Now the Good News:

Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him. For we know that since Christ was raised from the dead, he cannot die again; death no longer has mastery over him. The death he died, he died to sin once for all; but the life he lives, he lives to God. In the same way, count yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus. Romans 6:8-11

The word "Gospel" generally refers to the first four books of the Christian New Testament. It means "good news." And I can't think of any better news than this: Even though I'm all messed-up, even though I make mistakes every day, God loves me anyway. I'm proud and happy to say "I'm with him."

Peace, Love and Hallelujah!

Who Killed Jesus? I Did.

On what we now call Palm Sunday, (Mark 11:1-11, Matthew 21:1-11, Luke 19:28-44, and John 12:12-19), Jesus rode triumphantly into Jerusalem. The common folk celebrated, but the Religious officials of their day (the Pharisees) grumbled. The Romans threw them a bone; they allowed the little parade to happen.
Jesus knew what was coming. He knew how weak and how fickle His followers really were. In Luke 19:41 as Jesus approached Jerusalem, he looked at the city and wept over it, foretelling the suffering that awaited the city. But he accepted their Hosannas. He knew they were going to kill him -- They didn't even know! -- and He loved them anyway!

The Jews and the Romans were deeply divided over what to do with Jesus. To the Jews, He was supposed to be a great leader. He was suppose to make everything better… to fix the government. (And boy, it was a mess.) Some Jews wanted Him to get on with it already and take His rightful place as King. Those in leadership wanted to get rid of him ASAP. Everybody had their own opinion. Everybody had their own agenda.

Less than one week later they were united in one cause… to make sure He died.

I don’t want to be like that; so sure of myself, and so caught up in my emotions, that I crucify the very God I profess to love. I get caught up in my little agendas all the time. (At best, mine tend to relate to my “shopping list” of prayers. At worst, they relate to things I have no business in, such as my opinion of Quran-burners and whether gays should be allowed to marry.) I pray that I can set these things aside and listen to what God's agenda is:

“Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?”
Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.” Matthew 22:36-40

Let’s not be united in a cause that crucifies Jesus.

Peace, love, and Hosannah.

Sheep vs. Goats. Which Side Will You Be On?

“When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his glorious throne. All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left. “Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’

“Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’
“The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’
“Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.’

“They also will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?’
“He will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.’
“Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life.” Matthew 25:31-46

I keep trying to figure out how this passage fits with the conservative viewpoint. How can Christians slash parts of the budget that help poor people? How can they walk away from hungry people and say to themselves “I won't help them because they're lazy.”
Of course, there are different ways to help the poor. Arguably, handing cash to winos on the street won't help. It's better to give them food and shelter, and even better to help them find jobs and even rehabilitation. But this still boils down to the same thing: Help the poor.
This passage isn't unique, either. There are other passages that say to help the poor and the needy, the widows and the orphans: Deuteronomy 15:7, Luke 12:33, James 1:27 Based on what I read here, some people are going to be surprised. Some who thought they were "good Christians" are going to be caught saying "But... I thought I was doing the right thing. I championed the right political causes." And some will say, "But I never was good at preaching. All I did was volunteer in a soup kitchen."
It seems really clear to me: If you want to be "good with God," help poor people. Because if you do so, you're helping God Himself.

Am I Gonna Get Hit By Lightning?

Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see. Hebrews 11:1

If I admit that I feel doubt will I get scratched out of the book of life? (Rev. 20:15) If I ask questions, do I make God mad? If I get mad at God, does he reject me?

I hope not. Because I do all those things, every day. I really don’t have any choice. Thoughts and doubts pop into my head all the time. Call them the devil if you want. That’s fine. The devil has a firm hold on this world, and I’m in this world (if not of it,) so I can’t avoid the devil. Here are a Christian's choices, as far as I see:

1. Pretend I don’t feel doubt (Contradictions? La la la not listening!) and hide in the crowd of “happy” Christians. (They’re all happy? All the time? What’s wrong with me?)


