The Worst Part of Winter

Okay, so you should know right up front that I've been sick for the last 3 days and I may sound a bit grumpy.  I had terrible sinus problems and a cold that drains every ounce of energy from you.  In my case, the runny nose means that I will also constantly be having bloody noses, so that's an added bonus.  To top everything off, I've been using a different medicine to "help" but seems to give me the worst cotton mouth I've ever had in my life.  Basically, I'm sick of being sick!  Take this cold weather and SHOVE IT!

So, some people will say that I don't know how to slow down and take it easy so my body will recover, but I'm sure there are others who think I'm lazy and need to do more work.  Who knows. . .and right now I don't really care.  Basically, I just want to be finished being miserable.

Of course, I do know that God made this crazy body I'm in.  I also think He made sure it could heal, so in the midst of my discomfort I want to take time and thank God for my health (that's the faith speaking).  Also, as an aside, I'm thankful that I'll live until tomorrow which means I will have been treading this earth for 34 years.  Thanks for that, God, and thanks for letting me start to understand my place here. . .

First Snow

  So, we have our first snow now, and it was so peaceful.  It happened just after Thanksgiving, and it was so beautiful.  You know, that kind of perfect snow that clings to all the trees and creates Norman Rockwell type pictures.  Of course, the wind kicked up and the temperature dropped, but for a moment the entire world was a picture of the Creator's artistic side.  

  Lately, I'm just a little more conscious of the beauty all around.  I think it helps me to know that I am loved, and maybe that sometimes things are beautiful just to make us (me) smile.

Live Like Jesus

  So, what does it mean to be a Christian?  I guess in the end, it's as simple as living like Jesus.  The hard part comes in trying to figure out what that means.  I think a lot of christianity would teach that it means following a set of rules and looking like a "good" person.  I think it's easier.  All you have to do is live like Jesus.

  I'm not suggesting that you can ever BE Jesus, just that we should quit trying to make it so hard.  Just live like Him.  He fed people who were hungry, you may not feed 5,000 but I bet you could invite a neighbor over for supper.  He healed the sick and hurting.  You may not walk around performing miraculous healings, but I bet you could listen to a hurting friend or pray for someone with cancer.  He turned water into wine for a party, maybe you could just invite a friend to share a beer and talk.

  I'm sure some may think this is oversimplified, but I think we could probably do without a great deal of the theology and doctrine if we just learned to live our lives by loving our God and loving our neighbor.  Period.  Sounds so simple. . .why is it so hard?

Update

Okay, so I was gone for a while, and now I'm trying to get back. I just posted a couple of thoughts that come from a newsletter I send out. Hope you like them, or at least that they make you think. I'm trying to start a whole new website, so that's where I've been. As soon as it's ready, I'll make sure to let you know so you can check it out.

Understanding

My son came home a couple
days ago so excited,
“Daddy! Daddy! I was
picked to paint the shovel at
school!”
To be honest, I had no idea
what he meant, and the
harder I tried to understand
him, the more confused I got.
I couldn’t understand why
painting a shovel was important,
or why only one in his
class was chosen. Finally, I
got my answers.
I help in his classroom every day
for reading excercises, and the
teacher explained that every grade
had one student selected to paint
the “shovel”, and she pointed out
the window. That’s when I saw the
blade of an Altoona city snowplow.
The city is allowing the students
to paint the face of the plow
so that when they see the snow getting
plowed, they’ll have a connection
to helping the city! It suddenly
made sense.
Having the proper understanding
of the situation made me understand
why he was so excited. It
also helped me to realize why it
was such a big deal. Just hearing
different words and seeing a visual
totally changed my perspective.
It got me thinking about how we
don’t understand people of other
denominations or even different
faiths sometimes. Often we are doing
the exact same thing, but using
different words or ceremonies, and
yet we use those things to cause division.
So often we look for how
“they” are different from “us” but
how often do we look for what
makes us similar?
I think it’s time for us to start considering
that just because we don’t
understand something doesn’t make
it wrong. Why not take the time to
learn and understand what’s going
on behind the words. Let’s not assume
we know the what and why,
instead let’s try and understand the
story behind the words.
Take a look at Acts 17 with Paul
preaching on Mars Hill, using a pagan
culture’s ideas, statues, and poems
to reveal Christ. Maybe if we
looked for what makes us similar,
we would have a basis for relationship
in which we could exchange
ideas and help them see God in their
world. Wouldn’t that be interesting.
. .

