Of all the classes I taught, Bible wasn’t the one I looked forward to teaching every day. I enjoyed my gym classes and my screen writing classes, but this Bible class I had to teach last year was a struggle. Mostly because of the kids. Yes, I said it. I had a class of kids I didn’t enjoy. Okay, these kids were fine individually, but put them together and they would start to pick on one another.
I knew, as their Bible teacher, it was my job to teach them the correct way to treat their classmates. But no matter what I told them, the girls still singled out the one girl they decided was different from them and treated her as if she was trash. And the boys, well, they just cheated most of the time and complained if they weren’t given the best marks on all of their work.
Telling them how Moses brought the people of Israel out of Egypt in hopes of helping them become a kinder class was just not working. Sunday school lessons on David killing Goliath didn’t mean anything to them. By middle school at the Inter-American School, a private Christian School, they’d heard it all. Unfortunately the way they were treating their classmates wasn’t matching up with the Bible verses they’d heard all of their life, and it was bringing me down.
Kids won’t change if the teacher, who is in charge of their spiritual growth, has a bias against them. Their bad attitudes were causing me to neglect them. For a while, longer than I care to admit, I decided just to teach the class, but not try to help them grow in their relationships with Jesus. Neglecting them was working fine until I came across the book of Colossians.
Colossians 4: 12 states, “Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience.”
I knew as a Christian leader I had to show my students compassion. I started praying for them each night. The prayers were simple, but they helped. The girls were still mean to one another and the boys still cheated, but I started to love them. And I believe that’s what it takes when we live spiritually.
As my love grew, I decided to challenge the class as a whole, including me, to start living by the fruit of the spirit. I stopped worrying if they knew who was king David’s great-grandfather (Boaz) and started focusing on love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.
I offered them extra credit to memorize Galatians 5:16-25, the passage in the Bible where the Apostle Paul get’s spiritually fruity. They complained about having to know such a long passage, but as I was memorizing the passage the fruit started to show in my life. And my hope was my students could see the change in me, and start to see what it meant to live by the fruits of the spirit.
This is a lesson we can apply to our own lives. If we want to live spiritually, we need to live by the fruits of the Spirit. I am not sure if my students learned anything (middle schoolers are a stubborn breed and not all blogs have clear-cut endings), but I know by being joyful for them when they did well, being kind to them when they were mean to me, or by showing self-control when they acted out, my heart changed. And if they can see me change, then maybe, just maybe, they’ll change too.
I haven’t talked to many of those kids since I returned to Colorado, but I still pray for them. I challenge anyone to live by the fruits of the spirit and pray for the people in their lives, even if they are annoying. The change will be sweet, I guarantee it.
Back in 2003 I decided to become a runner. Running, for me, has always been a problem. I’ve suffered from Abdominal Migraines most of my life, which are, as I described them in my blog Dancing Con Aguafiestas, set off by running. So, why did I take up this difficult task, one most people who don’t suffer from migraines avoid? Simple, I wanted to lose weight and I wanted to challenge myself. I knew if I kept sitting around I might avoid the migraines, but I’d never live the life I wanted to live.
Learning to be a runner was a challenge, it took me a little more than three years to lose any weight, but I did it. Leaning to be a runner taught me how to set my mind on a goal. Training for a half-marathon taught me how to achieve my goals.
Running and losing weight take perseverance and eating healthy. At this point you might be wondering when I am going to get spiritual on you guys. Well, follow me on this one. Living Spiritually is just like running. When I started running seriously, I took all of the advice I ran across. So, here are three practical ways to help us all live spiritually.
1. Be Attentive: Being attentive as a runner means paying attention to your body, which is important when trying to stay healthy. Likewise, spiritual health requires attentiveness. We can’t see God at work if we aren’t taking care of ourselves. Being physically healthy means paying attention to what you consume.
Being spiritually healthy is exactly the same. So, take care of yourself by reading your Bible and spending time in prayer. I spend at least twenty minutes every night reading my Bible and praying. Another thing I try to do so I can see God at work in my life during the day is get a good night sleep. We must treat every day like a big race day, which means getting a good night’s sleep. It is impossible to stay attentive to God’s doings, let alone run, if you can’t even keep your eyes open. So go to bed early.
2. Be in Position: During a race I try to find my mental sweet spot, which always seems to be Coldplay’s album Viva La Vida. I pace myself to its tracks as I run, but if I were to stop running for two months before the race and then position myself at the starting line on race day, I can’t expect myself to succeed. Therefore, I position myself for success by going to the gym at least six times a week.
Positioning is important with spiritual success too. I find my spiritual sweet spot when I am hiking with a friend. Hiking in the mountains with a friend gets me going, but if I position myself inside of the wrong group of people, negative people, I tend to lose focus on God. Likewise, if I seclude myself, not go on any hikes, I typically feel like God isn’t with me. And so I know I must go out and engage with people, ones who support me, to be able to see God work. I do know that there are people who feel God’s presence when they are alone, for those people I encourage them to turn off their tv, or whatever is distracting them, and spend some quiet time with God. Find your sweet spot and position yourself in a place where you are most likely to see God.
