"I Don't Know What the Likes of Me Can Do"

    Many years ago I had a professor who intimated that, contrary to the evidence of our eyes, he was indeed Gandalf. He was just in disguise since getting a sword through the airport would have been slightly tricky. That semester, I began earnestly developing my love for literature, and Tolkien's Lord of the Rings in particular. Since then, I have on average read Tolkien's epic once a year.

    Over the last couple of years, I have been particularly struck by a piece of conversation that takes place fairly early in the story. Frodo and Aragorn have just related to Barliman Butterbur, an innkeeper, that in helping them he will be facing forces from Mordor. In light of this information, they want to know whether he still wants to assist them. Tolkien relates his answer this way:

 "I am," said Mr. Butterbur. "More than ever. Though I don't know what the likes of me can do against, against---" he faltered.

"Against the shadow in the East," said Strider quietly. "Not much, Barliman, but every little helps."¹

    This idea of inability, or limited agency, recurs repeatedly through Tolkien's saga. Examples could include Frodo's "I do not know the way" in Rivendell, Theoden's description of himself as a lesser man, Denethor's despair at winning the war with Mordor, and Sam's reluctance to continue the quest when he thinks Shelob has killed Frodo. Each of these moments in their way capture Barliman Butterbur's "I don't know what the likes of me can do." Each of these characters is brought to face with how small they are in the face of the evil they are opposing.

    Part of the refreshment in Tolkien's story is that he does not undermine this question, but rather gives it  full weight. In the hands of a slightly more contemporary storyteller, one would expect the protagonist to discover that they were uniquely equipped to address the evil they find in the world. The apparent limits on their agency end up being limits of perception, rather than limits in reality. Without discounting the value of those storylines, it is worth noting that Tolkien generally supports his character's assessment of themselves. Even when it turns out that they were stronger than they realized, their additional strength does not give them the resources to successfully confront the evil in Middle Earth.

    And yet, they do win. How? Before we can fully explore that answer, we ought to look at Madeline L'Engle's Wrinkle in Time series. Specifically, the second book in that series, A Wind in the Door.

    In A Wind in the Door, the Murry family's youngest, Charles, is dying, but for no reason which doctors can identify. As his older sister, Meg, seeks to discover the case of and heal Charles' illness, the reader is taken on a trip that spans from galaxies to cells in the human body. A key point that is brought out in the story is that all members of creation are interconnected and have specific roles to play relative to each other: ". . . we all need each other. Every atom in the universe is dependent on every other."² Because of this need of each for the others, "A fara or a man or a star has his place in the universe, but nothing created is the center."³ Not being in the center does not detract from one's importance. Rather, it recognizes that no one person or thing is all-important, requiring no support from others. In the end, Charles is healed, but only as a result of everyone else playing their part. Separation leads to disorder and chaos. Unity, though, brings greater harmony and order.

    Return to Barliman Butterbur. The fact that my own resources and efforts are minuscule in the face of the disorder and injustice in the world is quite obvious. More often than not, I find myself repeating with him, "I don't know what the likes of me can do." What both Tolkien and L'Engle affirm is that when this is our perspective, we are grasping an essential truth. On our own, we cannot defeat evil. However, that is not the end of the story. They go on to remind us that "every little helps",  and "every atom in the universe is dependent on every other." We cannot personally right what is wrong with the world. But, the interconnections in the world mean that the effects of our small actions ripple out in ways we rarely can anticipate.

    In the end, I am sure that this is rehashing ideas that others have done a better job explaining. Still, with the general unrest in the world, we have all been faced in a new way with our inadequacies. Like me, perhaps, you need the reminder that "can I make a significant enough difference" ought to be reframed to "what can I do now?" It may not be much--but, it was never supposed to be much. It was supposed to be the piece that supported the work of those around you.

What are particular wrongs in the world which capture your attention?

What skill sets or strengths do you have which allow you to speak to those wrongs?

---

Notes and References

1. J. R. R. Tolkien, The Lord Of The Rings (Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1993), 185.

2. Madeleine L'Engle, A Wrinkle in Time Trilogy (New York: Square Fish, 2012), 441.

3. Ibid., 431.

Culture of Questions

"I know the question of 'ends' cannot safely be mentioned in the polity itself, because that would imply that some 'lifestyles' are better than others. We do not want that sort of sentiment around. Virtue cannot be a viable option, for that would mean that some things are vices. Still, as an act of rebellion, it is good to wonder about things that we are not supposed to think about."

