March Madness 2014

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This year’s bracket was released yesterday — no, I have not looked at it yet. But I will. And then I will fill one out with my most hair-brained guesses. Why? For the pride attached to trying to defeat all the other blindly-guessing folks in my circle of friends.

And a better reason? For a shot at $1 000 000, courtesy of Warren Buffet. Consolation prizes are $100 000 each — I know I’d be consoled!

Yes, the odds of filling out a perfect bracket are statistically slimmer than being struck by lighting a dozen times or finding a Malaysian airliner in your fridge, but as an old friend once observed:

Billions or not, if the energy and drama of March Madness is more than sufficient for you, perhaps this compilation of buzzer beaters will serve to get your blood pumping ahead of Tuesday’s warm-up and Thursday’s real action!

Six-Pack (59)

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After being away last weekend, let’s get back to sharing another edition of the aims-to-be weekly Six-Pack.

This week’s collection features the usual mix of ministry, faith, and anything else that piqued interest.

If six ever feels overwhelming, start with my two *Picks of the Week*, and move out from there.

For a steady stream of such links, follow me on Twitter to the right of this post.  Sharp quotes and solid articles are tweeted 3-4 times daily.

Today’s edition:

1) Is Peace Possible (*PICK OF THE WEEK*)
The conflict in the Holy Land has been painted as an unsolvable religious dispute. But is there more to the story? Oh, almost certainly!

2) Unplug SF
If you have an issue with your cell phone — an issue of over-attentiveness — perhaps you should visit San Francisco.

3) Why I Park the Furthest from the Church
This brief post explains how Derwin Gray choose his parking spot each day.

4) Precious Memories (*PICK OF THE WEEK*)
Why do we love sports? Beyond the action and the athleticism, some theorize it’s actually deeper: More about connection. This ESPN piece on UNC legend Dean Smith and his battle with dementia will stir both sports fans and others.

5) The Right Culture for Community
Most churches emphasize the term “community”, as in the nature of the relationships being built between people. Ed Stetzer has some thoughts on what it takes to build a culture capable of creating and nurturing legitimate community.

6) Supernormal Stimuli
“Is Your Brain Truly Ready for Junk Food, Porn, or the Internet?” That’s the title on this fascinating article, from Gregory Ciotti. While the evolution-based assumptions aren’t mine, there is a lot of sound observation in here about how (and why) people operate within the world of today.

May your week ahead be filled with life, as you seek the One from whom it flows!

leaveacommentYOUR TURN: Your input makes this post better!

  • Which link above was today’s best-of-the-best?
  • Why that one?

Direct others to the best of the bunch with a quick comment.

[You can subscribe to this blog via RSS or email, in the upper right corner of this page.]

Sabbath: God is For Us

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Slide1Our church recently worked through a series of teachings on Sabbath. Far beyond a weekly holiday, this biblical concept is loaded with meaning, with each additional layer creating a rich tapestry of teaching that displays the love and goodness of God in fresh ways.

This series of blog posts will aim to capture some of the highlights of discovery along the way.

—

In clarifying the intent of the Sabbath commandment, perhaps Jesus offered no more definitive statement than his words in Mark 2. In one sentence, he expresses the extraordinary goodness of God as seen in the laws He lays down: “Man was not made for the Sabbath, but the Sabbath was made for man.”

BigRedBallsWhenever I’m in need of a chuckle, I search for footage of the TV show “Wipeout”. Contestants trying to navigate the “big red balls” is a personal foolproof recipe for laughter. I imagine the backroom glee that the course designers must experience as they dream up obstacles and traps through which to push willing contestants. They aren’t setting out to create smooth, trouble-free “walks in the park”. They are looking to sabotage participants. Maximize slippery and surprising, minimize success – that’s the formula for great wipeouts. And the name of the show is no accident.

As fun as that job might be, God is nothing like a “Wipeout” designer. He has no interest in creating a system and then recruiting participants (victims) to fail their way through. He hasn’t set out to create unnecessary burdens, diversions, or challenges. Instead, He births children, each one bearing His divine image. Then He sets out to meet their every need! He custom-made us, then chose us as His own, then created guides for vibrant health and life.

If anything regarding Sabbath is to be perceived clearly, it is this: Sabbath is for us!

