Picturesque

Here are a few pictures of what I saw on my run today. Still can't get over monkeys yet. I am also working at uploading a video of monkeys playing on telegenic sidewalk as I was running. Hope you enjoy.

Spirituality

Recently I have been thinking a lot about spirituality. In my house group with church, we are currently examining spirituality. In January we start reading a book by Greg Boyd called Present Perfect. Boyd addresses the lack of spirituality in the church and examines different applications of how to experience the presence of God in our ever day life.

After reading Boyd's Present Perfect, our house group decide to read through Acts to see how the beginning Church experience the presence of God. Only being through Ch. 10 in Acts it is obvious that the beginning Church was dependent on the Holy Spirit for guidance and growth. Starting out, I was asked what I hoped the group would get out of reading and meditating on Acts. Although I can't remember the exact words I said, I believe there were a few key points I wanted the group to understand. Those being: 1) that we are to live differently since the Spirit is leading us; 2) we need to change our expectations of God and how he works; 3) that God has a calling for our lives and is involved in each of our lives.

As we continue to go through Acts, I am continually asking a few questions:
1) What is this showing us about the characteristics of God? Or what are theses writings revealing to us about God’s heart?

2) What were the disciple’s expectations of God, knowing his heart and characteristics?

3) How are these words relevant to the way we are suppose to live today?

4) How is the Kingdom of God being brought to the here and now, like in Acts?

5) How are we daily living “missionally”?

6) What do we see the “church” becoming?

Recently, I have found this very hard to keep at the fore front of my mind. To bringing the Kingdom of God to earth is something that does not come naturally. It is a yearning in my heart, but it gets drowned out by a bombardment of everyday worries and logistics.

As I write this, I am distracted by my to-do-list of the day. It is extremely hard to quiet myself and sit in the presence of God listening to the Spirit. How does one listen to God, when His voice is drowned out by the white noise of the world? For me, I am realizing that it means that I need to silence myself before God and I need to find joy in the things that God has created as a reminder that He is ever present.

The Bible is God's Revelation, part 1

It is apparent that God reveals himself to humanity in two different ways. These ways can be described as general and special revelation. General revelation can be defined in three areas: Nature, humans, and history. Through nature we are shown God's eternal power and divine nature. King David writes explicitly about seeing God in nature.

Psalms 19:1-6:
1 The heavens declare the glory of God;
the skies proclaim the work of his hands.
2 Day after day they pour forth speech;
night after night they reveal knowledge.
3 They have no speech, they use no words;
no sound is heard from them.
4 Yet their voice[b] goes out into all the earth,
their words to the ends of the world.
In the heavens God has pitched a tent for the sun.
5 It is like a bridegroom coming out of his chamber,
like a champion rejoicing to run his course.
6 It rises at one end of the heavens
and makes its circuit to the other;
nothing is deprived of its warmth.

Through humanity the image of God is reflected. Within the first book of the Bible and first chapter (Genesis 1:26-27) humanity is made in the image of God. Through humanity God reveals himself and his characteristics, although there is brokenness due to sin, we get a glimpse of who God is through general human interaction and need for community. History also reveals God to us. Humanity gets to see God through events in history and gets to see characteristics through how He makes himself known.

Though general revelation of God is seen, but that does not convence people of His existence. Through studying of nature, humanity, and history we are pointed toward God, but not given definite proof of His existence. This leads to special revelation of God.

Special revelation of God is shown through the Bible. Through the Bible we are shown God's characteristics and heart. Humanity is given personal accounts of God's involvement in people's lives from the beginning of time. God shows that he loves his creation and is interested in relationship with His creation. In order for His creation to be able to fully come into His presence, He sends His son Jesus Christ to be fully human and fully God to live among His creation. God loves his creation so much that His scarifies His son for creation that humanity may fully live out how we were created to love each other and bring the Kingdom of God to the world. We are also shown that God is over death, by the resurrection of His son. Where death is the only thing that humanity can't conquer, God show He is over death and that humanity need not fear death for it is not the end. It is through special revelation that we are drawn to God and truly understand is His characteristics and heart.

Acts of God

Within Acts 8:26-9, there is a lot revealed about God's character and how the people of God should respond to when deciding to follow Christ. We have the apostle Philip, who is told by God to travel to Gaza from Jerusalem. There he meets a eunuch Ethiopian, who is reading Isaiah 53:

"He was led like a sheep to the slaughter, and as a lamb before the shearer is silent, so he did not open his mouth. In his humiliation he was deprived of justice. Who can speak of his descendants? For his life was taken from the earth."

Philip, gets to take this royal official through the Old Testament and tells the eunuch about the good news of Jesus. The eunuch is so moved that as they pass water the eunuch wants to be baptized. After the baptism, Philip is taken by the spirit to places like Azotus until he reaches Caesarea.