Fr. James Schall's thoughts from On The Unseriousness of Human Affairs bring up an important facet of life which is easy to pass over: asking questions. In the hustle and bustle of each day, finding the time to sit back and contemplate life isn't easy. And, to be honest, contemplation sounds both heady and boring to most of us. Between our lack of time and the apparent lack of practicality, our culture doesn't encourage asking questions.

Or, perhaps we should say our culture does not encourage asking the right questions. When you think about it, there are all sorts of questions that we regularly ask. Who will win the next game? Is the stock market up or down this morning? Did you hear about the latest gaff from that celebrity? What is the best way to do ____? How will the President respond to this crisis? What are the polls saying about that hot button topic?

The list could continue. When we look at our questions though, how many do you see directed towards "ends?" That is, how many are focused on the purpose or reason for things? As Fr. Schall says further on:

"Those things that flow into us and those things that flow out of us belong to one world. We are not complete if we do not reflect on the highest things, or even on our own things. Nor are we complete if we do not seek to relate all things to one end, not just to any end, but to the truth of things."

Thinking about "ends" involves seeing how things fit into the truth about the world around us. While everything is unique, they are also specific parts of a whole - the whole of reality. Schall emphasizes that seeing this whole requires contemplation - specific focus on each of these facets and how they relate to and are part of the whole. Of course, in order to do this, we must know what the whole is, or at least have the framework from which to hang the other facets we encounter.

Francis Schaeffer communicated similar thoughts when he indited the Church for seeing "things in bits and pieces instead of totals." Schaeffer's concern was that focusing on the differentiation of subject matter prevented us from seeing how all of reality works together. Viewing the world as a series of compartments makes it easy to forget that these facets are part of a whole. Until we understand and know the whole, we will not be able to make sense of the facets.

This idea of knowing the whole implies that there is an absolute truth to the world - truth that applies to everyone all the time. This is why Schall regretted that questions of ends could not safely be asked in our culture- if they were to be accurately answered, we would find that some people were living life wrong because they were pursuing wrong ends. Still, he encourages us that, counter-cultural as it might be, these questions about ends are worth asking. After all, there are some things which are important enough for us to contradict the culture.

In the end, Schall and Schaeffer remind us that questions about ends are important because they require us to see reality as a whole - and in the process realize that Truth is something we see, not something we create.

In light of their thoughts, there are several questions we should ask ourselves: Do we agree that these questions ought to be asked? If so, does our personal culture and the culture we add to those around us support and encourage asking these questions? How do we encourage this kind of culture?

Feel free to leave a comment with your thoughts and answers. I'd be interested to hear your perspective!

"I'm the Only One"

I'm the only one. It's just me. There's so much that is is going wrong in the world around me, but the tide of evil can't completely be turned because, well, I'm the only one fighting against it. 

Sound familiar? This seems to be Elijah's perspective after the showdown at Mount Carmel. In first Kings, we read his explanation of the situation to God:

He said, “I have been very jealous for the Lord, the God of hosts. For the people of Israel have forsaken your covenant, thrown down your altars, and killed your prophets with the sword, and I, even I only, am left, and they seek my life, to take it away.” (1 Kings 19:14, ESV)

Does this ring any bells for you? If so, listen to God's response as Paul reports it in Romans 11:

Do you not know what the Scripture says of Elijah, how he appeals to God against Israel?“Lord, they have killed your prophets, they have demolished your altars, and I alone am left, and they seek my life.” But what is God's reply to him? “I have kept for myself seven thousand men who have not bowed the knee to Baal.” (Romans 11:2b-4, ESV)

This exchange between Elijah and God points out several things to us:

1. Our Vision is Limited: Elijah thought that he was God's last true servant, yet there were seven thousand others still serving God faithfully. Just because we can't see others faithfully serving, it doesn't mean that they aren't there.
2. Not Everyone's Service is in the Lime Light: As we touched on in an earlier post, serving God faithfully does not always mean that our work will be front and center. Instead, it could easily be backstage, at least for most of the world. That does not make it any less important to the Kingdom. This is key to remember both when we are worried that our work isn't making an impact and when we are worried because we can't see others working. Not everything that God is doing will be visible to everyone.
3. God Knows What is Going On and is in Control: The turn of events for Elijah wasn't unforeseen by God, nor was the need for servants to advance His Kingdom. He was already prepared for it and had the needed reinforcements all set. As it is, we should also keep in mind that numbers (or the lack thereof) do not hamper God's ability to achieve His goals. This fact is ably shown in Gideon's defeat of Midian (Judges 7). Who is on the roster list isn't important - faithfully serving where we have been placed is.