3. Be Submissive: When I train for a half-marathon, I know if I want to run the race to the best of my abilities, I must train and training means giving up certain desires, like sleeping in on the weekends. I must submit myself to a training schedule, which typically requires long hours and lots of sweat. But I know if I place that schedule above me, as my master, I will have a great opportunity to succeed during my race.
Again, and you’ve probably already got my point, heck you’ve probably already become Jedi’s at all of this, but I’ll say it anyway, Living Spiritually is the same. We must live with our palms up, submitted to God. As said in Proverbs, “In all of your ways submit to Him and He will make your paths straight.” Turn your hands up to God in an act of submission. He may ask you to do something out of the ordinary, but He will not lead you astray.
For we are submitting to one who has run this race before us. We are letting Jesus be our master. Hebrews 12:1-2 says and Tim Tebow tweeted before his first playoff game, “Therefore, as we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith. Who for the joy set before him, endured the cross, and all its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.”
Can you find something you are thankful for each day? Can you open yourself to seeing God in your life-not just in the big events-but in the little moments too?
Our lives can get pretty busy with work, family, and friends. Most people are so caught up in their lives that they miss out on the greater adventure that life can become. I think God tugs on our lives each year. He calls us, most of the time very gently, to join him in a grand adventure, which is why every year we make goals to improve our lives. We yearn for more, maybe even for the life God has for us, but often we give up one week in. I think that happens because we are trying to reach these goals alone. So let’s join together in making 2012 a special year. As an online community let’s place God at the center of our lives.
Living Spiritually means listening for God and doing what he asks.
On Christmas Eve I realized I hadn’t really given anything good to half of my family. Fortunately hours before midnight I felt a gentle nudge to challenge my family to keep a daily journal about how they saw God.
For a brief moment I tried to ignore the idea. Nah, too much work. But then it hit me, if I didn’t try this idea I’d never know what God could do with this. So I said yes, drove up to Wal-Mart, fought off the last minute shoppers, picked up six journals, printed out some pictures (that way each journal had a personalized photo for each person), and drove home knowing this gift would be an incredibly hard challenge.
On Christmas Day my family opened up their journals and the idea of challenging everyone to open their eyes to God’s daily activities sprang to life.
This is a challenge my family is taking on together. Now I want to invite you to join in. Say yes to God’s gentle nudge. You will not be alone in this. Together we will make 2012 a different year, a special year. Do you want to go on a grand Adventure? If so, pick up a journal and keep track of how you see God work in your life.
Here is how I am going to do it.
Every day I am going to read the Bible. God is relational and the best way to get to know Him is to read his word.
Every day I am going to write down what I am thankful for. I believe keeping track of what I am thankful for will help me stay focused when times get tough.
Every day I am going to look for ways I’ve been blessed and when I see them I will write it down too. I believe if I am looking for God’s gifts, God will make me a person who is more willing to give and receive blessings.
Every day I am going to recognize God’s presence. He is in the big moments and the little moments. It just takes opening my eyes and looking for him. I will write down what I see in my journal.
Writing all of this down is key. Go grab a journal, it doesn’t have to cost much or be fancy, and start writing. It trains us to look for God and see what He is doing. And at the end of the year we have proof of a life lived with God at the forefront of our every day lives.
Adding these four steps to your already busy life might seem daunting, but when you join in on this adventure you aren’t doing this alone. Through prayer and scripture we will do this together, and as my nearly three year old little niece Addi once said, “You can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.”
Living Spiritually means saying yes to God. Keep God at the center of your life in 2012 and join us on this adventure.
I helped my dad create facebook.com/livingspiritually and would like you to like the page. When you like the page you will join us in our adventure and have a great way to interact with a broad group of people who have committed to living spiritually. If you are on twitter tweet #livingspiritually2012 to join the conversation about how God is working in our lives.
1. I will not leave major life situations up to chance. Playing the dice game on my phone to decide if I am going to have a second burger is fine, but not acceptable for major life changing situations. No, I did not use my phone to help me make my decision to move back to Colorado after living in Guatemala. That would have been stupid, plus I made that decision in 2010.
2. I will not spend half the year without a job. 2011 was a rough year for work. I spent half the year teaching and the other half babysitting Way to put my college degree to work. Eff em up, Eff em up GO CU!!
3. I will not read the rest of the Millennium Series. The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo was a true bore fest. I know Stieg Larsson was trying to create a tense mystery, but he failed to make me care about any of the characters. And if I don’t care about the characters I don’t care about the story, he also never really put any of them in real danger (at least in the first book and at least for the first 300 pages, which is too long for me). I guess a better way to put it, I am not going to waste my time on poorly written books.