The Love of a Family

As I have been struggling with this need for living in true community, I heard an interesting thought from my
coach, Heidi. She was telling a story about how different gifts can seem at odds with each other, even when both
are functioning as God desires. A person needed money to stay in an overpriced apartment, and was lamenting
that fact. The grace and mercy gifts wanted to love and offer support while the prophetic and administrative type
gifts wanted the person to face facts and get a cheaper apartment. This would seem to cause friction in the family.
The prophetic was seeing something that the others weren’t. . .maybe the person was lazy and didn’t want to
do the work to live according to their means. A plan was devised where the group offered to help pay rent if the
person did some work, and found a cheaper apartment. What a great deal! In the end, they didn’t want to do the
work of finding a new apartment, so they lost out on an even bigger show of support.
As we talked, we discussed how there is so much division and backbiting among people, even those who proclaim
to love Christ. Why can’t we understand that different parts of the body (family) are incredibly different
from us (even in annoying ways) yet they are family. We would not be able to experience the fullness of Christ
without them. Let me say that again, people who’s gifts rub us the wrong way are helping us experience the fullness
of Christ. This has two implications that I’d like to think about. First, do we distance ourselves from God
when we try and avoid certain people? Are we trying to live just with our own gifts and thinking we are enough
for us? I grew up with a brother and sister, and they both got on my nerves enough over the years, but I wouldn’t
be who I am without them. Do we honestly feel this way about the brothers and sisters we have in Christ.
The second point is this, as an American we are incredibly individualistic and we think we can do it alone. We
even teach personal prayer time and devotions. We ask how your relationship
is with Christ, as though that can be distinguished from how your relationships
are with your brothers and sisters, who are the body! I have nothing against
personal devotion times, I think they are necessary and provide a certain
amount of life. I just wonder if we have forgotten just how important the rest
of the family is to our own development. I will only experience Christ to the
fullest when I experience Him in community. I’m still processing this concept,
but even as I place such emphasis on it, I still have a nagging feeling that
I don’t understand the entire gravity of it. Do you?

Some thoughts on Experts

Ok, strange title, but go with me here. We’ve just finished an amazing (historic,
annoying, crazy) political season, and the fireworks will continue for some time.
What has really struck me lately, is how much we adore our “experts” in America.
We hang on their words, we trust what they say, we change our behavior
based on their advice. The funny thing is, the next expert completely contradicts
their advice and has compelling reasons why. Throw into the mix that most of
them are bought and paid for, but none of that matters because we love our experts.
The funny thing is that we make people experts unwittingly, I think. For instance,
our system of religion teaches us that a pastor should be the expert on
hearing from God. So, we go to them with our troubles and expect them to hear
God and give us the solution to the problem. I would say a deeper problem is that
sometimes we pastors believe we have the answers. I have caught myself relying
on the wisdom or advice that jumps to mind when talking to people. And, I’m
sure down somewhere in myself in places I don’t want to talk about, I really like
the fact that people want to know MY advice. But, this is not how it should be.
The scripture tells us that God speaks directly to our hearts, everyone, not just
the pastors. Instead of trying to help people from our own wisdom, we need to
immediately ask people what they are hearing from God about the situation, and
if they are obeying that voice. As part of the Journey, we want to teach people to
rely on God, not some system of religion or a solitary leader of that system. We
want them to know how to hear God’s voice and obey so that they can be an example
to their friends of how to hear God’s voice and obey.
My hope is that whenever I unwittingly or instinctually offer my own advice,
someone is there to ask if I am pointing people to God’s wisdom or pointing them
to a man who is just as imperfect as anyone.

Where Have I Been

Excerpt:
"And so when I consider the way I am treated by Christ, the degree of kindness with which He guides me, I know that as Napolean said, I would die for Him. And I would not die for Him because He threatens me; I would die for Him because He loves me, and because I am part of a a community of people who are committed to one another, to the world, and to the mission of Jesus."
-by Donald Miller in "Searching for God Knows What"

I urge you to check out the link of this book, it's not to sell it to you, it's a link to Donald Miller's site as he is talking about finishing the book. . .great insight. . .brilliant thinker.
It's interesting that I just read this because we just had a discussion sat. night about some of what's in the quote. Basically, it revolved around doing the right thing because it's the right thing to do as opposed to doing it because of a bad consequence. We discussed how the church has used power and manipulation to "scare people into heaven" and we also talked about if it's ever right to scare someone with a consequence to keep them from doing something (or making them do something).
Someone mentioned that if there was a consequence, then they would do the opposite just to prove a point, and then deal with the consequence be it jail or whatever. They only wanted to live their lives by deciding what is right, and then choosing to do right. But, how does a child know that it's not right to stick their hand into the flashing and pretty light we call fire? Don't we have the "scare" them sometimes to help them learn? No matter how nice and loving you are, telling a child their hand will burn and turn crispy just isn't going to be fun for them.
On the other hand, we are adults, and I do believe very much in doing what is right from a standpoint of love instead of just following rules. Rules are what Jesus railed against with the Pharisees, but it wasn't the actual rule that was bad. . .the rule originally was beautiful and meant to provide memory and significance. But the rules became the object instead of the memory and significance. How do we re-shift back to memory, focus on God not rules, love for others that compels us to serve them instead of pity for them, a move back to servant leadership as oppposed to the Me-focused world we live in?
I don't know, what do you all think? Can you live in one world, but live by another world's code? How do I reconcile so much of what it means to be a christian with the (American) world we live in? Guess I'll keep working on that one. . .

