A month or two ago, an old friend of mine posted a question, asking for some input from the ‘big shots’ in his life. From his vantage point, I often wonder who his big shots are. I don’t know if anyone answered him or not. If my memory serves me correctly, here was his question;
“Why do we like scary movies?”
We do we? We have little tolerance for a life well lived. We prefer to watch some beautiful young lady in a bikini as she is torn apart by a shark or being hacked up by a chainsaw. THAT is entertainment.
There is a principle at work that I share with you on a consistent basis and it goes like this...
The lives we live are a reflection of who we really are.
So if we enjoy watching the suffering of other human beings, what does it say about us?
Any serious thinking human must know what I’m about to share with you, although, depending on one’s worldview, each will give it a different name. There is something dreadfully wrong in the heart of humanity. Sigmund Freud called it the ID. I believe that Steven King said that to varying degrees, we’re all crazy. One might think that he might have at least some insight as to why we like scary films.
As a culture, it seems obvious that Christ’s words apply directly to us when He said;
“..people loved the darkness more than the light...”John 3:19
We love the darkness. Don’t we? At work last week, I spoke with a teacher who was transferred from a progressive school in town, to one of those backwards rural public schools. It’s the kind of school where they still have the nerve to allow Gideons to hand out testaments. I asked him if he noticed any difference between his old school and the new school. This was his response.
“Well, at the rural school, I don’t have to confront gang members or try and check them for weapons before class.”
This is the expression of our brand of civil freedom. I’m not complaining. I’m really not. I’m not saying that we should bring prayer back into public schools, place a Bible in every desk, or even that doing these would cure our ills. What I’m saying, is that we prefer Saw to Hammy Hamster. We prefer drugs over prayer and switchblades to testaments. We glorify celebrities whose lives end in train-wreck. I’m fine with all of this. In fact, you have no idea of how fine I am with it.
We are increasingly a people who love to see the shed blood of others, but it’s completely acceptable because it comes in the form of entertainment. We’re going the way of Rome. Here is a question to ponder; Is there any act so vile, that it is offensive to portray it on screen?
I’m not a big shot. I’m just a guy who loves his wife and children. I make my living fixing other people’s problems. I have been faithful to my family, and by God’s grace, I intend to remain so as long as I shall live. I don’t live the kind of life that many people would want to see in a film.
Just in case you are wondering, I don’t care if you watch horror films or not. If you enjoy watching the suffering of other human beings, turning off the TV won’t fix what’s in your heart. If you don’t want to think on things that are pure, true, noble, honourable and worthy of praise, then please don’t. If you enjoy watching someone being beaten into a bloody stump, then by all means, feed your fever. Maybe not everything I watch is completely on the up and up either. If so, the problem isn’t on screen.
There has to be another way to be human.
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Sunday, October 16, 2011
Saturday, October 15, 2011
Occupying Canada
I’ve been following the coverage for today’s Occupy Canada thing. As a believer, I have mixed emotions about the whole thing. The general consensus seems to be that ‘the system isn’t working’. I believe wholeheartedly that the whole world is broken; irreparably. For me however, this really isn’t my country, so I have a hard time understanding my place in it. I don’t know about you, but my citizenship is in heaven. This is just my temporary assignment.
From a worldly perspective however, I often question what these demonstrators really expect. What would the solution be for them? What would actually be the fix? We’ve tried all of the 'isms. Fascism was great. Communism was one step better. Socialism is a blast isn’t it? How about tribalism? In my own opinion, Capitalism has done about the best because it uses greed as it fuel, and it seems to be a completely renewable resource.
There is no ‘ism that will fix our dying world. There is no world system which consistently produces goodwill and prosperity for all of its citizens. If there were, there would be some country where the ‘ism has erased poverty and satisfied the public at large. As it stands, Canada must have one of the best ‘isms available, because we are consistently one of the best countries to live in throughout the entire civilized world. So if this country isn’t good enough, what is?
Yeah. We have problems. We really do. I somehow doubt that any people group or ideology really holds the answers. Call me cynical. We elect a new leader every 4-8 years or so, and it’s funny, our problems don’t go away. It doesn’t matter who carries the mantle or what colour their elections signs were. We still have problems. I'd bet my organs that our problems won't go away no matter who we call to office, no matter their qualification, their ideology, their race, gender or sex.
