New Year, same messy package

I think New Years is one of my least favorite parts of the year, firstly its cold (at least in the Northern Hemisphere), and secondly New Years resolutions. I’m sure that a lot of people make a lot of great promises to themselves at New Years about the coming year, and beyond. However, why wait for a new year? Why not start as soon as you think of it. For instance, if I decide I need to start working out over the summer why wait for the new year, just do it. There is no reason to wait to improve yourself. I think that we have this mind-set that the new year is a fresh start, when in reality we have the same messily wrapped package as the year, before. We want our lives to be neat and orderly. Our very human nature doesn’t allow this.

I don’t mean this to be a downer by any means, I mean to really encourage you, the reader, to live life as well you as you can. John 10:10 says that Christ came that we may have life and life to the fullest, one translation says life overflowing. If we wait for the New Year to ‘live life’ to ‘improve ourselves’ are we really living life fully? If we believe that we can have a nice neat life are we living an overflowing life?

A Neat Little Package

Well 2009 is wrapping up (for some it’s a neat package for others not so neat), and 2010 looms in the not so distant future. I don’t normally take time to look back over my year or plan the next year, I’m not a big new years resolution guy, I just try to live life to the best every day. However, my 2009 year has been full of insane-ness. Those of you who have been with me on the ride know that Amy (who can now be followed on twitter @guamie1) and I moved to Yakima, WA to take a youth ministry position at a CMA church there. While there my brother Steve returned from his deployment to Afghanistan, a little beat up, but none the worse for wear. We didn’t last through the 6 month probation they promised us at Yakima before we were ‘released from our calling’. However while there we made some good friends and built a significant relationship or two with a few students, and had a great time. Literally the week after I wrapped up (in a not so neat package) my ministry there my brother Dan (who can also be followed on twitter @dtmepl) married Meghan Flinn (now Anderson) on August 1st, and I was privileged to be able to preside over the ceremony, I love doing weddings especially those I am close too. Not two weeks after that I was contacted by David Lawson from May Valley Alliance Church to interview and candidate for the Youth Pastor position there. After a quick process, a lot of prayer, and a few well placed hints from God I took the position. And now here I am in Renton, WA a place I had never heard of a year ago. SO as my year wraps up I would say that God has made it a messy package, but ya know, if it was neat what would I do next year. The only time I think I want God to wrap something neat for me is when I die. Because then the ‘here after’ is neat and glorious and bright and happy, and well you know. So this New Year Eve raise a glass to the messy little wrapped package the end of your year should be!

How neat or messy is your 2009 package?

Titles

So at breakfast this morning my family and I ended up talking about a training event for leaders that had a name that caused me to cringe a bit. The reason for the name after discussed made sense. However, first impressions are important even if they may not be accurate impressions. I guess it made me wonder if the titles we give Christian events and organizations should be strategically chosen to accurately and yet do not repulse those that have yet to join the Church. I read somewhere that the Bible is offensive enough without us trying to be offensive as well.

How strategic should we be about our program and organization titles?

The War on Christmas

“Focus on the Family’s Stand for Christmas site lets customers rank retailers. It has Gap and Best Buy listed as the most offensive and Bass Pro Shops and Cabela’s the most Christmas-friendly.” This quote from sphere.com by editor Steve Pendlebury kinda makes me cringe. Here’s why . . . this website is in response to the ‘War on Christmas’. This culture war that I guess is now an American tradition. I for one am all for saying ‘Happy Christmas’ or if you prefer the more American ‘Merry Christmas’ I like happy better personally. Anyway, there are a lot of PC (not personal computer, but they have problem too, because it’s not an Apple) that would rather you say Happy Holidays. This also is perfectly fine in my book, since we have Hanukkah, and boxing day in the mix too, not to mention New Years, and if you want to add Kwanza sure why not. But the site above is an extreme reaction. I might be one of the few Christians who is ok with the ‘War on Christmas’ but for a different reason. I think that we let the pop-culture desecrate the season by prolonging it and commercializing it, this view is nothing new and not the point here. The point really is how do we react in the reality of the ‘War’ is to eliminate the Christ from the holiday. I don’t think that rating stores and businesses is the way to go. We cannot expect the secular world to live the way we do, or celebrate Christmas the way we do or for the reasons we do. So we cannot rate them negatively for saying Happy holidays, since between November 26th and Jan 1st, there are a plethora of Holidays. Ease up, take a chill pill, and enjoy a holiday cookie . . . I mean Christmas cookie.

(Pardon the rant)

Seniors

Today I had the privilege of joining the Seniors from our church for their Christmas lunch at Old Country Buffet. The church staff joined them for this lunch, and I have to say, I was a little weary, because I hadn’t gotten to know them well yet. However, this lunch was a blessing. I think they loved to hear about what the youth are doing and growing. I was very encouraged by their words, their interest, and their ear. It was also a blast to just sit and listen to them tell stories about what they’ve done in their lives. Our seniors today are amazing people, that can impart great wisdom, and encouragement, and I constantly need reminding of this. So thank you to the May Valley Alliance Church Seniors Ministry for having me along!

