emotion, and every aspect of Him draws us closer and closer to Him.
Friday, September 15, 2006
The Greatest Story In the Universe
Ever since I was little I have always enjoyed listening to stories and now that I am older I still find myself being fascinated by tales of adventure discovery. Recently, however, I found myself being very suprised at myself by being interested with stories of different kinds. For this semester and the following semester I will be taking a couple of courses in geology for a science requirement and over the past couple of weeks I have been finding myself getting really excited about the content. Most of it has been about identifying minerals and rocks, but recently we have begun studying the forces that form volcanoes, valleys, mountains, and the landscape of the earth in general. I just find myself getting more and more intrigued by the content, because it almost feels like a huge story is being unfolded before me and I am getting to discover a story that has been and is being written for millions of years.
These feelings and ideas are actually not new to me. I actually began developing these thoughts over the past summer, when I spent about three months living in Yosemite National Park. Yosemite Valley and the surrounding terrain is a biological and geological wonderland and many elements of the surroundings can be very thought provoking. I remember one hike that I took deep into the Merced Lake Trail, a trail that follows the Merced river deep into the remote high country of the park, and as I walked along and saw the changing landscape, I had the feeling of almost reading a book with many chapters as the river bended and twisted and carved out the Merced Canyon, a trend that has been going on seemingly since the beginning of time. As pondered this, I was amazed by how much it felt like the story of the world was stretching out before me in profound and striking ways. As a history student, I am used to analyzing and deciphering the story of human progress and evolution, but it took on a very different context when contemplated the earth and the universe as well.
Too many times I think we try to describe the progress and passage of time within a strictly human point of view. Within that context, the insect world is considered incidental, any thing beyond our small solar system is unconsequential, and a million years sounds like an eternity. How would our perspective change if we started to understand the world and universe with a less earthly point of view, with our spiritual lives included. Perhaps we would stop seeing the work of God being centered solely around the salvation of human beings alone, but perhaps a plan for God save and perfect His creation as a whole, making everything have the ability to enjoy and desire Himself as he had intended it. With this point of view, perhaps we would see even the creation around us in a different way, more in touch with how God had originally planned it.
In everything around us, whether it is a complicated leaf, a tropical fish, a grinding iceberg, a towering mountain, a distant galaxy, or a fellow human, God is continuing to send us messages about Himself, His nature, and giving us a desire to continue to seek and know Him better in a strong and personal way, weaving together the greatest story in ever told. So, in one of thinking, through the eyes of Creator, the greatest story ever told in the universe is exactly that: the universe.
Ever since I was little I have always enjoyed listening to stories and now that I am older I still find myself being fascinated by tales of adventure discovery. Recently, however, I found myself being very suprised at myself by being interested with stories of different kinds. For this semester and the following semester I will be taking a couple of courses in geology for a science requirement and over the past couple of weeks I have been finding myself getting really excited about the content. Most of it has been about identifying minerals and rocks, but recently we have begun studying the forces that form volcanoes, valleys, mountains, and the landscape of the earth in general. I just find myself getting more and more intrigued by the content, because it almost feels like a huge story is being unfolded before me and I am getting to discover a story that has been and is being written for millions of years.
These feelings and ideas are actually not new to me. I actually began developing these thoughts over the past summer, when I spent about three months living in Yosemite National Park. Yosemite Valley and the surrounding terrain is a biological and geological wonderland and many elements of the surroundings can be very thought provoking. I remember one hike that I took deep into the Merced Lake Trail, a trail that follows the Merced river deep into the remote high country of the park, and as I walked along and saw the changing landscape, I had the feeling of almost reading a book with many chapters as the river bended and twisted and carved out the Merced Canyon, a trend that has been going on seemingly since the beginning of time. As pondered this, I was amazed by how much it felt like the story of the world was stretching out before me in profound and striking ways. As a history student, I am used to analyzing and deciphering the story of human progress and evolution, but it took on a very different context when contemplated the earth and the universe as well.
Too many times I think we try to describe the progress and passage of time within a strictly human point of view. Within that context, the insect world is considered incidental, any thing beyond our small solar system is unconsequential, and a million years sounds like an eternity. How would our perspective change if we started to understand the world and universe with a less earthly point of view, with our spiritual lives included. Perhaps we would stop seeing the work of God being centered solely around the salvation of human beings alone, but perhaps a plan for God save and perfect His creation as a whole, making everything have the ability to enjoy and desire Himself as he had intended it. With this point of view, perhaps we would see even the creation around us in a different way, more in touch with how God had originally planned it.