One of the main complaints has been greed itself, but is seems as if we are only upset at certain forms of greed; corporate greed to be precise. Other forms of greed are quite acceptable to us as a culture.
Greed is about this. It’s about, more. That’s it. Just more. More never stops. More does show up in corporate life. More also shows up in the workforce, whether unionized or not. I guess if it’s unionized, the labour force might get a little more of the more. Management always wants more. More shows up in the business arena. No matter how good you do or what sales quota you reach, it’s never really good enough. The goal is always more for next year. More is for everybody. The rich want more. The strangest thing of all, is that the poor want more too. We've all got the bug.
I agree in principle with so much that is being said behind the protests. I think we do depend way too much on drugs and pharmaceuticals. I think that we as a people need to be content, but not just in the corporate world.
Even though I agree much in principle with many of the sentiments behind the peaceful protest, I must be one of the 1 percent, because I really don’t feel that the protests represent me. I believe wholeheartedly, that they think in every way the same as the very people they claim to be against. There is a message that I am definitely not hearing from any of them. If anyone wants my support, here is the message I’m looking to hear.
“Less for us.”
To date, I have not heard of any group telling the government, “It’s okay. We’re willing to receive less and give more.” We will not recover unless people begin stepping forward to make personal sacrifice, and I hear absolutley nobody willing to do so.
There is one area of human life where we really aren’t greedy and a friend of mine brought it to my attention today. As a world, we really don’t want more of Christ do we? I’m not complaining about it. I don’t expect the citizens of this world to want more of the God of Heaven. Why would I? That would be treasonous.
I do like the thoughts however that it could be said of me. “Man. That guy just never gets enough of Jesus. He’s a Jesus freak.”
I promise you this. You will not find an ‘ISM which fixes the world. You will not find a leader apart from Christ who can permanently carry your hopes and trust. I’m told that the Anti-Christ might be able to do that for a time, but we’ll see.
Have fun with your world. You seem to have all the answers. Let me know how it works for you.
From a worldly perspective however, I often question what these demonstrators really expect. What would the solution be for them? What would actually be the fix? We’ve tried all of the 'isms. Fascism was great. Communism was one step better. Socialism is a blast isn’t it? How about tribalism? In my own opinion, Capitalism has done about the best because it uses greed as it fuel, and it seems to be a completely renewable resource.
There is no ‘ism that will fix our dying world. There is no world system which consistently produces goodwill and prosperity for all of its citizens. If there were, there would be some country where the ‘ism has erased poverty and satisfied the public at large. As it stands, Canada must have one of the best ‘isms available, because we are consistently one of the best countries to live in throughout the entire civilized world. So if this country isn’t good enough, what is?
Yeah. We have problems. We really do. I somehow doubt that any people group or ideology really holds the answers. Call me cynical. We elect a new leader every 4-8 years or so, and it’s funny, our problems don’t go away. It doesn’t matter who carries the mantle or what colour their elections signs were. We still have problems. I'd bet my organs that our problems won't go away no matter who we call to office, no matter their qualification, their ideology, their race, gender or sex.
One of the main complaints has been greed itself, but is seems as if we are only upset at certain forms of greed; corporate greed to be precise. Other forms of greed are quite acceptable to us as a culture.
Greed is about this. It’s about, more. That’s it. Just more. More never stops. More does show up in corporate life. More also shows up in the workforce, whether unionized or not. I guess if it’s unionized, the labour force might get a little more of the more. Management always wants more. More shows up in the business arena. No matter how good you do or what sales quota you reach, it’s never really good enough. The goal is always more for next year. More is for everybody. The rich want more. The strangest thing of all, is that the poor want more too. We've all got the bug.
I agree in principle with so much that is being said behind the protests. I think we do depend way too much on drugs and pharmaceuticals. I think that we as a people need to be content, but not just in the corporate world.
Even though I agree much in principle with many of the sentiments behind the peaceful protest, I must be one of the 1 percent, because I really don’t feel that the protests represent me. I believe wholeheartedly, that they think in every way the same as the very people they claim to be against. There is a message that I am definitely not hearing from any of them. If anyone wants my support, here is the message I’m looking to hear.
“Less for us.”
