God the Idiot: Part 2

In the previous post we looked at some of the characteristics of God as portrayed in Family Guy (Click Here for part 1).  Today we are going to ask how to respond.

What is the Christian response to the “Family Guy god”?  For some it is simply to call it heretical and blasphemous, and boycott it.  While I understand and sympathize with those feelings, we then miss the opportunity to respond to and correct the picture of who God is.  Instead we must respond by correcting the images that are out there.

    First, it is important for evangelical Christians to reaffirm the truth that God is neither man nor woman.  God is portrayed in the Bible as being personal and involved, but never male or female.  “Indeed, the Old Testament avoids attributing sexual functions to God, on account of the strongly pagan overtones to such associations” (McGrath, 2007, p. 204).  Sallie McFague has said that, “God is she and he and neither” (Kraus, 1991, p. 96).  Norman Kraus also says, “To think of God exclusively in masculine gender turns him into an idol” (Kraus, p. 96).  Kraus goes on to argue that in each context it is important to find the right metaphors to use when talking about God (Kraus, p. 96).   However, because of the predominance of male language about God, I wonder if North America would benefit from more feminine language about God.  The Bible is full of this language (Hos 11:3-4,13:8 Deut 32:18, Isaiah 66:13, 49:15, 42:14 Mt 23:37 Lk 13:34, 15:8-10). God is described as one who gives birth, nurses, has a womb, and is like a mother bear.  In fact, when one begins to search the Scriptures for feminine language of God it does not take long to find an astounding number of verses.1 I once heard a prison chaplain who talked about how a card company gave a bunch of Mother’s Day cards to the inmates in a prison.  It was a huge success.  All the cards were taken and sent to the mothers of these inmates.  Because of the overwhelmingly positive reaction, the card company decided to do it again for Father’s day.  The result was the exact opposite.  Not a single card was taken by the inmates.  In a culture full of fathers who are absent, abusive, or both, there is value in recognizing and using the feminine language of the Bible to talk about God.  In the book, The Shack, William Young does this exact thing. Because of the main character’s own problems with the word “papa,” God chooses to be self-revealed as a black woman.  The “Family Guy god” reveals the need for us to more clearly articulate our belief that God is she and he and neither.

   Secondly, what do we mean when we talk about God’s omnipotence?  C.S Lewis stated the problem well, “If God were good, he would wish to make his creatures perfectly happy, and if God were     almighty he would be able to do what he wished. But the creatures are not happy.  Therefore God lacks either the goodness, or the power, or both” (McGrath p. 216).  It seems that this is part of what drives the “Family Guy god.”  If God is powerful, why is it that we are not all supermodels?  Why are some children born with malfunctioning hearts?  The answer lies in a better definition of what omnipotence means.  While the literal definition of omnipotence is that God has all the power and can do anything, the Christian understanding is different (Kraus, p. 81).  When we follow this first meaning of omnipotence we are quickly led to ridiculous questions about whether or not God can make a rock so heavy that he can’t lift it.  Stanley Grenz writes, “In contrast to such misguided discussions, to say, ‘God is omnipotent’ is to acknowledge that God is able to bring to completion the divine design for creation” (Grenz, 1998, p. 98).  Kraus points out that God’s omnipotence means that God is not locked into God’s created system.  “God is not limited to the causality of the so-called natural process” (Kraus p. 81).  Perhaps one of the most important things we can say about God’s omnipotent power is that it is exercised, “though self-limitation and defenselessness of the incarnation.... God in his own freedom     chooses to accomplish his goals through our freedom of response to him.  He joins with us in the struggle to overcome death and evil in such a way that his victory will also be our victory.  His power is for us.  It is not independent and exclusive of us, but inclusive of us” (Kraus, p. 82).  God has self-limitation of power, which gives us freedom.  At the same time, God still retains the power to see that creation is brought to its final goal.  God chooses to join us in the struggle and share power with us.  Perhaps the “Family Guy god” is not a poor reflection of God doing a sorry job of creating things, but of Christians failing to respond to the structures and sin in the world that dehumanizes and devalues those in the world.  Instead of wondering why God does not simply make the world a better place, perhaps the world should be asking what has the Church done lately to make the world a better place?  God will one day rule fully in all power and nothing will be able to stop this plan.  However until that day God has chosen to be self-limiting and to work primarily through those who respond to God’s call.

