You Have To Admit, It Would Be Pretty Cool
"Daddy?""Yeah, bud?""Sometime? Can we plant a ball tree?""...""Daddy?""...huh?""Sometime? Can we plant a ball tree?""Um. What's a ball tree?""A tree! And balls grow on it! And you can pick them and play with them and some fall off!""Oh. Well. Yeah."I don't know. Can't hurt. I mean, at worst his 7th grade Earth Science teacher will have a cow.
ZOE Fallout
It was such joy to see all of our ZOE friends this weekend...coughs, colds, flu, cancelled and delayed flights aside. I didn't get nearly enough time to catch up with them, but the moments we had were wonderful.It was a treat to meet Josh and Tanya, even if I crossed up all kinds of signals about getting together for lunch on Sunday. (Josh, I just found out last night that you guys went to class after church, (duh) and that's why I couldn't find you...and probably why you couldn't find me. As the kids say, my bad.) I also got to chat up young Andy Power and talk about his big brother. All in all, ZOE weekends always remind me of heaven...except in heaven we'll have all the time we need to catch up and build eternal relationships.Randy Harris' class knocked me flat. All my plans for last night's Adult Education meeting with the elders went right out the window as he challenged us toward real discipleship. It must be nice to be able to fly in somewhere, mess everything up with the bold truth, and then fly back out. I gotta get me a gig like that.The weekend also featured one of the greatest examples in my life of God supplying a very real, very obvious answer to prayer. More on that another time.
Worship
The ZOE Group comes to town tomorrow! I look forward so much to this one weekend of the year. It's a wonderful family reunion. But more than that, it's a special time devoted to study and worship. There was a time in my life when I truly didn't know what worship was. I went through certain rituals that I probably would have labeled as "worship," but I only passed time with them because it was what I thought I should be doing. Over time came maturity, awakening, and finally a genuine relationship with my Creator that not only demanded true worship but gave me great joy in it.I'm so grateful that ZOE combines periods of study with worship because the two are inseparable. Worship without study (in Dallas Willard's words) "is of limited value and can be very dangerous. We may develop 'a zeal for God, but not according to knowledge.' (Rom. 10: 2)" Study without worship is probably even worse. Few of us have to think too hard to come up with examples of it. In either case, we are talking about acts of pride. If I worship God without trying to grow closer to Him through study of His Word, it may begin as an outward expression of love, but it will invariably turn inward, continuing on only because it feels good to do so. And if my study progresses without praise and worship, then my true motivation is to know more than someone else, to be right where they are wrong. If my worship is pure and real, then it will drive me to know more about the Being I worship and to draw closer to Him. If my study is selfless, how can I not praise??In his book, "A Long Obedience in the Same Direction," Eugene Peterson uses Psalm 122 to teach about the importance of worship. I rejoiced with those who said to me, "Let us go to the house of the Lord." Our feet are standing in your gates, O Jerusalem. Jerusalem is built like a city that is closely compacted together. That is where the tribes go up, the tribes of the Lord, to praise the name of the Lord according to the statute given to Israel. There the thrones for judgment stand, the thrones of the house of David. Pray for the peace of Jerusalem: "May those who love you be secure. May there be peace within your walls and security within your citadels." For the sake of my brothers and friends, I will say, "Peace be within you." For the sake of the house of the Lord our God, I will seek your prosperity.Here's the Psalm from Peterson's "Message" version:When they said, "Let's go to the house of God," my heart leaped for joy. And now we're here, O Jerusalem, inside Jerusalem's walls! Jerusalem, well-built city, built as a place for worship! The city to which the tribes ascend, all God's tribes go up to worship, To give thanks to the name of God - this is what it means to be Israel. Thrones for righteous judgment are set there, famous David-thrones.