It is also worth noting that this sense that "I'm the only one" applies to groups just as much as individuals. The only difference between "I'm the only one" and "we're the only ones" is the plural terms. Both thoughts focus on our finiteness and frailty while ignoring God's sovereignty and omnipotence.

In other words, God, who has already won, is marshaling his armies and has all that is needed to bring about His victory. Given this fact, we are never "the only one" in the fight. Odds are, there are others in the trenches that we just aren't aware of. More importantly though, God Himself is working in and through us. We are not alone because He is with us, ensuring that His will is carried out. Or, as we learn in Joshua: One man of you puts to flight a thousand, since it is the Lord your God who fights for you, just as he promised you. (Joshua 23:10, ESV)

What are God's directions for your life right now? If you don't know, how can you learn them? If you do know, what can you be doing to pursue them more effectively?
Do you think God normally has people work on their own or in teams? Why? How should this impact the way we pursue the goals He gives us?

Living Like You Are A Human

"...the Christian is called to exhibit the characteristics of true humanity, because being a man is not intrinsically being sinful man, but being that which goes back before the Fall, to man made in the image of God."

Schaeffer's thoughts from The God Who is There indirectly touch on an interesting facet of how we define what it means to be human. We often tend to think of people solely in the context of Genesis 3, The Fall. After all, one of the basic facts of life is that everyone is fallen, right? What we miss is that in order to fall, you first need to have been standing. Genesis 3 doesn't make any sense without Genesis 1-2. You have to start with a good creation for that creation to fall. Evil isn't original - either in chronology or it's ability to create. It is proceeded by good and can only twist what is already there.

This perspective should impact how we live life in at least two specific ways:

1. Recognize the Twisting Effects of Evil - it touches everything, including the people with whom I interact. In the Truth Project, Del Tackett presents a helpful analogy: People who believe the lie of sin are POWs, not enemy combatants. The fact that they have been fatally messed up shouldn't prevent me from seeing that they were created to be something good. 
2. Enjoy Life Fully - Following God and enjoying life is a both/and proposition. G.K. Chesterton puts it this way in Orthodoxy: "The more I considered Christianity, the more I found that while it had established a rule and order, the chief aim of that order was to give room for good things to run wild." Good things running wild, life filled with zest, places and people enjoyed simply because God created them and they were created to be enjoyed - that's part of the life others should see in us. It's easy to evaluate experiences solely in light of their practicality: How much does this cost? Will I be learning something valuable? Is there a more profitable way to spend my time? Those are the questions that I have been quick to ask in the past. While there is a place for questions like these, we also need to recognize that they can completely miss the fact that some things we ought to do simply for the sake of enjoying God through his creation.

Following God and enjoying the world is a both/and proposition. In fact, on some level enjoying the world provides us with a unique way to worship God. With this in mind, what are some ways that you will be enjoying God through His creation in the near future? What are other facets of living a truly human life which we should be thinking about?

Flags Jump-Starting Discipling

Yesterday was a big day for my family. Flag Day. While there is historical significance attached to this day, it is not the history which makes this a big day for us. Rather, for years this is also the day on which we get up a couple hours early and run house to house setting up roughly 1,200 flags through several local neighborhoods. What can I say - strenuous work has a way of asserting itself as a priority for us.

As we got started going, I was mentally gearing up for loping at a decent pace and finishing the task as quickly as practical. I mean, as fun as running/walking for several hours is, there's no point to extending the time any longer than needed. Which is why I was a bit put out when my younger sister, no more than 2 houses into the day, had a question about how to stick the flags into the ground. "Really", I thought to myself, "there goes hopes for a quick, smooth day."

