"Movement"

Christmas is full of typical phrases, such as “Merry Christmas” and “Happy Holidays”. In our house, the tradition include ones that, while familiar, aren’t usually associated with Christmas. They include: 
“Let’s get this show on the road!”
“Time to get moving people.”
“Off your butt and on your feet”
“Boots and saddles!” 
(Yeah...just Google that last one to find out where that saying comes from.)

These sayings pop-up because of our annual trek to the midwest to visit relatives for the Christmas season. This time of year my family and I will load up into our gianormous SUV and start a seventeen

"The Princess"
(Our family SUV)

hour 1,200 mile journey eastward on I-80, and these idioms are frequently heard at our gas stops…although admittedly they are not always spoken by me. (My girls are road warriors and aren’t interested in languishing at truck stops or restaurants.) 

I will admit that I love the experience of movement. I love the travel and the sense of adventure. Even though we have traveled this road enough times that it has become almost intimately familiar to me, the sense of movement still thrills me. There is an overwhelming sense that we are on the road to somewhere; to a destination; to an arrival full of family and friends and reunions. 

I’ve come to realize that the movement is toward an ideal that is somehow deeply embedded in my family's collective and shared memory. So I move toward the future because my past has confirmed the worthiness of the experience. And in that moment, I realize that movement is not only a good thing, it is wonderfully life affirming. My past, which is so full of wonderful experiences, was only accomplished because I was willing to move. To take the first step. To get off my butt and on my feet. To drop everything and saddle up. To risk the journey of getting the show on the road.

I am who I am because of my willingness to embrace movement.

But I am also a pragmatist. I understand there is an associate cost with movement. I have spent

This isn't heaven...
it's Iowa.

some long hours driving thru the middle of Nebraska where all I could do was watch the odometer slowly roll over and wonder if the Iowa border would ever come. I recognize that sometimes it takes sheer grit and fortitude to put up with movement, but I endure it to reach the cherished destination. 

In many ways, this is our spiritual journey as well. We all seek movement closer to God, but we discount the fact that the actual progression requires determination. But move we must. We need look no further than Jesus’ challenging statement to find that truth: “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me.” (Matt 16:24). Movement is required in following. We cannot stay motionless if we are going to pursue our Lord. 

That movement will reveal itself in many different forms in our life. It will require change. It may need a willingness to sacrifice, or to let go and leaving certain things behind, or simply to grit our teeth and persevere. But we do it because there is an overwhelming sense that we are heading somewhere; to a destination; to an arrival that will be worth all the endurance, toil, and pain. We move and follow our Lord because our past collective experience affirms the worthiness of the journey. 

Wherever you are headed this holiday season, embrace the movement.

Merry Christmas! 

Keep the faith,

Justice and Living in the Empire

Good Morning...and
welcome to church!

The whole narrative of the bible (both Old and New Testament) has a major theme of justice coursing through it. Justice for the oppressed.  Justice for those in dire need.  Justice for the environment (God's creation.)  In the stories of the Bible, you will see protagonists and antagonists.  The antagonists is always on top in the world.  A group we could refer to as the "Empire".  Those in power.  Those who have the ability to change things, but only change it to benefit and preserve themselves.  The protagonists are what those without power.  Those who have little ability to change.  They live at the whim of the Empire.  We can call them the "Underdogs."  

When we read those stories, we are always find ourselves rooting for the Underdog. Unfortunately, in America, most Christians fail to realize that they are people of the Empire...not Underdogs. Maybe to to keep this false impression alive...some cast themselves as the Underdog in the context of religious beliefs.  The complaint is cast as: "I am being persecuted for what I believe!" Personally, I believe God isn't very concerned about that kind of perceived 'persecution'. (Honestly, we enjoy more religious freedom in the United States than anywhere in the world.)  Rather, what God is truly interested in is how they treat and respond to the Underdogs.  

