I learned something new today...

While cruising the Internet I ran across something that caught my eye and I felt a need to see what it was... It was link to Scum of the Earth Church in Denver, CO. Considering that for almost the first 4 decades of my life I thought the only "scriptural name" for a body of believers was "The Church of Christ (Romans 16:16)", seeing a name like this was at the very least...intriguing.

I mean by what mandate can they call themselves "scum of the earth" - that's not even biblical!

So, I followed the link and read about them - a group of believers that are reaching out to those that are broken - just like Christ did. They obviously have some new ideas about what Church is about and how to spread the Gospel. Almost immediately, I saw - at the very top of the web page - the scripture. The very kind of thing I have done myself - a scripture that describes their personal mission and drive...below it quoted the previously mentioned scripture. As I read I was CERTAIN that they were using some strange pseudo-translation (commentary) and I was also CERTAIN that they had used creative licence on the "scum of the earth" reference. So I pulled out my trusty NIV and here's what I read...

1 Corinthians 4:11-14

To this very hour we go hungry and thirsty, we are in rags, we are brutally treated, we are homeless. We work hard with our own hands. When we are cursed, we bless; when we are persecuted, we endure it; when we are slandered, we answer kindly. Up to this moment we have become the scum of the earth, the refuse of the world.

I had to read it twice, then I went back and read the whole chapter. I remembered the chapter, but the part that we always focus on when studying this passage is Paul chastising Apollos and his followers. It really says scum of the earth!?!? (yeah, KJV says "filth of the earth", but I still don't do the "King's English" very well).

Reading back through the passage the part that really calls to me is this - "when we are cursed, we bless; when we are persecuted, we endure it; when we are slandered, we answer kindly". I have been called to endure much in the last few years and the way that I have responded to much of it has been a topic of debate and dismay for my friends and family. They want me to rise up and stand up for myself - to get what I am entitled, to play dirty like those around me...to stoop to their level.

Paul got it - he was (and IS) trying to tell us that you can't stoop down farther than you already are! How do you stoop down to someone else's level when you are already at the bottom - already the "scum of the earth"? Answer - you don't. You answer kindly...

Earlier in the chapter Paul says that we have no business judging others - that's God's job and God will take care of it. "It is the Lord who judges me. Therefore judge nothing before the appointed time; wait till the Lord comes. He will bring to light what is hidden in darkness and will expose the motives of men's hearts. At that time each will receive his praise from God." 1 Cor. 4:4-5 He goes on to say "For who makes you different from anyone else? What do you have that you did not receive? And if you did receive it, why do you boast as though you did not?" 1 Cor. 4:7 God provides - he provides everything we need including judgement for those around us...leave that to Him.

I learned something new today - don't judge a book by it's cover or a Church by it's name.

Subs...

It turns out that I am somewhat of a "sandwich connoisseur" and I didn't even know it. I love all kinds of sandwiches.

Today I'm thinking about subs...this may not be very interesting, but it's what's on my mind.

For years about the (seemingly) only national chain that served decent subs was Subway and in the late 90's a group of friends and I where I used to work ate at Subway up to 3 times a week. Back then, Subway was owned by a group of doctors that wanted good food that could be good for you too. This went on for a while, but things have changed...have they ever.

We've stopped asking my youngest son where he would like to go eat if we are grabbing a bite out because he always wants to go to Subway... It reminds me of conversations between my mom and my brother and I when we were very young. We ALWAYS wanted to eat at McDonald's because...it was McDonald's! Now that I am an adult I realize what McDonald's is and where it resides in the world of cuisine. The idea behind McDonald's is that it supposed to be the same everywhere - not the best - just...very familiar...and it is. If I get a double cheeseburger in Cleveland and another in Amarillo I would expect them to taste EXACTLY THE SAME - and they (generally) do.

Subway is now the McDonald's of subs - they are everywhere and there are rarely any surprises when you eat there. However, I can also remember the growing pains that McD's went through in the late 70's and 80's. Up until then, McD's was known for good food, fast and cheap. The "cheap" part got harder and harder to do with the same quality standards and the prices went up and the menu changed. Yeah they still have hamburgers, but they aren't as big anymore... I can still remember getting a Big Mac in the 70's where the patties looked like silver dollars...