This was followed by a reminder from the Lord of what this really was - an opportunity to teach my sister. Indeed, you might even say it was an opportunity to disciple her. As that thought stuck with me, there were several facets of discipleship which our flag run highlighted for me:

1. Discipleship Isn't Convenient - I had this conception of discipleship as something which I could control. That is, it could happen at the pace I wanted to make it happen, almost as if it could be added to a calender and scheduled in advance. The truth is, that's not always the case. It's a process which is happening all the time. You can't turn off when you are speaking into someone's life - even if it would be more convenient to impact them at a different time.
2. Discipleship Happens in a Historic Context - As was mentioned above, we've been running these neighborhoods for years, generally several times each year. Most of what I was teaching/modeling for my sister was skills which I'd learned walking with my Dad when I was helping him as a young tyke. When disciplining others, it is helpful to remember that there is history behind what they are learning. That history helps give a context for the idea/skill being taught as well as added authority to the one teaching.
3. Discipleship Doesn't Always Look Like Teaching - My passion includes sharing new ideas with people. There aren't many things which get me quite as excited as seeing the lightbulb turn on and knowing that someone has picked up a new idea and will be seeing the world in a new way moving forward. Not all teaching is going to happen in a pre-planned, structured environment. Conversation in the car, project we are working on, putting flags in the ground - there are plenty of times where I'm discipling others that aren't in a classroom.

Down the road, I'll be trying to learn from my from our flag running experience. Specifically, I'll be trying to keep a closer eye out for the unexpected platforms which God will give to impact the lives of those around me. That being said, I know that discipleship covers quite a bit more than I've been able to look at in this post. With that in mind, I'd love to get your input. What facets of discipleship have you found to be important to keep in mind? How are you planning to be more intentional about your discipleship of others moving forward?

Stress and Recentering

Stress - I recently had a run in with this friend. Much as I'd like to leave it behind, my experience so far has been that stress is an inevitable part of life. Like it or not, we'll all continue to run into it through life. While pondering my immediate circumstances, I was reminded of several facts which added perspective to the situation. Before jumping into them though, we should set some Scriptural context.

While I didn't realize it at the time, the path my thoughts took was based on a sermon I heard a year or two ago in Moses Lake, WA. The pastor of the Church I was attending was working his way through the Psalms of Ascent. For Psalm 121, the first verses set the focus for the sermon: "I lift up my eyes to the hills. From where does my help come? My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth." (Psalm 121:1-2, ESV)

The thrust of the message was that our constant response to life needs to be one of looking back up to God. In so doing we consciously make Christ the center of our focus, rather than the circumstances. This ends up pushing our focus up and beyond the immediacy of what we are walking through.

With that background, there were two facets of looking to Christ which jumped out at me:

1. God's Providence - Stress is a perfect opportunity to practice trusting in God's control over life. I wish I could say remembering this fact magically changed my circumstances. It didn't. The hand I was working with was still the same. What it did do though was add a fuller context to my view of life. These weren't simply a set of random circumstances I may or may not be able to control. Instead, they were pre-planned activities which God arranged for my benefit and His glory. Even though the stressful circumstances remain, remembering that God is in control is part of centering our focus back on Christ.
2. Limited Horizon - The other facet which which jumped to the forefront of my mind was the fact that I didn't have much perspective on what was actually happening. The space between the here and now and when I hit the horizon line of the future is pretty limited. That's not limited to just a few occasions. For just about everything that life throws at us, the horizon of our perspective is very close. Sure we'll be able to see further in some cases than others, but rarely will we have anything close to an adequate vantage point from which to understand the path we are walking on at the moment. Realizing this should also help us remember to focus back up on Christ, whose vantage point encompasses all of history.

And, there you have it folks - nothing to deep or brainy, but hopefully some thoughts which help you in your walk today. Look up to Christ and center your focus on Him. He knows both where you are at and what is coming. Further, He has planned it for your ultimate good and His greatest glory. It's hard to ask for more than that.

It's Just a Minor Task...

A couple weeks ago, I had the chance to combine a few of my favorite things - great people and making music. While on a retreat with a group of fantastic young adults, I pulled out my Mountain Dulcimer, was shortly joined by a Guitar, and pretty quickly we had a group of folks singing along.

As we were going around picking out hymns to sing, I began to question the necessity of my playing. At that point, my contribution consisted solely of playing melody lines. Additionally, it was quite possible that most of the people around couldn't really hear even this simple contribution. Later on, it struck me that life often appears this way. Most of us aren't front and center, making huge impacts on the world. Our sphere of influence is limited. We have what appears to be a simple supporting role. Think crowd extras in a movie. This fact usually leads me to the following conclusion: I've failed. After all, if I was really doing all I could, my impact would be larger. There are three false assumptions (and a lot of pride) behind this thought:

1. "I have an accurate perception of my impact" - As a finite human being, I can't fully comprehend how God is using my actions. Only God has the perspective to know the true importance of my actions.
2. "My work isn't necessary" - The fact that I'm making a minor impact on the world does not automatically mean that what I've been given to do is optional. The tasks to which God directs us are not busy work to keep us occupied. We are directed to them because they need to be accomplished.
3. "God is more pleased with others work because their impact is bigger" - Paul had some great advice about comparing ourselves to others: Don't (2 Corinthians. 10:12-18). God's pleasure is not based on how we stack up with others. Instead, God's pleasure is based on how well we used the opportunities given to us.

