Migrating

Migration has occurred:

http://sacredsideways.wordpress.com/

Church |RE|framed

It's Saturday and church is around the corner. I'm already battling with my false self, the one that says, "you don't need that!", or "it's a waste of time". I honestly believe these things at times,usually every Saturday and Sunday morning. I think part of it comes from being a washout as a pastor. Too young, too ignorant, too self absorbed. I'm coming to believe that I'm supposed to go through these battles in my cranial conversation. I'm beginning to come to terms that I will ALWAYS be dissatisfied with church. I will ALWAYS be able to pick out something wrong, ignored, incongruent, or blatantly hypocritical. That will always be the case if I go without checking myself. I will see several hundred people tomorrow, some familiar, most unfamiliar, but each is one of my ABBA's beloved. I wonder how the ABBA of Jesus will view church tomorrow? I wonder what He will think of all the noise and distractions? Maybe, those things aren't even on His radar. Maybe He's more in tune with comforting the widow crying out in her loneliness, or the young couple struggling with infertility, or the family celebrating the safe return of their son from a tour of duty in Iraq. I'm sure he's gonna be paying attention to the high school girl who was just rejected by her best friend's. I think He has bigger things on His plate than my petty petitions and complaints. I pray that this Sunday I can go to church with the desire to worship my ABBA, by sharing in His concerns for His beloved. Will you join me?

The Greater Problem

Throwing this one out there... The bigger problem we have is not how we "DO" church, but the fact that we have no concept of "WHO" we actually are in Christ. Until we answer this question, how we "DO" church is a prolific distraction keeping us from discovering and growing in our "true" identity. Thoughts, questions, hymnals being thrown at me???

A Gem of a Christmas Reminder... Who Penned this Observation???

"Man is so preoccupied with himself, he has such urgent need of all the space and all the time for his own things, that nothing remains for others, for his neighbor, for the poor, for God,"

Emergent Theologians

A friend of mine, Jonathan Brink, wrote an entry on his blog about the need for emergent elders. Great points were made and a biblical scan supports the call for emergent elders in efforts to more fully express who we are as a community. This also has me thinking about the need for emergent theologians. These would be brothers and sisters fascinated by the deep narratives of God's word, His language, His themes. They would also need the skills of a master story teller to gather the community and share of their travels and invite all to travel with them. Their theology won't be found in treatise and volumes, but in blog entries and fictional works. Their efforts directed at revelation of the magnetic force of the divine Narrative and how deep the Narrative runs in time and eternity. These are theologians without a title or position, they are theologians because they are theologians. Their ponderings happen in the trenches of life's warfare. They spare nothing to engage pain and suffering when it is presented, and work endlessly to understand how God is expressing Himself in our grief, suffering and inconvenience. Their thoughts and considerations are not blatant stabs at one's sources of guilt and shame, but a gentle and directed calling for those wanting to see Christ more fully exposed in their personal orthodoxy and ultimately in their personal orthopraxis. Do you know some of these theologians? Where can they be found?

Blogging Buddies

Not much time to blog here these days as I have been reading & writing on other blogs as they offer inspiring dialog.

Lonliness

Loneliness, one of the most profound experiences a human can have. The experience of isolation, distance, and disconnect from others. It's Sunday morning, I have showered and readied for church, and this is what I am experiencing. In a few short hours I will be siting with 600 other people... I wonder how many of them experience loneliness? I guess the overcast sky might have something to do with it, or the fact that a busy holiday week is wrapping up. But maybe, just maybe, loneliness is visiting to remind me of something, to teach me about something more powerful than imagined, to guide me in a way of greater love. I don't like the feeling of loneliness, it's uncomfortable, never dangerous when kept in check, but always serves as a great encourager to be the one to reach out and connect meaningfully with others.

The church & Jesus

Ernst Kasemann, a German theologian, made the following insights:

"What causes most trouble for Christians of all ages is not legalism or lack of faith or theological controversies; it is Jesus Himself, who bestows freedom so openhandedly and dangerously on those who do not know what to do with it. The church always gets panic-stricken for the fear of the turmoil Christ creates when He comes on the scene; and so it takes His freedom under its own management for the protection of souls entrusted to it, in order to dispense it in homeopathic doses when it seems necessary. The church claims to represent Jesus on earth, but in fact often supplants Him. It must tremble in all its joints when confronted with His portrait. Ecclesiastical traditions and laws have domesticated Jesus, and today all of the churches are living off the success of the attempt."

