I will start off with this. I am a fan of Tim Keller.
I don’t always agree with him. But then I cannot think of anyone I always agree with. But I love several things about him more than I disagree with him in a few theological and practical areas.
1) I love that he wrote “The Reason for God” while he was a pastor in a church. I think that writers who are having to walk out the realities of their views in a local church context benefit greatly from those experiences. What you are thinking about and writing about has to connect with the daily lives of those you are sharing life with. There are certainly a number of very powerful writers that I truly enjoy that I stepped out of pastoral ministry. So, my appreciation for Keller’s path isn’t a condemnation of anyone else’s.
2) I love that Keller’s church, Redeemer Presbyterian is so heavily focused on serving New York City. Hope for New York literally mobilizes thousands of people to serve each year. I love that.
3) I love that Redeemer Pres. has managed to reach a very diverse group of ages and races. Personally, I don’t think I have done as good a job of that as Keller has.
Here, Keller speaks as a part of the authors@google series. He was there soon after the release of his book, The Reason for God, and is speaking to the main reasons why people would find reason to believe in God, and why others would not. I really enjoyed it.
Hope you do to! Please let me know if you have any comments/thoughts about what he was speaking about. I always love to hear what you are thinking!
Peace.
One of the things many people that I speak with strugle with is how to describe the good news, the gospel, of Jesus as our Messiah. One one hand you can make it very simple. He came, he died, he rose again. We are forgiven when we accept those truths. Quick, clear and to the point.
On the other hand you can easily make it so etherial that it feels almost impossible for someone who is not a seminarian to ever figure any of it out.
Honestly, I have been to both of those extremes.
What is left is a simple question that is not very simple at all. What is the good news? What is this hope that we who follow Jesus claim to have access to?
JR Woodward asked 50 people to try to describe what they thought the good news was. This group has activists, philosophers, artists, blue and white collar workers, authors, and yes, pastors and seminarians. We are from different walks of life, we are of different ethnicities, and we have different backgrounds. His question to all of us was the same; could we describe what the good news, the hope of Christ, is like? But he threw in two caveats; we had to address it as if it were being written up in our local newspaper, and we couldn’t go over 700 words.
Many months later it was thrilling to see the fruits of those descriptions bound up in the first release of Ecclesia Press, ViralHope: Good News from the Urbs to the Burbs (And Everything in Between). Take a look at the trailer, produced by the Brothers Nee.
Hello everybody.
I realize that I am not only being cliche, but redundant as I express my shock that so much of the summer has gone by already! So, there it is. Again.
I doubt it will be the last time either. 
This season of the year is always a bit of a unique one. A key group that [nlcf] reaches out to are college students, so the start of the fall semester is always a very busy one for us. But busyness isn’t the issue.
The start of fall signals the start of a season where we have very specific goals. Goals that we need God to step into and enable, or we simply won’t hit them. This fall is no different. And that is why this time of the year feels so unique.
This time of the year begs the question, “What if God doesn’t do his part in the way we are expecting him to?” Yes, we have a part to do in all this, but unless God shows up and does the heavy lifting, then we are stuck.
That question then leads to others, “Why didn’t he do his part? Did we misunderstand? Is he trying to show us that we are on the wrong track? Are our hearts wrong?” And a litany of questions like them.
What do we do when God doesn’t do what we thought he was going to do?
This question, like so many we have reflected on this summer, have so many levels to them, so many nuances, that we simply cannot reflect on them all. So, let’s try to go after what we can. There is one that I hear lurking underneath so many of the others in my own heart, but also in the hearts of those that ask similar questions. What does it say about God’s love for me when he doesn’t show up and do what I ask him to?
Not surprisingly, this one runs very deep, so let’s take a look. And let’s start in the chapter that many people — and commentaries — call the Hall of Faith, Hebrews 11.
I would strongly encourage you to read the whole chapter, as I am going to pick it up in verse thirty-two. And away we go…
32 “And what more shall I say? I do not have time to tell about Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, David, Samuel and the prophets, who through faith conquered kingdoms, administered justice, and gained what was promised; who shut the mouths of lions, 34 quenched the fury of the flames, and escaped the edge of the sword; whose weakness was turned to strength; and who became powerful in battle and routed foreign armies. 35 Women received back their dead, raised to life again.” Others were tortured and refused to be released, so that they might gain a better resurrection. 36 Some faced jeers and flogging, while still others were chained and put in prison. 37 They were stoned; they were sawed in two; they were put to death by the sword. They went about in sheepskins and goatskins, destitute, persecuted and mistreated– 38 the world was not worthy of them. They wandered in deserts and mountains, and in caves and holes in the ground. 39 These were all commended for their faith, yet none of them received what had been promised. 40 God had planned something better for us so that only together with us would they be made perfect.”
