Mission Faithwalk

Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like someone who looks at his face in a mirror and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. (James 1:22-24)             Total Truth spends a lot of time on the idea that we have been taught to live in two stories (as in a house), or in two stories (as in a book), or in two worlds. Even scientists face this issue. They proclaim that we are basically organic computers responding to biochemical commands, then they go home and tell their wives and children that they love them and truly believe that it has a meaning beyond electrical impulses and chemicals. They admit that this happens and that they can’t stop leaping to that second story, even if they actually wanted to (which they don’t.)                 I’ve struggled with this for years, only in reverse. The idea is that the lower floor represents realit

How sweet are your words to my taste, sweeter than honey to my mouth!   I gain understanding from your precepts; therefore I hate every wrong path. (Psalm 119:103-105) Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight. (Proverbs 3:5-6)                 In Psalms and Proverbs, we’re told repeatedly to gain wisdom and understanding. I’m fond of understanding, but I have to confess, I’ve had some strange conversations with God about it. One that gets rehashed once in a while is this: Me:        “God, I don’t understand!” God:      “That’s OK. You don’t have to.” Me:         “No, You don’t understand, God. I don’t understand!”                  It’s a good thing that God is so patient. I’d like to think we’ve all been in the same boat. Understanding and not understanding cause problems. The first problem is when understanding becomes the end, not the means. When this happens, unders

The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance . (II Peter 3:9) For I take no pleasure in the death of anyone, declares the Sovereign Lord. Repent and live! (Ezekiel 18:32) You shall not make for yourself an image in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below. You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the parents to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me,   but showing love to a thousand generations of those who love me and keep my commandments . (Exodus 20: 4-6)           Some folks think that the Bible describes two gods. The god of the Old Testament, known as Jehovah or Yhwh, is judgmental, harsh, and demanding. The god of the New Testament is sweet and loving and wouldn’t hurt a fly (well, except those times in

God saw all that he had made, and it was very good. And there was evening, and there was morning—the sixth day. (Genesis 1:31)                 One of the flaws of Greek philosophy is the contention that everything has two realities. There is the spiritual reality, seen by the Greeks as good, and the physical reality, seen by the Greeks as bad. There was an ideal known as “duckness” and all ducks could be compared with it, and all of them found wanting. Because of this, it really didn’t matter what one did to or with matter, since the physical activity could not mar the ideal reality. Some folks, seeing that this wasn’t right, reversed it. The way one achieved that ideal reality was by rejecting the physical, or certain parts of the physical, whether sex, dancing, going to movies, listening to music, etc.                Others reversed the bias. What is physical is good, what is not physical has no value. We can’t manage to do away with it, but religion has no place in the “real”

"For if you remain silent at this time, relief and deliverance for the Jews will arise from another place, but you and your father’s family will perish. And who knows but that you have come to your royal position for such a time as this?” (Esther 4:14)           I’m re-reading Total Truth by Nancy Pearcey because I have this sense that I (and many other people) need to change my worldview a little. Specifically, there are some things that I’ve tended to accept… not quite accepting that they are true, but accepting that other people believe they are true and therefore, well, is it really worth rocking the boat? I know some people would be amazed that there are any boats that I don’t rock, but to give you an example, I find nothing in Scripture that suggests that identity politics is valid. I have told people that I don’t believe there are human races, just one human race, but I still refer to hyphenated Americans. I don’t always do this – when I talk to Grace, they are all pe

Who can hide in secret places so that I cannot see them?” declares the Lord. “Do not I fill heaven and earth?” declares the Lord. (Jeremiah 23:24)           Where is space? Where does one have to go to be in it? The first answer we give is that it’s “out there, beyond the atmosphere, between the planets and the stars.” Some who are more terrestrial will say that it’s outside the cities where there are fewer buildings and, more importantly, fewer people. Space is where you can twirl like Julie Andrews at the beginning of Sound of Music and not hit anything or anyone. Ah, that’s space.          Of course, the reality is that the Milky Way is in space, which means the Solar system is in space. That means that the Earth is in space and therefore, we are in space even when we’re sitting at our kitchen tables. Our cities are within the wide open spaces where we can twirl like Judy, so our cities are in space. Space is all around us. In fact, it even fills us because there is space b