    Finally, the “Family Guy god” is disinterested in humanity; he is an absent god.  It is vital for Christians to speak up and remind all who will listen that God has not abandoned humanity.  Rather, God cared so much about this planet that the Divine became human.  God has suffered with humanity, so that God could restore humanity.  In the midst of all the difficult things that happen in life, God is the relational Being whose presence can be known.  When I think back to the bar scene, I know that God is, in fact, present in the bar, but God is present in a fundamentally different way than MacFarlane sees it.  MacFarlane sees God torching the place and running, whereas the incarnation shows me that God is in the bar suffering with those who suffer.  God has not left the world to burn.  God is present in it and will one day fully restore it into a new earth.

    The “Family Guy god” is nothing like the Christian God.  However, it does seem that the “Family Guy god” character is created from a number of misunderstandings and assumptions that are drawn from the language we use as North American Christians.  God is not a bumbling idiot who chases women, uses his power poorly, and fails to take an interest in the world he created.  Rather, God is she and he and neither, at the same time, God is personal!  God is actively involved in the lives of God’s creation.  God limits God’s power so that people can freely respond to God, and then God shares that power with us.  In the incarnation we see that God chooses to suffer with humanity, sharing our pain and sorrow.  We know that God is working towards a goal that will be accomplished.  I believe that, as Christians, it is important for us to respond to the “Family Guy god” in a way that carefully corrects these misrepresentations of God.  As Christians, we must watch the language we use about God.  We must take action and use the power God has given us to alleviate the things that are wrong in the world.  And we must continually remind people that God deeply loves humanity and the world, so much that God took on flesh to be among us.

Holy Darkness

As I was driving the other day I heard Rufus Wainwright cover Leonard Coehn’s Hallelujah.  Rufus changed a few of the verses from the original and one of his new lines goes “Remember when I moved in you; the holy dark was moving too, and every breath we drew was Hallelujah” As I heard the line “The Holy Dark was moving too.” I stopped. What does it mean? Holy Dark?   I don’t think that these are two words that we put together very often.  But why not? Maybe I am just reading too much of the Book of Job, but doesn’t the idea of a Holy Dark make perfect sense when trying to understand God?

So often when I think about God and the way he works I think BRIGHT and PASTEL colors.  But I am beginning to think that isn’t the way God always works.  Often He works in the Dark.  The dark is scary, we don’t understand the dark.  We bump into things in the dark and we can’t see past our noses (the reason I stubbed my toe last night).  And there are times that life seems very dark.  Where is God for the barren woman?  or the Woman who loses her child in birth?  Where is God when men go to war?  Where is God when all our plans are smashed on the rocks?  Life seems to be filled with a lot of dark.

This is where. for me, the idea of a Holy Dark comes in.  I have faith that behind the darkness there is a God who cares for us and is moving behind the scene.  Maybe instead of imagining it as a black darkness, we should think of Holy Dark as a deep blue, like the night sky as it gives away to dawn.  Personally I believe that the scriptures tell us we have a God who cares for us, who can guide us through the pitch, and a God who defends and pulls for us.

I don’t know what this all means.  What does it mean when we can’t see God moving? How does someone having cancer fit with this idea? I don’t know, I don’t have all the answers, but in my own moments of night, I will keep having faith that behind the darkness God is moving, so it’s not just a dark that envelopes me, it is a HOLY dark.

Hitting the Weights

Well life here seems to be getting back into a routine! Youth starts up this week, and I have to say that this (our 3rd youth year in Altona) is shaping up to be my favorite! Speaking of shaping up... it is also that time of year, when you realize that all your big work out plans for the summer fell through, and that if you want to be in shape for next year at the beach it would be best to start now. So now I'm on this healthy eating thing, fruits, veggies, Rye bread... and such, and I've also started working out... and I've actually done pretty well in the last three weeks. I'm pretty stoked about it, and depending on what time of day I weigh myself, and how much is in my pocket it looks like I've already lost around 5 pounds. Maybe the biggest difference though is this time I have set a goal for myself. I want to lose another 30 pounds and weigh 165... which I don't think I have actually weighed since I was.... 16 maybe... anyway, that's the goal. I'm sure there will be more posts about this as the year continues.

But all this thinking about shaping up and working out and stuff has made be very aware of eating habits and other people who are in shape. When I see someone who is totally ripped I ask myself, "I wonder what he does?" But there is one thing that I saw this weekend that sort of bothered me.