To date, I have not heard of any group telling the government, “It’s okay. We’re willing to receive less and give more.” We will not recover unless people begin stepping forward to make personal sacrifice, and I hear absolutley nobody willing to do so.
There is one area of human life where we really aren’t greedy and a friend of mine brought it to my attention today. As a world, we really don’t want more of Christ do we? I’m not complaining about it. I don’t expect the citizens of this world to want more of the God of Heaven. Why would I? That would be treasonous.
I do like the thoughts however that it could be said of me. “Man. That guy just never gets enough of Jesus. He’s a Jesus freak.”
I promise you this. You will not find an ‘ISM which fixes the world. You will not find a leader apart from Christ who can permanently carry your hopes and trust. I’m told that the Anti-Christ might be able to do that for a time, but we’ll see.
Have fun with your world. You seem to have all the answers. Let me know how it works for you.
Tuesday, October 11, 2011
From Toilet to Testaments
My knuckles are still sore from that knockout punch I delivered on my toilet bowl yesterday. If you are wondering about why I would beat up my toilet, you’ll have to friend me on Facebook to see the pictures. No. I was not angry or venting out of any pent up frustration. My wife and I are redoing our upstairs bathroom and beating it up just seemed like a fun way to break it down into a form where our garbage man would take it away for us. We aren’t the kind of people who enjoy spending money decorating our home, but some of the plumbing was leaking, which ruined the flooring and black mould was beginning to grow on the ceiling downstairs.
Today was a much different day than yesterday. I had the privilege of handing out New Testaments to some of the grade 5 classes in 4 of the schools in my area. Without fail, every time I am out witnessing and giving away Bibles, there is always one person who catches my attention; someone who says something to me that impacts my heart and remains very much in mind for weeks and years to come. This morning was no exception.
We were in one of the public schools in our area. That in itself is an extraordinary privilege. I told the class that we as Gideons are men and women who believe that there is but One God who loves every single person on the face of the earth. He sent His son Jesus in order to make us right with Himself and we want to make sure that everyboy at least has the opportunity to get to know Him. I know that many of you would have presented the gospel much more clearly. But that’s the problem isn’t it? You weren’t there. I’ll be more than happy if God sends someone more qualified to fill my shoes. If you can present the Gospel much more clearly, I’ll be happy to step aside. Seriously.
After describing to the best of my abilities the value of knowing Jesus, one girl quietly raised her hand. I don’t know her name or her parents, and in a way, maybe that’s a good thing. She was a lovely young lady with longish blonde hair. After I acknowledged her, she went on to reveal a little bit of her family life;
“My mom and dad said that the TV brought sin into our house. Once we got rid of it, it made it all better.”
I wish I had more time to prepare for situations like this. How do you respond to a statement like that in a public school setting? Reflecting on the moment, there are many more things I would like to have shared.
In my heart, I feel for both the girl and for the family. Maybe in some way, the situation in their home isn’t quite exactly the way she has received it. Maybe her parents aren’t that black and white about it. My wife and I don’t have cable, satellite or even a working antenna, but it isn’t because the sin comes through the TV.
Or maybe they really do believe that sin comes through the television, and if we just get rid of the TV demon, that will make us right with God. If that’s the case, I still feel for them. In their heart of hearts, they might really believe that, and no matter how misguided, their intentions might be completely honourable.
Personally, I don’t plan on getting cable anytime soon. Whenever we are away staying at a motel, we turn it on. When we do, we’re reminded that we really aren’t missing much. In fact, I do believe that our family does enjoy a certain kind of intimacy because we aren’t plugged into the world in that way. There are often blessings to be had for turning off the screen.
(We do watch some programming via the internet, which really isn’t much different. Our family’s favourite show is The Biggest Loser.)
I hope I responded in a way that glorifies God and gives Christ His proper place.
“Personally, I don’t think it quite works that way, but if your parents don’t want you watching TV, I hope you’ll respect that for now.”
There is but one way to the Father, and it’s through Christ and Him alone. Self denial often carries with itself an appearance of godliness, and even has a place in our faith. The sin however doesn’t live in the TV, the bottle or the pill. The sin dwells either in our hearts or in our flesh.
I’ve said what I could and done what I could. I have to trust God for the rest.
I’ll be thinking and praying for her and her family for some time to come; perhaps for the rest of my life.
