Serving my subconscious since 1999.
I will not use email as a means of communication for relational issues.
I will try to give everyone the benefit of the doubt when the say or do something that ticks me off or makes me wonder about their motives.
I will ask questions before “shooting.”
I will continue to blog vaguely causing friends and family to wonder if I’m writing about them; just assume that I am and change whatever you’re doing to bug me.
Apparently there’s no documentary evidence for attributing the quote “Beer is proof that God loves us and wants us to be happy” to Benjamin Franklin, although everybody continues to do so. That being the case, I submit to posterity the notion that “Coffee is proof that not only does God love us and wants us to be happy, but he wants to experience life wide awake and with all of our senses.”
Perhaps the biggest obstacle to unity, whether in the family, in the church, or in any community, is our tendency for selfishness. We all have different wants and needs, some good, some bad, some legitimate, and others… not so much. When our individual wants and needs come in conflict with the wants and needs of someone else, problems arise. Sometimes the conflict leads to compromise; sometimes it leads to one person giving up their position to please or serve another; and other times it just gets ugly.
Paul tells us in Ephesians 5:21, “Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.” This directive comes in a list of others intended to encourage the church to do as Paul wrote in the first two verses of that chapter: “Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children and live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.” As disciples of Jesus, we strive to be more like him, to be imitators of him, because we love him. Jesus’ example of sacrifice, giving himself for our sake, leads us to submit to one another.
As we continue in our mission to love God, love people, and serve like Jesus, we will become more unified as we imitate Jesus. This shows clearly the importance of the process of becoming and growing as a disciple. It’s one thing to connect to God, but if we’re not growing in our faith and knowledge of Jesus, we won’t be able to imitate him as we should.
The more we learn about Jesus, the more we can see the importance of submitting to each other, giving up our own wants and needs for the sake of the whole body. While it seems counterintuitive, the more we put others first, the closer we connect to them; just as when we submit to God, we grow closer to him. Let’s continue to encourage each other, out of love for God and each other, and submit to each other as we grow and serve together.
It bugs me how this election has prompted me to write yet another political post. However, I just have to get this off my mind so I can get on with the day.
I despise the way so many people glibly dismiss the views of those who are anti-abortion/pro-life, as if the point of view is intrinsically stupid. Pro-life candidates and their supporters are often painted as backwards and selfish in their thinking. While I have to admit that some of the more vocal pro-life advocates have been less than reasonable in their approach to the issue, much less to those who actually struggle through the decisions surrounding abortion, the pro-life position is certainly superior to the pro-choice/pro-abortion position.
To be pro-life is superior because there is no logical reason to believe that the fetus is anything but an unborn human child, at any stage of development. To be pro-life is superior because there is no moral reason to devalue the fetus in comparison to the mother. To be pro-life is superior because it is unethical to support abortion as the industry it has become or to deal with the fetus as the commodity it is becoming.
Ultimately, in a political context, abortion is my litmus test of trust in regard to many different areas. To the pro-abortion/pro-choice candidates I say:
Perhaps the worst among the pro-choice candidates are those who claim to be opposed to abortion personally but who support the supposed right of others to choose. Certainly they would not extend that right to racists, terrorists, and others who practice unspeakable acts based upon aberrant philosophies. This is an intellectually weak position adopted solely for self-preservation, and it cannot be tolerated, much less trusted, in an elected official.
Back when I was more overtly a right-wing nut—when I simply read my NRA magazine and listened to Rush Limbaugh and nodded vigorously without a whole lot of investigation and thought—I joined in with other conservative-minded folk who lamented the apparent liberal bias of the news media. Now that I put some thought into my political views, I recognize that everybody has a spin they put on political “news.” And, for the most part, I tend to keep my views to myself, as the politicians I will likely support say and do enough goofy things on their own to validate at least some of the attacks they receive.
However, upon John McCain’s announcement that he had chosen Sarah Palin as his running mate, I find my head spinning as the news media revert back to the bold-faced bias of the 80s. It seems that every reporter and anchor has had their press credentials printed on the back of their membership card for the Democratic Party.
Maybe I’ve gotten soft in my thinking over the past decade, believing that news has been reported more even-handedly in the past few years. Maybe I’ve let my guard down and let myself be taken in by the friendly banter of Good Morning America’s crew. But now that the Republican ticket has been announced and the campaign is well underway, the smiles are gone, replaced by looks of open disgust. No more pleasant discussions about any topic; it’s back to slash and burn.
It’s sad, really, to see people I’ve come to trust as rational adults revert to childish name calling and snarky, sarcastic remarks. While it seemed that they were capable of reporting only the facts, even when they may have disagreed with conservative philosophy, it has become clear that they cannot be trusted.