On the MTV VMA's on Sunday there was a lot of hype about the return of Britteny Spears, which was basically a disaster. She looked drunk on stage, did a horrible job of lip syncing, and basically the performance was a dud. But what bothers me most is how many pictures I have seen of her in her tiny little outfit with the caption "Out of shape Britteny Spears."

What bothers me most about the whole thing is not her tiny outfit and how she promotes a life style of sex and promiscuity that we just don't need in our society, and let me be clear, that does bother me. What bothers me most is how every commentator is calling her flabby and out of shape, when really in those pictures she looks to be a healthy weight. No she doesn't have rock hard abs, but neither do most people. The media is big on telling us that we put too much emphasis's on how we look. Tyra Banks has been positive spokeswoman for models that aren't a size zero, and has encouraged people to be healthy, but also to feel comfortable and beautiful as they are. And yet... here is the same media telling us that Britteny is "fat", "flabby", "dumpy", and out of shape, when she clearly is not.... she's just not a size zero. It bothers me the images that we feel we must live up to, and I can only imagine the anguish that a young girl must go through hearing these thing said about Britteny and realizing that she isn't even in as good shape as her. It is just plain wrong! And so that is my rant, I hate the way the media has dumped on Britteny, and the way that the media is two-faced, on one side saying that it's o.k. not to look like a size zero model, and on the other blasting anyone who doesn't meet their standard. I hope that today if you are reading this you realize that you are a beautiful/handsome person and you do not need to aspire to the false concept of beauty that the media feeds you.

In Loving Memory of Nate

Sometimes life doesn't make any sense to me. And the question why is brought to the forefront of my mind. On the weekend I heard that a friend from Bible School, Nate Toews, was killed in an accident. Nate and I shared a instant connection when we first met at Bethany. We were both P.K's, we were both Nate's, and our birthday's were even close together. But on my part I just wanted to be associated with Nate, there was an infectious quality about Nate. He was one of those people who you meet and will never forget, who leaves a permanent mark on your life and soul, who was the presence of Jesus to many many people. I loved Nate, I loved to be around him, life was never boring in the dorm with him around. I always felt inspired and loved after a time with him... oh and my sides usually hurt to from laughing, and soaking in the joy that radiated from him. After Bethany we sort of lost touch, but a two summers ago when we were at Redberry Bible camp he and his brothers came through and did the chapels at camp. And it was so good to pick up again and hear about the things he was up to and such. Once again I was struck by his passion and love for God, and his incredible Joy! But a tragic accident has robbed us far to soon from someone who brought so much joy, robbed us of a husband, friend, and disciple of Jesus.

My prayers are with Rosanna as she grieves the loss of her husband, and with the rest of his family. And my heart grieves with them. There are no words to explain how my heart reaches out. I want to say something... but I can't... I don't know where to begin.

And we are all left with a why? I cannot except simple answers, pat answers. "God had a plan", "It was time for him to go", these answers do not answer the pain that is left, and only cause me to doubt the goodness of God. How can a good God leave a young widow to mourn? How could a good God rob us of such a holy inspiring man? How could... And yet... I do believe that God is good, and I believe that his love and comfort know no boundaries, so while I cannot believe that God caused this tragedy, or even wanted it to happen, I do believe that God is good, and will work destruction into beauty, will work tragedy into celebration, and will work death to life. I don't understand the why and don't believe I ever will, but I put my trust in the good and loving hands of Jesus and trust that he will turn our mourning into dancing.

ht: thanks Trev for the great picture from our freshman year missions trip

Convention

So here we are back in Saskatchewan.... I mean seriously, how much more are we going to be driving out here. Two oil changes in a month = too much driving. But I guess it's still nice to be hanging out at Bethany, seeing some old friends and cooling of in Jerry's office since it's very nice and air conditioned. So far convention is a convention. Lot's of meetings and lot's of people talking, some good stuff, some that is a little less interesting. Yesterday we had a class on Divorce and remarriage so that was pretty awesome, I liked the whole academic schooling type thing again. This morning I put Lennox outside at my mom and dads, and when I let him back in this morning his face was covered in golf ball sized bites. So we're thinking it is mosquitoes but if anyone knows different I'd love to hear from you. The bugs are unbelievably bad here.
Well that's all for now.

