a Waypointe...

The more things change, the more they stay the same.  

"The eastern world it is explodin' violence flarin' bullets loadin' you're old enough to kill but not for votin' you don't believe in war but what's that gun your toatin' and even the Jordon river has bodies floatin', but you tell me over and over and over again my friend, you don't believe we're on the eve of destruction..."

The more things change, the more they stay the same.

2 Timothy 3.1-4 ..."But realize this, that in the last days difficult times will come. 2  For men will be lovers of self, lovers of money, boastful, arrogant, revilers, disobedient to parents, ungrateful, unholy, 3  unloving, irreconcilable, malicious gossips, without self-control, brutal, haters of good, 4  treacherous, reckless, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God..."

Does this sound familiar?  Is Paul describing the corporate culture around us, the environment we labor in on a daily basis?  Our neighborhoods?  The places we shop?  The schools our kids and grandkids attend?  Yes.

But Paul doesn't stop at verse 4.  In the next verse he says...

 "...having a form of godliness, but denying its power."

Does that sound like the church where you (we) worship?  Paul is telling Timothy what the last days, the Eve of destruction, will be like; he says they will be marked by three observable facts:  a Godless world, a powerless religion and a corrupt ministry (detailed in vv.6-9); we are there.

My focus in blogging today is on the second fact, the Church in America is unplugged, powerless.  By power I mean spiritual gravitas--authority which is the result of a clear anointing from God.  Most of the country perceives the confessing church to be the most conservative wing of the Republican Party.  I grew up hearing my mom say, "if the shoe fits wear it!"  Unfortunately, we've been tagged with this perception the old fashioned way, we've earned it.  We've chosen to contend for the soul of America using the political process--a grave error.  The shoe fits. 

Last December we came to a "waypointe" called Sandy Hook; a "waypointe--a place on a journey where the traveler can stop and change course."  It's time for the confessing church change our trajectory to become THE church. The fact is we've settled for sloppy seconds.  Too many of us worship in places that are driven by forms rather than power.  We've allowed popular culture to shape our vision of what Christ's church should be, what it should look like; we have embraced the wrong set of outcomes.

Today we measure the quality and effectiveness of our ministries based on the Big 3: People, Buildings and Revenue.  In fact, it's not difficult to erect buildings and fill them with people that generate million-dollar budgets.  False religions, cults and sects do it all around the world.  Jim Jones did in San Francisco and finally in Guyana.  Jimmy Swaggart did it, then did it AGAIN in Louisiana.  

People, buildings and money won't produce transformational-redemptive power, nor are they the indicators of the anointing of God.  Powerless religion, form-driven religion has a micro focus: it sees "the church" as the end.  Forms--the way we "do church," the things we do or don't do that identify us as "christians," are paramount.  This is the kind of context Jesus came into in Judea; the context the Religious power brokers endorsed and protected.

Form-driven religion becomes a template that blinds us to the brokenness which surrounds us.  Form-driven religion makes us think in "wrong headed ways" about what the world deserves v. what God desires--us v. them.  Form-driven religion becomes a tyranny which chokes our vibrancy and shrivels our generosity.  

Outcomes are what's at stake here.  Matthew 9..."35  Jesus was going through all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every kind of disease and every kind of sickness.  36  Seeing the people, He felt compassion for them, because they were distressed and dispirited like sheep without a shepherd.  37  Then He said to His disciples, 'the harvest in plentiful, but workers are few.'" 

We've come to a waypointe.

What joy...

Water flows; silk across rock.
Resounding concert of joy.
Linger, listen.

It comes, it goes.
Course of life it forms.
Reflect, rejoice.

Linger, listen
Reflect, rejoice.
New mercies, every morning.

Standing on principle...Hooyah!

Six gun companies have announced plans to stop selling any of their products to any government agency in states that severely limit the rights of private gun ownership.  These six...