First, an apology. I thought this was scheduled to go up yesterday. Just realized it was not. My “I’m on vacation bad.”
So here we are.
We are on the verge of July, and while I know this is very cliché, I feel like I am always in disbelief that we have already come through this much of summer.
My family and I are visiting our Virginia Beach Leadership Training program for about a week and a half. I had the honor of speaking to a great group of emerging leaders last evening, very early this morning and then I will do so again tonight. This weekend I will be speaking at all five gathering of Coastal Community Church and also at Fuse. It is a great church and I always enjoy seeing them.
This week I would like to ask a very simple to state but tough to fully answer question.
Ready? Hang on, its coming in just a minute.
“Jesus came and told his disciples, ‘I have been given all authority in heaven and on earth. Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Teach the new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age.’” Matthew 28.18-20 NLT
Likely, everyone that is reading this post has heard this one before. Go and make disciples. And yes, that is the jist of it. But let’s unpack this a bit.
When Jesus spoke to his followers, his learners (that is what disciple means) he had lived his life here on earth without sin, had laid his life down and submitted to one of the most gruesome death processes that world knew, had taken the entirety of the weight of our human rebellion (past, present and future) upon himself and finally, had physically risen from the dead.
As a result, God the Father had given God the Son authority over everything. Jesus had access to all the power of the trinity and had reign over everything.
So when Jesus said,“I have been given all authority in heaven and on earth,” he meant it. It would be like your boss getting a huge promotion at work and they tell you, “I have the power to bring you up with me, and I am going to do it.” They have been given power and they are telling you how they intend to use it.
I have to say, I have LOVED hearing from everyone who has posted a comment or sent me an email. Please keep them coming. God is doing some very cool things through our doing some very simple things.
That being said, what I am also hearing is that there are a number of people who are starting to feel like they are behind on some aspect of the weekly focus, prayer or action step(s).
Cool. Let’s do this, let’s say that this is one of two things: a catch up week or a continuation of what you have already been doing.
If you are on it and rolling, then continue to roll. Continue to ask God for ways to demonstrate the God-flavoring that we are all called to be. Pray expectantly for opportunities (be they big or small) to chat with people about how you view God interacting in the world. Now remember, this isn’t just helping people understand their need for Jesus’ forgiveness and guidance. It certainly involves that, but it isn’t just that. Salt simply takes what it is on and brings out the flavor. Trust God to place you in situations and simply talk about what you notice.
This past week I was at a wedding and about half of one of the families was from Utah and were Mormon. At one point during the reception, I was talking with a couple of friends and the grandfather of the groom came up to me and asked me what I thought about marriage in heaven. I referred to a situation where some Pharisees were attempting to trick Jesus. In his answer, Jesus seems to pretty clearly say that in heaven we won’t have marriages. As hard as that seems to me to grasp, it seems like when we are fully present with God, we won’t be lacking for connection (either with Him or one another) and so marriage won’t be an issue. This is just one issue that Mormonism views differently from Christianity.
I have really been struggling with when/if I should write another book.
I have struggled for who knows how many hours over the topics and over the invasive nature of writing. It takes time, thought, prayer, struggle, time, time and time.
I happen to love my ministry role at [nlcf] and my family even more that that. So, Tracy and I have really struggled with this decision. I have a wonderful agent who has helped in my thought process about the book and has never really pushed me either way, several good friends who have helped me work through different ideas and timelines, so I feel like I have had every benefit I could ask for. But I still couldn’t decided what to do. A couple of weeks ago I decided I needed to take some more time to really decide. And through a number of different avenues, I think I have.
I wanted to share an amazing email I got from Bill (who asked that I change his name.) He is a minister (in a state that is farther west than Virginia) and is in ministry (of some type) :)
The reason I am sharing this email is that he states in it the exact reason I started writing the first book. If you are interested in reading what he said, take a look after the jump. I appreciate his giving me permission to do so. (more…)
If you are in the New River Valley area and would like some saweeeet Greek cuisine, stop by Souvlaki’s on College Ave in Blacksburg Wednesday night for dinner. Not only is the food excellent, but a portion of the proceeds will go to support [nlcf]’s Ukranian Kids project. C’mon… how do you say no to Ukranian orphans?
Just try to… you physically can’t.
If you find you can, watch the vid, then see.
Ukraine 09 – The Orphans from Robbie Poff | Highland Films on Vimeo.
