The thought occurred to me last Sunday in our house church discussion that we have maturity all wrong in our church culture. My premise was that maturity is really not at all about obedience, rather knowing right from wrong and knowing where to go when we are wrong. I still believe that we have maturity all wrong, but the obedience thing I was wrong on. Let me briefly explain.

In the "modern" church, similar to the Pharisaic movement in Jesus' time, maturity is about obedience to an external code of conduct, such as the law or whatever culturally-imposed regulations we place on our fellow church members. Of course Jesus came and put this to rest, emphasizing time and again that inner purity or morality was more important that outer obedience (Matthew 15).

True maturity, I then surmised, was not about this external obedience but about the inner things, the thoughts of a man's heart. I'm sticking with that. However, my thoughts on the disregard for obedience is totally unfounded. I had thought obedience was unneccessary due to the fact that it is impossible, no one can be totally obedient, so why try, and I thought a few Scriptures supported that. I don't know that I follow the commands of the Lord any better today than I did the week before I got saved. I do less external things that are wrong, but the thoughtso my heart remain impure. Why then focus on obedience? However, the NT writers continue to encourage us toward obedience, just one example being 2 John 1:6, "And this is love: that we walk in obedience to his commands. As you have heard from the beginning, his command is that you walk in love." Seeking to be obedient to the ways of the Lord is of utmost importance, balanced with knowing what to do when we do sin, as 1 John 2:1-2 states, "My dear children, I write this to you so that you will not sin. But if anybody does sin, we have one who speaks to the Father in our defense–Jesus Christ, the Righteous One. He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world." When we sin, we need to go to the Father who is there with open arms offering forgiveness and grace.

My conclusion then is that the definition of maturity has to change from external obedience to inner obedience to the ways of the Lord. The heart is more important than the actions. Furthermore, obedience is necessary, but we must also understand what to do when, not if but when, we are disobedient. We need to go to the Father, and be thankful for the atoning death of Christ which allows us this opportunity at grace.

Today's sign that the apocalypse is upon us: Lambeau Field needs "volunteers" (they are paid $8 an hour) to shovel the bleachers before Sunday's game. Last time they asked for this, they had to turn 300-400 people away. I'd like to know how many of these people called in sick to go and shovel Lambeau.

On a personal note, I believe I am narrowing down my personal vision and philosophy on my purpose in life. I have mentioned in this space before my heart for abused and neglected children. I also am seeing more the burden I feel for what we could call "21st Century Slaves." Finally, there are those in need around the world that I feel the need to support spiritually by spreading the Gospel and helping them grow in their faith.

I say this because I have always felt the need to be very strategic in my support and missionary travels. I feel it a travesty when money is wasted on various ministries that do nothing more than support their workers' incomes. More and more, my entire support and missionary travels are going to funnel to the three areas above that the Lord has given me a heart for rather than wasted on someone sitting on a college campus having brat fry's to bring people to a group and get them to say a prayer, or supporting the building of their own personal kingdom's. May the Lord guide me in this process.

Finally, I came up on the following web site and was impressed. Check it out:
http://freetheslaves.net/home.php

A couple of random thoughts tonight:

First, regarding the US being "stingy" in the aid effort, something that perterbed me greatly, the following quote is relevant:

Last year, American government provided 35 percent of worldwide relief aid. In private contributions, American individuals, estates, foundations and corporations gave over $240 billion to charitable causes in 2003, according to Giving USA Foundation. Privately, Americans give at least $34 billion overseas. Besides, these numbers overlook Americans' private contributions, which equal 2.2 percent of our GDP. Add the value of volunteer time contributed, and – even when calculated at minimum wage – that gives you another $100 billion.

One percent of GDP is supposed to be the golden number. American more than doubles it. Stingy? For more information, take a look at the link that I have attached.
http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=42266


Second, I feel like I have been hit over the head by a sledgehammer in the past two days. A good friend of mine opened up that his wife left him and he considered suicide. Right now it appears there is no hope. Prayer seems to be the only thing. I just can't fathom this or what he is going through.

Third...

