Last Meal

I found it interesting that the most requested final meal of inmates on death row was a cheeseburger and fries (read about it here). I would probably pick the same thing (add a milkshake), but I have to confess it feels a little creepy to share culinary choices with murderers and rapists.

Okay, so clock's ticking . . . what's your final meal?

Does God know the future?

Had an interesting converstation with a friend on Facebook today (thanks Keith). He was prodding me for my thoughts again on a subject we've discussed before. Here's the transcript (edited, of course):

12:54pmKeith
I have a theological question for you. Explain what your justification is for God's ability to only know every thing that has happened and not everything future included

12:58pmAndy
Let me ask you this first: Does God know God's own future?

12:59pmAndy
If not, then how can He know our future (aside from bringing about the fulfillment of His will and design) in any specific detail?

1:00pmKeith
hmmm.....I don't think so. Otherwise how then would you explain him changing his mind when Moses asked him to spare lives?

1:01pmAndy
You would have to say He knew He would change His mind.

1:01pmKeith
right....and that doesn't make sense.

1:02pmAndy
And if that's the case, then how does He know our future without it impinging on our freedom AND without our future being little more than a ruse?

1:03pmKeith
agreed.....so .....prophecy

1:08pmAndy
Forthtelling aside, I see in prophecy not so much prediction as predetermination. As I'm sure I said to you before, if I tell Oscar that he will be punished if he lies to me, and then he lies and is punished, that's similar to God saying Israel will suffer punishment for its sins. Or you could say that prophecies concerning Jesus' birth are simply God bringing it about in a way He has forordained. You could also argue from the perspecitve that the writers of the Gospels picked and chose which prophecies they saw Jesus as the fulfillment of. In other words, there are many "prophecies" that did NOT refer to Jesus but perhaps could have . . . had He done something to fulfill them.

1:10pmKeith
Is that a slippery slope to saying that Christ was not the chosen one, rather he was just fulfilling prophecy that was written about someone else?

1:12pmAndy
Well, it's commonly accepted that the Suffering Servant referred to a person (or nation, i.e. Israel) contemporary with Isaiah but we also believe it refers to Jesus as well . . . so, is that a slippery slope?

Jesus said I did not come to abolish the law but to fulfill it. If that's the case, then even if the law (or prophecies) referred to someone else originally, Jesus Christ was the fulfillment of all that God had revealed to the Nation ofIsrael.

1:13pmKeith
i accept that :-)

1:17pmAndy
Back to the future . . .

1:18pmAndy
If when God created us, time, as we know it began, and as time bound beings with personal freedom we are able to make free choices and those choices have real influence over future events, then how can we say that God knows the future when it does not yet exist? Is it really limiting to God to say that He doesn't know something that can't be known or doesn't exist in His creation? I don't think it is. Although we may feel worried about limiting God, it doesn't seem that He's worried about it because He's already done it by creating us with autonomy and more especially through His own Incarnation in Jesus Christ.

So, what do you think? Does God know the future?

The difference between the almost right word & the right word is really a large matter--it's the difference between the lightning bug and the lightning.

--Mark Twain

Straining credulity . . .

I just read a USA Today article concerning the guest list at the White House so far in this administration. It notes that some of the first visitors were prominent celebs and lobbyists. Nothing too surprising there. But here's what absolutely blew my mind:

"The list also includes some names that would draw attention at first glance: Michael Jordan, Michael Moore, William Ayers and Jeremiah Wright. The White House was quick to note that the visitors were not actually the basketball star, the documentary filmmaker or the controversial activist and preacher — just people who share their names."

Are you kidding me? Do they really expect us to believe that it's just a coincidence that there are four people with the exact same names who happened to receive an extremely rare invitation to the White House. In my 35 years of existence, I've never known a single person who shares any of those exact names.

Please hear me out, I'm not a Fox News junkie (never watch it) or a fan of polarizing talking heads like Limbaugh or Coulter, but I've got to say to this--C'mon! Whatever happened to truth and transparency and avoiding politics as usual?

U2 Concert

For those who missed it, here is a replay of the live U2 concert in Pasadena on Sunday night.

As a side note, my sister-in-law who lives in LA said she could hear the concert outside and there was about a 30-second delay. Amazing when you consider the footage was concert quality and was being beamed live around the world.

Enjoy.