And remember, they are pronounced, yee-rohs. Just helping you to not look lame at a Greek place.
Peace, Jim
Probably, if you are like me, you had never heard of George Rekers… until some pics taken at Miami International Airport on April 13th of this year.
To quote CBSNews.com in their coverage of the story… “he has long played a prominent role behind the scenes in the social conservative movement: A member of the founding board of the conservative Family Research Council, Rekers has authored books on how to ensure that children grow up straight.
A Baptist minister and former research fellow at Harvard University, Rekers has testified against gay adoptions and is on the board of National Association for Research & Therapy of Homosexuality, which “upholds the rights of individuals with unwanted homosexual attraction to receive effective psychological care.”
So, what do we make of ole George?
To me, there really are three questions that matter here.
1) Is he telling the truth?
2) If he is not, what are the implications?
3) Am I free to come to my own conclusions regarding homosexuality or does the bible speak into it?
As for question one, Is he telling the truth? my natural cynical default becomes a real issue. Now, realize that I am not calling myself a cynic. The definition of cynic from thefreedictionary.com -if you can believe anything is really free - defines a cynic as someone who believes that people are essentially cold, calculating and out for their own selfish interests. By that definition I would be a recovering cynic. I would categorize myself as more of a skeptic at this point. I can doubt things and people pretty easily,but it isn’t my default any longer. I am actually learning how to trust more people, more readily. That skepticism doesn’t mean I never believe anything that is tough to believe, it just means that to do so I need to feel like I have a reason for overriding my doubt. My doubt-button is easily pushed, if you will, sometimes helping me to see the truth through misleading stories, and sometimes causing me to question or reject what is actually true, just tough to believe.
Suffice it to say my doubt-button has been pushed on this one. What is tough here is that, in many ways, this feels like former Idaho Senator Larry Craig’s “I have a wide stance” type of story. A public figure that is caught
in a damaging situation and comes up with an explanation that seems too far-fetched to really be true. Probably all of our doubt buttons were lit up and blinking over that one.
But that doesn’t mean that everything that is tough to believe is wrong. It just means it is tough to believe.
Right?
Sure, it could be true. Rekers probably does need some help with luggage and whatnot, but getting help from a travel companion that advertises the ways he can help on Rentboy.com? I, probably like everyone else, look at that with more than a bit of skepticism.
As a follower of Jesus, and as one that hold the scriptures to be an authoritative voice, I am called by God to believe the best of others. Jesus challenges me to let my yes be my yes and my no be my no in my interactions with others and to try to believe that they are doing the same with me. That doesn’t mean I automatically take everyone’s word on everything they say (other sections of the scriptures, in particular several in Proverbs, wisely call that foolishness). So, I try to give the benefit of the doubt, as much as I can. My goal has become trying to see the world through God’s eyes. Trying to look more and more at things from his perspective and realizing, after reading this section of Matthew, how different his perspective and mine really is.
1 One day as the crowds were gathering, Jesus went up the mountainside with his disciples and sat down to teach them. 2 This is what he taught them: 3 ”God blesses those who realize their need for him, for the Kingdom of Heaven is given to them. 4 God blesses those who mourn, for they will be comforted. 5 God blesses those who are gentle and lowly, for the whole earth will belong to them. 6 God blesses those who are hungry and thirsty for justice, for they will receive it in full. 7 God blesses those who are merciful, for they will be shown mercy. 8 God blesses those whose hearts are pure, for they will see God. 9 God blesses those who work for peace, for they will be called the children of God. 10 God blesses those who are persecuted because they live for God, for the Kingdom of Heaven is theirs. 11 ”God blesses you when you are mocked and persecuted and lied about because you are my followers. 12 Be happy about it! Be very glad! For a great reward awaits you in heaven. And remember, the ancient prophets were persecuted, too.
That was one of the first times that I realized that, not only could my take on what I am experiencing not be right, but that I might completely miss that it is wrong. That my perspective was more about self-protection than about truly interacting with those I am around.
Honestly, it wasn’t until I started trying to live in that way that I realized just how little trust I was willing to give anyone. How much I expected them to be dishonest with me. As I have been trying to live in a more trusting way towards others, a few things have happened that I didn’t expect.
I have become more accepting of others, regardless of how much we agree about or how well we get along. My cynicism caused me to have an almost constant internal sneer towards others. Internally I pitted myself against them, was always looking for their angle, was waiting for the thing they were hiding to come into the light. As I have walked away from that, I find I am much more interested in the people I am around. Much more accepting and open to hearing from them and learning from them.