A Broad Smile

Brennan Manning relates this story:

"Several years ago, Ed Farrell, a priest from Detroit, went on a two-week summer vacation to Ireland to visit relatives. His one living uncle was about to celebrate his eightieth birthday. On the great day, Ed and his uncle got up early. It was before dawn. They took a walk along the shores of Lake Killarney and stopped to watch the sunrise. They stood side by side for a full twenty minutes and then resumed walking. Ed glanced at his uncle and saw that his face had broken into a broad smile. Ed said, 'Uncle Seamus, you look very happy.' 'I am.' Ed asked, 'How come?' And his uncle replied, 'The Father of Jesus is very fond of me.' "

Numbers 6:24ff

God bless you and keep you,

God smile on you and gift you,

God look you full in the face
and make you prosper.

-------------------

Remember, today the Father of Jesus has a radiant smile pointing in your direction because you are one of His beloved.

Helpless, but not Hopeless

" I have not seen a patient who was not helpless, totally or partially. Patients are helpless to stop their pressures, they are helpless when they find themselves seized with air-hunger (panic attack) or night terror (rumminating thoughts). And if any patient claims to be helpless I shall not challenge the correctness of his statement. But when a patient declares himself hopeless I shall warn him that he has presumed to make a prognosis and has trespassed into my territory. The physician alone is capable of deciding whether a condition is hopeless or hopeful."

This quote is from Dr. Abraham Low, MD. He was a Jewish psychiatrist that founded an international organization called "Recovery Incorporated". He launched Recovery Inc. before Bill W. and A.A. were around. What I enjoy about his insights is that they are rabbinical in flavor. Rabbai first, psychiatrist second. I love the last sentence, "The physician alone is capable of deciding whether a condition is hopeless or hopeful." Great stuff!!! Sounds like something Jesus would say to us.

Just Read

I've received emails and a comment regarding neurosis.

You and me, we have a history. Some of our histories are full of joy, laughter, warmth, and presence. Other's histories are detailed with abuse, neglect, addiction, anxiety, depression, etc. I like the first over the latter. At this point we can't choose our past. It's done, except for those memory neurons that keep firing and continue keeping our memories alive. These memories determine alot. This is an understatement. I think our childhood meant something. We may be adults now, but our childhood continues. We assessed our meaning in the early days by the faces of those around us and the touches they offered. The quality of those early days have residue into our adulthood. Those were the days of meaning. Where we discovered that we were important and cherrished to those close to us. For some, those days never arrived. This is where neurosis begins. Unhealthy emotional families keep their children off balance. The children try to reclaim balance by becoming what the family system demands of them. These children develop a life command: "Be what others want you to be and then you can have peace." This is a redicullous way to live. These children as adults have little to no sense of self. I know because it is me. Decades of attempting to be everything to everybody else, thus a "False" self, an actor in a sick distorted play. Every waking hour being on stage and performing for others, so they will be happy, so I can be happy. This is an expression of neurosis. Neurosis is to light of a word. It is emotional and spiritual cancer of the worst kind. If it is not treated it will destroy. This is not a warning, but reality. I've lived it. It is not something that happens to a person, but is a choice, an idolotrous choice, "Others above God". Living, breathing, rumminating, over the opportunity to prove one's importance to others. A treadmill of death, that's what it is! I'm off, no more! What we need is circumcission. A slicing and bleeding of our memories. A removal that heals and gives us a new identity... a "True" self. This is Christianity. A complete reworking of our inner-life as we experience the healthy family system of the Trinity. Acceptance, value, redemption, forgiveness, esteem, identity, peace, presence are the commodity of this Family. I like this family. It lets my old family off the hook, forgiveness is theirs and mine. I am a child once again. I am being restored. I am my Abba's child and so are you.