A God Moment

Very few times in my life can I point to an occurrence similar to what we experienced recently. More specifically, while I've obviously never heard God speak audibly, on a very few rare occasions, an answer to prayer or bit of guidance has been so specific, direct, and timely that it's about as close as you can get to experiencing God's activity in your life in a tangible way.

For those who've never been a part of one, planting a new church from scratch is, well, a scratchy business. Emotionally, intellectually, physically, and spiritually it can be a bit like a ride across the Rockies--up and down, ad infinitum.

Last week was yet another valley for us. Questions with no answers piled up like the autumn leaves outside. On Wednesday morning after breakfast, Barb and I were reading the Psalms together, and then Barb prayed for us. But she prayed something we don't often pray--she prayed that God would provide us with definitive encouragement on that very day, encouragement that we were still in step with Him on this whole church planting thing. "Lord, show us today that You're not through here yet and that we aren't crazy for doing this."

As the day went on, her prayer made its way to the back of my mind until I'd nearly forgotten it. Then, that evening, just before we left the house for some errands, I decided to check my e-mail. What followed was an unmistakeable God-moment for us. Here is the message that greeted us:

"Hi Andy and Barb--
I just looked at your new website and read through all the pages. It looks great! I felt prompted to encourage you and share something God is reminding me--we are not after a destination or end product, but each day is about being who Jesus called us to be that day. I don't share that because I think you are focused on the wrong thing at all, but Jesus reminded me of that recently (more than once, because I am slow I guess) when I was having feelings of discouragement.

Lord Jesus,
Please encourage Barb and Andy and their walk of faith. They are surrendered to You and depending on You to use them. When they are discouraged, fill them supernaturally with the amazing power of Your Holy Spirit. Remind them that their love and obedience is all You desire. Protect their marriage and their children from plans that would harm or destroy them. Provide them with discernment and clarity as they seek Your direction. Meet their needs and fill them to overflowing with You. Amen.

Praying for you both as God brings you to mind!"

In a moment of grace and through the obedience of an old faithful friend, God broke through the noise and spoke peace and encouragement into what is at times the disorienting fog of following His will.

I share this to reveal to you a God who still demonstrates His care and guidance in tangible ways. I share it to encouarage someone else walking through a valley. And I share it to say thank you to the person who listened to the Holy Spirit and delivered God's grace that day.

Poker Playing Priest

Came across this article on a priest who's playing poker to "raise funds to help build a new, bigger church." You can read it here.

So what are your thoughts on gambling and the way of Christ?

Ready when you are

In the Gospel of Luke chapter 11, we read the account of the disciples asking Jesus for instruction on how to pray and Jesus teaching to them what we call the Lord's Prayer (vv.1-4). As I've been teaching on this for the last 7 weeks at Emmaus Road Church, one of the more curious things I've noticed about this request is when it takes place.

By this point, the disciples had been with Jesus for many months. So why hadn't Jesus taught them this already? If you or I were in charge of a movement that we hoped would change the world, don't you think we'd start by teaching our followers the fundamentals, like how to really pray to God? Of course we would. But Jesus didn't. Why not?

Simply put, I think Jesus recognized that the disciples weren't ready. So instead of forcing something upon them they could not really apprehend, Jesus simply modeled it for them until they were ready. One writer puts it this way,

"Jesus simply prayed. He just prayed and prayed until [the disciples] eventually asked, 'How do you do it?' By way of answer, He said, 'Try this.' It was so important He didn't insist they learn to pray until they themselves perceived they were missing something."

After reading that, I grasped just a little more fully what the point is of much of our frustration when it comes to life--especially our spiritual life. By not answering our flippant requests, the ones we usually offer Him as we're falling asleep or when we're in some desperate situation, God creates in us a dissatisfaction, a longing for something more and something greater. In this way, he weeds out all things trivial in order that what is fundamental and true can grow tall and strong until we recognize it as that which we most truly and desperately need.

It's not that God's unwilling, it's simply that we're not ready. In fact, God is always ready, but most than that, He's ready when you are.

Burning up

The church that some of our friends attend in downtown Toledo recently burned to the ground. It was a devastating loss, but the great thing is that they've decided to remain in the downtown and rebuild.


The other great thing is this sign they hung out in front of the burned-out shell of their sanctuary. Would that we all had the same perspective in tragedy.

.