But the Lord is faithful, and he will strengthen you and protect you from the evil one. (II Thessalonians 3:3)           If you read through Proverbs, you’ll see this idea a lot. You’ll also see that He will protect you from the fool. You’ll also see that you are supposed to keep yourself from the evil one and the fool. Of course, what comes to mind as I read such promises is Pogo’s line, “We have met the enemy, and he is us.” Another good line is “He who represents himself has a fool for a client.”   It goes both ways. God protects, but we’re supposed to protect ourselves, too. There’s no excuse for our being lazy or ignorant.           I tell people that I hate making arbitrary decisions. It goes a little further than that. I was talking to a friend today who says that he looks for the easiest way. When I was looking for a vehicle several years ago, I reached the conclusion that my father didn’t want to make any decisions (and future events proved me correct about that.) My de

I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you with my loving eye on you. (Psalm 32:8)           I originally had a different idea in mind for today’s post, but part way through the day, this idea came to mind, picking up where yesterday’s left off. It’s not new, but it’s not a habit, so repeating it is good for me. Since my thoughts happened to follow a political direction, I’ll use that as an example.  Question 1: What are the opportunities?           I looked up when the City Council is going to meet next, wondering if I should attend. They happen to meet on July 3 in the morning and two weeks later in the evening. That gives me two opportunities. Question 2: What do you really need to do regarding this role?          Attending one of those meetings, or both might be good ideas. I’m not discarding them as ideas yet, but, I’m not sure they’re what I really need to do. At least, they may not be what I need to do – yet. When I thought about wh

I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you with my loving eye on you. ( Psalm 32:8)           Yesterday, I wrote about making decisions and being settled. I suspect most people don’t make goals, and most of those who do are probably like me. I write them down and that’s the end of them. I mean to do more, but life, laziness, and whim get in the way. This weekend is as good a time as any to get back on track.           For the past three months, I’ve been dipping my toes in the pool of “What do I want to be when I grow up?” and struggling with the doubts that are my “certainties:” that anything I decide will be the wrong decision and that if I ask God for something, it will be the wrong thing and in His mercy or reproof, He won’t grant it.           With those as whispering voices in the forest through which I wonder, it’s time to get to work at least to frame the questions that I need to answer. Most of the self-help, goal-setting gurus sugges

Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty . (Psalm 91:1)           Dwelling and resting. There’s a settledness about both those terms that both draws and repels me. I would love to dwell and rest, but it seems like the moment I do so, I find something more to do. And you wouldn’t believe how much time I’m sure I waste. Quite probably, the time I think I waste is when I’m resting, and the time I think I’m resting is actually when I’m wasting time.          Dwelling somewhere means living there. It’s not moving in and making it your own, it’s what happens after that. That’s part of the trouble. I’ve dwelled in my home for a long time, but now I’m moving in and making it mine, and I should have taken pictures before and after because I’ve made more progress than I like to admit to myself. But I’m not dwelling yet. I’m also not resting. Oh, I get a good night’s sleep most nights, but again, I’m not settled.          Just as I can’t seem to

What good is it for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul? (Mark 8:36)           There are seventy-three million Millennials out there, and for years, they’ve been led and guided by the idealistic Baby Boomer generation. What they were told is that they are winners (no matter what) who deserve the world as their prize if they just keep following what the BBs are laying down. Unfortunately, the world isn’t the prize they were told it would be, and as a result, the Millennials are disillusioned and grieving. Part of that grief is anger, accusing this group or that for all of the woes of the world and looking for miracle fixes.           It’s easy to blame the BBs, but the truth of the matter is the Greatest Generation filled the Boomers with dreams of utopia, and the Missionary Generation led the charge that led to the Greatest Generation to its challenges and victories.            The thing is, the idealistic generations like the Missionary and Baby Boomers alwa

Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word,   and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless.   In this same way, husbands ought to love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. After all, no one ever hated their own body, but they feed and care for their body, just as Christ does the church—   for we are members of his body.   “For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh.”   This is a profound mystery—but I am talking about Christ and the church.   However, each one of you also must love his wife as he loves himself, and the wife must respect her husband. (Ephesians 5:25-33)           If you believe that the Bible is just a bunch of stuff written by a bunch of men, you can write this passag

                          Nor should there be obscenity, foolish talk or coarse joking, which are out of place, but rather thanksgiving. (Ephesians 5:4)                 I checked my Greek Interlinear and a concordance for the definitions of the words here. The word the NIV translates as obscenity is also translated as baseness or obscenity . The word translated as foolish talk is only translated as foolish talk . The word translated as coarse joking is also translated as raillery, coarse joking , and vulgar joking. Raillery is defined as good natured teasing . I’m sure I also saw it translated as coarse jesting , but now I don’t find it.                 James wrote about how dangerous the tongue is. Peter warned about keeping out tongues from evil. Paul admonished that our words should be seasoned, as it were, with salt (and there’s no evidence that his “salty speech” and what they call “salty speech” today have any positive relation.) The book of Proverbs is full of advice