Today was a much different day than yesterday. I had the privilege of handing out New Testaments to some of the grade 5 classes in 4 of the schools in my area. Without fail, every time I am out witnessing and giving away Bibles, there is always one person who catches my attention; someone who says something to me that impacts my heart and remains very much in mind for weeks and years to come. This morning was no exception.
We were in one of the public schools in our area. That in itself is an extraordinary privilege. I told the class that we as Gideons are men and women who believe that there is but One God who loves every single person on the face of the earth. He sent His son Jesus in order to make us right with Himself and we want to make sure that everyboy at least has the opportunity to get to know Him. I know that many of you would have presented the gospel much more clearly. But that’s the problem isn’t it? You weren’t there. I’ll be more than happy if God sends someone more qualified to fill my shoes. If you can present the Gospel much more clearly, I’ll be happy to step aside. Seriously.
After describing to the best of my abilities the value of knowing Jesus, one girl quietly raised her hand. I don’t know her name or her parents, and in a way, maybe that’s a good thing. She was a lovely young lady with longish blonde hair. After I acknowledged her, she went on to reveal a little bit of her family life;
“My mom and dad said that the TV brought sin into our house. Once we got rid of it, it made it all better.”
I wish I had more time to prepare for situations like this. How do you respond to a statement like that in a public school setting? Reflecting on the moment, there are many more things I would like to have shared.
In my heart, I feel for both the girl and for the family. Maybe in some way, the situation in their home isn’t quite exactly the way she has received it. Maybe her parents aren’t that black and white about it. My wife and I don’t have cable, satellite or even a working antenna, but it isn’t because the sin comes through the TV.
Or maybe they really do believe that sin comes through the television, and if we just get rid of the TV demon, that will make us right with God. If that’s the case, I still feel for them. In their heart of hearts, they might really believe that, and no matter how misguided, their intentions might be completely honourable.
Personally, I don’t plan on getting cable anytime soon. Whenever we are away staying at a motel, we turn it on. When we do, we’re reminded that we really aren’t missing much. In fact, I do believe that our family does enjoy a certain kind of intimacy because we aren’t plugged into the world in that way. There are often blessings to be had for turning off the screen.
(We do watch some programming via the internet, which really isn’t much different. Our family’s favourite show is The Biggest Loser.)
I hope I responded in a way that glorifies God and gives Christ His proper place.
“Personally, I don’t think it quite works that way, but if your parents don’t want you watching TV, I hope you’ll respect that for now.”
There is but one way to the Father, and it’s through Christ and Him alone. Self denial often carries with itself an appearance of godliness, and even has a place in our faith. The sin however doesn’t live in the TV, the bottle or the pill. The sin dwells either in our hearts or in our flesh.
I’ve said what I could and done what I could. I have to trust God for the rest.
I’ll be thinking and praying for her and her family for some time to come; perhaps for the rest of my life.
Sunday, October 2, 2011
Do You Want Me To Love You?
A few weeks ago, I had the privilege of catching up with a young man who used to be one of THEM. Sitting in a small coffee shop in the north end of Aylmer, we talked about many things. We recalled fondly the days when we first met. We talked about the goings on in our current lives, the challenges of married life and our role in the workplace. We talked about God, what he’s doing in our lives as well as some of our personal struggles.
During our time together, I took some time to share with him a story from my work life. The story recalls the events of a conversation I had with one of my coworkers.
The Story
As I recall, it was in the dead of winter, just before the time when we open the doors to the public. Timothy walked in the doors, carrying a bewildered expression on his face.
“What’s wrong with old people?” he asked.
Inquisitive, I responded, “What do you mean?”
“Well. I’m driving to work, and there is this old guy crossing Main St. in front of me. He takes like forever to cross, so I had to wait for him to get to the other side. It’s 7:30am in the morning! What was he doing up at that time of the day anyway? When I retire, I’m not going to get up that early. Isn’t it dumb? What do they have that is so important to do? What do you think?”
Timothy stood quietly, waiting for my response. As I think on the moment, what probably took a matter of seconds, draws on for an hour or so as I replay the
scene as it happened in my mind. The question I thoroughly pondered within those few seconds went something like this; “Do I tell him what I really think?”