On June 20, 2001, Yates drowned her five children one by one, then called police to her Houston home and showed them the bodies of Noah, 7, John, 5, Paul, 3, Luke, 2, and 6-month-old Mary.

I'm sure by now you have seen that Andrea Yates. Within the past year I saw a TV documentary on her and it was SCARY! Seriously, this woman was possessed, she said the devil told her to kill her children and I believe her. On the special they showed the bed and the tub, and I just can't get out of my mind what it must have been like for her oldest son, 7, to walk into the bedroom, see three of his brothers dead in the bed, walk into the bathroom, see his youngest brother lying dead in the water, and have his mom turn on him. It's nothing more than pure evil. Nothing more than pure evil...

I am an overly paranoid person and it really bothers me. I am constantly worried about losing my job, being sued and losing everything I have, thinking something bad is going to happen to me physically, and so on. As I was going through one of these phases this evening, thinkingof all the bad things that were going to happen to me, I felt that this is really due to a lack of trust or faith. A few Scriptures came to mind:

Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life...Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life? - Mt. 7:25a,27
But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own. - Mt. 7:33-34
But I will show you whom you should fear: Fear him who, after the killing of thd body, has the power to throw you into hell. - Luke 12:5

Of course there are many others. But the point is that these feelings are due to lack of faith. I worry about these things because I don't trust in the Lord as I should. Whom should I fear, not the things of this earth but the things of eternity. My focus needs to be there. Your prayers are appreciated.

I watch two movies in the past week that have really stuck with me. The first is "Garden State," which I have already referenced here. The second is "Beautiful Girls," an older movie which I had wanted to see again for some time. Two things stick out in my mind:

First, these movies were about real life. So many current flicks are about nothing but garbage, we watch them but really they just numb our minds. Movies like "Maid in Manhattan," "Men in Black," and even a recent favorite such as "The Bourne Supremacy" stick out in my mind. They just aren't real!

Second, what I took from these movies is the ability to love and how it's tough for us (me) to do. Whether is be just loving life, loving friends, or loving family, it's not always easy. For me it seems there is this hesitation at times to let love just go. Part of it is the male in me, part of it is sin, part of it is just me being me. But if these movies encouraged me in anything, it was to love, love those close to me, family, friends, co-workers, etc. God calls us to love, and love we must do. That is something I'm going to focus on more and see where it takes me. It may hurt at times but I think in the end it will be very edifying.

I continue to be amazed at the blame God has received for the death toll in the recent tsunamai. For a society that really doesn't believe in God (you're right, 92% of us do, but in reality we don't believe in the God of the Bible) we are quick to put the blame on Him any time something bad happens.

If the Book of Job teaches us anything, and it does teach us a lot, it's that the old notion of retribution theology, where goodness results in prosperity and wickedness leads to suffering, is not valid. A popular doctrine in ancient Mesopotamian culture, God eliminated this way of thinking and application of retribution theology, where the blame was placed on the sufferer and they could only accept the fate hurled on them by the "unfathomable gods." Job was clearly an example of where this was of thinking is wrong, as we the reader get a sneak peak behind the scenes at the beginning of the book and note that Satan was the cause of the hardships. God is not to blame, Satan is the menace and the root of all evil.

Of course, balance does come into effect here, as the covenant between God and the Israelites did set forward this retribution theology, and Dt. 28 wrote of the blessings for obedience and curses for disobedience. This can be seen as a governing principles of the workd, but not an absolute, as the story of Job attests to.

I see so many like Job in the world today, they enter our churches and workplaces every day. We (I) judge them immediately, accusing them of some wrongdoing, leading to their plot in life. We (I) need to get deeper into the situation before casting judgment of wrongdoing on such modern-day Jobs, lest we (I) fall to the same judgment as Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar.

Of course, Satan and sin are the cause of the death toll in the Indian Ocean and other places around the world. After the sin in Genesis 3, the world was thrown into chaos, and we are now experiencing the labor pains Jesus told us would come. Amen, Come Lord Jesus, Come!