Then we get to the climax of Acts (or so it seems). We get reintroduced to Saul, who is a zealous Pharisee out for blood of the heretical "Christ-followers". Remember, he was at the stoning of Stephen. But, as we see, Saul has his whole world turned upside down. He traveling to Damascus and he sees a vision. Some scholars, as highlighted by N.T. Wright, say the vision was much like that of Ezekiel's when he describes seeing a great chariot, with whirling wheels and flashing lights or that of Stephen right before he takes his last breaths while being stoned (where Saul was present). Saul is thrown to the ground, blinded and hears the voice of Jesus asking him "Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?". While being blinded, it is written, he was praying and shown the cost of following Christ and how much he will suffer. Following this experience Saul is blinded and has to wait until a follower of the Way, named Ananias, comes to him and laid hands on him, filling him with the Holy Spirit and restores his sight. Saul's response to this experience is to be get-up, immediately be baptized and eat.

After, meeting with the disciples in Damascus for several days, Saul immediately starts preaching that Jesus is the Son of God. As Saul, proves to the Jews more and more that Jesus is the Messiah, they plot to kill him. So he flees Damascus to join up with believers in Jerusalem, who at first don't accept him fearing that he is deceiving them.

What do these chapters tells us about the characteristics of God? What are these characters revealing about God's Heart?

What were the disciple's expectations of God, knowing his heart and characteristics?

How are these words relevant to the way that we are suppose to live today?

These few passages say a lot about God's character and heart. Starting with Philip, we see that God's message and Son Jesus is not just for the Jews. Philip, shares the message with an Ethiopian eunuch or a castrated black man. From what I understand in the Jewish world once someone was castrated they were not allowed to be Jewish. This is the first highlighted story of a none Jewish person being brought to the way. How about that? I read this story, and I think of Jesus and his conversation with the Samaritan women. Jesus and the his followers cross all cultural, gender, and ethnics lines, when showing individuals the Way. Which shows the heart of God and his characteristics...he wants to see every people gathering in His love and grace.

We are further shown the heart and characteristics of God in the conversion of Saul to Paul. Saul being a Pharisee was zealous for the Lord. Particularly, he was a devout Jew that followed the Jewish law to the letter and held individuals around him to that standard. He was present at the stoning of the Apostle Stephen and was out for more blood traveling to Damascus to apprehend believers of the Way. Yet, Saul is stop in tracks on the road to Damascus, by Jesus. This shows that God can change the heart of anyone he wants.

There is much that we can take from these two stories. One is God's love is for all to come to His open arms. Two it is that we need to take seriously the Message of Christ, so serious that like Saul(Paul), Christians must realize that we will suffer for the Message of Christ and the way that we choose to live our lives. Thirdly, we must come to realize that although it will be hard, there is great joy and fullness in following Christ and living according to His word.

Spirituality

In 2005 Eugene Peterson was interviewed by Christianity Today about his thoughts on spirituality. Peterson believes that spirituality is misunderstood by Christians and non-believers today. Of this I would agree.

People misunderstand spirituality thinking it is some elitist kind of Christianity. When in reality spirituality is no different than going to church, taking communion, being baptized, learning to pray, and correctly reading scripture. It is intimate, but not in the way that many people idealize it. It is idealized to be an experience of knowing exactly what God is thinking and being in total union with Him. Although this is a noble idealization, it is not realistic and in a fallen world it would be seem to be impossible. Since many view spirituality this way it is hard for people to pursue it, the eternal closeness is not felt. In all honesty the intimacy of spirituality is more like that of being married or having a very close friend (Eugene Peterson). It is not always felt and it is something to be worked on.

Intimacy is "a way of life, a life of openness, honesty, and a certain transparency(Eugene Peterson)." Intimacy should have a sense of sacrifice, giving, or vulnerability. To me intimacy means sharing your soul, honestly bearing who you are without being someone different or putting up a front.

Spirituality is a way of living. It's living the Gospel to the means in which it was written, which was and is to live life to the fullest. As Eugene Peterson puts it, "It's learning how to do." -- which turns into losing the smoke and mirrors people put up.

How far are we from true spirituality in the Church today. It is something I thirst for and I feel that many Christians do as well. It is an acceptance that spirituality is not just for those who write books or lived hundreds of years ago. Could the lack of spirituality or intimacy with God and those who believe in Christ be the reason so many Christians and non-believers turn to affairs and dishonesty? There is a thirst for something deeper in life. This thirst can only be quenched by truth and intimacy found in Christ.

Purpose and thoughts

The purpose of this blog to create an outer dialog of an exodus of societal norms and into a new place of exploration. My hope is to challenge myself over of the course of a year or so with thoughts and questions that come to me as a I struggle through daily living out the foot steps of Jesus. I want to understand how the life of Jesus can be applied to my life.

Having just graduated from college and starting a new chapter in my life, I am realizing that there must be more to life then just having a job and starting to set myself up for financial success (although I do understand the importance of both of these aspects of my life). I want something more then just going to work. I want to make a difference. But, I am realizing that it is not me who can make a difference. It is Christ working through me. Over the course of the next year, I want to focus on reading classic literature on Christian thought (e.g. C.S. Lewis, Foster, Tozer, Augustine, Wesley, Spurgeon, Pascal, Bonhoeffer, et. ). As well as reading other topics of literature from classical English to contemporary to history to science. I did not graduate with a degree in literature or working composition. I am not a literature analysis, I am a person who is interested in finding truth that is applicable to my life and the lives of people I come in contact with. I am approaching this from a Christian world view and I will be turning to the Bible to find answers to questions I have.