Articles
Trash Day
It would be nice if we could choose our garbage day. Obviously this would cause some major problems for the trash collectors, but would be a handy option if it were possible. That’s because some days are definitely better days than others to have assigned as your trash day. And I’ve decided that Monday is the worst possible trash day one can have. Why? Primarily because several federal holidays fall on Monday. They are MLK, President’s Day, Memorial Day, Labor Day and Columbus Day. Then there are a few more federal holidays that sometimes fall on weekends, and when that happens they are normally observed on the next weekday, which of course is Monday. Those are New Year’s Day, Independence Day, Veteran’s Day and Christmas Day.
Hospitality
The term hospitality conjures up significantly different images for different people. Unfortunately, the term has been reduced in many minds to the concept of entertaining friends, family, and “special” guests. The biblical theme of hospitality is, in fact, much different and much richer.
Your Re-Story
I am going to get technical on you for the first little bit of this. Hang with me. I know you can.
Ownership, Entitlement, and Letting Go
The requirement of all summer vacations is to spend some time entertaining the idea of one day buying a place nearby…of becoming a local. Whether it is a real possibility or not, you dream. Perhaps you even pick up a local realtor magazine. Maybe you could rent it out during the year…make some extra income. The conversation usually ends somewhere along the ride back home as reality sets in.
Seen and Heard
One of my students wrote me an ugly email the other day. This happens rarely, but it has happened. They get on their class website (for online classes) and find out that something isn’t what they expected for a grade, due date, etc. Then, because it is easy to do, they write an email where they vomit their frustrations into cyberspace. They say words with attitudes I imagine they would never say in person. Many people have not figured out yet that there is such a thing as Internet social skills.
Emails, Apologies, and Corrective Experiences
I attended graduate school at an enchanting little place called Fresno Pacific University in California. The school’s Mennonite roots reach their ideology of peace throughout their curriculum. I’m not talking about “stick-your-head-in-the-sand” kind of peace. I’m talking about the “let’s-face-one-another, wrestle, and-learn-to-live-together-in-spite-of-our differences”, hard, honest, and sometimes messy kind of peace. I became a wife and then a mother in this environment, navigating two of the more challenging albeit joyful transitions of life in the arms of this tiny community.
Sex, Prayer, and Video Games
I was twenty seven years old when I got married. I was not exactly old, but old enough that more of my friends were married than not. And the majority of my unmarried friends followed suit within the next few years. One of the things that has been interesting to me during the last eleven years since I made a lifelong covenant with my therapist is the various ways that romantic boys struggle to become the committed men that they say they will be when they launch into marriage. I am not talking about marital infidelity, but the ability to simply mature into a hard-working, supportive, and caring husband and father who places the correct priority on his wife and children.
Reflection on the Queer-Pentecostal Dialogue
Last week I participated in a symposium at Princeton Theological Seminary that sought to explore the issue of homosexuality in the Pentecostal church. The symposium potentially served as the genesis of a dialogue between Pentecostalism and the LGBT community. Only time will tell on that front. However, it certainly served as a catalyst for encouraging more dialogue about sexuality in general within Pentecostalism. Since posting my opening remarks from the symposium I have been asked by many for an update. So, what follows serves as a brief reflection on the symposium itself, and some of my thoughts on where we go from here.
Homosexuality in the Pentecostal Church
Today I am participating in a Pentecostal Symposium at Princeton Theological Seminary organized by The Association of Charismatic and Theological Students (ACTS) organization of the school. The title of the symposium is Spirit Poured Out on All Flesh: Sexuality, Gender, and The Body in the Pentecostal Church. I am one of four panelist asked to speak in the first session: Homosexuality in the Pentecostal Church. Here are my opening remarks.
Concerning Our Tribe: Letters From the Future
My Dear Children, Grandchildren & Great Grandchildren:
Today I turned ninety. I have been blessed with a long and fruitful life. Nothing brings me more pleasure than my four children, eleven grandchildren, and that precious great grandchild that came to us last year. I am so proud of each and everyone of you, and overwhelmed at the beauty of your families. But looking into the eyes of our newest addition has brought to me the realization that I may not get the opportunity to know very many from the next generation. That being the case, there are some things that I would like to pass along to you.
Tornado Dreams
People do not often tell me about dreams that they have had, but when they do there is a pretty good chance that there is a tornado in it. I heard about someone’s tornado dream for the first time fourteen years ago. It was such a vivid and striking dream that it captured my imagination, but I had no idea that it would be the first of scores of such dreams reported to me. There has rarely been any prompting to tell such dreams, and really no context at all. I will simply find myself in a conversation where someone will suddenly say, “I had the strangest dream the other night.” I have no idea what to make of this phenomenon. However, it has had made me wonder just how common tornado dreams might be. I can rationalize an increase in tornado dreams since April 27th, 2011. But what about all of the ones prior to that sad day?
Performing Worship
Someone once observed that church had become so focused on the performance of the preacher and worship leaders that the people attending had actually begun to believe that they were the audience in a worship service. Could that describe some church services that you have attended? Does it describe almost all of them? Well, that observation was made by Soren Kierkegaard in the 1850′s. I guess not much has changed in 150 years. Kierkegarrd believed that in corporate worship God was the audience, the congregation were the performers, and the service leaders were merely the prompters.I wrote last week about the need to prepare ourselves for corporate worship, but what about the actual performance of it?
Place
In Scripture, particularly the Old Testament, the theme of land is prominent. This might be surprising at first glance, especially in a day where booming urban centers remind us that we can fit a lot of people into a relatively small piece of land. God chose Abraham and promised to turn his descendants into a great nation. He then promised Abraham land that would be given to that nation. In all of these promises God was not merely promising Israel physical space. He was promising them a place in this world. It is one thing to know that there is a space for you; it is another thing to know that there is a place for you.
Onan
It is a strange and sordid tale, which is precisely why it grabs my attention. It takes place in the messy context of tragedy and redemption, which is precisely what makes it so perfect. It is one of those stories that Muslim friends point to as proof that the Jewish and Christian scripture has been corrupted. It is one of those stories that Atheist friends point to as proof that even if God did exist no one would like him. It is the curious story of Onan. His part in the divine narrative covers all of three verses. Yet spiritual pilgrims have speculated about the significance of his actions for thousands of years. This is what we know about Onan from Genesis 38:8-10:
For What It’s Worth…The Here and Now
Therapy is way more than a toolbox of intervention. Information alone cannot replace professional help. However, information can be very powerful. So, for what it’s worth to you, here is the weekly post offering a therapeutic idea, concept, or intervention that you can try out in your own life or relationships.
Shout Jesus Saves
