Why Are We Here?

  I’d like to request a formal apology, but I don’t know what address to put on the front of the envelope.  It’s bigger than our government or the UN.  If I were to try and speak to scientists in general, which ones do I send it to?  Is there a governing body?    I know I could send it in to Maclean’s, although, it really isn’t their fault.  They’re just reporting what they are given.  I don’t expect them to think.  Besides, even if I were to demand such an apology, I’d be told that my belief system has warped my worldview.

  The caption on the title page of Maclean’s article reads, “The Higgs boson discovery does more than just explain why we exist.”  Scientists have discovered a particle which is claimed to give mass to the substance of the universe, and the tab for the project is estimated around $13.2 billion.   Whenever I read articles on this kind of subject, I always hear a similar type of rhetoric, “These physicists are looking for answers to questions that humankind has asked itself for millennia – who we are, where we came from, why we’re here”.

   I like science.  In its purest form, I find it interesting.  What I’m having a hard time with are the different messages I seem to be hearing from the scientific community, even though I can’t seem to locate where these messages stem from.  If you are the source, I am so happy to have found the proper audience.

  There are a great number of people who hold to the theory that God created the universe, and I am among such thinkers.  Whenever I get into conversations with people via the internet, I am consistently informed that we know how we got here.  Billions of years ago, we exploded in a big bang and it just happened.  I’m told this is known science and that people like me are mindless twits who care little about truth.

  My issue is this.  If we already know how the universe came to be, then why are you spending $13 billion to find out how it came to be?  You either know or you don’t.  That’s it.  I expect one of either two things from you.

1.        Be honest and tell us that you don’t know for sure how the universe began.  If that’s the case, I can handle that. 

2.       Stop spending billions of dollars trying to figure out how this all began.

   There is a third alternative, but I doubt that your pride is capable of making the admission.  You could be forthcoming and concede that your worldview is influenced by your belief system.

  I wish I knew who you where, but I don’t so I guess I’ll save myself the postage. 

  I don’t anticipate you being apologetic.  If you want my real thoughts, I believe that the work you are doing isn’t capable of achieving the objective it has set out to do.  You aren’t able to answer the ‘why’ questions of life.  So why are you trying? 

Taken from the July 23^rd edition of Maclean’s Magazine, pages 40-47

Don't Read That! It Could Melt Your Mind.

  I woke up this morning to read an article written by a pastor warning his congregation about a new book that has come out.  I have a few friends who like to post warnings about the different works available in this world we live in.  I often wonder if I should spend more time telling people what they should and should not read.

  As I was reading through 1Kings Chapter 2 this evening, it just spoke so much to me about leadership and what I need to do with the responsibility entrusted to me, and I realized that there is absolutely no book that speaks to my heart the way that scripture does.

  Maybe that’s because I’m better than most of you.  I’ve got this special link with God and I can just listen to His Word without an interpreter, ‘cause I’ve got the inside track.  I’m laying on the sarcasm intentionally thick, hoping that you catch it.

   I won’t go into detail about what God was speaking to me in the pages of 1Kings, other than to say, I want to have no part of any guilt you may incur while I do what I can to minister to you.  I’m not going to tell you which books to read or which books to stay away from.  I’m not here to blast the latest ‘Christian’ heretic, or the next dirtiest work of the world. 

  To my knowledge, I have never encouraged any of you to read anything other than the Bible.  If I have done so, please forgive me the indiscretion.  Okay.  I did lend someone The Case for Christ that one time, but it was in a moment of weakness.   I believe I can honestly say that I don’t even encourage people to read my own writings.

   I’m not being a hardliner sola scripture guy here, but what I will say is this:  Other than scripture, whatever you are reading, please do so knowing that I have not been the one to encourage you.  Whether you like to read the kinds of erotic, sorcerer, vampire stuff that the world cranks out, or even books on Christian theology, you didn’t get the idea from me.  That should be fair.