Pray for Jerusalem's peace! Prosperity to all you Jerusalem-lovers! Friendly insiders, get along! Hostile outsiders, keep your distance! For the sake of my family and friends, I say it again: live in peace! For the sake of the house of our God, God, I'll do my very best for you. Peterson's observation that "worship is the single most popular act in this land" took me by surprise. But it's true (...from a certain perspective...). On any given Sunday, there are more people at worship than at any other single activity. But why? And to what end? The "Message" translation brings out three concrete reasons to worship.Worship gives us a workable structure for life. It takes things that seem out of place, a life that seems bereft of order, and gives it a framework based on what is real. When I praise God, I remember Who is in charge and what is truly important.Worship nurtures our need to be in relationship with God. It reminds us that God is always there, no matter our highs or our lows. I may not feel like worshiping Him, but that doesn't mean that my soul doesn't need to. In fact, when I worship Him at times I don't want to, I often find my want catching up with my need.Worship centers our attention on God's decisions. When we are surrounded by "David-thrones," it makes judgments which are based on pettiness and ego fall away. My wisdom is nothing when compared to God's wisdom. Worship lifts me up. It also puts me in my place.
Study
It's appropriate that I turn my attention this week to study and worship, disciplines of engagement, as we prepare for our ZOE friends to come to town. Over the past few years, the College Church has learned as much about those two things from ZOE than over many years past. ZOE has taught us much about becoming disciples rather than just Christians. They have lovingly and gently brought us closer to fulfilling God's will for us, showing us the importance of being Jesus in the world.I'm especially looking forward to this year's conference because I will have a chance to meet some blog buddies for the first time. A couple of people have asked me how they might find me so that we could get together while they are here. I thought about maybe wearing a red carnation or (even better) my Angels cap. But carnations don't go with jeans, and my mom won't let me wear my cap in church. So I guess you'll just have to look for the dorky guy in Randy Harris' class. Granted, that probably won't narrow it down much, so I'll be sure to wear my nametag at all times. I'd post a picture but I'm on my work computer and the only one I have features me with a mohawk. Maybe later from home.My six-year-old boy is in a fascinating stage of his educational development. He is learning new things so quickly that I can't keep up. About once a day I hear myself saying, "I didn't know he knew how to do that!" It's a testament to his wonderful teacher, but it's also a sign of his readiness and his cognitive development. For our study of the Word to be worthwhile, we must be at a place of readiness. When we are, we will find our walk progressing by leaps and bounds, surprising ourselves when we look back and see how far the Spirit has taken us. When Christians study their Bibles, all too often their purpose is to fulfill some felt obligation. At best they might be setting out to learn something new. But when the goal is to advance in their spiritual walk, to grow closer to God, to transform themselves, then the study takes on a life of its own. And when they have prepared themselves with times of solitude and silence, ridding themselves of old needs, habits, and desires, then the time spent in the Word can have a profound effect. New desires, new habits replace old ones. Our minds are not only set on things above, but they are rooted there.This week I watched an episode of The West Wing where presidential hopeful, Arnie Vinick, is explaining to President Bartlett why he doesn't attend church. He talks about how he began to read from the King James Bible his wife bought him and couldn't understand how people could love the God he found there. He was horrified at a God who would command stoning for adultery among other things. Bartlett's response was, "I'm a New Testament man myself."Vinick's dismay is typical of a worldly approach to reading the Bible. I understand completely when people ask me why I would want anything to do with a God who would command His armies to wipe out entire cities, with a psalmist who would write about babies being dashed against rocks. And I understand the quick evasion of Old Testament stories in favor of the teachings of Jesus. The problem comes from trying to get people to have a relationship with God through reading the Bible, rather than asking people to read the Bible in response to their relationship with God. I think that if Philip hadn't come along, the Ethiopian eunuch would still be in a fog.Can someone simply open a Bible and be led to Christ? Probably. But without guidance and help from others, the roots would probably not go very deep. A better approach is to come alongside the Word with them and allow it to work on us together, to change us into something new. For the Bible to change us the way God wants it to, we must approach it with openness to transformation, with sacrifice of our own will, with preparedness of stillness before God, with a relationship rooted in love, and with the greatest of awe and reverence.
