Happy for Habitat

Today I was fortunate to participate in a dedication program for the most recent Fort Wayne Habitat for Humanity Home. This was house number 118 in the past two decades, quite an accomplishment.

There are several reasons why this was a special project:
* the family moving in are former refugees from Northeastern Africa
* many local-aid agencies who have been working this this refugee family
* many Christians and churches worked together to bless this family with help and a home
* this was Anchor's first Habitat project
* and we made new friends.

Louise McCracken - a member of Grace Presbyterian Church, is a board member for the FW/HH, and at the dedication today she told two stories of two different volunteers that participated in the build; it just so happened that these two vols were both Anchorites! Louise told these two stories to help highlight the joy and sacrifice that many vols experienced in making this house happen.

The first story was of Joanna Herrrick - surprise, surprise. Louise remarked that Joanna, upon bringing the meal this past Thursday for the workers who were cleaning the house, walked into the home and declared, "This is a God-thing." This tickled Louise and resonated with what we hoped and knew to be true.

The second story was about the sweet and giving spirit of Sarah Palmer. Sarah, an employee of the West State Scott's store, bought four bags of fruit, donuts, juice and supplies to bring to the build where she was also going to work with a hammer and nails. Sarah doesn't drive, so she was hoping to get a ride with another Anchorite - which unfortunately didn't work out. Being a determined sort of person, Sarah took the bus from the corner of State Blvd and St. Mary's Avenue to the corner of Anthony Blvd and Paulding Rd - the other side of town. Not an easy trip with four bulging bags of food. When Sarah showed up, Louise was surprised and delighted and overwhelmed by the gift and determination of Sarah.

As our Lord Jesus taught and demonstrated: it is more blessed to give than to receive. Thanks Joanna, Sarah, and all the other Anchorites who did their part in putting together a house by which we can bless refugees from Africa. And thanks for Habitat for making these kind of projects possible. Happy are the merciful!

Here are some pics:

Knock, Knock...Who's There?

Wouldn't you know it, but my daughter Emma is hooked on these Knock, Knock jokes.

Here's a typical one:

Knock, Knock.
Who's There?
Banana.
Banana Who?
(this is where it gets...ummm...odd...like tonight, for example, on the way home for the lake): Banana with a steering wheel on it's head!
(this is followed by all sorts of giggles!).

On and on this goes in the van:
Banana Who? Banana sitting on a steering wheel!
Banana Who? Banana coming out of a steering wheel!

My family informs me that when I was Emma's age, I also told these kind of nonsense jokes.

I actually think Emma's jokes are funny...up to a point: like after the eighth version of bananas and steering wheels I had to try and introduce anything different for Emma to make a joke about. I finally had to tell here to stop with the knock knock jokes.

She agreed.

Then she smiled.

"Hey Dad...why did the banana cross the road?"

Poverty and the Church in the USA

The issue of poverty is coming up more and more in church ministry discussions. As it should; any self-respecting group of Christians who claim to follow Jesus ought to care for the poor. But the question is often: what does it mean to care for the poor? The poor are not a monolithic group. You have white poor, black poor, hispanic poor, asian poor; northern poor and southern poor; single mother poor and widowed grandfather poor, disabled poor and uninsured poor, lazy poor and working poor. What connection is there between caring for the poor of our day and region and the poor of Jesus' day and region?

And where does caring for the poor require the church and the corporate world to work together? How can religion and economics partner rather than spar or succumb?

I'm a regular reader of Imprimis: a publication of Hillsdale College. The May 2008 edition included excerpts from a speech given by the president of the Club for Growth, Patrick Toomey. In talking about the "greatest story never told" - the greatest period of prosperity in human history - he lists too many statistics to prove how the world's economy is expanding. I was struck by the statistics he shared about American families who live below the poverty line.

...in the early 1970's, less than 40 percent had a car, almost none had color televisions, and air conditioning was virtually unheard of; in 2004, 46 percent owned their own homes, almost 75 percent owned a car (indeed, 30 percent owned two or more cars), 97 percent had color TV's, and 67 percent had air conditioning. The poor in the U.S. have an average of 721 square feet of living space per person, as compared with 430 in Sweden and 92 in Mexico.

Who are the poor that the church is to care for? And what is the point of caring for the poor? Alleviating their causes of poverty? Lifting them out of poverty? Or caring for them whether they choose to stay in poverty or not?

What is the moral/religious obligation to end poverty? Does our spiritual call to care for the poor require economic saviness and sociological wisdom? How much of poverty in America is a moral problem, and how much of it is a sin problem, and how much of it is an economic reality? And what should the church do?

The Saleh Swimming Pool

Sunday for lunch we went to our cousin Nathan's house for his high school graduation party. Excellent Texas Sheetcake!

It was hot weather for the party, and we needed a place to cool down. Our home was without functioning A/C, so Amy invited us over to their home, which was nice and cool. Funny - we hardly spent anytime indoors. Jamil had bought a big swimming pool and the kids played in it for a long time. Good fun.

At one point Emma decides to have Alia baptize her. Emma crosses her arms and gets on her knees and then instructs Alia on how to dunk her down. Emma comes up squealing and smiling. Very cute. Then Emma seeks to baptize Alia - except she has zero interest in her cousin putting her face under water. So we tell Emma to baptize herself. Which she does. And then she does it again.

I tell Emma: "You sure like getting baptized, don't you?"

"Yeah," she quips, "I really love God!"

I Will Show You

Genesis 11v31 - 12v4

Sunday begins the event: OnePrayer!

Over 1300 churches are joining together under the banner of OnePrayer - Craig Groeschel and others are spearheading this movement of bringing churches together to pray. I'm all for joining other churches in Gospelwork, and I think prayer is a pretty good idea also.

The four-week series centers on this one prayer: Lord, make us...

Each church - starting this Sunday, will inspire their congregation around their one prayer. For Anchor, our one prayer is: Lord, make us courageous.