10,000 Hours

My friend Eric offered a thought-provoking post a couple of days ago on the observation that it takes approximately 10,000 hours of doing something to become an expert at it. So many implications . . .

Here's a link to his post: Ten Thousand

Back to School

My son Oscar cried himself to sleep tonight because he starts 1st grade tomorrow. He's not scared or anything, he just doesn't like to have to do "work and stuff." I wish life were that simple.

Edie then called me to her room and said, "Dad, I'm not so sure I like school anymore because Oscar doesn't like it." Empathy through and through.

We prayed a special prayer with each of them tonight--for them, their peers, their teachers, and the staff for this school year.

They grow up too fast.

Trust

This is a working definition for me:

Trust=Calculated Risk

------------------------

If you can't say anything nice . . .

After this post, it will be obvious that it's a good thing I usually filter what I'm thinking before I say it . . .

Do you ever do something that makes you mad, just to make yourself madder? I think that's me with Facebook. I've grown to hate it, well at least some of things people do on it. Here're a few things that are stickin' in my craw (not in any particular order):

#1--I hate the stupid quizzes people take, and I guess I hate reading the results even more. For example "Which Hollywood Diva (Hunk) Are You?" The person taking the quiz could be the homeliest person on the planet and yet the results are inevitable: "You are Julia Roberts (or George Clooney)" They should quit wasting their time and actually take the quiz "Which fantasy world do you live in?" The result? Backwards world.

#2--I hate it when people fake humility. For instance, "Buster Compton is really tired today after completing marathon in the morning and swimming the Atlantic Ocean in the afternoon." Or here's another one, "Wily Dedridge is feeling humbled after sharing my proposal today with the mayor of (name big city) and her entire cabinet." I'm sure the mayor thought about as highly of you as I do right now, so go get a life.

#3--I hate it when people send millions of invitations to join things I don't know or care anything about. Like this: "Jane Posetta invited you to join 'I like the old Facebook--you know, the one before they moved that one button on the bottom left-hand corner two centimeters to the right'." Or "Samson Franks wants you to join, 'I bet we can find fifty million Facebookers who wear loafers'." Hey, here's one: "Andy invites you to join 'Look Ma! No Life'."

Seriously, am I alone in this?

Getting Sick on Vick

So how screwed up is it when we pay a recent criminal $1,600,000 this year, and $5,300,000 next year, to play a silly game like football, while untold thousands of men, women, and children in our country (not to mention the rest of the world) languish in abject poverty?

I'm all for second chances, but come on.

The Furious Love of God

I recently showed part of this message from Brennan Manning to Emmaus Road Church. It spoke powerfully to us. Perhaps God will use it in your life. I hope so.

Pass the bacon

I think bacon is God's way of saying, "I'm still here, and I love you. Everything's gonna be alright."

It's never the right time, but there's never been a better time

As I've continued to reflect on the journey that has brought us to this point in our lives and the life of Emmaus Road Church, I've become convinced of the following statement:

It's never the right time, because it's always the right time

A simple illustration to explain: As the Allied forces prepared for the D-Day invasion of Normandy, the element of surprise was their greatest weapon. Although they amassed hundreds of ships and thousands of well-trained soldiers, it was only a minuscule number compared to what would eventually be needed to break out of the beaches of Normandy and eventually liberate continental Europe.

The point is this, had they waited until they had every last ship, tank, cannon, soldier, and bullet they thought they'd need, they would never have landed and the outcome of the war would have been vastly different.

There are times in our lives, and I believe they are many, when God calls us to some great and difficult task. We sense it in our hearts and perhaps even long to respond, but the fear that we're underprepared holds us back. "I don't have the right training." "Who will go with me?" "How will I provided for, and how will I provide for my family?" Such questions, while legitimate, can become the antithesis to walking by faith.

I've recently met two women who have stepped out beyond the need for answers to these questions to the front lines of faith. They're an inspiration to me to continue in what God's called us to at ERC. They've chosen to walk at the edge of faith where only God knows the way ahead and He must come through for them.

From time to time, young married couples will ask Barb and I "When is the right time to have children?" I simply tell them that there's never a "right" time--there's nothing you can ever do to fully prepare yourself for the wonderful challenge of parenting; choosing to have children is something you step into knowing that it's a decision you have to grow into.

Following God's calling, obeying His voice, joining Him in reclaiming the earth for Him requires us to recognize that although it's never the "right" time, according to our standard of how things ought to work, there's never a better time than the present.