Silence
"Be still and know that I am God."That's not two requests; it's one. If we will be still, then we will know that He is God. Unfortunately, we are all too seldom still.I have only recently begun to practice the discipline of silence. And I am still a novice. A music-lover, I have filled most of the moments that would be silent with melody. My 50 minutes to and from work were covered by radio noise. My precious time before the cacophany of students every weekday was covered by iPod noise. My solitude was always filled with sound.No wonder we so seldom hear God. He only shouts when He has to, and that is not very often. Far more often He speaks in a quiet whisper. Still, He would be easy to hear if we only listened. God is not a bully. And God does not need a microphone.So I am learning. Learning to turn the noise off. Learning to listen. Learning to be still.I begin each morning in prayer. The prayer fills much of my time from rising to that sad, sad moment when the first student comes banging through my door. Earlier this week, I stopped my prayer, searching for what to say next, for what else to ask for. God asked me politely if I wouldn't mind being still for a bit, so that He could have a turn. I actually laughed at myself, driving to work, ashamed of my foolish tongue-wagging but so grateful for His understanding. And I listened.He really has quite a lot to say.
Solitude
As spiritual disciplines go, the practice of solitude comes very easy to me. At least, the desire for solitude does. I like people. I've even learned to love people. But (and I say this with the greatest love for those of you I spend regular time with) I love being alone. The problem is, and I daresay that this is a problem for most people, time alone is very hard to come by. And the irony is that those people who are alone many hours of the day tend to absolutely crave being with others. Solitude must be planned for. Solitude as a spiritual discipline requires more than a twenty minute drive to work or an hour in the park. The whole point of solitude is to spend extended time with The Creator, to get away from human contact and find restoration in prolonged exposure to God and God alone. It is in our human dealings that bad habits are formed, habits of envy, anger, lust, selfishness. When alone with God, it becomes impossible to feel pride.The other advantage of extended solitude is that it makes the practice of other disciplines far easier. When alone, if I want to talk to someone, it has to be Someone. Even those who shy away from long periods of prayer because they find their mind tends to wander will find their minds wandering back if there are no other distractions. Even worship becomes sublime when one is alone.Of course, God wants us out in the world. Solitude, like any discipline, can be taken to extremes. But if Jesus needed 40 days, it makes sense to think that we might need a weekend. How exactly to find that weekend becomes a matter of priority and understanding. Above all, we have to realize our need to spend time away, time alone.
Discipline
I am convinced that most of the sin in our lives comes from habit. Very seldom do I set out to sin. But I never do it blindly and I never do it by accident. There is always a point where I realize that I am sinning, or am about to sin. At that point, I have a decision to make.As I struggle to live a better, more pleasing life in the eyes of God, I have to face these habits and see them for what they are. I have to try to erase them from my life and, just as important, replace them with different, better habits.For much of my life, I saw the spiritual disciplines as things I should do, or that I was supposed to do. But of course, it is to our benefit as well as to the benefit of the kingdom that we engage in these activities (or non-activities), so that we can replace old habits with new. With discipline comes transformation; not quickly, not easily, but vitally.There are many disciplines and they tend to fall into two categories: those of abstinence and those of engagement (Dallas Willard's terms). All are important, but some moreso than others as they tend to lead us to desire even more transformation. Disciplines of abstinence would include, first and foremost, solitude and silence, and then fasting, sacrifice, frugality, chastity, and others. Disciplines of engagement lead off with study, prayer, and worship, and then lead towards service, fellowship, confession, and more.(Richard Foster's "Celebration of Discipline" is required reading. If you get it and want more, it contains an excellent bibliography.)The older I get, the more I want to practice these disciplines out of a desire for transformation than out of a sense of obedience. For the next few days, I hope to share some personal thoughts on individual disciplines and hear about their transformative power from others.
The Spirit World
Yesterday's message about demons generated a surprising amount of enthusiastic interest. People, it seems, want to talk about the spirit world. They are entirely willing to acknowledge that there is more going on around us than meets the eye. Most importantly, they are anxious to actively keep Satan and his minions at bay and ask for God's protection and offensive support. They are anxious to be fervent in study and spiritual discipline, remaining self-controlled and alert, aware that the devil is on the prowl. Putting on the armor of God only makes sense when we realize that the arrows are still flying.Of course, once you get past societal bugaboos and the nagging feeling that such topics are out of date and irrelevant, it's easy to get excited about the invisible. When you see the ease with which Jesus cast out demons and confronted Satan himself, you realize that being on the side of the angels is a can't-lose proposition. Far from being fearful at the mere idea of demonic influence and attack, we recognize that we are more than conquerors through Jesus Christ.