4. I am not going to fly American Airlines. I was surprised when in late 2011 they filed for chapter 11 Bankruptcy, because they had over charged me for several of their mistakes. With all of the extra money I gave them I would think they would be financially sound. Since when is it my fault that they canceled a ticket I purchased and notified me by sending me an email in, wait for it, . . . Spanish. A language I am not completely fluent in. This miscommunication cost me over 200 dollars when I had to re-buy my ticket. They also conveniently lost the recording of a phone conversation I had with one of their representatives, which would have proved the error was theirs and saved me money. I will eventually write a blog about how much I hate American Airlines, but for now I am still too mad.
5. I am not going to be a host for a party of amoebas. If you have traveled outside of the U.S. you understand the temptation to taste the rich local food. It can be so colorful and exotic, but more often than not, it is also very dangerous. So, no street food for me. I am saying no to hotdogs for under a dollar, which is a shame because gringas, garnachas, cheveres, and tacos are great. Living in Colorado has been a bit safer for my bowels as I have yet to walk past any of my favorite street vendors, but after Thanksgiving 2011 I wasn’t sure some of my old uninvited friends (amoebas) weren’t throwing a party in my stomach. I am not going to host that party in 2012.
6. I am not going give up on my dream of dating Jessica Scheel (Miss Guatemala 2010). Because if I am afraid to dream grand dreams, then I will live an empty life. There is only one snag in this whole thing, I am just a normal guy living in the states and she is super famous (or kind of famous). Maybe it would be better to say, I am not going to give up on my love life even though it’s seemed more like an impossible dream at times.
7. I am not going to succumb to a Zombie attack. As many people believe that 2012 is the final year on earth and a Zombie Apocalypse is bound to happen, I vow to be prepared. Those brain suckers will not feast on my brain. More realistically I will not spend all of my time sitting in front of the TV. 2012 will be a year for doing and living. It will not be a year for the undead.
8. I will not stop dreaming about Guatemala. I am not completely sure if I am in control of this one, but I have had dreams about Guatemala, my friends and my students, almost every night for the last six months. Typically in the dreams I am teaching at Hogwarts, but the school for wizards and witches is always located in Guatemala and the student body is not British, but Guatemalan; more specifically all of my old students. I am not sure what these dreams mean, but I am pretty sure they will continue well in to 2012.
9. I am not going to give up on my dream of becoming a writer. My current plan is to go back to school for my masters in teaching, but my end goal is to be published. I love writing and I want to be able to share my ideas with the world. I am not going to stop dreaming this dream.
10. I am not going to live timidly, except for when it comes to street food. The Mayan calendar ends on December 21st. Some people think this means the end of the world, but in reality we never know how much longer we have to live. Life is precious, so don’t hold back. For God has not given me a spirit of fear, but of power, love, and a sound mind. (2nd Timothy 1:7)
What are you not going to do in 2012? I hope everyone has a safe and happy New Year!
Last year I learned the meaning of Christmas. I spent Christmas 2010 in Guatemala, away from the snow of Colorado and more importantly away from my family. Guatemala, or at least my home city of Xela, doesn’t celebrate Christmas the way most of the world celebrates the birth of Christ. Sure at the Inter-American School, where I worked, we had a Christmas Play. Last year the elementary performed the well known play Izzy Saves Christmas, where Izzy the mouse saves Christmas. Haven’t heard of it? Well, it’s a Guatemalan staple, or it is now.
I also taught my students what the best kind of Christmas party is; a White Elephant Party. Who doesn’t want to go home with an alarm clock in a country where it is better to use your cellphone as an alarm at night, because anything plugged into the wall just might lose power.
But where Guatemala, and especially Xela, differs from Christmas in the United States is Christmas Eve. Growing up as a Presbyterian Pastor’s kid in the United States, my family’s Christmas tradition centered around our church’s Christmas Eve service. Every year, especially when I was younger, my mom would force me into my Christmas best, drive me and my sisters to church, and we would light the Christ Candle. As I documented last year, in my blog I’ll Be Home For Christmas, my family always had the misfortune of lighting the Christ Candle, which never went smoothly. I fought with my sister in front of 1,000 plus people who’d come to church expecting to hear how Christ came to bring peace on earth and goodwill to men. The next year they expected something else, and I did not fail them. I dropped a lit match on the carpet floor. Fortunately the church didn’t burn down.
I did not have to light the Christ Candle for Christmas Eve in Xela. I was a spectator, surrounded by friends and Guatemalan families who had come to celebrate Christ’s birth. As much as I missed being with my family last year I enjoyed witnessing how the Latin culture celebrates Christmas. My favorite part of the service at Saint Mark’s was the Posada. A handful of kids marched into the church dressed as Guatemalan Marias and Joses with sumbreros and mustaches followed by a very Guatemalan baby Jesus Cristo.