It seems to me that most people I know - especially the ones going through difficult times (pick an issue...), they know what the right thing to do is, but they are afraid to do it (or afraid to ask for help...). Somehow it is easier to keep doing the familiar things that contribute to the problem, than do the next right thing that would move them towards grace and peace.

I came across this ancient Irish prayer the other day:
Lord, make us keen to discern your will,
make us wise to understand it,
and grant us courage to follow it wherever it leads.

Reading the ancient - Irish prayer, I thought of Abraham. Specifically when God called him out of Haran to Canaan. Lots of interesting nuggets about the story, but a few that are pertinent to our one prayer: Abraham had never heard God's voice before, Abraham was totally ignorant of God, of even his name. But the text says that upon hearing God's promise, Abraham went.

Here's the thing: God promised the very thing that Abraham wanted more than anything. Abraham had left Ur for Canaan with his father Terah many years ago, but they stopped halfway and settled in Haran. Settling wasn't a long-term option for Abraham. So when God gave permission to Abraham to complete his journey, Abraham was delighted.

The courageous action on Abraham's part was not that he left Haran for Canaan. Lots of people did that - merchants, soldiers, refugees, etc. The courageous part was Abraham's reliance on God. The key to God's promise was this: "...to the land I will show you." It was if God was co-opting Abraham's dream, as if God was saying - "I need you Abraham, I need you and your dreams/desires. Let me lead you into the future, let me lead you into getting what you want more than anything." A God he did not know or understand gives him permission to fulfill his dream...and he trusts that God! Amazing.

Lord, make us courageous like Abraham...willing to follow you to the land you will show us. Grant us the courage to trust your ways, the courage to leave behind a settled life for a blessed life, the courage to become your blessing to the world.

C.S. Lewis points out in his famous sermon The Weight of Glory that far too many people have desires that are too weak; they settle for a safe, predictable life when they could've entered into a blessed life that pours out grace and peace into their neighborhoods.

What fears keep you from having that necessary conversation with your spouse? What fear keeps you from engaging your children? Your parents? What fear keeps you from standing up to your boss? What fear keeps you from using your God-given talents and gifts to bless others? What fear keeps you from trusting? What fear keeps you from following God's way?

Abraham went - he overcame his fear to follow the Way of the LORD, and it made all the difference. Stop taking the well-traveled road of fear, take the path less travelled - courage will make all the difference.

Lord, make us courageous...to follow your Way wherever it leads.

The Worth of a Life

For Christmas 2006 my Dad gave me a wonderful gift: A Year with Dietrich Bonhoeffer -daily meditations from his letters, writings and sermons. I read a couple of entries each month, and this one today was illuminnating. Bonhoeffer's quote on life and love caused some good reflection in me; may it be so for you.

The worth of a life is measured by how much love it has.

What do happiness and unhappiness mean, what do wealth and poverty mean, what do honor and disgrace mean, what does living at home or abroad mean, what does life and death mean where people live in love?

They do not know.

They do not differentiate.

They only know that the sole purpose of happiness as well as unhapppiness, poverty as well as wealth, honor as well as disgrace, living at home or abroad, living and dying is to love all the more strongly, purely, fully.

-- from A Testament to Freedom, 241

Sunday Sermon Notes - 6.1.08

The Acts of the Apostles 16.22-34

Interesting historical note: according to F.F. Bruce, the Gospel According to Luke and the Acts of the Apostles was originally one work titled "Historical Origins of Christianity". I knew that Luke was the author of the two works, and that they fit together, but I didn't realize they were originally one work. Interesting. After the second century, the four gospels were clustered together, thus the Acts were separated and put with Paul's letters. I've often wondered why modern day Bibles don't just switch Luke and John, so that in reading the gospels, you can have a reconnected story from Luke's Gospel to His Account of the Apostles.

Sunday is Baptism Day! Always a special day. And usually the occasion for a sermon on being baptized. Fortunately there is plenty of material to use in the NT. Like the story of the Philippian jailer who was saved and baptized by Paul. Fascinating story.

My point is simple: we get baptized because of what we believe. Simple enough. But to clarify - the use of the word "belief" is qualified amply enough by James and even Paul in his letters to Rome, Corinth, and others. We don't get baptized to help us believe, to indicate that we want to believe, or that we want to be seen as one who believes. We get baptized because of what we believe about Jesus - is he Lord or not?

As Rob Bell and other preachers have pointed out: the cry of the Roman citizen and slave was "Caesar is Lord". Caesar is the Savior, he is to be worshipped, he requires primary allegiance. For the jailer to announce that Jesus is Lord, and that he believes/puts primary allegiance in Christ, not Caesar - well this is a monumental step...like crossing the Rubicon. Baptism would be like physically crossing the Rubicon - for baptisms were normally done in "living water" or water that is moving - thus a river or stream and not a lake or pond.

In our century - it is still radical to publicly make known that you believe Jesus is Lord. It is even more radical to make life choices that clearly reflect this allegiance. And I don't mean going to church, reading your Bible and avoiding swear words. Because of what he believed about the Lord Jesus, and about Caesar, the jailer was going to have to make changes in his eating habits, his sexual habits, his spending habits, his recreation habits, his family habits. Not because of adopting a long list of rules to live by, but because he was gripped by the saving grace of Jesus - the forgiveness of sins. To be forgiven, and then to live as one willing to give grace, to forgive, to love as God loves us - well that is going to change a lot of habits.

The jailer was confronted with death, and received a second chance at life. He took his second chance as a gift from God and started over again - was baptized into a new way of life. Have you been given a second chance at life? What are you doing with that gift? With your life? Be baptized because you have chosen to believe in the Lord Jesus, in his Way of Life - his way of grace, forgiveness, truth, goodness, strength, and power. The baptism matters to the degree that you live what you believe. Belief with out life is dead, baptism with living belief is powerful.

Another Reason We Go To Church...

I received a note this week from an Anchorite. An experience during the week prompted him to share some thoughts with me about last week's sermon: Why Gather On Sundays?

What he wrote was authentic and poetic. It was an encouragement to me, and I wanted to pass it on.

