The Genius of George Orwell...

Not too long ago I read 1984 by George Orwell, and the book was just scary prophetic.  At first I read it thinking, "wow, that's really good" but at some point I turned a page and thought, "okay, this is just too right on, and this isn't funny anymore!"

Quite profoundly, Orwell was looking at trends in 1948 and making predictions about the future.  Watching government control grow through the degradation of individuals and their individual freedom in his own time, Orwell understood the mechanisms a control state would have in place to oppress its people with impunity.

Cover for 1984

One of the most frightening of these mechanisms in 1984 was the party slogan "Freedom is Slavery."  At first I was confused as to how people actually applied this in our society today (the other two slogans, "War is Peace" and "Ignorance is Strength" aren't too hard to understand how they apply), but what this slogan is saying is actually cunning as all get-out.

It says to the masses, "Instead of being truly free, you people are merely free to be enslaved.  Whatever it is that enslaves you, wherever you find a lack of self-control within yourself, you are now free to give yourself over to that lack of self-control and/or to whatever else it is that binds you.  You are now free to be a slave to that thing that holds you back from becoming a truly powerful person."

Once I understood this slogan in Orwell's world, I saw it everywhere in mine.  This is now a battle cry in our society.  Basically people are finding themselves enslaved to all sorts of bad habits, lifestyles or character faults.  Rather than say, "I want to be free and will do anything to be free from this oppression in my life" people are saying things like "I want to be free to be a slave or at least live like one.  Leave me alone and give me the freedom to not have to change or bear any responsibility for doing so."

In so doing they are declaring in unwitting fashion "Freedom is Slavery" right along with Orwell's dystopia.

Thoughts on the Last Supper

Da Vinci's Last Supper was painted on the wall of the refectory (cafeteria) of the Holy Mary of Grace church in Milan, Italy.  Everyday when the monks gathered, they saw this painting and were reminded of the real Last Supper.  

There are so many wonderful things to meditate on in Communion services, but this wonderful piece of art showcases the moment where Christ told His disciples that one of them would betray Him.  Of all the truths to choose to think upon during Communion, this is the one Da Vinci's genius chose to depict.   

There was a traitor at the Last Supper, even with King of Glory Himself being present. 

I want close communion with God, to enjoy the freedom of relationship with Him that He purchased for me, and I'm glad to be reminded of that and feed on that joy when I celebrate Communion services. 

But Da Vinci has taught me that it's also good to remember that Christ chooses to dine with even the evil, traitorous ones that are in His life (don't we all have them?).  I should go and do likewise with others, AND be willing to let God love on me in all the places where my heart still wants to rebel against Him. 

Furthermore, let it be a backstop to my heart to know the judgment of God: that even though I sit and dine with Him today and receive His mercy, I must continue to choose His mercy and forgiveness and not my own self-righteousness as the way to salvation.  

A Little Study on Isaiah 1

No Bible Thumping Here:

This post is going to have a lot to do with the Judgment of God.  Let me begin by saying, I'm no Bible-thumper, and I don't like to emphasize this particular topic over God's mercy and His love.  That's because I just don't believe that the best way to motivate people is to tell them, "God will judge you."  The "fire and brimstone" preaching, in my opinion, usually only turns people away from God.  

However, I do think that from time to time, the simple awareness of God's Judgment, when it's happening/when it's not happening, and an understanding of His motivation behind His judgments is extremely helpful.  To that end, I'm writing this post, but with the disclaimer that you really need a book on this subject to even begin to adequately explain it.  

How Judgment Works:

Throughout the Bible, whenever God judges, you see several things in play: 

1. His judgments are always aimed at bringing His people back to Him.  It's never arbitrary or separated from His love.  It's like a parent who disciplines His children-though this example is of limited use because judgments are on a much more massive scale than spanking a child.

2. God always gradually steps up judgment.  He does not obliterate people groups in an instant because of a sinful act-that's always the last resort.  He steps up His judgments as people continually refuse to turn back to Him. 

