Thursday, February 21, 2008

For the Widows in Paradise; For the Fatherless in Ypsilanti, Sufjan Stevens

I have called you children, I have called you son.
What is there to answer if I'm the only one?
Morning comes in Paradise, morning comes in light.
Still I must obey, still I must invite.
If there's anything to say,
if there's anything to do,
If there's any other way,
I'll do anything for you.

I was dressed embarrassment.
I was dressed in wine.
If you had a part of me, will you take you're time?
Even if I come back, even if I die Is there some idea to replace my life?
Like a father to impress;
Like a mother's mourning dress,
If you ever make a mess,
I'll do anything for you

I have called you preacher; I have called you son.
If you have a father or if you haven't one,
I'll do anything for you. I did everything for you

Sunday, February 17, 2008

Dreams Diminished.

"Purpose determines Existence" Rob Maupin, professor of missions at Lincoln Christian College.

Rob said this in class a couple of weeks ago and I have let it sit in the crock pot of my brain for that long. I realized that in a lot of ways this statement is very true. However, I do not think that this statement is ultimatley true because it would be two narrow in terms of existence.

But hearing this made me think of the dreams I used to have that don't seem to fit into the life that I am living. Which makes these dreams intolerable. These dreams arn't those dreams that people say are too big to reach they just don't fit into the life that I am living anymore.

So I find myself to be floating around Central Illinois quite a bit and reading quite alot. It's amazing how much time I have found to read when I am not obssessing over a dream.

I was actually reading the book of Exodus and I stumbled into chapter 19. This chapter is placed in the midst of the Israelites recent escape from the slavery of the Eygptians. Not only have the Israelites just escaped, Moses is actually on Mt. Sinai and is about to recieve the Ten Commandments from God.

But before God delegates these holy rules one must first read chapter 19 which is the dream and the vision that God gives to the Israelites. This dream is vitally important to the existence of the Israelites and is the reason why the Ten Commandments were given.

For how can God give the Israelites a dream without giving them the means to reach it?

It is written, "You yourseves have seen what I did to Egypt, and how I carried you on Eagles wings and brought you to myself. Now if you obey me fully and keep my covenant, then out of all nations you will be my treasured possession. Although the earth is mine, you will be fore me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation." Exodus 19:4-6

It's intersting because, first, God reminds them who the nation is in the kingdom of God and who God is. He reminds them that HE brought them out of Eygpt and HE brought them to Himself. So we must realize that God is God. HE is the creator over all creation and HE is the King of the Israelites. Not pharoah or any other Eygptian God's but Yahwah Himself.

Secondly, HE calls the Israelites his treasure possession. HE tells them that if they keep their part of the promise they made with God through the patriarch Abraham then they will be the treasured possession. Now this word in Hebrew is actually segullah and it literally means to be the crown jewel. To be the center of all beauty on the head of the King.

Thirdly, God peices the whole dream together. HE not only reminds the nation of who they are HE also tells them who they could be in the promise of God. God doesn't leave it at that though. HE tells them who they need to be in relation to other people. God is calling them to be missionaries. I know missionaries is a term that is generally looked down apon and is spat at because of guilt connotations, but God is calling the Israelites to be the holy people among all the nations. HE wants them to not only be holy in communion with him and with each other, HE wants them to be Holy within the context of the nations around them. This is their vision. This is their mission.

Purpose doesn't create existence, God does. But God also creates purpose and HE had one for the people of Israel and HE has one for the Church today. The question is are we so self centered on our own existence that we miss the purpose of the church itself?

Wednesday, February 06, 2008

I like to listen to songs over and over again. Not all the time but when I find that there is a song that tugs at my heart strings I tend to want to hear it as long as possible in that singular moment. There is generally something in a song or a melody that I don't understand. That is why I tend to want to go over it again and again.

There is a mystery to a peice of art. When you can listen to something, or look at something, or read something that has been intertwined with the soul it no longer remains something humanly created. There is a divine peice that has partnered with it as well.

Most of the time when I come into contact with a peice of art like this I realize who I am in that moment. I become very small when I come into a collision with something that is full of soul. Simply because I realize that I, for one did not create these things, which makes me realize that I am not God. Secondly, because I am not God I have a great appreciation for what God has done. Thirdly it brings me to a place where I can worship God more definitley because I am not God, I am his child.

This is how I view the great scripture that has been taught to me over all of my time going to church. So many times I approach scripture in such a laxed way. I come to it with the mentality that I will go in to it and then evaluate my life. Instead of letting the scripture come into me and evaluating me. I have lost the revreance for scripture simply because no one has ever really taught it to me.

So let me say this, for all of the readers who come to my blog for one reason or another, scripture is much bigger than you or I will ever be. Now you can naysay it and tell me that I am reading the wrong translation, or that the Greek manuscripts used didn't all match up. You can throw textual criticism around all you want, and there is definitley a place for that.

However, when you come to scripture with the attitude of analyzing it and tearing it apart why then do you wonder about the desparing world around us? Because if you come into scripture analyzing it, then it is not truly changing your life hence it will not change the lives around you.

To everyone who preaches scripture if you are truly aware of the scripture that you are preaching please come to it in prayer and contemplation. Do not take something and just add illustrations and stories to make it sound better. Scripture has a life of it's own. It doesn't always need to be explained away with an illustration.

Realizing that Scripture is so much more than just words on a page, but is written with a soul attatched and with a divine hand we can come to it in humility. We can realize that we are not God because we did not create it. We can also give the appreciation of scripture towards God since we did not create it ourselves, and then we can glorify and honor God through our worship because we can understand who we are in accordance to God.

We can go back to scripture over and over again, just like I do with a song that seems to grasp my soul.