In the Gospel, Jesus says to a rich young ruler: "If you want to be perfect, sell everything you have and give the money to the poor.  Then come follow me."  The rich young ruler goes away sad because he has great wealth. Interestingly, this is an example when many Christians make the decision to to interpret this command metaphorically instead of literally, which is an inconsistent approach to scripture. The same approach is applied to when Jesus says: "If someone strike you, turn the other cheek."  Or "Love your enemies".  Or "If your eye causes you to sin, then gouge it out."  The list goes on.  Instead, many American Christians think it is a "God given right" (ironically, no such thing exists in the Bible) to own guns, kill those who threaten us, and let the poor suffer because they deserve their lot in life. They choose to interpret the bible in the way that suits their own warped worldview.   

At least let us admit that we are all members of the Empire.  Furthermore, let's admit that it's rather comfortable being part of the Empire.  Life in the Empire is good.  But let us also understand that we have a responsibility to the Underdog.  We have an obligation toward that which cannot defend themselves. So we should try to do something on behalf of the Underdogs. In the grander scheme, it's not much, mostly because we haven't sold everything to follow Jesus. Honestly, we're probably just too scared. Our fear is rooted in the realization that we don't want to give up our privileged position in the Empire.  But understand this...and it is important: One day we will stand in front of Jesus and have to account for that shortcoming and that fear.  But also understand this: We don't stand in front of Jesus to account for ourselves on whether or not we get into heaven.  It is not a courtroom where we plead our case.  To the contrary, we stand in front of Jesus to account for what did with our life AND what did learn through our life. 

The New Face of
American Christianity?

As I imagine that scene for me, I understand that my day of accounting will be a deeply shameful moment because I had the power to act on behalf of the Underdog, and I chose not to do it because I realized it would cost me...and I was unwilling to pay it.  I didn't help the poor, the underprivileged, the immigrant, the widow, the orphan, the environment because I was scared...and more truthfully...too interested in preserving and protecting me and mine.  Remember the Looney Tune cartoon of Daffy Duck?  Watch this scene.  That is me. That is most of American Christianity.  "We may be cowards...but we're greedy little cowards."  

But of course, if the majority of American Christians actually read the bible, then we'd know all this.  We'd understand that the people most in need of a savior is not 'them'...but 'us'...the privileged American Christian who thinks of themselves as Underdog and not Empire.  We'd also understand this is reflective of another scene in the Gospel where Jesus looks over his people and weeps.  We just don't get it.

Keep the faith,

The meaning of LIFE

The Host Site (Crestview)

A while back our church hosted a two day regional meeting of our denomination.  This meeting happens twice a year and involves people who serve as pastors, elders, or other denominational functionaries.  Our region covers four states, and despite the far flung geography, we are a fairly tight community, especially among us pastors. I always look forward to attending our regional meetings because of the relationships I have with so many different people that I don't get to see enough. 

Our agenda for this meeting was overflowing, so we felt the pressure to get down to work by starting earlier than usual.  As usual, we opened with 30 minutes of worship as a reminder to keep our priorities straight.  But as soon as we said 'amen', we got down to business.   

These guys are QUICK!

We were about an hour into the meeting when one of the pastors from a small congregation located out in the Plains of our country suddenly leans over in his chair and falls to the floor.  Because he was sitting at the rear of the room, at first it didn't draw much attention.  The two people who were sitting by him started to attend to him.  But then the severity of this medical emergency became apparent to everyone, and we halted the meeting.  We got him situated and called 911. The ambulance got there in about 7 minutes, and he was at the hospital 10 minutes after that.  

But the whole situation is like "YIKES!"  What does one do in that scenario? Well, we did what we could...we made him comfortable, we called for help, and we prayed.  But after he was carted off to the ambulance, what did we do then?  In retrospect, it seems odd, but we had our coffee break and then we went back to our meeting.  I remember standing there and being amazed at how we tend to function in this world.  It's like once the crisis passes, we say to ourselves: "OK...carry on." Never mind that one of our own has just suffered a medical emergency that will permanently change the outlook of his life...we're back at our agenda. We have reports to hear, exams to be given, disputes to resolve.  Basically, we gotta do stuff.   