In everything around us, whether it is a complicated leaf, a tropical fish, a grinding iceberg, a towering mountain, a distant galaxy, or a fellow human, God is continuing to send us messages about Himself, His nature, and giving us a desire to continue to seek and know Him better in a strong and personal way, weaving together the greatest story in ever told. So, in one of thinking, through the eyes of Creator, the greatest story ever told in the universe is exactly that: the universe.
Monday, September 11, 2006
The Stale Life
Sometimes life gets stale. Sometimes it gets boring, mediocre, and generally uninteresting. But is this really how life should be? To paraphrase of C.S. Lewis, all christians are interested in being happy. They aren't christians because they want to do good deeds, want to be seen as good people, or out to be famous. Essentially, all christians know that the life that they lead will give them ultimate happiness and is a better life. It might not be easier, but it is better. God didn't necessarily want life to be easier for us but he does intend for us to live a joyful life of genually loving following Him and being in His prescence. But what happens when we don't feel that joy?
Shortly after a meeting with the leaders of the ODU Intervarsity Coordinating Team, one of my good friends commented, "Are any of you tired?...of being in this role at least...it seems like all we are doing is busy work." After some conversation, we all realized that we were all getting worn out and burned out from all the coordinating and desicion-making we had been doing. With that being revealed to us, we seemed very disheartened and even more discouraged, especially since we really didn't know what to do about it. After thinking about it further, however, I thought about my friends comment about us just doing busy work. I thought that maybe all we have been doing was busy work, and the one of the only ways for this to become busy work was if God was somehow being pushed out of the picture.
Through all of our planning and coordinating, perhaps we have lost sight of the core of why we are doing all this work. Without Christ, all of our efforts are fruitless and pointless. In the same way that it is meaningless for a professor to make assignments without intending to teach anything worth learning, perhaps all of our efforts are also pointless without Christ being the center and the reason for all the effort. Granted, Christ's will will still be done, but we will learn more, see more, and genuinely enjoy more of what we do and our time with our Creator when we are mindful of His will and His purpose. At the very core, that is the very reason why we want to spread the gospel to others, not because we want to boost numbers or gain fame for ourselves, but because we genuinely know that the life we are living through Christ is better than the life of being without. Without it, life is just busy work, with no rewards, no lessons, no joyful communion with the Creator.
Perhaps the C-Team doesn't need to change any of the things we are physically doing, but perhaps we need to find where we have pushed out God and tried to infuse ourselves into His place. At the very core of the matter, I believe God wants to make this year joyful and beautiful for us all on the C-Team and in all of IV, maybe not easier, but genuinely bringing us closer to Him and to His heart. The only way that can happen is through a life of repentance and life of keeping God in complete control. We are definately there yet, I pray that God gives us the knowledge, insight, and experiences to guide us on that road closer to His heart.
Sometimes life gets stale. Sometimes it gets boring, mediocre, and generally uninteresting. But is this really how life should be? To paraphrase of C.S. Lewis, all christians are interested in being happy. They aren't christians because they want to do good deeds, want to be seen as good people, or out to be famous. Essentially, all christians know that the life that they lead will give them ultimate happiness and is a better life. It might not be easier, but it is better. God didn't necessarily want life to be easier for us but he does intend for us to live a joyful life of genually loving following Him and being in His prescence. But what happens when we don't feel that joy?
Shortly after a meeting with the leaders of the ODU Intervarsity Coordinating Team, one of my good friends commented, "Are any of you tired?...of being in this role at least...it seems like all we are doing is busy work." After some conversation, we all realized that we were all getting worn out and burned out from all the coordinating and desicion-making we had been doing. With that being revealed to us, we seemed very disheartened and even more discouraged, especially since we really didn't know what to do about it. After thinking about it further, however, I thought about my friends comment about us just doing busy work. I thought that maybe all we have been doing was busy work, and the one of the only ways for this to become busy work was if God was somehow being pushed out of the picture.
Through all of our planning and coordinating, perhaps we have lost sight of the core of why we are doing all this work. Without Christ, all of our efforts are fruitless and pointless. In the same way that it is meaningless for a professor to make assignments without intending to teach anything worth learning, perhaps all of our efforts are also pointless without Christ being the center and the reason for all the effort. Granted, Christ's will will still be done, but we will learn more, see more, and genuinely enjoy more of what we do and our time with our Creator when we are mindful of His will and His purpose. At the very core, that is the very reason why we want to spread the gospel to others, not because we want to boost numbers or gain fame for ourselves, but because we genuinely know that the life we are living through Christ is better than the life of being without. Without it, life is just busy work, with no rewards, no lessons, no joyful communion with the Creator.