  I say this for a couple of reasons.  Firstly, I can’t begin to try and warn you of every false teacher or every perverse thing that hits the shelves or the internet.  I just don’t have the time.  Secondly, I believe that there is a tendency for us to gather unto ourselves teachers that tell us the kind of things that we like to hear, even in conservative circles.  (Perhaps especially so)

   I’m not condemning you if you are the sort who likes to read.  I know that there is value in it.  I really do.  Some of you read a lot and are much stronger believers than I am because of it.  I just don’t have the time or heart to be a part of that world.

  As for my own writings, I have conflicted opinions.   I often wonder why God has me write; because I know firsthand that I’m so imperfect.  I know that there have been times where I have given people questionable advice, and I wish I could take it back, but I don’t know how.

   Read what you truly think is right.  I know you will anyway and I won’t think any less of you.  Other than The Bible, you did not however, do so from my prompting.

 

PS  I’ve also lent out Eusebius, an account of the church’s early history.  So much for my stand.

PPS  OH!   And to that pastor/friend/musician guy who meets with me on occasion and gives me books to read because he loves me and wants to see me grow, I’m very thankful and I’m still working through the last one you gave me.  Please don’t stop loving me in that way, unless you get tired of pouring yourself into me.

Openly Vile or Secretly Wicked: Which is Worse?

 "Silver Cars Get Dirty Too"

   Yesterday, I wrote a scathing report on how black cars are NOT harder to keep clean than other cars.  After reading the post, a friend of mine told me that silver cars are better than black cars.  I had forgotten to add silver cars to my list.  It appears as if I have more work to do.    

   People can be a lot like cars.  We often care more about being seen as respectable, than actually being righteous throughout.  Check out Matthew 23:27-28.  Personally, I don’t believe that the Pharisees are the only ones who deserve Christ’s accusation.  There’s a little Pharisee in many, if not all of us.

   I don’t know if I’m going to sound like a heretic or that I disagree with Jesus, but I think there might be a place for trying to look good on the outside.  What if you’re a murderer at heart?  Deep down, you’re filled with all kinds of greed, jealously, anger or hatred towards those around you, and everything within you screams, “I need to choke the life out of someone!”

  If only for the sake of appearances, I’d much prefer you to try your personal best to suppress your true self.  You’ll still be the filthy rotten murderer in your heart, but at least nobody will die.  The same goes for adulterers, child molesters and the like.  There is a place to suppress what lies beneath, even if you are living a lie.

  There is something repulsive though about people who are fake; people who smile on the outside, but are miserable within.  Or what about people who speak softly to you, but stab you in the back when you aren’t around?  It burns me when people pretend to care, when over time they prove that they don’t.  It is a form of hypocrisy and it really is wretched.

  Being openly vile isn’t acceptable either.  It does shed the veil of hypocrisy, but it makes a statement of its own.  I just finished reading an article on the internet where a person went public with their own personal sin.  That kind of life carries its own demented kind of praise in this world.  We often respect the people who have the courage to be publicly foul, ascribing to them a skewed form of courage.  Some people really are proud of the very things which should bring shame on them.  Living such a life, argues that living a shameful life is acceptable.

   Paul spoke about such people when he shared this with the believers in Philippi:

“They are headed for destruction. Their god is their appetite, they brag about shameful things, and they think only about this life here on earth.”  Philippians 3:19

   In Christian circles, we often debate which is better.  I’ve read that it’s better to be openly wicked, because there is a greater chance that the person should be able to recognize their rebellion and turn to Christ in repentance.  There are also portions of Christendom that say we just need to knuckle down and play the part, whether we feel like living right or not.

  I believe Scripture is clear that neither is acceptable.  We’re called to be holy, because God is holy.  That is tough to fake.

Black Vehicles are NOT Harder to Keep Clean

   I think I’ve finally found a new personal cause.  It’s not that my old causes weren’t noble.  I really thought that if I could teach the world the difference between the words, ‘accuse’ and ‘judge’, I would earn a Nobel Prize.  It was a good cause.  I am convinced however, that the task is greater than me.  But this one…this one, I’m sure to accomplish.