Shortly after the service, after I had sung my share of Spanish Christmas Carols I headed back to my house with Skyy a fireworks crazed freshman , his mom Susan, whose house I lived at, Jen (co-worker), Blake and Amy (co-workers), Blake’s family, and Holland (another co-worker) and his boys to set off fireworks. Ask anyone in Guatemala and they will tell you setting off fireworks is the real reason for the season. I may have spent upwards of twenty dollars on fireworks, which didn’t even match all of the explosives Skyy brought to the table. Us guys took the next couple of hours detonating our ammunition. At midnight Xela sounded as if it were under attack, the entire city lit up like the large Christ Candle.
Christmas Eve has aways been family time for me, quiet and relaxing (after the Christmas Eve service at least). This year I plan on watching “How Earnest Saved Christmas” with my two sisters. I look forward to waking up on Christmas morning and being with my family. But I will always remember how much fun I had lighting off fireworks and celebrating my savior’s birth with people my Guatemalan family.
Christmas is not about what you do, what you give or what you get, but in the end it is about enjoying the birth of Christ with those who are around you. No matter where you are. Last year on Christmas day Donna and Laurel McMarlin (Laurel was one of my co-workers) welcomed me into their family and shared their Christmas with me. They helped make what could have been a lonely day, a day full of love and celebration, which made for a perfect Christmas.
After living in Guatemala for three years the idea of moving back to the United States sounded boring. I thought, “Where’s the challenge in living in a country where I speak the language fluently?”
But readjusting to the states has been different than I expected. While I can talk to almost everyone I meet, life here is still a challenge. Just because I can communicate with everyone doesn’t mean making friends has happened effortlessly.
A couple of weeks ago, before the weather turned, I was transplanting trees for my uncle and it made me think about how hard it is to move. To transplant a tree correctly the timing and soil must be right. Pick the wrong season and the tree will whither and if the dirt is too hard the tree’s roots will never extend far enough to keep the tree alive. And not to mention a lot of water must be added to keep the tree healthy in its new home. It is also a lot of hard work for the person digging up the tree. The trees roots must be left intact so that it can take hold in its new hole.
After I dug up and transplanted the fourth tree I was ready to admit change comes just about as difficultly for humans. We root ourselves in our own holes and resist being transplanted even if there might be a better location for us. Two of the trees I dug up and transplanted were hidden behind large pines. They’d been there for years and years and their roots had taken hold in the dirt, but no one could see these trees. They were wasted back behind the pines, but once I dug them up and planted them in their new holes my aunt said to me, “It looks as if they’ve always been there. Like they’ve belonged there all along.” She was right. These two trees looked beautiful in their new locations and even if the change was difficult, it was good for them.
I know my life might not seem as adventurous as it was when I was living in Guatemala, but a challenge can be taken as an adventure if one keeps his or her eyes open and is willing to look for the bigger story. And the challenge of taking jobs when I can get them is a change that I hope has been good for me too.
I believe that my American adventure is just starting and I am excited to see where God plants me. When God plants me into the soil he has prepared for me I know my roots will take hold and God will continue to grow me into the beautiful creation he created me to be, that’s his bigger story. But if that is to happen I must be willing to let him do the work in me he desires to do.
No matter where I live I must live in his will, because that is right where I need to be and that’s when the true adventure begins.
I love going to the movies. I was that kid who stood in line to see all of the “Star Wars” movies when they were re-released back in the 90’s and when “The Lord of The Rings: The Fellowship of The Ring” came out ten years ago, I was the first person in line, not just for tickets, but to enter the theater. And when theaters started releasing movies at midnight, I’m there at 10 pm. Don’t even get me started on how early I had to get to the theater for “The Return of The King;” it was crazy.
I think the reason I love going to the movies is because I love good stories. The atmosphere in a crowded theater on opening night is exhilarating. When “The Sixth Sense” came the theater was packed. With every twist and turn each of my friends began tucked their legs up on their seats. We shared in the fear. We pulled for Bruce Willis’s character to reconnect with his wife and for Haley Joel Osment’s character to receive the help he needed. As the movie built toward its climax the hairs on my legs stood up and all I wanted to do was hug my knees like everyone else, but fear froze me. The crowd made the climax of the movie completely captivating, but the well told story made the change the characters experienced even more meaningful and worth the level of fear I had to experience.
Good stories are filled with meaning. Movie writer and teacher Robert McKee says, “If I could send a telegram to the film producers of the world, it would be these three words: ‘Meaning Produces Emotion’ Not money; not sex; not special effects; not movie stars; not lush photography.” Meaning is what a good story is all about and the climax of a good movie will be filled with meaning. McKee states that “The Climax of the last act is your great imaginative leap. Without it, you have no story. Until you have it, your characters wait like suffering patients praying for a cure.”
When I’m in a packed theater, I’m suffering along with the main character for that positive or negative turn to occur in the movie. I want Frodo to make it to Mount Doom and drop the ring into the fires of Mordor. I want Harry Potter to live or die, maybe both, and so I wait for that turning moment, that meaningful climax. As an audience, we share the ups and downs of the characters story. Without the ups and downs that lead to the climax, the climax would be meaningless.