By Bruce E. Stoker © 2008
I know by sight those tasked to brew the beans,
Baristas young and pert who blend and grind
And pull strong shots from sleek, gleaming machines;
I put my trust in them to clear my mind.
Their pleasant banter pierces morning haze;
Caffeine induced, I’m sure, but I don’t care.
Undaunted by my sullen, grumpy daze,
They serve my cup of joe without despair.
It shames me now to think that this first draught
Is what I need to greet the day with joy,
That change is all I have to praise their craft,
That their spirit is what I should employ.
I sit. This simple mug, it should affect
A calm to pause, to think, and to reflect.
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My addiction to coffee has grown to coffee-related activities. In this case, quiliting. The day before we left for our vacation “up north,” I joined Sandi and a group of women to make a quilt. Just in case you were wondering, it’s a coffee-themed lap quilt (4×6-ish) in a rail fence pattern.
I was able to finish only the top that Saturday. But when we returned, I took the afternoon of Labor Day to finish the back, add the batting, “birth it,” and tie it.
Not sure I’d do it again any time soon, but overall, it was a good time.
Back-to-school time is kind of like my New Year’s Day. Ever since I was a child, I’ve always thought in the terms of a school year. So, with a new year comes renewed purpose.
For the past year, I’ve been focusing on the idea that the church is the body of Christ. And just like any body, we have a purpose. In order to do that, we need to be connected. We all have gifts, skills, talents, experiences, and knowledge that prepare us as individuals to do various tasks, but when we get connected, we need to figure out how all that goes together so this body can live according to its purpose.
Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 12:18 that “God has arranged the parts in the body, every one of them, just as he wanted them to be.” Not only are we all different parts of one body, but God has put us where we ought to be. That can get confusing, but again, if we think of this as a new school year, the uncertainty is just a part of growth.
The first day of school brings together a bunch of kids who don’t know what’s going on until the teachers direct them to specific desks or lockers. Kids have a general understanding of what school is, but they have to grow with the specifics. We’re the same way. We know we’re supposed to be together and heading in one direction. We don’t know specifically what we’re going to do from day to day, but we trust that there will be someone there to guide us. That’s why we have the Bible, the Holy Spirit, teachers, and other leaders, to guide us as we grow.
And next year, even though we might be back in the same uncertain position, we are a step ahead of those who have come behind us, and we can lead them to where we are. Our purpose as a church is to make disciples who make more disciples, people who love God, love people, and serve like Jesus. And the process begins with getting connected, first to God and then to others, so we can grow and serve together.
I don’t think my kids are looking forward to going back to school as much as Sandi and I are, but I love this time of year. I love school and the whole educational process, and I believe that it’s one of the central points of what we do within the church.
Paul makes this pretty clear in Ephesians 4:11-16. Verses 11 and 12 tell us there’s a structure in place to build up the body. Verses 12 and 13 say that the areas to build are in service, unity, and knowledge. Verses 14 through 16 tell us that the result is growth in understanding, love, and service. Verse 16 tells us that this growth works only as we work together, each of us doing our part. Basically Paul tells us that in order for people to have the life that God intended for us to have, we need to connect to God and each other, grow in our faith and knowledge of Jesus, and serve together like Jesus.
We have the structure in place; so the next step is to start building up the body in knowledge. We can do that by each of us getting into God’s Word through smaller groups, especially in our Adult Bible Fellowship groups on Sunday morning. We have groups for adults of all ages and in different stages of life. September 7 is the beginning of a new quarter, and each class has chosen their curriculum. You can read about the different classes and what they will be studying in the new ABF brochures which can be found at the welcome center. Then it’s just a matter of checking them out and making the connection.
As a side note, we are working to grow our ABF for young adults. Instead of focusing on college-age adults, whose stage of life doesn’t permit them to attend regularly, we want to build a core group of young professionals, couples, and parents. This will allow this growing segment in our church family to connect, grow, and serve together, and in turn, they can provide a stable “home” for college-age students as they transition from student ministry to adult ministry.
Last summer, after helping out with the senior high camp, a bunch of folks convinced me to join MySpace—against my better judgment. I did it. Everyone was thrilled to find me there, but a month later, they were ALL GONE! (Thanks, guys!)
Then they started begging me to join Facebook. I refused. For months I remained defiant… but alone… oh, so alone…
So, I did it. Last week I signed on to Facebook, and I’m glad I did! I’ve found and been found by all kinds of people from high school, college, and around the world. While it points out how lousy a friend I’ve been for the past twenty years, it has been a blast reconnecting with old friends.
It renews my understanding of how important people are and how quickly time flies. It gives me a new sense of urgency to really live out my faith in “Love God, Love people.”