   If you live in the land of the shiny automobile, you have likely been part of the conversation where someone has said, “Black vehicles are harder to keep clean.”  I am coming before you today to dispel the myth.  The truth is, black vehicles are not harder to keep clean.  It is harder to keep them looking as if they are clean, but as for their actual cleanliness, there is no difference between a black car, a whit car, a grey car, a blue car, a purple car, a yellow car, a green car, a brown car, orange car or a maroon car.

  I can tell you from experience, because I have owned vehicles of different colours, and they all get dirty.  I was fortunate enough at one time to own a vehicle that was painted the same colour as road salt, but I can assure you, it still got dirty just as readily as the black vehicles I have owned.  They didn’t look dirty, but they truly were just as dirty.

  I’m very sorry if this post challenges you beyond what you are comfortable with.  I hope your conscience will recover.

PS  People can be a lot like cars.  We often care more about being seen as respectable, than actually being righteous throughout.  Check out Matthew 23:27-28.  Personally, I don’t believe that the Pharisees are the only ones who deserve Christ’s accusation.  There’s a little Pharisee in many, if not all of us.

Does God Have a Sense of Humour?

  It’s a conversation I find myself involved in time and time again, the question being this: “Does God have a sense of humour?”

  Now, I know this will challenge many of you.  You might not even want to be my friend anymore.  Yet, I have promised to love those of you who listen, and part of loving you means that I commit to being honest with you.

  I’m not going to go through every mention of laughter as found in scripture.  Such a venture would require more than a blog post could capture.  I do however wish to address the single most recurring argument that is given to me.

“We are made in God’s image.  We have a sense of humour.  Therefore, God must have a sense of humour.”

  I hear this repeatedly, even among my closest and most conservatively minded friends.  Most of the time, I smile at the argument.  Sometimes I address it. 

  I beg of you to look at this with an open mind.  Please think about what the argument is saying.

We are this way.  Since we are made in God’s image, then God must be that way as well.

  Does that really work for you?  If it does, then this will also work for you….

“Most people lie.  We’re made in God’s image.  Therefore, God must be a liar too.”

   I couldn’t care less whether or not you think God has a sense of humour.  We often find Him laughing in Scripture; although, the things He laughs at rarely seem to be over a good joke.  What I take issue with, is how we project our character upon a Holy God.  I expect it from the people of the world.  I expect the people of the world to think that God The Father must be a tyrant, because they may have grown up with a tyrant father of their own.  I expect earthlings to believe that God must be immoral, because many who claim to be His, are found to live immoral lives.

  I expect more from you.

  We were made in His image, not His character.

Where Do You Draw The Line?

This past week, a friend of mine posted a link to a website called, “Draw The Line”.

   As I take on my calling in Christ, I can smile on a lot of things.  There is one area however where I simply have been unable to budge, and because of it, I come under fire on occasion.  Sometimes I’m told that I’m some sort of morality policeman.  I can’t budge with regards to sexual immorality and as a result I often wonder if I sound like a broken record. 

  And wouldn’t you know it?  In my time in The Word for this evening, I was reading about David’s romantic interlude with Bathsheba.

  My friend’s website brought up some interesting issues.  What if your favourite pop star molests children?  Would you still buy their albums, or celebrate their accomplishments after they die?  I mean, I know it’s wrong for priests to play with little boys, but it’s okay of you’ve made a significant contribution to pop culture isn’t it?

  The website asked the question, ‘What if your sister tells you that her husband forces her to have sex?  What do you do?’  What about that? 

  I know that you’re going to do whatever you intend to do with your body.  So don’t you dare accuse me of trying to run your life, control you or judge you.  Hear me out.

   In my first book entitled, The Edge of His Cloak, I share this in the first chapter:  “If we walk through the Bible and look at God’s will for human sexuality, it would look something like this.  God expects us to remain sexually pure, until the point in time where the man and the woman leave their parents and become joined as one.”

  I can’t quite say that I’ve been sexually pure from start to finish, but my wife and I did wait for each other.  For all of my shortcomings, when my wife joined me in marriage, at least she knew that I had the self control enough to wait. 