They Like Jesus but not the Church

Here's an interesting video from Chicago where random people are asked to give their views on Jesus and Christians. Sort of a difficult video to watch, and yet inspires me to make sure people see something different in me.

ht Dan Kimball

Atheists Debate Part II

So the debate was last night... all said I wasn't too surprised. One of the most painful moments was when Brian Sapient and his partner Kelly totally destroyed the argument that Kirk and Ray had put forward. When the moderator asked Kirk or Ray if they had anything to say there was a very long awkward silence, and then they said, "No, we think people can figure it out." I was sitting there going WHAT!!!! They totally destroyed or at least seriously wounded the entire premise of your argument, and you don't do anything, or try and refute it!?? The other problem was that Kirk and Ray completely failed to do what they had set out to do. They said that they would prove completely scientifically without faith or the Bible that God existed, and they certainly didn’t do that. At the end of the day it wasn't much of a debate, I would say from all I've seen Kirk and Ray got hammered, but Brian and Kelly weren't exactly stellar either (in my opinion), and some of their “facts” weren’t fact at all. But perhaps the person who got the roughest time out of it was Ted Haggard (I'm not sure why he was mentioned so often, but I guess Brian and Kelly thought it was relevant).
I thought that the best part of the whole thing was when the moderator said at the end (My paraphrase), “Maybe it isn't about winning or losing, but just about opening the floor for discussion.” My feeling on the whole thing, is debates don't work, trying to defend your point of view will rarely win people to your side of any argument. But relationships and discussion… now we are moving in the right direction. So maybe in the end the whole thing wasn't so bad, because at least it opened up some discussion, and has people talking. See for yourself, watch here or go to YouTube and search Face-Off Does God Exist there are like 6 parts there.

Atheist Debate

I don't know how much you've heard about the ABC Nightline debate that is coming up. But here's the run down, Actor Kirk Cameron and another Christian are going to debate with two Atheists about God, creation, and the rest of that. It's interesting, but I've noticed a lot about Atheism in the media the last little while. Maybe it has to do with Richard Dawkins' book the God Delusion.
Anyway I was up early this morning and I watched Richard Dawkins and George Stroumboulopoulos on the Hour. So after watching that (click here to see it) I'm really hoping that Kirk and his Christian buddy do better than what they did before (see video).

Now I am all for conversation and there can even be a place for all out debate (all though I think this sounds like ABC is going for a ratings grab). But I really would feel better about this if they had some of the right people there. I have this sinking feelings that this could be a real gong show. That banana logic is more than a little thin.

"I want you to be merciful; I don't want your sacrifices."

A while ago I felt like it was time to reread through all the gospels. I tend to spend most of my time reading in Mark (a personal fav) but I thought it was time to get the whole perspective on the story of Christ again. So the other day I read this cool verse from Matthew 9. Jesus is talking to the Pharisees, 'cause they are trippin’ that Jesus would hang out with the likes of Matthew and as they like to label them "scum." So Jesus throws out this response. He says in verse 13 "Then he added, 'Now go and learn the meaning of this scripture: 'I want you to be merciful; I don't want your sacrifices (Hosea 6:6).' For I have come to call sinners, not those who think they are already good enough." So this struck me, and I thought it was a cool verse. Jesus is quoting Hosea 6:6 so I went back and read through the whole chapter to see the context of the passage Jesus is quoting. Well today I was reading Matthew 12 and Jesus is back in hot water with the Pharisees because the disciples are grabbing handfuls of grain and eating it on the Sabbath (has anyone ever thought about how gross that would be to eat? Mmmm raw grain, yummy! I think I'd rather go hungry... ANYWAY) Jesus looks at the Pharisees and says, "But you would not have condemned those who aren't guilty if you knew the meaning of this Scripture: 'I want you to be merciful; I don't want your sacrifices." So I'm reading and I go 'huh? I think I've heard this before. So I'm thinking that if Jesus is repeating himself, He probably thinks that this is a pretty important thing. The whole part of Hosea 6:6 says, "I want you to be merciful; I don't want your sacrifices. I want you to know God; that's more important than burnt offerings." So here is Jesus repeating that what He is looking for, what He wants us to be doing, be merciful, and know God. He’s not interested in empty ritual, he is interested in people. Not always the easiest thing in the world to do, but a good challenge as we go about our days, so let us be merciful, and not fall into the trap of thinking we are already good enough.

