A Displaced People

Jesus said, "I will not leave you like orphans; I will come to you." John 14:18

This early American Depression Era picture may indicate how many folks in the south, really folks all over, may feel about their state in life. Look at her face! Look at her kids! There is no perceived hope in this picture at all, and yet Jesus promises himself. He doesn't promise absence of hardship, only His presence through the trial. The big question for this mother and for many mothers is "what are we gonna do?" "How do we begin again? Faith in Christ as the One who knows our need is really all many have right now.

Look at this picture one more time. What can I do, what can we do, to help folks like these in affirmation of an everpresent Help and the compassion of fellow man? That's the question we who are looking on must ask. That's the question we must ask each day in our every day world with people whom we work and play with who inside feel like this momma, but seem to have it all "together."

Just a reminder of Christ's faithfulness and a probe into your heart to be sensitive to hurting people wherever they may be.

M*A*S*H 4077th

Maybe with a close run with the Carol Burnett Show this was the best modern classic. Whether you prefer Lt. Col. Blake or Col. Sherman Potter this classic brought us many laughs admidst the toughest scenerio of war.

The Korean conflict was no laughing matter. Lives were lost on many fronts. What MASH did was expose the viewer to the tragedy of men and women in wartime circumstances. We got to see real people evolve through the high and hilarious emotion on MASH. Every character had to work through their strengths and weaknesses to make it through the conflict. There's just not enough you can say about this one. The finale is still a tear jerker!

Classics include "Hotlips" and "Hawkeye" on assignment to a front medact station and getting shelled all along the way and through the make shift surgery. They were exhausted and through it all built a genuine authentic respect for each other apart from all the gigs they usually gave each other. Then there's the constant jokes on Frank Burns, the innocent "Radar" and the nut case "Klinger."
"B.J. Honeycut" added so much to each show as well. Wow something like MASH is a treasure show for sure, no doubt about it. What do you think?

Then There's This Classic

This, along with the episode where Lucy makes a fake nose to throw off William Holden so he won't recognize her - those two I Love Lucy's are so classic. Yeah, there's a whole lot more that could be tossed in, but who has time!

Now whata we got? You tell me? Seinfeld? Gone! Friends? Come on! Reality shows. Yeah right. Classic TV ain't what it used to be that's for sure. I think we've probably even exhausted the Cop/Murder Mystery shows. Maybe I'm just old, but I sure miss the days of decent TV. I was even telling a friend the other day how classic it was when Bill Bixby used to say, "you wouldn't like it when I'm angry." And then he'd turn into THE INCREDIBLE HULK! Oh yeah, that was a classic.

I'll write something more substinative later.

Grace is the Embodiment of Holiness

With so many conceptions and misconceptions about holiness, holy living, the preaching of a holy God, it has really boiled down to two very simple ideas of what holiness entails. To live a holy life entails both grace and love. Grace given to me by God and grace I show others. Love shown to me by sending His Son and love, unconditional love, I show others. These two things flesh out in the way I work, the way I treat my wife and kids, the way I respond to negative criticism and hateful talk towards me, and the way I serve my fellow man.

The flow of grace extends from resting in grace - I Peter 1:13, "rest your hope fully on the grace that is to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ. Now, without sounding pious, I KNOW I have not always extended the love or grace of our Lord as I could of in some past situations of my life. And I know grace and love was often not shown to me in the past from family members and those I pastored. (OK now you know).

At any rate, I've learned the true marks of holy living are not of any merit of our own but by grace, Ephesians 2:8-9. I once had a pastor friend in Arkansas who taught me the value of extending grace. He showed me that all we are, have, and ever hope to be is by grace, and if it were not for grace where would I, or any of us be?

See this great book below for a good read on holiness in an every day sort of way. It helps me see holiness as love in action rather than legalism, which may be how most of us see it.

Relational Holiness offers insight and evidence for understanding the theology of holiness by focusing on love - the core of God's nature and character - and describes how God invites us to share in a life of divine love. Thomas Oord and Michael Lodahl present this new paradigm for sanctification in a relevant and understandable style that is engaging and insightful, especially for the post-modern generation."...Communicating holiness in relational categories and making holiness understandable today are the two passions that inspire these imaginative theologians. With insightful originality they propose that love is the core notion of holiness. Every believer's life can be enriched with this candid contemporary dialog about the holy life."

go to http://www.nph.com to order.

