Viral Faith

"According to Gallup Polls taken in 1962-63, most White Americans believed that Black Americans were treated equally in regards to opportunities for jobs, schooling, and housing opportunities." Tim Wise, Colorblind One of the interesting dynamics in addressing racial and cultural reconciliation is that racial discrimination and prejudices are like hypertension.  Many people would deny that they have a problem until the problem causes a catastrophe.  Even in the midst of the civil rights struggles in the 1950's and 60's, where there was blatant and violent discrimmination,  it was not uncommon for White Americans to completely ignore and deny injustice towards Black Americans. Our society has been sick for sometime and occasionally we treat the symptoms, hoping that the disease has gone away.  Yet, the evidence of the underlying disorder, verified by test after test, born out in our pathologic performance, is denied.  America, the grand experiment in...

Even the land was defiled; so I punished it for its sin, and the land vomited out its inhabitants. Leviticus 18:25 Twenty Five years ago, the nuclear reactors in Chernobyl Russia melted down, killing fifty-five people and exposing over 800,000 people to radiation poisoning, requiring the evacuation of over 330,000 people.  The land around Chernobyl has been quarenteed.  Scientist estimate that the land immediately around the reactor may not be inhabitable for nearly one thousand years. Its interesting that when we look at Biblical language that describes the defiling of land, we see a predominant theme.  Although the Old testament law is careful to speak to healthy and sustainable agricultural practices (giving the land rest, not over harvesting, not destroying trees, etc), these were not most signficant way of defiling the land. In the Bible, the greatest way of defiling the land was to devalue the sacredness of sexual intimacy.  In Leviticus 19:29, prostituti...

Friday, is the day of death (Jesus died on the cross in pain for our sin) Sunday is the day of life (Jesus rose from the grave in victory) Are we locked into Friday living.  Are our lives centered on acts of death?  Are we identified more with our pain than our victories.  For many Christians, we are Friday people.  Never tapping into the victory and power of Sunday.  Friday living is focused on dealing with sin.  It is perpetually thinking about putting to death that which is evil or that which we revile.  Friday living is necessary to grow, but for some the weekend never progresses. Sunday living is focusing on life.  It is perpetually thinking about bring life and freedom to everything in us and around us.  Sunday living is what we were designed and redeemed for. Jesus said that he came to give us life and life abundantly.  This is Sunday living.  Its better, greater, and more complete, than simply trying not to die....

"Here is my servant, whom I uphold, my chosen one in whom I delight; I will put my Spirit on him and he will bring justice to the nations." Isaiah 42:1 The prophecy of Isaiah foretold of one who would be annointed to bring justice to the nations.  The Christian church recognizes the servant as Jesus of Nazareth who lived about 2000 years ago. What is interesting to me in this text is not the "who" but the "what".  The servant's role is to bring justice.  The prophecy would go on to say that: "he will not falter or be discouraged till he establishes justice on earth." Isaiah 42:4 According to these prophecies, Jesus is to establish justice globally.  This has led to people to question the accuracy of the prophecy or the legitimacy of Jesus, since we still experience wars, violence, and all varieties of injustice.  I believe that Jesus has fulfilled this scripture brilliantly, but it may not be apparent.  There are a couple of things w...

The church that I have the privilege of leading is a multicultural stew.  European American, Latino, African American, African,  and Asian Americans all gathered into one body.  This is not only a privilege to be part of, but a glimpse of heaven (Rev 7:9). Recently, our leadership and pastors have been having some significant conversations about unity among diversity.  One of the things that  surfaced is that our own colors and cultures great impair our ability to truly know, relate, and ultimately love others.  We found that despite our sincerity towards one another, that there were these persistent assumptions that we had about one another, that keep us somewhat separated. Interestingly, knowing that we have assumptions is the first step in limiting the affect that our color and culture may have on my understanding of others.  If you have neighbors, co-workers, or even marriages with people of a different ethnicity, socioecon...

"In that great gettin up morning, fair thee well, fair thee well" Classic Negro Spiritual One of the classic  and foundational doctrines of Christianity is that of the return of Jesus to the Earth.  In the 1970's, with the popularity of the Hal Lindsey's "The Late Great Planet Earth", speculation was high in the evangelical Christian world that Jesus' return was imminent.  In the 1990's, we saw the highly popular "Left Behind" series of books and films that also sparked the imagination of the evangelical movement.  Yet, today, I think that it may be one of the least considered doctrines in the daily lives of most Christians. Anyone reading the New Testament will get a sense of the tension of the New Testament writers: The Kingdom of God has been initiated by Jesus, but it will not be consummated or completed until His return.  There is an anticipation of what is described as the "blessed hope" and the "glorious appearing...

"Pain that is not processed is passed on. Pain that is not transformed is transmitted"  Fr. Richard Rohr Pain is a problem for the church.  We know that individuals, families, and entire communities feel the hurts of the world.   Those painful things inflicted by people, situations, illnesses, and disappointments.  These hurts are part of the human experience and everyone has them in some form or another. Pain, in general, is our mind/body/soul's way of pointing out something potentially dangerous is happening.  It is a powerful motivator of behavior, as the drive to relieve pain can be used positively (remove hand from hot stove for example) or negatively (self-medicating with alcohol in order to numb pain). I would submit that most contemporary churches have no place for expressing pain and allowing it to be transformed by God.  Sometimes, in our worship, we are so focused on the jubilant celebration of God, that we do not leave room for the ...

Rarely has a book created so much controversy and discussion in the blogsphere as Pastor Rob Bell's recently published book " Love Wins ".  Rob Bell is the lead pastor of Mars Hill Church in Grand Rapid, MI and a creative and provocative communicator.  He produced the Nooma video series as well as very successful books such as "Velvet Elvis" and "Sex God".  While his writing style is very provocative, his content has been squarely within the framework of what most would consider evangelical Christianity. Interestingly, it is those, particularly within the Reformed traditions of the evangelical church who have been the most outspoken against this book and against Rob Bell personally.  Reformed theologian John Piper, after reading an excerpt from the book, went as far as to put on his twitter account a simple message: Good bye Rob Bell. After reading the book, I would highly recommend reading it .  While I do not want to be the spoiler, I do want to...

What if I suggested that our worship services are to be significantly more powerful than most Christians imagine.  Worship is to be a dangerous act of celebration, reflection, and commitment before God, awesome in His majesty and omnipotence, accessible in His mercy and love.  Authentic worship is not safe, boring, or ritualistic.  Authentic worship does not support the status quo, but the experience of the transforming presence of God, the creator, who recreates His will in us and through us. We do not often think of worship in such a dramatic way.  We settle for a safe worship experience.  A worship experience where we attempt to experience God in our preferred way, asking Him to do our preferred tasks, and expecting Him to confirm our way of life or ideologies.  Success in worship is often framed in God's ability to affirm us as opposed to our ability to actually worship God. This kind of worship is not authentic, but is false.  False wo...