Friday Thoughts

“The greatest barrier I have met is the almost total absence from the minds of my audience of any sense of sin... The early Christian preachers could assume in their hearers, whether Jews, Metuentes, or Pagans, a sense of guilt. (That this was common among Pagans is shown by the fact that both Epicureanism and the mystery religions both claimed, though in different ways, to assuage it.) Thus the Christian message was in those days unmistakably the Evangelium, the Good News. It promised healing to those who knew they were sick. We have to convince our hearers of the unwelcome diagnosis before we can expect them to welcome the news of the remedy.

The ancient man approached God (or even the gods) as the accused person approaches his judge. For the modern man, the roles are quite reversed. He is the judge: God is in the dock. He is quite a kindly judge; if God should have a reasonable defense for being the god who permits war, poverty, and disease, he is ready to listen to it. The trial may even end in God’s acquittal. But the important thing is that man is on the bench and God is in the dock.”
― C.S. Lewis, God in the Dock: Essays on Theology and Ethics 

Which leads to discussions like this:
 

So very excited to read Bad Religion with our small group this summer.

In This Place

When we first moved to Kansas City about 4 years ago, I struggled with the idea that we were on temporary assignment. In a place that wasn't my first choice on the list of my dream places to settle down, I was hesitant to commit to engaging in Kansas City. Some of this feeling came from just leaving a place that I loved with lots of friends and not being ready to do that again. After some time had past though, I just found myself being complacent. Not engaging just because it was habit. But then I read Jeremiah 29.

The context behind this passage is the Israelites are in captivity in Babylon. They long to return to the promised land, and there are false prophets telling the people what they want to hear, that they will soon return, so don't get too comfortable in Babylon. (My paraphrase). But Jeremiah tells the Israelites that instead of being renters in a distant land, waiting for the day of return, they should instead have an interest in BEING right where they are. Build a house, get married, bless the city! This is what God says, even though the Isrealites are not in a place of their choosing. 

This spoke directly to me. I'm not to be just passively here in this place waiting to go "home". I'm supposed to be here, being in real relationship, investing in others, really being involved in blessing the city where I am. This means taking risks. It involves actually showing up. It will lead to some dead ends. It will mean being genuinely vulnerable, which I think is one of the hardest things for many of us. But it will also lead to paths that are greater than you could ever imagine.

We so often focus on the passage speaking about the fact that God knows our future and get caught up in that future day, but the focus of this passage is not only on hope for the future, but also on really living right where you are. And of course, this is the Christian life. We are to be in the world, but not of the world. Here to be a blessing right now in this imperfect place that is not the promised land.

Quote of the Day 5/1

"God hates sin not just because it violates his law but, more substantially, because it violates shalom, because it breaks peace, because it interferes with the way things are supposed to be." C. Plantinga from, Not the Way It's Supposed to Be

Time and Money

Over the past couple of weeks I've stumbled on these three graphics. I'm always interested in statistics and human behavior, and these tell an interesting story about modern American culture. 


More than 1/3rd of the average persons time is spent at work or in related activities, like commuting. his is a little depressing, especially if you are in a job that doesn't bring you joy. I also wonder what the split of "Leisure and Sports" is for the leisure time and active time. Maybe 90/10? Also, eating and drinking is only 1.1 hours total? I think Janelle and I usually spend that much time cooking dinner every night.

Source: Dec. 2011 Bureau of Labor Statistics

Source: Dec. 2011 Bureau of Labor Statistics

The change between 1949 to 2011 was interesting. Looking at relative spending, we spend almost double on housing and transportation and about 40% as much on food than people used to. Part of this has to do with food costs being cheaper now, (for some things that are factory produced. We could debate whether or not some of these things are actually food, but people eat them...) In general though it seems to infer people have been more interested in stuff than they are about taking care of themselves.