******
We need to be in amongst others physically,
in the same place, just to know we're not alone.
Not alone with our problems.
Not alone with our self doubts.
Not alone with our hope and faith.

You and many others at Anchor continue making me feel not alone.
I would have said everybody, but I've got to open up more, to more people;
then that whole communality thing just gets better.

Difficulty, Suffering, And Hope

Rob Bell writes in his final chapter of Velvet Elvis these helpful thoughts. Ministry has been really, really hard for me lately. Plenty of suffering. And it's been easy to lose perspective, misjudge reality, become confused about my responsibilities, and to worry about what's next. These following thoughts contain helpful reminders to me about the inherent difficulty of following Jesus, the natural suffering that often results from loving and serving, and the possibility that it is all good. Maybe you'll find these thoughts helpful too.

To be this kind of person - the kind who selflessly serves - takes everything a person has. It is difficult. It is demanding. And we often find ourselves going against the flow of those around us. Which is why we are reclaiming the simple fact that Jesus said the way was narrow. We are honest about this, especially to our friends who wouldn't say they are Christians. Very few people in our world are offering anything worth dying for. Most of the messages we receive are about how to make life easier. The call of Jesus goes the other direction: It's about making our lives more difficult. It is going out of our way to be more generous, disciplined and loving and free. It is refusing to escape and become numb to and check out of this broken, fractured world.

And so we are embracing the high demands of Jesus' call to be one of his disciples. We are honest about it. We want our friends to know up front that the costs are high, which is what is so appealing about Jesus - his vision for life takes everything we have.

This is what we are all dying for - something that demands we step up and become better, more focused people. Something that calls out the greatness that we hope is somewhere inside of us.

Not only is the way narrow, but it involves suffering. To truly engage with how the world is, our hearts are going to be broken again and again. And so we are learning how to suffer well. Not to avoid it but to feel the full force of it. It is important that churches acknowledge suffering and engage it - never, ever presenting the picture that if you follow Jesus, your problems will go away. Following Jesus may bring on problems you never imagined.

What If Jesus Returns in 7000AD?

In the Christian circles I live, there is a continual buzz about the imminent return of Christ. He could come any day, so be ready.

But Christians of some sorts have been saying that for almost two-thousand years. Who's to say it won't be for another five-thousand?

For some of you, you never, ever, ever wonder or worry when the Lord will come back to earth. I've tried not to think about it for the past decade or so. But the issue just won't go away. The theological word used to describe the thinking around the return of Christ is: eschatology (in Greek - study of last things). Does eschatology matter, does what you believe about the coming again of Jesus matter?

On one level, it doesn't seem to. It doesn't really affect my purchase of wheat or white bread, of a red or blue car, of getting 7 or 8 hours of sleep, or a thousand other mundane, daily decisions I continue to make.

But don't you ever wonder what the purpose of life is?

Don't you ever wonder where history is headed?

What trajectory are our actions taking the human race?

If God is at work in the world, and he sent Jesus once, and promises to send him again at the end of the ages...what does that mean for where humanity is headed and what does that mean for how I live today?

That's the question I'm trying to answer.

My first action is to squiggle out from under the oppressive weight that Jesus might return in my lifetime. Of course he might, but odds are he won't. Pretty much every generation has had somebody who was convinced that this was the season when the Lord would return as a "thief in the night." Except he didn't.

This belief that Jesus is headed back soon because of XYZ events going on in the world tends to result in a couple of negative traits: one being short-sightedness. We do the work of the LORD with only short-term gains in mind. We think of doing Christian work with the goal of saving as many individuals now as possible...before the LORD returns.

But what if a bunch of Christians - committed to the Return of Christ - took into account that it might be another two-thousand years, or twice that: how might that shape what kind of plans we implement for being/bringing Good News to the Nations?

At Anchor I made a commitment to pastor for a minimum of a decade. For most in my profession, that's a long-term commitment, especially for a first appointment. But in the scope of the next four-thousand years, how might I change my perspective for how much of my life I invest in Anchor? How might it change my perspective for what kind of work Anchor might be committed to? I'm sure somebody is scoffing at this proposal. At Anchor most people scoffed at my thirty-year vision for the church. I was serious, too bad not many others were. I know the world changes fast, that many insist that three-year visions for a church are almost too lofty. But that just depends on what you envision being accomplished - stuff that will be forgotten in a couple of years, or stuff that will endure for a couple of decades, maybe a couple of generations, unto the ages.

Some crazy people think in terms too lofty to stay anchored in reality. Most normal people think in terms too safe, too predictable, too trivial. But if Jesus has promised to return at the end of the ages for the renewal of all things, and if he is teaching us to pray for his kingdom to come now, then there is a link between our Isaiah 61 work today and the work of the Spirit that endures into the millenia.

Brian McLaren has some helpful thoughts along this line in his book The Church on the Other Side:

Could it be God's plan for all people through all time to live with this dynamic tension - not enough patience to breed complacency, and not enough urgency to inspire panic. Does he want us to hold urgency and patience in synergy to encourage us to plant trees (a long-term investment requiring patience) and plant them today (with enthusiastic urgency)? And could it be that on a personal level, urgency always makes sense, since each of us will face our own apocalypse (called death) within this generation anyway? And could it be that on a global level, patience also always makes sense, since God's plans and time frames make our longest life span seem like a sigh?

Waiting for my Huckleberries

Saturday afternoon I planted my huckleberry seeds!

This is my third season in four years for planting delicious huckleberries. Last year was a bumper crop...I think my Mum was able to make two whole pies - one for me and one for Dad. This year I'm expanding my crop.

I ordered two packets of seeds from Direct Gardening. I filled two 18 piece egg cartons with about 100 seeds apiece. Once they sprouted, Dad took one of the cartons home. If even half of my seeds survive my amateurish attempt to farm these berries, I'll be swimming in them! Well not quite, but maybe I can have enough berries so that I can freeze some for a pie at Christmas as well as Thanksgiving and at harvest time!