2. Reject a God who usually appears to be hateful or, at best, uncaring. I’ve been an agnostic, but I’ve never fully turned my back on God. I was more like a teenager who says “I hate you!” to her parents when she doesn’t get her way.


3. Keep praying, keep listening, keep reading, keep asking questions. And, yeah, keep doubting.

I’m not sure if I’ll get the answers to those questions. I often say jokingly that when I get to the pearly gates, I’m going to have a looong list, though. (#1 on the list is “If You’re all-loving, [1 John 4:8] why do you allow suffering?”) Other questions, like “What were Dinosaurs doing in a 6000-year-old world?” aren’t even on my radar. So what? What does that have to do with the way I live today? I think one of the worst things we do as Christians is making up our own answers to our questions, just to make ourselves feel better. That leads to silly answers, like “dinosaur bones were put in the ground to confuse non-believers.” (WHAT? God is TRYING to lead people astray?)

Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight. Proverbs 3:5-6

A friend of mine says, “If God can handle anything, He can handle my silly little doubts. He can handle my questions. He can even handle my temper tantrums.” The important thing is to trust Him anyway. If I feel questions arise (and I do!) I turn them over to Him. Sometimes I even get answers! God loves me and I love God. Now the important thing is to spread that love. I don’t want to just tell about it. God wants me to pass it on.

“For Christ’s love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died. And he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again.” - 2 Corinthians 5:14-15

Peace, Love, Trust

Has the Kneejerk Reaction Set In?

There’s a book that’s been causing a stir among Christians. I haven’t read it. I only saw a video, which I admit was intriguing enough that I might read it. I assume from the hoopla around “Love Wins” that Rob Bell says there's no hell. Hmmm… that’s a bit much for me. Hell is mentioned too many times in the Bible for me to dismiss it (Sheol, Hades, Gehenna) and I’m not convinced that it can be explained away.
Luke 16:22 was always the most meaningful (read: scary) to me, and it’s definitely a warning, so, no, I can’t say there’s no hell: The time came when the beggar died and the angels carried him to Abraham’s side. The rich man also died and was buried. In Hades, where he was in torment, he looked up and saw Abraham far away, with Lazarus by his side. So he called to him, ‘Father Abraham, have pity on me and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, because I am in agony in this fire.’ (Read the whole passage in context: Luke 16:19-31)

(Personally, I feel that God will NOT force ANYONE into hell. I believe people will go there willingly rather than submit to Him. How many people, or who they are? I have no idea.)

But I do feel that there’s too much emphasis on hell in some churches, and not enough emphasis on LOVE. Jesus talked about love and forgiveness an awful lot. He went out of his way to talk to sinners. (Some of them were real lowlifes, too.)

Jesus doesn’t WANT people in hell. He wants us to turn to him. Maybe instead of digging in their heels, Christians who have gone to the other extreme (Fear of hell as a motivator) could use this as a chance to talk. Why would a Christian write a book like this? (Kneejerk reaction: The devil got ‘im. He’s going to … well… you-know-where.)
Are there any other possible reasons? Could some Christians be doing it wrong? Could condemning people without really knowing them be an un-Christian *gasp* thing to do? Jesus met a Samaritan woman at a well and offered her living water... in short, Himself. He knew she had slept around and was “shacking up” even as he spoke to her. She was a sinner. Did he say, “Well, you’re a loss. You’re going to hell.” No. He offered her living water, (she accepted!) then he sent her to tell others.

Jesus’ followers didn’t always like it when he favored “sinners” over them. And when they saw it, they all murmured, saying that he was gone to be guest with a man that is a sinner. Luke 19:7 As Christians, we shouldn’t be smug. Those of us who live righteously are not the only ones who will be in heaven. In fact, some of us may not get there at all! For all who rely on the works of the law are under a curse, as it is written: “Cursed is everyone who does not continue to do everything written in the Book of the Law.” Galatians 3:10

Let’s not be greedy and keep Jesus to our near-perfect selves. The road is narrow, yes, but everyone is allowed on it. Even “prodigal sons.” His brother wasn’t too happy either. …The older brother became angry and refused to go in. Luke 15:28 (Read it in context: Luke 15:11-32)

I’ve heard that the comment that started this whole can-of-worms was a note that read something like “Gandhi is in hell.” Does this person know that? Is it his or her place to say??? One of Gandhi's more famous sayings was, “I like your Christ. I do not like your Christians. Your Christians are so unlike your Christ.” Mohandas Gandhi was turned away – turned away!!! – at the door of a church. How does that fit into your definition God’s love?