In order to correct these ideas moving forward, two steps are required. First, I need to place God and His glory at the center of my focus and desires. Worrying about whether my impact measures up to others' comes from wanting to glorify me and my work. Second, I need to take the advice of the author of Ecclesiastes to heart: "Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with your might..." (Ecclesiastes 9:10 ESV). The opportunities I have to glory God and expand His kingdom should be pursued to their fullest.

Most of the time, the opportunities presented to us will not be glamorous. However, when God and His glory is the focus of our desire, following Him will be more important than how our results stack up to others'. 

What current opportunities has God given you to glorify Him? What is your next step in pursuing them?

Giver of Pain and Forgiveness?

When it comes to pain, the first impulse for most of us is to try and avoid it. This is certainly true for me and I'm assuming you'd probably agree. There might be some differences in how much pain we're willing to endure, but sooner or later we'd all have enough and look for the way out. This being the case, I found the following verse intriguingly counter-intuitive:

"The people did not turn to him who struck them, nor inquire of the LORD of hosts." (Isaiah 9:13 ESV)

A moment for context. Preceding verses (v. 8-12), inform us that Israel is facing God's judgement. In fact, there have been repeated judgments. Throughout this pain though, God expects Israel to run back to Him. Okay, I'll admit that this doesn't sound super foreign, after all, that's how repentance should work, right? It's certainly a familiar concept for most of people who have spent most time in church. Read that verse again though:

"The people did not turn to him who struck them..."

That is not the typical viewpoint that you will get of repentance. When repentance comes up in sermons or conversations, it will more likely be surrounded by descriptions of God's love and willingness to forgive. Those are both aspects of God's nature, but they are not the facet that Isaiah uses when looking at Israel's lack of repentance. Isaiah examines their response from the fact that God is the one dealing out the punishment. God inflicted the pain and Israel was supposed to run back to Him. I don't know about you, but I find running back to love and forgiveness much more appealing than running back to the source of pain and punishment.

Granted, these two concepts are not really separated like I have described them. Repentance involves turning back to God who has both punished us and desires to forgive us. However, I wonder how often we separate them and focus solely on the love and forgiveness and forget that God is also the one Who deals out justice on me. And in so doing, what have we lost from our knowledge of God that would impact how we live? For instance - consider the dichotomy that I presented above: punishment vs. love and forgiveness. Is God's punishment actually another facet of His love? If this is true, how should it effect our interactions with each other?

These are questions that I haven't thought all the way through before, so I don't necessarily have great answers for them. However, that's the advantage of starting a conversation, you don't need to have all the answers ahead of time! In other words, you are formally invited to join the conversation. Leave a comment with your thoughts - I'd be really interested in hearing them.

To restate them, here are some of the questions under consideration: What, if anything, is lost from our understanding of God when we ignore His role as corrector? Is God's love separate from his punishment? And, how should our lives change in light of the answers we give to these questions?

A Most Wretched Adventure...Right in the House

"Seems to know as much about the inside of my larders as I do myself!" thought Mr. Baggins, who was feeling positively flummoxed, and was beginning to wonder whether a most wretched adventure had not come right into his house."

This delightful little quip from J.R.R. Tolkien's The Hobbit jumped to my attention about a month or so ago. Not surprisingly, it jumped out at me because it resonated with where life was, and is, for me. In order to fully understand the impact of this quote, a bit of background on Hobbits, and Mr. Bilbo Baggins in particular, is in order.

Hobbits are one of the creatures which populate Middle Earth, the world created in Tolkien's books. Identifying characteristics include: hairy feet, child sized height, and a love of food, pipe smoking, and song. More importantly though, hobbits hate anything out of the ordinary. They like life to be pleasant, familiar, and generally speaking, comfortable. Anything which smacks of adventure is to be avoided at any cost.