If you've never had huckleberry pie, let me know. I'll be sure to invite you over at harvest-time and I will share a slice of pie with you. Along with some home-brewed Starbucks coffee, of course!

Thank you for Chicago.

That was how Isaac ended his prayer tonight, when we asked what he was thankful for. Me too, Isaac, me too.

Here's some pics of the fun we had as a family for Graduation Weekend.

Waiting for the Baccalaureate service to get started... I only had to get up with Eli a couple dozen times.

The Happy Hallman's getting ready for bed - we need to get our rest for the big day tomorrow.

Ahhhh...the pool! This was the only thing the kids cared about. Lucky for us, Mike and Jana and crew were able to join us - here Cameron and ELI are hanging on me as I drag them around the pool again and again and again...

All dressed up and ready to Graduate!

The Hallman-MacFarlane Clan - now if only Jerm and Maria could have joined us.

Isn't she beautiful!

ELIE by the fish pond...

That is one very expensive grin. A very relieved grin. A very satisfying grin.

Celebrating with the kids! I missed alot of summers at the lake...they're glad I'm going to be around to swim and boat! I am too.

Nothing better than sharing a sweet moment like this with those who love me most.

Ahhh...Tara, how do I say thank you...for sticking by me, for believing in me, for being with me all the way through. Thank you.

Dad and Mum - thank you for helping make this experience possible. Thanks for the encouraging words, for the notes, for the bran muffins on those early 4:30am drives to school from the lake during the summer...and for helping my wife and kids when I was gone. Thank you.

Thanks Shirley and Faye for spending so much time with the kids and helping Tara when I was at class. Faye - I'll never forget our conversation on the bus while travelling to the Cubs game, when you asked me if I knew what I was doing. I did. :)

It was awesome to have Tara's family join us for this joyous celebration Naomi and Jim, Amy, Hannah and Alia, and Karen! Thanks for the support, for caring about us when times were stressful, and for being there for us.

My friend Leslie; we met in my second summer - during Greek. We did four classes together that summer - Suicide Greek is what they call it...for very good reasons. Good guy, with a son named Ivan. A very cool name.

Levi wouldn't try on the hat, but the other three did...we'll see if someday they get to wear their own.



Here we are - all nineteen of us - at RainForest Cafe in downtown Chicago. It was a looong table, a loud table, a fun table.

Eli and I wear causing great distress to Levi and Isaac, who happen to have very sensitive hearts. The Yellow Snake lowers his head and sticks a long black tongue out. I just happened to be standing near it such that Eli was almost struck by the serpent, which caused Levi and Isaac to squeal. Well of course I had to stick oblivious Eli even closer the next time, which elicited cries of panic. A glance from Tara encouraged me to quit, before I made a bigger scene.

For desert, Emma requested the desserts that catch on fire: a chocolate cake served with vanilla ice cream and a big sparkler on top. Amy and Alia were quite delighted by the surprise, as we all were.

There's just something mischevious about Alia's grin...it's almost as if she swiped some of Grandma's cake when she wasn't looking. Or something...

It's Sunday morning breakfast and the kids - with RainForest Cafe souveniers in hand (giant sharp-skinned alligator and long green fuzzy snake) giving me my graduation gift: a fun book by John Wooden about building character and growing up. Definitely a book I can identify with and enjoy; especially with all the neat notes that Tara wrote inside - along with the kids autographs - of the many ways the Wooden story connects with what Tara and I have been through the past five years.

It's Mother's Day! Heading out of the hotel for Kohl's Children's Museum. Momma just wanted to spend time with the kids (and me...) on her day, so that's what we did.

There were alot of neat hands-on activities for the kids; this one included rearranging translucent geometrical shapes. Isaac and Levi did most everything together: pick up beanbags with a crane, shoot windchimes with a water gun, and much more.

Emma impressed me with her princess castle made of the translucent geometrical shapes. Her creation was all by herself, no instructions or model in front of her! Very good job sweetie...I need to get my Lego's out. Oh the fun!

What A Weekend!

Ahhhh...I'm graduated!

Well, almost.

Once I finish my last class in August, then I'll be completely finished.

I made a pledge to Tara that I would be done with my M.Div by the time Emma started kindergarten. I finish my last class on Friday, August 8; Emma starts her first class on Wednesday, August 20. Cutting it kind of close...

It was so much fun having Tara and the kids join me on campus - for the very first time. Tara had been there a few times, but my whole family had never been there with me. All those days, weeks, semesters, years at TEDS, and it was like my own little world. It was also neat to have my parents there with us - they've been so supportive in thousands of ways...it was important to Tara and I that they join us for the weekend. Since schooling was such a big part of our life for so long, it was also important to have as much family join us as possible - since so many of them gave something to help us get through. It was fun hanging out at the hotel with the family, swimming, eating breakfast, and taking lots of pictures by the fishpond!

With all the family joining us, there wasn't much time to pause and reflect on that actual experience of graduating. My first moment came when all the graduates were gathered in a large tent prior to the processional. Even though there was a loud and constant buzz of conversation, there was this moment where it dawned on me: Thanks God! God has been so loyal and patient with me these past five years. It was a hard endeavor in many ways, and God proved himself kind and providential. Classes schedules had a way of working out around personal commitments; class topics had a way of tying in with key pastoral issues; spiritual needs and financial needs had a way of being addressed and taken care of. Being a TEDS grad is a special opportunity; only a few people in all the world get the opportunity to be part of such an exceptional school. Thanks God.

Being a part-time student, full-time pastor, and all-the-time husband and father, I didn't have alot of time to meet alot of fellow students and develop life long friendships. Not being that connected, I was a little fearful that when I graduated, I wouldn't know anyone in my class. Fortunately, some of the students that I got to know were graduating with me - it was a pleasant surprise as one by one I met another and another friend on Saturday that was graduating with me. During my Greek-summer, I sat next to Leslie Aylesworth; we had some great talks and I was able to have dinner with his family a couple of times. Good guy, neat friend. I was pleased and surprised that we were able to graduate together. It was also neat meeting and talking with students who I'd not ever met, but standing in line for forty minutes prior to processional makes for a good time to make new friends. I even met one guy named David, standing a few paces away - I had just found his blog the other day...and now I'm meeting him on graduation day...how odd is that?