Thunderstorms

So, today my son and I are sitting in the dark, waiting for the power to come back on. This morning we've had a rash of thunderstorms rolling through dropping tons of rain. I didn't blog any about the horrible flooding in Iowa a couple weeks ago, just didn't feel like it, but this thunderstorm has me in a reflective mood.
The power of nature, which I would submit was put in motion by God, is amazing. Whether a flood that no man made barrier can contain or a strong wind or lightning strike that no tree could stand up to, it's just amazing the raw power of nature. It's also amazing just how arrogant we are in thinking we can protect ourselves from it. It's just absolutely amazing to me. I have no more thoughts, just that we really don't seem to know our limitations.
On the other hand, sometimes it's the best thing in the world when we are limited against our will. This morning, I would have done my normal routine and gone about the day without as much concern for my son or how he was feeling. Instead, we got out the flashlights, which he loves to play with all the time anyway, and played with those. Then, we played the board game Sorry! for a while. He came out of the gate strong and was whipping my butt, but I hung in there. In games of chance, it only takes a few good cards to be back in the race. He was literally getting close to winning and I still had 3 tokens in the "start" circle. Guess what. . .I won! I was exuberant, I laughed in his face, I mocked him till he cried. . .I really hope you don't believe that! What kind of father do you think I am? Well, yes, I beat him, but we had a great time. Just dad and son, hanging out. No tv or music going in the background, just us and the silence. It was great.
Maybe we all need a forced break from electricity, just sit and listen to the silence for a while. Then, after you've felt yourself calm down, maybe read a book. Better yet, just focus on your closest friends and family. You may just be amazed at what happens.

Living in the Now

Okay, so I know this will probably be a bit different than you would imagine from the title, but I wonder what Jesus would be doing if He were living right now. I ask this question because my sole purpose in life is to try and live the life He intended for me to live. I think when most people answer that question is comes back to having something to do with the organized church. Not so much for me.
I want to be more about living as I see Jesus lived, getting in the midst of the arguments of the day, helping those who need it, and certainly by living and loving those who are close to me. One of the main things that has been on my mind lately is about what Jesus taught and spoke about. It seems most of it wasn't about the "bible", or even the Torah that they had back then. It seems to me that He spent a lot of time tackling the big issues of the day like taxes, govornment oppression, how to treat others, and the religious system of the day.
I wonder what it would be like if we, as a Church (notice the capital C), decided to think about our govornment and our taxes and how our political system works in the context of what is best for the nation and even the world. I wonder if we quit paying people (lobbyists) to do our fighting for us, and instead cared enough to get involved oursleves, what would happen? I wonder what would change if we were as concerned about homelessness and hunger as we were with how to spend our stimulus checks on vacation?
I think it's great to spend time in the bible, reading and learning about what God intended for us. I think there are great minds that do this all the time, and I love to hear them speak and enlighten me as to the depth and richness of the bible. However, if that doesn't change me and my life, if it doesn't compel me to look deeper in the systems around me and question, then what good is it? If we decide to blindly support our govornment based on one scripture, but then don't question certain oppressive practices. . .are we really living like Jesus?
This is a lingering thought for me. . .so I'm sure I'll have more coming soon. . .

Phatkat ><>

New Beginnings

Okay, so I have officially begun a new chapter in my (our) life. I am now officially done as a youth pastor, and am putting all of my energy into trying to help people see and follow the true, untarnished, non-religious, and full of love Jesus. I have to admit that I'm a little in awe of the unknown, and ready to see what comes my way next. It's a strange feeling knowing that you really don't know what the future holds, but have a peace about it anyway. This change of life, as well as a blog I read lately (click here for Breona's cool blog) have led me down a road that is making me wonder about what makes us who we really are.

I've had enough dreadful things happen in life that I'm sure they all influenced me and left me a little scarred, but I've also had a tremendous amount of love, care, and concern in my life and I'm sure that has left its mark as well. I'm sure much of the love, care, and concern were probably there without me even knowing it. Either way, it's all effected me is some way or another.