    When I think on the issue of a husband forcing himself on his wife, it makes me sick, and I think it’s wrong.  After looking at the site, I realize that I draw the line way before the world does.  And I’m the mean morality policeman. 

  If you’re going to play with fire, that’s your business.  If you want to marry someone who has not demonstrated the ability to be faithful, patient and self controlled, why would that bother me?  I just humbly asked that you do not allow yourself to be shocked at the results.

Father of The Year (Happy Father's Day)

  I still don’t exactly know what it’s supposed to mean to be a man.  Oh.  I’ve had people tell me, and I’m sure several of you have very accurate definitions.  You read that book once.  In fact, that guy who read that book once told me what it means to be a man, but I forgot.  Since he isn’t with me every week telling me about that book he read and what it means to be a man, I don’t know if I’ll remember.  Perhaps if I read the book every week or two, I’ll eventually get it down.

  This morning, being father’s day, there was a certain excitement in our house.  You see, I’m the fun one.  It isn’t that my wife isn’t fun.  She’s just not as fun as I am.  It really isn’t a secret.  Not only am I more fun, I also like fun stuff.  And because I like fun stuff, my loving wife takes the opportunity to get me fun things.  So the whole family gets excited when I open my gifts, because everybody knows that the gifts will be the kinds of things that they will all want to play with.

   After opening my Wii Sports boxing gloves, Super Mario World for the N64, the ice cream hard chocolate shell, the can of peanuts, the free tickle coupon, the 1 day ipod use coupon and the 2000 point Wii game card, I noticed a heavier gift.  Taking the gift bag into the living room, I soon discovered it contained a SEGA Dreamcast. 

  Yay for me!

   As I went through the games which came with the system, I paid particular notice to the game ratings.  Some of the games are keepers.  I’ve already caught my first fish on the bass fishing game.  I’ll be throwing some games into the garbage, because I think they should be erased from history.

  The games I received had 3 basic ratings:  E – for everyone, T for teen, and M for mature.

  It’s funny.  In our culture, we believe that growing up seems to have something to do with getting drunk, getting laid or blowing someone’s head off.  I have to tell you, I’m not okay with that.

  Oh, I’ve gotten drunk before.  I’ve had sex a time or two as well.  I’ve never killed a person, but I do know how to use a gun and have shot my winter’s meat.  I know that very few people value my opinion, but for what it’s worth, it’s absolutely horrid that we equate growing up with the kind of things that we do.

  I don’t have a written definition of what it means to be a man, but I like to think that I have a decent picture.  If I could give you that picture, it would look a lot like a co-worker of mine named Adam.  I first met him when he was twenty years old.  He is now 26 I believe.  In the time I have known him, he has demonstrated time and again the kind of metal which should characterize much of manhood.

  Okay…He’s not perfect.  I do love pointing out his shortcomings from time to time.  Just hear me out.

  I have worked with a lot of boys in my short career.   When life demands more of us, most of us tend to complain, balk, turn to the drug, head to the bar for comfort, the hobby or throw up the flag in surrender.  As a deadline approaches on our work, many or most of us start to sweat, get frustrated, or angry as the clock ticks down.

  Men rise to the challenge.  In him, at work, as the clock winds down, he picks up his game.  As life gets harder, he pushes back even harder.  When his family needs more of him, he gives more of himself, at the sacrifice of his own comfort, rest and exercise.  I wouldn’t be surprised if he cries once on a while.  I know I would in his shoes.  What amazes me most, is that he has consistently handled life the way he has, without having had a father to model manhood before him, so I often wonder how he has learned to be the dad, husband and worker he is.  I like to think that what I see in him, is an indication that God the Father is at work in his heart.

  I’m sorry that I can’t tell you what it means to be a man.  I wish I had the definition for you so that you could tell your friends.   In this dark world, there may be a place to know how to fight, yet knowing how to smash in someone’s face isn’t what I would use as a qualifier for manhood.

  I’m sure there is a Bible study somewhere that will give you the answer.

PS  To many of the other fathers I know….I think the world of you too, but if you knew the full extent of Adam’s story, I think you’d agree that he deserves this.