PubCast on Creativity

An interesting discussion on pursuing creativity by Dick Staub and guests. This was recorded live in a local Seattle pub.

Sacred | Sideways presentation @ River Life Church

If anyone lives in the downtown Sacramento area and feels like dropping by River Life Church this Sunday, I'd enjoy meeting you as I'm speaking on relationships. Their meeting time begins at 9:30 AM and they are located in East Sacramento. Beyond me speaking, which is really no big thing, River Life is one of a few authentic Sacramento emergent communities meeting in an organized manner. So, if you're looking for an authentic group of Believers that are into livin' it, then this locale is worth visiting.

Neurotic me, Neurotic we

I am a psychotherapist by trade. I work with people. I also work with myself. I analyze others as they analyze me. But I mainly analyze myself. Somewhat boring, but infrequently entertaining. I've learned a bit about myself and others. I'm a bit of a neurotic... that's what I learned. I've also learned that a lot of people are neurotic. At least I'm not alone. We neurotics work hard on being "serious". We get worked up big time. Other people don't see the drama we do. We get enraged and find ourselves talking to people that have a certain look on their face as they listen. You know, the, "what freakin' planet did you just fall off?" look. They also look traumatized. When I was in seminary a professor said something to me. He was giving me the look when he said it. "Jon, you are way too serious", that's what he said. I didn't like what he said. We neurotics are serious. We neurotics don't like being told we are serious. I still like my professor. Jesus was serious. Not my kind of serious though. He didn't care for the way some people could be overly serious. He didn't like it when people were religious and overly serious at the same time. I can be that way. It feels yucky inside. I don't like feeling yucky. Jesus did get serious though. He got serious when children were mistreated. He got serious when an adulterous women was going to be nuked by the crowd. He got serious when a knife was drawn and an ear was lost. He became enraged also. He became enraged when others prostituted the gifts of His Father. He was not neurotic. I don't think He felt yucky when He was serious. I get enraged at shallowness. I get enraged at modern inauthenticity in the church. I get enraged ..., but I'm a neurotic. Jesus focused on His Father. He was not a neurotic. I'll focus on my Father. I will not be neurotic.

Emerging Broken: A Look @ the 10-20-30 Virus

Some of my friends have been blogging their 10-20-30 virus. I am riveted at these glimpses into their past. I am also struck. I am struck at the commonality of brokenness in their narratives. Common themes are divorce, distance from one parent, isolation, drug abuse, addictions, disappointment, and neglect. Way too close to home for me. Now we're adults with broken narratives, what does this mean? What does this mean to the emergent community? It means a lot. Broken people break more things for the most part. We can be a dangerous bunch. We don't like the mainstream church! Why? It reminds us of home. Where falsities are rampant. We don't like mainstream church because it feels false, appears false... too familiar for our weary bones. So we criticize. We're adults now and we have opinions. There is much to criticize. But we still feel empty. At times hauntingly empty. We talk about community and authenticity. Would we know community and authenticity if we actually experienced it? How would we? Many of us have never experienced it. We can nail fake though! We're experts. We need a new sacred space called home. That home is our Abba's tent. In our Abba's tent we become the children that we never were. In our Abba's tent, we laugh, cry and express in reality, not family distortion. In our Abba's tent, we are the children sitting on our Savior's knee, as he grasps us close to Himself as the neurotic adults try and rip us away from Him. In our Abba's tent we are safe... we are known... and we are His.