I went and saw 300

So on Saturday I went out with some of my friends here in town for Ribs and 300. The ribs were AMAZING!!! I'm telling you, no one makes a rack of Ribs like good 'ole Tony Roma! After stuffing ourselves full of meat, we went and saw 300.

Now having read a few reviews of this movie, I knew exactly what we were in for. 105 minutes of bloody violence with a few naked women thrown into the mix. But still in the three weeks since its release the movie has grossed over $162,354,000, and continues to dominate the box office. Now obviously I don't think that we should just go along with whatever culture does, but when something makes such a splash, I think that there is something worth checking out. Why are people seeing it? So we went. Now I will say this about the movie; There, were a few minutes where we all spent some time studying our shoes (but the movie wasn’t nearly as sexual as I had been led to believe). And second there is a lot of blood (although it looks pretty fake). With that said, at the end of the movie all of us were wishing that we lived back in 400 B.C. and we had what it took to be a true Spartan. What was it about this movie, that inspires? That draws a longing deep within us? What this movie does is it shows us a world were things are simple. It shows us a world where honour, respect, and glory are held above everything else. It shows us a world where there is something greater than ourselves to live and die for. It shows us a world where men discipline their bodies, and make it their slaves. It shows us that our lives can mean something, even if we are small and it seems like everything is against us. It shows us a community of people who will stand by each other and sacrifice their lives for each other. Essentially it shows us the world that we wished we live in. Now most of us would rather do without all of the violence and battle, that came with this era, but we want something to live and die for. We want honour, respect, glory, discipline, community, and a cause. And that is what draws us to this movie.

Of course there is more too it than that. Cinematically it is stunning, and the stylized fighting is amazing to watch. But I believe that at the heart of it, there is a longing that this movie creates in us. I know that even days later, I still have a longing to be a warrior, to have a battle that demands my life.

And so.... the question is, where do we go from here? I believe that within Christianity there is a place for honour, respect, glory, disciple, community, and obviously there is a cause that we have. But how to we draw that out? How do we inspire men to grab hold of the faith, and become warriors? How does Christ, become our battle of Thermopylae Pass? And how do we live Sparta today? How does the church meet the longing that a movie like 300 brings out in so many of our young people today?

For more info you can read Relevant Magazine Plugged In Magazine and Ben Witherington
for their reviews of 300

God's Blueprint

So on Sunday I preached on the guidance of God in our lives. (you can listen to sermon here). In that sermon I mentioned that I don’t believe that God has a perfect blueprint for my life. I believe that I have choices in my life. There wasn’t just one person I was supposed to marry. But I chose Niki, and now I committee to live out the rest of my life with her (By the way I think it was an excellent choice). There isn’t just one school for us to go to, one church for us to serve in, one…anything. However, believing this does raises some interesting questions. What I’ve done here is laid out three of the main reasons why I struggle with the idea that God has a perfect plan laid out for my life. I would love to hear your responses and your thoughts. Hopefully we can discuss and learn together.

1) God Can Change his Mind, so then the plans Change.
First we are told in Hebrews 6:18 that it is impossible for God to lie. With this in mind when we read the story of Exodus 32:9-14 we are left with a clear picture of when God’s mind can be changed by his people. Because his threat to destroy the people was either, real, or a lie, God was clearly ready to destroy the Israelites, but because of Moses’ intercession, and arguing God relents and changes His mind. So if it is possible for us as humans to change God’s mind, how can He have a blueprint laid out for my life? Clearly there are things that can change His mind and make new plans.

2) We must have choice (To choose and reject)
God is Love, God created us for love. In Mere Christianity C.S. Lewis says,
“Free will is what has made evil possible. Why then, did God give (creatures) free will? Because free will, though it makes evil possible, is the only thing that makes possible any love or goodness or joy worth having.”
Because God wants real love from us, it means we must have a choice. This choice is clear to us through the scriptures. It is repeatedly affirmed that God loves the whole world and does not want one person to be lost (1 Tim 2:4 4:10; 2 Pet 3:9)! And yet at the same time it tells us that many people will be lost. The possibility of saying no to God must be there just as the possibility of saying yes. People can and often do resist God. Choice is part of the fabric of who we are. So in my life I must have choice in the decisions I will make, if God has a blueprint of everything I will do, and am supposed to do, I become nothing more than a robot. It also raises questions about those who choose not to follow God. Either they have a choice, or God has a blueprint that says they will not choose to know Him. And so now He is the one responsible for them being lost. Seeing as we have already established that God cannot lie, and the God wants all people to be saved, so this clearly isn’t an option.