I just finished the movie "Garden State." I enjoyed it, although I'm not sure what the point was. What I got out of it was to live and enjoy life, to let yourself love, and to laugh off the bad in life.

This falls in line with one of my main goals for the New Year, which continues to be that of living the Kingdom life. Although I am still trying to figure out what that means, one of the things that has popped into my mind lately was not to take life too seriously. Obviously, there are things in life to be taken seriously, relationships, family, life with Christ, etc. But then there are things that we can take too seriously that we get off track on our journey. Work is one. People are another. People are people, some are good, some are bad, we must take the good with the bad. Enjoy the good, laugh off the bad. I think one of my themes is going to be to laugh more and enjoy the good more while not worrying so much about the bad. Does that make sense?

I've always had a deep heart for parents in such areas as the Sudan and other third world countries as they seek to provide for their children. We hear the stories of their children getting sick and the family leaving everything and embarking on a three or four day journey to the nearest clinic with the hope that maybe something can be done to help their child. More often than not, the child is dead or beyond help by the time they arrive.

My heart for these parents has grown even more over the past day and a half as my daughter has become very sick and has thrown up almost a dozen times and just lies around sleeping. While I do not fear for her life, I feel for her spirit and her body as she seeks to fight this sickness and recover to her old self. I also feel so thankful that I am surrounded by wonderful health care that is a three or four minute drive from my house where she will receive the proper treatment she needs.

I am thankful that we are blessed with the society we live in and my prayers go out to those parents not as fortunate as I. What have I done to deserve these blessings from the Lord?

I also can't help being overly-cynical at the way people go about spending over this season. Now I don't care if people who can afford it spend a million dollars on Christmas, what gets me is those who don't have it who try to make it up by just going into extreme debt this time of year. And the useless gifts people buy...it's that whole philosophy of trying to buy the love of your children. Last year the local newspaper had a debate about whether there whould be a Wal-Mart in one of the smaller cities in the area. One person wrote in and said there should be because every Christmas they had to drive 45 minutes to the next-closest Wal-Mart to buy Christmas presents and couldn't afford to go anywhere else because with the large amount they spend Wal-Mart saved them money. They noted spending well over $1000 dollars. I'm sorry, but if the only place you can afford to shop is Wal Mart and you are spending well over $1000 on Christmas, you need to tone down a little. Or maybe your children really need that "Cow Pie" game of the life-sized Minnie Mouse or every movie you can find to put them in front of the TV all day.

Every year I show the movie "I am Sam" with my students and after the fact ask them if they would rather have a parent like the character played by Michelle Pfeifer in the movie who buys their child everything but doesn't spend any time with him, or the character played by Sean Penn who has no money but spends all the time he can with his daughter. Almost to a person they answer with Sean Penn, and these are spoiled rotten little kids who are as selfish as they come. Need I say more.

Christians really need to give up the idea that Christmas has anything to do with the birth of Christ. It is really void of all meaning anymore, what with the consumerism that drives the culture we live in, we can fight and claw but in reality, we might as well just give it up. Maybe we can create our own alter holiday, the day after or something. Or maybe in October. I would bet a large figure of money that for well less than 10% of American Christians, Christmas is not tainted by consumerism, who are we kidding? Then we use the excuse that we don't want to keep this tradition from our children...yeah, like they aren't spoiled enough the way it is. (Shaq brought a truck load of bikes, PS2's, etc to the children in LA yesterday, how about food for their parents and college scholarships to break the cylce of depravity...forgive my cynicism.) To add to that, this holiday has pagan traditions, as Missler notes the following in his K-House news:

The date of December 25th, which was officially proclaimed by the church fathers in AD 440, was actually a vestige of the Roman holiday of Saturnalia, observed near the winter solstice, which itself was among the many pagan traditions inherited from the earlier Babylonian priesthood.

I'm sorry, I just can't do it, and that is why I have become the Scrooge of Christmas. Yet, as Vox Day points out, it doesn't matter, "For to us a child is born..." and that child would sacrifice Himself on a Roman cross to bring you and me in His Kingdom. Whether we celebrate it or not, it is there and for that I am thankful!