let us talk about sin (the inauthentic narrative), Part 2

As I mentioned below, it's time to talk about sin. I hope to explore this in a manner that is ultimatly respectful and grounded in our heavenly Father's view of sin. But, let's begin with a few words... authentic and inauthentic. These words float around the emrgent environment as if they were inflated with endless amounts of hellium. I don't like it when words become "hip" and "relevant", because when they do they seem to lose their weight a bit. Like they have left the earth and now exist on the moon and no longer are effected by gravity in a manner that is real to our own lives. They become abstract and ultimately become "useless". The reason I reasonate with postmodernism is because true postmoderns are poets at heart. Words are not cheap or to be used in a way that postitutes their intent. Jesus was the ultimate fulfillment of postmodern holdings, "I AM the Alpha and the Omega." Grasp this for eternity, He is proclaiming that language is about HIM, describing Him, pondering Him, praising HIM, being saturated in HIM, and on and on. Have we thought on the reality that language was and is designed to express God himself. He is saying to us, "I AM the Alpha and the Omega and everything in between. Every word is connected to Me and a day will come when an assessment of those who uttered words will be given". When we gossip we assault Him, when we talk in a useless manner, we belittle His creation, when we yell at our children we tell Jesus to remove the children from His knee. So as I venture into this dialog, know that I am not attempting to be emergent or postmodern for the sake of being emergent or postmodern, I am merely trying to frame the discussion in a manner that appreciates the power of discussion and the weight it has on eternity.

Back to authentic, inauthentic, sin and our heavenly Father. Let's begin with authentic. What I mean in this context is the authentic self. Much of this will be influenced by what Scripture has to say about this true Self. When I say the true or authentic self, I am framing out of my understanding of Ephesians 1, "He chose us before the foundations of the world." I propose that our authentic / true Self has always existed in the mind of God. Our Father has known us before the existence of time and but for a breath in eternity we find ourselves in conflict and confusion regarding the possibility of being inauthentic. Don't we all connect with this "unsettling" that something is a bit awry within us; always attempting to readjust and "re" present ourselves to others, so that we may feel more "authentic". My concern is that the emergent dialog leads us on another rabbit trail away from our true Selves. After reading "The Screwtape Letters", by C.S. Lewis, I began to appreciate the power of the false Self, and how it is a master at distracting us from living out of our true Self. Lewis does a masterful job of describing how the demons numb us into inauthenticity through the use of the mondane and the trivial. Our eternal true Self cries out from our inauthentic self-construct and says, "Listen, this is not it, don't settle, push on, be courageous." Our authentic Self is eternally aware that it is created in the very likeness of Jesus. You and I, traversing time, space and a few dimmensions carrying the spiritual D.N.A. of Jesus himself. This is the true You, the true Me, reflecting in still waters the very image of Jesus. He is the definition of authentic, and we are never more authentic (sin-free) than when we are living out the HE in us.

So what does this have to do with Sin?.... Stay tuned and / or enter your thoughts in via the comments.

let us talk about sin (the inauthentic narrative), Part 1

As Christ-followers in praxis and emergent orientation, we have taken many shots over the years from other Christians, namely evangelical conservative pastors. One of the frequent comments regarding the emergent movement is that as a movement it will not talk about sin and is often observed watering down or avoiding the issue altogether. I have to agree for the most part with their assertion. And then I beg... what are we scared of? Personally, I think we're scared to discuss and engage the issue, because when we do we are not able to escape the "old" language frame that "sin" is often couched in. When we discuss sin in the modern context, we are namely discussing a word that has been developed from the passions and patterns of persuasion presented by the revivalists of the mid to late 19th century up to the present. The method of these crusaders was to batter the listeners to a point where shame and guilt so strangled an individual, that the listener would do anything to ease the pain. If we, as Christians, want to be honest, we have to ask the question whether this initiation to the Kingdom leads to fully developed and devoted followers of Christ? The fact that I'm writing this blog is evidence to the futility of this approach. However, although previous generations were into guilt tripping, this generation should not side-step the issue... sin is sin. So let's re-engage the issue. Let us not begin with, "what do we think about sin?", but "What does our heavenly Father think about sin?" Before I develop this further, I wish to get your thoughts on sin and how it fits into the narrative of the emergent dialog. Your thoughts???

Where does grace reside?

Dutch Anabaptist reformer Menno Simons wrote in a letter:
'Wherever there is a pulverized and penitent heart, there
grace also is, and wherever there is a voluntary confession
not gained by pressure, there love covereth a multitude of
sins.'

Click here to read more about Menno Simons.

Understanding our troubles

Anglican clergyman and hymnwriter John Newton wrote in a letter:
'The Lord himself is our Keeper. Nothing befalls us but what
is adjusted by His wisdom and love. He will, in one way or
another, sweeten every bitter cup, and ere long He will wipe
away all tears from our eyes.'