3. This is always after He has reached out in love toward people repeatedly and after He has shown mercy and patience.  He always sends warning messages, either through signs and wonders or through prophets that speak a message of warning.  These messages are not always obvious to those who hear them (if you are hard of hearing, you won't hear what is obvious), but God warns clearly nevertheless.  

Isaiah 1 is a great example of some of these things in action:

"Where should I strike you next, as you persist in rebelling?  The whole head is sick, the whole heart diseased.  From the sole of the foot to the head there is nothing healthy, only wounds, bruises and festering sores that haven't been dressed or bandaged or softened with oil.  Your land is desolate, your cities are burned to the ground; foreigners devour your land in your presence; it's as desolate as if overwhelmed by floods."  -Isaiah 1:5-7

Here, God is in the midst of seeking to turn His people back, but they have repeatedly refused to repent.  He is now desperate ("Where should I strike you next...?") as any concerned parent would be with a child that is refusing to stop acting wickedly in spite of consistent discipline.

Judgment Starts with the House of God

Dore's Last Judgment

When God starts judging, Scripture says that He begins, not ends with His people (see 1 Peter 4:17).  Israel and His Church by extension, are the first to be judged because they should know better.

Continuing in Isaiah 1, God demonstrates His feelings toward hypocrisy.  If the actions His people take outside of the temple/church are not consistent with what they do inside then God doesn't really care too much for the so-called worship services of His people toward Him.  Not caring is actually a bit of an understatement-He actually says that He ceases to enjoy them!

"New moons, Sabbaths, calling convocations-I can't stand evil together with your meetings!  Everything in me hates your [religious] festivals; they are a burden to me-I'm tired of putting up with them.  

When you spread out your hands, I will hide my eyes from you; no matter how much you pray, I won't be listening; because your hands are covered with blood.

Wash yourselves clean!  Get your evil deeds out of my sight!  Stop doing evil, learn to do good!" 
-Isaiah 1:13b-16a.  

Angry God Face!

These passages can seem a little bleak, but even in the midst of this passage (there are many other passages to back up this point too) we see that God is willing to be patient with a people that are trying to go in another direction when we see Him say, "learn" to do good.

It does take time to learn and develop the practice of doing good, especially when evil has been handed down to us from previous generations.  Thankfully God knows this and is more than willing to work with us.  Additional parts of this same chapter (see Isaiah 1:18-20) drive this point home.

Conclusion:

I think it's really important for the church to study the Judgment of God so that we know when we are being judged and how we can respond to it properly.  In such cases I believe we will be pushed into taking action that will bring new relevance and power to our worship services as well as revival in our personal lives.

Toxic Charity (Book Review)

I just recently read this excellent book, and I thought it was so impactful to my thinking that I've decided to recommend it to nearly every person I know.  I bought it because I was searching for how to do a better job at giving to the poor.  I know Jesus says, "Give to all who ask" but I was deeply troubled by the fact that outright giving to some would be tantamount to enabling.  That said, I feel I got an answer through my reading of Toxic Charity, but I also got a lot more than I bargained for.  (My conclusion was pretty basic, give to all who ask, but be careful what you give).

Lupton's thesis states that charity, without building self-reliance into people, builds dependency that results in people (and their surrounding cultures) to gradually become worse off and poorer than they would have been without the aid.  Instead of freely giving all the time, there should be a gradual transition from dependency to development in people.

A Few Eye-Openers: 

1. Africa, after receiving over 1 TRILLION in foreign aid is poorer and less literate, with a stagnated life expectancy.  

2. Lupton shares a personal anecdote about an inner city dad basically being emasculated when "charity tree" givers show up with free presents at Christmas. Why?  Because it's shameful to him as a man that he can't provide for his family.

3. Local mosquito net companies in Africa going out of business because so many are given away by Westerners. 

4. A Nicaraguan pastor's irritation with missionaries that are "...turning [his] people into beggars." 

It's not all about the problems though.  Perhaps the best thing about the book is that the author, Lupton, who has over 40 years of experience working with the urban poor, doesn't just whine and complain about toxic charity-he also offers viable solutions so as to create life-giving charity on both a large and small scale.  