The more I think about it, that IS our life, isn't it?  Every day we get up and face the day with all its challenges and hurdles.  Some days have more than others.  But whatever we face, we try to make the best of it...at least most of the time.  If there is a crisis, we deal with it.  Once it passes, we're back to the routine.

Is that the sum total of our life? Getting up and facing the day and making the best of it? (The author of the Book of Ecclesiastes would say "yes", but I won't go there.)  Trying to figure out the meaning of "life" is a deep and existential question that involves far more than I could possibly hope to cover here.  So instead of the broad deep question, how about this simpler, more narrow one: How do we view our individual life?

So often I think we operate with the assumption that we 'own' our life.  We have control.  We get to do what we want.  To some degree that is true. We are self-autonomous to some measure.  We get to live our own life...mostly driven by our decisions and chosen direction.  Or at least, that is what we tell ourselves.  But at the same time, we don't live our life in a vacuum.  It's not like we're the single living entity that inhabits planet earth. Our lives are lived out contemporaneously among billions of other lives.  And all those lives are colliding and bouncing off each other like water molecules plunging over a waterfall.

Yes and no...

Maybe a better way to think about it is that we don't actually 'own' life itself. We have a life, but we don't 'own' it...at least, not completely.  We need to recognize than our own individual life is an incredibly small part of something far larger...something we maybe should call LIFE (as in all capital letters.) LIFE that has breadth and depth which far exceeds the small event horizons of our individuality. LIFE that stands all by itself, and doesn't need us, but rather, we need it.  Here is the thing we need to admit to ourselves: We don't possess LIFE. Rather, we get the privilege to participate in LIFE.  We get to influence it.  Shape it.  Impact it. Leave our mark on it.  But we don't "own" it.  To the contrary, it owns us.  We need to remember that LIFE was going on long before we joined the parade...and LIFE will continue long after we've slipped away from earthly bonds.  As we've all frequently blurted out with ignorance of the deeper implications: "LIFE goes on."  Yes it does...with or without us.

So as I reflect back over the events of this past weekend...it taught me something important about LIFE: To know that my days of participating in LIFE are numbered.  That LIFE is full of blessings and victories, as well as hurdles and challenges. And above all, the opportunity to participate in LIFE is the best gift...no matter what each day brings.  (Maybe Ecclesiastes does have it right.)

Keep the faith,

Floods & God

 

In September of 2013, the community of Boulder suffered a natural disaster of epic proportions.  It rained for four days straight.  That may not be much to people who live on relatively flat ground, but when it happens in the mountains, none of that water stays where it falls.  It all starts running downhill...fast.  The media started to use an interesting metaphor in describing the amount of rain.  They said it was raining in 'biblical proportions.'  A pastor friend of mine pushed back against that characterization by pointing out is wasn't as if God was hovering over the Rocky Mountains repeatedly pushing the 'rain' button. Rather, the event of last month were the result of naturally occurring meteorological forces...albeit forces that don't come together very often...like once every 100 years.  But they do happen.  And when they happen, we get results which turns meandering streams into raging rivers that literally move mountains...and bridges...and roads...and buildings...and anything else we've situated on the land.  And yet, when these things happen, people want to blame God.  (We usually do when things aren't going our way.)   

Most of the devastation
occurred in the mountains.

But when it comes to natural disasters, I think we blame God unfairly.

This is not an attempt to minimize the tragic loss of life, or the massive scale of physical destruction caused by natural disasters.  They are truly lamentable and I grieve with everyone who has suffered because of one.  However, I am suggesting that it is healthy to keep things in their proper perspective.  We need to remember that we live on a dynamic planet that was created by God.  More to the point, God imbued this place with a creative process didn’t stop with the first Sabbath. Earthquakes create new islands and volcanoes birth new hills.  At the same time, erosive action gives rivers new courses and felled trees disintegrate to provide nutrients for new flora.  It is a never ending process of construction and destruction that includes blizzards, droughts, floods, tornadoes, hurricanes and all other manner of natural disasters.  It is part and parcel to the privilege of living on God’s green earth.   