Click HERE from more info. on John Newton

Value of Journaling for Self Knowledge

"The practice of keeping a diary would promote vigilance. The lives of many are spent at a sort of hazard. They fall into certain religious habits: and are perhaps under no strong temptations. They are regular at church and sacrament, and in their families. They read the Bible and pray daily in secret. But here it ends. They know little of the progress or decline of the inner man. They are Christians therefore, of very low attainments. The workings of sin are not noticed, as they should be, and therefore grace is not sought against them: and the genial emotions of grace are not noticed, and therefore not fostered and cultivated. Now, a diary would have tendency to raise the standard to such persons by exciting vigilance."

- Josiah Pratt making comments at an 1803 meeting of the "Eclectic Society"

Great Journaling Program

Universe as Allegory

In 1956, English Christian apologist C.S. Lewis wrote in a letter: 'In so
far as the things unseen are manifested by the things seen,
one might from one point of view call the whole material
universe an allegory.'

Taken from the daily email "This Day in Church History" on studylight.org.

True Living

Anglican clergyman and hymnwriter John Newton wrote in a letter:
'This is faith: a renouncing of everything we are apt to call
our own and relying wholly upon the blood, righteousness and
intercession of Jesus.'

Take Joy Christian

Is 43: 17ff (The Message Translation)

The God who summons horses and chariots and armies--

they lie down and then can't get up;

they're snuffed out like so many candles:

18"Forget about what's happened;

don't keep going over old history.

19Be alert, be present. I'm about to do something brand-new.

It's bursting out! Don't you see it?

There it is! I'm making a road through the desert,

rivers in the badlands.

---

Take joy Christian that your God has gotten over your past. His wrath is completely sedated by the work of Christ; great satisfaction is His! Why hold tight to failures and disappointments, for your joy today, oh yes today, is in Messiah. Revel in delight that past failures have been thrown into the wasteland of yesterdays and breathe afresh the rejuvenate breezes coming ashore from the great sea of His Grace.

Personal Calling & the Activity of God

Eph 3:7 This is my life work: helping people understand and respond to this Message. It came as a sheer gift to me, a real surprise, God handling all the details. 8 When it came to presenting the Message to people who had no background in God's way, I was the least qualified of any of the available Christians. God saw to it that I was equipped, but you can be sure that it had nothing to do with my natural abilities.

- Paul, an Apostle of the Christ

Devotional Delight

I read this devotional today. Such a simple, practical devotion, and ultimately serves as a great reminder that humility of mind and heart keeps the soul refreshed.

Follow the link:

Trust

Belief or Unbelief
by Os Hillman, December 5, 2005


..."Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness." - Romans 4:3

You can be a believer yet act as though there is no God. Whenever you fret over life circumstances, you immediately demonstrate unbelief. Whenever you move out of fear or anxiety, you believe a lie about God's nature.

Each day your actions affirm or convict you of your belief system. It reveals who the central focus of your life really is - you or God. It reveals who you place your ultimate trust in - you or God. It is one of the great paradoxes for believers. One day we can believe Him to move mountains. The next day we can question His very existence.

. Peter believed God and walked on water.

. A sick woman touched the hem of His garment and was healed.

. A Canaanite woman believed and freed her daughter from demon-possession.

In what circumstances do you act as an "unbeliever"? Ask God to increase your level of trust so that your actions match up with one who believes every day.

If you would like this email devotion in your email on a daily basis, then go to:

http://www.marketplaceleaders.org/pages.asp?pageid=27810

Praise Heart

Psalm 150:1-6

1 Praise the LORD! Praise God in His sanctuary; Praise Him in
His mighty firmament! 2 Praise Him for His mighty acts; Praise
Him according to His excellent greatness! 3 Praise Him with the
sound of the trumpet; Praise Him with the lute and harp! 4
Praise Him with the timbrel and dance; Praise Him with stringed
instruments and flutes! 5 Praise Him with loud cymbals; Praise
Him with clashing cymbals! 6 Let everything that has breath
praise the LORD. Praise the LORD!

Wisdom?

What is wisdom? "Wisdom is mastering the art of living." - Chuck May