I mean, I have had conversations like this with Tim before, and whenever I have told him what I actually thought, they had always tended to pull us into some kind of argument. Would it be worth the effort to tell him what I actually thought? Did we have time for the discussion anyway? We were supposed to be opening the store to the public in minutes.
As I considered his question and reflected on his story, my mind was remembering the conversations I have had with some of the elderly people in my life. The explanation I received from them time after time was very consistent from person to person. Their stories each echoed something to this effect;
When you spend your entire working life getting up to go to work at 6:00am, it’s impossible to stop just because you are retired. It’s difficult to reverse a habit that you have developed during your entire adult life.
Should I have shared that with Timothy? If the conversation devolved into another conflict, would it be worth it? I decided against honesty.
I just smiled and nodded my head. I really didn’t think he valued my opinion, even though he asked for it.
Back at the Coffee Shop…
My friend sat back in his chair, giving me a thoughtful glare. “Kevin. Can I be honest with you?”
“Of course you can.”
“I don’t think you really love that guy.”
Pausing for a moment, I had to acknowledge he was right. I really didn’t believe that pursuing an authentic relationship with Timothy was worth the aggravation. However, I often question whether or not Timothy even wanted me to love him in the first place. Would he have received it well, were I to set him straight on his perception of the elderly?
Whenever I speak, whether in person, on stage, in an e-mail, through a book or in a blog post, I often wonder who you are and if you really want me to love you or not. If you are a non-believer, do you want me to love you? It’s a fair question isn’t it? I often check out message boards and chat rooms, hearing similar complaints from non-believers,
“Christians shouldn’t try to force their religion on other people.”
Personally, I don’t think it’s even possible to force a personal faith in Jesus on another human being. However, there is a deep rooted resistance among many to be presented the good news that we have peace with God through faith alone in Christ alone.
Is that you? If you really don’t want me to give you a Bible, invite you to church or ask you to receive Christ as Lord and Saviour, you have no idea of how fine I am with that. If spending eternity apart from Christ is fine with you, I’m okay with it too. I hear it’s pretty horrible, but if you don’t care, then I’ll do my personal best not to care.
If you don’t like being told about Jesus, I have great news. Most Christians don’t want to tell you about him either. The ones you think might be trying to “force their faith” on you probably actually love you more than those who leave you alone. (Notice my use of the word, “probably”. It’s not always the case.)
As I have worked through my latest book, Alien Love, and as I recount my conversation at the coffee shop with my friend, I realize that I have loved very few people authentically. My coffee shop friend has been among the few.
When he was going out with his girlfriend, I used to wonder if he was fornicating. On the outside, they were both professing to be following Christ so I was hoping that they were able to remain faithful to Him in their relationship with each other.
How do you ask that sort of thing? Do you just come out and ask? “Hey! Are you two doing the nasty? It’s a sin you know.”
I don’t remember how I asked them, but I do vividly remember their response. They each smiled and paused to look into each other’s eyes. Looking back at me they responded, “We’re waiting for each other.”
You can do whatever you want with your life and I’ll still love you. Yet, if you really want me to care about you, I’ll need to know, because if I don’t perceive that you welcome my input into your life, I’ll just smile and nod.
I promise that I’ll only care as much as you want me to. If you tell me to leave you alone, I am completely fine with that. How forthcoming do you want to be with those whose lives intersect with your own? To what extent do we actually want the honest input of others into our lives?
If you’re characterized by a dirty mind, or a dirty mouth, do you want me to be fine with it? Should I be? If you’re thinking of walking out on your family because it’s not fun anymore, what do you really expect me to say?
Likewise, seeing as this is sent out to anyone in the world with internet access, I’m not so sure how much I want you to be completely forthcoming to me.
Kevin
PS – Timothy. Did you want me to love you? Or are you glad that I just smiled and nodded?
During our time together, I took some time to share with him a story from my work life. The story recalls the events of a conversation I had with one of my coworkers.
The Story
As I recall, it was in the dead of winter, just before the time when we open the doors to the public. Timothy walked in the doors, carrying a bewildered expression on his face.
“What’s wrong with old people?” he asked.
Inquisitive, I responded, “What do you mean?”
