THE FORMULA The mystic was back from the desert. “Tell us,” they said, “what God is like.” But how could he ever tell them what he had experienced in his heart? Can God be put into words? He finally gave them a formula — inaccurate, inadequate—in the hope that some might be tempted to experience it for themselves. They seized upon the formula. They made it a sacred text. They imposed it on others as a holy belief. They went to great pains to spread it in foreign lands. Some even gave their lives for if. The mystic was sad. It might have been better if he had said nothing. (From Song of the Bird by: Anthony de Mellow)
Now I grew up in two different churches who would both be considered to be on the conservative end of the spectrum when it comes to how they practice their Christian faith. I owe them a lot for they did their best to help me come to know Christ. I learned a lot about the text in the Bible. I learned their canonical order, their authors and subjects, and memorized many scriptures. But it wasn’t until my undergraduate training that I begin to learn more about the context, translation, and ultimately the inclusion or exclusion of text into the modern Bible.
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Well it’s that time of year once again. Some would say it’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year. Decorations are going up in and on houses, and towns are lighting up the night sky with beautiful Christmas lights. People are shopping to buy the latest gifts for their loved ones, filling angel trees, dropping money into red buckets, and filling toy drive bins across the nation. Some are making plans to serve; others are making plans to connect with family and friends. So, whether you are a fan of the season, or a Mean One Mr. Grinch, or just indifferent, Jesus’ birthday can present us Christian disciples with plenty of opportunity to share the story of Jesus.
For years I have watched Christians debate whether or not it’s the right time of year to celebrate Jesus’ birth. Some would argue that we celebrate all the time, why take a special time to emphasize it more? Others have been frustrated by the Happy Xmas and feel as though it’s an overt attempt to remove Christ from his birthday celebration. Still others have tried to label the Christmas season using an old word, Advent, in hopes of bringing the original focus back to a season now seemingly lost in Jingle bells, Frosty the Snowman, Rudolph, the red-nosed Reindeer, and Santa Baby.
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At Singing Oaks right now we are studying the book of Acts and it has got me thinking a lot about “Church”. In this day and age being a member of a local church family is not the norm. In fact being a “committed to this church family no matter what” member is so far from your norm that it makes talking to others about faith, God, and His will for His church next to impossible. So many of my friends over the years have left my church family to go and connect with a new one. Many of them still haven’t landed and are being tossed to and fro so much that they will likely give up on being a part of a faith community all together. And most leave for so many consumeristic reasons that it is almost disheartening to strive for the Kingdom and Unity that Jesus prayed so diligently to become realized. Has church become a product? Yes! and No!
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If you haven’t been on YouTube, Instagram, Facebook or most any other social media recently then you may have missed the new trend of video sharing. It’s a multi-billion dollar industry. YouTube alone has more than 1 billion unique users who visit the site each month and over 6 billion hours of video are watched each month. Those users upload 100 hours of video each MINUTE! Vote: Is this a good thing or a bad thing?
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As I reflect on Solomon and his teachings I want to share with you how I have come to find truth in Proverbs 3:5-6.
Trust God from the bottom of your heart; don’t try to figure out everything on your own. Listen for God’s voice in everything you do, everywhere you go; he’s the one who will keep you on track. Proverbs 3:5-6
After telling this story a few times I thought I would post it on here for others to be encouraged by.
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