Ok, this picture is corny and wrong! As Shane said, “what do they do with the Poke function?” and what about all the special invites people give me that make me download new applications and stuff. I always ignore them. This is not a very good way of advertising:
We need more signs like this to get people’s attention. Something doesn’t seem right about this picture.
Compliments to Backcountry.com
Is there a day… a time… for opposites?
Is there space for the “upside-down” perspective of the kingdom of God?
I long for a different way in this world we live in.
When the world says go bigger,
I choose to go deeper.
When the world says it’s about our individual rights,
I choose community.
When the world says fight to get it,
I choose sharing.
War?
I choose active non-violence and peace.
When the world says stay younger,
I long for older and ancient.
When the western world is paramount,
I gravitate further and further east.
In a world of noise,
I long for silence.
Where there is a desire for power and spotlight,
I seek to empower.
When they strive to live the American dream,
I want to join God’s dream for Kingdom living.
When people want the last word,
I want the last question.
In a world of professional leaders,
I hope to affirm the Spirit of God in all of us.
Where the solution is the national level,
I seek to focus locally and with no boundaries.
Where education | information is delivered by the experts,
We learn from each other.
Will the president solve our problems,
Or the message, love, and people of Jesus.
Where the world appreciates flash, show, and control,
I long for humble authenticity.
Where there are quick fixes and progress,
I look for the slow way.
Many want to see the leaves, flowers, branches,
I want to grow the roots… connecting… uniting… strong.
The American dream…
The Kingdom of God.
Dear, dear Lauren,
I have no way of contacting you, so I am writing this here… and hopefully you will come across it. After the accident Wednesday, you have been on my mind and in my prayers daily. As much as I grieve for the loss of my dear friend Keith and the pain that the Moons are going through, I grieve equally as much for you and the pain you are undoubtedly experiencing.
There are moments in the midst of my day, where I try… try to put myself in your shoes and understand the pain. My stomach sinks. I am at a complete loss of words. Please, please know that with all the love that I have, I am sorry that this happened. Every time I get in my minivan I realize that it could have been me driving… it could have been me figuring out directions… I could have been the one in that accident.
I just don’t get why things happen. I believe God loves us. I believe that he wants what’s best for us and that these things hurt him as much as they hurt us. But when no one is at fault, when there is no one to blame… I have to ask “Why the hell did it have to end this way? God, what are you doing?!?”
See, last summer, my brother, Tim, got in a terrible motorcycle accident on the Autobahn. He was going 100 mph and a guy who had been drinking drifted into his lane. He went down and slid until hitting the guardrail. Even though he lost his left arm at the elbow and broke his foot in many places, he lived. Why? As much as I love my brother… I just don’t get why he survived and Keith didn’t, especially since last week’s accident was so random.
This makes me so confused at the world… God… and what hope we have for certainty. I guess this isn’t what we hope in. I guess it is encouraging to me that after all the uncertainty, unsafety, pain, suffering, and lack of control that there is still love left over. There are still communities who are willing to open their arms and love… forgive… take care of. Jesus invites us into it.
So Lauren, if we ever meet, I will give you a hug… a big hug. And I’ll cry with you. I want to do that. You are always welcome with me.
You are consistently in my thoughts and prayers,
Nate
I would say I am not really angry any more. Many, many questions around Keith’s death and no honest answers than life is tumultuous and unpredictable… and God doesn’t stop it from being that way. He doesn’t like these things to happen to any of us. I cannot yet grasp Keith being gone.
Thank God for distractions and routine. Certain things still must be done… and it is nice to have them and to jump into them. I’ve been really diving into my bonsai. Here’s a couple pics of one tree that I recently worked on. I didn’t have any idea what to do with it, but after posting some pics over at the BonsaiTALK forum, I got some direction.
I haven’t really been posting that much here as I really am finding not much to say when I am by myself. I’ve connected with a number of pastors in town who I should have met with long ago. I am excited for future friendship, partnering, and support. Mike from Fellowship Bible Church (Evangelical Free), is the new youth pastor there, and has just spent the last four years working in urban ministry in Portland. Sam is the pastor of the Mennonite church in town, the River, which has been going for two years. Both are not afraid of Emergent and willing to talk.
Everyone’s grief goes its own course, and if you feel no resentment at all, God bless you!
But if the anger does rise within you, name it, accept it, and send it to God!
Why? – because God is responsible for the tragic quality of human existence? Of course not. We are responsible.
Then why? Two reasons…
First, because we think God is responsible. Even when we fear to admit it, god is our final antagonist. God the Omnipotent, Sheer Infinitude, the Holy Other, by his mere being and by the contrast to ourselves, teaches us our tiny-ness. It is plain honesty, then, that carries the anger to God.
But second, because God can take it! God, who understands us better than we understand ourselves, will not be destroyed by our most passionate rages. In fact, he sees already the fury and its intended object before we confess either one. And it hurts the Lord when our anger hurts people.
Better, then, to give it to God.
It doesn’t matter that we are wrong to accuse him for our sorrows. God will not give tit for tat. Instead, he is glad for the chance to communicate. When we speak, we are also inclined to listen. When we confront the Lord we open up ourselves to divine response – and then the Lord can egage us in dialogue, and then he can heal us…
God will respond by loving you. He will acknowledge your anger. He will not call it just, but he will call you to himself and will himself empower the coming.
The opposition of emotion must fail in the end. We cannot but suffer the finitude of all creatures. But if we experience the failure in the presence of the Creator, we will know who is God and who is not.
I read somewhere that in times of tragedy or injustice, the one to truly be mad at is God. It doesn’t pay to be mad at those involved as it often turns to hatred, but to be mad at God is healthiest thing we can do. If anyone can handle our anger it is God. If anyone can do anything with our anger it is God. And so I vent it all… knowing there are those who are hurting deeper, yelling more vehemently, and crying harder. My dear friend Keith was killed in on his bike yesterday on his way home from work.
It was too early, God. Too damn early… I hurt as much for his two sons and wife as I do for losing him. He was one of the best fathers I know… and I don’t say that lightly. He was. Of all the men at our church, I probably felt closest to him. The hikes, the mountain bike rides, the times over for dinner, hanging out over a beer, men’s group. He reached out to me so much… he understood where I am coming from. I know his family so well. I know his mom. God… the pain…
A bike accident happens so fast. I hear about so many of them, but so few are fatal… and I never anticipate knowing the person. Last summer, it was my brother Tim on his motorcycle in Germany… but he was going 100 miles per hour and survived… miraculously, yes, and still recovering, but he is with us now. Keith is gone. With a bicycle, on a street 4 blocks from my house… I realize this could happen to any of us. Why Keith, God? Why Keith? I guess I don’t really have answers or even the right questions. I feel the hole… and I know there are so many whose emptiness is even more than I can imagine.
Prayers please.
Good blog articles elsewhere