Sabbath is for us because God is for us, and every gift from His hand is for us.

Any understanding beyond that is misunderstanding.

leaveacommentYOUR TURN: Your input makes this post better!

  • Have you typically considered Sabbath as a gift or as a burden?
  • If you did view Sabbath as a gift, how might you “open it”?

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How Children Pray

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photoI was awakened early this morning by our one-year-old (first face in the photo to the right) calling my name, “Dada! Dada!” I entered her room and rocked her back to sleep, taking the wake-up call as my cue to head downstairs to begin some quiet in Scripture and prayer.

I read my scheduled passage, from the book of Numbers, and began stumbling into prayer. Again, our little one cried out my name from her crib, “Dada! Dada!” As I rocked her again, I pondered the barely-veiled prayer teaching within her morning cries.

And I longed for such simplicity in my prayer life.

How easily I make things difficult. How sharp are my skills to dull communication with the Father! Why is it so hard to merely call His name “like I mean it”, then to nuzzle in and draw from Him all the love, warmth, peace, and security that I need?

Far too often, my Bible serves as a barrier to deep prayer. I know the obvious truth that it need not be this way, but my weak mind is quickly pulled into the analyzing of text and the idolizing of ideas at the outrageous cost of intimate interaction with the One who is both revealed in Scripture and far too large for any leather-bound book.

There is something to be said for simply shouting, “Dada! Dada!”

leaveacommentYOUR TURN: Your input makes this post better!

  • What prayer barriers have your experienced or overcome?
  • How would you suggest that prayer can be simplified for the better?

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Sabbath: Butcher Jesus Loves Sacred Cows

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Slide1Our church recently worked through a series of teachings on Sabbath. Far beyond a weekly holiday, this biblical concept is loaded with meaning, with each additional layer creating a rich tapestry of teaching that displays the love and goodness of God in fresh ways.

This series of blog posts will aim to capture some of the highlights of discovery along the way.

—

Jesus-Heals-on-the-SabbathI often muse at how Jesus pushed the issue of the Sabbath. Within the Gospels, we have thirty-seven accounts of Jesus performing miracles. Straightforward statistics would suggest that one-seventh of those acts would have taken place on the Sabbath; however, we find seven Sabbath wonders, among these stories. While this isn’t overwhelming, it does paint for me a picture of a feisty Saviour. He didn’t need to heal on the Sabbath. If he would looking to be “meek and mild”, he could slotted his signs differently in his daytimer. But I imagine him eyeing the Sabbath with anticipation – not just for the rest that was to accompany it, but for the riling that he foresaw as well.

What was Jesus trying to do?

He was trying to take issue.

Jesus has a problem with people distorting the ways of the Father with too-small visions. Jesus gets worked up when life-giving gifts are mutated into death-dealing burdens. These types of silliness make Jesus angry. They also make him hungry. Such fiascoes awaken Jesus’ taste for blood – but not yours. If anything, Jesus’ dealings concerning the Sabbath give clear indication that he loves to butcher sacred cows.

BBQ JesusWhen we begin to value things more than God values them, yet expend energy convincing ourselves that our assessment is right in line with God’s, then our sacred cows come into view. And everyone has a sacred cow. Most of us own ranches full of them. One of Jesus’ hobbies is slaughtering them. After he does, he slathers them in his secret sauce, grills them, and feeds them to us. And then he lovingly watches us squirm as we awaken to the realization that our beloved Betsy’s bell isn’t clanging anymore.

Future posts will look at the practical side of Sabbath: What does it mean? How should we view it in this time and place? How might one observe? What does it mean to keep it holy?

But for today, let’s just admire the Sabbath as a still-live grenade. In his day, Jesus occasionally pulled its pin and rolled it into people’s foxholes just to see them scatter and take stock. In that sense, Sabbath will forever hold value as a case study on the eagerness of Jesus to challenge distorted values, question misplaced priorities, and nudge people to seriously consider whether they are tapped into the full life-flow of their Maker.

If that’s all Sabbath means today, it’s quite a lot.

But I suspect that’s not all Sabbath means today.

leaveacommentYOUR TURN: Your input makes this post better!

  • Why do you think Jesus liked to “mix it up” on Sabbath?
  • Ever had an experience when it felt like Jesus was hunting down one of your sacred cows? Did he succeed?

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