There are also some interesting family stories: we went to Rainforest Cafe in downtown Chicago for our celebration dinner. We had no problem getting there. Mike and Jana got there early and confirmed with the restaurant that the rest of the 18-member party was on its way. We underestimated traffic and completely forgot about parking issues. Tara drove Amy's truck into town, Shirley followed in the Magnum - they both ended up paying $24 each for parking! I happened to find a parking spot on the street (the car topper prevented me from going into the parking garage) for only $2! Once we got all parked we found our way into the Cafe - very neat! And loud! After a tasty dinner and a flaming desert, we attempted to leave the city. It's a lot harder than we thought. Since I was parked on the street, I ended up trying to leave the city before the other two cars. I accidently got on I94E instead of West, so I had to take the next exit and get off and try to find a new exit. That wasn't easy without a map. But then Jim remembered we had a Garmin; we typed in the address for the school (which was close to the hotel...we couldn't remember that address), and we were finally able to escape. But then Tara missed the exit and never even got on I94...so I'm talking to her on the cell phone, while she's trying to talk to Faye on the walkie-talkie, and I'm trying to give them directions...with no map. Crazy! They finally...somehow...miraculously find the right exit, and we all ended back at the hotel a lot later and a lot more tired than we planned! But oh the memories.

Getting Ready to Graduate from TEDS!

This is the weekend!

We're all pretty excited around here. Five years ago, this event seemed a looooong way off. Now that it is here, my first two classes seem like a loooong time ago.

Graduation at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School is Saturday afternoon; with Baccalaureate services Friday evening. We've got lots of family going up with us to Chicago for the weekend: Tara and the kids, Dad & Mum, Shirley and Faye, Karen, Amy and the girls, Jim and Naomi, and Mike & Jana will be in town from Alaska! My brother Jerm and his family can't come, unfortunately. He was able to travel up to class with me a couple times - it was a big help and alot of fun.

It is hard to express how grateful I am to my family for the effort, energy, and prayers they put into me and my schoolwork. They had to rerarrange schedules, listen to us vent, and share their resources with us for all of this to happen.

An extraordinary and unending thank you is in order for my wife Tara. Our decision for me too begin school was difficult. Our experience of me going to school in Chicago was deeply difficult. But it was the right thing to do. I will continue to be indebted to my wife for the sacrifices she made for me. Emma was six months old when I started, and since then we had the twins Levi and Isaac, and our charming Eli. It was hard being in school and having twins. And being a pastor. And Tara working full-time part of the year. Very hard. Which is why I am eternally grateful for Tara. As St. Paul reminds me, "let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another."

On (Not) Getting By in America

Have you ever eaten at a mom and pop restaurant? Have you ever paid attention to the waitresses? Have you ever wondered what their life must be like given their vocation? What's it like to live in their shoes?

Ever been to Wal-Mart? Or K-Mart? Or any other kind of big-box mart? Ever wonder how the non-smiling employees are doing economically? Ever wonder what the promise of always low prices means for employee satisfaction and well-being?

How about all the other low-wage jobs that pay anywhere from $5 to $10/hour? Ever wonder how people make it on those wages? Under what circumstances do people take those kinds of jobs? Why do they keep those jobs? What's life like for them?

Barbara Ehrenreich cares about poverty, and she tried to walk, work, and live in the shoes of a low-wage employee. What is it like to earn poverty-level wages...as a single woman, with a Ph.D, a strong work ethic and lots of personal motivation? Hers is a fascinating story full of humor, wit, painful realities and deeply rooted injustices. Note that her point in writing the book is not about how people can't find a way to make it, but rather, they can't if they get hired at many of the businesses that we frequent often. Nickel and Dimed is a must read.

Here's some of what the backcover states:

Millions of Americans work full-time, year-round, for poverty-level wages. Barbara Ehrenreich decided to join them, inspired in part by the rhetoric surrounding welfare reform, which promised that any job equals a better life. But how can anyone survive, let alone prosper, on six to seven dollars an hour? To find out, Ehrenreich moved from Florida to Maine to Minnesota, taking the cheapest lodgings available and accepting work as a waitress, hotel maid, house cleaner, nursing home aide, and Wal-Mart salesperson. She soon discovered that even the "lowliest" occupations require exhausting mental and physical efforts. And one job is not enough; you need at least two if you intend to live indoors.

Think about it: if you earn $7/hour, 40/hrs a week, that equals $280/wk; or $14,560/yr.
You rent a two-bedroom, one bath, home for $500/month: $6000/yr.
That leaves you $8,560.
You pay utilities - water average $20/mnth; sewer avg $30 mnth; gas avg $100/mnth; electric avg $80 mnth: $230mnth or $2760/yr.
That leaves you with $5800.
You pay taxes - about 20% which equals $2912. That leaves $2888/yr, or about $241/mnth or about $56/wk to cover car payments, car fuel, car insurance, renters insurance, health insurance, medical bills, clothing expenses, and food.

Even if you earned $11/hr, which is $22,880, a person is still barely above poverty-level. Now you can afford a $3000 car, the $1000 car insurance, the $1500 car fuel, the $1000 car repair bills, and just enough money for a $50/wk grocery bill. But still no health insurance, no clothing expenses, let alone the miscellaneous needs that come up like cleaning supplies, personal hygeine items, birthday and Christmas gifts,

And all this assumes you live by yourself.

Consider how important it is to you to pay as little as possible for products or services: the less you pay, the less the employees get paid. America has a interesting track record of trying to squeeze as much output from workers as possible for as little wage as they can get away with. Especially for low-skill jobs. So the next time you eat at a restaurant, or shop at Wal-Mart, or visit your great-aunt in a nursing home, go out of your way to smile at the employees, compliment them, treat them with dignity and respect, and encourage the employers to pay their employees a more decent wage. Or something like that.