• LaRue Tactical
• Olympic Arms
• Cheaper Than Dirt
• Templar Custom
• York Arms
• Extreme Firepower Inc. LLC

Have taken a stand on principle and the Constitution.  The essence of their complaint:

"Disappointed with New York State lawmakers and other jurisdictions around the country who have passed strict gun control legislation, the companies—composed of firearm manufacturers, gunsmiths, and sporting goods retailers—have announced these policies in the past week.  Their various statements emphasize that such laws create a class of government employees with rights and and a class of citizens without rights. Thus, they refuse to aid the enforcement of such inequality."

Good to see some things are still more important than money.  This is getting more interesting by the day.  

The race to..just about average.

Education in America, and educators are in trouble. 

By any reasonable measure, what we are asking our educators to do is unreasonable. The result: the implosion of the system.  It's happening right now, this year, this month, TODAY. Entire teaching staffs being reassigned; schools closed or being "taken over" by the State and teachers dismissed.

Effective education is a partnership on at least four levels.

Level 1: Parents and teachers. I don't know why we tolerate it, but I do know we, our culture, have lowered our expectations for parents and shifted many parental roles onto public education. It's a fact, parents are AWOL; parents from every demographic: busy parents, tired parents, distracted parents, ambitious parents, selfish parents, economically disadvantaged parents. Unless and until parents see parenting as a worthy vocation--a selfless vocation--a social responsibility, and we can build accountability into the system for PARENTS, as well as teachers, our system will continue to devolve.

Level 2: Teachers and administrators. The current "political climate" makes this partnership difficult, if not hopelessly ineffective. "No Child Left Behind" has administrators focused on the wrong outcomes: Administrators chasing the holy grail--passing scores on standardized tests.  Under pressure to achieve a "passing grade" Administrators have dumbed the system down and mandated teaching to the lowest common denominator. The result: a brain drain of gargantuan proportions.  We've given up too much real education in the race to measure "skills." 

Leaders in education must get back to "leading."  They must be good managers; they must also be effective Innovators, Team builders and Coaches.  They must get out of their offices and into the halls and classrooms of the buildings they manage.  Teachers must be challenged to grow as professionals, taught to, and rewarded for, "thinking outside the box."  The system must be able to shed under performing (based on fair-minded, role appropriate, measurable, attainable and negotiated standards of praxis and outcomes) teachers and administrators.  Otherwise we will, without question, produce underperforming schools.

Teachers must be coachable.  Unions must be student as well as teacher focused.  Department Chairs must be trained as Master Teachers and empowered to Coach teachers under their charge, evaluate them and reward merit or remediate poor performance.

Level 3: Education and the public.  Federal oversight is an impossible burden.   There is a role for the Federal government, but not what we've seen develop over the last decade.  Educational oversight and policy creation must be sent back to the most local units of government possible and/or practical.  In most cases, that would be the locally elected School Boards.  

State oversight is critical to resource multiplication, curriculum development standards, training, and compensation.  But the State must also recognize the limits of effective management.

Communities must create opportunities, then call their citizens to participate as volunteer tutors, mentors, after-school staff, security workers and any of a dozen other functions that can be filled by people willing to give-up time, and get training or invest their expertise to give school age kids a shot at a brighter future.  This would, at the same time, preserve and extend financial resources which in turn would make it possible to provide funds for merit based pay incentives.

I challenge families who've abandoned public education for private, private-parochial or home-shooling to re-engage and re-think their decision.  It is in the long-term best interest of their kids to support and work to reform and strengthen public education.  Their unwavering commitment to quality education and the quality of the kids their raising is integral to lifting education for all our children to the next level.  This has significant implications on so many elements that are critical to the future of our nation and our children.  Look back at the 19th Century to discover what a culture of "education haves" and "have nots" becomes--and it's a most unsavory image.

Level 4: Education and the private sector.  I'm a small business owner.  Much of the property tax bill I pay every six months goes to support education.  But that's not enough.  The partnership with local business, while it's there, needs to be expanded and much more highly developed.  The answer isn't higher taxes, it's bigger hearts, fueled by shared vision and better communication.  Not only should business be there for internships, but for aggressive sponsorship--without expectation for anything in return--beyond all the significant benefits local business enjoys from a sterling school-system.