2008
After writing our traditional Christmas letter, wrapping up all Thurman-related events from the past year, I was struck by this singular thought: Man, I'm glad 2007 is over. It's not that it was a horrible year. But it was very "Bleh." 2008 carries far more promise. Reasons follow.1. Travel, travel, travel! The big trips of last year were Pismo, Monterey, and Cambria. See a trend there? This year's vacation spots will also have an ocean theme, but are a tad more exciting. In May, Lisa and I will spend a week in Maui. I understand it's very nice there. She earned the trip through very hard work and I will be enjoying the benefits of it. As usual, CM will be treating us like royalty while we are there, putting us up in luxurious accomodations and treating us to snorkeling and hiking expeditions, all the while showering us with gifts. That all sounds sarcastic, but it's actually not. They do things up right.This summer (probably...we're thinking about possibly saving this for the Thanksgiving holiday) the family will be traveling to San Diego. We have never been there and many of our friends have told us what a great time they've had. So we'll be experiencing the joy of Lego Land, Sea World, etc. The advantage to going during summer is that we may get to see a Padres game while there, the only ballpark in California I haven't visited. The advantage to going in November is far lighter crowds.2. 10 years! This year, Lisa and I will celebrate our tenth anniversary. I have some plans here that will remain private for the nonce.3. Movies! I can't wait to see "Coverfield" next weekend. Word is that it's the best monster movie to come along in a good, long while. The Star Trek trailer preceding it has me pretty excited too. In May, we'll have Iron Man and Indy. Harry Potter VI will be along towards the end of the year. And if you haven't seen the trailer for "Dark Knight," what are you doing on this website?? The Joker looks like just the right amount of creepy.4. Baseball! Marty McFly gave me a sports almanac for 2008. The Angels go all the way this year.5. A New School Year! 'Cause this one........not so much.6-10. ? Every new year carries with it so much possibility. I really feel like this year might see the beginning of some exciting transitions. I am looking into some things and I think God has His hand all over them. Obviously, I'll be sharing them as they develop. For now, I'm praying and watching the doors to see when they open.I have high hopes for the Christmas letter this year. And this blog may actually get interesting at times. Imagine that!
Demons
The New Testament has a lot to say on the subject of demons.Are those scriptures still worth our time today? Is there any reason we should study those passages, or would we be better off setting them aside in favor of things that seem more relevant? Is there still a spirit world? Is it active? Do demons still possess people?
Bloglessness
I really didn't go into vacation time with the intention of ignoring my blog. As I've said before, vacation time has a life of its own. I have more time to blog, but less desire. Today I'm back at work and life is far more structured again. And yet the two words that come to mind most quickly are "malaise" and "ennui." There's nothing really wrong...I'm not beset by large amounts of depression or anything like that. It's just that my attitude towards life right now can best be summed up like this: Eh.But, just to fill in the blanks a little, here's a quick recap of the last few weeks.Christmas was nice. My mother-in-law and her new hubby enjoyed breakfast and gift-unwrapping with us. My father-in-law came over a bit later. My side of the family does their own thing on Christmas morning so we didn't get to see them until that night. Among James' favorite presents were a rock tumbler (thousands of years of eroding in just a few weeks!) and a Lego Star Wars game for the Playstation. He and daddy have already enjoyed quite a few hours of gaming together.The day after Christmas, I saw "Charlie Wilson's War" with my brother. Movie: good. Huge dent in the Mustang left by oblivious dude in the parking lot: bad. Fortunately I was IN the car when it was hit, so I got said dude's info. The people at my body shop know me by name.Two days after Christmas I had my top two wisdom teeth removed. I don't remember much of that day, although my wife assures me that I was extremely nice to the nursing staff. I don't really want to pursue that.This weekend I've had a nasty cold and had to back out of my responsibilities at church. I really hated doing that. I get so much joy in my work there, and I hate leaving people in the lurch. But coughing through a lesson isn't really my bag either.This week, I'll be preaching on Luke 4: 31-41. Spending time in the Word should be an excellent antidote for malaise and ennui.
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