I just finished eating lunch at Subway and my experience there is indicative of that same process. 8 years ago if I had ordered a foot long BMT and attempted to eat it in one sitting I would have rolled out of the place. Today I just kept looking for the meat and wondering if there was a sub buried in all that bread. It was pathetic - what good is a $5 foot long if to get it to me at that price you have cut half the meat off of it and put the toppings on with a toothpic?

Not too long ago when they started the original "5 Dollar Foot Long" campaign I called it. I told my family to watch and that something was going to change after the campaign was over.

I called it right.

They kept the $5 fool longs, but only for their cheapest subs and then raised the prices of all the rest hoping that we would all forget how much they had originally cost before the campaign! Now it's back and here's what I see.

When this one is over - it's over - and the "cheap" subs will be priced just like the other subs. Also, the subs that used to taste so good and fill you up will leave you wanting for more. They built a sub empire that can't be maintained and it shows.

My solution?

Run, do not walk, to your nearest Jersey Mike's or Jimmy John's and never go back to the "McDonald's of subs" again. If you want McDonald's- go to McDonald's - they have had a couple decades to re-invent themselves and they did a pretty good job. Also, JM and JJ are getting to do it right from the beginning after seeing Scrubway flounder around - at least someone is learning from their mistakes...

Too smart for your britches...

The Bible is simple.

Forget the mountains of books, articles, blogs, discussions, sermons, pamphlets and commentaries that try to "explain" it - the facts of the Bible are simple and easy to understand. Why would our God, who loves us deeply, and wants all of us to succeed make His word hard to understand?

The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance. 2 Peter 3:9

I believe that if you talked to any child that has been taught about God and knows the stories from the Bible they can easily tell you how simple God's message is; God loves us, we should love Him and we should do what He says...

As we mature in our faith we learn to understand HOW we do that and start developing a sense of boundaries (WHERE God wants us) and WHAT we need to do. Then we start analyzing the word, trying to find that nugget of information that will get us closer in our understand of the God we love. This is awesome and worthy of our time and God is worth the effort.

Sometimes we get too smart for our own britches...

After living on this earth for over 4 decades ONE of the things I've learned is this:

Just because something is right
does not make it IMPORTANT.

Here's an easy one. We know that Jesus washed the disciples feet and we know that it was a powerful statement of how he wanted us to treat each other. However, I have never washed my brother's feet, nor has a brother washed mine. Why? Because we understand what that meant and that He was not telling us to specifically wash the feet of those around us, but to attend to their most basic needs. That there is nothing we shouldn't do for our fellow man. That one is easy...

This Sunday in our bible class we were talking about Joseph and the teacher took us off on a tangent that was more confusing than anything. IMHO, it was an attempt to look smart or at the very least just ill-advised.

Through a series of true statements and bible concepts the teacher showed that you could exchange the word testify for prophesy. That prophesying was simply bringing a specific message from the bible to someone that needs that message. It happens all the time...no doubt.

However, he muddied the lines between being a "prophet" and (as he described it) "prophesying". Christianity runs into this problem all the time...SEMANTICS.

You say "prophet" and I think Jeremiah, Abraham, John the Baptist, Jesus. Others (some who claim to be "Christian", others who do not) in our world think Jesus, Joseph Smith, Muhammad, Ellen G, White, Benny Hinn. Any responsible, mature Christian understands the rift between true biblical representations and the world view of "Christianity". Sunday, our teacher made it easy for less mature Christians and non-Christians in the class to make an erroneous connection between prophets declared by God in His word to "modern-day" prophets. I know that he did not tell the class that we have prophets today, but here is my question:

What USEFUL purpose is served by introducing such an extremely loaded word such as "prophesying" to our class when we already understand the concept and call it testifying or ministering.

My answer...none...other than to make yourself look smart or cause confusion. Leave such theological discussions for your trip to Starbucks with other mature Christians.