Christmas Narrative

For almost as long as I can remember the Christmas narrative has started with the angel’s appearance to Mary and ended with the Magi showing up with their gifts. This is how I saw the Christmas story. It was a story of faith, struggle, and hope to be sure, and I was comfortable with it. This year, however, I have come to realized that the Narrative of Christ’s birth doesn’t start with the angel’s appearance, or end with the Magi, that perhaps is a chapter. With any Biblical narrative you cannot separate it from the rest of the narrative, we may be able to tell parts of it at a time, but if we remove it and don’t apply it along with the rest of the narrative, or show how it fits into God’s Grand Narrative, we miss something big. At May Valley Alliance Church this year, our Advent speakers have been tying the chapter of the Christmas Narrative into the larger context, including prophecies from Isaiah, references to the fall, creation, the crucifixion, and resurrection. Creating for those who attend our church a larger more full narrative. It has been interesting to see, and exciting to get a full picture this year.

A Confession 4 – Faith

I have been reading through the book of Hebrews the past few days, and I have to say, I forgot how much I like that book. There are some hard-hitting lines for sure, and I think that’s what I like. There was one verse this time that really stuck out to me, something I think I sub-consciously knew, but never really came to grips with. Hebrews 11:6 “It’s impossible to please God apart from faith. And why? Because anyone who wants to approach God must believe both that he exists and that he cares enough to respond to those who seek him.” It makes sense to me, but I don’t think I ever really applied it to my life. I am more like the father in Mark 9 proclaiming “I believe! Help me in my disbelief.” (v. 24) While I believe we are all like this to a certain extent, the point I want to make is that I never really make it to the second part. In Mark 9 when the man admits he has a holes in his faith, and needs help. Christ attributes the faith to heal his son to him. I just go around saying I believe, knowing that I have holes in my faith.

Specifically for the verse in Hebrews, I believe God exists, but most of the time I think I doubt “that he cares enough to respond to those who seek him.” I doubt he will respond to me. I wonder though, how many of us are like that? I wonder, if we all fully believes that God would respond to us how much more vibrant the American church might actually be. I don’t think I’ve solved that problem, just a thought.

Do you have holes in your faith?

“I’m Not a Babysitter”

Adam Lambert from American Idol appeared on ‘The Today Show” where he was interviewed about his performance at the AMAs. I was struck by the final statement in this clip, “I’m not a babysitter, I’m a performer.” While this is true, it still bothered me. I am not completely sure why. Maybe as a youth pastor who knows that teenagers that watch this performance will be influenced by it, and in a negative way in my opinion, I am just offended by his attitude. Do I expect to much of our stars to want them to ‘own up’ for their mistakes? I feel like the attitude that Adam has taken on is the attitude of a lot performers, actors, and artists today. They don’t care what people perceive they just want their message out there, and when people take offense to their message they get all offended. Should we expect our ‘entertainers’ to have a higher standard? Or do we as mentors, and parents need to open a dialogue with our kids and teens about what the culture is throwing at them?

What stance do you take?

The Old Covenant

So  I was reading Hebrews this morning. Specifically chapter 8. I came to verse 7 and it said this in the NASB, “For if the first covenant had been faultless there would have been no occasion sought for a second.” I scratched my head and said “what” in my head. I was baffled, I’ve read this before, but for some reason it never stood out to me. I began to ask myself the question, why were there faults in the first covenant? I am by no means an Old Testament scholar, by any stretch of the imagination, so this question may be answered. However, to me there seem to be only two conclusions. The first covenant was created imperfect by God so it would be over-shadowed by the new covenant that was perfect. Or, the old covenant was made imperfect by the Hebrew people who continuously broke the covenant. Perhaps some of your OT scholars can help me out, or even the casual theologian at that.

What makes the old covenant imperfect?

p.s. are pastors allowed to ask questions like this?

Church Family

Well Amy and I have been living in Western,WA for a little over two months now. We are feeling settled in and at home here. Still getting used to the wind and rain that they seem to have in excess here, but we’re coping. The big thing for me has been the church family. We are still getting to know them for sure, and because of a camp, and me being sick I was gone for two weekends. However, this family has embraced us, and anyone else who walks in the doors, more fully than any church that I have been apart of. We have had families in the churches in the past welcome and accept us, but it feels to me that this entire church family has welcomed us the fullest. What strikes me about this church is they seem to be trying to live out the church in Acts 2, where they are giving up items to others in needs, be it coats, clothes, money, or food. Since I’ve been sick I’ve had more people offer to bring over dinner than I can count, and I’ve taken up a few. It’s been great. I think we are far from knowing everyone at our church, but we are definitely beginning to feel at home here.