There are people out there that flip to the end of a book before they start just so they can see if it is a good ending or not. They pick up “Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows” and flip to Harry’s battle with Voldamort. They want to get the stories payoff without reading the entire book or, even worse, the other six books in the series. By skipping to the end of the book they miss the reason why Harry had to do what he does. But just like sharing a story with someone adds to the story’s meaning, the work it takes for character, as well as the reader, to make it to the climax is what makes it meaningful.
The people who want to skip to the climax of a book are the same people who sat down and watched the last episode of Lost with out watching the previous five seasons. They didn’t want to see the story develop, to see the characters grow and change. They wanted all of the payoff without watching for six seasons. These are the same people who on December 5th want to fast forward to Christmas Day. They want the meaning without any of the work.
More on Christmas in a moment. Let’s not rush to the climax because right now we’re at the rising action of our story. Sunday December 4th The Neighborhood Church celebrated the second Sunday of the Advent season by sharing a sit down meal during the worship service. People met together, ate, and shared stories about Christmas’ past. It was very meaningful. The only problem was the service didn’t finish until 12 pm. An hour into the Denver Broncos game against the Vikings. Co-blogger and Co-pastor of the Neighborhood Church, Mike Klassen comforted the congregation by reminding us all that “Tebow Time” (A term here meaning going beast mode and winning against all odds) isn’t until the fourth quarter anyway. So if we missed the first half it would be just fine.
I tevoed Tebow anyway. As I pressed play on the DVR, I knew I wanted to share a meaningful story with my fellow Bronco fans who’d gathered around the TV with me. We knew we could just fast forward to the end. But we wanted to experience the entire story. If we had just skipped to the end, the win wouldn’t have been as meaningful. The time we shared together watching the Broncos game was splattered with theological discussions. Why is Tebow so loud about his faith? Incomplete pass! What if Tebow messes up (On the field and in his faith)? Fumble, no way the ground can’t cause a fumble! What is perseverance of the Saints (No, I’m not talking about football here)? I can’t believe it, the Broncos Win!
And as Tebow rallied the Broncos from an 8 point deficit late in the fourth quarter we were discussing how God’s Grace works in our lives. Life is like a good movie with many turns. In “The Return of the King,” Frodo loses hope. He turns away from his mission and decides he will keep the ring, but Grace steps in (In the form of Sam) and saves him. Grace does what Frodo cannot do, destroy the ring and bring him back to the Shire. Grace creates the meaningful change in Frodo’s life. If Tebow fails on the field or in life, Grace will be there for him too. Grace is there for all of us, offering a chance to make a meaningful change in our lives. A chance to Tebow (Go beast mode/let God takeover), which brings us back to Christmas.
Christmas is not about what you get or even about what you give. It is about experiencing the season with the people you love. It is about sharing special moments with those around you. Most of all it’s about God sending the Incarnation of Grace down to the world as the baby Christ. If we fast forwarded to Christmas Day it would be like reading the last page of a book, only watching the Broncos during the fourth quarter, and fast forwarding all our favorite movies to the climax: empty and meaningless. So slow down and know that no matter how long it seems until Christmas, that God is working in your life. Christmas is more than just the climax of Christmas day. It is about the Grace we have been given and the work it does in our life. Let Grace make a meaningful change in your life this season.
I am an avid Bronco fan and movie enthusiast who believes in Tebowing every night because the best way to live a meaningful story is to stay connected to the author.
On Easter Sunday we celebrate the most famous case of the dead coming back to life. You heard me right, celebrate. I know many of you about to run away from your computer screens to grab your shotguns or katanas, but wait. Hold up.
Have you ever had the fear that the living dead will come breaking through your door? I’m talking about rotten decaying humans that hunger for your brains.
Many ancient societies held to the fear that the dead would come back to life and run rampant across the land. Why else do we still bolt our coffins shut from the inside or why did the ancient Irish place a stone in the mouths of the dead. Both are precautions against the dead returning to life; one locks the dead in a coffin and the other fills the mouth so that the dead is prevented from eating.
There are many other examples that prove that our world lives in fear of the death and the dead. Like the rules of cleanliness in ancient Israel, if a person touched a dead body there were considered unclean. Maybe they were trying to prevent the spread of diseases or maybe they thought if someone interacted with the dead they would become a Zombie.
The technical definition of a Zombie is any dead body given the semblance of life, but mute and will-less by a supernatural force, usually for some evil purpose like eating brains. In Harry Potter they are called Inferi and are used by dark wizards to attack the living. Even magical people fear the living dead. Any Zombie has no will of his or her own, save to consume brains and make more Zombies.
Real Zombies, whether you believe in them or not, exist to suck life and meaning from their prey. Zombies live, well not really live, with an unquenchable desire to feed. Much like the American consumer, Zombies are always wanting more and what they leave in their path is death and destruction.