At the time of the quote above, Bilbo Baggins' life has been nearly turned upside down. A band of 13 dwarves has descended on his house, invited themselves to tea, and are about to whisk him away on a long journey full of many perils and dangers. While he's not aware of the trip he is about to take, Bilbo has some unsettling premonitions that an adventure is afoot. What's more, the adventure seems to be forcing its way into his life, whether he likes it or not. Not only is it forcing its way into his life, it's come right into his house! Forget privacy or a place to retreat. Apparently nowhere is safe when trying to avoid the adventure.

Isn't life often like this? One doesn't get to chose the adventures you go on, or when they happen. They simply invite themselves in and take you with them. And, they usually come along at very inconvenient moments. You know, the times where the very last thing you want to have is an adventure mixing up life for you. Further, they usually don't seem to want to leave you alone. As you crawl into your safe places of retreat, the adventures seem to find a way to follow you.

For better or worse, though, we don't have the option to pick and chose our adventures. As Lewis puts it in The Last Battle, we need to "take the adventure that Aslan sends us", even when that's a wretched adventure that is forcing its way right into our house. Knowing who is in charge of history makes all the difference in how we approach the twists that come up in our lives.

Most of my post has explained what adventures can be like. How to interact with them is an important follow up question. Assuming you agree with my description of adventures, how would you encourage someone to think about "taking the adventure"?

Good Community is Annoying Community

The purpose of community is annoyance. That is, we need our community to annoy us. Put practically, if your community is not annoying you, you're not getting all you could out of it.

This idea was presented by my Pastor during last Sunday's evening worship service. We were considering how God often uses other people to change us into Christ's image. As a member of a large family, I can attest to the truth of this statement! This being the case, you should expect the members of your community to be annoying at times. If we are not being annoyed, then we are not growing into Christ's image. Unless of course you are Jesus' mirror image, but if you are think that, you're probably not there yet.

So, how annoying is your community? If you are never annoyed by them, odds are you are not really interacting with them enough. Consider some of these thoughts on being in a community and start jumping in a little more. It's not easy and will hurt some, but it's one of the ways that we can open ourselves to God's sanctifying process.

How has your community annoyed your recently? What has this taught you about yourself and helped you grow in Christ's image?

New Post...on a Friend's Blog

My latest bit of written musings is on a topic that haven't tackled yet: Relationships. Yep, romance, love and all that good stuff. However, you will not find this post on this blog. Don't worry, its out there for you to read, you'll just need to visit my friend Caitlin Muir's blog to read it. Click here if you want to travel over to my post on her blog right away!

While you're over there, be sure to check out some of the other posts. Caitlin's blog has a strong focus on how your beliefs should practically affect your life. While I can't guarantee that you'll agree with everything you read, I'm sure that you will find her ideas thought provoking (which can be more valuable than finding someone communicating ideas you already agree with).

But, enough posting about the post. Head over to Caitlin's blog, read the posts she has up, leave a comment or two, and join the conversation!

But They Never Came to Rivendell

Life is not always a bed of roses. Sometimes its more of a road with rocks waiting to trip you up. That's where life has been for me recently. Rough, stressful, challenging. Full time work and full time school, an upcoming move from the community I've built up, plus a few other things are all stacking up. And I don't know about you, but I don't really like it here, in the rocky road. Pain is never really fun. One can only pretend that it's all good for so long on their own. In that context, I came across this quote in Tolkien's Lord of the Rings:

"...they missed a dark and dangerous journey. But they never came to Rivendell."

In the course of the book, this quote is actually talking about the Hobbits ponies that were scared off during the attack on the Inn at Bree. In this little aside, Tolkien relates to us how they missed the rest of the difficult journey which Frodo and Company took. However, this also meant that they never made it to Rivendell, the elven refuge for rest and encouragement. In the tales of Tolkien's world, it is also aptly referred to as The Last Homely House.

Why take time to look at this brief snapshot? Because we often are on the dark and dangerous journey, whether we like it or not, whether we chose it or not. This snapshot of the hobbit's ponies encouraged me to rise above myself and see the bigger picture. Sure, life is difficult now, but Rivendell is at the end of the difficulties. Paul puts it this way in 2 Corinthians: "For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal." (2 Corinthians 4:17-18 ESV)

If, like me, you are on one of life's rocky stretches, take heart. Rivendell is up ahead. Once we get there, we'll be able to see how the rough stretch was worth it.