I'm still trying to figure out what to do with this book. I just know I ought to do something constructive. The Prophets often make a direct connection between God's Righteousness and Man's Justice: judgment comes when we persist in unjust economic systems that debase the poorer amongst us so that a few of us can have the conveniences and pleasures we don't want to give up. See Amos. Or Isaiah. Or Nathan. Or Jesus.

Emma the Soccer Girl

During practice Emma worked hard on getting a light touch on the ball, she has a tendency to boot the ball. She had fun doing the drills...kids running everywhere, balls going everywhere...a good way to start her season.

The guys had to bundle up in the sunshine, the wind was strong and brisk - but they braved the weather to support their sister.

Emma loves running! She ran and ran and ran and ran...with a smile on her face almost the whole time!

We worked on her throw-ins at home, she was ready for the game and did a good job, she has a strong throw.

One of Emma's breakaways! Go Emma!!!

Emma got a break during the third quarter. After getting some water she was ready to get back in the game.

Emma is just a few yards from the goal, she's on the verge of breaking away from the pack with the ball, but one of the defender's is right on her heels.

Oh Emma! Are you okay? That big lanky defender caught your heels and knocked you down! But you're a tough little soccer girl, aren't you?

Everyone enjoys snack-time...that's why they play soccer!

Finally a chance to sit down and rest after a hard game. Good joy Emma!

Me Emergent?

There is ever-increasing controversy about being identified as an Emergent Christian. For some Christians, they know nothing about the Emergent movement, for some they don't care, and others they have very strong feelings. I don't have strong feelings for the Emergent movement, but much of what characterizes them resonates with me. Does that make me Emergent? I don't know.

In the right-hand column is a Theological Worldview Survey I took a few months ago that identified me as Emergent/Postmodern (scroll down to view it). I was a bit surprised at the result, but upon further reflection, not so much. As it is, I don't follow much of the Emergent writers/writings, the gatherings, the conferences, the controversies. I am mostly concerned with trying to increase in understanding and skill as a pastor, theologian, Christian, husband, father, man. As I seek to understand the truth, many of my leanings, conclusions, viewpoints, convictions, and beliefs are eerily similar to what others label as Emergent. So be it.

Below is a quote from a new book out about the Emergent movement as highlighted on Out of Ur. Maybe half of the descriptions below are somewhat true of me. The list isn't meant to imply that all of these characteristics are true of every Emergent Christian, but rather that Emergents cover a wide territory, and at least some of these traits are true of Emergents.

Anyway, it's kind of long, but kind of interesting.

After reading nearly five thousand pages of emerging-church literature, I have no doubt that the emerging church, while loosely defined and far from uniform, can be described and critiqued as a diverse, but recognizable, movement.

You might be an emergent Christian:

if you listen to U2, Moby, and Johnny Cash’s Hurt (sometimes in church), use sermon illustrations from The Sopranos, drink lattes in the afternoon and Guinness in the evenings, and always use a Mac;

if your reading list consists primarily of Stanley Hauerwas, Henri Nouwen, N. T. Wright, Stan Grenz, Dallas Willard, Brennan Manning, Jim Wallis, Frederick Buechner, David Bosch, John Howard Yoder, Wendell Berry, Nancy Murphy, John Frank, Walter Winks, and Lesslie Newbigin (not to mention McLaren, Pagitt, Bell, etc.) and your sparring partners include D. A. Carson, John Calvin, Martyn Lloyd-Jones, and Wayne Grudem;...

if your idea of quintessential Christian discipleship is Mother Teresa, Martin Luther King Jr., Nelson Mandela, or Desmond Tutu;

if you don’t like George W. Bush or institutions or big business or capitalism or Left Behind Christianity;

if your political concerns are poverty, AIDS, imperialism, war-mongering, CEO salaries, consumerism, global warming, racism, and oppression and not so much abortion and gay marriage;

if you are into bohemian, goth, rave, or indie;

if you talk about the myth of redemptive violence and the myth of certainty;

if you lie awake at night having nightmares about all the ways modernism has ruined your life;

if you love the Bible as a beautiful, inspiring collection of works that lead us into the mystery of God but is not inerrant;

if you search for truth but aren’t sure it can be found;

if you’ve ever been to a church with prayer labyrinths, candles, Play-Doh, chalk-drawings, couches, or beanbags (your youth group doesn’t count);

if you loathe words like linear, propositional, rational, machine, and hierarchy and use words like ancient-future, jazz, mosaic, matrix, missional, vintage, and dance;

if you grew up in a very conservative Christian home that in retrospect seems legalistic, naïve, and rigid;

if you support women in all levels of ministry, prioritize urban over suburban, and like your theology narrative instead of systematic;

if you disbelieve in any sacred-secular divide;

if you want to be the church and not just go to church;

if you long for a community that is relational, tribal, and primal like a river or a garden;

if you believe who goes to hell is no one’s business and no one may be there anyway;

if you believe salvation has a little to do with atoning for guilt and a lot to do with bringing the whole creation back into shalom with its Maker;

if you believe following Jesus is not believing the right things but living the right way;

if it really bugs you when people talk about going to heaven instead of heaven coming to us;

if you disdain monological, didactic preaching;

if you use the word “story” in all your propositions about postmodernism—

if all or most of this torturously long sentence describes you, then you might be an emergent Christian.*

What About Global Warming?

Like some of you, I've heard about this thing called Global Warming.

What to think of it? According to some, it is a huge crisis; to others it is an overblown scam.

Al Gore earned a Nobel Peace Prize for promoting the dangers of GW, and for suggesting solutions.

But who are the ones providing the other side of the story?

Greg Shoup, a local weatherman, has his own blog where he entered this interesting post about GW. The conclusion? It's a SCAM!