To help me keep that in perspective, I remember when I would drive up highway US-36 toward the mountain town of Estes Park.  Along the way I would marvel at the rugged splendor of canyon scenery, and in that, would see the beauty of God’s creative hand.  Or, to borrow from the Belgic Confession, “Creation was before my eyes like a beautiful book in which all creatures and landscapes, both great and small, was as letters on the pages to make me ponder the invisible things of God.”  But after the floods, I ask myself: "Am I justified in protesting

God's creative process at work...it's just that
the road got in the way

God’s construction method for making those canyons?  Is it right for me to object to the manner in which He changes the topography of His world? Can I be mad at God because of how his hand has traced the letter on the page of his Creation?"

Of course we wouldn’t be the first to wrestle with the question.  (e.g. the Book of Job).  Nor am I suggesting that God causes disasters for the sake of simply redecorating Creation.  Instead, the Apostle Paul points us to a different reality when he writes in Romans 8 that both we and Creation live in eager expectation of the coming of God’s Kingdom; that life on this earth is not as good as it gets.  

So when I struggle to make sense of the pain, suffering and destruction caused by natural disasters, I remember a line from the Heidelberg Q&A 1, which reminds me:  “God watches over us in such a way that not a hair can fall from our head without the will of our Father in Heaven; In fact, all things must work together for our salvation.”  I take that to mean that God’s redemptive work of restoring us AND His Creation cannot be stopped.  So while we grieve and lament for losses in the wake of a natural disaster, we are reassured that our eternal security and His coming Kingdom is never in doubt. 

Keep the faith,

Back to the Garden - The meaning of 'Sabbath'

When I was a kid growing up in the 60’s, I had fair number of friends in my neighborhood with whom I spent almost every waking moment that wasn’t already spoken for because of school, family meals, or sleeping.  Six days out of the week, from morning until bedtime, it was a time filled with playing sandlot baseball, sledding, and games of “Army” in the open field down the street from morning until our mom’s called us home. 

Actual picture of our neighborhood 
sandlot/playing field
(a.k.a. Oak Hill Cemetery) 

As community of kids, we quickly developed our routines, our rules, and our traditions.   Among other things, those rules and traditions included when, where and what we would do together; the location of the out-of-bounds lines; the times when you had to include younger siblings in our activities; and who had to go home on the first call or the third (depending on whose mom was doing the calling.)  Although an outsider wouldn’t know, let alone understand, our rules and traditions, it made perfect sense to us.  How we practiced our rules and traditions maximized our play time, minimized our disputes, and gave us a sense of purpose and belonging.  

Me on the front porch as a kid...
but I wasn't stuck there.

But I also learned that one day out of the week our routines and rules were superseded by another set of rules and traditions. Since our neighborhood was predominantly Dutch, and therefore religious, that day was reserved for something my friends called ‘the Sabbath.’  I didn’t understand the Sabbath as a kid because, despite my parents being thoroughly Dutch, they were not church going folk, I never learned the reason behind it.  But while I didn’t comprehend the purpose of Sabbath, I did quickly learn its practice.  It seemed to me that my friends were pretty much stuck to the porch on that day. They told me it was a day that they had to 'rest.'  As a 10 year old boy, I understood the word ‘rest’ was nothing more than parent code-speak for ‘nap.’  And when you are 10 years old, the last thing you would do is burn daylight hours on a nap.  So for me, this strange tradition of ‘Sabbath’ made no sense.  And judging from the reactions of my childhood friends stuck up on the porch, it didn’t make much sense to them either.

