I shall never Tweet

Pastors spend lots of time in large group functions. In this picture I told my folks I was giving free hugs, but I grew up in a family that were not huggers.

I barely facebook, although I love all the cute comments pictures and daily lives of my friends, I find myself content with this little blog, because you have to come visit, I am not putting myself in your face.

All this to say that the issue of extroverts and introverts has been in the Christian news when recently retired Pastor John Piper shared that he was an introvert and struggled with the social demands of his 33 plus year ministry in one place when it came to being in social situations.

A recent book named Introverts in the Church is making a splash in helping evangelicals give room for people who are often drained by group experience rather than charged by them. Interesting stuff, because I have struggled with this. Introverts are energized by solitude, they process things internally,they prefer depth over breadth. Many pastors with real callings are introverts, some who share this trait would surprise you, like mega church pastor Andy Stanley.

So Piper tweets a Bible verse from Job about the tornado, and he is called out by popular blogger and author Rachel Held Evans on the theological implications of an angry God who used disasters to urge repentance, one of Pipers consistent themes. You should read her responses on the blog listed by her name in yesterdays post.

I have been to Pipers church and conferences, and know his humility and integrity, but on this issue, I am far more persuaded by her comments than his. I am an introvert though, so I think about it alot without jumping into the fray.

Heartland suburban disaster in our thoughts and prayers

Raising children is what life is all about.

Last summer I visited the Midwest, starting in Wichita, and really thought about Oklahoma as I travelled through a small portion or the state. So difficult too watch the rescue and hear stories of sadness and survival.

Tornadoes are so very random in their choice of victims, which is why we feel such identity with those who catch the worst and lose possessions and life.

My heart joins with all those who were affected.

Seven Days and goodbye

This was May of 1968, forty five years ago, my how time flies.

Every year I make a brief stop by Laura's classroom to say hello to her kids and see the tiny faces behind her stories of classroom adventures in overcoming strong willed children.

They are cute, but they are little versions of our own broken selves and the challenges she faces daily in education are very real, and I admire her for pursuing her career and helping to create a semblance of future financial security for us.

Meanwhile, back to church to start again, a memorial service this week, board meeting, some sticky problems to overcome or at least tolerate.

Why Gnosticism?

It is very hard to learn much concrete about the gnostic heresy in the first three centuries of the Christian gospel because it was so thoroughly rooted out of the church that it all but ceased to exist, and many of the writings were destroyed.

We know it contained a mixture of greek philosophy and christian ideas and was quite damaging to the faith, causing many to leave or fall away from the faith.

At its core, the duality of gnostic thought devalued this life and moral issues. Since flesh is evil and spirit is pure, we can be spiritual by knowledge and our deeds in this life really do not matter.

It reminds me of the old saying, "so heavenly minded that he is not earthly good", but in a really negative way, not just ignoring the world but indulging the flesh with no sense of consequence since its all about the next life.

Not good, while Christianity placed a great deal of emphasis on the next life and eternal life, it never divorced or split this life from the next. We are making a track record of faith and good works, as a response to grace, and a witness to the world.
This was my friend Alex, who loved living in this world, and left it early, in his 20s. I still miss him.

My peregrinations

My sister had an early Mustang, and I drove a 58 Morris Minor. Not very cool.

Peregrinations-humorous travels from place to place, a word I just learned and decided to use this morning. I was thinking about this house we live in and the furnishings which are pretty much complete. Each room has things Laura chose or things she kept from the past she loves. Our home is complete with the addition of one more chair scheduled to arrive this afternoon. Now I am sure something may break or wear out, but by in large we are happy with our stuff.

My own life has been full of peregrinations in which ideas and thoughts that were once comfortable furniture in my brain have been worn out or given away and replaced with new ones. I am pretty sure my new furnishings of the mind and heart are complete. I am just moving things here and there to see how they look together.

My peregrinations have taken me to large and small cities, to different denominations, in and out of several movements, certainly in and out of the affections of a number of people who felt more comfortable in older furniture.

I spoke to a pilot this week who loved what he did so much he continued flying till he was 73. He loved it, and though he switched from front seat to back seat and from people to freight he was still flying.

The Christian Church is like a plane, but its direction and destination depend on the pilot, and if the pilot and the passengers are headed for different places, it becomes like a peregrination, almost humorous in its wandering.

So my teachers used to say if you use a word three times the word becomes yours, and so I have, but can anyone figure out what I said?

A recurring dream

I have this dream where I am ready to preach and have a great message but the musicians keep extending their part of the service and sharing things and although I am visible up front, the service ends without my message. The audience is clearly disappointed and wondering why I did not speak, but then someone else starts planning next weeks service and leaves me out again.

There is a huge new grocery store from the northwest that will soon have four locations in the valley. They are taking old Costco locations. My golf buddies stopped there yesterday. Huge.

Laura has just over a week of classes. I desire this to be a special summer for us. We are watching the last episodes of the shows we watch this week, we have been surprised by how much we enjoy the quirky "Elemenary" with Sherlock Holmes and a very cool Watson.

Laura likes Body of Proof which is getting the axe.

Tomorrow Ethan Allen is delivering my sleek leather recliner and ending a recliner drought in my house that goes back to the early mid 80s. I am not saying Laura is stubborn, but she just does not like the look of recliners. I always sit in them when I visit homes and I am very excited that my drought is over.

I am shocked that some writers for Christianity today actually think Dallas Willard and his teachings about prayer and meditation are off base. They have a sort of biblical idolatry that says there is no sensing God beyond the written word. They are wrong minded on this.

The screen on my laptop is malfunctioning and I am typing this using a Samsung TV monitor hooked to an hdmi cable which proves the computer brain is fine, just its display. What to do?

I am taking Protandim for health restoration, hoping it and the other suggested supplementations will delay the progress of heart disease, and I have no other explanation for the regrowth of hair on my lower legs where old men begin to lose it under the sock line. Bald lower legs is the bain of beach walking senior citizens.

Now you see how scattered my thoughts are on this Friday morning, have a great weekend.
A very cool guy in his senior prom outfit....do not look at how short the pants are!!!!

Courses for Horses

A special day to play Las Sendas Golf Course, which was built in 1995 in North East Mesa. Very classy, beautiful homes, fast greens. I was really looking forward to it as a special treat until I was sabotaged by yet another attack of inconsistent driving.

Struggle, frustration, wishing I was at work, except for having some of the most beautiful views in the valley.