3) If God is responsible for everything that means evil as well
One final reason (although I’m sure I can think of more) I see a problem with the idea of God’s blueprint of my life is that then there is, “A specific divine reason for every particular event that transpires, including the activity of Satan, then the ultimate explanation for evil cannot be found in Satan. It must rather be found in the reason that God had for ordaining or allowing him to carry out that specific activity, The problem is that the New Testament doesn’t point toward that. Acts 10:38 says that Jesus “Went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil.” In fact Jesus always treated disease as a work of the enemy.” If God has a plan for everything in my life it means that He is also in control of all the sickness, disease and disasters that happen in this world, that He NOT Satan is the perpetrator of these events. To me this is irreconcilable with God as good, and the pictures we see in the scripture as God’s kingdom fighting against the powers and principles of this world.

In Conclusion, I find the evidence of God’s ability to change His mind, His gift of choice to choose or reject Him, and the fact that a good God cannot be responsible for evil, is enough that God does not have a single plan for our lives. It seems to me that if God has a plan for our life it is that we will Love Him, and that we will live Holy Lives.

Now I also have to say that all of this doesn’t make total sense to me yet. I am just a pilgrim searching for answers. And while I don’t think that God has a specific plan for my life, I also believe that God calls people and commissions them for things. I believe that it is good to seek the guidance of God, and walk in His steps. So how that relates to what I’ve said before I am not totally sure yet. But this I do know, without choice, we stray too close to predestination for my liking.

Rest

I've been thinking a lot lately about rest. What does it mean to be resting in God. a couple of things have led to this thinking. The first is, as a staff we are reading "The Rest of God: Restoring Your Soul by Restoring Sabbath" by Mark Buchanan. I also just finished Contemplative Youth Ministry by Mark Yaconelli in that he talks about his son who started a club called the "Slow Club" the whole point of the club is to slow down and not be rushed no matter what you had to do and who was pushing you to go fast... did I mention that his son was 4? Anyway to me this is such a good idea. And I have been trying to slow down my pace. To enjoy the half block walk from work to home without rushing. The final thing that I have been thinking about is the guidance of God. Psalm 46:10 says "Be Still and Know that I am God." Isn't it true that we get so busy that we miss God. We are so worried about doing that we forget God is more interested in us just being. How can we find God’s guidance when we are so busy that we never pay attention to Him? Niki was talking on her blog about how she was resting, and in that rest she was busy doing things, and then she talked about how the tree outside our window is a reminder to her of how God is present. But I wonder if there isn't another illustration from the tree.

It seems to me that the busyness in our life is like a wind that shakes our extremities, and threatens to knock us down. But when we have learnt to rest in God, all the wind does is shake our branches, but WE are firmly rooted and are able to rest. So we are active, but not busy. But when we have lost the ability to be still and know God, the wind/busy times in our life come and blow against us, and we shatter like an old tree in a strong storm. Busyness will kill you. Think about that word, what comes to mind? For me it is the bee going from one flower to the next, flying around in circles. Busyness will destroy you. It will separate you from God. Unless we can slow down, rest in the presence of our creator, we will break under the speed of life. So stop for a minute, take a breath, tune into the presence of God, rest....... and then go back to your work, but do so remembering that the wind is only shaking your branches, not you. Remember that you can be active, but not busy.

Jealousy

“Do not worship any other god, for the LORD, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God.” - Exodus 34:14

Question: How do you deal with a God who’s very name is Jealous, a God that proclaims loudly and frequently that He is a Jealous God, and the fact that we as his people are not supposed to be Jealous?

This was the question I faced the other day. How do I respond? So I asked a few people how they would answer it. The best answer I got was, “Because He’s God, so he can do whatever He wants.” Fortunately this was said with a bit of a smirk, so I knew this wonderful woman that I admire hadn’t just crushed my opinion of her. But still…

So these are my thoughts on the topic.

1) Emotions are from God, and so Jealousy is not always a Bad thing.