I'm on a classic TV show kick this weekend. I mean it doesn't get any better than Mr. Kotter, Horseshack, Vinney Boberino, Freddy "Boom Boom" Washington, and the ultimate Juan Epstein - "a note from my mudda (mother) Mr. Kotter."

This guy was the model teacher in a tough situation. He made learning about academics fun but he was tough. His class "had his back" at all times because he earned their trust. Plus this show was just downright hilarious - vintage Travolta!

Stay tuned for more classic TV shows. Yeah, I could choose to blog about the heavy stuff like Hurrican Rita and Katrina, I'm sure I will comment eventually, but bloggin on stuff that isn't so heavy is fun too.

Shifting gears - our Adult Bible Study Fellowship had like 30 people there today. Man God is really blessing our class and today was so cool because we are learning about the Spirit of Christ as our Guide. In John 14:18 Jesus states that he "would not leave us like orphans, but would come to us and help us." How many of us just try to live this life in our own strength and behave LIKE orphans. No, He comes to us and never leaves us. I've been in some tough life storms and I can attest to His never failing presence, even when I FEEL He's a zillion miles away.

Hey that's something to be happy about and the memory of "The Sweathogs."

Well, it's Saturday night and awesome wife and I we're talking about our day just a few minutes ago. We went to this wild wild west show in Olathe at the Mahaffie homestead. Hot, but good day. Anyway, we were discussing the trick riders on the horses and it reminded me of when the Fonz jumped those cars in the parking lot of Arnold's. Yeah, I miss that guy. Richie too! No, I don't have TV Land on Cable. Gas prices are too high. Anyway, the days of the Fonz are over. Not even the Dukes of Hazard movie satisfies the hunger for the days when Saturday night baths, popcorn, and a Coke commercial by Mean Joe Green were so great. Can anyone relate?

Anyway, my son scored his first soccer goal today! Oh yes, it was so cool. Third game of the season, secon half, he's all alone on a break away. SCORE! He subbed out and came to the stands for a strawberry snack. Pretty great stuff.

All in all the wild west gun fights and western day thing was nice. My kids took a pic with Wyatt Earp. What a hard job he had. He suffered a lot for keepin' the law. Well goodnight with thoughts of the Fonz.

I've been working on a project this year called The Quest. It's basically an Acts 2 and Wesleyan response to 40 days of Purpose and The Purpose Driven Life. PDL was awesome for so many Christians and for those who claim no faith in Christianity. The premise of The Quest, though, is to move people from initial understanding of God's purposes to discovering the Power to fulfill those purposes. I mean, after all, do we just do this Christian thing on our own strength or is there Somebody who can help us?

The five themes for discovery, much life 40 Days of Purpose had five, are Guidance (the Spirit of Christ is our Guide), Love (accepting God's unconditional unmerited love), Purity (how does that look today), Power (victory over sin), and Character (what are the marks of a person filled with the Spirit of Christ). People have asked me if this isn't just a "knock off" or if it's just a band wagon response. I say it may be only in methodology, but in content the focus is so radically different. I mean, if you could discover how to live the life you you've always longed for as a Christian than this is more than just discovering purpose it's about how to employ purpose. Botton line - this is new material that will help people know Jesus personally and experience the cleansing touch and power of God's Spirit as maybe never before. It's not fluff. It's as real as the day of Pentecost.

I find myself a mid thirty-something, former track athelete, now dad, trying to get back in shape again. Cholesterol is high! Weights a bit high. So, working hard at exercising more and watching the sweets. Can anyone relate?

Well, I have a most awesome wife who's keeping me on task and helping me with nutrition. She bought me a pretty sweet mountain bike for my birthday in August so I can save my knees from the pavement! Plus I can ride with my family who is also big into bike riding.

Last great book I read was by Brian McLaren. This narrative theology and emergent methodology is really me. It's good to be able to finally connect with something of faith not entrenched in programs and the latest thing. And no, I don't think emergent is the latest thing, rather, a reawakeing to the roots of CHristian faith.