It was recently stated that faith is the abandonment of reason. This is a misinformed judgment in my humble estimation. Faith is the understanding that not everything is understandable by our limited intellect and being ok with that. We do not serve an illogical God. One must only go so far as to observe the fact that there is a scientific and mathematical equation behind just about everything God did during the Creation process (I believe this serves to demonstrate the depth of God’s creativity not to mention mathematical and scientific brilliance). We may not understand His logic all the time but I don’t believe we are to abandon logic in order to call ourselves faithful to Christ.
Pursue logic and reason for as long as your intellect will allow you. And then rest in a faith that dictates that you trust a God that has a masterful grip on the institution of logic that you will never match this side of time and space.
Some of the purest forms of worship I have ever experienced have been found at the end of a road of logic that I have attempted to traverse for as long as I could only to wind up with a scrambled brain, a heart that is full of awe and an ego that has been dashed upon the rock hard fact that God is so much bigger than I.
Tuesday, September 20, 2005
Friday, September 16, 2005
A Child's Thoughts On God
I recently started going to a creative writing group to hone what little I have to start off with. Anyway this was an essay that I started in the group during our 20 minute writing time and have since completed:
I look at him. He’s strong. I remember how he would lift me up high into the sky as if I weighed no more than a thought. Lighter than snow, as inconsequential as the sun on my face.
I look at him. His strength is matched only by his understanding of the world. Not just any world. My world. I had questions. He had answers. Sometimes I would sit and try to think of a question that would contend with his knowledge of the universe. “Why is the grass green?” I would ask. “Why is the sky blue?” “Why do animals have fur?” “Why are you bigger than me?”
I think sometimes he would act like the question really challenged him. As if to say “That’s a really good question. You’re very smart for thinking of that.” But nothing really ever stumped him. By the time that big light in that even bigger expanse disappeared on another long, endless day of my youth's making he would have found an answer to the most challenging & profound questions I could conjure. And with a strong hand on my shoulder and the knowledge of the universe burning bright behind his big blue eyes he would set the world back into the embrace of a child’s understanding.
Until I thought of more questions to ask. “Why are clouds white?” “How do my legs work?” “Why do I sneeze?”
You see this man was my dad...as if you didn’t know that already. The beginning & ending of my existence. The one-stop-shop for all things, both questions and concerns. My fears & my hopes found their resolution in this hairy mountain of a man I called “Daddy”.
But over time my questions slowly changed. “Why do people die?”, “Why do we need forgiveness?”, “Why do we go to church?”
All of which he was prepared to answer. But my questions demanded more thought if one was going to attempt answering them.
Time made it’s cyclical way around my existence and at some point in it’s inevitably dictated events I found myself asking a different set of questions. Instead of “why do people die?” I was asking “why did my mother die?”, or “why did my friend have to die?”. Questions like “does God really love me?” and “who am I to an all-powerful all-knowing God?”. Questions that required deeper answers than what words pouring off peoples tongues could provide. Yes even the answers that issued from my father’s mouth could not satisfied the insatiable hunger of this man-child’s questioning.
Yet sometimes on those celestially planned days by someone bigger than me I find myself asking those funny child-questions again: “Why is the sky so big?” “Why are mountains so tall?” “Why does blood course through my veins?”.
I guess things don’t change all too much over time. I still have questions. But I also have a better understanding of what kind of answers I’m looking for...
...and only one can give me those kind of answers.
I look at him. He’s strong. I remember how he would lift me up high into the sky as if I weighed no more than a thought. Lighter than snow, as inconsequential as the sun on my face.
I look at him. His strength is matched only by his understanding of the world. Not just any world. My world. I had questions. He had answers. Sometimes I would sit and try to think of a question that would contend with his knowledge of the universe. “Why is the grass green?” I would ask. “Why is the sky blue?” “Why do animals have fur?” “Why are you bigger than me?”
I think sometimes he would act like the question really challenged him. As if to say “That’s a really good question. You’re very smart for thinking of that.” But nothing really ever stumped him. By the time that big light in that even bigger expanse disappeared on another long, endless day of my youth's making he would have found an answer to the most challenging & profound questions I could conjure. And with a strong hand on my shoulder and the knowledge of the universe burning bright behind his big blue eyes he would set the world back into the embrace of a child’s understanding.
Until I thought of more questions to ask. “Why are clouds white?” “How do my legs work?” “Why do I sneeze?”