So what is this thing that we call Sabbath? Is it important, or insignificant?  Is it required, or optional?  Can it only be done one way, or are there many ways?  To be honest, I never did ‘get’ the idea behind Sabbath until recently.  Previously, my perspective was that the Sabbath was a tradition that maybe had outlived its usefulness.  Sure, it gave us a time to gather for worship, but beyond that, it was a day much like any other day, except maybe there was enough time to grab a day time nap (and thereby confirming my childhood suspicions).  I attribute that skewed perspective to the simple truth that tradition without understanding is useless.  I didn’t understand the intention behind the practice.  Then I started digging into it and uncovered a deeper truth and purpose.

Jesus had a saying about the Sabbath: ‘The Sabbath was made for people, not people for the Sabbath.’”  I love it when Jesus reels off a pithy saying like that, but what is Jesus driving at with that statement?  What is the underlying purpose of taking a day of rest?  I think we find the answer in the story of where the concept of Sabbath was created in the first place.  In Genesis 1, we encounter nothingness.  No light, no dark, no sky, no sea, no land, no birds, fish or animals…and most of all…no us.  Then God starts speaking, and as he speaks, he brings creation into existence.   And it isn’t a haphazard plan, but where everything created is incredibly interconnected.  Part and parcel to creation of the universe, the earth, and all things on the earth, God also created the Garden of Eden and Adam and Eve.  Genesis tells us that it was a place where the physical needs of Adam and Eve were met perfectly.  All of this was done methodically in six days.  Then on the seventh day, God created Sabbath.  

So if we stop the time line on the seventh day, what do we see?  We have humans living in Eden, walking with God, tended his garden, and Sabbath.   So as Adam and Eve lived in the Garden, and were stewards over it for six days of the week, on the seventh day they too were encouraged to enjoy it thru Sabbath.  The point being that even when the world was in its perfect state, just as God wanted it to be, there was still Sabbath.  Sabbath is part, and has always been part, of God’s master plan for creation.

Where was this app
when we needed it? 

Well most of us know what happened next.  Sin entered into the world and into the Garden of Eden.  We obtained knowledge of good and evil, except we didn’t download other useful apps with it…like wisdom, insight or good judgment. Instead, it was just enough understanding for us humans to be really, really dangerous.  So God sent Adam and Eve out of the Garden. He had to.  He had no other choice.  If they had remained, their sin would’ve destroyed the place. But here is the one important fact that most of us miss in that whole transaction:  While God banished Adam and Eve (and by default, us) from the Garden, do we ever notice the fact that God didn’t take away the Sabbath?  True, we lost our place in God’s creation where our physical needs were met perfectly, and instead, found ourselves facing a life of pain and hard toil.  But it's not as if God decreed that banishment was 24/7, or indeed, a permanent.  With that realization, we start to unravel the purpose behind the practice of Sabbath.  

To better understand how Sabbath applies to us here and now, we must first draw back a bit from our own faith journey and look at the larger context of humankind’s journey.  Ever since the fall of mankind, God has been on a single focus mission of redeeming us and His Creation.  God didn’t banish us and simply shrug his shoulders and say “Well, guess that didn’t work out.”  To the contrary, from that moment onward God has been intent on restoring us back to the Garden.  So from our perspective then, we should be aware that while the journey of humankind begins in the Garden of Eden, it is also on a trek back to the same Garden, as described in the Book of Revelation.  We are all on a journey from the Garden, back to the Garden.

The truth is we all want to get back to the Garden.  We all want to get to the place where the needs and wants of our whole being (both physical and spiritual) are met perfectly.  There is a yearning to once again walk in peace with God and have the pleasure to tend to his Creation.  Yet, the present reality is that we are engaged in a daily struggle of life in this broken place we call planet Earth.  How are we to be sustained?  How are we to be nourished?  How can we continue on?

One practice of faith that can help us is actually practicing Sabbath.  I'm not suggesting the mindless sitting on the porch, doing nothing, kind of practice, but one done with understanding and purpose.  An understanding that is grounded not only in the firm belief that Christ will indeed return to earth and restore Creation and us, but also the belief that God has not abandoned us or his mission where we find ourselves here and now.  So while we wait for the return of that perfect physical place, he gives us something that was the crowning achievement of Creation in the first place: Sabbath. 