There is certainly more that could be said about how to live life well in the middle of difficulty. In addition to looking forward to the benefits at the end, how else should we approach life's rough times? Do we take something away from the benefit of the pain if we focus solely on resolving and healing it?

The Choice

For the past little while, I've been noticing some areas of sin in my life which had hung around for a while. To be perfectly honest, that is at least in part because I haven't seriously been fighting against the sin in my life. This is why when I was reading Romans 6 today, the Holy Spirit had some select verses to bring to my attention.

Before we get to them though, a quick review of Romans 6 is in order. The overarching thrust of the chapter centers on the Christian's victory over sin. Specifically, the believer's current victory over sin. In the context of the rest of Romans, Paul is refuting the idea presented at the end of Chapter 5 that Christian's should sin freely to exult God's grace and forgiveness. For those of you who love theological terms, this relativistic Christianity is call antinomianism (literally No Law).

Paul's argument in Chapter 6 is that our sin nature died with Christ on the Cross. This means that instead of being freed to sin, the Christian is actually freed from sin. Indeed, to sin is to willfully ignore the effects of Christ's sacrifice for us.

While the whole chapter speaks to this issue, there were several verses which specifically jumped out with application for my life:

"Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, to make you obey its passions. Do not present your members to sin as instruments for unrighteousness, but present yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life, and your members to God as instruments for righteousness. For sin will have no dominion over you, since you are not under law but under grace."
(Romans 6:12-14 ESV)

Paul's admonition isn't new. It was stated more concisely by Joshua back when Israel first entered Canaan:

"And if it is evil in your eyes to serve the LORD, choose this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your fathers served in the region beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD."
(Joshua 24:15 ESV)

The question of sin in our lives is not a question of whether we can stop sinning, but rather whether we will stop living in sin. Sin is not unbeatable, or inevitable. It is something that we can overcome through Christ's strength. This leaves us with one final question: will we choose to move forward in Christ's victory, or decide to remained a slave to our sin. There is no other option.

In the post above I briefly touched on the idea of antinomianism, which is one attempt to answer the question of how the Law relates to the Christian. What do you think Scripture says on this topic, and how should that affect our daily lives?

"As Weary Pilgrim"

Currently I am in the middle of an American Literature course. Today my studies found me reading Anne Bradstreet's poem "As Weary Pilgrim." Anne was part of the Puritan band who traveled with John Winthrop to found Boston. In the poem, Anne looks at the end of life from the backdrop of a pilgrim who has ended their travels. It echos some the cries of my heart (the final lines particularly this time) and reminds me to keep my focus on Heaven and Eternity. Hopefully you find the same encouragement in her words:

"As weary pilgrim, now at rest,
  Hugs with delight his silent nest,
His wasted limbs now lie full soft
  That mirey steps have trodden oft,
Blesses himself to think upon
  His dangers past, and travails done.
The burning sun no more shall heat,
  Nor stormy rains on him shall beat.
The briars and thorns no more shall scratch.
  Nor hungry wolves at him shall catch.
He erring paths no more shall tread,
  Nor wild fruits eat instead of bread.
For waters cold he doth not long
  For thirst no more shall parch his tongue.
No rugged stones his feet shall gall,
  Nor stumps nor rocks cause him to fall.
All cares and fears he bids farewell
  And means in safety now to dwell.
A pilgrim I, on earth perplexed
  With sins, with cares and sorrows vext,
by age and pains brought to decay,
  And my clay house mold'ring away.
Oh, how I long to be at rest
  And soar on high among the blest.
This body shall in silence sleep,
  Mine eyes no more shall ever weep,
No fainting fits shall me assail,
  Nor grinding pains my body frail,
With cares and fears ne'er cumb'red be
  Nor losses know, nor sorrows see.
What though my flesh shall there consume,
  It is the bed Christ did perfume,
And when a few years shall be gone,
  This mortal shall be clothed upon.
A corrupt carcass down it lies,
  A glorious body it shall rise.
In weakness and dishonor sown,
  In power 'tis raised by Christ alone.
Then soul and body shall unite
  And of their Maker have the sight.
Such lasting joys shall there behold
  As ear ne'er heard nor tongue e'er told.
Lord make me ready for that day,
  Then come, dear Bridegroom, come away."

In today's culture we seem to lean towards ignoring eternity and focusing on this present life. However, it can be quite easy to go to the other extreme and ignore this world entirely while focusing on heaven. How should we avoid these extremes? Does your focus need to be adjusted?