Supposedly, the last word Gandhi said after being shot was “God.” Who knows he wasn’t uttering a prayer to our Christ in his last breath? I don’t.

Peace, Love, Seek, and Knock

It's More Easy Being Green

There's a rumor out there that "green" and "Christian" don't go together. I'm here to tell you that this is wrong. Many (most?) of us feel that it's very important to care for God's world. I'm basing this very unscientific theory on conversations with friends, at home and around the internet.
It's my mission to educate myself on living "green" in any way I can.

Here are a few things I've done so far, and you can too:

Use reusable shopping bags
Buy green products (light bulbs, laundry detergent, etc.)
Bring your own cup into restaurants and coffee houses
Start a backyard garden
Don't buy things you don't need (!)
Keep your old car a while longer
Recycle (notice this is low on the list. Reduce->reuse->recycle... in that order)
If you blog, make it carbon-neutral:



Click on the leaf and these good people will plant a tree for you.

This is a partial list. As you learn more, you can do more.

"The earth is the Lord's, and everything in it."
1 Corinthians 10:26
You wouldn't trash someone else's property, would you?

Peace, Love, Trees

God, Fix My Problems!!!

Earthquakes

Broken hearts

Cancer

Homelessness

WHY is there suffering in the world? WHY are there earthquakes? WHY doesn’t God just come down and fix things? Clearly, He doesn’t want to. But that just sounds mean. Is God mean? The Bible says He is love. So... There must be a reason.
The fact is, we keep expecting God to be something different from what He is. The Jews expected a warrior king and got Jesus. We expect a genie and get... God. He doesn’t fix our problems for us. We live in a world of harsh realities.

I wish I had an answer. Well, I do have answers, but I wish I had a definitive, satisfying "Oh-I-get-it" answer. Actually, I just wish I had a solution!

Here's what I have:

God will bless us.

Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you. Matthew 5:10-12

I admit it, this is my least favorite of the beattitudes. I like the blessing part, but not the rest. From where I stand, sometimes I can't feel the blessing, and I don't like that.

God wants us to turn to Him completely.

My soul finds rest in God alone; my salvation comes from Him.
He alone is my rock and my salvation; he is my fortress, I will never be shaken. Psalm 62:1-2

God wants the suffering to be gone more than we do, but WE need to change.

O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who kill the prophets and stone those sent to you, how often I have longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing. Matthew 23:27

It's not for us to figure out.

Where were you when I laid the earth's foundation? Tell me, if you understand. Job 38:4

Suffering is good for us. (Ouch.)

...the Lord disciplines those he loves, and he punishes everyone he accepts as a son. Hebrews 12:6

God is in control.

In him we were also chosen, having been predestined according to the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will, in order that we, who were the first to hope in Christ, might be for the praise of his glory. Ephesians 1 11-12
(As for predestination: I think we were predestined to choose Him.)

We WILL understand when we come through this life.

Now we see but a poor reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known. 1 Corinthians 13:12

And that's what I'm left with. God loves me, God is in control, and I will understand later.

And then sometimes, especially when I'm praying or reading the Bible, or when I see a homeless person eating soup at my church, I get a little glimpse. A little hope. A feeling of "Oh, I get it!" I can't explain "Oh, I get it," though. Not in words. All I can do is pass it on. I can do something kind, tell someone I love them, give them a hug, donate a few dollars to earthquake relief. The best I can do is trust God and try to reduce the suffering.

That's the best answer I have.

Peace, Love, Hope