From the beginning, the Sabbath was meant for us!  It was created for us.  It is a gift, a benefit.  When we engage in Sabbath, our physical and our spiritual beings, our very souls, are fed!  It is through the practice of Sabbath that God gives us a sign of his creative and redeeming power.  It is a time to remember that while God may have sent us out of the Garden, he still takes care of us, and will delivers us back to it.  It recalls our previous glory, when we lived with God in Eden, and at the same time, testifies to God’s purpose to recreate us in His own image.  In essence, Sabbath points us to what was…and is yet to come.

Think about it this way:  If we are on a journey from the Garden back to the Garden, the purpose and practice of Sabbath is to prepare us for re-entry into it.  It is a tradition that that makes us fit to once again live in Eden with our Lord and Creator.  It is a spiritual routine that gives us purpose and identity.  So as we approach that day that God has intentionally set aside and making it holy so we can experience restoration and renewal.  It is a time and space where we once again walk in relationship with the Lord, rest in his presence, and play in his Creation.  It is our temporary respite in our journey from the Garden…back to the Garden.

Keep the faith,

So it begins...

In a phrase that has no doubt been muttered by countless aspiring writers..."I've been meaning to do this for a long time."  And so this blog begins.  A place where I can finally follow Obi Wan's sage advice and 'stretch out with my feelings.'.  But mostly it will be a place where I can practice the ageless craft of writing.

First, the name: A Boulder View of God.  I will violate the age old rule of never explaining a play on words (lest it lose its cool factor), and say that I will use this space and place to express a 'Bolder' view of God, as well as occasionally sharing one that can only emanate from the unique and diverse culture that is my home town: Boulder, Colorado.  No doubt I will frequently miss the mark, but as a wise and personal Obi Wan of my own always told me: No one can tell you how you feel.

Second, the content:  When I hear my daughters (I have three of them) complain about homework, and specifically writing papers, I respond that I write a 10 to 12 page paper every week.  I call it a sermon.  So lots of times you will read a reworked version of my sermon in this space.  For those of you who attend the church that I serve (Crestview), maybe this will be helpful in jogging your memory of what I said on Sunday as I gently lulled you to sleep with my rhythmic and melodious voice.  (Just kidding.)  My hope is to include other observations and experiences that come from living the daily life of schedules and routines.

Which brings me to my third point, frequency:  My goal is to write a minimum of once a week.  Sometimes I will probably make lots of entries.  Sometimes the silence could stretch into weeks...but I am hoping not.  God is omnipresent, meaning he is always there.  But when he manifests himself to us is more dependent on us.  We have to be looking for him in our life daily. After all, it's hard to see anything if you're not looking for it.  Anyway, I hope to capture and describe snapshots of that 'showing up' as much as humanly possible.  But part of that will fall victim to other time demands, and part of that will be my lack of astute awareness in looking for him.  Daily life and routines can dull the human brain and cause our eyes to become opaque.  I will strive for the former and seek to avoid the latter.     

Finally, the fourth point is confidentiality:  As both a former lawyer and present pastor, I understand and respect the confidentiality of people.  Obviously, this is a public blog, although it probably will get less read than street graffiti on the side of a railroad car.  But still...no one wants to be the subject of a blog post without knowing what is going to be written.  So I will be discreet or withhold when I can't be sure of permission...except for my three daughters.  I made them sign binding agreements at birth that I have free reign to use them as sermon fodder whenever it fits my purposes.  They are a never ending fount of inspiration to me, both with their astute wondering questions, and their youthful wisdom (or lack thereof).  But I was young once too...so there is always hope.  Then again, as my daughters point out, I was young once too...and I rode dinosaurs to school.

So here we go...a Boulder View of God.    

Keep the faith,