A Zombie’s main desire (If a Zombie has the free will to have his or her own desire) is to turn normal people into Zombies and once you have been turned into a Zombie you are condemned to a living death. Imagine working in Dilbert’s cubicle for the rest of your life, bent on just amassing more; a “life” doomed to utter meaningless. Just imagine living your life and your only desire is to eat brains; human brains at that.
And now to the upcoming celebration of the most famous case of resurrection. That’s right, I’m talking about Easter Sunday!
That’s right, Jesus Christ came back from the dead and in two weeks we’ll celebrate his resurrection.
Fortunately Jesus Christ is the Anti-Zombie! Jesus, who called himself, “The Good Shepherd,” who was willing to die for his, “sheep,” knew he had to die so that we would be protected from a meaningless life. In the Gospel of John Jesus says, “I have come that [you] may have life and have it to the full.” Jesus did not come so that we would live our lives in mediocrity. No he came to break us away from meaninglessness. His life gave us a purpose, which I believe is to love and serve one another with a confidence that we are protected from the sting of death.
Jesus died so that “whoever believes in him shall not parish, but have eternal life.” Anyone can die, but Jesus came back to life. However, unlike Zombies who are the reanimated dead bent on destruction. Jesus’ resurrection is, in essence, an act against a meaningless life.
As J.K. Rowling says in Harry Potter and The Deathly Hollows, “The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death.” Rowling cleverly pulls this quote from 1st Corinthians chapter 15 verse 26. She is making the point that death, and in my opinion, meaninglessness are enemies to be destroyed. And fortunately for all of us Jesus has conquered these enemies.
Paul, the author of 1st Corinthians, believed that Christ’s resurrection was a resurrection to a spiritual life and that death has no sting or power. That whoever allows Christ to work in their life will be changed in life and through death. Their body might die, but their soul will live on in Heaven.
So Jesus’s death and resurrection give a meaning to life. Where Zombies are reanimated to consume, Jesus died and came back to give us the freedom to live. That is part of the practice of the Communion at church. Believers take in Jesus’s body and blood and are given a full life; one that is satisfied by Jesus and not material goods. We, normal humans, who don’t go around eating brains, no longer need to be afraid of Zombies, of meaninglessness, or death, because Jesus died and came back to life for us, so that we could live our lives to the full.
And now the Zombie Commandments: Some of Jesus’ commandments with a Zombie flavoring.
1. The most important commandment is this, “Love the lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and all your brain,” mmmmm brains I can’t get enough brains . . . I mean, “mind and with all your strength.
2. Love your neighbor as yourself because his brain tastes as good as yours.
3. You are the salt of the earth, so add extra humans on any brains you might eat.
4. You have heard it said, “Do not commit adultery.” But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully and does not eat her brain has already lost out on a chance for a good meal.
5. You have heard it said, “an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth,” but I tell you do not resist anyone that wants to eat your brain.
6. And if someone wants to sue you and take your tunic, let him have your brain as well.
7. Give to anyone your brain if they ask for it, and do not turn away anyone who utters the phrase, “Must Eat Brain!”
8. You have heard it said, “Love your neighbor and hate your enemy,” but I tell you to love your enemy and pray for those who try to eat your brains.
9. Thou Shalt covet they neighbors brain.
10. Be a perfect brain eater as your Zombie father is a perfect brain eater.
Happy Resurection!!
Celebrate Holy Week by living like the anti-zombie, Jesus, and living in the freedom from a meaningless life.
Saturday, as the news broke about the death of Al Davis, the owner of the Oakland Raiders, I was unsure of how to react. One side of me wanted to smile, this was the side that hates the Raiders and wants to see misery in my opponent’s eyes, and the other side was sad. Sad because Al Davis had run his team into the ground and well, I wanted the Raiders to remain terrible. Now, the pessimist in me believes his departure from the Raiders might make the team I hate a more competitive franchise. The Raiders have been an inept franchise for a decade, but they haven’t always been that way.
For a long time the Raiders were winners, committed to excellence.
Al Davis cared for nothing more than winning. And I, like all Bronco fans, cared nothing for him and am pained by the above video, but I guess he did win some games. According to Hall of Fame coach Don Shula, Davis was devious, but would have taken it as a complement to be described as such. It is fair to say that hate him or love him (he does have a family) he was a driven man who helped shape the game of football.
He made the phrase, “Just win, Baby,” famous. But growing up as a Denver Bronco fan, I just wanted him to lose. For the last decade, if not a little more, that’s all the Raiders have been doing. And as bad as the Broncos have been for the last five years, it has been comforting to know that the Raiders have been worse, except when they beat my team.
Al Davis may have lived his life by his “Just win, Baby,” motto, even while his team was losing, but is life about winning? Football is just a game. Don’t get me wrong, I love sports. I’m very competitive and I believe if it is your job to play a game, you should do your best, but maybe there’s more to life than winning or losing.