"Come Alive"

"Come Alive"

Foo Fighters

Seems like only yesterday
Life belonged to runaways
Nothing here to see
No looking back
Every sound monotone
Every color monochrome
Light began to fade
Into the black

Such a simple animal
Sterilized with alcohol
I could hardly
Feel me anymore

Desperate and meaningless
All filled up with emptiness
Felt like everything
Was said and done

I lay there in the dark
And I close my eyes
You saved me the day
You came alive

Still I tried to find my way
Spinning now was end of days
Burning like a flame
Behind my eyes

Drowning it out
Drinking it in
Crown the king of suffering
Prisoner, slave to the disguise

Disappear the only thing
Bittersweet surrendering
Knew that it was time
To say goodbye

I lay there in the dark
And I close my eyes
You saved me the day
You came alive
No reason left
Me to survive
You saved me
The day you came alive

Come alive
Come alive
Come alive
Come alive
Come alive
Come alive
Come alive
Come alive

Come alive
Come alive
Come alive
Come alive
(Come alive)
(Come alive)
(Come alive)
(Come alive)

I lay there in the dark
And I close my eyes
You saved me the day
You came alive

Come alive
Come alive
Come alive
Come alive
Come alive
Come alive
Come alive
Come alive
Come alive
Come alive
Come alive
Come alive
Come alive
Come alive
Come alive

Nothing wrong to give
I can finally live
Come alive
You're laughing at me
I can finally breathe
Come alive

Lay me down in the dark
Open my eyes
You saved me
The day you came alive

Come alive
Come alive
Come alive
Come alive
Come alive
Come alive
Come alive
Come alive
Come alive
Come alive
Come alive

"That Which Matters Most"

"This is Zion and we are not afraid!"

If you are familiar with "The Matrix" trilogy this quote should be (at least) familiar... It's the last phrase of a speech from Morpheus to the residents of "Zion", and underground city - the last free "sanctuary" for humans in a world ruled by machines. At the time of the speech 250,000 machine assassins ("Sentinels") are digging their way to kill them all and exterminate the remaining free human race.

The people of Zion are afraid - the commander of their army has all but conceded the fight (even before it has started...) and this is not lost on the people of Zion...they are afraid...

Morpheus speaks to the people of Zion and tells them the "cold, hard facts" about their situation. The commander wants to hide the facts so as not to scare the people of Zion. Morpheus wants his loved ones to shed their fear based not on the "smoke and mirrors" of sweet ignorance, but because of their faith.

"I stand here without fear because I remember...that after a century of war I remember that which matters most - WE ARE STILL HERE!!!"

During his speech he urged the people of Zion to face their fear so that they can shed it.

Fear...

Fear is a powerful emotion, a terrible reaction that has the power to help us and hurt us, free us and control us. When we are afraid our body and mind react - instinctively. I often say that I have a "healthy fear" of power tools - my reaction to that fear is to be extremely careful with them, respect them and never forget that the POWER in the power tool can hurt me as quickly as it can help me.

But, what if I am so afraid of the chain saw that I never use it? My fear has now taken over and controls me. If I need to use a chain saw I can't (or more precisely, WON'T) and fear has won. If I need to cut down a tree I can't do it myself, I may have to pay someone else to do it or just leave the tree to rot and fall down on it's own.

This may sound redundant, but "keeping fear from ruling our life takes courage".

Wow, that's smart - if I have courage then I can keep fear at bay, but if I don't have courage then I am afraid then I can't keep fear at bay. Sounds like a Catch-22... If so, how do we break the cycle?

We have to recognize what fear is and WHO controls it... Sometimes we think of "the devil" as someone that wants us to have fun - to enjoy all of the "naughty" things in life. That may be true, but let's not forget this - Satan is desperate to get to you and he uses any and every way possible. FEAR is his realm - he wants you to be afraid because fear causes a reaction in you that allows him to get in and start whispering in your ear - and you start listening...

Fear is a contagious virus that spreads like the worst cancer imaginable and it eats at your soul and leaves it for dead. It takes the best out of us and leaves nothing - nothing but a rotting, stinking carcass with flies buzzing around it.