One WARNING I would give about reading this book: you've got to read the whole thing to understand Lupton's argument.  I kind of felt that he was pretty one-sided for 3/4ths of the book, but in the final quarter he balances out his argument to be very redemptive of the practices we currently have in many charitable organizations.  

The Point of the Journey

Sometimes when we look ahead at what we're called to do, we can look up and down the "mountain" of our calling and say, "I'll never make it, that summit is just too high for me!"

Based off of where you are and your current perspective, chances are that you are accurate.

Right now, you probably don't have the muscles, discipline and dexterity needed to climb the mountain ahead of you.




But that's precisely why you've got to start climbing.  

Once you start moving, you begin to strengthen your lungs, your legs and your resolve.  You stretch and reach further and become more flexible as you go.  Even your grip becomes tenacious as each and every finger gets stronger and tougher.  You learn how to navigate the tricky spots so that you no longer get stuck at places you once consider impasses.  Long reaches that once took you hours to figure out (or things you even had to move around) now become simple exercises that you've done hundreds of times before.  By the time you reach the summit, you'll be as tough and nimble as a mountain goat-completely agreeable to living at the top.

In short, the point of having to take the journey to where you are going is to make you ready to abide in the place where you'll be staying.

So take heart and begin your long journey at the base of the mountain you are meant to conquer.

An Appetite for Reading.

I currently have about 10 books that I’m reading.  This is not an accident; neither is it a rare occurrence.  I almost always have about 10 books that I’m reading.  Each book takes months for me to read because I read a little bit, maybe even a lot, intensely for a short period of time.  Then I get bored with that book and move on to another, leaving the first book unfinished.  I usually continue this process through a cycle of 10 books (whatever the reason, that’s about the average).  Some books stay on my “currently reading” pile for over a year. 

I’m not saying that this practice doesn’t have its disadvantages.  It was about useless while I was going to school because I could hardly ever stomach to read books straightway through for my classes.  But now that I’m free from the bonds of my educational servitude, I’m reading whatever I want, whenever I want, and it’s most delightful and in my opinion, more effective in a lot of ways. 

The huge advantage of this is that there’s never a day that goes by that I don’t read.  I’ve learned that I’m always in the mood to read, it’s just a matter of what I read that comes into question.  Therefore, I read strictly according to mood, according to the dictates of the a

ppetite of my brain’s desire.  I sometimes ask, “What am I mentally hungry for today?”

As a result, military history today might turn into a study on the Catholic Popes Past tomorrow.  As much as possible, I try to avoid “disciplining” myself to read stuff that seems like it would be “good” for me to read as I don’t think there’s too much profit in that kind of lifestyle.  I’ll just end up reading less (bad), remember less (very bad) and enjoy it less (also bad) if I try. 

And let us not, I say, underestimate the importance of enjoyment when it comes to reading (or a great many other activites for that matter).  I could be wrong, but I believe that retention is deeply tied to enjoyment.  This theory isn’t exactly rocket science, but I believe that it stands up to common sense.  Think of movies you’ve seen.  You remember the ones you like, but the ones you couldn’t care less for—well they probably don’t come up in the memory that much anymore.  Our memories seem to care for things that our hearts care about too. 

This is why I read 10 books at a time—it’s hugely important to me that when I read, I enjoy it.  Perhaps this is why school learning frustrated the dickens out of me and why I feel like I hardly remember most of what I read for school!  AUGH!   That’s just me though.  I know that, for some people, my reading practices drive them absolutely insane.  However, for those who struggle to read through a book, or to read regularly, I invite you to try this.  It works and it’s actually loads of fun!

An Entire Symphony Written for One Instrument!

You really should hear this... but don't just hear it, marvel at the coordination it takes to move your hands and feet all at the same time in rhythm!  

This song comes from a dude named Widor who wrote symphonies for the Organ (because let's face it, it's the only instrument that could single-handedly play a symphony).  This is the Tocatta from Symphony #5.  BLAM! 

And just so you know, it was the postlude (music they play at the end) at my wedding.