I wonder if Davis defined his life by the wins and loses his team acquired on the field. I did not know him so I can’t guess if he lived for more than wins on the field. As a Bronco fan, competitively I hope he didn’t. That way he lived his last ten years in misery. But that’s just the Broncos fan in me, maybe I need to let God work on that area of my life.
But as a Christian, I hope he did live for something more than just wins. While, I admire his desire to win because I believe God wants us to give everything we do our all, I don’t believe life is just about winning.
What is life about then?
What if life was about losing? About giving instead of taking.
Matthew 5 reads like a list of objectives for weirdos. It is counter culture to the max. I mean, “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven,” come on, who lives like that. Or how about, “Blessed are the peacemakers for they will be called sons of God.” That doesn’t sound very competitive. You’re just going to get run over if you live like that. Or what about, “Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” It’s like Jesus is telling people to be losers. Or is he just saying, be different and you’ll be noticed for what really matters.
Jesus wants people to stand out, which is why he says, “You are the salt of the earth . . . You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden.” So if you are living like Jesus you are going to be noticed. You are going to be different and like salt you are going to add a flavor to whatever you shake it into. Did you know salt enhances the natural flavor of any food it’s added too? Maybe that’s what life’s about, enhancing the lives of the people we come into contact with.
What about “Just win, Baby”? That mentality seems to breed the eye for an eye mentality. If someone punches you, punch back, ’cause you just got to win. But Jesus says something different. He says, “If someone strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also. And if someone wants to sue you and take your shirt, let him have your jacket also. If someone forces you to go one mile, go with him two miles. Give to the one who asks you, and do not turn away from the one who wants to borrow from you . . . Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.”
Fans, Jesus wants us to lose. To give more than what is asked from us. To love the Raiders? To pray for Al Davis and the Raider nation as they grieve their owner’s death.
Jesus commands us, and this isn’t just a command he is giving to Christians, this is for everyone out there, even Raiders and their fans, to love. Jesus says in Matthew 12 vrs 29-31, “Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is One. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength. The second is this: Love your neighbor as yourself. There is no greater commandment than these.”
Ok Bronco fans, this is what our head coach is saying, “Love God and give him your all. Next love your opponents, even the Raiders, just as much as you love your Broncos.”
What is love though?
Love is patient, love is kind, love does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always preservers. Love never fails.
Jesus wants me, a Bronco fan, to let go of all the hate I have for the Raiders. So what if Al Davis never payed my beloved former coach, Mike Shanahan. Life isn’t about money and I am sure Mike Shanahan has enough money and during his time with the Broncos he sure got the wins against the Raiders, as well as two Super Bowl wins for my team. I think if I am to mourn Al Davis, I have to be different.
So how does a Bronco fan mourn Al Davis? First, I stop trying to win at all costs (This is going to be difficult for me, ’cause I’ve been known to wish injuries on my least favorite players). And Secondly, I need to look at the bigger picture of life. Football isn’t just a fun diversion, remember how it helped restore hope to our nation after September 11th? Sports are important, but loving our neighbors is more important.
What would Tebow Do? Tim Tebow, the much debated quarterback for the Broncos, is a Christian who has made a name for himself by standing up for what he believes in. I believe he would go out and play the game with the talent God gave him, but also respect his opponents with a Christlike love. But that’s just a guess. I know Tebow’s not Jesus.
Neither was Al Davis. He was just a man (a neighbor), but a man created in God’s image. He may have just wanted to win and maybe that’s what created such a good rivalry between the Broncos and the Raiders, but life is bigger than the victories on the field. I can mourn Al Davis because he was one of God’s creation. I can mourn him because as a Christian I am called to be different, to see past the gridiron, and to love even him, my enemy.
If time heals all wounds, do you think all the wounds have been healed? This, the morning after, a decade later.
Many of the students I taught at the Inter-American School in Xela have never known a world with the Twin Towers. One student, Sebastian, a squirrely little boy who would rather make his classmates laugh than kick in the winning run in kickball, was born in Canada on the day of the 9-11 attacks. His life will always be strangely connected to the attacks. He came into the world as so many were taken away.
Last year, as he celebrated his birthday at IAS, I asked his mom what it was like for her on that day. She told me the doctors didn’t let her know what was going on and that for her the day had been a true blessing. Sebastian, is a true blessing. His laugh and the myriad of nicknames he dumped on me always made teaching him PE enjoyable. Life has gone on. But I know many of us cannot forget what happened.
10 years later and many of us are still wondering how we move forward from here.
September 11th, 2001 started like any Tuesday for me. I was a month in to my new school at Battle Mountain High School, my new life in Vail, Colorado. I was lonely but I didn’t want to make friends, because I figured I would just move off in a year for college. I had built up a hard shell of isolationism. The move from Tulsa to Vail hurt me deeply. The loss I felt when I left the friends I had known almost my whole life redefined who I was. I was no longer the leader at my church. I felt like a nobody. I felt weak. The move took away my confidence and sadly I didn’t want to find it again. I felt I was just okay floating along until college.