I really hate it when people wish they could go back and change their lives. I mean, I wish I could change some things in high school (LOL!). . .just kidding. Anyway, what I meant was, I'm glad for the good and the bad, because it has led me to this place and time right here, right now. I also believe that all of these things have been allowed into my life to make me who I am, and it's all been done for a reason. I also believe that it's wonderful to look back at the major points of life and see why they effected you the way they did. It helps me see why I react the way I do sometimes, and in a moment of brilliance it even helps me to change for the better. . .I hope.

Anyway, I didn't want to take a long time, just wanted to get this thought out there and see where it takes you. I guess I hope it makes you think about life, your history, and how blessed you may be. I hope it makes you smile to know that there is something out there pushing you to this very moment in time. Also, if you feel that you are in the midst of one of the crappy times, I hope it gives you a measure of hope for what is coming next. In my worldview, everything can be used for good, crappy situation or not.

Grace and Peace. . .Phatkat ><>

Kingdom of God Project

I've been reading a pretty cool book lately, and I ran across a couple of quotes I thought I'd share with you. It's called "The Secret Message of Jesus" by Brian McLaren. I started reading it a year ago when it came out, but got sidetracked. I'm back now, and there are some great things in this little book.

We were reading about the kingdom, and this came up on page 78, "The whole kingdom-of-God project, then, began as a community of people learning to love and play the music of the kingdom in the tradition of the Master and his original apprentices" Could anything be more beautiful?

I love the concept, I love the poetry of the statement, I love the idea of a people learning and loving, even when it's not perfect, I just love it. It fills me with hope that maybe there are people out there that really want to find the original intent of the Master, and then try to live like that.

On the next page, we see a fairly accurate description of what I believe has happened in the church. "Frankly, our music has too often been shallow, discordant, or played with a wooden concern for technical correctness but without feeling and passion. Or it has been played with passion but has departed from the true notes, rhythm, and harmonies of the Master."

How truly sad that some of us just follow the rules to be technically "right", and how sad that many of us have decided to follow our own passions and claim that they are the will of the Master. Both ends of the spectrum are equally horrible and not in line with loving and playing as the Master intended.

I took about 12 years of piano lessons growing up and I'm a pretty accomplished drummer (and a slight hack on the guitar!) I think I can tell when someone is playing technically correct and it truly makes people stop and appreciate their correctness. Many people even see that correctness and want to emulate it. What has never happened to me, is to feel the music and actually be moved by a technical player.

However, when a person plays that has some sort of deeper connection to their music, you can tell. You listen, you watch, you may even dance or just sit and wonder, but you actually begin to interact with the music. It brings out emotions in you and stirs memories. It can move you to places you didn't know existed, and you are happy for it. It is also usually impossible to forget a performance that does this to you.

That's the type of Christ-follower I want to be. I don't care if people think I'm being "correct" or not, but I don't want any of them to question that I'm following my Master with all that I am. I hope that as my Master helps me make His music, that people are drawn in and experience Him as we interact. I hope they are inspired to seek my Master's leadership as well. I hope they can never forget how my Master makes me live and move. . .

It makes me wonder what do people remember about me? What do they remember about you? Does your life inspire or leave people with no hope? Will my music truly reflect my Master, or have I corrupted his tune? How do we learn to truly make music together with beautiful harmonies that could never happen when we are alone? These are things I wonder about. . .

Quick and General Thoughts on Politics

Okay, so I've been talking to some different people about the political race lately, and I keep saying the same things over and over, so I thought I'd get it off my chest here, and then I can be done with it. . .like that will happen!

Anyway, here's my thoughts on the two political parties, cuz let's face it, there really are only two. Anyway, my heart's desire for how I believe things should work probably lies with the actual platform of the Republican party. I say their actual platform because I don't see any Republicans actually standing for what they are supposed to stand for any more. I do think less govornment is better, I do think less taxes is better, I do believe we have a right to bear arms, I do believe life begins at conception (actually I think it begins before that, but that's another post! Anyway, I love their basic beliefs, yet I strongly oppose how I see this party acting or not acting on those beliefs.

The Democrats hold a closer place to my heart in their desire to see social justice. This fact alone is their sole redeeming tenet of belief in my opinion. I also really appreciate people who will not just speak about something, but will get out there and do something about it. I often times don't agree with how they do things, and I rarely agree with the fact that they use the govt. to do it. However, I think they have a better mindset of everyone working together for the betterment of all. Again, though, I rarely see this portrayed accurately by our current crop of legislators (read the legislators as big fat whiny blood suckers who hold their hands out to any special interest group they can).