You see this man was my dad...as if you didn’t know that already. The beginning & ending of my existence. The one-stop-shop for all things, both questions and concerns. My fears & my hopes found their resolution in this hairy mountain of a man I called “Daddy”.
But over time my questions slowly changed. “Why do people die?”, “Why do we need forgiveness?”, “Why do we go to church?”
All of which he was prepared to answer. But my questions demanded more thought if one was going to attempt answering them.
Time made it’s cyclical way around my existence and at some point in it’s inevitably dictated events I found myself asking a different set of questions. Instead of “why do people die?” I was asking “why did my mother die?”, or “why did my friend have to die?”. Questions like “does God really love me?” and “who am I to an all-powerful all-knowing God?”. Questions that required deeper answers than what words pouring off peoples tongues could provide. Yes even the answers that issued from my father’s mouth could not satisfied the insatiable hunger of this man-child’s questioning.
Yet sometimes on those celestially planned days by someone bigger than me I find myself asking those funny child-questions again: “Why is the sky so big?” “Why are mountains so tall?” “Why does blood course through my veins?”.
I guess things don’t change all too much over time. I still have questions. But I also have a better understanding of what kind of answers I’m looking for...
...and only one can give me those kind of answers.
Wednesday, September 14, 2005
Mississippi
I just returned from a trip to Mississippi & Louisiana to help in the Disaster Relief effort that's taking place out there. I have a few things to write about but don't have time as I've got a week of work to catch up with. Anyway check out the photos. I took a bunch of them.
Colorado Relief Team Gallery.
Colorado Relief Team Gallery.
Thursday, September 01, 2005
To Boycott or Not to Boycott....that's not really the question.
Just recently an article made it’s way around the church office. You may have seen the article. It basically attacked Starbucks for putting a Homosexual’s quote on one of their cups in addition to supporting the “homosexual agenda” in general. The bottom-line of the article was a call for Christians to fight (boycott) this onslaught of twisted and satanic cultural insurgence in the name of everything holy and good.
I understand that God disapproves of homosexuality as a lifestyle. But is that really the only issue that we’re facing today in our world? And should we really be talking about “going to war with homosexuality?” Those are really the only two issues you hear about in the church. That and abortion (these in my mind are no were near equal issues by the way).
Along the lines of boycotting though: How many corporations are we supporting who’s values don’t match up with our ideals and moral framework? What about sweatshop based stores. What about non-fair-trade type organizations. What about the diamond industry? How many women are out there who have diamonds on their rings who decide not to support Starbucks but decide to support the blood stones of the African diamond trade? It’s an issue of selective ignorance. And that’s my issue with the idea of boycotting. Boycotting doesn’t promote individual thought. An individual analysis of what one should or should not support. What it promotes is a bandwagon mentality. A blind movement forward in the dark without really understanding what one is achieving in doing so. We have only seen a growth in the visibility and the proliferation of the homosexual lifestyle in our society. One must ask the question...what exactly are we accomplishing?
Don’t misunderstand me. We have a national and social duty to act on the political level in moving this country in the most God honoring direction. I believe however that we have become too reliant on the legislative mandating of morality. Too keen on forcing a view point on someone who doesn’t believe the same way we do. But does this change people? Does a law change the heart?
The answer can only be no.
I understand that God disapproves of homosexuality as a lifestyle. But is that really the only issue that we’re facing today in our world? And should we really be talking about “going to war with homosexuality?” Those are really the only two issues you hear about in the church. That and abortion (these in my mind are no were near equal issues by the way).
Along the lines of boycotting though: How many corporations are we supporting who’s values don’t match up with our ideals and moral framework? What about sweatshop based stores. What about non-fair-trade type organizations. What about the diamond industry? How many women are out there who have diamonds on their rings who decide not to support Starbucks but decide to support the blood stones of the African diamond trade? It’s an issue of selective ignorance. And that’s my issue with the idea of boycotting. Boycotting doesn’t promote individual thought. An individual analysis of what one should or should not support. What it promotes is a bandwagon mentality. A blind movement forward in the dark without really understanding what one is achieving in doing so. We have only seen a growth in the visibility and the proliferation of the homosexual lifestyle in our society. One must ask the question...what exactly are we accomplishing?
Don’t misunderstand me. We have a national and social duty to act on the political level in moving this country in the most God honoring direction. I believe however that we have become too reliant on the legislative mandating of morality. Too keen on forcing a view point on someone who doesn’t believe the same way we do. But does this change people? Does a law change the heart?
The answer can only be no.
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