As the day unfolded on the televisions, which were tuned in to the news in all of my classes, our identity as a nation changed. We were once independent and indestructible. As the towers crumbled, I knew we’d never be the same. I knew I needed people, sadly a knowledge I didn’t act on right away. And as the months passed I believe the entire nation realized it needed one another as well. The hard shell of our nation was cracked, if only just a little, that day. As we mourned the loss of so many people, we came together. We were hurt. And we changed.
September 12th, 2001 was the day we all picked ourselves up and began to move forward. We started to change, but what change has really occurred?
Maybe you were one of the first responders. Maybe September 12, 2001 was your second day digging through the rubble of the collapsed buildings. Maybe you were one of the first to enlist in our nations armed forces. Maybe you were one of the first to be deployed overseas to Afghanistan. Maybe you were one of the first to march into Bagdad and liberate an oppressed people. Maybe you were one of the pastors who comforted those who lost loved ones. Maybe you were, like me, just a student who stared at the television and watched the world change. I watched and watched and watched. I was drawn in by the stories of loss, horror, and hope. By nightfall on the 12th, 82 people had been confirmed dead and 11 people had been rescued. I believe we’d realized that sometimes you can’t make it on your own.
U2’s lead singer, Bono, wrote the song Sometimes You can’t Make It On Your Own while dealing with the loss of his father, but as it seems to happen the words speak to a deeper truth.
Tough, you think you’ve got the stuff
You’re telling me and anyone
You’re hard enough
You don’t have to put up a fight
You don’t have to always be right
Let me take some of the punches
For you tonight
Listen to me now
I need to let you know
You don’t have to go in alone
And it’s you when I look in the mirror
And it’s you when I don’t pick up the phone
Sometimes you can’t make it on your own
We fight all the time
You and I… that’s alright
We’re the same soul
I don’t need… I don’t need to hear you say
That if we weren’t so alike
You’d like me a whole lot more
Listen to me now
I need to let you know
You don’t have to go it alone
And it’s you when I look in the mirror
And it’s you when I don’t pick up the phone
Sometimes you can’t make it on your own
I know that we don’t talk
I’m sick of it all
Can, you, hear, me, when, I, sing
You’re the reason I sing
You’re the reason why the opera is in me
Hey now, still gotta let ya know
A house doesn’t make a home
Don’t leave me here alone
And it’s you when I look in the mirror
And it’s you that makes it hard to let go
Sometimes you can’t make it on your own
Sometimes you can’t make it
Best you can do is to fake it
Sometimes you can’t make it on your own
If time really does heal all wounds, I think 10 years later we would all be fine. But people still hurt. People still see today, ten years after the first day after, as if September 11th, 2001 was yesterday. 10 years later I hope we all know that we are not alone. And together, unified, is the only way to move forward.
But is being united truly enough?
Over the last ten years I moved forward. I broke out of my shell, graduated from both high school and college, and then moved to Guatemala. For me Guatemala has been and will be the most definitive time in my life. As I lived outside of my home country, away from every comfort I’d grown up with, I realized how much I needed God in my life. And I found out that God has something for me.
I believe God has something for the United States as well. On September 12th, 2001 he began the healing. While we were all in mourning, while we were all being led away from whatever was normal just 48 hours before, God was busy working. Over the past ten years, while we came together as a nation, we have all been in a form of exile. Being an American has been something different, our indestructible identity is gone. We are still proud, as we should be, but the pain of being attacked still lingers, maybe in a way no one thought it would. I believe the biggest change we have undergone as Americans is not knowing how to be who we are, Americans.
Do we love? Do we realize we need each other? Or do we stand apart? Do we mourn alone-wrapped up in our own fear? Do we stay in exile, confused about who we are and what God has for us? Or do we come back to our foundations? It is a new decade. It is time for us to realize that God has a plan for us all. As he said to the exiled Israelites through the profit Jeremiah, “This is what the Lord says: ‘Whenever seventy years are completed for Babylon, I will come to you and fulfill my gracious promise to bring you back to this place. For I know the plans I have for you,’ declares the Lord, ‘plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with your whole heart.”
Are we going to be a nation that finally turns its eyes to God?
We have fought to defend ourselves. We have strengthened our defenses. Can we lay our weapons down when it matters? Can we love when love is what is needed most? On September 11th we were all hurt badly. It has been ten years and one day. Let this be the first day we love first instead of hardening our hearts toward everything that might hurt us. How long must we sing this song of hurt and pain? Not another ten years. Not another day.
We must wait on God and seek him out with our whole hearts the way King David did when he wrote Psalm 40because he will bless us with something new.
Of all the classes I taught, Bible wasn’t the one I looked forward to teaching every day. I enjoyed my gym classes and my screen writing classes, but this Bible class I had to teach last year was a struggle. Mostly because of the kids. Yes, I said it. I had a class of kids I didn’t enjoy. Okay, these kids were fine individually, but put them together and they would start to pick on one another.
Adventure With Brendan 