Now is the time!

Sucker for infomercials

Over the course of 13 years of marriage, Barb and I have picked up a few items directly from informercials or after they've shown up in stores (don't mock, I know more than one of you own a George Foreman Grill). So, if you're brave enough to admit it, I was wondering what items others of you have purchased and whether they've been crap or actually decent.

Here's my list:

My first purchase (I was in high school) of an infomercial product was the famous "Soloflex". You know, it looked less like a machine and more like a work of art. I didn't, however, buy it from tv, but snagged it (w/attachments) for $350 from an ad in the paper. It was sturdy enough and well designed, but I never liked the feel of pushing and pulling the rubber band weights. Used it more for chinups and dips than anything else. Sold it 10 years later for $200. I'd give it a grade of C.

"Sweepa" picked up at Ohio State Fair in late 90's. Still have it, and it actually works like it says. Grade: B+

"Salsa Master" also picked up at the Ohio State Fair. Makes a great fresh salsa. Also chops nuts well and cleans up quickly. We don't use it much though. Grade: B-

"Walk Fit" shoe inserts. After paying hundreds of dollars to a podiatrist and purchasing expensive inserts from his office that did nothing, I decided to try out these babies. Ordered about 7 years ago off of TV from a hotel room in Effingham, IL (funny name--say it aloud). Still wearing them today. A+

When we lived in Kansas City, one of our homes had Brown Recluse spiders, aka Fiddlebacks. Not something you want around unless you like huge, festering lesions on your skin when they bite you. So we tried the plug in pest repellers, which we bought at a store, to get rid of them. These absolutely did not work. Grade: F

"Magic Bullet" ordered directly from television (bad idea). Good product--we've used it a lot. Great for protien/milkshakes, smoothies, grinding coffee and chopping nuts and hard candy. Juicer does not work well at all. Grade: B

"Tempur-Pedic" mattress. Okay, no, we didn't spend $1500+ on a mattress, but we were convinced we wanted to try out the "memory foam". So, when it was time for a new mattress, we bought a really firm one, and then I found a foam supplier online and ordered a 3" memory foam mattress "topper" with a similar viscosity (that's important, fyi) as a Tempur-Pedic mattress for about $200. Truth be told, it is very comfortable (although hot) and I'm guessing the Tempur-Pedic would be great. I don't think you really sleep any better though. Grade: C because of cost.

The "Swivel Sweeper". So, if you have hardwoods or any other hard-surface flooring AND you have young children, you probably should run out and buy one of these now. This thing cleans up crumbs like the LAPD cleans up a crime scene. Parents purchased our first one from a box retailer. The second one we picked up new for $5 at a garage sale. The only down sides are that it's not as great as it says at working on carpets--not bad, but not great--and it's not as durable as you would hope for $35 new. Both are now defunct, and we're using the "Sweepa" again. Grade: B because of durability.

A year and a half ago, I was up late watching the 50-year-old Tony Horton doing the kinds of pushups and chin ups I could only dream about at 33. Ordering the P-90X DVD series wasn't far behind. Learned my lesson, though, and bought it off of ebay for cheaper and without all the hassles of S+H. The workouts are for real and the videos are great quality, but alas, I've yet to complete the 90 day routine. Grade: A+

Here are a few items I don't, and probably won't ever have, but would like if I could afford it.

#1 Fein Multimaster--Always need more tools, especially cool ones.

#2 Snuggie (just kidding)

#3 Chef Tony's "Miracle Blades"--Can you say "rock and chop!"?

So, what do you have, and how's it working out?

Rewind

Watched Paolo Nutini on "Austin City Limits" the other night. Can't stop listening to his songs. Here's "Rewind." You're welcome.

Things you may not want to do as a pastor #237

Tonight some good friends of ours invited us to join them for a night out. So, after the babysitter arrived, we met them at Blue Pacific Grill for dinner and then went on to the Funny Bone comedy club at Fat Fish Blue to catch some live stand up comedy.

We had a great time with our friends, but I learned something of great value tonight, and it's this:

"Pastoral Tip #237"--For future reference, it's probably best NOT to invite a neighbor or friend to a comedy club as a way of building a relationship with them--unless incessant profanity and vulgarity are elements of your approach to witnessing.

A word to the wise.