Now, there have been a number of times that I have been taken advantage of as well. The process hasn’t always been rosy. But through those and through a continuing pursuit of God, I have been trying to re-calibrate my skepticism. Not get rid of all of it, we don’t live in a world that allows that, but to allow it to speak into my decisions when it is right to do so and not allow it to drive almost all of them.
All that being said , it seems very hard to believe that nothing was happening. Either way, I am wanting to pray for George Rekers. Either he has inadvertantly stumbled into a situation that is almost impossible to believe could be truly innocent, and as a result is suffering for something he never did; or he has just had a part of his life and soul that he clearly has been trying to cover be exposed. Both would be horrible to live through.
For the rest of us, I suggest we should do four things in the midst of all this. First, remember to be praying for George and in particular, his family. Second, to allow this to be a cause for pause. A time to reflect on how skeptical/cynical we are towards those around us. Third, to seek to live lives that are fully known. To have at least a couple of people that we have no secrets from. And fourth, to only use family members as luggage-hefting travel companions.
Please tell me your thoughts on all this.
In a few days we will discuss what the implications would be for a Christian, reparative therapy advocate to be found to have been involved in at least one homosexual sexual relationship.
Peace, Jim
As many of you know, I am one of the pastors of a church that is primarily made up of people thirty years old and younger. As such, I get to be around a ton of single people and young married people, most of which do not have kids.
That last part is really key.
I get razzed quite a bit for a few things in [nlcf]. I get razzed because I am functionally bald, because I am turning the corner on forty and primarily because for the last eight or nine years, I have driven a minivan. Three of them to be exact. Now I claim that our new Mazda 5 isn’t really a minivan – I mean, it was driven by a bad guy in 24! But no one is buying it…
So, being the mature adult I am, I tease back and tell them that while my minivan days are on the wain, theirs haven’t even begun yet. This is when I inevitably hear the mantra… We won’t drive one of those, we will get an SUV.
Now, realize this, I am around A LOT of people that go through the early married years transition to the been married a bit longer and now have a few kids phase. Off the top of my head I can only think of ONE family that has stayed the We’re going to get an SUV course. Ryan and Lisa Hartsook, you get the prize.
Most couples follow this trajectory…
I will never have a minivan
Hmm… that is kind of a sweet looking minivan
Wow, you mean you fit the stroller, the playpen (excuse me, play garden as they are now sometimes called – say what you will, it has sides, it’s a pen), the booster seats and some toys back there?
Then the final step… you mean they can’t reach each other to fight?
When that happens, hang your heads cool people, cause a minivan is coming for you!
I have recently been razzing another [nlcf] staff couple who live two doors down from us, Steve and Amy Englund. They absolutely deny they will EVER own one.
I am not buying it.
My point in this whole rant is that, in six to ten years, this will be the Englunds. Mark your calendars. Steve and Amy, start saving up for your own personal Swagger Wagon…
We rock the SE not the SUV…
This past Sunday, The Roanoke Times ran a review of Should We Fire God?. Overall, it was a good and fair review, while certainly not the strongest the book has gotten. If you haven’t seen it, you can read it here. Here is a quote from the review that was very kind.
He writes in a personal tone and presents the message of redemption in a clear manner while interweaving his own story of disbelief. The book reads like a candid conversation with the author on a very difficult subject..
What is interesting is a blog the reviewer, Stephen Escalera, wrote about the final, edited version of his review. I am including one paragraph of his response to that final version.
While I am excited about having a review published in print, I am also very disappointed with the editing. As published, the book comes across as rather postmodern with perhaps only a hint of the gospel. However, the book is very strong on presenting the gospel and I said as much as originally written in my review. However, in the editing process, the key paragraph of the review was pared down to say next to nothing about the author’s message in his book. I’ve posted the paragraph as it was originally written, with all the bolded section indicating what was omitted:
You can read the rest of his thoughts here. Stephen just started following me on twitter (nlcfjim) and I am definitely following him as well. I would recommend his blog Eskypades as he has an interesting reading list and some very interesting thoughts on many of those books. I have only been able to peruse it a bit, but have liked what I have seen so far.
Just thought this was an interested look into the world of reviews.
For the record, I have no reason to think that the Roanoke Times had any ill motives in editing down Stephen’s review. The more writers I know and speak to, this is a pretty normal thing. Just another piece of the puzzle.
Peace, Jim
“This book oozes honesty about the doubts and anger we often feel when injustice occurs. The book not only made me laugh and brought me to tears, more importantly it caused me to think. SHOULD WE FIRE GOD? will appeal to people wherever they are on their spiritual journeys.”
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