Okay, here's my real thoughts on it all. I really don't like any of our choices politically. My opinion is that as a person seeking the kingdom of God, that means someone trying to bring about on earth what God intended for us in the beginning, we should be taking care of the social ills of society. If the true followers of God would stand up and care for the wounded and afflicted, we would not need the horrific social programs that drain our economy and provide hand-outs instead of true help. Every true follower of Jesus should be looking around their own city, state, and country to find the problems that need to be addressed. After that, since we live in such an overly blessed nation, we should also be finding ways to care for the poor and afflicted around the world.

If we were to do this, there would not be a need for large govt. and legislators trying to pass laws and institute programs that don't really help us move forward. The govt's. job would then be to organize the army, defend us, and maintain basic infrastructure. No more, that's it. Keep your crazy politically devious minds and fingers out of our lives. Of course, they way I see it, this can only happen when people realize who God created them to be, and then actually live that out. Unfortunately, I will agree with anyone who would say that the church as a whole has not been doing that lately. . .a lot of great people doing good things, but somewhat too little, too late as I see it. We need a revolution in our thinking and our living. We need to actually turn to the historical Jesus, and earnestly seek Him, and then truly live as we were made to do. . .

Of course these are just my thoughts, what do you think? Please reply and let me know.

Phatkat ><>

What am I Searching For?

Okay, so I'm on this journey, trying to figure out exactly what I think God intended and I ran across this quote. It's by Rob Bell, whom I absolutely feel a kindred spirit with:

“Church is when you are sitting around in your living room with people who would give their lives for each other. So I don’t have any time or tolerance for nice services where we feel good about ourselves and give a little bit of our money to some people over here or there. To me, church is the people whom you are journeying with. . .”

How beautiful is that?!?!? I love how he cuts thru the crap and comes up with something that really matters. Of course, I only believe it really matters because he happens to be saying something that I already believe. I am very concerned with how the church is supposed to be represented here on earth. I don't want to confuse anyone, either, so let me make sure and clarify that I believe there is only one church and we are all part of it. Denominations and styles matter none to me. I'm more concerned with living as we were meant to live, representing who Jesus is accurately, not tainted by so much religion and laziness.

So, it brings me to a question. Do you have anyone you could say you would give your life for? Are you truly journeying with others or just traveling a road alone? Do you share the joys and pains of life, or when someone asks you how you are doing do you just say fine? We live in such a plastic and surface level world. . .I want more!

I think we were meant for something more and I want to pursue it. I believe life is worth living, and that trying to live it just for my own gratification would be pointless and a waste. I want to connect with people that want to change the world, dream big, and also just sit around and laugh a lot. I want close enough connections that we all feel free to drop in on each other any time we want. I want to truly live my life in such a way that I think about you and your needs above my own. I want to see what's wrong with the world and be heartbroken enough to want to change it, not just walk on by and ignore yet another fault in this world.

So, there's a start of what I'm looking for. What about you? What is it you really want to see happen? What do you really think is worth living for?

Here We Go!

Hello All! Welcome to my new blog. This is the first time that I have attempted a blog, so I guess we're all in for a ride. I suppose I could at least explain who I am a little for those of you who don't know me from Adam. . .and who is this Adam that everyone talks about anyway?

Well, I'm 33, and I've got a gorgeous and loving wife and one of the greatest little boys in the world! (Indulge me, I'm a father.) I'm just about to leave the job that I've had for the past 5 years and embark on a new adventure. That's something about me that you'll find, I love adventure and trying new things. In this case, I believe very strongly that this is something I'm supposed to do. Up front, I should let you know that I am a follower of Jesus, and try every day to live the way He would want me to.

I want to explain a little more on that last part. I say follower of Jesus because I don't feel like saying I'm a christian really explains it anymore. I feel like the institutional church has kinda strayed from the original intent of our faith and has maybe become a little more of a religion than a lifestyle. Anyway, my goal is to live like Jesus, not the way a certain church or denomination tells me to live and think. Don't get me wrong, there are a LOT of great people in the churches, it just doesn't seem to do it for me anymore. I need something more. . .more on that later!

Okay, well, I guess that at least gets us started. I hope to use this blog to get out some of my thoughts, and hopefully you will help me by replying and even stretching my own thoughts on issues. I also promise to never pull any punches. I will say what I truly believe, and hopefully that will reflect my desire to follow Jesus. What you see is what you get with me, and I know that I'm not always right. My goal is to be on a journey with you as I continue to seek the way I was meant to live in this world.

Grace and Peace, the Phatkat ><>