I'm trying to stay open-minded about GW, but here is what concerns me more: pollution. Pollution is supposedly a contributor to GW, but energy conservation and reduction of our carbon footprint gets more attention. Reducing pollution of air, water, food, dirt, and animals is alot more tangible than carbon footprints. I"m all for reducing pollution, but I'm not sure how convinced I am of global warming...yet.

Having a Hard Time Forgiving? Get Wisdom...

You can't whitewash your sins and get by with it; 

you find mercy by admitting and leaving them.
Proverbs 28:13

Overlook an offense and bond a friendship; 

fasten on to a slight and—good-bye, friend!
Proverbs 17:9

Keep vigilant watch over your heart; 

that's where life starts.
Proverbs 4:23

Okay, so you know you must forgive. And when you are honest, you want to forgive others. The big things and the little things.

But how do you know what to do and say? If it was just as easy as going up to the other person and saying "I forgive you", you'd have done it. But somehow you know there is more to it than just saying those three powerful words. But what?

There are alot of things to be said as an answer for that question, but the one I want to focus on is this: Wisdom.

God's Wisdom, to be specific.

How do we get it? Here are a couple of ways: Scripture is a good start.
Torah is God's Wisdom for the new nation of Israel.
The Writings of Job, David, Solomon, and Ruth are sources of wisdom of how God's People sought to live in reality, obedient to the LORD of the Universe.
The Prophets reveal wisdom in how God works, what he wants from people, and how far he is willing to go to help people live right with Him and their Neighbor.
The Gospels tell the story of Jesus - whose every move exuded wisdom, whose every word and instruction exuded wisdom, who's ever reaction and response exuded wisdom.
The Epistles are letters of Paul, Peter, James, John and Jude - letters rooted in wisdom to Christians on how to think, act, live in the midst of a difficult and hard reality.

Another way to get wisdom: choose a wise pastor, choose a wise friend, choose a wise neighbor to examine your heart, your motives, your attitudes, your desires. You need help understanding the Wisdom of Scriptures, and you get wisdom from those who understand more than you. So be willing to make a new friend, or to get to know your pastor better, and get wisdom.

One last way: along with the Wisdom of Scripture and of Godly Christians, you get wisdom from experience - learning from your past can be a good source of wisdom. When it comes to forgiving: you'll probably note from your past that when you do forgive, you give the relationship a chance to heal to some degree and move forward in health and goodness. Or, you'll note that many times you did not forgive, and how those relationships have either withered or worsened. Learn from your past: tis better to forgive than forge ahead in bitterness.

Wisdom gives us perspective on our own need for mercy, and thus some reflection on how to give it to others.

Wisdom gives us understanding on what to overlook, and how to make friends out of those who have hurt us.

Wisdom gives us promise and warning: enlarge your heart through forgiveness, lest you shrink your heart through resentment.

There are many proverbs about mercy, forgiveness, and making amends...find some that help you and seek ways to live it out. Today.

Bottled Water and High Gas Prices

It seems kind of silly to complain about high gas prices if you also purchase bottled water.

A month ago, on NPR Science Friday, I listened in on an interview with various water experts about the current H20 crisis. Half-way through the interview they opened it up to callers with their questions. Unsurprisingly, someone asked about the ridiculous business of bottled water. It's ridiculous because of the cost we are willing to pay for the convenience of bottled water, ridiculous because of the environmental impact caused by the creation of, transportation of, and disposal of bottled water, and ridiculous because of the "fears and beliefs" people accept by which they buy bottled water in bulk.

The other night I went to Scotts and purchased a 24-pack of non-brand bottled water for $4. I brought them home, and for whatever reason began to feel guilt over my purchase. I pulled out our water utility bills from last year to figure out how much it would've cost me to fill 24 water bottles out of my tap. Based on my calculations, it would've cost me $.04 to fill all those bottles. I paid 100 times that amount for the convenience of someone else to reverse osmosis the water and put it in a yet unused plastic "disposable" bottle. That, my friends, is ridiculous.

According to the interview, it takes about four bottles of water to make one bottle of water: this includes making the bottle, purifying the water, and transporting the bottle. This is a waste of water for mere convenience. Considering the rapidly developing water crisis in the West, and the lack of clean drinking water in underdeveloped nations, what business do we have wasting water on bottled water?

What are the benefits of bottled water? The taste? The convenience? The health factor? All nonsense. Ridiculous. How hard is it for you to purchase your own reverse osmosis machine and wash out and reuse a fashionable water bottle? And the health factor? Most people are not going to get dehydrated throughout the day because they don't have a convienient disposable water bottle next to them every waking hour.

We would be less reliant on foreign oil if we quit using plastic water bottles at the rate we do. We'd have lower gas prices too. And our budget would ironically be freed up to better accommodate rising gas prices.

But of course, who in their right mind would want to live life less conveniently?

Our Duty to Love Those We See

For to be able to love a man in spite of his weaknesses and errors and imperfections is not perfect love; it is rather to be able to find him lovable in spite of and together with his weakness and errors and imperfections. pg 156

...this discussion is about the duty of finding in the world of actuality those we can love in particular and in loving them to love the men we see. When this is the duty, the task is not: to find - the lovable object; the the task is: to find the object already given or chosen - lovable, and to be able to continue finding him lovable, no matter how he becomes changed. pg 158

...the holy God is gracious and therefore always points away from himself, saying, as it were, "If you wish to love me, love the men you see. Whatever you do for them you do for me."

God is too exalted to be able to accept a man's love directly, to say nothing of being able to find pleasure in what pleases a fanatic. pg 158

If anyone says "Corban" of the gift by which he could help his parents, that is, that it is intended for God, this would not be well-pleasing to God.

If you want to show that it is intended for God, then give it away, but with the thought of God. If you want to show that your life is intended as service to God, then let it serve men, yet continually with the thought of God. pg 158-9

How do you help save a marriage?

This is the question I've been trying to answer lately...alot.

It's a good question, but it does me no good to keep asking it...I must find some good answers. Thanks to so many men and women who also are asking that question, there are alot of good answers out there. There are many that I have found, one in particular has been very helpful.