Parents need to be selfless.  Politicians and administrators need to chill.  Educators need to step-up. Citizens need to act like partriots.  It's easy to blame someone else; the problem is us. 

Meanwhile, another generation gets left behind as we race to..just about average.

Game on!

America is unique.  It's amazing what people can do when given the freedom to succeed AND to fail.  Our "Super Bowl" has become a metaphor...

Back in July, each team started at the same place, 0-0, as every other franchise in the NFL.  Now, 106 young men, two teams remain standing; black, white, brown...not all born equally, privleged start and not.  All shapes, sizes...some more talented than others.  All making the most of what they've been given, working hard and sacrificing for a dream.  Working together to create synergy.  All competing on a level playing field, and yet, a few with a clear advantage over others, not all endowed equally--size, strength, speed.

That said, each strives to overcome, to elevate their game and maximize their opportunity, against all odds. The underdog can prevail, because "heart" can't be measured.  Mistakes will be made, injuries will occur that force a change to the gameplan and the unexpected will be the norm.  Bad calls?  No doubt; someone is going to feel like it wasn't fair.  Most will perform up to standard, a few will be disappointed--and not play well at all.  The ball will be dropped and it will take some bad bounces.  But there won't be any do-overs.  One performance will be judged most outstanding of all...and propel that player to a new level of achievement and noteriety.

At the end of the day, some will win, others will lose.  And tomorrow morning?  Each will crawl out of bed, and begin again, in an attempt to make the ascent to the top of their profession; each sore, tired, some beaten...all driven by conviction; it's a new day, it's a new opportunity; "I believe 'it' can happen...if I work hard, stay focused and apply myself."  This hope compels them to bear down, start over and try again.  They will take what they learned (the good, the bad and the ugly), winners and losers, and use that as leverage to get better; and they will.

I believe this is why this night, this event, is more celebrated, anticipated and watched than any other event on the calendar in America.  It reflects our hopes and dreams, our core values as a nation, at so many levels.  We watch these young men compete and we are reminded, dreams come true here; hard work pays here, the hope of success far outweighs the risk of failure.  Bottom line: "It" can happen, it does happen.  If it doesn't?   Failure isn't the end of the world, it's the begining of a new cycle.

Everyone has to play by the rules, but the rules aren't designed to produce pre-determined outcomes.  So, many compete; some win, some lose...some never win or lose, because they never try, that's ok too.  America is a place where dreaming is a part of our culture, where we set the bar; where people can "do better" and to no one's surprise, we do.  

America, we hold these truths...

Out of Mulligan's

My heart breaks for America.  

Our political polarization has brought us to our knees.  This isn't, at it's core, a "left v. right" issue.  The problem is on both sides of the isle.  We must seek out and elect politicians who will act in America's interest, from a base commitment to social justice and Constitutional integrity.

Both parties must wake up and get it right, we have run out of Mulligan's.

The beat DOWN goes on...

Last week was an adventure...in stammerna, that's right, stammerna.  

Sunday evening...the garage door opener quit working with the car on the wrong side on the door, and an important meeting to attend.

Tuesday evening...the dishwasher finally and mercifully died, may it rot in appliance hell.  I was determined not to make the same mistake again (See Saturday).  

Wednesday morning at 5.15...the alarm triggered at my office and when I arrived  I, along with a very capable County Sheriff, discovered what proved to be about $8000 in damage.

Thursday afternoon...A citizen decided, while I was working with a State Farm claims adjuster (See Wednesday) in my agency conference room, to free-slide in her car on the snow and ice; she sheared off, at the base, one of our lovingly planted, and nurtured-for-seven-years, Crab Apple trees.  She then proceeded to back over it and drive away without stopping to tell us who she was, or more importantly, how she intended to pay for it.  The State Farm adjuster decided it was time to leave before the lightening strike--thanks Dennis.