“Well. I’m driving to work, and there is this old guy crossing Main St. in front of me. He takes like forever to cross, so I had to wait for him to get to the other side. It’s 7:30am in the morning! What was he doing up at that time of the day anyway? When I retire, I’m not going to get up that early. Isn’t it dumb? What do they have that is so important to do? What do you think?”
Timothy stood quietly, waiting for my response. As I think on the moment, what probably took a matter of seconds, draws on for an hour or so as I replay the
scene as it happened in my mind. The question I thoroughly pondered within those few seconds went something like this; “Do I tell him what I really think?”
I mean, I have had conversations like this with Tim before, and whenever I have told him what I actually thought, they had always tended to pull us into some kind of argument. Would it be worth the effort to tell him what I actually thought? Did we have time for the discussion anyway? We were supposed to be opening the store to the public in minutes.
As I considered his question and reflected on his story, my mind was remembering the conversations I have had with some of the elderly people in my life. The explanation I received from them time after time was very consistent from person to person. Their stories each echoed something to this effect;
When you spend your entire working life getting up to go to work at 6:00am, it’s impossible to stop just because you are retired. It’s difficult to reverse a habit that you have developed during your entire adult life.
Should I have shared that with Timothy? If the conversation devolved into another conflict, would it be worth it? I decided against honesty.
I just smiled and nodded my head. I really didn’t think he valued my opinion, even though he asked for it.
Back at the Coffee Shop…
My friend sat back in his chair, giving me a thoughtful glare. “Kevin. Can I be honest with you?”
“Of course you can.”
“I don’t think you really love that guy.”
Pausing for a moment, I had to acknowledge he was right. I really didn’t believe that pursuing an authentic relationship with Timothy was worth the aggravation. However, I often question whether or not Timothy even wanted me to love him in the first place. Would he have received it well, were I to set him straight on his perception of the elderly?
Whenever I speak, whether in person, on stage, in an e-mail, through a book or in a blog post, I often wonder who you are and if you really want me to love you or not. If you are a non-believer, do you want me to love you? It’s a fair question isn’t it? I often check out message boards and chat rooms, hearing similar complaints from non-believers,
“Christians shouldn’t try to force their religion on other people.”
Personally, I don’t think it’s even possible to force a personal faith in Jesus on another human being. However, there is a deep rooted resistance among many to be presented the good news that we have peace with God through faith alone in Christ alone.
Is that you? If you really don’t want me to give you a Bible, invite you to church or ask you to receive Christ as Lord and Saviour, you have no idea of how fine I am with that. If spending eternity apart from Christ is fine with you, I’m okay with it too. I hear it’s pretty horrible, but if you don’t care, then I’ll do my personal best not to care.
If you don’t like being told about Jesus, I have great news. Most Christians don’t want to tell you about him either. The ones you think might be trying to “force their faith” on you probably actually love you more than those who leave you alone. (Notice my use of the word, “probably”. It’s not always the case.)
As I have worked through my latest book, Alien Love, and as I recount my conversation at the coffee shop with my friend, I realize that I have loved very few people authentically. My coffee shop friend has been among the few.
When he was going out with his girlfriend, I used to wonder if he was fornicating. On the outside, they were both professing to be following Christ so I was hoping that they were able to remain faithful to Him in their relationship with each other.
How do you ask that sort of thing? Do you just come out and ask? “Hey! Are you two doing the nasty? It’s a sin you know.”
I don’t remember how I asked them, but I do vividly remember their response. They each smiled and paused to look into each other’s eyes. Looking back at me they responded, “We’re waiting for each other.”
You can do whatever you want with your life and I’ll still love you. Yet, if you really want me to care about you, I’ll need to know, because if I don’t perceive that you welcome my input into your life, I’ll just smile and nod.
I promise that I’ll only care as much as you want me to. If you tell me to leave you alone, I am completely fine with that. How forthcoming do you want to be with those whose lives intersect with your own? To what extent do we actually want the honest input of others into our lives?
If you’re characterized by a dirty mind, or a dirty mouth, do you want me to be fine with it? Should I be? If you’re thinking of walking out on your family because it’s not fun anymore, what do you really expect me to say?
Likewise, seeing as this is sent out to anyone in the world with internet access, I’m not so sure how much I want you to be completely forthcoming to me.
Kevin
PS – Timothy. Did you want me to love you? Or are you glad that I just smiled and nodded?
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