Emotions are something that are God given, and important to who we are as people. Jesus showed us a wide variety of emotions during his time on earth. Whether it was anger at the money changers in the Temple, or the tears shed over Jerusalem, Jesus as a man who had emotions and used them. There are times when injustice calls us to a righteous anger. There are times when we hear stories that break our heart and call us into action. Even our sexual urges are something given by God. All of these emotions obviously can be used incorrectly. Anger can turn into destructive violence, sadness can lead to a unhealthy view of the state of the world, and sexual feelings, can lead to a whole host of problems. So is jealousy like these emotions? Can it be used correctly?

2) Really what is Jealousy

Well to answer that last question. First we need a framework, a definition of what Jealousy is. The one I found that actually helped a lot was from Wikipedia (the encyclopedia that allows even idiots to be experts). Anyway, they say. “Jealousy typically refers to the thoughts, feelings, and behaviors that occur when a person believes a valued relationship is being threatened by a rival.” So then if Jealousy is our reaction when a valued relationship is being threatened by a rival, I think it starts to make a little more sense. We as the creation of God, are created to be in relationship. Because of the fall and some bad choices on our part, or relationship with God becomes threatened by the entrance of sin and Satan. Now maybe I’m putting human emotions on God, but wouldn’t it make sense for God to become jealous when He sees His perfect creation, His relationship with His children so threatened. This definition has helped be understand how God can be jealous, and how that can be a good thing.

But then we are still left with the question, What about us? Is there ever a place where it is right for us to be jealous? I’d really like your input here, because I can’t think of many. In fact the only one I can really think of would be marriage. When a husband or wife feels there relationship is threatened by an outside force, jealousy kicks in to protect that marriage. Now like all other emotions it can be misused and abused. But within the context of marriage jealousy can be a very good thing.

I guess the problem is that there is a very thin line between jealousy and envy. Envy is that desire for things you don’t have. And often it seems like Jealousy gets lumped in with it. But at least to me, I see a difference. I think I can see how God can be jealous, how there is place for us to be jealous. But at the same time the need to walk with care, to make sure we aren’t slipping over into envy. Longing for something that we have no right to.

So what are your thoughts?

WHY I’M MORE LIKE FRODO THAN GANDALF

So the other day I started reading Lord of the Rings again. It truly is a literary masterpiece. It is a great book to sit and read, and be carried away. Anyway during this reading I was struck by this conversation that happens between Frodo and Gandalf, about Gollum. As I read it I couldn’t stop thinking about the different things that are happening in the world, our churches, and my own life. So first the conversation and then some thoughts.

“Gollum!” Cried Frodo. ‘Gollum? Do you mean that this is the very Gollum-Creature that Bilbo met? How Loathsome!”

‘I think it is a sad story.’ Said the wizard, ‘and it might have happened to others, even to some hobbits that I have known.’

‘I can’t believe that Gollum was connected with hobbits, however distantly,’ said Frodo with some heat. ‘What an abominable notion!’

…. “Do you mean to say that you, and the elves have let him live on after all those horrible deeds? Now at any rate he is as bad as an Orc, and just an enemy. He deserves death.”

“Deserves it! I daresay he does. Many that live deserve death. And some that die deserve life. Can you give it to them? Then do not be too eager to deal out death in judgment. For even the very wise cannot see all ends. I have not much hope that Gollum can be cured before he dies, but there is a chance of it. And he is bound to the fate of the ring. My heart tells me that he has some part to play yet, for good or ill, before the end; and when that comes, the pity of Bilbo may rule the fate of many- yours not least.”

I was thinking about how quick I am to judge people, especially people who are different, or perhaps more frighteningly, people like me. I am quick to judge, and throw down a verdict of guilty, while not seeing that we are connected. Gollum came from a people just like the Hobbits, but some bad decisions led him down a dark road. In the same way that the Stripper, drug dealer, ultra right wing conservative Christian, Saddam Hussein, and me, are all cut of the same cloth, designed and created in the image of God. Some of us have chosen paths that lead us to become stretched and thin, but there still resides within, the goodness of Christ. I’m not much of a new years resolution guy (why decide something that you won’t keep anyway) But this year I want to see people the way Gandalf does… the way Christ does. To see the goodness in people, to hope for the best, to hope that they can be changed. After all, in the end wouldn’t our fates be entwined with theirs?

"Then the King will say to those on his right, 'Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.' "Then the righteous will answer him, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?' "The King will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me." -Matthew 25:31-40