I'm Actually Impressed with the Israelites

We are forgetful people. This was impressed on me when my pastor asked us a month or so ago for the top 2 times we had seen God at work recently, in either our lives or the lives of those around us. I'm sorry to say, I couldn't think of a single instance. That isn't to say that God hasn't been at work, but it does say something about my memory of His workings.

Looking at this from a different perspective, my pastor took us to Exodus 14-15. In this passage the Egyptian army is drowned in the Red Sea, the people of Israel praise the Lord for his deliverance, travel through the wilderness for 3 days, and then begin complaining about the lack of water. Now I don't know about you, but I've always seen the Israelites as "The Complainers." They see God's miraculous works time and time again, yet still seem to be able to quickly slip into complaining. As my pastor pointed out though, they went three days before they started complaining. This was followed up with the question: How long do you go through life before you start complaining? Those three days of the Israelites is much more impressive now, isn't it?

As the sermon progressed, one specific way was highlighted to combat our forgetful tendency: Regularly attend corporate worship services with your local Body of Believers. One of the reasons we should gather to worship as a body on Sunday mornings is to remind ourselves of God's greatness and mighty acts from the past, present, and future. Because of our individual forgetfulness, we need to come together as a Church Body to help reorient our focus back on Christ and off our individual situations.

On the flip side of the coin, we should also look to actively share with others how the Lord has been working in our lives. This was impressed on me as while reading the Psalms for my personal Bible Study. Consider Psalm 35:18 and 28 (ESV):

"I will thank you in the great congregation;
in the mighty throng I will praise you....
Then my tongue shall tell of your righteousness
                and of your praise all the day long."

So the challenge to us is two fold: 1. Are we feeling down, and in a dry place in my walk with the Lord? We mustn't let that stop us from gathering with fellow believers. In fact, we probably need their insight and encouragement to help us to focus back on Christ. 2. Is the Lord working in our lives? Great! Who did we tell about it? We can't hold the good news to ourselves! On that note, here are some of the things that I have to be grateful to the Lord for, small and personal perhaps, but they are ways that I have seen His presence in my life--a decent grade on a paper which I didn't know whether the prof would agree with - peace in answer to prayer during a troubled moment last night - conviction of sin from Scripture reading.

What about you? How has the Lord been working in your life recently?

Weeds

My daily Bible study today had me reading Matthew 13, which contains quite a few parables related to the Kingdom of God. One of the more well know of these parables is the Parable of the Sower (verses 3-9, 18-23). In this parable, Christ describes 4 sets of seeds.

The first set are sown on hard ground. There is no potential for them to actually get into the soil and grow, so they just sit on the surface and are eaten by birds. The second set are sown in soil which is full of rocks, and they are unable to develop a root system deep enough to survive. The third set is sown in a plot of land full of weeds which keep the growing plants from receiving the nutrients and water they need. The forth and final set of plants is sown on good ground and they produce varying amounts of fruit. As Christ explains to his disciples later on, each of these sets of seeds represents different types of responses to the Word of God in the lives of people.

Why am I bringing this up? Well, frankly it is because my life has been in the weeds lately. I don't know about you, but I think I always had this idea in the back of my mind that the weeds were evil influences, sinful desires which crept in and stole away time from God's Word. What I've been seeing in my life though, is that these weeds can be good, or at least innocent, things. If I were to get down to brass tacks, some of the weeds in my life have included work, school work, Facebook, spending time with friends and reading outside of school for my own enjoyment and edification. Everything on the list (Facebook excepted) is as a rule rather wholesome and a necessary part of living a good life. However, by letting them all overcrowd my day so that I don't have time to study the Bible, they have turned into weeds which ultimately will choke my faith.

As has been pointed out many times before, the good is the enemy of the best. Important, necessary parts of the Christian life can never substitute for its foundation. If we are not going back to the Bible and re-centering our lives on Christ and His Word, our Christian walk will fall apart. At least I know that I can't live the Christian life without Christ's grace and strength.

Praise the Lord though, there is mercy and forgiveness for sinners like myself. The fact that weeds are in the garden doesn't mean that it needs to be given back to the wild. Instead, it means that there is an opportunity to claim ground for Christ and pull them out! So, let's go conquer some weeds!

What about you? Do you see yourself in one of the sets of seeds? What kind of weeds to do you see in your life? What have you found helpful in preventing/pulling out weeds in your life? Feel free to leave a comment and join the conversation!