Saturday I got back around to my dishwasher.  I was determined not to make another "bad selection" and endure 10 years of hostility and anger every evening loading the beast.  I did my due diligence--Invested my Saturday, all day, at Consumer Reports, Google reviews, Amazon reviews, shopped the Net for my price, did side-by-sides with the 3 finalists and then pulled the trigger on my selection, throwing my arms high over my head in a "Rocky" like pose, fist-bumping the Sears clerk--only to discover it was unavailable ANYWHERE, at ANYTIME in the near or short term future.

Sunday morning I wrote out my "offering check" for the ministry community we are a part of--only to discover I'd misplaced it at the appointed time of "offer it up" as my sacrifice of praise, during our worship hour.

By week's end, I was st-sta-stam-stammering my way through the day--aghast at the carnage and cost of the last full week of January, 2013.  So grateful it only contained 7 days; and the beatDown goes on.  

Big sigh, BIGGER SMILE :) 

It's a 10!

Thankful today for our two kids and their life-mates: Erin & Matthew; Joseph & Miranda; immensely talented people with great character, gripped by passion for life and their life's work, committed to making a difference. Guys...humbled  by your friendship, blessed by your love. You have enriched us, thanks so much.

One for Daisy...

Friends...passing this along for Daisy and for you--a friend passed it along to me. 

It seems to me that together we, those who feel compelled to, might enter into the suffering of this little girl and her family. I think it will bless them. I think it will change us in a profound way. I think it's an amazing opportunity to use FB, and the information highway, as powerful and redemptive tool.

Read the blog entry--allow it to penetrate and teach you, then click on the "video" tab and learn more about Daisy and her family; follow your heart, it will point the way.  

Start the journey by clicking on the link below...

http://blog.prayfordaisy.com/

Vexed. NOT Beaten.

Someone recently asked me about a passing comment I'd made about the Tower of Babel; wanting me to expand on what was said.

Over the years I've always attempted to find "dynamic equivalents" in the culture around me to help people understand a deeper principle from the Scriptures. The Tower of course was the ultimate expression of hubris on the part of humankind; our effort to shake a collective fist at God and say "See, you aren't so transcendent after all." Foolish pride led to an inflated opinion of who we were; God breathed, language changed and chaos ensued. We discovered we were no match for the transcendent God.

Fast forward to modern culture: God, in his grace, has allowed mankind to apply his intellect and ingenuity, these also graciously granted by God, to "discover" thousands of things that insulate us from the ill-effects of the fall: drugs, asphalt, steel, plastic, roads, air conditioning, engines, automation--the list is endless. We in turn, tainted by sin and swelled with pride, believeing ourselves to be wise "shake our fists" at God and say, "You see, the Scriptures are myth; there was a big-bang and then there was mankind and look at how we have evolved...we have the power to give and take life. We don't need myths to prop us up anymore. We are God."

In reality, everything we touch we corrupt. Look at what we call our "system of Justice." We condition the air at the same time we poison it with hydro-carbons. We pollute the planet, poison our bodies, can't beat cancer or aids and when/if we do, something else always emerges. Regardless of how effective we are at blunting the effect of sin on life and the planet, sin always trumps our best efforts...and God allows it, to point us to our need for a Savior and His gracious provision for our redemption.

The farther evolved civilization becomes the further it devolves into moral and spiritual chaos--abortion, failed economies, addiction, violence, corrupt governments, greed, broken relationships, idolotry, shaminism, social injustice. Think about it, in 1965 LBJ gave us the Great Society. These unfunded mandates have done nothing to enlighten culture and end poverty--but they have driven us to edge of bankruptcy and destroyed families while perpetrating genocide on the poorest of the poor. The smarter we get, the dumber we are. We can run from God, but we can't hide.

So then, civilization as we have fashioned it, has become mankind's' most recent "Tower of Babel;" the work of "our hands" which demonstrates our independence, our ability to "get it done without God." We set out to be like God, and in a final irony, we create the very modality that could be the end of life as we know it. We can destroy it, but we can't fix it..."and all the king's horses, and all the king's men, couldn't put humpty-dumpty back together again."

The lie that deceived Eve, continues to vex us; but we aren't beaten. This Truth has set us free..."When we were utterly helpless...God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners." Romans 5.6a,8

Hallelujah, what a Savior!