Perhaps the C-Team doesn't need to change any of the things we are physically doing, but perhaps we need to find where we have pushed out God and tried to infuse ourselves into His place. At the very core of the matter, I believe God wants to make this year joyful and beautiful for us all on the C-Team and in all of IV, maybe not easier, but genuinely bringing us closer to Him and to His heart. The only way that can happen is through a life of repentance and life of keeping God in complete control. We are definately there yet, I pray that God gives us the knowledge, insight, and experiences to guide us on that road closer to His heart.
Thursday, August 31, 2006
What a World of Difference a Worldview Makes
*Disclaimer* To the readers of this blog: Even though some of the ideas in this entry may seem somewhat animistic and religiously relativistic, I do believe in the Christ, the resurrection of the body, and being saved by and only by the grace of God. However, I think it would be wrong for us to completely and uncritically believe everything that has developed and evolved in Western Christianty and at the same time completely throw away and discard all the other ideas of other religions and belief systems.
This semester I will be taking a class on colonial and revolutionary American and I kind of came across a very interesting observation as I studied. As I read and studied the beginning of the textbook, I realized that the book took a very multi-cultural viewpoint and emphasized the importance of gaining a balanced view of the cultures and history around us. At first, I was a little surprised, considering that I was expecting to be learning about the founding fathers and the creators of our nation. As I thought about it further, I realized that most of the history is very centered on the people of our own ethnicity, with a few sprinkles of other nationalities spread throughout. It was hard for me to realize how much things change when not seen through the lens of our own culture, but it was really eye-opening when I took a different look at it.
It really is amazing when to think about how world history really has been changed by the different world views of cultures. It has caused conflicts and sometimes has prevented some people from understanding each other at all. As a historian, the writing of history will soon begin a huge revolution in how it writes and perceives the world. I was a little confused when I saw that I wasn't going to totally be studying the history that I though I would be, but later I realized that it is my duty to study the history of the world...through the eyes of every man, woman, and child.
With this in mind, it is very easy for me to become muddled in worldview interpretation and cultural relativism. So how can we know the complete and full truth? What if the truth is so complicated we can't even begin to wrap our minds around it? In light of these ideas, I believe that absolute truth is out there...if we only ask for it. Perhaps we can pick and choose what is real truth from our culture and other cultures we will see and grow closer to God...through the eyes of all his people. Perhaps the Tower of Babel was something bigger, not just a seperation of superficial language, but also a mixing of understanding, perception, and worldview. All this can only make God bigger in our eyes, thoughts and hearts.
Perhaps thinking this way may muddy the waters of an already complex issue, but in another way it brings me closer to worship of God, that we have an extremely big God who is using all of his children all over the world to reveal His glory.
*Disclaimer* To the readers of this blog: Even though some of the ideas in this entry may seem somewhat animistic and religiously relativistic, I do believe in the Christ, the resurrection of the body, and being saved by and only by the grace of God. However, I think it would be wrong for us to completely and uncritically believe everything that has developed and evolved in Western Christianty and at the same time completely throw away and discard all the other ideas of other religions and belief systems.
This semester I will be taking a class on colonial and revolutionary American and I kind of came across a very interesting observation as I studied. As I read and studied the beginning of the textbook, I realized that the book took a very multi-cultural viewpoint and emphasized the importance of gaining a balanced view of the cultures and history around us. At first, I was a little surprised, considering that I was expecting to be learning about the founding fathers and the creators of our nation. As I thought about it further, I realized that most of the history is very centered on the people of our own ethnicity, with a few sprinkles of other nationalities spread throughout. It was hard for me to realize how much things change when not seen through the lens of our own culture, but it was really eye-opening when I took a different look at it.
It really is amazing when to think about how world history really has been changed by the different world views of cultures. It has caused conflicts and sometimes has prevented some people from understanding each other at all. As a historian, the writing of history will soon begin a huge revolution in how it writes and perceives the world. I was a little confused when I saw that I wasn't going to totally be studying the history that I though I would be, but later I realized that it is my duty to study the history of the world...through the eyes of every man, woman, and child.
With this in mind, it is very easy for me to become muddled in worldview interpretation and cultural relativism. So how can we know the complete and full truth? What if the truth is so complicated we can't even begin to wrap our minds around it? In light of these ideas, I believe that absolute truth is out there...if we only ask for it. Perhaps we can pick and choose what is real truth from our culture and other cultures we will see and grow closer to God...through the eyes of all his people. Perhaps the Tower of Babel was something bigger, not just a seperation of superficial language, but also a mixing of understanding, perception, and worldview. All this can only make God bigger in our eyes, thoughts and hearts.
Perhaps thinking this way may muddy the waters of an already complex issue, but in another way it brings me closer to worship of God, that we have an extremely big God who is using all of his children all over the world to reveal His glory.
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