Sing to God, sing in praise of his name, extol him who rides on the clouds; rejoice before him—his name is the Lord. A father to the fatherless, a defender of widows, is God in his holy dwelling. (Psalm 68:4-5)           When I read this verse, I was thinking that I wanted to write about singing praises, but on my walk, the question of who our society’s fatherless are, and who our society’s widows are kept coming to mind. Who are they, and how can we be fathers and defenders for them? There is no end to the list of groups who will claim victimhood, but in ancient society, widows and orphans had no one. The government wasn’t there for them. Today, whether well or poorly, right or wrong, the government provides at least some. The problem is, what they provide isn’t solving the problem.          I’ve read about this issue a little – not nearly enough – and one of the things I’ve learned is that we often try to help in the wrong way and end up doing more harm than good. Very likely,

          Therefore, you Israelites, I will judge each of you according to your own ways, declares the Sovereign Lord. Repent! Turn away from all your offenses; then sin will not be your downfall. (Isaiah 18:30)           Completely destroy them—the Hittites, Amorites, Canaanites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites—as the Lord your God has commanded you. (Deuteronomy 20:17)           As the Lord commanded his servant Moses, so Moses commanded Joshua, and Joshua did it; he left nothing undone of all that the Lord commanded Moses. (Joshua 11:15)           Yesterday, I watch a video in which a Middle Eastern man addressed the accusation, made by some, that God promotes genocide. After all, Deuteronomy 20:17 states it as boldly as it can be stated. Those six people groups had to die!           Part of his answer was that we need to consider what that command would have meant to Joshua and the Israelites at the time it was given. He believes they probably understood it as much i

Moreover, we have all had human fathers who disciplined us and we respected them for it. How much more should we submit to the Father of spirits and live! (Hebrews 12:9)           Respect. From what I’ve heard, the idea of children respecting their parents is passé. There are some who think the idea of even believing in any god is equally old. No, the current thing is to teach children that they are gods, or at least Disney princesses, which is about as cool. No, they don’t need to respect their fathers. They just need to feel good about themselves.            Today is Father’s Day. Today, for at least a few hours, we’re supposed to tug out our smiles, pat our papas on the head and tell them what good little daddies they are. Then we get to go back to our real lives, watching beloved sitcoms that teach us to respect no one. Part of that may be because the X-er parents are trying to give the “love” they didn’t feel growing up, and part of it because they are determined that their

But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ,         (Philippians 3:20)           “But I proud to be an American, where at least I know I’m free, and I won’t forget the men who died, to give that right to me….” (Lee Greenwood)           Today’s passage is a little difficult for me. I think I try to live it out in my life, but when I think about it, I struggle a little. One of my ancestors came to the American colonies around 1638 (if I recall correctly). The most recent immigrant arrived about two hundred years later, which was approximately one hundred forty years ago. At least three ancestors fought in the Revolutionary War, and I was, for a number of years, a member of the Daughters of the American Revolution. I have voted in every major election since I got back home from college, and almost every primary. I resent it when people abuse the flag or the Constitution, and I consider a vow to “fundamentally transform America

The law of the Lord is perfect,     refreshing the soul. The statutes of the Lord are trustworthy,     making wise the simple.   The precepts of the Lord are right,     giving joy to the heart. The commands of the Lord are radiant,     giving light to the eyes.   The fear of the Lord is pure,     enduring forever. The decrees of the Lord are firm,     and all of them are righteous. (Psalm 19:7-9)           We all struggle against God’s Law because we are all fallen creatures. We cannot do otherwise except by the grace of God. I understand that, but a lot of people really struggle against God’s Law. There seems to be this notion that God arbitrarily made up ten (or six-hundred thirteen) laws and sits waiting for someone to disobey one of them like someone fishing watches a bobber or the tip of the pole.            Those same folks don’t feel as much moral outrage at God for laws like gravity, motion, or thermodynamics. We may bluster a little, but generally speaking, we accept

The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands. Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they reveal knowledge. (Psalm 19:1-2)           When I went to college, I dreamed of being an astronomer. To my dismay, it turned out that astronomy was more about mathematics than it was about beauty. At the time, that disillusionment was more than I could bear. I change my major. Fast forward almost forty years, and I find myself dreaming of a telescope so I can explore and share the beauty, and I’m writing a series of blog posts that have me trying to make sense of the physics formulae that astronomers use to figure out how the universe works. I’ve also been reading about things in the universe that, if they were only slightly different, the universe wouldn’t exist, or we wouldn’t exist. What’s more, if the earth were just a little different from what it is, our ability to understand the universe would be drastically and devastatingly decrease