Divorce Busting is a book and organization started by Michele Weiner-Davis in her effort to stop divorces. She's brilliant, passionate, and really good. Click here for a series of really good articles, tips to help you help a couple save their marriage.

If you have any friends who are getting a divorce, thinking about it, or possibly headed there, if you see it, and care about it, know that you can do something about it. You may not know what to do, but if you check out the Divorce Busting material, you will be very encouraged and better equipped in the basics.

I work hard to increase my knowledge and skills to better help couples save and improve their marriage. If I can do it, so can you. It's not a matter of intelligence or talent, but of will and heart. If you see a need, and it moves you, there is something you can do.

Oh, and if you want, I have some of her books available in my study as well as in the Anchor Library. And you can buy them on Amazon.com, used, for an affordable price. Not that price should keep you from buying a book that could help you help a friend save his or her marriage.

What to do about politics...

Condi Rice as VP? That's one of the most interesting possibilities yet to emerge amongst the Republican Party.

But...there is not much I know about her. I'm sure if she gives indications of interest, the media will help us get to know her. Sort of. Like Mike Huckabee, they'll publish some stuff, but not the kind of useful stuff that you can use to weigh meaningful decisions. I guess to get that information, one has to do your own digging. But isn't digging the job of journalists?

But if I was going to do my own digging, how much energy should I personally put into my political interests? How much does politics really matter? People who have power, influence, money, and ambition will seek high political office, so what difference does my political interest or vote really matter? Is there a better use of my time and energy?

The men and women I'd really like to serve our country are either too busy doing good work elsewhere, or they don't think they could do good work in government, or for some of them, they don't want to use their talent for such a thankless, grueling, and cheap job.

As far as I know, there are some good men and women who serve in the political arena in a local, state, and federal level. But not enough. But my voting is not really the difference maker. What makes the difference is the kind of people who choose to use their skills and enter the arena.

A new book by Shane Claiborne has some strong words for those who rely too much on politics to make the difference that Christians want to see in the world. Pick any realm that the government is involved in: the economy, health and human services, transportation, environment, etc: the chronic problem is the human element. Christians want to help humans receive a changed heart that loves one another as our Creator God loves us. Not a mushy, soft-skinned kind of love, the the one marked by strength, loyalty, integrity, generosity, sacrifice, atonement, forgiveness, patience, goodness. What will help fellow-citizens serve their country with that kind of heart? What role does the government have in helping change human hearts?

I'll likely vote for somebody...whoever is elected will be responsible for decisions with enormous implications for the next generation. No pressure...

What's Your Luggage?

This morning at Anchor we used a Rob Bell Nooma film as part of our teaching on forgiveness. You can preview it here: Luggage/07.

Forgiveness is a good topic during the Easter Season; it's at the heart of why Jesus lived, died and was resurrected. We may not always be clear on our doctrine, on the chronology of Christ's life, or the meaning behind all the stories, but we are usually pretty clear on our need to be forgiven by others. We are always clear when we know we want someone to forgive us, but usually we fear that they won't.

But what about when you are the one who needs to do the forgiving?

In my life there are a handful of "things" that I harbor in my heart, grudges, resentment, disappointments, irritations, even anger and bitterness toward others who have not done to me what I wanted or feel I deserve. Maybe you are a better person than I am and you do not harbor these things. Instead of holding it in, you let people know how you feel, you don't take nothing from nobody...

Two things from the film that stuck with me: in forgiving others, in letting go their debt, I'm the one how is being set free. I'm the one letting the grudge go, I'm the one erasing my resentments, and my heart is glad for it.

The other thing: I'll know I've forgiven "that person" when I can genuinely wish them well.

R.T. Kendall, in his book Total Forgiveness, does a good job of spelling out this concept in some helpful details. Wishing them well, or blessing them, is not only to be our first response to those who have sinned against us, it is also God's disposition towards us. This is idea is not new...but it is connecting with me in a new way.

Who do you need to forgive?

What's keeping you from forgiving your friend or family member?

What do you need to forgive? Little everyday things? Big hurtful things?

"Father, forgive us our sins as we forgive those who sin against us."

Horton Hears a Who

Tara and I took the Emma, Levi and Isaac to the Huntington 7 for their very first movie theatre experience. It was alot of fun!

They were all grins from the moment we walked in. The seats were a bit big for Levi and Isaac, so they sat on the edge of their seats during the previews. It was a bit chilly in there, so Levi sat on my lap for most of the movie, which was kind of neat.

And we all thoroughly enjoyed the Dr. Seuss movie. Though we've read the book many times, we sat riveted throughout the whole movie. Of course all the kids ate all their popcorn before the movie even started! But they stayed with the whole movie, Emma sat giggling and squirming in her seat most of the time - very cute!

It was a good movie mostly for the kind of character Horton is - an elephant who is faithful 100%! His commitment to people who are people no matter how small - well that is something I can rave about!

Gorbachev's Perestroika

Gorbachev is a Christian?

The article in the Telegraph briefly hints that the Russian Communist leader may be a follower of Christ. Apparently some think he's been a believer for many, many years. Some see this secret faith as one of many factors for his support of perestroika (practice of restructuring/reforming) and glasnost (wider dissemination of information) in the Soviet Union during the 80's.

St. Francis of Assisi, the famed saint who forsook his father's wealth to serve the Lord by embracing the poor, inspired Gorbachev, though is that the same as salvation?

Growing up in the 1980's, Communism was a big threat. Gorbachev was the enemy. But even then, as a middle schooler, there was something impressive about him. In his own way, he tried to increase the spiritual and economic welfare of the country. Rather than continuing the injustices of the SU, he sought to address them.

May Gorbachev continue to influence his motherland to embrace a form of perestroika and glasnost that fuels justice for the hardworking, mercy for the downtrodden, peace for the nation and abundance for its neighbors.

Another article at Christianity Today tries to dig deeper. I suppose there is more than one side to each story. But it's an interesting story.

Check out his personal website.